The next few weeks are relatively quiet in terms of upcoming book releases about which I’m excited. I’m thinking therefore that this could be a good opportunity to catch up on my TBR pile, specifically in terms of catching up with series with which I have fallen behind. Generally, I like variety in my reading so it’s unusual for me to marathon a whole series, even if I enjoy it immensely. So, without further ado, here are some of the series I really should catch up on. (NB, these are series which are not necessarily complete, but for which I’ve not read up to the latest published book.) It goes without saying that I’m up to date on Game of Thrones and am eagerly awaiting Winds of Winter. The Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne. This series is about an ancient Druid, Atticus O’Sullivan and his Irish Wolfhound, Oberon, who live in modern times. Each of the novels – currently seven, with an eighth due out next year – is relatively self contained, and tells of a new adventure, but builds up the world of the Druid and its inhabitants. I have listened to books one to three, and this…
First of all, may I just say isn’t this the most gorgeous cover art? I’m not certain who created them, but all three covers (four if you include the novella) in the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series are simply stunning. Days of Blood and Starlight is the second in Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy which is a contemporary fantasy based on the themes of Romeo and Juliet. We have the star-crossed lovers from different and opposing sides, faked death, boyfriend goes off the rails. This second instalment is based on the premise of “what if Juliet woke up from her fake death and found, not that Romeo had taken his own life, but that he’d killed all her family and friends?” What I liked The world. The world that Taylor has created is wonderfully rich and detailed. I loved reading about the chimaera and seraphim. We learn more about their world in this book. The themes. The idea of star-crossed lovers is a timeless one. There is a reason that Romeo and Juliet is a classic, and Taylor has done a great job of interpreting that into modern fantasy. Add into this the theme…
[book-info title=”Because You’ll Never Meet Me” author=”Leah Thomas”] Because You’ll Never Meet Me by Leah Thomas is a young adult contemporary novel and tells of the pen friendship between two isolated young men, Moritz from Germany and Ollie who lives in the US. Each of the two young men has a physical ailment which limits their interaction with mainstream society. These same limitations – for Ollie an severe reaction to electricity and for Moritz a heart defect requiring an electronic pacemaker – precludes their ever meeting face to face. Their friendship develops through the letters they write to each other. The novel is written in the style of letters exchanged between the two. I loved this book, which I listened to in audiobook format. What I liked The characters. I adored both Ollie and Moritz and was emotionally invested in their journeys. I was really rooting for them both. Their two differing points of view are beautifully brought out through the letters they write to each other. Each has a unique writing style which gave a wonderful insight into their characters. It is a mark of how invested I was in the two that when Moritz finally comes back…