Your residence for beautiful scribbles.
I am shackled
I am undone
I am ethereal
I am home
I am doubt’s castle
I am raw abandon
I am leaking stars
I am oozing passion
I long for a home I have never encountered
I long for this earth to grow teeth and devour me
I chase lightning, peering hard behind every hill
I chase moon beams, in the elfin darkness we meet
A three-way heartbeat we share.
May we never stop wondering and thinking.
This is Megan’s first book and this is a beautiful debut novel. Like many readers, I did not realize Sin Eater’s were real and still active a century ago. Sin Eaters were woman ordained by faith to carry the sins of the people, or eating their sins as represented by food items. By eating the food, that symbolizes society’s sins, they allow society to enter heaven, unburdened. I loved the time period and the concept for the book. My only complaint was that I wanted more story when I got to the end. Well done, Mary.
I gave this book a 4/5 and I look forward to her next one.
**Alert Spoiler’s Below**
We first meet May Owens, the book’s main character, after she is caught for stealing a loaf of bread from a baker’s stand. At her sentencing, her crime of theft is commuted and she is declared a Sin Eater. She in not allowed to speak regularly, only when she is absolving sins and she is marked with an S-Collar. Her tongue is branded with an S as well. They have a dedicated residence within the city, where she is paired with an older Sin Eater for training.
In her early days, they are called to the castle to sin eat for a royal governess. The governess confesses her sins and the ritual food is procured, but during the eating session, a deer heart appears on the coffin. It is a mistake and the older sin eater refuses to eat it since the governess never confessed to it. The Queen locks her away for refusing to eat the hear while May eats it but doesn’t realize her mistake until later. What follows is lovely winding murder plot as more residents of the royal house subside to poisoning and fake deer hearts appear.
May is attempting to unmask the killer after she discovers the previous sin eater was tortured and killed within the royal prison. After much sleuthing and detective work, she discovers a horrible secret hidden within a tapestry. During this time, may has to visit a magician’s shop and he manages to unlock her S-collar. She does not take it off, but her burden becomes less a prison and more her purpose, that she is free but chooses to be the Sin Eater.
The Queen had a child out of wedlock and made her friends and servants swear to kill the child but they couldn’t thought the child was hidden. Once May validated that one of the other nobles was not responsible, she discovers the long lost child is responsible for murdering royals while also attempting to poison the Queen through her cook and a special meal. Since she can’t speak no one else knows what she does, but she leaves her city behind after escaping the palace grounds while the palace guards hunt the poisoner.
May settles a few towns over but is accepted by the existing, ailing Sin Eater to live out her days in presumed peace.
This was my first Brent Weeks novel and I have to say I was more than pleasantly surprised, I loved it. The world of Azoth and his Master Blint was a wonderful adventure. The plot lines were well woven and I quite enjoyed the ending His world building was slightly confusing with so many different governments happening at once . It did take me about 100 pages to become vested in Azoth as a character but after that, the pace picked up nicely.
I gave this book a 3/5 stars. There are abuse and rape mentioned in this book, FYI, in case it’s not your thing.
**Spoiler’s Below**
The book begins with our main character, Azoth, a drifter within the Warrens Cenaria City. He is in a guild and looks after a younger girl, Doll Girl, and a slightly older Jarl. Abused by one of the Guild Fists, and through several twists, has the chance to become an assassin’s apprentice to Durzo Blint, if he manages to kill the Fist, Rat, before the night is over. Rat mutilated Doll Girl’s face and agrees if Durzo promises to save her.
Durzo saves Doll Girl and Azoth kills Rat eventually, becoming the wanted apprenticeship, but Durzo refuses to let him see Doll Girl or any girl for that matter as they are denied loving relationships. They can be used against assassins as a weak spot. Azoth gets paid by Durzo and soon becomes Doll Girls unknown benefactor so she may join a family and grow up within a normal family. Azoth trains to be a killer, but is never able to summon his hidden magical ability. Eventually, Durzo stages Azoth’s death so everyone thinks he is dead, after the King attempts to blackmail Durzo into his service. He becomes Kylar.
Kylar leaves Durzo’s house to stay with Count Rimbold Drake, an old dear friend of Durzo’s. He also learns to read from Mamma K, the sister of Durzo’s long lost love, Vonda. Momma K is also a member of the Sa’kage, and manages every brothel in the city. Kylar is never. At Drake’s he learns to behave in society, hanging out with the young Logan Gure, they become good friends. Around this time, Jarl also make a come back and eventually works himself up to be Momma K’s right hand man.
While both Durzo and Kylar are searching for ways that might let him use his talent, rumor has it one exists, hidden within the City. Momma K tells them, there may be one within the palace walls. Without telling each other they were going, Kylar discovers the ka’kari first, and after touching it, it bonds with him. Only one bond can happen per ka’kar, until they die. Kylar is now able to summon his magical power. In the palace scuffle, the King’s prince is murdered by his mistress but she tries to blame both Durzo and Kylar.
About this time, Roth, a previous Guild Fist is making politicalk moves, with aimes to joinSa’kage. It requires a vote, leading him to Momma K’s establishment. He knows she has a daughter, fathered by Durzo that she never told anyone about. He blackmails her into helping him. He ultimately uses this fact to blackmail Durzo as well. Durzo is called upon the murder every living heir and member of the royal family. Roth ultimately brings war upon the City by allowing Khalidor troops through security gates and over bridges, into the city and palace. The entire Gyre family is killed except for his father, who was already assigned to a certain battle zone, while Logan is unwillingly forced to marry the King’s daughter, Jenine, for the good of the kingdom.
That night in the palace, through Roth, Durzo poisons the meat that everyone eats for dinner. Shortly after the remaining royal members die, Logan and Jenine are all that’s left. Roth hunts them down, murders Jenine, but leaves Logan alive so he can be fed to the Maw, a cannibalistic pit of the prisons. After Roth’s departure, Neph, his witch, secretly save Jenine with plans to add her to the GodKing’s already large collection of wives.
With Kylar’s help, Jarl attempts to hire a guard that would locate Logan and help him escape the palace. The shear number of witches, he is killed and Logan with no where else to hide and witches searching for him, chooses to enter the cannibal den. armed only with a knife and the key to the door. Kylar and Durzo are fiorced to fight each other, Kylar must kills Durzo for his own Black Kakari, it must go to Roth to save Durzo’s duaghter. After quite the battle, Kylar finally bests him, fully assuming the roll of the Night Angel,, the Avatar of Justice, which had been
With Kylar’s help, Jarl attempts to hire a guard that would locate Logan and help him escape the palace. The shear number of witches, he is killed and Logan with no where else to hide and witches searching for him, chooses to enter the cannibal den. armed only with a knife and the key to the door. Kylar and Durzo are forced to fight each other, Kylar must kills Durzo for his own Black Kakari, it must go to Roth to save Durzo’s daughter. After quite the battle, Kylar finally bests him, fully assuming the roll of the Night Angel,, the Avatar of Justice, which had been Durzo.
He returns to the palace to find Logan and kill Roth. Unfortunately, within the Maw ,all he finds at the prison is blood and assumes Logan is dead. He does find Elene and Uly (Durzo and Momma K’s daughter), and releases them to escape. Killing Roth proves to be a difficult task as he is guarded by a room with plenty of soldiers and witches. Eventually, he kills them all and Roth but dies himself as well. IN death, he meets a figure called the Wolf. He is given the choice of heaven or hell OR an Immortal life. He chooses to return to life and escapes the palace. The Godking still took control of the country, forcing Elene, Kylar and Uly to flee together.
Father’s Day has many different forms of celebration through time and by country. The US and a cluster of countries, observes a celebration of fatherhood on the third Sunday of June, while the rest of the world celebrates as early as February and as late as December 26th. It all depends on local custom and religion.
While I don’t personally have the best relationship with my own father, I can be grateful for other father figures that were there. My grandfather and uncle proved that unconditional love was possible at their hands. On this day, I would like to thank them as well as any other fathers or father figures out there doing your best. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect, just keep trying and that’s all we can do.
Coronavirus has created new ways of life for us all. but together, we will make it through.
Another new Author for me this week with Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone, first book in The Shadow and Bone Trilogy. It appears I will be an avid reader of her work soon, her pace and word choice had me hooked in the first 8 pages. The world building was also well executed. I gave this book a 4/5 rating and intend to continue through the rest of the trilogy.
**Alert** Spoiler Alerts Below
I saw certain of people calling the main character and overall plot cliche, I personally related to her awkwardness, lonely childhood. I was also very fascinated by the magical system, and the plot of saving the world stood out for me among other issue with love triangles or whatnot.
In this first book, we are introduced to the country of Ravka with a dark past. The magical people in this world are called Grisha and are tested early in childhood to see if they display magical abilities. If they show abilities, they are sent to a particular school to hone their abilities. This magic system is based on them being capable of manipulating elements (air, water, fire, etc.).
They are also plagued by the Shadow Fold. A place of darkness with terrifying creatures that prowl the depths. Alina Starkov, our main character for this book, is an orphan and part of a regiment walking into the Shadow Fold. It separates Ravka from the sea and they must traverse it on a regular basis to receive shipments from other nations. The skiff Alina is stationed in is outfitted with a confutation of Grisha and warriors and attacked by Volcra shortly into their attempt across the Unsea.
During the attack, her best friend is injured and watching him almost die triggers her own rare Grisha mastery, the ability to summon Light. Her unknown summoning saves her friend and everyone else on the boat as it gives them a chance to escape back to shore. The volcra can’t withstand her light and fall back.
The Leader of the Grisha, The Second Army, takes control of her at this moment, forcing her to traverse back to their capital and well defended city, Os Alta and she is separated from Mal, her orphanage friend. While there, she is added to the school for training with the rest of the Grisha students. The Darkling attempts to seduce her, but one of her teachers, Baghra, inform her of a plot of deception by the Darkling to control her great power by use of a fabled amplifier.
With Baghra’s help, she is able to flea the castle grounds and flees west. Meanwhile, the Darkling sends her regiments of the army after her to bring her back. While she is fleeing, she is spotted by the Army and while running for her life, her and Ma, an exceptional tracker, l are reunited after many months apart. They discover he was tracking an ancient stag that would be her amplifier from the Darkling. They decide to track it together to beat the Darkling’s militia from killing it first.
During the long trek, they finally admit they love each other and Mal fienes this famous stag for her to kill. When they approach, she can’t end his life and grants him mercy. The Darkling and his forces appear, and he takes the stag as his own. They fashion a collar for the amplifier and she becomes enslaved to his will. After a long journey back, he forces her and Mal back into the Shadow Fold, forces her to keep the Volra at bay while he extends the death and destruction of the fold into further into other countries. The border towns are wiped form the map as his strategically placed ambassadors on the boat, what this.
His attempt to take control of not only Rakva but the neighboring nations with fear manipulation is slightly thwarted as Alina finally realizes her mercy for the stag’s life gives her claim to the amplifier. The Darkling throws Mal overboard into the Volcra, Alina breaks free and they escape together as she destroys the boat and they flee.
I definitely recommend this book for reading and excited to continue the rest of the series.
David Estes’s – Fatemarked (book 1 of the series) was an amazing read. A high fantasy based series, with brilliant characters and wonderful plot lines, several layers thick. The plots covered a swath of main characters, that I enjoyed immensely. My personal favorites were Gwen and Roan. I give the first book a 4/5.
With a name like Fatemarked, it expectantly, brings the reader through our own fate. Are we the maters of our compass? Or, does some bigger picture out of our view, bring us to precise points in time for a higher purpose? A question that’s been chewed over for centuries already and will continue well after we pass on from this place.
*Alert* Spoilers past this point. *
In book 1, Fatemarked, we are introduced to a new world comprised of various countries in endless years of war. ‘Fatemaked’ humans are created, with peculiar markings on their skin, bestowing them with unique abilities. Some can control fire, while some are made of stone and difficult to kill, while others, (The Peacekeeper) can heal. I enjoyed the variations in geography and climates, particularly the Iron Forest, the northern frozen tundra to the southern deserts of the of Phanes.
The land is overrun by a Hundred Years War e every region of the four kingdoms is at war with some other region, just because that’show it’s been so long. No one remembers what peace felt like and generation after generation continues the viscous circle of killing each other.
Roan Loren is our main character for this book and we discover that, fatemarked, he can heal himself from any grievous wounds. He can also use it to heal other people. We also meet Bane, fatemmarked with death and a deadly ability to kill without mercy. A long forgotten prophesy by the Oracle, declares that peace will return to the four kingdoms with Bane and Roan working together towards this goal. As opposing sides of the human spectrum, life and death, they have no choice but to find a way to work together. Bane must kill 8 war mongering rulers, 2 from each kingdom, according to the prophesy.
Bane and Roan become difficult for each other as Bane attempts to kill one of Roan’s friends, the prince of the King of the East. Roan refuses to let him die and injects enough life back into him that he eventually recovers. The duo spend much of the book at odds with each other over what is right and wrong.
This book is filled with a great sense of humor and I enjoyed the comebacks between characters. I can’t wait to finish the rest of the series.
This is a stand alone novel by one of my favorite authors, Garth Nix. I first discovered Garth in his Sabriel series many years ago, so this book was my first of his in many years. The premise for magic use and the world building was unique, even for a Nix novel. A world based on magic tied to angels and arch-angels in seventeenth century France, it was wreathed in mystery and betrayal and friendship.
I Really struggled to rate this book, but finally landed on a 3.5/5.
** Alert Spoilers Below**
In this universe, magic users must call on angels to utilize it. This wreaks havoc on their body as the spells require life in exchange for magic. The more powerful the angel, the more life required to summon them. The summons require icons, beautifully crafted ringlets and symbols, specific to each Angel.
Our main antagonist, Lilliath, is a very powerful angel mage, if not the most powerful we encounter in the book. She is immune to the life drain normal to utilizing Angels for spells. She has just awoken from a century long slumber, before which, she had caused the Fall of Ystara. Her only driving need is to be united with her arch angel lover, Palleniel.
In the Fall of Ystara, all of it’s people were either killed by the ashblood plague, or evolved into hideous beasts. The survivor’s followed Lilliath into the closest province, Sarance. The descendants will never join the city as equals as performing magic on their blood transforms it to ash. They are shunned by most of the city and now called the Refusers.
Now, in the modern age, she simply promises them their dreams but has no intention handing it over. She is cold and heartless and a great villain. Due to her power, there are many protagonists that choose to stand against her, but the four at the top are four descendants of Ystara but they remain untouched by ashblood plague and capable of magic. Lilliath intends to recruit them, but only to use them to meet Palleniel. They have no plans to become fodder and it sets us up for an incredible battle.
The four descendants are: Simeon, a large man and doctor in training; Agnez, a new musketeer recruit; Henri, a clerk moving up the ranks in employment of the architect building a new palace; and Dorotea, a gifted icon-maker and scholar of the mages college. They are drawn together, due to their heritage, as though brothers and sisters. The final culmination of deception and betrayal happens within the Temple if Ystara and Lilliath betrays the 4, trying to sacrifice them to Pallenial. They thwart her plans and Dorotea manages to convince her to ascend to Pallenial rather than trying to force him to the surface.
Altogether, a good read.
A rewrite of Rumpelstiltskin, this is a great steady story to the end. I enjoyed Naomi’s writing style and the way she managed to layer many aspects of the story’s character’s together and still created a wonderfully cohesive story. It was published in 2018 as a stand alone novel, but I would welcome additional chapters into this universe. I gave this book an easy 5/5. This new version of the fairy tale includes a great battle between fire and ice, but the rest of the characters go through difficult and sometimes disturbing events to reach their happy ending.
** Alert, Spoilers Below **
Set in the world of Lithvas, with a medieval flavor of princess and princes, the story begins with Miryem and her father’s money lending business. Already impoverished, her mother soon becomes ill and creeps toward the edge of death, while her father remains incapable of collecting the full debt of his borrowers. Miryem decides she is done being poor and to procure medicine for her mother, she begin’s collecting her father’s debt for him.
She discovers she is good at it but holds the borrowers to their terms, forcing them to pay back their debts sometimes with non money items. Soon they have money for themselves and to fix the repair the house and Miryem discovers she is gifted and purchasing items from other locations and reselling them at a good price, or spinning Silver into Gold as the saying goes.
Meanwhile, while she is performing rounds on borrowers, one planter who can’t pay back his debt, she suggests his strong young daughter come to her house to perform chores and work off his debt. Wanda soon becomes irreplaceable addition to the household.
Miryem’s ability to create gold attracts the notice of the Staryk king who thrice brings her swaths of their magical silver, telling her if it isn’t transformed, he will turn her to ice or his queen if she succeeds. She takes the silver to a jeweler and they create first a ring, then a necklace and finally a crown. The Duke’s daughter, who is not especially beautiful, becomes breathtaking upon donning the trio of Staryk silver. All three times, she turns the silver to gold and he comes for her, ferreting her away to the magical ice kingdom of Staryk.
Meanwhile, Irina, Daughter of the Duke of Lithvas and the new owner of the trio of Staryk silver, soon becoming the wife of a Tsar, Tsarina herself. She has a great grandmother Staryk, which means the silver from their realm calls to her. Her new Tsar husband, Miryem, battled through life with a demon in tow. The demon of fire, intends to harvest her soul slowly and painfully. Her Staryk background and their silver, allows her to escape through mirrors and evade being in close quarters with the Tsar. She offers a bargain for the King Staryk’s soul instead of her own and her countrymen.
After a long battle between Staryk and the Fire lord, the Staryk becomes imprisoned within a silver chain and circle of candles from their realm. The Tsar intends to drain Staryk slowly and painfully ebb his life force away and demands to know his real name, which he refuses to relinquish. Killing the King Staryk, will stop the extended winter in Lithvas, but it will also kill the kingdom of Staryk, and everyone in it.
Miryem betrayed the Ice King and tried to kill him, but eventually realizes her mistake, and tries to free him from the silver chain’s imprisonment bonds. The fire lord catches her and injuries both of them heavily before they manage to escape into Lithvas. Miryem and her companions are forced to carry him to a special spot for crossing into the realm of Staryk. Before they can, the fire lord captures Irina again, and forces her to use her Staryk silver on a mirror to bring him into the realm, set to destroy the Kingdom of Ice.
The final twenty pages cover Miryem agreeing to help fight the fire lord, but on the condition that the extended winter must end upon Lithvas and that his people are not allowed on their side anymore. Riding a wild deer into holy frozen mountain only to find its frozen waterfall unleashed onto the people. Staryk and his people fight valiantly but are unable to overcome him. Miryem lures him into the mountain and changes silver to gold in an enclosed storeroom releasing the equivalent of sunlight on him, finally dispatching him.
The end is a happy one, where everyone gets who they want or need. I strongly recommend adding this to your reading list.
My first novel of Ann Lecki’s, The Raven Tower is an interesting quandary of a multiple god universe. It is told from the standpoint of one of those larger strength gods and his ascent through his lifespan. this includes learning merely to hearing the humans that begged for his help and eventually evolved into moving himself across countries. I give Ann’s novel a 4/5 rating as it was beautifully written. The plot lines are wonderful, if only a bit slow in the beginning. That first half were meant for world building and so the slow pace is justified. I enjoyed that the point of view for the book, centered on this one god within the matrix of gods, each with a justified purpose, be they large or small.
** Spoiler Alert** Below
As implied, the story begins centered on one god, in a multi-god universe, The Strength and Patience of the Hill. He survives most of his life in a large boulder. An aspect of the plot, that I enjoyed, is their inability to lie. If they tried to speak things that were not wholly true, or outright lies, the universe would make truths. And any energy differences would be exacted from that god and could kill them if they were not watchful with their words. Gods can take forms of animals or other aspects of nature, they may also move to another one but it requires much power and effort.
As I mentioned before, the first portion of the book takes us through Strength and Patience’s life history, his journey through being alone and then upon being with humans. He even learns to speak to those praying to to him, first through patterns of inscribed tokens but eventually he speaks to them directly. Initially, he inhabits to northern part of the Country, Iraden.
One of the other gods within Iraden, that we meet is called the Raven, who is naturally, a Raven. Located within the port city of Vastai, much further south than Strength and Patience, initially. The Raven is linked to humanity, uniquely, by being tethered to the Raven’s Lease. Lease’s are bound to the Raven’s will and submit their lives to this cause but gain the power of a god. There is always an heir to the lease, somewhere is the bloodlines of the original family.
In the present time, we discover the most recent Lease’s heir, Mawat. Son of the existing lease and current commander of the army, he is notified his father is ill and must return to Vastai immediately. He returns with his attendant, a transgender man named Eolo. They must travel along much of the country, to reach Vastai, but when they do return, they find Mawat’s Uncle, Hibal on the leases’s bench instead. Mawat accuses Hibal of murdering his father and attempts to communicate with the Raven one-on-one. Mawat will be required to sit on the ground, in the square and appeal the Raven for a private audience. This move accuses Hibal of foul play while obtaining the bench.
Meanwhile, Eolo, is thrown into the Raven’s world by a private audience with Hibal, where he attempts to lie to Eolo and convince him Mawat’s father abandoned the Lease’s Bench of his own accord. Hibal contests he fled, but Hibal allows Eolo to ask three questions to the Raven in Mawat’s stead. The answers convince Eolo, a dangerous game is still in play. Eolo discovers Mawat’s father beneath the Raven’s tower, half alive.
Within the Raven’s tower, he uncovers none other than Strength and Patience enslaved to the Raven. His eternal turning provided power and life to keep the Raven alive but he was slowly dying. Finally, he discovers a god touched stone, which makes Eolo invisible upon touching it. Eolo utilizes the stone to exit the tower in one piece, but Mawat does not believe what he claims to find.
After much convincing, Mawat and Eolo return t the tower and indeed find his father. Rather than being exited he is angry and claims his father was selfish since he was unwilling to pay his life to the Raven, as it is with Leases’s. They release Strength and Patience from his bondage to the Raven and then Mawat makes quick work of the usurper, Hibal. His father dies shortly after of his injuries and undernourishment. Mawat is framed for a high ranking official’s death and the city is flooded. Dysentery and enemy forces attack, proving the Raven is indeed dead and unable to help his people. Finally, the snake god kills Mawat, but Strength and Patience promises to look out for Eolo, since he is truly a gentle soul. Strength and Patience leaves Vastai vowing to never come back.
This was one wild ride in the final chapters.
Recent Wild Mustang Foal
We have a collection of wild mustangs that wander through the prairie, and we were lucky enough to catch some action and their new additions to the herd.
Motherhood, in all forms is a beautiful thing. My own mother is now deceased, but her love left behind a capable woman, and a valuable role model to strive too.
All of the mother’s of the universe, invariably, leave the world a better place behind them. We thank you.
