Month: December 2019

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Book Review – The Heir of Night by Helen Lowe

The Heir of Night (The Wall of Night, #1)

The Heir of Night by Helen Lowe

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Heir Of Night is a tale of Malian, heir to the house of night, finding lost powers and protecting the people of Haarth against the Darkswarm.

The Cover: I have a different version of the cover displayed here. The copy I have has a young girl with a sword standing in a brick archway as flames rise up in the background behind her. I prefer the one I have to be honest, but both of these convey a fantasy novel and fit well with the genre.

The Good Stuff: I found this book to be a well written with a richly crafted world. The protagonist and other main characters are well defined, and there are some very dark creatures.

The Bad Stuff: You may get the urge to give up on this book as it is quite slow to get started.

There seems to be a lot of mixed reviews about this book. I sit in the camp of those that enjoyed it. In my opinion it was an interesting read with a good storyline. I’m giving it 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

Amazon.com
Amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Book Review – The Magicians’ Guild by Trudi Canavan.

The Magicians' Guild (Black Magician Trilogy, #1)
The Magicians’ Guild by Trudi Canavan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Magicians’ Guild is basically a story about Sonea, a girl with innate magical abilities that appear when she throws a stone at a magician of the guild in anger. On realising she has magical power the guild search to find her before her magic consumes her, but she thinks they want punish her for throwing the stone and so is in hiding.

The Cover: There is a great cover on this book. The Black image on the white background is clean and crisp. The font works really well and the image is a good fit. All together it clearly represents the genre and targets the audience it is aimed at.

The Good Stuff: I liked the different characters and cultures within this story. The character is likeable and well developed and crosses a clear arc within the story. The world is also well established.

The Bad Stuff: Trudi Canavan tends to use a lot of internal thought to convey what she wants the reader to know or think, this irritated me a little. Some of the story was also a little predictable.

Overall this was a very enjoyable book, Trudy Canavan has created a solid fantasy world with interesting characters that will carry you through the story and leave you wanting more. I give this one 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

Amazon.com
Amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Wishing You A Merry Festive Season.

christmas bauble
Photo by Matty Cooper on Pexels.com

Hello Readers,

Another year is almost over and I just wanted to wish you and your families a very merry time over the festive season. I hope you have a great time and enjoy a nice little break, wherever in the world you may be.

Happy Reading.

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Book Review – The Orc King by R.A. Salvatore.

The Orc King (Forgotten Realms: Transitions, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #17)

The Orc King by R.A. Salvatore

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Orc King is a classic fantasy novel about the search for peace amid the struggle for power.

The Cover: I love this cover. The artwork is great and screams fantasy, but if it wasn’t clear enough the title cements it in the genre. The font also works with this title.

The good stuff: The characters are well rounded and interesting. I aslo liked the magical weapons, the creatures, and the locations. The story is set in a well established world and has all the elements of a good fantasy novel.

The Bad Stuff: There are some over technical explanations within the fight scenes that detract from the story. Some long and clunky sentences.

In my opinion, this is a great fantasy novel with Orcs, Elves, Dwarves, magic and magical weapons. What more could you ask for? This one gets 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks from me.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

Amazon.com
Amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Book Review – Structuring Your Novel by K.M. Weiland

Structuring Your Novel: Essential Keys for Writing an Outstanding Story

Structuring Your Novel: Essential Keys for Writing an Outstanding Story by K.M. Weiland

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Structuring Your Novel: Essential Keys for Writing an Outstanding Story, as indicated by its title, is a book for writers who want to learn about novel structure.

The Cover: This has a strong non-fiction cover. The clear font, title, artwork and colouring clearly show what the book is about and who the target audience is.

The Good Stuff: If you want to learn more about story structure, this is the book for you. I was familiar with the content, but it served as a refresher for me. It is written in plain language and explains the key components around structure. I was actually surprized by the amount of content in this book and I recommend it if structure is something you wish to improve on.

The Bad Stuff: There really isn’t anything I found that was bad about this book. The experienced writer will probably know the information within the pages, but this is inevitable really. Any writer who practices long enough will eventually learn most of the knowledge and techniques that are available.

Overall, Structuring Your Novel: Essential Keys for Writing an Outstanding Story is well written, easy to read and takes a very comprehensive look the elements of structure. I am giving this one 5 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

Amazon.com
Amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Book Review – Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy by David Gerrold

Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy

Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy by David Gerrold

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Worlds of Wonder – How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy by David Gerrold is a non-fiction title for writers who are looking to learn about the craft of writing in the genres of science fiction and fantasy.

The Cover: I really wasn’t sold on this cover. It didn’t really suggest the book was non-fiction, the picture didn’t really work for me, and I really didn’t like the font used on the title and author name. It made the book look less professional to me. If I took the text away from the cover all together, this could have been a sci-fi, horror, or thriller novel in my opinion.

The Good Stuff: Wow! I thought the last book I read on the craft of writing was good, but this book blew me away. This has to be the best book for writers that I have read. David Gerrold really has a firm grip on the craft. I am the target audience for this book and it did its job, really hitting the mark for me. The chapters are succinct, no waffle, no filler, no repeating the same thing 3 times, just solid direct writing. The words run smoothly and make perfect sense to me as a writer and to top it all off, my version was published in 2001. David Gerrold’s text is relevant today as much as it was back then and seems to be timeless.

The Bad Stuff: I’m pretty sure I have covered all the bad stuff in the cover section.

Overall, I found this book to be pretty amazing. If you can only afford to buy one book on writing this year I would recommend you make it this one. It is clear and concise, covers a wealth of information, provides some solid advice, and the writing is interesting. This one is getting a star making, writer creating 5 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

Amazon.com
Amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

If you liked this review please share it with your friends on social media.

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