Started: 30.10.26
Finished: 6.11.26
Paperback
Aaah, this was so good!!! I love this little band of thieves! I love that there's one we haven't even met yet! I love this weird world of glass and alchemy! I can't wait to see where their next adventures lead them!
Started: 22.8.26
DNF: 24.8.26
Paperback
A DNF. Weird names for the sake of having weird names.
Started: 7.6.26
Finished: 11.6.26
Paperback
TBR Prompt: Two word title
This is the follow up to Alice, and I've just looked at that picture and it says THE Red Queen. But my book definitely doesn't have a 'THE', so I'm sticking with that.
Anyway, this is once again a very dark reimagining, involving some of the characters from the original stories. I was looking forward to reading this, but if I'm honest, I think I was getting a bit bored with it, which is why it's taken me a while to get through it. It seemed to be dragging quite a bit as though there was a lot of padding just to make it long enough, and it felt a bit all over the place towards the end. Having said that though, I do really like Christina Henry's writing and I've got quite a few of her other books lined up to read.
Started: 2.4.26
Finished: 6.4.26
Kindle Unlimited
TBR Prompt: Newest / most recently acquired book
Well, it's been a minute since the last one, but I think I can safely say that this is a 5 star book! The Sword of Kaigen had me gripped; I'm a bit amazed at how much I loved it! The extensive glossary / new vocabulary used in the story was quite overwhelming at first (and I think some words were unnecessary), but it was so well written that it gets easier to follow as you go. This is a standalone fantasy about love and loss, duty and family honour, politics and propaganda. There is a LOT of violence; the fight scenes are cinematic in their visceral brutality, and there are heartbreaking moments (one in particular that I read several times because I couldn't actually believe that it was happening?!?!?) The deep misogyny was frustrating, to say the least, but I think it went some way to highlight the isolation and distance of Kaigen from some of the more forward-thinking regions.
I'm still very new to the fantasy genre, but I think I can see that my preferences are leaning more towards high fantasy like this, or grimdark like The First Law Trilogy (I've only read book one so far), rather than romantasy or cosy / light fantasy. I'm so excited to read more!
Started: 22.3.26
Finished: 23.3.26
Paperback
TBR Prompt: Retelling / Reimagining
Ooh, I really enjoyed this! Loosely based on Alice In Wonderland, this is a very creepy reimagining of what happened to Alice after she met the Rabbit, though the characters of Rabbit, Caterpillar, Walrus and Cheshire are very different in this book. This was a lot darker than I was expecting, but I loved Alice and Hatcher's relationship, and their journey to track down the beast; the ending was possibly a bit of an anti-climax, though it fit into the whole magical theme of the story. There is a sequel, The Red Queen, which I'm looking forward to reading.
Started: 14.3.26
DNF: 22.3.26
Kindle Unlimited (/Audiobook)
TBR Prompt: Continue a series
When I read Dungeon Crawler Carl I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it, although I think I said that I wasn't in a hurry to start book 2. When I pulled out the TBR prompt to 'continue a series' I had a couple of options to choose from, but I'd been hearing so many good things about this, that I decided to give it a go. I really wanted to like it, but I think the gaming aspect of it is just a bit too much for me. I coped with the novelty of it in book one, but this time I found my eyes glazing over a bit with all the AI stuff about classes and points and skills and quests etc. I did try listening to the audiobook for a bit, but I think I'm in a minority as someone who doesn't really enjoy the narrator's voice.
I think that if you're not heavily into the LitRPG genre, or into gaming (I'm not), then reading the first book is probably enough to give you a taste of what it's all about, but continuing with the series is probably unnecessary. When I read all the positive reviews for the whole series so far, I do get a touch of FOMO and feel like I should push through, but I just don't think I can face another 7 books of basically the same thing (ie fighting the enemies to progress to the next level). So this is, quite reluctantly, a DNF.
Started: 2.3.26
DNF: 7.3.26
Kindle Unlimited
TBR Prompt: First in a series
Aww, I really wanted to like this, but I just wasn't feeling it. Viv, an Orc, wants to give up the fighting life and open a coffee shop, in a town where nobody knows what coffee is. The first dozen or so chapters are about her converting an old livery into said cafe, and then selling the coffee once her gnomish-made coffee machine arrives. She acquires an assistant, and then a baker to make some baked goods and... it was all very twee and cute and cosy and just... not for me. It felt like a DIY / makeover show in book form to begin with, and then a guide to how to run a business. I didn't dislike it, but I just didn't love it either.
Started: 20.2.26
Finished: 27.2.26
Kindle
Chosen by RNG
Strong, stubborn, feisty FMC, dark and mysterious MMC with wings, if that floats your boat. This was a tense enemies to lovers, found family fantasy; at times the pacing was a little slow, but it ramped up towards the end and talk about finishing on a cliffhanger... or should that be a chasm-hanger?
Started: 24.1.26
Finished: 27.1.26
Kindle Unlimited / Audible
I'd heard lots of good things about this, and I found it to be a unique and enjoyable read. Although I understood the RPG element - I'm aware of things like achievements and equipment inventories in games etc - as a non-gamer it probably didn't appeal to me as much as it would to someone who regularly plays RPGs. It was very entertaining, but I also liked that it reflected on the unfairness and brutality of the game; there was a seriousness underneath the humour. I'm not sure if I'll read any more books in the series, I don't feel in a hurry to pick up the next one.
Started: 21.1.26
Finished: 24.1.26
Paperback
On the whole, really enjoyable, but a bit of a slog at times (699 pages). Pretty much all geared up towards the battle with the King Of Hybern. All the main characters survived, which is good but also a bit too convenient; there were a couple of lesser/side character deaths, some of which were sad, others richly deserved. I'm looking forwards to having a much smaller book to hold in my hands for the next one!
Started: 24.1.26
Finished (skipped): 24.1.26
Paperback
Somewhat surprisingly, I didn't really enjoy this book, to the point that I skipped the second half of it. I'd read up to the end of Chapter 14 but I was finding it a bit boring, if I'm honest. This was more like a novella, and not a lot was happening. I read some reviews, a lot of which likened it to a Hallmark Christmas Special - it mainly revolved around the 'inner circle' buying gifts for each other for the Winter Solstice. There was still tension between Nesta and Cassian (and everyone, really). Feyre opened up an art studio, and Rhysand bought her an estate so that she could build them a bigger house. Mor was preparing to travel to the continent. Everyone was still recovering from the war and learning how to live with the fragile peace that had been achieved. It was really just a bit of a bridging book to the next one, and it made me think that it might be a good place to take a break. I'd intended to go straight into A Court Of Silver Flames, but as there may be a book 6 release in 2026, I think I might pause here and pick up book 5 later in the year. I've enjoyed the first three books, but I think I was starting to get a bit of 'fantasy fatigue' and I feel like I want to read something completely different next.
Started: 18.1.26
Finished: 21.1.26
Paperback
Really good! Feyre had great character development, and I really enjoyed her bond with Rhysand, and the rest of her 'found family'. Apparently it always 'kicks off' in the last 100 pages or so of these books, and that was definitely true for this one, excited to move onto book 3.
Started: 16.1.26
Finished: 18.1.26
Paperback
16.1.26 - I'm going in - wish me luck!
18.1.26 Well, finished the first one, and ordered the rest of the series yesterday from Amazon so can dive straight in to book 2.
I don't think there's anything I can say about this that hasn't already been said. I've tried to avoid spoilers, but I've seen so many reviews on Instagram, for example, that I felt like I had this sense of anticipation all the way through it, like I was always waiting for something to happen. Apparently it gets A LOT better in book 2 (not that this wasn't good) so I feel the same about the rest of the series - there's more to look forward to. I enjoyed this book a lot, but it didn't blow me away, but it seems as though the next ones might?? I don't know, I'm excited to read them. I definitely have questions from this one, like is Tamlin too good to be true? Rhysand seemed like the bad guy for a while, but kind of redeemed himself a bit at the end, and I know there's a lot more to come from him. So yes, book 2 here we come!
Started: 11.1.26
Finished: 12.1.26
Kindle Unlimited
Well this duology was absolutely brilliant! A perilous race against time into the mist-cloaked forest in search of the missing Providence Card. A royal battle between good and evil. A fitting end and a new beginning 500 years in the making. Great well-written characters and a gripping plot. It seemed like Ravyn and Elspeth were meant to be the main romance pairing in the first book, but in this one it was definitely Elm and Ione. Elspeth was there, but her body was kind of overtaken by Nightmare/The Shepherd King for most of it, which was hard to remember sometimes. Happy that this was one of my first forays into fantasy, it was a really good start!
Started: 9.1.26
Finished: 11.1.26
Kindle Unlimited
First book read on my new Kindle Paperwhite!
This really had me gripped! A gothic fantasy involving a deck of cards imbued with magic, a young woman tormented by a nightmare and a group of highwaymen trying to rid their kingdom of a centuries-old curse. Immediately going to start book 2...
Started: 4.1.26
Finished: 10.1.26
Paperback
Cosy cottagecore fantasy with sweet romance and found family
Paused... to come back to...
I started this yesterday I think, and although it was ok, I feel like I have other books that I'm in more of a hurry to read, so I've put this back on the TBR pile for now. I didn't want to make it a DNF because I would still like to read this series, just not yet...
Started: 3.1.26
Finished: 4.1.26
Paperback
Hmmm. Hmmm.
I wanted to love this book as much as the first two. But it just seemed to go in a weird direction.
It begins a few months after Luke has died from cancer. (He and Lanore had spent 4 years together, after Adair had let her go). I'm not sure what the point of Luke was really. I know he played a role in her life, but I'm not sure how necessary it was.
Lanny is having nightmares about Jonathan being tortured in the underworld. Yes, she's still obsessed with him, which I found increasingly frustrating.
Although he did redeem himself towards the end of his life, he was never really very good to her, but she couldn't let him go. She decides that she must go to the underworld to rescue him, and the only person who can help her with that is Adair.
He has been living in exile on a mystery island, although when Lanny arrives she finds that he is enjoying the company of two young women. He later confesses to her that he thinks they may be possessed by / reincarnations of two witch sisters who he'd wronged in a previous lifetime. That was a bit random and out of the blue.
Adair is now a changed man, and just as he agrees to help Lanny go to the underworld, she finally realises that she loves him. At last!!
He doesn't need to kill her, he just casts a spell to send her spirit there to look for Jonathan. What feels like just minutes and hours for her, are months passing for Adair while he keeps vigil over her sleeping body. The sections in the underworld also felt like months passing for me, to be honest, it really slowed things down.
At one point, Adair is drugged by the two women (who are the witches, as he suspected) and they throw Lanny's body into the sea. He summons huge waves which wash her back to him, but wash away the two women. So that's that.
He has no way of knowing what is happening to Lanny in the underworld, and realises that the only thing he can do is join her there, which he does.
It transpires that Adair is actually the King Of The Underworld, but he'd escaped and had all his memories erased, and new ones implanted, to allow him to survive in the real world. The Queen is actually his sister; he didn't want to marry her though, because, ew, incest! (Nevermind all the other stuff he's done). In the end, they have to ask The Big Man (God - long white hair, toga style outfit) for permission to be allowed to return to the real world and live as mortals, which he allows. Meanwhile, Jonathan is promoted to Queen Consort / new King Of The Underworld.
The whole underworld section is just where it fell down for me. It turned out that the Queen had sent those nightmares to Lanny, and that actually Jonathan was quite happy and didn't need rescuing, so once again she'd screwed things up chasing after him. I'm glad that she finally realised that she loved Adair, and that it'd kind of been him all along, but when they returned from the underworld, it was practically on THE LAST PAGE! We never got to see them together, properly in love!
