Fantasy – Fiction Aficionado

Best of 2020 – Emoji Files, Part IV: Take Me Away

Welcome back, reader friends! It’s time for Part IV of my annual Emoji Files celebrating my best reads of 2020. If you’ve missed my previous posts for 2020, make sure you check out The Swoony Awards, Got Me in the Feels, and The WOW Awards.

The Take Me Away Awards go to those books that were truly immersive reads, carrying me away to different times and places with authentic historical, sensory, and cultural details and introducing me to some fantastic and intriguing characters who inhabit those worlds. Through these stories I’ve travelled all over the world and beyond—an experience that has had extra significance in 2020!

1 January 2021

Dawn of Vengeance (Ronie Kendig) – Review

A haunting prophecy upended his identity. Now it demands his life.

Once a formidable bounty hunter, Marco Dusan is plagued by insecurity as he tours the realm he now rules. This quiet, backwater planet is not as untouched as he’d once thought. Evidence of collusion between Droseran factions and the powerful Symmachians with their forbidden technology litters his encounters. Worse, all signs indicate Xisya, the alien who tortured him, is still snatching Kynigos Brethren–but to what end?

Lance Corporal Eija Zacdari works hard to win a coveted place on the Symmachian hyperjump program, but instinct tells her their intel is flawed. Despite nearly failing the tests, she is assigned to the team-and lands in the middle of a bewildering conspiracy.

7 December 2020

First Line Friday – Dawn of Vengeance (Ronie Kendig)

Happy Friday, and welcome to First Line Friday, hosted by Hoarding Books. I feel like I have been waiting F-O-R-E-V-E-R for this book to be out in the world, but Dawn of Vengeance will finally release next Tuesday, 8 December. I cannot begin to tell you how big a hold this series has on my heart. Even if you’ve never read a space opera or aren’t usually a fantasy/sci-fi reader, I encourage you to give this series a try, starting with Brand of Light.

Also, Ronie Kendig will be going live on Instagram on release night, so make sure you’re there! @kendigronie

4 December 2020

Book Spotlight + Giveaway: Quest of Fire series (Brett Armstrong)

Welcome to the Blog + Review Tour & Giveaway for Quest of Fire: Succession & The Gathering Dark by Brett Armstrong, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

Son of the Northern Realm’s Defender, raised among the dwarfs of Ordumair, Meredoch was anticipated to succeed his father. Some whispered he would bring the longed-for peace between Ordumair and their ancient foe, Ecthelowall. All of that changes when Ordumair’s Thane is killed and Meredoch and his family are exiled. From prestige to poverty, the young boy must chart a new course.

26 October 2020

Forsaken Island (Sharon Hinck) – Review + Giveaway

On an uncharted world, happiness is effortless and constant … but can true joy exist without sacrifice?

The people of Meriel have long believed their island world floats alone in the vast ocean universe, so they are astonished when another island drifts into view. With resources becoming scarce, Carya and Brantley quickly volunteer to search the new land for supplies.

After navigating a barrier of menacing trees, the pair encounter a culture of perpetually happy people who readily share their talents and their possessions. But all is not what it seems. At the core of the island is a horror that threatens everyone, including Brantley and Carya.

30 September 2020

First Line Friday – Forsaken Island (Sharon Hinck)

Happy Friday, and welcome to First Line Friday, hosted by Hoarding Books. I love Sharon Hinck’s Hidden Current when it released last year, so I’m looking forward to diving into the second in the series, Forsaken Island, very shortly. It’s a great read for the YA readers in your circle too—my fourteen-year-old really enjoyed it, and I’m pretty sure she’ll be diving into it once I’ve finished!

18 September 2020

The Story Hunter (Lindsay A. Franklin) – Review

Redeeming the past is a fatal quest.

In the wake of a deadly coup, the capital city of Urian has descended into chaos. Heartbreak and bloodshed await Tanwen and her friends as they discover the unlikeliest leader now rules Tir.

If they want to save the realm, Tannie and the Corsyth weavers must rescue Queen Braith and unmask the Master, ending the strife once and for all. But the success of their hunt depends upon an ally no one trusts.

The Master has a new target in sight: fragile, trauma-scarred Digwyn, whose unique weaving ability could turn the tide of any war. When the desire for vengeance proves too powerful for Digwyn to resist, Tanwen must face a terrifying truth: the fate of Tir rests in the hands of a volatile, shattered girl.

30 May 2020

Cover Reveal! Heart of a Princess (Hannah Currie)

Welcome to the cover reveal for Heart of a Princess by Hannah Currie.

To the watching world, Princess Alina has it all – maids to serve her, a kingdom to revere her, a prince to marry her, and a wardrobe filled with enough frills, flounces and shades of pink to rival a flower shop. But behind the smiles and designer clothes, Alina has a secret. She’s barely holding it together.

After a moment of panic almost ends in tragedy, Alina is sent to a refuge far from the palace to recuperate. Her family claim it’s for her own good but – faced with cows, knife-beaked ducks and far too many of her own insecurities – Alina is pretty sure it will kill her first. And Joha Samson, infuriating man that he is, will laugh as it does.

6 April 2020

The power of fiction, the beauty of words, and the God who made us to wield them for His glory.