Under the Whispering Door

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune Website | Twitter | Instagram Publication Date: September 21, 2021 Publisher: Tor Books Pages: 384 ISBN: 9781250217349 Genre: Fantasy | Romance Source: Own Add to Goodreads Available for Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

 

Synopsis: Wallace has lived his entire life in the office dedicated to his work. When he finds himself in a nearly empty church at his funeral talking to the Reaper he has a hard time believing that he is dead. Acceptance starts to set in when the Reaper takes Wallace to Charon’s Crossing, a way station for crossing over. There he meets Hugo, the ferryman that will help him cross. That’s when reality starts to set in and Wallace must come to terms with the fact that his life on earth is over but his journey is just beginning.

Review: What a heartfelt story! I thoroughly enjoyed the way this book explores grief. There is so much complexity to it and it takes the reader on an emotional rollercoaster. There is so much goodness in this book but don’t be fooled, it tackles some incredibly heavy topics surrounding grief and loss, including suicide.

"It's never enough, is it? Time. We always think we have so much of it but when it really counts, we don't have enough at all." - TJ Klune, Under the Whispering Door

Klune’s books always make me ugly cry and have all the feels. I’ve never read anything like this before and I’m glad I picked it up when I was in a good headspace but the topic also made me revisit feelings and memories of those I have lost. It’s a very emotional read.

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The Witch Collector

  

The Witch Collector

(Witch Walker, #1)
by Charissa Weaks

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Publication Date: Nov 2 2021
Publisher: City Owl Press
Pages: 343
ISBN: 9781648980442
Genre: Fantasy | Young Adult
Source: ARC eBook

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Synopsis: Every harvest moon, the Witch Collector rides into the valley and takes on the witches back to Winterhold to protect the immortal Frost King. Collection day is a day many families fear because the witches never return from Winterhold and their families never hear from them again. 

For 24 years the Witch Collector has passed Raina by, but not this year. Raina has one desire - to kill the Front King and the Witch Collector for taking her sister 8 years ago. But before Raina can kill the Witch Collector, an unexpected enemy sets fire to Raina's world, and the only way for Raina to save her sister and their empire is to help the Witch Collector save the Frost King. 

Raina sets out with the Witch Collector on a harrowing journey that tests her strength and determination but what Raina learns along the way is that sometimes the lines blur between good and evil and that people are not always as they seem and sometimes the villain is a hero in disguise - including the Witch Collector.

Review: This book!! Once I started it, I couldn't put it down. It was so captivating and Charissa instantly drew me into her worldbuilding. Initially, I came across this book and fell in love with the cover, knowing that I had to have it. I wasn't sure if the story would be good or not because at the time there weren't very many reviews about it and I've never read anything by Charissa Weaks. I am so glad that I decided to take a chance on this story.

I love how well everything is explained and that the backstory with the Gods and Kings/Queens is laid out throughout the story and not a huge info dump at the beginning - because oftentimes that is confusing for me and hard to follow. This book is so detailed that it is easy to imagine the world and the unbearable cold and ice.

Let's talk about the characters for a second - there are so many strong females in this story. So many!! Raina is such a strong powerful character and her best friend Helena- also strong and amazing! Huge shout to the author for having the main character be mute. Also - so many people of color and diversity and it's very subtle - the author doesn't obsess over talking about their skin color - it's just casually mentioned like no big deal and then on to the next thing. Can we also just swoon for a minute over the Witch Collector (Alexus)? Seriously, that man is legit boyfriend goals. He is the perfect companion for such a strong female and the way he pushes her and admires her instead of holding her back is just perfection.

“In another life, I would've tried to know her. I would've admired her and read her poems written by my own hand. I would've walked with her through fields of stardrops, danced with her in the stream.” - Alexus
― Charissa Weaks, The Witch Collector

Seriously, I am so glad this is a series because I need to know what happens next with Raina and Alexus! I'm just sad that I have to wait so long for the next one.

Overall I give this book 4.5 stars because the story is so powerful, the characters are complex and dynamic, and the cover art is beautiful.

Special thanks to City Owl Press for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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The Last Graduate

The Last Graduate

(Scholomance, #2)
by Naomi Novik

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Publication Date: Sep 28 2021
Publisher: Del Rey Books
Pages: 400
ISBN: 9780593128862
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy
Source: eBook

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Synopsis: Senior year is finally here which means it's time for El, Orion, and the other seniors at Scholomance to prepare for graduation - a deadly ritual that historically leaves only a few survivors. Instead of preparing for graduation by building enough mana to get through the graduation ceremony, poor El is spending all her time fighting off mals that seem to be focused entirely on her. It's clear the school is out to get her because she gets straddled with the worst class schedule, in the farthest classrooms, and is grouped with freshmen. How is El supposed to store up enough mana to graduate when she has to keep using it to fight off mals and save herself from becoming a delicious snack to all the mals? 

Review: Usually second books in trilogies are the worst because they just act as a gap between the first and third books. The Last Graduate is not one of those, in fact, I loved it even more than the first book. How is that even possible? That rarely happens, in fact, I am having a hard time recalling another series where the second book was better than the first. 

I'm not sure exactly what it is, but I just absolutely adore El. I have found her so relatable, even from the very beginning. She is introverted, sarcastic, and often pessimistic. You can actually see the growth between junior and senior year because the character that closes out the second book is not the same girl we met at the beginning of book one. She is so honest and raw and that makes her likable and relatable, and even though she has a prickly personality she finds friends that love her for who she is, even if she is in an inner battle with herself to not go malificer. 

Novik has a gift to create vivid worlds, relatable characters, action-packed adventure, and gut-wrenching endings - wait what? Yes, you read that correctly! Seriously, what the actual f with that ending?! I'm pretty sure I just sat there staring at the screen for several minutes, slowly blinking, thinking - "wait, what just happened?" 

“I think everyone else felt as I did, secretly and irrationally, that if we could only succeed, if we could only destroy the whole place, we could save ourselves from ever having been in here.”
― Naomi Novik, The Last Graduate

Overall I give this book 4.5 stars because the story is that fantastic, but don't just take my word for it, read the series for yourself.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Del Rey Books (Random House Publishing/Ballantine) for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: The Kingdom of Copper

 

The Kingdom of Copper
(Daevabad, #2)
by S.A. Chakraborty

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Publication Date: February 21 2019
Publisher: HarperVoyager
Pages: 625
ISBN: 9780062678133
Genre: Fantasy |Adult Fiction
Source: Library

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Synopsis: The Kingdom of Copper, book two in the Daevabad series, takes place five years after The City of Brass. The prologue at the beginning of the book details the immediate aftermath that transpires following the conclusion to The City of Brass. We get a glimpse into the three main characters' lives; Nahri's arranged marriage to the crowned prince of Daevabad, Muntadhir, Alizaydi al Qahtani's possession by the marid and his exile, and Darayavahoush's death.

The story begins five years later. Nahri has come to terms with Dara's death, the loss of her best friend Alizaydi (who also betrayed her and murdered Dara), and her arranged marriage to Muntadhir. She has been busy keeping herself occupied by practicing healing and forming a relationship with her mentor.

Ali has been building a life for himself in exile in the barren lands of Bir Nabat. He has newfound abilities with water and has many new friends and alliances in his new life. He is happy with the simplicity of life in Bir Nabat and starts to look forward to his future their.

Dara has been brought back to life, much to his dismay, by Manizheh. Manizheh has plans to take back Daevabad and restore the Daeva tribe with the Nahids leading the way. Dara finds himself in the role of a dutiful warrior once again as he helps Manizheh to make her plans come true.

But then Ali finds himself back in Daevabad, and he witnesses the havoc his father is creating between the tribes. There is a lot of political unrest and Ali once again finds himself in the middle of conflict while he tries to rebuild his friendship with Nahri, be the obedient son his father expects him to be, and be the man he was always meant to be.

Review: I can't say enough good things about this book. Usually, the second book in a series is pretty mediocre, at best. Not Kingdom of Copper. It was absolutely fantastic and so hard to put down. The characters are culturally diverse and well developed. It has such a fast pace dramatic tone with a compelling writing style.

The world-building in this story is fantastic. It draws you in right away and continues to evolve as the story goes on. It's impossible to not feel like you also live in this world.

“People do not thrive under tyrants, Alizayd; they do not come up with innovations when they're busy trying to stay alive, or offer creative ideas when error is punished by the hooves of a karkadann.”
― S.A. Chakraborty, The Kingdom of Copper

This series is probably one of the best fantasy series I have ever read. If you haven't read it already, do it!

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