Brothers


This book is a must for all Van Halen fans! Oh my God, what a memorable read!

It's a tale of filial love between a big brother and his younger sibling. I didn't expect so many poignant moments, but it's obvious that Alex loved his little brother dearly and his passing has left a huge void that cannot be filled. It's a heartfelt narrative of what it meant to be an immigrant in the USA back in the 60s and growing up as someone different in California. I loved the story of the Van Halen family's early years in Pasadena and how the boys got into music.

It's a tale of brotherhood, of course, but I thoroughly enjoyed Alex's reflections on music and his looking back on how they became a band. Loved how he explored the teenagers' early attempts at forming bands and how Van Halen ultimately came to be. It was nice to have him elaborate on the creative process behind each album and how their record company kept them on the road all the time, with only short breaks to put together yet another album.

As many have pointed out, the only problem with Brothers is the fact that the narrative stops with David Lee Roth's departure from the band and there's absolutely nothing about the Sammy Hagar era. Here's to hoping that there will be a sequel that covers those years. I was surprised by how positive his outlook on Diamond Dave turned out to be. Another surprise is how little Michael Anthony features in Alex's recollections. Almost as though the guy was a paid mucisian and not a true member of the band.

All in all, Alex Van Halen's Brothers is a terrific read!

Here's the blurb:

In this intimate and open account—nothing like any rock-and-roll memoir you’ve ever read—Alex Van Halen shares his personal story of family, friendship, music and brotherly love in a remarkable tribute to his beloved brother and band mate.

Told with acclaimed New Yorker writer Ariel Levy Brothers is seventy-year-old drummer Alex Van Halen’s love letter to his younger brother, Edward, (Maybe “Ed,” but never “Eddie”), written while still mourning his untimely death.

In his rough yet sweet voice, Alex recounts the brothers’ childhood, first in the Netherlands and then in working class Pasadena, California, with an itinerant musician father and a very proper Indonesian-born mother—the kind of mom who admonished her boys to “always wear a suit” no matter how famous they became—a woman who was both proud and practical, nonchalant about taking a doggie bag from a star-studded dinner. He also shares tales of musical politics, infighting, and plenty of bad-boy behavior. But mostly his is a story of brotherhood, music, and enduring love.

"I was with him from day one,” Alex writes. “We shared the experience of coming to this country and figuring out how to fit in. We shared a record player, an 800 square foot house, a mom and dad, and a work ethic. Later, we shared the back of a tour bus, alcoholism, the experience of becoming successful, of becoming fathers and uncles, and of spending more hours in the studio than I’ve spent doing anything else in this life. We shared a depth of understanding that most people can only hope to achieve in a lifetime."

There has never been an accurate account of them or the band, and Alex wants to set the record straight on Edward’s life and death.

Brothers includes never-before-seen photos from the author’s private archives.


For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download William Gibson's Pattern Recognition for only 1.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

The accolades and acclaim are endless for William Gibson's coast-to-coast bestseller. Set in the post-9/11 present, Pattern Recognition is the story of one woman's never-ending search for the now...

Cayce Pollard is a new kind of prophet—a world-renowned “coolhunter” who predicts the hottest trends. While in London to evaluate the redesign of a famous corporate logo, she’s offered a different assignment: find the creator of the obscure, enigmatic video clips being uploaded to the internet—footage that is generating massive underground buzz worldwide.

Still haunted by the memory of her missing father—a Cold War security guru who disappeared in downtown Manhattan on the morning of September 11, 2001—Cayce is soon traveling through parallel universes of marketing, globalization, and terror, heading always for the still point where the three converge. From London to Tokyo to Moscow, she follows the implications of a secret as disturbing—and compelling—as the twenty-first century promises to be...


More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can download Lev Grossman's The Bright Sword for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

A gifted young knight named Collum arrives at Camelot to compete for a place at the Round Table, only to find that he’s too late. King Arthur died two weeks ago at the Battle of Camlann, and only a handful of the knights of the Round Table are left.

The survivors aren’t the heroes of legend like Lancelot or Gawain. They’re the oddballs of the Round Table, like Sir Palomides, the Saracen Knight, and Sir Dagonet, Arthur’s fool, who was knighted as a joke. They’re joined by Nimue, who was Merlin’s apprentice until she turned on him and buried him under a hill.

But it's up to them to rebuild Camelot in a world that has lost its balance, even as God abandons Britain and the fairies and old gods return, led by Morgan le Fay. They must reclaim Excalibur and make this ruined world whole again—but first they'll have to solve the mystery of why the lonely, brilliant King Arthur fell.

The first major Arthurian epic of the new millennium, The Bright Sword is steeped in tradition, complete with duels and quests, battles and tournaments, magic swords and Fisher Kings. It's also a story about imperfect men and women, full of strength and pain, trying to reforge a broken land in spite of being broken themselves.


The Dragon Revenant


The Bristling Wood, third installment in Katharine Kerr's Deverry saga, ended with such a cliffhanger that I had no choice but to jump right into The Dragon Revenant to discover how the author would bring an end to the first story arc of this Celtic fantasy series. Not sure why this title was ultimately chosen, for it has absolutely nothing to do with the plot.

Unlike its predecessors, this fourth volume only occurs in the present. I figure that the plot had grown too vast to include past reincarnations in the storylines this time around. As a result, The Dragon Revenant made for a more streamlined reading experience. Which, it goes without saying, was for the best.

Here's the blurb:

For years the provinces of Deverry have been in turmoil; now the conflict escalates with the kidnapping of Rhodry Maelwaedd, heir to the throne of Aberwyn. Intent on rescuing him, his beloved Jill and the elven wizard Salamander infiltrate the distant land of Bardex, where Rhodry is held captive. Tied to Deverry by obligation and circumstance, the immortal wizard Nevyn begins to see that all the kingdom's problems can be traced to a single a master of dark magics, backed by a network of evil that stretches across the sea. Now Nevyn understands that he too is being lured away to Bardek--and into a subtle, deadly trap designed especially for him.

Katharine Kerr's novels of the Kingdom of Deverry unfold in a world of stunning richness and depth. Her vivid portrayal of characters caught in a complex web of fate and magic captures the imagination with a realism that few can match. Now she retums to this enchanted kingdom, where the wheels of destiny are tuming anew.


Once again, in The Dragon Revenant Katharine Kerr's superior worldbuilding continues to shine. Like Katherine Kurtz and Kate Elliott, the author has an eye for historical details and her portrayal of medieval Welsh/Celtic culture brings this tale to life with a realism that feels authentic. With the bulk of the action taking place beyond the sea, we learn more about the dweomer and its uses, about Bardek in particular, about the Old One, the dark masters, the Hawks of the Brotherhood and the other guilds. If it was in The Bristling Wood that the story truly took off, it's in The Dragon Revenant that Kerr brings it all together.

The better part of the novel deals with the aftermath of Rhodry's kidnapping and his becoming a slave in Bardek, as well as Jill and Salamander's quest to rescue him. With his brother dead, Rhodry is now the lawful heir. But if he cannot be found within a year's time, war will erupt as factions fight to determine who will lead. I feel that too much focus was put on the Bardek plotlines and not enough on the Nevyn vs the Old One showdown. Given its importance in the series thus far, their battle was rather anticlimactic to say the least. This is definitely a case of the resolution not being worthy of the build-up. However, I really liked how the author played with the politics of Rhodry's return and how it all came about. That was well done.

The Dragon Revenant brings all the storylines from the previous books to a mostly satisfying conclusion, all the while leaving the door open for a lot more to come. Kerr failed to come up with an endgame that did justice to the proverbial battle between Good and Evil, especially since she spent the last two volumes telling us how badass the Old One is. In and of itself, this could have killed the book. But the finale delivered in more ways than one. Those expecting a nice and romantic ending might find themselves shocked to a certain degree.

Though it's far from perfect, The Dragon Revenant concludes the first story arc of Katharine Kerr's Deverry saga in a way that makes me want to know what happens next. So yes, I will give the next arc a shot. If you're looking for a complex old-school speculative fiction series featuring an interesting cast of characters, you should definitely check out these books.

The final verdict: 7.75/10

For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now get your hands on the digital edition of Janny Wurts' The Cycle of Fire: The Complete Series, an omnibus comprised of Stormwarden, Keeper of the Keys, and Shadowfane, for only 3.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

Now in one volume: three novels in the “epic tale mixing fantasy and SF . . . full of action, splendid scenes of magic and engaging secondary characters” (Publishers Weekly).

Stormwarden

A young girl, her brother, and a Firelord’s descendant are caught up in the rescue of the Stormwarden Anskiere—and the unbinding of the demons that could destroy all of humanity.

Keeper of the Keys

As Jaric struggles to accept his father’s heritage, Taen’s brother is possessed by the demons who use him as a pawn to hunt down and slay the Firelord’s heir.

Shadowfane

Jaric faces the Cycle of Fire that drove his father to madness, while Taen Dreamweaver is targeted by her brother and his demon overlords, psionically endowed aliens who have been revealed as mankind’s ancient conquerors.


Cover blurb for Glen Cook's LIES WEEPING

It's been rumored for a while, but the folks at Tor Books made it official! Glen Cook is returning with a brand new story arc for the Black Company. Lies Weeping is the first installment in a new series coming out next fall.

Here's the blurb:

From the godfather of Grimdark himself, LIES WEEPING is the first book in a brand new arc of Glen Cook's groundbreaking Chronicles of the Black Company series!

The Black Company has retreated across the plain of glittering stone, toward a shadow gate that would let them trade the dangers of the plain for the questionable safety of the Company’s one-time haven on Hsien, a region in the world known as the Land of Unknown Shadows.

In Hsien, the company returns to their former base, An Abode of Ravens, where the Lady ages backwards in a return to force, shaking off the thrall, one breath at a time. Meanwhile, Croaker, ascended to godlike status as the Steadfast Guardian, has been left behind in the Nameless Fortress.

In their adopted father’s stead, Arkana and Shukrat have taken up the role of annalist for the Black Company. At first, life in Hsien appears quiet, even boring, but it is quickly apparent that strange goings on are more than what they seem, and it's up to them to discover the truth hidden in the shadows of this strange land.


More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now get your hands on the digital edition of R. R. Virdi's The Doors of Midnight for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

Myths begin, and a storyteller's tale deepens, in the essential sequel to R.R. Virdi's breakout Silk Road-inspired epic fantasy debut, The First Binding.

Some stories are hidden for a reason. All tales have a price. And every debt must be paid.

I killed three men as a child and earned the name Bloodletter. Then I set fire to the fabled Ashram. I've been a bird and robbed a merchant king of a ransom of gold. And I have crossed desert sands and cutthroat alleys to repay my debt.

I’ve stood before the eyes of god, faced his judgement, and cast aside the thousand arrows that came with it. And I have passed through the Doors of Midnight and lived to tell the tale.

I have traded one hundred and one stories with a creature as old as time, and survived with only my cleverness, a candle, and a broken promise.

And most recently of all, I have killed a prince, though the stories say I have killed more than one.

My name is Ari. These are my legends.

And these are my lies.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.


More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download Simon R. Green's The Man With the Golden Torc, first volume in the Secret Histories series, for only 3.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

New York Times bestselling author Simon Green introduces a new kind of hero, one who fights the good fight against some very old foes in the first novel in the Secret Histories series.

The name’s Bond. Shaman Bond. Actually, that's just his cover. His real name is Eddie Drood, but when your job includes a license to kick supernatural arse on a regular basis, you find your laughs where you can.

For centuries, his family has been the secret guardian of Humanity, all that stands between all of you and all of the really nasty things that go bump in the night. As a Drood field agent he wore the golden torc, he killed monsters, and he protected the world. He loved his job.

Right up to the point where his own family declared him rogue for no reason. Now, the only people who can help Eddie prove his innocence are the people he used to consider his enemies...


This week's New York Times Bestsellers (November 10th)

In hardcover:

Cecy Robson's Bloodguard debuts at number 2. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Rebecca Yarros' Iron Flame is down one position, ending the week at number 6. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Jeff VanderMeer's Absolution debuts at number 7. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Chloe C. Peñaranda's The Stars Are Dying is down six spots, finishing the week at number 12. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Rebecca Yarros' Fourth Wing returns at number 14. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

In paperback:

Rebecca Yarros' Fourth Wing is down one position, ending the week at number 3. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

John Gwynne's The Fury of the Gods debuts at number 5. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Sarah J. Maas' A Court of Thorns and Roses is down one position, ending the week at number 6. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Sarah J. Maas' A Court of Mist and Fury is down three positions, ending the week at number 14. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now get your hands on the digital edition of James S. A. Corey's The Mercy of Gods for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

How humanity came to the planet called Anjiin is lost in the fog of history, but that history is about to end.

The Carryx—part empire, part hive—have waged wars of conquest for centuries, destroying or enslaving species across the galaxy. Now, they are facing a great and deathless enemy. The key to their survival may rest with the humans of Anjiin.

Caught up in academic intrigue and affairs of the heart, Dafyd Alkhor is pleased just to be an assistant to a brilliant scientist and his celebrated research team. Then the Carryx ships descend, decimating the human population and taking the best and brightest of Anjiin society away to serve on the Carryx homeworld, and Dafyd is swept along with them.

They are dropped in the middle of a struggle they barely understand, set in a competition against the other captive species with extinction as the price of failure. Only Dafyd and a handful of his companions see past the Darwinian contest to the deeper game that they must play to survive: learning to understand—and manipulate—the Carryx themselves.

With a noble but suicidal human rebellion on one hand and strange and murderous enemies on the other, the team pays a terrible price to become the trusted servants of their new rulers.

Dafyd Alkhor is a simple man swept up in events that are beyond his control and more vast than his imagination. He will become the champion of humanity and its betrayer, the most hated man in history and the guardian of his people.

This is where his story begins.


Wind and Truth has started to ship!


If you're a Brandon Sanderson fan, you may have seen that some lucky readers have already received their copy of Wind and Truth. Maybe you'll be one of them! For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Here's the blurb:

The long-awaited explosive climax to the first arc of the #1 New York Times bestselling Stormlight Archive—the iconic epic fantasy masterpiece that has sold more than 10 million copies, from acclaimed bestselling author Brandon Sanderson.

Dalinar Kholin challenged the evil god Odium to a contest of champions with the future of Roshar on the line. The Knights Radiant have only ten days to prepare—and the sudden ascension of the crafty and ruthless Taravangian to take Odium’s place has thrown everything into disarray.

Desperate fighting continues simultaneously worldwide—Adolin in Azir, Sigzil and Venli at the Shattered Plains, and Jasnah in Thaylenah. The former assassin, Szeth, must cleanse his homeland of Shinovar from the dark influence of the Unmade. He is accompanied by Kaladin, who faces a new battle helping Szeth fight his own demons . . . and who must do the same for the insane Herald of the Almighty, Ishar.

At the same time, Shallan, Renarin, and Rlain work to unravel the mystery behind the Unmade Ba-Ado-Mishram and her involvement in the enslavement of the singer race and in the ancient Knights Radiant killing their spren. And Dalinar and Navani seek an edge against Odium’s champion that can be found only in the Spiritual Realm, where memory and possibility combine in chaos. The fate of the entire Cosmere hangs in the balance.


More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download Anna Smith Spark's The Court of Broken Knives for only 1.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

Perfect for fans of Mark Lawrence and R Scott Bakker, The Court of Broken Knives is the explosive debut by one of grimdark fantasy's most exciting new voices.

It is the richest empire the world has ever known, and it is also doomed -- but only one man can see it.

Haunted by prophetic dreams, Orhan has hired a company of soldiers to cross the desert to reach the capital city. Once they enter the palace, they have one mission: kill the emperor, then all those who remain. Only from the ashes can a new empire be built.

The company is a group of good, ordinary soldiers for whom this is a mission like any other. But the strange boy Marith who walks among them is no ordinary soldier. Though he is young, ambitious, and impossibly charming, something dark hides in Marith's past -- and in his blood.


Quote of the Day

There are a lot of things that could go wrong. Fortunately, I don’t know enough about what the hell I’m doing to know what those things are. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. Though sometimes ignorance will just make you very surprised when it kills you.

- STEPHEN BLACKMOORE, Ghost Money

For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Fire Season


As mentioned in my review of Hungry Ghosts, the first three installments in Stephen Blackmoore's Eric Carter series mostly read like Jim Butcher's episodic early Dresden Files books. But it looked as though we'd reached the end of the first story arc of this paranormal and gritty noir murder mystery series. There was potential for bigger and better things to come, and the ending of Hungry Ghosts certainly left the door open for much more.

As I said before, it remains to be seen whether or not Blackmoore can up his game and elevate this series to another level. Fire Season is definitely a step in the right direction, yet this series is not growing in scope quite as rapidly as the Dresden Files did. Though this fourth volume takes Eric beyond what was meant to be the first act in this story, I can't say that the plot is progressing at a good clip. Every novel thus far has been quite short, which limits the amount of progress the author can come up with with each new title. Still, Fire Season has been the best one yet.

Here's the blurb:

The fourth book of this dark urban fantasy series follows necromancer Eric Carter through a world of vengeful gods and goddesses, mysterious murders, and restless ghosts.

Los Angeles is burning.

During one of the hottest summers the city has ever seen, someone is murdering mages with fires that burn when they shouldn't, that don't stop when they should. Necromancer Eric Carter is being framed for the killings and hunted by his own people.

To Carter, everything points to the god Quetzalcoatl coming after him, after he defied the mad wind god in the Aztec land of the dead. But too many things aren't adding up, and Carter knows there's more going on.

If he doesn't figure out what it is and put a stop to it fast, Quetzalcoatl won't just kill him, he'll burn the whole damn city down with him.


My main gripe with urban fantasy works is that the market demands that they be short and relatively fast-paced works. Exactly why, I've never been able to say. But until an author achieves a certain level of commercial success, it feels as though editors won't allow them a larger page count. Hence the 300 pages or so that Stephen Blackmoore gets to work with. Understandably, the first few books were parsimonious on the worldbuilding front. However, in Hungry Ghosts the author finally unveiled many secrets pertaining to magic in general and Aztec/Mexican mythology. Having such Mayan and Mexican cultural influences gives the Eric Carter books a somewhat unique flavor and that's what I like the most about them. Fire Season mostly deals with the aftermath of what took place in Mictlan, the Aztec land of the dead. It now looks like Eric has a vengeful Aztec god coming after him for not upholding his part of their bargain and he's burning down Los Angeles in retribution. Trouble is, four volumes into this series and I still have no idea where the story is going. Whether he likes it or not, Eric has become the King of the Dead, and it's now evident that Darius and how he's planning to escape from his prison have become an integral part of the tale. And yet, even though each new installment adds layers to the plot, we still don't have a clear idea as to what this series really is about. It would be a major problem if the books were not entertaining, no doubt about it. But I feel that by now readers should have a better understanding of the overall plot and what Blackmoore is actually planning.

Basically everything Eric Carter touches turns to shit, which makes him an easy protagonist to root for. As always, he's a foul-mouthed smartass who gets beaten to a pulp way too many times in the span of such a short novel, but there is still something about him that makes you care for the poor fool. Again, he acts like an idiot for the most part because he's trying to protect those he loves without realizing that he's alienating them in the process. He has been running from his past for a long time and now it's finally caught up with him. As mentioned in my review of Hungry Ghosts, as entertaining as he is, I was hoping for some character growth to help him become a more balanced individual. Well, with LA burning down around him and mages trying to kill him for murders he hasn't committed, there is very little room for growth. I was glad to see Gabriella return in this fourth volume. Vivian and Letitia, a mage who went to school with Eric and who's now a police officer and a secret member of the Cleanup Crew, made for a nice addition to the supporting cast. Although there is only one POV, it's nice to have other people sharing the spotlight with Eric.

With Fire Season being such a short work, there are no pacing issues from start to finish. With a vindictive god and a ruthless sicaria wielding a god-created weapon coming after him, this latest Eric Carter book reads more like a thriller than an urban fantasy novel. And since I'm almost done with the fifth volume, Ghost Money, it's also obvious that Fire Season sets the stage for yet more troubling times for the necromancer. Given that his plate is already quite full, it will be interesting to see what Blackmoore has in store for him. Especially since Santa Muerte, his wife and patron saint of death, who is and isn't who she used to be since the events that occurred in Mictlan, is also seeking attention.

If you are looking for a gritty urban fantasy series featuring a deeply flawed male lead, the Eric Carter books are definitely for you. How this series has flown under the radar for all these years, I'll never know. But fans of Jim Butcher, Simon R. Green, and Richard Kadrey will definitely find a lot to like about these novels.

The final verdict: 7.75/10

For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download TJ Klune's In the Lives of Puppets for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

In a strange little home built into the branches of a grove of trees, live three robots—fatherly inventor android Giovanni Lawson, a pleasantly sadistic nurse machine, and a small vacuum desperate for love and attention. Victor Lawson, a human, lives there too. They’re a family, hidden and safe.

The day Vic salvages and repairs an unfamiliar android labeled “HAP,” he learns of a shared dark past between Hap and Gio–a past spent hunting humans.

When Hap unwittingly alerts robots from Gio’s former life to their whereabouts, the family is no longer hidden and safe. Gio is captured and taken back to his old laboratory in the City of Electric Dreams. So together, the rest of Vic’s assembled family must journey across an unforgiving and otherworldly country to rescue Gio from decommission, or worse, reprogramming.

Along the way to save Gio, amid conflicted feelings of betrayal and affection for Hap, Vic must decide for himself: Can he accept love with strings attached?

Inspired by Carlo Collodi's The Adventures of Pinocchio, and like Swiss Family Robinson meets Wall-E, In the Lives of Puppets is a masterful stand-alone fantasy adventure from the beloved author who brought you The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door.



You can also get your hands on the digital edition of S.A. Chakraborty's The City of Brass for only 1.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

Nahri has never believed in magic. Certainly, she has power; on the streets of eighteenth-century Cairo, she’s a con woman of unsurpassed talent. But she knows better than anyone that the trades she uses to get by—palm readings, zars, and a mysterious gift for healing—are all tricks, both the means to the delightful end of swindling Ottoman nobles and a reliable way to survive.

But when Nahri accidentally summons Dara, an equally sly, darkly mysterious djinn warrior, to her side during one of her cons, she’s forced to reconsider her beliefs. For Dara tells Nahri an extraordinary tale: across hot, windswept sands teeming with creatures of fire and rivers where the mythical marid sleep, past ruins of once-magnificent human metropolises and mountains where the circling birds of prey are more than what they seem, lies Daevabad, the legendary city of brass—a city to which Nahri is irrevocably bound.

In Daevabad, within gilded brass walls laced with enchantments and behind the six gates of the six djinn tribes, old resentments run deep. And when Nahri decides to enter this world, her arrival threatens to ignite a war that has been simmering for centuries.

Spurning Dara’s warning of the treachery surrounding her, she embarks on a hesitant friendship with Alizayd, an idealistic prince who dreams of revolutionizing his father’s corrupt regime. All too soon, Nahri learns that true power is fierce and brutal. That magic cannot shield her from the dangerous web of court politics. That even the cleverest of schemes can have deadly consequences.

After all, there is a reason they say to be careful what you wish for . . .

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now get your hands on the digital edition of T. Kingfisher's A House With Good Bones for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

A haunting Southern Gothic from an award-winning master of suspense, A House With Good Bones explores the dark, twisted roots lurking just beneath the veneer of a perfect home and family.

"Mom seems off."

Her brother's words echo in Sam Montgomery's ear as she turns onto the quiet North Carolina street where their mother lives alone.

She brushes the thought away as she climbs the front steps. Sam's excited for this rare extended visit, and looking forward to nights with just the two of them, drinking boxed wine, watching murder mystery shows, and guessing who the killer is long before the characters figure it out.

But stepping inside, she quickly realizes home isn’t what it used to be. Gone is the warm, cluttered charm her mom is known for; now the walls are painted a sterile white. Her mom jumps at the smallest noises and looks over her shoulder even when she’s the only person in the room. And when Sam steps out back to clear her head, she finds a jar of teeth hidden beneath the magazine-worthy rose bushes, and vultures are circling the garden from above.

To find out what’s got her mom so frightened in her own home, Sam will go digging for the truth. But some secrets are better left buried.




You can also download Samantha Shannon's The Priory of the Orange Tree for only 4.99$ here.

Here's the blurb:

A world divided.
A queendom without an heir.
An ancient enemy awakens.

The House of Berethnet has ruled Inys for a thousand years. Still unwed, Queen Sabran the Ninth must conceive a daughter to protect her realm from destruction--but assassins are getting closer to her door.

Ead Duryan is an outsider at court. Though she has risen to the position of lady-in-waiting, she is loyal to a hidden society of mages. Ead keeps a watchful eye on Sabran, secretly protecting her with forbidden magic.

Across the dark sea, Tané has trained all her life to be a dragonrider, but is forced to make a choice that could see her life unravel.

Meanwhile, the divided East and West refuse to parley, and forces of chaos are rising from their sleep.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now get your hands on the digital edition of Madeline Miller's The Song of Achilles for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

“Mary Renault lives again!” declares Emma Donoghue, author of Room, referring to The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller’s thrilling, profoundly moving, and utterly unique retelling of the legend of Achilles and the Trojan War. A tale of gods, kings, immortal fame, and the human heart, The Song of Achilles is a dazzling literary feat that brilliantly reimagines Homer’s enduring masterwork, The Iliad. An action-packed adventure, an epic love story, a marvelously conceived and executed page-turner, Miller’s monumental debut novel has already earned resounding acclaim from some of contemporary fiction’s brightest lights—and fans of Mary Renault, Bernard Cornwell, Steven Pressfield, and Colleen McCullough’s Masters of Rome series will delight in this unforgettable journey back to ancient Greece in the Age of Heroes.


You can also download James Islington's The Shadow of What Was Lost, first volume in the Licanius trilogy, for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale. It's supposed to be a must for fans of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time.

Here's the blurb:

It has been twenty years since the god-like Augurs were overthrown and killed. Now, those who once served them - the Gifted - are spared only because they have accepted the rebellion's Four Tenets, vastly limiting their powers.

As a Gifted, Davian suffers the consequences of a war lost before he was even born. He and others like him are despised. But when Davian discovers he wields the forbidden power of the Augurs, he sets into motion a chain of events that will change everything.

To the west, a young man whose fate is intertwined with Davian's wakes up in the forest, covered in blood and with no memory of who he is...

And in the far north, an ancient enemy long thought defeated begins to stir.

This week's New York Times Bestsellers (November 3rd)

In hardcover:

Rebecca Yarros' Iron Flame is up one position, ending the week at number 5. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Chloe C. Peñaranda's The Stars Are Dying is down four spots, finishing the week at number 6. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Ruby Dixon's Bull Moon Rising debuts at number 7. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

In paperback:

Rebecca Yarros' Fourth Wing is up one position, ending the week at number 2. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Sarah J. Maas' A Court of Thorns and Roses maintains its position at number 5. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

Sarah J. Maas' A Court of Mist and Fury is up two positions, ending the week at number 11. For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can download Susanna Clarke's Piranesi for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

From the New York Times bestselling author of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, an intoxicating, hypnotic new novel set in a dreamlike alternative reality.

Piranesi's house is no ordinary building: its rooms are infinite, its corridors endless, its walls are lined with thousands upon thousands of statues, each one different from all the others. Within the labyrinth of halls an ocean is imprisoned; waves thunder up staircases, rooms are flooded in an instant. But Piranesi is not afraid; he understands the tides as he understands the pattern of the labyrinth itself. He lives to explore the house.

There is one other person in the house-a man called The Other, who visits Piranesi twice a week and asks for help with research into A Great and Secret Knowledge. But as Piranesi explores, evidence emerges of another person, and a terrible truth begins to unravel, revealing a world beyond the one Piranesi has always known.

For readers of Neil Gaiman's The Ocean at the End of the Lane and fans of Madeline Miller's Circe, Piranesi introduces an astonishing new world, an infinite labyrinth, full of startling images and surreal beauty, haunted by the tides and the clouds.


More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now get your hands on the digital edition of Travis Baldree's bestseller Legends and Lattes for only 2.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

The much-beloved BookTok sensation, Travis Baldree's novel of high fantasy and low stakes.

*This new edition includes a very special, never-before-seen bonus story, 'Pages to Fill.'*

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time.

The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.

If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to go it alone.

But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.


More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download Octavia E. Butler's Dawn for only 1.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

The two sequels, Adulthood Rites and Imago, are also on sale for the same price. Or you can download the entire trilogy for 4.32$.

Here's the blurb:

One woman is called upon to rebuild the future of humankind after a nuclear war, in this revelatory post-apocalyptic tale from the award-winning author of Parable of the Sower.

When Lilith lyapo wakes from a centuries-long sleep, she finds herself aboard the vast spaceship of the Oankali. She discovers that the Oankali—a seemingly benevolent alien race—intervened in the fate of the humanity hundreds of years ago, saving everyone who survived a nuclear war from a dying, ruined Earth and then putting them into a deep sleep. After learning all they could about Earth and its beings, the Oankali healed the planet, cured cancer, increased human strength, and they now want Lilith to lead her people back to Earth—but salvation comes at a price.

Hopeful and thought-provoking, this post-apocalyptic narrative deftly explores gender and race through the eyes of characters struggling to adapt during a pivotal time of crisis and change.


Sex, Drugs, Ratt & Roll: My Life in Rock


I wanted to take a break from works focusing on the Middle East in between SFF reads, so I went looking for books similar to Mötley Crüe and Neil Strauss' The Dirt: Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band. That one turned out to be my favorite reads of all time, so I decided to download a bunch of rock and roll biographies. Hard rock, glam rock, heavy metal, whatever label you want to put on these records, hair bands were the thing during my teenage and young adult years and they have shaped my life in various ways. Hell, I still listen to most of that music today and it's no guilty pleasure. The 70s and 80s produced the very best music the world has ever seen and I'm just glad I was around to experience it!

Surprisingly, Stephen Pearcy's memoir is the book that came up the most when I was looking for suggestions for similar works to The Dirt. I was never a big fan of Ratt back in the day. Not a Ratt and Roller by any stretch of the imagination. They were okay and part of all hard rock compilations that were released every year or so, and I did get a few of their albums from the Columbia House promo thingie where so many of us got cassettes and CDs in the 80s and the 90s. So I knew of them and enjoyed a few of their songs, chief among those being Round and Round, which played on the radio and around the clock on MTV and Much Music during the mid-80s. But though Ratt got big and scored four platinum albums in a row, they never made it to superstardom the way Mötley Crüe, Bon Jovi, and Guns N' Roses ultimately did. Hence my surprise that Sex, Drugs, Ratt and Roll: My Life in Rock would be pimped like it was when I was looking for my nex rock and roll book.

I mean, it's 2024 and I can still name a couple of Ratt tunes, yet I couldn't for the life of me remember the name of the band's lead singer. But what the heck? I told myself that if it's only half as good as The Dirt, I was in for a treat!

Here's the blurb:

The jaw-dropping tell-all from the lead singer of 1980s supergroup Ratt—and the dirty details of the riotous era when big-haired bands ruled the world.

Women. Spandex. Drugs. Hair spray. . . . Welcome to heavy metal rock ’n’ roll, circa 1980, when all you needed was the right look, burning ambition, and a chance. Cranking out metal just as metal got hot, Ratt was the perfect band at the perfect time, and their hit single “Round and Round” became a top-selling anthem. The bigger Ratt got, the more excessive lead singer Stephen Pearcy and his “pussy pirates” became. There was nothing these guys wouldn’t snort, drink, bed, or break. But as Ratt scrambled up a wall of fame and wealth, so they experienced a gut-wrenching free fall. Pearcy’s stunningly honest rock ’n’ roll confessional, by turns incredible, hilarious, and lyrical, is more than a story of survival—it’s a search for the things that matter most.


Let me begin by saying that Sex, Drugs, Ratt and Roll: My Life in Rock is nothing like The Dirt. It's still a fun and interesting read, but there's very little in terms of content. Sure, it's a tale of neverending excess and debauchery. There's a lot of name-dropping and Pearcy and his boys did a lot of crazy shit with other famous people. But there's only so much sex and drugs one can take and maintain interest.

The most fasinating stuff has to do with everything that went on during the time Ratt was created and tried to make it. It's fascinating because basically all the musicians that formed bands that came out of the Sunset Strip and its infamous venues pretty much all knew each other and played with one another before making it big or not. I had no idea that the guys from Ratt were so close to the Crüe, even before the band was signed. Or that Pearcy was close enough with Eddie Van Halen that the legendary guitarist would hide booze at Pearcy's place so he could come and drink without his wife finding out. There are a lot of anecdotes like that and they make the book a worthwhile read. I couldn't help laughing when Pearcy, for whom Duran Duran was a big fashion influence for Ratt's wardrobe, tried to get his picture taken with Simon Le Bon at one of Hollywood's most exclusive clubs, only to have the other refuse. Or Pearcy's awkward meeting with Michael Jackson at a similar club. In addition, I wasn't aware that Ratt was one of the first big bands to give Bon Jovi a shot to open for them and they were the first to take Poison on tour with them.

What I would have liked was a bit more information about the creative process for each album and the tour that followed. Alas, we get a paragraph or three and that's it. Like many of those popular rock bands, Ratt self-destructed on its own, mostly due to big egos and various conflicts between members. But it was interesting to see that the principal factor that led to Ratt's demise was that Atlantic Records kept them on the road constantly, with only short breaks to record a new album and then send the band back on tour. Say what you want of these guys, they were machines. 222 shows in 15 months to promote their first album, Out of the Cellar. Nearly 250 shows in a year to promote their recond record, Invasion of Your Privacy. And remember that this was in the days of tour buses with bunk beds, not private jets flying you to the next city. No wonder the guys were stoned out of their minds the whole time.

Stephen Pearcy doesn't deserve any pity or sympathy. Like most of his contemporaries, he was an arrogant asshole. Given the amount of booze, drugs, and pills that went through his body, and the heroin addiction that followed later on, it's a wonder the man survived to this day. Not to mention AIDS. How he dodged that bullet given all the nookie he indulged in, I'll never know. There is a poignant moment when he describes his heroin problem, which makes you feel for the poor sod. But though it's extremely difficult to show any empathy for a tattoed millionaire who owned a collection of black Porsche cars and lived it up like a king for a while, it's still sad to think that that permanent drug haze seems to imply that he doesn't quite recall headlining mythical venues like the LA's Forum and NYC's Madison Square Garden, or playing in front of enormous crowds as part of the Monsters of Rock festival in Europe. After four platinum albums and two gold records and ten million copies sold worldwide, over a thousand shows played around the globe, it's too bad that so little of that success appears to be left down the line. Pearcy's relationship with guitarist Robbin Crosby is another highlight of the book. Too bad it ended the way it did, with Crosby becoming addicted to heroin, coming down with AIDS, and dying of an overdose.

Like so many rock and roll stories, Ratt's own rise and fall comes with its own unhappy ending. The good thing is that Pearcy now has a daughter he loves and seems to have cleaned up his act. Good on him if that's true. In the end, Sex, Drugs, Ratt and Roll: My Life in Rock is worth a read if you were a Ratt and Roller or if you were into hair bands during the 80s. Nothing groundbreaking per se, but an entertaining read nonetheless.

For more info about this title, follow this Amazon Associate link.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!

You can now download Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's Dragons of Autumn Twilight for only 1.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

Once merely creatures of legend, the dragons have returned to Krynn. But with their arrival comes the departure of the old gods—and all healing magic. As war threatens to engulf the land, a group of lifelong friends reunite for an adventure that will change their lives and shape their world forever . . .

When Tanis, Sturm, Caramon, Raistlin, Flint, and Tasslehoff see a woman use a blue crystal staff to heal a villager, they wonder if it's a sign the gods have not abandoned them after all. Fueled by this glimmer of hope, the Companions ban together to uncover the truth behind the gods' absence—though they aren't the only ones with an interest in the staff. The Seekers, a new religious order, wants the artifact for their own ends, believing it will help them replace the gods and overtake the continent of Ansalon. Now, the Companions must assume the unlikely roles of heroes if they hope to prevent the staff from falling into the hands of darkness.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's Dragon Wing, first volume in the Death Gate Cycle, the authors' very best series, for only 3.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

The second volume, Elven Star, is also on sale.

Here's the blurb:

Preeminent storytellers Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman have redefined epic fantasy. Since the publication of their Dragonlance series, millions of readers have enjoyed their imaginative world-building, rich characterization, and intricate storylines. Now these best-selling authors bring their talents to one of the most innovative fantasy creations ever in Dragon Wing, the first volume in The Death Gate Cycle.

Ages ago, sorcerers of unmatched power sundered a world into four realms—sky, stone, fire, and water—then vanished. Over time, magicians learned to work spells only in their own realms and forgot the others. Now only the few who have survived the Labyrinth and crossed the Death Gate know of the presence of all four realms—and even they have yet to unravel the mysteries of their severed world. . . .

In Arianus, Realm of Sky, humans, elves, and dwarves battle for control of precious water—traversing a world of airborne islands on currents of elven magic and the backs of mammoth dragons. But soon great magical forces will begin to rend the fabric of this delicate land. An assassin will be hired to kill a royal prince—by the king himself. A dwarf will challenge the beliefs of his people—and lead them in rebellion. And a sinister wizard will enact his plan to rule Arianus—a plan that may be felt far beyond the Realm of Sky and into the Death Gate itself.


More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download Connie Willis' Doomsday Book for only 1.99$ by following this Amazon Associate link. This OneLink will take you to the nearest Amazon site serving your country and you'll see if you can take advantage of this sale.

Here's the blurb:

For Kivrin, preparing to travel back in time to study one of the deadliest eras in humanity’s history was as simple as receiving inoculations against the diseases of the fourteenth century and inventing an alibi for a woman traveling alone. For her instructors in the twenty-first century, it meant painstaking calculations and careful monitoring of the rendezvous location where Kivrin would be received.

But a crisis strangely linking past and future strands Kivrin in a bygone age as her fellows try desperately to rescue her. In a time of superstition and fear, Kivrin—barely of age herself—finds she has become an unlikely angel of hope during one of history’s darkest hours.



You can also download Dr. Chris Kempshall's Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire for only 1.99$ here.

Here's the blurb:

"So this is how liberty dies—with thunderous applause." —Senator Padmé Amidala

When Sheev Palpatine declared the birth of his new Empire, he expected it would stand for thousands of years. Instead, it lasted only 24. This is the story of how a tyrannical regime rose from the ashes of democracy, ruled the galaxy with an iron fist, and then collapsed into dust.

It is a story of war and heroes. It is a story of propaganda and the power of fascism. But most of all, it is a story of normal people trying to live their lives in the face of brutal dictatorship.

From the barbarity of Darth Vader's campaigns to the horrors of the Tarkin Initiative, this book offers new insights into the dark entity at the core of the Star Wars saga, with chapters covering economic strategy and political organisation, propaganda, crime and punishment, military tactics, and warfare, giving even the most expert Star Wars fans a fresh perspective on the Galactic Empire.