Tag Archives: fantasy books

Apr 19 2016
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Book Review: The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

Title: The Fifth Season

Author: N. K. Jemisin

Series: The Broken Earth #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 5/5 stars!

The Overview: This is the way the world ends. Again.

Three terrible things happen in a single day. Essun, a woman living an ordinary life in a small town, comes home to find that her husband has brutally murdered their son and kidnapped their daughter. Meanwhile, mighty Sanze — the world-spanning empire whose innovations have been civilization’s bedrock for a thousand years — collapses as most of its citizens are murdered to serve a madman’s vengeance. And worst of all, across the heart of the vast continent known as the Stillness, a great red rift has been torn into the heart of the earth, spewing ash enough to darken the sky for years. Or centuries. Now Essun must pursue the wreckage of her family through a deadly, dying land. Without sunlight, clean water, or arable land, and with limited stockpiles of supplies, there will be war all across the Stillness: a battle royale of nations not for power or territory, but simply for the basic resources necessary to get through the long dark night. Essun does not care if the world falls apart around her. She’ll break it herself, if she must, to save her daughter.

The Review:

“The Fifth Season” by N. K. Jemisin first came across my radar when one of the authors I follow casually mentioned that it had a lot of great world-building. In fantasy, I find the more expansive the world-building, the more I tend to become immersed in the story. It has the power to leave me feeling like I’d done more than read a good book, I also had an experience with it. This is probably why I value world-building so highly when evaluating speculative fiction titles. Anyway, when “The Fifth Season” was announced as a nominee for the 2015 Nebula Awards, I knew I had to read it asap.

And it was one of the coolest books I’ve read in ages!

One of my favorite things about the book (and there were many) was the story construction. It was unconventional and totally unlike anything I’ve ever read. Jemisin wove together three POVs (one of which was written in 2nd person) that at first seemed unrelated, but you still got the sense that they’d eventually come together brilliantly (which they did). Jemisin broke rules left and right, deviating from what we are taught makes up solid story construction, and it was fantastic! She clearly knew enough about the rules of writing to break them and still have a solid piece of work to present. If I ever teach a class on writing technique, “The Fifth Season” will be one of my favorite books to have students analyze – it really was that well-done.

Jemisin created a world in which the very earth itself rises up against its inhabitants. The people are at the mercy of the various “seasons” which decimate the population whenever (and wherever) they strike. With such unstable environments, you’d think working together for survival would be everyone’s primary concern. People will be people, however, which means there was no shortage of politicking, power-seeking, and discriminating to be had. It was a fascinating composition of elements that somehow managed to be both foreign in presentation yet completely relatable in concept.

For example, prejudice is very prevailent through the book, but the targets are those gifted with the talent to sense and manipulate movement within the earth. It’s a subtle representation, but definitely makes you aware of the unfairness of each situation based on unjustified things beyond the victim’s control. It’s an aspect I really loved about “The Fifth Season” because it helped make the story thought-provoking and not just downright entertaining. The book also showed diversity in sexual identity and orientation, which you don’t come across too often in fantasy works. I applaud the author for not discriminating in her character construction and reminding us that, at the end of the day, were all just people doing our best to survive and find a measure of happiness.

Overall, I can see why “The Fifth Season” is getting so much attention and think it totally deserves every bit of it. It provided everything I want from a fantasy novel while shattering boundaries and disrupting the status quo at every turn. If I had any complaints, it’s that I’m craving to understand how this world works even more, and the second book (“The Obelisk Gate”) doesn’t come out until next August – woe is me! Fair warning: sexual content and language.

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Feb 24 2016
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DNF Q&A: The Omen Machine by Terry Goodkind

The Omen Machine by Terry Goodkind

Title: The Omen Machine

Author: Terry Goodkind

Series: Richard and Kahlan #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: DNF

The Overview: #1 New York Times-bestselling author Terry Goodkind returns to the lives of Richard Rahl and Kahlan Amnell—in a compelling tale of a new and sinister threat to their world. In addition to concluding the Sword of Truth series, The Omen Machine also launches the new series of “Richard and Kahlan.

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The Q&A:

This is a reviewing feature I’ve been eyeballing on one of my favorite book blogs There Were Books Involved for a couple years now because I think it’s an excellent way to talk about an unfinished book fairly. I’m incredibly grateful because Nikki (the brains behind the blog, who has a most excellent name)  kindly allowed me to steal the idea and questions for my own blog. As my list of “amazing books to read” continues to grow, I find I have less and less time and patience to devote to the books I’m just not enjoying. I never would have considered DNFing a book ten years ago, but then I came across a quote, “Read the best books first, for you might not have the chance to read them all,” and have since made it my personal mantra. So let the Q&A begin!

I’m a Richard and Kahlan fan to the point where my unborn child would’ve been named “Kaylen” had he been a girl, thereby representing my all-time favorite female character from anything I’ve ever read. If that’s not fangirl enough to show my passion for elements of this series, I don’t know what is. I was willing to overlook the Pillars of Creation because I thought the Chainfire trilogy really redeemed the ending of the saga. Heck, I was even willing to overlook the uninspiring prequel The First Confessor, but finally have to admit that this series is no longer doing anything for me. Omen Machine lacked everything that once made the series special. I’ll elaborate:

Did you really give the Omen Machine a chance?

I think so – I read at least half of the book, if not more, before deciding to put it down.

Have you enjoyed other books in the same genre before?

Emphatically, YES! Fantasy is my favorite genre and I still consider the Sword of Truth series a must-read for fellow fanatics.

What ultimately made you stop reading?

I mentioned above that I feel the series has reached a point where it no longer contains the elements that made it special, and unfortunately it also exacerbated all the things I’ve criticized it for. For examples, Omen Machine lacked a sense of adventure and discovery (not to mention world building), didn’t have a clear purpose to the story (or villain, as far as I read), had zero romantic tension/love story, and really didn’t give the characters much to do other than stand around and argue over magical theory. And argue they did… holy shit.

Goodkind has always been accused of needlessly beating his readers over the head with concepts that are fairly simple to grasp. In Omen Machine, there was essentially nothing other than theory and concept driving the plot, and the resulting tirade of repetitive dialogue was enough to make me pull my hair out (and don’t even get me started on the ten page argument the characters had over how to implement a card catalog system in the palace library). It’s like Richard had to say everything four different ways before he was completely satisfied, then a talking-head character would step in and say “what you mean?” and he’d proceed to explain it four more ways. Then, another character would jump in and add one more tiny nuance of a fact and the whole cycle would start all over again. After one such scene went on for over twenty pages, I decided they had about ten more to finish the conversation and continue the plot before I got fed up. After another dozen more had passed with no end in sight, I’d had enough! I put the book down. For all I know the characters beat each other into bloody pulps with all the explanations. I just knew I didn’t want to risk joining them.

This is harsh, but I’m really disappointed in Goodkind. Omen Machine came across as self-indulgent and lazy – it always takes more effort to edit your work down to something concise (which this book desperately needed) than it does to add more detail. But then, cutting out all of the needless repetition would mean he wouldn’t have been anywhere near his word count and would’ve had to replace the vacancies with things like, I don’t know, storytelling and plot advancement. That’s a scathing as you’ll probably ever hear me get, but I just expected so much more at this point and he really let me down.

Was there anything you liked about Omen Machine?

Frankly, no.

Would you read anything else by this author?

Yeah, I actually would if he started a new fantasy series with fresh concepts and characters. I feel like part of his problem with this novel was trying to extrapolate more from the story that had nothing else left to give.

So you DNF’d the book – would you still recommend it?

I definitely still recommend the Sword of Truth series, but unless you just can’t stand not having a new book with Richard and Kahlen’s names in the text, I’d say skip this one. Honestly, I thought the ending to the SoT series was really satisfying, so I’m going to continue pretending like the saga actually ended there.

Other books you might like better:

by Niki Hawkes

Feb 22 2016
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Series Review [So Far]: Mistborn 4-6 (Wax and Wayne) by Brandon Sanderson

Bands of Mourning by Brandon Sanderson
Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson
The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson

The Wax and Wayne Series [So Far]
(Mistborn 4-6)
by Brandon Sanderson
4.75/5 stars

I’m a huge Sanderson fan, and these latest books in the Mistborn saga are just three more very compelling reasons why he’s one of my favorite authors.

If you aren’t familiar with the Mistborn series, here’s a little more about it: Sanderson originally meant to tell the story across three trilogies (a high fantasy, a contemporary, and a science fiction). The first set (Mistborn 1-3) was published between 2006 & 2008. Somewhere along the way, while working on a plethora of other projects, Sanderson got a wild hair and decided to add what I’m calling a “bonus” series – a set of four books that focus on the characters Wax and Wayne. This bonus series, set a few hundred years after the first Mistborn trilogy, is a fantasy/mystery hybrid set in an era resembling the 1920s. While these books are strong enough to stand on their own, readers would benefit from exploring the entire series in order of publication (starting with Mistborn: The Final Empire) to fully enjoy the rich history and nuances of character this saga has to offer.

This spoiler-free review will focus on the Wax and Wayne series (thus far) as follows:

The Alloy of Law:

I really enjoyed this novel and thought it was a great introduction to both the new era and characters within the Mistborn saga. The characters all caught my attention right away with their interesting backstories, but Sanderson really only scratched the surface of their depth in this first book. The mystery was also engaging, but it’s not until the next few books where you see how it ties in to the arc of the saga as a whole. Overall, The Alloy of Law was a light first read that’s entertaining and worth your time… but you ain’t seen nothing yet!

4/5 stars

Shadows of Self:

After finishing Shadows of Self, I was certain it would be my favorite of the series, it was that good (and yet IT GETS EVEN BETTER in the final book). It not only brought in a fresh mystery that clearly tied into the overall arc of the series, but also offered a glimpse into a few characters’ pasts. Strength of character is easily one of the trilogy’s best elements, and I particularly appreciated the chance to learn more about each person’s quirks and inner motives. This book is when I knew for certain that Wayne, the loyal sidekick of the story, was my favorite character because a) he’s hysterical and b) it was fun to see him in his element (incognito, doing very serious detective stuff… wink wink). Also, as hinted at earlier, there’s a point in this novel where things start to tie back to the original trilogy in a way that had all of my nostalgic meters beeping off the charts. But the tiebacks were subtle, which made them accessible to new readers of the saga. Overall, Shadows of Self was a very strong work filled with mystery, action, humor, and a few surprises that might just knock your socks off (I’m still looking for mine, they flew so far).

4.75/5 stars

Bands of Mourning:

I could barely put Bands of Mourning down. Every single last page was engaging and exciting, culminating towards an ending that had me stalking the author for news on the next one (which is on hold for a couple years while the author finishes up Oathbringer, the third book in the Stormlight Archive series, and incidentally the only series I’d be okay with postponing this one for – can you say amazing?!). What stood out to me about Bands of Mourning, aside from the obvious aforementioned character depth, world building, excellent action scenes, and spot-on pacing, was that it felt like Sanderson had an absolute blast while writing it. It maintained its serious base plotlines while at the same time managing to be positively hilarious. I laughed out loud for what felt like most of the book while still reveling at all the twists and turns. Sanderson gets yet another A++ for execution on this one, landing it not only as my favorite book of the series so far, but one of my favorite books of all time!

5/5 stars!

Overall, is this bonus Mistborn trilogy worth your time? Definitely. Fans of the series will enjoy the continuation and delight in the new characters while newcomers will (hopefully) be intrigued enough to go back and see where the saga started. I consider Sanderson a must-read for any fan of the fantasy genre, and this latest set of books are no exception!

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Feb 18 2016
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Book Review: The Furies of Calderon by Jim Butcher

furies of calderonTitle: The Furies of Calderon

Author: Jim Butcher

Series: that The Codex Alera #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 3/5 stars

The Overview: For a thousand years, the people of Alera have united against the aggressive and threatening races that inhabit the world, using their unique bond with the furies – elementals of earth, air, fire, water, and metal. But now, Gaius Sextus, First Lord of Alera, grows old and lacks an heir. Ambitious High Lords plot and maneuver to place their Houses in positions of power, and a war of succession looms on the horizon.” “Far from city politics in the Calderon Valley, the boy Tavi struggles with his lack of furycrafting. At fifteen, he has no wind fury to help him fly, no fire fury to light his lamps. Yet as the Alerans’ most savage enemy – the Marat – return to the Valley, he will discover that his destiny is much greater than he could ever imagine.” Caught in a storm of deadly wind furies, Tavi saves the life of a runaway slave named Amara. But she is actually a spy for Gaius Sextus, sent to the Valley to gather intelligence on traitors to the Crown, who may be in league with the barbaric Marat horde. And when the Valley erupts in chaos – when rebels war with loyalists and furies clash with furies – Amara will find Tavi’s courage and resourcefulness to be a power greater than any fury – one that could turn the tides of war.

The Review:

I am a huge Dresden fan and loved the unconventional means by which this series came into existence –

It’s basically a series of half a dozen books set two thousand years after a lost Roman legion travelled through a rift to a world where pokemon exist, and now the legionnaires live and work with pokemon, except they’re called “furies” (I’m not even making this up, he did it as a dare after being called on one of his assertions by a crowd at a convention: He said everything in writing is about execution. They said prove it. He said give me three crazy horrible topics and he would make something out of it. They said lost Roman Legion, Pokemon, and the Zerg. A year later he released Furies of Calderon).

-D.R. Sylvester at www.drsylvesterfiction.com (who was kind enough to clue me in with this comment on one of my posts. You should check out his blog – it’s one of my favorites).

Needless to say, I knew I had to at least give it a try. And I liked it!

It’s probably not the strongest series starter I’ve ever read, but it was at least consistently entertaining from start to finish. And the characters were fantastic – so many great POVs, and each brought something special to the story. I liked all of them pretty equally and am most excited to see where their paths lead next. Great characterization is definitely one of Butcher’s storytelling strengths, and Furies of Calderon was no exception.

It’s a good thing the characters were good because their minor, interpersonal conflicts are what got me through the story when I found the overall arc a bit too narrow. Butcher kept this first book on a fairly minor scope, which I didn’t like, but I have a lot of hope that its potential will be realized in the next few installments. There just wasn’t enough focus on the handful of things that initially drew me in. For one, the furies (Butcher’s interpretation of Pokémon) didn’t play as big of a role as they could have, to the point where it felt almost as if the wielders were controlling elements rather than elemental beings. Also, there were strong references at the beginning of the book about an academy for these fury-wielders, which wasn’t expanded on it all throughout the rest of the story. There’s plenty of time for these things to become the focus in a six book series, so I’m not too stressed, but they’re definitely the things I will be specifically looking for going forward. How well they are brought to life will ultimately determine my overall satisfaction with the series.

At the end of the day, Furies of Calderon had great characters, good writing, a somewhat narrow focus, and some excellent ideas that were a bit under-realized (but with colossal potential). Incidentally, this is almost identical to how I felt about the Aeronaut’s Windlass – the first book in his newest fantasy series. I’m very hopeful that both will dazzle me in books to come. After all, even the magic that is Harry Dresden took a couple of books to really get going.

Other books you might like:

 by Niki Hawkes

Aug 14 2015
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Top Ten Authors I’ve Read The Most Books From!

top ten tuesday

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Well, this post is embarrassingly late. I blame over ambition… And a horrifying eye strain issue that kept me from reading, writing, and essentially functioning for three days. :/ In any case, I initially tried to narrow my list down to ten authors, but felt guilty for every one I had to knock off. Long story short, enjoy ALL THE AUTHORS I’ve read the most books from (my favorites, anyway).

Top Ten Fifteen Authors I’ve Read The Most Books From!

1. Richelle Mead

I’ve read everything she’s published and for the longest time have considered her my favorite author. Thank goodness she’s so prolific!

2. R.A. Salvatore

I love this series and think the author is great at sparking a sense of adventure and excitement. Even though Salvatore made the list, I still have several non-Drizzt books on my shelves waiting to be read.

3. Brandon Sanderson

So many amazing stories – it’s difficult to believe they all came from one mind. I have not read a single Sanderson that got lower than 4 stars – in fact, most of them were solid 5s!

4. Kim Harrison/Dawn Cook

I actually read Kim Harrison first as Dawn Cook then got really bummed when four or five years went by where she didn’t publish anything new… Imagine my delight when I discovered her Rachel Morgan series (which is now my favorite urban fantasy series)!

5. Glenda Larke

I love Glenda Larke with a passion, so much so that I was even willing to pay astronomical shipping to buy her Mirage series from overseas. Her world building is phenomenal and her stories are unforgettable – I recommend all of them!

6. Raymond E. Feist

This is the author/series that really ignited my love of fantasy. I’ve been slowly making my way through all the books, savoring each one as I go, for the last fifteen years and am finally getting close to having read them all.

7. Patricia Briggs

Patricia Briggs is such a cool author – she’s made a huge fan out of me with her Mercy Thompson series, and I have also thoroughly enjoyed her fantasy novels (although I admit I still have a few of those to read). I like her. :-)

8. Daniel Abraham

Daniel Abraham is an author who does not get enough credit for his vast array of works (although, some of that might be due to his many pen names). Regardless, I’ve read most of his works and appreciate all of them.

9. Julie E. Czerneda

Czerneda is my favorite science fiction author, and I have to thank Luis Royo for putting them on my radar with his gorgeous cover art. I am super excited for This Gulf of Time and Stars coming out within the next couple of months!

10. Robin Hobb

It is so difficult for me to declare which author is my all-time favorite, but with every new book by Robin Hobb, that decision becomes easier and easier. She is a remarkable author, and her books stay with me years after I’ve read them.

11. Brian Jacques

I didn’t start taking reading seriously until my eleventh year, when I came across The Outcast of Redwall in my middle school library and decided I wanted to get good enough at reading to tackle a novel of that size. It was a major revelation in my life, and I have enjoyed each of these books countless times throughout the years.

12. Ann Aguirre

Aguirre might not be my favorite author, but she sure as hell makes my top five. I have completely enjoyed everything I’ve read by her and am impressed that she can brilliantly write stories from so many different genres.

13. Jacqueline Carey

I love this series with a passion and have not even made my way through all of them, but only because I take several weeks to savor each one. I am super eager to read her new urban fantasy series, but I’m equally terrified to run out of Carey books to read.

14. Keri Arthur

As many books as I’ve read from this fantastic urban fantasy author, I still have about double that amount before I’ve read everything she’s published. I like her newer stuff better than the older, and her Riley Jensen series is still among my all-time favorites.

15. Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman

This was arguably one of the earliest series that I read to completion (not counting all of the spinoff novels, although I did read a bunch of those as well). I think these are an excellent introduction to the realm of fantasy and recommend it often to young readers wanting to tackle the genre without getting into anything too heavy.

I love all of the authors on this list, and would like to pay an honorable mention to Jennifer Lynn Barnes, Mindy McGinnis, Rae Carson, Rachel Aaron, and Melissa Landers. All of these authors would have made the list if they’d had more books out – I completely devour anything new that gets published! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed my really long, really late list!

What authors have you read the most books from?

by Niki Hawkes

Aug 7 2015
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Mini Book Review: The Cloud Roads by Martha Wells

cloud roadsTitle: The Cloud Roads

Author: Martha Wells

Series: The Books of the Raksura #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 3/5 stars

The Overview: Moon has spent his life hiding what he is — a shape-shifter able to transform himself into a winged creature of flight. An orphan with only vague memories of his own kind, Moon tries to fit in among the tribes of his river valley, with mixed success. Just as Moon is once again cast out by his adopted tribe, he discovers a shape-shifter like himself… someone who seems to know exactly what he is, who promises that Moon will be welcomed into his community. What this stranger doesn’t tell Moon is that his presence will tip the balance of power… that his extraordinary lineage is crucial to the colony’s survival… and that his people face extinction at the hands of the dreaded Fell! Now Moon must overcome a lifetime of conditioning in order to save and himself… and his newfound kin.

The Mini Review:

I can say with absolute confidence that I’ve never read anything quite like The Cloud Roads. My initial reaction after finishing it was “what a cool book!” and that can largely be attributed to the author’s expansive world-building. I feel like I’m pretty well-read in fantasy and, while authors dazzled me all the time with their interpretations of familiar concepts, I very rarely come across anything that strikes me as truly original. The Cloud Roads oozed with originality, everything from the sentient inhabitants (including the main protagonist, himself) down to even the most minute flora and fauna. All were unique (and fabulous). All of these creative elements created a strong atmosphere that was easily my favorite component to the book.

Moon, the POV character, was a lot of fun to read about – I can’t think of very many books that boast a nonhuman as a main character. He and those of his race revealed a complete, foreign culture that was as believable as it was alien. As fascinated as I was with his species, I found Moon a little difficult to relate to. Not because he was alien, but because the conflicts he faced didn’t grab me (not to mention they were drawn out a little too long for my tastes… which could also have been a pacing issue). Overall, I’m left feeling a bit torn – I would like to pick up the next novel if for nothing else than to re-immerse myself in the creativity, but don’t feel emotionally attached to the character enough to pick it up anytime soon. Overall, I enjoyed the story and would still definitely recommend it to people in the mood for something different – it was a cool experience.

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes