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Tag: Mongrels

Ep. 23 – Stephen Graham Jones is LIVE!

March 13, 2020 by David W, posted in Reviews

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Tagged Authors, Authors on a Podcast Talking Books, Books, Horror, Mapping the Interior, Mongrels, Mystery, Podcasts, Saga Press, Stephen Graham Jones, The Only Good Indians, Thriller, Tor.com, Tor.com Publishing, Tordotcom, Tordotcompub, William MorrowLeave a comment

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Authors on a Podcast Talking Books

Ep. 29 - Anna Smith Spark
Ep. 28 - Dan Stout
Ep. 27 - Adam Cesare
Ep. 26 - James Rollins
Ep. 25 - Peter Kenny

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@orbitbooks_us & @hachettebooks always know just how to cheer up the Walters household. 📚 Long ago, a magical war destroyed an empire, and a new one was built in its ashes. But still the old grudges simmer, and two siblings will fight on opposite sides to save their world in the start of Django Wexler's new epic fantasy trilogy. Gyre hasn't seen his beloved sister since their parents sold her to the mysterious Twilight Order. Now, twelve years after her disappearance, Gyre's sole focus is revenge, and he's willing to risk anything and anyone to claim enough power to destroy the Order. Chasing rumors of a fabled city protecting a powerful artifact, Gyre comes face-to-face with his lost sister. But she isn't who she once was. Trained to be a warrior, Maya wields magic for the Twilight Order's cause. Standing on opposite sides of a looming civil war, the two siblings will learn that not even the ties of blood will keep them from splitting the world in two. 📚 #bookstagram #books #booklover #booknerd #bookstagrammer #bookworm #bookaddict #booksofinstagram #bookish #bookshelf #dog #dogsofinstagram #doglovers #dogsofinsta #dogstagram #dachshundsofinstagram #dachshund #dachshundlove #fantasy #djangowexler

Oh, hellooooooooo. New @jrj_is_probable from @gallerybooks @sagasff hitting the Kindle this evening. May have to throw everything else to the side and binge it. Sounds too damn good. ♾ Alien meets World War Z in this heart-racing thriller as a group of teenagers attempt to survive the night in a town overcome by a science experiment gone wrong. A small town nestled in the hills of central Oregon becomes the epicenter of an epidemic of violence when the teenaged children of several executives from the local biotech firm become ill and aggressively murderous. Suddenly the town is on edge, and everyone must do everything it takes just to survive... ♾ #bookstagram #books #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookworm #booknerd #bookaddict #booksofinstagram #bookish #bookobsessed #bookcommunity #theloop #jeremyrobertjohnson #thriller #horror #bookalicious #bookblog #booklove #bookgram #kindle #ebook #netgalley #sagasff #saga #gallery

Shoutout to @johnmarrs.author for the signed copy of The Passengers (which I am happily halfway through, I might add). John and I had a phenomenal chat about 8 days ago on my podcast and he has quickly become one of my FAVORITE authors, let alone human beings. If you love thrillers with great characters and amazing storylines, John’s your guy! 🚗☠️ #bookstagram #books #booklover #bookworm #bookstagrammer #booknerd #bookaddict #booksofinstagram #bookish #booksbooksbooks #bookobsessed #bookcommunity #bookphotography #bookalicious #bookaholic #thriller #thrillers #thepassengers #johnmarrs

Hey, Ma. I think I might be a horror fan after all. Shoutout to all of the pubs tagged. I don’t know if I could’ve asked for a better haul during this craziness! 🔪💀👻🧟‍♂️ #covidbookmail #icantbelieveitsbookmail #bookmail #bookmailisthebestmail #bookish #book #books #bookaddict #horror #horrorreader #horrorbooks #horroraddict #horrorfan #horrorstories #horrorcommunity #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookobsessed

Couple of nifty novels from @titanbooks that I grabbed on a Dollar Tree run the other day. Covers really popped, and they both sound phenomenal. Kieran Shea is not an author I’m familiar with, but I’ll take a chance with those author blurbs 😉.

This is a dual appreciation post for @kealanpatrick / @elderlemon_design & @warrior_scribe. Some of the best covers out there mixed with one of the craziest stories I’ve ever read. 🦘 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The Roo is the best piece of entertainment to come out of the Outback since Mr Inbetween. Picture the cast of Letterkenny trying to escape the wrath of a killer roo that can’t be stopped. If you enjoy some B-rate horror with tons of blood, guts, and a cast of characters built from the horror community on Twitter, look no further. It’s also sort of amazing that this book, which is only the beginning of a series of creature features, all began as a joke on Twitter. See, social media isn’t all politics and people shaming.

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"Fanaticism causes a man to excuse anything in the name of belief. His ends justified his means". Such a strong sequel to a strong debut! Ed Mcdonald shows us how grimdark fantasy can be written beautifully. I love the fact that Ed expanded the world and provide us with a detailed examination on Misery (a wasteland created during the war between the Nameless and the Deep Kings). I noticed that this is lacking in the first book. I also love the fact that Ed explored cultism and fanaticism in this installment. "People will believe what they want to believe. That doesn't make it real". This statement is so relatable especially in this current world where religion is now merely a tool to achieve some personal agendas. Character wise, Ed explored the vulnerability of Ryhalt Galharrow who is now not only haunted by his past, but by the death of a woman he loved. He faced so many losses and sacrificed so much in order to save Valengard. Further, I normally do not appreciate any romance elements in a fantasy series. But in Ravencry, this is an exception. The relationship between Ryhalt and Valiya is so well done and heartbreaking! I also enjoy reading the friendship between Ryhalt and Nenn. It feels so authentic and believable. All in all, for those who enjoy reading grimdark fantasy, you wouldn't want to miss Ed McDonald's Raven's Mark series! Another strong 4.5/5 star read and now moving on to Book 3: Crowfall! #bookstagram #bookreview #edmcdonald #ravencry #grimdark #fantasy #kjreadsfantasy #goodread #bookcollector #booknerd #booklover #bookaddict #bookoholic #beautifulbooks #igread #bookgeek #booksofinstagram #bookish #reading #bookreviews #bookrecommendations

“Corruption doesn’t take root in isolation, it embeds itself where the soil is fertile.” @ed_mcdonald_blackwing_overlord just made it to my list of favorite fantasy authors with this series! To be honest i spent some to get use to Ed's writing style and some of the terms referred to in the book (such as "skweams", "drudge", Spinners, "Darlings" and etc). After getting through the first few chapters, you will basically get an idea of these terms as well as the magic system of the world. Ed is a writer who trusts his readers and just sets out all the elements of the world and magic system right at your face. There's not much info dumping or very detailed examination on the magic system. You just have to get through it and figure it out by yourself throughout the book. After getting a hang of it, you will note that the magic system in this world is very interesting, creative and original! We have Spinners who are able to manipulate light energy into magic, Darlings who are able to control one's mind, Brides who are able to control one's lust and feed on it, the Nameless who are basically godlike wizards and other strange monsters in roaming around Misery (a toxic wasteland). Ed's writing style is also very poetic and at times, lyrical. Some of his quotes in the book just hit me real hard! Moving on to the characters. At first I thought there is not much characterization of the characters as the whole story is told from the POV of Ryhalt Galharrow. But throughout the book we can see that although he is a tough and cruel captain of the Blackwing, he is struggling with his past and has a soft spot for the weak. Ezabeth's character is also very well executed and her powers (she is a very talented Spinner) are so cool! In short, this is a strong debut for @ed_mcdonald_blackwing_overlord and deserves a 4.5/5 star rating. Already immersed myself into the second book of the series (Ravencry) during the lockdown period in Malaysia! #bookreview #gollancz #blackwing #ravenmark #edmcdonald #bookstagram #bookoholic #beautifulbooks #bookcollector #booknerd #booklover #bookaddict #bookgeek #booksofinstagram #igread #bookshelf #bookworm #bookish #reading

This is by far my favourite King novel! Misery is a quick and engaging read. But content wise, it is so deep, well-researched and of course, gruesome. King sets a very high bar for the "psychological horror" genre through Misery. From Paul Sheldon's character (a famous novelist who is kidnapped by his number one fan), we can see his addiction towards drugs (painkillers), his passion towards writing, his mentality when he was trapped by himself and his trauma after the incident. From Annie Wilkes (an ex nurse who is a number one fan of Paul Sheldon), we can see that she suffers from personality disorder, her fury, her mood swings and most importantly, her rage, is super terrifying. There are a few very very disturbing and brutal scenes in this book. King made these scenes so graphic by just using words. Annie's character really made me feel so uncomfortable and disturbed, which is a huge success for an author to be able to create such a character which allows readers to fully immersed into its characterization. Throughout the book, King also shared some of his writing tips through Paul's character when he was forced to write a book specially for Annie. King also used the "story within a story" technique in this book which I think is part of the character development of Paul Sheldon (perhaps to showcase his writing skills). My favourite, would be the last few pages of the book where King is able to describe Paul's PTSD so well with just a few paragraphs. For sure, a solid 5/5 star read! #bookreview #stephenking #bookstagram #bookoholic #beautifulbooks #bookcollector #booknerd #booklover #bookaddict #bookgeek #booksofinstagram #igread #bookshelf #bookworm #bookish #reading #bookreviews #bookrecommendations #misery #hodderandstoughton

The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa is a decently written dystopian novel. The story is set in an island where things around the inhabitants (such as novels, maps, calenders, roses and etc.) will dissappear gradually. The inhabitants will have a feeling when things start to dissappear and they have no choice but to ensure that they do not keep the remains of things that have been disappeared. The Memory Police will be the ones who "enforced" the disappearance of things. In other words, they will ensure that there is no trace of these disappeared things, including the memories of such things. Those who are able to recall or remember the existence of these disappeared things will eventually be caught by the Memory Police. The narrator of this story is a novelist who enjoys writing novels. Hence, there is a story within the story and it brilliantly reflects 2 main aspects of humanity: the main story reflects ADAPTABILITY and the story within the main story reflects RELIANCE. These aspects were seen as weaknesses of humans: we tend to adapt to situations which violates our rights rather than fighting for our rights, we tend to over-rely on resources rather than being independent. Both weaknesses result in the loss of our identity. At least, this is my interpretation of the story. While there are some problems to me (unlike other dystopian novels whereby the focus is more on the world building and the description of society, which I enjoy a lot, this story focuses more on the narrator trying to survive in a depressing and oppressed society), this story still deserves a 4/5 star rating. Also, congratulations for being longlisted in the 2020 International Booker Prize! #thememorypolice #yokoogawa #internationalbooker2020 #bookstagram #bookoholic #beautifulbooks #bookcollector #booknerd #booklover #bookaddict #bookgeek #booksofinstagram #igread #bookshelf #bookworm #bookish #reading #bookreviews #bookrecommendations #dystopia

Finally finished reading the conclusion of the Lightbringer series! I loved it so much but at the same time I am confused with certain parts of the story and its really frustrating. Without a doubt, @androssguile is a master in crafting the characterization of characters. Andross Guile will go down in the fantasy history as one of the best morally grey characters. I am also very satisfied with the conclusion of Teia's character arc. Brent Weeks spent a considerable amount of pages in building up her character and I can feel that she is torn apart mentally in trying to juggle with her position as a double agent. As for the plot of this story, Brent Weeks managed to tie up so many plot threads and answered so many questions that were left hanging in the previous books. Not to mention, he has once again dropped so many revelations and plot twists in this concluding book. However, a major problem to me is that there is too much focus on religion and faith in this book (which I think most readers share the same sentiment) and this causes the first half of the book to be rather slow and draggy. But the second half of the book is just so so epic! I literally cant put down the book with all the battles in different fronts, the strategies and the magic which are happening in the last few hundred pages of the book. It is one of the most impressive final battles that I have read. Even in the last book of the series, the magic system is still expanding. We understand more on the properties of chi luxin, the consequences of drafting chi and the use of drafting chi. However, when it comes to the immortals or the old gods, Brent Weeks seems to accord them with unlimited powers (whereby they can just heal someone with a flick of their hand?) which is a problem to me as it is rather illogical. Despite the problems in this book, it is still a 4.5/5 star read to me. Lightbringer is definitely one of my favourite fantasy series and @androssguile is a fantasy author to look out for! #bookstagram #bookreview #orbitbooks #lightbringer #brentweeks #bookoholic #beautifulbooks #fantasy #kjreadsfantasy #goodread #bookcollector #booknerd #booklover #bookaddict #igread

It seems like everyone is talking about The Sword of Kaigen in 2019 and it was so highly praised. After knowing that it is one of the finalists for the SPFBO competition, I immediately picked it up and fell in love with it! The Sword of Kaigen is a Japanese inspired military fantasy standalone. Its supposed to be the prequel to @mlwangauthor Theonite series but you can totally follow the story of this book without being exposed to her Theonite series. I would say that this book reminds me a lot of Avatar: The Last Airbender whereby the magic system focuses on the control of elements such as water, fire and air. Nevertheless, I still feel that the magic system is rather authentic as ML Wang added her own personal twist to it by allocating a unique technique to each Family. For example, the technique unique to the Matsuda Family is the Whispering Blade (a weapon formed by ice and can cut through anything), and the technique unique to the Tusano Family is Blood manipulation. As for the characters, I enjoyed Misaki's character the most. Her development throughout the book is so engaging and to some extent inspiring. I can sense some feminism concepts being introduced through her characterization (especially her relationship between Misaki and Takeru, her husband) and I personally favoured her Blood manipulation technique. The fighting scenes are so well written in this story. One problem to me is that the climax of the story came too early and ended maybe after the first half of the story. I think this is a personal taste whereby I enjoy reading stories which climaxed at the end rather than the midway of the story. But this does not change the fact that the climax of the story (consists mainly if fighting scenes) were handled so brilliantly. The Sword of Kaigen to me deserves a 4.5/5 star read. Please grab a copy of this and you will not regret it! #bookstagram #bookreview #mlwang #theswordofkaigen #bookoholic #beautifulbooks #fantasy #kjreadsfantasy #goodread #bookcollector #booknerd #booklover #bookaddict #bookgeek #booksofinstagram #igread #bookshelf #bookworm #bookish #reading #bookreviews #bookrecommendations #spfbo5

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