The interview, where I talk about my current projects, my beta-reading process and BetaReader.io is now live. Check it out!
https://betareader.io/2019/05/01/leticia-toraci-views-all-feedback-as-an-opportunity-to-improve/
Advertisements
Wrap-Up: r/Fantasy Reading Bingo 2018
I must confess that at a certain point in the year I lost track of the Bingo Challenge and my reading went to other directions. I think that one of the reasons was that I wasn’t always lucky with my picks for the different prompts, so eventually I distanced myself and started prioritizing shorter Readathons with the idea that I still had enough time to finish the Bingo later, but April came and the last four remaining books to complete the card remained unread. I completed only one of the rows entirely, even if I managed to read four prompts in all five rows.
Since I like no stress attached to my reading goals, I decided to post my final results in this Wrap-Up even though. And the unread books I chose for the last year’s challenge will be read, eventually. Not all books I chose for the challenge were for me, but I still liked going out of my favourite authors scope and trying new ones.
In addition, certain prompts were very interesting so I also read more than one book for them, I will be adding the additional books when I consider them special enough to mention.
1st Row:
Novel that was Reviewed on r/Fantasy
I chose Nice Dragons Finish Last by (Heartstrikers #1) by Rachel Aaron for this challenge and even started reading it, but somehow got distracted by other books, so I still didn’t finish reading this.
Novel Featuring a Non-Western Setting
The Killing Moon (Dreamblood #1) by N.K. Jemisin
I liked this book even if I considered it quite slow-paced (even for epic fantasy). The relationships, magic system and world could have been much more fleshed out too. I’m yet in doubt whether I will go on reading this Duology or not.
Additional Book:
The City of Brass (The Daevabad Trilogy #1) by S.A. Chakraborty
Awesome story world with Ifrits, Ghouls, Marids, Peri, Djinn and multi-layered characters. I’m following this series for sure.
Five Short Stories
I chose to read the anthology “The Djinn Falls in Love & Other Stories” by Mahvesh Murad (Editor)
I set it aside after reading five stories, mainly because I expected mainly a fantasy anthology when I started reading this and, true, all stories there have fantastic elements, but apart from this they are a mixture of genres. Therefore, I’ll finish reading this when I feel like reading literary, slice-of-life, or magical realism short stories.
Novel Adapted by Stage, Screen, or Game
For this prompt I read the whole trilogy of Ruby Red (Edelstein-Trilogie #1) by Kerstin Gier, Anthea Bell (Translator)
Kerstin Gier is my new favorite fantasy and young adult author even if I don’t read her books in their original language, German. I may try it though sometime with “Die Mütter-Mafia” books. The whole trilogy was told in a light and humorous way that makes it a real treat for a relaxing afternoon. I also like the tension created by the time-travel plot and multi-layered characters. This was an entertaining, page-turner trilogy. The Audiobooks, narrated by Marisa Calin, were also very good.
Hopeful Spec-Fic
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) by Becky Chambers
This was a different kind of science-fiction, quite enjoyable and focused on the characters and human interactions.
2nd Row:
Fantasy Novel that Takes Place Entirely Within One City
Beautiful Creatures (Beautiful Creatures #1) by Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl.
This was entertaining, very romantic and full of magic atmosphere. I watched the film based on this book, and will eventually go on reading this series.
Self-Published Novel
I had chosen Sufficiently Advanced Magic (Arcane Ascension #1) by Andrew Rowe for this, but unfortunately lost track of it. This remains in my TBR though.
Novel Published Before You Were Born (1973, GenXer here!)
The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester (first published 1955)
This book was a trip, you will want to jaunt yourself after reading it, LOL. Some allowances have to be made since this was written in the 50s, but I can fully understand why this is in a science fiction masterworks list. All the settings this book goes through, often in a disturbing, and very possible dystopian way, make it the revered classic that it is.
Any r/Fantasy Goodreads Group Book of the Month
All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries #1) by Martha Wells.
Murderbot is a very original character, you can see why this novella has won the 2018 Hugo Award. I’ll be following this series.
Novel Featuring a Library
The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins
Sometimes I read outside my favorite genres and with that I discover a great read. This wasn’t unfortunately the case here, but it could be due to Horror not really being a genre I enjoy. I started this book due to all good reviews on Booktube, but found it too confusing and at a certain point I stopped caring about the characters and plot and DNFed the book.
3rd Row:
Subgenre: Historical Fantasy OR Alternate History
Servant of the Underworld (Obsidian and Blood #1) by Aliette de Bodard
I mainly picked up this book because it is extremely rare to find books with an Aztec setting. I liked the original world building/story elements in this book. I can imagine that for someone who likes the blend of mystery/historical fiction this is a four/five star read.
** spoiler alert ** One of the reasons I rated it three stars is that for me alone the main character’s arc was very slow paced dragging the plot with it. I couldn’t understand why Acatl acted the way he did most times, always in doubt whether he should act, blending aloofness and insecurity with resourcefulness. It was part of the story, but it was also shocking how Acatl and others sacrificed animals all the time without a second thought on the waste and cruelty of their way of life, and how quickly they dismissed people’s deaths as every moment occurrence. I wonder if the Aztecs were really like that or if they were more like us, willingly ignorant of the brutality of our world most of the time? An original, thought-provoking and interesting read in any case.
Novel Published in 2018
Fawkes by Nadine Brandes
This book was an entertaining page-turner. I liked especially the original characters, and the well-constructed fantasy world with historic background. I’ll be checking out the next books by this author.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Thomas Nelson–FICTION for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Novel Featuring a Protagonist Who is a Writer, Artist or Musician (NOT: Kingkiller Chronicles)
Wintersong (Wintersong #1) by S. Jae-Jones
Were it for the writing style and the original premise and setting alone I would have given this book five stars, but the main relationship in this book is so… ** spoiler alert ** I’m not really sure of how to finish this phrase, perhaps: “hopeless-through-the-whole- book-until-the-end-when-I-was-happy-that-it-was-finished”?
I’m tired of stories were the heroine is unnaturally and endlessly humble, selfless and self-sacrificing and the (anti) ‘hero’ is cruel, blase, cold and treats other women badly because supposedly they were not as great as the heroine is.
Perhaps this is how fairy tales are supposed to be, but to me it feels really outdated and even unfair as gender roles go? I’m tired of the trope of “there isn’t a bad man, only a man who has not found the perfect woman to change him for the better,” because for teenage girls this is not the best thing to believe in. Perhaps the purpose of the story was to show that the heroine was better off without that troublesome relationship, but it didn’t feel as if she made the decision of finishing the relationship herself. No, she was freed by the cruel ‘hero’ because ‘she was better than the other girls.’
I cringed every time Liesl said ‘Mein Herr’ to her husband, always so subservient and meek. Again, this was only another of the story elements but it made everything sound so old fashioned. True, the Goblin King helped her to grow up enough to express her music, but did she really need him to become a composer or to be happy at all? Perhaps the next book in the series will answer this question
Novel Featuring a Mountain Setting
A Court of Frost and Starlight (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3.1) by Sarah J. Maas.
It’s with the same characters from the trilogy, that I liked well enough to reread, but extremely little really happens. I hope the next books have more plot to them.
My pet-peeve with novellas is that they are mostly too short to introduce as many new and interesting things as a novel, and this one felt like a long epilogue of the third book. I would rather have a spin-off based on any other character than the main ones, or a collection of different POVs from side characters.
2017 r/Fantasy Top Novels List
The Goblin Emperor (The Goblin Emperor #1) by Katherine Addison.
This is so hyped but I can’t see what’s that all about…
The story reminds me of “The Queen of the Tearling” by Erika Johansen. However, the stakes, the tension and the action of the mentioned book aren’t present at all. The main character has a lot of time to think, meditate and complain about life… I’ve already read 110 pages and not much happened. I don’t manage to care enough to read everything. This book isn’t for me.
4th Row:
Novel with Fewer than 2500 Goodreads Ratings
Blood of Wonderland (Queen of Hearts Saga #2) by Colleen Oakes.
I expected more from this sequel after enjoying the first book so much. It felt flat and rushed up, I was just wondering why characters were acting into certain directions, it felt forced with the main character, Cheshire and Wardley.
The story world just went by, interesting but not being really explored in detail, although this seems to happen often in YA.
Novel with a One Word Title
Armada by Ernest Cline.
I liked this even if I still prefer “Ready Player One” by this author. I would love a next book where Zack Lightman would meet the aliens and try to find out what they are plotting 😉
Novel Featuring a God as a Character
I chose The Curse of Chalion (World of the Five Gods #1) by Lois McMaster Bujold for this prompt, but haven’t read it yet. However, all Bujold books are on my TBR!
Novel by an Author Writing Under a Pseudonym.
Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse #1) by James S.A. Corey
I started this but stopped because I could not bring myself to go on reading. I’ll perhaps pick this one later again, right now I find it too slow-paced and I don’t fell like committing to a very long series when the first book isn’t for me.The world is interesting though and it left me curious enough to watch the first season episodes based on the books. **spoiler alert** Sigh… I’m really tired of zombies whether they come from ice or space, and I think they spoil every story they appear in. To me zombies always seem like a cheap and cliché plot device to add action to a plot the author has no other stakes for.
Subgenre: Space Opera
The Empress (The Diabolic #2) by S.J. Kincaid
I’m in doubt how to rate this book, it was quite original and full of really unexpected plot twists. I wonder how the story is going to continue and can’t wait for the next book.
Audiobook: The reading of Candace Thaxton was as five stars good as in the first book.
5th Row:
Stand Alone Fantasy Novel
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black.
This was an original take on vampire stories and the world building was awesome.
I found it somehow slow paced and thought that a couple of flashbacks were placed too late in the story, but I was happy to find similarities between this book and The Cruel Prince.
This book should be getting a sequel.
Novel by a RAWRR Author OR Keeping Up With the Classics
I chose The Black Company (The Chronicles of the Black Company #1) by Glen Cook but couldn’t get to it.
Novel from the r/Fantasy LGBTQ+ Database
Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows #2) by Leigh Bardugo.
I liked more this sequel than the first book in the Duology due to all the feels and the depth of the character stories.
Additional Book:
China Mountain Zhang by Maureen F. McHugh
This was very well written, a literary, slice-of-life, dystopia. At the beginning I thought Zhang aloof and could not relate to him, but as the story progressed I understood that it isn’t easy to survive in a world that condemns most things about you. I considered the chapters with the other characters really great too and loved the story set in Mars.
A beautiful book, to be read without hurry, as the awesome food-for-thought about human condition that it is.
Format: Graphic Novel (at least 1 vol.) OR Audiobook
Paper Girls, Vol. 1 (Paper Girls #1- #4)
#1- I like it but the story is all over the place. I’ll go on reading and see where is going.
#4- Finally we start to get some answers after three volumes of saying “Um, what just happened” like one of the robots in the series and we go on reading this page turner.
Additional Graphic Novels:
Bitch Planet, Vol. 1: Extraordinary Machine – (Bitch Planet (Collected Editions) #1) by Kelly Sue DeConnick (Goodreads Author) (Writer), Taki Soma (Illustrator), Valentine De Landro (Artist), Robert Wilson IV (Artist)
This is awesome, I would recommend it to anyone, especially with how politics is going nowadays in the world.
Bitch Planet, Vol. 2: President Bitch (Bitch Planet (Collected Editions) #2) by Kelly Sue DeConnick (Goodreads Author) (writer), Taki Soma (artist), Valentine De Landro (artist). – This is awesome and everybody should read it. 😉
Novel Featuring the Fae
An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson
This book has nice descriptions, a really nice cover, premise, and so much hype that I was completely underwhelmed by it.
It could have been better but the pace was terribly slow and at a certain point I wasn’t caring anymore about the story or the characters. I dropped it on several occasions because nothing interesting was happening. Even the romance was insta-love, and it also dragged. For me this was only an over hyped book where the hype had not real reasons to be there.
And you, do you agree/disagree with my opinions on the books I picked? And have you already committed to a year-long reading challenge?
2019 r/Fantasy Book Bingo Reading Challenge
I’m doing this challenge again this year.
Some of you have probably noticed me talking about book bingo around here and were wondering what exactly I was going on about. Well, now that it’s after April 1st (the start of the new bingo period) I thought I’d do a post about it.
r/Fantasy Book Bingo is something I initially started on kind of a whim. Several years ago, after I’d been skulking about reddit’s r/fantasy community for a bit, I found myself engaged in thread about book challenges. In the discussion I mentioned having done a book bingo before and then said ‘I should make a fantasy one for the subreddit’ and a couple of people were like ‘yeah, you totally should’ and thus r/Fantasy Book Bingo was born.
So, what is r/Fantasy Book Bingo? It’s a year long reading challenge with the aim of getting readers to branch out, look at books they may have otherwise…
View original post 222 more words
My favorite books of 2018 (only now, but rich in content like a Lungo)
Now it’s already 2019. It took me long enough to write this post, after Christmas cookies, a lot of shopping for presents, and the family reunion when all those presents were exchanged and a harmonious meal was shared. January also went up quite quickly while I participated in a science fiction Readathon I’ll be soon wrapping up here, but now finally I’ll post my 2018 favorite books.
And I have a lot of books to chose from. I read 130 books, mainly Fantasy, Science-Fiction and a surprisingly great amount of Young Adult and Graphic Novels. I didn’t expect it, but many of my YA reads were 5 stars.
I had a lot of fun reading all the books by S.J. Kincaid I could find, marathoning through eight Deluxe Editions of Fables by Bill Willingham and thankfully discovering new authors, since the favorites I already follow and auto-buy don’t write new books as fast as I read them.
I also had a fair amount of unfinished book and books which hype didn’t hold as I read them. And a couple of series sequels that failed to impress me, with the result that I’ll be abandoning them. I wonder if I should write about about the last year’s let-downs or about series I won’t be following anymore? What do you think? Let me know in the comments.
For now, I’ll talk about the five star books and a couple of honored four stars. Here they are:
5 Star Champion Series I already finished or that I’ll be continuing next year
1) The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air #1) by Holly Black
When it comes to this book the hype is deserved. I loved the world building and the ‘cruel prince’ is a very interesting character. I’m curious to be seen how this story will develop in the next books. I am, in any case, on board. Now in January I also started listening to The Wicked King (The Folk of the Air #2) Audiobook and I’m loving it.
2) “The Bone Season” and “The Mime Order” (The Bone Season #1 and #2) by Samantha Shannon.
In both books the world building is quite extensive and that alone was already worth at least 4,5 to 5 stars. There is even a spin-off called “On the Merits of Unnaturalness” which further explains it’s rules, but, although I haven’t read it, I could follow the various ‘voyants’ classes that appear in the book.
I also liked Paige because, although she was likable, she wasn’t exactly a standard romantic heroine. She could be contradictory, seemed to be too cynical and suspicious sometimes and only at the end of the book, you could see all her layers. Perhaps she’s not everybody’s favorite type of main female character, but I found that really refreshing after so many perfect fictional girls out there. I also liked the flaws in all other characters, I think this contributed to give depth to the story.
I also read The Mime Order (The Bone Season #2) and I loved the sequel development, the world building is still awesome and the characters so greatly multi-layered. This is a not hyped, but extremely interesting series. I can’t wait to read the next book.
3) The City of Brass (The Daevabad Trilogy #1) by S.A. Chakraborty
Awesome story world with Ifrits, Ghouls, Marids, Peri, Djinn and multi-layered characters. I’m following this series for sure.
4) “A Shadow Bright and Burning”, “A Poison Dark and Drowning” and “A Sorrow Fierce and Falling” (Kingdom on Fire #1, #2 and #3) by Jessica Cluess
This series isn’t nearly as much hyped as it should be. It is an awesome series, with unique and unforgettable multi-layered characters, and so many surprising plot twists.
Like the Bone Season series, it is also original and many levels above most fantasy YA series I’ve read. It has a rich fantasy and historical world and one of the best heroines I’ve found since ever. 😉
I would recommend this series to anyone who likes fantasy with a strong female character and complex side characters as well.
I heard this whole series as Audiobooks and the performance from Fiona Hardingham was awesome too.
5) “The Diabolic” and “The Empress” (The Diabolic #1 and #2) by S.J. Kincaid
Awesome writing, characters and an original, page-turner plot. I could not stop hearing the Audiobook until the last sentence of this story. This was the best book I read (“heard”) in the first six months of 2018, and this is saying something about how perfectly written this story is.
This is my first book by this author but I’ll surely take a look at all her other books. and go on following this series.
The Empress was quite original and full of really unexpected plot twists. I wonder how the story is going to continue and can’t wait for the next book in this series. This book goes connects to the universe of the other trilogy of Kincaid, Insignia, so I would read that trilogy before reading this second book.
The reading performance of Candace Thaxton in both Audiobooks was quite awesome too.
6) “Insignia”, “Vortex” and “Catalyst” (Insignia #1, #2 and #3) by S.J. Kincaid
I picked the first book after reading Diabolic from the same author and liked it too, even if Diabolic is still my favorite. Tom goes through so much, you can’t help but sympathize and feel super worried for him. The themes of this series are quite important in the present light of things, this trilogy stands above the usual YA Dystopia. All the feels and themes in this series! If you have to choose only one Dystopian YA trilogy to read in your whole life choose this one.
7) “The Queen of the Tearling”, “The Invasion of the Tearling” and “The Fate of the Tearling” (The Queen of the Tearling #1, #2 and #3) by Erika Johansen
This trilogy is an awesome mix of fantasy, and dystopia, a real page-turner with great characters, story and oh, all the politics! It isn’t exactly YA as it contains strong scenes of domestic abuse that may be a trigger for some people, but in my opinion the portraying of all the injustice added to the value of the trilogy.
I recommend this trilogy if you like original books with unexpected plot twists, well-written POVs (you end up caring a lot for secondary characters like a jailer with a disability and a gate guard!), and multi-layered characters. Erika Johansen is an author I’ll keep in my radar for sure!
8) “Bitch Planet Vol. 1” and “Bitch Planet Vol. 2: President Bitch” (Bitch Planet (Collected Editions) #1 and #2) by Kelly Sue DeConnick (Goodreads Author) (Writer), Taki Soma (Illustrator), Valentine De Landro (Artist), Robert Wilson IV (Artist)
This is an awesome graphic novel series. Everybody should read it, especially with how politics is going nowadays in the world. 😉
9) The Golem and the Jinni (The Golem and the Jinni #1) by Helene Wecker.
A jewel, I loved everything about this book; the writing style, the story, the theme, the characters, the setting and the ending. It’s a new classic and going towards literary fiction, but it has tension until the last page.
I also liked the Audiobook narrator: George Guidall. I’m waiting for The Iron Season by the same author.
10)Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows #2) by Leigh Bardugo
I won’t talk long about this book because it it hyped with great reason and everybody raves in detail about this. 😉 I liked more this sequel than the first book in the duology due to all the feels and the characters stories depth. I’m surely waiting for King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo to meet her characters and the Grishaverse again.
11) Children of Time (Children of Time #1) by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Really good, original Sci-fi! This book was so well written, the story world so rich and the characters so likable! I found a new favorite author. I’ll be waiting for Children of Ruin (Children of Time #2).
And a Standalone: 12) China Mountain Zhang by Maureen F. McHugh
Nowadays standalones have turned to be rather the exception. This was very well written, a literary, slice-of-life, dystopia. At the beginning I considered Zhang aloof and could not relate to him, but as the story progressed I understood that it isn’t easy to survive in a world that condemns most things about you and could sympathize. I considered the chapters with the other characters really great too and loved the story set in Mars.
A beautiful book, to be read without hurry, as the awesome food-for-thought about human condition that it is.
Wow, this was a long post, I could still rave about my four star reads of last year, but then this would end up with two thousand words LOL.
Let me know if I should follow up with four stars, three and disappointing set asides and DNFs.
And at last, which were your favorite books from last year? Let me know in the comments.
Wrap-Up: The One Readathon To Rule Them All Round 2 #theonereadathon
This is my wrap-up of the second round of The One Readathon, a fantasy Readathon that happened from November 17 to December 1. The original announcement video from Don’t Have a Degree in Reading with all challenges and rules is linked here. And if you want to see, this is my previous TBR for this Round 2
I took a bit longer through the “Route 4” which was “Nomadic Traveler”. In which, as it says in the original video, “you may pick as many (or as little) of the challenges from below as you want. You are in charge of this route but remember…you must get the Ring to Mordor!”
I did most of the challenges without using any book for more than one challenge, so it took me a while to go through my long TBR pile. I was gladly taking my time because I consider two weeks way too short for so many awesome challenges. I think that “The One Readathon” would fit really well in a three months reading challenge, so I went someplace in between and took a whole month.
I also decided to choose other books for a couple of challenges along the way. Therefore, the books from my previously planned list that are yet unread will be postponed to 2019.
Fortunately, most books I picked were 5 star reads for me. I am lately enjoying young adult books very often when I’m looking for a lighter read after a long day. And many of the books, for example, The Tearling Trilogy, that I initially considered young adult went far beyond that genre to plunge into an original fantasy, dystopia and science fiction blend that I really cherished and became one of my favorite reads of this year.
As it always happens when you read a bunch of books, a couple of the books I chose were not really for me, not due to them being essentially bad, but because I considered their writing style tiring or they weren’t what I expected when I started reading them. I’m often too tired to go on reading a book that can’t hold my interest, so I didn’t finish or skipped pages of three of the books in this list.
The only challenges I didn’t have time to complete were the Shire, Moria, and Lorien, but this was all right since you didn’t have to do all the challenges for the readathon and I managed to complete the rest of them.
So, without further considerations, here are the challenges I completed and the books I’ve read:
BREE
Read a fantasy book set in a non-European influenced setting.
I decided to read The City of Brass (The Daevabad Trilogy, #1) by S.A. Chakraborty for this challenge.
Review – 5 Stars!
Awesome story world with Ifrits, Ghouls, Marids, Peri, Djinn and multi-layered characters. I’m following this series for sure.
FANGORN FOREST
Read a fantasy book with magical/supernatural creatures
For this I read The Djinn Falls in Love & Other Stories by Mahvesh Murad (Editor), Jared Shurin & others
Review – No rating, because I set this anthology aside for now, after reading around five stories, mainly because I expected a fantasy anthology when I started reading this and, true, all stories have fantastic elements, but apart from this they are a mixture of genres. Therefore, I’ll read this when I feel like reading literary, slice-of-life, or magical realism short stories.
RIVENDELL
Read a fantasy book with LGBTQIA+ rep (author/MC/POV)
I changed my mind an picked Aquicorn Cove by Katie O’Neill, for this challenge.
Review – 5 Stars! This graphic novel has a heart warming story with cute illustrations and an environmental message. It deals with so many important themes; loss, sustainable use of natural resources, different ways of being feminine and strong… All in a way a child can understand and relate with. Light, lovely and powerful.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Oni Press for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
ISENGARD
Read a fantasy book with a villain MC/POV (morally grey MC/POV is acceptable!).
The villain MC/POV book I chose was Grendel by John Gardner.
Review – 2 stars. This is original and well-written, therefore the two stars. Subjectively, I considered the monologue quite long, and skipped some pages in between, but the tragic character had an interesting voice.
HELM’S DEEP
Read a fantasy book that is a standalone.
I read The Goblin Emperor (The Goblin Emperor #1) by Katherine Addison
Review: 1 star. This is so hyped but I really can’t see what’s that all about… The story reminded me faintly of “The Queen of the Tearling” by Erika Johansen. However, the stakes and the tension of the previously mentioned book were not present at all. The main character had way too long time to think, meditate and especially complain about life, to a point that I stopped caring completely. After reading 110 pages without much happening I read the end only to see that few concrete things had really happened and the story would continue on a next book.
Apart from this, the writing style with the pronouns and the words exclusive to the story were extremely jarring.
ROHAN
Read a fantasy book w/ a female MC.
I decided to finish a young adult fantasy series, by hearing the audiobook of A Sorrow Fierce and Falling (Kingdom on Fire #3) by Jessica Cluess (Author), Fiona Hardingham (Narrator).
Review: 5 Stars!
This series isn’t nearly as much hyped as it should be. It is an awesome series, with multi-layered characters that are unique and has so many awesome plot twists.
It is also original and many levels above most YA series I’ve read. It has a rich fantasy and historical world and one of the best heroines I’ve found since… Ever. I would recommend this series to anyone who likes fantasy with a strong female character and complex side characters as well.
I heard this whole series as Audiobooks and the performance from Fiona Hardingham was awesome too.
GONDOR
Read a fantasy book w/ POC rep (author/MC/POV)
I changed my mind and, instead of the book I had chosen before, I decided to read two graphic novels with POC characters for this challenge:
1) Afar by Leila del Duca, Kit Seaton (Illustrator)
Review – 5 Stars!
Very interesting, a graphic novel with astral travelling? I’m all for it!
2) Sleepless, Vol. 1 (Sleepless #1-6) by Sarah Vaughn, Leila del Duca (Artist), Alissa Sallah (Colorist), Deron Bennett (Letterer)
Review – 4 Stars.
*Spoiler Alert* This was very interesting even if a bit slow-paced, you will probably get answers only in the next books, but this happens often in graphic novel series. On a personal note, the whole sleepless thing didn’t make much sense for me, if the sleepless defenders would get some magical abilities for all the lack of sleep, it would have made sense, but as it was it looked only like a silly idea (perhaps I just didn’t understand it well enough). In any case I’ll be following this series further on.
MINAS TIRITH
Read a fantasy book
I picked Sapphire Blue “Saphirblau (Edelstein-Trilogie #2)” by Kerstin Gier for this challenge.
Review – 5 Stars! Kerstin Gier is my new favorite young adult author even if I don’t read her books in their original language, German. I may try it though sometime with “Die Mütter-Mafia” books.
The story is told in a light and humorous way that makes it a real treat for a relaxing afternoon. I also like the tension created by the time-travel plot and multi-layered characters.
MORDOR
Read the conclusion to a fantasy series (standalones count) or the most recent installment of a series.
For this final challenge, I read the last book of the Queen of the Tearling series,
The Fate of the Tearling (The Tearling Trilogy) by Erika Johansen
Review – 5 Stars! This was original and awesome fantasy/sci-fi!
I recommend this book if you like books with amazing plot twists, well-written POVs (you end up caring so much for secondary characters like a jailer with a disability and a gate guard!), and multi-layered characters. The whole trilogy was awesome and Erika Johansen is an author I’ll keep in my radar for sure!
The One Readathon To Rule Them All Round 2 #theonereadation
Don’t Have a Degree in Reading and other Booktubers listed in her video have now launched a second round from this awesome fantasy Readathon.
I was gladly participating of Round One in April this year. If you would like to see what I was reading then, here’s are the posts from the first’s round TBR and Wrap-Up
I’ll also participate now in the second round, which goes from November 17 to December 1, but I plan to post my wrap-up only when most of the books in my long TBR have been read.
Now, without further ado, here are my choices for each challenge.
The Shire
Reread a favorite fantasy book
This is the only challenge I haven’t yet a book for. It could happen that I pass on it too, since I rarely reread books.
Bree
Read a fantasy book set in a non-European influenced setting
I’m undecided between Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of Orïsha, #1) or The City of Brass (The Daevabad Trilogy, #1).
Have you read any of them? Which would you recommend me?
Fangorn Forest
Read a fantasy book with magical/supernatural creatures
I’m in doubt between Nice Dragons Finish Last or The Djinn Falls in Love & Other Stories
Have you read any of them? Which would you recommend me?
Rivendell
Read a fantasy book with LGBTQIA+ rep (author/MC/POV)
The Black Tides of Heaven (Tensorate #1)
Moria
Read a grimdark fantasy book or a fantasy book w/ spooky elements.
The Black Company (The Chronicles of the Black Company #1)
Lorien
Read a fantasy book published by an indie press
Sufficiently Advanced Magic
Sufficiently Advanced Magic
I found this list quite helpful.
Isengard
Read a fantasy book with a villain MC/POV (morally grey MC/POV is acceptable!)
Helm’s Deep
Read a fantasy book that is a standalone
The Goblin Emperor
Rohan
Read a fantasy book w/ a female MC. Here is a very interesting list for this challenge.
Gondor
Read a fantasy book w/ POC rep (author/MC/POV)
I’ll still pick a book for this, probably any book of fantasy I read in the meantime that it isn’t yet on this list.
Mordor
Read the conclusion to a fantasy series (standalones count) or the most recent installment of a series.
For this final challenge, I’ll pick the last book of the Queen of the Tearling series,
For more book recommendations check the original video and the other creators and co-host videos.
Captain’s Log: Tome Infinity & Beyond Wrap Up #TomeInfinityAndBeyond
This is my wrap-up, a month late since I was without time to write a blog post when the Readathon finished. Better late than never, so here are my reviews:
My Traveling Itinerary
I was leaving Earth with Ship D reading a new to me Author
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) by Becky Chambers.
This was a different kind of science-fiction, quite enjoyable and focused on the characters and human interactions. Rating: 4 Stars
On the Asteroid Belt I was reading a Space Opera
Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse #1) by James S.A. Corey. Even if the premise and world were interesting, I set it aside after forty pages because I was bored with its slow pace and new character introductions. I’ll perhaps pick this one later again, right now I’m in doubt if I want to commit to such a long series. Rating: No Rating since I DNF it.
In Saturn I was reading A Book With Circles On The Cover
The Grey Moon by Timothy P. Callahan. The story was quite centered in the characters and their relationship, almost in a slice-of-life sort of story. I would have liked if it would have been less focused on the relationship details and more on the science fiction itself, or if the pace would have been a bit faster. I found the kind of relationship depicted interesting though, it is seldom that you read a story where the effects of one of the partners working too much is talked about, therefore Rating: 3 stars.
Uranus, Hahaha – Reading A Book Featuring Some Comic Relief
Armada, by Ernest Cline. I liked this even if I still prefer “Ready Player One”. I would love a next book where Zack Lightman would meet the aliens and try to find out what they are plotting, LOL. Rating: 4 Stars
Neptune, Reading A Science Fiction W/ Fantasy Themes Or Vice Versa
I read the Innkeeper Chronicles series, which now has three books and liked it a lot. It’s a mixture of Paranormal Fantasy and Science Fiction. Here are my reviews of the three books:
Clean Sweep (Innkeeper Chronicles #1)
There ain’t no real vacations without an Ilona Andrews book… 🙂
I liked this book, just missed a bit more description and focus on the main character herself, especially when all side characters, even the dead dogs, got good descriptions.
The sci-fi and fantasy story world felt a bit rushed at times too, but I hope to get to know more about it in the next books of this series that I’ll be following for sure. Rating: 4 Stars
Sweep in Peace (Innkeeper Chronicles #2)
This was awesome, an entertaining series in any case. Rating: 5 Stars
One Fell Sweep (Innkeeper Chronicles #3)
When it’s the next book in the series here? Rating: 5 Stars
And finally I’ll arrive in my new home planet,
Pluto, where the goal was to Read A Vintage Science Fiction Book (25+ Years Old)
The Inheritors of Earth by Gordon Eklund, Poul Anderson.
This was vintage original sci-fi at it’s best. Rating: 5 Stars
And after setting camp in Pluto, I decided to go on reading…
Other Sci-fi books I would recommend
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
This book was very interesting, romantic and a real page-turner. I recommend this for anyone who likes their sci-fi with a lot of action and unpredictable quantum physics twists. Rating: 5 Stars
Prime Meridian by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
This book is not standard new-adult science fiction, but a well-written, and touching story in a, quite possible to happen, dystopian future.
Amelia is a heart-warming, relatable and real heroine. The theme of a woman giving her best and even tough being taken for granted is shown in detail (I found the symbolism with the rat very clever) and the heroine arc is lovely.
I hope there are more books with Amelia’s life on Mars and will be checking out future books by this author.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Innsmouth Free Press for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Rating: 5 Stars.
China Mountain Zhang by Maureen F. McHugh
This was very well written, a literary, slice-of-life, dystopia. At the beginning I thought Zhang aloof and could not relate to him, but as the story progressed I understood that it isn’t easy to survive in a world that condemns most things about you. I considered the chapters with the other characters really great too and loved the story set in Mars.
A beautiful book, to be read without hurry, as the awesome food-for-thought about human condition that it is. Rating: 5 Stars.
And you? Have you read any great sci-fi or any other book you would recommend?
Tome Infinity and Beyond Readathon**CREATED BY**
Brushing Bookends: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcvO…
Co-Hosts:
Sarcasm And Sci-Fi: https://youtu.be/abAkDmeU-OQhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr8_…
Brews And Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4Ay1…https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCln6…
Noveltea Corner: https://youtu.be/03s9RMb6sPQhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCEr…
The Restricted Section: https://youtu.be/OlkN7gjXEbAhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5Yd…
Don’t Have A Degree In Reading: https://youtu.be/3yxSbnI8naAhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UClEF…
Recommendations Link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/…#tomeinfinityandbeyond #tomeinfinityandbeyond2018
