I love the mix of historical fantasy and am fascinated by Middle Eastern cultures, so jumped on this as soon as I heard about it. What to Expect A Steampunk-ish world, where in the early 20th century Egypt – after releasing magic in the mid 19th century – has risen to a world power and […]
Book Reviews
Book Review: A Troll Walks into a Bar, by Douglas Lumsden
Considering my love of detective stories, especially noir, hard-boiled types, and urban fantasy it wasn’t a big surprise I jumped right on this. What to Expect Expect a classic detective story like Raymond Chandler or Dashiel Hammet, but set in an alternate world suffused with magic. The protagonist, through whose eyes the story is told, […]
Book Review: Battle Ground, by Jim Butcher
I’ve read the first half of this story (see my review of Peace Talks) back in July, and of course I jumped straight into this novel as soon as it came out. What to Expect Expect the culmination of the two-part story starting with Peace Talks. As usual, Butcher delivers an intense thriller-paced, larger-than-life adventure […]
Book Review: Forgotten Peoples of the Ancient World, by Philip Matyszak
Matyszak is one of my favourite historians (because archaeologists and historians are much more deserving of celebrity culture than actual celebrities 😜), and I loved previous books of his. This books offers a review of people and nations you’ve probably heard of in passing, and promises to give you a deeper understanding of those forgotten […]
Book Review: How to Rule an Empire and Get Away with It, by K.J. Parker
I’ve read the previous novel (Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City) just recently, and there was just no doubt I’d read this one as soon as it comes out. What to Expect Events in this book take place seven years after the previous one, with the The City still besieged all around by the […]
Book Review: The Last Wish (Introducing The Witcher), by Andrzej Sapkowski
I’ve watched The Witcher TV series first, and since my wife wanted to watch it again ahead of season 2 it was high time to read the books. What to Expect Six short stories / novelettes introducing us to the world of the Witcher, glued together with interludes that make for a seventh. We get […]
Book Series Review: The Elric Saga
I’ve been in the mood for some classic SF/F lately, and since I’ve been meaning to re-read the Elric saga this seemed like the perfect, timely choice. This post contains the review for Elric of Malniboné and The Weird of the White Wolf. Though there are different ways of ordering the series, those are the […]
Book Review: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, by Robert A. Heinlein
I read most of Heinlein’s work years ago, and was in the mood for some classic Sci-Fi. This work has aged well, and makes it clear why he was a grandmaster story-teller. What to Expect This is the story of an accidental revolutionary, a computer technician that ends up leading the movement to free the […]
Book Review: Add a Cup of Chaos, by Stephanie Barr
This is my first foray into Barr’s works, after reading the prequel short story Demon Spawn. Chaos is just about right! What to Expect A zany adventure mixing science and fantasy, demons and space aliens, dragons and laser beams. What starts off as a disgruntled, subversive, sorceress using-but-not-happy-about-it demon magic quickly evolves into an imminent […]
Book Review: Peace Talks, by Jim Butcher
I enjoyed the Dresden Files in the past, so was looking forward to the new installment after a few years’ gap. If you’ve never read them before this is not the place to start, but if you are a fan then this book delivers. What to Expect Peace Talks picks up where the series previously […]
FELIX THE FOX MYSTERIES 