Have you ever read a non-fiction book that made you stop everything and think, “Whoah, I didn’t know that, and now I do my entire worldview has changed”?
Well, here are five books that did exactly that to me when I read them, and I feel a much more informed and enlightened human being because of them.
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Book Review: Behind the Throne (The Indranan War #1) by K.B. Wagers (published by Orbit)
This science fiction novel definitely did not live up to its description of an ‘action-packed’ ‘Star Wars-style science fiction adventure’ for ‘anyone who wonders what would happen if a rogue like Han Solo were handed the keys to an empire’. Instead it was a story of political/court intrigue where the main character Hail, a princess turned gunrunner turned princess again, spends most of her time going to a lot of brief meetings within the palace and a couple of public events where she’ll invariably survive an assassination attempt. There’s some action (or what I would call action) near the end. Audiobook Review: The Dry (Aaron Falk #1) by Jane Harper (published by Macmillan Australia)
This audiobook was a great listen. I loved the Australian narrator – a great change from British or American accents. The Dry is a mystery thriller that focuses on the story of Aaron Falk, a police officer in Melbourne who focuses on money fraud. When his childhood best friend dies in the same rural, farming town where Aaron grew up, he returns and – on the insistence of the dead friend’s father – becomes involved with the investigation as to what happened. So you’ve written a first draft, be it of a scene, short story, chapter, entire book. And now comes the fun part – at least, I find it fun. Some writers find editing a slog, procrastinate over doing it, get overwhelmed or down because they think what they’ve written is not good enough.
Book Review: Kings of the Wyld (The Band #1) by Nicholas Eames (published by Orbit)
This is a fun fantasy full of action, rock and roll references, humour and LOTS of strange, bloodthirsty creatures. Kings of the Wyld tells the story of an old mercenary band who reform nineteen years after they disbanded to save the daughter of one of the band members. She set off to start a band of her own, only to be caught in a siege by a great, angry horde of aforementioned creatures.
Book Review: James: Witch-Hunter by K.S. Marsden (published by K.S. Marsden)
This paranormal / urban fantasy book is a prequel to the author’s Witch-Hunter series and focuses on one of the characters from the trilogy called James. It can be read as a standalone, but, in my opinion having never read the series, is also a great warm up to the main event.
Audiobook Review: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank (published by Penguin)
The audiobook narrated by British actress Helena Bonham Carter was absolutely excellent. Her reading helped to make this story come alive for me, adding humour, emotion and a vibrant personality to Anne that I probably wouldn’t have imagined if I had read the text. Much of the action in my epic fantasy Melokai is set in a matriarchal country called Peqkya. The society is ruled by women and women’s interests are valued above the men.
One thousand years before the story takes place, the country was a war-torn, ravaged and frightening place to live – for both the men and the women. A woman, Sybilya, wrenched power from the tyrannical, savage men who then ruled, and the women have maintained control since.
Book Review: The Blinding Knife (The Lightbringer Series Book 2) by Brent Weeks (published by Orbit)
After absolutely loving the first book in the series, The Black Prism (read my review here) I couldn’t wait to read The Blinding Knife. I loved this one too, but not quite as much as the first. It picks up immediately after the end of book one on the ships that escaped Garriston. The Prism, Gavin Guile, must find somewhere for a lot of war refugees to live. But first, he must battle a sea monster…
Book Review: The Sheriff by Simon Fairbanks (published by Simon Fairbanks)
This short, quick read was delightful and I really enjoyed it! It is an action and adventure fantasy that pulls you into it’s imaginative world and the detective tale that unfolds. It follows the story of Sheriff Denebola, a lion who walks on two legs and who is sworn to protect everyone in the world of Nephos by the Maverick, a descendent of the Clown.
Book Review and Author Interview: Faithless by Graham Austin-King (published by Fallen Leaf Press)
At the end of October, I attended a science fiction and fantasy convention called BristolCon and there I had the pleasure of hearing Graham Austin-King reading from Faithless. I had already started the novel, and Graham kindly agreed to answer some questions for me. So, below is my review and then an interview with the author. From Melokai story concept through to ‘on sale’ took me one year, four months. It was an intensive time, and in this post I will break down the different stages of planning, writing, production and marketing that led up to publication day on 10th October, 2017.
Audiobook Review: The Power by Naomi Alderman (published by Penguin)
WOW! I luurrrrrrrvvved this book! It’s science fiction with a feminist slant and a hint of dystopia. It tells of an event that sees almost all the women in the world suddenly having the ability to create electricity from their bodies (from a new ‘organ’ called a skein) and electrocute at will. And then lays out a scenario for what the world would become if the women became the more powerful gender. My original idea for Melokai came when I was trekking in Nepal’s Annapurna Sanctuary and I started to daydream about a country surrounded by mountains and ruled by women. The trek took eleven days up and down, hiking for seven hours on some days, so I spent a lot of time in my head and a story formed.
One of the critical parts to my thinking was about this country (which I named Peqkya) and about the wider world it was situated in. It was important to me that Peqkya was a country which could actually be real, which could survive and function, and wasn’t one dimensional.
Book Review: Fires by Tom Ward (published by Crooked Cat Books)
This thriller is quite dark but kept me interested and is very relatable. It is set in modern times in a bleak, industrial city where the lives of two strangers, Guy and Nathan, become inextricably linked as Guy fights fires and arsonist Nathan likes to set them. |
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