JanineBook ReviewsReading lists10 Comments

January 17, 2019

REVIEW: The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

JanineDNF ReviewsDancer / heist / hotelier / Magic / magical powers / Paris / theft / turn of the century / YA fantasy9 Comments

Dear Ms. Chokshi, A YA fantasy about a heist set in Belle Epoque Paris sounded like exactly my cup of tea, so I happily requested an ARC of The Gilded Wolves after hearing about it. The novel, set in an alternate universe in 1889, begins with a theft. In this ... more >

January 7, 2019

Janine’s Best of 2018

JanineNeed A Rec! / Reading Lists / Recommended Reads / Top Ten Lists#ownvoices / African American / Asperger's / California / class-difference / Contemporary / Doctor / Eastern Europe / econometrician / escort / Fantasy / India / Italy / journalist / LGBT characters / magic users / moneylender / monsters / Native Americans / Ocean changelings / Paranormal / police / queen / thief / turn of the century / Urban-Fantasy / Washington DC / werewolves15 Comments

I love end-of-year reading lists so I hope our readers share their own favorite books of 2018 in the comments. Here are the 2018 releases I enjoyed most: Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik Naomi Novik’s fantasy novel is the story of three young women’s quest for empowerment — a Jewish ... more >

December 14, 2018

What Janine is Reading, Listening To, and Seeing — Fall 2018

JanineB+ Reviews / Book Reviews / Need A Rec! / Reading Lists / Recommended ReadsReading lists10 Comments

Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse This is a fantasy set in a post-apocalyptic world on a Dinetah (Navajo) reservation which has survived at a time when much of the American Southwest has been flooded and is now underwater. Ironically, the reservation is desert-dry and water there is scarce. The ... more >

November 28, 2018

REVIEW: Lies Sleeping by Ben Aaronovitch

JanineB+ Reviews / Book Reviews / Recommended Readsdiversity / London / Magic / police procedural / Recommended Read / UF / Urban-Fantasy2 Comments

Dear Mr. Aaronovitch, The last book in your urban fantasy Rivers of London series saw some big developments, including the unmasking of police constable Peter Grant’s nemesis, the wizard known as the Faceless Man. Lies Sleeping, book seven in the series, finds the hunt for the Faceless Man and his ... more >

JanineA Reviews / A- Reviews / B Reviews / Book Reviews / D Reviews / DNF Reviews#ownvoices / Eastern Europe / Judaism / magical powers / moneylender / winter / YA fantasy19 Comments

I believe this is our first four-person review here at DA. Sirius, Jennie, Jayne and myself review Naomi Novik’s Spinning Silver with reactions that run the gamut from “Loved it!” to “Couldn’t finish it.” We hope you’ll enjoy our review. –Janine Janine: Spinning Silver, Naomi Novik’s standalone follow-up to the ... more >