Frozen Rage – A Review

Hello! Welcome back for another Storytellers on Tour Post! Today I am reviewing Frozen Rage by Steve McHugh. This is a new novella set in the Hellequin Chronicles but it can be read on its own.

Book Blurb
The Realm of Dreich is a getaway for the rich and powerful, a medieval-inspired town in the middle of a vast frozen wilderness.

Now it’s the site of a wedding, intended to join two feuding families who have spent centuries in an uneasy truce with each other.

When Tommy Carpenter asks his best friend, Nate Garrett, to help him with the security of the wedding,

Nate reluctantly agrees, knowing that it will be a long weekend of work and, in all probability, treachery.

It is only a matter of time before members of each family are found murdered and it is up to Nate and
Tommy to find the killer before more bodies fall, potentially reigniting a war.

I was very kindly gifted a physical copy for this review but I also purchased the audiobook myself to listen as I read. (would really recommend the audiobook as it was fantastic!)

This was a great little novella which introduces you to the main characters of this series including a few of the races (including werewolves, werelions and werebears!) along with following a murder mystery.

As this is only 117 pages long and is also a mystery, I don’t want to give away too much of the plot. However, I can say that I really enjoyed the writing style, I felt for the characters and I will definitely be picking up the other books in the series!

Don’t forget to check out the other hosts!

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Book Links
• Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54141669-frozen-rage
• Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08DD8V26VStorytellers On Tour Frozen Rage Book Tour
https://storytellersontour.online Sep

To Sleep In A Sea Of Stars by Christopher Paolini – A mini review

Hello! I’m here with a very exciting post today as I am one of the first hosts on the blog tour for this stunning book! However, unfortunately there was a delay in the copies being sent out so I haven’t finished this beast of a book yet. But…. This means that you’ll get two posts instead of one! (thank you to the publisher for gifting me this beautiful finished copy)

This post will be a review of what I have already read along with some info on the book and I will do a follow up post once I have finished reading. This means that I will also be able to review the audio book for you as I really enjoy reading epic sci fi like this book with the audio on at the same time.

So! On to the important stuff! This is an epic space sci fi that is Paolini’s first foray into the sci fi world. It’s also quite the chonker as it’s around 900 pages long (we all know that I love a long book!). I will also preface any review that is below by saying that the author’s Eragon series is one of my all time favourites so I am already familiar with this authors writing style.

The Blurb:-

Kira Navárez dreamed of life on new worlds
Now she’s awakened a nightmare

During a routine survey mission on an uncolonized planet, Kira finds an alien relic. At first she’s delighted, but elation turns to terror when the ancient dust around her begins to move.

As war erupts among the stars, Kira is launched into a galaxy-spanning odyssey of discovery and transformation. First contact isn’t at all what she imagined, and events push her to the very limits of what it means to be human.

While Kira faces her own horrors, Earth and its colonies stand upon the brink of annihilation. Now, Kira might be humanity’s greatest and final hope . . .

Now onto my mini review of the first 300ish pages that I’ve managed to read this weekend through my anxiety brain!

The writing in this book in really accessible, it isn’t too “techy” or clinical which I know is a criticism of a lot of sci fi. This book opens following Kira as she goes on a research mission which promptly goes wrong. There is a lot going on in this book and I have a lot of my exciting/Omg moment tabs in my physical copy just within the first 100 pages. This book literally made my jaw drop when I was reading because the events that happen were both incredibly surprising but also awesome.

So far in this book we have some LGBTQIA+ rep in the book which doesn’t feel like it’s just been shoehorned in, it feels natural and like it’s just something that happens which is wonderful. There are also different people from different planets, with different customs who all mingle well together and I actually enjoy all of the characters mentioned.

I’ve even spotted a couple of Easter eggs from the Eragon universe (One of these actually made me put down my book and go and get my copy of Eragon to check I was right!)

Overall so far, I think this is a really unique piece of work and it’s definitely worth checking it out if you enjoy sci-fi!

Don’t forget to check out everyone else’s posts too!

The Skald’s Black Verse by Jordan Loyal Short – A Review

Hi Guys! I have another spot on a Storytellers on Tour blog tour and that’s for this beauty! (I mean, just look at that cover!) make sure you go and check out the other hosts posts Here!

Book Blurb
When a soldier’s murder sparks rebellion in the tiny village of Skolja, Brohr’s past marks him as the
prime suspect. Haunted by his brother’s ghost, and drawn into a web of dark pacts and tangled
loyalties, Brohr must choose between the path of vengeance set before him, and a chance to forge his
own fate.
From the shadows, an all but extinct race of alien demigods have begun the end game of their
millennia-spanning war, and one has chosen Brohr for his closing gambit.
But Brohr’s grandfather harbors a dark secret that will change everything.
Above it all, a dread portent looms in the sky, spelling the death of Brohr’s world. With doom spiraling
toward them, Brohr must lead an unlikely rebellion, unearth disturbing family secrets, and tame the raging ghost that haunts him. Can Brohr lead his people out of darkness, or will he succumb to his own terrifying bloodlust, and destroy the very people he has sworn to save?

So! I went into this expecting a fairly typical Viking story which I usually end up loving! However, what I got was actually a mixture of sci-fi and fantasy – a concept that was very cool!

In this book you have your viking-esque characters who are the Norns and instead of it being your usual Christian invaders taking over, in this book it’s actually a different race from another planet!

This is a very dark and gritty book that has plenty of violence in it along with a very graphic birth and baby death scene in the prologue so please read with care if you are sensitive to any of these things.

This was a good book and I’m intrigued to see where the story goes in book two event hough this wasn”t written in my usual preferred writing style. However, I’ve seen that the audio book for this should be released soon so I think I will re-read this on audio as that usually helps me when the writing style isn’t my favourite!

Author Links
Website: https://jordanloyalshort.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Jordanloyalshor
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jordanloyalshort
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18602359.Jordan_Loyal_Short

The Lost Sentinel by Suzanne Rogerson – A Review

Hi Guys! I’m here today with another Storytellers on Tour blog post! (I’m fast becoming a regular)

The Blurb –

The magical island of Kalaya is dying, along with its Sentinel.

The Assembly controls Kalaya. Originally set up to govern, they now persecute those with magic and exile them to the Turrak Mountains. Tei, a tailor’s daughter, has always hidden her magic but when her father’s old friend visits and warns them to flee to the mountains she must leave her old life behind.
On the journey, an attack leaves her father mortally wounded. He entrusts her into the care of the exiles and on his deathbed makes a shocking confession.
Tei joins the exiles search for their new Sentinel – the only person capable of restoring the fading magic. But mysterious Masked Riders are hunting the Sentinel too, and time, as well as hope, is running out.
Against mounting odds it will take friendship, heartache and sacrifice to succeed, but is Tei willing to risk everything to save the island magic?

Ok… I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be reading the sequels! For those of you who would rather buy the box set, this has just been released on kindle and will be reduced to £3.99 for the duration of this tour which is awesome!

I found this story to be really engaging, it was easy to fall into (I need a new phrase don’t I!), it felt a little familiar without feeling like it was another book and the plot kept moving forward at a good pace!

I ended up enjoying all of the characters perspectives, though I did have a little trouble with Brogan at the start.

The magic system was really interesting and I love the idea that the island has magic that the Mystics must protect but the none magical people have forgotten and don’t look after the island ass they should. I really wish we had more stories where the land was actually alive with magic because I usually enjoy them.

Tei as a main character goes through so much growth and I love seeing a character actually grow up! The poor thing does go through a lot though and I would say that I would give content warnings for mild torture/violence and also loss (these are just for me personally) so be a little wary if you are sensitive to these topics.

However, as I’ve already said, this was a very enjoyable read and bring on book 2!

Join Suzanne’s mailing list – here!

Suzanne’s website – here!

Goodreads – here!

Twitter – here!

Instagram – here!

Amazon UK – here!

More about the author –

Suzanne lives in Middlesex, England with her husband, two children and a crazy puppy.
Her writing journey began at the age of twelve when she completed her first novel. She discov-
ered the fantasy genre in her late teens and has never looked back. Giving up work to raise a
family gave Suzanne the impetus to take her attempts at novel writing beyond the first draft,
and she is lucky enough to have a husband who supports her dream – even if he does occa-
sionally hint that she might think about getting a proper job one day.

Now an author of four novels including the recently completed Silent Sea Chronicles trilogy
and a Czech translation of her debut, Visions of Zarua, Suzanne hopes the dreaded ‘W’ word
will never rear its ugly head again!

She loves gardening and has a Hebe (shrub) fetish. She enjoys cooking with ingredients from
the garden and regularly feeds unsuspecting guests vegetable-based cakes.

Suzanne collects books, is interested in history and enjoys wandering around castles and old
ruins whilst being immersed in the past. She likes to combine her love of nature and photog-
raphy on family walks, but most of all she loves to escape with a great film, binge watch TV shows, or soak in a hot bubble bath with a nice cream and a book

Smoke and Stone by Michael R Fletcher – A Review

Hi guys! I’m back today with a quick review for you!

The blurb –
After a cataclysmic war of the gods, the last of humanity huddles in Bastion, a colossal ringed city. Beyond the outermost wall lies endless desert haunted by the souls of all the world’s dead. Trapped in a rigid caste system, Nuru, a young street sorcerer, lives in the outer ring. She dreams of escape and freedom. When something contacts her from beyond the wall, she risks everything and leaps at the opportunity. Mother Death, a banished god seeking to reclaim her place in Bastion’s patchwork pantheon, has found her way back into the city. Akachi, born to the wealth and splendour of Bastion’s inner rings, is a priest of Cloud Serpent, Lord of the Hunt. A temple-trained sorcerer, he is tasked with bringing peace to the troublesome outer ring. Drawn into a dark and violent world of assassins, gangs, and street sorcerers, he battles the spreading influence of Mother Death in a desperate attempt to save Bastion. The gods are once again at war.

This was my first self published read of the month and it did not disappoint!

The authors writing style was really nice and let me fall into this world.

I’m a sucker for books that explore pantheon of gods and what would happen if they decided to make a comeback so this was right up my street!

I don’t really want to say anything else as I feel like you’re better going in with nothing more than the blurb but I loved this book!

Book 2 has just been released and I also own another book by yjis author which I can’t wait to get to!

Amazon UK – here!

Og- Grim-Dog by Jamie Edmundson – A Review

Hi Guys! I’m back today with my first review for Self published Fantasy month! This review will be for Og-Grim-Dog which is a novella series based on the life story of a 3 headed ogre!

The Blurb:

Two heads are better than one

Three can be a real pain in the arse

We are Og-Grim-Dog!

We have been loved and reviled! We have been the Hero of the Hour, the Darkest Villain, and everything in between! We have saved this world and travelled to worlds beyond it!

You think you can distil the life of Og-Grim-Dog into some words on a page?
When a stranger visits their inn, the regulars are in for a surprise. Did their Landlord really come here from Gal’azu—the dangerous, edgier province to the east? Could it be that his stories, so fanciful and fantastical, were episodes from his previous life?
When their Landlord is persuaded to have his life story recorded for posterity, the surprises come thick and fast. Just like his regulars, you too can learn how a three-headed ogre came to be a hero. Unlike them, you don’t stand to be killed if it all goes wrong…

As I said, this series (two books are currently released) are written as novellas – this first one was 136 pages according to my kindle. Normally, I’m not a fan of novellas as I always feel like I want more but this one was perfect!

There was enough information given that I had a fairly clear picture of the world and there were more than enough action scenes along with other interactions that helped show the growing relationship between Og-Grim-Dog and their companions.

I loved Grim the best I think (always stuck between his brothers arguing) but I also enjoyed the other two characters and I can’t wait to read on and see where this trio ends up!

Goodreads – here!

Amazon UK – here!

Tuyo by Rachel Neumeier – A Review

Hi Guys! I’m back again with a review of Tuyo and I’m part of the blog tour hosted by Storytellers on Tour! Make sure you check out everyone else’s reviews here!

The blurb –

Raised a warrior in the harsh winter country, Ryo inGara has always been willing to die for his family
and his tribe. When war erupts against the summer country, the prospect of death in battle seems imminent. But when his warleader leaves Ryo as a sacrifice — a tuyo — to die at the hands of their ene-
mies, he faces a fate he never imagined.

Ryo’s captor, a lord of the summer country, may be an enemy . . . but far worse enemies are moving,
with the current war nothing but the opening moves in a hidden game Ryo barely glimpses, a game in
which all his people may be merely pawns. Suddenly Ryo finds his convictions overturned and his loy-
alties uncertain. Should he support the man who holds him prisoner, the only man who may be able to
defeat their greater enemy? And even if he does, can he persuade his people to do the same?

Rachel has a nice, easy writing style and this book felt like an older fantasy which was great for me! The whole premise reminded me of Raymond E Feists earlier Midkemia novels which are some of my favourites.

I really enjoyed the concept of enemies becoming friends (though I feel the author missed a trick slightly by there not being something more than friendship) and the trust that builds slowly between Tuyo and Lord Aras.

I did feel that Ryo made some silly decisions on occasion but they were mainly due to ingrained fear that he has of sorcery due to his peoples culture, but he was always very honest and honour bound which I really enjoyed.

This is an interesting story because the main focus of the story is very much on their characters and watching their friendship grow and develop rather than on the world building and magic systems – personally I would have loved to know even more about the magic system.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable read and I look forward to reading some of her other works!

Kings & Daemons by Marcus Lee – A Review

Good afternoon everyone! Today we have my stop of the blog tour for Kings and Daemons by Marcus Lee which is a self published novel that came out this year! Make you check out all the other people below to see what they thought too!

The Blurb –

A tale of conquest, dark kings, and daemonic heroes. A spellbinding story that will enchant you with its plot of ambition, love, betrayal, sacrifice and redemption.

Over fifty years have passed since Daleth the seemingly immortal Witch-King and his army conquered the Ember Kingdom.

Now, with the once fertile lands and its enslaved people dying around him, the Witch-King, driven by his insatiable thirst for eternal youth, prepares his forces to march on the prosperous neighbouring Freestates. It will be the beginnings of a conquest that could destroy nations, bringing death and destruction on an unimaginable scale.

Then, when a peasant huntress whose rare gift was concealed from birth is exposed, it sets in motion a chain of events that could alter the destiny of generations to come.

So! This is listed as a fantasy romance which I do agree with and I’d also say that it borders between adult and YA so lovers of either will get along with this book!

We follow a few different protagonists in this book and I have to say, I loved all of them! There’s usually at least one character that I don’t like following but all of these characters were really interesting and I loved seeing what they did! The world building in this book was also fantastic! I found that I could always visualise each of the different areas that our characters went through which is a big plus for me!

This book basically has something for everyone! There’s action, a bit of romance (which was done very well), all of the fantasy elements that we know and love along with a few things that were new to me and I hadn’t seen before!

I would definitely recommend picking this one up and I can’t wait for the next book!

Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20457874.Marcus_Lee

Amazon – https://smile.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08978G3FP/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_oM-mFbHPGAP13

There is a UK only giveaway where you could win one of 5 copies of this beautiful book! Enter by clicking this link http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e832e98814/?

Girl, Serpent, Thorn – a mini review!

The blurb - 
There was and there was not, as all stories begin, a princess cursed to be poisonous to the touch. But for Soraya, who has lived her life hidden away from everyone, apart from her family, safe only in her gardens, it's not just a story.

As the day of her twin brother's wedding approaches, Soraya must decide if she's willing to step outside of the shadows for the first time. Below in the dungeon is a demon who holds knowledge that she craves, the answer to her freedom. And above is a young man who isn't afraid of her, whose eyes linger not with fear, but with an understanding of who she is beneath the poison.

Soraya thought she knew her place in the world, but when her choices lead to consequences she never imagined, she begins to question who she is and who she is becoming . . . human or demon. Princess or monster.

Firstly, thank you to the publisher for providing me with an e copy of this book (I bought my own physical copy). 

I really enjoyed this book! I love fantasy set in a Middle-Eastern world and this one includes Persian Mythology. 

The world building was very good and I couldn't help but love the main character! I felt like I could really picture the castle and all of the other settings despite this being a short book. 

There were a few twists in this book that I didn't see coming which kept me on my toes! 

Overall a very enjoyable book that I just didn't want to put down and I will be reading more from this author!

Rating - 🌟🌟🌟🌟