Posts in "recap"

August 12, 2024

Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft

The basics

Title: Senlin Ascends

Author:

Series: The Books of Babel #1

- Senlin Ascends (2013)
- Arm of the Sphinx (2014)
- The Hod King (2019)
- The Fall of Babel (2021)

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Goodreads Summary:

The Tower of Babel is the greatest marvel in the world. Immense as a mountain, the ancient Tower holds unnumbered ringdoms, warring and peaceful, stacked one on the other like the layers of a cake. It is a world of geniuses and tyrants, of airships and steam engines, of unusual animals and mysterious machines.

Soon after arriving for his honeymoon at the Tower, the mild-mannered headmaster of a small village school, Thomas Senlin, gets separated from his wife, Marya, in the overwhelming swarm of tourists, residents, and miscreants.

Senlin is determined to find Marya, but to do so he'll have to navigate madhouses, ballrooms, and burlesque theaters. He must survive betrayal, assassins, and the long guns of a flying fortress. But if he hopes to find his wife, he will have to do more than just endure.

This quiet man of letters must become a man of action.
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Posted by Amber • No comments
August 5, 2024

Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

The basics

Title: Assistant to the Villain

Author:

Series: Assistant to the Villain #1

- Assistant to the Villain (2023)
- Apprentice to the Villain (2024)

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Goodreads Summary:

With ailing family to support, Evie Sage's employment status isn't just important, it's vital. So when a mishap with Rennedawn’s most infamous Villain results in a job offer—naturally, she says yes. No job is perfect, of course, but even less so when you develop a teeny crush on your terrifying, temperamental, and undeniably hot boss. Don’t find evil so attractive, Evie.

But just when she’s getting used to severed heads suspended from the ceiling and the odd squish of an errant eyeball beneath her heel, Evie suspects this dungeon has a huge rat…and not just the literal kind. Because something rotten is growing in the kingdom of Rennedawn, and someone wants to take the Villain—and his entire nefarious empire—out.

Now Evie must not only resist drooling over her boss but also figure out exactly who is sabotaging his work…and ensure he makes them pay.

After all, a good job is hard to find.
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Posted by Amber • No comments
August 4, 2024

The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent

The basics

Title: The Serpent and the Wings of Night

Author:

Series: Crowns of Nyaxia #1

- The Serpent and the Wings of Night (2022)
- The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King (2023)
- The Songbird and the Heart of Stone (2024)

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Goodreads Summary:

The adopted human daughter of the Nightborn vampire king, Oraya carved her place in a world designed to kill her. Her only chance to become something more than prey is entering the Kejari: a legendary tournament held by the goddess of death herself. But winning won’t be easy amongst the most vicious warriors from all three vampire houses. To survive, Oraya is forced to make an alliance with a mysterious rival. Everything about Raihn is dangerous. He is a ruthless vampire, an efficient killer, an enemy to her father’s crown… and her greatest competition. Yet, what terrifies Oraya most of all is that she finds herself oddly drawn to him. But there’s no room for compassion in the Kejari. War for the House of Night brews, shattering everything that Oraya thought she knew about her home. And Raihn may understand her more than anyone – but their blossoming attraction could be her downfall, in a kingdom where nothing is more deadly than love.
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Posted by Amber • No comments
July 13, 2024

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden

The basics

Title: The Housemaid

Author:

Series: The Housemaid #1

- The Housemaid (2022)
- The Housemaid's Secret (2023)
- The Housemaid is Watching (2024)

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Goodreads Summary:

Every day I clean the Winchesters’ beautiful house top to bottom. I collect their daughter from school. And I cook a delicious meal for the whole family before heading up to eat alone in my tiny room on the top floor.

I try to ignore how Nina makes a mess just to watch me clean it up. How she tells strange lies about her own daughter. And how her husband Andrew seems more broken every day. But as I look into Andrew’s handsome brown eyes, so full of pain, it’s hard not to imagine what it would be like to live Nina’s life. The walk-in closet, the fancy car, the perfect husband.

I only try on one of Nina’s pristine white dresses once. Just to see what it’s like. But she soon finds out… and by the time I realize my attic bedroom door only locks from the outside, it’s far too late.

But I reassure myself: the Winchesters don’t know who I really am.

They don’t know what I’m capable of…
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Posted by Amber • No comments
July 1, 2024

Powerless by Lauren Roberts

The basics

Title: Powerless

Author:

Series: Powerless #1

- Powerless (2023)
- Reckless (2024)
- Untitled (2025)

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Goodreads Summary:

Only the extraordinary belong in the kingdom of Ilya—the exceptional, the empowered, the Elites.

The powers these Elites have possessed for decades were graciously gifted to them by the Plague, though not all were fortunate enough to both survive the sickness and reap the reward. Those born Ordinary are just that—ordinary. And when the king decreed that all Ordinaries be banished in order to preserve his Elite society, lacking an ability suddenly became a crime—making Paedyn Gray a felon by fate and a thief by necessity.

Surviving in the slums as an Ordinary is no simple task, and Paedyn knows this better than most. Having been trained by her father to be overly observant since she was a child, Paedyn poses as a Psychic in the crowded city, blending in with the Elites as best she can in order to stay alive and out of trouble. Easier said than done.

When Paeydn unsuspectingly saves one of Ilyas princes, she finds herself thrown into the Purging Trials. The brutal competition exists to showcase the Elites’ powers—the very thing Paedyn lacks. If the Trials and the opponents within them don’t kill her, the prince she’s fighting feelings for certainly will if he discovers what she is—completely Ordinary.
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Posted by Amber • No comments
February 22, 2024

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

The basics

Title: All Systems Red

Author:

Series: The Murderbot Diaries #1

- All Systems Red (2017)
- Artificial Condition (2018)
- Rogue Protocol (2018)
- Exit Strategy (2018)
- Network Effect (2020)
- Fugitive Telemetry (2021)
- System Collapse (2023)

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Goodreads Summary:

In a corporate-dominated space-faring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. For their own safety, exploratory teams are accompanied by Company-supplied security androids. But in a society where contracts are awarded to the lowest bidder, safety isn’t a primary concern.

On a distant planet, a team of scientists is conducting surface tests, shadowed by their Company-supplied ‘droid--a self-aware SecUnit that has hacked its own governor module and refers to itself (though never out loud) as “Murderbot.” Scornful of humans, Murderbot wants is to be left alone long enough to figure out who it is, but when a neighboring mission goes dark, it's up to the scientists and Murderbot to get to the truth.
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Posted by Amber • No comments
February 10, 2024

Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor

The basics

Title: Just One Damned Thing After Another

Author:

Series: The Chronicles of St Mary's #1

1. Just One Damned Thing After Another (2013)
2. A Symphony of Echoes (2013)
3. A Second Chance (2014)
4. A Trail Through Time (2014)
5. No Time Like the Past (2015)
6. What Could Possibly Go Wrong? (2016)
& more

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Goodreads Summary:

Behind the seemingly innocuous façade of St Mary's, a different kind of historical research is taking place. They don't do 'time-travel' - they 'investigate major historical events in contemporary time'. Maintaining the appearance of harmless eccentrics is not always within their power - especially given their propensity for causing loud explosions when things get too quiet.

Meet the disaster-magnets of St Mary's Institute of Historical Research as they ricochet around History. Their aim is to observe and document - to try and find the answers to many of History's unanswered questions...and not to die in the process. But one wrong move and History will fight back - to the death. And, as they soon discover - it's not just History they're fighting.
Follow the catastrophe curve from 11th-century London to World War I, and from the Cretaceous Period to the destruction of the Great Library at Alexandria. For wherever Historians go, chaos is sure to follow in their wake....
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Posted by Amber • No comments
January 29, 2024

The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan

The basics

Title: The Justice of Kings

Author:

Series: Empire of the Wolf #1

- The Justice of Kings (2022)
- The Tyranny of Faith (2023)
- The Trials of Empire (2024)

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Goodreads Summary:

The Empire of the Wolf simmers with unrest. Rebels, heretics, and powerful patricians all challenge the power of the Imperial throne. Only the Order of Justices stands in the way of chaos. Sir Konrad Vonvalt is the most feared Justice of all, upholding the law by way of his sharp mind, arcane powers, and skill as a swordsman. At his side stands Helena Sedanka, his talented protégé, orphaned by the wars that forged the Empire. When the pair investigates the murder of a provincial aristocrat, they unearth a conspiracy that stretches to the very top of Imperial society. As the stakes rise and become ever more personal, Vonvalt and Helena must make a Will they abandon the laws they’ve sworn to uphold, in order to protect the Empire?
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Posted by Amber • No comments
January 28, 2024

The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley

The basics

Title: The Emperor’s Blades

Author:

Series: Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne #1

- The Emperor's Blades (2014)
- The Providence of Fire (2015)
- The Last Mortal Bond (2016)
- Skullsworn (2017)

Add it: Goodreads

Goodreads Summary:

The circle is closing. The stakes are high. And old truths will live again...

The Emperor has been murdered, leaving the Annurian Empire in turmoil. Now his progeny must bury their grief and prepare to unmask a conspiracy.

His son Valyn, training for the empire’s deadliest fighting force, hears the news an ocean away. He expected a challenge, but after several ‘accidents’ and a dying soldier’s warning, he realizes his life is also in danger. Yet before Valyn can take action, he must survive the mercenaries’ brutal final initiation.

Meanwhile, the Emperor’s daughter, Minister Adare, hunts her father’s murderer in the capital itself. Court politics can be fatal, but she needs justice. And Kaden, heir to an empire, studies in a remote monastery. Here, the Blank God’s disciples teach their harsh ways – which Kaden must master to unlock their ancient powers. When an imperial delegation arrives, he’s learnt enough to perceive evil intent. But will this keep him alive, as long-hidden powers make their move?
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Posted by Amber • No comments
January 5, 2024

A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer

The basics

Title: A Heart So Fierce and Broken

Author:

Series: Cursebreakers #2

- A Curse So Dark and Lonely (2019)
- A Heart So Fierce and Broken (2020)
- A Vow So Bold and Deadly (2021)

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Goodreads Summary:

The curse is finally broken, but Prince Rhen of Emberfall faces darker troubles still. Rumors circulate that he is not the true heir and that forbidden magic has been unleashed in Emberfall. Although Rhen has Harper by his side, his guardsman Grey is missing, leaving more questions than answers.

Win the crown, save the kingdom.

Rumored to be the heir, Grey has been on the run since he destroyed Lilith. He has no desire to challenge Rhen--until Karis Luran once again threatens to take Emberfall by force. Her own daughter Lia Mara sees the flaws in her mother’s violent plan, but can she convince Grey to stand against Rhen, even for the good of Emberfall?

The heart-pounding, compulsively readable saga continues as loyalties are tested and new love blooms in a kingdom on the brink of war.
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Posted by Amber • No comments
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