StyxI won’t lie. I picked up this book solely because the author has one of the most awesome sounding names I’ve ever come across. And I’m happy I gave this book a chance. Styx, written by Flemmish author Bavo Dhooge, is a mystery novel with what is probably the most original twist on a zombie story I’ve ever seen.
Nearly GoneWhat draws you to a book? Is it the cover artwork? The title? The cover tagline? The synopsis on the back of the book? For me this time around it was all to do with the cover. The art was intriguing, showing only a portion of our main character Nearly Boswell’s face and, while her lips are on the cover it isn’t explicitly sensual. I tend to grow tired of the covers with beautiful girls in beautiful clothes in a beautiful scene somewhere. We all know that for most of those books the beautiful, idyllic cover is a lie. This time around, the haunting cover tells you everything you need to know, that nothing is okay and you’re in for an intense ride.
Let me also state that this book has a very Pretty Little Liars feel to it in that teenagers are solving crimes and, in the process, getting themselves into trouble/making matters worse. Now that that’s out of the way let’s talk about the book itself.
Wizard's First RuleI finally did it. I finally read Terry Goodkind’s Wizard’s First Rule. I meant to read this for years. It’s my husband’s favorite book of all time. We own two physical copies and an ebook version. And, finally, after years of nagging, I sat down and read the whole thing. At once. All the way through. All 800 some odd pages. In less than 24 hours. It was just that good. I love high fantasy and this one certainly satisfied that itch.
Overlord, Vol 1: The Undead KingWhen I saw Overlord, Vol 1: The Undead King by Kugane Maruyama sitting on the shelf at the book store I just had to have it. I couldn’t help myself. It isn’t every day you find a translated light novel with breathtaking artwork (and hardcover no less!) just sitting around in the wild like that. Not unless you’re at a specialty book store. Sure, they have manga most of the time, but they’re usually usually way in the back and resigned to only one shelf, two if you’re lucky. And even they usually only have the old standards.
Okay, so, first. For those who don’t know, light novel is a term for a Japanese novel which is more or less the length of a long novella or a short novel, and is almost always part of a series. Overlord is one of these. This is the first volume, and, as of the time of writing this review, the only one currently available in English.
Welcome to Night ValeHave you ever listened to the Welcome to Night Vale podcast? Heard of it? Well, this is Welcome to Night Vale the book, written by the podcast’s creators Joseph Fink and Jeffery Cranor. Those who’ve never listened to the podcast, don’t be afraid. The book doesn’t require any previous knowledge of the world or plot of the podcast, though I do feel as though fans will get just a little more from this book than others as it does wrap up the Man in the Tan Jacket subplot.
The Zodiac Legacy Vol 1The Zodiac Legacy #1 is a graphic novel by Stuart Moore, Stan Lee, and P. H. Marcondes based on a series of young adult novels of the same title. This is the first in a series of graphic novels involving characters with superpowers based on the Chinese zodiac.
ChampionAgain, this time I didn’t tear through Champion. I was anxious to read this book and finish the series so once I got past the second chapter I went through it fairly quickly.
We open with Day and June apart, Day working within the military and June as the Princeps-Elect. As the Republic struggles towards a peace treaty with the Colonies a biohazard plague starts ripping through the Colonies.
Cure for the Common UniverseI stumbled upon Cure for the Common Universe by Christian McKay Heidicker completely on accident, and boy am I happy I did. I was at the bookstore and there it was – all bright reds and oranges popping off a background of blues and greens and whites. It even had an interesting sounding title. So I put it on top of my already too-big stack of books and wanted to love it instantly. And boy howdy, I was not disappointed.
InfomocracyMalka Older’s debut novel Infomocracy is a brilliantly written story of political intrigue set in the near future. Every ten years sees a world-wide election. Instead of individuals competing for leadership, it is political bodies with vastly differing ideologies. Whichever government will win the most votes will take the coveted position of Supermajority. Above all of this is Information, a global corporation providing information about everything and everything. But this governmental system is fairly new, the election filled with contention, and things quickly go from bad to worse.
Beacon 23: The Complete NovelSo, I’ve had a Kindle for years. Somehow, I missed that you could check out a book from the Amazon store as a library book. Once I figured out that (a) this was a thing and (b) how to do it, I borrowed Beacon 23: The Complete Novel by Hugh Howey. Despite actually owning his first novel, Wool, this is the first of his books I’ve read. (I know, I know. I’m a serial tbr pile neglector.)
Welcome to Looking Glass Reads! We review speculative fiction novels as well as manga, light novels, and graphic novels.
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