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…
-
-
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…
-
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…
-
The Books I Reviewed in 2019
Do note that I said reviewed in the title and not read. I did read some of the books I reviewed in January back in December of 2018 and I am still reading books (of course I am), but those reviews won’t be posted until January and February of next year. I honestly can’t remember which books I started reading this past January, so I’m forced to simply talk about the books I reviewed over the past year. The Stats in Paragraph Form Because I Prefer Words to Numbers I wish I knew how many books I have actually read this year as I’m curious to see how close I…
-
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.…
-
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.…
-
Book Review: The Impossible Contract by K. A. Doore
Title: The Impossible Contract Author: K. A. Doore Publisher: Macmillan-Tor/Forge Publication date: November 12, 2019 Genre: Fantasy Summary: Book 2 in the Chronicles of Ghadid series, it takes place a few years after the events of the first book, The Perfect Assassin. This time, the story is centered on Thana, cousin to the assassin introduced in the first book. As the Serpent’s Daughter, she has a lot to live up to, which is also why she was chosen for a special contract: to kill Heru Sametket, second marabi advisory to the Empress. It seemed simple enough, until the dead became reanimated, and bent on destruction and death. Seeking to complete her contract, Thana ends up…
-
Book Review: The God Queen by M. L. Tishner
Title: The God Queen (Rebirth Book 1) Author: M. L. Tishner Publisher: Self-published Publication date: October 22, 2019 Genre: Fantasy, Science Fiction Summary: Rei lives in a backwater town on Earth, dreaming of the day she can avenge her older brother Niklaryn’s death at the hands of Infiernen, an instrument of the Dominion. On the side of the Federation, who holds there are multiple gods while the rapidly spreading Dominion preaches one god, Rei quickly learns she is just as hunted as her brother had been, and that she is a god reincarnated, one of several. Meeting up with her fellow gods isn’t the hard part; working to end the war between the Dominion and…
-
Book Review: The Throne of the Five Winds by S. C. Emmett
Title: The Throne of the Five Winds Author: S. C. Emmett Publisher: Orbit Publication date: October 15, 2019 Genre: Fantasy Summary: After Khir is conquered by Zhaon, the Great Rider’s daughter Mahara is sent to be the Crown Prince of Zhaon’s wife to secure peace. Komor Yala, Mahara’s friend and lady-in-waiting, is the only one to accompany her and protect her in a potentially hostile country. Seemingly welcomed, Yala quickly learns there are six princes angling for the throne and two queens and two concubines who will do anything to attain glory for their children. Caught in a deadly game, Yala must use all of her training with a deadly hidden blade to keep her princess…
-
Book Review: Dominion of the Star by Angelica Clyman
Title: Dominion of the Star Author: Angelica Clyman Publisher: Indie Angel Books Publication date: July 20, 2015 Genre: Fantasy Summary: Eighteen years ago, the Earth was wrecked with destruction during an Eclipse. Out of the chaos rose Sebastian Za’in, the man who took power and imposed his own Angelic order on the survivors. After all, he’s rumored to be a Nephilim, the offspring of an Angel and mortal. The next Eclipse is set to happen in a few months and he has plans to change the world forever. To do so, he needs Kayla Steelryn, a young woman ignorant of her parentage and powers. But as she’s brought out of the quiet potter’s village she…
