The Great BookTok Debate -Part 1

Ok, that title is shit, there is no debate. It rhymed in my head and so I had to use it as a title. Anyways, my old ass recently ventured onto tiktok, and well, it’s a lot. But I found a whole bookish community on there and I was so excited. I’ve mostly come across romance readers on there, so if you are on there and rec fantasy, please let me know. 

And now to the point of this. I found that a lot of the same books are being talked about again and again. It seems everyone is into the same 5-10 dark romance/smutty books. As someone who is a big fan of romance with a heavy dash of fairy porn, I wondered why I had missed all these books. I’m using June to explore and talk about all the romance that are being recommended on TikTok. So if you aren’t a fan of romance, skip most of my posts this month.

Stacking The Shelves

A weekly post where I can brag about my new books? Yes please. Granted I definitely won’t have something to post every week, I’ll just do it as required. I will be including everything from my purchases, to NetGalley, gifts and books from authors. For more information head over to Tynga’s reviews.

I finished The Night Prince series. And if you have read any of my stacking the shelves updates you would know I was on a buying ban and couldn’t buy any new physical books until I had finished the series. I was so excited, I knew which book or five I wanted. There have been some amazing new releases out already this year, I wanted them all. I wanted all the pretty new books for my shelves. So you can imagine my utter despair when I discovered that I couldn’t get any of the books I wanted in paperback. I’m a tight ass, I don’t pay hardback price. DEVASTATED. First world problems I know. I decided to get a different book (great decision) and get the kindle version (I’ll get it in paperback later), and that led me to the other horror book I found.

Ebooks:

The Gulp by Alan Baxter – I may have a slight obsession with Alan Baxter’s books. This one was an absolute winner and my review can be found HERE.

We Are Wolves: A Horror Anthology by some incredibly talented authors and edited by Gemma Amor, Laurel Hightower and Cynthia Paleyo – This is one that I wasn’t searching for, it found me and boy am I glad. Feminist dark fantasy and horror. From the forward to the very last page, I was completely enamoured.

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse – I’ve had my eye on this since it was first released. I don’t know what the deal is at the moment, but I couldn’t get this in paperback either.

From blood and Ash by Jennifer L Armentrout – There is so much hype around this one. I’m hoping for dark and sexy fantasy.

That’s it from me this week. Have you read any of these? Do you have a favourite?

Pawn’s Gambit by Rob J. Hayes

Some days I need to be careful where I check my email, because occasionally I get an email that causes me to emit a shrieking “hell yeah” followed by a fist pump in the air, a silly grin and a little dance. That is exactly what occurred the day I opened my email and discovered an arc of Pawn’s Gambit sitting there waiting for me. It was the ultimate early Christmas present. 

Pawn’s Gambit is book 2 in the Mortal Techniques series and while it is definitely an advantage to have read book 1, Never Die, they aren’t tied together so they can be read separately. Although I will say you would be doing yourself a massive disservice as there are little nods to book one throughout and its an absolute treat.

Remember by Tara C. Allred

This is the prelude novella to the Existence series, book 1 will be released later this month. I thought it was really cool that the author gives us this story first. Often when a prelude is written later into a series it feels like it’s trying to fill the gaps. Remember is a complete story on it’s own. It gives you hints as to what will come but it seems like there are so many ways in which the world is about to go to shit that you just don’t quite know what way the author will choose.

White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton

Adam Lee Binder is everything his brother, Robert hates. Robert had him committed as a teen and washed his hands, He was done. But when Robert’s wife starts acting strange and he begins getting glimpses of something other, he realises that maybe Adam wasn’t crazy and he desperately needs his help.

Adam is busy hunting a warlock, he lives with his aunt in a trailer and he is getting by okay. Yet when the message comes from his brother he feels compelled to help. But nothing is as easy as it seems, all the magicians in Denver are dead, there is a giant spirit siphoning the life out of its inhabitants and it’s decided Adam is next. He is going to have to make a deal with someone much stronger than him if he wants to get out of this alive.

May Day by Josie Jaffrey

Synopsis – If the murderer you’re tracking is a vampire, then you want a vampire detective. Just maybe not this one.

It’s not that Jack Valentine is bad at her job. The youngest member of Oxford’s Seekers has an impressive track record, but she also has an impressive grudge against the local baron, Killian Drake.
When a human turns up dead on May Morning, she’s determined to pin the murder on Drake. The problem is that none of the evidence points to him. Instead, it leads Jack into a web of conspiracy involving the most powerful people in the country, people to whom Jack has no access. But she knows someone who does.
To get to the truth, Jack will have to partner up with her worst enemy. As long as she can keep her cool, Drake will point her to the ringleaders, she’ll find the murderer and no one else will have to die.
Body bags on standby.

I want all the books

I was placing an order on Amazon the other night and after a solid hour of wishful thinking book stalking, I was led to a kindle unlimited ad. I’ve avoided kindle unlimited so far because I didn’t think it would be worth the cost, but it was a two month free trial. How could I actually pass that by… It would be crazy of me not to use this opportunity to see what it has to offer.

Apparently my ever growing piles of books and backlog of NetGalley arcs weren’t enough to make me pause, I dove in with a level of excitement I usually reserve for cake and cats.

The Book Of Koli by M.R. Carey

I love M.R. Carey’s ability to write characters that you fall madly in love with, within seconds. Characters that reach out off the page and wrap you around their little pinkie. The Girl with All the Gifts is one of the best books I have read and it was my love of Melanie that made it so. The story and the way he built the tension solidified it’s place in my heart.

May Wrap-Up

Here we are at the end of the month. I’ve been traversing through the fantasy worlds and ignoring the reviewing part that comes with being a blogger. I got lost a couple of times, as even with a clear map, I get distracted by all things bright and shiny. A big thank you to our fearless leaders Imyrl, Lisa, and Jorie, I am already looking forward to next year.

Stacking The Shelves

A weekly post where I can brag about my new books? Yes please. Granted I definitely won’t have something to post every week, I’ll just do it as required. I will be including everything from my purchases, to NetGalley, gifts and books from authors. For more information head over to Tynga’s reviews.

May was a good month. I was inspired by Wyrd and Wonder and added to my fantasy collection a little.