#BookReview THE DISCORD OF GODS by JENN LYONS @BlackCrow_PR @torbooks

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Discord of Gods marks the epic conclusion to Jenn Lyons’s Chorus of Dragon series, closing out the saga that began with The Ruin of Kings, for fans of Brandon Sanderson and Patrick Rothfuss.

The end times have come.

Relos Var’s final plans to enslave the universe are on the cusp of fruition. He believes there’s only one being in existence that might be able to stop him: the demon Xaltorath.

As these two masterminds circle each other, neither is paying attention to the third player on the board, Kihrin. Unfortunately, keeping himself classified in the “pawn” category means Kihrin must pretend to be everything the prophecies threatened he’d become: the destroyer of all, the sun eater, a mindless, remorseless plague upon the land. It also means finding an excuse to not destroy the people he loves (or any of the remaining Immortals) without arousing suspicion.

Kihrin’s goals are complicated by the fact that not all of his “act” is one. His intentions may be sincere, but he’s still being forced to grapple with the aftereffects of the corrupted magic ritual that twisted both him and the dragons. Worse, he’s now tied to a body that is the literal avatar of a star – a form that is becoming increasingly, catastrophically unstable. All of which means he’s running out of time.

After all, some stars fade – but others explode.

PUBLISHED BY TOR BOOKS

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon

Blackwell’s

MY REVIEW

The fifth and final installment of a truly epic fantasy series – say it ain’t so!! But this ‘chapter’ is a really fitting end to the series and allows us to spend more time with our favourite characters and marvel at the grand scale of the drama and goings on!! Be prepared! This book is full on, non stop action!! There’s barely time to draw breath between the chaos and carnage, and that’s where the wonderful use of the footnotes come into play as they just allow that light relief and pause as you take stock of what’s been going on, and marvel at the ‘snark-asm’ which this series has been a master at!! Guaranteed to bring a smile and smirk to any grumpy face!

The main characters each take their turn in playing a major part in the action, as Relos Var’s plans begin to take shape but has he taken his eye off the ball to someone else coming in and spoiling his fun!! There’s double bluffs, soul searching and the wonderful interaction between characters as before, my favourites being Kihrin, Janel and Tereath, and there are some satisfying conclusions being played out, along with a few twists and turns that hit hard!!

This is a series that has dragons and demons, rituals and revenge, magic and murder, battles and betrayals, and most importantly, the wonderful world building that allows your imagination to go nuts! It’s a series I’ve loved and I’m very sad to see it go! Thank you Jenn Lyons for the ride!!

★★★★★

My thanks to the team at Black Crow PR for the advanced reader copy in return for a fair and honest review.

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#BlogTour OUR LADY OF MYSTERIOUS AILMENTS by T.L.HUCHU #BookReview #OLOMA @UKTor @BlackCrow-PR

Delighted to be with you today as part of the awesome Blog Tour for the fabulous OUR LADY OF MYSTERIOUS AILMENTS by T.L.HUCHU. My thanks to the author, publisher and team at Black Crow PR for letting me be part of it all!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Some secrets are meant to stay buried

When Ropa Moyo discovered an occult underground library, she expected great things. She’s really into Edinburgh’s secret societies – but turns out they are less into her. So instead of getting paid to work magic, she’s had to accept a crummy unpaid internship. And her with bills to pay and a pet fox to feed.

Then her friend Priya offers her a job on the side. Priya works at Our Lady of Mysterious Maladies, a very specialized hospital, where a new illness is resisting magical and medical remedies alike. The first patient was a teenage boy, Max Wu, and his healers are baffled. If Ropa can solve the case, she might earn as she learns – and impress her mentor, Sir Callander.

Her sleuthing will lead her to a lost fortune, an avenging spirit and a secret buried deep in Scotland’s past. But how are they connected? Lives are at stake and Ropa is running out of time.

PUBLISHED BY PAN MACMILLAN

PURCHASE LINK

Amazon

MY REVIEW

The fun and intrigue continues here in Book 2 of the Edinburgh Nights series, and once more I couldn’t get enough!  The odd goings on continue and Ropa is at the heart of it all again as she is keen to find out more about the underground library, along with doing all she can to assist those in need, and take care of her family!

Her life as a ghosttalker means there’s never a dull moment, and they still pop up whenever they are in need of assistance and make it very difficult for her to ignore! No matter how hard she tries! Money is at the heart of the matter for her as she wants to help out more at home, with her grandmother and sister so when she’s offered money to help investigate some strange illnesses at the hospital she can’t turn it down and it leads to some rather shocking discoveries. She goes into full ‘detective’ mode as she tries to figure out who the patient – Max – was in touch with before he became ill and what he’s mixed up in that isn’t of this world!

I loved this latest installment!  There were no lulls, there’s great banter galore and you’re just drawn into this world so easily.  It has a really fresh feel about it and plenty of snark in the humour – I do love that aspect of a story!!  It has a great mix of the supernatural, the mystery, history and all things in between, and I think the character of Ropa is such a fascinating creature! She’s pro-active, hard working and has a great sense of fairness about it.  She could easily crumble but has this inner resilience that is really empowering!

Brilliant!!

★★★★★

#BookReview THE GIFT by RA WILLIAMS @wearewhitefox @BlackCrow_PR

ABOUT THE BOOK

A lush historical adventure that’s equal parts Gothic horror as it is tale of lost love, this first book in THE GIFT trilogy follows an optimistic yet cautious American ethnologist on her journey from St Dunstan’s Prep in Michigan, to the warm tropical shallows off the coast of Honduras, and the tors of Germany’s Externsteine, uncovering clues to the identity of the man who saved her from the Crimen one fateful night. All clues lead to Folkestone, England where she is reunited with the man she has sought for nearly three decades. But, is their reunion the end, or merely the end of the beginning?

The North Atlantic, 14 April 1912.

Amid the chaos of the sinking Titanic, a young Eleanor Annenberg meets the eyes of a stranger and is immediately captivated. As the ship buckles around them, she follows him down into the hold and finds him leaning over an open sarcophagus, surrounded by mutilated bodies. She catches but a glimpse of what lies within before she’s sucked into a maelstrom of freezing brine and half-devoured corpses.

Elle is pulled out of the water, but the stranger – and the secrets she stumbled upon – are lost. Unintentionally, however, he leaves her a gift; one so compelling that Elle embarks on a journey that pulls her into a world of ancient evils, vicious hunters and human prey to find the man who saved her that fateful night.

From trench warfare at Cape Helles in 1915 to a shipwreck in the tropical shallows off the Honduran coast, from a lost mine beneath the towering Externsteine in a Germany on the verge of war to the gothic crypts of Highgate Cemetery in London, Elle gets closer to a truth she has sought for most of her life. But at what cost? Gifts, after all, are seldom free.

PUBLISHED BY WHITEFOX PUBLISHING

PURCHASE LINK

AMAZON

MY REVIEW

I love reading books that are a little bit different, and that’s definitely what you get with this one! It’s part historical, part gothic horror and full on adventure!! Ooh and it has maps!! Always a big plus with a big sprawling kind of story!

The story starts aboard the Titanic, where Eleanor is captivated by a stranger. What she finds beneath the decks when she follows him down there is the stuff of horror – and the fun and games begin with the author taking the reader on an epic journey across the globe, over many years and you’re always guessing as to what role Eleanor has to play and what she saw that night has in store for her as she moves forward with her life.

She is one of those characters that definitely grows on you as you get to know more about her. She isn’t afraid to ruffle feathers and there’s always that sense that some want her stopped as she may be interfering in things! And this is what sets up the story nicely for the rest of the trilogy to come and I look forward to seeing what adventures the author takes us on next in this raw, mysterious and dark journey!

★★★★

#BookReview PSYCHOPATHS ANONYMOUS by WILL CARVER @BlackCrow_PR

ABOUT THE BOOK

Maeve has everything. A high-powered job, a beautiful home, a string of uncomplicated one-night encounters. She’s also an addict: A functioning alcoholic with a dependence on sex and an insatiable appetite for killing men. 

When she can’t find a support group to share her obsession, she creates her own. And Psychopaths Anonymous is born. Friends of Maeve. 

Now in a serious relationship, Maeve wants to keep the group a secret. But not everyone in the group adheres to the rules, and when a reckless member raises suspicions with the police, Maeve’s drinking spirals out of control. 

She needs to stop killing. She needs to close the group. 

But Maeve can’t seem to quit the things that are bad for her, including her new man…

A scathing, violent and darkly funny book about love, connection, obsessions and sex – and the aspects of human nature we’d prefer to hide – Psychopaths Anonymous is also an electrifyingly original, unpredictable thriller that challenges virtually everything.

PUBLISHED BY ORENDA BOOKS

PURCHASE LINK

Amazon

MY REVIEW

What must go on in the mind of an author to come up with a character such as Maeve??!! Probably best not to ask! And to just to enjoy the madness of his creation!!

I loved the way this story was told. We’re in the mind of Maeve – not a sane place to be! – but we hear every train of thought as she process her life, her encounters and everything in between! She’s a woman with zero empathy! Her views are cynical, cold and calculating! Yes she can appear ‘normal’ on the outside, but that illusion is quickly shattered when you’re alone with her!

We follow her in this story as she seeks to quench her thirst for all the bad addictions in her life – drugs, drink, sex and killing! She is very careful with who she picks out as a victim, and the more she gets away with the more driven she becomes! You wonder just what it is she is looking for throughout this journey, and to be fair, I don’t think she knows either! She just has a need to be in control, like a true psychopath!

You’re always wondering if her way of dealing with life is going to catch up with her, and the author does a fantastic job of immersing you in her world and watch her playing with fire – with very little concern for the outcome! She’s the kind of killer who will judge the goings on in reality tv while torturing a victim! Zero F’s given for any of her victims!!

There’s a ton of sex, drugs and violence (not rock and roll!), and it’s a book that stays long in the mind for very dark reasons!! Will Carver is a master at creating such twisted and insane offerings – and as a reader I am very thankful!!!

★★★★★

My thanks to Jamie and the team at Black Crow PR for the e-copy in return for a fair and honest review.

#BookReview DARE TO KNOW by JAMES KENNEDY

ABOUT THE BOOK

Dark Matter meets Annihilation in this mind-bending and emotional speculative thriller set in a world where the exact moment of your death can be predicted–for a price.

Our narrator is the most talented salesman at Dare to Know, a prestigious and enigmatic company in the death-prediction business. While he has mastered the art of death, the rest of his life is an abject failure. Divorced, estranged from his sons, and broke, he’s driven to violate the cardinal rule of his business by forecasting his own death day. The problem: apparently he died 23 minutes ago.

The only person who can confirm his prediction is Julia, the woman he loved and lost during his rise up the ranks of Dare to Know. As he travels across the country to see her, our narrator is forced to confront his past, the choices he’s made, and the terrifying truth about the company he works for–and his role there.

Highly ambitious and totally immersive, this adrenaline-fueled thriller explores the destructive power of knowledge and collapses the boundaries between reality, myth, and conspiracy as it races toward its stunning conclusion.

PUBLISHED BY QUIRK BOOKS

PURCHASE LINK

Amazon

MY REVIEW

If you  like your books weird, twisty and to be a bit of a mind f***, then this is the book for you!! I loved it! It has the power to entertain, confuse and to make you think…. would you want to know when you were going to die?!

In this book, there’s a group who can predict  your death date and have turned it into a business.  The only rule of the death prediction business is not to calculate your own death date…. the book narrator breaks this rule and is left dealing with the consequences.
It took me a while to get into the style of writing, but once I’d connected with it, I really enjoyed the way the story played out.  The narrator takes you through each stage – as he deals with his disastrous life whilst looking back at those moments in his life that made him who he has become – the school friendships, relationships, his random thoughts and hates.  This is alongside the internal battle he’s having with himself of trying to make sense of it all, and should he do his own death date.  He knows he shouldn’t but just can’t shake the feeling off that he NEEDS to know.

I really enjoyed the frenetic pace of this book – it flits from one thought to another, from the now to the past and you really get a sense of his confused state of mind.  How his arrogance and complacency can be a help and a hindrance!

The twists were well thought out, and I loved the randomness of his mind!  It’s a book that I raced through and loved the uniqueness of it all!  It makes you think outside of the box and challenges you!

★★★★

My thanks to the team at Black Crow PR for the advanced reader copy in return for a fair and honest review.

#BookReview THE HOUSE OF ALWAYS by JENN LYONS @BlackCrow_PR @UKTor

ABOUT THE BOOK

For fans of Brandon Sanderson and Patrick Rothfuss, The House of Always is the fourth epic fantasy in Jenn Lyons’ Chorus of Dragons series that began with The Ruin of Kings.

What if you were imprisoned for all eternity?

In the aftermath of the Ritual of Night, everything has changed.

The Eight Immortals have catastrophically failed to stop Kihrin’s enemies, who are moving forward with their plans to free Vol Karoth, the King of Demons. Kihrin has his own ideas about how to fight back, but even if he’s willing to sacrifice everything for victory, the cost may prove too high for his allies.

Now they face a choice: can they save the world while saving Kihrin, too? Or will they be forced to watch as he becomes the very evil they have all sworn to destroy. 

PUBLISHED BY TOR BOOKS

PURCHASE LINK

Amazon

PRAISE FOR A CHORUS OF DRAGONS SERIES

 ‘What an extraordinary book. The Ruin of Kings is everything epic fantasy should be: rich, cruel, gorgeous, brilliant, enthralling and deeply deeply satisfying. I loved it’ – Lev Grossman 
‘Hands-down the best fantasy debut I’ve read in a long time’- Storgy Magazine 
‘Everything you could want from a fantasy epic…unputdownable’ – Den of Geek
 ‘In a sprawling, magic-filled world populated by gods, dragons, krakens, witches, demons, ghosts, shapeshifters, zombies, and so much more, Lyons ties it all together seamlessly to create literary magic. Epic fantasy fans looking for a virtually un-put-down-able read should look no further’ – Kirkus starred review ‘Its lore and memorable characters will leave epic fantasy fans eager for the second volume’ – Publishers Weekly starred review 
‘An instant classic and TOR have got an absolute winner on their hands’ – Fantasy Book Review ‘Both innovative and a traditional, grand epic. If you like dragons, twisty storytelling, and you also want to fall in love with a character that eats people, The Ruin of Kings is for you’ -Tasha Suri, Empire of Sand 
‘The world-building is vivid, and Lyon’s vision feels fresh and fun. You sense a real intellect at work behind the words, with a detailed cosmology and distinct, witty characters – 4.5 stars’ – SFX Magazine ‘This follow up to Lyon’s brilliant debut takes a similar, assured (and sassy) narrative approach as The Ruin of Kings…Lyons proves she is worthy of comparison to the masters of epic fantasy, such as Patrick Rothfuss, Stephen R . Donaldson (particularly in GrandGuignol action), and Melanie Rawn’ – Booklist starred review
 ‘Simply put: This is top notch adventure fantasy written for a 21st-century audience – high recommended’ – Kirkus starred review ‘Lyons is creating a complex and wonderful series that will immerse and delight’ – Library Journal ‘Lyons proves she is worthy of comparison to the masters of epic fantasy’ – Booklist starred review

MY REVIEW

Book 4 in the series and it’s still as fresh as Book 1!!  I can’t believe the series is almost at the end – one more book to go 😦 – but this is another gripping, emotional and pulsating instalment to the series that I will be very sad to say goodbye to!

The House of Always is a more mature, character driven story than the past books, and that was quite nice!  It had a different style and change of pace to some of the action in the previous books and it felt good to spend more time connecting with each character as they faced new dangers and dilemmas.  You could see how the different relationships between them were changing so you feel like you get more feel for each character, which isn’t always easy when there’s too much action going on.

That’s not to say there’s no action going on in this story! There is plenty! There’s battles with demons and dragons, betrayals galore, sacrifices and magic for you to enjoy.  Added to the normal mix of maps, floorplans and the wondrous footnotes that I just can’t get enough of! The footnotes are a book in themselves and just add that little something extra to each part of the story!!

The main crux of the story for the characters to work out is why they’re all trapped at the Lighthouse of Shadrag Gor, and how they can rescue Kihrin from inside the mind of a god! Sounds like an easy task right?! No chance!!

It’s also told from the point of view of Senera which adds a new dynamic to things and I loved finding out more about her past!  None of them ever seem to have nothing to hide!

There are arguments and betrayals, but also an overwhelming feel of unity – ‘the world changed’ is a phrase that is used a lot and you really do get that sense of each action they take having a greater impact on the outcome of each battle.

I found this to be real edge of the seat stuff throughout and it has just fitted so nicely into the series, with things building perfectly for the next installment…. I hope we’re not waiting too long! I don’t think I can cope without knowing what is in store next!!

★★★★★

My thanks to the team at Black Crow PR for the advanced reader copy in return for a fair and honest review!

#BookReview SISTERSONG by LUCY HOLLAND @BlackCrow_PR @panmacmillan @UKTor @silvanhistorian

ABOUT THE BOOK

535 AD. In the ancient kingdom of Dumnonia, King Cador’s children inherit a fragmented land abandoned by the Romans.

Riva, scarred in a terrible fire, fears she will never heal.
Keyne battles to be seen as the king’s son, when born a daughter.
And Sinne, the spoiled youngest girl, yearns for romance.

All three fear a life of confinement within the walls of the hold – a last bastion of strength against the invading Saxons. But change comes on the day ash falls from the sky, bringing Myrddhin, meddler and magician, and Tristan, a warrior whose secrets will tear the siblings apart. Riva, Keyne and Sinne must take fate into their own hands, or risk being tangled in a story they could never have imagined; one of treachery, love and ultimately, murder. It’s a story that will shape the destiny of Britain.

PUBLISHED BY MACMILLAN

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon

Goldsboro – signed edition

Blackwell’s

MY REVIEW

I found this to be a wonderful historical story, with fantasy elements, that centres around 3 very different sisters who are all struggling to deal with finding their place and their role in a world that is changing around them.

They are the children of King Cador and while he sets out to protect them, they are the kind of women who want to break free, to follow their own paths and that is proving ever more difficult. I loved how different the sisters – Riva, Keyne and Sinne – are from one another. Their outlooks, their strengths, weaknesses…. it really does help you to connect to each character as their stories are told separately against the backdrop of the world around them proving to be a very dark place.

It also brings to the fore the struggles we can all face growing up – the expectations of others and ourselves, wanting to be heard and seen despite feeling like we’re being oppressed – and these young women face all of this and it’s a challenging time. We get to witness young women learning things about themselves – not all good! – and facing adversity and sibling rivalry. And dealing with a father who won’t listen to them or give them credit is never a good thing to factor in to the mix!

This was an epic and absorbing story that I totally lost myself in and couldn’t read quick enough to see how their stories played out! There’s action,angst and magic throughout, and it was amazing to watch these women find their feet and their voices!

★★★★★