Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence My rating: 4 of 5 stars Note: I’ve kept this one short given the popularity of the series and the length of time it’s been out. It’s hard to provide a no-spoiler review that doesn’t cover what everyone before me has already mentioned. This was Mark Lawrence’s debut and first in The Broken Empire trilogy where we follow Jorg, a prince to one of a hundred kingdoms all vying to become Emperor and reunite…
We Are the Dead by Mike Shackle My rating: 5 of 5 stars When you think of a rollercoaster it’s fast, frenetic and a little bit scary, which is what you’ll get from We Are the Dead without having to queue for two hours first. WATD is the debut novel from Mike Shackle in his grimdark series The Last War, following its characters through the dark and deadly life in an occupied territory as they try to resist the enemy…
Of Blood and Fire by Ryan Cahill My rating: 4 of 5 stars Of Blood and Fire from Ryan Cahill is a great debut, marking the start of The Bound and the Broken series, which proved an addictive read. It is a classic epic fantasy with a modern interpretation. Though this starts off in familiar territory – with 3 young men, as close as brothers, on the eve of their manhood trial, which inevitably goes awry and the village bully…
The Hand of the Sun King by J.T. GreathouseMy rating: 4 of 5 stars An Asian-inspired fantasy steeped in ancestry, obligation and magics. Wen Alder is a child of a Sien father and a Nayeni mother; the Sienese are the conquerors of Nayen (& many other lands) and Alder is torn between the two early in his life. His (maternal) Grandmother names him in the Nayeni tradition – Foolish Cur – and tries to teach him of their ways in…
Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir My rating: 3 of 5 stars If you’ve come for the “lesbian necromancers in space” then, er, readjust your expectations. There’s no romantic or sexual involvement between anyone. Sure, Gideon fancies women but at no point does anyone identify themselves by a set sexuality – she could be bi for all we know – and while she sort-of fancies one of the other necromancers (not Harrow) for a while, that’s it. She notices when…
I’ve put together 20 prompts for my reading next year. I think there’s a good mix below and I’m sure there’ll come a point where it’ll help me choose what to read next! I’ve kept them fairly simple as who knows what surprises await us next year, given how bizarre my reading went in 2020. Take part in #MountTBR2021 and aim for Pike’s Peak (12 books I already own) – see more info here: https://myreadersblock.blogspot.com/2020/10/mount-tbr-challenge-2021.html A translated book A non-fiction…