Invictus by Ryan Graudin – Review
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / August 6, 2017

I was lucky enough to receive an advanced Netgalley copy of Invictus by Ryan Graudin – thanks so much to Hachette for giving me a copy.  I ADORED Graudin’s earlier series Wolf by Wolf so I was very excited to read Invictus.Invictus is described as young adult time-travel adventure with a dash of Doctor Who (guys, you already had me at “Ryan Graudin,” no need for overkill) and Firefly.  So without further ado, here’s my review. What I liked Characters From my enjoyment of her previous books, character development is one of Graudin’s strengths as a writer and this is borne out by those we meet in Invictus.  I really enjoyed them all and was very much invested in their journeys, romances and challenges.  Each person was nicely developed with his or her quirks, wishes and weaknesses.  The interrelationships between them all were very well done and I really enjoyed seeing how they developed.  Certain characters start out as quasi antagonists, but by the end, I came to care for them as much as for our heroes. Plot Without saying too much – spoilers!- I did like where Graudin went with the storyline.  There are some really nicely done twists….

Assassin’s Fate by Robin Hobb – First Impressions NO SPOILERS
Book Reviews / April 30, 2017

Those of you who follow my blog will know that Robin Hobb’s Realm of the Elderlings series is one of my all time favourite fantasy series and that the relationship between Fitz and the Fool is one of my most invested in fictional relationships.  Further, you will know that May 9th marks the release of Assassin’s Fate, the final book in the Fitz and the Fool trilogy, and the apparent conclusion of the 16 book Realm of the Elderlings series.   Assassin’s Fate is one of my most anticipated and yet dreaded releases of this year, so you can imagine my pure delight when yesterday I received an email advising me that I’d been approved for an early e-galley of said book and that I could download my copy now.  Thank you so much Random House!  I immediately put everything else on hold and have sped read through it already and am here to give you my first impressions, spoiler free.  I intend to do a more spoilery review once I have reread it. The first question I had going into this book was, would Hobb provide an ending worthy of Fitz and the Fool, and I can say without…

Getting things Done by David Allen
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / February 4, 2017

Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen Format: eBook Pages: 294 pages Genres: Self Help Buy from Amazon, Kobo, iTunes, Audible Evelynne’s rating: Self help is not a genre of books I read very often, but I made an exception for David Allen’s Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity. One of my goals for 2017 was to become better organised and to be more productive. I first learned about the GTD methodology through Carl Pullein’s YouTube channel that I follow. I’ve been working on this for around six weeks now, so it’s too early to tell, but I’m happy with what I’ve learned so far. Getting Things Done, or GTD, is a productivity methodology based on a few deceptively simple concepts. Now, I’m still very new to GTD, but this is how I see it.  One of the fundamental ideas behind GTD is that the human brain is excellent at processing ideas and being creative, but not a great storage facility.  A key part of GTD is getting all ideas, projects and commitments out of your brain and into a trusted system or external brain. There are five activities to GDT: Capture, Clarify, Organise,…

The Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks – Review
Audiobook reviews , Book Reviews / November 4, 2016

The Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks is the fourth in a planned series of five epic fantasy books.  The series has a wonderfully imaginative magic system in which magic users can turn light into a physical substance. luxin.  Each spectrum of light (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet) produces luxin with different properties and uses.  If you’ve not yet started this series, I heartily recommend it.  Go start with The Black Prism.  I strongly suggest experiencing this series in audiobook format due to the excellence of the narrator, Simon Vance. Initially, the series was planned to be a trilogy; then four books and recently Weeks announced he would need five books to tie up his series.  The Blood Mirror is the penultimate entry and sets up things for the finale. What I liked The romance.  While it is not a focal point of the series or book, there is a love story in The Blood Mirror and it is beautiful.  It focusses on that very first serious/sexual relationship in which a character must learn to love another real life person, warts and all, and not just a fantasy crush.  Our protagonist’s learning to accept his partner, emotions, needs, strengths…

Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas – Review
Audiobook reviews , Book Reviews / September 13, 2016

Empire of Storms is the fifth and penultimate book in Sarah J. Maas’s Throne of Glass in which a former assassin uses her skills and her magic to save her kingdom.  Being the second to last book in the series, it focusses very much on getting our protagonists into the right place for the finale. What I liked The pacing.  Despite the fact that Empire of Storms is primarily focussed on getting the team into place for the final confrontation, Maas managed to keep the pacing brisk and the tension high.  There were several points where I feared for our characters’ lives.  There are several confrontations adding to the tension, even if the end result is moving the pieces across the chessboard. The characters and their group dynamics.  This is clearly one of Maas’s real strengths as a writer.  I loved the relationships between the characters and their journeys.  It was wonderful that each of our characters has a unique skill set, developed over the course of the series, which will be vital in the cause to defeat Erawan.  If even one person fails to play his or her part, the world is doomed.  I personally have not read the…

Blood for Blood by Ryan Graudin
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / August 11, 2016

Hachette was kind enough to send me an Advance Reader Copy of Blood for Blood by Ryan Graudin, the sequel to Wolf by Wolf.  Thank you so much, guys!  I was super excited to receive it as it was one of my most anticipated reads of 2016 and it did not disappoint in the least.  Blood for Blood is the second book in an alternate history young adult series set in a world in which the Hitler and the Nazis won World War II.  Our protagonist is a young Jewish death camp survivor with the ability to shape shift.  The series consists of the two main novels, Wolf by Wolf and Blood for Blood as well as the prequel novella Iron to Iron. The story starts immediately after the cliffhanger ending of Wolf by Wolf and expands the points of view to three.  It continues the quest Yael was assigned in Wolf by Wolf and deals with the fallout of the events and discoveries of the book.   What I liked The world.  Once again I was completely drawn into the alternate history that Graudin has created.  The world felt so real and fleshed out I could easily imagine our…

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – the Script (spoilers)
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / August 2, 2016

So, the script for J.K. Rowling’s play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, billed as the eighth Potter story, was released on July 31st.  Naturally, I and the world and his dog rushed to pick up a copy.  Here are my thoughts.  I should point out that I have not seen the play, worse luck, and am going from the script alone.  Note that there will be total and complete spoilers, which I will hide after the cut. First, the non spoilery section. There was a lot I loved about it, and some things that didn’t work nearly so well for me.  I loved that the same themes that pervaded the book series – love, friendship, family, loyalty – still form the core of Cursed Child.  It was wonderful seeing how Harry, Ron and Hermione coped with adult life and parenthood (being an adult myself, it was especially fascinating.). The new characters, Scorpius and Albus and their friendship are completely adorable – Scorpius really does get all the best lines.  And, naturally, it is simply wonderful to revisit the Wizarding World in any shape or form.  Rowling’s world is utterly breathtaking.  I really wish I could see how certain scenes…

Court of Fives by Kate Elliott – Review
Audiobook reviews , Book Reviews / July 26, 2016

Court of Fives by Kate Elliott is a YA fantasy book and one that I found myself being sucked into even in the middle of a reading slump. I found the protagonists engaging and loved the world. I found it had a bit more substance than some YA fantasy novels. What I liked Cultural tensions. This is very much a tale of being caught between two cultures.  Our protagonist, Jessamy, is the child of a Saroese father and Efean mother and struggles to fit in with either culture.  Her father’s people, who are the conquerers of the Efeans, do not fully accept Jes as one of their own due to her mixed heritage yet her genteel upbringing closes her off from acceptance in her mother’s society.  Jes herself also struggles to find her place in her world.  The only time she can truly be herself is when she is training for the game the Court of Fives.  Although we do not live in a magical society, this theme may still strike a chord with many readers. The Games.  I really enjoyed how the game of Court of Fives permeated the story to a great extent.  We see the games themselves…

Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch – Review
Book Reviews , eBook reviews / July 19, 2016

Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch is the first in a young adult fantasy series centering around Meira, a young refugee left orphaned when her country was overrun and conquered by a neighbouring power.  It focusses on her struggle to locate the missing magical Conduit of Winter and to free her imprisoned countrymen. What I liked The world.  I really enjoyed the world that Raasch has built for her story.  There are eight kingdoms; four Season realms, each dominated by a single season (our protagonist is from Winter) and four Rhythm, whose climate cycles through each season.   Each kingdom was wonderfully described and I loved their seasonal themes.  The tensions between the kingdoms were interesting and well described and I appreciated the political machinations that were going on behind the scenes. The magic system.  The magic system of the Conduits was fascinating, and I look forward to reading more about the chasm of magic and the Decay in future books.  I always appreciate it when limitations are written into the magic system – often, they are as interesting as the magic itself.  In this case I enjoyed the fact that certain artifacts are limited by gender and can only…

Paper and Fire by Rachel Caine
Audiobook reviews , Book Reviews / July 13, 2016

Paper and Fire by Rachel Caine is the second in The Great Library series and is the sequel to Ink and Bone, which was one of my favourite reads from last year.  I realised I never did a full review of it.  Bad Evelynne.  Paper and Fire was also one of my most anticipated reads for 2016 and it did not disappoint.  For those of you not familiar with this series, it is a contemporary alternate reality/fantasy in which the Great Library of Alexandria survived and now has a monopoly on the distribution of books in electronic medium and controls all hard copy books, too.  Naturally, this gives it the ability to control the flow of knowledge and as such it has gained almost immeasurable power.  Our protagonist, Jess Brightwell, comes from a family of book smugglers and has infiltrated the Library with the intent of continuing the family trade.  The people he meets there open his eyes to the extent of the Library’s corruption and change his perspective. The sequel, Paper and Fire, opens shortly after the events of Ink and Bone and deals with the aftermath of the Library’s successful “divide and conquer” campaign against Jess and his…