A Gamer Geek's Cogitations, Conjectures and other Cortical Experiences

Tag: fantasy novels

Empire (In Her Name: Redemption)

Book Review: Empire (In Her Name: Redemption)

Empire (In Her Name: Redemption, #1)Empire by Michael R. Hicks
My rating: [rating=4]
(Click here to see this review on Goodreads)

Empire is a classic example of trying out a book that I haven’t heard of before, written by an author I haven’t read before and enjoying every page. Fantasy books can often be a hit or miss but I think Empire is a definite hit. I follow Michael R. Hicks on Twitter and happened to notice he had a newsletter which I signed up for and that ultimately lead me to three free ebook downloads. Empire was one of those books.

Earth is all but destroyed. The humans are at war with an alien race of female warriors. Reza Gard survives an attack on his family, is transported to a planet for orphan children where he begins to emerge as a born leader and warrior. Then he is abducted by the same aliens that killed his family. Now he is on their home planet, where they are training him for combat, but to what end?

When you reach the end of this book you will be hooked. You will want to read more because you need to know the answers to all the questions in your mind.

The three free downloads were the first books of three of his trilogies. It was a great marketing idea because, after reading Empire, I will be picking up the two remaining books in this series. I will also, eventually pick up the other books as well (I only have so much money budgeted for books). He also just published a new book, Vulcan’s Fury: The Dark Lands, which is already getting 5 stars on Goodreads and Amazon. I think Michael R. Hicks will be another author that will be on my “read more” list.

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Empire (In Her Name: Redemption)

Book Review: Darkfever

Darkfever (Fever, #1)Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
My rating:[rating=3]
(Click here to read this review on Goodreads)

This was another one of those books I snagged for free, probably from Book Bub. The book starts kind of slow. I had a hard time with the main character ultimately having some kind of supernatural abilities. She seemed like such a plain Jane/fashionista, which may have been the author’s intention. When Mac was described as having pink fingernails and ostentatious clothing, I started envisioning Reese Witherspoon from Legally Blonde.

I never stop reading a book; once I start it I intend to finish it no matter how horrid I think the book is. This book was not horrid, just slow to get started. By the end, however, I was starting to get hooked. In fact, under the right circumstances, I may even be inclined to pick up the next book to see what happens next.

While I may be off to a slow start with this author, that doesn’t mean I would turn away from anything else Moning has written. On the contrary, I would probably feel quite compelled to read it.

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Empire (In Her Name: Redemption)

Book Review: Blood and Masks

Blood and Masks (Neva Cora, #1)Blood and Masks by Alex Ziebart
My rating: [rating=4]
(Click here to see this review on Goodreads.)

If you’re a gamer, specifically MMOs like World of Warcraft, then you will enjoy this book. If you happen to read Blizzard Watch frequently then you should know this author. Alex Ziebart is the Editor-in-Chief and owner of the Blizzard Watch blog site. This book was his debut novel as a fantasy author.

I’d say, for a newbie author, his first book was well done. I haven’t read a lot of fantasy novels but the world he created in Blood and Masks seemed pretty unique to me. That’s not to say he didn’t borrow from the vast world of fantasy races, but he doesn’t violate any canon rules (i.e. elves). He does create his own class of fantasy race called “minari”, which does have some “demon hunter” influence but still remains unique. The minari world Ziebart creates is intriguing and I hope to learn more about their kind in future novels.

I hope this novel brings Alex success and motivation to continue writing fantasy. I think, with Blood and Masks, he is off to a great start.

Recommended for any fantasy reader.

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