Tag: adult fantasy

Review: Red City by Marie Lu

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
Alexis holds Red City above a stone walkway and a tree

Babel meets Jade City 📚⁣

⁣Alexis: I got an ARC of Red City from my fave indie bookstore at the beach, and it didn’t disappoint! ⁣

⁣The story takes place in an alternate Los Angeles called Red City, and the city is the perfect gritty backdrop. The magic system of alchemy was interesting and well thought out, and even though the first half of the story was slow paced, it really allowed you time to learn alchemy and learn the stakes of the story in time with both of the main characters.

The beginning of the book follows Sam and Ari, two separate alchemy students, during their school years. It definitely has dark academia vibes and some parallels to Babel by R.F. Kuang. The second half of the book is much more Jade City, with dueling alchemy groups that are essentially mobs and some political intrigue. 

Lu discusses this a little in the back of the book, but Red City dives into the grittiness of immigrant families and was inspired by her own family’s immigrant story. This is really where I felt the heart of the story was; her exploration of the hardships of the immigrant family was devastating—and in different ways when it comes to Sam and Ari.  

⁣This is a darker story (and Lu’s adult debut!) and deals with a lot of dark themes—including grooming, drug use, murder, violence and more. And the tagline of “power always has a price” certainly rings true throughout the story. This was so close to being a five-star read for me, but there were some plot points at the end that didn’t quite work for me. 

⁣VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫/5 ⁣

⁣Is Red City on your tbr? Special thanks to Tor Publishing Group for the copy in exchange for a review!

Review: Dark Water Daughter by H.M. Long

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
A Kindle ARC copy of Dark Water Daughter lays on a desk on 2 notebooks and next to a pair of pinkish-clear glasses and a candle

Alexis:

Happy Publication Day to Dark Water Daughter!

Synopsis

Dark Water Daughter is an adult historical pirate fantasy. It follows two main characters: Mary is a Stormsinger, a woman whose voice can still hurricanes and shatter armadas. Samuel is an ex-naval officer who now works as a pirate hunter—with a unique power of his own. Both Mary and Samuel must come face to face with pirate lord Silvanus Lirr as he hunts down Mary for reasons yet unknown while also coming to terms with their pasts.

Worldbuilding 

The thing I love most about this book is the worldbuilding and magic systems. At the beginning of each chapter is a tidbit from a guidebook that details an aspect of the world. I love how this feeds us information about the world without it feeling forced and without having to info dump.

As for the worldbuilding itself, we have ghistings, or spectral creatures who inhabit the ancient forests of Mary’s homeland and the figureheads of ships. I absolutely loved how unique and ghostly ghistings feel! 

On top of that, we have Stormsingers, as mentioned above, but there are also people who can see into a world called the Other, and yet other people who can influence others. The world and magic is so rich and vibrant, and I loved reading about it.

Atmosphere and Characters 

The atmosphere is great: think forest/sea/winter. Think Pirates of the Caribbean but darker. I love both Mary and Sam’s backstories. There’s a whole host of side characters, but they never feel flat. And there is an amazing twist in the second half that really gets the story moving and gives it another edge. 

Critiques 

My only main critique is that the middle of this book lags a bit, especially when Mary and Samuel set off on separate adventures—I kept waiting for their storylines to cross again! This book is also in first person perspective, and sometimes I wanted to hear more thoughts and feelings from both Mary and Samuel. (However, this is a common critique I have of adult fantasy books, so it could totally just be me who feels this way!)

Why you should read it!

If you’re looking for an adventurous and dark pirate story with a unique magic system, a complicated plot with a great twist, and plenty of forest, sea, and winter vibes, definitely give Dark Water Daughter a shot.

Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for providing me with an ARC for review! 

VERDICT: ☠️☠️☠️☠️.5/5 

Also, Happy Publication Day to A Song of Salvation by Alechia Dow! You can check out my review of this heartfelt YA space opera here.

Review: The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten

Anna and Alexis1 Comment
The Foxglove King sits on top of a laptop on a table at a coffee shop, next to Alexis's hand in a gray sweater, which holds an iced matcha latte.

Alexis:

If you want a book that feels like For the Wolf, Furyborn, and The Wolf and the Woodsman mixed together, read The Foxglove King!

Synopsis: Adapted from Goodreads

The Foxglove King follows Lore, a poison runner and spy who has also happens to be a necromancer. When one of her runs goes wrong and Lore is caught, she is sent to Presque Mort, a group of monks sanctioned to use Mortem, or death magic, and work for the Sainted King. When entire villages on the outskirts of the country start dying overnight, seemingly at random, Lore is blackmailed by the King into figuring out why.

Thrown into court, Lore must work together with Gabriel, a duke-turned-monk, and Bastian, the prince, in order to save both herself and more villages from dying.

Review:

This book is dark and gritty, with an almost renaissance yet gothic feel to it. When I read Whitten’s For the Wolf, I fell in love with her writing style and snarky characters. And I’m happy to say that her writing and characterization have improved! Lore is a no-nonsense type of character. Gabe has a good heart but a tortured past (and, you know, he’s a monk). And Bastian is hilarious and snarky. Often, the banter between the characters is a welcome comedic relief, yet it manages to fit into the dark setting. 

As for worldbuilding, I was impressed! The worldbuilding feels well-fleshed out, and I like how Whitten describes the use of Mortem and how Lore can control it. The religion itself reminds me of the religion in The Wolf and the Woodsman, which also uses body horror in tandem with religion. 

I was hooked on the story from the beginning, and I loved the vibes and all of elements. My only main critique is that Gabriel/Gabe, who only has one eye, is described as only having one eye literally on every other page in the first half of the novel. I feel like having a handful of meaningful descriptions of Gabe would’ve been more impactful than being hit over the head with them. However, in the grand scheme of things, obviously this didn’t impact my feelings about the rest of the book. 

Overall, if you’re looking for a gritty adult fantasy with court politics, flawed and interesting characters, a small dash of romance, religious trauma, and plenty of death magic, then you might like this one! I’m looking forward to the sequel.

VERDICT: 💀💀💀💀💀

Review: A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
Alexis holds A River Enchanted next to A Fire Endless on a gray blanket with an Aquarius candle.

Alexis:

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

I’m back home from a hospital stay, where I unfortunately had to have (more) lung surgery. The only good news about that is I’ve had plenty of time to read!

During my recovery, I read A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross, which is the sequel to A River Enchanted. 

This adult fantasy duology follows four main characters—Jack, Adaira, Sidra, and Torin—who live on the Isle of Cadence. The Isle is split between two warring clans and has spirits/faeries, music, and magical items. 

As with the first book, I loved the historical Scottish-inspired island in A Fire Endless. Ross’ writing is as lovely, atmospheric, and lyrical as ever. 

What I really appreciated about this sequel was getting to know Jack and Adaira better. In the first book, I preferred both Sidra and Torin’s POVs. But I felt like both Jack and Adaira had great character arcs. 

Sidra is still my favorite character, and I loved her character arc, as well!

Torin’s POV lost me a little bit. This book is slow moving, and I felt like Torin’s POV dragged it down. I also felt like his character growth already happened in the first book, so I didn’t feel as invested in his journey. I also didn’t like the plot as much as in the first book; however, I did really enjoy the ending!

Overall, I think if you’re looking for a character-driven, historical fantasy novel, this duology might be for you. 

VERDICT: 🔥🔥🔥🔥/5

Review: The Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah

Anna and Alexis1 Comment
Alexis holds a library copy of The Stardust Thief and a gingerbread latte.

Alexis:

So I’ve read more books in 2022 than in any past year. And this month, I finally felt like I was getting into a reading slump. I wasn’t sure what I was in the mood to read, and I picked up two different books, only for them to feel like a chore.

But then I remembered I checked out The Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah, a One Thousand and One Nights retelling, from the library. 

The Stardust Thief is an adult fantasy that follows Loulie, who is also known as the Midnight Merchant. With the help of her jinn bodyguard, Qadir, Loulie finds and sells magical jinn relics on the black market. But when the sultan blackmails her into going on a quest for him, Loulie treks across the desert to find a magical lamp and realizes not everything is as it seems.

This was just such a fun book to read. It reads like part adventure story, part myth, and part revenge story. It has multiple POVs—Loulie, Prince Mazen, and one of the eldest Prince Omar’s forty thieves named Aisha. At first, I only wanted to read from Loulie’s perspective, but by the end, all of the characters stole my heart!

All of the characters were so well-rounded. Their distinctive personalities and motivations carried me through the story. I especially loved Qadir and Loulie and their familial-type relationship, and I enjoyed learning about their pasts.

The beginning does start off a little slow, but I like how it allowed Abdullah to set up the scene and really make me root for the characters. Plus, there are still plenty of action scenes!

The worldbuilding is excellent. The different settings shine on the page. There’s also an emphasis on storytelling in The Stardust Thief, and I loved “listening” to Mazen’s stories. Overall, Abdullah’s writing style worked really well for me. 

The ending has some great reveals, and I’m looking forward to seeing what happens in the sequel!

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Review: Book of Night by Holly Black

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
Book of Night rests on a coffee shop table next to a Starbucks cup and a pumpkin

Alexis:

On a whim, I picked up Book of Night from the library. I haven’t read a Black book (unless you count The Spiderwick Chronicles when I was a kid) and I’ve heard conflicting reviews of Book of Night…

Which I now understand.

The first half of this book is slow. The worldbuilding is minimal, there are too many chapters that take place in the past, and the world itself suffers from what I call adult fantasy book syndrome—the world is cold and dreary, depressing and dark. For example, Ninth House has adult fantasy book syndrome, meaning everything about it is unnecessarily dark. While Book of Night isn’t quite as dark, it still has a criminal main character, lots of references to drugs and alcohol, kidnappings and murder, self harm, trauma, etc.

Which makes me wonder…why can’t we have an adult fantasy book that is both dark yet fun? 

That being said, the second half of this book takes a turn. The inciting incident doesn’t happen until around page 50 or 60, and then the plot gets rolling. I became more intrigued by the plot and the characters, especially as the world’s shadow magic and manipulation was explored a little more. There was also a plot twist that worked really well for me.

The beginning of the book is 2 stars, and the latter half 4, making this a 3 star read overall. (Or crescent moons, if you will).

VERDICT: 🌙🌙🌙/5

Review: The Vanished Queen by Lisbeth Campbell

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
Alexis holds a fall kombucha bottle next to a library copy of The Vanished Queen.

Alexis:

The Vanished Queen is an adult fantasy that starts off with a bang. The prologue delves into a theft: a slightly drunk Anza breaks into a locked room in a library to steal a journal. 

The Vanished Queen follows three different POVs. Anza is an archer and a part of the resistance. After the king put her father to death and she found the missing queen’s journal, Anza is dead set on fighting against the cruel and tyrannical king, Karolje. 

Prince Esvar is the younger son of Karolje and Mirantha, the vanished queen who is presumed dead. He hates his father’s regime and is desperate to find a way to defy him.  

And the third POV is Mirantha, the vanished queen herself. Her story is set in the past, leading up to her disappearance.

To be honest, I considered DNFing this about 100 pages in. The plot was very slow, and despite the synopsis mentioning that Anza and Esvar end up working together, that doesn’t even happen until the halfway point of the book.

But after that, the plot picks up. Schemes and planning happen. The political intrigue thickens and the stakes grow higher. In the beginning, a lot of the characters feel flat, but once the plot picks up, they come to life a little more and I became fully invested in the story. Karolje was such a terrible king and soulless person that I was ready to see him be brought down.

What I liked about this book:

-High stakes

-Mirantha’s chapters

-Themes of love and justice

-Esvar gives me Prince Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender vibes/Dorian from Throne of Glass vibes 

-Bisexuality rep: Anza is bisexual 

-High fantasy world without magic  

What I didn’t like as much:

-I often felt like the characters were being held at a distance; I wanted to be more in their heads

-Slow pacing 

The first half of this book is three stars and the latter half is higher.

VERDICT: 👑👑👑👑/5

Trigger warnings:
Death, including hangings, mentions of suicice, rape, violence/blood, torture, coded anti-semitism, domestic abuse, forced abortion 

Review: The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
The Lights of Prague sits on a gray blanket next to a small white pumpkin and a dilute calico cat.

Alexis:

The Lights of Prague is a historical fantasy set in (you guessed it) Prague in the mid 1800s, right after gas lamps are introduced to the city. ⁣

⁣It follows Domek, a lamplighter who also fights monsters—like the pijavice (vampires)—and Ora, a wealthy, badass, and secretive widow.

⁣This book has a will-o’-the-wisp, monster hunting, philosophical musings, alchemy, and beautiful descriptions of Prague. ⁣

While I liked Domek’s character in the beginning, Ora quickly became my favorite. She had an interesting backstory and was flawed and well-rounded. 

⁣My only con was that the plot felt slow moving, which meant I found myself leisurely reading this instead of my usual binge-reading. Despite the high stakes, I didn’t feel like the plot had quite enough urgency. Because of this, I liked this book, but I wasn’t as obsessed with it as I had hoped.

I still enjoyed it overall, and if you’re looking for a historical fantasy with vampires, then check it out; it’s the perfect read to ease into fall.

VERDICT: 🧛🧛🧛.5/5

Review: Among Thieves by M.J. Kuhn

Anna and Alexis1 Comment
A copy of Among Thieves rests on a gray blanket next to a candle and a dilute calico cat.

Alexis:

Among Thieves was actually the last book I read in 2021!

It’s a heist novel set in a dark, gritty world. We follow many POVs, but all of the characters are working for Callum Clem, the leader of the Saints gang. In this world, there are magical people called Adepts who are brainwashed and owned as slaves by the people in power.

There were many aspects of this book that I loved. Kuhn’s writing, and writing style, is great. She writes great descriptions, and she describes people especially well. Each time we meet a new character, we get a very Dickensen description, so that we not only know what the character physically looks like, but we get a sense of what each person is actually like, as well. 

The banter is fun and quick. The magic system is interesting and feels different from other magic systems. 

But there were a couple of things that kept me from being fully invested in the story.

  1. Cursing is realistic in adult fantasies like these, but I often felt like Kuhn could have been a little more choosy about where she inserted swear words, and it would’ve made more of an impact. Instead, the amount of cursing tended to pull me out of the story.
  2. The worldbuilding was thrown at you. I had a hard time getting through the first 100 pages because my brain was trying to play catch up, all while reading from multiple new POVs.
  3. And finally…I wanted a map. I know this is a small thing, but a map definitely would’ve helped me imagine the world a little better.

Overall, this was a fun read. I think if you like heist novels like Six of Crows but are looking for an adult version with a full cast of characters, then you might like this.

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐.5 /5 

Review: The Bone Shard Emperor by Andrea Stewart

Anna and Alexis1 Comment

Alexis:

The Bone Shard Emperor is the sequel to The Bone Shard Daughter, one of my favorite reads from earlier this year. 

Like the first book, it follows 5 POVs: Lin, Jovis, Phalue, Ranami, and Sand/Nisong. Jovis is still my favorite, as well as his talking, bonded otter-like creature named Mephi. But I felt like I got to know Lin’s character better, as well.

I love how Stewart began to reveal more of the world’s history, as well as the mystery surrounding Mephi and some other characters. 

Also like the first book, this was a 5-star read for me. However, I don’t think it was quite as well done as the first. Phalue and Ranami get even less page time in the book, so I found myself not caring about their characters as much as I wanted to. 

But my biggest critique is that there was also a romantic storyline that, while had potential and made sense from a logical viewpoint, didn’t quite work for me. The characters just didn’t have any chemistry on the page.

Despite moving at a slow pace, I love Stewart’s writing, and I love her worldbuilding, and I never felt bored; I was always drawn into the story. 

However, I especially loved the last quarter of the book. A lot of interesting developments are happening, and based on the great ending, I’m excited to see where the third and final book takes the story!

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐