Hello and welcome to another reading roundup.  Since my last roundup I have read two pretty good books which I’d like to share with you. [book-info]I received an Advance Reader Copy of The Poisoned Blade by Kate Elliott at BEA.  It’s been on my TBR for a while, but it’s only recently I read it.  The Poisoned Blade is the second book in a planned trilogy (I believe) and continues the story of Jessamy, a young woman caught between two cult...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

The Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks is the fourth in a planned series of five epic fantasy books.  The series has a wonderfully imaginative magic system in which magic users can turn light into a physical substance. luxin.  Each spectrum of light (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet) produces luxin with different properties and uses.  If you’ve not yet started this series, I heartily recommend it.  Go start with The Black Prism.  ...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

Empire of Storms is the fifth and penultimate book in Sarah J. Maas’s Throne of Glass in which a former assassin uses her skills and her magic to save her kingdom.  Being the second to last book in the series, it focusses very much on getting our protagonists into the right place for the finale. What I liked The pacing.  Despite the fact that Empire of Storms is primarily focussed on getting the team into place for the final confrontation...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

Court of Fives by Kate Elliott is a YA fantasy book and one that I found myself being sucked into even in the middle of a reading slump. I found the protagonists engaging and loved the world. I found it had a bit more substance than some YA fantasy novels. What I liked Cultural tensions. This is very much a tale of being caught between two cultures.  Our protagonist, Jessamy, is the child of a Saroese father and Efean mother and struggles to fit...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

Paper and Fire by Rachel Caine is the second in The Great Library series and is the sequel to Ink and Bone, which was one of my favourite reads from last year.  I realised I never did a full review of it.  Bad Evelynne.  Paper and Fire was also one of my most anticipated reads for 2016 and it did not disappoint.  For those of you not familiar with this series, it is a contemporary alternate reality/fantasy in which the Great Library of Alexan...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

Julian Fellowes’s Belgravia is a new book/audiobook/app series from the creator of Downton Abbey.  It is set in the Belgravia quarter of London in 1841 with a prequel set in Brussels in 1815.  The lives of two families, the rich, titled Bellasis family and the nouveau riche Trenchards are brought together at the Duchess of Richmond’s ball and the effects are felt down the years.  It is available in ebook format, as an audiobook and as an a...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

The Wheel of Osheim by Mark Lawrence is the third and final book in his Red Queen’s War trilogy.  It continues the story of Jalan Kendeth as he continues to follow the path upon which fate has set him. The Red Queen’s War trilogy is set in the same world as, and dovetails with, Lawrence’s earlier Broken Empire trilogy.  In some ways that is both a blessing and a curse.  It’s a blessing because the world in which the trilogies are set i...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray is a YA sci-fi mystery in which teenager Marguerite Caine must use technology developed by her parents, the Firebird, to chase her father’s murderer across multiple dimensions.  She finds out that things aren’t as they first seemed. I picked this book up partly because of this concept and partly because I’ve enjoyed books (Star Wars) by Claudia Gray.  Thanks to Amazon’s Whispersync for Voice I pi...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld is the fourth in the Austen Project of modern retellings of Jane Austen’s novels and attempts to bring her classic Pride and Prejudice into the 21st century.  Having read the other three Austen adaptations, I was intrigued to see how Sittenfeld would update the story of Elizabeth, Darcy, Jane and Bingley.  From experience I know that Austen adaptations, when done well, can be wonderful. (check out The Lizzie Benn...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More

Now, pretty much anyone who has an interest in popular culture is aware that the first Star Wars movie since 2005, The Force Awakens, was released on December 18th 2015.  Full disclosure: while I consider myself a fan of Star Wars, I have only dabbled in the Extended Universe/Legends supplementary material.  Like many, though, I was anxious to see what J.J. Abrams would make of Lucas’ legacy and booked my ticket to a showing on release day. Â...

No Comments Evelynne Robertson Read More
Dream of Time by Nancy J. Price – Review
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / August 28, 2013

I received a free copy of Dream of Time by Nancy J. Price from Netgalley to review.  It tells the story of modern day wife and mother Robin from San Francisco who, when she sleeps, inhabits the body and life of turn of the century Jennie diMedici.  It relates her attempts to prevent tragedies and crimes using knowledge gleaned from her present day life. What I liked The basic concept.  I loved the main idea and felt it was very well...

Kobo announces its new device lineup
e-Reader Reviews / August 28, 2013

Kobo held a press event today entitled “Beyond the Book.”  in which it announced three new variations of its popular Kobo Arc tablet and a new version of its eInk Kobo Aura.  I hadn’t been expecting a refresh at this point as both their eInk readers (the Aura) and their tablet offerings (the Arc) were refreshed earlier this year. For me, the Kobo Aura seems very interesting.  It retains the HD pixel density of the 6...

Kobo announces its new device lineup
e-Reader Reviews / August 27, 2013

Kobo held a press event today entitled “Beyond the Book.”  in which it announced three new variations of its popular Kobo Arc tablet and a new version of its eInk Kobo Aura.  I hadn’t been expecting a refresh at this point as both their eInk readers (the Aura) and their tablet offerings (the Arc) were refreshed earlier this year. For me, the Kobo Aura seems very interesting.  It retains the HD pixel density of the 6...

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare – Review
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / August 26, 2013

As I mentioned in my Clockwork Angel review, I had problems getting into City of Bones.  I have now read it all, or rather listened on Audible, and I have to say my initial reactions have not really altered much. What I liked The worldbuilding. This, for me, is the highlight of the book, and probably what will keep my coming back for more.  Clare has done an excellent job in defining her world and the history and beings in it.  I lov...

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare – Review
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / August 26, 2013

As I mentioned in my Clockwork Angel review, I had problems getting into City of Bones.  I have now read it all, or rather listened on Audible, and I have to say my initial reactions have not really altered much. What I liked The worldbuilding. This, for me, is the highlight of the book, and probably what will keep my coming back for more.  Clare has done an excellent job in defining her world and the history and beings in it.  I lov...

Reading Roundup – 23rd August 2013
Reading Roundup / August 23, 2013

It certainly isn’t a good week to be a bookworm in Quebec.  Canada’s Globe and Mail is reporting that Quebec’s legislature has opened a hearing on pricing for new books.  Being discussed is the question of whether or not to prevent the price of new books being discounted by more than 10% for the first nine months after release.  The stated intention behind this is to protect the smaller bookstores, especially smal...

Codex Born by Jim C Hines – Review
Uncategorized / August 23, 2013

Codex Born by Jim C Hines is the sequel to Libriomancer which tells of Isaac Vainio, a libriomancer with the power to access magic from within books.  If you have not read Libriomancer, I would strongly suggest you start there.  While it is not impossible to enjoy the story without having read the first book, it builds upon concepts, characters and events detailed in Libriomancer.  Codex Born continues Isaac’s story and develop...

Reading Roundup – 23rd August 2013
Reading Roundup / August 23, 2013

It certainly isn’t a good week to be a bookworm in Quebec.  Canada’s Globe and Mail is reporting that Quebec’s legislature has opened a hearing on pricing for new books.  Being discussed is the question of whether or not to prevent the price of new books being discounted by more than 10% for the first nine months after release.  The stated intention behind this is to protect the smaller bookstores, especially smal...

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare – Great Start, Weak Middle, Good End
Audiobook reviews , Book Reviews / August 21, 2013

Some months ago a friend recommended Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments series to me.  I picked up City of Bones, the first book, from Audible, and found it hard to get past the first few chapters.  In all fairness, that might have been due to the fact that it was the book I selected to listen to at the gym, and for various reasons (my lack of willpower mainly) I didn’t go as often as I should have.  It’s also tr...

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare – Great Start, Weak Middle, Good End
Audiobook reviews , Book Reviews / August 21, 2013

Some months ago a friend recommended Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments series to me.  I picked up City of Bones, the first book, from Audible, and found it hard to get past the first few chapters.  In all fairness, that might have been due to the fact that it was the book I selected to listen to at the gym, and for various reasons (my lack of willpower mainly) I didn’t go as often as I should have.  It’s also tr...