Tag: Book Review

Book Review: The Sunlit Man (Cosmere) by Brandon Sanderson

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 447 pages
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Dragonsteel
Release Date: October 1st, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

#1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson shows us a future in the Cosmere universe where a perpetual planetary wanderer must decide whether to keep running, or stay and make a difference on a struggling planet.

Years ago he had comrades in arms and a cause to believe in, but now the man who calls himself Nomad knows only a life on the run. Forced to hop from world to world in the Cosmere whenever the relentless Night Brigade gets too close, Nomad lands on a new planet and is instantly caught up in the struggle between a tyrant and the rebels who want only to escape being turned into mindless slaves—all under the constant threat of a sunrise whose heat will melt the very stones. Unable to understand the language, can he navigate the conflict and gain enough power to leap offworld before his mind or body pay the ultimate price?

HOLY COSMERE.

Note: I do think it is beneficial to be caught up on The Stormlight Archives (Books 1-4), Dawnshard (Novella), and Warbreaker. This really takes the Cosmere to a whole new level and in order not to spoil or to stop anyone from being confused, having this background is 100% needed.

ANYWAYS.

I loved this book. Which is no surprise. I was blown away by all of the connections and Easter eggs and all of these little dynamics and characters that kept popping up. I loved how fast paced everything was and you could really feel the desperation of Nomad and those he was working with to save the planet.

Beautiful characterization, an awesome cast and a story line that you can’t put down. I would love to go into more details, but I really think this book is best read blind AND there’s many moments that now have me nervous for what Stormlight 5 is going to bring. If you’ve loved everything Sanderson has written before, I don’t think you’ll have a single problem loving this one too.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: none
  • Violence: high

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Book Review: To Bleed a Crystal Bloom (Crystal Bloom #1) by Sarah A. Parker

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Rating: ★★★☆
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 486 pages
Author: Sarah A. Parker
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: July 24th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

What a pretty flower to keep locked in a big, rocky tower.

Nineteen years ago, I was plucked from the heart of a bloody massacre that spared nobody else.

Small. Fragile.
An enigma.

Now ward to a powerful High Master who knows too much and says too little, I lead a simple life, never straying from the confines of an imaginary line I’ve drawn around the castle grounds.
Stay within. Never leave.
Out there, the monsters lurk. Inside, I’m safe … though at a cost far greater than the blood I drip into a goblet daily.
Toxic, unreciprocated love for a man who’s utterly unavailable.

My savior. My protector.
My almost executioner.

I can’t help but be enamored with the arcane man who holds the power to pull my roots from the ground.

When voracious beasts spill across the land and threaten to fray the fabric of my tailored existence, the petals of reality will peel back to reveal an ugly truth. But in a castle puddled with secrets, none are greater than the one I’ve kept from myself.

No tower is tall enough to protect me from the horror that tore my life to shreds.

IT KIND OF WORKED FOR ME?

I have felt super conflicted over my thoughts on this one.

One one hand, I really did like this overall. It is dark, it is a bit twisted, but the author did a good job of conveying that and it was written in a way that didn’t bug me too much. I could see great potential for Orlaith’s character development and the whole Rapunzel theme was perfect.

I did think the “heat” scenes in the middle of the book were way out of left field? And forced the steam rather than a natural development. It was kind of weird, I don’t understand why it was there and could have used a whole lot less of it.

The reader is kept in the dark as much as Orlaith and I liked that plot choice. I was kept enough in the loop to keep me going and that was fine with me. I figured more would be explained throughout the series and was getting a big enough taste to want to read those books.

There’s some plot holes involving Orlaith’s drug addiction and other tidbits that I thought were thrown to the side and needed more closure about, small plot things kept jutting out to me that left a little flustered.

But now after seeing some reviews and speaking with friends who’ve read the second book I’ve decided, at this time, not to pick it up. I have some major thoughts on the romance arc (that I won’t go into here because of spoilers) that I would need answered to give the whole series a go.

Overall audience notes:

  • Dark Fantasy Romance
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: high innuendo; 1-2 open scenes
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: abusive relationship, PTSD, agoraphobia, panic attacks, nightmares/night terrors, self-harm, drug use, drug addiction, blood/gore depiction

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Book Review: The Queen of Days by Greta Kelly

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 384 pages
Author: Greta Kelly
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release Date: October 24th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

For Balthazar and his family of thieves, stealing a statue during the annual celebration of the god Karanis was just a good bit of fun…or a way to stick it to the governor who murdered his parents. And yeah, the small fortune in reward doesn’t hurt—even if his boss also hired the mysterious Queen of Days to join the crew as “the weapon of last resort…”

Whatever that means.

But Bal doesn’t know the ceremony isn’t simply empty words and dusty tradition; it’s true magic. The kind of magic that rips open a portal for the god himself. Only the idol that Karanis planned on using for a body now lies broken at the Queen of Days’ feet. And half of it is missing.

With the aid of a lovable brawler, a society lady turned bomb maker, a disgraced soldier, and a time-eating demon, Bal must hunt down the missing half of the statue if he has any hope of earning his money, keeping his crew alive…and perhaps even saving all of humanity. But as his journey sends him racing through the city—and across realities—he discovers that doing all this might just doom the city.

The city be damned. It’s time to kill a god.

Thank you to Harper Voyager and Bibliolifestyle for the gifted copy.

GREAT STANDALONE.

I looooved how fast paced this was. It really added to the intensity of the heist and I had a hard time putting this down because I just wanted to know what would happen next. This is my first book by this author and I am very much intrigued to read more now!

What helped me too was knowing that there isn’t any romance. It’s focused on the found family and finding a way to survive when meddling gods start to cause chaos and threaten where the crew lives. I loved the push and pull and highs and lows this group went through to find a way to end things.

I loved that it was dual POV and we got to see Tass and Balthazar’s views. They both gave great insight into thoughts and maneuvers from opposite angles. I loved the growth in Tass and seeing her find a new place to land.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: one closed door
  • Violence: moderate-high

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Book Review: A Vision in Smoke (Until the Stars Are Dead #2) by Allyson S. Barkley

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 522 pages
Author: Allyson S. Barkley
Publisher: Atmosphere Press
Release Date: January 1st, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

After weeks of travel and several narrow brushes with death and capture, Ari and Ely are finally nearing the end of their unwanted adventure. But Ari let her secret slip to save them and suddenly the stakes of their journey are so much higher. Thrown into the middle of the war Ari has tried to avoid for so long, they are forced to confront long-forgotten ghosts, painful betrayals, and dangerous truths. Will Ari and Ely’s unsteady bond be enough to brave these oncoming battles, or will the past and its secrets tear everything apart?

A Vision in Smoke draws us back into the world of Until the Stars Are Dead with a host of new characters, exciting twists, and gripping action.

Thank you to the author for a gifted copy.

WELL.

This didn’t go as I hoped. I had mixed thoughts on book and it kind of spiraled in book two.

Once again Ari and Ely are traveling and traveling, and traveling. After getting to a war camp, most of the book is spent there without anything really happening. Some war councils, a few practice sessions, etc. Aaaand that was mostly it until at the end there was at last, some true action.

There was a dash of romance in here but it came from a different angle than I was expecting and I wasn’t wholly invested. And with how some of those last scenes shook out I am very much disappointed.

I think there was a lot of potential and the core ideas are there. I’m missing the connection to it I need to love it, but I’m sure others will.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: medium
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: physical altercations, battle themes, loss of loved ones

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