Synopsis The Hinterlands are a lawless place of broken dreams and broken people. Roth is a bodyguard trying to leave his dark past behind, but history has a way of turning back up. Cynthia is a bandit who’s trying to make a future by wading through blood. They travel separately, trying to live by their own codes. […]
Grimdark
Book Review: A Grave for Us All (Crown and Tide #2) by Michael Roberti
TL;DR Review: Higher stakes, deeper grimdarkness, bloodier battles, and messier characters—exactly what I want in a Book 2! Synopsis: “A civil war on that scale would make Harfal little more than a mass grave.”“There would be death. There would be chaos. But this time there would be a lasting peace…” Follow Cael, Emil, Merily and […]
Book Review: The Traitors We Are (Crown and Tide #1) by Michael Roberti
TL;DR Review – “Light” grimdark flavor, with singular characters and a world that just keeps getting more interesting with every chapter. Synopsis: In a world where writing disappears when the author dies, 22-year-old Cael Oberlan watches the last gasping breaths of his best friend. He pulls a scrap of paper out of his pocket as […]
Review: Arc of Broken Brotherhood (The Brotherhood of the Eagle #4) by Tim Hardie
Synopsis Broken Brotherhood, the fourth and final book in The Brotherhood of the Eagle fantasy series by Tim Hardie The final conflict between the Brotherhood of the Eagle and King Adalrikr Kinslayer approaches. Johan Jokellsward’s forces lay siege to Adalrikr’s stronghold, preparing to launch a deadly and decisive assault. Far to the north, Rothgar returns […]
Review: Mushroom Blues (The Hofmann Report #1) by Adrian M. Gibson
Synopsis ENTER THE FUNGALVERSE. BEAT THE WINTER BLUES. Blade Runner, True Detective and District 9 meld with the weird worlds of Jeff VanderMeer, Philip K. Dick and China Miéville in Adrian M. Gibson’s dark, hallucinatory, fungalpunk noir debut. Two years after a devastating defeat in the decade-long Spore War, the island nation of Hōppon and […]
Book Review: A Low Country (Low Country #1) by Morgan Shank
TL;DR Review: Insanely fast paced action, complex and damaged characters, and a breathtaking Wild West-flavored world. Synopsis: Everything went to hell in the first week. Sharla was ready to settle down after four years on the road, but when Claws raid her town and take her lover, Renn, she knows it’s time for action. She’s […]
Book Review: The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston
TL;DR Review: Grueling, gritty, and grimdark as hell. A main character who takes badass and resilient to a whole new level. Synopsis: A gender-flipped Die Hard set in a mysterious castle, Cameron Johnston’s The Last Shield is an engaging fantasy read, perfect for fans of John Gwynne and Mark Lawrence. The ancient forest realm of […]
Review: Horus Rising (The Horus Heresy book 1) by Dan Abnett
Synopsis Under the benevolent leadership of the Immortal Emperor the Imperium of Man has stretched out across the galaxy. On the eve of victory, the Emperor leaves the front lines, entrusting the great crusade to his favorite son, Horus. Promoted to Warmaster, the idealistic Horus tries to carry out the Emperor’s grand design, all the […]
Review: House of Chains (Malazan Book of the Fallen #4)
Synopsis In Northern Genabackis, a raiding party of savage tribal warriors descends from the mountains into the southern flatlands. Their intention is to wreak havoc amongst the despised lowlanders, but for the one named Karsa Orlong it marks the beginning of what will prove to be an extraordinary destiny.Some years later, it is the aftermath […]
Review: Memories of Ice (Malazan Book of the Fallen #3)
Synopsis The ravaged continent of Genabackis has given birth to a terrifying new empire: the Pannion Domin. Like a fanatical tide of corrupted blood, it seethes across the land, devouring all who fail to heed the Word of its elusive prophet, the Pannion Seer. In its path stands an uneasy alliance: Dujek Onearm’s Host and the Bridgeburners – each now outlawed by the […]
The Blacktongue Thief (Blacktongue #1) by Christopher Buehlman
Synopsis Kinch Na Shannack owes the Takers Guild a small fortune for his education as a thief, which includes (but is not limited to) lock-picking, knife-fighting, wall-scaling, fall-breaking, lie-weaving, trap-making, plus a few small magics. His debt has driven him to lie in wait by the old forest road, planning to rob the next traveler […]
Review: The Failures (The Wanderlands #1) by Benjamin Liar
Synopsis From a debut voice comes a genre-breaking blend of apocalyptic sci-fi and epic fantasy about a scattered group of unlikely heroes traveling across their broken mechanical planet to stave off eternal darkness. A tightly-coiled puzzle of a thrill ride, The Failures launches The Wanderlands trilogy Welcome to the Wanderlands.A vast machine made for reasons […]