WWW Wednesday is three quick questions, hosted by Taking on a World of Words, that provide a quick reading update. Everyone and everyone is welcome to join in!
We’re in full exam flow now. I’m halfway through, but that doesn’t seem to be affecting my reading progress – except by increasing it. Books have always been my go-to for de-stress, and so I’ve made read headway on my Goodreads Challenge this past week.
1. What are you currently reading?
I have just started my re-read of FIRE AND THORNS, by Rae Carson. To any international readers, this is called A GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS pretty much everywhere else – and with far uglier covers!(Not that these UK ones are very representative of the books)
I utterly adore this series, and I am loving returning to the world of Joya d’Arena with Elisa, Hector and the gang. This is the series that kick started my love of political fantasy, and I can foresee lots of gushing over it in the coming days!
On the eARC side, I’m reading KINGDOM OF SOULS, by Rena Barron. I think that I’m going to be reading this one for a while. I’m not sure if it’s just a long book (I find ebooks much harder to judge their length) or if it’s because I’m really enjoying it. Unlike physical books, I slow down a lot when I’m enjoying ebooks, and go fast when I’m not.
It’s such a rich world, full of mythos and intrigue. I can’t wait to see what happens next, and where the story goes. I’ve got a few guesses ticking away at the back of my mind. We’ll see how right I was soon enough.
2. What did you recently finish reading?
I can’t quite believe I’m going to say this, but I’ve read seven books. Seven!
The one I want to gush about is VIPER, by Bex Hogan. This is an outstanding debut set on the high seas. Rather than being pirates set on vengeance or to right some wrong which the law can’t handle, the Snakes are supposed to be the morally-queasy policemen of the sea, doing the King’s dirty work (think privateers made into assassins). But their Captain has decided he rather likes power. His daughter, Marianne, is caught in the middle of it, trying to fighting for the people being ignored. I loved the world and can’t wait for the next book, though that won’t be released for almost a whole year.
I finished an eARC of NOCTURNA, by Maya Motayne earlier this week too. It was a fun enough, easy read that I raced through while at the laundrette and waiting for food to cook. However, it just felt like a rip-off of A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC. Black-magic-god-thing trying to spread and take over the world, turning incompatible people to ash? Unfortunately, it lacked the parallel worlds and charismatic characters that make ADSOM so compelling. The world also felt very generic and paper-thin, like it could have been anywhere and nowhere. It was a rather disappointing read overall, and the worst one this week.
The other books I’ve read have been the complete Sin Eater’s Daughter series, by Melinda Salisbury (THE SIN EATER’S DAUGHTER, THE SLEEPING PRINCE, THE SCARECROW QUEEN and the short story collections THE HEART COLLECTOR) and SKY IN THE DEEP by Adrienne Young. Rather than babbling about them here, and boring you, just click on the titles for my reviews (THE HEART COLLECTOR will be in a short story etc post coming beginning of July).
3. What do you think you’ll you read next?
The next book I’ll read will be CROWN OF EMBERS, by Rae Carson. It’s the second book in the Fire and Thorns trilogy, and my favourite of the three.
For a very long time, this book has held onto the title of favourite book of all time without any real contenders. However, it’s recently come under fire from some pretty stout attackers. I’m excited not only to finally return to this book (after almost two years!), but also to see if it can retain its title, or whether it’ll be knocked from it’s podium.
After that, it’ll be on to the final book in the trilogy, THE BITTER KINGDOM. I remember buying and gobbling it down in mere hours one New Year while on holiday. This was a finale that took me by complete surprise when I first read it, shattering so many expectations about how finales were supposed to end. Also, I think it takes the title of prettiest cover, don’t you agree?
I’ve just discovered that Carson is writing a standalone sequel about Red and Rosario, and I can’t wait to read it!
As for eARCs, it’ll probably be a while, but the next one on my list is UPON A BURNING THRONE, by Ashok K. Banker. I’m somewhat ashamed to admit that it’s been on my NetGalley shelves for so long that I can’t quite remember what it’s about. I think it’s a retelling of the Indian epic The Mahabharata, but beyond that I don’t know too much. Clearly, I must have been interested six months ago when I made the request! However, I’m rather excited to go into something utterly blind – though I’ve been warned it’s a chunker of a book, so it could be a while until it’s finished.
What books are you reading this week?
Sifa Elizabeth Reads 