Tag: science fiction

Book Review · Books

Middlegame by Seanan McGuire [BOOK REVIEW]

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Middlegame by Seanan McGuire [BOOK REVIEW]

Middlegame has easily become, and will stay for a long time, one of my ultimate favourite books of all time. I am so glad I won it as a giveaway, as otherwise this book may never have found me. 

About The Book:

Middlegame by Seanan McGuire [BOOK REVIEW]


Pages: 528

Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction

Publisher: Tor

Format I read it in: Paperback

Rating: ★★★★★

About Middlegame:

I went in unprepared, and loved the experience I was introduced to. I read the synopsis, but the book didn’t do it justice. There is so much going on that one blurb could never be able to explain. You will get to meet twins Roger and Dodger. Roger is very good with languages and stories. Dodger is amazing with maths. Numbers come so easy for her, and they are her world. Roger and Dodger are not actually human, although they don’t know it. The bond they have between them is special, and it serves a special purpose in the world. They are two pieces in a puzzle, and need each other’s abilities to unlock their full potential. 

“The unspoken pieces of language are sometimes the most painful.”

And even though they’re twins, they live in separate states and can communicate in a unique way. This was actually one of the most intriguing parts for me – I loved how they get to know each other and start communicating, and also how throughout the years, despite all the challenges, they keep finding their way to each other. 

“Heredity is not only in blood. It is in the sympathetic vibration of the universe, in the places where atom becomes alchemy.”

Roger and Dodger were created by Reed, an alchemist, who has goals of his own. His plan is to raise the twins to the highest power, to ascend with them and claim their authority as his own. I particularly liked Reed’s chapters. I enjoyed these, as they show a much larger picture of the motives behind what he is doing and to learn more about what the Doctrine is.

“Ignorance is bliss, or at least ignorance leads to better choices: ignorance doesn’t try to account for the costs and consequences of a hundred doomed timelines every time it takes a step.”

My Thoughts:

As I said, the blurb doesn’t do this book justice, in fact, it will probably confuse you rather than offer an explanation. But Middlegame is so much more than that! If I could recommend one thing, it would be to dive into the story without knowing too much. Everything will be explained properly as you start reading, and it will all make sense, unlike my notes of the blurb.

“But what is perfection, really, if not the act of winning?”

For me, diving into Middlegame transported me into another reality, where alchemy resembles magic. It has been a while since a book did that to me from the first chapter and that is one of the reasons I will remember this book. Middlegame starts with an “end of the world” type of way, and then we go back in time to find out what led to this moment

“Time is like skin: it can scar if you cut it enough times.”

The other fascinating thing for me were the excerpts from “Over the Woodward Wall” by A. Deborah Baker. Deborah Baker was an alchemist and she created Reed. After finishing the book and doing some research, it turns out that this is a real book. And the author, A. Deborah Baker, is a pen name for Seanan McGuire. What an incredible thing to do – I am still in awe of this fact.

As for Seanan McGuire, I have nothing but praise! For all the feelings Middlegame evoked from me. For the incredible writing and for hiding a book within a book. And an author within an author, within a character. I will be definitely continuing “Alchemical Journeys” and reading “Seasonal Fears”, the second book in the series, as well as “Over the Woodward Wall”. 

“In the same ordinary town, on the same ordinary street, lived two ordinary children who had never quite managed to cross paths.”

From “Over the Woodward Wall” by A. Deborah Baker

About The Author:

Middlegame by Seanan McGuire [BOOK REVIEW]

Seanan McGuire is an American author and filker. McGuire is known for her urban fantasy novels. She uses the pseudonym Mira Grant to write science fiction/horror and the pseudonym A. Deborah Baker to write the “Up-and-Under” children’s portal fantasy series.

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Book Review · Books

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon [BOOK REVIEW]

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The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon [BOOK REVIEW]

I was surprised by how much I really enjoyed The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon. When I picked the book up, I knew I was looking at an international bestseller, but I still had my doubts. Well, not anymore…

About The Book:

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon [BOOK REVIEW]


Pages: 452

Format I read it in: Paperback

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Purchase Links:
Amazon UK | Amazon US

★★★★

Synopsis:

The year is 2059. Nineteen-year-old Paige Mahoney is working in the criminal underworld of Scion London, based at Seven Dials, employed by a man named Jaxon Hall. Her job: to scout for information by breaking into people’s minds. For Paige is a dreamwalker, a clairvoyant and, in the world of Scion, she commits treason simply by breathing.

It is raining the day her life changes for ever. Attacked, drugged and kidnapped, Paige is transported to Oxford – a city kept secret for two hundred years, controlled by a powerful, otherworldly race. Paige is assigned to Warden, a Rephaite with mysterious motives. He is her master. Her trainer. Her natural enemy. But if Paige wants to regain her freedom she must allow herself to be nurtured in this prison where she is meant to die.

The Bone Season introduces a compelling heroine and also introduces an extraordinary young writer, with huge ambition and a teeming imagination. Samantha Shannon has created a bold new reality in this riveting debut.

My Thoughts:

The Bone Season gripped me from the start. Literally from the first chapter, I was alongside Paige, getting to know her clairvoyance as she’s discovering it herself. Paige is a character that you want to root for, but you also want to understand the other side, just to ensure she’s making the right decisions. Meeting the gang in the underworld of Scion London gave me an introduction of the dystopian world that Paige lives in. Clairvoyant people are being imprisoned left, right and centre, and when something goes horribly bad for Paige, she discovers that it could be much, much worse. And somehow she managed to end up there.

“I fitted with these people. They understood the strangeness of my world, a world I was only just beginning to discover.”

The world building in this book is on another level.

Samantha Shannon created a world with different orders of Clairvoyance. On top of that, she created dystopian cities and a different type of creatures that have a role to play as well. Through Paige, we meet so many vivid characters, all unique and lovable in their own way.

I loved the chapters when Paige would reminisce about her past. It helped me understand her so much better and it ties very well with the story in the present. I also loved how the parts with the past tie into the plot to create a plot twist in itself. I feel like every scene was created the way it was with a certain purpose. To serve a bigger role and to tie into the plot in one way or another. But it never felt as if a scene was written just for the sake of it.

One of my favourite parts in this book were the parts focusing on emotion.

There isn’t a romance in this book, so to speak. But there were moments of building connections. Of building trust. Times of sharing experiences, memories and big heartbreaks. But all these moments were an addition to a friendship that turned into a little bit more. It only complimented a personality, rather than become a main focus of the story, which made these moments even more special.

“I didn’t believe in hearts. I believed in dreamscapes and spirits. Those were what mattered. Those made money. But my heart had hurt that day. For the first time in my life, I’d been forced to acknowledge my heart, and acknowledge its fragility. It could be bruised. It could humiliate me.”

And that ending… When that ending happened, it shattered me in a very delicate way. I grieved for one reason, but felt joy for another. The bittersweet taste is still between my fingers, feeling it as I was closing the last pages. But there is one thing for sure – this story doesn’t end here and I’ll sure as hell read the next book in the series.

About The Author:

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon [BOOK REVIEW]

Samantha Shannon studied English Language and Literature at St. Anne’s College, Oxford. The Bone Season, the first in a seven-book series, was a New York Times bestseller and the inaugural Today Book Club selection.

Her next novel, The Priory of the Orange Tree, was published in February 2019 and became a New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller. Her work has been translated into twenty-six languages. She lives in London.

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Book Review · Books

Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline [BOOK REVIEW]

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★★

When I first found out that there is a sequel called Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline, I was so excited! But I was also doubtful whether it would live up to the hype. Writing this review was a bit hard for me, considering how much I loved the first book, but here we go.

Synopsis:

Days after Oasis founder James Halliday’s contest, Wade Watts makes a discovery that changes everything. Hidden within Halliday’s vault, waiting for his heir to find, lies a technological advancement that will once again change the world and make the Oasis a thousand times more wondrous, and addictive, than even Wade dreamed possible.

With it comes a new riddle and a new quest. A last Easter egg from Halliday, hinting at a mysterious prize. And an unexpected, impossibly powerful, and dangerous new rival awaits, one who will kill millions to get what he wants. Wade’s life and the future of the Oasis are again at stake, but this time the fate of humanity also hangs in the balance.

My Thoughts:

Everyone my age remembers where they were and what they were doing when they read Ready Player One. I remember I was listening to the audiobook, wonderfully narrated by Wil Wheaton. It was the first audiobook I ever listened to, and I loved everything about it. The plot, the Oasis, the easter egg contest, the 80’s references. And for me, Ready Player One ended perfectly. Wade won the contest, and everything was fine.

So you can imagine my surprise and excitement when I heart that there is a sequel coming. Of course I was excited! But I was doubtful at the same time. A little bit afraid that this new book wouldn’t live up to my expectations.

Ready Player Two starts very soon after the first book ends, and Wade and his friends uncover a new set of technology, where people can now feel and touch things in the Oasis. But something goes wrong and a villain appears. Only this time, the stakes are very high. People’s lives are in danger. And Wade and his friends must go onto another quest, gathering seven stones, to save everyone!

The quest element was basically the same as the easter egg contest.

Except this time, there were different puzzles and the stakes were higher, with a very tight deadline. I was not impressed at this part at all, and not even the 80’s references could help anymore. Some of the quests went on and on, making me fall asleep on my hardcover book a couple of times. And then, some of them were completed in two pages or less, not given any attention.

Then we had our main hero, Wade, who I started to despise. The Wade I knew from the first book suddenly turned into this rich douchebag that had a God complex. He definitely forgot where he started, and how humble he used to be. He does change a bit in the end, but I gave up on him way before that happened, so I didn’t care.

To be fair, the second part of the book wasn’t that bad, which is why I gave this review an extra star. I loved the final battle, and I’ll be honest, I might even watch that second movie, just to see that scene in action.

But let’s be honest. Ready Player One ended as it ended, and it didn’t need a second book. If feels as if everyone involved in the first book and movie loved the revenue, and decided to milk it as long as it is popular. Because we all love the idea of the Oasis and will keep reading things that feature it. And that’s what gives me the ick.

There is no easy way to say this. When people would ask me about sci-fi recommendations, I would instantly say: “You have to read Ready Player One by Ernest Cline!”. Now, when people ask me the same, I say this: “Ready Player One is amazing! But don’t read the second book. It’s not worth it.”

Purchase Links:
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Book Review · Books

Beneath The World, A Sea by Chris Beckett [BOOK REVIEW]

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Beneath The World, A Sea by Chris Beckett [BOOK REVIEW]

★★★★

Beneath The World, A Sea by Chris Beckett is a book I won through ReadersFirst, published by Corvus. And to be honest, Beneath the World, A Sea wouldn’t have been my first choice, because I don’t often go outside my comfort zone. I am so glad I did though, because I really enjoyed this book a lot!

Synopsis:

Beneath The World, A Sea by Chris Beckett is a story told mainly by Ben, the policeman. The story is also told from other people’s points of view as well, all connecting to Ben in one way or the other. 

A number of people go on a journey to Submundo Delta, all with different missions and plans in mind. During this trip, they have to go through a place called Nus, where no one can remember their duration of their stay there. 

In Submundo Delta, the people that live there are called Mundinos. However, there are also creatures that live in the forest, called duendes. And the duendes want to get closer to the Mundinos, which results in them getting killed vigorously. 

Ben is sent there to investigate why the local people are killing the duendes. During his investigation, he meets different people and gets a chance to have some weird encounters with the duendes themselves. 

My Thoughts of Beneath the World, A Sea:

Beneath the World, A Sea is very philosophical and deep science fiction, and definitely not for everyone. It touches on many topics, but mostly the topic of self-discovery. Who are we? Who are we really? How do we get to be the person we actually are? Are we hiding any hidden intentions? Are we just performing a play and not letting people see behind the curtain? What if there is a place we can truly be ourselves? And we don’t remember it after? Would we be murderers, or samaritans? 

This book will make you wonder, all while maintaining the story and introducing interesting characters. Ben is trying to discover who he really is, Hyacinth seems to somehow know everything he’s about to experience, Rico has a relationship with the duendes like no one else, Jael is extremely smart but chose to do something else with her life, Justine had her heart broken and never had the courage to leave… Beneath the World, A Sea is a unique experience with fantastical elements in it. It is also very well written, with intriguing plot twists and a very unexpected ending. I especially loved the intrigue that involved a certain diary. It kept me hooked until the very end. 

Even though a very unique and niche book that won’t appeal to all, I warmly recommend it, as I think this is the perfect book to get you out of your comfort zone and take you on a unique adventure.

Purchase Links:
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Book Review · Books

The Turning Point (The ELI Chronicles #3) by Julia Ash [BOOK REVIEW]

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The Turning Point (The ELI Chronicles) by Julia Ash book review blog blogging diary of difference diaryofdifference

★★★★

The Turning Point by Julia Ash is the third book in the ELI Chronicles. Thank you to Julia, for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Read my reviews of the first two books in the series: 

  1. The One and Only
  2. The Tether

The Turning Point continues where the previous book left off. If you haven’t read the previous books in the series, I would recommend reading my review on the first book – The One and Only, as this review contains spoilers from the other two previous books. Now that you have been warned, I can safely continue. 🙂 

Ruby Spencer has continuously saved the world.

First, it was the zombie infection. Then, she was turned into a vampire against her will. In the first book we found out her blood was special, and in the second book – we find out why. Her blood was a result of a donor from another planet, which she ended up saving in the second book. And this time – the planet needs help again. But also this time – Ruby might not be the one that can save it. 

Because the animals have their own language, and Ruby cannot understand it. If she could understand them, she would know that they are tired of being puppets to the humans and the vampires. And wolves are more than happy to lead this rebelion. 

Without an alpha that can fight for their rights and lead their uprising, the animals will destroy everything in front of them. Ruby is the only one who can connect the animals with their rightful king – is she could only find him.

I have to admit, I struggled a bit at the beginning, when at one point we were introduced to all the different creatures and abilities (zombies, vampires, sculpting, werewolves, multiple planets, search for the true king). While the first and second book were more focused on one part of the story, in this book we had all of the different aspects colliding into one. And despite my struggles at the beginning, it all worked out in the end.

I really loved this book, and it was a perfect last book to conclude this series.

The ending was beautiful and I enjoyed the final few twists, where you couldn’t trust anyone. I loved the love this family had for each other, and how kind and generous they always are. They care so much for each other, it’s really nice to read it. It was such an adventurous ride, and I was eager to know how it ended. I am also glad they gave Zagan another chance to prove he changed, and that he deserves another chance at life.

If you have read my previous reviews – you will know me and Clay don’t really get along. But this book changed my opinion a bit, and I actually ended up liking his character and his story in this book. (surprise, surprise). 

The ELI Chronicles, as a whole, is a series not only about zombie apocalypse, vampires, werewolves, rightful kings and special abilities, but also a story about the true power of one family, and their love for each other. Julia Ash managed to combine these two things into the books so well, and make this journey not only adventurous, but also heartwarming.

And I have to say – I am glad that I am part of it by reading this series.

I am glad I have experienced this book, and grown together with it. Thinking of where I was on my journey when I started the first book, and where I am now, I can understand and appreciate this story way more and connect better with it. Definitely a must-read for all fans of sci-fi, adventure and thrillers.

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

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