Waiting on Wednesday 02/05/20

Posted on February 5, 2020 25 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

Peace Talks by Jim Butcher (July 14, 2020 by Ace Books)

Finally, it’s the next Dresden Files book, nuff said!

“Harry Dresden is back and ready for action, in the new entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling Dresden Files series.

When the Supernatural nations of the world meet up to negotiate an end to ongoing hostilities, Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard, joins the White Council’s security team to make sure the talks stay civil. But can he succeed, when dark political manipulations threaten the very existence of Chicago–and all he holds dear?

Peace Talks is the sixteenth novel in the Dresden Files series and follows Harry’s adventures after the events of Skin Game.”

Audiobook Review: Watchdog by Will McIntosh

Posted on February 4, 2020 20 Comments

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

Watchdog by Will McIntosh

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

Genre: Science Fiction, Middle Grade

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Tantor Audio (January 14, 2020)

Length: 3 hrs and 32 mins

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Narrator: James Fouhey

I’m a big fan of Will McIntosh and I’ve had Watchdog on my radar for quite some time, though it wasn’t until the release of the audiobook version this month that I finally got to check it out. This being a middle grade novel, it was a quick listen, and the fact that it was also packed with tons of kid-friendly action and a featured an adorable robotic watchdog certainly didn’t hurt.

Vick and Tara are our story’s protagonists, thirteen-year-old twins who were left to fend for themselves in a harsh and unforgiving world after their mom died. Tara is also autistic, and her brother is the only one who understands her struggle with emotions and knows how to help. The two of them live out of a makeshift shelter on the streets, barely surviving off what little they can make from salvaging at the local junkyard. Tara likes to build things and has a talent for figuring out how robots work, so she helps Vick figure out which useful tech parts they can sell. The pair of them are also always accompanied by their small robotic dog, Daisy, which Tara had cobbled together from the odds and ends left over from their trips to the scrapyard.

Then one day, during one of their salvaging sessions, Tara discovers a mysterious component which appears to have been discarded by mistake. Once installed into Daisy, it enabled her to do incredible things that shouldn’t be possible. Unfortunately, this soon draws the attention local crime boss Ms. Alba, who now wants Daisy for herself, sending her goons after Vick and Tara after they refuse to deal with her. Thankfully though, the siblings are very resourceful, and Daisy is far from helpless with Tara’s new upgrades, allowing the little robotic pet to rival the strength and ferocity of Ms. Alba’s own expensive, weapons-grade watchdogs.

Whenever I read Middle Grade, I always have to keep in mind a few things. First of all, the writing and the stories are geared towards children, so you can’t have themes that are too dark or violent, and second, you also can’t load the book up with exposition and too much description or else you end up boring your audience. So that’s sort of where we are with Watchdog, which is understandably less complex than McIntosh’s other work, with world-building and characters that aren’t quite as developed. Still, there’s one more thing that I try to do when I read MG, and that’s putting myself in a kid’s shoes. In this case, I ask myself would a ten-year-old be completely enthralled and entertained while reading this novel? The answer, I think, is yes.

For one thing, readers interested in technology and robotics will find the concept of watchdogs entirely fascinating. The term is really just a catch-all for any kind of robot companion, because in reality watchdogs can be any shape and size, though many owners prefer to model them after animals. They’re also fully customizable, with some folks willing to pay big bucks to fit their robotic pets with high-tech modifications which would allow them to better serve their functions, turning them into effective killing machines. Still, if there’s one thing that a watchdog can’t do, it’s to think for themselves—and that little tidbit is what leads to the crux of the novel.

I also mentioned earlier that the book’s age category keeps it from getting too dark, but at the same time, it’s not all sunshine and lollipops either. Vick and Tara have it pretty rough, orphaned and living alone on the streets of a dystopian Chicago. Their part of town is run by the mob, and at one point they even escape a sweat shop-like factory, narrowly avoiding being sold into indentured servitude. Tara’s character also has autism, and Vick is under the intense pressure to keep them both safe. There are times when his frustration with his sister makes itself known, but there’s also no doubt the two siblings are fiercely loyal to each other. McIntosh portrays Tara’s disability in a compassionate way, acknowledging that it causes her a lot of difficulty, but at the same time, autism doesn’t define her. The message of this novel is simply the importance of family, and at the core of it is a story about a brother and sister who love and protect each other.

All told, I think Watchdog would be great for all readers, though its intended audience—ages 10 to 12 or so—would probably get the most out of it. It’s an adorable story with a solid mix of adventure and sci-fi dystopian goodness, not to mention plenty of action, humor, and heart.

Audiobook Comments: I enjoyed the narration by James Fouhey, who read Watchdog in expressive and animated tones that were perfect for the audiobook. It was an enjoyable listen.

Audiobook Review: Burn the Dark by S.A. Hunt

Posted on February 3, 2020 18 Comments

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

Burn the Dark by S.A. Hunt

Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 3 of 5 stars

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Book 1 of Malus Domestica

Publisher: Macmillan Audio (January 14, 2020)

Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Narrator: Saskia Maarleveld

Meet Robin Martine, a social media personality and self-styled witch hunter who achieved internet fame with her wildly popular YouTube channel, Malus Domestica. Traveling around the country, Robin leads her followers to believe that her videos are nothing more than a cleverly acted, special effects laden mockumentary-style series depicting her witch hunting adventures—a fiction she’s more than happy to go along with, because the truth is much more terrifying. For you see, witches are very real, and they have caused Robin no small amount of pain and grief. When she was a young girl, a coven of them killed her mother, destroying her family and upending her whole life. Robin has been on a mission for vengeance ever since, trying to track down the witches responsible.

Now, upon receiving an ominous message about the Red Lord, a malevolent demon that has been dogging her every step, Robin finds that her journey has led her back to her hometown of Blackfield, Georgia. Her childhood home, the site of so many bad memories, has long been fixed up and was sold only recently to a father and his son who are experiencing some very strange phenomena in their new house. Something evil has awakened within its walls, and Robin soon discovers that the circumstances surrounding the events which have brought her back to where everything started are much more complicated that she realized.

Anyway, I have some very mixed feelings about this one. It took me a while to get a feel for this novel, because I had such hard time connecting to its characters and story. I only discovered after finishing Burn the Dark that it was originally self-published, but I’m assuming some reworking and polishing had been done for its second release once it was picked up by Tor Books. In light of this, I feel even more terrible for saying this, but perhaps a little more time at the editing chair could have helped, especially for the first half of the book. In short, the reason I had such difficulty getting into it had a lot to do with the narrative’s overall disjointedness, including how time would skip haphazardly from present to the past, or the way perspectives would shift so frequently that you could barely even tell Robin was supposed to be our main protagonist.

The good news is, after the halfway mark, the experience improves as the story finds its legs and picks back up. If the book still has your attention at this point, I think you’d be pleased you stuck with it, but there are still a few obstacles to overcome. Namely, the characters themselves are pretty bland—not merely based off of well-known archetypes, but the author actually goes quite overboard with the clichés. Robin is practically a caricature of the broken, angsty heroine—which isn’t really a negative by itself, but it does become a problem when readers aren’t getting the full picture of her backstory for the first half of the book, so she just comes off as angry and entitled.

Then there was the writing. Not bad, but certain passages did leap out at me as being overwritten and unnecessarily embellished. To be fair though, I noticed this while listening to the audio version, and perhaps the prose would read smoother in print form.

At the end of the day, had the plot been tightened up and the characters written with slightly more originality, Burn the Dark could have been amazing. That said, while there’s still a lot holding the book back, I think S.A. Hunt is on to something good here, and we’ve at least established a good foundation for future volumes to build upon. Certainly, the last quarter of the novel provided what much of the first half was lacking—excitement, conflict, and most important of all, a clear direction. In a way, this section truly saved the book; it’s a promise that more is coming, and even though the hook came a little too late in this one, perhaps the sequel will be better because we’ll be able to jump right into the action.

Audiobook Comments: This isn’t the first audiobook I’ve listened to with Saskia Maarleveld as narrator, but for the first time it’s really hit me just how unbelievably talented she is. Faults of the book aside, I loved her performance, the way she handled accents and made the best out of some of the hammy dialogue and purplish prose. I don’t think I would have enjoyed this book as much had I read it in print form, and it’s all thanks to the fantastic narration.

Book Review: The Hollows by Jess Montgomery

Posted on February 2, 2020 15 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 Hollows by Jess Montgomery

Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Genre: Mystery, Historical Fiction

Series: Book 2 of Kinship

Publisher: Minotaur Books (January 14, 2020)

Length: 343 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Definitely not my usual kind of read, but when I was first pitched The Hollows by Jess Montgomery, I went and dug around for some information. This was how I found out the book is part of a historical mystery series inspired by Maude Collins, Ohio’s first female sheriff, and that was enough to pique my interest.

While The Hollows is technically the second book in the Kinship sequence, following Montgomery’s debut The Widows, I had absolutely no problems jumping right into the story. The author does an excellent job catching us up with the protagonist, Lily Ross, who became the sheriff of the small mining town of Kinship, Ohio after the death of her husband who had previously held the post. The year is 1926, and while most the townsfolk know and trust Lily, not everyone is ready to openly support a woman sheriff, making her even more determined to show she has what it takes. On her latest case, she is called out to the Moonvale Tunnel, a site used as part of the underground railroad used to aid and shelter escaped slaves from the South during the early to mid-19^th century. An elderly woman in her 70s, dressed in a nightgown with her feet wrapped in cloth, had been found dead on the tracks, and a witness report claims that she may have fallen—or was pushed by a mysterious assailant—from the hills above.

Lily’s first task is to identify the woman, whom no one in town seems to recognize, which in itself is a bit strange. With the help of her friend Marvena and a scent hound, they track the trail to an asylum in a neighboring county, from where the old woman had escaped. Lily now has a name to go with the victim, one with connections to some old families in Kinship, as well as a long history that traces back to the Civil War. Now Lily’s job is to figure out how all of it is related, though it isn’t going to be easy in the face of reticent witnesses and disturbing rumors of Klan activities on the rise again. In addition, there is the upcoming election to decide if she’ll be able to keep her position as sheriff, as well as the private struggles of her best friend Hildy Cooper who is trapped in an unwanted engagement while being romantically involved with another man. It would be so easy, and not to mention more convenient for Lily, if she simply labeled the old woman’s death an accident, the way the entire town would prefer. However, our protagonist is a damn good sheriff, and she will not rest until she finds the truth and bring those responsible to justice.

First, the good stuff: Montgomery does a great job spinning this mystery, threading in side-plots that involve many of the secondary characters, resulting in a narrative that felt bigger than it really was. I did not expect such scope when I picked up The Hollows; by the end of it, I was impressed with the way personal stories as well as the setting’s rich history were both incorporated into the larger picture. Relationships are at the forefront (in fact, occasionally they even get to be too distracting from the main mystery plot), and all the tensions flying around in a small town like Kinship where everybody is deeply connected can be likened to a pressure cooker about to explode. Almost everyone has a secret—scandals, hidden pasts, or other dangerous knowledge that can potentially ruin reputations or destroy lives.

I also liked that The Hollows made the lives of its female characters the main focus—and that goes for both protagonists and antagonists. Our heroines Lily, Marvena, Hildy are all brave and determined women, strong in their own ways. They’re ahead of their time, struggling against social norms in a time where sexism and racism are still big problems. Thing is, much of the pressure to conform is also from other women, and in Hildy’s case, from her own mother. Lily deals with discrimination as sheriff too, from people who don’t take her seriously or think she doesn’t have what it takes to do a “man’s job.” As well, she’s a widow grieving for her murdered husband, trying to raise her kids the best she can. One of the best scenes from the books, which is also one of its most touching moments, is when Lily talks to her daughter about how to deal with a bully. It’s moments like these that are the most revealing about her character and that make me want to pick up The Widows to find out more about her back story.

As for criticisms, I mentioned earlier how relationship drama would sometimes get in the way of the story’s flow. I thought the mystery plot itself dragged a bit, mainly because of these frequent detours to focus on the characters’ personal stories. Don’t get me wrong; I liked that we got to know more about the characters, but the murder investigation could have been more interesting—and the pacing improved—had things been better balanced. This being a historical novel, I was also disappointed and a little surprised I couldn’t get a stronger sense of the place and time. Montgomery is a talented writer, but her prose is sparse on description and she doesn’t take nearly enough time to establish the physical and social environment. As a result, even though my mind knew I was reading a story set in the 1920s, my heart just didn’t feel it.

But all in all, I’m very glad I decided to venture outside my comfort zone and try The Hollows. A decent historical mystery with a heavy emotional comment, this was a very good read and a nice change of pace. I will be watching for more from Jess Montgomery in the future.

Bookshelf Roundup 02/01/20: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads

Posted on February 1, 2020 28 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!

First, my thanks to Saga Press for a couple of surprise arrivals this week: Gravity of a Distant Sun by R.E. Stearns is the third novel wrapping up the space opera trilogy Shieldrunner Pirates, and The Hidden Girl and Other Stories by Ken Liu is the author’s second anthology, collecting the title story as well as sixteen other tales plus an excerpt from his upcoming novel The Veiled Throne, book three of the Dandelion Dynasty series.

With thanks also to the kind folks at Harper Voyager for sending along a copy of Where Oblivion Lives by T. Frohock after I had mentioned not having read it when I received its follow-up, Carved From Stone and Dream, which is coming out next month. Speaking of which, we’ll be celebrating in February by hosting a guest post by the author, so keep an eye out for that!

I’d also like to thank Angry Robot for sending me a copy of Sixteenth Watch by Myke Cole, which I’m very excited to read. I somehow missed out on his Sacred Throne series so I’m looking forward to getting back into his work with this one.

Courtesy of Ace Books, I also received The Queen’s Bargain by Anne Bishop. I’ve been debating this one, because on the one hand I’m intrigued by a new story set in the world of the author’s much admired Black Jewels series, while on the other…well, I’m not exactly caught up. I’m hoping I can dive into this one and still enjoy it though, and with the arrival of a surprise ARC at least I can give it a try.

Finally, my thanks to 47North and Wunderkind PR for sending me a finished copy of Bridge 108 by Anne Charnock, a post-apocalyptic dystopian.

And here I thought I would have a week with no new digital acquisitions, but a couple squeaked by at the last moment. With thanks to Saga/Gallery for The Kingdom of Liars by Nick Martell, which I’ve been anticipating for a long time. Also I received a listening copy of Ashes of Onyx by Seth Skorkowsky with thanks to the author and Audible Studios!

Reviews

The Bard’s Blade by Brian D. Anderson (4.5 of 5 stars)
The Other People by C.J. Tudor (4 of 5 stars)
A Queen in Hiding by Sarah Kozloff (4 of 5 stars)
Infinity Son by Adam Silvera (2.5 of 5 stars)

Roundup Highlights:

This Week’s Reads

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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!

Friday Face-Off: First Contact

Posted on January 31, 2020 20 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:

“Ack, Ack, Ack, we come in peace”
~ a cover featuring FIRST CONTACT

Mogsy’s Pick:

Armada by Ernest Cline

When the story of Armada starts, our protagonist Zack Lightman is worried that he might be losing his mind. Staring out the window in his boring math class, he thinks he spies a flying saucer in the sky – and not just any kind of flying saucer, either. The spaceship looked exactly like an enemy Glaive fighter in Armada, his favorite first-person space combat flight sim MMO. In the game, players from all over take the role of drone pilots, controlling Earth Defense Alliance ships to do battle with alien invaders. Zack’s been playing the game so much, he’s starting to think he’s hallucinating it in his real life as well.

Turns out, the good news is that Zack’s not crazy. The enemy fighter he glimpsed was as real as it could be. The bad news is, so is the Earth Defense Alliance and the war against the aliens. The government had known about an imminent attack for decades, and all the science fiction films and video games since the 70s have been preparing humanity for this very moment. Since their inception, online games like Armada have been training potential recruits for the coming battle, and as one of its highest ranked players, Zack is enlisted with other skilled gamers into the EDA’s forces.

Fun, right? Sure, it was cheesy, but I loved this book for its tongue-in-cheek entertainment and pure escapism. Let’s take a look at its various editions and see how their covers measure up:

From left to right:
Crown Publishing (2015) – Broadway Books (2016) – Finnish Edition (2018)

Czech Edition (2016) – Dutch Edition (2016) – Slovak Edition (2016)

Russian Edition (2018) – Romanian Edition (2017) – Italian Edition (2018)

Chinese Edition (2018) – German Edition (2017) – French Edition (2019)

Winner:

A lot of nostalgic covers this week, and I spot a few inspired by the likes of Space Invaders, Stranger Things, and even an X-Wing?! But it’s tough to beat the original. I’ve always had a fondness for the “classic” look of the Crown Publishing cover, and since it’s the edition I own, there’s also a factor of familiarity.

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

Book Review: A Queen in Hiding by Sarah Kozloff

Posted on January 30, 2020 35 Comments

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

A Queen in Hiding by Sarah Kozloff

Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Book 1 of The Nine Realms

Publisher: Tor Books (January 21, 2020)

Length: 496 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Oh, I can already tell this series is going to be one fantastic journey, not to mention now I have a much better understanding of why Tor Books has chosen to publish all four installments in quick succession, over the next few months. A Queen in Hiding is a solid novel, but it is also very clearly just the opening chapter of a much bigger, more comprehensive, powerful and important saga, and I have a feeling readers will appreciate the short wait to get their hands on book two while their blood is still up, events still fresh on their mind.

But here’s what it’s all about: A Queen in Hiding kicks off a new fantasy series called The Nine Realms by debut author Sarah Kozloff. While the book’s description focuses on Cérulia, Princess of a land called Weirandale, the story actually begins with her mother Queen Cressa and the events that lead to her eventual exile. Throughout history, the women of the royal family have always been gifted with a “talent” by the spirit worshiped by the people of Weirandale. This typically manifests as a supernatural ability well before a girl turns eight, which is why Queen Cressa is growing frustrated and concerned because it appears her young daughter has yet to display any powers.

However, the truth is, Cérulia does have a talent—a very rare and useful one, though no one seems to realize it. When she tells others that she can talk to animals— and that they even talk back!—everyone simply dismisses her claims as a child’s fanciful imagination. Except one day, that power ends up saving Cérulia’s life and her mother’s. The incident is a wake-up call for Cressa, who realizes war has come to Weirandale’s doorstep, and that she is no longer safe at the palace which is crawling with traitors and spies. Cressa decides to flee the country, but not before hiding her daughter with a family of peasants. Next, the exiled queen heads for the ocean, where she plans on biding her time until she is strong enough to repel the invaders from Weirandale and retake her throne. After all, she’d promised Cérulia that she will return for her one day—but for now, the safest place for the girl is in hiding.

While what I am about to say is not meant to be disparaging in any way, A Queen in Hiding does seem to have the feel of a prologue—and a very long one at that. By the end of the book, it becomes indubitably clear this is a story about Cérulia, but of course, the bulk of it is also about her mother, Cressa. Once you start reading it though, you’ll start to understand why the author decided to tell the story this way, beginning with a strong foundation that not only sets up where Cérulia came from, but also why circumstances have forced her into an unpleasant situation. Furthermore, this allows for plenty of world-building, giving readers a chance to learn more about the ways of Weirandale, including the people’s reverence for nature spirits and the importance of talents bestowed on their queens. War plays a big role in the novel too, and Cressa’s chapters also serve to give us a rundown of the political climate and the reasons her reign is such a mess, opening her up to threats of treason and invasion.

If I’m making the novel sound like a lot of world-building and setup, well, that’s because it is. Considering that it’s nearly five hundred pages long, admittedly not a whole lot actually happens in it, with the bulk of the activity hitting us in a flurry closer to the end, yet the whole thing could still probably be summed up in a handful of sentences. And yet, therein lies the brilliance of this book. Kozloff packs a mighty amount of info into A Queen in Hiding, but even the meatiest concepts are made interesting and effortlessly simple to understand, perfectly spread out and well-paced across the entire novel. Rather than feel like I was being inundated with detail, I felt like I was absorbing all that I needed to know from the background, the way I would while watching a movie play out in front of me. Which is why, despite much of the novel feeling like one long intro, I can’t say I really minded at all.

Of course, it helped having some great characters. On the whole, I thought the book really started to take off once we reached an important turning point, which occurred around the halfway mark. This led to a sort of transformation for both Cressa and Cérulia, so that they each came into their own in their respective ways. Cressa became the leader she’d always meant to be, fending off pirates with her dashing sea-faring husband, and it was glorious. I could read about her battles on the high seas all day, but alas, all good things must come to an end. What’s more poignant and intense though, is the way Cérulia changes. Adopting a new identity, going from princess to peasant, she alone knew the truth of her mother’s plans. In this period of loneliness, she only had her animal friends to turn to for comfort amidst her losses, and I’m curious to see where the story will take her talent, especially since I have a feeling it will play a big role in her future.

In sum, all great intros leave you excited and impatient to know more, and this is definitely the mindset A Queen in Hiding has put me in. Now that my appetite’s been whetted, I’m hooked and hungry to dig into the meat of this series, so I expect you’ll be seeing me review the next book quite soon, given the quick release schedule of these books. Here’s hoping it’ll be just as enjoyable.

Waiting on Wednesday 01/29/20

Posted on January 29, 2020 14 Comments

Mogsy’s Pick

A Chorus of Fire by Brian D. Anderson (August 4, 2020 by Tor Books)

Hot on the heels of my review of The Bard’s Blade, today I’m featuring its sequel, A Chorus of Fire. Actually, I’ve been noticing its cover and blurb floating around for a while now, but I always feel weird “waiting on” a later book in a series when I haven’t read the previous ones yet. It’s silly, but I always worry that I’ll be jinxing myself and end up hating the first book. Luckily though, I loved The Bard’s Blade, and as I said in my review, I really can’t wait to see what happens next.

“The second book in a new epic fantasy trilogy from successful self-published author, perfect for fans of the Wheel of Time and Sword of Truth.

A shadow has moved across Lamoria. Whispers of the coming conflict are growing louder; the enemy becoming bolder. Belkar’s reach has extended far into the heart of Ralmarstad and war now seems inevitable.

Mariyah, clinging to the hope of one day being reunited with Lem, struggles to attain the power she will need to make the world safe again. But a power like this is not easily acquired and will test the limits of her mind and body. She will need to look deep inside herself to find the strength to achieve what even the Thaumas of old could not.

Lem continues his descent into darkness, serving a man he does not trust in the name of a faith which is not his own. Only Shemi keeps his heart from succumbing to despair, along with the knowledge that he has finally found Mariyah. But Lem is convinced she is being held against her will, and compelled to do the bidding of her captors. He is determined to free her, regardless the cost.

Their separate roads are leading them to the same destination. And once they arrive they will have to confront more than the power of Belkar. They will have to face themselves and what Lamoria has forced them to become.”

Book Review: The Bard’s Blade by Brian D. Anderson

Posted on January 28, 2020 27 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 Bard’s Blade by Brian D. Anderson

Mogsy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Book 1 of The Sorcerer’s Song

Publisher: Tor Books (January 28, 2020)

Length: 432 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

It’s always good to get back to the basics, and this, I think, was the key to the huge appeal behind The Bard’s Blade, which I enjoyed immensely. Author Brian D. Anderson reminds us all that an epic fantasy novel isn’t required to be filled with sweeping battles, an indecipherable morass of politics and magical systems, or enough characters to fill a small village in order to be a hit with readers. Sometimes simple is best, even though finding that sweet spot between originality and conventionality can be tricky. However, I think Anderson manages to strike the right balance.

In this opening volume of a series called The Sorcerer’s Song, our story first begins in a sheltered little realm called Vylari which is magically protected by a barrier hiding it from Lamoria, the dangerous world beyond. Vylari is also home to Mariyah, the daughter of a wine merchant, as well as her betrothed, a talented musician named Lem. Like any young couple, they are planning for their future, even with its countless obstacles. Mariyah, with a good head for business, knows she will need to stay and help her family, but neither does she want Lem to have to give up his traveling and music, knowing how much it means to him. Young and in love though, the two of them are confident they can overcome any and all challenges, as long as they are together. Life was simple, happy and good.

However, all that calm is shattered one evening, as Lem receives an urgent summons from his uncle Shemi to come home. Upon returning to the house, Lem finds a strange visitor waiting, bearing an ominous message prophesizing the return of an ancient evil. The stranger also claims to have come from Lamoria, which shouldn’t be possible, as no one should be able to breach the magical wards—except, as Shemi reluctantly admits, it’s actually happened once before. Lem’s mother had purportedly passed over and come back, bearing him in her womb. Rocked by these revelations, Lem is driven by the need to know the truth of his origins as well as to fulfill his quest on this new path destiny has set for him. To stop a rising darkness and protect those he loves, he will need to leave Vylari—and, as much as it breaks his heart, Mariyah.

What Lem didn’t count on though, is his beloved’s strength and daring. Frightened for him, and also furious that he had left without even saying a last goodbye, Mariyah decides to follow Lem into Lamoria, despite Shemi’s fervent objections that his nephew would want her safe in Vylari. But ultimately, both of them end up crossing the barrier, on what will be a long and harrowing journey to find and help Lem.

What follows is a rollicking adventure, told on two fronts. One thread follows Lem as he attempts make a life in Lamoria, navigating its strange and alien customs in order to secure himself a source of income and a place to stay. The people he encounters are nothing like the kind, hospital folk of Vylari; instead, many of them are cutthroat, scheming, and openly aggressive towards newcomers. In spite of this, Lem manages to find work as a musician, gradually making a name for himself. Meanwhile, Mariyah and Shemi are dealing with troubles of their own. Their kind and trusting natures, shaped by a lifetime of living in friendly Vylari, have now become their greatest weakness, making them vulnerable and naïve to the realities of Lamoria. In this storyline, Mariyah learns the hard way how seriously the people of this world take their religion, landing in hot water when she and Shemi are arrested for being heretics, for there is no tolerance even for outsiders unfamiliar with the ways. By the time Lem discovers that they had followed him to Lamoria, it may already be too late.

I’m very tempted to call the tone and style of The Bard’s Blade traditional, and yet, that’s also not quite accurate. Sure, there are certain themes of the novel that fit my expectations of a conventional fantasy quite comfortably, like a well-worn cozy sweater. Take the guileless young hero, for example, setting off on an epic quest to stop the evil bad guy from destroying the world. However, try to look beyond that, and you might see that the story actually offers a lot more. You have Lem and Mariyah, a courageous young couple who are more than they seem. Indeed, while their devotion to each other drives much of the narrative—especially in the second half, where both are coerced into their respective new vocations—this is not going to be your typical “love will conquer all” story. Plenty of exciting developments and surprising twists await you, and Anderson does a fantastic job with his storytelling, maintaining a high level of intrigue while providing great fun.

I’m also impressed at how streamlined everything feels. Tightly plotted with none of the bloat, The Bard’s Blade was a novel I breezed through effortlessly, as the story kept up an energetic and driving pace. Though the world-building was on the lighter side, I appreciated the fact that we were constantly moving forward, unhindered by bulky exposition or extraneous detail bogging things down. In this way, it was easy to become completely drawn in and addicted to the narrative.

All told, if you’re in the mood for an invigorating adventure, I can’t recommend The Bard’s Blade enough. For pure and perfect escapism, it doesn’t get any better than this, especially if you’re looking for a modern fantasy told in an old-school flowing style to whisk you away. High recommended, and I can’t wait to see what’s next.

Book Review: The Other People by C.J. Tudor

Posted on January 27, 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.

The Other People by C.J. Tudor

Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Genre: Mystery, Thriller

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Ballantine Books (January 28, 2020)

Length: 288 pages

Author Information: Website | Twitter

C.J. Tudor has done it again with The Other People—another twisty, creepy, suspenseful page-turner that leaves your gut wrenched and heart pounding. This is her third novel, and like the others, it is a dark psychological thriller, stark and raw in its honesty and emotion in the face of life’s harsh realities, yet it also leaves something scratching at the back of your mind, teasing at the possibility of something more supernatural and sinister at play.

The story begins with an introduction to our protagonist Gabe, an overworked husband and father who recognizes deep down that his time away is likely hurting his relationship with his wife Jenny and their young daughter Izzy. It’s the reason he made a solemn promise to his family that he would be home early that day, and yet it appears the bumper-to-bumper traffic in the rush-hour commute is about to make a liar out of him—again. To take his mind off the time and his frustration, Gabe turns his attention to reading the gaudy bumper stickers on the rusty old junk bucket in front of him, but then notices the face of a small, frightened child suddenly appear in its rear window. It is only a brief flash, but Gabe would recognize the girl anywhere, with her pigtails and bright eyes and the gap in her mouth from a recently lost tooth. It’s his five-year-old daughter Izzy. And the last he sees of her is in the back of that old car, mouthing one word: “Daddy.”

Fast forward a few years and Gabe is alone and the life he once knew is gone—shattered the day he saw that car drive off with Izzy. Unable to give chase due to the horrendous traffic, he had returned home to find police crawling all over his house, telling him his wife and daughter had been murdered in a burglary. But Gabe was sure he saw Izzy that day, in spite of what witnesses and the coroner’s report might say. He knew his little girl had to be alive and was still somewhere out there, waiting to be found. He vowed he would never give up until he found her, and so he spends his days driving up and down that same stretch of highway, hoping to catch a glimpse of that car with its bumper stickers that has haunted his dreams every day for the last three years. Eventually, his search does bear fruit—though perhaps not the kind he wanted. Vague hints lead him to the dark corners of the internet, where he learns of a group who call themselves The Other People. If you’ve lost a loved one, The Other People claim, they can help. All they ask for is a favor in return.

As always, the draw of Tudor’s novels is the way they hook you so thoroughly. It always starts with the characters, who have deeply complex backgrounds, but sometimes the whole truth isn’t made clear until much later. This was definitely the case with The Other People. We have Gabe, a tortured soul who tragically lost his family, and the only thing that gives him reason to go on is the belief that his daughter is still alive. Everyone else has given up on him, dismissing his obsession as a symptom of his grief and delusion. I won’t lie, the author’s books tend towards darkness, with an atmosphere of hopelessness and despair. I felt Gabe’s pain like a gut punch, especially as a parent. It was easy to sympathize because he was so desperate, dejected, and broken. Then there was Kate, a waitress at a service station diner he frequently stops by on his drives up and down the motorway. Kate herself is a stressed out single mom working long hours to make ends meet. She’s also lonely and unhappy, but she sees how Gabe is and hopes that one day he will find what he’s looking for. And finally, there is Alice, whom we know the least about. She and her mom Fran are on the run from something, but she’s never told what. All Alice knows is that they must remain hidden, and that’s why they’ve moved from place to place, never setting down roots anywhere, for as long as she can remember.

And that brings us to the other aspect of C.J. Tudor’s books that make them so riveting: the mystery. It digs itself into your skin and settles into your bones. You keep turning the pages because you just need to know what everything is building up to—the whys, whats, and hows. Why are Alice and Fran on the run? What exactly did Gabe witness in the car that day? How could he have seen Izzie if she had been murdered, as the police say? And of course, the biggest mystery of all: Who are The Other People? The pieces of this puzzle will fall into place eventually, but on the journey to this point there will be questions upon questions to keep you guessing. I’m deliberately being vague to avoid revealing any spoilers, but what I will say is this: all the characters have secrets, and the things they’ve done in the past will be the key. Layer by layer, the narrative will reveal the truth behind all the years of lies and deceit.

All told, I highly recommend The Other People if you enjoy darkly clever psychological thrillers tinged with just a slight hint of supernatural horror. If you’re a fan of C.J. Tudor previous novels, there’s also a good chance you’ll like this one too. I love how they’ve all been quite different in terms of premise and plot, but the amazing characters along with the delicious atmosphere that infuses all her work is what keeps me coming back to her stories.