Monday Minis

Unravel The Dusk by Elizabeth Lim is the follow-up to Spin the Dawn, a whimsical Asian-inspired fantasy in which Maia pretends to be her brother to take part in a competition to find the next imperial tailor. With the help of magical scissors she sets out on an adventure that ends up much greater than expected. This sequel has the odd position of following up on a book that I kind of thought should have been a standalone. So, it feels like certain themes seemed to repeat themselves, the plot was sometimes a bit meandering but it was still very enjoyable. It is a compulsively readable series, and while book one was rightly called out for ableism (Maia’s brother has a limp, which she fakes for much of the book) this is something that is not present in this sequel, which I really appreciated. I also really liked the coherent world-building with references to the in-universe story of Six Crimson Cranes, which the author recently released as a standalone fairy-tale. All in all, this is a sweet YA fantasy, great for bingeing and a cosy night in now that it’s getting colder.

Alpha Night by Nalini Singh has been lying around on my partially read pile for far too long. It probably wasn’t the wisest move to try and dive into the middle of a series without being caught up on what happened beforehand (entirely mea culpa) but back then I thought, oh, a paranormal romance will be a fun enough read. But how wrong I was. I did enjoy the beginning when I started it many moons ago, and didn’t feel as overwhelmed as one might think reading a book out of sequence, until I put it aside once the romance parts started happening. Because oh boy, did that transport me back a decade in the development of female-orientated fantasy. Not remembering that that was why I put the book aside a while ago, I recently picked it back up to finally finish, but had to decide to DNF – going from unrelated conversation to rough sex within two sentences is just not my jam. I prefer my romantic scenes to be slow-burn with tangible buildup, and not banging for the sake of banging. I think this might also have to do with the shifter dynamics inherent in Singh’s work (as the lovely Kat explained to me, who is much more well-versed where it comes to romance), so, not a book for me, unfortunately.

Lakesedge by Lyndall Clipstone is so damn compulsively readable. I just wanted to dip in for a bit, and oops, the book is done. It coasts by on a dark, gothic atmosphere, and gives me such Hades and Persephone vibes – though Violeta, the main character seems to be more interested in the local broody boy than in the powerful death deity she deals with. While this is more of a gothic fantasy, this has hit the spot of my dark academia craving as it kind of matches the aestethic and vibes of those books and I’m now already longing for the sequel. It isn’t the most inventive story or has the most unique characters, but it is incredibly compelling and the combination of all these individual elements turn it into something special. If you’re into YA fantasy, and like your books dark and gloomy, this is definitely one to put on the TBR. A very very solid 4* read for me – and one I’ll probably be rereading soon.