The Book Plank

Twelve Kings by Bradley Beaulieu, The Song of the Shattered Sands #1  Or so it seems, until Çeda, a brave young woman from the west end slums, defies the Kings’ laws by going outside on the holy night of Beht Zha’ir. What she learns that night sets her on a path that winds through both the terrible truths of the Kings’ mysterious history and the hidden riddles of her own heritage. Together, these secrets could finally break the iron grip of the Kings’ power...if the nigh-omnipotent Kings don’t find her first. Sharakhai, the great city of the desert, center of commerce and culture, has been ruled from time immemorial by twelve kings—cruel, ruthless, powerful, and immortal. With their army of Silver Spears, their elite company of Blade Maidens, and their holy defenders, the terrifying asirim, the Kings uphold their positions as undisputed, invincible lords of the desert. There is no hope of freedom for any under their rule. I have been reading a lot of Science Fiction and Urban ...

The Thousand Names by Django Wexler, The Shadow Campaigns #1 In the desert colony of Khandar, a dark and mysterious magic, hidden for centuries, is about to emerge from darkness. Marcus d’ Ivoire, senior captain of the Vordanai Colonials, is resigned to serving out his days in a sleepy remote outpost, when a rebellion leaves him in charge of a demoralised force in a broken down fortress. Winter Ihernglass, fleeing her past and masquerading as a man, just wants to go unnoticed. Finding herself promoted to a command, she mut rise to the challenge and fight impossible odds to survive. Their fates rest in the hands of an enigmatic new Colonel, sent to restore order while following his own mysterious agenda into the realm of the supernatural. Ever since finding out about The Thousand Names I just wanted to read this book. Having been termed with “flintlock fantasy”, the beautiful cover and the interesting synopsis, this book just had to be great. And you know what i...

The Oathbreaker’s Shadow by Amy McCulloch, The Knots Sequence #1 Fifteen-year-old Raim lives in a world where you tie a knot for every promise that you make. Break that promise and you are scarred for life, and cast out into the desert. Raim has worn a simple knot around his wrist for as long as he can remember. No one knows where it came from, and which promise of his it symbolises, but he barely thinks about it at all—not since becoming the most promising young fighter ever to train for the elite Yun guard. But on the most important day of his life, when he binds his life to his best friend (and future king) Khareh, the string bursts into flames and sears a dark mark into his skin. Scarred now as an oath-breaker, Raim has two options: run, or be killed. Set to be released in the June 2013, The Oathbreaker’s Shadow is the debut young-adult book of Amy McCulloch, who is a commissing editor for Harper science fiction and fantasy department Voyager. The Oathbreaker’s...