Audiobook Review: Mickey7 by Edward Ashton
Posted on February 28, 2022 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.
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Science Fiction
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Macmillan Audio (February 15, 2022)
Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrators: John Pirhalla, Katharine Chin
Mickey7 by Edward Ashton is light-hearted sci-fi romp, with space colonization, alien first contact, and even cloning themes to boot. Nothing really too new or deep to see here, but it’s undeniably entertaining!
The story follows Mickey Barnes, or the seventh iteration of him, to be more precise. He is an Expendable, the one job nobody wants but that every expedition needs, especially when you’re looking to colonize an inhospitable ice planet like Niflheim. Mickey’s job title is exactly what it sounds like—every time there’s a mission too dangerous, they send him in, and if he dies, they’ll simply regenerate a new clone of him, with his memories mostly intact. The reason he’s in this position is because the original Mickey had gotten himself in a bit of trouble on his home planet, and needed a reason to get off-world fast. A history major, he had few marketable skills and the only opening available on the Niflheim expedition was Expendable, a job one only takes willingly if they are crazy or desperate. Mickey was the latter.
But that original Mickey is long gone. The current iteration is Mickey7, which means he’s experienced six deaths—most of them of a violent or gruesome nature. By now he’s well aware of what it means to be Expendable, and how that might influence the way the rest of the crew perceives him. So, he shouldn’t have been surprised when he is left for dead after falling down a deep tunnel during a scouting mission on the planet surface. Only, he manages to survive, but by the time he makes his way back to the colony base, Mickey8 had already been created.
This leads to a predicament. The rules for Expendables are very clear—there can only ever be one version of Mickey in existence; any duplicates must be destroyed. Protocol would require either Mickey7 or Mickey8 to be disposed of in the recycler, but when the time comes, neither could bring himself or make the other go through with it. Risking it all, they decide to carry on in secret. They can continue their duties and social obligations, as long as one of them always remains hidden. However, as the two clones soon find out, pulling this off in a tiny colony isn’t going to be easy, especially when resource usage is carefully monitored and each person’s food intake is individually rationed and tracked.
Long story short, nothing turns out the way they’re supposed to, and Mickey7 ends up being his own best friend and foil. The humor and light-hearted tone of this book was easy to get into and the conversations between the Mickeys were a highlight, as you can imagine. Most colonization sci-fi stories tend to fall on the darker and grimmer side, and though there are parts of Mickey7 that are certainly very brutal and bleak, on the whole I would class this one more as a comedy, but not one that’s overly silly. Needless to say, it was quite the breath of fresh air, to have a book about human settlers on a faraway planet, but the main conflict isn’t at all what you’d expect.
Sure, there’s no great character or plot development, but the premise was fascinating and fun to read about. It even touches upon philosophical themes relating to death and immortality, though never heavy-handedly, keeping it humorous and light. The world-building was intriguing as well, especially the parts surrounding the concept of Expendables and cloning, including technology, history, and religion. And of course, this being a colonization sci-fi novel, it’s about survival. I enjoyed the ice world setting and the challenges it posed for our colonists. Admittedly, I would love to have seen more of Niflheim, but there are still plenty of secrets lurking beneath the planet’s surface that are eventually revealed.
I also had a great time with the audio edition, which I received for review. Narrated by John Pirhalla and Katharine Chin, the story was brilliantly performed and the personalities of the characters came through in the voicework. I would strongly recommend this book!
Bookshelf Roundup: 02/26/22: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Posted on February 26, 2022 22 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.
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!
Another quick update this week! I have a lot to get through in March, which means only saying yes to/requesting my must-reads and so far I’ve been pretty good at resisting temptations. Speaking of must-reads though, I was excited at the arrival of Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher. It’s definitely one of my most anticipated reads this spring. A big thank you to Tor Books for the ARC.
Also new this week were a couple of surprise arrivals from the kind folks at Simon & Schuster, with the middle grade titles The Code Breaker by Walter Isaacson with Sarah Durand, a young readers adaption of the author’s bestselling book about Jennifer Doudna and the development of CRISPR, as well as Charlie Thorne and the Curse of Cleopatra by Stuart Gibbs, the newest volume of the author’s series about a thirteen-year-old genius who travels the world solving history’s biggest mysteries. These will probably go on my daughter’s shelf.
In the digital haul, first I want to highlight Living Memory by David Walton. The author got in touch with me earlier this week and offered me a review copy. I’ve enjoyed several of his books in the past, so I’m really looking forward to check this one out – not to mention dinosaurs! Thanks, David!
Also thanks to Macmillan Audio for the following listening copies: The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake, as well as a couple of thrillers that caught my eye, The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth and The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Pekkanen. And finally, with thanks to Brilliance Audio, I received an ALC of Sea Storm by Andrew Mayne, third of the Underwater Investigation Unit series.
Reviews
The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan (5 of 5 stars)
The Deepest of Secrets by Kelley Armstrong (4 of 5 stars)
Roundup Highlights:
What I’ve Been Reading
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!
Thriller Thursday Audio: The Deepest of Secrets by Kelley Armstrong
Posted on February 24, 2022 17 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 Deepest of Secrets by Kelley Armstrong
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Series: Book 7 of Rockton
Publisher: Macmillan Audio (February 15, 2022)
Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Therese Plummer
So, it appears we have come to the end of the Rockton series, with this seventh and final installment, The Deepest of Secrets. Truthfully, as much as I love these books, I’ve been anticipating this moment for a while now. There are only so many murder mysteries you can wring out of a town like Rockton with its unique circumstances without the stories becoming repetitive or spiraling out of hand. All in all, Kelley Armstrong has done a wonderful job with this series, and, after a shaky intro, this concluding volume has managed to wrap things up quite nicely.
Situated in the Yukon Wilderness, Rockton is a secret town, and a town of secrets. Every one of its residents has a story to tell and are there because they don’t want to be found. They take comfort in the fact that Rockton is a safe haven, that their pasts will remain hidden, but also that the mysterious offsite council managing the town will vet incoming residents and keep the dangerous criminals like murderers and sexual predators.
But now, that trust is shattered. One of Casey’s closest friends Anders is thrust into the spotlight after an anonymously written message revealing his reasons for coming to Rockton is put up for the whole town to see. Overnight, the mood in Rockton changes as everyone becomes paranoid that they might be the next to be exposed. Meanwhile, Casey and her boyfriend Eric do their best to carry on their law enforcing duties, trying to figure out if this case might be a one-off or the worst-case scenario—that somehow, someone had gotten access to resident records.
In the middle of this chaos is also resentment towards Rockton’s council. It appears their vetting process has not been quite so selective after all, allowing killers into their midst. Unfortunately, as the closest thing to authority in Rockton, Casey and Eric are bearing the brunt of the anger, making their jobs all but impossible. The town is falling apart, and Casey can’t help but wonder if this had been the council’s intention all along, as they’ve made it clear they’re looking for any excuse to shut down Rockton.
As I said, I had issues with the first section of the book. It contained several of my pet peeves about this series, namely that later storylines increasingly became more ridiculous, featuring highly contrived and manufactured situations in order to keep things fresh. For one thing, the town’s reaction to Anders’ secret seemed wildly overblown. I mean, considering what they’ve all been through in the last six books, what he did in the past hardly seemed like it would be the worst thing in the residents’ eyes. This creates the impression that autonomy does not exist in Rockton; everyone (other than a handful of named characters) are merely sheep that go along with whatever their friends or neighbors are doing, believing every lie spouted by the town troublemakers.
Thankfully, things gradually improve, mainly because the story shifts gears after someone tries to murder one of the above-said troublemakers. In many ways, the book feels like two stories in one, as we make the transition from a complete farce to a plotline that more resembles a mystery thriller. In addition to that, we had the conspiracy related to the council, and the threat of Rockton’s imminent shutdown. After spending so much time with these characters, I felt as stunned as them over the decision, and being fully involved in their lives, I had to know what would happen to them.
The ending was very surprising, and abrupt. The mystery may have been resolved, but the fates of Casey, Eric, and all the remaining residents of Rockton are left somewhat in the air. With a solid plan under their belts though, I think the author makes it pretty clear that our beloved characters will land on their feet, but it would have been nice to have had an epilogue of some sort to confirm that.
Bottom line though, while The Deepest of Secrets might not have been my favorite of the series, my attachment to these characters should be a clear testament to Armstrong’s talent for mystery storytelling. My love for this series has not changed, and I highly recommend checking out these books from the beginning, especially since some of the earlier ones are among the best. Also, I can’t say enough good things about the audio editions and narrator Thérèse Plummer who has done a phenomenal job throughout the entire series. I first discovered her work when I listened to City of the Lost, the book that started it all, and since then she’s become one of my favorite narrators.
More on The BiblioSanctum:
Review of City of the Lost (Book 1)
Review of A Darkness Absolute (Book 2)
Review of This Fallen Prey (Book 3)
Review of Watcher in the Woods (Book 4)
Review of Alone in the Wild (Book 5)
Review of A Stranger in Town (Book 6)
Waiting on Wednesday 02/23/22
Posted on February 23, 2022 8 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
Reckoning by W. Michael Gear (October 11, 2022 by DAW)
Six books in and still going strong. That said, the previous book will be hard to beat, but if anybody can do it, it’s Gear!
“The sixth book in the thrilling Donovan sci-fi series returns to a treacherous alien planet where corporate threats and dangerous creatures imperil the lives of the colonists.
Three years after Ashanti spaced for Solar System, Turalon reappears in the Donovanian sky. The Corporation has returned. Donovan’s wealth is a lure for the powerful families who control the Board. Unburdened by morals, they are bringing their battle for supremacy to Port Authority and a showdown that could tear The Corporation apart.
Much to her disgust, Falise Taglioni has been chosen to ensure that her family emerges triumphant; she comes with instructions for her brother, Dek. After all, she could always manipulate him to her will. And she will again, even if she has to destroy Talina Perez in the process. And if her war with the Grunnels, Xian Chans, and Radceks destroys Port Authority in the process? Who cares?
But nothing on Donovan is static, and in the three years since Ashanti’s departure, life on the planet has hardened Kalico Aguila and the scrappy inhabitants of Port Authority. Life in the bush breeds a different kind of human, genetically altered, tough, and self-reliant. And on Donovan, determining who is predator, and who is prey has never been easy.
Meanwhile, for Kylee Simonov and her bonded quetzal, Flute, there will be a final comeuppance. Because on Donovan, blood vendetta needs to be paid. And then she’s going to town. After which, nothing will be the same.”
Book Review: The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan
Posted on February 22, 2022 31 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 Justice of Kings by Richard Swan
Mogsy’s Rating: 5 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of Empire of the Wolf
Publisher: Orbit (February 22, 2022)
Length: 496 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
You’d think as someone who has been reviewing books for as long as I have, I should be better at this, but whenever I come across something I absolutely and wholeheartedly adored, I always seem to find myself at a loss for words. You know the kind of book I’m talking about—the ones that leave you with a hangover for days and in agony over what to say, because I feel like nothing I could ever come up with will do it justice. It’s those times that I wish I could write, “I loved this book, PERIOD” and leave it at that, but of course, another part of me just wants to gush and gush and gush. I promise I’ll try to be as coherent as possible.
The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan takes place in a world vaguely analogous to our own, influenced strongly by the time of the Holy Roman Empire which was marked by strong papal authority and the spread of the Church. The story is told through the eyes of a young woman named Helena, the nineteen-year-old clerk and perhaps one day the apprentice to the Emperor’s Justice Sir Konrad Vonvalt. On his travels across the vast expanse of the empire, it is Vonvalt’s duty to ensure that its laws are being observed and followed. Safeguarding the peace and doling out justice wherever he goes, his authority is only second to the Emperor’s.
And wherever Vonvalt goes, Helena is also by his side to assist him, as it has been so since he rescued her from an orphanage when she was child. Traveling with the Justice is also his steadfast friend and protector, the veteran soldier Dubine Bressinger. As the three of them arrive at a town under investigation for suspected heathen practices, Vonvalt shows his dedication to upholding the law but also his compassion for the villagers who simply want to worship their old gods. This act of mercy, however, may have just doomed them all. It soon becomes clear there is more to the situation beneath the surface. The brazen murder of a Baron’s wife may be involved, which sets Vonvalt, Helena, and Bressinger on the trail of an unknown killer. Still, a simple investigation isn’t going to cut it this time, as the layers of the case peel back to reveal a darker conspiracy rotting at the heart of the Empire.
The entire story is told in retrospect by a much older Helena, recalling the adventures of her youth. It may be a common fantasy trope but it’s one of my favorites, and I loved the juxtaposition between the character’s wiser, more seasoned narration describing the naïve, fresh-faced, and impulsive girl she used to be. And young Helena is most certainly someone still struggling to find herself. Having been in Sir Konrad Vonvalt’s service since she was a child, she’s forever grateful to him for giving her a future even though she harbors doubts about whether she actually enjoys the work. Still, she respects Vonvalt too much to voice her concerns, even as the constant pressure to seek his approval frequently makes her grumpy and resentful, leading her to rebel in little ways, much like how a teenager would test the limits of her father.
Which brings me to the best part of the book: the expertly written mentor/apprentice relationship. Speaking of tropes I love, this is another one of my favorites. In many ways, Vonvalt and Helena in The Justice of Kings reminded me very much of Merela and Girton in The Wounded Kingdom trilogy by RJ Barker (which, incidentally, is another amazing fantasy series you should not miss). Both are narrated by protagonists looking back on their apprenticeships to mentors who were more parent than teacher. From the tone of older Helena, it was clear she had much fondness for Vonvalt and vice versa, though neither were quite equipped to show it. There were just so many nuances in their dynamic, so much the reader could read into the subtle complexities of their bond, that I was simply consumed with the masterful way in which all of this was conveyed.
The characters themselves were deep and superbly written. The more time I spent with them, the more I felt involved in their lives and cared about what happened to them. My heart was in my throat whenever they found themselves in danger, or if one of them had a brush with death. I even found my eyes tearing up for minor characters when tragedy befell them. My favorites were of course Helena, Vonvalt, and Bressinger, but I pretty much felt involved with all of the supporting cast and even the villains.
Finally, I can’t end this review without mentioning the story or the world-building, so well entwined that both were equally important in bringing the setting to life for me. The Justice of Kings starts off as a murder mystery, but quickly develops into something much greater and far more satisfying. For a Justice has more in their toolkit than just the authority granted to him or her by the Emperor; skilled ones like Vonvalt can also work a form of magic, enabling them to imbue their voice with the power to compel, or even use necromancy to talk to the dead. A vast conspiracy also drives the plot, as a power struggle in the capital threatens to undermine the power of the Justices. To an honorable man like Vonvalt, who is firm in his belief in the law and that no one is above it, it is a harsh truth to accept, and it’s fascinating to watch how the effects of this conflict gradually weigh him down.
Funny how I started this review feeling at a loss for words, and now I have to force myself to stop before I rave on for another ten paragraphs! While I’m aware it’s only February, I have a feeling this will be my favorite book of the year as it’s going to be damn difficult to unseat. Fantasy, mystery, drama, intrigue, action—The Justice of Kings has it all. Needless to say, I loved this book to bits, and I am wholeheartedly recommending it to everyone! It certainly ended far too soon, and I cannot wait for the next installment.
Bookshelf Roundup: 02/19/22: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Posted on February 19, 2022 23 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.
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!
Just a small haul and a quick update today, but a couple of very exciting new arrivals. A big thank you to Tor Books for an ARC of Book of Night by Holly Black. This is one of my most anticipated releases this spring, but I probably won’t wait until then to read it!
And from Orbit Books I also received an ARC of The Bladed Faith by David Dalglish. I’ve enjoyed several of his books in the past, so I’m looking forward to starting this opener to a new fantasy series about an exiled prince who steps into the role of an assassin. I’m definitely intrigued.
One audiobook in the digital haul this week, but it’s also a good one. Crowbones by Anne Bishop is the latest novel set in the author’s world of The Others. Feels like I’ve been waiting on this forever! My thanks to Penguin Audio.
Reviews
The Great Witch of Brittany by Louisa Morgan (4 of 5 stars)
The Paradox Hotel by Rob Hart (3 of 5 stars)
What I’ve Been Reading
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!
Book Review: The Paradox Hotel by Rob Hart
Posted on February 17, 2022 14 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Mogsy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Genre: Science Fiction
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Ballantine Books (February 22, 2022)
Length: 336 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Welcome to the Paradox Hotel. A playground for the super rich, its offers its exclusive clientele the chance to travel back in time to any era they want. But meddling with the time stream also has its consequences. To prevent any of their time tourists from mucking about with the past too much, the hotel also employs time agents like our protagonist January Cole, whose job is to track and fix any time ripples before their effects can get out of hand.
Unfortunately, too much time travel can also have some deadly side effects. One of the nastier symptoms is mental degradation, a state known a being Unstuck. When this happens, the time traveler will experience lapses where past and future moments collide with the present, making it difficult to tell what is real. Due to her many years of working security for the Paradox, January has become Unstuck, her condition having progressed into the later, more severe stages, though she is reluctant to admit it, insisting on staying on the job.
So, when January finds a dead body in one of the hotel rooms, she doesn’t know what to think. Is this real, or is it something only she can see? With a blizzard rolling in, the Paradox is also on lockdown, trapping a group of trillionaires within its walls, along with the ghosts purported to haunt its halls. It all just seems too coincidental, and January has a suspicion that all this has been planned. Hiding among them is a killer who knows how to manipulate time in their favor, and the hotel is rife with wealthy victims, any of whom might be next.
As someone who has read and enjoyed Rob Hart’s The Warehouse, I was excited to jump into The Paradox Hotel, whose premise boasts of a locked room mystery with time travel. But as it turns out, the mystery aspect doesn’t feature too prominently. For one thing, there is a lot of preamble; by the time we got to the part with the dead body, I confess I’d almost forgotten that this was supposed to be a murder mystery. In addition, we also had a multitude of factors that made the plot confusing to follow, but I’ll talk more about that in a bit.
The good news though, is that there’s time traveling aplenty. I was impressed with a lot of the ideas here, and there are some fascinating world-building elements related to time travel. That said, if you’re not into sci-fi or don’t read the genre regularly, the story might be a bit hard to follow, with time travel being a challenging subject to write about in the first place, and the author could also have done a better job articulating some of the more intricate concepts. If you zone out for even a second, you might miss some important detail, so this is a book that truly requires the reader’s full attention.
Another factor that could complicate things is the main character herself. Because of her condition, January could be considered an unreliable narrator, leading you to constantly question where or when she might be, and whether or not she is experiencing something real versus reliving one her memories or having one of her “slips” through time. She isn’t the easiest protagonist to get behind either. Often, I found her too standoffish, judgmental, and overly sarcastic. Character development in general was sparse, and had the unfortunate effect of making a caricature out of most situations, the people of this world reduced to stereotypes, and January herself felt like a generic smartass, I’ve-got-a-tragic-backstory-to-excuse-my-too-edgy-to-follow-your-stupid-rules kind of heroine, unloading her unpleasantness onto everyone from hotel clientele to close friends.
Still, The Paradox Hotel wasn’t a bad book, as ultimately I enjoyed myself. Of course, I wish the story had featured a stronger mystery element or that the plotline hadn’t been so convoluted, but the second half of the book contained a ton of action and entertainment which made it a quick and fun read (despite the dinosaur parts coming across as just a tad self-indulgent). For me, this one felt more like a standard fluff read, but I was glad it kept me turning the pages.
Waiting on Wednesday 02/16/22
Posted on February 16, 2022 5 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
Tread of Angels by Rebecca Roanhorse (November 15, 2022 by Gallery/Saga Press)
If Rebecca Roanhorse writes it, I’ll read it, simple as that!
“Celeste, a card sharp with a need for justice, takes on the role of advocatus diaboli, to defend her sister Mariel, accused of murdering a Virtue, a member of the ruling class of this mining town, in a new world of dark fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of Black Sun, Rebecca Roanhorse.
The year is 1883 and the mining town of Goetia is booming as prospectors from near and far come to mine the powerful new element Divinity from the high mountains of Colorado. where a rare ore known as divinity, is mined with the help of the pariahs of society known as the Fallen, the descendants of demonkind, living amongst the Virtues, the winners in an ancient war, with the descendants of both sides choosing to live alongside Abaddon’s mountain in this tale of the mythological West from the bestselling mastermind Rebecca Roanhorse.”
Book Review: The Great Witch of Brittany by Louisa Morgan
Posted on February 14, 2022 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.
The Great Witch of Brittany by Louisa Morgan
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Redhook (February 15, 2022)
Length: 448 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
If you’ve read Louisa Morgan’s A Secret History of Witches, the name Orchiére will sound familiar. There, we first got to meet Ursule, the latest in a long line of women with magic flowing in their veins. Now in The Great Witch of Brittany, readers will get to know the story of her namesake, her legendary great-grandmother.
Born in Brittany, France in the mid-1700s, the original Ursule was the daughter of a fortune-teller, though at this time, the Orchiéres had not produced a witch in generations, leading everyone to believe that magic in the clan was dead. Traveling with their Romani caravan, Ursule would watch as her mother conned gullible customers using false spells and carefully chosen words, but little did anyone know, the spark of magic lives on in our young protagonist, and The Great Witch of Brittany is the multi-part saga that tells of how she grew into her powers.
Still, after Ursule first discovers she has magic, she is forced to hide them, lest they draw the attention of witch hunters who would see her burned at the stake. But for all their caution, Ursule and her mother end up running for their lives anyway, eventually finding safe haven on a goat farm where they work as laborers. As Ursule grows up, she begins dreaming of passing on her gift, and following a brief romance with a blind musician, she gives birth to a daughter, Léonie, who unfortunately has no interest in learning the Romani ways. Luckily, Léonie ends up having six daughters, the youngest of whom is Nanette, mother of the Ursule in A Secret History of Witches.
Thus, it would be accurate to call this novel a prequel of sorts, but the good news is, it also works perfectly fine as a standalone. That said, I also felt that it was very rewarding being able to experience the connection between the two books and seeing how they linked together. As such, even though A Secret History of Witches isn’t a requirement, I would still highly recommend checking it out, either before or after The Great Witch of Brittany, just to have the full picture.
The two books also have many similarities, thematically and in their structure. Both are multi-generational stories, though in The Great Witch of Brittany, we are seeing everything through the eyes of Ursule, in stark contrast to the changing perspectives between the different women in A Secret History of Witches. As a result, I felt the flow here was much improved and a lot less repetitive. Getting the full story from a single perspective also led to more stability and coherence, which could be why I also found this novel so much easier to get into.
Above everything else, the book shines as character study, exploring Ursule as a woman, a daughter, a mother, and a legend. Despite being known as one of the greatest witches to have ever lived, this is the true story of Ursule which shows that she was not always wise, nor was she always responsible with her powers. As a young woman, she was more often than not driven by selfish desires, though in many cases, you could also hardly fault her for wanting so desperately to protect her loved ones. On her journey to self-discovery, she weathers through many mistakes and suffers terrible losses, but somehow always manages to overcome these challenges, emerging stronger and more confident of herself on the other side.
All in all, The Great Witch of Brittany was a simple story, yet extraordinary in its depth and richness, exactly the kind of book I love. Louisa Morgan continues to impress, and hopefully she’ll keep writing more of these “witchy” novels because I really enjoy them!
Bookshelf Roundup: 02/12/22: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Posted on February 12, 2022 21 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.
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, up, with thanks to the team at Del Rey for a review copy of The Paradox Hotel by Rob Hart! I’ve been looking forward to this one for a while, and I think it’ll be my next read. Thank you also to the kind folks at Subterranean Press for an ARC of Scanned Clean: Rereading Michael Marshall Smith in the Digital Age by Dr. David Sweeney, a revisiting of the perceptions and representations of emerging technology in the nineties, in the context of today’s internet age.
Also thanks to Tor Nightfire for an ARC of Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel. The synopsis of this one sounds really unsettling, definitely the kind of horror I go for. From Tor I also received a review copy of Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson, a Stormlight Archive novella set between Oathbringer and Rhythm of War. While we wait for the next novel, I’ll take anything in this series! And thanks to Tor.com for an ARC of A Mirror Mended by Alix E. Harrow, the follow up to A Spindle Splintered. I can’t wait to continue Zinnia Gray’s story in this second installment of the Fractured Fables series reimagining some classic fairy tales.
A big thanks to Harper Audio for the new audiobooks in my digital haul this week, which includes Hunt the Stars by Jessie Mihalik, The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley, and Gallant by V.E. Schwab!
Reviews
Echo by Thomas Olde Heuvelt (4 of 5 stars)
Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes (3.5 of 5 stars)
The Appeal by Janice Hallett (3.5 of 5 stars)
What I’ve Been Reading
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!
The BiblioSanctum 