Tag: western fantasy

Book Review: Wizard and Glass – Stephen King

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***Today’s review of Wizard and Glass contains an affiliate link to Amazon if you wish to purchase the book. If you follow this link, I will earn a small commission from that purchase at no cost to you. 

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Wizard and Glass wasn’t quite the book I expected it to be. So far in Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series, the narrative has been light on the context of the wider series. Hoping this would unravel later in all due time, I was okay with this. Well, unravel it did. If you’re interested in my thoughts on the earlier books of the series, you can find these here: – 

The Gunslinger

The Drawing of the Three

The Waste Lands

I confess, Wizard and Glass wasn’t quite the books I anticipated, and I almost marked it down for it. Ultimately, it was an interesting book. However, if I’m honest I was a little disappointed Wizard and Glass came across as a bit of an info-dump book. 

However, the book and narrative isn’t without its merits, and overall I rated the book four stars. Before we get into my thoughts in full detail, let’s cover the stats and synopsis… 

 

Wizard and Glass – Stephen King

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 845

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Publication Date: 04 Nov 1997

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

 

Purchase Link – Amazon UK

Goodreads – Wizard and Glass

Roland, Eddie, Susannah, Jake, and Jake’s pet bumbler survive Blaine the Mono’s final crash, only to find themselves stranded in an alternate version of Topeka, Kansas, one that has been ravaged by the superflu virus. While following the deserted I-70 toward a distant glass palace, they hear the atonal squalling of a thinny, a place where the fabric of existence has almost entirely worn away. While camping near the edge of the thinny, Roland tells his ka-tet a story about another thinny, one that he encountered when he was little more than a boy. Over the course of one long magical night, Roland transports us to the Mid-World of long-ago and a seaside town called Hambry, where Roland fell in love with a girl named Susan Delgado, and where he and his old tet-mates Alain and Cuthbert battled the forces of John Farson, the harrier who—with a little help from a seeing sphere called Maerlyn’s Grapefruit—ignited Mid-World’s final war.

 

My Thoughts

Plot 

Whilst the overall setting and backstory of this book came across as a bit of an info-dump, I can’t actually fault the narrative in itself. This book wasn’t what I expected or hoped for. Instead of a continuation of the present day narrative we’ve enjoyed in books 1-3, very little actually happens in the present timeline in Wizard and Glass. 

Instead, we are taken back to Roland’s youth for the entirety of this book. If not for the level of cohesive detail, and my inability to come up with a way this story could have been told in the detail it is any other way, I would have marked it down. There is so much to this book that I think it was necessary to do in this format. In the grand scheme of the series, the context this backstory provides is relevant to the wider plot and needed to be told. My dislike of the change of pace and plot-line is ultimately preferential and so I couldn’t in good faith by unfair on this point my marking down my review. 

Wizard and Glass is an epic storyline. Hardly surprising for a Stephen King book, but especially in this wider world. Rather than following the established journey towards the Tower, we instead explore the backstory that set Roland on its path. That said, the plot is no less full of action and conflict that we’ve seen in earlier books. Rather, the setting of the book takes us back to what I would describe as a more authentic Western setting. Conflicts, when not handled with words, start with fists and end with bullets or flame. It’s dramatic, tense, and everything I’ve enjoyed in the series so far. 

 

Characters 

As well as the usual cast and crew we’ve come to know and love throughout The Dark Tower so far, we come to know many more in Wizard and Glass. 

Despite almost starting again, and having a whole new cast to introduce and explore, this wasn’t overwhelming to read. Key character are brought into the narrative in good time, not all at once. Even though I went into this book with investment into a set of characters that barely feature in the story (Roland aside, of course), I was still able to relate and motivate myself to explore the new characters and their conclusions. 

The small town community setting of this book is one I know all too well. I live on an island myself, and news, and people, get around. In this even smaller, somewhat isolated group, it’s not difficult to appreciate how difficult it is to keep secrets in a place like this. The conflict and tension of such a setting is engaging. Groups like this often develop their own senses of right and wrong, morality, things like that. For outsiders, it’s entirely skewed. That’s very much the case here, and I liked that. To what extermes will these people go to? Where are the boundaries, if they exist?

 

Setting 

The benefit of a book which essentially addresses flashbacks is that we get to see a whole new setting within the wider world already established. It’s an opportunity to address history and take a look at the places, events and ultimately the backstory that shaped the more modern timeline. 

In Wizard and Glass, we get to experience what I would describe as a book with closer fidelity to a Western style narrative. In earlier books, we’ve had elements of modern societies bleed into the narrative. Blane the mono, abandoned cities and the like morph the setting slightly to something more hybrid. However, in Wizard and Glass, the small town setting and close community brings us back to the book’s Western roots. The self-sustaining community, suspicious of outsiders, set in their ways and opinions and witchcraft especially feels authentic. 

Whilst I’ve enjoyed the other books and their crossovers in setting (it’s a fantasy after all, not a pure Western), I got on well with Wizard and Glass leaning into this more authentic setting. 

 

Narrative Style 

For the most part, we spend the majority of our time in Wizard and Glass flashing back to the past. Whilst we get brief glimpses of present day and the group listening to Roland’s recount of his youth, not much happens here. Even still, these brief interludes help break up that dense, contextually relevant narrative and give Susannah and Eddie the opportunity to ‘ask questions’ to help reaffirm relevance to readers. 

Despite being a chunky read, I read Wizard and Glass pretty quickly. In all, I think I was actively progressing with this book over a span of a couple of weeks. I did have to put it down temporarily to pick up some reading obligations. However, once those were out of the way I dived into the final 30% of the book with gusto. 

For an epic fantasy, I’d say Kings books, Wizard and Glass included, aren’t difficult to read. There’s complexity in the depth of what is going on, sure, but not really in the language, tone or writing style of the book. Even references to phases and elements of ‘own language’ in the book are pretty self-explanatory. 

 

Summary 

Thanks for reading today’s Wizard and Glass review! 

Have you read Wizard of Glass, or any other books in Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series? If not yet, pick up a copy of Wizard and Glass here, or start the adventure with The Dark Tower and let me know what you think of this Western-style fantasy. 

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Monthly Wrap-Up – August 2024

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Hello readers and welcome to this monthly wrap-up for August. I had a decent month of reading, and this post is about sharing what I read over the last month.

I had a couple of carryover’s from July, as well as a varied list for August. As usual now, I didn’t get to all the books I set for August – but I had a great time with the books I did read.

Let’s take a look!


Books Read


The Power of Habit

Picking up from last month’s monthly wrap-up post, I was 30% into The Power of Habit.

I really enjoyed this book, and I’m hoping I have some good take away knowledge from it. The book has great examples of the consequences of bad habits – personal, organisational and as a society. The key takeaway I have from the book is that you can often change a habit by making changes in a seemingly unrelated way and gradually introduce change from there.

I’m hoping this will help me build more good habits in my own life!


The Other People

In my Monthly TBR post I shared that I was nearly through this audiobook. I’d already listened to 80%, so this month I was hoping for a quick conclusion.

Mum loved and strongly recommended The Other People and having finished it, I get why. If you enjoy mysteries that keep you guessing all the way along, this is perfect. Even up until the very end I was still trying to put pieces together and work out character’s involvement in the story line.

The Other People is the third book I’ve read by C.J. Tudor, and I still have plenty to read!


The Midnight Library

For our first ever book club at work, we chose The Midnight Library by Matt Haig to read and discuss. For me it is a re-read, but I agree with some feedback from another member that it’s better second time around!

I re-read The Midnight Library very quickly. It’s only a short read – one of the reasons I recommended it to book club in the first place. At the same time, it raises plenty of discussion points; it doesn’t lack for content! Admittedly I did leave this a little last minute. I finished it the night before book club. I wasn’t the last though – Helen spent the first half hour of the meeting finishing it!


Eruption

I’ve prioritised picking up our next book club read, Eruption, as I’m sharing a physical copy with another member.

As of the end of August I was 65% into the book. I’ve started reading it again after my bout of covid (so as not to contaminate the book!) so as of drafting this monthly wrap-up I’m a little futther.

I hope to finish this soon so I can pass on to Helen ASAP.


Wolves of the Calla

A book I very briefly started, but ended up shelving temporarily, is Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the book and I fully intend to pick it up again soon. However, I started to read this right at the end of the month when I became unwell. I decided the time wasn’t ideal to pick up such a tome. When I’m back into the swing of things I’ll pick it up again.


Breathtaking

A short audiobook I enjoyed this month was Breathtaking by Rachel Clarke. Make no mistake, it’s an eye-opener.

I totally appreciate the book and subject may not be for everyone right now. However, I enjoyed listening to this perspective on the pandemic. I had no idea that care homes were so woefully under-supplied with PPE. What I also found interesting was Rachel’s (and colleagues) views of the advice being issued by the government. It is very much a view of too little and too late.

 

Undoctored

My last non-fiction to share with you in this monthly wrap-up is Undoctored by Adam Kay.

As of drafting this monthly wrap-up I have just finished the book this morning. You’ll get more thoughts on it in Sunday’s Sunday Summary update.

However, as a snapshot of where I was at month end, I was a couple of hours shy of completion.


Summary

I read quite a number of non-fiction books in August – more than average I’d say. However, given I was a little behind in my mid-year review on this goal, it’s a good change. I’m still slightly behind, but only by one book or so.

August was a good month of reading for subject diversity and I’m looking forward to an equally productive September. My reading list is coming out in the next day or so, so stay tuned!

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Sunday Summary – 25th August 2024

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Good evening folks – it’s Sunday once again (and it’s been a miserable one at that!) so I’m here with another Sunday Summary catch-up!

This week is the first in which I’ve cut down my blog schedule, so I’ve only shared one post with you so far. That post was my book review of The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker. If you like the sound of a Greek mythology with a feminist twist, I strongly suggest you check that out!


Books Read


Wolves of the Calla

As of last week’s Sunday Summary post I had only just started Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King. In reality, I’m not much further in this post. I started the book but ended up putting it on hold when I received a copy of Eruption. I explain why below.

As of this post, I am only 26 pages in, but looking forward to getting stuck in once Eruption is finished with!


Eruption

I’d debated ticking along with Wolves of the Calla by reading this in tandem with other books. However, I have more or less put that on hold in order to read Eruption by Michael Crichton and James Patterson.

The book club at work are picking this one up ahead of our next meeting. The reason I’m reading this one so early this time is because I am sharing the book with Helen. She wasn’t able to get a copy from the library and she’s trying to watch pennies at the moment. I’ve offered to share my copy, so I’m reading it first to give her as much time as possible with it before the meeting.

As of this Sunday Summary post, I am 277 pages into the book. It’s an interesting read, even if I think the premise is a little bit far-fetched. It’s also very readable as the chapters are short and sweet. If anything, perhaps a bit too short for my liking. It’s something I’m able to work with quite well though.

I’ll have this finished in the next few days. I can give you my final thoughts in next week Sunday Summary.

Undoctored

From the half an hour listening time I updated you in last week’s Sunday Summary, I have gone onto listen to another hour or so of Undoctored by Adam Kay this week.

The majority of that audiobook time this week has been when driving to and from work. It’s a good reliable quality time moment for me that I can crack out an audiobook and have a good listen.

Undoctored so far is every bit as funny as I expected it to be. I loved listening to This is Going to Hurt and T’was the Night Shift Before Christmas. I have high expectations of Undoctored based on these experiences, but also confidence that it will meet those lofty standards.


Books Discovered

Between reading for fun and studying for work this week, nothing new has come onto my radar in the last week to update you on!


Coming Up…

I’m writing a fun book tag mid-week as a bit of something different on the blog. I found the post over on Zezee with Books and I thought it would be fun to share.

I’ll be back with my next Sunday Summary instalment at the same time next week. In that post, I’ll update you on my recent reads, anything added to the reading list and summarise what’s coming up on the blog in due course.

I hope you can check out each of those posts and I look forward to seeing you around.

Happy reading!

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Sunday Summary – 18th August 2024

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It’s Sunday night again, so I can only be back with you for another Sunday Summary update! I hope you’ve all had a great week?

I’ve shared my usual two posts so far with you this week. The first of those was my Favourite Books to Recommend discussion post which went live on Thursday. I shared books I love to recommend to others for a variety of reasons. If you want to find out more, or are looking for recommendations yourself… take a look here!

The second post I shared was my First Lines Friday feature. In this week’s post I featured one of the two new additions to my TBR (which I share below). Take a look to find out which one and what it’s all about.


Books Read


The Power of Habit

I’d temporarily put The Power of Habit on hold as I needed to finish The Midnight Library before Tuesday lunchtime. Once that was completed though, I got stuck back in and finished the book within a couple of days!

I enjoyed the different angles and examples of habit-building at individual, corporate and societal level. Some the examples also go to show that you can start to build habits in unanticipated ways – by starting small or looking at a habit that seems unrelated but has a knock on effect.


Breathtaking

My main audiobook listen this week was Breathtaking by Rachel Clarke. If you watched the four part TV series of the same name, it was inspired by this book.

As of last week’s Sunday Summary I was 60% into the book. This week, I made it to the finish! It’s quite a short read or listen, but no less impactful. Whilst it didn’t make me upset, it is a book of emotional ups and downs.

The perspective is told from that of a hospice nurse who volunteers part time to help on Covid wards between January and April 2020. In the grand scheme, it only covers the early pandemic. However, it is a good insight and commentary on the state of the NHS during one of its busiest periods to date.


The Midnight Library

My reading priority at the beginning of this week was to finish The Midnight Library ahead of our book club meeting on Tuesday.

As of last week’s Sunday Summary I was about 50% into the book. It’s quite a short one, and familiar to me so therefore quick to read. I blitzed the last 50% on Sunday night and Monday so I was able to go to our meet fully prepared.

It was our first club meet and you know what? It went really well! We all enjoyed the book and had a great chat about it.


Wolves of the Calla

I’m including Wolves of the Calla in this Sunday Summary so you know what I’m reading in the next week or so. I’ve only just started the prologue so I have nothing significant to report… just that this is my next read!


Undoctored

Another book I feature in this post as I’ve just started it is Undoctored. I’ve only listened to the first half an hour, but it’s been a good listen.

That’s hardly unexpected! Adam Kay is funny and his humour is shining though already. I’m looking forward to listening to more over the next week or so.


Books Discovered



I’ve added two books to my reading list this week after I read about them and they caught my attention.

I was recommended Curious Tides on Threads by a fellow reader after asking for recommendations for books in the dark academia genre. This also blends with fantasy, so it sounds like a perfect type of book for me!

I read about The Memory Police in an article about translated books. The Memory Police was originally published in Japanese. I like the dystopian nature of the synopsis and I’m intrigued if there are any cultural differences to the narrative given the difference in setting etc.

 

Coming Up…

On Wednesday this week I plan to share my review of The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker. I read this back in August 2022 and I can’t wait to share my thoughts on this 5* read!

I would usually share three posts a week and have a regular Friday feature. However, as I’m about to start studying for a qualification for work I’m going to cut the blog schedule from three posts a week to two until that’s done.

So, my next and last post of the week will be another Sunday Summary catch up. Will I feature as many books in next week’s post? Not likely – but I’ll update you all the same.

Until then, happy reading and I hope to see you in the next post!

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Sunday Summary – 11th December 2022

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It’s that time of the week again folks – welcome back to my Sunday Summary update post. As always, I hope you’ve had a fantastic week!

Before I jump into the books I have been reading this week, let’s recap the blog posts I have shared. Earlier in the week, I shared my discussion post on why I think setting reading goals is beneficial. If you are considering setting a reading goal as a New Year’s resolution, and I’d recommend checking out this post.

On Friday, I shared a First Lines Friday post. In that post, I featured A book that I have recently added to my TBR and can’t wait to read! I’m not going to tell you any more than that. If you want to go and check it out for yourself, you can find a link here to do so.

 

Books Read

This week I have made great reading progress. It has been a week of fantasy books, which is something I always jive with.

However, these two fantasy novels are very, very different. The first of those is Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan. As of last week‘s Sunday Summary post, I was just under 20% through this book. I very easily finished this book this week.

It is not the smallest book at about 560 pages, however, it is very easy to read. I really enjoyed the Chinese mythology background of this book. Typically, I read a lot of westernised fantasy novels. So, it’s not very often that Chinese mythology sneaks into these books. And that’s a shame, because this is one of the elements that sold the book to me. I really enjoyed the change of setting, customs, and characters. Based on my read of Daughter of the Moon Goddess, I’m definitely going to try and read more Asian inspired fantasy in future!

On Saturday, I moved onto a more traditional (western) fantasy novel by an author I have come to love this year. Ship of Magic is the first book in The Liveship Traders series by Robin Hobb, and is part of the overall Realm of the Elderlings series. This particular series is sat in a completely different environment to that of the Farseer trilogy that I have read so far. I wasn’t sure what to make of it at first, however, I am now 136 pages in and comfortably settled.

This book is as chunky as its predecessors. At around 880 pages, my 136 page progress only equates to 15% through the book. I have a lot of reading to do in the next week! fingers crossed I’ll have a good update for you in next week’s Sunday Summary!

 

Books Discovered

Having added three books to my reading list last week, you think I would calm down. However, I had the opportunity to meet a colleague from another office in person for the first time this week. She is as fond of books as I am, and I have taken one of her recommendations on board.

One of the books she mentioned she enjoyed was Behind Closed Doors by B. A. Paris. I really like the premise of the book. The line of discussion we were having about this book is that even though the characters aren’t real in this particular book, these situations do exist for real people. Narratives such as this book make you angry/sad on their behalf.

Behind Closed Doors is a relatively short book, so will be a quick read whenever I get round to it!

We also discussed a number of books by Leigh Bardugo. I have started the Shadow and Bone series. I haven’t added any additional books to my reading list yet; I’m going to see how this series goes before possibly adding more later.

 

Coming Up…

The first blog post I have planned for you next week is an audiobook review. It has been a little while since I shared one of these. Having taken a look at my list of pending reviews, I have come up to Traitor’s Blade by Sebastien de Castell. This was the first book of Sebastien’s that I have read (listened to), and I’ve already listened to and enjoyed the second book of this series as well. I can’t wait to share my thoughts with you next week!

My Friday feature will be a Shelf Control post. If you are unfamiliar, this is a feature in which I take the opportunity to review books on my TBR and see if they are still relevant. If so, I think to them on my blog and share exactly why I’m looking forward to reading them! I hope you can join me for this week’s post, in which I feature a history book that aims to fill in the gaps in my British history knowledge.

As always, I’ll be back at the end of the week with another Sunday Summary post.

That’s all from me in today’s update – what are you reading at the moment?

 

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