Previously: Love Bites Book Review | Coming Soon:
Hello. Hello. Hello. Did you miss me? I know that’s it’s been a good old while since I last posted here, and while the break was necessary I have missed you. I thought that I would return this week with a little reading update where I could tell you all about the last two books I’ve read, what I’m currently reading, and what’s up next on the old TBR. Nice and casual. Easy breezy for a Saturday afternoon.
Recently Read:
If you want to keep up to date with what I’ve read then don’t forget that the best place to do that is GoodReads. While I haven’t updated you here, I have still been reviewing everything over there.
The Adventure Zone, vol.4: The Crystal Kingdom by Clint McElroy, Griffin McElroy, Travis McElroy, Justin McElroy (writers), and Carey Pietsch (illustrator)
Technically I should save this for Comic Corner, and I do still want to talk about it over there, but I want to mention it here too. If you’ve not read this series then let me explain the premise for you. It’s an adaptation of a popular podcast, which sees three brothers and their father play Dungeons and Dragons. Before you panic, you do not need any prior knowledge of the game to enjoy either the podcast or the graphic novels. Essentially we follow a carpenter, an elf, and a dwarf on fantastical adventures. It’s a lot of fun, but there’s also a lot of heart in these books. It’s currently May and this book is my first five star read of the year. Let’s let that sink in for a moment…
The Magicians’ Guild by Trudi Canavan
I’ve currently got a real craving for fantasy which is awesome because it has been a while and I have missed this genre dearly. I had previously been moving away from YA, finding it a little lacking in what I was personally looking for, however, this book reminded me of why I do enjoy YA. It was an easy read, a quick read, and delivered exactly what I want from a good YA fantasy book. We follow the chosen one trope, and while it doesn’t do anything drastically different, it is a good entertaining story. This is an author that I will be picking up again in the future, and a series I hope to continue with.
Currently Reading…
Not to hype up my GoodReads again, because it’s nothing special, but if you follow me there (or know me at all) then you’ll know that I’m reading more than two books at the moment. I’m only going to mention two here for two reasons. Firstly, because I don’t want this post to be too long. And secondly, because the following two are the books that I’m really focusing on at the moment, the others are on the back burner, if you will.
Kings of a Dead World by Jamie Mollart
Is this fantasy? No. It’s actually sci-fi, or maybe even dystopian, but I picked it up anyway. In general I would like to read more sci-fi. My problem is, I love Pierce Brown so much I’ve yet to find something to compare to his books. I’ve read the first two chapters of this book, so all I can tell you is that the book takes place in a future world where resources are scarce. To combat this the majority of people are put to sleep for long periods of time. I’ve met two men, who I believe are our protagonists, one is a sleeper and the other is a warden, someone who doesn’t sleep but looks after the sleepers. As you might expect given the fact I’m only on chapter 3, my knowledge of both this and the following book may be a bit iffy. If you’re in the UK, and you’re reading this post in May, then this book is currently 99p in the Kindle store. There’s no prize for guessing what format I have this book in.
Dial A For Aunties by Jesse Sutano
Is this doing anything for my fantasy craving? Absolutely not. But in general I need to get though some physical purchases because I can justify buying more, so here we are. This is a contemporary murder mystery which follows Meddy, a photographer for her family’s wedding planning business, whose accidentally kills her blind date. I’ll grant you that it doesn’t sound like a typical mystery, but given that the title is a riff on Dial M for Murder, I’m assuming it will be a mystery and that maybe Meddy is not at fault? Earlier in the year I began to really crave cosy murder mysteries and I think that this is along those lines.
Next up:
Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuki Tsujimura, trans. by Phillip Gabriel
I love the cover of this book. Let’s just get that out there right now. I love the cover more than I love the synopsis, enough that I’m willing to give this book a chance. It sounds like a YA book, which I am more open to thanks to The Magicians’ Guild, and involves some teens finding a portal that takes then to a castle. I think they have to leave every day before the portal closes or they’ll be stuck there forever. Definitely not what I typically look for in fantasy, but did you see that cover?
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, vol. 2: Once Bitten by Jordie Bellaire (writer), and David López (illustrator).
Again, this is a graphic novel so maybe I should save it for Comic Corner. But let’s just say that today’s post is a bit of an all rounder. Given that this is the second volume, I won’t tell you too much about the plot. All you need to know is that it takes the concept of Buffy and transplants it into a modern day setting. If you’ve never seen the TV show, then fear not because you can easy pick up vol.1: High School is Hell, and start there. I picked up vol.1 on the cover alone and had a lot of fun, despite some minor issues, so went our and bought this one. I’ll probably be able to smash though it in an hour or two, and since Angel is on the cover I’m going he’s going to be added into the mix.
And those, dear reader, are my recent, current, and future reads. I’ve linked all the books just in case you might be interested them. As usual, the links are affiliate links, but you are, of course, under no obligation to use them.
In the meantime, why not check out… Love Bites Book Review, November TBR, October Reading Wrap-Up.
Carton-Manette-Darnay 