August Wrap-up & New Member Announcement

As summer draws to an end and pumpkin-themed beverage and decorations are ushered into our daily routine, we celebrate another month of reading and blogging!

And we also celebrate the arrival of a new member. Everyone, say hello to Travis! We are delighted to have you on board.

The Inn has welcomed great guest posts and interviews and will continue to do so in the coming month so…do young people still say “stay tuned”? Stay tuned!

Hiu

I hit a bit of a reading slump this month, as my free time decided to sacrifice itself to a whole slew of non-reading (and therefore non-fun) activities. I did manage to read five books this month though, which were:

• The first two books of the Threadbare series by Andrew Seiple (Audiobook) – have you ever wanted to listen to Tim Gerard Reynolds narrate a sentient teddy bear that wields knives and shit? Honestly, these books are delightful. I can’t wait for the final audiobook to drop.
• City of Kings by Rob J. Hayes – An enjoyable grimdark siege story. Some larger than life characters, and some excellent battle scenes.
• Rosewater by Tade Thompson – A sci-fi story set in future Nigeria, published by Orbit. This book was incredible. My review for this will probably drop mid-September, closer to release.
• Cold Iron by Miles Cameron – A throwback to classical farmboy fantasy, but with modern sensibilities in mind. This was my first book by Cameron, but I doubt it’ll be the last.

Next month I intend to read:

• Bloody Rose by Nicholas Eames – (I FINALLY got my grubby paws on this today)
• Ghosts of Tomorrow by Michael R. Fletcher
• Gryphon’s Eye by Kevin Weston
• From the Shadows of the Owl Queen’s Court by Benedict Patrick
• Touch of Iron by Timandra Whitecastle
• King of Assassins by R.J. Barker
• City of Lies by Sam Hawke

I’m totally on a mood reading kick, so there is next-to-no chance that I’m actually gonna finish all of the above in September… but I’ll give it a try, at least!

Jenia

So this month I finished my MA thesis!!! It’s very exciting but also now I’m terrified, waiting for the results haha. But if you wanna know something about how acronyms like IDK and LOL are used, I can tell you everything you need to know! Or 60 odd pages worth anyway! *nervous, terrified laughter*

Anyway obviously I didn’t have that much time to read, especially the last couple weeks. Hope September is a little less stressful!

This month I read:

• European Travel for the Monstrous Gentlewoman by Theodora Goss
• Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse
• Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong by James W. Loewen (Finally finished the audiobook! It’s great but maybe a little bit repetitive. Especially because I’m not American so it’s not exactly “what a shock~~~!” for me.)
• We Ride the Storm by Devin Madson (I’m not really a grimdark + epic fantasy person but I’m really glad I tried it cuz I loved it!  Full review on GR.)

Kopratic

With all of the hectic stuff in my life finally coming to a close/me getting back on a normal schedule, I was able to finish one book this August. I read:

• And Then There Were Crows by Alcy Leyva [eARC provided by Black Spot Books]
  • I felt torn about this book. I loved the plot. It was entertaining and managed to make something unique out of a demon-hunting trope. I liked the idea of the characters. Unfortunately, they fell flat most of the time for me and didn’t really have that much depth to them. Finally, while this was a relatively short novel, there were still a couple of parts I felt could’ve been cut. Overall, this was an alright read for me. That being said, though, the parts that were good, were good. The beginning, especially, is a fantastic blend of dark comedy and suspense.

For September, I’m hoping to finish at least the following two books:

• Trial of Kings by Phil Tucker
• The Ikessar Falcon by K.S. Villoso

Sharade

Slow month! I didn’t manage to finish a fantasy novel, but I did read two exceptional shorts. Pro-tip in case of a slump: apply a Tor.com novella. Repeat if necessary.

• A Taste of Honey by Kai Ashante Wilson: a beautiful love story in a setting I want to see more of.
• The Black God’s Drums by P. Djèlí Clark: I have heard a lot of good things about it and it didn’t disappoint. Alternative steampunk New Orleans, sky pirates, gods and badass nuns, feral kids and dangerous weapons. It’s a thrilling story that I absolutely recommend.

I’m currently rereading Fool’s Errand by Robin Hobb (I’ve never reread any of the Fitz books for obvious reasons – me becoming a sobbing mess, and sure enough: first chapter, cue the tears), trying to finish The Guns Above by Robyn Bennis, and I have started Two Serpents Rise by Max Gladstone (fantastic worldbuilding, not sure about the plot yet).

Tam

I had a bit of a slow month and didn’t read much in the second half of the month.

• Royal Assassin and Assassin’s Quest by Robin Hobb – I finished The Farseer Trilogy this month and really enjoyed it. Fitz is such a great character.
• Threadbare Volume 2 by Andrew Seiple – This released in audiobook form this month and was absolutely amazing. Tim Gerard Reynolds does a fantastic job with the narration.
• We Ride the Storm by Devin Madson – This was a really good book. You can check out Hiu’s review for it here. I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait for the sequels. Lots of interesting characters and world building.
• The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty – This was a really interesting historical fantasy set in the Middle East with lots of interesting magic and creatures.
• A Crucible of Souls by Mitchell Hogan – A awesome trilogy beginning with some really cool magic. I’m looking forward to seeing where this goes and reading the rest of the series.
• The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien – I finally managed to read The Hobbit. It was a fantastic story and I really enjoyed it.

I’m currently reading The Aching God by Mike Shel in audiobook, Simon Vance has done a fantastic job with the narration, and am going to start reading The Ninth Rain by Jen Williams today.

Travis

I’m excited to be joining the Fantasy Inn crew! I’ve been an avid fantasy reader for years and writing reviews seems like a great way to throw my favorite books at people. Metaphorically, of course. I go through a lot of graphic novels, short stories, and audio dramas, so I’m hoping to review some of those for the site soon. My goal is to read over a hundred books this year and I’ll reviews as many as I can!