Synopsis: Murder is just, so long as it serves the crown. Hidden behind a mask and with a dagger in his sheath, Mute serves the crown with pride. A fair life, if not a monotonous one. But his next contract nicks too close, for murder within a brothel is always nasty business, especially the one […]
Fantasy Books
Review: Hemlock & Silver by T. Kingfisher
Hemlock & Silver is a great retelling, unique in its approach, with stellar characters and a fun adventure narrative at its core. Anja was one of my favourite characters that I’ve been on a journey with this year!
Review: The Penitent by Robyn Abbott
Synopsis: From #1 bestselling dark fantasy author Robyn Abbott comes The Penitent, a gritty standalone in the unflinching Forgotten Fragments series. Perfect for fans of Richard Swan and John Gwynne, this gothic tale picks up where most epic fantasies conclude: the end of a long-fought war… The Usurper is dead. As are all five of his […]
Review: A Dragon of the Veil by Nick Snape
Synopsis: Some lies are best left buried deep… Laoch, a ranger deeply scarred by the Unbeliever Crusades, seeks salvation in the dishonoured elven warrior, Sura. Together, they are thrust into a new conflict when a powerful enemy crashes into a Meister’s alchemical experiment, setting off a wave of fear and magic that ripples throughout the […]
Review: Riven Earth by Zammar Ahmer
Synopsis: The world has stopped turning. Burned by a blazing sun. Thrust into eternal winter. Life survives only in the Sunset Forest. For untold millennia, mankind lived subservient to the dryads, forced into worship of the Earth-Mother, Astea. Then one man ventured into the Scorched Desert and returned with the secret of fire. His rebellion […]
Review: The Palace of Illusions by Rowenna Miller
Synopsis The Palace of Illusions brings readers to a Paris breathless with excitement at the dawn of the twentieth century, where for a select few there is a second, secret Paris where the magic of the City of Light is very real in this enchanting and atmospheric fantasy from the author of The Fairy Bargains of Prospect Hill. In the […]
Book Review: The Bone Raiders (The Rakada #1) by Jackson Ford
TL;DR Review: Action-packed, insanely fun, wildly imaginative, and wonderfully human. Non-stop rip-roaring adventure from start to finish. Synopsis: WE DIDN’T START THE FIRE . . . BUT OUR GIANT FIRE-BREATHING LIZARDS DID. You don’t f*ck with the Rakada. The people living in the grasslands of the Tapestry call them the Bone Raiders, from their […]
The Inside Story of the British Bureau of the Arcane: The Dark Elf Dynasty File (Book 1) by Phil Parker
Synopsis: The British Bureau for the Arcane has kept people safe for centuries from the arcane species that seek to harm human beings. Their range extends to Commonwealth nations that were part of the British Empire. A once-proud part of the British Secret Service, their success in controlling the arcane races has been their downfall. These […]
Review: ShadowBane by Cal Logan
Synopsis: One womb, one soul, two fates. One will rise. One will fall. Shura and Jin are the last of a divine bloodline, operating at the bloodiest fringes of society where they wield might and magic against the demons they are sworn to destroy. For Shura, it’s the only way to restore honor to her […]
Review: The Undermining of Twyla and Frank (Hart and Mercy #2) by Megan Bannen
Synopsis 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 […]
The Fall of Selvandrea (The Draemeir Chronicle #1) by Tim McKay
Synopsis: Remember the wolf. Remember what’s out there in the dark. Valdaris was a middling artillery captain before his people fell to a conquering rival. Then he fell further still, snatched from the battlefield by a ruthless cult and cast into the depths of ultimate evil. Transformed by powers he can’t begin to understand, Valdaris […]
Author Chat: Simon Kewin
Simon is an award-winning fantasy and sci/fi writer with over a hundred published short stories to his name (with appearances in Analog, Nature and many others). He’s the author of the Cloven Land fantasy trilogy, cyberpunk sci/fi thriller The Genehunter and the “steampunk Gormenghast” Engn Saga. He’s signed to the mighty Elsewhen Press for the […]