It is that most horrible of times: Monday!
The day I have to put my big boy suit on and jump back on the corporate escalator to nowhere.
This week I’m going to finish up a couple of series by D.P Prior and read my first Joe Abercrombie novel. (Yeah, I’m a bit behind on the times with that last one, I know.) Anyway, as for Mr. Prior, I’d never heard of his books until stumbling onto them last weekend while surfing around amazon.com, but now I’m a big fan. His stories remind me a lot of the sword and sorcery fare of Michael Moorcock in works like Elric of Melnibon and Corum; both of which I’ve always really liked.
So without any further explanation, here are the books I will be reading this week.
THE UNWEAVING (SHADER BOOK 3) by D. P. PRIOR
Goodreads description:
Shader has failed and Sektis Gandaw now holds all the pieces of the Statue of Eingana. Despair hangs like a pall over the battered armies of Sahul and Aeterna. It’s now just a matter of time …
A sliver of hope comes in the form of Shadrak the Unseen, who has the means to travel to the source of the coming cataclysm, the black mountain at the heart of the Dead Lands on Aethir.
But Shader, Shadrak, and Rhiannon discover that Aethir brings a new set of challenges: the Sour Marsh—an oozing malignancy from the nightmare realm of Qlippoth; an arrogant senate that seeks to appease rather than fight; and a volatile secret at the heart of the ravine city of Arx Gravis: a dwarf with no name who could prove the most stalwart of allies… or the deadliest of foes.
Old love has turned sour and regrets run deep. Shader is sick of killing, but can see no other way. Rhiannon’s last defense against all she has lost is a self-destructive rage; and Shadrak’s niggling conscience is causing him more trouble than he needs. Loyalties are called into question, yet all three must bury their differences if they are to find a way into Sektis Gandaw’s impregnable base and prevent the Unweaving of all things.
THe AXE OF THE DWARF LORDS (THE NAMELESS DWARF BOOK 2) by D. P. PRIOR
Goodreads description:
One foot into the lands beyond the Farfall Mountains and the nightmare begins.
Nils wishes he’d never taken the job to escort a dwarf with no name on a madcap quest for redemption. Ilesa reckons she should have asked for a bigger bounty, and Silas is beginning to think the grimoire he stole from the Academy has a sinister will of its own.
Nameless, on the other hand, is having the time of his life. After all, what more could a dwarf want than a horde of undead to splatter with his axe, a shape-shifting woman who does dwarf especially well, and a wizard who can produce ale out of thin air?
But his ever fragile mood takes a turn for the worse when he discovers a terrible secret at the bottom of the sea—an unstoppable horror that destroyed an entire race, and a mythical axe that brings back the darkest of memories from his recent past.
HALF A KING (SHATTERED SEA BOOK 1) by JOE ABERCROMBIE
Goodreads description:
“I swore an oath to avenge the death of my father. I may be half a man, but I swore a whole oath.”
Prince Yarvi has vowed to regain a throne he never wanted. But first he must survive cruelty, chains, and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea. And he must do it all with only one good hand.
The deceived will become the deceiver.
Born a weakling in the eyes of his father, Yarvi is alone in a world where a strong arm and a cold heart rule. He cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he must sharpen his mind to a deadly edge.
The betrayed will become the betrayer.
Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast and the lost, he finds they can do more to help him become the man he needs to be than any court of nobles could.
Will the usurped become the usurper?
But even with loyal friends at his side, Yarvi finds his path may end as it began—in twists, and traps, and tragedy.
So what are you reading? 🙂
Stuck in WW I thanks to the Great War Great Read hosted by the KCPL. Going to break that up with occasional short pieces from Lightspeed and Tor.com.
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Only book I’m familiar with up there is Half a King – which I really enjoyed. I hope you’ll have a good time with all your books this week!
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Do you really think Prior is like Moorcock? I would love to read more like Elric and Corum, but I’ve already read what I like from Moorcock, so that stream is dry [or tainted, to be honest].
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He has the same style and blends the normal with supernatural well. Obviously, no one can match Moorcock, but Prior reminds me of him. Give him a , the first Shader novel is free on amazon.
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Thanks! I’ll go do that right now.
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Thanks for brightening up our Mondays! 😀
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Thanks for reading.
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