Top Ten Tuesday – Books That Feature Travel

On May 21, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn List2 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. For this week’s Top Ten Tuesday, participants are encouraged to list their favourite ten books that feature travel in them. While this guiding topic could reference a lot of different things, I’m choosing to interpret it as books where the participants are required to go on long journeys away from home, possibly in a quest-like manner, or novels where the act of traveling is essential to the plot. As such, my list is filled with a fair amount of fantasy and science fiction, with a few other interesting entries as well. I actually came up with quite a few potential choices for this list, but I was eventually able to whittle it down into a compelling Top Ten list alongside my usual generous Honourable Mentions section. So let us see what made the cut.

Honourable Mentions:

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

A classic young adult fantasy tale where the protagonist travels far from home to discover his destiny.

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Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio

Vast intergalactic journeys are the order of the day in this brilliant science fiction read.

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Trollslayer by William King

An awesome collection of connected tales, where the two protagonists journey all over the Warhammer Fantasy world looking for trouble.

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How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler

One of the funnier entries on this list. How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying was a great book that saw a young woman repeatedly journey across a fantasy land to become the next dark lord.

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Top Ten List:

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

A very easy place to start is with the works of J. R. R. Tolkien whose books were all about epic quests and long journeys. While all three books in The Lord of the Rings trilogy would have worked here, I’m going with the original classic, The Hobbit, that saw a very brave hobbit journey across Middle Earth on a grand adventure.

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Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett

From Tolkien to Pratchett, I’m starting this list off with some real fantasy fiction heavyweights. Terry Pratchett was another author whose stories often featured grand quests across the titular Discworld, even though his protagonists were often a lot more reluctant to go on them. There were quite a few different Discworld books I could have featured here (as well as some of Pratchett’s standalone novels like Strata or The Carpet People), however, I’m going to go with one of my favourites, Witches Abroad, which fits the travel theme extremely well. Following three of Pratchett’s witch protagonists as they go on an extended holiday to a fairy-tale plagued city, Witches Abroad is a very funny read and one of the better Discworld books.

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Hawk Quest by Robert Lyndon

Moving outside of fantasy fiction for a bit we have the epic historical fiction novel Hawk Quest by Robert Lyndon. A massive adventure novel, Hawk Quest follows an eclectic group of protagonists in the 11^th century as they transport rare hawks to the Holy Land to serve as ransom for an imprisoned knight. Requiring a trek across medieval Europe, Hawk Quest is a brilliant novel that is all about travelling impossible distances.

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Magician by Raymond E. Feist

I just had to feature the outstanding classic fantasy read Magician by Raymond E. Feist on this list, which sees all its protagonists embark on great adventures across Feist’s fantasy realms. All the key characters engage in some massive travels in this novel via ship, horseback and more, including the main protagonist who journeys to a whole other fantasy dimension and back again, just to hammer home how important travel is for this outstanding read.

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Artifact Space by Miles Cameron

To mix things up a bit I had to include the cool science fiction novel, Artifact Space by Miles Cameron. While quite a few of Cameron’s books features lengthy quests or travelling great distances (such as his novel Dark Forge), I decided to go with Artifact Space as it probably features the furthest distance travelled as the protagonist embarks on a massive trade ship going to the edge of known human space. An ambitious and compelling read, Artifact Space is an excellent novel where the protagonists end up going so very far away from home.

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Streams of Silver by R. A. Salvatore

Another author whose books often feature grand journeys is legendary fantasy writer R. A. Salvatore. I was honestly spoiled for choice when it came to Salvatore’s books, as so many are travel-focused, but in the end, I went with Streams of Silver. The second book in the Icewind Dale trilogy, Streams of Silver sees Salvatore’s entertaining party of protagonists leave on a quest to recover the legendary Mithril Halls, traversing all manner of fantasy landscape along the way. A classic fantasy adventure with a ton of travel, Streams of Silver is a very worthy addition to this list.

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Bullet Train by Kōtarō Isaka

For something a little different I decided to include the cool thriller Bullet Train by Japanese author Kōtarō Isaka. Set aboard a moving bullet train, this fun book sees several dangerous killers attempt to outfox each other before the train arrives at its final deadly destination. I think the constant moving train and the ticking clock as it gets closer to the end of the line qualify this thriller nicely as a book containing travel, and I honestly had a ton of fun getting through both the Bullet Train novel, and its entertaining movie adaptation.

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The Bone Ships by R. J. Barker

Nothing says epic travel more than a group of condemned criminals navigating a ship made of bone across a deadly ocean to hunt down a sea dragon. The always impressive R. J. Barker makes this insane concept work extremely well with some of the very best fantasy nautical scenes you are likely to read. A truly incredible novel that you will not be able to put down.

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The Falcon of Sparta by Conn Iggulden

Going back to history we have the fantastic read The Falcon of Sparta from amazing author Conn Iggulden. Loosely based on the Anabasis by Xenophon, The Falcon of Sparta follows ten thousand Greek mercenaries and camp followers who attempt to escape Persia by land back to Greece following the Battle of Cunaxa. An awesome book that makes use of one of history’s most unlikely journeys.

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Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

The final book I want to feature on this list is the complex space adventure Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. Following a lone scientist sent to another star system to find a way to stop the sun from dimming, Project Hail Mary features a darker, yet highly compelling take on a travel narrative that is extremely impressive and addictive. A truly exceptional read, this was a great novel to end this list on, and I cannot recommend it enough.

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And that’s the end of this latest Top Ten list. As you can see, I’ve had the pleasure of reading some really great books that feature amazing travel elements, and this Top Ten list is only just scratching the surface of the novels I could talk about. I’m pretty happy with how this latest list turned out and I look forward to seeing what other travel-focused books people want to recommend in the comments below.

Top Ten Tuesday – Longest Audiobooks That I Have Listened To – Part IV

On February 13, 2024 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, List6 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. For this week’s Top Ten Tuesday, participants were given a love themed freebie in honour of Valentine’s Day. As such, I’m going to focus on something that I have a lot of love for, the audiobook format, as I once again revisit and update a fun post I last looked at nearly two years ago.

As readers of this blog will be aware, I am a massive fan of audiobooks, and it is often the best way to enjoy a good book. I have been lucky enough to listen to an impressive collection of audiobooks over the years, with some of them being extremely long, often taking me weeks to get through. Back in 2019, I got curious about all the audiobooks I had listened to, and I wanted to know which was the longest one that I had ever listened to. As a result, I sat down and worked out which ones had the longest run time and turned it into a massive list. This ended up being such an interesting endeavour that I posted it on my blog here, with the longest 20 books featured. I had such an amazing time doing this that a year later I had a go at updating it, adding in a few additional audiobooks I had listened to, and then I once again updated it in 2022.

Well, it has been nearly two years since I last updated this list and I always intended to keep coming back to this list to see how the recent long audiobooks I have listened to stacked up against the books already on this list. Since the last update in 2022 I have managed to listen to quite a few new audiobooks, several of which had an excellent run time. The list below is similar to the list I posted a couple of years ago, with several new additions added in (see the highlight posts). I ended up returning the list back to the original 20 entry format I previously had, and the resulting post turned out pretty damn well.

Top Twenty List:

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson, narrated by Michael Kramer and Kate Reading – 45 hours and 48 minutes

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The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss, narrated by Nick Podehl – 42 hours and 55 minutes

The Wise Mans Fear Cover

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Magician by Raymond E. Feist, narrated by Peter Joyce – 36 hours and 14 minutes

Magician Cover

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A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin, narrated by Roy Dotrice – 33 hours and 45 minutes

A Game of Thrones Cover

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The Shadow Casket by Chris Wooding, narrated by Simon Bubb – 32 hours and 37 minutes

The Shadow Casket Cover

The longest new entry on this list is the exceptional audiobook, The Shadow Casket by Chris Wooding. The sequel the Wooding’s previous novel, The Ember Blade (the audiobook version of which also appears on this list), The Shadow Casket proved to be a remarkable piece of epic fantasy fiction, and I loved the elaborate narrative that emerged. The impressive narration by Simon Bubb helped to turn this massive audiobook into something very fun to listen to, and The Shadow Casket ended up being one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2023.

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Mistress of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts, narrated by Tania Rodrigues – 32 hours and 1 minute

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Inheritance by Christopher Paolini, narrated by Gerrard Doyle – 31 hours and 29 minutes

Inheritance Cover

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Servant of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts, narrated by Tania Rodrigues – 30 hours and 42 minutes

Servant of the Empire Cover

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The Ember Blade by Chris Wooding, narrated by Simon Bubb – 30 hours and 40 minutes

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Brisingr by Christopher Paolini, narrated by Gerrard Doyle – 29 hours and 34 minutes

Brisingr Cover

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The Will of the Many by James Islington, narrated by Euan Morton – 28 hours and 14 minutes

The Will of the Many Cover

Another exceptional audiobook from last year was The Will of the Many by James Islington. An awesome and complex fantasy book that saw a young, fugitive prince infiltrate an elite academy of his enemies, The Will of the Many had so many fun elements to it, and I was quickly enthralled by its brilliant narrative. Narrator Euan Morton added his unique voice to the mix, and this helped to turn The Will of the Many into a pretty fun listen, and one I managed to power through quickly despite its over 28 hour long run time. A highly recommended audiobook, especially if you are looking for a long listen to get lost in.

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Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio, narrated by Samuel Roukin – 28 hours and 3 minutes

Howling Dark Cover

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The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, narrated by Nick Podehl – 27 Hours and 55 minutes

The Name of the Wind Cover

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House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas, narrated by Elizabeth Evans – 27 hours and 50 minutes

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Dragon Mage by M. L. Spencer, narrated by Ben Farrow – 27 hours and 18 minutes

Dragon Mage Cover

An intriguing and powerful fantasy audiobook from a couple of years ago. Dragon Mage was an impressive book, that featured some great classic fantasy elements to it. Following two young protagonists dragged into a deadly war for the fate of magic and its dragon protectors, Dragon Mage was an awesome listen that I couldn’t get enough of.

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Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale – 27 hours and 2 minutes

The Order of the Phoenix Cover

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Son of the Poison Rose by Jonathan Maberry, narrated by Ray Porter – 25 hours and 55 minutes

Son of the Poison Rose Cover

One of my favourite author and narrator combos, Jonathan Maberry and Ray Porter, made its way onto this list with Son of the Poison Rose. The sequel to Kagen the Damned, Son of the Poison Rose is an excellent and very brutal dark fantasy read that I could not get enough of. Maberry makes full use of the extra runtime of this novel to tell an impressive story, and this audiobook comes highly recommended, especially with Porter’s exceptional voice work.

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Red Seas under Red Skies by Scott Lynch, narrated by Michael Page – 25 hours and 34 minutes

Red Seas Under Red Skies

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In the Shadow of Lightning by Brian McClellan, narrated by Damian Lynch – 24 hours and 52 minutes

In the Shadow of Lightning Cover

An epic and highly addictive new fantasy novel by Brian McClellan, In the Shadow of Lightning was one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2022, and I really fell in love with its elaborate story. I honestly flew through In the Shadow of Lightning’s near 25-hour runtime, and narrator Damian Lynch ensures the action and intrigue laden narrative really flows along. An exceptional piece of fantasy fiction that comes alive in its audiobook version.

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Murtagh by Christopher Paolini, narrated by Gerard Doyle – 24 hours and 32 minutes

Murtagh Cover

Considering how some of the other original Inheritance Cycle audiobooks dominate the top half of this list, it is unsurprising that Christopher Paolini’s latest addition to the series, Murtagh, also makes an appearance. Featuring original narrator Gerard Doyle, Murtagh was a great addition to the series, and I had a wonderful time getting through this lengthy audiobook at the end of last year.

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Well, those are some cool new additions to this list. I am pretty happy with how this new version of the list turned out, although I should work on listening to some longer audiobooks in the coming year. I will have another go at updating this list in a couple of years or so, but in the meantime let me know what the longest audiobook you have listened to is in the comments below.

Top Ten Tuesday – Books I Meant to Read in 2022 but Didn’t Get To

On January 10, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn List4 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. For this week’s Waiting on Wednesday, participants were required to list their most anticipated books for the first half of 2023. However, as I covered this last week with two separate lists (one for fantasy and science fiction, and one for other genres), I am instead mixing things up and instead featuring the top books of 2022 that I wanted to read but didn’t get a chance to.

2022 was a great year for novels and I had an outstanding time getting through a solid collection of cool new releases and older novels, which were pretty much all epic and impressive reads. However, no matter how hard one tries, there are always a couple of books each year that I did not get a chance to read, either due to time constraints, lack of access or from being overwhelmed with other books that I really wanted to read. As a result, this is a list that is rather tinged with regret, as each book I plan to mention below is one that I really wish I had taken the time to read.

To complete this list, I pulled together some of the more interesting and compelling sounding novels that I did not get a chance to read in the last year. Each entry was released last year and while I knew that they were coming out, I did not get a chance to read any of them. In many cases I have these books sitting on my shelf at this moment, silently and constantly judging me, and I think I will have to try and read them to stop their bookish glares. I was eventually able to cull my list of regret down to 10 entries with an honourable mentions section. The final list is an interesting collection of books from across the genres and includes a couple of big 2022 releases I did not get a chance to look at.

Honourable Mentions:

Road of Bones by Christopher Golden

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Three-Edged Sword by Jeff Lindsay

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The Girl and the Moon by Mark Lawrence

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Age of Ash by Daniel Abraham

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Top Ten List:

Kingdoms of Death and Ashes of Man by Christopher Ruocchio

A joint entry to start things off as there were actually two books in the excellent Sun Eater series by Christopher Ruocchio released in 2022. Unfortunately, I missed both, but hopefully I get chance to read them in 2023 as this is an extremely good series to get into.

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An Empty Throne by Robert Fabbri

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The Misfit Soldier by Michael Mammay

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The Bladed Faith by David Dalglish

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Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

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Star Wars: Shadow of the Sith by Adam Christopher

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Falling Sky by Harry Sidebottom

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Khaos by Jeremy Robinson

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Warhammer 40,000: Witchbringer by Steven B. Fischer

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The Starless Crown by James Rollins

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Well, that is the end of my latest list and it looks like I have a lot catch-up reading to do if I am going to make a dent in it. There are some truly amazing-sounding novels on this list and I fully intend to get through all of them at some point, although with all the outstanding books coming out in 2023, it might take me a little time. In the meantime, let me know what books you most regret not reading in 2022 in the comments below.

Top Ten Tuesday –Novels from the First Half of 2022 I Still Need to Read

On July 19, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn List4 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. For this week’s Top Ten Tuesday, participants get a freebie so I thought I would continue my literary examination of the first half of 2022 by looking at the top books from the first half of the year that I still need to read.

While I have already enjoyed some amazing reads in 2022, there are still quite a few impressive novels that have come out in the first half of the year that I have yet to read. Many of these were on my most anticipated reads lists for 2022 (both fantasy and other), and while I was really excited for them, I have honestly not had a chance to check all of them out. Therefore, I am going to use this freebie session to shame myself in the hopes that it gets me into gear to finally get around to checking out these epic reads. This was a very easy list to pull together for me, as many of these books had been weighing on my mind for a while. All 10 novels below (plus honourable mentions) sound really, really good, and I hope I get a chance to read all of them soon.

Honourable Mentions:

Queen’s Hope by E. K. Johnston

The Bladed Faith by David Dalglish

An Empty Throne by Robert Fabbri

Road of Bones by Christopher Goldin

Top Ten List:

The Omega Factor by Steve Berry

I am probably going to listen to an audiobook version of The Omega Factor next, so hopefully this will not be on my to-read list for too much longer.

The Martyr by Anthony Ryan

Following on from last year’s epic read, The Pariah, I have been extremely keen for this book, and I know I am going to love it. I got a physical copy of The Martyr a few weeks ago but I have not had a chance to pick it up yet. I was actually holding out for an audiobook version of The Martyr (I really enjoyed The Pariah audiobook last year), although apparently The Martyr’s audiobook isn’t out till September. Not sure if I will be able to wait that long to find out what happens in this cool sequel, although it might be worth it to enjoy it in audiobook. No matter what though, I will be reading The Martyr before the end of the year.

The Girl and the Moon by Mark Lawrence

I definitely need to find out how this cool series from the sensational Mark Lawrence ends and this will be a major reading priority for me during the next six months.

Star Wars: Midnight Horizon by Daniel Jose Older

I have been trying really hard to keep up with the impressive new High Republic sub-series of Star Wars tie-in novels, and Midnight Horizon ended up being one of the first ones I have missed. This is a real shame as it is apparently quite a good book, and I am very curious to see what else happened in this universe around the same time as the main novel, The Fallen Star. I should really carve out a few days to listen to Midnight Horizon before the next batch of High Republic books come out later this year, especially as I know that I am going to have a great time with it.

In the Shadow of Lightning by Brian McClellan

I was very excited to check out this new novel from highly acclaimed fantasy author Brian McClellan, and I have plans to read this in the next few weeks. I am already hearing some excellent stuff about this book though and I am sure that if McClellan keeps up his usually impressive writing style, it will be an outstanding read.

Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio

There is no way that I am going to miss out on the fourth book in the Sun Eater Sequence, especially after having such a good time with Empire of Silence, Howling Dark and Demon in White. However, the trick is finding the time to read or listen to this big book amongst all the other novels on my reading list. I reckon I’ll have to try soon though, as Ruocchio apparently has the fifth book in the series, Ashes of Man, coming out in December.

The Starless Crown by James Rollins

Another awesome fantasy novel from the start of the year that I need to check out! The Starless Crown is supposed to be a very good read, and I will have to try and fit it in at some point in the next few months.

Catachan Devil by Justin Woolley

I have been having a great time with some of the recent Warhammer 40,000 novels, especially those that focus on the ordinary human soldiers, such as Steel Tread, Krieg, and The Vincula Insurgency. However, due to the sheer number of Warhammer novels released each year, I haven’t had a chance to read them all (I’m only one man), and this includes the very cool sounding Catachan Devil by Justin Woolley. Following a regiment of the elite Catachan jungle fighters as they engage in a brutal battle, this sounds like an extremely awesome and action-packed read and I look forward to checking it out as soon as I can.

Age of Ash by Daniel Abraham

One half of the writing team behind The Expanse series returned to his fantasy roots at the start of the year with Age of Ash by Daniel Abraham. A massive and sprawling fantasy epic that serves as the introduction to a new series, Age of Ash is a key book I missed earlier this year and I will hopefully fix that mistake before the end of the year.

The Misfit Soldier by Michael Mammay

The final book that I most regret not reading in the first half of 2022 is The Misfit Soldier by Michael Mammay, who has previously wowed me with his Planetside trilogy (made up of Planetside, Spaceside and Colonyside). This latest novel from Mammay, which I have honestly just not had time for, sounds very fun, as it follows a new science fiction protagonist in a Kelly’s Heroes-esque escapade on a futuristic battlefield. I really need to take the time to read this outstanding book, especially as Mammay has just released a new audiobook that I will also try and enjoy this year.

Well, that is the end of this latest list. As you can see, there are a bunch of exceptional novels from the first half of the year that I need to check out. All the above books sound incredibly epic, and I know that I will have a brilliant time getting through all of them. So, I am going to have to try a lot harder to start reading through them as soon as I can. In the meantime, let me know which books released in the first half of the year you most regret not reading in the comments below.

Top Ten Tuesday – Longest Audiobooks That I Have Listened To – Part III

On March 8, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, List16 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. For this week’s Top Ten Tuesday, I’m veering away from the official topic (this week it was Top Ten Books with your Favourite Trope/Theme), and instead I chose to revisit and update a fun post I last looked at nearly two years ago.

As readers of this blog will be aware, I am a massive fan of audiobooks, and it is often the best way to enjoy a good book. I have been lucky enough to listen to an impressive collection of audiobooks over the years, with some of them being extremely long, often taking me weeks to get through. Back in 2019, I got curious about all the audiobooks I had listened to, and I wanted to know which were the longest ones that I had ever listened to. As a result, I sat down and worked out which ones had the longest run time. This turned into such an interesting endeavour that I ended up posting on my blog here, with the longest 20 books featured. I had such an amazing time doing this that a year later I had a go at updating it, adding in a few additional reads.

Well, it has been nearly two years since I last updated this list and I always intended to keep coming back to this list to see how the recent long audiobooks I have listened to stacked up against the books already on this list. Since the last update in 2020 I have managed to listen to quite a few new audiobooks, several of which had an excellent run time. As I just reviewed one of these yesterday, I thought this would be a good time to update the list again and see what differences have been made in the last year. The list below is similar to the list I posted a couple of years ago, with several new additions added in (see the highlighted posts). I ended up extending the list to 25 entries, mainly to fit a couple of extra recent audiobooks in, so prepare for even more awesome covers.

List:

1. The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson, narrated by Michael Kramer and Kate Reading – 45 hours and 48 minutes

2. The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss, narrated by Nick Podehl – 42 hours and 55 minutes

3. Magician by Raymond E. Feist, narrated by Peter Joyce – 36 hours and 14 minutes

4. A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin, narrated by Roy Dotrice – 33 hours and 45 minutes

5. Mistress of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurst, narrated by Tania Rodrigues – 32 hours and 1 minutes

6. Inheritance by Christopher Paolini, narrated by Gerrard Doyle – 31 hours and 29 minutes

7. Servant of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurst, narrated by Tania Rodrigues – 30 hours and 42 minutes

8. The Ember Blade by Chris Wooding, narrated by Simon Bubb – 30 hours and 40 minutes

9. Brisingr by Christopher Paolini, narrated by Gerrard Doyle – 29 hours and 34 minutes

10. Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio, narrated by Samuel Roukin – 28 hours and 3 minutes

11. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, narrated by Nick Podehl – 27 hours and 55 minutes

12. House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas, narrated by Elizabeth Evans – 27 hours and 50 minutes

13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale – 27 hours and 2 minutes

14. Red Seas under Red Skies by Scott Lynch, narrated by Michael Page – 25 hours and 34 minutes

15. The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch, narrated by Michael Page – 23 hours and 43 minutes

16. The Wisdom of Crowds by Joe Abercrombie, narrated by Steven Pacey – 23 hours and 36 minutes

The Wisdom of Crowds Cover

The longest book I am adding to this list is the epic dark fantasy novel, The Wisdom of Crowds by Joe Abercrombie. This incredible book, which was one of the best novels and audiobooks of 2021, ends Abercrombie’s Age of Madness trilogy on a very high note. Containing a brilliant story, some incredible characters, and some major twists, this is an essential read for all fantasy fans. At nearly 24 hours in length, this is a pretty hefty audiobook, although once you get caught up in the epic story, you will power through it.

17. Eldest by Christopher Paolini, narrated by Gerrard Doyle – 23 hours and 29 minutes

18. Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil by Timothy Zahn, narrated by Marc Thompson and The Mask of Mirrors by M. A. Carrick, narrated by Nikki Massoud, 23 hours and 13 minutes

Lesser Evil and The Mask of Mirrors Covers

I was very surprised to find myself with a tie for the number 18 position, especially as both were audiobooks I only recently listened to. These two awesome audiobooks, which come in at 23 hours and 13 minutes each, are the third book in the epic Thrawn Ascendancy Star Wars trilogy, Lesser Evil by Timothy Zahn, and the excellent fantasy epic The Mask of Mirrors by M. A. Carrick. Both novels were impressive 2021 releases, with Lesser Evil perfectly wrapping up the Thrawn Ascendancy trilogy (which included Chaos Rising and Greater Good), while The Mask of Mirror ended up being one of the best debuts of 2021. Both audiobooks were very good, with Lesser Evil featuring legendary narrator Marc Thompson, while The Mask of Mirrors was expertly told by Nikki Massoud (loved her various accents). Both outstanding performances really helped me to enjoy these great books and I powered through them in no time.

19. Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie, narrated by Steven Pacey – 22 hours and 38 minutes

20. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie, narrated by Steven Pacey – 22 hours and 15 minutes

21. Engines of Empire by R. S. Ford, narrated by various – 22 hours and 3 minutes

Engines of Empire Cover

The most recent book on this list that I have listened to, Engines of Empire was an epic fantasy novel that introduced readers to an excellent new world. Filled with intrigue, action and magic, I had a lot of fun with this audiobook, and I particularly liked how it featured several separate narrators. This impressive team of narrators ensured that Engines of Empire turned out to be a pretty awesome audiobook, and it was one that I had a lot fun getting through.

22. The Trouble With Peace by Joe Abercrombie, narrated by Steven Pacey– 21 hours and 56 minutes

The Trouble with Peace Cover

Wow, this list is just loaded with Joe Abercrombie’s epic novels, as another book from his Age of Madness trilogy is featured here. The Trouble with Peace is the second entry in the series, and it perfectly follows up the first book, A Little Hatred. I deeply enjoyed this cool book, especially as it once again featured the cool narration of Steven Pacey, and this was easily one of the best books and audiobooks of 2020. Easy to power through thanks to the incredible story and brilliant characters, this near 22-hour long audiobook will just fly by.

23. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch, narrated by Michael Page – 21 hours and 59 minutes

24. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale – 21 hours and 36 minutes

25. Altered Realms: Ascension by B. F. Rockriver, narrated by Maximillian Breed – 21 Hours and 26 minutes

Altered Realms Cover 2

The final new audiobook on this list is the interesting novel, Altered Realms: Ascension by B. F. Rockriver. An intense and clever LITRPG novel, Ascension featured an NPC who is given the powers of a player and must adventure through his world with a whole new set of eyes. Not only was this a great novel (one of the best debuts of 2020), but the audiobook version of it was a lot of fun, especially as narrator Maximillian Breed perfectly captures the computer-generated voice anyone who has played an RPG will be familiar with. A cool audiobook that is worth the substantial time investment.

Well, those are some pretty cool new additions to this list. I am probably being a little over generous moving it up to 25 entries, but I think it turned out alright. I am a little disappointed that none of my recent books got anywhere the top ten, so I think I will have to work on listening to some longer audiobooks this year. I will hopefully have another go at updating this list in a year or so, but in the meantime let me know what the longest audiobook you have listened to is in the comments below.

Top Ten Tuesday – Books on my Autumn 2022 TBR

On February 22, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn List4 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. The official Top Ten Tuesday topic for this week was around Dynamic Duos, however, I decided to instead move up my quarterly post about the best upcoming books to read (TBR) for the following three months. This is a regular post I do at the start of each season, and as this Tuesday is just before Autumn (Spring for you folks in the Northern Hemisphere), this is the ideal time to put this up.

For this list, I have come up with 10 of the most anticipated novels that are coming out between 1 March 2022 and 31 May 2022. There are quite a few very cool novels set for release in the next few months that I am extremely excited for, including some of my most anticipated books and fantasy novels of the year. Due to how impressive some of these upcoming books are, it took me a little while to finalise my list but I was eventually able to whittle it down into a Top Ten list (with a few honourable mentions). I have primarily used the Australian publication dates to reflect when I will be able to get these awesome novels, and these might be somewhat different to the rest of the world. I have previously discussed a number of these books before in prior Top Ten Tuesdays and Waiting on Wednesday articles and I think all of them will turn out to be pretty incredible reads. I have extremely excited for the next three months as quite a few up these upcoming reads are easily going to be amongst the best books of 2022.

Honourable Mentions:

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi – 15 March 2022

A fun romp with giant monsters that is going to be so very entertaining.

Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson – 29 March 2022

A great upcoming book with a fantastic concept, Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone is the latest thriller from Australian author Benjamin Stevenson (Greenlight and Either Side of Midnight). This cool novel will see an entire family with murderous secrets start killing each other during a deadly family reunion, and I know I am going to love it.

Amongst our Weapons by Ben Aaronovitch – 12 April 2022

Impressive fantasy author Ben Aaronovitch returns with the latest book in his Rivers of London series that follows a special police unit that investigates magical crimes in London. This series perfectly blends urban fantasy with police procedural elements (check out my reviews for Lies Sleeping and False Value), and I look forward to seeing what happens next.

One Foot in the Fade by Luke Arnold – 26 April 2022

After having a brilliant 2020 with his first two novels, The Last Smile in Sunder City (one of the best debuts of 2020) and Dead Man in a Ditch, Luke Arnold returns to the deadly Sunder City, a former stronghold of magic that has fallen into devastating ruin following the destruction all magic in the world. One Foot in the Fade will continue to follow Arnold’s detective character as he attempts to bring back magic and save the former magical creatures he doomed to an early grave.

Top Ten List:

Usagi Yojimbo: Tengu War! by Stan Sakai – 22 March 2022

The first entry on this list is the next upcoming Usagi Yojimbo comic, Tengu War!. I had this book on my last TBR list, but the release date got knocked back to March, so I am featuring it again here. I am extremely keen for this comic and I cannot wait to see what epic adventure Usagi gets into next.

Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio – 22 March 2022

An incredible sounding entry in one of the best current science fiction series.

An Empty Throne by Robert Fabbri – 1 April 2022

More chaos in the aftermath of Alexander the Great’s death.

The Bladed Faith by David Dalglish – 5 April 2022

Assassins, deposed kings, and dead gods should lead to an epic read.

Desperate Undertakings by Lindsey Davis – 7 April 2022

The next Flavia Albia novel from legendary historical fiction author Lindsey Davis, who has produced some outstanding books in recent years (check out my reviews for Pandora’s Boy, A Capitol Death and The Grove of the Caesars). This next entertaining sounding novel will follow its protagonist as she investigates several despicable deaths around ancient Rome. Sure to be a ball of fun, I am extremely keen to check it out.

The Hunger of the Gods by John Gwynne – 12 April 2022

Still my favourite cover of 2022.

Three Assassins by Kotaro Isaka – 12 April 2022

Last year I was lucky enough to receive a copy of Kotaro Isaka’s Bullet Train, the English translations of one of his impressive Japanese books. I had a ton of fun with this clever thriller and I was extremely excited to find out that Isaka had a new book coming out this year with Three Assassins. His new book will pit another unique group of assassins against each other and should make for an extremely captivating read.

The Girl and the Moon by Mark Lawrence – 4 May 2022

One of the most intriguing current masters of fantasy fiction, the impressive Mark Lawrence brings his clever Book of the Ice trilogy to and end this year with The Girl and the Moon. I have deeply enjoyed this cool series over the last two years, with the first two entries, The Girl and the Stars and The Girl and the Mountain, being extremely impressive reads. I cannot wait to see how this series ends I am expecting heartbreak, destruction and some powerful moments.

Star Wars: Brotherhood by Mike Chen – 10 May 2022

Return to the Clone Wars with this awesome upcoming Star Wars novel.

Kagen the Damned by Jonathan Maberry – 10 May 2022

My favourite thriller author dives into fantasy fiction this year with an intense revenge story I am already predicting will be a five-star read.

Well, that is the end of my Top Ten list. I think it turned out pretty well and it does a good job of capturing all my most anticipated books for the next three months. Each of the above should be extremely epic, and I cannot wait to read each of them soon. Let me know which of the above you are most excited for and stay tuned for reviews of them in the next few months. In the meantime, it looks like I have quite a few books to get through soon and they should all be pretty awesome.

Top Ten Tuesday – Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2022 (non-fantasy)

On January 4, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn List12 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. For the first Top Ten Tuesday of 2022 participants get to list their most anticipated upcoming books for the first half of the year. This is a regular post I do each year and I always look forward to highlighting the most awesome looking books for the start of the year. I am actually planning to do two versions of this list, this one and another that will focus on some incredible upcoming fantasy novels, so make sure to check that out as well.

Despite only just starting, 2022 is already shaping up to be an epic and exciting year for books with a huge range of impressive and highly anticipated novels due for release in the next 12 months. This includes exciting debuts, anticipated sequels and the latest entries in beloved bestselling series. The first half of the year is looking particularly awesome, with a substantial number of incredible upcoming releases that I am deeply looking forward to.

Even though I excluded fantasy books, this ended up being a rather difficult list to pull together due to all the awesome releases coming out in Australia between 1 January 2022 and 30 June 2022. There were way too many extraordinary upcoming books that I could have included, and I ended up having to make some very tough calls and cutting several novels that have an immense amount of potential. Despite this, I am rather happy with the eventual choices that I made, and I think that this list reflects the upcoming novels and comics I am going to have the most fun reading. I have mentioned several of these books before in my weekly Waiting on Wednesday articles, and some of them also appeared on my recent Summer TBR list. However, there are also some interesting new books that I am discussing for the first time here, so that should give this list a bit of variety. I am also excluding a couple of upcoming books with real potential, mainly because a lot of details about them haven’t been released yet, such as the third book in Conn Iggulden’s Athenian series. So let us get to my selections and find out which upcoming novels are my most anticipated releases for the first half of 2022.

Honourable Mentions

Road of Bones by Christopher Golden – 25 January 2022

A fun and intriguing horror thriller.

Warhammer 40,000: Day of Ascension by Adrian Tchaikovsky – 1 February 2022

One of the best sounding upcoming Warhammer 40,000 novels by impressive science fiction author Adrian Tchaikovsky.

City of the Dead by Jonathan Kellerman – 8 February 2022

Another fantastic Alex Delaware novel from leading crime fiction author Jonathan Kellerman, that follows on from his last amazing novels, The Wedding Guest, The Museum of Desire and Serpentine.

Star Wars: Shadow of the Sith by Adam Christopher – 28 June 2022

There are several interesting new Star Wars novels coming out in 2022 and one of the more intriguing ones is Shadow of the Sith by Adam Christopher (no cover available yet). Set in the gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, Shadow of the Sith follows Luke and Lando as they attempt to uncover ancient Sith secrets and identify the new threat rising to destroy the New Republic.

Top Ten List:

Star Wars: The High Republic: The Fallen Star by Claudia Gray – 4 January 2022

The impressive new High Republic subseries of Star Wars novels continues with The Fallen Star by Claudia Gray. Continuing the main storyline contained in previous novels Light of the Jedi and The Rising Storm, The Fallen Star looks set to contain an intense and captivating story as the Nihil launch their most devastating attack yet. I am hoping to start The Fallen Star this week and it should be a pretty epic read.

Dark Horse by Gregg Hurwitz – 8 February 2022

The seventh book in Hurwitz’s action-packed Orphan X series, Dark Horse has a great sounding story and is easily going to be one of the most exciting books of the year.

Usagi Yojimbo: Tengu War by Stan Sakai – 15 February 2022

One of my favourite comic series, Usagi Yojimbo by Stan Sakai, has another great volume coming out early this year. Tengu War, the 36^th volume, looks set to feature several really cool stories in it and I already know I am going to love every page of this exceptional comic.

Sierra Six by Mark Greaney – 15 February 2022

Another epic thriller, Sierra Six will be the 11^th novel in the Gray Man series by amazing author Mark Greaney. I have deeply enjoyed the last few Gray Man novels (One Minute Out and Relentless were particularly good) and I am really looking forward to seeing how this incredible series continues.

The Misfit Soldier by Michael Mammay – 22 February 2022

After deeply impressing me with his debut Planetside series (made up of Planetside, Spaceside and Colonyside), science fiction author Michael Mammay has a cool new novel up his sleeve with The Misfit Soldier. The Misfit Soldier will follow a conman and thief turned futuristic soldier as he attempts to pull off a heist in the middle of a warzone. I love the sound of this book and The Misfit Soldier should be an outstanding read.

An Empty Throne by Robert Fabbri – 1 April 2022

One of the most entertaining historical fiction authors in the world today, Robert Fabbri, will continue his amazing Alexander’s Legacy series with the third book, An Empty Throne. Following on from To the Strongest and The Three Paradises, An Empty Throne will explore the unique chaos that occurred following the early death of Alexander the Great and should be a lot of crazy fun.

Desperate Undertaking by Lindsey Davis – 7 April 2022

Another cool and entertaining historical fiction series continuing this year is the Flavia Albia series by veteran author Lindsey Davis. Set in ancient Rome, this cool series sees its titular protagonist investigate several strange murders around the city, often in hilarious circumstances. Several of the recent books, including Pandora’s Boy and The Grove of the Caesars, have been exceptional reads, and the new upcoming novel, Desperate Undertaking, has a great sounding story about a serial killer obsessed with architecture. Sure to be a gripping and clever read, I cannot wait to check it out.

Star Wars: Brotherhood by Mike Chen – 10 May 2022

Another awesome upcoming Star Wars novel is Brotherhood by Mike Chen. Set at the start of the Clone Wars, this novel will place Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker in a dangerous situation as they attempt to uncover who is behind a terrorist attack on an alien planet. With some cool action and an interesting look at the relationship between former master and apprentice, this will be a great read, especially as it will likely tie into the upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi television series.

Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio – 17 May 2022

Impressive science fiction author Christopher Ruocchio will continue his massive Sun Eater space opera series this year with his fourth book, Kingdoms of Death. Following on from the outstanding Empire of Silence, Howling Dark and Demon in White, this latest novel will continue to chronicle the life of the universe’s greatest heroes and villains as he fights for humanity’s survival in the stars. This will be an incredible and powerful science fiction read and I cannot wait to see how Ruocchio continues his epic series.

The Omega Factor by Steve Berry – 7 June 2022

The final book on this list is another cool and impressive thriller by the legendary Steve Berry. Berry, who is best known for his Cotton Malone novels (such as The Malta Exchange, The Warsaw Protocol and The Kaiser’s Web), is introducing a new protagonist in The Omega Factor, who is thrust into a deadly historical conspiracy involving a missing piece of artwork. Set to expose a war between the Vatican and a secret order of nuns, this sounds like an awesome novel, and I am very excited to dive into another enjoyable Steve Berry novel

That is the end of this list. I am extremely happy with how my latest Top Ten Tuesday article turned out and this list contains an intriguing collection of upcoming books that should prove to be incredible reads. I think that nearly every one of these books has the potential to get a full five-star rating from me and I cannot wait to see what amazing and exciting stories they contain. While I am waiting to get my hands on these books, why not let me know if any of the above interest you, as well as what your most anticipated releases for the next six months are in the comments below. Also, make sure to check out my other Top Ten List with the top upcoming fantasy books of 2022.

Top Ten Tuesday – My Favourite Sequel Novels

On October 20, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn List6 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. The official topic for this week’s list required participants to list their favourite book-related online resource. However, I once again went in a different direction and instead decided to focus on a different topic, sequels.

The idea of sequels has been around for a very long time, however, recently it is becoming increasingly hard to avoid them. From television shows to films, sequels are everywhere, and to be fair, there is something great about seeing how a fantastic story continues after a first beloved instalment. Sequels in the novel world are also nothing new, and in fact, nearly every modern novelist has written some sort of sequel throughout their career. So many great novels have featured intriguing sequels over the years, some of which led even more novels, or even massive series. I’m sure we can all name some awesome sequels that we have read, and in some cases many sequel novels are just as good, if not better, than the books they followed. I personally have enjoyed some incredible sequels over the years, and I thought that this would be a good opportunity to highlight them on a list, especially as I have read some particularly amazing sequels recently.

To complete this list, I pulled together some of the best sequels I have ever read, to see what I wanted to feature. I primarily focused on second novels in series that I felt were outstanding follow ups to impressive first entries that set up overarching storylines. In many cases, these books followed on from an author’s debut novel, and it is rather cool to see how an author improved on their initial work. I ended up with quite a big collection of amazing sequel novels to work with, and it took me a little while to condense it down to a manageable list. I was eventually able to cull it to my 10 absolute favourite books, as well as a decent Honourable Mentions section.

Honourable Mentions:

Usagi Yojimbo: Volume 2: Samurai by Stan Sakai

Usagi Yojimbo Samurai Cover

A cool comic that improves upon the art style and story from the first volume, The Ronin, as well as featuring the backstory for the series’ titular character.

Dark Forge by Miles Cameron

Dark Forge Cover

One of the best books and audiobooks of 2019, Dark Forge followed up the first book in the Masters & Mages series, Cold Iron, perfectly, with an impressive focus on war and world building

The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik

Last Graduate Cover

An outstanding follow-up to last year’s fantastic book, A Deadly Education. The Last Graduate is an outstanding novel and I hope to have a very complimentary review of it up soon.

Fool Moon by Jim Butcher

Fool Moon Cover

With a great story about murderous werewolves in Chicago, I felt that this second novel from Jim Butcher was even better than his debut, Storm Front.

Top Ten List:

The Dragon Factory by Jonathan Maberry

The Dragon Factory

I have a lot of love for Jonathan Maberry’s incredible Joe Ledger series, especially the first entry Patient Zero, which featured a great modern reimagining of zombies. However, I don’t think that the series truly hit its stride until the second novel, The Dragon Factory. The Dragon Factory, which featured two rival groups of antagonists experimenting with genetic engineering, was incredible and had an outstanding and captivating narrative. I honestly think it was a stronger novel than Patient Zero, and it did a great job setting the tone for the later entries in the series.

The Two-Faced Queen by Nick Martell

The Two-Faced Queen Cover

Last year I was blown away by Nick Martell’s first fantasy novel, The Kingdom of Liars, which was easily one of the best debuts of 2020. I deeply enjoyed the compelling and elaborate fantasy tale contained within, and I was eager to see how Martell would continue it this year. I was in no way disappointed as Martell ended up producing a truly epic read, that perfectly added a vengeful queen, magical serial killers, and a range of competing immortals, to an already elaborate narrative. This ended up being one of the best books (and audiobooks) I have so far read this year and it is a highly recommended sequel to read.

The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss

The Wise Mans Fear Cover

There was no way that I could exclude the The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss from this list. The sequel to his iconic first book, The Name of the Wind, The Wise Man’s Fear continued the complex tale of Rothfuss’s protagonist in incredible fashion, and this second novel goes in some deeply captivating directions. It provides a really good continuation of the overarching storylines, while also introducing some intriguing new additions. Unfortunately, it also opens a lot of questions, that readers have been waiting to see answered for quite some time.

Streams of Silver by R. A. Salvatore

Streams of Silver Cover

The next sequel takes us back to 1989, with the second book in The Icewind Dale trilogy by fantasy icon R. A. Salvatore, Streams of Silver. Streams of Silver serves as the sequel to Salvatore’s debut novel, The Crystal Shard, and contains an impressive story. While I enjoyed The Crystal Shard, especially as it does a great job introducing Salvatore’s best characters, I think that Streams of Silver had the stronger story. Featuring an epic fantasy quest, Salvatore subtlety moves the focus more towards the overarching series’ more distinctive protagonist, while also featuring some excellent storylines, epic scenes, and an outstanding new antagonist. I deeply enjoyed this novel, and it was a fantastic continuation of a fun first book.

Starsight by Brandon Sanderson

Starsight Cover 2

Sanderson has written quite a few impressive sequels throughout his career, however, my favourite so far is Starsight. Starsight follows on from Skyward, a brilliant young adult science fiction novel that follows a class of starship fighter pilots, forced to defend their planet from aliens. This sequel does a beautiful job of continuing this story by massively expanding the universe and taking the protagonist on an epic journey to a whole new world. I loved this outstanding second series, and I cannot wait to see what happens in the third book, Cytonic, later this year.

How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It by K. J. Parker

How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It

Back in 2019 I had the great pleasure of reading the fantasy comedy, Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City by K. J. Parker that told an amusing story about a conman engineer using all his tricks to win a siege. While this was an outstanding standalone read, Parker followed it up the next year with the wildly entertaining How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It. Set in the same city as the first book, this outrageous sequel followed a new protagonist, a professional impersonator, who manages to become emperor. Bold, funny, and very clever (especially the meta jokes about the first book), this was an amazing sequel, which ended up being one of the best reads of 2020.

Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio

Howling Dark Cover

Back in 2018, debuting author Christopher Ruocchio had one of the best books of the year with the outstanding Empire of Silence, an ambitious and inventive gothic science fiction epic. After setting up his massive universe in Empire of Silence, Ruocchio than proceeded to continue the narrative in the second book, Howling Dark. This sequel had an amazing story, as Ruocchio expanded out his series in some very bold ways. This sequel was a truly captivating and powerful piece of science fiction, especially the last epic extended sequence, and I had a fantastic time reading it.

Men at Arms by Terry Pratchett

Men At Arms Cover

What’s a list on the Unseen Library without at least one Discworld book by Terry Pratchett, in this case, Men at Arms, the second book in the City Watch sub-series. Men at Arms is a very clever and hilarious fantasy murder mystery novel that serves as a sequel to Guards! Guards!. Guards! Guards! was an outstanding read that followed a small group of city watchmen as they attempted to solve a murder committed using a dragon. This was one of the best books in entire Discworld collection, and it was a truly impressive feat that Pratchett was able to one-up-it with Men at Arms. This sequel contained an amazing story that sees the invention of the Discworld’s first gun, which immediately leads to chaos and bloodshed. Featuring an extremely clever mystery, as well as some great and iconic new characters, Men at Arms is one of Pratchett’s best books, and it helped to really elevate the City Watch novels in the Discworld hierarchy.

Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch

Red Seas Under Red Skies

Back in 2006, author Scott Lynch blew away fantasy fans with his outstanding debut, The Lies of Locke Lamora, a complex and powerful fantasy heist novel that was a lot of fun to read. Lynch soon followed this amazing debut with an excellent second book, Red Seas Under Red Skies. This served as a very clever continuation of the original story and contained another elaborate heist, as well as a fascinating focus on the nautical arts and piracy. I deeply enjoyed this second novel, especially with the great twist at the end, and it was a very worthy follow up to Lynch’s incredible debut.

Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

Harrow the Ninth Cover

The final book on this list is Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir, an exceptional novel I had the great pleasure of enjoying on audiobook last year. Harrow the Ninth served as the very clever sequel to Muir’s debut, Gideon the Ninth, which followed a group of space-faring necromancers. While the first book was really fun, I think that Muir greatly surpassed it with the sequel. Focusing on a different protagonist, Harrow the Ninth has a very elaborate narrative to it, including a reimagined version of the first book that excludes the original protagonist for very clever reasons. One of the most unique books I have ever read, I have a great appreciation for what Muir did with this sequel, and it is a fantastic and brilliant follow-up to Gideon the Ninth.

Well, that is the end of this latest list. As you can see, there are some impressive sequels out there, and I have had a lot of fun with some of them. Each of the above entries on this list are exceptional reads, and all come highly recommended, although in most cases you will also need to check out their preceding novels first. This might be a list I come back to I the future, especially with some great sequels coming out in the next couple of years, and I look forward to seeing what second book could potentially make the cut in the future.

Waiting on Wednesday – Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio

On September 8, 2021September 8, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn Science Fiction, Waiting on Wednesday4 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy. I run this segment in conjunction with the Can’t-Wait Wednesday meme that is currently running at Wishful Endings. Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them. For this latest Waiting on Wednesday I check out an impressive sounding upcoming space opera that is bound to be one of my favourite books of 2022, Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio.

Kingdoms of Death Cover

Over the last few years, one of the absolute best science fiction series I have had the pleasure of reading was the epic Sun Eater Sequence by Christopher Ruocchio. This series started in 2018 with Ruochhio’s debut novel, Empire of Silence, an outstanding novel that followed compelling protagonist Hadrian Marlo. Set in a gothic far future, Hadrian is a man doomed to universal infamy after ordering the destruction of a sun to commit an unforgivable act of genocide. Told as a chronicle written by an older Hadrian, Empire of Silence detailed his earlier adventures and served as an amazing introduction to the characters and the setting. I had an awesome time reading Empire of Silence, and it ended up being one of my favourite books of 2018. Ruocchio has since written two excellent sequels, Howling Dark (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2019) and Demon in White (one of my favourite books of 2020). All three novels have been five-star reads, and I have deeply enjoyed the complex and captivating narrative that Ruocchio has set up. So, you can imagine my excitement when I saw that the series will continue early next year with a fourth book, Kingdoms of Death.

Kingdoms of Death, which is currently set for release in March 2022, will continue to follow Hadrian as his legend and reputation grows to new heights. This novel will be set around a century after the events of Demon in White (the characters are very long lived, especially as they spend a lot of time in cryogenic sleep while travelling between planets) and will initially detail the consequences of the events that saw Hadrian use unusual reality-bending powers to cheat death.

Synopsis:

The fourth novel of the galaxy-spanning Sun Eater series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy, as Hadrian Marlowe continues down a path that can only end in fire.

Hadrian Marlowe is trapped.

For nearly a century, he has been a guest of the Emperor, forced into the role of advisor, a prisoner of his own legend. But the war is changing. Mankind is losing.

The Cielcin are spilling into human space from the fringes, picking their targets with cunning precision. The Great Prince Syriani Dorayaica is uniting their clans, forging them into an army and threat the likes of which mankind has never seen.

And the Empire stands alone.

Now the Emperor has no choice but to give Hadrian Marlowe—once his favorite knight—one more impossible task: journey across the galaxy to the Lothrian Commonwealth and convince them to join the war. But not all is as it seems, and Hadrian’s journey will take him far beyond the Empire, beyond the Commonwealth, impossibly deep behind enemy lines.

I am really excited about this upcoming novel, and it sounds like Ruocchio has a pretty awesome and compelling story in store for us. The above synopsis has a lot of cool details, such as the fact that Hadrian will start the novel a prisoner, which isn’t too surprising as the third novel ended with an entire planet praising him and declaring him a god, right in front of the jealous son of a galactic emperor. This will no doubt continue to play into the political and religious intrigue angles that were so fascinating in Demon in White, and I look forward to seeing how the universe has changed over the last century. The fact that the Emperor gets desperate enough to unleash Hadrian once again is pretty telling, and it sounds like we are getting closer and closer to the final showdown between humans and the alien Cielcin, which will result in Hadrian’s ultimate act of destruction. I cannot wait to see what devastating events result in the usually good-natured and merciful Hadrian to commit to such a terrible course of action, and it should result in some exceptional storytelling.

Another part of the above plot that I am quite excited about is the fact that Hadrian will be visiting another human civilisation in the Lothrian Commonwealth. The Lothrian Commonwealth has been mentioned multiple times throughout the first three novels, but it will be really fascinating to see the protagonist and his companions visit it. Ruocchio is particularly good at universe building, and he will paint a detailed and captivating picture of this new society, which should serve as a distinctive alternative to the dark, repressive, and anti-technological Empire the series has primarily been set in. It should also provide opportunities for additional political intrigue and espionage as Hadrian needs to convince them to join in the war against the Cielcin. I also like the hint at the characters heading behind enemy lines, and it should prove very thrilling and compelling to see Hadrian once again come into conflict with the very dangerous Cielcin, especially if the series big bad once again shows up to face him.

I think at this point it is obvious that I am extremely keen for the next exciting entry in the Sun Eater Sequence. This series has already been incredible, and the fourth entry, Kingdoms of Death, has an immense amount of potential. Based on how outstanding the series has already been and on Christopher Ruocchio’s amazing writing ability, I am extremely confident that I am going to love this new novel and I have no doubts what-so-ever that it will be one of the top books of the year.

Kingdom of Death Cover 2

Top Ten Tuesday – Most Viewed Posts of 2020

On February 16, 2021February 16, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn List1 Comment

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. The official topic for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday was to list a participant’s favourite purple, yellow, and/or green Book Covers in honour of Mardi Gras, however, I really did not have any great book covers to feature on this list so I am going to do something a little different and list my top viewed posts of 2020.

Over the last month or two I have been having fun listing some of the top releases I enjoyed in 2020, including my favourite debuts, audiobooks, new to me authors, pre-2020 novels and books that I read last year. However, it is probably time to finish this line of Top Ten Lists off and move onto different topics, so I thought that I would do something new as a closing act and decided to take a quick look at which of my posts got the most views in 2020. Not only this a fantastic way to finish highlighting some of the best novels released last year, but I am also genuinely curious to see which posts people were most interested in last year as this may some impact on what I try and read going forward.

To fill out this list I checked out the nifty stats section of my WordPress website to see which of my posts got the most views last year. While some of the posts I wrote before 2020 did get a lot of attention last year, I decided to limit this list to those blog entries that I published in 2020 and I only ranked them by views received last year. This resulted in a rather interesting collection of posts and I was so intrigued by this I decided to expand the selection out to my top 20 posts rather than 10, which I think created a much more varied and captivating list. The final list contains a great combination of different posts, including reviews, Waiting on Wednesday posts and even a few other Top Ten Tuesday lists. I am really happy with how this latest list turned out, so let us see which posts made the cut.

Top Twenty List:

Waiting on Wednesday – The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett – 940 views

The Evening and the Morning Cover

The top scoring post was the Waiting on Wednesday post I did for the latest Ken Follet novel, The Evening and the Morning. I was a little surprised that this Waiting on Wednesday did so well last year, especially as a lot of the views on it occurred after the book got released, but the view count on this post has continued to grow and grow. A lot of this is probably down to how impressive each of his massive novels are, as readers know they are in for a good time and keep an eye out for the latest Follett book.

House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas review – 449 views

House of Earth and Blood Cover

After the fantastic first entry there is a bit of a drop in views, but second place is held strongly by my review for House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas. This is not too surprising, considering that Maas has a pretty substantial fanbase, and House of Earth and Blood was one of the most anticipated fantasy releases of 2020. This was only the second novel from Maas that I have read (the other being Catwoman: Soulstealer) and the first adult fantasy novel from an author that specialises in young adult fiction. I ended up really enjoying the complex and lengthy story that Maas created for House of Earth and Blood and I am looking forward to seeing how the series continues in the future.

Lost by James Patterson and James O. Born review – 317 views

Lost Cover

Number three on this list was a bit of a surprise. While I enjoyed Lost, I must admit that it was not one of my favourite books of 2020 and I did not expect my review of it to get as much attention as it ended up getting. Still, with Patterson’s immense number of fans and followers, I guess it makes sense that people would be interested in seeing how one of his books would turn out, and I really need to check out some more of his novels this year.

Waiting on Wednesday – Relentless by R. A. Salvatore – 265 views

Relentless Cover

The next entry on this list is the Waiting on Wednesday article that I did for legendary fantasy author R. A. Salvatore’s second 2020 novel Relentless. Relentless was a particularly cool fantasy novel from last year which followed on from Salvatore’s previous novels Timeless and Boundless. There ended up being a good amount of interest in this post, and it looks like there are a lot of fans of Salvatore and his amazing fantasy novels. I actually just posted a slightly belated review of Relentless, and it will be interesting to see how much attention it gets this year.

Waiting on Wednesday – 2021 Thrillers – 229 views

Thriller Covers

Next up we have a Waiting on Wednesday post of three thrillers released in early 2021. Each of these novels, Relentless by Mark Greaney, The Kaiser’s Web by Steve Berry and Prodigal Son by Gregg Hurwitz, are the latest entry in a popular and established thriller series, and each of these authors already have a lot of dedicated readers. I have already read Prodigal Son (review coming soon, but in short it is pretty awesome), while I have copies of Relentless and The Kaiser’s Web currently sitting on my table. It will be interesting to see how they turn out, but I am predicting some epic and amazing reads from them.

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik review – 224 views

A Deadly Education Cover

Naomi Novik is a talented fantasy author with a lot of buzz surrounding her, so it is no surprise that a lot of people were interested in her latest book, A Deadly Education. A Deadly Education was an outstanding and captivating read that proved to be extremely inventive and addictive. I deeply enjoyed reading and reviewing A Deadly Education last year, and Novik’s upcoming sequel, The Last Graduate, is one of my most anticipated reads of 2021.

Top Ten Tuesday – Favourite Books of 2020 – 223 views

Trouble with Peace and Battle Ground Cover

This post listed my absolute favourite books of 2020. Featuring 20 novels, including impressive reads like The Trouble With Peace by Joe Abercrombie and Battle Ground by Jim Butcher, this was always going to be a post that a lot of people would be interested in, and I was very happy with how many views it got in closing days of 2020. I cannot wait to list my favourite books of 2021 in 10 months’ time.

One Minute Out by Mark Greaney review – 222 views

One Minute Out Cover

Considering how much attention that the above Waiting on Wednesday for Greaney’s next book got last year, it is not surprising that a lot of people also checked out my review for One Minute Out. Serving as the ninth book in Greaney’s impressive Gray Man series, this was a fantastic read that got a full five-star rating from me. I cannot wait to read the next book, especially if turns out to be as good as One Minute Out.

Top Ten Tuesday – Most Anticipated Releases for the Second Half of 2020 – 208 views

How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It and Call of the Bone Ships Covers

Another Top Ten List with a lot of major and popular entries in it, including How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It by K. J. Parker and Call of the Bone Ships by R. J. Barker. This was a fun and intriguing list to pull together, especially as I ended up reading and loving every book featured on it.

The Gates of Athens by Conn Iggulden review – 205 views

The Gates of Athens Cover

It looks like a lot of people were interested in historical fiction last year as my review for The Gates of Athens by the always impressive Conn Iggulden got viewed more than 200 times. The Gates of Athens was a particularly awesome novel as well, and I am looking forward to reading the sequel, Protector, soon.

The Law of Innocence by Michael Connelly review – 196

The Law of Innocence Cover

I actually reviewed two books from iconic crime fiction author Michael Connelly last year, Fair Warning and The Law of Innocence. While both were fantastic reads, it seems more people were interested in my review of The Law of Innocence, which saw the return of the Lincoln Lawyer. This was a particularly fun and enjoyable read and I am glad that so many people were keen to see what I thought about it.

Usagi Yojimbo: Volume 34: Bunraku and Other Stories by Stan Sakai review – 173 views

Usagi Yojimbo Bunraku and Other Stories Cover

I did quite few reviews of Usagi Yojimbo comics in 2020, all of which proved to be rather popular, which was great considering how niche these comics are. Out of all these, the one that got the most attention was for the 2020 release, Bunraku and Other Stories. I had an amazing time writing a passionate review for this comic, the first to be released completely in colour, and it was great to see so much interest in it. My Waiting on Wednesday article for the next Usagi Yojimbo volume, Homecoming, has already gotten a substantial number of views in 2021, so hopefully readers will also enjoy my review for this upcoming volume.

Top Ten Tuesday – Longest Audiobooks That I Have Listened To – Part II – 166 views

WAY OF KINGS MM REV FINAL.indd

A continuation of a previous Top Ten Tuesday list I did, I spent a bit of time working out the longest audiobooks I have ever read. This is a post I will probably revisit again this year, although I very much doubt that the current longest audiobook, The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson, is going to be unseated from its top position on the list.

Waiting on Wednesday – Colonyside by Michael Mammay – 150 views

Colonyside Cover

Another Waiting on Wednesday that got a lot of attention last year was one I did for the cool science fiction thriller, Colonyside. Serving as the third book in Michael Mammay’s Planetside series (which also includes Planetside and Spaceside), this article got a bit of attention after a timely retweet from Mammay. I recently read and reviewed Colonyside a few weeks ago and it really lived up to the hype.

Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio review – 143 views

Demon in White Cover 1

Now, this was a fun book to review. Demon in White is the third epic entry in impressive new science fiction author Christopher Ruocchio’s outstanding Sun Eater Sequence, which previously featured Empire of Silence and Howling Dark. Considering how amazing this latest entry in the Sun Eater series was, I am very glad that my review for his book got some attention last year, and I would strongly recommend this impressive, gothic read.

Waiting on Wednesday – Ink by Jonathan Maberry – 124 views

Ink Cover

I always really enjoy reviewing or promoting anything written by Jonathan Maberry, and this Waiting on Wednesday I did for his standalone horror novel, Ink, ended up getting a lot of attention in the end. Maberry has a new novel coming out in a few months, Relentless, which I am very excited for, and I anticipate a lot of views for that review when I get it written up.

The Constant Rabbit by Jasper Fforde review – 113 views

The Constant Rabbit Cover

One of the funniest books of 2020, The Constant Rabbit was a lot of fun to review and I am glad that a lot of people checked it out last year.

The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett review – 111 views

The Evening and the Morning Cover

While it may not have gotten as many views as its Waiting on Wednesday article, my review for The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett did make the Top Twenty list. Serving as a prequel to Follett’s iconic The Pillars of the Earth, this was one of the best historical fiction novels in 2020 and is a strongly recommended read.

Top Ten Tuesday – My Favourite Horror Novels – 110 views

Into the Drowning Deep Cover

The penultimate post on this list was an interesting Top Ten Tuesday I did for Halloween, listing my favourite horror novels I have ever read. I honestly am not the biggest fan of the horror genre, but I was able to rustle up a good Top Ten list for this post, including some great reads like Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant and Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry. It looks like a lot of horror fans were out in force last Halloween as people were quite interested in this list, and I hope I recommended a few good reads for any fans of the genre out there.

Top Ten Tuesday – My Favourite Books from the First Half of 2020 – 107 views

Song of the Risen God Cover

The final entry on this list was a Top Ten article that highlighted some of the best books from the first half of 2020. Featuring some particularly cool reads, including Into the Fire by Gregg Hurwitz and Song of the Risen God by R. A. Salvatore, this one got a bit of attention early in the year and it was interesting to see which of the books featured eventually made their way onto my overall favourite reads of 2020 list later in the year.

While mainly a conduit for my ego, I think this list turned out pretty well, and I really enjoyed seeing which of my posts got the most views last year. I had a lot of fun pulling this list together and I think this might be something I will revisit in the future. In the meantime, I hope everyone has a happy and safe Mardi Gras.