Review of The Changeling Sea by Patricia A. McKillip
I only discovered Patricia McKillip about three years ago. Of course, I’d heard of her long before then—she has won the World Fantasy Award and been nominated for the Hugo and Nebula Awards, after all!—but I hadn’t actually read anything by her even though she’d been on my mental list of “authors to read someday” for quite awhile at that point. She might still be on that list had I not leafed through an ARC of Wonders of the Invisible […]
Mini Review: Truthwitch by Susan Dennard
Book Description from Goodreads: On a continent ruled by three empires, some are born with a “witchery”, a magical skill that sets them apart from others. In the Witchlands, there are almost as many types of magic as there are ways to get in trouble—as two desperate young women know all too well. Safiya is a Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lie. It’s a powerful magic that many would kill to have on their side, especially amongst the nobility […]
Mini Reviews: Serpentine, Burn for Me, and The Very Best of Kate Elliott
Book Description from Goodreads: SERPENTINE is a sweeping fantasy set in the ancient Kingdom of Xia and inspired by the rich history of Chinese mythology. Lush with details from Chinese folklore, SERPENTINE tells the coming of age story of Skybright, a young girl who worries about her growing otherness. As she turns sixteen, Skybright notices troubling changes. By day, she is a companion and handmaid to the youngest daughter of a very wealthy family. But nighttime brings with it a […]
Mini Review: The Winter Long by Seanan McGuire
Book Description from Goodreads: Toby thought she understood her own past; she thought she knew the score. She was wrong. It’s time to learn the truth. Seanan McGuire’s debut Rosemary and Rue was an intriguing start to the October Daye series, and it became one of my favorite urban fantasies after reading the first few installments: there’s darkness and difficult choices, but endearing characters and amusing narrative and dialogue keep it from becoming overwhelmingly gloomy. Although I do find it […]
Sci-Fi Month: Review of Cagebird by Karin Lowachee
I have a Sci-Fi Month confession to make: I didn’t think I liked science fiction for a long time. I once thought it was a dry and dull genre, full of flat characters who owed their existence to the need for someone to deliver tech-heavy exposition. Now I know the genre encompasses a wide variety of stories after reading many wonderful science fiction books and discovering television shows like Firefly, but the point is: had my introduction to science fiction […]
Mini Review of Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho
Book Description from Penguin Group Website: In this sparkling debut, magic and mayhem clash with the British elite… The Royal Society of Unnatural Philosophers, one of the most respected organizations throughout all of England, has long been tasked with maintaining magic within His Majesty’s lands. But lately, the once proper institute has fallen into disgrace, naming an altogether unsuitable gentleman—a freed slave who doesn’t even have a familiar—as their Sorcerer Royal, and allowing England’s once profuse stores of magic to […]
