Title. I was browsing the Aduible sale and noticed a lot of grphic audio books are under $5 for the full books. Graphic Audio is often split into parts but you can buy the full book versions for under $5. I picked up some brent weeks and Brandon Sanderson books I didn't have.

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"You have to read everything to get the best experience"

We've all heard this line before. In spite of what half the fans will insist, often it's false. And we all know this.

All the main entries in one series? Normally. But side novellas, other books set in the same world following different characters, etc? Reading entertainment should be enjoyable and leisure time is limited. A person can love one branch of a saga without knowing the other. Scroll down far enough, chill fans will say the same while providing the person asking the info they actually need.

What's a saga/series where you intentionally chose to read some parts and not the others?

I have vehement HATRED for fantasy TV shows where the main goal of a show is to be human.

There seems to be effective propaganda across many fantasy shows and its the main reason why the media PMO.

-Immortality is a curse, never the goal. Mostly because they always think being stuck in earth is the limit. Always had something to do about seeing loved ones dying. Would love to see this with an autistic mc that just wants to see scientific progress. -Always empathize with humans. Even though every episode they kill some mischaracterized fantasy creature. -Only fantasy creatures who helped humans should be “humanized”x others are basically cockroaches. -Some episodes they get cool powers that will conveniently never be used in another episode. -The only choreography is with guns and mma fighting. Truly powerful magical creatures will just walk menacingly with a thriller bgm and wait until you slash them with the power of friendship. (just watched the librarian and its a Cop shop disguised as a magic show) -No training or actual knowledge about whats going to kill you until your 3 years from the prophecy for some complicated reason that is paper thin. -There always has to be a stand off in a shape shifter episode.

I think the people need Fantasy shows where the goal isn’t to save the world (who cares about the world) but learn, grow, and appreciate the magic. Or maybe for some selfish reasons. Idk.

Spoilers, I guess, but I simply cannot fathom what the hell is going on in this book. It seems to think that the central problem is a matter of shared responsibility and blame when it obviously, objectively isn't, and that disconnect makes it absolutely unbearable to slog through. Is there supposed to be some sort of twist in later books that justifies how insufferable this one is?

Was recently watching DOTA 2: Dragon's Blood, better than I thought it would be.

Without getting into spoilers one of the major themes of the series, and the final season in particular, is the idea of fighting against fate and how trying to do so often leads to more harm than good. That the world isn't fair but that if you always try to change it to suit you that you just makes things worse. At some point there's a need to recognize that the world isn't fair and that we need to learn to accept what is and has been. But it's not fatalistic or morose about it, the acceptance of these things is portrayed in a positive light for the characters and the world.

I feel like it's not a common theme I see in modern writing--that they tend to be big on either defying fate successfully or making the acceptance of fate actually give you everything you wanted. Here that is not the case.

Any recommendations for good stories with a similar theming?

Don't care too much about which medium they're in.

I just wanted to order the Discworld collectors edition.The type of reviews I have seen suggest that it can be a calm, relaxing , funny yet philosophical ride . I wanted it so that maybe i can pick a book a month when I am going somewhere or just wanted to relax and not to read some extreme epic fantasy or non fics. Am I correct about the assumptions?

Currently very close to the end of words of radiance, on page 840. I’m In a long distance relationship at the moment, so for the holidays I have to travel to see my girlfriend to spend it with her. I brought my book but I feel guilty if I read it when we’re visiting with each other (even though she says to go ahead, I just always feel guilty doing it when I have plenty of time to read when I’m back home.) So how do others circumvent their addictions to the cosmere or other great fantasy worlds when they aren’t able to read? I’ve been browsing this Reddit and looking at fanart lol, but after four days of being too busy to read I feel like I’m having drug withdrawals

For me it was Excalibur (1981). I'm dating myself, but when I first saw Excalibur -- and it was in a movie theater -- I was completely blown away. The story and the music had me speechless with awe (especially the scene where Arthur's army is riding and the countryside blooms as they gallop past). That made me fall in love with the Carmina Burana "O Fortuna," and I read everything I could in my local library about the Arthurian legends.

The film is dated now, of course, but, oh, what I wouldn't give to reexperience the sheer joy and wonder I felt when I watched that movie for the first time.

What about you? What was the first fantasy film that blew you away?

And by elden ring I mean fantasy books with scenes like when igor from the dlc is screaming at bayle, who is much larger and more powerful than him but he still screams his heart out at him because revenge.

Hey, y'all. I read pretty much exclusively in the fantasy genre, and mostly YA (because young adult books are tamer, when it comes to sexual content). I'm wanting to read more books in the adult category, but am not wanting anything with a lot of romance or sex. And yes, Brandon Sanderson is on my list of authors to check out!

I had fallen out of touch with what was going on with speculative fiction over the last couple of decades, and I have been trying to get back in touch with who is writing books that I can really enjoy.  I’ve been using the bingo reading challenge to, well, challenge myself to read new to me authors.  I’m not the most active poster on the sub, but I do want to give back to the sub with some reviews of what I’ve been reading.  My idiosyncratic rating scale is: excellent (reserved for books that hold up on re-reading), really very good, very good, good, ok, meh, and DNF. I have DNF’d some books that I picked up intending to use them for bingo since my last set of reviews, but I haven’t included them here.

The Bone Harp by Victoria Goddard

Rating: really very good

Stats: high fantasy, multiple third person POV/past tense, non-chronological structure (with flashbacks and dual timeline)

Squares: Dreams (I think hard mode), Bards (HM), Self-published, Multi-POV (HM), 2024

Tamsin came slowly to himself.  He drifted for a long time at the lapping edges between waking and sleep, not quite dreaming, not quite thinking.  Even half-asleep he knew it was an inexplicable peace.  He held himself there, floating in the warmth, his soul open to the sun, listening to the song of water and wind, the coming and going of the sea.

Tamsin is an elven bard, who became a warrior, thrice accursed, mute, maimed, and deprived of any rest or peace due to a misbegotten oath.  The book opens as he awakens with his voice regained, his hands healed, and released from his oath, but without any detailed memory of how this has come to pass.  

I found this book remarkable.  It is clearly influenced by some epic high fantasy, but it deviates from those tropes.  It is definitely not another glorious battle of Good against Evil.  Instead, it shows us that even a just and necessary war, even a war against evil, is ugly, corrupting, and damaging.  And it shows us this not by immersing us in the dark and gritty moments of war (to the extent that we do get to see what happened in the war, it is at a remove).  Instead, we see the affect of the war, on various secondary characters, but most of all, on Tamsin.

The Bone Harp is primarily a character study of Tamsin, and even when he is not the POV character, he is still the focus.  It is poignant and contemplative journey of emotional recovery.  Tamsin rediscovers himself and reasserts his values.  We see him as he regains his memories, his art, and his joy in life.

I understand that this makes it sound like the book is boring.  I resisted picking it up, because I feared that it would be boring, but instead I found it gripping, even heartwrenching at times.  Even at the weakest parts, I could not put it down.  I have spent some time pondering how Goddard succeeds at making such introspective fare so compelling, but I do not have an answer.  It reminds me of the power of Taran Wanderer by Lloyd Alexander, another book in which not much happens, aside from the amazing growth of the protagonist.

I’m not going to claim that this is a book without flaws.  I personally found the motivations of Klara, Tamsin’s love/rival, incomprehensible.  It just didn’t slow me down at all.  

Throughout, Goddard’s prose is lyrical and poetic.  The setting was delightful, highlighting the beauty of nature and simple, timeless pleasures.  These are charming ornamentations to this deep and rich story of character growth.  I highly recommend The Bone Harp.

The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison (🎧 audiobook narrated by Kyle McCarley)

Rating: really very good

Stats: secondary world fantasy with a touch of steampunk, single third person POV/past tense

Bingo Squares: Orcs, Trolls, and Goblins; Reference Materials

This is a great book for those who love character driven stories and political intrigue.  A young man is suddenly catapulted from internal exile to emperor after the murder of his father and elder brothers.  Basically, we follow along as this kind and decent person struggles to find his way in an unfamiliar environment and live up to great responsibilities.  Although when he arrives at court he is uninformed, he is not stupid, nor is he naive.  He has enemies, but he also gains allies.  Addison has crafted an intricate and interesting society with complex characters.  If “a day in the life at court” sounds like your thing, this is your book.

The Greenhollow Duology by Emily Tesh (Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh and Drowned Country by Emily Tesh)

Rating: very good

Stats: historical (Victorian?) MM romance (kisses only) fantasy, each novella is single third person POV/past tense

Bingo Squares: Under the Surface (for Drowned Country), Romantasy, Readalong, arguably Set in a Small Town

The Greenhollow Duology consists of two novellas that tell two different fantasy stories, but one romance.  Silver in the Wood does stand alone, but I am not sure whether Drowned Country does.  In any case, I think it is a richer reading experience to read them both together.  Tesh subtly evokes a lovely world: an eternal forest with dryads and other magical beings, butting up against a world with steam engines and an inexorable ocean.  

Tobias took up a newly sharpened knife and trimmed his fingernails.  He’d meant to do it earlier, but then Silver had been there.  Afterwards he swept up the scattered dry curls of dead leaves and tossed them on the embers.

Both novellas are primarily cozy, with just the slightest hint of something dark.  They are marketed as fantasies, not romance, and quite rightly so, as there is no info-dumping and while the romance features prominently, it doesn’t follow the typical beats of genre romance.  As someone who happens to love genre romance, as well as speculative fiction, I found the romance aspect quite charming.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

Rating: very good

Stats: paranormal MF romance fantasy; two POVs, one is first person, one is third person, both POVs are past tense; some open door sex scenes, not very explicit.

Bingo Squares: First in a Series, Dreams (HM), Romantasy, Dark Academia, arguably Criminals

Let me preface my review by saying that I have been living under a rock, and I hadn’t heard of either the books or the tv show.  For anyone equally ignorant, Diana Bishop is an academic historian and non-practicing witch who, in the course of her studies, becomes embroiled in a supernatural conflict, and turns to Matthew Clairmont, a vampire and biologist, for assistance.

I found this compelling reading.  I was pleasantly surprised at the attention given to how the relationship developed, as I was expecting the book to be rather action oriented.  Harkness may know her history of science, but she doesn’t know biology (including evolution and genetics), and it shows, but I was willing to forgive because the world she created of vampires, witches, and daemons was interesting and fun.  The main characters and many side characters were complex and three dimensional.  The pacing was good and the strong narrative kept me up all night reading and swept me into the next book.

The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo

Rating: good

Stats: historical fantasy, folklore inspired, set in early 20th century Qing era China, dual POV: one is third person/present tense, one is first person/past tense

Bingo Squares: dreams (HM), entitled animals (HM), prologues and epilogues, 2024, author of color, judge a book by its cover, arguably reference materials

Snow, a fox spirit, is grieving the death of her baby daughter and seeks revenge.  Meanwhile, Bao, a 63 year old detective who can hear truth from lies, has been hired to find out the name of a dead young woman.  We meander through their stories in an alternating fashion, and eventually the two stories converge.  It is slow and dreamy and melancholic.  The characters, including many side characters are well fleshed out.  Both main characters have to make peace with their past.  Choo also explores different forms of love, romantic love, but also parental love.  

I had high hopes for this, and although there is much to admire here, it didn’t quite land for me.  I think its aspirations towards literary fiction and its experimentations with conventions probably interfered with my enjoyment.  The language is simple, but I’m not a fan of first person narrative, and I really have difficulty with present tense narrative.  Throughout the first two thirds of the book, I liked it well enough while I was reading, but didn’t feel called to pick it back up and continue reading.  There were several occasions throughout the book that Snow postpones sharing information (“more about that later”), and I think that may have contributed to my disengagement.  I appreciated learning about Chinese folklore and history, but  I wonder whether a more conversant reader would find all the explanations superfluous and annoying.

I typically enjoy character driven fiction and folklore inspired fantasy, and don’t usually mind a slow pace, but in this case, although I liked The Fox Wife, I didn’t love it.

I’m talking what book gave you chills or made you cry or you think is the best thing ever

Could be covert like the claw from malazan or the cia or just part of kingdoms top squad, preferably overowered and confident like James Bond or John Wick

What book has a major character sacrifice themselves in a way that really stuck with you? (Understanding that the answer may be a spoiler so reader beware!)

I'm currently in a remote Swedish cottage surrounded by forests full of lush moss and HUGE stones. I'd love to find a fitting book with trolls, but also wouldn't mind fairies, elves, and dwarves in it. Thank you 💚🦦

I really enjoy reading the big Harry Potter illustrated books, as well as “All Tomorrows” by Koseman and “Expedition” by Barlowe (which are sci-fi).

Are there any similar books in the fantasy genre? Big (not normal books size) Illustrated books with big, full page, illustrations?

I am not a huge fan of graphic novels, I’m even okay if the books are considered “children’s” as long as the writing and art is well done.

Does anybody know of / own art books that include a lot of richly illustrated fantasy landscape paintings?

I attempted the first book of the BotNS a few years ago and struggled heavily with it, so much so I didn’t get past the first few chapters. I just couldn’t get my head round what I was supposed to be reading.

I always said to myself I’d make an effort to try it again.

Having just finished it I can see this time was an entirely different experience.

The plot of the book itself is actually not hard to follow at all. It’s very simple.

The challenge comes in the world building and piecing the together the obscure language Wolfe uses to wade through the dreamlike prose and setting.

Coming to realise bit by bit the setting is a sort post historical world was quite a fun experience and you find yourself eagerly anticipating the little nuggets of information scattered around the book. Whether it be things Severian directly observes or choices words said from folk he encounters.

I’m glad a tackled it again but I don’t think I going to be in a rush to move on the next one just yet. I’m gonna try my hand at something lighter for the time being.

Hi,

Is there some high fantasy bands like Rhapsody with concept albums telling a single story. I already know Ancient Bards and Twilight Force. ( Don't mention Blind Guardian I don't like that band at all and they don't have epic fantasy albums telling one story. Yes i know Nightfall album and it's not even symphonic metal )

It's a very small book, I've purposefully been looking for lesser known authors (who are published by a publisher whose looking at one of my books) and I finished the first book of the trilogy and I didn't HATE it, 2-2 1/2 stars for sure (Which I would say on my 5 point scale is average enjoying) but I didn't fall in love with it, I don't HAVE to know what happens, but I'm curious and there are some characters I really liked, but I'm just not motivated to continue the series, so like...how do you guys deal with this kind of feeling? Like that story is in my brain now and I have questions about it, but like, the questions are annoying but I don't feel like I care enough to try and get them answered

(For the Killing of Kings, Howard Andrew Jones)

im looking for a book to buy my friend theyre mid teens and really have a big imagination so whats the best book for them?

So as the title says I'm looking for something to read, and fantasy is pretty much the only genre I read lol, I've read books recommended by tik tok and such that say they are "the best book ever" but I haven't found them that entertaining, I've read lies of locke lamora, and it's really good, I've read mistborn, and that was lacking, and I'm currently reading assassin's apprentice by robin hobb, and its like there's almost no dialogue, fitz just stats quite most of the time and doesn't speak and it feels like the author doesn't know how to write interactions between people, the same characters say and do the same things every time they interact with the main character, my favorite series is the night angel trilogy by Brent weeks, I love the quick witted main character and the blend of different characters we actually see grow and form new ideas and personalities throughout the book, the book doesn't have to be about assassins lol, I've ready plenty of other books, I'm just looking for recommendations, TIA

This is the Monthly Megathread for December. It's where the mod team links important things. It will always be stickied at the top of the subreddit. Please regularly check here for things like official movie and TV discussions, book club news, important subreddit announcements, etc.

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Goodreads Book of the Month: The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

Run by u/kjmichaels and u/fanny_bertram

• Announcement
• Midway Discussion - Dec 16th - Read Chapter 1 through Chapter 16
• Final Discussion - Dec 30th - Read Chapter 17 to the end of the book

HEA: Will return in January with The Stars Too Fondly by Emily Hamilton

Run by u/tiniestspoon, , u/orangewombat

• Announcement

Feminism in Fantasy: Will return in January with Metal from Heaven by August Clarke

Run by u/xenizondich23, u/Nineteen_Adze, u/g_ann, u/Moonlitgrey

• Announcement

New Voices: WIll return in January

Run by u/HeLiBeB, u/cubansombrero, u/Cassandra_Sanguine

• Final Discussion for November's Book

Beyond Binaries: Blackfish City by Sam J Miller

Run by u/xenizondich23, u/anarchist_aestete, and u/eregis

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• Final Discussion - Dec 26th

Resident Authors Book Club: My Boss is the Devil by Ben Schenkman

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• Announcement

Short Fiction Book Club

Run by u/tarvolon, u/Nineteen_Adze, u/Jos_V

• Announcement
• Dec 4 - Discussion

Read-along of The Thursday Next Series: Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde

Run by u/cubansombrero

• Announcement
• Midway Discussion - Dec 11th - Chapters 1-18
• Final Discussion - Dec 20th - Chapters 19-34

After feeling very out of the loop for the last few years on most of the books that got nominated for awards, I have decided that 2024 is my year of reading stuff being currently published.  While I will no doubt get sidetracked by shiny baubles from the past, I am going to be completing a bingo card with books solely written in 2024. 

Dreadful had floated on and off my reading list for this project for a while. Villain stories were definitely in this year, and I figured that Majordomo probably filled the same slot, so I kicked it off the list. When something is available now at the library though, and you need an audiobook … well it was tough to say no

This book is good for readers who like tongue in cheek stories, D&D tropes, mildly self-aware books

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Elevator Pitch:  A dark lord has lost his memories, only to find he has a princess in his dungeon, incompetent goblins for servants, and an even darker lord nosing their way into his business. Unfortunately, he doesn’t know his name or what on earth is going on. Plus … he’s not so sure he liked the person he used to be anyways.

What Worked for Me This book was probably a best case scenario for an audiobook for me. I oftentimes drop details when listening as I get distracted by poor drivers, my dog yanking me to chase a squirrel, or a particularly tough patch of dried food on a plate. Dreadful was always easy to slip back into, mostly because it’s a story that goes along with all your expectations for how a story like this is going to go. The narrator was pleasant, and the plot engaging enough for me to keep going, even if I wasn’t finding excuses to listen like I would for some books.

If you want a book that’s largely inoffensive, plays with D&D ideas, and does what you expect it to, this is a really good option.

What Didn’t Work for Me Unfortunately, that general air of ‘it’s fine’ isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement either. This book just sort of … existed. It never did anything particularly surprising or ambitious, and the prose and dialogue weren’t engaging enough to carry a predictable plot into the realm of greatness. It’s sort of like unbuttered popcorn: I’m fine grazing it, but it never really leaves an impact on your taste buds.

I also think the book was rather too heavy handed on themes I found basic and insipid. The main thematic thrust is that people will manipulate their appearances and actions to match your expectations, and to make assumptions at your own peril. But it wasn’t particularly novel with how it presented these ideas, and hit you on the head with it over and over. Yes, the seductress witch is just leaning into the stereotype because it was the easiest way to control sexist men; yes the goblins are playing dumb because that way they don’t get put into actually dangerous situations; yes the super uncomfortable robe the main character wears is more for impact and not for daily use, because how will people know to fear him if he isn’t wearing it?

It just felt very 2015. I don’t disagree with any of it, but it all felt so terribly basic. And while I don’t mind basic stories with basic themes, I needed other elements to carry the interest more. Majordomo isn’t exactly the same premise, but its a novella that does very similar things in a much smaller package with a more interesting lead character (and honestly, more interesting things to say about manipulating people’s perceptions of you for your benefit).

But this book didn’t leave me DNFing, so there’s at least some nuggets of interest here

TL:DR an inoffensive story that rehashes old ground, but is a pleasant enough read

Bingo Squares:  Criminals, Published in 2024, Character with a Disability (HM: Amnesia), Orcs Trolls and Goblins, Small Towns, Eldritch Beings

Previous Reviews for this Card

Welcome to Forever - My current ‘best read of the year’ a psychedelic roller coaster of edited and fragmented memories of a dead ex-husband

Infinity Alchemist - a dark academia/romantasy hybrid with refreshing depictions of various queer identities

Someone You Can Build a Nest In - a cozy/horror/romantasy mashup about a shapeshifting monster surviving being hunted and navigating first love

Cascade Failure - a firefly-esque space adventure with a focus on character relationships and found family

The Fox Wife - a quiet and reflective historical fantasy involving a fox trickster and an investigator in early-1900s China

Indian Burial Ground - a horror book focusing on Native American folklore and social issues

The Bullet Swallower - follow two generations (a bandit and an actor) of a semi-cursed family in a wonderful marriage between Western and Magical Realism

Floating Hotel - take a journey on a hotel spaceship, floating between planets and points of view as you follow the various staff and guests over the course of a very consequential few weeks

A Botanical Daughter - a botanist and a taxidermist couple create the daughter they could never biologically create using a dead body, a foreign fungus, and lots of houseplants.

The Emperor and the Endless Palace - a pair of men find each other through the millennia in a carnal book embracing queer culture and tangled love throughout the ages

Majordomo - a quick D&D-esque novella from the point of view of the estate manager of a famous necromancer who just wants the heros to stop attacking them so they can live in peace

Death’s Country - a novel-in-verse retelling of Orpheus and Eurydice set in modern day Brazil & Miami

The Silverblood Promise - a relatively paint-by-numbers modern epic fantasy set in a mercantile city with a disgraced noble lead

The Bone Harp - a lyrical novel about the greatest bard of the world, after he killed the great evil one, dead and reincarnated, seeking a path towards healing and hope

Mana Mirror - a really fun book with positive vibes, a queernorm world, and slice of live meets progression fantasy elements

Soul Cage - a dark heroic/epic fantasy where killing grants you magic via their souls. Notable for the well-done autism representation in a main character.

Goddess of the River - Goddess of the River tells the story of the river Ganga from The Mahabharata, spanning decades as she watches the impact of her actions on humanity.

Evocation - f you’re looking for a novel take on romance that doesn’t feel sickly sweet, this book is delightfully arcane, reveling in real world magical traditions as inspiration.  Fun characters with great writing.

Convergence Problems - A short fiction collection with a strong focus on Nigerian characters/settings/issues, near-future sci-fi, and the nature of consciousness.

The Woods All Black -An atmospheric queer horror book that finds success in leveraging reality as the primary driver of horror.  Great book, and a quick read. 

The Daughter’s War - a book about war, and goblins, and a woman caught up in the center of it.  It’s dark, and messy, and can (perhaps should) be read before Blacktongue Thief.

The Brides of High Hill - a foray into horror elements, this Singing Hills novella was excellent in isolation, but didn’t feel thematically or stylistically cohesive with the rest of the series it belongs to.

The Wings Upon Her Back - A book about one woman’s training to serve in a facist regime and her journey decades later to try and bring it crumbling down.

Rakesfall - A wildly experimental book about parallel lives, this book is great for people who like dense texts that force you to commit a lot of brain power to getting meaning out of it.

Running Close to the Wind - A comedic book following a former intelligence operative on his ex’s pirate ship trying to sell state secrets. Features a hot celibate monk and a cake competition. Loved every second of it.

The Tainted Cup -A classically inspired murder mystery set in a fantasy world defined by alchemical grafts. Tightly written, and a really great read.

Masquerade -a story blending Persephone with precolonial Africa, Masquerade is a straightforward (if perhaps a hair shallow) look into power, sexism, and love.

Ministry of Time -Ministry of Time follows a British Governmental officer helping refugees from history adapt to modern life, and ends up in a minor romance/thriller situation.

Mistress of Lies -A vampire-adjacent dystopian romantasy featuring great romantic tension, but I wish had more political depth to it.

The Storm Beneath the World - A phenomenal epic fantasy featuring insect-cultures on floating islands featuring ambitious worldbuilding, great characters, and an engaging plot.

The Sapling Cage - Epic Fantasy with witchcraft at the core and a compelling trans lead character. If that idea is intriguing, this book is for you.

The Mars House - A really interesting portrait of a martian colony with some compelling political conundrums, with a romance bubbling under the surface.

An Academy for Liars -  A dark academia book with gothic vibes, a problematic romance, and lots of fun plot beats

The Scarlet Throne -  A really solid debut fantasy novel telling the villain origin story of a girl with a demon impersonating a Living Goddess.

The Dollmakers - A prodigy dollmaker who doesn’t take criticism well sets off to try and vanquish the evil attacking the land. A solid standalone with some plotting issue in the middle, with promise of future books in the world following other characters.

Yield Under Great Persuasion - A gay romance with a prickly lead character forced to confront his own personality flaws and grow through them. Delightfully free of miscommunication plot lines

The Lost Story - A disappointing ‘meta-fairy tale’ story that struggled with characterization, plotting, and quality gay representation.

When I was young , I didn't have any ereader experience and used to read in any paper back I would find ( even secondhand often) because they are cost effective.

Reading became a kind of addiction ( NOT A GOOD THING ) , didn't want to buy 10 plus books a month with my parents money, started reading mistborn in tablet . Then read Stormlight and so on so on....

Then I became financially Independent, money became less of a barrier for many reasonable things . I decided to put some favourite books in a bookshelf . Bought some special editions, liked them a lot .

Two years later , I have around 60 books in my bookshelf . Some books look extremely good ( dragonsteel , Folio society etc ) .But it's no longer about just having my favourite books in my shelf it's about having my favourite books in the best looking edition which are ever growing because of how the markets are expanding now a days .

I decided recently that I am gonna only have normal paperback or hardcover from now onwards , it will reduce the number of choices I have or will have .

I know life experiences, hobbies, desire ,need differs from person to person . But if possible do give some feedback or opinions . I would love to know what do you all think.

Thanks .

I'm looking for fantasy books to help me get into the holiday spirit. They don't necessarily have to be about the holidays per se. I'm just looking for books that have a strong wintery or Christmasy vibe or ones that at least partially take place during Christmas. For example, the first few Harry Potter books especially always make me think of the holidays because of the Christmas and winter scenes. Also, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Also, if you know of any fantasy retellings of classic Christmas stories like The Nutcracker or something, that could be cool too.

After reading Dragonbone Chair and absolutely loving it, I came into this one with high expectations. Unfortunately, this book was a little disappointing though… It wasn’t bad by any means, but it feels like a serious case of “middle-book-syndrome.”

CHARACTERS There were some interesting choices in this book regarding characters. Our two “main” characters (Simon and Miriamele) are kind of sidelined for most of the book. Simon is trapped in a beautiful world with not much to do, and Miri’s plotline seems more and more pointless as I continue to read… Then you have certain side characters like Maegwin and Tinukai’i whose plotlines were kind of boring to read, unfortunately. (It seemed like both were setting up a lot of world-building stuff, but without knowing what, it drags) On a positive note, I loved Binibik and Sludig in this novel.

PACING I kind of forgave the first novel’s pacing a little, as it was the setup book for the series. And, I actually believe that the pacing in Dragonbone Chair is better than people think. However, the pacing in this book is pretty bad… Most of the vents feel kind of “side-quest-y”, and everything really seems to take too long. Now when stuff does happen, it is amazing. I loved Josua’s fight, the witch lady that Simon encountered, the ending with the Sithi… But this book really could have been half its length.

PLOT This book feels almost entirely like setup, and because we don’t really get any of the payoff until (i’m assuming) the next book, it’s a little disappointing. We get more and more POVs, and all the plotlines seem more spread out than ever, and I do believe that when they eventually converge it will make for some great reading. I was also quite disappointed that my two least favorite storylines by far involved two of the three main women (Maegwin and Miri). They aren’t exactly the most likeable characters, and it’s such a shame that I find their POVs kind of boring. (I also really didn’t like Miri’s final scene in the book; it made me a little too uncomfortable and felt unneeded)

CONCLUSION While not “bad”, I really did find this second book to be a little disappointing. The slow pacing, which didn’t bother me as much before, was starting to get to me some, and I’m just a little uncertain about it all going into the last book. I’m hoping that To Green Angel Tower will be satisfying, and maybe if it is, I’ll enjoy Stone of Farewell more on a possible reread.

RATINGS Dragonbone Chair - 9.5/10 Stone of Farewell - 8/10 To Green Angel Tower - ???