Tag: paranormal

Sunday Summary – 14th December 2025

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Last week’s Sunday Summary post came to you from a wet and miserable day. Today isn’t any different. With yet another warning for rain in place, winter has truly taken hold. Not only that, but the winter lurgy is also doing the rounds, and it’s officially my turn. Please bear with me for this post. It may not be my best, but it will be the weekly update you expect!

So, what have I been up to? My first post of the week was a book review for Brandon Sanderson‘s second book in his Skyward series, Starsight. I really enjoyed this young adult series, so it was a pleasure to feature the second book and let you know just how much I enjoyed it.

On Friday, I featured a thriller on my TBR. I would not like to be in the shoes of the victims. Deprived of their senses, victims return to society mentally scarred by their experiences. Interested in hearing more about this book? Take a look at my Shelf Control post using this link.

 

Books Read

 

Empire of the Dawn 

I’m struggling to read Empire of the Dawn, and I don’t understand why.

This is the third week in a row in which I have very little reading progress to update you on. At this point, I’m putting this book down for now and trying again later in the month.

I don’t understand why this book isn’t doing it for me right now. I am enjoying it as when I’m reading it, the problem is I’m just not really picking it up to read it! Sometimes having a heavy physical hardback can be a bit off-putting. However, the reason I think I’m struggling with this book the most is that I don’t want to finish the book (and the series) yet. 

It’s silly, I know. However, for the sake of keeping up with reading progress, I’m going to put this down temporarily and pick up another physical read for now. 

 

A Crucible of Souls

In last week’s Sunday Summary, I had already listened to the vast majority of A Crucible of Souls. With just a short way left to go in the book, I finished this audio this week.

If I’m honest, the book didn’t quite live up to my expectations. I had hoped we will find out more about Caldan and his past. Instead, I finished this first book of the series knowing as much about him as I did at the beginning. A bit disappointing to say the least, because this book leaves a lot of questions unanswered. 

I don’t feel so strongly about this book to continue with the series. It was unacceptable lesson, but I wouldn’t say it was really engaging either. That’s just my experience, and a lot of people are of differing opinions. Don’t take mine as gospel if you want to try this on yourselves. 

 

The Housemaid is Watching 

Audiobooks have been a lot easier for me this weekend. I like to listen to them when I’m busy plotting along with household chores and the lake. However, I’ve also turned to audiobooks today because they are easier to listen to then they are to read physically. 

Over the course of this weekend, I’ve listened to over six hours of audio. In terms of p The Housemaid is Watching, I’m currently at around 60% as of this Sunday Summary update. As I found with each of the books in this series, they are pretty easy to listen to. The narrative is engaging and the plot keeps you gripped. What is happening, and are events as they are portrayed as they seem to be? Very often with these books, the answer is no. Whether that is the same for The Housemaid is Watching remains to be seen.

 

Beyond Redemption 

It barely feels worth a mention, but I have started Beyond Redemption this weekend. I initially started the book at the hairdressers yesterday, but given my decision to pause Empire of the Dawn, I’ve read a little more of this book tonight. I’m really intrigued by The narrative and emphasis on delusions shaping reality. 

It sounds like it’s going to be a very dark book, but I’m looking forward to seeing where this takes us. It’s specifically what I asked ChatGPT for in the final prompt I asked, so I hope it lives up to expectation. 

 

Books Discovered

Once again, I’ve behaved and not added any new books to the TBR, or purchased anything, this week. Well, Santa is nearly here right…?

 

Coming Up… 

My first blog post due next week will arrive in your inbox on Tuesday. A regular post I like to feature on this blog is a Top Ten Tuesday. I’ve also done this theme before. Once a quarter, one of the topics is about books on your next seasonal TBR. In this case, I’ll share which books are on my winter 2025/2026 TBR in a couple of days time. 

My next post is also a regular feature, although this week I am setting myself a festive challenge. For next week’s first lines Friday post, I have to feature something festive. Whether the book itself is festive or is set around Christmas time, anything goes. 

Finally, next week I’m back with my latest Sunday summary catch up. Fingers crossed, I’ll have better physical reading progress to share with you. Hopefully switching up my books will help get reading momentum back on track. I have a lot of books to try and pick up before the end of December, so I’m hoping for a miracle 🤞🏻 

That’s all for me and this Sunday summary update though! What have you read recently? Have you read anything worth recommending, or has a book you recently picked up disappointed you? 

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Sunday Summary – 7th December 2025

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It’s a soggy Sunday here, but that won’t put a dampener on today’s Sunday Summary catch-up! Whether the weather is as miserable where you are as it has been here, or if you’ve got off lightly, I hope you’ve had a great week.

This week I’ve posted more than average on the blog. With the timing of a blog tour coinciding with the beginning of the month, I’ve had an increase in post obligations. That said, I’ve managed the extra post pretty easily, and I hope you have enjoyed finding out what I’ve been up to.

My first post that went live was my monthly wrap-up for November. In the end, November was a great month of reading progress. If you have yet to check out that post, or are interested in the books I read last month so you can maybe pick up a recommendation or two, here’s a link so you can take a look for yourself.

Next, I shared my blog tour review for a book called Death of a Billionaire by Tucker May. If you are looking for a fun, lighthearted murder mystery, this would be a great pick for you. I read this book very quickly and the lighter tone was very much needed. I’ve been reading a lot of heavy fantasy. The change of genre and tone were much appreciated.

On Friday, I shared my last monthly TBR of the year. With final reading goals to meet, I’ve planned December‘s reading list around hitting those final milestones. Final books in series? Check. Books on the Goodreads Fall Challenge? Check.

 

Books Read

Empire of the Dawn 

I’ve still not really read much of Empire of the Dawn this week. However, with the conclusion of I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! tonight, I’ll have less in the way of TV obligations to keep up with and hopefully more time to pick up a physical read. 

I’ve toyed with the idea of getting a digital copy of this book from my local library. Sometimes, I think having a big heavy hardback can get in the way of me getting some reading done. However, I can’t borrow it that way, so I’ll persevere with my physical copy. 

 

A Crucible of Souls

Progress with my audiobook listen of A Crucible of Souls has gone much better. In fact, I have listened to several hours of the audiobook today whilst putting up Christmas decorations. That, and redecorating my Christmas tree every time the cats pull the ornaments off. I have a suspicion I’ll have ‘redecorated’ the tree about 50 times before the 1st of January… 

With progress at around the 75% mark, I’m now intrigued as to whether the narrative of this first instalment of the series will end. Caldan is doing pretty well for himself after his exile from the monastery he grew up in at the beginning of the book. Honestly, I think he’s having too good of a time at the moment and I’m wondering if it’s all going to come crashing down on him. He’s clearly an exceptional person who was undiscovered because of his cloistered circumstances. For a person of his naivety, I can’t help but think at some point somebody is going to take advantage.

Regardless of how the book pans out, with a little under five hours left of progress to make, I anticipate finishing A Crucible of Souls next week. Then, I can tell you more! 

 

Death of a Billionaire 

As of last week’s Sunday Summary, I picked up at the beginning of the week with priority going to finishing the last 80% of Death of a Billionaire.

With a review deadline of Wednesday, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I pushed on with this book so I had plenty of time to write my thoughts before that post went live on Wednesday. Not that it was difficult to finish! On the contrary, the change of genre, pace and tone was exactly what I needed. After reading a lot of heavier and longer books of late, I appreciated something shorter and with plenty of humour laced throughout.

This Sunday Summary isn’t the place where I’m going to outline all my thoughts. I’ve done so already in my blog tour review post. If you want to find out more, that’s the place to go.

 

Books Discovered

With a couple of book acquisitions last week, I’ve behaved and have nothing new to add to my reading list. The only update in today’s Sunday Summary is that I actually took a couple of books off my list when looking ahead to an upcoming post next week. It may not be exciting news, but I have plenty enough of my reading list to be getting on with without forcing myself to pick up something I’m no longer interested in. 

 

Coming Up… 

It’s been nearly a month since I shared my last book review with you that wasn’t for a specific commitment. And everyone knows I have a backlist longer than my TBR. Okay, well not quite, but it’s significant! Next on my list of books to review is Starsight by Brandon Sanderson. If you know a fan of young adult sci-fi, you won’t go wrong with this series if you need some Christmas present inspiration 😉 It’s well documented I love Brandon Sanderson, so my review won’t come as a surprise. 

On Friday, I’ll share my next Shelf Control post. If you haven’t seen this before, it’s a series I have ongoing on my blog. In the series, I look at upcoming reads on my TBR to make sure what’s on there is still relevant. This week, I’ve got a sinister thriller lined up for you. 

Finally, this time next week I’m back again with another Sunday Summary. I’ve got plenty of books on my final TBR of the year, so hopefully I’ll have plenty more reading progress to share! 

That’s all from me right now though. Enjoy your week ahead! 

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Sunday Summary – 30th November 2025

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This week’s Sunday Summary follows another week off work. Don’t take this the wrong way, I’m not rubbing it in. If you feel that way, you can laugh at me because I’m back tomorrow. Bag packed? Check. Lunch organised? Yup. Jokes aside, it’ll be nice to get back into my normal routine.

The routine that hasn’t really changed is my blog schedule for this week. Whilst I’ve been off, I’ve kept up with posting online as usual. This week, my first post was a final review of my 2025 resolutions and a list of books I could pick up in December to meet my outstanding goals. As of that post, I have actually already completed one of my goals due by the end of the year! If you haven’t read that post and you want to find out what’s coming up in the very near future, you can check that out now.

On Friday, I set myself a challenge to feature a young adult novel in my First Lines Friday feature. In the end, I featured the first book of a series loved and plan to re-read in future. Whilst young adult isn’t a genre I gravitate to very often, I did enjoy this one. I even confess in that post that I could get behind the relationship between the protagonists – that’s not something I say lightly! 

 

Books Read

Empire of the Dawn 

Progress with Empire of the Dawn has admittedly been slow. I’ve enjoyed picking up this book in the couple of instalments I have, but honestly, I think I’m holding myself back. Empire of the Dawn is the final instalment of Jay Kristoff’s Empire of the Vampire trilogy. The only reason I can give for my resistance picking up this book is that I’m not looking forward to finishing it and the series being over. 

I’ve enjoyed every aspect of the book I’ve read so far and to continuing with it. I’ll have to put my big girl pants on and just accept that it’s the final book and I won’t find out what happens unless I read it! Even when it’s over, I can always re-read it… 

 

The Housemaid’s Secret

You may recall in last week’s Sunday Summary post, I shared that I’d listened to just over 25% of The Housemaid’s Secret. Well, it’s fair to say I made pretty light work of that book! Having listened to such a long audiobook before picking up this one, finishing Freida McFadden‘s second instalment in her housemaid’s trilogy was a breeze! 

As I mentioned in last week’s post, whilst I’ve been off work, I’ve been doing some work around the house. More specifically, I’m updating my kitchen. Because I’ve been doing physical work, I’ve been occupying myself with audio to keep myself entertained. I’ve also been doing a lot of crafty projects in my downtime, and listening to audio works really well for me at the same time. 

As a result, I devoured The Housemaid’s Secret. The plot and characters in the book really helped this along. It was an easier read because it was a lot shorter, but it is also engaging and an interesting story to listen to. Truthfully, I expected nothing less. I felt the same about the first instalment of the series, The Housemaid. If you read or checked out my 2025 resolutions review post earlier this week, you may have spotted the sequel to the series on that list as a potential December read.

Watch this space… 

 

A Crucible of Souls

After devouring The Housemaid’s Secret, I started A Crucible of Souls by Mitchell Hogan. This is the second book I’m reading as part of a ChatGPT recommendations challenge I’ve set myself. 

So far, I’m getting on pretty well with the book. For a debut, it reads really well and I’m hoping the action in the book starts to pick up pace very shortly. As of this Sunday Summary post, I am a third of the way through this audiobook. It’s interesting, and there are elements of the plot that have us intrigued because they are unresolved at the moment. The main character Caldan is also a little bit of a mystery. Who is he, and is he going to draw unwanted attention by his abilities? Time will only tell. 

 

Death of a Billionaire 

Finally, I picked up Death of a Billionaire by Tucker May today. I am reviewing this book as part of a blog tour which kicked off earlier this week. My review is due on Wednesday, so naturally this book is taking priority in the immediate future. 

As things stand, it’s a pretty short and easy read. I’m enjoying the humour and I’m intrigued as to who the mystery narrator is. Their overt opinions and distain for a lot of people, the reader included, has me asking questions as to who it is and why they presenting themselves that way. It’s not the sort of thing you see in a lot of books, but it has me intrigued! I have a suspicion already, but it remains to be seen whether that turns out to be the case! 

As of this Sunday Summary update, I’m 20% into Death of a Billionaire. Naturally, I’ll be sharing more about this book on Wednesday, so I hope you can check in with me then. 

 

Books Discovered

I popped into town on Friday to do some Christmas shopping, and of course I had to take a look in our local Waterstones. Armed with some vouchers, I picked up Hitler, Stalin, Mum and Dad and Come to This Court and Cry. 

No prizes for guessing I combed through the history section… as sad as it is, I love reading about World War II and the associated events, history and people affected. I’m looking forward to reading these books in this category. 

 

Coming Up… 

I may be back to work next week, but there is no rest for the wicked here! I have a full week of content planned, and I’m excited to share each of these posts with you 😊

My first post will go live tomorrow as it will officially be the beginning of December. I can no longer complain about premature Christmas music or mince pies being on sale. With it being the end of the month, I’m looking forward to sharing my monthly wrap-up for November and sharing the books I’ve read over these last few weeks. Progress has felt really good, so I hope to have plenty of content in that post for you.

Next, on Wednesday I’ll be sharing my review for Death of a Billionaire, as I’ve previously alluded to. December 3rd is my official stop date, so that’s a hard deadline to meet.

On Friday, I’ll share my December reading list in my usual monthly TBR format. I’ve already got several books planned which has been shaped from my 2025 resolutions review post. I’ve got some cracking books to finish up the year with. If you are intrigued to see what those will be, I hope you can check in with me later this week.

Finally, this time next week I’ll be back with my next Sunday Summary instalment. No doubt I’ll be a little bit tired and fed up because I’m planning to put up my Christmas decorations. Good luck to me – I have no idea how the cats are going to react to the Christmas tree. However, I have my suspicions and it may not be pretty 😂 

Like I said, no rest for the wicked! 

What have you been up to this weekend?

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First Lines Friday – 28/11/2025

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What’s fun about today’s First Lines Friday is that I set myself a challenge for this post. And, for today’s post, I’ve succeeded in finding a young adult book I’m delighted to feature. 

I started this series back in 2019, of all places, in some Spanish sunshine – quite a contrast from the setting outlined in today’s intro! If you’ve read young adult books, maybe you can work out today’s book from the protagonists name. Also, a fun fact for you. I was inspired to dye my hair blue because of this character. 

Do you recognise who or what I’m referring to in this First Lines Friday? If so, let me know in the comments! Otherwise, take a look at the opening below and I’ll share more on the book after! 

 

Walking to school over the snow-muffled cobbles, Karou had no sinister premonitions about the day. It seemed like just another Monday, innocent but for its essential Mondayness, not to mention its Januaryness. It was cold, and it was dark – in the dead of winter the sun didn’t rise until eight – but it was also lovely. The falling snow and the early hour conspired to paint Prague ghostly, like a tintype photograph, all silver and haze. 

On the riverfront thoroughfare, trams and buses roared past, grounding the day in the twenty-first century, but on the quieter lanes, the wintry peace might have hailed from another time. Snow and stone and ghostlight, Karou’s own footsteps and the feather of steam from her coffee mug, and she was alone and adrift in mundane thoughts: school, errands.

 

 

Daughter of Smoke and Bone – Laini Taylor

Genre: Fantasy 

Pages: 418

Audience: Young Adult

Publisher: Little Brown Books

Publication Date: 27 Sept 2011

Goodreads – Daughter of Smoke and Bone

 

Around the world, black hand prints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious “errands”, she speaks many languages – not all of them human – and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

 

My Thoughts…

I’m not going to go too far into Daughter of Smoke and Bone in this First Lines Friday post. I have reviews for every book in the trilogy on my blog if you want find out more: –

Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Days of Blood and Starlight

Dreams of Gods and Monsters

More meaningfully perhaps, is that I’ve featured this book on lists of books I want to re-read, must-read fantasies and books guaranteed to put an end to your book slump. I’ve got physical copies of the books and I’m keeping them to re-read in future! 

What I really got behind in this series, and I don’t say it everyday, is the relationship between Karou and Akiva. I’m not a romance girly, but these star-crossed lovers stole my heart. If Laini Taylor can defrost my heart, I believe anyone can root for this ‘ship. 

Have you read Daughter of Smoke and Bone? Is it in your reading list after today’s First Lines Friday?

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Sunday Summary – 23rd November 2025

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Today’s Sunday Summary brings plenty of reading progress. I’ve enjoyed the week off work, and the good news is, I’ve got another one next week! I’ve enjoyed doing some jobs round the house, and reading… of course! 

On the blog, I shared a book review for Stephen King’s The Waste Lands. I’ve enjoyed reading this series so far, and The Waste Lands is probably my favourite book so far! 

On Friday, I shared a Shelf Control post. In this series, I look at upcoming books on my TBR. Friday’s feature was a historical fiction classic that’s nearly 1000 pages long. 

 

Books Read

 

The Shadow of What Was Lost

Last week, I shared in my Sunday Summary that I was about 50% through the book. It’s a long audiobook, and I had approximately 14hrs audio left. I wasn’t sure if I’d manage to listen to it all this week. Progress so far was pretty slow. However, I shouldn’t have doubted myself! 

I’ve spent a good portion of the week doing household jobs that allow me to listen to audio as well. That, and working on a large cross-stitch project! I love listening to audiobooks at the same time. Thankfully I’m not having to wrestle kittens off my work too frequently anymore and the two hobbies go side-by-side very well 😂

I finished The Shadow of What Was Lost yesterday and I have lots of thoughts! The epilogue did so much for convincing me to pick up the sequel. I’m looking forward to documenting my thoughts on this one properly. 

 

Empire of the Dawn 

Another finish I was hoping for this week, but didn’t quite get to, was Empire of the Dawn. 

I’ve read the book spasmodically over the week. And I’m enjoying it! However, with the jobs I’m doing at home at the moment, I’ve not done much in the way of conventional reading. I was also out watching Wicked: For Good last night. 

My focus will be to finish Empire of the Dawn next week. As of this Sunday Summary, I’m about 20% through. I’m intrigued where the story is going to take us. 

 

The Housemaid’s Secret

The final book I’ve progressed with this week is one I started today – The Housemaid’s Secret. Just as I was settling down to read Empire of the Dawn, one of the kittens decided to fall asleep on my arm and rendered holding a hardback book impossible. 

So, I started my next audiobook instead! It’s been a good few months since I listened to The Housemaid earlier this year. My efforts to continue series whilst they’re still fresh in my mind motivated me to start The Housemaid’s Secret. 

Already, I have listened to 2 hours and 30 minutes of the housemaid secret so far. If you are a stats boffin, that puts me at 26% progress in one sitting. Not bad, eh? I always feel like progress goes really quickly when I pick up a short audiobook straight after a lengthy one 😂 When you consider this audiobook is just under 10 hours long, it’s only a fraction over a third of The Shadow of What Was Lost in terms of page count. Big difference! 

I’m actually enjoying the shorter and more faster post read. I do enjoy a lengthy epic, but sometimes something short and sweet (and a thriller to boot) helps pick up the pace.

 

Books Discovered

It’s another quiet week here in terms of new additions to my monthly TBR. I actually took a book off my reading list when prepping for Friday’s Shelf Control post. It’s fair to say things are moving in the right direction… 

 

Coming Up… 

Next week is the last week of November. Please tell me where that’s gone! I’ll have to start mentioning the C word before long 😂 

Before that though, I’ve got plenty of non-festive related content to share with you. I’m pointedly avoiding this week’s Top Ten Tuesday post theme to get away from the festivities – how bad is that? 

My first post of the week will be a recap on where I’m up to with my reading goals this year and an opportunity to set my final intentions for the last month of the year. How close am I to my reading goals? Is there anything I can do to get myself over the finish line with some of these before the end of the year? That post is all about setting out my intentions. I hope you can check in with me and celebrate my progress so far. 

On Friday, I’ll return with a First Lines Friday feature post. I’m in the mood to set myself a challenge for next week’s post. Sometimes I like to make my life difficult, okay? 😆 For next week’s First Lines Friday, I’m challenging myself to feature a book that is either for a young adult or new adult audience. Most of my reading list falls outside of these two genres, so I’ve got my work cut out for me to feature something interesting that meets these criteria.

Last, but certainly by no means least, I’ll be back the same time next week with another Sunday Summary. Fingers crossed, I’m able to use my time off work to get a lot more reading done before I’m back to the daily grind. 

That’s all for me in this Sunday Summary update, however. How have you spent your weekend? What projects do you have ongoing at the moment, bookish or otherwise? 

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Sunday Summary – 16th November 2025

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This Sunday Summary is one I’ve been looking forward to writing. Why? Because it finally coming around means I’m now off work for Two. Whole. Weeks! Yes! I’ve got all the time for reading, crafting, doing some random jobs round the house and generally enjoying a slower pace. 

But, before I get too hot on what’s happening next week, I suppose I should update you on my news from the week just gone, right? That’s the point of my Sunday Summary after all! 

In terms of content, this week I shared a Top Ten Tuesday of books I enjoyed that were out of my comfort zone. This is a fun one if you’re looking for a diverse list of reads and need some inspiration. On Friday, I shared a First Lines Friday and the opening lines to my current read. 

 

Books Read

 

The Shadow of What Was Lost

Progress has been a little slow with The Shadow of What Was Lost up until now. This week though, I’ve tripled last week’s meagre hours progress. And, as I’ll be spending a good chunk of time home in the next couple of weeks, it’s prime time for audiobook listening! 

Events I’ve listened to today have taken the story in a direction I wasn’t expecting. However, I’m keen to see where it leads. Naturally, I expect to make a lot more progress in the next seven days. I’m coming up 50% through, with under 14 hours left. Can I do it in a week? We’ll see! 

 

The God of the Woods 

In last week’s Sunday Summary, I shared that I was pushing for completion of The God of the Woods ahead of book club. 

Thankfully, I finished The God of the Woods the night before and it was a great read. It was also well received at the club, so it was a good choice all round. 

The mystery was twisty yet somewhat resolved how I wanted it to. The narrative was cleverly written and I was engaged all the way through! 

 

Empire of the Dawn 

The final book to share progress with in today’s Sunday Summary is my current read, Empire of the Dawn. I’m looking forward to reading more of this book. With a bit of a rush to finishing the God of the woods, I stepped back a little from reading in the last couple of days. That’s no reflection on this book though! 

At 50 pages in, I am back up to speed with what has happened to date and I can’t wait to see where his final book takes us in Gabriel’s story. 

Needless to say, I’m excited picking this up coincides with my time off work. It’s a hefty book over 750 pages. Will I get it finished next week? I sincerely hope so! 

 

Books Discovered

I’ve not added any more books to my reading pile this week. Whilst that’s not the most exciting news for you, it’s not a bad thing for me 😅 

 

Coming Up… 

I feel like I’m overdue a backlist review. With that in mind, my plan is to share my thoughts on a classic fantasy horror from Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series. The Waste Lands is the third book of the series and I hope you like reading my review. 

On Friday I return with a Shelf Control post. In this series, I feature upcoming books on my reading list and why I’m looking forward to reading them. I’m excited to look forward at what is coming up on my TBR – fingers crossed you are too! 

Finally, I’m back with another Sunday Summary post at the end of next week. I’ve got no excuse for a lack of reading progress, although I don’t expect that to happen in the slightest! 

What is the name of the book you last finished? How do you rate it? 

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First Lines Friday – 14/11/2025

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Today’s First Lines Friday features a HIGHLY anticipated new release. The third and final book of a much-loved trilogy, it’s one in both excited and scared to read. I’m confident I’ll love this book. 

If you haven’t guessed which book I’m referring to (my monthly TBR might give it away), then take a look below to find out more! 

 

IT WAS THE twenty-seventh year of daysdeath in the realm of the Forever King, and his murderer was still waiting to die. 

The killer stood again at a thin window, watching his finale arrive. Tattooed hands were clasped at his back, stained with blood, both fresh and merely remembered. His room stood high in the reaches of his lonely tower, battered by a tempest just as sleepless as he. His door remained locked like a secret. His heart, locked tighter still. 

From his vantage, the killer studied the procession below, his eyes the grey of the storm above. The figures wending towards the gatehouse were few, antlike; tiny black spots crawling on a plain of frost. But their coming was a portent, shaking the stones beneath him like no earthly thunder could, and their arrival told him that his departure was not too distant now. That this game, like all good things, must soon see its end.

 

Empire of the Dawn – Jay Kristoff

Genre: Gothic Fantasy 

Pages: 768

Audience: Adult

Publisher: HarperVoyager

Publication Date: 06 Nov 2025

Goodreads – Empire of the Dawn

 

From New York Times bestselling author of the Empire of the Vampire and Empire of the Damned, Jay Kristoff, comes the epic conclusion to the #1 internationally bestselling series.

From holy cup comes holy light;

The faithful hands sets world aright.

And in the Seven Martyrs’ sight,

Mere man shall end this endless night.

Gabriel de León has lost his family, his faith, and the last hope of ending the endless night—his surrogate daughter, Dior. With no thought left but vengeance, he and a band of loyal brothers journey into the war-torn heart of Elidaen to claim the life of the Forever King.

Unbeknownst to the Last Silversaint, the Grail still lives—speeding towards the besieged capital of Augustin in the frail hope of ending Daysdeath. But deadly treachery awaits within the halls of power, and the Forever King’s legions march ever closer. Gabriel and Dior will be drawn into a final battle that will shape the very fate of the Empire, but as the sun sets for what may the last time, there will be no one left for them to trust.

Not even each other.

 

My Thoughts…

I don’t pick up many books immediately after publication, but Empire of the Dawn is an exception. I loved Empire of the Vampire and Empire of the Damned. They are well written and I love the length of the books. They’re long, but immersive! 

They’re also darker than a lot of other fantasy I’ve read. The narrative style also suits me. Naturally, with the being the final book of the series, I’m both keen (and nervous) to reach the conclusion. It’s one of those where I’m worried it won’t live up to expectations, but I probably shouldn’t be. Jay Kristoff hasn’t let me down yet! The synopsis promises drama as well. 

Thanks for reading today’s First Lines Friday post. Have you ever picked up a book as soon as it’s released? If so, what was it? 

As always, I want to hear your thoughts – on this book – or any other you’ve been so excited to read you picked it up straight away!

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Shelf Control #78 – 21/06/2024

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This Shelf Control features an author I have read many times already, and will continue to do so in future. He is very prominent in his genre and is by all accounts a household name.

I added this book to my reading list as I was intrigued by the synopsis. I also know I love his writing style, so I can’t really go wrong here!

Before I get into details of the book, I share a reminder of what the Shelf Control feature is all about!

Shelf Control is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a celebration of the unread books on our shelves! The idea is to pick a book you own but haven’t read and write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up!

If you want to read more about the Shelf Control feature, check out Lisa’s introductory post.


Bag of Bones – Stephen King

Genre: Horror

Pages: 672

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton

Publication Date: 31 May 2017

 


Goodreads – Bag of Bones

 

A powerful tale of grief, love’s enduring bonds and the secrets of the past.

When Mike Noonan’s wife dies unexpectedly, the bestselling author suffers from writer’s block. Until he is drawn to his summer home, the beautiful lakeside retreat called Sara Laughs.

Here Mike finds the once familiar town in the tyrannical grip of millionaire Max Devore. Devore is hell-bent on getting custody of his deceased son’s daughter and is twisting the fabric of the community to this purpose.

Three-year-old Kyra and her young mother turn to Mike for help. And Mike finds them increasingly irresistible.

But there are other more sinister forces at Sara Laughs – and Kyra can feel them too . . .


My Thoughts

Stephen King is an author I intend to read over time. To date, I have enjoyed many of his books, from crossovers with the fantasy genre (The Dark Tower) to pure horror (The Shining, Pet Sematary, The Green Mile etc). And, I’m not much of a horror reader in general, so there’s a compliment, right?

The synopsis is as gripping as all King novels are. There is always something supernatural going on and we are never quite sure what is behind it all. That’s what I love digging into in his books, and Bag of Bones will be no exception.

It’s also a reasonably chunky book. You know that appeals to Queen of chunky books here!

Have you read Bag of Bones? What did you think of it if you have?

 

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First Lines Friday – 08/03/2024

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Welcome to the next instalment of my First Lines Friday regular feature series.

As soon as I started planning today’s First Lines Friday post, I knew I wanted to feature today’s book. It’s a book I recently obtained a copy of, and it’s the one and only pre-order I have been waiting on for a good few months now.

It’s not very often I pre-order books I must admit, but this was an exceptional case! Let’s see if you can guess the book from the introduction.

 

The dead boy opened his eyes.

All was still and silent, he among it, and most of all. A statue he was, his only movement in the yawning of his pupils, the soft parting of his bloodless lips. There was no quickening of breath as waking claimed him, no deeping drumbeat beneath his porcelain skin. He lay there in darkness, angelic and bare, staring at the timeworn velvet canopy above, and wondering what had woke him.

 

 

 

Empire of the Damned – Jay Kristoff

Genre: Gothic Fantasy

Pages: 756

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Harper Voyager

Publication Date: 29 Feb 2024

 

 

Goodreads – Empire of the Damned

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Nevernight Chronicle, Jay Kristoff, comes the much-anticipated sequel to the #1 international bestselling sensation EMPIRE OF THE VAMPIRE.

From holy cup comes holy light;
The faithful hands sets world aright.
And in the Seven Martyrs’ sight,
Mere man shall end this endless night.

Gabriel de León has saved the Holy Grail from death, but his chance to end the endless night is lost. Drawn into an uneasy alliance with the mysterious vampire Liathe, Gabriel must now deliver the Grail to ancients of the Blood Esani, and learn the truth of how Daysdeath might be finally undone.

But the Last Silversaint faces peril, within and without. Pursued by terrors of the Blood Voss, drawn into warfare between the Blood Dyvok and duskdancers of the frozen Highlands, and ravaged by his own rising bloodlust, Gabriel may not survive to see the Grail learn her truth.

And that truth may be too awful for any to imagine.

 

My Thoughts…

My original plan was to re-read Empire of the Vampire in February so that I was in a position to pick up Empire of The Damned this month. That’s not worked out, but Empire of the Vampire is high on my upcoming reading list. Technically it is not on my March reading list as I’ve changed the way I’m structuring those. However, it is very likely to be the next book I pick up after I complete March’s reading.

I am very excited to pick up this sequel, even if I wholly admit that I need to go back to the first book as a refresher. I read this book in 2022, but I also had covid at the time. I may have been on holiday, but the circumstances of reading this when I was ill has definitely impacted my recollection of events… if not how the book made me feel overall.

It would also be very rude of me not to pick up and read my special edition copy of Empire of the Vampire that my sister kindly gifted me…

Have you read Empire of the Vampire or any other books by Jay Kristoff? Do either of these books appeal to you for their dark and gritty nature? I would love to talk about these books, so let me know in the comments!

Thanks for checking out today’s First Lines Friday feature and I’ll see you again soon!

 

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Book Review: Empire of the Vampire – Jay Kristoff

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In today’s post, I am looking forward to sharing my thoughts on one of my favourite reads of 2022! The book easily made it into my top 2022 reads list, and I will be reading the sequel as soon as it’s out next year!

Not too long to wait now!

 

Empire of the Vampire – Jay Kristoff

Genre: Epic fantasy / Gothic fantasy

Pages: 718

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Harper Collins

Publication Date: 07 Sept 2021

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

Goodreads – Empire of the Vampire

From holy cup comes holy light;
The faithful hand sets world aright.
And in the Seven Martyrs’ sight,
Mere man shall end this endless night.

It has been twenty-seven long years since the last sunrise. For nearly three decades, vampires have waged war against humanity; building their eternal empire even as they tear down our own. Now, only a few tiny sparks of light endure in a sea of darkness.

Gabriel de León is a silversaint: a member of a holy brotherhood dedicated to defending realm and church from the creatures of the night. But even the Silver Order could not stem the tide once daylight failed us, and now, only Gabriel remains.

Imprisoned by the very monsters he vowed to destroy, the last silversaint is forced to tell his story. A story of legendary battles and forbidden love, of faith lost and friendships won, of the Wars of the Blood and the Forever King and the quest for humanity’s last remaining hope:

The Holy Grail.

 

My Thoughts

For the most part, I’m not really one for vampire stories. There are some exceptions to that rule, and this book and future series is now one of them. I suppose I’m a little guilty of tarring books with vampires with a negative brush – whilst I haven’t read or watched Twilight, I’ve heard enough to have made my mind up…

I decided to give this book a go against my instinct because it was written by Jay Kristoff. Since I really enjoyed his Nevernight Chronicles series in audio format, I took the plunge in getting a hardback of this book. I didn’t regret it – not even taking this chunk in my hand luggage on holiday!

 

Plot

Empire of the Vampire, structurally, it’s quite typical of popular epic fantasy novels. There is good and evil, a smattering of religion, and magic that stretches the bounds of reality as we know it. There is some small element of coming of age growth by some characters in this book too, which I enjoyed. At the same time, it doesn’t overly overtake the plot in terms of emphasis either, which makes a refreshing change.

There is plenty of action in Empire of the Vampire, given there’s an ongoing war between humanity and the undead to keep the pacing of the book… alive. See what I did there? Fantasy books are stereotypically earmarked as being full of world building and info dumping. Don’t get me wrong, some of them do. It’s rare that I’ll complain about a book being too descriptive, because I personally enjoy delving into the background and setting of a book. If anything, I’m more likely to criticise a book for being too action orientated, and there not being enough depth for me. I’m still bitter at how much I loved Red Rising by Pierce Brown, but disliked its sequel, Golden Son. It’s a prime example of this at play. However, Empire of the Vampire balanced the two nicely!

 

Characters

If you’re looking to read fantasy on the lighthearted side, then you’re looking at the wrong type of book. Empire of the Vampire is very dark and visceral. What do you expect with vampires on the scene? However, we’re not just talking about the characters. We’re talking about descriptions, events and language. If you ever read the Nevernight trilogy by Jay Kristoff then you’ve already had a flavour of what you can expect in Empire of the Vampire.

One of the tropes I enjoy in fantasy, and is something I discussed recently in my favourite fantasy tropes post, is a non-altruistic protagonist. The protagonist Gabriel is a Silversaint, born and raised to fight against the paranormal and defeat the vampires oppressing humanity. However, he is not the devout and altruistic man he was raised to be. He is a man who experiences doubts and loses his way.

He is the last Silversaint, and whilst he does try to do the right thing broadly, it’s more for his own motives rather than for humankind’s benefit. In my opinion, having a protagonist any other way wouldn’t fit with this book. As I’ve already mentioned, it is a dark and gritty novel. If we had a sweetness and light go-getter to save the world character, he would stick out like a sore thumb. He has been kicked and beaten, physically and emotionally. He’s lost friends. To an extent, he loses his own identity because of the world he lives in. Whilst he may be fighting on the side of humankind in the long run, there are plenty who consider him a monster as well.

 

Narrative Style

I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this book. I wanted to give it a try because I have really come to enjoy Jay Kristoff’s writing style in previous books.

The narrative style (likened to Patrick Rothfuss’ The Name of the Wind) and setting of the world appealed to me. It appealed to me for all the right reasons! I love the way in which this story is told. As in the aforementioned book, the story is told almost in the style of a confessional, through the eyes of the main character retrospectively. There are lots of people out there that love the style of narrative. Others don’t so much. Personally, I want to see more of it! I’ve read some fantastic books using this narrative style. Whilst some argue that it takes some of the joy and suspense out of knowing what happens to characters, I would argue that if it’s written well, that’s not the case at all!

The atmosphere and tension in the book kept me hooked! It definitely maintained Gothic vibes throughout, and I really enjoyed this. It’s not the typical book you would take for summer holiday reading, but I’m not a typical person! It really worked for me!

 

Summary

This book has everything you would expect from an epic fantasy – complex and detailed world-building, a vast array of characters with detailed backstories and relationships, and a storyline that will inevitably span a large number of chunky books!

I can’t wait for the sequel!

 

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