A "Serie"ous Review: The Broken Earth by N.K. Jemisin

I forget how I found this series.  I think it was during a brief period where I had just finished reading a number of romance novels and wanted some fantasy to read.  Once I started reading this series, I was pulled in and just had to read the next one!

The first book, The Fifth Season, is written from Essun's point of view.  It starts in the present with the horrific murder of her son and kidnapping of her daughter by her husband, but as she travels through her destroyed world, she also tells the reader about her past.

The middle book, The Obelisk Gate, is when her past and present collides at what she considers to be her new home.  This is when she discovers that no matter where she goes, politics will always be affecting her.  We also hear from Nassun what happened when her father kidnapped her and afterwards.

In this stunning conclusion of the series, The Stone Sky, it is told in several different voices.  The voice of Hoa, speaks of his and indeed, the earth's past.  Nassun has been forced to grow up all too quickly in this fifth season and we find out what choices she makes when she is pushed to the edge.  Will her mother's love for her win her over or will she decide that everything must be cleansed?

I really liked this fantasy series!  Although I'm not normally into something this gritty, it is nowhere near as gritty as The Game of Thrones.  I thought it was a good balance.  I found the last book a little heavy as she explores several serious topics all at once.  It was fascinating how she used the different voices to intertwine the stories and lessons, so it didn't necessarily come off as heavy handed as it could have.  She also tied up all the loose threads by the end of the book, which was amazing.  I highly suggest this series for all fantasy fans!

Review: Duchess by Design

Duchess by Design by Maya Rodale

The premise is very simple:  The duke of Kingston has come to New York City to find a heiress.  When he runs into a well dressed lady in the lobby of the hotel and sees her entering a room, he believes he has found his heiress.  Miss Adeline Black is a seamstress who wants to create feminine and functional clothing.  When she meets and flirts with the duke on her way to a fitting, she sees it as harmless, but when he finds out who she is and follows her back to her employer's establishment and she is fired because of his carelessness, she assumes that she will never see him again.

This book was amazing! I loved the characters and their very feminist point of views. I also liked that the setting was different because it was set in the Victorian age in New York City. It was really hard to put down because I wanted to see how each situation would resolve. Would she see the Duke again? When? Why? How were they going to resolve their different points of view? The main characters really had wonderful chemistry which resulted in an incredible steamy love scene close to the end. The conversations, including the witty flirty banter, between Adeline and Kingston were also so much fun to read.

I can't wait to read the next one in the series!

Review: The Fifth Season

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

In a parallel Earth, a cataclysmic event occurs in which the capital city of the Empire is consumed in flames and threatens all life on the Earth. This story is about a woman and her search for her missing daughter after her husband murders their son after this cataclysmic event takes place.

This was an amazing book! It is written so well. I love the characters as they are so complex. I also truly enjoy that there are LGBQT+ characters in this book. I was a little confused at first as to what was happening since the author switches between the past and the present, but as the author approaches present day, I figured out what was happening. The world building is very good as well since you feel like you are somewhere similar, but not our Earth.  Also, when I downloaded the ePub, I was warned it was an ePub3, but I don't feel I missed out on anything by reading it on a "traditional" eReader. I can't wait to read the sequel!

I would suggest this book for anyone who is really into big worlds and don't mind the grittiness of the world.  So, people who enjoyed Game of Thrones, this book is for  you!

No New Blog Post This Week

I've been feeling kind of blah this last week what with being sick and not going to the gym, so I had to take some more personal time than normal.  We'll be back to our regularly scheduled blog posts next week!