Priest of Lies by Peter McLean

Please note, Priest of Lies is the second book in an on-going series. If you haven’t read the first book in the War for the Rose Throne, Priest of Bones, then what follows will likely contain some minor spoilers. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. I don’t want to have to send the Pious Men round to sort you out! People are weak, and the poorer and more oppressed they are, the weaker they become–until they can’t take it anymore. And when they rise up…may the gods help their oppressors. When Read more […]

The Gameshouse by Claire North
Claire North , Fantasy , Orbit / May 30, 2019

Everyone has heard of the Gameshouse. But few know all its secrets… It is the place where fortunes can be made and lost through chess, backgammon – every game under the sun. But those whom fortune favors may be invited to compete in the higher league… a league where the games played are of politics and empires, of economics and kings. It is a league where Capture the Castle involves real castles, where hide and seek takes place on the scale of a continent. Among those worthy of competing Read more […]

A Brightness Long Ago by Guy Garivel Kay
Fantasy , Guy Garivel Kay , Hodder / May 24, 2019

In a chamber overlooking the nighttime waterways of a maritime city, a man looks back on his youth and the people who shaped his life. Danio Cerra’s intelligence won him entry to a renowned school even though he was only the son of a tailor. He took service at the court of a ruling count–and soon learned why that man was known as the Beast. Danio’s fate changed the moment he saw and recognized Adria Ripoli as she entered the count’s chambers one autumn night–intending to kill. Born to power, Read more […]

The Poison Song by Jen Williams
Fantasy , Headline , Jen Williams / May 16, 2019

Please note, The Poison Song is the third book in The Winnowing Flame trilogy. If you haven’t read books one and two then what follows will likely contain spoilery type information. Don’t say I didn’t warn you in advance. All is chaos. All is confusion. The Jure’lia are weak, but the war is far from over. Ebora was once a glorious city, defended by legendary warriors and celebrated in song. Now refugees from every corner of Sarn seek shelter within its crumbling walls, and the enemy Read more […]

Breaking The Lore by Andy Redsmith
Andy Redsmith , Canelo , Fantasy / April 12, 2019

How do you stop a demon invasion… when you don’t believe in magic? Inspector Nick Paris is a man of logic and whisky. So staring down at the crucified form of a murder victim who is fifteen centimetres tall leaves the seasoned detective at a loss… and the dead fairy is only the beginning. Suddenly the inspector is offering political asylum to dwarves, consulting with witches, getting tactical advice from elves and taking orders from a chain-smoking talking crow who, technically, outranks Read more […]

The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie
Ann Leckie , Fantasy , Orbit / February 28, 2019

For centuries, the kingdom of Iraden has been protected by the god known as the Raven. He watches over his territory from atop a tower in the powerful port of Vastai. His will is enacted through the Raven’s Lease, a human ruler chosen by the god himself. His magic is sustained via the blood sacrifice that every Lease must offer. And under the Raven’s watch, the city flourishes. But the power of the Raven is weakening. A usurper has claimed the throne. The kingdom borders are tested by invaders Read more […]

The Hod King by Josiah Bancroft
Fantasy , Josiah Bancroft , Orbit / January 12, 2019

Please note – The Hod King is the third book in the ongoing going series The Books of Babel. If you haven’t read books one and two then what follows is likely to contain some minor spoilery type elements. Consider yourself suitably warned! Fearing an uprising, the Sphinx sends Senlin to investigate a plot that has taken hold in the ringdom of Pelphia. Alone in the city, Senlin infiltrates a bloody arena where hods battle for the public’s entertainment. But his investigation is quickly derailed Read more […]

The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Hanrahan
Crime , Fantasy , Gareth Hanrahan , Orbit / January 5, 2019

A group of three young thieves are pulled into a centuries old magical war between ancient beings, mages, and humanity in this wildly original debut epic fantasy. The city has always been. The city must finally end. When three thieves – an orphan, a ghoul, and a cursed man – are betrayed by the master of the thieves guild, their quest for revenge uncovers dark truths about their city and exposes a dangerous conspiracy, the seeds of which were sown long before they were born. Cari is a drifter Read more […]

Children of Artifice by Danie Ware
Danie Ware , Fantasy , Fox Spirit / December 6, 2018

An ancient city, sealed in a vast crater. A history of metallurgical magic, and of Builders that could craft the living, breathing stone. Caphen Talmar is the high-born son of an elite family, descended from the Builders themselves, his artistic career ruined when his ex-lover broke his fingers. One night, gambling down at the wharfside – somewhere he shouldn’t have been in the first place – he meets Aden. An uncomplicated, rough-edged dockworker, Aden is everything Caph needs to forget Read more […]

Something Wicked by K T Davies
Fantasy , K T Davies , Scimitar Media / November 22, 2018

Please note, Something Wicked is the third novel in The Chronicles of Breed. If I was prone to giving advice, I would strongly suggest you read books one and two before proceeding any further withthis review. Not only will it ensure you are informed of Breed’s prior misadventures you’d also avoid any potential minor spoilery type elements which may follow. I’d imagine the author of said novels would also be entirely appreciative of your additional custom. We all know how it goes. You’re Read more […]

Priest of Bones by Peter McLean
Crime , Fantasy , Jo Fletcher Books , Peter McLean / October 4, 2018

It’s a dangerous thing, to choose the lesser of two evils. The war is over, and army priest Tomas Piety finally heads home with Lieutenant Bloody Anne at his side. When he arrives in the Stink, Tomas finds that his empire of crime has been stolen from him while at war. With his gang of Pious Men, Tomas will do whatever it takes to reclaim his businesses. But when he finds himself dragged into a web of political intrigue once again, and is forced to work in secret for the sinister Queen’s Men, Read more […]

The Ember Blade by Chris Wooding
Chris Wooding , Fantasy , Gollancz / September 13, 2018

A land under occupation. A legendary sword. A young man’s journey to find his destiny. Aren has lived by the rules all his life. He’s never questioned it; that’s just the way things are. But then his father is executed for treason, and he and his best friend Cade are thrown into a prison mine, doomed to work until they drop. Unless they can somehow break free. But what lies beyond the prison walls is more terrifying still. Rescued by a man who hates him yet is oath-bound to Read more […]

Bloody Rose by Nicholas Eames
Fantasy , Nicholas Eames , Orbit / August 30, 2018

Please note, though not a direct sequel, Bloody Rose is set in the same shared universe as Kings of the Wyld. If you haven’t read that first there may well be minor spoilers in the review below. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya! Live fast, die young. Tam Hashford is tired of working at her local pub, slinging drinks for world-famous mercenaries and listening to the bards sing of adventure and glory in the world beyond her sleepy hometown. When the biggest mercenary band of Read more […]