5/7/2023 0 Comments Book priory of the orange tree![]() ![]() ![]() I love the sheer fun and spectacle that can come with the genre.īut a new fantasy novel is always a daunting prospect: entire continents, histories and mythologies, religions – and the names, oh the names – thank goodness we’ve abandoned the trope of the random apostrophe in names! The Song of Fire and Ice series had many benefits: the opening salvo in A Game of Thrones felt relatively comfortable and familiar, settled in a western European monarchy as most viewers of the show will recognise, the Lannister-Lancaster / Stark-York parallels with The Wars of the Roses was fairly obvious the number of (planned) novels and (completed) television seasons allowed for a slow drip feed of more exotic locations and mythologies. I cut my reading teeth on fantasy – thank you Tolkien and Eddings and so many others! I love the way that the freedom of a fantasy world can throw a light into the contemporary. ![]()
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5/7/2023 0 Comments Someone to Love by Mary Balogh![]() ![]() Now there are enough plotholes in this to drive a postchaise and four through, complete with outriders. ![]() Anna Snow, now the Lady Anastasia Westcott, has inherited a huge fortune, a cousin has taken the title and entailed estates, and the expected heirs are bastards and get nothing. ![]() His first marriage produced a previously unknown daughter, Anna Snow, raised in an orphanage in Bath, while his second marriage, with a son and two daughters, was contracted bigamously. This has one of the most riveting premises I’ve come across: the Earl of Riverdale has just died, and to everyone’s shock, it’s discovered that he has been married twice. A Mary Balogh book is always worth reading, but this is the first of her recent books that I’ve tried and I’m pleased to see that the standard hasn’t slipped at all. ![]() 5/7/2023 0 Comments Tank Girl by Alan C. Martin![]() But at the centre is always our Tank Girl, or Rebbecca Buck as she is later revealed to be called. How to possibly tell you what this graphic novel is all about, because these novels have no regard for plot or narrative whatsoever. I hereby present the hero we never wanted but all need (whether we like it or not): Tank Girl! It has also made me permanently confused, because none of these stories actually make sense, but I‘ll get to that later. ![]() ![]() This series has made me think, made me laugh out loud and spit out my beer, brought me to many a protest, while also making me care just a little bit less about things. In fact, I do read some comics and it only made sense for me to review one of my favourite graphic novels. But I recently started to think: I can do what I want! I read all kinds of books and I’m all for having no shame about anything in your library, as long as you enjoy it. It seems almost like we’ve divided the categories. Jo does children’s books and also some classics. ![]() I do the classics and a few young adult books. Usually, Bella is the one reviewing the graphic novels on this site. ![]() |