Hello Fellow Journeyers,
November is here and I've been getting re-accustomed to the reading life over the last eight weeks. After investing in reading again and having finished three books in September and three in October, I'm realizing that my kids are taking much more time and energy than ever before. They're talking and wanting to explore which is a definite upside contrasting with all the extreme intensity and unpredictability. It's tiring work to keep up with them, but reading is still a fantastic outlet to fall back on. So here's to November.
What's on the radar:
Vow of the Vanquished by the fairly established DePaoli is the first entry of his new series about a man with mysterious powers that will be important to the world's future? Honestly, I'm almost a third done and I'm still a little confused as to what is going on. 😄 But honestly, it's the best book I've read that my utter confusion hasn't taken me out of the story. I'm intrigued by what's happening and hope to see where things come together and move forward.
Wrath of a Hungry God is Sean Crow's second entry in the Godless Lands series. I finished the first book, Godless Lands (a novella), last month and was pretty astounded at how good it was. All of my favorite elements were there: a plot that was straightforward enough to follow and was not convoluted, relatable characters, important and consistent action, and a satisfying conclusion. I look forward to seeing how the next book continues from the first's end.
What I couldn't get through:
I'm planning a new segment in my updates that gives some explanation for books I talked about in the previous month's update that I never wrote a review for. Because of how many books I try to give my time to, I am unable to get through every single one that doesn't work. So these are like micro-reviews of books I simply couldn't finish for one reason or another.
The Oathbreakers, the first of Mike D. Martin's new series was going to start a new series inspired by The Witcher series. I read the novella, The Terror of Dunwall, last month and was pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable it was while pointing out some pretty significant mistakes. Unfortunately, The Oathbreakers only showcases these mistakes on a greater level. In the opening chapters, there were many inconsistencies and contradicting story elements that I couldn't go on. Something just felt off and while the writing isn't bad, the story lost all its momentum from this.
A Season of Ravens by J. R. Snyder is comprised of several short stories in a format and layout that reminded me heavily of The Witcher series, that I appear to never be able to fully take my focus off of. I've read several books recently in the hopes to get a good Witcher-inspired tale but to no avail. A Season of Ravens starts off with a short first story that is supposed to give us a taste of what's to come and I had my issues with it. My short review on Goodreads summarizes my thoughts:
The dialogue is fairly stilted and unrealistic rather than portray the characters' personalities or the plot's purposes. The main character came across as youthful, but his abilities were considerable for someone so young. There wasn't any explanation for this so it was hard to believe. The plot's finale was based on a twist that didn't really make sense as I was reading it and felt like an attempt at something more complex than what it actually was. Many elements reminded me of The Witcher series, but the story lacked suspense in what was happening or wonder for what would take place.
What looks promising:
Beckoning of the Gate by Benjamin J. Ryan got my simply with that epically gorgeous cover...I mean look at that. And that's pretty much all I have as far as background information. I'm excited to see what this one is like.
The Last Ranger by J. D. L. Rosell is an unexpected last minute find that is being funded through a kickstarter, an interesting approach to publishing a book. A story of a ranger who's existence is being threated and must find out how to stop the impending doom while coping with her own demons and shame. A very compelling idea mixed with the idea of a protagonist as a ranger is exactly the kind of thing I like to read. I hope to glean much from the sample I downloaded and read this book as soon as I can. 😁
What I'm most excited about:
The Sword's Elegy is Brian D. Anderson's third book of The Sorcerer's Song trilogy that I've been reading throughout this year. The Bard's Blade was a fantastic debut and honestly warranted a great 5 star rating from me. A Chorus of Fire was entertaining, but not the sequel I had hoped for. Hopefully the third entry will end the series on an all time high note!
Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for future updates and reviews!