Tavern Chat: J.E. Hannaford

On Apr 13, 2023Apr 13, 2023 By Rowena AndrewsIn Fantasy, Q&A / Interview, Self-PublishedLeave a comment

Hello!

Today I am delighted to be bringing the Tavern Chat back to the blog, albeit in a slightly abbreviated form due to scheduling conflicts on my end. And today, I am welcoming J.E. Hannaford the author of the Black Hind’s Wake Duology (The Skin & The Pact), and of the upcoming Gates of Hope which is the first book in theAulirean Gates trilogy.

As some of you may have seen, Gates of Hope has been hit by Amazon issues and lost it’s preorders, so please do keep checking either twitter or the author page on amazon for updates on the release and give this book all the love and support on it’s release. (I mean how can you resist, it has the best boy on the cover!)

Book Summary:

The Watcher shattered the Gates.

Now hope must arise from the shards.

Darin and Suriin enter the Black Palace of the So’Dal, at a time when monstrous Edgelands creatures return to the skies over Caldera.
After exhibiting magical traits thought lost, Darin is drawn into a secret society charged with keeping the Watcher’s secrets. Now he must balance learning to control his magic, caring for Star, his new companion, and finding a way to sustain the Howlers’ power for long enough to protect Caldera from the predatory creatures of the Edgelands.

Before she arrived at the Black Palace Suriin broke the ancient rules of the So’Dal to save the life of the person she loves the most. As her search for a cure delves deeper under the mountain, is there any price she won’t pay?

On the outer moon of Tebein, Elissa’s newly awakened magic will endanger her home and family. Now she must race to find help for those she leaves behind as she escapes those who want her, and all those like her, dead.

One wrong decision by any of them could return legends to life and end five hundred cycles of peace. Will they find the solutions they need in time?

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Book Review: Gates of Hope (Aulirean Gates #1) – J.E. Hannaford

On Apr 5, 2023 By Rowena AndrewsIn Fantasy, Review, Self-Published1 Comment

Hello!

Today I am delighted to be reviewing Gates of Hope, the first book in the Aulirean Gates trilogy which is the upcoming series from J.E. Hannaford the author of The Skin & The Pact (The Black Hind’s Wake). I adored that first duology and they set Hannaford as a must-buy author for me, and Gates is set to follow that trend. In full disclosure, I read an early version of Gates of Hope and fell in love immeditely with this world and these characters (and the bestest boy), and I have since reread it through the ARC.

Gates of Hope is out in the wild next week on the 14th April, and I know that the author is going to be at Eastercon if you want to pick up a copy from her in person!

Disclaimer – I received a copy in exchange for an honest review, all thoughts are my own.

Book Summary:

The Watcher shattered the Gates.

Now hope must arise from the shards.

Darin and Suriin enter the Black Palace of the So’Dal, at a time when monstrous Edgelands creatures return to the skies over Caldera.
After exhibiting magical traits thought lost, Darin is drawn into a secret society charged with keeping the Watcher’s secrets. Now he must balance learning to control his magic, caring for Star, his new companion, and finding a way to sustain the Howlers’ power for long enough to protect Caldera from the predatory creatures of the Edgelands.

Before she arrived at the Black Palace Suriin broke the ancient rules of the So’Dal to save the life of the person she loves the most. As her search for a cure delves deeper under the mountain, is there any price she won’t pay?

On the outer moon of Tebein, Elissa’s newly awakened magic will endanger her home and family. Now she must race to find help for those she leaves behind as she escapes those who want her, and all those like her, dead.

One wrong decision by any of them could return legends to life and end five hundred cycles of peace. Will they find the solutions they need in time?

Continue reading →

My ’10’ Favourite Books of 2022 & My Book of the Year

On Dec 29, 2022Jan 6, 2023 By Rowena AndrewsIn Lists2 Comments

Hello!

It’s that time of year again when we look back at the books we’ve read and loved this year, and while 2022 has been A YEAR, I was blessed with many fantastic books (and an evergrowing TBR from the ones I didn’t get too). It’s always difficult to narrow that down to ten (and I did sneak in an extra one), and then my absolute favourite on top of that (because I have no self control). Now these are my personal favourites, whether because of emotional resonance, sheer enjoyment, favourite characters or any one of the many criteria readers love books, and I’ve listed them in no particular order (because I can’t choose and they’re all bloody good and you should absolutely add them to your TBR for 2023 if you haven’t already read them.

This year, all the books featured are indie/self-published which reflects just how much of my reading falls into that category these days. There are wonderful trad books out there and I still really enjoy them, but indie books are just so wonderfully varied and the community so rich that I find myself leaning that way more and more.

Now without further ado…the list!

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My 10 Most Anticipated Books for 2022

On Dec 27, 2022Jan 6, 2023 By Rowena AndrewsIn ListsLeave a comment

Hello!

The first list post of the week is taking a look ahead to 2023 as Hogmany looms. This year has been a great year for books, and next year is already shaping up to be a great year with both new releases and those already on my TBR.

For the purposes of this list, I have only included books that are (a) coming out in 2023 and (b) as confirmed as they can be (allowing for life and everything else that might get in the way.

And because I have no self control I might have snuck an extra one in too…

However, before we get into that list. I also want to shout out the following who may or may not have books out in 2023, but would be on my most anticipated list if and when they do (and who I will wait however long it takes for their books). Firstly, Sarah Chorn who has the Necessity of Rain in the works which is shaping up to be one of the most emotional and beautiful books, and I am already very much in love with this book and can’t wait to see the finished product whenever it is ready. Secondly, Luke Tarzian who is currently working on a project called Atrocious Puppets, and every snippet he has shared so far has been hauntingly compelling to read. Another is Nathan Hall who is working on A Fort of Winter which is the sequel to An Altar on the Village Green which was my favourite book of 2021. And finally, Jonathan Nevair who has just released Stellar Instinct which was such a fun read, and whose Wind Tide series is absolutely fantastic, and I look forward to discovering what his next project is going to be!

And now on with the list…

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Book Review: The Pact (The Black Hind’s Wake #2) – J.E. Hannaford

On Aug 22, 2022Jan 9, 2023 By Rowena AndrewsIn Fantasy, Review, Self-Published3 Comments

Hello!

Today I am delighted to be reviewing The Pact by J.E. Hannaford which is out on the 1st September, and is the final book in the Black Hind’s Wake Duology. I adored the first book The Skin (You can read the review HERE), and The Pact has firmly established J.E. Hannaford as a must-read author for me, and I am already ridiculously excited for her next project Gates and whatever will come next in the world of the Black Hind’s Wake.

Disclaimer – I received a copy in exchange for an honest review, and I also had the honour of being a beta reader for this one, however all thoughts are my own.

Book Summary:

‘How, can you let things fade so far? I had a reason. I had cause, I was limited. You – you hide in your lakes playing games. This world crumbles, the last refuge north of the Everstorm is Mynyw and you have let it fall into jeopardy.’

The new King of Terrania may no longer hunt for Old Ones, but the world is far from safe. As the crew of Black Hind continues to search out the Old Ones and return them to their rightful homelands, the reach of a dead consort haunts the new king from beyond the grave.

In distant Mynyw a loyal guardian discovers the unravelling of an ancient pact. As Black Hind sails into his territory, he has a decision to make. Can he overcome his prejudice and ask for help from the strangers before the last refuge falls?

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Blog Tour (Book Review): The Skin (Black Hind’s Wake #1) – J.E. Hannaford

On Oct 20, 2021Oct 20, 2021 By Rowena AndrewsIn Fantasy, Review, Self-Published7 Comments

Hello!

Today I’m delighted to be reviewing ‘The Skin’ by J. E. Hannaford as part of the blog tour organised by Storytellers on Tour. This is the first book in the Black Hind’s Wake series, and what a way to start a series! I absolutely loved this book, and there is a chance to win a copy of this one for yourself at the end of the post.

I hope that you will check out the book and the author, and enjoy the rest of the tour with the schedule in the banner below or (HERE).

Disclaimer – I received a copy in exchange for an honest review, all thoughts are my own.

Book Review:

You cannot fix this world alone, Selkie.’

‘I know. But, when we die, all that is left are shadows of our lives preserved in the memories of those who remain. I plan on leaving an exceptionally long shadow, filled with ripples of moonlight for those I helped, and darker than the worst of nightmares for those who wronged us.’

How far would you go to save your skin?

I’m a selkie, trapped above the waves until I can recover my skin. Humans used to call us seal-wives many years ago – before they broke the planet. Up here, the magic is fading and Old Ones like me are traded as trophies for rich and powerful humans to display in collections.

Without the Old Ones, the magic fades, without magic, the planet dies.

Humankind has gone too far and someone has to put a stop to it. I just wasn’t expecting it to be me.

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