The Fork, The Witch and the Worm

Like I told you guys earlier this week, I'm planning on reading two series this years. The first is His Fair Assassin series by Robin LaFevers. The second is the Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini. It's one of those series I read YEARS ago (ten? Twelve?) when the first book, Eragon, came out and loved, but got scared of the sequels due to length.

Anyway, when I decided to try and return to this world, the collection of short stories set after the fourth and final book, Inheritance, was announced so I need I was going to add to my reading without even thinking about. So, when the lovely Sian at ED PR asked if I would be involved in this blog tour to celebrate The Fork, The Witch and the Worm, I jumped at the chance.

Acting as both an entry point for new readers and loving return to fans, this collection takes place a year after the events of Inheritance, Eragon is struggling with find a new home for the dragons and riders while coping with a never-ending sea of tasks. But a vision, a surprise visitors and an exciting legend gives Eragon the distraction and new perspective Eragon needs...

I am currently reading this collection of three stories at time of writing this post and I am having a blast and can't wait to return to this world in the coming months. So, to share my excitement, I have a small extract to share with you!

Now, before I hand you to the extract, I want to thank Sian at ED PR for asking me to be involved in this tour. Super kind of you and a great way to kickstart my Year of Blood and Magic reading! And, if you want to know more about Christopher Paolini and the world of Alagaësia, you can check out paolini.net or say hi to him on Twitter at @paolini (Also say hi to his sister, Angela, on Twitter at @Angela_Paolini as she is not only the inspiration behind beloved character in series, Angela the herbalist [who my extract is about! SO EXTRA LOVE PLEASE AND THANK YOU!] by also wrote  within the collection. But where you ask? I'm not going to kiss and tell. A dragon would kill for less...)

RIGHT, ONTO THE EXTRACT!

Book Review - Hogfather

My first read of 2018 (I read The Uncommon Reader and Cardcaptor Sakura just before Christmas but was on blog break so here they are now)! Though, I did start this on Christmas Eve, I finished it last week so am classing it as a 2018 read!

And I got this for Secret Santa via Shannon Bookworm's blog. My Secret Santa was Virginie at Chouett, who got Hogfather, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (a book I keep wanting to read and I buy/get given but am always too intimadated to read so never have. THIS YEAR, DEAR READER, THAT WILL CHANGE!) and The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin (a book I only found out late last year after it was announced to be a TV show for TNT and am super excited to read. This feels like a Februray/March read and I am trying to figure out how can get Virginie to buddy-read this with me... I sense I am going to adore this strange little book...). So, Virginie, thank you. As soon as I saw I had Hogfather, I knew I was going to read this over Christmas - even though it screwed up my Christmas reading plans...!

It's a silent night, Hogswatch night. Too quiet... The Hogfather is gone. He's not coming down the chimney, delivering presents to children. No, instead Death is coming down the chimney, wearing a fake beard, having a pillow stuffed up his borrow red outfit and saying HO HO HO in his monotone way. On Discworld, superstition makes things work, and when this is undermined, there are Consequences. But where does Death's adopted granddaughter, governess Susan, fit into all of this? And if she can't fix it, the sun won't rise...

You better watch out and you better not cry...

I have been wanting to read Hogfather for years. Ever since I was a teenager and saw the cover of Death wearing a Father Christmas outfit! But I have always been intimidated by Discworld and Terry Pratchett and it has been only in the past few years (I only read Mort and Reaper Man back in 2015 and I have dipped in and out of Terry's other writings over past few years when I feel brave). Now, at the time of reading them, I was very mixed on my feelings on Mort but I loved Reaper Man. So, where does Hogfather fit?

Right in the middle, though leaning more towards Reaper Man than Mort. I had such a wonderful, fun time with Hogfather. I didn't truly love it, but it was fun - and my reading this year is focused on fun. There were several moments I actually snorted out loud, scaring my cat (the first time this happened, it caught me so off guard I had to explain my howl of laughter to my partner "The Grim Reaper owns cats!") and I liked the ideas behind this - why do we believe in fairy tales when we are children? Why do we believe in monsters under the beds and bogey men and tooth fairies?

Plus, Death is an awesome character. In all three Discworld books I have read (all within the "Death Series"), he has always come out as my favourite character. Though I loved Susan and her no nonsense attitude. I know her teenage self is one of the lead characters in another Discworld novel, Soul Music, which I might read when I have got my TBR under control.

I do have issues with this book. Pacing at the start is my biggest problem, but this is a me thing more than anything else. It was a bit slow, but that's because it was setting everything up. Once it was set up, the book moved! But I can't figure out if it was slow because it was slow or because I had such expectations over this book (again, wanting to read this since I was a teenager!) that the start didn't live up to the bar I had in my head (hence why I have held off read Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give and Philip Pullman's La Belle Sauvage).

But, I enjoyed myself reading Hogfather. So much so that I have two more Discworld novels on my TBR that I hope to read sometime this year - The Wee Free Men (that I discovered I had on my kindle for over a year without me knowing about!) and Witches Aboard (which I bought with a ton of other adult fantasy books the Friday before New Year's Eve) - so buckle up, everyone. You might be seeing more Discworld on my blog/social media outlets this year...

GoodRead - Arsenic For Tea

I haven't read the first book in the Wells and Wong series, Murder Most Unladylike. Before you say anything, I know... I know. I am a bad UKYA blogger. This is one of those books that everyone in the blogsphere LOVES and I do have a signed copy (thank you, Foyles!) on my TBR shelf, but when I saw Arsenic for Tea, I wanted to read it. Plus, I wanted to know if I could read Arsenic for Tea without reading Murder Most Unladylike...

Best friends Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong solved one murder. But can they solve other? When they go to Daisy's home, Fallingford, for the Easter break, they should be celebrating Daisy's birthday. Expect that's not the case - so Daisy is naturally annoyed. A mystery man has appeared and his arrival upsets the balance of the household.

And when he suddenly becomes ill and then dies, everyone close to Daisy is a suspect. And when the clues point to one person in particular, the Detective Society have to discover who the killer is - no matter the consequence...

As you guys know, I do like a good murder mystery and this was delicious reading. It was as if someone had dared Agatha Christie to write an Enid Blyton story and this was the end result. A story that was fun and addictive read, strong leads (I like Hazel a lot, but Daisy is a tad spoilt for my taste but I think she's meant to be!) and a mystery that leaves you guessing till the very end.

What is interesting about this book is, because of the time this series is set - the 1930s - we see things that I think people who like to brush over. There is hints of casual racism aimed at Hazel - racism from people who are "nice" - and we see that this upsets Hazel, but it's still unnerving to see this and go "People used to think this was accepted". Am very happy that Robin Stevens tackles this and doesn't shy away from Hazel's reaction and her feeling alone.

It was a fun read, though I do think you should read Murder Most Unladylike before as the events of book 1 were mentioned.

I do think some of you guys will think this is a bit young - it could be classed as a middle grade book rather than a YA read - but it was fun! A fun read and a good crime read (which is bad as I want to attack all the Kathy Reichs I own!), but I can't wait to read Murder Most Unladylike as soon as I find time so I am up to date when book 3 in this series, First Class Murder, comes out at the end of July of this year...

#re3 - Clockwork

As you probably know, I have been in a reading slump (something I hate! Will write a blog post on this in the future) so I have been, the past few days, reading very short stories/novellas to get out of it and I have, so far, managed to read two (The Fisherman's Net by Laura Lam and now, Clockwork [or All Wound Up] by Philip Pullman). And, barring my Harry Potter #re3 challenge, this is my first #re3 of the year so, yes, LET'S GET CRACKING WITH MY #RE3 QUESTIONS!

WHY DID YOU REREAD CLOCKWORK?
Reading slump. I fell into it and I just wanted to read something quite short till I got back on my reading feet. Plus, as part of the His Dark Materials Readalong with a few other bloggers, I wanted to read Philip Pullman before I reread Lyra's Oxford and The Collectors and read Once Upon A Time In The North.

WHAT WAS YOUR HONEST OPINION OF THIS BOOK WHEN YOU FIRST READ IT?
When I audiobooked this the first time, I really enjoyed it. I liked how, even though this was a middle grade book, how layered it was. How it hinted at little things and they grew over the short space of time the story took hold. Plus, I had discovered this book just after I discovered Northern Lights and The Subtle Knife so nothing could fault it at the time.

WHAT IS YOUR HONEST OPINION NOW THAT YOU HAVE REREAD THIS BOOK?
I can see that this is a middle-grade book. I am too old to read this, but I liked the little hints that mature readers got (for example, what happened to Fitz at the end of the book).

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT TO TELL US?
Unlike the audiobook, there is some sections of the story that is put in boxes (like footnotes) and you have to read them at just the right moment so it doesn't upset the flow of the story. But in the audiobook, they are slotted in perfect and as they are very short, it never felt upset and distracting.

BECAUSE OF THIS BOOK, WILL YOU REREAD ANY BOOKS WITHIN THIS SERIES?
As this is a standalone, no. But I am going to read Lyra's Oxford, The Collectors and Once Upon A Time in the North as part of the His Dark Materials Readalong as I am going to read more from this author. I might read Philip Pullman's younger-aiming books in the future. Maybe The Firework-Maker's Daughter...

GoodRead - Mort

A few years ago, I did a readalong with Stevie of SableCaught fame of Murder of the Orient Express by Agatha Christie on Twitter. We planned to do a video on her channel and talk about our reactions to the book, so we met up, did the video (which has NEVER SEEN THE LIGHT OF DAY because of the audio. And hopefully, because of this, we will NEVER SEE IT! EVER!) and chatted about Discworld as I was curious on the series and wondered where I would start. Stevie said this was the book to start, even though it's the fourth book in the series.

Death comes for us all. But when Death came for Mort, he offered Mort a job. What could possibly go on? A lot, is the answer. A lot.

Ok, I am going to start with this point before I go any further. I HATE THIS COVER! HATE IT HATE IT HATE IT!!! I know why this is the cover and I get why you lovely people love it but, in my opinion, it's awful. I trying to understand why Keli is wearing very very little - so much so that her boobs are going to pop out any second. I don't like how Mort is drawn. What is up with his neck. And with up with Ysabell? Where is Ysabell's body and isn't both Mort and Cutwell meant to be in their late teens/early twenties? And don't get me started on Death!

*exhales loudly* Sorry. I had to get that rant out of my system! I really dislike the cover, in case you didn't guess...

Ok, my reactions to the book. I am a tad mixed on this book.

My main reason, I think, is because I had such high expectation over this series - I mean, it's one of those series that everyone who reads adult fantasy read and love. So, the bar was always going to be high and, of course, the book was never going to reach my expectations.

But it's an interesting read. And an odd book.

For me, this is a good book to start with the Discworld series as the first half of the book touches on the weirdness of Discworld and, once the world is explained and the story gets on its feet (around 100 pages or so), I liked it. It wasn't what I was expecting.

Death is a character I love. As weird as that makes me sound, he intrigues me. He's a walking contradiction. He shouldn't meddle in human lives, and yet he finds us fascinating. He likes cats and has a horse called Binky. Oh, and he has an adopted daughter.

Yeah, this is the Grim Reaper as we know him.

I think tht's one of the reasons I liked this book. This book - ok, this series from my chats with "real" Discworld readers - takes fantasy very seriously. And yet, because it does, it knows where the humour lies. Its tongue is firmly in its cheek without making the world seem ridiculous or unreal, even though the Discworld is unreal and ridiculous.

But, like I said earlier on, I had high expectations over this book and it's my own fault that I didn't like it as much as I hoped. BUT I'M NOT GONNA GIVE UP! I won a beautiful hardback edition of Reaper Man and I have plans to read that and maybe one or two more Discworld books. When I feel brave enough to tackle them...

THE WOOD QUEEN Cover Reveal

On Thursday, Karen Mahoney revealed the UK cover for the second book in her Iron Witch trilogy, The Wood Queen (and after the error I made yesterday, I double-checked and this is correct. This was put on the author's blog). And here it is:



So, what do you think? It is breath-taking, in my opinion. And when you put it or compare it to the UK cover of The Iron Witch, it looks stunning. Am quite excited to see it for real next February!

But what do you guys think of this cover???

GoodRead - The Iron Witch

Donna Underwood has always been called a freak. After being branded with iron tattoos on her hands and forearms that happened after a horrible attack that killed her father. She's even more of an outcast in the secret world she lives in. A secret world of alchemy and elves...

But events are happening. Events she never expected. And when the biggest event happens, is Donna willing to sacrifice one of the world's greatest secrets to save the people she cares about...?

I had to be SO VAGUE on the above writing! I don't want to reveal too much!

Now, to start, the cover. It is BEAUTIFUL, isn't it? I just love it. It's very striking, yet simple.

Now, the story. Some of you lot may find this book slow going. If you are aware of The Event that happens in this book and you expect it to happen within the first few chapters, then nope. It takes a while for that to happen.

Instead, we have a book where we get to be introduce the characters and, because of that, I love it. I love getting to know Donna's best friend Navin and the mysterious Xan (am glad this is a trilogy because I want to know MORE about those two. When I told people on Twitter how shock/excitment over something that happened in the book, I got into a huge twitter conversation about who would be whose Fictional Husband!).

But I ADORE this book because of one reason and one reason alone – Donna herself. I love reading in her voice and I love everything about her! She's normal yet not normal at the same time. She is a normal girl who is in a world that isn't normal. The events that happen to her aren't normal. But I couldn't help but relate to her and, because of that, fall a little in love with her. There's something real about her. In one point of the book, (page 230), Donna said something that made Xan react:

Xan frowned. “Don't do that.”
“Do what?”
“Put yourself down. You shouldn't do that, Donna.”

I read that little exchange and laughed, because I do that. I put myself down, the same way Donna does and I have family members and friends, telling me off for that very reason. I related to her and, when I tweeted the author Karen Mahoney, saying something like “... I need Wood Queen [the sequel], like, NOW!!! I love Donna!!!”, Karen kindly replied, saying she was glad I loved Donna because she “...tried to make her 'realistically awesome' – I like that girls that can save themselves...” And yes, Donna is realistically awesome, isn't she?

I can't tell you how much I liked this book, or how much I love Donna. But I love Donna so am quite thrilled that this is a trilogy! I demand to read what happens next to Donna ASAP! You hear me, Karen Mahoney! AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!

(Also, I would like to thank the lovely Karen Mahoney & Lynsey Newton. Lynsey for, somehow, getting me a signed copy of Iron Witch, and Karen for not only signing to book but also chatting to me at Cat Clarke's book launch!)