Reviews of all sorts
1. First of all, the big news: I'm going to be one of the book reviewers at Urban Fantasy Magazine! It's a new online magazine of urban fantasy for adults that will be publishing its first issue in November. I'm already working on my first couple of reviews. If you write urban fantasy novels and want to get them reviewed there, please contact the editors.
There are a few of us doing reviews, so when you're deciding which reviewer to request, do keep in mind that my tastes tend to run toward the more fun/romantic end of urban fantasy rather than the darker/grittier end of the genre. I also love books where the magic feels very real and genuinely magical, and I love books with an intense focus on character. (For instance, I absolutely adored V.E. Schwab's Vicious, which was dark and romance-free but had the most fabulous characters I'd read in a long time.)
Just a few examples of other urban fantasy novels I've really enjoyed include most of Ilona Andrews's books, Patricia Briggs's first few Alpha and Omega books, G. Willow Wilson's Alif the Unseen (if that counts as urban fantasy? still debating in my head), Kat Richardson's Greywalker novels, and Mike Carey's Felix Castor novels. (I would say Deb Coates's books, too, but those are clearly rural fantasy, not urban fantasy, so...?)
2. In a totally different genre, I read my favorite MG novel in months this weekend, Dana Alison Levy's The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, which was hilarious, moving, sweet, smart and wonderful. It'll sit on my bookshelf of favorite MG family novels next to the Penderwicks, Hilary McKay's Casson Family books, and Susie Day's Pea's Book... series. You can read my full Goodreads review here.
3. Years ago, back when I was writing a romance book blog under my married name, I reviewed a book I absolutely LOVED, Rose Lerner's A Lily Among Thorns, a Regency romance for adults. It still stands out in my memory as my favorite book that I ever reviewed on that blog - it was so smart, so fun, so genuinely romantic...and also so different, in a couple of key ways, from most of what I was reading in the genre at the time. It just got re-issued, today, from a different publisher, and in honor of the republication, here's a link to my original review (updated to include the new cover and info at the end).
4. And some really lovely reviews have been coming in for my Kat novella, Courting Magic - yay! Here are some from Brandy at Random Musings of a Bibliophile, from Quinn at KidsReads.com, and from A Library Mama. A couple of quick snippets from the reviews:
Quinn says: "...And did I mention that it’s funny? I started reading this on the subway and within a few pages I was practically laughing out loud with delight. I’m sure everyone around me thought I was insane. Consider yourself warned."
A Library Mama says "...Burgis crams a lot of wonderful into a very short number of pages without things feeling rushed."
And Brandy says, "...Basically this book was all that I could have asked for. Happiness bubbled up inside me as I was reading it, like I was a bottle of soda being shaken up. It just made me effervescent when I was done, walking around grinning like a fool."
And I was beaming when I finished reading the reviews. :) I am SO GRATEFUL to everyone who's read or reviewed my novella! Thanks so much, guys. (And a quick reminder: you can read the first two chapters of Courting Magic here.)
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Whew! Now time to get back to my reading. :)
There are a few of us doing reviews, so when you're deciding which reviewer to request, do keep in mind that my tastes tend to run toward the more fun/romantic end of urban fantasy rather than the darker/grittier end of the genre. I also love books where the magic feels very real and genuinely magical, and I love books with an intense focus on character. (For instance, I absolutely adored V.E. Schwab's Vicious, which was dark and romance-free but had the most fabulous characters I'd read in a long time.)
Just a few examples of other urban fantasy novels I've really enjoyed include most of Ilona Andrews's books, Patricia Briggs's first few Alpha and Omega books, G. Willow Wilson's Alif the Unseen (if that counts as urban fantasy? still debating in my head), Kat Richardson's Greywalker novels, and Mike Carey's Felix Castor novels. (I would say Deb Coates's books, too, but those are clearly rural fantasy, not urban fantasy, so...?)
2. In a totally different genre, I read my favorite MG novel in months this weekend, Dana Alison Levy's The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, which was hilarious, moving, sweet, smart and wonderful. It'll sit on my bookshelf of favorite MG family novels next to the Penderwicks, Hilary McKay's Casson Family books, and Susie Day's Pea's Book... series. You can read my full Goodreads review here.
3. Years ago, back when I was writing a romance book blog under my married name, I reviewed a book I absolutely LOVED, Rose Lerner's A Lily Among Thorns, a Regency romance for adults. It still stands out in my memory as my favorite book that I ever reviewed on that blog - it was so smart, so fun, so genuinely romantic...and also so different, in a couple of key ways, from most of what I was reading in the genre at the time. It just got re-issued, today, from a different publisher, and in honor of the republication, here's a link to my original review (updated to include the new cover and info at the end).
4. And some really lovely reviews have been coming in for my Kat novella, Courting Magic - yay! Here are some from Brandy at Random Musings of a Bibliophile, from Quinn at KidsReads.com, and from A Library Mama. A couple of quick snippets from the reviews:
Quinn says: "...And did I mention that it’s funny? I started reading this on the subway and within a few pages I was practically laughing out loud with delight. I’m sure everyone around me thought I was insane. Consider yourself warned."
A Library Mama says "...Burgis crams a lot of wonderful into a very short number of pages without things feeling rushed."
And Brandy says, "...Basically this book was all that I could have asked for. Happiness bubbled up inside me as I was reading it, like I was a bottle of soda being shaken up. It just made me effervescent when I was done, walking around grinning like a fool."
And I was beaming when I finished reading the reviews. :) I am SO GRATEFUL to everyone who's read or reviewed my novella! Thanks so much, guys. (And a quick reminder: you can read the first two chapters of Courting Magic here.)
__
Whew! Now time to get back to my reading. :)