Top Ten Tuesday – Books From My Past Seasonal TBR Posts I STILL Haven’t Read

On July 26, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn List5 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. In this latest Top Ten Tuesday participants need to go back to their old Seasonal TBR lists and see which books from them they have still not read. This was a very interesting and useful topic to look at as this once again reminds me about all the awesome books out there that I was excited for but which I never got around to reading.

There are quite a few books out there now that I have been meaning to read for a very long time. Many of these books have been featured to a degree on my blog either through optimistic Waiting on Wednesday posts or in shameful “I wish I had read” Top Ten lists, where I air my great regrets about not checking out a certain release (to be fair, I only have so much time and there are so many awesome books out there). So now again it is good to go back and see which ones I have missed to remind me of what I need to read and provide some motivation for it. I just did a similar post last week regarding books from the first half of the year that I still need to read, however, I like the idea of going back and looking at some previous Top Ten Tuesday posts and seeing what other books lie there.

To appear on this list, a potential book needed to be both unread by me and have appeared on a previous Top Ten Tuesday Seasonal TBR post that I have done. I chose to exclude a couple of my more recent Seasonal TBR posts, namely those from 2022, as that would have just doubled up my list from last week. Despite these exclusions, there were still several lists to scour for potential entries and I was able to determine several books that would be appropriate for this list. However, this wasn’t as easy as I had thought, as it turns out I’m pretty good at getting through the books on these TBR lists, and most had been read and reviewed by me. In the end, I did manage to find 10 entries, as well as a few honourable mentions, and the results below are quite intriguing. So let us see what made the cut.

Honourable Mentions:

Providence by Max Barry

Star Trek: Rogue Elements by John Jackson Miller

The Liar’s Knot by M. A. Carrick

Top Ten Tuesday:

The Maleficent Seven by Cameron Johnston

Gamora & Nebula: Sisters in Arms by Mackenzie Lee

The Righteous by David Wragg

The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton

A Fool’s Hope by Mike Shackle

Star Trek: The Dark Veil by James Swallow

The Obsidian Tower by Melissa Caruso

Eagle Station by Dale Brown

Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett

Daughters of Night by Lauren Shepherd-Robinson

Well, that ended up being a rather interesting list. As you can see from the above, there are still several outstanding novels that I really need to read, and I hope that I get the chance at some point in the future. All 10 of the above sound like incredible reads, and I honestly have not purposely chosen not to read any of them, I just haven’t had the time or ability to check them out. Hopefully that will eventually change, as I am extremely keen for several of them, and I have no doubt they will be epic reads.

Top Ten Tuesday – My Favourite Audiobook Narrators

On September 28, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, List22 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 have been given a freebie topic, meaning that they can do a list on whatever interests them. So, I thought I would take this opportunity to talk about something I am very passionate about, audiobooks. In particular, I am going to have a crack at listing my favourite top ten audiobook narrators.

Readers of my blog will know that I have a particular love for the audiobook format, and it is one of my favourite ways to enjoy a good book (I’m listening to one now as I put this post up). I have long loved audiobooks, going all the way back to my childhood when I had Goosebumps books on cassette tape. While I eventually grew out of these series (and cassette tapes), my appreciation for audiobooks has remained, and I have become even more fond of them in recent years, due to how easy and accessible audiobooks are these days. As such, I have had the great pleasure of listening to some outstanding audiobook in the last few years, and I honestly find myself enjoying some books a hell of a lot more in this format.

One of the main reasons why I have so much fun with audiobooks is because a lot of them have outstanding narrators who excel at telling the story or bringing the characters to life. A great narrator can turn a good book into something truly magical, while boring narrators can ruin even the most compelling stories. Over the years I have found myself becoming a big fan of several talented narrators due to their ability to make every story they read incredibly awesome with their impressive range. Some of these narrators have been so good that I have followed them to other books and series, as I know that I am going to have a great time with whatever they are reading. As a result, I thought it was about time that I highlighted my absolute favourites of these on this blog.

To pull this list together, I sifted through the best narrators I have listened and tried to work out who I enjoy listening to the most. While there were a couple of great narrators I have enjoyed once or twice, my list tended to focus on those narrators whose work I have heard multiple time. I ended up pulling together a descent list, which I was able to cull down into a good top ten list with a generous honourable mentions section. The end result turned out pretty good, and I liked the cool cross section of genres and narrators that this list contained. So, let us see who made the cut.

Honourable Mentions:

Scott Brick – Orphan X and Cotton Malone series

Scott Brick is the narrator of two awesome thriller series, the Orphan X and Cotton Malone books. I have listened to several great books narrated by Brick, including Into the Fire and Prodigal Son by Gregg Hurwitz, and The Malta Exchange, The Warsaw Protocol and The Kaiser’s Web by Steve Berry, all of which were fantastic and compelling listens.

Jim Dale – Harry Potter series

I had to include actor Jim Dale somewhere on this due to his outstanding work narrating the Harry Potter audiobooks. While Stephen Fry also did a version, I have only had the pleasure of listening to Dale’s version, and it is such an outstanding way to enjoy this iconic series.

Jonathan Keeble – Trollslayer series

I have recently enjoyed Jonathan Keeble’s work on the Trollslayer series by William King, set in the Warhammer Fantasy universe. I have so far listened to three of these books, Trollslayer, Skavenslayer and Daemonslayer, and each of these has featured some impressive voice work, especially around the main characters. I am planning to check out more Warhammer novels narrated by Keeble soon, which should be a lot of fun.

Emily Woo Zeller – Star Wars: Doctor Aphra and Cyber Shogun Revolution

I also needed to highlight a rising audiobook narrator who has done some awesome books lately, Emily Woo Zeller. Zeller came to my attention when she voiced the titular character in the outstanding Star Wars: Doctor Aphra audio drama, perfectly capturing this outstanding and complex protagonist. This amazing performance, as well as her work in Cyber Shogun Revolution, really impressed me, and I look forward to seeing what Zeller will do in the future.

Top Ten List (unranked):

Ray Porter – Joe Ledger and Rogue Team International series

The first entry on this list is the incredible Ray Porter, a narrator whose work I am deeply enjoying. While Porter has narrated an amazing number of books, I know him primarily through his collaboration with author Jonathan Maberry. Porter has narrated most of Maberry’s novels over the years, and they are an impressive and captivating team. I particularly enjoyed Porter’s work in Maberry’s Joe Ledger series (which includes books like Assassin’s Code, Code Zero, and Dogs of War) and the sequel Rogue Team International series (featuring Rage and Relentless), as Porter always perfectly fits into the skin of the titular protagonist. I also really enjoyed his work on the standalone horror novel Ink, which was one of the best audiobooks of 2020, and I am particularly keen to check out more novels narrated by Porter.

R. C. Bray – Planetside series and The Dark

Another fantastic narrator whose work I have been appreciating lately is R. C. Bray, who has lent his voice to some amazing audiobooks. I first came across Bray through his work on Michael Mammay’s Planetside series, including Planetside and Colonyside (one of the best audiobooks from the first half of 2021). Bray did an outstanding job on these science fiction military thrillers, and his gruff voice was perfect for the veteran soldier the series followed. However, Bray can also voice some other unique characters, a fact I recently discovered when I listened to the wildly entertaining horror novel, The Dark by Jeremy Robinson. In this book, Bray voiced a stoner character who finds himself leading the fight against a horde of invading demons. Not only did Bray really get into this different protagonist, but he helped to turn The Dark into one of the best audiobooks of the year. I look forward to checking out more from Bray in the future, especially as he has already narrated a ton of books by Robinson that sound really cool.

James Marsters – Dresden Files series

The next entry on this list is someone who I was a fan of well before I enjoyed their audiobook work, actor James Marsters. Best known for his roles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, Marsters has also provided his voice to the audiobook versions of the Dresden Files urban fantasy series by Jim Butcher. I found this out last year when I listened to the awesome latest entry in the series, Battle Ground, and I instantly fell in love with Marsters’ take on the various characters. Marsters really dived into the role of titular protagonist Harry Dresden, and I appreciated all the cool voices he did throughout this novel. When I decided to go back and check out the earlier entries in this series, I was very excited to see that Marsters narrated all these prior audiobooks as well, so it was an easy choice to check them out in audiobook as well. I have so far enjoyed another four Dresden Files novels, Storm Front, Fool Moon, Grave Peril and Summer Knight, and each of them has featured some exceptional voice work from Marsters, which is really worth checking out.

Robert Petkoff – Star Trek audiobooks

Each year there are a ton of Star Trek tie-in novels released, all of which get adapted to audiobook. Of these multiple Star Trek books, nearly all feature the voice of Robert Petkoff. Petkoff has an excellent voice for Star Trek, especially as he can perfectly replicate most of the Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Next Generation cast. I have already listened to a great number of his Star Trek audiobooks including More Beautiful Than Death by David Mack, Agents of Influence by Dayton Ward, The Unsettling Stars by Alan Dean Foster, Picard: The Last Best Hope by Una McCormack and The Captain’s Oath by Christopher L. Bennett, just to name a few. I currently have several of his audiobooks currently loaded up on my phone, and I will hopefully listen to some of them soon.

Marc Thompson – Star Wars audiobooks

Moving from Star Trek to Star Wars the next narrator I need to highlight is the outstanding Marc Thompson. Thompson is a wonderfully talented narrator who has been lending his voice to some of the best Star Wars tie-in novels out there, and perfectly bringing them to life. I love the outstanding range of characters that he can voice, including those from the films, characters from the animated shows, and new characters never seen on screen. I am a particular fan of the voice he uses for the character of Grand Admiral Thrawn, as he perfectly captures the character’s complexities, especially in books like Thrawn, Chaos Rising and Greater Good by Timothy Zahn. Other impressive examples of his voice work can be seen in the audiobook versions of Scoundrels, Dark Disciple by Christie Golden, Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule and The Rising Storm by Cavan Scott.

Steven Pacey – First Law and Age of Madness trilogies

I am a major fan of Joe Abercrombie’s First Law series, so I also must highlight the impressive Steven Pacey. Pacey is a great narrator who I primarily know through his work on Abercrombie’s novels. I deeply enjoyed the narration he provided to Abercrombie’s iconic dark fantasy series, the First Law trilogy, with each of the complex characters perfectly portrayed by this talented narrator. Pacey really puts a lot of himself into this exceptional audiobook adaptions, and I was very happy that he continued to provide his voice to Abercrombie’s Age of Madness sequel trilogy, providing his exceptional voices to books like A Little Hatred, The Trouble with Peace and The Wisdom of Crowds.

Joe Jameson – King of Assassins and The Legacy of the Mercenary King series

The next entry on this list is Joe Jameson, a narrator whose voice I have been hearing a fair bit of lately. Jameson is a very talented voice worker who has been narrating several amazing recent fantasy novels. I first heard Jameson’s voice when I listened to the audiobook version of King of Assassins by RJ Barker, and I was particularly impressed by his impressive take on the intriguing characters contained within. Following this, Jameson was also provided his voice to The Legacy of the Mercenary King series (currently made up of The Kingdom of Liars and The Two-Faced Queen), where I was deeply impressed with his exceptional ability. I cannot wait to hear more of Jameson’s work on this series as it continues, and I am also thinking about listening to several unrelated novels that were also voiced by this talented narrator.

Nigel Planer/Stephen Briggs – Discworld series

There was no way that I could do a list about audiobook narrators without mentioning the epic duo of Nigel Planer and Stephen Briggs. Both Planer and Briggs are talented actors and narrators, but I love them the most for their work on adapting the epic Discworld series by Terry Pratchett. The Disworld books (such as Moving Pictures and The Last Continent), are my absolute favourite books, and I have so much love for them, especially in their audiobook format. All the Discworld novels (as well as some other standalone books that Pratchett wrote), were voiced by either Planer or Briggs, with Planer voicing the first 23 books, while Briggs narrated the last 18 books. Each of these narrators brings something a little different to the books they adapted, but both do an amazing job capturing Pratchett’s unique humour and compelling characters. I would strongly recommend any Discworld audiobook that these two narrate, and I have so much appreciation for them.

Jonathan Davis – Star Wars audiobooks

Another great narrator who has lent his voice to the Star Wars tie-in genre is the talented Jonathan Davis. Like Thompson, Davis is a leading Star Wars audiobook narrator, and he always does a great job portraying some of the iconic characters from the franchise. I have had a lot of fun listening to Davis’ work on such books as Master & Apprentice by Claudia Gray, Lords of the Sith by Paul S. Kemp, Maul: Lockdown by Joe Schreiber and the Dooku: Jedi Lost audio drama by Cavan Scott. I especially love Davis’ take on characters like Emperor Palpatine and Qui-Gon Jinn and I look forward to listening to more books from him in the future.

Jay Snyder – Gray Man series

The final audiobook narrator I need to highlight on this list is the fantastic Jay Snyder. I have recently been really getting into the Gray Man books, and a lot of that is because of Snyder whose audiobook version of the last two novels, One Minute Out and Relentless, were pretty incredible. I even recently went back and checked out the first novel in the series, The Gray Man, and I was really impressed by Snyder’s work on this initial book. As I am intending to get through all the Gray Man books in the next little while, I will be hearing more of Snyder’s voice work in the future, and I cannot wait to see what other cool adventures he gets to narrate.

That’s the end of this latest list. I think it turned out pretty well, and I liked the intriguing selection of narrators I ended up featuring. Each of the above narrators are pretty damn amazing and I would honestly listen to any novel that they cared to lend their voices to. Any audiobook narrated by them comes highly recommended and I am deeply excited to hear more from them in the future. I had a fair bit of fun coming up with this list, and I think it is one that I will revisit in the future. Hopefully the next version of this list will have more variety (such as more female narrators), and I cannot wait to explore even more awesome audiobooks in the future. In the meantime, let me know who your favourite audiobook narrator is in the comments so I can check them out.

Top Ten Tuesday – Books on my Winter 2021 TBR

On June 15, 2021 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 Top Ten Tuesday, participants need to list the top releases that they are looking forward to reading this summer (or winter for us down here in Australia). This is a fun exercise that I have done for each of the preceding seasons, and it is always interesting to highlight the various cool-sounding books and comics that are coming out in the next few months.

For this list I have come up with 10 of the best novels that are coming out between 1 June 2021 and 31 August 2021. I have decided to exclude novels that I have already read, or I am currently reading, so that took a couple of key books off the list. Still, this left me with a rather substantial pool of cool upcoming novels that I am excited for, which I was eventually able to whittle down into a great Top Ten list (with a few honourable mentions). I have previously discussed a number of these books before a number of my Waiting on Wednesday articles and I think all of them will turn out to be some really impressive and enjoyable reads.

Honourable Mentions:

The Coward by Stephen Aryan – 6 June 2021

The Councillor by E. J. Beaton – 20 July 2021

The Dying Squad by Adam Simcox – 27 July 2021

Star Trek: Picard: Rogue Elements by John Jackson Miller – 17 August 2021

Top Ten List:

Gamora & Nebula: Sisters in Arms by Mackenzie Lee – 1 June 2021

The Righteous by David Wragg – 10 June 2021

Star Wars: The High Republic: The Rising Storm by Cavan Scott – 29 June 2021

The 22 Murders of Madison May by Max Barry – 30 June 2021

I am really looking forward to reading the extremely fun-sounding science fiction thriller, The 22 Murders of Madison May by Australian author Max Barry. This fantastic novel will feature an amazing narrative about a reporter who hunts a serial killer across various alternate realities. I am very keen to check this great novel out, and I am expecting a compelling and entertaining read.

It Ends in Fire by Andrew Shvarts – 6 July 2021

I am very, very keen to get my hands on this book, especially after how much I have enjoyed some of Shvarts’s previous novels (such as City of Bastards and War of the Bastards). However, I may have to wait a little longer to read it down in Australia as it is coming out here a little later than in the rest of the world. Still, I am sure it will be worth the wait, as It Ends in Fire has the potential to be one of the best young adult books of 2021.

Relentless by Jonathan Maberry – 13 July 2021

Billy Summers by Stephen King – 3 August 2021

Starlight Enclave by R. A. Salvatore – 3 August 2021

The Maleficent Seven by Cameron Johnston – 10 August 2021

I have to say that I absolutely love the new cover for The Maleficent Seven which looks absolutely crazy and really fun.

The Pariah by Anthony Ryan – 31 August 2021

The final entry on this list is the intriguing upcoming novel from bestselling author Anthony Ryan, The Pariah. While I have not previously had the pleasure of reading any Ryan’s books before, I have heard some incredible things about his pervious series, and I fully intend to check them out at some point in the future. In the meantime, I am keen to read his next book, The Pariah, especially as it contains an amazing sounding narrative about a former outlaw turned soldier. Based on how beloved Ryan’s previous novels are I am fairly confident that The Pariah will turn out to be one of the top fantasy reads of 2021 and I cannot wait to check it out.

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 pretty 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.

Waiting on Wednesday – 2021 Star Trek Tie-in novels

On April 8, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Tie-in Novel, Waiting on Wednesday5 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. In this latest Waiting on Wednesday article, I highlight three amazing sounding upcoming Star Trek tie-in novels that I am particularly excited for.

Now, those people familiar with my blog will know that I like a good tie-in novel and I routinely read and review novels and comics that are extensions of several popular fandoms, including Star Wars, Warhammer, and Firefly. While I have been a major fan of a number of franchises for years, one particular fandom that I have only really gotten into in the last couple of years is Star Trek. Thanks to some of the recent mainstream Hollywood movies, a flurry of reruns on Australian television and some of the newer shows appearing on Netflix, I have started watching more Star Trek stuff in recent years, and I have quickly gotten drawn into this fun franchise. For example, last year I ended up probably watching the most Star Trek I ever have, especially with some of the awesome new shows that came out, (I really enjoyed both Picard and Lower Decks). Unsurprisingly, this increased interest in Star Trek shows and movies has also resulted in me checking out more and more Star Trek novels and even some comics, most of which I have then reviewed on this blog. Many of these, such as The Captain’s Oath by Christopher L. Bennett, Agents of Influence by Dayton Ward and the Star Trek: Boldly Go comic by Mike Johnson and Tony Shasteen, have been very impressive reads, and I am now actively trying to find and review any new Star Trek novels that come out.

2021 is shaping up to be another awesome year for Star Trek tie-in fiction, and I have been keeping a keen eye out for several upcoming Star Trek books. While I still need to check out Star Trek: Picard: The Dark Veil by James Swallow, which came out in January, there are several further books coming out in the next few months that I am quite excited for. Each of these upcoming books sound pretty cool and I am rather keen to check them out, especially as two have been written by some of my favourite authors of Star Trek fiction.

The first upcoming Star Trek novel that I am looking forward to is Star Trek: Discovery: Wonderlands by Una McCormack. McCormack is a fantastic author who has written several great Star Trek novels over the years, including a previous Star Trek: Discovery novel, The Way to the Stars, and the first Star Trek: Picard tie-in novel, The Last Best Hope. I was a particularly fan of The Last Best Hope when it came out last year, especially as it provide an amazing bridge between The Next Generation and Picard television series. As a result, I am very excited to see this great author’s next novel, especially as it is another Star Trek: Discovery novel.

Synopsis:

In a desperate attempt to prevent the artificial intelligence known as Control from seizing crucial information that could destroy all sentient life, Commander Michael Burnham donned the “Red Angel” time-travel suit and guided the USS Discovery into the future and out of harm’s way. But something has gone terribly wrong, and Burnham has somehow arrived in a place far different from anything she could have imagined—more than nine hundred years out of her time, with Discovery nowhere to be found, and where the mysterious and cataclysmic event known as “the Burn” has utterly decimated Starfleet and, with it, the United Federation of Planets. How then can she possibly exist day-to-day in this strange place? What worlds are out there waiting to be discovered? Do any remnants of Starfleet and the Federation possibly endure? With more questions than answers, Burnham must nevertheless forge new friendships and new alliances if she hopes to survive this future long enough for the Discovery crew to find her….

Wonderlands, which is currently has a release date of 18 May 2021, looks set to follow the protagonist of Star Trek: Discovery, Michael Burham, during the period when she was trapped in the desolate future without her friends. This setting opens up many plot opportunities and it will be interesting to see what sort of cool story that McCormack comes up with for this book. Based on her previous novels, I am extremely confident that McCormack will come up with an exciting and compelling read, and I am hopeful that she takes full advantage of the darker story elements of the Star Trek: Discovery series to create something truly memorable.

The next Star Trek novel that I am looking at in this article is the intriguing Shadows Have Offended by Cassandra Rose Clark, which will tie into The Next Generation television series. Shadows Have Offended, which is currently set for release on 13 July 2021, will be the first Star Trek novel from Clark, an author I am relatively unfamiliar with, although I have been meaning to check out her young adult Halo series, Battle Born. Based on the plot details that have been released, Shadows Have Offended will primarily follow Dr Beverly Crusher, Deanna Troi and Worf, as they encounter multiple problems during a seemingly routine mission.

Synopsis:

The USS Enterprise has been granted the simple but unavoidable honor of ferrying key guests to Betazed for a cultural ceremony. En route, sudden tragedy strikes a Federation science station on the isolated planet Kota, and Captain Jean-Luc Picard has no qualms sending William Riker, Data, and Chief Medical Officer Beverly Crusher to investigate. But what begins as routine assignments for the two parties soon descends into chaos: Picard, Worf, and Deanna Troi must grapple with a dangerous diplomatic crisis as historic artifacts are stolen in the middle of a high-profile ceremony… while nothing is as it seems on Kota. A mounting medical emergency coupled with the science station’s failing technology – and no hope of rescue – has Doctor Crusher racing against time to solve a disturbing mystery threatening the lives of all her colleagues…

I quite like the sound of this upcoming The Next Generation novel, especially as Clark has come up with two cool sounding separate storylines, including a medical mystery and a theft, and it will be interesting to see how these come together. I am also curious to see a novel that focuses more on Crusher and Troi than some of the other Star Trek books I have read in the past and it will be interesting to see this story unfold from their perspective. Overall, this should turn out to be a great read and I am quite excited to check it out.

The final Star Trek novel I am looking at here is the next Picard book, Rogue Elements by John Jackson Miller. Miller is another veteran author who has written several exceptional Star Trek books over the years. I absolutely loved Miller’s 2020 release, Die Standing, which, with its complex protagonists and clever plot, was easily one of the best Star Trek books of last year. His next novel, Rogue Elements, is possibly the 2021 Star Trek book I am most excited for, as it will feature one of the best new characters from the Picard show, Cristóbal Rios.

Synopsis:

Starfleet was everything for Cristóbal Rios—until one horrible, inexplicable day when it all went wrong. Aimless and adrift, he grasps at a chance for a future as an independent freighter captain in an area betrayed by the Federation, the border region with the former Romulan Empire. His greatest desire: to be left alone.

But solitude isn’t in the cards for the captain of La Sirena, who falls into debt to a roving gang of hoodlums from a planet whose society is based on Prohibition-era Earth. Teamed against his will with Ledger, his conniving overseer, Rios begins an odyssey that brings him into conflict with outlaws and fortune seekers, with power brokers and relic hunters across the stars.

Exotic loves and locales await—as well as dangers galore—and Rios learns the hard way that good crewmembers are hard to find, even when you can create your own. And while his meeting with Jean-Luc Picard is years away, Rios finds himself drawing on the Starfleet legend’s experiences when he discovers a mystery that began on one of the galaxy’s most important days…

This sounds like it is going to be particularly impressive Star Trek read and I am looking forward to this book. As I mentioned above, I really enjoyed the character of Cristóbal Rios, the damaged private starship captain and his crew of emergency holograms, each of them an alternate version of his own personality and distinctive accent, and I am very keen to see a book follow his early exploits. Rogue Elements also looks to explore some fun crime elements in this darker period of Star Trek history and I love the idea of seeing Rios going up against gangsters, power brokers and relic hunters. Based on the cool sounding plot, the great source material in Picard and Miller’s outstanding writing history, I know I am going to love Rogue Elements and it should be an awesome read.

As you can see, there are some very cool Star Trek books coming out later this year and I truly believe that I will enjoy all three of the above entries. Each of these books sounds extremely impressive and I look forward to seeing what unique stories they contain. I will have to keep an eye out for any addition Star Trek novels later in the year (I know that there is a new Deep Space Nine novel coming out called Revenant, although only limited details are available at this time). Until then, make sure to check out some of my reviews for other Star Trek novels and let me know which Star Trek tie-in books are your favourites.

Top Ten Tuesday – New-to-Me Authors I Read in 2020

On January 13, 2021January 13, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn 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. The official topic for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday was “Resolutions/Hopes for 2021 (bookish or not!)”, however, I am going to do something a little different and instead I will list the top New-to-Me Authors I Read in 2020. This is actually the official Top Ten Tuesday topic set up for a fortnight’s time, but I have an Australian fiction themed list planned for that week (it falls on Australia Day), so I decided to move this list forward a little.

I am very excited to do this list as each year I am lucky enough to read novels from authors who I was previously unfamiliar with and whose works I really love (make sure check out my 2019 version of the list). 2020 was no exception and throughout last year I had a wonderful time reading a huge range of books from several authors who were completely new to me. This includes some debuting authors, as well as more established writers whose works I only got around to this year; as long as I had not read anything from them before 2020, they were eligible for this list. Many of these new-to-me authors produced amazing novels, some of which I consider to be some of the best books released in 2020. As a result, this list may feature a bit of overlap with my top books and audiobooks lists of 2020 that I have previously published on this blog.

Like many of these lists that I do, I ended up with quite a substantial group of authors that I wanted to include, many of whom produced some fantastic and compelling reads. I was eventually able to whittle this list down to my top ten favourites, as well as featuring a generous honourable mentions section. While I did have to exclude a couple of authors whose books I really liked, I think I came up with a good list that represents which authors I am really glad I decided to try for the first time last year.

Honourable Mentions:

David Wragg – The Black Hawks

John Jackson Miller – Star Trek Discovery: Die Standing

Jeremy Szal – Stormblood

Steve Parker – Deathwatch: Shadowbreaker

Top Ten List:

Luke Arnold – The Last Smile in Sunder City and Dead Man in a Ditch

The first author that I am going to feature on this list is Luke Arnold, who had an impressive debut earlier this year with The Last Smile in Sunder City, a great urban fantasy novel set in dark city where magic has suddenly and traumatically died. Arnold managed to complete two novels this year, and with the sequel, Dead Man in a Ditch, did an awesome job following up from the first book. I look forward to seeing how this series continues in the future, and Arnold is a great new author that I was glad I tried out.

Nick Martell – The Kingdom of Liars

There was no way I could do this list without featuring Nick Martell, who debuted in early 2020 with The Kingdom of Liars, an outstanding fantasy novel that was extremely impressive. Not only was The Kingdom of Liars one of the best debuts of 2020 but it was also one of my favourite books of the entire year. I had an incredible time reading this cool novel and I am eagerly awaiting the sequel, The Two-Faced Queen, which is set for release in a couple of months.

Richard Osman – The Thursday Murder Club

Another exciting new author I checked out in 2020 was British comedian and television personality Richard Osman, who debuted with the clever and hilarious crime fiction novel, The Thursday Murder Club. This was an amazing first novel from Osman, and I am now deeply invested in checking out any future novels from him, especially the sequel to The Thursday Murder Club planned for later this year.

Jim Butcher – Battle Ground

I have been meaning to read one of legendary fantasy author Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files novels for ages now, and this was the year I finally took the plunge by listening to the latest entry in the series, Battle Ground. Battle Ground was an epic thrill ride that I had an incredible time listening to and which served as an intriguing introduction to the series for me. I think that I will try to listen to several earlier entries in this awesome series this year, and I look forward to seeing how the initial adventures turn out.

Jeff Lindsay – Just Watch Me

I was quite intrigued when I heard that Jeff Lindsay, the author of the iconic Dexter thrillers, was writing a series that focused on epic heists, and I ended up grabbing a copy of the first book, Just Watch Me. Just Watch Me was a fantastic and captivating read, and I just started reading the sequel, Fool Me Twice, and I cannot wait to see how it turns out.

Mark Lawrence – The Girl and the Stars

High acclaimed fantasy author Mark Lawrence is another author who I have had my eye on for several years but never had a chance to read before. However, when Lawrence released the first entry in a brand-new series last year, I decided to check it out, and boy was I glad that I did. The Girl and the Stars was an impressive and captivating novel set deep beneath the ice of a desolate planet that I had an amazing time reading. I am eagerly looking forward to the next entry in this series, and I will have to go back and read some of Lawrence’s earlier books.

Sarah Beth Durst – Race the Sands

I have mentioned quite a few times this year how much I deeply enjoyed the latest novel from Sarah Beth Durst, Race the Sands, which was the first book I checked out from this bestselling author. Race the Sands was an outstanding novel filled with cool action, creative fantasy elements and great characters, I had an excellent time getting through it. Due to how much I loved my first Durst novel, I am planning to read some more of her books soon, starting with The Bone Maker, which is coming out in a couple of months.

Max Brooks – Devolution

Another major author who I finally got around to checking out this year was Max Brooks, who produced the thrilling and exciting horror novel Devolution, which sees a small village attacked by sasquatches. This was an excellent and amazing novel that was so much fun to read and I fully plan to check out Brooks’ other big book, World War Z soon.

Mike Shackle – We are the Dead

I heard some really good things about Mike Shackle’s 2019 debut, We are the Dead, when it first came out, and I really regretted not reading it then. I decided to remedy this last year when I grabbed the audiobook version of this book, which turned out to be a captivating and fantastic read. I had an amazing time reading We are the Dead and I cannot wait to check out the sequel, A Fool’s Hope, which just came out.

John Scalzi – Redshirts

The final entry on this list was the clever and wildly entertaining Star Trek parody Redshirts by bestselling science fiction author John Scalzi. Scalzi is an author whose books I have been thinking of checking out for a while, and when I had a long road trip earlier in the year I took the opportunity to listen to the audiobook version of this extremely funny novel which was narrated by Wil Wheaton. I was not disappointed, as Redshirts ended up being an excellent novel that presents a hilarious parody of classic Star Trek tropes and was an insane amount of fun.

Well, that’s the end of this latest Top Ten list. I think it turned out rather well and it encapsulates some of the best new authors I checked out in 2020. I look forward to reading more books from these authors in the future and I have no doubt they will produce more epic and incredible reads. Make sure to let me know which new authors you enjoyed in 2020 in the comments below and make sure to check back next week for another exciting list.

Top Ten Tuesday – Favourite Audiobooks of 2020

On December 22, 2020December 28, 2020 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, List75 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 latest Top Ten Tuesday, participants needed to list the top ten books they hoped that Santa would bring them, however, I am going to do a slightly different topic. As we are nearing the end of 2020, I have decided to once again produce a series of lists that highlight my favourite books for the year, judged by several different criteria. I have previously listed my Top Ten Pre-2020 novels I read this year and now I am going to focus on something else, my Top Ten Favourite Audiobooks of 2020.

Readers of my blog only need to check out my extensive audiobook category to know that I have a lot of love for the audiobook format. In my opinion, the audiobook is often the best way to experience a good book, and in many cases this format makes a book more enjoyable for me. As a result, I listened to quite a few audiobooks this year, and while several of them are books that had been released before 2020 and featured in my Throwback Thursday posts, a large majority of them were released this year. There were some outstanding audiobook adaptions this year, and while I had a few books to choose from, I was eventually able narrow my absolute favourites down to a top ten list.

For this list I have only included audiobooks released in 2020 that I have listened to and completed, so I am excluding a few books that probably had some great audiobook productions (for example, I am sure that audiobooks of The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett or Devolution by Max Brooks were amazing, but I ended up reading a physical copy of them instead). While all of the books that made the top ten are outstanding novels, I have tried to take overall audiobook production into account while choosing my list. Each of the books that I included below had great narrators and I think that for most of these novels the audiobook format actually enhanced the story and helped me enjoy the book even more. I am extremely happy with how this list eventually turned out (with my typical extended honourable mentions section), and I had an amazing time coming up with this latest Top Ten article.

Honourable Mentions:

The Salvage Crew, written by Yudhanjaya Wijeratne and narrated by Nathan Fillion

House of Earth and Blood, written by Sarah J. Maas and narrated by Elizabeth Evans

Star Trek: Discover: Die Standing, written by John Jackson Miller and narrated by January LaVoy

I was also strongly tempted to use Star Trek: Picard: Last Best Hope, but I felt that Die Standing had a stronger and more exciting story that worked well with the audiobook format.

Song of the Risen God, written by R. A. Salvatore and narrated by Tim Gerard Reynolds

Top Ten List:

Battle Ground, written by Jim Butcher and narrated by James Marsters

The Thursday Murder Club, written by Richard Osman and narrated by Lesley Manville

Harrow the Ninth, written by Tamsyn Muir and narrated by Moira Quirk

Race the Sands, written by Sarah Beth Durst and narrated by Emily Ellet

Into the Fire, written by Gregg Hurwitz and narrated by Scott Brick

Star Wars: Doctor Aphra, written by Sarah Kuhn and narrated by a full cast

While a couple of other 2020 Star Wars tie-in novels did have more compelling or original stories, I felt that the combination of the fun adapted narrative in this audio drama and the excellent full voice cast made Doctor Aphra the best Star Wars audiobook of the year.

The Trouble With Peace, written by Joe Abercrombie and narrated by Steven Pacey

Ink, written by Jonathan Maberry and narrated by Ray Porter

The Kingdom of Liars, written by Nick Martell and narrated by Joe Jameson

One Minute Out, written by Mark Greaney and narrated by Jay Snyder

Well that is the end of this latest Top Ten list. All of the above novels are extremely good, and I would highly recommend each of them in their audiobook format. There is still time for me to listen to a few more great audiobooks this year, and I am planning to listen to either A Fool’s Hope by Mike Shackle or Cyber Shogun Revolution by Peter Tieryas next. Let me know what your favourite audiobooks of 2020 were in the comments below, and I might try and check them out.

Star Trek: More Beautiful Than Death by David Mack

On December 22, 2020August 20, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Alternate Timeline, Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Tie-in Novel2 Comments

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio (Audiobook – 11 August 2020)

Series: Star Trek – Kelvin Timeline – Book Two

Length: 8 hours and 16 minutes

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Amazon Book Depository

Prepare to once again dive into the alternate timeline version of the Star Trek universe, known as the Kelvin timeline, in this latest exciting tie-in novel from acclaimed author David Mack, Star Trek: More Beautiful Than Death.

Set shortly after the events of the 2009 Star Trek film, in which the planet of Vulcan was destroyed by the mad Romulan Nero, Captain James T. Kirk is now captain of USS Enterprise. Given a new mission, the Enterprise and its crew are ordered to rendezvous with Spock’s father, Ambassador Sarek, and escort him to the planet of Akiron. Akiron, a resource-rich world containing a substantial amount of dilithium, has recently sent out a distress signal to the Federation, who are hoping to exchange aid for favourable trading rights.

Arriving at Akiron, they find the planet in a state of chaos as the population are under attack by demonic dark-energy creatures, known as wights, who strike from the darkness, eat energy, and appear to suck the life right out of any living being. Determined to save the people of Akiron no matter what, Kirk begins his preparations to investigate the wights. However, before he can act, Sarek orders Kirk to abandon the mission and leave Akiron.

Refusing to obey Sarek’s orders, Kirk attempts to find the cause of the terrible events on Akiron and save who he can. With the help of an old mystic who believes that Kirk has faced the wights in his prior lives the Enterprise crew are soon able to discover the source of the wights on Akiron and the deadly potential their invasion has. As Kirk and his crew attempt to save the entirety of the planet they must overcome several deadly attacks as well as the sinister agenda of Sarek’s Vulcan aide, L’Nel, who hatches a dangerous personal plan to kill Spock. Can the Kirk and the Enterprise succeed, or will darkness engulf everything it touches?

Over the last couple of years, I have had a great pleasure of reading/listening to several amazing pieces of Star Trek fiction and I always love seeing the unique and varied tales that the talented team of tie-in authors can come up with. More Beautiful Than Death is an excellent example of this as it features a fantastic and captivating tale of exploration and desperation within an interesting part of the Star Trek canon. This latest novel is written by a true veteran of Star Trek fiction, David Mack, who has not only written a ton of different tie-in novels but who also has writing credits for two episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. More Beautiful Than Death is set in the alternate timeline introduced in the 2009 film Star Trek, known as the Kelvin timeline. This is the second Kelvin timeline novel I have read this year after previously enjoying The Unsettling Stars, and it set between the events of Star Trek and Star Trek: Into Darkness. More Beautiful Than Death ended up being an impressive and exciting Star Trek novel, and I had an amazing time listening to it.

Mack has come up with an excellent narrative for More Beautiful Than Death which sees the crew of this alternate timeline Enterprise attempt to defend an alien planet from a series of demonic creatures. The author writes this much like an episode of a Star Trek series, with the crew arriving at the planet, analysing the situation, facing all manner of conflicts, getting beat up and then engaging in a course of action to save the day. I felt that this worked extremely well for the novel and readers are treated to a captivating and dramatic science fiction story that easily keeps the attention from start to finish. The stakes are high throughout More Beautiful Than Death, and Mack keeps the tension and excitement going through much of the book, focusing both on the mission at hand and on the contentious personalities aboard the ship. There are a number awesome action-packed sequences throughout the book, and I especially enjoyed the various scenes that showed the Enterprise being attacked by the wights, forcing the crew to flee from an opponent they cannot even touch. There is also a particularly good subplot around the Vulcan characters aboard the Enterprise, with the mysterious character of L’Nel apparently plotting to kill Spock. I really enjoyed the way that Mack explored this subplot, showing L’Nel’s attack on Spock as a prelude to the rest of the book, and then slowly exploring the events that led up to it in the main story. This subplot combined with the main narrative extremely well and the result is a deeply compelling overall novel that I had an amazing time listening to.

Like many Star Trek tie-in novels, More Beautiful Than Death is best enjoyed by those readers who have some familiarity with the franchise. However, I felt that Mack made his latest book extremely accessible to new readers, and anyone can have a great time enjoying the fast-paced and intriguing novel with minimal knowledge of Star Trek lore. There are a lot of fun Star Trek elements associated with this novel, and I really enjoyed the author’s intriguing additions to the canon. Not only does this book serve as an excellent follow-up to the 2009 movie, showing the early missions of this younger Enterprise crew, but Mack also utilises the alternate timeline setting of this novel to come up with clever alterations to the classic Star Trek lore. One part of the book’s narrative ends up being an extremely ingenious homage to a key episode of The Original Series. Mack cleverly inserts this compelling altered version of this episode throughout the book, and it was deeply fascinating to see it unfold, especially as the events of the Star Trek film have ensured it is sufficiently different. This revision of a classic Star Trek episode was extremely impressive and it was one of my favourite parts of the entire book. All of this makes for an amazing Star Trek read, and fans of the franchise are in for a real treat with this book.

In addition to some cool call-backs to The Original Series, Mack also does an exceptional job bringing the Kelvin timeline versions of the Enterprise crew to life. The author ensures that all of the main characters in this book are portrayed slightly differently to how they are in The Original Series. For example, Kirk is a lot more impulsive, younger and combative than the classic version. Spock is a little stiffer, as he has only been influenced by Kirk a short while. Uhura is a lot more combative and emotional, mainly due to her relationship with Spock. Scotty is a lot more humorous, channelling his inner Simon Pegg, while McCoy is a lot gruffer and even more reluctant to get involved in the usual crazy Enterprise adventures (if that was possible). All this makes for a tie-in novel that is a lot more in line with the newer generation of films and I personally appreciated the effort from the author. I was tad disappointed that Sulu and Chekhov were not featured as heavily as the other major characters in the novel (something I have noticed in other Star Trek tie-in novels), but this was still a great novel for Star Trek characters.

I also appreciated how Mack takes the time to explore the psyches of several of his major characters, especially as it produces some compelling and dramatic results. This includes a deep dive into this version of Captain Kirk, such as exploring his mental state after the events of the 2009 film, with a particular focus on the guilt and hopelessness he felt over watching the destruction of Vulcan, which has made him more determined to save entire worlds. There is also an intriguing inclusion about Kirk’s past lives, with a couple featured as part of the plot. This leads into some great discussion about how the character is destined to be thrust into great and tumultuous events, which I quite enjoyed. Spock also gets a major focus in More Beautiful Than Death, thanks to the author’s inclusion of other Vulcan characters like Sarek and L’Nel. Spock’s complicated relationship with his father and other Vulcans is a major theme throughout the novel, and aspects of his life aboard the Enterprise, particularly Spock’s romantic attachment to Uhura and his loyalty to Kirk, increase the tension. This adds an excellent amount of drama to the narrative and it plays extremely well into the clever subplot around L’Nel, resulting in an intriguing and compelling narrative arc. I had a great time diving down into several of these characters, and it helped to produce a much more complete and emotionally driven narrative.

As I do with most Star Trek books, I ended up checking out More Beautiful Than Death in its audiobook format rather than getting a physical copy. The More Beautiful Than Death audiobook has a run-time of just over eight hours, making it an extremely easy audiobook to get through quickly. I had an amazing time listening to this audiobook, especially as it features the vocal talents of the outstanding Robert Petkoff. I have mentioned Petkoff before in several my reviews as he is the go-to narrator for any piece of Star Trek fiction that gains an audiobook format, due to his fantastic ability to perfectly replicate the cast members of both The Original Series and The Next Generation television shows. Petkoff did another exceptional job in More Beautiful Than Death, expertly bringing every key member of the Enterprise’s crew to life and providing fantastic voices for each of them. While they do sound more like The Original Series cast than the actors from the 2009 Star Trek film, this was still excellent work from Petkoff, and listeners are well aware which character is speaking at every point in the audiobook. I also liked the voices that Petkoff utilised for the various supporting characters in More Beautiful Than Death, and there are some great differentiation in tones between the various alien species, such as for the Vulcan characters Sarek and L’Nel. All of this makes for an epic listen, and Star Trek fans are strongly advised to check out More Beautiful Than Death in its audiobook format.

With his latest novel, David Mack continues to explore and add to the Star Trek expanded universe, this time diving into the intriguing Kelvin timeline. More Beautiful Than Death is an excellent and entertaining read that takes the reader on a gripping adventure in space. Thanks to the author’s excellent use of characters, Star Trek elements and his fantastic and unique narrative, More Beautiful Than Death is a fantastic Star Trek tie-in novel which will really appeal to established fans of this franchise. Highly recommended.

Amazon Book Depository

WWW Wednesday – 16 December 2020

On December 17, 2020 By The Unseen LibraryIn WWW Wednesday2 Comments

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words, where bloggers share the books that they’ve recently finished, what they are currently reading and what books they are planning to read next. Essentially you have to answer three questions (the Three Ws):

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

So, let’s get to it.

What are you currently reading?

Call of the Bone Ships by R. J. Barker (Trade Paperback)

Star Wars: Poe Dameron: Free Fall by Alex Segura (Audiobook)

What did you recently finish reading?

Hollow Empire by Sam Hawke (Trade Paperback)

Star Trek: More Beautiful than Death by David Mack (Audiobook)

Hideout by Jack Heath (Trade Paperback)

Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer (Trade Paperback)

What do you think you’ll read next?

Fool Me Twice by Jeff Lindsay (Trade Paperback)

That’s it for this week, check back in next Wednesday to see what progress I’ve made on my reading and what books I’ll be looking at next.

Top Ten Tuesday – Books on my Summer 2020-21 TBR

On December 15, 2020 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 Top Ten Tuesday, participants need to list the top releases that they are looking forward to reading this winter (or summer for us down here in Australia). This is a fun exercise that I have done for each of the preceding seasons, and it is always interesting to highlight the various cool-sounding books and comics that are coming out in the next few months.

For this list I have come up with 10 of the best novels that are coming out between 1 December 2020 and 28 February 2021. I have decided to exclude novels that I have already read, or I am currently reading, so that took a couple of key books off the list. Still, this left me with a rather substantial pool of cool upcoming novels that I am excited for, which I was eventually able to whittle down into a great Top Ten list (with a few honourable mentions). I have previously discussed a number of these books before a number of my Waiting on Wednesday articles and I think all of them will turn out to be some really impressive and enjoyable reads.

Honourable Mentions:

Star Wars: Doctor Aphra Vol. 1 – Fortune and Fate by Alyssa Wong and Marika Cresta – 26/01/2021

Daughters of Night by Laura Shepherd-Robinson – 1/02/2021

Serpentine by Jonathan Kellerman – 2/02/2021

City of Vengeance by D. V. Bishop – 9/02/2021

Top Ten List:

A Fool’s Hope by Mike Shackle – 3/12/2020

The first entry on this list is A Fool’s Hope by Mike Shackle, the sequel to Shackle’s epic debut, We are the Dead. I have been hearing some great things about his book already and I am really looking forward to checking it out. The trade paperback version of this novel is apparently not available down here in Australia until February 2021, but the audiobook version is already out, so I might grab that instead.

Colonyside by Michael Mammay – 29/12/2020

Colonyside is the third book in the amazing Planetside series by impressive science fiction author Michael Mammay. I have really enjoyed the first two novels in this series, Planetside and Spaceside, both of which were among my favourite books of 2018 and 2019 respectfully, and I cannot wait to see how the third entry in this excellent science fiction thriller series turns out.

Star Trek: Picard: The Dark Veil by James Swallow – 5/01/2021

Earlier this year I was lucky enough to read the first Star Trek: Picard novel, The Last Best Hope, which did an awesome job of bridging the gap between The Next Generation and Picard television series. Now acclaimed tie-in fiction author James Swallow presents the second Picard book, The Dark Veil, which will follow Captain William Riker and his crew as he gets drawn into the chaotic events the precede the Picard series. I had an amazing time reading the previous Picard novel and I have high hopes that this new upcoming book is going to be just as enjoyable.

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule – 5/01/2021

Now what would a Top Ten List on this book be without a Star Wars tie-in novel featured somewhere. Luckily there are several great upcoming Star Wars novels set for release in the next three months that I am quite excited to check out. Most of these novels are part of The High Republic range of Star Wars novels and comics, which are going to be set 200 years before the events of The Phantom Menace. Of these, the one I am most interested in reading is Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule. Light of the Jedi is set to be the main introductory novel to this new range of Star Wars fiction, and I am very curious to see what happens in this new period of the expanded universe. This new novel is written by one of the top authors of Star Wars fiction, Charles Soule, whose work on Star Wars comics such as the Dark Lord of the Sith comics (check out my review for Volume 2: Legacy’s End and Volume 3: The Burning Seas), has been rather incredible, and I am very excited to see what happens in this new book.

A Prince and a Spy by Rory Clements – 21/01/2021

The fifth book in Clement’s exciting Tom Wilde historical thriller series, A Prince and A Spy looks set to be an excellent novel to start off 2021 with. I have really enjoyed the previous entries in the Tom Wilde series, including Nucleus, Nemesis and Hitler’s Secret, and this upcoming book sounds particularly exciting as it contains a conspiracy set around the death of the Queen’s uncle during World War II.

Prodigal Son by Gregg Hurwitz – 2/02/2021

I am particularly looking forward to checking out Prodigal Son, the upcoming sixth book in Hurwitz’s Orphan X series. The Orphan X book are an awesome and wildly thrilling series that sets an elite and incredibly deadly former government assassin go up against a series of dangerous opponents across America. I have really enjoyed the last two novels in the series, Out of the Dark and Into the Fire, and I cannot wait to see how Prodigal Son turns out.

The Mask of Mirrors by M. A. Carrick – 27/01/2021

The Mask of Mirrors is an intriguing upcoming fantasy debut that I think has a lot of potential and should make for a compelling and entertaining read.

The Three Paradises by Robert Fabbri – 1/02/2021

One of my favourite historical fiction authors, Robert Fabbri, returns with the second entry in his Alexander’s Legacy series, The Three Paradises. The first book in this series, To the Strongest, was a lot of fun and I am very keen to see where this crazy historical story goes next.

Relentless by Mark Greaney – 23/02/2021

Top thriller author Mark Greaney returns with the 10^th novel in his Gray Man series, Relentless, that sees his protagonist, assassin Court Gentry, investigate a new conspiracy around the world. Greaney has been killing it over the last couple of years, especially with the previous two entries in the Gray Man series, Mission Critical and One Minute Out, and this upcoming book looks set to be another fantastic and captivating novel.

The Kaiser’s Web by Steve Berry – 23/02/2021

The final entry on this list is The Kaiser’s Web, the 16^th upcoming entry in the long-running Cotton Malone series. The Cotton Malone books are an exciting and interesting collection of novels that feature a series of fascinating history-based conspiracies. I have been really getting into this series over the last couple of years, and the last two novels, The Malta Exchange and The Warsaw Protocol, have contains some excellent and intriguing adventures. The Kaiser’s Web features another cool sounding plot and I cannot wait to dive into this latest adventure.

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. All of the above books should be pretty epic, and I cannot wait to read 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.

WWW Wednesday – 9 December 2020

On December 9, 2020 By The Unseen LibraryIn WWW Wednesday3 Comments

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

So, let’s get to it.

What are you currently reading?

Hollow Empire by Sam Hawke (Trade Paperback)

I was extremely glad when I got my copy of Hollow Empire the other day as I have been looking forward to reading this book for some time. I was a major fan of Hawke’s debut novel, City of Lies, and Hollow Empire continues the great story started in the previous book. I have made a great deal of progress on this book and I am having an amazing time reading it, especially as Hawke has come up with an elaborate and compelling conspiracy storyline. This is an epic novel and I am hoping to finish it off in the next day or so.

Star Trek: More Beautiful than Death by David Mack (Audiobook)

I was in the mood for a good tie-in novel so I thought I would check out another of 2020’s Star Trek novels, More Beautiful than Death. This is the second Star Trek novel set in the Kelvin timeline (the timeline used in the recent series of films) following on from The Unsettling Stars released earlier this year. I have only listened to an hour or so of this book at the moment, but it looks set to be an exciting and compelling novel.