Sword & Sorcery

Review: Goldenhand by Garth Nix

/ beckireads / Leave a comment
Goldenhand by Garth Nix (UK edition)

Goldenhand by Garth Nix (UK edition)

Title: Goldenhand (The Old Kingdom Series, 5)
Author: Garth Nix
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher: Hot Key Books (4th October 2016)
Blurb:

Lirael is no longer a shy Second Assistant Librarian. She is the Abhorsen-in-Waiting, with dead creatures to battle and Free Magic entities to bind.

When Lirael saves Nicholas Sayre after he is left unconscious by an attack from a hideous Free Magic creature, she finds he is deeply tainted with Free Magic. Lirael must seek help for him at the Clayr’s Glacier, her childhood home.

But even as she returns to the Clayr, a messenger is trying to reach Lirael with a dire warning from her long-dead mother, Arielle, about the Witch With No Face. But who is the Witch, and what is she planning?

Once more a great danger threatens the Old Kingdom, and must be forestalled not only in the living world, but also in the cold, remorseless river of Death.

Goldenhand is the long-awaited fifth instalment of Garth Nix’s New York Times bestselling Old Kingdom series.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)
Review:

GOLDENHAND is the fifth book in Garth Nix’s sprawling young adult fantasy Old Kingdom series. This book continues the story from ABHORSEN, so there will be some spoilers from previous books in this review. When the Abhorsen-in-Waiting, Lirael, gets called to deal with a Free Magic creature that is the Wall she discovers Nicholas Sayre unconscious and deeply tainted with Free Magic. Unsure what is going on, or how to help him Lirael decides to seek help at her childhood home, the Clayr’s Glacier. Meanwhile, a messenger is searching for Lirael with a warning from her mother about the Witch With No Face.

Continue reading →

Review: Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas

/ beckireads / Leave a comment
Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas (UK edition)

Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas (UK edition)

Title: Empire of Storms (Throne of Glass, 5)
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Bloomsbury (6th September 2016)
Blurb:

BLOOD WILL RUN.
DREAMS WILL SHATTER.
AN ARMY MUST RISE.

The assassin-queen has sworn not to turn her back on her kingdom again. Especially when she might be the only one who can raise an army to keep the Dark King from unleashing his beasts upon them all.

But Erawan will wield Aelin’s past, her allies, and her enemies against her.

With a powerful court trusting Aelin to lead them, and her heart devoted to the warrior-prince at her side, what – or who – is she willing to sacrifice to spar her world from being torn apart?

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)
Review:

EMPIRE OF STORMS is the fifth book in Sarah J. Maas’s brilliant Throne of Glass saga. Maas continues the story of the assassin-queen Aelin Ashryver Galathynius as she seeks to reclaim her kingdom and defeat her enemies. Regaining her kingdom is not an easy feat when she has to raise an army to keep the Dark King from unleashing his beasts upon the world. Aelin does have some aces up her sleeve though, in the form of her powerful court. But gaining an army isn’t an easy feat, not with Erawan hunting her and her companions, and old enemies lurking in the shadows.

Continue reading →

Review: The Bronze Key by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

/ beckireads / Leave a comment
The Bronze Key by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare (UK edition)

The Bronze Key by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare (UK edition)

Title: The Bronze Key (Magisterium, 3)
Authors: Holly Black and Cassandra Clare
Genre: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Sword & Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Corgi Books (1st September 2016)
Blurb:

MAGIC CAN SAVE YOU
MAGIC CAN KILL YOU

It should be a time of celebration. The Enemy of Death is dead; a severed head proof of his downfall – Callum, Tamara and Aaron, all students of the Magisterium, are heroes.

But when a fellow pupil is brutally murdered, Call’s worst fears are confirmed: there is a spy in his magical school.

No one is safe.

Now, using the powerful magic they’ve been taught, the trio must risk their lives to track down the killer. But magic is dangerous – in the wrong hands it could bring terrible destruction. And reveal the deadliest secret of all . . .

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 stars)
Review:

THE BRONZE KEY is the third book in Holly Black and Cassandra Clare’s brilliant middle grade fantasy series Magisterium. This book continues the story of Callum Hunt – or Call to his friends – as he attends magic school. The Enemy of Death has been defeated, and Call is about to start his third year at the Magisterium. Call had a good summer with his father and best friend Aaron away from the world of magic; he hopes his third year will be less eventful than the previous two. Unfortunately that isn’t to be, as not long after his return a pupil is murdered.

Continue reading →

Review: Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

/ beckireads / 1 Comment
Nevernight by Jay Kristoff (UK edition)

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff (UK edition)

Title: Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicles, 1)
Author: Jay Kristoff
Genre: Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Harper Voyager (11th August 2016)
Blurb:

From bestselling author, Jay Kristoff, comes a dangerous new world and a heroine born in darkness.

Destined to destroy empires, Mia Corvere is only ten years old when she is given her first lesson in death.

Six years later, the child raised in shadows takes her first steps towards keeping the promise she made on the day that she lost everything.

But the chance to strike against such powerful enemies will be fleeting, so if she is to have her revenge, Mia must become a weapon without equal. She must prove herself against the deadliest of friends and enemies, and survive the tutelage of murderers, liars, and daemons at the heart of a murder cult.

The Red Church is no ordinary school, but Mia is no ordinary student. The shadows love her. And they drink her fear.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)
Review:

NEVERNIGHT is the first book in a delightfully dark fantasy trilogy by Jay Kristoff. In this book we are introduced to Mia Corvere who was ten years old when she was given her first lesson in death. She is sixteen when the book starts, and is ready to take the first steps on the path to keeping the promise she made on the day she got her first lesson in death. This book introduces Mia and her world, and shows us the beginning of her story – when she attends the Red Church, which is no ordinary school.

Continue reading →

Review: Forest of Ruin by Kelley Armstrong

/ beckireads / Leave a comment

Forest of Ruin by Kelley Armstrong (UK edition)

Title: Forest of Ruin (Age of Legends, 3)
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Genre: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Atom (5th April 2016)
Blurb:

THE WORLD IS IN CHAOS. TWIN SISTERS MORIA AND ASHYN HAVE BEEN TORN APART, FORCED ON THEIR OWN SECRET MISSIONS.

Moria – strong-willed and brave – must confront sorcerer Alvar Kitsune, father of her once-friend Gavril. Meanwhile soulful, compassionate Ashyn faces an even more terrifying task. She must bring to life a dragon.

The sisters have been forced down separate paths. But the time is coming when they must face the greatest battle of their lives – together.

The third volume in the Age of Legends trilogy, Forest of Ruin brings this epic tale of romance, magic and power to its thrilling conclusion.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 stars)
Review:

FOREST OF RUIN by Kelley Armstrong is the final book in the Age of Legends trilogy. This book concludes the story of twins Moria and Ashyn, Seeker and Keeper. At this point in the story the twins have been split up. Moria looks set to confront Alvar Kitsune the sorcerer who set events into motion, whilst Ashyn faces the prospect of bringing a dragon back to life. Yet even as the twins’ world balances on a precipice, there are those who believe that the twins can complete their tasks. Armstrong brings the trilogy to its dramatic conclusion in this final book.

Continue reading →

Review: Truthwitch by Susan Dennard

/ beckireads / Leave a comment

Truthwitch by Susan Dennard

Title: Truthwitch (A Witchlands Novel, 1)
Author: Susan Dennard
Genre: Fantasy, Swords & Sorcery, Young Adult
Source: Illumicrate, Box 2
Publisher: Tor (14th Januaey 2016)
Blurb:

IN A CONTINET ON THE EDGE OF WAR, TWO WITCHES HOLD ITS FATE IN THEIR HANDS

Young witches Safiya and Iseult have a habit of finding trouble. Afterclashing with a powerful Guildmaster and his ruthless Bloodwitch bodyguard, the friends are forced to flee their home.

Safi must avoid capture at all costs as she’s a rare Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lies. Many would kill for her magic, so Safi must keep it hidden – lest she be used in the struggle between empires. And Iseult’s true powers are hidden even from herself.

In a chance encounter at Count, Safi meets Prince Merik and makes him a reluctant ally. However, his help may not slow down the Bloodwitch now hot on the girls’ heels. All Safi and Iseult want is their freedom, but danger lies ahead. With war coming, treaties breaking and a magical contagion sweeping the land, the friends will have to fight emperors and mercenaries alike. For some will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch.

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

TRUTHWITCH by Susan Dennard is the first book in an interesting new series called The Witchlands Series. It introduces us to a new world full of magic and on the cusp of war. The book follows the story of two young witches Safiya and Iseult who have a history of getting themselves into trouble. When the story starts, they end up getting themselves into a far deeper trouble than they expected to.

Continue reading →

Review: Hidden Huntress by Danielle L. Jensen

/ beckireads / Leave a comment

Hidden Huntress by Danielle L. Jensen

Title: Hidden Huntress (Malediction Trilogy, 2)
Author: Danielle L. Jensen
Genre: Swords and Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Angry Robot Books (4th June 2015)
Blurb:

SOMETIMES, ONE MUST ACCOMPLISH THE IMPOSSIBLE

Beneath the mountain, the king’s reign of tyranny is absolute. The one troll with the capacity to challenge him is imprisoned for treason. Cécile has escaped the darkness of Trollus, but she is not beyond the reach of the king’s power, or his mainpulation.

Cécile now lives with her mother in Trianon and graces the opera stage every night. By day she searches for Anushka, the witch who has eluded the trolls for five hundred years. Whether she succeeds or fails, the costs of those she cares about will be high.

To find Anushka, she must delve into magic that is both dark and deadly. But the witch is a clever creature. Cécile might not just be the hunter – she might also be the hunted.

Book II of the Malediction Trilogy, this is the stunning sequel to the acclaimed STOLEN SONGBIRD.

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

HIDDEN HUNTRESS by Danielle L. Jensen is the second book in the Malediction Trilogy. Cécile has escaped the darkness of Trollus and is beyond the reach of its inhabitants, both good and bad. She has moved to live with her mother in Trianon and has started to fulfil her childhood dreams. However, she misses and worries about her friends in Trollus, so she decides to search for Anushka and find out more about the curse that keeps the trolls trapped.

Continue reading →

Review: Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

/ beckireads / 5 Comments

Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

Title: Rebel of the Sands (Rebel of the Sands, 1)
Author: Alwyn Hamilton
Genre: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Faber and Faber (4th February 2016)
Blurb:

Tell me how you want your story to go, he says, and we’ll write it straight across the sand.

Dustwalk is an unforgiving, dead-end town. It’s not the place to be poor or orphaned or female. And yet Amani Al’Hiza must call it ‘home’.

Amani wants to escape and see the world she’s heard about in campfire stories.

Then a foreigner with no name turns up, and with him she has the chance to run.

But the desert plains are full of dangerous magic. The Sultan’s army is on the rise and Amani is soon caught at the heart of a fearless rebellion . . .

An epic story of swirling desert sands, love, magic and revolution.

Rating: ***** (5 stars)
Review:

REBEL OF THE SANDS by Alwyn Hamilton is the first book in a new trilogy. It tells the story of Amani Al’Hiza an orphan who lives in a dead end town, where she is beholden to her uncle. Amani dreams of escaping the place she was born, of being able to see the places she has only ever heard about in stories. And this time she might just have a chance to escape.

Continue reading →

Review: The Copper Gauntlet by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

/ beckireads / 1 Comment

The Copper Gauntlet by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

Title: The Copper Gauntlet (Magisterium, 2)
Authors: Holly Black and Cassandra Clare
Genre: Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Corgi Books (3rd September 2015)
Blurb:

WHAT IF YOUR SOUL WAS NOT YOUR OWN?
WHAT IF YOU KNEW YOU WERE DESTINED FOR EVIL?

Callum Hunt has returned from the Magisterium victorious. He is now a mage in his own right – a Copper Year student. He has friends; feels at home in the winding tunnels of the mysterious magical school.

But Call hides a terrible secret.

His soul is not his own. His body is a vessel for a powerful evil mage, wielder of chaos magic . . . murderer.

Salvation would like in the Alkahest, a mysterious copper gauntlet. But it is a dangerous object, with a violent history. It could destory everything Call knows and loves . . .

And release the evil within him.

THINK YOU  KNOW MAGIC? THINK AGAIN.
ENTER THE BREATHTAKING WORLD OF THE MAGISTERIUM.

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

THE COPPER GAUNTLET is the second book in The Magisterium series by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare. The book continues the story of Callum Hunt who having completed his first year at the Magisterium, is about to start his second but this time he knows a terrible secret that could have terrible consequences. Despite this Call wants to return to the Magisterium and his friends.

Continue reading →

Review: Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

/ beckireads / 1 Comment

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas (UK edition)

Title: Queen of Shadows (Throne of Glass, 4)
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Bloomsbury (1st September 2015)
Blurb:

NO MASTERS.

NO LIMITS.

NO REGRETS.

Celaena Sardothien is cloaked in her assassin’s hood once more. She is back in Rifthold, but this time she’s no one’s slave. She must delve into her most painful memories and fight for her survival, while resisting a smouldering passion that might very well consume her heart. And she will face her former master, the King of Assassins, again – to wreak revenge for a decade of pain . . .

Rating: ***** (5 stars)
Review:

QUEEN OF SHADOWS by Sarah J. Mass is the fourth book in the young adult fantasy series Throne of Glass. Celaena Sardothien knows who she is and has returned to Rifthold, in order to collect the debts she is owed. Starting with her former master, the King of Assassins.

Continue reading →