egkaetzel's reviews
188 reviews

Song of the Huntress by Lucy Holland

adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Read this as an advanced readers copy- thank you to NetGalley and Redhook for this ARC.

Lucy Holland takes everything that made Sistersong good and dialed it up to 11. I liked Sistersong, I LOVED Song of the Huntress. Holland shows again her ability to weave believable/flawed/lovable characters into a story made of magic and history, all tied with beautiful prose. As a lover of epic fantasy, I love when a standalone novel can bring enough world building and character development to get me invested and then wrap up in a satisfying way. A captivating and moving story with well balanced political intrigue, mysterious magic, and heart wrenching romance. 

Themes/Highlights: strong females characters, sapphic love, non traditional relationships, welsh myth

The Lies of the Ajungo by Moses Ose Utomi

adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Read. this. Book. (Really a novella) At 80ish pages this novella is a one sitting read that takes you on a breakneck ride, weaving west African lore with the cadence of a folktale. The best kind of fantasy where lies and truth and tangle together. I bet this would be AMAZING on audiobook! No notes, just read it. 

An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

An Education in Malice, by ST Gibson

ARC review- advanced digital copy provided by Redhook Books

Set to release Feb 13

I feel like it’s important, especially with ARCs to distinguish between when a book is not for me and when I think it is just not well done. This is an example of a book where there are specific reasons it didn’t fit my usual style,  it I do think there are a lot of people who will really enjoy it. I did enjoy reading it though!

The book is described as a dark academic fantasy with a heavy romance element. It focuses on the relationships between two poetry students (female) and a poetry professor (female), and the blurred lines between desire, obsession, and rivalry.

Vibes: sapphic romance, enemies to lovers, academic rivals

The truth is this book is mostly a romantasy. It has more depth and plot elements than a lot of books in the genre, and is well written stylistically, but the focus is on the rivalry/romance and not on fleshing out the magical worlds/academic world. 

You will like this: if you’re looking for a book that’s romance focused with poetic prose and with a bit of delightful sapphic 🌶️ and dark academic vibes

You may not like this: if you’re looking for a mostly dark academia and fantasy book similar to Ninth House or Atlas Six, or something with a heavier mystery/cult element. Or if you want any poetry, despite all being poets this book basically uses that as window dressing

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, and Sexual content

The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer

adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

The book was cute a lighthearted, with a nice little mystery to drive the plot. I wished I could like the main character, Lucy, better , but I think there just wasn’t enough time for me to really invest in her story. Reads closer to middle grade /YA so if you expect that level it’s a fun time. 

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

4.5

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
Did not finish book.

Good Omens by Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman

4.5

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods by Molly X. Chang

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

The premise of Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is very strong, and I love the idea of epic fantasy within Chinese culture. The main character has the power to bring death, and is faced with the moral dilemma of how to use that power amidst a colonial takeover of her home in China. Unfortunately this book just did not come together for me. The writing style is very choppy, overly flowery in some places and underdeveloped in others. It also struggled with pacing, the plot doesn’t really begin moving until 1/3 of the way in. I also agree with other reviewers that a romance with a morally gray colonizer did not sit well, and overall I felt myself taken out of the story than I was able to sit in it. Ultimately I would have liked to see more fantasy elements and tie ins with Chinese culture, as well as more development/world building of her magic. For fans of morally gray characters and strong female protagonist I think there is interesting elements, I just wish the whole thing had felt more cohesive. Thank you to Random House Ballantine for the ARC and the opportunity for an honest review.