Tag: orbit books

ARC Book Review: The Scarlet Throne (The False Goddess #1) by Amy Leow

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 432 pages
Author: Amy Leow
Publisher: Orbit
Release Date: September 10th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A dark, heart-thumping political epic fantasy by debut author Amy Leow—full of scheming demons, morally grey heroines, talking cats, and cut-throat priests, this delicious tale of power and corruption will captivate from beginning to end.

Binsa is a “living goddess,” chosen by the gods to dispense both mercy and punishment from her place on the Scarlet Throne. But her reign hides a deadly secret. Rather than channeling the wisdom of an immortal deity, she harbors a demon.

But now her priests are growing suspicious. When a new girl, Medha, is selected to take over her position, Binsa and her demon strike a deal: To magnify his power and help her wrest control from the priests, she will sacrifice human lives. She’ll do anything not to end up back on the streets, forgotten and alone. But how much of her humanity is she willing to trade in her quest for power? Deals with demons are rarely so simple.

Thank you Orbit for the gifted ARC.

WELL. I AM INTRIGUED.

If you’re looking for a book where the FMC truly is a villain and you don’t mind if there isn’t any romance, I definitely say give this a go. Not exactly my usual but I genuinely enjoyed this book. The writing style had this ease of reading quality that kept my attention and made this book move well.

My one little niggling thought is that I wish the FMC, Binsa, had at least one good relationship. Whether that was platonic, familial, or romantic. I felt like I was missing a strong side character. There were plenty of smaller characters but nobody that STOOD OUT.

The plot had a lot of political maneuvering and devious betrayals. This does lean towards a darker side of fantasy with some of the themes and content. I liked all of the machinations and that it didn’t feel long winded.

I am 100% curious how this will flow out through a trilogy and based off the wonderful cliffhanger ending, I am absolutely going to need some answers.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: low
  • Romance: none
  • Violence: high
  • Content Warnings: loss of life (including young children), murder, attempted murder

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ARC Book Review: Long Live Evil (Time of Iron #1) by Sarah Rees Brennan

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 464 pages
Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Orbit
Release Date: August 27th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A TALE FOR EVERYONE WHO’S EVER FALLEN FOR THE VILLAIN…

When her whole life collapsed, Rae still had books. Dying, she seizes a second chance at living: a magical bargain that lets her enter the world of her favourite fantasy series.

She wakes in a castle on the edge of a hellish chasm, in a kingdom on the brink of war. Home to dangerous monsters, scheming courtiers and her favourite fictional character: the Once and Forever Emperor. He’s impossibly alluring, as only fiction can be. And in this fantasy world, she discovers she’s not the heroine, but the villainess in the Emperor’s tale.

So be it. The wicked are better dressed, with better one-liners, even if they’re doomed to bad ends. She assembles the wildly disparate villains of the story under her evil leadership, plotting to change their fate. But as the body count rises and the Emperor’s fury increases, it seems Rae and her allies may not survive to see the final page.

This adult epic fantasy debut from Sarah Rees Brennan puts the reader in the villain’s shoes, for an adventure that is both ‘brilliant’ (Holly Black) and ‘supremely satisfying’ (Leigh Bardugo). Expect a rogue’s gallery of villains including an axe wielding maid, a shining knight with dark moods, a homicidal bodyguard, and a playboy spymaster with a golden heart and a filthy reputation.

Thank you Orbit Books for the gifted copy and LibroFM for the audiobook.

I’M STILL CONFUSED.

That is unfortunately my biggest takeaway. I am still confused by this world and some of these characters and why the heck this was 17 hrs of audio? The heavy world dumping in the beginning didn’t stick.

It’s a fun idea and the bones are definitely there. There’s noticeable pop culture references and some of the humor does it well. I just don’t think ALL of it did the intended job. It kind of felt like the TV show adaptation of My Lady Jane. Honestly, I think Long Live Evil would work best as a show. With the real world cross overs and setting this could be great for TV.

There’s some good themes on the perception of others and choosing the best option from a list of bad. I did like most of the characters and different scenes were interesting or perfectly comical.

I’m undecided on picking up book two right now. If I do I will probably do the audio again. There’s a great twister of an ending at least.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy + Romance
  • Language: moderate, scattered throughout
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: moderate
  • Content Warnings: terminal illness (cancer, theme throughout), murder

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ALC Book Review: The Undermining of Twyla and Frank (The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy #2) by Megan Bannen

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 464 pages
Author: Megan Bannen
Publisher: Orbit Books
Release Date: July 2nd, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From the author of The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy comes a heartwarming fantasy with a best friends-to-lovers rom com twist–When Harry Met Sally, but with dragons!—set in the delightful demigod and donut-filled world of Tanria.

The entire town of Eternity was shocked when widowed, middle-aged Twyla Banneker partnered up with her neighbor and best friend, Frank Ellis, to join the Tanrian Marshals. Eight years later, Twyla and Frank are still patrolling the dangerous land of Tanria, the former prison of the Old Gods.

Twyla might look like a small town mom who brings cheesy potatoes to funerals and whips up a batch of cookies for the school bake sale, but her rewarding career in law enforcement has been a welcome change from the domestic grind of mom life, despite the misgivings of her grown children.

Fortunately (or unfortunately) a recent decrease in on-the-job peril has made Twyla and Frank’s job a lot safer … and a lot less exciting. So when they discover the body of one of their fellow marshals covered in liquid glitter–and Frank finds himself the inadvertent foster dad to a baby dragon–they are more than happy to be back on the beat.

Soon, the friends wind up ensnared in a nefarious plot that goes far deeper than any lucrative Tanrian mineshaft. But as the danger closes in and Twyla and Frank’s investigation becomes more complicated, so does their easy friendship. And Twyla starts to realize that her true soul mate might just be the person who has lived next door all along…

Thank you LibroFM for the gifted audiobook.

I LIKED THIS.

Audiobook notes: I loved the audiobook! I had no issues listening at my usual speed (3x). The narrator was great and highly recommend this format.

I liked the big themes in this book. I loved that this was an older couple!! It was a pairing I rarely come across and it was a nice change. I loved that Twyla got to learn more about herself and what was going to make HER happy. Resonating with giving much of your life to your children squeezed my heart. Learning that it’s okay to also have separate things you love and want to be a part of too. And how wonderful a second chance at love can be, regardless of where you are in life.

There’s some good friends to lovers moments woven in. While some I personally get frustrated with (my struggled with F2L continues), I liked most of it. And there’s dragons!! I love dragon content always.

I think this book was well paced and had the quirky and cozy vibes that I loved from the first book. This is a unique series and I would definitely read another book in this world.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: moderate-high
  • Romance: 1-2 open door
  • Violence: moderate
  • Content Warnings: loss of a spouse (mentioned)

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ARC Book Review: A Letter to the Luminous Deep (The Sunken Archive #1) by Sylvie Cathrall

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 432 pages
Author: Sylvie Cathrall
Publisher: Orbit Books
Release Date: April 25th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

‘An underwater treasure-chest to be slowly unpacked, full of things I nosy and loving families, epistolary romance, gorgeous worldbuilding, and anxious scholars doing their best to meet the world with kindness and curiosity’ Freya Marske, author of A Marvellous Light

A charming fantasy set in an underwater world with magical academia and a heartwarming penpal romance, perfect for fans of A Marvellous Light and Emily Wilde’s Encylopaedia of Faeries.

A beautiful discovery outside the window of her underwater home prompts the reclusive E. to begin a correspondence with renowned scholar Henerey Clel. The letters they share are filled with passion, at first for their mutual interests, and then, inevitably, for each other.

Together, they uncover a mystery from the unknown depths, destined to transform the underwater world they both equally fear and love. But by no mere coincidence, a seaquake destroys E.’s home, and she and Henerey vanish.

A year later, E.’s sister Sophy, and Henerey’s brother Vyerin, are left to solve the mystery of their siblings’ disappearances with the letters, sketches and field notes left behind. As they uncover the wondrous love their siblings shared, Sophy and Vyerin learn the key to their disappearance – and what it could mean for life as they know it.

Thank you Orbit Books for the gifted ARC.

LOTS OF THOUGHTS.

I honestly don’t know what quite to do with this one. I almost DNF after the first 30 pages because good heavens this was slowww. And not in a way you can skim, this is a, read every word, kind of mystery. After being convinced to try again, I admittedly found myself liking the book more. The writing is all in letters and heavily academic. Once you’ve found your footing with it, things seem to flow a bit better.

I was intrigued by the world and how it was set-up. I thought it was interesting and the concept of living underwater was something I rarely read. The scholars and researchers and fanatics all kind of coalesce into a myriad of sub-plots that fill the larger story. I have a very hard time calling this a romance. Honestly I wouldn’t (so nobody sets themselves up right off the bat for disappointment). There’s a sweet little love story that’s woven in, it just doesn’t have everything I was expecting/hoping for when I picked this up.

The ending has me wanting to read book two. I am genuinely curious where people ended up, what the Structure is and why we care about it.

It appears that the audiobook has a full cast and I think that will make this book more enjoyable to those curious about trying it.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy + some romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: flirting
  • Violence: low

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