Fantasy

The third book in The Wheel of Time series, The Dragon Reborn, is a bit reluctant to move the story forward, recycling old themes, personal struggles, and even climactic fights. Its narrative strength, then, comes in the decision to – ironically, considering the title – abandon Rand to focus on his friends, finally giving them a real chance to shine. …

The Time of Contempt, the fourth volume of The Witcher saga, shows the best and worst the series so far: on the one hand, here is another story full of intriguing characters and complex social relations; on the other, our… contempt for the constant repetition of ideas and severe structure problems has just increased. The story begins shortly after the …

Written by N. K. Jemisin, The Killing Moon is a compelling page-turner: a fantasy novel with big ideas, strong narrative arcs, and good character development. It introduces us to a fantastical world, based on dreams and religion, where war and corruption are supposed to be extinct. Its main characters, however, start to discover that those are elements intrinsic to human …

There is a note at the start of Night of Knives, written by Gardens of the Moon author Steven Erikson, stating categorically that the work of Ian C. Esslemont is not to be considered simple fanfiction for taking place in the same rich universe introduced by his series of novels: Esslemont’s “the Malazan Empire” series is a canonical, integral part …

The Fifth Season talks about revolt with remarkable fury and finesse, building a bold and challenging narrative that uses the second-person in a meaningful way while presenting us a trio of main characters who are as fascinating as they are tragic. The book starts with the world ending twice. On a microscale, there is the world of the woman Essun, …

The Goblin Emperor is a steampunk novel that is primarily interested in its characters, relegating plot and action to the sidelines – and, in that sense, it’s a breath of fresh air. However, the book’s focus exacerbates its most glaring flaw: its characters are not complex enough to sustain the constant gaze directed towards them. The narrative follows the ascension …

Written by Philip Reeve, Mortal Engines builds a preposterous but intriguing world, telling a story with lots of ups and downs, but that ultimately delivers with its great set of characters and surprising worldbuilding. In the world of Mortal Engines, cities exist on wheels. They’re moving entities that are always looking for prey: here, one city can eat another with …

The Lies of Locke Lamora, the first book of the Gentleman Bastard series written by Scott Lynch, is a novel that successfully mixes heist stories with the fantasy genre, only failing when it starts to treat us with the same condescension with which the protagonist tries to deceive his victims. Locke Lamora is an orphan boy who, after being recruited by …

Although Blood of Elves is the third book in The Witcher saga, you could say it’s actually the first proper novel in the series, as the previous two volumes, The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny, are structured more like a collection of short stories. The transition proves to be more of a curse than a blessing, however, as Blood …

This review is full of spoilers for the entire trilogy; you could say it will… ruin most twists and turns. The Hero of Ages marks the conclusion of the first Mistborn trilogy. It’s an uneven novel that struggles under the weight of its many plotlines and themes, with redundant character development and some disappointing pay-offs. The story begins a few years after the …