SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: The Name of All Things by Jenn Lyons

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: The Name of All Things by Jenn Lyons: https://t.co/k0liKprpuB Short Review: 8 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 29, 2020

Short Review (cont): The 2nd in this epic fantasy series (after The Ruin of Kings) is much improved, with a more cohesive plot and a better cast of characters as the plot advances in this grey world and dark prophecies begin to come true. (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 29, 2020

The Name of All Things is the second book in Jenn Lyons' "A Chorus of Dragons", her five book dark (maybe grimdark) epic fantasy series which began with The Ruin of Kings earlier in 2019 (which I reviewed here).  I had very mixed feelings about The Ruin of Kings - one one hand, I only liked but didn't love the lead character and felt no attachment to the other characters involved, found the narrative structure unnecessarily distracting, and the plot often unfocused as it tried to setup both short term and long term plot arcs, often in confusing fashion.  On the other hand, I did find the prose hard to put down, with me reading the entire near 600 page hardcover while on a flight home from Seattle, and I was intrigued to see where things went from its conclusion.  So I figured I'd give its sequel a shot and if it didn't improve, I'd DNF it and move on, though I was in no rush to get to it.

Fortunately, the Name of All Things is a substantially improved novel, and made my decision well worth it.  The book features a cast of new far more interesting characters, a plot that is far more focused with its short term and long term plot arc in sync, and is a hell of a lot better at explaining things as it goes along, with less things seemingly pulled out of nowhere.  It still features the same extraneous narrative structure - a story being told by a narrator who footnotes the whole thing (in a way that is less entertaining than the author believes), with most of the story told in parts by alternating narrators, - but the structure works better here, even if it really could probably be cast aside.  The end result is an epic fantasy novel that is a much better novel than its predecessor and has kept me entertained and interested in seeing where the series goes from here.

Note: Minor Spoilers for The Ruin of Kings are inevitable below.  You have been warned.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: The Firmament of Flame by Drew Williams

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: The Firmament of Flame (The Universe After #3) by Drew Williams: https://t.co/YUzJlQEW4N Short Review: 9 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 28, 2020

Short Review (cont): The 3rd book in the Universe After space opera series follows Jane and Esa as they follow the path of the Cyn in hopes of restoring the universe...only to find its biggest threat. A fantastic installment all around, as the series truly takes the leap (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 28, 2020

The Firmament of Flame is the third book in Drew Williams' "Universe After" space opera series, which began with The Stars Now Unclaimed (Reviewed Here) and continued with A Chain Across the Dawn (Reviewed Here).  I've really enjoyed the series - which I've been reading in audiobook format - which channels influences like Mass Effect, Star Wars, and Alien through its first two books, with enjoyable action, some great characters, and plots that twist and turn but never overstay their welcome.  So I was really excited to see this book, the third book, coming out this February and took it out of the library in both ebook and eaudiobook format.

And wow, The Firmament of Flame really kicks things up a notch, surprising me by not concluding the series - it is not a trilogy - but continuing to develop both our main characters in interesting ways and confronting them with new strong conflicts.  It's the first book to end on a cliffhanger, and it's a hell of a cliffhanger, with the story taking this series to another level of emotional impact, to go along with its always entertaining action sequences.  I cannot wait for the next book in this series to come out, and when it does I will be there pretty much immediately.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Silver by Linda Nagata

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Silver by Linda Nagata: https://t.co/FjnjoVMu3L Short Review: 8.5 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 27, 2020

Short Review (cont): The 2nd Inverted Frontier novel is also a sequel to Nagata's "Memory", as our future nanotech-infused humans to a world built with the mysterious Silver, which they must master to defeat their godlike enemy. More character-focused & excellent overall (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 27, 2020

Silver is the second in Linda Nagata's "The Inverted Frontier" series and a direct sequel* to her previous novel, "Edges", which I reviewed previously on this blog here.  Edges was a different type of novel than what I usually like - it was more high concept scifi, dealing with various concepts derived from nanotechnology than character-based fiction - but I enjoyed it quite a bit, as Nagata managed to introduce a lot of concepts quickly and effectively.  The results was a fun plot that featured a number of characters using the mechanics of those concepts against each other in a battle for survival and exploration, ending on a cliffhanger with things left into a new status quo.

*Silver is also a sequel to Nagata's prior novel, "Memory," which I haven't read.  But while readers of that book may gain greater enjoyment and seeing that book's world and characters again, knowledge of it isn't necessary, as that book's elements are introduced to the reader as if the reader has no foreknowledge, even if references to that prior book are made.  So I had no problem without having read Memory.  Reading this book without reading "Edges" first however, will not work, as the book does not bother reintroducing concepts/characters from that book.  

Silver is a very different book than Edges, with it being a lot more character focused than its predecessor, and yet it's still a highly enjoyable and effective one.  New interesting concept mechanics - some of which may have been from another novel - are still introduced and are central to the plot as well mind you, but a lot of these are even more magic-like than the science-like concepts of the previous novel (yes yes, Clarke's Third Law) and more of the focus is on the characters this time around.  The result is a fun and solid novel, even if it's very different from what I expected, and I hope it's not the end of the Inverted Frontier series, as this does close one story arc.

Fantasy Novella Review: Spellswept by Stephanie Burgis

Spellswept by Stephanie Burgis

Spellswept is chronologically the first story in Stephanie Burgis' "Harwood Spellbook" romantic fantasy series - although it's actually a prequel to the main book series.  The story takes place in an alternate version of Victorian England ("Angland") where the country is ruled by a government of women politicians - the Boudiccate - with men relegated to the arts of spellcasting and magery - and being good husbands instead.

The novella focuses upon Amy Standish, a young woman who grew up an orphan intending to take the next step into Anglish politics, and to prominent status in the Boudiccate, by marrying a gentleman mage to boost her status....if only there wasn't this other man, a non-mage, for whom she had true feelings.  Add in an underwater ballroom, a reversal of gender politics, and magic, and you have a story in which even a reader unfamiliar with the series will have a good expectation of whats going to happen, but which is executed so deftly to still be a really enjoyable romantic fantasy.

Note: I read Spellswept in audiobook form, as the novella is part of the audiobook for Snowspelled, the first book in the Harwood Spellbook series.  The reader is excellent, so recommended in this format.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Ballistic by Marko Kloos

SciFi/Fantasy Advance Review: Ballistic by Marko Kloos: https://t.co/tvxr1Q67a7 Short Review: 7 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 25, 2020

Short Review (cont): The second book in Kloos space opera (epic SF?) series, "The Palladium Wars" improves upon the first as the conspiracy in the system begins to unravel, but just still moves a bit too slowly. Strong characters but the plot is glacial. (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 25, 2020

Full Disclosure:  This book was read as an e-ARC (Advance Reader Copy) obtained via Netgalley from the publisher in advance of the book's release on May 26, 2020 in exchange for a potential review.  I give my word that this did not affect my review in any way - if I felt conflicted in any way, I would simply have declined to review the book.


Ballistic is the second book in Marko Kloos' space opera series, The Palladium Wars, following up from the series opener, "Aftershocks" (Reviewed Here).  Kloos' "Frontlines" MilSci series is one of my favorite ongoing series at the moment - and I'm not a particularly big fan of MilSci, so that's saying something - so I was excited before Aftershocks to see what he would do with a genre I liked a bit more.  But while Aftershocks had a number of really interesting characters, and a solid setup, it felt way too much like a prologue than a complete book for my tastes, with none of the characters' arcs having any satisfying resolution for me to grab hold of.  So I was hoping the sequel, this book, would move forward a bit more quickly and give me more meat to hold onto.

Ballistic is better about this than Aftershock....but still suffers from the same problems.  If combined with Afttershocks into a single book, it'd probably be a far more satisfying novel, but as book 2, it continues to be disappointingly slow.  The character buildup remains mostly excellent, and most of the characters' arcs feature some major events happening, but Kloos continues to slowplay the overall plot developments of the series - even plot developments that Kloos has clearly been hinting at for two entire books now.  Even as a reader who prefers books high on character to being high on plot, there just isn't enough here to grab me, so unless you have Kindle Unlimited and or can get in on this series while its on sale (rather likely), I can't wholeheartedly recommend it, despite the solid writing.

SciFi Novella Review: Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi

Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi

Riot Baby is the recently released novella from SF/F author Tochi Onyebuchi (Beasts Made Of Night, War Girls), known for his African Myth/History inspired SF/F.  Riot Baby takes a different approach: it's a near-SciFi (starting in the recent past, entering the present, and then featuring the near future) look at American instead, particularly Black America as it exists in today's United States, through the eyes of two Black siblings.

The result, as much of this literature has to be, is a story that is full of righteous anger.   The imagery within is brutal, and there is no happy ending here - but the story is powerful and worth your time, even if it's not unique - and honestly, the fact that this novella is not unique in its story or ending only adds to that power and urgency.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: The Storm of Life by Amy Rose Capetta

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: The Storm of Life by Amy Rose Capetta: https://t.co/dUiDDLnlWL Short Review: 7 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 20, 2020

Short Review(cont):The sequel to the great The Brilliant Death continues the story of our non-binary couple, as they attempt to prevent the Capo's plan of using the Stregas' magic to cement his rule. Unfortunately the plot is a mess & feels like a lot of stuff was left out (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 20, 2020

The Storm of Life is the sequel to Amy Rose Capetta's YA Fantasy, "The Brilliant Death", which came out back in 2018, and is the conclusion to this duology.  I found The Brilliant Death (review here) to be one of my favorite works of 2018, a tale of two genderfluid protagonists trying to find out who they truly are as they also deal with the dangerous political situation in a fantasy country (based in language at least upon Italy).  The book ended on a tremendously satisfying note, to the point where it didn't really require a sequel with our lead characters having fulfilled their character arcs, even though there were clear plot points unresolved - the main antagonist left alone to continue his plan for instance.  So yeah, I was excited when I realized the sequel, The Storm of Life, was finally coming out to start 2020.

Unfortunately, The Storm of Life is a mess.  The book reverses course on plot points repeatedly throughout - including plot points and character developments from the first book - introduces things out of nowhere, and just can't seem to figure out what it wants to be doing for much of the book.  Our two lead characters - Teo and Cielo - remain great for the most part, as they continue to try to figure out the situation...and themselves out, and a few new characters are welcome additions.  And the ending is satisfying, so it's not like this book is bad.  But after its predecessor, this just feels like a disappointment, as if the author switched from a trilogy to a duology at last moment and the missing middle book just can't be ignored.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: City of Stone and Silence by Django Wexler

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: City of Stone and Silence by Django Wexler: https://t.co/wolAks99u6 Short Review: 9 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 19, 2020

Short Review (cont): The sequel to Ship of Smoke and Steel continues this dark YA Fantasy story by splitting the narrative: while Isoka tries to return on Soliton, her sister Tori finds herself - and her mind controlling powers - caught up in revolution. Really strong. (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 19, 2020

City of Stone and Silence is the 2nd book in Django Wexler's young adult fantasy "Wells of Sorcery" trilogy, which began last year with Ship of Smoke and Steel (Reviewed Here).  I liked that book a lot, due to Isoka, its strong morally grey - and often pragmatically ruthless - heroine, as well as its dark setting and satisfying ending.  The book had a few cliche tropes thrown in as well that made it somewhat predictable, but it was executed really well, so I was interested to see where the book would take Isoka from where it left off.

And yet, City of Stone and Silence surprised me tremendously in how it upped the ante from an already strong first novel, in completely different ways than I expected.  The book doesn't only continue Isoka's story, but splits its narrative, with half of the story now devoted to Isoka's 14 year old sister Tori, whose narrative forms a strong and compelling contrast with that of her sister's arc.  The result is a dark YA fantasy that is a hell of a read, and I cannot wait for the finale.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Lady Hotspur by Tessa Gratton

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Lady Hotspur by Tessa Gratton: https://t.co/wonIZcbSNN Short Review: 6.5 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 17, 2020

Short Review (cont): A stand-alone sequel to The Queens of Innis Lear and a genderflipped queer fantasy adaptation of Shakespeare's Henry IV Pt. 1, Lady Hotspur features three great leads but also a total mess of a plot, with some serious issues in its resolution. (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 17, 2020

Lady Hotspur is the second modern fantasy adaptation of a classic Shakespeare work by author Tessa Gratton - in this case, it's a genderflipped and queer retelling of Henry IV, Part 1.  The novel also serves as a stand-alone sequel to Gratton's "The Queens of Innis Lear" (Reviewed on this blog here), her prior adaptation of King Lear.  I thought Queens was a really well written book, with some great characters, although its turn towards tragedy was a bit much for me.  Still, I enjoyed the other work of Gratton's I've read - her YA Horror/Fantasy "Strange Grace" - so I was very interested in giving this a try.

Note:  I have not read the original Shakespeare work, and deliberately avoided even wiki-ing it until I completed the novel, and felt very comfortable with the text even without the foreknowledge.

Lady Hotspur is as well written as Queens, but is honestly overall a bit of a mess.  As a stand-alone novel, the story has some severe pacing issues, with a final act that tries to reverse the story from impending tragedy to a happy ending way too abruptly, and a major character who disappears from the narrative for long stretches of time.  The characters are written extremely well mind you, but the events that occur in the plot often don't feel like they're set up properly, with an ending that has some issues.  Moreover, the best parts of the novel essentially act as an extra epilogue to Queens, and thus will only be enjoyable for readers of that novel.

Note: I read this mostly as an audiobook, and the audiobook reader is well worth your time, so if you want to read this book, that format is solid.

More after the jump.

Fantasy Novella Review: Moontangled by Stephanie Burgis

Disclaimer: I received this novella as an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a review.  I give my word that didn't bias me in this review in any way - if I felt a conflict, I wouldn't have reviewed it.

Moontangled by Stephanie Burgis:

Moontangled is a novella in Stephanie Burgis' Fantasy Romance series, "The Harwood Spellbook," and is technically the fourth in the series (after two short novels and a prequel novella).  I hadn't read any of the prior works in the series before reading this novella, and that wasn't really a problem: the novella gives you all the details you need to know in its short text.  I've seen writers I like tweet out Burgis' work before, and I've grown to like fantasy romance, so it was an easy request when this novella showed up on NetGalley 2 days before its release date (today).  And Moontangled turned out to be a really lovely (F-F) fantasy romance, rewarding my decision quite a bit and making me want to go back and check out the rest of this series.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett

SciFi/Fantasy Advance Book Review: Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett: https://t.co/4tDCyt27tc Short Review: 8.5 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 13, 2020

Short Review(cont): The sequel to Foundryside sees Sancia & her friends use their wits to survive a battle of godlike beings & build a better future, one where power is used for good instead of oppression....if that's even possible. Strong but w/some 2nd in trilogy problems(2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 13, 2020

Full Disclosure:  This book was read as an e-ARC (Advance Reader Copy) obtained via Netgalley from the publisher in advance of the book's release on April 21, 2020 in exchange for a potential review.  I give my word that this did not affect my review in any way - if I felt conflicted in any way, I would simply have declined to review the book.

Shorefall is the latest novel by SF/F author Robert Jackson Bennett (The Divine Cities) and the second book in his Founders Trilogy, which began in 2018 with Foundryside (reviewed here).  Foundryside was easily one of my books of last year, with strong characters, a mechanic of the setting in Scriving that was really clever and allowed for some very tricky plot turns, and some strong themes of Power, Privilege, and Oppression that may be familiar to readers of RJB's Divine Cities trilogy, but were explored in some different and fascinating ways.  So it wasn't a surprise that I managed to finish my prerelease copy (eARC) of this book within a single day, despite it not being a short book at all.

Shorefall is a pretty good follow up, although it has some of the typical issues with second novels in trilogies which tell a single overarching story (in contrast to how The Divine Cities essentially told three stand alone stories which built upon each other).  The story remains clever, with some great characters, higher stakes, and some absolutely fantastic dialogue and plot developments, which continue telling a story with similar themes to its predecessor.  On the other hand, the wonder of some of the mechanics of this world are a bit lost in the process, as the story moves on from being a battle of mortals trying to shape reality to a battle of god-like beings.  It may be the weakest of the 5 RJB novels that I've read as a result, but it's still a strong work and I will be eagerly anticipating the conclusion.

Note: Spoilers for Foundryside are inevitable below, but I'll try not to go overboard on them.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Race the Sands by Sarah Beth Durst

SciFi/Fantasy Advance Book Review: Race the Sands by Sarah Beth Durst: https://t.co/8nA9QM0oFD Short Review: 8.5 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 11, 2020

Short Review (cont): A sometimes dark stand alone fantasy story in a world where reincarnation is real, and a young woman and a desperate mother find themselves racing a monster for their futures...and that of the Empire. Really enjoyed the characters and windy plot. (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 11, 2020

Full Disclosure:  This book was read as an e-ARC (Advance Reader Copy) obtained via Netgalley from the publisher in advance of the book's release on April 21, 2020 in exchange for a potential review.  I give my word that this did not affect my review in any way - if I felt conflicted in any way, I would simply have declined to review the book.


Race the Sands is the latest novel from SF/F author Sarah Beth Durst, writer of the Renthia novels (The Queen of Blood) among a whole bunch of others.  The Renthia novels were dark fantasy novels whose settings I enjoyed quite a bit, along with a few really highlight characters, so I was excited to see a new novel from Durst show up on NetGalley.  This book is an entirely stand alone novel, with no signs within that any follow ups are expected.

That said, I wouldn't mind if we get more books in this world, because Race the Sands is once again really well done in setting and characters.  Like the Renthia books, the book features a number of dark plot developments (although not as many as in Renthisa), so if you're looking for a fun light fantasy read this isn't for you.  But if you're looking for a fantasy story that's a dark at times but not too dark, with a plot that is executed rather well and characters who are easy to enjoy, if a bit simple sometimes, you could do a whole lot worse.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: A Dream So Dark by L L McKinney

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: A Dream So Dark by L.L. McKinney: https://t.co/QAdG8b2BdQ Short Review: 7 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 6, 2020

Short Review (cont): The sequel to A Blade so Black follows Alice as she returns to Wonderland to try & defeat the Black Knight & save her friends in the face of new & familiar dangers. A bit of a mess in the plotting, but Alice is great & the story is still very enjoyable (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 6, 2020

A Dream So Dark is the second in L.L. McKinney's "The Nightmare-Verse" trilogy, which began with A Blade So Black (Reviewed Here).  The series is a portal fantasy based upon Alice in Wonderland, in which our heroine, a black high school girl from Atlanta, secretly has a double life fighting monsters called Nightmares in parallel world to prevent them from coming over to our world....all the while dealing with some of the real issues facing black teens in the real world.  I very much enjoyed the setup of the first book, but felt that the story felt a bit too much like the beginning of a larger story for my tastes, so it wasn't quite satisfying.  Still, having enjoyed the setting and lead heroine, I was looking forward to the sequel, and here it is.

And A Dream So Dark is a very enjoyable novel, if also more than a bit of a mess.  The story follows immediately from the last book's cliffhanger, expands the world in some interesting ways, and continues to grow our fantastic main character.  On the other hand, it also removes one of the more interesting subplots quickly and features some plot developments that feel kind of shallow and unsupported.  But the novel is still really fun, and I am interested in seeing where the trilogy goes in its final volume from here.

Warning: Light spoilers for A Blade So Black below.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: They Will Drown in Their Mothers' Tears by Johannes Anyuru (translated by Saskia Vogel)

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: They Will Drown In Their Mothers' Tears by Johannes Anyuru (translated by Saskia Vogel) https://t.co/MBHt9lk7iZ

Short Review: 9 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 5, 2020

Short Review (cont): Swedish Novel about a woman who as part of a Charlie Hebdo-like attack changes her mind at the last moment and claims to come from a terrifying realistic dystopian future where non-Christians are no longer citizens and face holocaust like conditions (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 5, 2020

They Will Drown in Their Mother's Tears is a novel first published in Sweden by Johannes Anyuru back in 2017 which was translated into English last year.  It's a short novel, and one in which fits in the subgenre of potential science fiction, as I've talked about elsewhere on this blog - where it's a question for much of the book whether this is science fiction or not (I won't spoil in this review).  The novel won or was nominated for a bunch of awards for literary fiction upon is original release, so I was interested in reading the translation.

And it's a very fascinating, if depressing and maybe predictable, novel to read in English.  Taking inspiration from the Charlie Hebdo Shooting, this novel is a tale of both radicalization and the potential radical response to the horrors of radicalization by the terrorized, and the cycle that results.  It packs a lot into this short package, and is absolutely worth a read.

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: The Hidden Girl and Other Stories by Ken Liu

SciFi/Fantasy Anthology Review: The Hidden Girl and Other Stories by Ken Liu: https://t.co/MeCHSuA7xp Short Review: 9 out of 10 (1/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 4, 2020

Short Review (cont): A 2nd Collection of the short fiction of Ken Liu, one of the best SciFi/Fantasy writers today, features a ton of strong stories, often dealing with ideas about our future (Uploaded Minds, AIs, VR, etc.), with a few fun stories mixed up withe serious. (2/3)

— Josh (garik16) (@garik16) February 4, 2020

Full Disclosure:  This book was read as an e-ARC (Advance Reader Copy) obtained via Netgalley from the publisher in advance of the book's release on February 25, 2020 in exchange for a potential review.  I give my word that this did not affect my review in any way - if I felt conflicted in any way, I would simply have declined to review the book.

The Hidden Girl and Other Stories is the second short fiction collection (The First was The Paper Menagerie) by SF/F author Ken Liu, one of my favorite writers in genre - and in my opinion one of the strongest at using the genre of SF/F - mainly through science fiction - to convey ideas about humanity and about humanity's future.  Liu is one of the more versatile writers in the genre today really, as one might expect from a dude who also works as a translator (see The Three Body Problem), lawyer, and computer programmer.

This collection is, like pretty much all of Liu's work, really good, featuring a diverse range of stories, hitting on different scifi and fantasy concepts, although the concept of humanity uploading their minds into a virtual space is a common concept at the heart of a number of these stories.  I would say however that nearly all of these stories are pretty serious explorations of ideas relevant to humanity today, and a number of them are pretty depressing, so if you're looking for a fun read, most of this collection will not provide for you.  Be warned.

Perfect Scores: My 10 out of 10 SciFi/Fantasy Books (that I've read over the past few years)

I was a science fiction and fantasy book fan growing up, but after I went to college, my reading rate really slowed in the genre.  My interest in the genre however piqued up again a little over two years ago now (oddly, it was spurned by me hearing about the Hugo problems with the puppies), and over that span I've read over 200 books in the genre from many different authors.  As I've finished each book, I've posted a review of these books on my twitter account and given each of these books a score out of 10 (well, originally it was out of 5).

I consider myself a harsh grader, and while I may give more scores of 8 or above than you'd think from chance (even assuming that I'm good at selecting books to read), I rarely give books a perfect score.  But of the over 200 books that I've read, I have given at the moment FIFTEEN books a perfect score of 10 stars.  Are these books perfect?  No.  But these are the books that I have loved so much that I consider any flaws to be so minor compared to the rest of the book as to be irrelevant.

I'm going to keep this post up top on my blog so it's easy to find (and hopefully I will update it a few more times as I find other such books, but I generally add a book to this list maybe once every three months), but here are the books that so far I've read over the past 2 years that I've considered to be absolute masterpieces.  I will update this post if I come across other books worthy of this list, naturally.

NOTE:  Each of these books earned by highest ranking, so please don't think I like any of these books more than the others just because I wrote more below on a specific book (books I reviewed on this blog will necessarily get less writing here since I've written about them before):