Blog tour: Fractal Noise by Christopher Paolini

 I'm so excited to be on the blog tour for the newest release from Christopher Paolini - Fractal Noise! Make sure to check out the other stops on the tour too, and grab a copy of the book as it's out now! Here it is:

On the planet Talos VII, twenty-three years before the events of To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, an anomaly is detected: a vast circular pit, with dimensions so perfect that it could only have been the result of conscious design. So a small team is assembled to learn more – perhaps even who built the hole and why. Their mission will take them on a hazardous trek to the very edge of existence.

For one explorer, this is the opportunity of a lifetime. For another, a risk not worth taking. And for xenobiologist Alex Crichton, it’s a desperate attempt to find meaning in an uncaring universe. But every step they take towards that mysterious abyss is more punishing than the last. Ultimately, no one is prepared for what they will encounter.

So, Christopher Paolini is one of my favourite authors, and as soon as he started telling us about branching into Sci-Fi, I knew I'd be picking up whatever he wrote. It was definitely worth it, and now he's gone and wrote a prequel to the beast of a book that is To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. I would say, if you are a bit worried about starting the giant TSiaSoS, you could very easily read this book as a standalone, or read it first if you want to start small. There's nothing in this that would confuse you or make you not understand what was happening, everything in it is well explained, so you can definitely read this first if you want to jump into something smaller to begin with!

Now getting into the actual book - this was definitely a fascinating read. The characters were so well written, each having different motives for going to explore the new planet. The MC and narrator, Alex, was especially an interesting person to read the POV of. Although you were exploring the new planet, and had lots of information thrown at you about that, you also get to read about his reason for exploring - the death of his partner. It can be a bit hard hitting at time as the book leans on that, but you really get to see his struggles with grief and at times you really feel like you are living it with him and I just found that such a thought-provoking way of reading - not one I've really dealt with before in a book, but one I would definitely read again if they're written as well as this was.

I think the suspense of getting closer to the centre of the hole they found on the planet was really well done - and the noise that the hole is making follows you through the book with a 'Thud' every few lines. I found this really good at keeping the suspense and also I think it really made you feel how much that noise would affect you if you were in the book too. I especially loved that it slowly got larger as you read, as if you really were in the book and could see how much it would affect the explorers the nearer they got.

I'll admit, I am a bit rusty in my sci-fi reading, so quite a bit of the terminology went over my head, but it was still a smooth read and I really didn't want to put the book down after starting it was so gripping. I think that the writing was so good, because even if you aren't the best with sci-fi terminology you can still pick up the plot and read along, and if you are a sci-fi buff then you'll love it too! 

Overall, I give this book: 5 cats!

Make sure to check out the other stops on the tour below, it's running until the 2nd June, and go pick up a copy of the book! It will definitely be worth it - and if you loved TSiaSoS in sure you'll love this too. I can't wait to see what else Paolini will come up with in the world of sci-fi!

Review: The Book That Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence

So I may have requested this purely because of the description that there was a giant library.... I mean, what book lover wouldn't do that? But this turned out to be an amazing random pick from Netgalley, and now I must know what's going to happen in the future books!

But for now, here's the book:

All books, no matter their binding, will fall to dust. The stories they carry may last longer. They might outlive the paper, the library, even the language in which they were first written.

The greatest story can reach the stars . . .

Evar has lived his whole life trapped within a vast library, older than empires and larger than cities.

Livira has spent hers in a tiny settlement out on the Dust where nightmares stalk and no one goes.

The world has never noticed them.

That’s about to change.

As their stories spiral around each other, across worlds and time, each will unlock vast secrets about the world and themselves. This is a tale of truth and lies and hearts, and the blurring of one into another.

I admit it did take a while for me to get into this book, mainly because I really couldn't figure out where this was going and how the two characters would come together - but it was definitely worth the patience as you get to the end and want to see so much more out of it. I can't wait to see what happens in the next book - I like to think that the slow burn in this one was really building up the premise and the world, ready to jump right into the action, but we shall see... One thing's for sure though, I'll definitely be waiting to jump back into this when the next book is out as I already want to continue with Livira's and Evar's story!

Although it may have taken me a while to get into, I can definitely see this as a book that you can read again and again to pick up little nuggets you didn't notice before. I think one of the things I'll be paying specific attention to is the quotes at the beginning of each chapter - I love quotes at the beginning of chapters in books but I think I passed them by, hopefully a reread I'll be able to see if they link in more.

The two main characters in this, Livira and Evar, are really well written. Specifically I loved Evar's character, seeing him begin to explore after his life trapped in the library was fascinating, he was just a joy to read. That isn't to say I didn't like Livira - seeing her character develop through the years was definitely interesting too. Also, no spoilers here, but if you've read it - how much did the Raven's name amuse you? It gave me a chuckle!

Overall, I give this book 5 cats!

It's definitely a book I'll be reading again, and after that ending I think the anticipation of what may happen in the next books may kill me! It's a book that keeps your mind cogs turning, and definitely one I'd highly suggest!

ARC Review: The Sinister Booksellers of Bath by Garth Nix

 So, yet again here I am reviewing a Garth Nix book - I can't help it he's one of my favourite authors, and I absolutely adored the first in this series (The Left-Handed Booksellers of London), so as soon as I saw it on Netgalley I knew I would have to request it - and I recently got the beautiful physical ARC which I am now in love with too! So, without further rambling, here's the book:

There is often trouble of a mythical sort in Bath. The booksellers who police the Old World keep a careful watch there, particularly on the entity who inhabits the ancient hot spring. Yet this time it is not from Sulis Minerva that trouble starts. It comes from the discovery of a sorcerous map, leading left-handed bookseller Merlin into great danger. A desperate rescue is attempted by his sister the right-handed bookseller Vivien and their friend, art student Susan Arkshaw, who is still struggling to deal with her own recently discovered magical heritage.

The map takes the trio to a place separated from this world, maintained by deadly sorcery performed by an Ancient Sovereign and guarded by monstrous living statues of Purbeck marble. But this is only the beginning, as the booksellers investigate centuries of disappearances and deaths and try to unravel the secrets of the murderous Lady of Stone, a serial killer of awesome powers.

If they do not stop her, she will soon kill again. And this time, her target is not an ordinary mortal.

One thing you have to know about this book is that you really jump right into the action, and it stays action packed the whole way through. I liked this about that as I've read quite a few things lately with slower starts, and I really wanted a fast-paced read which this was. It did however mean I didn't want to put it down, but where's the problem in that? I have been reading less and less recently and a lot slower too but it felt like I breezed through this it was so great.

I will say, it is probably a book you could read without reading the first in the series, but I would highly recommend reading both (just because you get to know the MCs a bit more and you get a bit more backstory, especially of Susan which I think is important). And now I have to mention yet again my love for Merlin in this book, in my previous review for Left-Handed booksellers of London I did say how much I love him - and that love is just brought right back in this book too. He is just one of the most unique MCs and I just can't get over how well written he is.

One thing I think I always say is that Garth Nix is very good at creating creatures and characters in his books - this is repeated in both of his Bookseller titles. This book in particular had some rather terrifying new creations, and I loved trying to picture them all in my mind. On top of that, you got to meet some new Booksellers and hear about other bases that they have, which I hope means that we will get to see even more of this world in the future (fingers crossed).

I've just loved getting to return to the world of the Booksellers and the Ancient Sovereigns, and I give this book: 5 cats!

So, if you liked the first book I can assure you that you will definitely liked the second and I highly recommend buying this when it is out on the 21st March!

ARC Review: Daughter of Darkness by Katharine & Elizabeth Corr

 I have been looking forward to this book for so long, as Kat & Liz are great authors and I love all of their books so far. I did try to get my hands on a physical ARC, but with no luck I zoomed to Netgalley instead to request it! I may not know much about Greek mythology other than the odd bit, but I knew I wanted to read this as soon as I saw the description, and well the cover is absolutely beautiful so that made me want it even more!

Here it is:

Enter the Underworld in an epic new fantasy, where the Gods of ancient Greece rule everything but fate.

Deina is trapped. As one of the Soul Severers serving the god Hades on earth, her future is tied to the task of shepherding the dying on from the mortal world - unless she can earn or steal enough to buy her way out.

Then the tyrant ruler Orpheus offers both fortune and freedom to whoever can retrieve his dead wife, Eurydice, from the Underworld. Deina jumps at the chance. But to win, she must enter an uneasy alliance with a group of fellow Severers she neither likes nor trusts.

So begins their perilous journey into the realm of Hades. . . The prize of freedom is before her - but what will it take to reach it?

Is it weird that I absolutely adore reading greek mythology books despite knowing barely anything about it? I think that for me it ups the fun as you get to see each author's interpretation of the myths and you can really get into them. I loved this version because it was just such an interesting read, and the idea of Theodesmioi, the name they give those chosen to serve the difference Gods by infusing some of their power into them at a young age, was absolutely fascinating to me.

The main characters were amazing, and I really love the narrator Deina, she's such a fierce lead and she really draws you into the book to join the journey that she's taking in the underworld.

And that ending guys, I mean, you'll definitely be itching to find out what happens because I was shocked by how it ended - but I have found that Katharine and Elizabeth Corr do like to write books that pull you in and get you invested, my favourite type of books! 

Overall, this book definitely had me want to research more about Greek Mythology again - the authors note explaining a few things about what they based their book on was so interesting, and it really made me happy to get some context as to what they decided to base the book on. That and the vivid descriptions of the Underworld really show you that they did their research, whilst not making you feel like you don't know enough to read.

So, I give this book: 5 cats! And I can't wait to see the rest of Deina's story and how she gets on in the next book (can I have it already pleaaaase?!?!?!)

Daughter of Darkness is out this week (4th August 2022) and I'd definitely get your pre-orders in, this isn't one to miss!

Review: I Was Born For This by Alice Oseman

I got given a proof of this lovely book when it first came out for a review. I probably left it a bit longer than I should have to review it, but it was such a good book I knew I had to post my thoughts, even if late! 
 
Here it is:

For Angel Rahimi, life is only about one thing: The Ark – a pop-rock trio of teenage boys who are currently taking the world by storm. Being part of The Ark’s fandom has given her everything – her friendships, her dreams, her place in the world.

Jimmy Kaga-Ricci owes everything to The Ark too. He’s their frontman – and playing in a band is all he’s ever dreamed of doing. It’s just a shame that recently everything in his life seems to have turned into a bit of a nightmare.

Because that’s the problem with dreaming – eventually, inevitably, real life arrives with a wake-up call. And when Angel and Jimmy are unexpectedly thrust together, they will discover just how strange and surprising facing up to reality can be.

This book was like a blast of nostalgia from my teenage days when I had some serious fandom love - though I admit it was less boybands for me more books/films like Twilight. Though I did have a love for Blue, McFly and Busted! I will happily admit that.

It isn't often that I go to the contemporary side of YA, but I decided to start branching out - and so far nothing in this side has disappointed me - and they always make such a refreshing change from my usual fantasy YA. I also loved to see a take on modern day fandoms, as I was mainly a big fan when social media was just starting out so it was definitely interesting to read about this when social media is a lot more prevalent now and so I feel like fandoms are more investing than they were.

My favourite character had to be Jimmy. I loved him from the start, and kept on loving him throughout. I also haven't read a book where a MC deals with anxiety as intense as he did, so I think it really helped me to connect with him - you saw everything both his ups and downs and that was something that I think made the book so good.

Overall, I give this 4.5 cats. It was an interesting read, and I think I'll have to try some of Alice Oseman's other books too!

Have you read this book? Who was your favourite character? Comment below!