Category: Serena’s Reviews

Serena’s Review: “Eversion”

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Book: “Eversion” by Alastair Reynolds

Publishing Info: Orbit, August 2022

Where Did I Get this Book: from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: From the master of the space opera, Alastair Reynolds, comes a dark, mind-bending SF adventure spread across time and space, Doctor Silas Coade has been tasked with keeping his crew safe as they adventure across the galaxy in search of a mysterious artifact, but as things keep going wrong, Silas soon realizes that something more sinister is at work, and this may not even be the first time it’s happened.

In the 1800s, a sailing ship crashes off the coast of Norway. In the 1900s, a Zepellin explores an icy canyon in Antarctica. In the far future, a spaceship sets out for an alien artifact. Each excursion goes horribly wrong. And on every journey, Dr. Silas Coade is the physician, but only Silas seems to realize that these events keep repeating themselves. And it’s up to him to figure out why and how. And how to stop it all from happening again.

Review: I received an ARC of this book in the mail this month, and it really couldn’t have been more timely! While I love science fiction, of the genres I read, I probably know the fewest authors in this genres who are currently writing. It’s also a sweeping genre full of a lot of different types of stories, some of which appeal to me more than others. But I had heard good things about Reynolds in the past, and this story also seemed like an interesting combination of genres, including historical fiction and mystery/thrillers alongside the obvious science fiction. And man, what a pleasant surprise it was!

Doctor Silas Coates set out on what, for him, should have been a fairly straight forward job: to serve as the on-board doctor on an exploratory mission. The ship and crew have been hired to discover and research a mysterious foreign object located in the deepest, darker corners of the known world. But as the mission progresses, Silas begins to suspect that not only does he know very little about the nature of this mission, but that something greater is at work. Increasingly, what could at first be hand-waved as deja vu begins to feel like something more. As if…perhaps…he’s done this all before.

If my description of this book sounds vague (as does the official one), that’s because this is one of those great, but frustrating to review, books where much of the appeal and tension of the book is built around the mysteries at the heart of the story. That being the case, there’s not a whole lot that I can talk about that wouldn’t spoil some of the best aspects of the entire reading experience. I can say that while a primary mystery is at the heart of the story, there were definitely more than one to be found. In fact, the minute you think you’ve begun to piece together exactly what’s going on, the book would skip away, revealing yet another secret beneath the last. This made the reading experience incredibly fun and addictive; I definitely stayed up way to late finishing the book as it was almost physically impossible to put it down past a certain point.

There was also a great blend of historical fiction and science fiction. At various points in the book you could get lost on the page and feel as if you were fully immersed in a period piece following an old time sailing ship. At another, the ins and outs of space exploration and advanced technology take center stage. And the solid writing transitions smoothly from one scene and setting to another, never missing a step.

Silas was also an excellent main character. We feel his bewilderment and increasing fear as the story builds. But it’s his steadfast commitment to his job and his dedication to the friendships he has begun to build on this mission that really hold the story together. As he remains the only consistent aspect of the story, as a character, a lot is riding on his shoulders, and I thought he carried it well. I, for one, had a hard time not skipping ahead to the end of the book just to make sure everything worked out for him in the end. Something I can neither confirm nor deny!

The book was also a lot spookier than I had expected going in. Not only was the building tension of the entire situation incredibly stressful, but there were some significant fear factors involved in the story. The unknown, of course. But also claustrophobia, body horror, and the general fear of the strange and bizarre. That said, it’s definitely not a horror novel, and I found the scary aspects to be balanced well by the more sentimental moments.

Overall, I really liked this book! It was a fun, fast read that held more than one surprise at the heart of the story. You’ll be left guessing and frantically turning pages all through the night!

Rating 9: All the things: historical! thriller! science fiction! horror! And all at a clipping pace that will leave you breathless with anticipation.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Eversion” can be found on this Goodreads list: Science fiction & fantasy roundup, 2022

Serena’s Review: “Death at the Manor”

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Book: “Death at the Manor” by Katharine Schellman

Publishing Info: Crooked Lane Books, August 2022

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Regency widow Lily Adler is looking forward to spending the autumn away from the social whirl of London society. When she arrives in Hampshire with her friends, Lord and Lady Carroway, she doesn’t expect much more than a quiet country visit and the chance to spend time with her charming new acquaintance, Matthew Spencer.

But something odd is afoot in the small country village. A ghost has taken up residence in the Belleford manor, a lady in grey who wanders the halls at night, weeping and wailing. Half the servants have left in terror, but the family is delighted with the notoriety that their ghost provides. Piqued by this spectral guest, Lily and her party immediately make plans to visit Belleford.

They arrive at the manor the next morning ready to be entertained—but tragedy has struck. The matriarch of the family has just been found smothered to death in her bed.

There was no one else in her room, and the door was locked from the inside. The dead woman’s family is convinced that the ghost is responsible. The servants are keeping secrets. The local magistrate is flummoxed. Lily is determined to learn the truth before another victim turns up—but could she be next in line for the Great Beyond?

Previously Reviewed: “The Body in the Garden” and “Silence in the Library”

Review: I’ve really been enjoying this historical mystery series. There are a few others I’ve been reading recently, but they’ve all featured a heroine/hero combination that, while enjoyable, begins to feel familiar very quickly. This book stands out not only with Lily serving as the primary detective herself, but in the fact that her cast of supporting characters not only includes, yes, the hero character, but also some of her fellow lady friends. This has allowed the series to remain feeling fresh and unique as compared to contemporaries. So, of course, when I saw the new one coming out this summer, I was on top of things!

Lily Adler’s friend, Captain Jack, is heading back to sea. And while he is glad to be returning to his beloved ship, he worries that Lily has had quite the penchant for stumbling upon dead bodies recently. She, however, assures him that she will be heading to the country to spend time with her dear aunt. What body could possibly be found in these circumstances? Alas, Jack’s worries are all too astute. For Lily, accompanied by her friend Lady Carroway, not only stumbles upon another murder victim, but the primary suspect is none other than a manor house ghost. But when Lily stumbles upon some revelations she had never suspected, she begins to question her own abilities. Will she be able to solve yet another mystery?

So, unfortunately, this book didn’t quite live up to my expectations for it. Admittedly, they were quite high, so the book was by no means objectively bad. Just not as good as the two that came before. But first, there are a few things that definitely stood out in the positive category. For one, I liked Lily’s struggles with her own limitations. Up to this point, while Lily has struggled to garner the respect from her peers for her observational skills, she’s never suffered from any great crisis of faith in herself. Here, after a secret that has been sitting right under her nose for years finally comes to light, Lily must grapple with her own limitations and biases. It’s a great internal arch for the character, and one that you rarely see in detective mysteries such as this that rely on their main character’s almost supernatural ability to know all.

I also liked the addition of Lady Carroway. While we’ve seen the character quite a bit in other books, here, she is allowed a few of her own chapters and perspectives. These were excellent on their own, but also worked well as a balance point to Lily’s ongoing internal struggles. Lady Carroway has a very different view of society, both because of the challenges she faced as a biracial noblewoman, but also because of her differing temperament. Their friendship is not without its own ups and downs, and I liked this more honest depiction of female friendships, one where the waters are not always smooth.

I also liked the nods to the gothic novels that were popular during this period of time. This was a fun theme to explore in the story, and served as a nice change of pace from the more straight-forward murder mysteries at the heart of the previous two books.

That said, there are two major points where the book struggled, in my opinion. One of them is more subjective than the other, so let’s start with that one. One of the nice things about these books so far has been the very, very slow burn of any romance that may (or may not) be developing between Lily and Jack. On one hand, I very much like this. But on the other, when it became clear that Jack was going to cede his position in this book to Matthew Spencer, a gentleman who was introduced as a potential romantic interest in the previous book, I have to say I was a bit disappointed. I just couldn’t become invested in this character or this romance. It does seem like this might be setting the stage for Lily’s slow growth through her grief over her husband. And, objectively, the decision for her to not necessarily jump from one “great love” to another but instead have other interests between makes sense. But as a reader, I just spent most of the time missing Jack and rolling my eyes at Lily’s obtuseness (at least I had Lady Carroway right there with me on #TeamJack).

My second problem, sadly, came with the mystery itself. Because I don’t want to spoil it, there’s not a whole lot I can go into as far as details. It’s a closed-door mystery, so that lays out the stakes well enough right there. However, I found the way in which the murder took place incredibly obvious from the very first inspection of the murder scene. What’s worse, later in the book, Lily happens upon a particular happenstance in this same locked room that even more clearly illustrates the solution. And it still didn’t click! It was so blatantly obvious that it had the unfortunate effect of making Lily’s obliviousness increasingly at odds with her reputation for solving complicated mysteries. I also was able to identify the killer and a decent portion of their motivations fairly early, too. All in all, while I still enjoyed the process of reading about this mystery, it was incredibly anticlimactic given some of the obvious clues and red herrings.

However, I still very much enjoyed Lily as a character. And I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of viewpoints from Lady Harroway herself. So, in conclusion, this book was a bit hit and miss. I still think the writing is strong, and Lily’s long term arch holds a lot of potential. Fans of the previous books will likely enjoy this one, but be warned that the mystery was not as compelling as previous entries.

Rating 7: Has a bit of a “middle book” feel to it with a lackluster mystery at its heart, but Lily herself is still an interesting enough character on her own to carry the story.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Death at the Manor” can be found on this Goodreads list: Historical Mystery 2022

Serena’s Reivew: “The Monsters We Defy”

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Book: “The Monsters We Defy” by Leslye Penelope

Publishing Info: Orbit, August 2022

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Washington D. C., 1925

Clara Johnson talks to spirits, a gift that saved her during her darkest moments in a Washington D. C. jail. Now a curse that’s left her indebted to the cunning spirit world. So, when the Empress, the powerful spirit who holds her debt, offers her an opportunity to gain her freedom, a desperate Clara seizes the chance. The task: steal a magical ring from the wealthiest woman in the District.

Clara can’t pull off this daring heist alone. She’ll need help from an unlikely team, from a jazz musician capable of hypnotizing with a melody to an aging vaudeville actor who can change his face, to pull off the impossible. But as they encounter increasingly difficult obstacles, a dangerous spirit interferes at every turn. Conflict in the spirit world is leaking into the human one and along D.C’.s legendary Black Broadway, a mystery unfolds—one that not only has repercussions for Clara but all of the city’s residents.

Review: I was super excited when I received a copy of this book from the publisher. Not only is the cover very eye-catching, but it looks to be covering a unique time period and perspective for historical fantasy. I’ve read a million and one Regency fantasy novels (not that I’m complaining, I’ve read three excellent ones just this summer!), but it’s always refreshing to see authors pushing the boundaries on what we expect from this particular sub-genre. On the other hand, heists with a quirky group of people has also been done to death. So….I let’s see what this book had to offer!

Anyone pestered by spirits would be a little testy. And Clara, cursed/gifted with this ability for her entire life, has only barely begun to reign in her fiery temper. But she can’t stop herself from getting involved when people begin to act strangely and then go missing. Together with a band of other magically-afflicted individuals, Clara must work to pull off a heist to steal a magical ring. But the spirits won’t go easy, and they all will need to band together to pull of this feat!

I’ve read several other books by this author before, but they’ve all been second world fantasy, complete with magic systems and long, epic histories of warring gods. So I was curious to see how she would handle this change of pace. However, it is always a bit steadying to go into a new book knowing that, at the very least, the author has the writing chops to pull of her story. Whether this change in subgenre would work or not, I knew that Penelope would craft a well-told, descriptive story. And I was definitely right about that! I really enjoyed this version of Washington, D.C. in the 1920s that she imagined. There was enough recognizable history and culture to center the reader in the setting, but the introduction of magic and cultural folktales layered over it all to bring us something fresh and new.

Clara herself was an excellent character. I enjoyed her spirit (ha, bad pun) and determination to break through all of the barriers placed before her. But as this is a heist story, we, of course, also have a band of other players to follow as well. Penelope did a good job of laying out each of their histories and motivations in such a way that, for the most part, I felt invested in all of their individual outcomes. I will say, my initial reaction to large casts of characters is typically hesitance, as it’s not my preferred reading style. So while I personally wasn’t blown away by all of these characters, the author did a better job than most in introducing them and using them in such a way as to retain my interest.

The author includes an excellent note at the end about the history of the young woman who served as an inspiration for Clara (a young black woman who spent two years in prison for manslaughter after killing a policeman who enter her home and began shooting). She also explains her use of African American folktales through out the story. It was clear that this book was well-researched, and I think it was an exciting new entry of historical fantasy fiction, which, all too often, can begin to blend together with similar-sounding stories.

I’m running a giveaway for an ARC of this book, so don’t for get to enter! The giveaway is open to U.S. residents only and ends Aug. 31.

Enter to win!

Rating 8: A fresh, new historical fantasy story that introduces an excellent cast of characters and highlights African American folklore.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Monsters We Defy” is on this Goodreads list: Can’t Wait Sci-Fi/Fantasy of 2022.

Giveaway: “The Monsters We Defy”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “The Monsters We Defy” by Leslye Penelope

Publishing Info: Orbit, August 2022

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Washington D. C., 1925

Clara Johnson talks to spirits, a gift that saved her during her darkest moments in a Washington D. C. jail. Now a curse that’s left her indebted to the cunning spirit world. So, when the Empress, the powerful spirit who holds her debt, offers her an opportunity to gain her freedom, a desperate Clara seizes the chance. The task: steal a magical ring from the wealthiest woman in the District.

Clara can’t pull off this daring heist alone. She’ll need help from an unlikely team, from a jazz musician capable of hypnotizing with a melody to an aging vaudeville actor who can change his face, to pull off the impossible. But as they encounter increasingly difficult obstacles, a dangerous spirit interferes at every turn. Conflict in the spirit world is leaking into the human one and along D.C’.s legendary Black Broadway, a mystery unfolds—one that not only has repercussions for Clara but all of the city’s residents.

Giveaway Details:

I was super excited when I received a copy of this book from the publisher. Not only is the cover very eye-catching, but it looks to be covering a unique time period and perspective for historical fantasy. I’ve read a million and one Regency fantasy novels (not that I’m complaining, I’ve read three excellent ones just this summer!), but it’s always refreshing to see authors pushing the boundaries on what we expect from this particular sub-genre. On the other hand, heists with a quirky group of people has also been done to death. So….I guess we’ll have to see what this book has to offer!

This is another pen name for the author L. Penelope. I’ve read a decent number of her books in the past, and have reviewed some of them here (“Song of Blood and Stone”, “Whispers of Shadow and Flame”, and “Cry of Metal and Bone”). She’s a solid fantasy author who also writes excellent romances into her stories. All of the books I’ve listed above were set in a fictional world, so I’m also excited to see what she can do with a historical book.

Per the usual, my review for this book will be up Friday. But don’t wait until then to get in on the chance to win a copy of this book! This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only and will end on August 31.

Enter to win!

Serena’s Review: “Longshadow”

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Book: “Longshadow” by Olivia Atwater

Publishing Info: Orbit, August 2022

Where Did I Get this Book: from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: The marriageable young ladies of London are dying mysteriously, and Abigail Wilder intends to discover why. Abigail’s father, the Lord Sorcier of England, believes that a dark lord of faerie is involved – but while Abigail is willing to match her magic against Lord Longshadow, neither her father nor high society believe that she is capable of doing so.

Thankfully, Abigail is not the only one investigating the terrible events in London. Mercy, a street rat and self-taught magician, insists on joining Abigail to unravel the mystery. But while Mercy’s own magic is strange and foreboding, she may well post an even greater danger to Abigail’s heart.

Review: I’ve been having a blast this summer working my way through Atwater’s historical fantasy romances. I was so blown away by “Half a Soul,” and then the follow-up, “Ten Thousand Stitches,” was just as fun. That being the case, I wasted no time in picking up this book once my ARC arrived. And, while it probably is my least favorite of the three, it was still a solid, fun read.

Abigail has never felt a keen interest in dancing with the gentlemen at the various balls and parties she attends with her family. However, she recognizes that it holds appeal for many of the other marriable young ladies. But then those same ladies begin to mysteriously die, and Abigail discovers that while dancing may not be her thing, solving a murder mystery sure seems to be. When she teams up with self-taught magician who comes from a very different rung of society, Abigail begins to understand that she may not know herself as well as she thought.

Much of the appeal from the first two books was present again here. The writing was fun, clear, and fast moving (even if the plot was less so at times). In a word, these books have all been very “readable.” It was also a blast getting to see several of the characters from the first two books as well. I love it when authors manage to write stand alone stories but then weave in familiar faces in follow-up works. You get the returning-faces-appeal of sequels without having to forfeit a new main character and new overall story. It was nice to see these characters, but the balance was also appropriate, as it remained Abigail and Mercy’s story throughout.

However, didn’t find myself quite as attached to either of these characters as I did the ones in the first two books. I think in some ways this was just my own preference for the type of characters/romances that I most enjoy. The first book, especially, had the exact sort of romance I love. Here, while I enjoyed the uniqueness of Mercy and Abigail’s story, I didn’t find myself swept away by their romantic arc. Mercy had a few reveals later on that added to her story, but overall, she wasn’t the sort of love interest that I most enjoy.

I did like the murder mystery, overall. This definitely falls over several of my preferred genres. But again, here, I found the pacing of the story and mystery to be a bit more off than in the first two books. The story takes a decent amount of time to really get going. And by the time we get to the reveals around the mystery, it begins to highlight the fact that for the reader, the mystery was pretty much unsolvable. Again, there’s a delicate balance to be found between making a mystery so obvious that the reader immediately guesses the solution before the sleuth themselves does, and going to far the other way, where the mystery is totally unsolvable on its own.

Overall, this book delivered on much of what I expected from it: a fun story, a slow-burn romance, and a lovely balance of fantasy and history. That said, it’s probably my least favorite of the three. But fans of the first two will likely still enjoy this one and should definitely give it a go!

Rating 8: A bit slower than the first two books, but still a fun beach read that is sure to be a hit, especially for those looking for a sapphic love story in historical fiction.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Longshadow” isn’t on any Goodreads lists yet, but, like the others, it should be on Regency Fantasy Books.

Serena’s Review: “The Drowned Woods”

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Book: “The Drowned Woods” by Emily Lloyd-Jones

Publishing Info: Little Brown Books for Young Readers, August 2022

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Once upon a time, the kingdoms of Wales were rife with magic and conflict, and eighteen-year-old Mererid “Mer” is well-acquainted with both. She is the last living water diviner and has spent years running from the prince who bound her into his service. Under the prince’s orders, she located the wells of his enemies, and he poisoned them without her knowledge, causing hundreds of deaths. After discovering what he had done, Mer went to great lengths to disappear from his reach. Then Mer’s old handler returns with a proposition: use her powers to bring down the very prince that abused them both.

The best way to do that is to destroy the magical well that keeps the prince’s lands safe. With a motley crew of allies, including a fae-cursed young man, the lady of thieves, and a corgi that may or may not be a spy, Mer may finally be able to steal precious freedom and peace for herself. After all, a person with a knife is one thing…but a person with a cause can topple kingdoms.

Review: I absolutely loved “The Bone Houses” when it came out a few years ago. Ever since, I’ve been practically stalking the author on Goodreads to see when she’d be releasing another book. So, it’s no surprise that when this one came up on Edelweiss+, I immediately requested it and devoured it. And now, I guess I’m back to the stalking??

With great power comes great responsibility, and all of that. So when Mer discovers the prince has been using her water powers to locate enemy wells and poison them to kill civilians, she makes herself scarce. Now, having lived in the shadows, disappearing from place to place, her long-ago handler has tracked her down with a proposition: a dangerous mission, but one that could cripple the prince and his power for good. Alongside a young man with incredible fighting abilities and some connection to the Fae and a strange little corgi who could be a spy, Mer sets off to topple a kingdom.

There was a lot to love about this book! I will say, it took me a bit longer to find myself fully drawn into this story, but I think part of the reason for that is this felt like a more serious story. Not to say it wasn’t an enjoyable read, but all of the characters we meet immediately held the weight of long personal histories that still burdened them. This left them all with incredible story arcs, but the story required a bit more time invested before you fully begin to feel pulled into the story. But once there, everything was amazing. The writing is also so solid that any slow start is immediately counterbalanced by the sheer joy of reading the prose.

The author described this book as “Welsh Atlantis” at one point, and what a cool idea that was! Apparently, there is some myth of a land that used to exist off Wales but was subsumed under the waves by the mistake of a young woman and her water magic. This story is that myth but told from the perspective of the water mage. Mer was an incredible character, and the more we learn about her tragic history of betrayal after betrayal, the more we understand the slow work it is for her to trust again. I also really liked her magic. When you hear “water magic” there are some pretty obvious examples that come to mind. But while those are included, the author was also so creative with how this ability could be used in other devastating ways.

Fane was also an excellent character. Again, his fighting magic could have been an overly familiar fantasy trope, but instead the author created unique boundaries and limits on how it could be used and the price it cost Fane. His story also slowly revealed the truths of his history and his own motivations and goals moving forward. There were a couple of surprises that I definitely didn’t see coming with his role in the story.

There were two romances in this book, one was a romance of the past between Mer and an heir to the thieves guild. And then the other was the slow-burn between the Mer of the current day with Fane. Both were lovely in their own right, and I enjoyed how Mer’s experiences with her first love shaped how her feelings developed for Fane.

This book will definitely satisfy those who enjoyed “The Bone Houses,” even if it was a bit slower of a read. The epilogue, especially, had some nice connections laid out between this story and that. Though it is no way necessary to have read that book before tis one. Fantasy fans, especially those looking for a solid stand-alone story based on myth, should definitely check this one out!

Rating 9: Definitely a favorite for the year, this story pulls together everything I like: a mythical fantasy story, a slow-burn romance, and excellent character-driven arcs.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Drowned Woods” is mostly on on rather boring Goodreads lists like this one YA Releases August 2022.

Serena’s Review: “Wildbound”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here

Book: “Wildbound” by Elayne Audrey Becker

Publishing Info: Tor Teen, August 2022

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: With the assassination of Telyan’s king, the time for peace has passed.

Determined to make up for his failure to procure the stardust, Helos finds work as a healer at Fendolyn’s Keep, the military garrison to which Telyan’s exiled royals–and half its civilians–have fled. Racing against the Fallow Throes’ ticking clock, he endeavors to repair his relationship with Prince Finley and fight off the gathering shadows in his head, as the base around him prepares for war.

Half a continent away, his sister Rora is doing everything she can to reawaken the land and end Eradain’s slaughter of magical beings. Still reeling from the revelation that Eradain’s violent monarch is her half-brother, she journeys to the kingdom determined to infiltrate his court in disguise–and finds the seeds of rebellion are already stirring.

With a magical illness running rampant and the continent arming for battle, the three realms’ long-feared destruction seems inevitable. But the two shifters they believed would bring about Alemara’s ruin may in fact hold the key to its survival.

Previously Reviewed: “Forestborn”

Review: This book has been on my “most anticipated” list pretty much from the minute I finished the first book, “Forestborn.” It was a surprise read for me, as I went in with very few expectations. But now the situation is reversed, and I had tons of expectations for greatness when I picked this one up. And, while it didn’t quite reach the highs of the first book, it definitely didn’t let me down. Let’s get into the review.

The two shifters, prophesied to bring death to the land years ago, have been separated. Rora has gone north to try and gather intel and help form a resistance to the tyrannical leader (who happens to be their half brother) who is trying stamp magic out of the land. For his part, Helos is eager to return to his work as a healer. But soon enough he finds that he is unable to so easily slip back into his quiet life. Instead, with the knowledge that he and his sister are potentially in line for the throne in the north, Helos is beginning to see a very different future for himself.

I was a little hesitant when I opened this book and realized the POV was split between Rora and Helos. For one thing, I was very happy in my single-POV perspective in the last book. And for another thing, in that book at least, Helos was kind of an unreasonable grump who I didn’t foresee needing tons of time with going forward. But I’m happy to say that I was proven wrong! Not only were Helos’s chapters very good, but as it stands, Rora’s own story was so simple that this book couldn’t have existed if it had focused only on her events. Frankly, there were a few times when I felt the story lagged due to the slowness of her storyline.

For his part, Helos’s story focuses a lot on inner growth. Not only does he need to process the torture that he underwent in the first book, but we also see his struggles with finding a place for himself in the world. Where Rora was already comfortably working for the royal family, Helos was always floating in a more mixed role, working as a healer but also deeply in love with the youngest prince. On top of that, here he is beginning to come to grips with a future as a monarch himself. His story is very much one of having to find balance and a way forward when you have two extremes with regards to helping others: on one hand, a healer literally touches the people and provides care, and this can be incredibly rewarding. But is there a responsibility to take on the role of leader to help the greater good, even if that means a loss of the instant gratification that comes from being a healer? It’s all very good stuff and I think handled in a way that acknowledges the intricacies of these types of choices.

As I said, Rora’s story, unfortunately, is where the pacing of the book got held up. And the reason this book’s rating had to drop a bit for me from the first book’s place. Her story feels both very fragmented, with her jumping from one group and mission to a different group and mission and again with very little natural transition. Beyond that, she doesn’t have much of a personal arch, which just makes her story a bit harder to become truly invested in.

That said, I was still much more interested in Rora and Wes’s romance than in Helos and Finley. Even spending more time with Finley here, I couldn’t shake my impression that he came across very much as a “manic pixie dream boy,” without much true personality to come by, other than being this perfect, charismatic bean. Which, frankly, I’m just not that interested in. And then, due to the nature of the story, Rora and Wes are apart for much of the book. I kept anxiously awaiting them to be reunited, and it was completely worth it in the end. But I do think this long delayed reunion contributed to my struggles with the pacing of the book in the first half of the book.

Ultimately, I did find this book to be a good conclusion to the duology and a solid read on its own. I don’t think it quite lived up to the high of the first book, but it definitely didn’t detract from that in any way. And it did resolve and nicely tie up the loose heads left hanging from that book. Also, I still love the romance between Rora and Wes, and the payoff there was well worth the wait. Fans of the first book should definitely check out this conclusion!

Rating 8: The pacing stumbled a bit and Rora’s own character lacked a direct arch, but I enjoyed Helos’s story a lot more than I expected and the romance was still on point!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Wildbound” can be found on this Goodreads list: YA Novels of 2022

Serena’s Review: “Soul Taken”

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Book: “Soul Taken” by Patricia Briggs

Publishing Info: Ace, August 2022

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: The vampire Wulfe is missing. Since he’s deadly, possibly insane, and his current idea of “fun” is stalking Mercy, some may see it as no great loss. But when he disappears, the Tri-Cities pack is blamed. The mistress of the vampire seethe informs Mercy that the pack must produce Wulfe to prove their innocence, or the loose alliance between the local vampires and werewolves is over.

So Mercy goes out to find her stalker—and discovers more than just Wulfe have disappeared. Someone is taking people from locked rooms, from the aisles of stores, and even from crowded parties. And these are not just ordinary people but supernatural beings. Until Wulfe vanished, all of them were powerless loners, many of whom quietly moved to the Tri-Cities in the hope that the safety promised by Mercy and Adam’s pack would extend to them as well.

Who is taking them? As Mercy investigates, she learns of the legend of the Harvester, who travels by less-trodden paths and reaps the souls that are ripe with a great black scythe. . . .

Previously Reviewed: “Moon Called,” “Blood Bound,” “Iron Kissed,” “Bone Crossed,” “Silver Borne,” “River Marked,” “Frost Burned,”and “Night Broken” , “Fire Touched” , “Silence Fallen”,  “Storm Cursed” and “Smoke Bitten”

Review: I’m always happy when I see another “Mercy Thomson” book coming my way. I’ve always preferred this series to the “Alpha and Omega” companion series, and it’s been running on a high note for the last few books. Plus, I’m really getting pretty desperate about my urban fantasy situation. I’ve tried out a few things here and there, but how many of those reviews have you seen on this blog? Yeah…I think that says it all. Anyways, on to my tried and true!

Something is going on with the vampires. A sentence no one wants to hear, especially not Mercy and her pack of werewolves who are responsible for the lives of everyone in the Tri City area. The powerful and eccentric vampire, Wulfe, is missing and his mistress is also behaving strangely, tasking Mercy to find her lost vampire. At the same time, an urban legend of a powerful, dangerous weapon wielded by a being called the Harvester is beginning to sound like a bit more than a myth. On top of that, secrets in the pack are coming to a head. All just in another day for Mercy Thompson!

I really liked this entry into the Mercy Thompson series. For one thing, I was glad to see that we, again, experienced the book through Mercy’s eyes, with only a few the interruptions of chapters from Adam’s perspective. While there wasn’t a lot of character growth for either main character or changes in their relationship, this is hardly surprising considering we’re on, what, the 13th book? There was a bit of discussion around the continuing challenges of the secondary, beast form that Adam has been cursed with. I liked some of the exploration around this form being an extension of long-repressed PTSD from his time as a soldier before he became a werewolf.

For Mercy’s part, we see her continue to grapple with her understanding of her mentor/quasi-father figure, Zee, a powerful Fae being. The mystery of this book dives deeply into Zee’s own past, and we see Mercy again have to confront the darker sides of her friends. As she spends most of her time surrounded by “monsters,” this type of grappling with finding the good in beings who, in some form or another, routinely deal with death, has always been a compelling part of the story.

Beyond Zee’s story, we also get more background into Bran and his family. I was still left wanting a bit more here, but it’s always interesting when we can add layers on top of this complicated character and his sprawling history as the leader of the werewolves. Mostly, however, the book focused in on the history of the vampires we know well: Marsilia, Stephen, and, most especially, Wulfe. There was a lot of great history to be found here, and I really liked how their story was tied into the other mystery of the Harvester and how that had become an urban legend in the first place.

For everyone who enjoys this series, this was definitely a solid entry. It doesn’t advance Mercy’s own story in any significant ways, but it also continues the tradition of finding clever ways to use her shifter affinity with death magic to solve otherwise impossible situations. We also got a good amount of information about the vampires and their twisted histories and relationships. Fans of the series will likely be very happy with this one.

Rating 8: A clever use of Mercy’s magic, a nice addition to the lore of this world, and a fun story all around!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Soul Taken” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Most Anticipated PNR 2022 and Trickster Gods.

Serena’s Review: “The Wonder Engine”

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Book: “The Wonder Engine” by T. Kingfisher

Publishing Info: Argyll Productions, March 2018

Where Did I Get this Book: from the library!

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: Pull three people out of prison–a disgraced paladin, a convicted forger, and a heartless assassin. Give them weapons, carnivorous tattoos, and each other. Point them at the enemy.

What could possibly go wrong?

In the sequel to CLOCKWORK BOYS, Slate, Brenner, Caliban and Learned Edmund have arrived in Anuket City, the source of the mysterious Clockwork Boys. But the secrets they’re keeping could well destroy them, before the city even gets the chance…

Previously Reviewed: “Clockwork Boys”

Review: So, I actually read these books pretty much back to back. But, due to blog scheduling and wanting to get more timely releases out during the month they were published, here we are about a few months later with this review. Before getting into anything else, I will say that I recommend all readers of this duology to read the books this way, one after another. They’re both short and, all things considered, they read better as a longer, single story than as two separate works.

The journey to Anuket City was fraught with peril. Frankly, Slate didn’t think she and her band of criminals were even going to make it. Which was part of the reason she agreed to go. But now they’ve arrived, Slate must not only deal with the ruthless crime boss who’s out for her head, but she and the others still must discover the source of the powerful Clockwork Boys. On top of all of this, Slate isn’t quite sure what to do with her increasing feelings for the proud and proper paladin, Caliban.

Given that I already stated that I think these two books should be read as one, and the fact that I rated the first book fairly high, it’s probably no surprise that I enjoyed this second book. After some of the events of the first book (and, honestly, the title itself??), I felt like the mystery to the creation of the Clockwork Boys was pretty obvious, however. There were a few other surprises along the way, but I feel like the astute reader will be able to predict most of them. The way they all worked together, however, I thought was interesting. Most of these reveals also drove character growth in our two main characters, so I think they were largely successful.

The reveal regarding Slate’s history with the city was, perhaps, a bit underwhelming as a hole. But again, when her past caught up to her, there were a good number of exciting action sequences, as well as some self-reflection on her part. When the duology began, Slate was very cavalier with her own life, seeming resigned, almost eager, for her own death. Here, she not only has to come to terms with the fact that she does want to live, but that she may need to change the way she has been living as well (though not so much as to give up forgery!).

For his part, Caliban has been dealing with a crisis of faith, a loss of belief in not only himself but the emptiness in his being where his god has resided. But during their time in Anuket City, Caliban begins to once again find the value in himself and the unique abilities that he still brings to the world. At times, these are cruel, harsh choices. So his worth is not only in being able to commit challenging acts but in shouldering the weight of decisions other may have crumpled beneath.

I also really liked the romance that develops between Slate and Caliban. They are both adults with full lives behind them. This means they bring their own baggage to any potential relationship. But it also means they have to learn to bend again, to understand what compromises they are willing to make to slot their own lives in alongside another.

This was a really fun book (both this and the first one). It was action-packed and read so quickly! I finished this second book up in two sessions, and probably could have done one, but for the pesky children in my house. Fans of T. Kingfisher’s work will definitely enjoy this. And anyone looking for a fun, light fantasy read should check this out!

Rating 8: Some of the twists were a bit too easy to predict, but the fun and heart of the story make it well worth the read!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Wonder Engine” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Speculative Fiction Heist/Caper Stories and Indie Authors Everybody Should Read.

Serena’s Review: “Fevered Star”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Fevered Star” by Rebecca Roanhorse

Publishing Info: Saga Press, April 2022

Where Did I Get this Book: audiobook from the library!

Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat

Book Description: The great city of Tova is shattered. The sun is held within the smothering grip of the Crow God’s eclipse, but a comet that marks the death of a ruler and heralds the rise of a new order is imminent.

The Meridian: a land where magic has been codified and the worship of gods suppressed. How do you live when legends come to life, and the faith you had is rewarded?

As sea captain Xiala is swept up in the chaos and currents of change, she finds an unexpected ally in the former Priest of Knives. For the Clan Matriarchs of Tova, tense alliances form as far-flung enemies gather and the war in the heavens is reflected upon the earth.

And for Serapio and Naranpa, both now living avatars, the struggle for free will and personhood in the face of destiny rages. How will Serapio stay human when he is steeped in prophecy and surrounded by those who desire only his power? Is there a future for Naranpa in a transformed Tova without her total destruction?

Previously Reviewed: “Black Sun”

Review: This one came out a few months ago, obviously, so it’s probably a bit surprising it took me this long to get to this. I loved the heck out of “Black Sun,” but I had a good reason for my delay! I listened to the original book as an audiobook with an excellent full cast of readers and I couldn’t bare to give up the opportunity of experiencing this book in the same format. Given the immense waitlist for the library’s audiobook copy, I wasn’t the only one with this plan. So here we are, months after its release, finally getting to this one!

The order of the last several centuries came smashing down in one violence-filled day. Now, gods walk the Earth and powerful forces vie to fill the void in power left after the destruction of Sun Priest and her order. But she has not gone. Instead, Naranpa finds herself filled with a powerful force of light, the dimetric opposition to Serapio’s Crow god and the enforced shadow over the sun. Xiala, adrift in the city, works to find her way back to Serapio after learning he survived what he thought was a suicide mission. But soon she, too, is caught up in forces more powerful than herself, and slowly she begins to understand that her past and future are fast heading towards a calamitous intersection.

So, it’s no surprise that I very much enjoyed this book. True, it did suffer a bit from “second book syndrome,” but we’ll get to that after we go through all the pros. For one thing, it’s always hard to start up a second book in a fantasy series one whole year after reading the first. There’s always a lot to catch up on. But Roanhorse does an excellent job of recapping the events of the first book without resorting to paragraphs of exposition. One way that she does this is by reintroducing the story in the first few chapters from characters who, while present in the first book, were definitely slotted to the second tier. Through their eyes, we see the cataclysmic events that occurred when Serapio called upon the Crow God and destroyed the priesthood.

I will say, that while I enjoyed getting more of an inside look into these other players and their interpretations of what is going on (as well as more and more layers involved in whose plan is really being followed here), I did miss getting to spend as much time with our initial three characters. Of them all, Naranpa definitely has the most storyline in this book. We see her not only have to come to grips with the presence of a godly power within her body, but we see her struggles to redefine her place in the world. The priesthood is gone, and her brother, a leader of the underworld of the city, has plans for her. Her journey is one of self-definition and, eventually, the realization that her vision of the future and the world is what made her unique as the high priestess, and it may be what is needed now.

Sadly, we see very little of Serapio. Mostly, he’s the man who wasn’t meant to live, and now that he finds himself occupying a time past the point of his own imagination, he, too, must redefine his own path. But for both Serapio and Naranpa, they are the avatars of gods with their own plans. So we see the struggle they each must balance between their own sense of duty and the futures they see outside of what their gods may have in mind.

We do get a fair amount from Xiala, which is great since she was my favorite character from the first book. But her story is really where we see the pitfalls of the second book thing coming into play. The biggest flaw of the book is that much of the story is window dressing (excellent and fascinating, but still window dressing) for getting our main character from one point to another point from which book three will surely jump forward. Xiala’s story is literally this: she spends 90% of the book travelling from point A to point B, all of it driven by factors around her and characters making decisions that force her hand. This leaves her in a very passive role, spending much of her time wishing she could reunite with and help Serapio and the rest of the time avoiding her past. Her story does pick up a bit towards the end, and I was pleased to find out more about what exactly happened to Xiala that left her an exile of her own people.

As I mentioned above, the story added a lot of layers of intrigue and shadowy players who have been moving pieces around in the background and only now are coming into the light. Honestly, I’m not sure I was able to fully keep track of it all. But I was having such a blast anyways that I didn’t really mind. This will likely be one of those things that will come down to retrospect: does the third book pull this all together in a way that makes this book more clear in hindsight? Or did I actually miss important things here, which might mean there was a slight lack of clarity here. Either way, I’m fully on board for book two and am very excited to see where our characters go from here. I do hope that Serapio and Xiala can be reunited though. My poor romantic heart was very sad to see zero scenes of them together in this book. Alas. Anyways, fans of the first book will surely be pleased with this one and should definitely check it out if they haven’t already!

Rating 9: While some of the pacing and lack of direct action speaks to “second book syndrome,” there was enough intrigue and character growth to leave this one as a very satisfying and enjoyable read.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Fevered Star” can be found, bizarrely, on this Goodreads lists: What Women Born in the 90’s Have Read in 2022