Jerusa

Seriously one of the best books I have ever read. I will say I often flip between audio and reading so I can listen on my drive to and from work, on this one however I do not recommend the audio version. I opted to just listen to a podcast on my drives as I could seriously not get into the audio at all, it is god awful. Do yourself a favor.. read it.

This is now in my top series of all time.. and this third book was amazing. Gripes you from the get go and I could not put it down. Lots of twists I did not see coming, gasps “did that just happen?!”, EPIC battle scenes, and actually quite a lot of laughing out loud as well as there are some very funny characters who still manage to be funny even in the midst of an crazy and brutal 2 day battle.

I will say if you do not like blood, gore, or cussing this is not the series/book for you... if you like a little grimdark in your life than I could not recommend this enough!! It is criminally underrated and I hope more people discover this and love it as much as I do.

Also just want to note that the audiobooks are phenomenal, Tim Gerard Reynolds does an amazing job. Unfortunately the this third book is not yet available in audio but I will definitely be doing a reread of this in the future and will pick that up.

It is not often that I actually love a second book in a series more than the first. Twists I thought I knew were coming came but nothing to what I had anticipated. This one was hard to put down as there was no lulls or boredom and then when I finished I went immediately to purchase the third book and alas I have to wait a month. If the third book ends up being as good as the first two this is definitely going to be in my top series of all time.. So, so good.

I do not typically read science fiction but trying to expand my horizons. I figured this was a safe gateway before getting into the heavier stuff.

This book was awesome. I seriously could not put it down. It was funny and heartwarming and scientific without making my head hurt or wander off. Honestly probably the best book I have read so far this year.

I really loved the first two books in this series so I was really looking forward to this. Unfortunately it did not hit the mark for me.

It felt...rushed. I feel like this could have easily been another 100 pages and also needed another round of editing as there were numerous grammatical errors.

I love the author's style of writing and especially how detailed he is when it comes to certain aspects. Some of the scenes in this book were almost on the level of horror and he did an amazing job in describing the monsters and the fight scenes. Which brings me to my next biggest issue with this book...

WARNING THIS NEXT PART IS A BIT OF A SPOILER>>>

There is a particular scene with one of the “Risen”, a monstrous and terrifying creature that one of our characters needs to fight and kill to prove to her village that these beasts exist. In the process of fighting this creature she breaks her arm, and not just breaks her arm... the author describes in detail her forearm breaking and the bone sticking out. To the point where one of the other characters throws up. But she continues on and keeps fighting for her life with her one good arm. She is given some pain medicine to help but this effects her ability to use her magic as it dulls not only her pain but her mind. Fast forward and the beast is dead and they get back to the village and yada yada... NOT ONE MENTION OF HER BROKEN ARM EVER AGAIN!! She does multiple things around the village and all around and not once... not once is her broken arm mentioned again even though the BONE WAS STICKING OUT!! In the time and place of the book this would be a MAJOR setback for an individual. And if somehow it was healed with magic well than say so! But no one has healing magic anymore since the world is in chaos so I really do not think that was even plausible. How can you go into that much detail about a fight and an arm breaking that badly and then just forget in the next chapter???? It is mind blowing to me.

And I went back and re-read this chapter as well as the next chapter with her in it 3 times to see if I missed it. I missed nothing, cause nothing was there about her arm healing in any way or fashion.

Again it all felt rushed. Even without the broken arm mishap it really just missed the mark for me. In the first two books all the characters were so well developed that you felt connected with each of them. Here I just didn't care about any of them except Eva and Kehlem. Ban was too much for me in this book, which was maybe his point and I am ok with that. But the ending was too rushed and I was left feeling like I missed something.

It is just unfortunate cause I REALLY wanted to love this book like I loved the first two. This had amazing potential.

Having binged this entire series I can only blame myself for the emotional rollercoaster that this book put me through. After I digested it all I was happy how it ended and I highly recommend the series though for anyone who has not read them. I would probably suggest taking a break after book 3 and maybe even again after book 7 if you do not want to start literally dreaming about elves, dwarves, dragons and the living dead.

awesome

I read conflicting reviews on this so I wasn't sure I would like it but I did... I really, really enjoyed this. It was fun, witty, action packed, a little heartache, clever, and kind of grim at times. I mainly read this on my kindle but I did listen to a few chapters and so I must also point out that Christopher Buehlman has a pretty nice singing voice. If you need a break from reality and want something that will make you laugh and not have to think to hard I highly recommend this. A truly fun read

Aside from the fact that I was secretly hoping Gideon would die the entire book I highly enjoyed it and love where the story is going. I just cant stand Gideon and his all high and mighty Dragorn ego... however maybe I am supposed to hate him at this point, idk... I feel like he is probably a lot of peoples favorite character, but I am finding myself wanting to skip his POV sections. Inara could die as well and I wouldn't mind either which is odd because I love all of the other Galfreys. I think I just really do not like the Dragorn. All the other characters I love, including the Orcs. I have been binging the series excited to see how this all plays out.

There were a lot of things I liked about this book. For me the thing that held me back from really enjoying it was that I felt no connection to the characters. Or well.... I did, or I would start to... and then it would be like hundreds of years later and thus new characters (kind of) and then repeat. I get that the name is children of time but do we really need to time jump 10 times?? I also really do not like spiders... BUT... surprisingly those were the characters I enjoyed the most, or that version of them but then poof...different reincarnated spiders. I don't know.. I really did want to like this and it just left me feeling hungry still, but not hungry for the next book, more like that meal was not satisfying so lets order pizza when we get home.

This was entertaining. I've been binging the Sun Eater series and needed something light hearted before book 4 and this was perfect. It's funny, witty, and not at all what I was expecting. If your looking for a “first contact” style book this hits the category but not the mark. This story was way more about the characters, relationships, social dynamics, and politics than it was about the actual first contact. But again... it was highly entertaining.

Wow

What an incredible end to an incredible story. As grim dark as this series is it also pulled at my heart strings in ways most books do not. This is now on my list of top series ever and I highly recommend giving this series a chance. Just really, really good.

I do not understand the hype around this book. I was bored to tears.

Never read when I was younger and needed something simple and easy as a break after a May readathon with my book club and it was surprisingly pretty good. I can see what all the hype was about and my inner teenage girl really enjoyed it. Only downfall was I have seen the movies so I kept picturing the actors and that is always a bit of a drag for me.

Really enjoyed it...I only wish someone would have warned me that I was going to cry my eyes out for a half hour while reading it. I loved it so much though that I went ahead and joined the Kickstarter to get the special addition hardcover. Solid standalone, highly recommend (but have some tissues handy).

I don't think I was in the right mood the first time I tried to read this but I am so glad I decided to try again. I've read a lot of conflicting reviews and honestly all I can say is try it for yourself and see. It does seem slow at the beginning but after a bit I truly enjoyed reading about Simon bumbling around like an idiot half the time. And what really sold this whole story for me was Binabik. Hands down one of the best characters I have had the pleasure to get to know. I want him to be my best friend.

I have to start by saying this was unlike any other book that I have read as to how it was set up. At the start I almost felt like I was reading a bunch of short stories that didn't quite end. However about half way through you start to see the webs in which they connect and then as it progresses everything comes together. At first it's frustrating because you get into a character's story and then it gets to climax and it ends and you go to another chapter with a totally different story.. but I would instantly become enveloped into that story. And as it goes on and you start to connect the dots it is just so good and turns into a real page turner. I loved the writing and his approach was refreshing as it was new to me. Without giving spoilers I will also just add that Chapter 9 was hands down my favorite and if ever wrote a whole book on the quirky old alchemist I'd be first in line. I truly loved this book and I cannot wait for the next one!

This is one of those stories that will resonate with me for a long time. I have read many books where I have liked the villians even though they were terrible people. Sometimes they're funny, witty, smart, or just all around likeable characters. But in this case it was not any of those... I felt a true and utter sadness inside me for Ruka. I felt this for Dala as well, but not on such a deep level. This author has a masterful way of making your heart break without doing it in such an obvious and expected way. I do not want to depress you though lol, this book has many things aside from heartache. Revenge, friendship, family, love, brotherhood, magic, battles, religion... it is all around a truly good read. All the characters were really well written and developed. Kale's story is as engrossing as Ruka's with an interesting twist at the end that I am excited to see where it goes.

This book was on my TBR for entirely too long and I am so glad I finally took the plunge... and I enjoyed it so much that I have immediately started the next book even though I am in the middle of a readathon with my book club and I had my whole month planned. To hell with plans...

This was really good. Funny, witty, and also quite deep and a little sad. This took me by surprise to be honest. I loved that the author did not spend 100 extra pages describing all the things that happened inbetween scenes... don't get me wrong I love an epic fantasy but in this story it was not needed and really appreciated that they left all the nonsense out. Pumpkin was awesome..

I know a lot of people do not like Lift much and I will admit I was on the fence about her but after reading this I am quite fond of her. It is a good quick read.

This book brought me out of a reading slump and invigorated my soul for more. I cannot wait for book 3 and this will hands down be in my top series ever... so good. I loved the Faithful and the Fallen series, but I will admit on the companion series that I hated Riv so much that I had ended up putting the Blood Sworn Saga on the back burner. I finally decided I'd read book 1 and then when it was announced book 3 would come out I'd read book 2; but I couldn't help it and totally read them back to back.

I loved all the POVs in both of these books. I truly love John Gwynne's writing style, his character development, and his battle scenes... I also very much love how he does animal (or weird creature) companions. Honestly I wish more books I read had this aspect and did it as good as him. (Craft.. cough..cough)

I will add that I do in a way wish I'd have waited until the 3rd book was coming out as we were left on a total cliffhanger in this book!! But I'm also glad I didn't wait as I needed this in my life right now. But DAMN you John!! It made me feel like if I had read Ruin and book 4 hadn't been released yet lol.. way to pull on the heart strings ☹️

I was a little hesitant cause the whole lava world doesn't really appeal to me. When I play BOTW Goron is always my least favorite part and I have to wear that stupid suit. BUT... this book is so not Goron City and I am really happy I decided to pick this up. I started it last night and I could not put it down. I kept thinking I knew exactly where the story was going and I was wrong every time. The “magic” system is really interesting though I'm not sure if the author meant it as magic per se but it was interesting nonetheless. The characters are great, decent battle scenes, lots of blood, some heartbreak, and I laughed out loud a few times... all the things that make a book a winner for me. I hope more and more people pick this up and I will definitely be suggesting it as an Indie feature for my book club. Can't wait for the next one to come out.