Reviews

Review: Elantris by Brandon Sanderson

#CosmereConquest

Elantris by Brandon Sanderson

Rating: ★★★★

Brandon Sanderson is a giant of Fantasy Fiction. Having read The Final Empire around a year ago, I know I liked his writing and, just like everyone, was wowed by his inventive and extremely clever magic systems (there is a reason everyone talks about them, they’re amazing).

So when Benedict (@BensBlurb on Twitter, check him out) launched the Cosmere Conquest for 2021 – a read through of Brandon’s Cosmere Universe books – I was ready and confident enough that I liked his writing to take part in my first EVER readathon!

I’m having a lot of fun so far, if you’d like to take part, take a look at the original post here, there’s even a discord group to chat about the books!

We’ve kicked January off with Elantris, a standalone book in the Cosmere series but widely considered to be the best starting place…for a reason I don’t think I know yet!

Elantris was once a powerful city with magical and etheral beings as it’s inhabitants, but is now considered cursed. Since the fall of Elantris the Shoad (a mysteries power with physcial effects on random people, regardless of status or rank) has been sweeping the nation – then it takes the crown prince of Kae, a neighbouring city. Meanwhile a priest arrives in Kae tasked with converting the entire population of Arelon to a new religion, with only a new princess in his way. Elantris has an important part to play in this religious war.

I really enjoyed Elantris. I think you can tell that it’s Sanderson’s debut – it doesn’t feel as well paced as his other writing, but this is still nonetheless brilliant. I loved the magic system (no spoilers) which as always felt brilliantly original and different, and was one of the things that kept me reading. I enjoyed the contrasts in the way each character lived and made their way through the book and have to say that some characters really surprised me.

Raoden’s chapters were my favourite, but I found Sarene to be delightful as well, and greatly enjoyed the way both of them were written – I actually forgot that they’re both royalty most of the time. Hrathen’s chapters for me were a little bit dry, and the reason I gave the book 4 stars is because had I known that the book was quite so steeped in religion I probably wouldn’t have picked it up. I have to say though, I ended up liking Hrathen’s moral compass and his role in the book. There were a few things that went unexplained – though I admit this may happen in later books – but that if they don’t I’ll be a little disappointed.

I found the familial elements for each of the characters interesting, especially interactions with secondary characters and the relationships they built with other people or had already established were something that stood out to me during my read through.

I’m incredibly glad I carried on, I persevered and was slowly pulled into the universe Sanderson has started to create, and I’m really excited to see how the later books tie in with this one. Overall, Elantris felt a little disjointed but was engaging and is definitely worth persevering with as it is a great fantasy book with the beginnings of a fascinating universe within its pages.

Sanderson writes extremely well, it’s easy to see why his books are so popular – you never feel like there is too much of anything in the things he writes, it’s all so well rounded, and you can really focus on taking the story in without stumbling around clumsy sentences and the like. I’m looking forwarding to reading more of his work.

Have you read Elantris? Are you taking part in the Cosmere Conquest? Let me know!

Reviews

Review: Shadowless by Randall McNally

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Shadowless by Randall McNally

Rating: ★★★★

Amazon

A huge thank you to the author, Randall, for contacting me and sending me this book!

Welcome to a land of gods and monsters, magical beings and us mere mortals – where you never quite know who’s on which side.
‘Shadowless’ is a behemoth of a book, a continuously twisting narrative guides us through the world of the Shadowless, beings fathered by gods, unwittingly granted powers, and without a shadow. But also, hunted. The gods would like their power back, and the only way to do that is by killing their children, unleashing more power than they original gave, making them stronger and everlasting.

I really enjoyed reading Shadowless, learning about all the different characters, what they can do (turning invisible, shapeshifting to name a few) and how their lives come together. The world of the Shadowless is vast and exciting, but also dangerous.
I liked that although the differing powers of the Shadowless might at first seem like the cliché superhero powers, the author put their own spin on each one. For example, one can be invisible but can only do so at great speed. I thought this was a clever way of introducing something new to the genre and avoiding run of the mill stuff.

I will admit to being slightly overwhelmed by the number of characters and trying to keep up with them all, some I had clean forgotten their backstories when the conclusion came around, but others were vibrant and demanded attention which helped. Characters are well written and rounded with believable backstories and motivations, even the evil ones! They blend well with their surroundings, and world building which is very effective. I enjoyed learning about all the different places and their landscapes, the inhabitants (dragons!) and flora and fauna. I thought the world as a whole sounded vibrant and real, which was excellent, but I found the writing a little too descriptive in some minor areas, particularly the beginning, though I stopped noticing it the further I got into the book.

I liked the changing viewpoints, though might have benefitted from revisiting a few of the characters after their introduction and before the end. I wonder if the author is setting up for more books, as there was one character I thought we would come across in the end but never did. On the whole I found each person to be unique and interesting and made me want to keep reading.
The lore, too, seems well done, I loved the inclusion of dragons (exceptionally well done) and contrasting cast of characters.

Overall I think this is a good debut – engaging and intriguing – and it was a book I kept wanting to read more of which is always a positive.
Though it could benefit from a few small refinements I believe it stands well on its own and is great for anyone looking to get into fantasy – as the switching viewpoints makes it easy to dip in an out of.

Reviews

Review: The Cousins by Karen M. McManus

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The Cousins by Karen M. McManus

Rating: ★★★

Bookshop.org

Determined to uncover the truth of their parents’ estrangement from their grandmother, three cousins set out to an island resort for work, and sleuthing – finding a family along the way and bonding in ways they never thought possible. It’s Death in Paradise for teenagers.

Although this was no Agatha Christie, I found the plot very readable, light (as far as murder mysteries go), twisty (though I find, increasingly guessable) and with a solid plotline. It was engaging and a welcome escape to a sunny paradise (albeit dangerous) – a far cry from the reality of 2020. I found the characters well written and fleshed out, I can only assume they are relatable as well, though my ever advancing age means that the relatability of characters in Karen’s books has declined somewhat. I did find myself sighing at various intervals at how very little sense these characters, particularly Milly, seem to have.

I find every mystery written by Karen M. McManus to be well thought out, although as with her previous books I did find the resolution to be a little weak when compared to the earlier twists in the novel…I often find these to be much stronger and more capable of shock, though admittedly the final paragraph was a good ending. I did enjoy the split narrative, I find this is something which when done well makes me want to keep reading, and it is done well in The Cousins. Nicely balanced throughout and very well paced. I found Alison to be…well frankly not needed, in the sense that her parts of the story didn’t seem to do much for the plot apart from create a break between anything exciting happening.

Karen M. McManus us just about the only YA mystery author I will read nowadays, purely because I’ve outgrown a lot of them. The sad truth is that I’m beginning to outgrow these too. They’re books I will read if I find them, but I’m not going to go seeking them out.

Have you read The Cousins? What did you think?

Reviews

Ten Words or Less: A Reading Year in Review

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Welcome everyone, to the end of the shit show year. As we cross the mighty threshold of January and all of our problems magically vanish and 2020 is the-year-that-will-not-be-named (because that’s going to happen right?) I’m feeling reminiscent. Most of us have had a brilliant reading year, because we’ve had heck all else to do, and so many have discovered some firm favourites, I’m no different!

But here’s the thing. Fancy wrap ups…not my thing, SO I’m going to post a ten-word-or-less* review of every book I read this year, and lucky ‘ole you gets to come along for the, admittedly shorter than it should be, ride.

Let’s dive right in! (there are a lot here, just…be warned. It’s a long one).

**Good, murdery, intriguing and readable – high praise for murder mysteries.**

**A highlight of this year – very well done.**

**I do not…remember reading this book.**

**Good, solid book, a little young for me perhaps.**

**Perhaps my favourite of the year. Brilliant, engaging, constant guessing.**

**I READ ALL OF THEM. READ THEM. PLEASE!!!!! SO GOOD.**

**A decent book from a consistent writer.**

**Good first half, super boring second half.**

**Love this series, ambivalent about this installment.**

**Read a few from this series. Meh. all the same.**

**Did not enjoy the narrator (audiobook)**

**Important, own voices, personal and happy to see!**

**AMAZING. AWESOME, CAN’T WAIT FOR ‘DELICATES’.**

**A little disappointing. Over hyped but not bad.**

**Read two of these. Run of mill well written romance.**

**A short classic. Can’t go wrong with Christie.**

**Not revolutionary, but a nice getaway.**

**Debut of the year. Wholesome, awesome – more please. Lots more.**

**Overhyped, average mystery. Short and okay.**

**Another standout of this year. Read some good mysteries!!**

**Consistently good series, looking forward to more.**

**Solid, but not my favourite of Matt’s**

**Wonderful. Loved this story and didn’t guess the ending.**

**Highly anticipated, didn’t disappoint. READ IT.**

**Brilliant! Unexpected favourite – came out of nowhere.**

**A classic. Imaginative, enthralling, unique.**

**Run of mill romance with own voices rep. Not bad.**

**Enjoyed the mid story twist more than the ending.**

Phew. There are a lot there. I hope you had a great reading year, are any of your favourites on this list? Let me know!

*…and yes, I know it should be ‘Ten Words or Fewer’ 😉

Reviews

Review: Seven Kinds of People You Find in Bookshops by Shaun Bythell

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Seven Kinds of People You Find in Bookshops by Shaun Bythell

Rating: ★★★★

Bookshop.org

Shaun Bythell quickly established himself as one of my go-to authors with his first two books, The Diary of a Bookseller and Confessions of a Bookseller. Owner of a beautiful second-hand bookshop in Scotland’s Wigtown, Shaun’s acerbic wit and hilarious observations about the day to day running of his shop have produced some of my favourite books of the last few years. So much so that I’m planning a trip to Wigtown myself…just as soon as…all this craziness is over…and I can travel again. We’ll be able to that again right?

So, when Seven Kinds was announced, I was understandably very excited. I was not disappointed, although be warned, if you can’t take a joke, best not read this. Shaun’s continuously funny observations on the patrons of his shop (seriously his writing really does make me laugh out loud), are something I could continue to read for a long time.

I spent most of the book wondering when the ‘Kind of Person’ I fit into would show up -I wasn’t an ‘Expert’ (unless you count an unhealthy amount of knowledge of Harry Potter, Doctor Who, or The Book Thief as expert), nor do I (mercifully) have a ‘Young Family’ or identify as an ‘Occultist’. I’ve been known to be a ‘Loiterer’ though not in the sense described here, I certainly hope I’m not a ‘Bearded Pensioner’ at my tender age, and sadly I have not yet reached the level of bookshop ‘Staff’. Spoiler alert, turns out I’m boringly normal (at least I like to think so!). But nevertheless, being boring did not distract from my enjoyment of this wonderful book, through which once again arise a vibrant cast of characters and one slightly grumpy (though I’m finding evermore identifiable) bookseller.

There’s no doubt that Shaun loves what he does, I doubt he’d be able to get away with this good natured needling of his patrons if he didn’t, but it has to be said that he hides it very well, through layers of intelligent sarcasm and a sprinkling of vitriol for the truly heinous customers.

So, if you’re in need of a break from your current read, or just a break in general – I’d say definitely give this a go. We all need a laugh at the moment, and Seven Kinds of People You Meet in Bookshops truly delivers. Not only that, but this is one of the cutest little hardbacks I’ve ever seen (it’s not a large or long book – perfect for a book lover’s stocking filler!).

Reviews

Review: The Sandman Vol. 1 – Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman et al.

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The Sandman Volume 1: Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman et al.

Rating: ★★★★

Bookshop.org|Amazon

Finally. I’ve hopped on board The Sandman train – perused this seminal ‘grand oak’ of a comic book series – dabbled in, what was and continues to be for many, the gateway drug to a graphic novel addiction – examined this godlike and holy text….you get the picture. I read The Sandman Volume 1. Here’s what I thought.

The Sandman Volume 1 (hereafter referred to as Sandman, cos I love you all but I’m not writing that out every single time I mention it) serves as an introduction to Neil Gaiman’s much loved universe. We traverse the plains of hell, dreams and death with our protagonist, the reserved yet quietly fierce Morpheus. Wrongly captured in place of Death herself (his sister, incidentally), imprisoned and sapped of strength, when freedom finally calls, Morpheus must track down his prized power-giving possessions – The Helm, The Ruby, The Sand Pouch – before he can get back to being the dream maker.

Look, you don’t need me to tell you that Sandman is brilliant. But I’m going to. Because it is. Neil Gaiman has always been a genius writer, and writing a graphic novel series where the main character is the lord of Dreams. Yes please. Be warned, it’s not for the squeamish, but if you can put aside any mild aversions to what I will technically refer to as ‘yuck’ then you’ll be drawn in just as much as the rest of us have been.

The Sandman give us the reader just enough to leave us wanting more in the way that Neil Gaiman does so brilliantly well. Featuring a vibrant cast of characters – I loved Death and can’t wait to read more about her – with a gorgeous and extremely fitting art style, I’m already hankering to start Volume 2.

The plot line is a little jagged in my opinion, scenes do not run smoothly from one to the next in a nice linear fashion. This is Neil Gaiman, he’s not just going to hand us the story on a plate, and I have to admit to having read the Wikipedia article in order give a little order and sense to what I was reading, but once I did…oh boy. Once you get used to the way it’s structured, the story gains a very particular sort of flow – almost dreamlike (ha ha). The concept is beautifully original and a stark examination of what it means to be human, balanced with the supernatural in a superb and masterful way.

I feel like sometimes I get fed up of reading books with similar plotlines and the lack of originality in some of the books I’ve read is just mind numbing, I get sick of reading the same old tropes. Well let me assure you, that isn’t present here.

Quite literally, I’ve never read anything like it.

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Let me know what you thought if you’ve read The Sandman! I’m also now an affiliate of TheBookshop.org a place for independent bookshops to sell their books online! So, if you see something you like (or indeed if you would like to purchase The Sandman) maybe buy through my affiliate link – no extra cost to you and something small for me! 🙂 Plus, you’ll be giving a hand to our country’s indies, who need our help more than ever!

Reviews

Review: The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis

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The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis

Rating: ★★★★

Book Depository|Amazon

Upcoming Netflix drama The Queen’s Gambit had my attention as soon as I watched the opening scene of the trailer. Released in October, when watching the trailer I saw the words ‘Based on the book by Walter Tevis’ flash across the screen. Okay Netflix. You got me.

I’ve always had an interest in Chess. I’m an entirely average player with little experience and only a rudimentary knowledge of the World Chess scene, yet for some reason films about Chess are something I really love. I honestly can’t explain it – I think it may be something to do with Chess being something everything can play, but takes a really incredibly brain to properly master. Plus, to be honest, I’ve always wanted the title of Grandmaster – it’s so…grand.

Following orphan and Chess prodigy Beth, The Queen’s Gambit is an elegant tale of self discovery and a very particular kind of life. I won’t lie – you’re not going to enjoy this book if you don’t know at least a little bit about chess. That’s not in anyway meant to be a patronising statement from me – but there is A LOT of chess notation, move narration and explanation of the game is heavy, so I’m not saying you can’t read it, I’m just saying you may not enjoy it if they are not your thing.

A cautionary tale of the fine line between ‘genius’ and ‘madness’ (in my eyes two completely subjective statements but the best fitting here) The Queen’s Gambit is slightly quirky, but it’s a book I also found to be incredibly engaging. Watching Beth navigate adoption, the transition from an all girl’s school to mixing with males, not only that but doing so in a male dominated sport, as well as growing up in the public eye, was a thoroughly enjoyable and emotional ride.

Quite aside from the main theme of Chess, the other theme which stood out to me was that of what friendship is and the many forms it can take. I thought the way Tevis wrote Beth’s relationships with the people in her life was delicately and really well done – it made the book believable and made it into somewhat of a page turner. It made the book starkly human.

If you pick up this book, be prepared for a deeply emotional and introspective book, steeped in tension and expectation surrounding a male dominated game in which a young girl takes the world by storm.

I also highly recommend checking out the Netflix show which is beautifully true to the book and amazingly well done, Anya Taylor Joy is PERFECT as Beth, I promise you’ll enjoy it!

Reviews

Review: The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

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The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

Rating: ★★★★★

Book Depository|Amazon

I received an e-arc of this book from the publishers in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Raven Books!

Stuart Turton returns with the much anticipated The Devil and the Dark Water. It is essentially, as Hannah Gadsby would say, his ‘difficult second album’- released on a tidal wave of expectation due to the amazing success of his debut novel The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle.

So, can genius strike twice? Yes. Apparently it very definitely can.

Stuart Turton has definitely lived up to the hype and is quickly establishing himself as not only one of my go-to authors, but also a commanding voice in the ‘murder mystery’ ‘sci-fi’ ‘historical fiction’…wait. What genre is this exactly? *flips to author’s note* ‘historical fiction. where the history is the fiction’ ah. ok. Well as I was saying, Turton is rapidly carving a space for himself on my bookshelves and as an authority in his particular type of writing.

It is a very particular type too. His books are effortlessly woven mysteries with engaging characters who can captivate you regardless of how much time they actually get at the forefront of the story. Coupled with settings which are so atmospheric it’s almost magical – seriously I swear I felt seasick at certain points – his books make for some of the most original we’ve seen in the last 5 years.

The Devil and the Dark Water follows the ‘Saardam’ a ship sailing from Batavia to Amsterdam and it reportedly doomed from the outset.

Prisoner and sleuth Samuel Pipps, together with his bodyguard and friend Arent Hayes are travelling on the ship, Samuel having being arrested for reasons unbeknownst to him. Alongside them travel a large cast of characters including the Governor General – Jan Haan – his wife Sara, and their daughter Lia. Captain Crauwells and his mish mash crew are charged with making sure the Saardam makes port in Amsterdam, but there may or may not be a devil on board and whispers follow them through the waters from the minute they leave Batavia.

I found Arent to be a most intriguing character, with a quiet humility about him Turton made me want to know more about his character and motivations. Smaller characters like Lia, Dorothea, and Crauwells were no less vibrant, Lia actually quickly became one of my favourite characters in the book. I absolutely loved the entire thing, I think it’s a masterful piece of work – but in particular what stood out to me was the overall atmosphere. At times I could feel the old creaking ship around me, smells and all, and the way Turton does this is just unlike anything else I’ve ever read. As the reader you are so completely caught in the net of the story that at times it’s a shock to return to ‘normal life’. Fellow blogger Ollie said some similar things in his review, which you can find here!

Furthermore, another of Turton’s talents is on effortless display once again with a number of subplots woven intricately – yet perfectly – into the story. These subplots are just as, if not more, engaging than the actual plot and serve to prove that Turton is easily one of the most talented writers around at the moment. You can just tell that this book has been so carefully and meticulously crafted and has been done with someone who cares a great deal about his writing, something which really stands out in both of Turton’s books.

Another favourite was the representation of women in the novel, once again carefully crafted and done delicately and accurately without it feeling like the writing was performative, it was done incredibly well. I don’t know if you can tell but I very quickly lost my heart to this book.

To be completely transparent, if I were asked to pick my favourite of Turton’s books, I would pick Seven Deaths purely because where Seven Deaths was absolute genius, this book for me erred on the side of slightly far-fetched at times, not necessarily in a bad way, but in a way I personally like a little less. Do not let that put you off though, this is still one of the best most engaging books I’ve read and truly was a joy to finally get my hands on. In fact, one thing I would say this book does slightly better than Seven Deaths is the characters – I cared about them all and wanted to read more about them all. There was not one point where I found myself wanting to skip interactions or felt I was getting bored – whereas if I recall correctly Seven Deaths did have a bit of that.

The Devil and the Dark Water was an absolute pleasure to read, I count myself lucky to be around at the same time as these books, they’re just that good. Needless to say I would never have seen that ending coming, which for someone like me, who reads a tonne of murder mystery and can see a cliché ending from several miles away, is deeply and satisfyingly refreshing.

If you have any hesitations about reading this and my review hasn’t swayed you either way, check out some other reviews – you’ll see that we’re pretty much all singing from the same hymn sheet – you won’t regret reading it. When you read that last page, you’ll close it with a sigh of satisfaction, safe in the knowledge that this book is in your life forever. And, like me, you’ll begin your vigil, patiently stalking social media for news of the next book by the genius that is Stuart Turton.

Reviews

Review: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Rating: ★★★★☆

Book Depository|Amazon

This…is a really great book.

I’m a little bit late to this party, mostly because I tried once before to read it, and made it to the end of the second chapter before I put it down. I think sometimes it’s just a case of wrong book, wrong time. I’m never going to enjoy a book if there are others I’d rather be reading.

However, I’m immensely glad I finally woke up to how good Seven Husbands is. So, why the 4 stars?

Perhaps a little unfairly, the book lost a star through no fault of its own. Unfortunately, being late to a book party often means that spoilers are very hard to avoid and have kind of entered social discourse (i.e. book twitter) with no spoiler warning. And rightly so; comparatively speaking this book is old. Especially in the world of blogging and book reviews. This meant that I went into the book knowing what was going to happen, there was almost no mystery, and therefore lacked suspense – absolutely not the book’s fault, but nevertheless had an impact on my enjoyment. I’m a murder mystery lover, suspense often means a lot for me.

Having said all of that, I absolutely loved almost everything else.

The pacing, the characters, the story, the writing, even the format of the book – I loved it all. The book being split into parts pertaining to each husband worked really really well for the story, the pacing was amazing – it sometimes took a little while to get a grip on where exactly we were in Evelyn’s life but it didn’t detract from the book. Evelyn’s character is just superbly written. Complex, caustic, yet so completely human – you get a sense of feeling how those around Evelyn must have felt had she been real. She has flaws – major ones sometimes – but as the reader you fall completely for her and are rooting for her from the first page, regardless of how she acts. She’s brilliantly written.

I have to say that I felt very little for Monique, I know the book isn’t technically about her, I felt like a little bit more of her character could have been explored – there was comparatively little and not enough for me to really connect.

Spoilers commence from here———————————-

Celia and Evelyn’s relationship was heart wrenching, with the husbands as secondary yet no less real characters I felt that the over all way the book was handled was masterful. The ending – ouch. Gosh it hurt me, yet felt completely right in a way, and it was something I did see coming from about halfway in.

For me, this is a really refreshing approach to a book and is unlike most other things I’ve read…I love that it makes me feel that way as sometimes I see too many books whose plots are basically just a copy and paste. Not for Evelyn Hugo though – she only gets the best treatment.

This is a book I would highly recommend to pretty much anyone who enjoys the ‘old Hollywood’ vibe, mystery, intrigue, romance and beautifully written characters – it won’t disappoint you.

Yes, going into The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo I knew what to expect – I was not, however, prepared for how it would make me feel. Sometimes, that’s the best part.

Reviews

Review: The Midnight Library by Matt Haigh

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The Midnight Library by Matt Haigh

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Book Depository|Amazon

Unfortunately for Matt Haigh, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, I’m a huge fan of How to Stop Time. It has become the standard by which I judge all of Matt’s books, rightly or wrongly.

The Midnight Library is, in my mind, a good book, but fell short of the things I really loved from How to Stop Time. I keep seeing this book called a sci-fi novel…in my opinion it’s not really, there is a small element yes, I’ll agree with that, but not enough for me to class it as sci-fi.

Nora Seed is dissatisfied with life. Everything is going wrong, and she’s having her worst days, everyday. Exhausting. When Nora gets the chance to live some other lives, she finds The Midnight Library and thus begins a complicated collection of living and dying..at the same time.

The main problem with The Midnight Library is that to be honest, I didn’t really care about any of the characters. I wasn’t really rooting for Nora, and even though we have shared experiences, I found it really difficult to connect with her. It fell a little flat for me.

I was also expecting more from the ending. The middle third of the book originally had the rating at 4 stars, it was ramping up, there were some interesting things going on, my attention was grabbed…and then swiftly released by a little bit of a flat ending. Not a bad one, just not a great one. And a good ending is sometimes half the battle.

All in all, if you like Matt Haigh’s work, don’t be afraid to pick this up. You’ll probably enjoy it. Just, in my opinion, don’t be expecting something on the level of How to Stop Time.