fantasy – Page 28 – Amy Leigh Reads

Reasons why I Love Fantasy Series

May 19, 2020July 11, 2020by amyleighreads19 Comments

This weeks Top 10 Tuesday is reason’s you love…. and today I decided to list the reasons I love fantasy series with a couple of examples!

Here are 9 reasons why I love Fantasy Series:

I loving deep diving into a new world with every fantasy novel I pick up, learning all about it and how it differs from reality.

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Magic is usually at the core of each fantasy novel/series and learning about all of the intricacies, rules and restrictions is one my favourite things about the genre!

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The characters are such a highlight in fantasy. Sometimes they are quite similar to regular human in a completely fantastical setting, other times they are a completely foreign species that we need to learn about!

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Quests are some of my favourite tropes in fiction and the fantasy genre has provided me with some of my favourites!

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Of course nothing quite beats an evil overlord of some kind that our underdog main protagonist needs to defeat. The dichotomy of good versus evil is very prevalent in fantasy and I feel it creates a bond between the reader and the characters.

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There are sooooo many different subgenres of fantasy that keep me engaged and consistently entertained! One I’ve recently been enjoying is sci-fi fantasy!

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A good romance mixed in between all of the magic and adventure is something that always keeps me coming back for more!

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There is something freeing about diving headfirst into a long, epic/high fantasy series that really helps you to escape the realities of life.

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This might seem a little trivial to some but there is something about maps in fantasy novels that I just love! It reinforces how different the world may be and definitely adds a layer of depth to the tale.

Reviews

Middlegame Review

May 18, 2020by amyleighreads1 Comment

35965482._SX318_ This was a strange read.

Middlegame is a stand alone fantasy stand alone book which involves alchemy and a pair of twins names Roger and Dodger.

In terms of the character I actually enjoy Rodger and Dodger, especially when they first discovered each other and developed that initial connection. The way that their lives differ and the amount of adversity they both had to overcome during adolescence and teen years was interesting to read and did ultimately keep me engaged in the story. They are quite honest with each other and even though they have such a complex and close connection they still make mistakes and hurt each others feelings yet they never fully give up on each other.

Reed and Leigh even though they are quite integral to the overall plot I didn’t really develop any kind of emotional connection to them. I wasn’t really interested in their plot line with the other alchemists and what Reed was ultimately trying to prove. I think with Leigh there was potential for me to like her even though she is this very unlikeable character because ultimately she was just being what she was created to be. I just wish we would of learnt more about her and what she was doing in the lab. Maybe witnessing why she was so frightening to anyone who comes across her, rather than just the reaction people have around her.

I will say the pacing was quite fast and the countdown of the timeframe is what initially kept me invested and eager to read on. I just felt like a lot of the alchemy jargon mixed with the all of the talk about the impossible city just went right over my head. Theres a whole lot of complex language and equations and things that didn’t really make sense to me and I felt like the majority of the book I was just treading water trying to keep up with what was going on.

I think overall it was just a little too repetitive for me as well. We see Roger and Dodger come together and forced apart multiple times throughout the course of the storyline and nothing was really revealed until right at the end. By that time I was just kind of reading to finish the book, I wasn’t all that invested in what what going to happen to them.

⭐️2/5 stars just not my kind of book…

Reviews

The Black Prism Review

May 15, 2020May 13, 2020by amyleighreads2 Comments

*MAJOR SPOILERS BELOW*

515zOsxnpQL__SX329_BO1,204,203,200_ The Black Prism is a multi-perspective epic fantasy novel revolving around this holy figure in this world called the Prism. He just found out that he has fathered a child 15 years ago and now must shield him from those who wish to cause him harm.

Gavin is such an interesting, multi-faceted character that just kept surprising me at every turn! He is definitely more of a morally grey character who is striving to atone for what he thinks are the sins of his past. Giving himself the seven great tasks he wants to accomplish before he looses his powers. He isn’t afraid to do what he thinks is right for the greater good of the Chromeria whilst still maintaining a kind of neutrality and level of separation from all of their rules and regulations. That twist of the stolen identities definitely surprised me, I was thinking whilst reading during their interaction, what if Dazen beat Gavin and then two minutes later what do you know. It was a fantastic revelation and set up perfectly for the reader.

Kip didn’t really capture my attention at all for the first half or so of the book. Of course I knew he was going to be integral to the story and would somehow end up making an impact later on, but it took a little while for him to get there. There is quite an emphasis put on his weight and the fact that he is a bit of a coward, but I’m glad that we see some growth from his character over the course of the plot, having to make some decisions and take action where he would of previously ran and hid.

This was the perfect amount of world building and introduction of all the characters and their backstories without being overwhelming. Granted at the start as I am with most epic/high fantasy I read I am a little lost, but I established myself pretty quickly into this world and was invested almost instantaneously with the characters. The magic system was unique and interesting and had just enough information to keep me engaged yet eager to know more.

I loved my experience reading this book and I cannot wait to binge the rest of the series and see how the world progresses and the action intensifies!!

⭐️5/5 stars Why did I wait so long???

Reviews

Every Heart a Doorway Review

April 28, 2020April 27, 2020by amyleighreads3 Comments

25526296 Didn’t quite live up to the hype….

This book revolves around a school that takes in wayward children who have travelled to different worlds and have stumbled back to reality and can’t cope.

This book just didn’t quite gel with me personally. I went into it only really knowing that everyone absolutely loves this book and you don’t really get a lot of negative reviews but it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. Even though the book is quite short I thought it would go into a lot more details about the different worlds and the adventures that each of the children had whilst they were there and how it contrasts to the current world.

There wasn’t really any point in time where I was invested or all that engaged in the story. I think the development stage was a tad rushed and I wasn’t really settled into the plot at any point. I was definitely intrigued and once the murders started occurring I was eager to figure out who was behind them, but the pacing and the structure of the story felt a little fractured I guess.

I wasn’t all that attached to any of the characters either. They were all very diverse and distinct and had a voice and a story of their own but it was never to the point where I was developing any emotions or commitment to them. They all felt a little one dimensional to me as well, and again I think it was just due to the length of the book and that underdevelopment factor.

The premise is definitely original and now that I read this book and I understand kind of how it has been written and the purpose of the story I think I will enjoy the rest of the series. As a high/epic fantasy reader it just wasn’t fleshed out enough for me. I am used to a lot more world building and magical elements which this did have just not to the extent that I was expecting.

⭐️3/5 stars promising, needs a bit more oomph!

Reviews

House of Earth and Blood Review

April 13, 2020April 14, 2020by amyleighreads3 Comments

*SPOILERS BELOW*

44778083 This book killed me! Sarah J Maas really got me invested in Danika and the Pack of Devils right from the start and to then rip them away really hit me in the feels. Especially Connor, oh my poor heart!

Bryce is a half elf half human who works as an antiquity assistant to a sorceress by day and loves to party and with her friends at night, until one fateful night when everything changes and her life is never the same again.

I absolutely loved Bryce as our main protagonist. She has had to deal with so much over the course of the storyline and even though she keeps secrets from those around her she stayed true to herself. She doesn’t compromise and is unapologetically living her life regardless of what people think about her. The overall situation with Danika was heartbreaking and the fact that all the blame was placed on Bryce and we see how it has affected her was an emotional rollercoaster.

I think it was destined for me to love Hunt, a broody, sexy angel who is a slave to the Arch Angel Governor of the city after a failed rebellion (uh duh). I like that even though he is portrayed as an alphahole he still expresses his emotions to Bryce and communicates with her about how he is feeling, albeit a little harsh at times. Their romance was obvious right from the start but I liked that even though it was apparent they were attracted to each other they didn’t give in right away. Bryce had to accept what happened in the past and come to terms with the guilt she felt over Connor and Hunt needed to realize he is able to love someone else.

It was a little info dumpy at the start of the book, especially when the world is established. It just jumps straight into the political system of Lunathion and breaks down all the different houses and factions within the houses. It was a little hard to get settled into the story, but after the first 100 or pages I was very much invested!

All of the characters were distinct and diverse and all had a part to play in the overall plot. Fury I was a little unsure of after learning how she ghosted Bryce for the two years after the murder and I felt she never really apologized for it. I would love to get more perspectives from her in the future as she interests me!

From that first twist at the start I wasn’t able to predict anything that was going to happen next. The forced partnership between Bryce and Hunt, the investigation, the revelations, everything came together perfectly for me and even though it was over 800 pages I flew through this book!

⭐️5/5 Through love, all is possible.