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...

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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.  ...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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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...

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Dipping my toes back into Android
Tech Reviews / July 20, 2012

Those of you who have read my blog know that I am an Apple fangirl, and that I had been very disappointed in my brieftime with the Kobo Vox ereading tablet. That had been my first experience with Android, and although I was very disappointed in the Kobo Vox, I realised that was due to the tablet itself not the operating system. I really liked the 7 inch size of the Kobo Vox, and I had been considering a more general Android 7 inch table...

Dipping my toes back into Android
Tech Reviews / July 20, 2012

Those of you who have read my blog know that I am an Apple fangirl, and that I had been very disappointed in my brieftime with the Kobo Vox ereading tablet. That had been my first experience with Android, and although I was very disappointed in the Kobo Vox, I realised that was due to the tablet itself not the operating system. I really liked the 7 inch size of the Kobo Vox, and I had been considering a more general Android 7 inch table...

In defence of fantasy
Miscellaneous / July 18, 2012

****NB spoilers on A Game of Thrones and the Harry Potter series**** As most of my regular readers will know, much of my reading falls into the category of fantasy both epic and contemporary and young adult literature. It is my belief that this is a reaction to being forced to read and dissect to death so much heavy literature while at university. For many years after I graduated I found it difficult to enjoy reading for pleasure, and w...

In defence of fantasy
Miscellaneous / July 18, 2012

****NB spoilers on A Game of Thrones and the Harry Potter series**** As most of my regular readers will know, much of my reading falls into the category of fantasy both epic and contemporary and young adult literature. It is my belief that this is a reaction to being forced to read and dissect to death so much heavy literature while at university. For many years after I graduated I found it difficult to enjoy reading for pleasure, and w...

The Return by Carter Vance – Review
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / July 17, 2012

This is a mystery thriller in the style of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, so if you enjoyed it you might find this book interesting.  It borrows some themes from Dan Brown's work, notably SangReal referring to Royal Blood and Jesus' progeny rather than the cup of the Last Supper.   The novel is fast paced, and the action keeps on coming.  The characters are sympathetic if somewhat black and white.  I d...

The Return by Carter Vance – Review
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / July 17, 2012

This is a mystery thriller in the style of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, so if you enjoyed it you might find this book interesting.  It borrows some themes from Dan Brown’s work, notably SangReal referring to Royal Blood and Jesus’ progeny rather than the cup of the Last Supper. The novel is fast paced, and the action keeps on coming.  The characters are sympathetic if somewhat black and white.  I did find myself e...

Review – Redemption (Ryan Drake 1)
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / July 14, 2012

I learned about this book because I followed the YouTube book reviews of the author, Will Jordan.  Sadly, his reviews are no longer available online, but I had been very impressed with his sharp commentary and his clear understanding of character, plot and pacing.  The fact that he was able to present it in a fun and amusing way was an added bonus.  Naturally, when he announced he had been awarded his first publishing con...

Review – Redemption (Ryan Drake 1)
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / July 14, 2012

I learned about this book because I followed the YouTube book reviews of the author, Will Jordan.  Sadly, his reviews are no longer available online, but I had been very impressed with his sharp commentary and his clear understanding of character, plot and pacing.  The fact that he was able to present it in a fun and amusing way was an added bonus.  Naturally, when he announced he had been awarded his first publishing contract, I was...

Guest post by author Tricia Stewart Shiu
Miscellaneous / June 28, 2012

Please enjoy this guest post by Tricia Stewart Shiu, author of the paranormal YA novel with a literary bent Moa. Then read on to learn how you can win huge prizes as part of this blog tour, including $6000 in Amazon gift cards, a Kindle Fire, 5 autographed copies of Moa, and 5 autographed copies of its sequel, Statue of Ku.   The Story Behind Moaby Tricia Stewart Shiu I've always loved Hawaii and was thrilled when my husband b...

Guest post by author Tricia Stewart Shiu
Miscellaneous / June 28, 2012

Please enjoy this guest post by Tricia Stewart Shiu, author of the paranormal YA novel with a literary bent Moa. Then read on to learn how you can win huge prizes as part of this blog tour, including $6000 in Amazon gift cards, a Kindle Fire, 5 autographed copies of Moa, and 5 autographed copies of its sequel, Statue of Ku.   The Story Behind Moaby Tricia Stewart Shiu I've always loved Hawaii and was thrilled when my husband b...