All posts tagged: S.A. Chakraborty

Top 5 Tuesday: Books of Magic

Published by Alexandra

Welcome to another Top 5 Tuesday, hosted by the Bionic Bookworm herself, Shanah! I’m way behind on writing and posting this one today (because of my bright, shiny, distracting, new iMac—yes, I’m writing this one the old iMac). Anyway, where was I? Oh, yes, it’s Tuesday, so this week we’re talking books with Magic. It’s only natural (or is that, obvious) to want to start this one with none other than Rowling’s Harry Potter series, or Tolkien’s Lord Of The Rings but I’m sure everyone is going to mention them. I’m going to go with a few less obvious choices of book I’ve read over the years, that for me at least, have been a magical read. #1. GLORY ROAD — Robert A. Heinlein This one is older than me (I think) but was one of the first Heinlein books I read, and yes, while it is classified as SF, it also features a great deal of magic. Science-based magic … Star is Empress of the known universes, and, eh, wields a very unusual magic …

Fall Book Tag — 2018

Published by Alexandra

Shanah over at Bionic Book Worm, has created a Fall Book Tag, which is basically a tag we can all do for the fun of it, especially as it’s just once a year. So here are my entries for the Fall Book Tag. Crisp Fall Air — A book that felt fresh and new: For me, this has to be The Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie by Alan Bradley, it’s not normally the kind of book I would pick up, let alone read. But I was delighted I took the plunge. Because, for me at least, this was a laugh out loud read, with so many quirky moments that gave me flashbacks to my own childhood. I finished reading this one with a huge smile on my face. I love Flavia and her crazy family, and want more of the ‘pie’. Howling Winds — An ending that blew you away: I should have realised it was coming, given everything that was happening and the way the story unfolded, the trail of breadcrumb clues, …

Book Review: THE CITY OF BRASS

Published by Alexandra

DETAILS Title: THE CITY OF BRASS Author: S.A. Chakraborty Publisher: Harper Voyager ISBN: 9780062678119 Genre: Epic Fantasy BACK COVER BLURB Nahri has never believed in magic. Certainly, she has power; on the streets of 18th century Cairo, she’s a con woman of unsurpassed talent. But she knows better than anyone that the trade she uses to get by—palm readings, zars, and healing—are all tricks, sleights of hand, learned skills; a means to the delightful end of swindling Ottoman nobles. But when Nahri accidentally summons an equally sly, darkly mysterious djinn warrior to her side during one of her cons, she’s forced to accept that the magical world she thought only existed in childhood stories is real. For the warrior tells her a new tale: across hot, windswept sands teeming with creatures of fire, and rivers where the mythical Marid sleep; past ruins of once-magnificent human metropolises, and mountains where the circling hawks are not what they seem, lies Daevabad, the legendary city of brass, a city to which Nahri is irrevocably bound. WHAT I THOUGHT …

First Impressions Friday: THE CITY OF BRASS

Published by Alexandra

It’s that time of week, again, which means, it’s First Impressions Friday. For those of you who are unfamiliar, #FIF is a weekly meme created by J.W. Martin. The goal is to talk about a book you recently started reading then share your first impressions, predict what you think will happen, and then say whether you think you’ll enjoy it. I picked up a copy of THE CITY OF BRASS by S. A. Chakraborty, last weekend, but was only able to start reading it late Tuesday, so I didn’t get very far. But, oh my, have I been binge-reading ever since. So much so, I really, and I mean, really, don’t want to put this book down to eat, drink, or sleep! I was sucked in from the very first pages and am hooked on Nahri, Ali, and Dara’s stories. This is an immense One Thousand and One Arabian nights kind of tale full of myth, magic and mystery. At once compelling and intriguing, brimming with action and adventure and yes, elements of horror too—ghouls …

There Is A Time To Read …

Published by Alexandra

And a time to buy! And, as my To Buy list had gotten so unruly these last few months, I’ve had to go through it and pare it down to a manageable size. As a result, I know have three lists: To Buy, Am Considering, and, of course, the ever growing Wish List, which is almost 300+ books in total. Thanks in part, to all the recommendations from everyone out there. You’re killing me, people! This weekend saw me create a new master—to buy list—over on Indigo Chapters, so I can also keep track of just how much money all these wonderful books might cost me. I can also decide, by reading the reviews and the back cover blurb, whether or not books are in the right list. Or if they should be moved back to the Wish List. You know how it is, procrastinating over what you think you want, and what in reality, you can afford. Anyway, I can now play virtual shuffle board with books from one list to another, without sacrificing …