#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!!

★★★★★

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#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!

★★★★★