Title: Master of Sorrows Author: Justin T. Call Publisher: Blackstone Publishing Publication date: February 25, 2020 Genre: Fantasy Summary: Annev wants nothing more than to become an Avatar, basically an Academy-trained thief who retrieves magical artifacts. But he has a secret that, if revealed, would absolutely spell his death. The only member of the Academy who lives with an outside mentor, he also trains to be a priest, but it only brings the different ideologies each brings into conflict. Annev, though is good at almost everything and, by being incredibly smart, he manages to achieve his goal, just in time for his small, hidden village to be attacked and his secret revealed. Described as the story…
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Book Blog Tour – Review: The Unwilling by Kelly Braffet
The Lily Cafe is thrilled to participate in the book blog tour for The Unwilling by Kelly Braffet. Title: The Unwilling Author: Kelly Braffet Publisher: MIRA Publication date: February 11, 2020 Genre: Fantasy Summary: Judah’s sole job in life is to not die. To die would mean certain death for the Lord of the City’s heir. Born on the same night, Judah and Gavin share an incredible bond: they experience each other’s emotions and physical ails as though they were their own. If one is injured, the other displays the same injury. Judah is a young woman with no family, a foundling taken in at birth, a young woman Lord Elban, Gavin’s father, detests but cannot rid himself…
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Book Review: Been There, Married That by Gigi Levangie
Title: Been There, Married That Author: Gigi Levangie Publisher: St. Martin’s Press Publication date: February 11, 2020 Genre: Women’s Fiction Summary: Agnes Murphy Nash has been married to big shot movie producer Trevor Nash for over a decade, but Trevor has decided he needs out of the marriage. Completely caught off guard, Agnes does the only sensible thing and chooses to fight tooth and nail for custody of their tween daughter Pep (short for Penelope), hoping that giving in on everything else won’t prolong their Hollywood-style divorce. Unfortunately, Trevor is determined to make her life a living hell, throwing wrenches into her life so he comes out looking his best. But, with a trio of Spanish…
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Book Review: The Omega Archives by Erik Melendez
Title: The Omega Archives Author: Erik Melendez Publisher: Self-published Publication date: December 1, 2019 Genre: YA, Science Fiction Summary: Born with scientifically engineered mutated genes into a training facility, Alex is anything but a normal teenager. When the facility is attacked and everyone either killed or taken, Alex is the sole survivor. Adopted by loving and patient parents who work hard to remediate him and assimilate him into normal society, Alex just tries to live a normal life. But he and his town are attacked and he ends up being recruited by a counter-terrorist group searching for the mastermind behind the attack on the training facility. And Alex will do anything he can to find answers…
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Book Blog Tour: Horseshoes and Hand Grenades by S. M. Stevens
The Lily Cafe is thrilled to participate in the book blog tour for Horseshoes and Hand Grenades by S. M. Stevens. A fictional novel exploring the lives of two female victims of sexual harassment and abuse, this is a heartbreakingly beautiful novel. Title: Horseshoes and Hand Grenades Author: S. M. Stevens Publisher: Touchpoint Press Publication date: September 26, 2019 Genre: Women’s fiction Summary: (I usually write my own summaries, but, in this case, I think it’s best to use the book’s description.) Fragile but practical Shelby Stewart and ambitious, confident Astrid Ericcson just want to start their PR careers in 1980s Boston and maybe find a nice guy to hang out with. But long-buried memories of incest at…
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Book Review: Mr. Nobody by Catherine Steadman
Title: Mr. Nobody Author: Catherine Steadman Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine Publication date: January 7, 2020 Genre: Mystery and Thriller Summary: With just a name written on his hand, The Man regains consciousness on a British beach with no memory of who he was or is. In London, neuropsychiatrist Emma Lewis is hoping that his case will make her career. But the patient brings her back to her childhood home, and a horrific past that led to her and her family relocating and changing their names. As she fights to hide her identity and he struggles to regain his, their presents collide. My thoughts on this book are completely scattered. I’m not sure what,…
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Book Review: The Secret Chapter by Genevieve Cogman
Title: The Secret Chapter Author: Genevieve Cogman Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group – Ace Publication date: January 7, 2020 Genre: Fantasy Summary: Librarian Irene is summoned to the Library and tasked with negotiating with a Fae for a very specific book needed to stabilize a world Irene has fond memories of. Accompanied by the dragon prince Kai, in human form, the two travel to the Caribbean and find themselves part of an unlikely team comprised of Fae, dragons, and a Librarian charged with stealing a painting from a museum in Vienna on yet another world. Promised anything as a reward, the group sets off to a world where supernatural beings are actively hunted and a trio of…
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Book Review: The Music of the Mind by Ash Adler
Title: The Music of the Mind Author: Ash Adler Publisher: Self-published Publication date: November 14, 2016 Genre: Fantasy Summary: Almost murdered by a dark, shadowy being, journeyman bard Finn Bran emerges with the ability to hear the harmony or discord of people’s thoughts and intentions. Seeking both to be a hero and to escape the discord he hears in people, Finn willingly goes with a fairy lady into the realm of the Fair Folk. There, his own music reveals the discord in his own soul, propelling him back into his world where he learns to master his mind from a dragon, enabling him to set off to destroy the darkness that threatens to strangle his world.…
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Book Review: Realm of Ash by Tasha Suri
Title: Realm of Ash Author: Tasha Suri Publisher: Orbit Publication date: November 12, 2019 Genre: Fantasy Summary: The Ambhan Empire has been plagued by a curse, which seems to have become worse since the death of the Maha. Now that the Emperor lies near death, it becomes gravely apparent to young widow Arwa, who hides the true lineage of her blood and the curse it carries, and bastard prince Zahir they must find the answers from their ancestors in the treacherous realm of ash. This is the second book in the Books of Ambha series. I did not know that going in, but I don’t feel like I necessarily needed to have read the first book.…
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Book Review: The Cosmic Misfortunes of the Furious Ginger by S. J. Maddock
Title: The Cosmic Misfortunes of the Furious Ginger Author: S. J. Maddock Publisher: Self-published Publication date: August 29, 2019 Genre: Science Fiction Summary: Ginger-haired Kimchi McQuade is a lackluster longevity scientist seeking the key to immortality. Due to his research interest, he is quickly tapped by the mysterious Order of the Moon Rabbit to meet with Dr. Daitsuke Endo, another longevity scientist of great renown. However, he arrives to find Endo dead. The mysterious Zeus, who arranged for his visit in the first place, alerts him to danger and sends him careening on a journey that takes him from Japan to Korea to Russia to Mars, and straight into the hands of the enemy, the Skolkovo…
