Book Review: Dragon Unleashed by Grace Draven

Posted on June 8, 2020 29 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

Dragon Unleashed by Grace Draven

Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Genre: Fantasy, Romance

Series: Book 2 of Fallen Empire

Publisher: Ace Books (June 9, 2020)

Length: 384 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

It’s official, Grace Draven is now my go-to author for fantasy romance. I adored Phoenix Unbound, the first book in the Fallen Empire sequence, namely because she treated the story and the characters with as much care and importance as the romance. Now she returns to the world with a second novel, Dragon Unleashed, which follows a new set of protagonists and thus can be read as a standalone.

Opening once more on the Krael Empire where magic is outlawed by the cruel tyrant Empress Dalvila, this novel shines a light on the draconic lore of the world. While most believe that the draga have long gone extinct, the truth is that the few who have survived still live secretly among humankind in disguise. Malachus is one of these dragons, who uses a magical artifact called a mother-bond to maintain his human form. Without its magic, he would be forced to revert to his true self, revealed to the world without protection.

When the story begins though, Malachus has just had his mother-bond stolen, and is in the middle of tracking the thieves who have taken it when he chances upon a caravan of free traders. Among them is a young woman named Halani, a healer who possesses the gift of magic. Her uncle is also the leader of their group, who purchases the mother-bond, unaware of the true power the artifact holds. When Malachus catches up to the original thieves thinking they still have what belongs to him, a skirmish ensues, leaving him grievously injured. It is Halani who ends up treating his wounds and nursing him back to health, and during his long convalescence, the two inevitably grow closer, inadvertently giving away some of their secrets. Malachus can’t help being drawn to the healer, despite being disapproving of some her less-than-ethical free trader ways, while Halani herself suspects there is something more to her enigmatic patient, but never in a million years would have guessed his true nature.

Meanwhile, the reason for Malachus’ furtiveness soon becomes clear as it is revealed that Empress Dalvila is on the hunt for a draga for herself. Her network of spies have been hard at work seeking information on the mother-bond, which she plans to use as bait, and unbeknownst to Malachus or Halani, they are already a target for Dalvila’s agents.

While Dragon Unleashed technically reads as a standalone and new readers can jump right in without worrying they will be missing out on pertinent information from the first book, I would still highly recommend starting with Phoenix Unbound for several reasons. First is that you will get a more detailed exploration into the background and history of the Krael Empire and why those possessing magic, like Halani, must remain hidden for fear of persecution and death. Second, the main couple from the first book, Gilene and Azarion, feature as side characters in this one, and I was able to appreciate reading about them a lot more knowing how much they’ve been through to get where they are. And third and most important of all, Phoenix Unbound was simply and excellent book that shouldn’t be missed, especially considering the romance in it was even more swoon-worthy than this one.

That said, Dragon Unleashed was no slouch either. While their romance might not have been as intense as Gilene and Azarion’s, I felt Halani and Malachus’s story was overall filled with more action, intrigue, and fascination. I can also understand why some readers might find their relationship too slow to develop, but I personally enjoyed how the author took her time. After all, Malachus teaching Halani to read was sexier than anything I could imagine! Plus, the differences between our two protagonists only served to make the journey of their courtship even more compelling, particularly in light of their disparate backgrounds and ideologies. In fact, I think the novel was strongest when it was focusing on our main characters, as well as the comings and goings around the free trader camp, which in addition to the appearances by Gilene and Azarion also included Halani’s charmingly sweet but mentally disabled mother Asil as well as the wretched and greedy uncle Hamod. In contrast, when the story flipped back to the capital, where Dalvila’s machinations are seen through the eyes of a top henchman, the interest there was simply not as strong, so that might be my only major criticism of the plot and pacing.

Still, whatever you may think of the lead-up to the conclusion, the book’s climax and its final scenes were incredible. I thought the ending also underscored Grace Draven’s talent as a romance writer whose stories aren’t just about the romantic aspects, because everything I’ve read by her so far has featured strong plot and character elements as well. However, given the way this one wrapped up, it did make me wonder if we might see another volume in this series, since things did end with something of an air of finality to them. If not, it’ll be sad to say goodbye to this world, but I will still be eagerly looking forward to the author’s next project.

More on The BiblioSantum:
Review of Phoenix Unbound (Book 1)

YA Weekend: Incendiary by Zoraida Córdova

Posted on June 7, 2020 28 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

Incendiary by Zoraida Córdova

Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult

Series: Book 1 of Hollow Crown

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion (April 28, 2020)

Length: 384 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

There is a dark vibe to this that is hard to describe, but I found it pleasantly surprising and it also made the story that much more poignant and gripping. Incendiary by YA author Zoraida Córdova is the first installment of a planned duology which takes place in Puerto Leones, a fantasy world loosely based on Inquisition-era Spain. King Fernando has declared all Moria, or individuals gifted with magical abilities, as a blight on the land and must be hunted down and killed. Our protagonist Renata “Ren” Convida was just a child when her nation was conquered and she was kidnapped by the King’s Justice, who brought her to be raised at the palace of Andalucia as a political prisoner. As a Robari possessing one of the rarest and most powerful gifts of the Moria, Ren was immediately pressed into the king’s service to use her abilities to steal the memories and secrets of Fernando’s enemies. As a result, she was forced to witness the suffering and deaths of thousands of her own people, helpless to stop any of it.

Eventually though, Ren was taken in by a rebel Moria group called the Whispers after they stormed the palace and rescued her. Still, with few willing to trust someone with so much blood on her hands, Ren remained an outsider, despite aiding the resistance with her powers. Only Dez, her unit commander and the son of the Whispers’ leader was fully accepting of her, and the two became romantically involved. But now, a new threat looms on the horizon in the form of a weapon developed by the king to rid the world of Moria, forcing the rebels to turn to more drastic measures. Unfortunately, when Dez winds up being captured by the notorious Prince Castian, Ren realizes with horror that she may have just put her love’s life in danger by unwittingly disrupting a secret mission being planned by the Whispers. To destroy the king’s weapon and save Dez’s life, she must return to the palace of her nightmarish childhood under the guise of a loyal subject and convince her former captors that she is still on their side.

Incendiary is a book that hits the ground running, and if you’re not paying attention, you might get left behind! From the start, readers are thrown into the action, and there’s a feeling of stepping into a story that is already underway. I appreciate how the author didn’t waste time getting into the meat of the conflict, and any background information can be gleaned from snippets of details dropped along the way. This kept the pace moving smoothly and quickly, though you might run into a bit of confusion at the beginning, at least until all is made clear. Another downside to the way this novel is structured is that Ren and Dez are already a couple when the story opens, and before long he is captured so not much time is given to developing their relationship before they are separated. Considering how Ren’s motivations were predicated on her love for Dez, which was also the driving force behind the whole plot, this aspect probably could have been handled better.

But when the story gets going, it also gets a bit grim, which I enjoyed because you could never be certain where Córdova will take our characters. Speaking of which, Ren is an enigma, with a past that is gradually revealed. Even then, it is a long time before we get a complete picture, since she doesn’t remember all the details herself. Before her rescue by the Whispers, she was a child manipulated into doing terrible things with her powers. As a Robari, she has a special type of magic that allows her to steal memories from anyone with just a touch, and if she takes them all, her victim becomes a Hollow—an empty shell that has lost everything that makes them who they are. That said though, when used carefully, her abilities can also take away bad memories, freeing the person of any pain or trauma. While memory thieves are not exactly a new idea in fantasy, I did enjoy how this duality of Ren’s magic was explored and the way these dynamics gave her character more depth.

As for the plot, the pacing was a bit uneven, especially after Ren makes her return to the palace, which is where the story’s focus shifts to subterfuge and intrigue. World-building was strong, thankfully, which helped move things along. The final quarter of the book also blew up, with all sorts of game-changing revelations and deceptions uncovered that will make you rethink everything you’ve read. This final section was nothing short of brilliant, and more than made up for any fumbles along the way. The stage is now set for the next volume of the duology, and I can’t wait to find out what happens next.

Friday Face-Off: Flight

Posted on June 5, 2020 27 Comments

Welcome to The Friday Face-Off, a weekly meme created by Books by Proxy! Each Friday, we will pit cover against cover while also taking the opportunity to showcase gorgeous artwork and feature some of our favorite book covers. If you want to join the fun, simply choose a book each Friday that fits that week’s predetermined theme, post and compare two or more different covers available for that book, then name your favorite. A list of future weeks’ themes are available at Lynn’s Book Blog.

This week’s theme is:

“To flee, to fly”
~ a cover featuring FLIGHT

Mogsy’s Pick:

Blackwing by Ed McDonald

My pick for today is Ed McDonald’s Blackwing, which follows Ryhalt Galharrow, a bounty hunter for a mysterious organization known as the Nameless. His patron, called Crowfoot, is a ruthless master who communicates through a tattoo on Galharrow’s arm, bursting forth from his skin in a form of a raven whenever he has orders to give. With all these allusions, it’s no wonder we get all these gritty covers of birds taking flight:

From left to right:
Ace Books (2017) – Gollancz (2017)

Russian Edition (2018) – Serbian Edition (2018) – French Edition (2018)

Polish Edition (2018) – Spanish Edition (2018)

Winner:

I confess I’ve always been quite partial to both the Ace and Gollancz versions, but when I saw the Polish edition for the first time, I knew I had found my new favorite!

But what do you think? Which one is your favorite?

Thriller Thursday: This Is How I Lied by Heather Gudenkauf

Posted on June 4, 2020 22 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

This Is How I Lied by Heather Gudenkauf

Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 4 of 5 stars

Genre: Thriller, Mystery

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Harlequin Audio (May 12, 2020)

Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Narrator: Brittany Pressley

I really enjoyed this one, and no wonder, for This Is How I Lied has all the ingredients that make a killer thriller—no pun intended. Here, we have an unsolved murder in a small town, a twenty-five-year-old cold case which has recently been reopened because new evidence has come to light. Our protagonist is also the lead investigator, who was childhood best friends with the victim, so we have that added element of a deeply personal angle.

The novel opens brutally, on the final moments of Eve Knox’s life. It is winter of 1995 in the sleepy town of Grotto, Iowa, and the sixteen-year-old has somehow found herself alone in the icy caverns near her home, crawling away from an unknown assailant, who kills her in cold blood. Skip forward to the present, and Maggie still grieves for the loss of Eve like it was yesterday, not to mention she was also the one who had found the beaten and bloody body of her friend. However, no one was ever arrested for the murder, despite the efforts of Maggie’s father, the former chief of police in charge of the case. All the suspects, from Nick the boyfriend to Nola, the victim’s own younger sister, were eventually cleared due to lack of evidence.

But now, everything in Maggie’s life is about to change, thanks to a recent discovery by a kid who found an old boot wedged into a crevice of a cave they were exploring, and there is no doubt that it had belonged to Eve. This prompts the police department to reopen the investigation into her murder, hoping that advancements in forensic science and technology can help reveal any new clues they had missed. Maggie, now a police officer herself, immediately fights to lead the case, despite being aware how it might be a bad idea. In addition to the fact that she was Eve’s best friend and her impartiality can be called into question, Maggie is also currently seven months into a risky pregnancy, and neither she nor her husband wants to jeopardize the baby’s wellbeing with the added stress and trauma of working on such a personal case. Still, solving the mystery of Eve’s murder is very important to Maggie, who knows this is a matter she must see through to the end—for herself, as well as for her father, who never forgave himself for not finding the killer, and was later forced to retire from the force when he was diagnosed with dementia.

What made This Is How I Lied so special is that it felt like a story with multiple climaxes. About halfway through, the author drops a bombshell on the reader, the kind that makes you want to jump up and scream “HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT! THIS IS LIKE THE BEST TWIST EVER!” because it pretty much changes everything you think know about the book. Just be prepared while you read to re-evaluate the situation again and again, because the plot will keep throwing curveballs and other unexpected revelations at you every step of the way.

What also made this book interesting were the characters. Utilizing dual timelines, with chapters alternating between past and present, This Is How I Lied is told via three main POVs. Of course, on the one hand we have Maggie, who provides us with a front row seat to the investigation. When she was a teenager, her father had shielded her from a lot of his police work and the details about Eve’s death. Now that Maggie has access to all of it in the archives, seeing all the witness testimonies and crime scene photos has brought on a fresh wave of pain and horror. At the same time, her father’s condition is worsening, adding to her sorrows and the stress of her pregnancy.

Next, we also have separate thread that belongs to Eve, chronicling the final days leading up to her murder. Her POV might be the toughest to read of all, and it goes beyond simply knowing that the poor girl is doomed. Despite having a good head on her shoulders—she’s sharp enough to recognize that her best friend Maggie is caught up in a bad relationship, at least—Eve is unable to free herself from her own involvement with a toxic and abusive boyfriend. Watching her fall back into this vicious cycle again and again was almost too much to bear.

But perhaps the most memorable POV is also the most disturbing and creepy one. It belongs to Nola, Eve’s weird and possibly psychopathic little sister. Her super intelligence and lack of remorse made for a frightening combination, but despite her odd behavior, it can somewhat be gleaned that she did indeed care for her older sister and was greatly affected by her death. Nola’s unique perspective gave the story a bit of an edge, a feeling of uneasiness from not knowing where she might take us, because wherever that place is, it’s sure to be unpleasant.

Bottom line, This Is How I Lied was a great read. And yes, I deliberately focused more on the characters in my review rather than talk about the story, because it would be a shame to reveal too much. Needless to say, a lot was going on in this book, and thanks to these various elements, it made an otherwise typical cold case murder mystery into something truly different and special.

Audiobook Comments: As with most book with multiple POVs, I wish the audio edition had went with multiple narrators, especially since Maggie, Eve, and Nola were very dissimilar characters with such different personalities. Still, Brittany Pressley delivered a solid performance, and overall the audiobook was a good listen.

Waiting on Wednesday 06/03/20

Posted on June 3, 2020 24 Comments

Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that first originated at Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. Either way, this fun feature is a chance to showcase the upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!

Mogsy’s Pick

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells (April 27, 2021 by Tor.com)

How awesome that so soon after I finished Network Effect, there is news already of another Murderbot book on the horizon? Unfortunately, the wait for it will be long, at almost a year out. But I have a feeling it’ll be worth it!

“The New York Times bestselling security droid with a heart (though it wouldn’t admit it!) is back in Fugitive Telemetry!

Having captured the hearts of readers across the globe (Annalee Newitz says it’s “one of the most humane portraits of a nonhuman I’ve ever read”) Murderbot has also established Martha Wells as one of the great SF writers of today.

No, I didn’t kill the dead human. If I had, I wouldn’t dump the body in the station mall.

When Murderbot discovers a dead body on Preservation Station, it knows it is going to have to assist station security to determine who the body is (was), how they were killed (that should be relatively straightforward, at least), and why (because apparently that matters to a lot of people—who knew?)

Yes, the unthinkable is about to happen: Murderbot must voluntarily speak to humans!

Again!

A new standalone adventure in the New York Times-bestselling, Hugo and Nebula Award winning series!“

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Covers that Give Off Summer Vibes

Posted on June 2, 2020 26 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish, a weekly meme that now resides at That Artsy Reader Girl. The meme first came about because of a love of lists. Who doesn’t love lists? The original creators also wanted their lists to be shared with fellow book lovers and to ask that we in turn share ours with them and connect with other book bloggers. To learn more about participating, stop by their page dedicated to it and dive in!

This week’s topic: Top Ten Covers that Give Off Summer Vibes

Today’s topic is “Top Ten Books that Give Off Summer Vibes,” but really, I think any book can be turned into a feel-good summer read as long as you’re enjoying yourself! So I decided to tweak the topic a little bit and focus on my favorite book covers on my shelves that feel like summer. Can you feel the sun on your skin, and see yourself at the beach or by the poolside yet?

Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman

The Deepest Blue by Sarah Beth Durst

Shark Beach by Chris Jameson

Dead to Her by Sarah Pinborough

The Favorite Daughter by Kaira Rouda

Pacifica by Kristen Simmons

Second Star by Alyssa B. Sheinmel

Something She’s Not Telling Us by Darcey Bell

Children of Earth and Sky by Guy Gavriel Kay

The Unfortunate Decisions of Dahlia Moss by Max Wirestone

Audiobook Review: The Last Emperox by John Scalzi

Posted on June 1, 2020 24 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

The Last Emperox by John Scalzi

Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Genre: Science Fiction

Series: Book 3 of The Interdependency

Publisher: Audible Studios (April 14, 2020)

Length:8 hrs and 7 mins

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Narrator: Wil Wheaton

The Last Emperox is the final installment of John Scalzi’s The Interdependency trilogy, and boy is there a lot to unpack here. But first, picking up where the last book left off, as predicted by scientific models, the collapse of the Flow is now imminent. Entire systems are about to be cut off and snuffed out, putting billions of lives in danger. And yet, politicians are gonna politick and profiteers are gonna profiteer, and no one has been affected by this than Emperox Grayland II, who has already faced opposition from her detractors and foiled an attempt on her life.

But unfortunately, what we’ve seen is only the beginning, and with the Nohamapetans out there still scheming, it’s not a matter of if another assassination attempt will come, but a matter of when. Still, Grayland knows she must see to the plight of her people, whose hopes now lie at End, the only planet with the conditions and renewable resources capable of sustaining human life. That said, transporting the innumerable masses of the Interdependency to this far-flung, modestly sized world is not a realistic solution either, and with all the great houses jostling to secure their own chances of survival, the situation is rife for corruption and treachery.

So in a way, my feelings for this book reminded me of how I felt the first time after watching The Last Jedi. I walked out of that theater thinking the film was awesome—it was exciting, funny, full of action and surprises. But it was also a feeling that didn’t last very long. Given enough time to mull things over, especially on the drive home in slow traffic, I started to see a lot of things that didn’t quite make sense. The plotting was seriously flawed. A few characters were given the short end of the stick. Questionable decisions upon questionable decisions. Point is, entertaining as the movie was, a lot of it fails to stand up to close scrutiny once you get a chance to really think about it, and I think I had much the same reaction to The Last Emperox. After sleeping on it, I decided there were a few things that prevented me from giving this one a higher rating.

Since I’m big on characters, I’ll start with them first. I’ve been a fan of John Scalzi for a long time, mainly because he writes such fun, light and fluffy books. While he’s upped his story game in recent years, sadly his character game has remained stagnant, and even gone down in some cases. In this book, for example, when it comes to powerful human emotions like love and grief, Scalzi either glosses over them or completely avoids addressing them all together. How many times after a major turning point event do we simply get some lengthy exposition or impersonal news report-like passages that merely spit out what the characters are doing and thinking? It’s frustrating as hell and only served to widen my disconnect with the characters.

The premise also fell a bit flat, probably because the delivery itself felt so half-hearted. The characters in the book spend an inordinate amount of time espousing the value of computer models and data, but as recent events have shown, models are useless if your methods are flawed, and how do you come up with good methods when there is a total lack of fundamental understanding? For the protagonists of this series though, all the issues are pretty cut and dry, which dulls the gravity of the situation and the excitement of the story somewhat. Again, Scalzi glosses over the problem, so perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised that when the solution came, it was likewise treated with less care than it deserved. Now, I didn’t hate the ending, but the more I thought about it, the more holes I was able to poke in it, and thus the more dissatisfied I became. I’m not going to give away the spoilery details here, but can you say deus ex machina?

Still, I don’t want to make it sound like I didn’t enjoy The Last Emperox, because I did—albeit on a very surface-level kind of way. It was also better than the last book, but nowhere near as good as some of my favorites by the author. Even the humor, which is usually his forte, felt a bit forced, and I see that the old trick of relying on Kiva Lagos’ profanity-laced dialogue for a few cheap laughs is still in play. Scalzi seemed to have rushed through this one without giving much thought to developing the characters or story, and as a reader and longtime fan who knows he’s capable of so much better, I’m slightly disappointed. These doubts aside though, The Interdependency trilogy served up some decent entertainment overall, and while maybe The Last Emperox wasn’t the best concluding volume I could hope for, it still offered a solid finale.

Audiobook Comments: It’s been a while since I’ve listened to a book narrated by Wil Wheaton, and wow, what a difference from his older stuff! He actually attempts accents now! And varies the tone and timbre of his voices! That said though, while I’m aware Scalzi’s books and Wheaton’s narration often go hand in hand, with all the major characters—the best characters—being women, I still think this series would have been a better audio experience with a female narrator. But overall, a good listen.

More on The BiblioSanctum:
Review of The Collapsing Empire (Book 1)
Review of The Last Emperox (Book 2)

Audiobook Review: The Closer You Get by Mary Torjussen

Posted on May 31, 2020 9 Comments

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

The Closer You Get by Mary Torjussen

Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 3.5 of 5 stars

Genre: Mystery, Thriller

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Penguin Audio (April 21, 2020)

Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Narrators: Elizabeth Knowelden, Susan Duerden, Steve West

Some of the best thrillers are based on the unpredictable responses of people to disastrous situations of their own making. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I present to you Exhibit A: The Closer You Get by Mary Torjussen. Packed with dirty secrets, juicy scandals, and characters who can’t seem to stop fucking up their lives at every turn, this one started off in fits and starts but actually ended up being quite entertaining.

At the heart of this tale are two couples. Ruby is married to Tom, but she is having an affair with her boss Harry, who is married to Emma. Ruby and Harry have been seeing each other for a while now, and they’ve finally decided to leave their spouses in order to start a new life. But on the day Ruby was supposed to meet Harry at their hotel to go through their plan together, he never shows up. Having already told Tom that she was going to divorce him, Ruby is terrified that something has happened to Harry and tries calling him to no avail. Harry would not return any of her calls or emails, and the next day, Ruby shows up to work only to find out her contract had been terminated. Her life suddenly in shambles, Ruby has no choice but to rent a cheap apartment and start looking for a new job, all the while wondering what has happened to her lover.

Meanwhile, the story also unfolds via POV chapters from Emma, Harry’s wife. She’s had suspicions about her husband and his beautiful young personal assistant Ruby for a while, but doesn’t want to believe it. As the plot pushes ever onward toward its climax and conclusion, however, it is revealed that not all is as it seems.

The Closer You Get is probably best described as a slow-burn thriller, as the tension gradually grows and bubbles to the surface. The mystery deepens as Ruby starts receiving terrifying prank phone calls and feeling like she is being stalked. While she’s certainly not a protagonist worthy of sympathy, considering her role in the affair, the story still does an impressive job making the reader fear for her safety. But lest you think you’ll find a more sympathetic character in Emma, the wronged woman…well, let me disabuse you of that notion right now, because some not so flattering details about her are revealed from her perspective as well. Like I was saying, this book is just full of fucked up people who do fucked up things.

That said, I do feel that the story is weakened somewhat because it reveals all its cards a little too early. This makes The Closer You Get a rather wobbly thriller in terms of pacing, with an intro that starts off too slow, and a middle that robs the reader of any true surprises. The premise itself isn’t too unique, so I doubt anyone would have trouble predicting the outcome of the story, and the long denouement following the climax was also way too drawn out, spoiling its effect and impact.

Fortunately, the sheer amount of drama this novel throws at us makes up for a lot of these pacing issues. The switches between Ruby and Emma’s POVs had the effect of keeping the interest high by showing multiple aspects of the conflict. The little revelations they provided also fleshed out the character backgrounds and explained their lives at home, so even if you can’t bring yourself to actually like them, at the very least you can understand what motivated their actions.

Ultimately, as domestic psychological thrillers go, The Closer You Get is neither the most original nor the most gripping, but it does offer a fascinating angle on marriage and relationships, as well as the extreme lengths people can go when they feel trapped. Bottom line, this is a story that boils down to characters making poor choices and their consequences, and while the pacing could have been better, I still ended up enjoying this book much more than I thought.

Audiobook Comments: Only a short section in the beginning was narrated by Steve West, which was a pity, since I love his voice! Elizabeth Knowelden and Susan Duerden delivered wonderful performances as our main characters though, and I’m glad they went with two narrators to give Ruby and Emma each a unique voice.

Bookshelf Roundup 05/30/20: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads

Posted on May 30, 2020 29 Comments

Bookshelf Roundup is a feature I do every weekend which fills the role of several blog memes, like Stacking the Shelves where I talk about the new books I’ve added to my library or received for review, as well as It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? where I summarize what I’ve finished reading in the last week and what I’m planning to read soon. Mostly it also serves as a recap post, so sometimes I’ll throw in stuff like reading challenge progress reports, book lists, and other random bookish thoughts or announcements.

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Received for Review

My thanks to the publishers and authors for the following review copies received, and be sure to click the links to their Goodreads pages for more details and full descriptions!

I received some book mail from the kind folks at Tachyon Publications this week! First up is an ARC of Kitty’s Mix Tape by Carrie Vaugh, the sixth and final novella in the author’s Kitty Norville series which I confess I’m not too familiar with. But now that I know it’s completed, maybe I’ll go back to the first book and take a look! Also in the package was Adventures of a Dwergish Girl by Daniel Pinkwater, a story which sounds as charming as its cover and title! To see what I mean, here’s the first line of the book’s description: “Molly O’Malley is a clever, adventurous girl. She is also a Dwerg. Dwergs are strange folks who live very quietly in the Catskill mountains, have lots of gold, and are kind of like dwarves (but also not!).” I love it! Definitely going to read it later this fall as we get closer to the release date.

And in the digital book haul, just three audio titles this week, with thanks to Tantor for the listening copies! I was very excited to find out they were pubbing the audiobook edition of Hella by David Gerrold, as this was a novel I’ve been dying to check out. I also received the audiobook of Silver in the Wood/Drowned Country by Emily Tesh featuring both novellas in the Greenhollow Duology, which is just perfect since I missed out on the first book and I’ve been kicking myself ever since. And finally, while Public Enemy Zero by Andrew Mayne isn’t exactly new, I believe it’s the first time coming out in audio. And you know me – I am ALWAYS up for anything by the author, and I’m especially curious to see how his older stuff holds up.

Reviews

Chaos Reigning by Jessie Mihalik (4 of 5 stars)
The Archer at Dawn by Swati Teerdhala (4 of 5 stars)
Sunshield by Emily B. Martin (3 of 5 stars)

Events

And that’s pretty much a wrap for Wyrd & Wonder! It was my first year participating, so everything was kind of touch and go this month, but now that I know what it’s all about, next year I hope to plan a little better and do more fun stuff on top of review posts. I also did terrible on my fantasy backlist challenge, by the way! But May actually turned out to be a very busy month, so was I was definitely relying more on my mood reads to pick me up rather than sticking to a reading list.

This Week’s Reads

Speaking of mood reads, as you can see, my week was clearly dominated by thrillers! As you might also recall, one of my hauls from a couple weeks ago were heavy on the thriller-mysteries, so some of this was me trying to catch up with those as well.

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Have you heard of or read any of the books featured this week? What caught your eye? Any new discoveries? I hope you found something interesting for a future read! Let me know what you plan on checking out. Until next time, see you next Roundup!

Excerpt: To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini

Posted on May 29, 2020 12 Comments

Thank you for following along with us on Tor’s serialized excerpt campaign for To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini! In case you missed any parts from the previous days though, don’t fret! As promised, below you’ll find the completed excerpt to close out this special blog event!

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini

Kira Navárez dreamed of finding life on new worlds.

Now she has awakened a nightmare.

While exploring a distant planet, she discovers an alien relic that thrusts her into an epic journey of transformation and discovery.

Her odyssey will carry her to the far reaches of the galaxy.

Earth and her colonies are on the brink of annihilation.

One woman.

The will to survive.

The hope of humanity.

This epic novel follows Kira Navárez, who, during a routine survey mission on an uncolonized planet, finds an alien relic that thrusts her into the wonders and the nightmares of first contact. Epic space battles for the fate of humanity take her to the farthest reaches of the galaxy and, in the process, transform not only her ― but the entire course of history.

Excerpt

Cold fear shot through Kira’s gut.

Together, she and Alan scrambled into their clothes. Kira spared a second of thought for her strange dream—everything felt strange at the moment—and then they hurried out of the cabin and rushed over toward Neghar’s quarters.

As they approached, Kira heard hacking: a deep, wet, ripping sound that made her imagine raw flesh going through a shredder. She shuddered.

Neghar was standing in the middle of the hallway with the others gathered around her, doubled over, hands on her knees, coughing so hard Kira could hear her vocal cords fraying. Fizel was next to her, hand on her back. “Keep breathing,” he said. “We’ll get you to sickbay. Jenan! Alan! Grab her arms, help carry her. Quickly now, qu—”

Neghar heaved, and Kira heard a loud, distinct snap from inside the woman’s narrow chest.

Black blood sprayed from Neghar’s mouth, painting the deck in a wide fan.

Marie-Élise shrieked, and several people retched. The fear from Kira’s dream returned, intensified. This was bad. This was dangerous. “We have to go,” she said, and tugged on Alan’s sleeve. But he wasn’t listening.

“Back!” Fizel shouted. “Everyone back! Someone get the Extenuating Circumstances on the horn. Now!”

“Clear the way!” Mendoza bellowed.

More blood sprayed from Neghar’s mouth, and she dropped to one knee. The whites of her eyes were freakishly wide. Her face was crimson, and her throat worked as if she were choking.

“Alan,” said Kira. Too late; he was moving to help Fizel.

She took a step back. Then another. No one noticed; they were all looking at Neghar, trying to figure out what to do while staying out of the way of the blood flying from her mouth.

Kira felt like screaming at them to leave, to run, to escape.

She shook her head and pressed her fists against her mouth, scared blood was going to erupt out of her as well. Her head felt as if it were about to burst, and her skin was crawling with horror: a thousand ants skittering over every centimeter. Her whole body itched with revulsion.

Jenan and Alan tried to lift Neghar back to her feet. She shook her head and gagged. Once. Twice. And then she spat a clot of something onto the deck. It was too dark to be blood. Too liquid to be metal.

Kira dug her fingers into her arm, scrubbing at it as a scream of revulsion threatened to erupt out of her.

Neghar collapsed backwards. Then the clot moved. It twitched like a clump of muscle hit with an electrical current.

People shouted and jumped away. Alan retreated toward Kira, never taking his eyes off the unformed lump.

Kira dry-heaved. She took another step back. Her arm was burning: thin lines of fire squirming across her skin.

She looked down.

Her nails had carved furrows in her flesh, crimson gashes that ended with crumpled strips of skin. And within the furrows, she saw another something twitch.

Kira fell to the floor, screaming. The pain was all-consuming. That much she was aware of. It was the only thing she was aware of.

She arched her back and thrashed, clawing at the floor, desperate to escape the onslaught of agony. She screamed again; she screamed so hard her voice broke and a slick of hot blood coated her throat.

She couldn’t breathe. The pain was too intense. Her skin was burning, and it felt as if her veins were filled with acid and her flesh was tearing itself from her limbs.

Dark shapes blocked the light overhead as people moved around her. Alan’s face appeared next to her. She thrashed again, and she was on her stomach, her cheek pressed flat against the hard surface.

Her body relaxed for a second, and she took a single, gasping breath before going rigid and loosing a silent howl. The muscles of her face cramped with the force of her rictus, and tears leaked from the corners of her eyes.

Hands turned her over. They gripped her arms and legs, holding them in place. It did nothing to stop the pain.

“Kira!”

She forced her eyes open and, with blurry vision, saw Alan and, behind him, Fizel leaning toward her with a hypo. Farther back, Jenan, Yugo, and Seppo were pinning her legs to the floor, while Ivanova and Marie-Élise helped Neghar away from the clot on the deck.

“Kira! Look at me! Look at me!”

She tried to reply, but all she succeeded in doing was uttering a strangled whimper.

Then Fizel pressed the hypo against her shoulder. Whatever he injected didn’t seem to have any effect. Her heels drummed against the floor, and she felt her head slam against the deck, again and again.

“Jesus, someone help her,” Alan cried.

“Watch out!” shouted Seppo. “That thing on the floor is moving! Shi—”

“Sickbay,” said Fizel. “Get her to sickbay. Now! Pick her up. Pick—”

The walls swam around her as they lifted her. Kira felt like she was being strangled. She tried to inhale, but her muscles were too cramped. Red sparks gathered around the edges of her vision as Alan and the others carried her down the hallway. She felt as if she were floating; everything seemed insubstantial except the pain and her fear.

A jolt as they dropped her onto Fizel’s exam table. Her abdomen relaxed for a second, just long enough for Kira to steal a breath before her muscles locked back up.

“Close the door! Keep that thing out!” A thunk as the sickbay pressure lock engaged.

“What’s happening?” said Alan. “Is—”

“Move!” shouted Fizel. Another hypo pressed against Kira’s neck.

As if in response, the pain tripled, something she wouldn’t have believed possible. A low groan escaped her, and she jerked, unable to control the motion. She could feel foam gathering in her mouth, clogging her throat. She gagged and convulsed.

“Shit. Get me an injector. Other drawer. No, other drawer!”

“Doc—”

“Not now!”

“Doc, she isn’t breathing!”

Equipment clattered, and then fingers forced Kira’s jaw apart, and someone jammed a tube into her mouth, down her throat. She gagged again. A moment later, sweet, precious air poured into her lungs, sweeping aside the curtain darkening her vision.

Alan was hovering over her, his face contorted with worry.

Kira tried to talk. But the only sound she could make was an inarticulate groan.

“You’re going to be okay,” said Alan. “Just hold on. Fizel’s going to help you.” He looked as if he were about to cry.

Kira had never been so afraid. Something was wrong inside her, and it was getting worse.

Run, she thought. Run! Get away from here before—

Dark lines shot across her skin: black lightning bolts that twisted and squirmed as if alive. Then they froze in place, and where each one lay, her skin split and tore, like the carapace of a molting insect.

Kira’s fear overflowed, filling her with a feeling of utter and inescapable doom. If she could have screamed, her cry would have reached the stars.

About the Author

Christopher Paolini was born in Southern California and has lived most of his life in Paradise Valley, Montana. He published his first novel, Eragon, in 2003 at the age of 19, and quickly became a publishing phenomenon. His Inheritance Cycle—Eragon and its three sequels—have sold nearly 40 million copies worldwide. This is his first adult novel.