Genre: Magic

The Nightmare Effect by Saxmei Milano

Posted June 23, 2018 in Reviews // 0 Comments

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from The Author and Amazon Digital Services LLC in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Writing an open and honest review for a friend is extraordinarily difficult. On the one hand, you want people to take you seriously, because you’re A Professional and you won’t let your personal relationship get in the way of your critique of their art. In fact, you my be inclined to write an extra harsh review because you don’t want people to think […]

Clariel by Garth Nix

Posted May 23, 2018 in Reviews // 3 Comments

Let this be a lesson to anyone who thinks it’s best to keep a young lady “safe”, even if it means keeping her away from her hopes and dreams. I read Sabriel and the rest of the Old Kingdom stories when I was a wee youngling in high school, but I’ve been wanting to revisit this world for several years. I even got my husband to read it, and I hadn’t managed to reread them yet. I still haven’t. But listening to Clariel brough everything right back. And that’s how a good book does it. Strong world building that sticks with you 13 […]

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani

Posted May 10, 2018 in Reviews // 0 Comments

Ahhhh, complicated reviews are complicated, y’all. On one hand, The School for Good and Evil is a fun fairy tale world with quirky, interesting characters and a secret you spend the whole book impatiently waiting to find out. One the other hand, it’s all very shallow and slow-paced and the little feminist in me dies a bit every time there’s an inference that the princesses watch their waistlines. So, depending on the particular page or chapter, I either enjoyed this book… or it made me cringe. In the beginning, we are introduced to our two main characters (Sophie and Agatha) […]

The Magicians by Lev Grossman

Posted April 11, 2018 in Reviews // 4 Comments

Imagine a world where anyone can perform magic, if they work hard enough and are smart enough. Magic is one of the world’s best kept secrets, but it runs in the veins of every influential organization worldwide. This is the world of The Magicians, where only the best of the best are recruited to Breakbills. But what to do after that? The Magicians is a great adventure in fantasy and magical realism. Most people are familiar with the popular Syfy show, but the book is deep and deliberate and fantastic. There are similarities, and there are changes, but I don’t […]

A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab

Posted December 26, 2017 in Reviews // 4 Comments

Delilah Bard stole my heart. While I am a fan of excellent heroines, very few capture me the way Lila did. The minute she swooped into this book, speaking of her swashbuckling dreams, I was entirely on board. A Darker Shade of Magic isn’t about Lila, though. Not really. It’s about Kell and the Antari who travel through worlds, and a bit of corrupted Black London that has found its way into his unwitting hands. It’s about danger and sacrifice and courage and stubbornness and Lila is very much just along for the ride. And who came blame her? With […]