“To believe in one’s dreams is to spend all of one’s life asleep.” – Chinese proverb
“Every city is a ghost.” – Opening line of Lair of Dreams
Dreams become traps and deadly nightmares in Lair of Dreams, the second installation in Libba Bray’s DIVINERS fantasy horror series. In 1927, a crew of men is opening up an old walled-off tunnel underneath the streets of New York City in order to build a new subway tunnel.
February 15th, 2018. Tadiana Jones and Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 4 | Libba Bray | Horror | SFF Reviews | 7 comments |
Hot Blooded (2013) is the sequel to Full Blooded and the second in Amanda Carlson’s JESSICA MCCLAIN series. This review will contain some spoilers for the previous book.
Jessica’s mate has been stolen, and her goal is to get him back. Readers who are really hell-bent on the romance aspect of the series will find this rather frustrating. There are quite a few (logical) detours Jessica must make before she can get her man back.
August 26th, 2017. Sarah Chorn | Amanda Carlson | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas
I was about three chapters into Crown of Midnight when I realized it was a sequel — after that it was a matter of tracking down Throne of Glass, catching myself up, and returning with a better understanding of the characters and situation. As it happens, I was a little lukewarm when it came to Throne of Glass, but I ended up much preferring this story to its predecessor.
January 6th, 2017. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 4 | Sarah J. Maas | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Shadowed Sun by N.K. Jemisin
The Shadowed Sun (2012) is the second book in N.K. Jemisin’s DREAMBLOOD two-book series, inspired the ancient kingdoms of Egypt and Nubia. However, rather than simply changing some names and using thinly-disguised history as her template, she introduces an entirely new religious and social system, one centered around worship of Hananja, the dream goddess represented by the moon. The story this time is set a decade after the events of the previous book, and features some of the same characters like Nijiri,
July 13th, 2016. Stuart Starosta´s rating: 4 | N.K. Jemisin | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Fall of Light by Steven Erikson
OK, look. I’m just going to put it on the table early on. I had a tough time with the beginning of Steven Erikson’s Fall of Light. And by “beginning,” I mean the first 150-200 of its 800-plus pages. It wasn’t just the pace (though it was admittedly more than a little slow). Or all the new characters (though really, one wonders at some point how many Tiste we haven’t met, not to mention Jaghut,
May 27th, 2016. Bill Capossere´s rating: 4 | Steven Erikson | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
Wednesdays in the Tower by Jessica Day George
The adventures of Princess Celie, who lives in a magical castle where rooms appear, shift around and disappear again, continue in Wednesdays in the Tower, Jessica Day George’s lively sequel to Tuesdays at the Castle. Normally Castle Glower only moves its rooms around on Tuesdays, but one Wednesday Celie, heading up the stairs to go to the schoolroom for lessons, finds herself in a passageway leading to a tower room she has never seen before.
April 18th, 2016. Tadiana Jones´s rating: 3.5 | Jessica Day George | Children | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
Tower Lord, book two in Anthony Ryan’s RAVEN’S SHADOW trilogy, picks up where its predecessor, Blood Song, left off, with protagonist Vaelin Al Sorna returning to the Unified Realm following his capture and eventual victory in a duel in the Isles. King Malcius, who has succeeded King Janus to the throne of the Realm, proves to be a fairly weak ruler. Vaelin is eventually reunited with his sister Alornis and is named Tower Lord by King Malcius.
September 16th, 2015. Kevin Wei´s rating: 2 | Anthony Ryan | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Mother of Eden by Chris Beckett
Mother of Eden, Chris Beckett’s sequel to Dark Eden, was thoughtful, complicated, and engrossing. Starlight Brooking lives with her people, the almost monastic Kneefolk, on Knee Tree Ground, a secluded island on Eden, a planet dominated by water. The Kneefolk make their living by trading bark boats with a few of the settlements nearby and staying out of the way of either Johnsfolk or Davidfolk, the two dominant, antagonistic human civilizations on Eden (the story of which schism is told in the first book).
July 7th, 2015. Kate Lechler´s rating: 4 | Chris Beckett | Audio | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire
Midnight Blue-Light Special (2013), book two in Seanan McGuire’s INCRYPTID series, wraps up some plot points, deepens some characters and expands the world of the stories. McGuire takes the expected “The Covenant Strikes Back” plot, but incorporates a few nice twists along the way.
The Covenant of St. George is a group dedicated to a “scorched earth” policy toward magical creatures, working hard to exterminate any cryptid race, no matter how harmless or,
April 9th, 2015. Marion Deeds and Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Seanan McGuire | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
Hive Monkey by Gareth L. Powell
Hive Monkey is the second book in Gareth L. Powell’s ACK ACK MACAQUE series, originally dubbed a trilogy but now, apparently, fated to be a quartet. The eponymous monkey, who likes cigars, rum and flying a refurbished WWII Spitfire, plays a large role in this book, gleefully wreaking mayhem on the bad guys. His sidekicks, Victoria Valois, journalist-turned-airship-captain, K8, plucky girl hacker, and Paul, a hologram, also have roles to play as they battle the colonized drones of an evil hive-mind.
March 25th, 2015. Marion Deeds´s rating: 2.5 | Gareth L. Powell | SFF Reviews | no comments |
What a fascinating exploration of Edwige Fenech's contributions to the giallo genre! I love how the post highlights her unique…
Pretty challenging book. Cut by half, speed up the cadence. Trying to figure out the plot, the main point of…
Thanks for the kind words, Marion! Coming as they are from a professional writer, they are much appreciated!
Wonderful review, Sandy.
The "body count" bothered me a bit less because being dead seemed more like an inconvenience than anything else... unlike…