• More information on the BRBC can be found here: Blood Rites Book Club
• And here is the link to their selection for this month: Book Club Selection (December)

These books can be purchased on Amazon.com

Blood Rites is an online RPG based on an AU setting of the Black Jewels series. The community welcomes everyone, members or non members, to participate in their book clubs. They host a live discussion for each book read with lively debate and discussion.

I will be formulating a review based on the discussion we had for Mistborn last month.

This is an open bookclub. You will need to create a forum name to participate but you do not need to be an active member of their RPG site.

Every other month they nominate a book and vote on what they want to read as a group. Then the each go off, read the book, and return to have a discussion at the end of the 2 month mark.

Their first book choice is Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson and the discussion date has roughly been set for early November.

I highly recommend people to join since this is an active group of intellectual participants who love to read and get involved in the fantasy genre. It is a diverse group when it comes to the genre but they are welcoming to all types of fans.

The Book Club

Book: The Shadow Queen
Author: Anne Bishop
Series: The Black Jewels
Published: March 2009

Rating: Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Book Jacket:

Dena Nehele is a land decimated by its past. Once it was ruled by corrupt Queens, who were wiped out when the land was cleansed of tainted Blood. Now only one hundred Warlord Princes stand…without a leader and without hope.

Theran Grayhaven is the last of his line, desperate to find the key that reveals a treasure great enough to restore Dena Nehele. But first he needs to find a Queen who knows Protocol, remembers the Blood’s code of honor, and lives by the Old Ways.

Languishing in the Shadow Realm, Lady Cassidy is a Queen without a court, a castoff. She is not beautiful. She thinks she is not strong. But when she is chosen to rule Dena Nehele, she must convince bitter men to serve once again.

Theran’s cousin Gray is a Warlord Prince who was damaged in mind and body by the vicious Queens who once ruled Dena Nehele. Yet something about Cassidy makes him want to serve- and makes him believe he can be made whole again.

And only Cassidy can prove to Gray- and to herself- that wounds can heal and even the whisper of a promise can be fulfilled…

Non-Spoiler Review:

It is hard to wrap up my opinions on this Black Jewels novel as they are quite mixed. I put down the book and managed to feel both satisfied and disappointed at the same time.

The Shadow Queen, compared to the other novels in the Black Jewels Series, had much more of a romance and light feeling to the overall storyline. It took me a moment to pinpoint the source of disappointment in the overarching storyline, but I finally realized what it was:

There was no enemy, no villain, and no antagonist!

Without an enemy in Shadow Queen the story is missing the true depth of darkness to match the other stories in the series, and it lacked the sense of struggle for the characters.  This was particularly, and surprisingly, light for a novel in the Black Jewels Series.

Furthermore the book jacket synopsis gave away too much about one of the major plots in the story. This is a particular pet peeve of mine; if you have to give spoilers in the jacket then you have lost the discovery aspect of the story that you cannot reclaim. In particular the most enjoyable storyline is given away in the jacket much like it would be for a romance novel.

Having aired my grievances for this book I have to focus on what I loved about it. I did rate it at 3.5 stars as proof that I really enjoyed this book. It’s one of my least favorites of the series but the entire book felt like a setup for a deeper story to follow (and ended up being continued in Shalador’s Lady, review forthcoming).

The best part of the Shadow Queen was the depth of exploration that Bishop shared with the reader in this beautifully crafted world. This is the primary strength to all of the Black Jewels novels and took a front and center place as the highlight to the storyline in Shadow Queen. Bishop built on the foundation provided in the Black Jewels Trilogy, particuarlly from the world in The Invisible Ring,  and from Dreams Made Flesh.  In addition to leveraging the foundation from those popular novels she also drew on the creativity featured in Tangled Webs. She was able to tie all the stories together without overwhelming the reader and allowed new readers to start with this book.  The small references that were made to each of the former novels in the series is a great way to draw the lines between all the novels in the series.

The Spoiler Review:
Exploring the love and annoyance relationship I had with the Shadow Queen.

[[Visit blog to check out this spoiler]]

All in all the Shadow Queen provides a deeper look into the world of Bishop’s construction and has clearly set up a follow-up novel in Shalador’s Lady (review forthcoming).

Purchase
Shadow Queen on Amazon.com.

A few months ago I revisited this growing pile of books and re-discovered several gems within the dust. I picked up The Lies of Locke Lamora and eagerly began it. I’m currently not even 100 pages in but I’m regretting waiting so long to read this book. I had purchased it in 2006, not long after it had been released, and it had sat in the to-read pile for over three years.

I thought I had covered all the books in my to-read pile when I posted the list in the RYOB challenge.

Boy, was I wrong.

Initially I was going to use this blog post to ask for feedback on the books I have sitting on my to-read stack. So that I can make an informed decision on what books to consider to read next. Let’s just say that it’s daunting to even look at these stacks as they overwhelm my desk. My plea to my friends, strangers, followers, haters or anyone who comes across this blog, whether it be tomorrow or a year from today, to present any feedback they have on any of these books. Whether you’ve read the books, or have heard about them, any opinions are welcomed. Now I’m using this post to weed through this list and give myself a place to start.

I can’t even begin to figure out how I collected this many books of the Fantasy genre. Some likely caught my attention on the shelves, others likely caught my attention because they were on clearance, and more probably because the one of the bookstores I worked for was closing and I can’t pass up a good deal.

One thing you may notice is that I only have books #2 or #3 of a series, this is not by design. This is because I got too good a deal to pass up on the book. I’m looking for feedback especially on these series so that I can make the decision to find the first books and add them to the queue of books to read.

	The Hidden Queen Book 1 of the Changer of Days by Alma Alexander
	The Darkness that Comes Before Book 1 of the Prince of Nothing by R. Scott Bakker
	The Somnambulist by Jonathan Barnes
	Hell and Earth Book 2 of the Promethean Age by Elizabeth Bear
	Transformation Book 1 of the Rai-Kirah Series by Carol Berg
	Restoration Book 2 of the Rai-Kirah Series by Carol Berg
	Flesh and Spirit Book 1 of the Lighthouse Duet by Carol Berg
	Breath and Bone Book 2 of the Lighthouse Duet by Carol Berg
	The Sweet Far Thing Book 3 of the Gemma Doyle Series by Libba Bray
	The Magicians’ Guild Book 1 of the Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Cananvan
	The High Lord Book 3 of the Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Cananvan
	Kushiel’s Scion Book 1 of the Imriel Trilogy by Jacqueline Carey
	Kushiel’s Justice Book 2 of the Imriel Trilogy by Jacqueline Carey
	Graceling by Kristin Cashore
	The Drowning City by Amanda Downum
	Sinner Book 1 of the Wayfarer Redemption by Sara Douglass
	The Alchemist’s Code Book 2 of the Venice Trilogy by Dave Duncan
	The Elder Gods Book 1 of the Dreamers by David Eddings
	The Treasured Ones Book 2 of the Dreamers by David Eddings
	Jaran Book 1 of the Jaran by Kate Elliott
	Blood of Ambrose by James Enge
	Shadows Return Book 4 of the Nightrunner Series by Lynn Flewelling
	The Bone Doll’s Twin Book 1 of the Tamir Triad by Lynn Flewelling
	Hidden Warrior Book 2 of the Tamir Triad by Lynn Flewelling
	The Oracle’s Queen Book 3 of the Tamir Triad by Lynn Flewelling
	The Witches of Eileanan Book 1 of the Witches of Eileanan by Kate Forsyth
	Nobody’s Prize Book 1 of the Nobody Series by Esther Friesner
	Thief With No Shadow by Emily Gee
	Assassin’s Apprentice Book 1 of the Farseer by Robin Hobb
	A Woman Worth Ten Coppers by Morgan Howell
	The Glasswrights’ Apprentice Book 1 of the Glasswright Series by Mindy L. Klasky
	Path of Revenge Book 1 of the Broken Man by Russell Kirkpatrick
	Dark Heart Book 1 of the Broken Man by Russell Kirkpatrick
	The Mage’s Daughter Book 2 of the Nine Kingdoms by Lynn Kurland
	Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner
	Foundation A Novel of Valdemar by Mercedes Lackey
	Hood Book 1 of the King Raven Trilogy by Stephen R. Lawhead
	Scarlet Book 2 of the King Raven Trilogy by Stephen R. Lawhead
	Tuck Book 3 of the King Raven Trilogy by Stephen R. Lawhead
	The Company of Glass Book 1 of the Everien by Valery Leith
	Red Seas Under Red Skies Book 2 of the Gentleman Bastards by Scott Lynch
	Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier
	Firethorn Book 1 of the Firethorn Trilogy by Sarah Micklem
	Heroes Adrift Book 3 of the Heroes Series by Moira J. Moore
	The Name of the Wind Book 1 of the Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss
	Cast in Shadow Book 1 of the Chronicles of Elantra by Michelle Sagara
	Mistborn Book 1 of the Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson
	The Fox Book 2 of the Indevan-Dal Algara-Vayir by Sherwood Smith
	Sea Glass Book 1 of the Glass Series by Maria V. Snyder
	Storm Glass Book 2 of the Glass Series by Maria V. Snyder
	Mona Lisa Awakening Book 1 of the Mona Lisa Series by Sunny
	Mona Lisa Blossoming Book 2 of the Mona Lisa Series by Sunny
	Mona Lisa Craving Book 3 of the Mona Lisa Series by Sunny
	Mona Lisa Darkening Book 4 of the Mona Lisa Series by Sunny
	Lucinda, Darkly Book 1 of the Demon Princess Chronicles by Sunny
	Lucinda, Dangerously Book 2 of the Demon Princess Chronicles by Sunny
	White Star Book 2 of the Star Series by Elizabeth Vaughan
	The King’s Peace by Jo Walton

What do you think? Have you ready any of these novels? Know anyone who has? What’s your opinion? Which should I backburner?

The rules are:

• Pick a number of books you’d like to read in one year
• Choose those books from your OWN collection
• Read them between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2010

And some guidelines:

• Re-Reads are NOT allowed (the challenge is to get more of your own books read that have been sitting there waiting!)
• Audiobooks & e-books ARE allowed

I am challenging myself to read 25 of the following books in 2010.

(I plan to revisit this list in deeper detail in an attempt to solicit your opinions and leverage your knowledge.)

• R. Scott Bakker
  • The Darkness That Comes Before
• Jonathan Barnes
  • The Somnambulist
• Elizabeth Bear
  • Ink and Steel
  • Hell and Earth
• Carol Berg
  • Restoration
  • Transformation
  • Revelation
  • Flesh and Spirit
  • Breath and Bone
• Patricia Briggs
  • The Hob’s Bargain
• Jacqueline Carey
  • Kusniel’s Scion
  • Kushiel’s Justice
  • Kushiel’s Mercy
  • Naamah’s Kiss
• Kristin Cashore
  • Graceling
  • Fire
• Amanda Downum
  • The Drowning City
• Dave Duncan
  • The Alchemist’s Apprentice
  • The Alchemist’s Code
• James Engle
  • Blood of Ambrose
• Lynn Flewelling
  • Shadows Return
• Kate Forsyth
  • The Witches of Eileanan
• Emily Gee
  • Thief with No Shadow
• Robin Hobb
  • Assassin’s Apprentice
• Morgan Howell
  • A Woman Worth Ten Coppers
• Russell Kirkpatrick
  • Across the Face of the World
  • In the Earth Abides the Flame
  • The Right Hand of God
  • Path of Revenge
  • Dark Heart
  • Beyond the Wall of Time
• Mindy E. Klasky
  • The Glasswrights’ Apprentice
• Mercedes Lackey
  • Foundation
• Stephen R. Lawhead
  • Hood
  • Scarlet
  • Tuck
• Scott Lynch
  • The Lies of Locke Lamora
  • Red Seas Under Red Skies
• Sarah Micklem
  • Firethorn
• Moira J. Moore
  • Heroes Adrift
• Patrick Rothfuss
  • The Name of the Wind
• Michelle Sagara
  • Cast in Shadow
• Brandon Sanderson
  • Mistborn
  • Elantris
• Maria V. Snyder
  • Storm Glass
  • Sea Glass
• Sunny
  • Mona Lisa Awakening
  • Mona Lisa Blossoming
  • Mona Lisa Craving
  • Mona Lisa Darkenig
  • Lucinda Darkly
• Elizabeth Vaughan
  • White Star
• Jo Walton
  • The King’s Peace

And I’m going to cheat, and include the books on my Amazon wish list.

• Joe Abercrombie
  • The Blade Itself
• R. Scott Bakker
  • The Warrior Prophet
  • The Thousandfold Thought
• Anne Bishop
  • Shalador’s Lady
• Scott Lynch
  • The Republic of Thieves

What relases are you looking forward to this year? Vote & Comment on the post below!

2010’s New Releases

March 2nd

• Shalador’s Lady by Anne Bishop
  • Shalador’s Lady is a follow up novel to last year’s release of The Shadow Queen, set in the world of the Blood/Black Jewels Series and following the new Queen of Dena Nehele. This is one of my most anticipated books of 2010. I’m a big fan of Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels Series and particularly have enjoyed the spinoffs with new characters and new storylines.

April 6th

• Destiny’s Star
  by Elizabeth Vaughan
  • Less than a day after I made this post Beth Vaughan did me the courtesy of replying to an email I had sent her, and in that email it mentioned that her next book will be coming out in April 2010. Needless to say I rush back to the blog to update my 2010 New Releases that I’m looking forward to. If this is anything like Daggerstar then I am in for a treat. I still have to read White Star but I will do that in anticipation of Destiny’s Star.

May 25th

• The White Road
  by Lynn Flewelling
  • The White Road is the continuation (book #5) of Flewelling’s hugely popular Nightrunner series. I’ve been a long time Nightrunner fan and have spread the love of this series many times over. I am eagerly awaiting this book’s release, if only because it will kick my butt into gear for moving #4 up the to-read list very quickly.

June 14th

• Naamah’s Curse by Jacqueline Carey
  • I may not have delved into this Carey book yet but the rest of the series is on my short list, so of course I have to anticipate the next release. I do appreciate that Carey has a pretty quick and steady release schedule for her novels. As a reader and fan that’s always a bonus.

October 21st

• The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch
  • The Republic of Thieves is the third installment to Lynch’s Gentleman Bastards series. I am currently engrossed in the first of the series and have high hopes for the continuation of it.

Hopeful Releases of 2010

• Towers of Midnight by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson
  • Sanderson publically noted that he hoped to have the draft to TOR by late 2009 or early 2010, and thought the book would be released around a year after The Gathering Storm. There’s no date yet but I am a little concerned that he has one of his own books releasing in 2010 as well. Can he handle both a new WoT book and one of his own? Time will tell.
• Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
  • We are hitting that 5 year mark, will he keep pace with the Feast for Crows release? I’m not holding my breath.
• Spy Glass by Maria V. Snyder
  • This novel is listed as “forthcoming” but there was such a short amount of time (5 months) between Storm Glass and Sea Glass that I have to wonder if she’ll keep pace. Goodreads.com has this book listed as an October 2010 release. My fingers are crossed.

Vote: What is your most anticipated release of 2010?

Follow-up your voting with a comment; especially for those who chose ‘Other/Write-in’. Poll closes 1/18 at midnight. Checkback to see which book wins!
* Indicates that this book has not been confirmed to have a 2010 release date.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Book: Daughter of the Blood
Author: Anne Bishop
Series: The Black Jewels
Published: March 1998

Book Jacket:

The Once and Future Queen

Seven hundred years ago, a Black Widow witch saw an ancient prophecy come to life in her dazzling web of dreams and visions.

Now the Dark Realm readies itself for the arrival of its Queen, a witch who will wield more power than even the High Lord of Hell himself. But she is still young, still open to influence-and corruption.

Whoever controls the Queen controls the Darkness. Three men-sworn enemies-know that. And they know the power that hides behind the blue eyes of an innocent young girl. And so begins a ruthless game of politics and intrigue, magic and betrayal, where the weapons are hate and love…and the prize could be terrible beyond imagining…

Non-Spoiler Review:

Sometimes a reader stumbles across a book and discovers a treasure they would otherwise have overlooked. Discovering the Black Jewels Trilogy for me was like uncovering a buried treasure.

No one recommended  this book to me. Nor did it have a particularly brilliant cover so I could not judge this book by it’s cover. The book jacket summary was vague and the author unknown. Though there were author accolades featured for the book they were not by authors I had read or even appreciated. I’m still not confident in my reasons for picking up this book but I am thankful. Thankful that I took a chance on a little known series and a new author to the world of Fantasy. I’ve been rewarded again and again by this seemingly random decision and it has inspired me to look for books in unlikely places.

This trilogy (and later expanded to series size) was unlike any other books I had chosen to read. It was a far cry from my first love of Fantasy, the Wheel of Time, and didn’t even have authors I loved lending it their credence and voice. Sometimes you truly find some great books blindly, rather than led by what you know you love.

I will warn you that this book, this Trilogy and series, are extremely dark and disturbing. There are very few themes or topics that Bishop has declared taboo. What I can appreciate of this dark atmosphere is that every moment adds to the mythos of the world of the Blood and helps to create an understanding for the setting. Some authors give their stories a taboo or erotic flair simply for the sake of pleasure but with Bishop she derives her world from these dark aspects and each moment lends support to her creation.

The strength of this book is not within the writing, it is not within the characters, and perhaps not even within the storyline. The strength is two fold: the humor and the system of magic, classes and power. Bishop’s writing has a sharp wit that is sure to draw a chuckle if not a full bellied laught time and time again.

The biggest  disappointment of the book for me was the Mary Sue quality of the major characters. Between the four main characters (Saetan, Daemon, Lucivar, Jaenelle) they hugely overpower their adversaries but are too bound by their code of honor and ethics to fight back. In fact it is those codes that they cherish that bind them to the villains of this story and perhaps that is a redeemable quality of their characters.

The Spoiler Review:
Delving deeper into the world of the Blood.

[[Visit blog to check out this spoiler]]

Coming Soon:
I have several novels on my short list to read and a few more commentaries I’d like to share. So here’s a brief glimpse of what you can expect from me coming up:

• Review on The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
• Commentary on screen versus paper Fantasy and Science-Fiction
• Review on Heir to the Shadow, Book 2 of the Black Jewels by Anne Bishop
• Upcoming Poll for the book I’ll read and review following The Lies of Locke Lamora.

Purchase Daughter of the Blood on Amazon.com
Purchase Black Jewels Trilogy Omnibus on Amazon.com

The problem, I’ve concluded, is that I simply have too many options to choose from.

That’s where you, my few but beloved, readers come in. I’m putting the power in your hands. Help me decide what book I will read (and therefore review shortly down the line) next.

Vote in the poll and if you have any thoughts on my selections make sure to comment! Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.
Poll closes Sunday night at midnight. Links to the Amazon page including short reviews and summaries for these books:

The Lies of Locke Lamora,
by Scott Lynch

Storm Glass,
by Maria V. Snyder

Mistborn,
by Brandon Sanderson

The Somnambulist,
by Jonathan Burnes

And just as a preview here are the reviews I have upcoming (in addition to any new books that I choose to read as well):

• Daughter of the Blood, by Anne Bishop (Black Jewels Trilogy, Book 1)
• Heir to the Shadows, by Anne Bishop (Black Jewels Trilogy, Book 2)
• Queen of Darkness, by Anne Bishop (Black Jewels Trilogy, Book 3)
• Eye of the World, by Robert Jordan (Wheel of Time, Book 1)
• The Great Hunt, by Robert Jordan (Wheel oF Time, Book 2)
• The Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan (Wheel of Time, Book 3)
• The Shadow Rising, by Robert Jordan (Wheel of Time, Book 4)

The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

For those of you who have already read the book, here is some rehashing and analyzing for you! I enjoyed The Gathering Storm greatly, and was pleased with Sanderson’s work. Still, with every book, I ended up having my favorite parts and little (or big) things that irritated me with it. I’m sure that everyone, like me, is starting to wonder exactly who will survive to see the last page of the last book, so I’m putting in my two cents on the likelihood that various pairings will have their “happy ending”, just for some fun!

[[Visit blog to check out this spoiler]]

The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

Book: The Gathering Storm
Author: Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson
Series: #12 in The Wheel of Time
Released: November 2009

To follow up on my previous review of The Gathering Storm I’d like to actually delve into the story, characters and plots this time. There’s only so many ways I can articulate that I loved this book without actually giving anything away.

So for those of you who have read The Gathering Storm- hereare my thoughts, and please, feel free to respond with your own!

Spoiler Review:
Click to reveal.

[[Visit blog to check out this spoiler]]

Non-Spoiler Reviews of The Gathering Storm:

• Lisa’s Non-Spoiler Review of The Gathering Storm
• Jamie’s Non-Spoiler Review of The Gathering Storm

Check back soon for Lisa’s take on The Gathering Storm and her spoiler based revelations and opinions.