Review: Foundryside

Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book had so much hype around it.
"Oh, it's going to be the next big fantasy!"
"Oh, it's so good!"
"Oh, the world-building is amazing!"

It took me a while to even get into it, so all that hype seemed like mush to me. It felt very Sanderson, almost to the point of being a melding of Mistborn and Stormlight Archives and feeling a little rip-offy (yes, I made that word up. stop interrupting!)

Then I decided to set that thought aside and give it a shot. And it went crazy! While it *is* reminiscent of Sanderson, the author has created his own unique magic system, developed a really interesting world, and introduced us to a very interesting cast of characters with depth. Most importantly, the story was FUN -- well, at least for the reader. The poor characters probably wouldn't have said any of it was fun at all.

Also, there was an unexpected but very welcome LGBT+ budding relationship that built over time, didn't feel forced, and I can't wait to see where that goes as well.

Trigger warning: There is a character who, umm, takes what he wants from women on every level (and to be fair, he does what he wants in every situation, no matter what, not just in getting what he wants from women) without care of morality or consequence. But he gets his. ;)

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Review: The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Now that was a rockin' debut novel! While the first half was a little slow, once you get deeper into it, it's compelling enough to be hard to put down. It's such an interesting concept - Agatha Christie meets Quantum Leap - that you just have to know what's going on!

I have to say, I figured out the first part of the mystery (as in who killed Evelyn) but then there was still 20% left of the book! Twist after twist after twist, and another one of my suspicions was correct.

Turton laid out the clues like a master, just like Christie, all the while hiding them in plain sight, in the middle of paragraphs where they fade into ordinary and don't stand out, but then when you get to the end and see the solution, you start to remember all those little things that were right there in front of you.

I'd definitely recommend this book as a great read with a really interesting take on a murder mystery scenario. I'll also absolutely be following the author to see if his sophomore book goes slump or champ!
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Review to come on release date, but WOW! Great debut!

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Review: Saddle Up

Saddle Up by A.M. Arthur
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Carina Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really love Clean Slate Ranch. It's one of my absolute favorite MM Romance series, and it just works for me.

I've been waiting for two books now to get to Miles story, and the hints dropped since book one proved true as Miles and Reyes finally got their day in the sun, and it was chock full of heartache, struggle, and two broken people find their missing pieces together.

I don't want to spoil the story, but if you're a fan of N.R. Walker's Red Dirt Heart, this series should be on your to-read pile. Add it, and get to it as soon as you can, because you'll love this ranch where people come to start over, find their way, and make a new life.
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I've been waiting for Miles and Reyes since book one. Glad we finally got there. Review to come on release date!

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Review: His Own Way Out

His Own Way Out by Taylor Saracen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for an honest review. Normally I'd say "review to come upon release" but I got this one after release date, so my review gets to go live pretty much immediately! :)

I enjoyed this book. I didn't love it. It had a lot of flaws, mostly the real lack of a driving force behind the book. We all knew where it ended up - his career at Helix Studios, since it's based off of a true story - but the path there felt less like a story and more like tidbits or chunks of seemingly unrelated sections of his life. Overall, it was still entertaining, but it was hard to watch him train wreck through his life before he found success. Over and over he made such bad decisions that it made it hard to root for him at all, and honestly, other than Blake, very few of the other players in his story felt fleshed out enough to matter. Same with his situations... we'd get a few chapters on each, and then bam, move on to the next bit. It almost felt like multiple short stories in an anthology, rather than one big story.

Worth a read, but don't go in expecting it to be the best MM you've read all year. I did want a little more naughty too, rather than all the fade to black scenes. :P

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Review: The Late Great Wizard

The Late Great Wizard by Sara Hanover
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sara Hanover's debut is a fun story. It's chock full of magic and adventure and betrayals and a big scary villain. It's got ghosts and spirits and dwarves and phoenix wizards and magical relics. It's one of those books that I just expected to fall in love with.

Unfortunately, the book felt... incomplete, unfinished, lacking something. The plot was all over the place, and some of the events felt forced or shoved into the story just to have an exciting moment rather than making sense for the story overall.

I definitely think she was setting up a series, because this book spends 75% of the book or so setting up the main series villain before making a sharp turn into "here's the villain of THIS book" territory. It spent the rest of the book focusing on that before swapping back to the main villain after the climax.

Basically the dialogue and banter felt a little forced, the relationships weren't overly believable (I mean she knew them all of like a day before she cared deeply for all of them?), and the plot was kinda messy. It felt like part of a bigger story that was left unfinished. It *felt* like setup, world building, without any of the payoffs of it being a complete story on its own that just happened to also setup more.

I gave it three stars (more like two and a half rounded up) because I like the world she created and all the fun types of magic, and because I think she has potential, but if there's a book two, it's going to need to show major growth over this one for me to continue past that.

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Review: Magic Triumphs

Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

OH NO. It's over. The series is over. *dies*

*remembers two more Hughs and potential same world books and kind of perks up a little tiny bit*

*throws temper tantrum*

Review to come on release date. And if you thought there was even a chance this would get less than five stars, you're delusional. ALL THE STARS.

NOTE: READING IRON AND MAGIC BEFORE READING MAGIC TRIUMPHS IS REQUIRED. DO IT. DON'T SKIP IT.
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Thanks to Berkley and Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review... I think. I mean, to be fair, it kind of means the series ended sooner for me than it should have... but yes, I definitely appreciate being trusted with an ARC of the final book of one of the best UF series of all time.

I don't even know where to begin to process my feelings, and I can't say too much without giving away spoilers.

Conlan - Yes. All the yeses. The way he is written is fantastic and funny and adorable. Bring on the teenage Conlan/older Julie spinoff, please.

Kate and Curran - plenty of their famous banter, some sexy times, lots of depending on each other, and proof that they are definitely "OTP."

Atlanta - We get to see so many characters in this one and I love it. Pretty much everyone we've ever met of any importance at least gets an appearance, and not a single one of them felt like a cameo just for a cameo. All felt like they progressed the story or helped Kate or pushed the narrative in some way or another.

Violence and Magic - lots, duh.

Iron - Read Iron and Magic before you read this. Just saying. Trust me. It's a great book anyways, but you need to. NEED TO. Thank goodness we have two more Hugh books.

The Villains - not exactly what you're thinking. Great surprises when you think the book will ONLY be about Roland. Nope. Lots of shit going on, of course, because that's when Kate thrives -- in the chaos and stress of EVERYTHING ALL AT ONCE.

Future Spinoffs - Yes, give me more. Ilona has mentioned more set in this world. I would love a Julie spinoff, especially after the finale of this book. She has aged into a smart, wise, powerful young woman.

Thank you, Ilona, for this series, for this world, for the time I've spent there (and will spend in future rereads). You are truly talented.

Now, excuse me while I go weep uncontrollably that this amazing series has reached its finale.

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Review: Night and Silence

Night and Silence by Seanan McGuire
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

No idea how Seanan McGuire does it so often, but she knows how to step up the stakes, over and over and over. And she sure knows how to make her characters suffer for the sake of the story!

If you've not been keeping up (but really, why wouldn't you be following me at this point?), Seanan McGuire is one of my absolute favorite authors. Her worlds are gloriously fleshed out, her characters are deep and nuanced, and her plots are inviting and twisty and chock full of surprises.

In this installment in one of the best series ever, Toby's family is front and center yet again - both the family she has built, and her blood relations - and yet again, those two things are at odds. Also, there are some surprising twists when it comes to villainy, one I wouldn't have expected (at least not yet!)...

But mostly, there's a cast of characters that will draw you in, make you care, and truly cause you to wish to be part of their little ragtag bunch.

Pick this one up if you're up to date in the October Daye series, but if you're not, start with book one - Rosemary and Rue. You've got plenty to binge - go on. :)

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