Features Overview

The Dark Queens (Non Fiction/History)

I am currently about halfway through this book, and already it’s had more twists and turns than Game of Thrones. Puhak’s writing is clear, concise, and fun.

That’s no mean feat given that the era of history she’s writing about is one that is often left untaught. Sixth century Europe was not a simple place, with political webs that spanned multiple families, generations, and kingdoms across the continent.

But through all of it, Fredegund and Brunhild gained, and lost, and wielded power many times over. Fredegund rose from a scullery maid to queen, and was able to intimidate kings into submission even as a near exile. Brunhild was a princess from a powerful family among the Visigoths, and utilized every skill she possessed to protect herself and her family.

Both women led armies, raised rebellions, organized treaties, and laid the foundations of what would become the empire of Charlemagne.

One of my favorite things about this book is the way that Puhak humanizes the characters, and is careful to acknowledge the limits of what we do and do not know. With characters so distant and so politically involved, propaganda and legend grow quickly, but Puhak is clear when discussing what we can confirm and what is mere speculation, while making her case for what the truth might be behind the fog of history.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves history, you’ll be blown away by all that you learn and the breathtaking twists that history can take.

The Legend of Eli Monpress (Fantasy)

This is the book that got me out of my last reading slump. I have read a lot of fantasy over the years, deep fantasy, epic fantasy, complex fantasy, and more. But I have never read fantasy that was more fun than Eli Monpress.

It’s not cheap, or shallow. The Aaron’s world is incredibly deep and rich, but it is filled to the brim with so much joy and life that you can’t help but be carried along as it rushes from one thrilling moment to the next.

The first of a three volume series, the Legend of Eli Monpress introduces us to the main characters as they engage in, or attempt to thwart the latest heist of the legendary thief, and from there things only get better. The series has everything you could want; Eli is the charismatic, fast talking thief who runs with a legendary warrior, and a girl with dark and mysterious powers. The world if filled with political intrigue, spirits, and depth that just keeps growing the further you read.

This is one of the best fantasies I’ve ever read, and while it was as well crafted and complex as most other fantasy books, I keep coming back to the fact that it was just so dang Fun.

So check it out, you’ll be hooked fast and you’ll enjoy the whole ride.

Spinning Silver (Fairytale/Standalone)

Fairy-tale retelling are a favorite genre of mine because of how fairy-tales themselves change and take the shape of their culture through time.

In this stand alone novel, Novik spins a rich, deep world that draws you in and sinks its teeth in deep almost before you know it. A retelling of the Rumpelstiltskin tale, Spinning Silver weaves together Eastern European fairy-tale elements with a slightly more modern concept of the fae folk to tell a story that grows from the tale of young girl’s struggle to support her family to an existential war that encompass two kingdoms,

As usual, Novik’s characters are deep, rich, and deeply relatable, and her use of different viewpoints helps create a deeper understanding of the struggles that each character grapples with.

The fae realm that Novik displays has the distinction of feeling deep and rich, while still maintaining a sense of mystery and otherness that I feel is essential to a world beyond mortal experience.

This book is a big favorite for me, and I go back to it at least once a year. If you enjoy retellings and a rich fair-tale world, check it out.
A side note; this book goes well with a hot drink. The ice and snow is so vivid you can almost feel it.