A Literary Escape

On My Radar: May 2024

Published on June 7, 2024June 4, 2024 by Celeste11 Comments

Well, better late than never, but here’s the May 2024 On My Radar list! I’m a few days late because I was on vacation. Here are a few of the posts on my radar around the blogosphere in May. Notably, check out Jodie’s post on Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week 2024, also listed below in the “Bookish Miscellany” section. Hopefully this introduces you to a few more bookish posts you might’ve missed last month!

Reviews

ARC Review – Swordcrossed by Chris at Biblio Nerd Reflections
Book Review: The Library of the Unwritten by A. J. Hackwith by Sarah at Exploring All Genres
Review: HOW TO BECOME THE DARK LORD (AND DIE TRYING) by Django Wexler by Caitlin at Realms of My Mind
Book Review: A Sorceress Comes to Call by Kate at Blogging With Dragons
A Villian’s Story: A Long Live Evil Review by Daniel at Just A Dream
Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan by Jodie at Witty and Sarcastic Bookclub
A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke by Jodie at Witty and Sarcastic Bookclub
Review: Daughter of the Merciful Deep by Leslye Penelope by Nathan at Before We Go Blog
Post-Apocalyptic Fantasy—Reviewing “Celestial Academy: Essence” by Anca Antoci at Summon Fantasy
The Love of my Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood – ARC Review! by Becky at Becky’s Book Blog
Book Review: Artificial Wisdom by Thomas R. Weaver! by Esther at Cozy With Books

Discussion

Let’s Talk Bookish: AI and Books by Raji at Worlds Unlike Our Own
Authors: How NOT to Ask a Book Blogger for a Review by Cat at The Strawberry Post

Bookish Miscellany

Eurovision 2024 Looks as Fantasy Book Covers by Ariana at The Book Nook
The Cosymeter by Ellie at Curiosity Killed the Bookworm
Disabled and Neurodivergent Books and Comics out in 2024! by Heather at Just Geeking By
Master Your Reading List: 10 Practical Tips for Avid Readers by Gina Rae Mitchell
Happy 11th Blogiversary to Me by H.C. Newton at The Irresponsible Reader
Most Anticipated June 2024 Book Releases by Chris at Biblio Nerd Reflections
Paws and Portals is Out in the Wild! by Ellie at Curiosity Killed the Bookworm
Book Blogging in 2024 Survey by Jo Linsdell
Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week 2024! by Jodie at Witty and Sarcastic Bookclub

June 2024 TBR

Published on June 6, 2024June 5, 2024 by Celeste10 Comments

Just like last month, I still have some older ARCs that I have yet to read. For the sake of brevity I only listed their titles this time. I also have a ridiculous number of books started, which I included here in the hopes of finishing them this month. My June 2024 TBR is light on ARCs, which I’m happy about. I have a grand total of one June ARC and I already read it. This gives me a little bit of breathing space (if I choose to ignore my backlist ARCs). My June 2024 TBR is also a little different than my typical TBR and includes books in genres other than fantasy. It’s good to mix it up sometimes! Onward!

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May 2024 Book Blog Wrap-Up

Published on June 5, 2024June 4, 2024 by Celeste13 Comments

May was a bit of a blur in terms of blogging for me. I scheduled an entire month of posting by the first week of May in anticipation of vacation time. As a result I didn’t post a ton of reviews. But thank goodness for Wyrd and Wonder with the event prompts! So this May 2024 book blog wrap-up is a smidge shorter than ones past. (But not by much, so don’t get too excited.)

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Wyrd and Wonder black dragon artwork by Ehtisham Sajid.

Wyrd and Wonder: Journey’s End

Published on May 31, 2024June 15, 2024 by Celeste11 Comments

After passing a bit of time on the Twin Peaks, I and everyone else are now at the Wyrd and Wonder Journey’s End. These are sad times, my friends. But it was another round of a lovely time celebrating all things fantasy.

This post is a hard one for me to write. Past me had to magic-eight ball what my favorite Wyrd and Wonder Read would be. Since I’m on vacation at the moment, I took a lot of time to schedule an entire month’s worth of content. That planning also included this post. Since my Kindle was my oyster, I only had access to e-books–the horror. (Even though I really wanted to read my physical copy of HOW TO BECOME THE DARK LORD AND DIE TRYING by Django Wexler.)

Anyway, I’m just rambling now. Let me seer this and guess that DREADFUL by Caitlin Rozakis is my favorite Wyrd and Wonder read. And it’s a standalone, hooray! It came out in the US on May 28!

Synopsis

A sharp-witted, debut high fantasy farce featuring killer moat squid, toxic masculinity, evil wizards and a garlic festival – all at once. Perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher, K. J. Parker and Travis Baldree.

It’s bad enough waking up in a half-destroyed evil wizard’s workshop with no eyebrows, no memories, and no idea how long you have before the Dread Lord Whomever shows up to murder you horribly and then turn your skull into a goblet or something.

It’s a lot worse when you realize that Dread Lord Whomever is… you.

Gav isn’t really sure how he ended up with a castle full of goblins, or why he has a princess locked in a cell. All he can do is play along with his own evil plan in hopes of getting his memories back before he gets himself killed.

But as he realizes that nothing – from the incredibly tasteless cloak adorned with flames to the aforementioned princess – is quite what it seems, Gav must face up to all the things the Dread Lord Gavrax has done. And he’ll have to answer the hardest question of all – who does he want to be?

A high fantasy farce featuring killer moat squid, toxic masculinity, an evil wizard convocation, and a garlic festival. All at once. All in all, Dread Lord Gavrax has had better weeks.

And that’s a Wyrd and Wonder Journey’s End wrap! Expect my typical monthly wrap up and June TBR a bit later than usual!

Dreams of Fire by Shauna Lawless

Published on May 27, 2024May 1, 2024 by Celeste4 Comments

Today’s review is about DREAMS OF FIRE by Shauna Lawless. It’s a standalone prequel novella to the Gael Song series. It’s not necessary to read the CHILDREN OF GODS AND FIGHTING MEN or THE WORDS OF KINGS AND PROPHETS to enjoy this story. (Although, they’re great books and I do recommend them!)

Author: Shauna Lawless
Series: Gael Song #0.5
Age Category: Adult
Publisher: Head of Zeus
Publish Date: March 14, 2024
Print Length: 105

Those interested in purchasing Dreams of Fire can do so on Amazon.*

*This is not an affiliate link and I do not make a commission from any purchase made using this link.

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