bookmeanderings's reviews
339 reviews

4.25 stars.

Thank you so much to Orbit books for a physical arc of this book. Receiving this in no way affected my review.

“Sometimes the only answer is blood and steel.”

I have had a really hard time writing this review because of how much I adored John Gwynne’s previous series in this world, The Faithful and the Fallen. I ended up comparing the two quite a lot as I read and that is never good for writing a review. However, now that my brain has finally been able to process things after a few days of nonsensical emotions and thoughts, here is my unadultered and quite humble review of A Time of Courage.

It was really good.

Oh, you want more than that? Alright, well I want to start off with what I always do when it comes to John Gwynne’s writing, the characters. Gwynne is simply put, one of the best authors out there writing compelling characters and thorough character development. There is just not many out there that can make me care about each and every named character like John Gwynne does. The sense of family, found family, and bonds of friendship are real and profound throughout the Of Blood and Bone series, but especially in A Time of Courage. I will say that there was one friendship that felt a little forced and unnecessary, but other than that each and every relationship is beautiful with a natural feeling to it.

“That what we fight for is love and friendship. Not schemes and strategies, but people. Our kind, our friends. Our loved ones.”

Another thing that stands out in A Time of Courage is the battle scenes, especially the climactic one. John Gwynne knows how to write an epic ending and this book does not falter in that whatsoever. No character is safe and that heightens each and every battle’s intensity and stakes. I was afraid that one or more of our main characters was going to die at some point or other. I should have learned my lesson from the Faithful and the Fallen series about hoping that Gwynne would use just a little plot armor and spare my favorites. However, that’s not how this story works. It is immersive, visceral, and heart pounding.

That leads me to talk about the plot. I felt that both the first two entries, A Time of Dread and A Time of Blood, had a somewhat slow pace leading up to climactic endings. However, A Time of Courage has a fast pace throughout the narrative. We get right into the action and it doesn’t really ever let up.

All in all, A Time of Courage was a great ending to the Of Blood and Bone trilogy and my favorite of the series. If you like elements of classic fantasy, tied in with deep bonds of friendship and love, and quite a few epic battle scenes, this trilogy is for you. Fairwell to The Banished Lands, you will be missed…..until I inevitably decide it’s time for a re-read.

This was quite good. I feel like they rushed the ending though so that was a little unsatisfying. RTC.

3.25 stars.

Thank you to Hachette Audio for the audiobook of A Dance of Blades in exchange for an honest review. Receiving this did not influence my thoughts or opinions on the novel.

We follow Haern again in this one for the majority of the story. I liked Haern’s development throughout the story and the way the people around him affected him in positive ways especially. When we start out this story Haern is a loner. Many of the people he cared about in his life are either dead or estranged from him in some way. However, we see Haern be able to reconnect with some old acquaintances and friends and transform into a more well rounded and focused person throughout the story. Although I did enjoy the character development that was there, I do wish that Haern and the other characters had some more in depth character development.

Haern’s skill with a blade is incredible and David Dalglish is really good at writing entertaining action scenes. Each action sequence was riveting and filled with danger and suspense wondering whether the characters involved would make it out alive.

We had some good side characters in this one. Ghost, the terrifying and deadly mercenary sent to take out The Watcher. The farmer (whose name I can’t remember) and his family, caught up in the machinations of the Trifect and the people trying to take the Trifect’s power for themselves. Death Mask, a mage trying to take over the Underworld. There were many side characters in this story and all were interesting and added to the story.

This was a solid entry into the Shadowdance series. An entertaining and fun read that I just wish had a little more depth in the characters and worldbuilding.

This was a fun addition. Though incredibly short. I would love to see more about Gemmel and how he trained Kelsier and how we got to "The Final Empire."

The best in the Chronicles series so far! RTC

3.5 stars.

Thank you to Hachette Audio for this listening copy. Receiving this LC did not affect my review in any way.

I want to start off by saying that this short story shouldn’t be read unless you have at least read the first entry in the Powder Mage series. There are certain things that are necessary to understand from the first Powder Mage book to fully understand and appreciate this story.

This short story was just that. It was a simple, fun, and very short story. It was just nice to get back into the Powder Mage world and hang out with Vlora and Olem. It was rewarding to get some more character development from Vlora. There was some action and mystery involved which was also quite enjoyable, especially the parts where Vlora uses her powder mage abilities.

I would love to have more to say about this short story, but at only 1 hour and 19 minutes (51 pages) there isn’t too much to talk about. I would recommend this if you are a fan of the Powder Mage books and just want to re-enter the world and enjoy a story with some of your favorite characters.

3.25 stars.

“You can’t just leave a dead body outside the door, magus!”

I have such a fondness for this series. Its two main protagonists Amra and Holgren are some of my favorite characters in all of fiction. Going into this book I was both excited and somewhat anxious because of the switch to a single, Holgren POV instead of Amra like the last three books.Thankfully, I had nothing to fear.

Although Holgren’s POV was hard to get used to at first, once I got used to it I really started to enjoy this story. Throughout the events of this book we get a lot of character development for Holgren that we were unable to get in previous books because Amra was the only POV. I really enjoyed getting to know more about Holgren and being able to see the world through his eyes.

The plot felt somewhat unfocused at first, but after a little while it really started to get going. This story takes place mostly in the cities of Bellarius and Lucernis. Bellarius had such a bleak feel and was so disturbing that I felt a tangible sense of relief when Holgren left it behind. Like our main characters I am in love with the city of Lucernis, Amra and Holgren’s home. Michael McClung knows how to create specific atmospheres for the settings in his book and Lucernis is no exception. Another place that we get to learn more about is the Eleven Hells that exist in this world. It was pretty cool to walk through this world and I wish there would have been more time spent there.

“Perhaps that spoke of a regrettable lack of empathy on my part, that I could explode flesh, but not re-knit it. Or perhaps it simply reflected the truth that it is easier by far to harm than to heal.”

Holgren is on a search throughout this story. I can’t get into it too much because of spoilers, but I can say that it was easy to feel for Holgren. He is dogged and determined in pursuit of his goal and may the gods have mercy on anyone who stands in his way. Holgren is merciless and brutal at times and I have to say I did not expect to see this side of Holgren. In the previous books he was much more gentle and kind. However, as the story progress it makes more and more sense as to why he is acting the way he is.

I enjoyed this story. This was another solid entry in the Amra Thetys series and I am looking forward to reading the 5th book.

3.5 stars

Fool Moon starts out with Dresden being down and out once again. After the conclusion of the last novel Storm Front, Dresden is having trouble making rent and supporting himself 6 months later. There is just little to no work to be had in the realm of supernatural investigation. That’s where the werewolves come in.

If you couldn’t guess it from the title, Fool Moon revolves largely around werewolves. I found this fascinating as there were at least 4 different kinds of werewolves mentioned and because of that Butcher was able to put a unique spin on a typical werewolf story. Not only that, but getting to know about new monsters is just plain cool.

Other than information that we learn through the plot about the different kinds of werewolves and how they work, there wasn’t much world building in this one. Demons were hinted at a little more, but everything else including The White Council and the NeverNever had almost zero page time. I was quite disappointed in this as learning about this world has been one of my favorite parts of this series so far. However, I am not too concerned for the series as a whole because there are still 15 books to go and counting.

“Until you stop pretending…and try to face reality, you’re not going to be able to heal. You’re not going to be able to trust anyone.”

Harry Dresden, as always, was compelling. We get to know some more about his back story. There are hints dropped about his parents’ lives and deaths that I found very intriguing. We also get to see a more vulnerable Harry in this one. The Harry that is scared to lose one of his only friends in Murphy. The Harry that is terrified to commit to someone in a real relationship for fear of getting hurt or them getting hurt. I think the reason that Harry is so compelling, at least for me, is that he is so relatable in his struggles and his ways of dealing with them.

“Black Wizards don’t just grow up like toadstools, you know. Someone has to teach them complicated things like summoning demons, ritual magic, and cliched villain dialogue.”

The humor within these pages was spot on for me once again. I think this will be a personal preference thing for most people, but I absolutely love the charmingly sarcastic and witty banter that Dresden often employs. He also tends to speak this way in situations that are totally inappropriate for jokes, like while getting attacked by a werewolf or being yelled at by his best friend. That’s not to say that there weren’t moments of reflection and intimacy, as well as a whole lot of danger, that kept me invested in the well being of our protagonists and the plot itself.

“My magic. That was at the heart of me. It was a manifestation of what I believed, what I lived. It came from my desire to see to it that someone stood between the darkness and the people it would devour……From my life. From the hope that I could make things better for someone else, if not always for me.”

I loved getting to learn more about the magic system and seeing more of what Harry is capable of. It’s a magic system that is grounded enough to be believable, while at the same time mystical enough to have flexibility. I also really like that Harry can’t just pull something random out of his hat and save the day. He has to use every trick he has up his sleeve to even have a chance at victory. Often the solutions are very creative and use more intellect than any mystical power which makes each victory feel earned.

Although I didn’t enjoy this one as much as the first, Fool Moon was still another solid entry in The Dresden Files and I cannot wait to dive straight into book 3!

This is the start of a series of short stories that follows a group of people living in a post apocalyptic world. An old, enormous silo has been converted into a last refuge for those who have survived the toxic air that will kill anyone who goes outside.

This isn’t necessarily an entirely new story. As most know, post apocalyptic fiction has become a very trendy form of entertainment in the last decade or more and there are undoubtedly similar stories in the genre. However, if you lumped Holston in with “all the other apocalyptic fiction” you’d be doing it a huge disservice. Hugh Howey makes this somewhat familiar tale his own by telling an intensely compelling and personal story about one man’s journey through the confined world of the silo.

This is an intimate tale as we solely follow Holston through the present and as he relives the anguish of his past. An extremely traumatic event three years in the past has made him question everything about the silo and its inhabitants. One thing I loved about following Holston is that we only know things as Holston begins to learn them. This was important because a huge part of the appeal of this story is the intrigue surrounding why the silo really exists and what really happens if you go outside.

“The children were playing while Holston climbed to his death”

From the opening line above, I was completely hooked and had to know more. Although this story had no action or battles there was a sense of urgency, of imminent danger and death that held me in suspense until the very last page.

This was a fantastic start to what I expect to be an incredible series. In the span of only 58 pages, Hugh Howey managed to suck me into this bleak, dystopian world, care deeply about Holston, and best of all kept me riveted as I quickly turned each page with the need to know more. Hauntingly sad and vividly realized, I highly recommend it!