Review: Blacktail

Blacktail by Scott Hawkins
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A bizarre sort of story, but no less enjoyable because of it. Violent and intriguing, and certainly not for the squeamish.

Blacktail is a half-breed - a wolf/dog mix of unknown paternity. His journey is one of revenge, after experiencing betrayal at the hands of humans.

I really enjoyed this revenge story, but it is a little strange to adapt to quickly. We get a familiar animal vs human set up, but then the story mixes in the supernatural and we have to adjust our idea of everything. I didn't mind it at all, but I did find it a little jarring.

Blacktail does not hold back, leading to some violent incidents that put this book firmly in the horror category. At the same time, there's not a lot of atmospheric horror to hold the tension throughout, so the nature of the story changes as it goes. It's this that really held me back from embracing it fully. I enjoyed the idea, the incidents, and the gruesome nature of it, but some of the wandering in between left me a little disappointed and honestly? kind of bored.

That's not to say I didn't enjoy it, because I found the uniqueness of it to be quite attractive. It's such an unusual story, filled with fresh concepts and a unique breed of horror that has the reader questioning whether they're on the right side of the man vs nature divide. There's something quite special about murderous animals - at least to me, anyway.

So it's definitely worth a shot if you're looking for horror with an animal protagonist, and/or something a little different to the usual fare.

With thanks to Macmillan and NetGalley for an ARC

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Review: Season of Fear

Season of Fear by Emily Cooper
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Yes I rather enjoyed this one!

A dark fantasy inspired by Bavarian folklore, the story sees fearless Ilse journeying into the Hexenwald to find her fear, in order to slake the thirst of the Saint of Fear and, in doing so, save her sister, Thea.

Fascinating premise, and a fresh folk tale unlike others I've read. Ilse is an easy protagonist to like, despite her being ostracised by her village - her fearlessness makes her an outcast to them, but more appealing to us.

The concept of having no fear was really interesting to me, and I enjoyed reading about how she experienced situations that would cause most people fear. She still feels deep emotions, but more often its anger.

It did start to feel a little long towards the end, and I was mystified by the days spent in between events sometimes, as the urgency I felt wasn't matched by Ilse's actions. It did drag a little at these times so it did end up feeling a little long to me. Thankfully, though, it seemed to tidy up every loose thread.

There is of course a love story, too, but it's sweet and not explicit so I didn't mind it.

A solid dark fantasy with some fun moments and surprises. A fun story I highly recommend giving a go.

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Review: Riftborne

Riftborne by Bree Grenwich
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had a lot of fun with this!

Finally a romantasy that remembered to include an exciting plot.

I really enjoyed the setup - could have done with out the romance (as always) but I liked the story and it's definitely left me wanting to know more. Very pleased the sequel is only a few weeks away!

A young woman with a terrible power she doesn't know how to control must team up with the Captain of the guards who needs her power to fight a terrible war against an enemy they don't understand.

That's the general vibe, and a familiar trope, but it's everything else that makes this more than just a romantasy.

Fia's friendships are a big part of the story and she's a loyal person who doesn't lose that suddenly because she's smitten. The relationships in this book are meaningful, well-founded and add a genuine likability to Fia in the way she treats those she cares for.

Also strong alchemy vibes which is always just fun for me. I love that kinda stuff in fantasy, the whole 'green' element of nature being such a big part of magic. In fact, everything about this book is 'green' in one way or another and it's my favourite colour so it appealed to me a lot in a very random, abstract kind of way. I don't know how to explain it, but 'green' is a word that describes this book. Read it and tell me I'm lying, I dare you. XD

General Ashford is the typical alpha male - in a position of power, best of the best, arrogant, strong and lordly etc with shirts that cling to his chiseled muscles. But again, once you get past the tropes there is an interesting character there - mostly in the way he interacts with others.

I do get bored reading the same romance plot again and again but this added a bunch of extra stuff I really enjoyed - the whole caste system, with Riftbornes being branded and treated as lesser was quite interesting to explore, and Fia's powers are fascinating. I also loved the concept of the Wraiths, and wanted to know so much more about them. I'll be reading the sequel mostly just to know more about this enemy.

This is definitely a book that sets things up for greater things to come, but I really enjoyed it. The characters are fun (though cliche), the setup is solid and the enemy is intriguing. Fans of romance will enjoy the pace of the relationship between Fia and Laryk, and fantasy fans will enjoy the world-building and hint of more to come. Mystery fans will be intrigued by the wraiths, and action fans will enjoy the blend of drama and the general pace of the novel.

A solid fantasy novel that romance fans should thoroughly enjoy. It's got a little bit of everything, and while it still relies on familiar tropes to push things along, it's also unique enough to sate the appetite of those looking for something fresh. Highly enjoyable and a recommendation for fantasy/romantasy fans.

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Review: Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone

Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A quirky, original sort of crime thriller.

An enjoyable read, though I did find the narrator insufferable at times and I was frustrated by the constant allusions to things to come. I hate spoilers with a passion so a book that goes out of its way to tell them really bugs me.

Ernest is a mystery writer arriving at something of a family reunion - located this year at an isolated ski resort. But as the title suggests, his is a family of killers, so when a body turns up in the snow, chaos ensues.

What follows is a mess of clues and red herrings, and Ernest is there to steer us wherever he likes as we go along. I didn't mind the humour, and in fact found it a fun, refreshing addition, but it feels almost like he's talking too much for you to be able to think about the mystery yourself. I guess it's not such a bad thing because it doesn't give you a lot of time to guess what will happen, but I did find it to be a little too much at times.

The mystery itself has so many elements to it, it's impossible to know what's relevant and what's not. I enjoyed trying to weed through it all but ultimately it was too much work to try and figure things out.

I enjoyed this enough that I'd happily read the next in the series, and I'd recommend it as a fresh take on the mystery/thriller genre for crime fans.

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Review: Exit Party

Exit Party by Emily St. John Mandel
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I can continue saying I love everything I've read from this author.

This was another beautiful story. Set a small jump into the future, we begin with a party that has too many people and finish once more with a strong desire to know more of this world.

Mandel has a special way of introducing a unique setting then focusing on how her characters interact with this setting. Once again, I loved getting to know these people and was desperate for any further morsels the author was willing to share. The characters intertwine so beautifully, and each story is its own precious moment.

The ideas in this book were beautiful, sad, tragic, heartwarming ... once again, a whole host of emotions that I was forced to feel and to continue mulling over now that the story has concluded.

Like all of Mandel's novels that I've read so far, this has some character overlap, though I didn't spot it so at least one re-read is in order. This overlap is one of my favourite things about her books, because it means when you're left yearning for more there IS more, in her other books.

Her writing style is candid, telling the story easily yet still evoking such incredible scenes. It's easy to digest what's happening and impossible to predict. There's plenty of symbolism, but some of it will really have you puzzling over what it means and if it does indeed mean anything at all.

This author's work is always hard to put into words, and while this story didn't grab me as intensely as some of her other work, I just really enjoyed the whole reading experience and how it made me feel. Definitely a stronger sense of this being a sci-fi story, but as always subtle and more focused on people than technology.

If you're a fan of her other work, this should be no different. Another wonderful story that will make you think and feel and yearn for more.

With thanks to Macmillan and NetGalley for an ARC

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Review: JLA: A League of One: Deluxe Edition

JLA: A League of One: Deluxe Edition by Christopher Moeller
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A fun Wonder Woman story backed up by an interesting yet ultimately confusing sci-fi tale about the JLA piloting mech units. Good bang for your buck if you get the two together in this edition, but the first story is really all you need.

A League of One: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

In this first story, Wonder Woman knows she's the only one who can save the world from a reawakened dragon, so she's gotta take out the members of the Justice League so they don't get in the way. It's a nice, simple story brought to life by gorgeous paintings. I loved studying these pages and just absorbing all the details. Beautifully rendered in such a way that you get this gorgeous fantasy story while still making it believable that the JLA are involved.

The gnomes are delightful, as are WW's two helpers. The colours are gorgeous, and the story is told well. A fun DC fantasy story.

Cold Steel: ⭐⭐

Generally terrible.

I liked it at first - beautiful artwork, and strange looking alien creatures. But as the story progressed it became increasingly difficult to hold the thread of what was happening and by the end I had no idea what had transpired.

A lot of work put into the mech designs for them to not really see a lot of logical action, and there was no clear reason they played such a role. It felt forced and as a consequence the story suffered.

Still gorgeous art, and I'd happily flick through just to marvel over the colours, but the story leaves a lot to be desired.


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Review: Songs of the Dead

Songs of the Dead by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Narrated by Jack Ayres
Presented by Bolinda Audio

Sanderson's name does more heavy lifting than the exceptionally bland story.

Honestly, I got bored with this at about 30% and the rest was just such a drag. I definitely zoned out a ton, so keep that in mind.

The story follows rocker Jack Solomon as he is introduced into a strange new world of music-magic, light-magic, and a whole bunch of dead people and stuff. *shrugs*

I was actually hooked by the premise - it sounded like a unique idea, and Sanderson is pretty good at creating fascinating magic systems. But this was messy. Music AND light AND dead people ... and a gratuitous amount of musical name drops. Layer upon messy layer of new ideas, new magic, new weapons and new people, and so many info-dumps I'm amazed I took any of it in at all.

This does not read like something from the mind of Sanderson. This reads like a book written by an aging musician who wants to convey the power of music in a new and interesting form while mentally reliving his own glory days. But those who aren't as musically-inclined will likely be alienated by the sheer volume of references, and it makes the book feel a little bit obnoxious. Jack strikes me as the kind of guy that would name an obscure band and then shame you for never having heard of them. Sanderson may have helped develop the magic but this strikes me very much as the pet project of Peter Orullian.

I might have given this an extra star if I'd read a physical copy and therefore followed the action a little better, but it just didn't interest me at all. The narrator does a fantastic job nailing a bunch of different accents but still somehow makes a handful of characters sound the same.

Did not expect him to sing to me, though; that was wild. Especially after every single other 'song' was spoken like bad poetry.

Overall it was an underwhelming urban fantasy that came across as arrogant rather than fun. I think perhaps a physical copy would deliver a little better, but the narrator does well with what he has to work with. If you're a metal head or big on urban fantasy with a musical twist, this might be for you. But don't pick this up based on Sanderson's name alone or you might be disappointed like I was.

With thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC

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