Tag: Speculative Fiction

Review: A Darker Shade of Magic (Shades of Magic #1) by V.E. Schwab

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This book has been all OVER my social media feed for months but especially the last few weeks with the upcoming release of the second book in the series.

So I decided on a whim to try it out. The cover is totally eye catching and the premise for the story sounds intriguing, plus I haven’t read a really good fantasy in a while so I picked this book up.

Kell is one of the last Travelers, which is a rare magician who choose a parallel universe to visit. Grey London is dirty, boring, lacks magic, ruled by mad King George. Red London is where life and magic are revered (also home of Kell), and the Maresh Dynasty presides over a flourishing empire. White London is ruled by whoever has murdered their way to the throne. People fight to control magic, and the magic fights back, draining the city to its very bones. Once there was Black London—but no one speaks of that now.

Officially, Kell is the Red Traveler, personal ambassador and adopted Prince of Red London, carrying the monthly correspondences between royals of each London. Unofficially, Kell smuggles for those willing to pay for even a glimpse of a world they’ll never see. This dangerous hobby sets him up for accidental treason. Fleeing into Grey London, Kell runs afoul of Lila Bard, a thief with lofty aspirations. She robs him, saves him from a dangerous enemy, then forces him to another world for her ‘proper adventure’.

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Review: The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials #1) by Philip Pullman

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After reading Up To This Pointe earlier this month, I was dying to read something else set in the ‘north’ or in the ‘cold’.

The Golden Compass has been on my TBR shelf forever and now seemed like the perfect time to read it since it features the Northern Lights and the north pole as well as a host of other things!

Lyra Belacqua has been raised at Oxford’s, Jordan College, most of her young life. It is here that two very important people come to visit. the first is her uncle, Lord Asriel, who is an explorer and who has just returned from the north with some dangerous findings.

Lord Asriel suspects that there is an alternative universe on the Northern Lights which he believes he can access. Lord Asriel intends to venture back to the north to continue his research, immediately.

The other visitor is Mrs Coulter, who is put in charge of Lyra. Mrs Coulter is cultured, rich, and charismatic…..she too is an explorer and has a scientific operation in the north. Mrs Coulter intends to take Lyra to the north with her but not before she ‘grooms’ Lyra and gets her accustom to London society.

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Review: Successio (Roma Nova #3) by Alison Morton

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As many of you are aware, I have been very impressed with this new series. This is the first and really, the only, alternative history book that I’ve come across in all my literary adventures.

Successio is the third book in the series and I still stand by the ‘read the series in order’ theory. I’ve seen some people say that these books read easily as stand alone novels but I completely disagree.

The world of Roma Nova is complex and the back story is very detailed so I would say if this novel looks at all eye catching to you, then start with the first book and fully immerse yourself in the rich world of Roma Nova and Morton’s stunning characters.

In this third book, we catch up with Carina Mitela, the heir of a leading family in Roma Nova. While things in the empire are more or less at peace, things in Carina’s world are far from that.

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Spotlight: AURELIA (Roma Nova #4) by Alison Morton

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02_Aurelia_CoverPublication Date: May 5, 2015
SilverWood Books
Series: Roma Nova, Book Four
Genre: Alternative Historical Fiction
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Late 1960s Roma Nova, the last Roman colony that has survived into the 21st century. Aurelia Mitela is alone – her partner gone, her child sickly and her mother dead. Forced in her mid-twenties to give up her beloved career as a Praetorian officer, she is struggling to manage an extended family tribe, businesses and senatorial political life.

But her country needs her unique skills. Somebody is smuggling silver – Roma Nova’s lifeblood – on an industrial scale. Sent to Berlin to investigate, she encounters the mysterious and attractive Miklós, a suspected smuggler, and Caius Tellus, a Roma Novan she has despised, and feared, since childhood.

Aurelia suspects that the silver smuggling hides a deeper conspiracy and follows a lead into the Berlin criminal underworld. Barely escaping a trap set by a gang boss intent on terminating her, she realises that her old enemy is at the heart of all her troubles and pursues him back home to Roma Nova…

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Review: Perfiditas (Roma Nova #2) by Alison Morton

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A lot has changed in the seven years since we first met the very unlucky Karen Brown.

She has now completely embraced her true identity of Carina Mitela and she is now living as a Roma Novan.

Carina has married Conradus (AKA Conrad) and since the last novel, they have advanced in their careers within the PGSF (Praetorian Guard Special Forces).

Conrad has just been made Legate which is basically the Chief within the PGSF and Carina is also a Captain in the Strategy Section.

Their marriage is solid but their careers are complicated.  They also have their children to protect and provide for….but that is a fact easier said than done. Carina must prevent a conspiracy that not only threatens her country, but also her marriage and children!

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