Tag: books
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Book Review: Five Dark Fates (Three Dark Crowns #4) by Kendare Blake
I have been loyally following Kendare Blake’s Three Dark Crowns (TDC) series since Three Dark Crowns (#1) was published in September 2016. As personal preferences go, Three Dark Crowns seemed to be right up my alley; I liked the darker, intense fantasy, especially if it features an interesting magic system. Rating: 3/5 Stars Note: spoiler-free …
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What is Fantasy?
I recently watched an old youtube podcast involving three hosts talk about fantasy. (For the intensely curious: The Story Telling Podcast #16: Writing Fantasy) It was clear that they were not particularly well-versed in the genre, and to be fair it was back from 2013. However, as I listened to them try to to define…
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Book Review: The Gathering Storm (WoT #12) by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
The end is drawing near. As the characters are preparing for the impending Last Battle, the narrative grows more intense and the stakes grow higher. The Gathering Storm focuses primarily on Rand al’Thor and Egwene al’Vere as they try to rally their people towards peace and unity; chaos and bloodshed will only provide the Dark…
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Setting Study: Gatlon City from Renegades
One doesn’t usually expect a rich world-building experience from a superhero novel, although one of the many reasons for it is that, most often, superhero novels are either based in real Earth-cities, or is at least situated in a sort of universe that is very Earth-like. In some capacity, it resembles that of an urban…
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Book Review: Supernova (Renegades #3) by Marissa Meyer
I wanted to hurry up and finish the series since Archenemies hadn’t taken me nearly as long to read as I’d worried it would. I’d forgotten how fast YA books tend to read, at least in comparison to the Wheel of Time series. So I pushed through this on my break at work and also…
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Book Review: Archenemies (Renegades #2) by Marissa Meyer
Almost two and a half years ago, only a few months after its publication, I picked up Renegades hoping it would be another Lunar Chronicles. I left that book feeling somewhat disappointed; neither hating it nor loving it, but rather just sort of wishing it had given me something more. I’ve had its sequels, Archenemies…
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Book Review: Knife of Dreams (Wot #11) by Robert Jordan
After the slow-moving narrative of the previous book, Knife of Dreams is all it’s hyped up to be. Many of the plotlines that dragged Crossroads of Twilight are officially brought to a close as everyone steels themselves for the last battle. I’ll talk about the pacing of the overall series below, but first, let’s dive…
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My Quarantine TBR List
With so much time on my hands, I’ve been reading through books like crazy. Even Wheel of Time goes pretty quick now that I’m able to read two to three chapters each day. As I result, I ended up buying a handful of books recently, adding to my growing list of books to read. It’ll…
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Writing Programs Review: yWriter
As a novelist, something that I’ve learned along the way is the importance of a good writing program. Similar to the reading experience, any tools that a writer can utilize to making writing and keeping track of information will ultimately help keep the creativity flowing. I have most extensively used Google Drive throughout my writing…
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Setting Study: The Dells from Fire
Although not a particularly rich world, The Dells from Kristin Cashore’s Fire (Graceling Realm #2) touches on many world-building elements that give it a realistic feel. The Dells, set apart from the Graceling Realm by nigh-impassable mountains, has its own unique magic system that comes simply in the form of its so-called monsters. The novel…
Katie Bachelder 