The Literary Lucy

This is book five of the Fallen Blade series.  You don't really have to read them in order but it helps a little when previous books are referenced. Aral Kingslayer was once a Blade of Namara, goddess of Justice and patron of assassins, but then his goddess was betrayed and murdered.  Since then, Aral has been a drunk, a jack-of-all-trades, a recovering drunk, and a foster father.  He has seen former members of his order turn traitor and beloved friends lost once more.  But nothing really prepares him for a summons of help from his mentor and former lover, Siri Mythkiller.  Siri needs Aral's help in putting a minor god back to sleep. The first time she did it was when she earned her title, but it cost her part of her soul, which the god is using to come back to wakefulness.  Fearing she is compromised, she reaches out to Aral and his daughter, Faran, to find her across the globe in a land ruled by magic. This is a fun, breezy series.  Each b...

Like the picture says, this is book 2 of the Iron Elves series.  I was very impressed with the first book, A Darkness Forged in Fire , as a breath of fresh air in the high fantasy genre.  I'm trying really hard not to give away any spoilers from the first book but the events are very germane to the plot, so the summary is going to be a little vague. Book two finds Captain Konowa leading the depleted and cursed ranks of the Iron Elves over the sea to the desert land of Hasshugeb, a restive colony where the original Iron Elves had been exiled.  Konowa is anxious to restore the honor of the exiles and also to re-enlist them to fill the ranks of his current (living) Iron Elves, which are mostly human and a dwarf.  The Shadow Monarch's power creeps out to touch all of them but Konowa is determined to use it against her.  Unfortunately, the desert holds its own dangers and the threat against him and his men grows. This was a lot darker in tone than the firs...

  This is book two of Mira Grant's Parasitology trilogy so there may necessarily be some spoilers if you haven't read book one, Parasite .  Which you definitely should.  It's amazing. Sal has escaped the clutches of SymboGen and it's morally bankrupt founder, Dr. Banks for the relative safety of Dr. Shanti Cole's illegal lab.  But with San Francisco falling apart under the influx of the parasite-infected zombie apocalypse, nowhere is really safe for long.  Sal's life is further complicated by the necessity of a dangerous operation to repair damaged blood vessels in her brain which will require her to venture forth among her enemies.  She must also plan the rescue of her spiritual sister and resident fun psychopath, Tansy, from SymboGen. Mira Grant is the pseudonym of fantasy author Seanan McGuire.  She has also written the Newsflesh trilogy under this name (which is also excellent.  In fact, just read everything she's ever written.  You w...

I love seeing the words "First in a New Series" on books, don't you? After having been disgraced by the murder of his king, Captain Kellas of the Black Wolves has accepted retirement, content to live with his beautiful wife and raise his grandchildren.  Then reeve Marshal Dannarah, sister to the king, comes to him with a secret mission.  She believes there is a plot to kill her nephew, the current King Jehosh.  Meanwhile, Sarai, an outcast among her people, offers herself in marriage sight unseen to an outsider of her clan, unknowingly involving herself in the politics of two rival queens.  The lives and paths of disparate individuals will cross and knot in unexpected ways as plot and counterplot play out. This is actually a follow-on series to Kate Elliott's Crossroads trilogy.  As I was reading this, I kept having those moments where I remembered this character or another from the first trilogy.  I wish I had gone back and re-read the Crossroads, jus...