Tales from the Circle

It's only April, but I already know this book is going on my top reads of the year. Sarah Mensinga has written another excellent fantasy book with unique world-building, excellent character development, a wonderful exploration of systemic problems within a society, and lots of magic and adventure! Shimmerdark starts off in the claustrophobic environment of a cave where the main character Xylia is sheltering from vicious nocturnes with a few others during a month-long darkness. I wasn't necessarily hooked right from the start with this introductory chapter, but I've read another book by the author and I know she's got excellent world-building skill so I kept reading and was soon glued to the pages. The story and world became extremely interesting as Xylia and her friends got rescued from the island they'd been shipwrecked on and went back to their intriguing world. I particularly love how the steampunk-like technology is woven in with the magical powers that exist in...

Amari and the Night Brothers is an excellent middle-grade fantasy book that can be read and enjoyed by adults. It follows the adventures of a young girl named Amari who discovers that there is a supernatural world that exists right alongside and within the normal world she's so used to. Her brother, who is now missing, has left her a nomination for a tryout at the Department of Supernatural Affairs, so she has the opportunity to go to a summer camp and try out for a position in the Bureau. This not only open up a whole new world for her, it also allows her to find out more about why he's missing and to look for him.  What follows is an excellent adventure where Amari learns to deal with an navigate her role in the supernatural world while at the same time learning to deal with and understand the racism and prejudice she faces in the real world. From the very beginning of the book the author shines a light on the prejudice that Black children face in their schools and daily live...

Of Blood and Steel by Seymour Zeynalli is an easy to read, adventure story that I was happy to turn to whenever I had free time. It follows the adventures of a young woman who is trying to get herself and a baby safely through rough terrain and the hardened old assassin that she hired to escort them. I thoroughly enjoyed that traditional fantasy feel of these people going on a long journey and facing interesting new threats and creatures and situations along the way. And as they go on, they also discover more about each other and about themselves. There's a great story here, hints of great world-building, and clearly a lot of storytelling potential by this new author. I'm going to be keeping an eye on his later works, because I think with a bit more experience he's going to soon be telling some exceptional stories.  I mentioned that this has that traditional fantasy adventure feel that I enjoyed. I must also mention that the author set out to bring the unique flavour of the...