What a year for science fiction and fantasy books. The Quill to Live has been around for almost 8 years and I have been making these lists like clockwork for that entire span. Since I started doing this, I think 2022 is the strongest year for SFF I have ever seen. We struggled to cut…
I decided my first introduction to Haruki Murakami would be The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. The book sat on my shelf for months because I never felt ready enough to open it up. However, if I’ve learned anything after finally picking up this book, it’s that no one can ever be ready for Murakami, so stop…
Continue reading ➞ The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle – Extreme Bird Watching
Have you ever wanted to turn to a colleague and exclaim “wow, you’re a coward,” and have legitimate grounds to stand on? What if that colleague was a good friend who told you to read a book, and you stonewalled them forever because “you had better books to read than ones they already read?” Well,…
That’s a wrap, folks! Brandon Sanderson closed out Mistborn era two with an explosive climax. Not only that, but The Lost Metal is by far the most Cosmere-aware book he’s released to date. With that in mind, I encourage you to steer clear of this review if you aren’t already deep into the Comsere’s many…
Come one, come all to the Cosmere! That’s right folks, after years of Brandon Sanderson reviews and discussions, we’re finally laying down the law. Today, one and a half Brandon Sanderson experts (Andrew and Cole, respectively) shoulder the Herculean task of telling YOU the ideal Brandon Sanderson reading order. A few clean-up notes before we…
Continue reading ➞ Welcome To The Cosmere: A Brandon Sanderson Reading Order Guide
This review’s subtitle might throw you off if you haven’t read any of the Skyward series yet. Head to my review of the first book if you count yourself among the confused. For those of you who are caught up, we now turn to Cytonic the third installment in Brandon Sanderson’s high-flying, space-faring romp. Cytonic…
When I first read the synopsis for Ray Nayler’s debut novel, The Mountain In the Sea, I felt threatened. The description of the book felt pointedly aimed at me and my parasocial relationship with Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Children books. I didn’t exactly pass right over it, but I didn’t really engage with the possibility of reading…
Continue reading ➞ The Mountain In The Sea – Peak Performance
Is Ordinary Monsters too long? Possibly. But while I was not dissuaded by the page count, I was exasperated by the end of the book. The book’s strong, descriptive start quickly turns into a chaotic story that hopped, skipped, and jumped to its ending. There are extraordinary children in the world, children with unnatural Talents.…
Last year, I was humbled before Gautam Bhatia’s The Wall. It refused to conform to my hopes, remaining a solid and unforgettable presence through the year. So of course, it was not long until Gautam teased me with the fact that there was a sequel. I can’t tell you how excited I was at the…
Brandon Sanderson’s Cytoverse, in which the Cytonic series takes place, just got a whole lot bigger. Starsight follows Skyward with another epic space adventure. There’s a lot to love in Starsight but the book suffers from some classic foibles. After discovering The Krell are humanity’s galactic babysitters, Spensa and her plucky flight crew bust through…
