Review Priest of Bones by Peter McLean (War for the Rose Throne #1)

“Where is the difference between holy and possessed? I wondered. When does miracle become magic, magic become witchcraft? Is it in the nature of the deed itself, or in the eye of the beholder? Is it decided in the telling after the fact, and if so does it depend on who does that telling?” Sarcastic…

A Gamble Of Gods – Mitriel Faywood (Order of the Dragon #1)

“Anger is like fire. Let it burn unwatched, and it will hurt you. Use it wisely, and it becomes what gods intended it to be: fortitude.” Sci-Fi meets Fantasy ✓ Hero’s Journey ✓ Charming Characters ✓ Kristian del Rosso has led a quiet life, burying himself in research and teaching at the University of St…

Shadowmarch – Tad Williams (Shadowmarch #1)

“Most dreadful of all, as she lay with her shivering children on the cold ground just outside the murdered town, she could hear the destroyers of everything she had, and they were singing. Their voices were painfully lovely. Darkness claimed her then, but only for a while.” High Fantasy ✓ Slow Storytelling ✓ Strong Emotions…

The Collarbound – Rebecca Zahabi (#1)

“Secrets are more precious than money. They’re the currency of power.” So what’s the book about? On the other side of the Shadowpass, rebellion is brewing and refugees have begun to trickle into the city at the edge of the world. Looming high on the cliff is The Nest, a fortress full of mages who…

Gardens of the Moon – Steven Erikson (Malazan Book of the Fallen #1)

“Ambition is not a dirty word. Piss on compromise. Go for the throat.” So what’s the book about? The Malazan Empire simmers with discontent, bled dry by interminable warfare, bitter infighting and bloody confrontations with the formidable Anomander Rake and his Tiste Andii, ancient and implacable sorcerers. Even the imperial legions, long inured to the…

Empire of Grass – Tad Williams (The Last King of Osten Ard #2)

“Saying peace never lasts, or that an empire must grow or die, is like saying that only birth and death matter,” she told him. “Most of life is not part of either, but what comes between–the simple hard work of living.” So what’s the book about? Danger lurks on all sides in Osten Ard. King…

The Hand of the Sun King – J.T. Greathouse (Pact and Pattern #1)

“Magic could reshape the world. Its power was undeniable. It needed no argument to bolster it, nor any faith to make it true.” So what’s the book about? All my life, I have been torn between two legacies: that of my father, whose roots trace back to the right hand of the Emperor. That of…