This week for me has been a week of Skull Thrones and Star Wars and Shakespeare, Oh My! One of the big releases of last week was The Skull Throne, the fourth in Peter V Brett’s Demon Cycle fantasy series. I have read and enjoyed the three previous ones so I was keen to read the fourth. More accurately, I should say listened to as I experienced this book in audiobook format. In general, I did enjoy it, but I did have a few issues. The biggest challenge I had was the sheer amount of in world vocabulary Brett has invented for this series. I admit it’s been a while since I read any books in the series, but at first I found all the jiwah Ka, khaffit, Shar’Dama Ka, inevera rather disconcerting and it threw me out of the story on many occasions. I ended up having to keep the Krasian dictionary open on my computer while I was listening. Eventually I was able to move beyond this and enjoy the story. For me one of the highlights of the book were the beautifully written interpersonal relationships, notably that between Ahmann Jardir and Arlen Bales. These are two men…
Good morning and welcome to another reading roundup. This was another week of nightshifts so a lot of audiobook consumption was involved. Here are some of the books I enjoyed this week. The Wicked Will Rise is the second novel in Danielle Paige’s reimagining of L Frank Baum’s Oz in which Dorothy has turned evil. Some of you who read my review of the first novel, Dorothy Must Die, may remember that I had a few issues with it, notably the pacing and the audiobook production. I am happy to say I found no such issues with the sequel. I found the pacing much more lively and consistent and it kept me listening along. I would strongly suggest that you read the e-novella The Wizard Returns beforehand – it’s not strictly necessary, but it will fill in a few blanks. The protagonist, Amy Gumm, continues to be kickass and engaging and I loved hearing the continuation of her story. I found some of the situations and emotional problems she has to deal with very well done. The narrator, Devan Sorvani, once again did an excellent job of bringing her to life and the production was much better this time in…
Now that it’s 2015, I would like to share some of my most anticipated books of 2015. Let’s get started! The first of these is Fairest: The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. This is a prequel to the three books currently published and tells the backstory of series antagonist Queen Levana. For those of you who don’t know the Lunar Chronicles, they are sci-fi retellings of classic fairytales. The characters are kick ass, the world building is fantastic and they are a brilliant read. I’m really looking forward to Fairest, which is released on January 27th 2015. The final book in the series, Winter, is due for release in the autumn of 2015. I’m also excited for A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab. I loved Schwab’s Archived and the premise for this one sounds interesting – parallel universes, with certain people having the ability to travel between them. Sign me up! A Darker Shade of Magic is released on February 24th 2015. One book I’m surprised I’ve not seen on more Most Anticipated lists is The Skull Throne, the four book in Peter V. Brett’s Demon Cycle. I’ve loved the previous books in the series and find…