Sorry for the lack of post last week...
I was a bit dead to the world for a couple of days. BUT! I am very much alive again, and just in time for this week's releases!
So, heads up, this one will have a few extra things going on.
I will talk about the event I missed last week, some cool book mail, some things I have added to the blog, and for the main event, I will besquealing talking calmly about The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon.
Without further ado...
How to explain/ describe how excited I am about this book... I don't know if there are exact words. Just noises. Incoherent noises.
Not long after I started working at my current job, I was doing some shelving, when the owner of the store, while walking towards me, asked me if I would be interested in the book that was in her hand. I had my back to her at that moment, but as soon as I saw that it was The Priory of the Orange Tree, I let out the most intense gasp. UUUUMMMMM YESSSSSS!!!! (2nd place goes to when I met Dessa. but that story is for another post...)
I then proceeded to literally hug the book for the next while, before finally forcing myself to hide it my locker, so that I wouldn't be distracted by the sight of it for the rest of my shift.
Now while I read the ARC of this beautiful beast of a book, I am curious to see how the finished copy will be different.
With my somewhat limited understanding of the book business, is that between an ARC, at least of this quality, and the finished product, there usually isn't much change in the way of story; the final edits focusing more on typos, layouts, and the like.
However, Samantha Shannon, said herself, that she tends to do quite intensive editing until the very last minute. I even remember her mentioning on her social media, that at the time that I received my copy, she still had another few rounds of major edits to go before she was going to call it final.
This is such a gorgeous book, inside and out, that of course I had to pre-order a finished copy for myself.(Unfortunately, it arrived damaged, so I am now awaiting a new copy.😭)
I can't forget to mention that it has maps (that were missing in the ARC). THE MAPS. So, I am a sucker for a pretty map. I actually "doodle" maps when I am either stressed... or bored. Nothing like these though.
Now, while this book is no small feat, at 848 pages, it is a stand alone. Which means, for the comparability to say, J.R.R. Tolkien or George R. R. Martin, this book is actually quite well contained. And what's even better, in my opinion, is that Shannon doesn't drag on. Each page has action and intention. There is a richness and real diversity in cultures and characters.
While I have struggled to get into most other epic high fantasy novels, such as Lord of The Rings or Game of Thrones, with The Priory, I had no trouble what-so-ever. Quickly drawn into this realm, Samantha Shannon has this magical way with world building.
Set in medieval high fantasy world, The Priory of the Orange Tree, is described as a feminist, female driven re-imagining of George & The Dragon. But it is so much more than that.
A world divided into East and West, refusing to see eye to eye. The West fears the dragons; the East reveres them.
The Queen of the West, Sabran, is the last of her line and in need of an heir. For her bloodline is what keeps the Dragon they all fear most trapped away. But there are those who would wish harm to the Queen. Which is, in part, where Ead comes in. Lady in waiting by day, Secret protector by night, she is bound to protect the Queen, even if it means breaking the law.
I am going to pause there, because honestly, I could probably talk about this book indefinitely. And this is already getting to be a long post. (But not as long as the book! Or as well written...)
🐉As I was reading the book, a coworker of mine would ask me how my "Dragon Book" was going. Dragon book is right. There are soooo many dragons, Daenerys Targaryen would be jealous.🐉
Having written young adult books across the sub-genres, I first heard of Charbonneau with The Testing Trilogy, which was a series that I think went a bit under the radar for a lot of people because it came out, after and was similar enough to The Hunger Games and Divergent.
Now, with a new book, Verify. It is set to be published September 24th. I am curious to learn more about this book.
Now, if you're not familiar with Graywolf Press, it is an independent, nonprofit publisher that has only been getting bigger and better and stronger over the years. In the past few years especially, where it seems like there books have been on the short lists for, and winning, just about every major literary award.
Casey is the sales director, and a really cool guy.
The book Casey/ Graywolf sent me was Lanny by Max Porter, which will be published May 14th.
This will be Max Porter's second book published ( both with Graywolf Press), the first being Grief is the Thing With Feathers.
I don't know too much about this book, yet, but I did a very quick flip through, and the way that the text is done, looks fascinating.
Last Tuesday (The 19th)
R is for Rebel by J Anderson Coats (Paperback, $7.99)
Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen (Paperback, $10.99)*
The Familiars by Stacey Halls (Hardcover, $26.99)*
Last Friday (The 22nd)
The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas ( Hardcover, $26.99)
The Heavens by Sandra Newman ( Hardcover, $26.00)*
This Tuesday ( The 26th)
We Are Okay by Nina LaCour (Paperback, $10.99)*
Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte (Hardcover, $17.99)*
Hired by Zoey Castile (Paperback, $15.95) *
I'll Be Gone In The Dark by Michelle McNamara ( Paperback, $17.99)*
Women Warriors by Pamela D. Toler (Hardcover, $28.95)*
Last of Her Name by Jessica Khoury (Hardcover, 17.99)
Tell Me Everything by Sarah Enni (Hardcover, $17.99)
I was a bit dead to the world for a couple of days. BUT! I am very much alive again, and just in time for this week's releases!
So, heads up, this one will have a few extra things going on.
I will talk about the event I missed last week, some cool book mail, some things I have added to the blog, and for the main event, I will be
Without further ado...
🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon (Hardcover, $32.00)
Not long after I started working at my current job, I was doing some shelving, when the owner of the store, while walking towards me, asked me if I would be interested in the book that was in her hand. I had my back to her at that moment, but as soon as I saw that it was The Priory of the Orange Tree, I let out the most intense gasp. UUUUMMMMM YESSSSSS!!!! (2nd place goes to when I met Dessa. but that story is for another post...)
I then proceeded to literally hug the book for the next while, before finally forcing myself to hide it my locker, so that I wouldn't be distracted by the sight of it for the rest of my shift.
(the tweet I posted when I first got the ARC)
Now while I read the ARC of this beautiful beast of a book, I am curious to see how the finished copy will be different.
With my somewhat limited understanding of the book business, is that between an ARC, at least of this quality, and the finished product, there usually isn't much change in the way of story; the final edits focusing more on typos, layouts, and the like.
However, Samantha Shannon, said herself, that she tends to do quite intensive editing until the very last minute. I even remember her mentioning on her social media, that at the time that I received my copy, she still had another few rounds of major edits to go before she was going to call it final.
This is such a gorgeous book, inside and out, that of course I had to pre-order a finished copy for myself.(Unfortunately, it arrived damaged, so I am now awaiting a new copy.😭)
( close-up of the cover on the finished copy)
I can't forget to mention that it has maps (that were missing in the ARC). THE MAPS. So, I am a sucker for a pretty map. I actually "doodle" maps when I am either stressed... or bored. Nothing like these though.
(the maps in the book)
While I have struggled to get into most other epic high fantasy novels, such as Lord of The Rings or Game of Thrones, with The Priory, I had no trouble what-so-ever. Quickly drawn into this realm, Samantha Shannon has this magical way with world building.
Set in medieval high fantasy world, The Priory of the Orange Tree, is described as a feminist, female driven re-imagining of George & The Dragon. But it is so much more than that.
A world divided into East and West, refusing to see eye to eye. The West fears the dragons; the East reveres them.
The Queen of the West, Sabran, is the last of her line and in need of an heir. For her bloodline is what keeps the Dragon they all fear most trapped away. But there are those who would wish harm to the Queen. Which is, in part, where Ead comes in. Lady in waiting by day, Secret protector by night, she is bound to protect the Queen, even if it means breaking the law.
Then there is Tané, who lives in the East, and has trained all her life to become one of the land's prestigious dragonriders. An honour, that is only awarded to a select group every 50 years. An honour that would prove all the more difficult to achieve than originally anticipated.
We also get the perspective of Dr. Niclays Roos, who although originally from the West, resides in the East, after being banished from the Queen. Somewhat settled in the last remaining trading post to his former home.
And then there is Loth, who is the heir apparent to a wealth province in the North, on the West side. However, he seems to be absent from court at the start of the book....
🐉As I was reading the book, a coworker of mine would ask me how my "Dragon Book" was going. Dragon book is right. There are soooo many dragons, Daenerys Targaryen would be jealous.🐉
(artwork in the hardcover of the different types of dragons)
While Amazon currently has the exclusive rights for the audiobook 🤢, if you want something to listen to, Samantha Shannon has created a Spotify Playlist for The Priory of the Orange Tree. In fact, she has done this for all of her books. 🎶
(screenshot of the Spotify playlist from my phone)
More Samantha Shannon
🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉
Book Mail!
Some fun things that I got yesterday....
🐉
One:
Mail from author, Joelle Charbonneau. Having written young adult books across the sub-genres, I first heard of Charbonneau with The Testing Trilogy, which was a series that I think went a bit under the radar for a lot of people because it came out, after and was similar enough to The Hunger Games and Divergent.
Now, with a new book, Verify. It is set to be published September 24th. I am curious to learn more about this book.
(The letter I got in the mail)
For More Joelle Charbonneau:
🐉
Two:
Mail from Graywolf Press/ Casey O'Neil. Now, if you're not familiar with Graywolf Press, it is an independent, nonprofit publisher that has only been getting bigger and better and stronger over the years. In the past few years especially, where it seems like there books have been on the short lists for, and winning, just about every major literary award.
Casey is the sales director, and a really cool guy.
The book Casey/ Graywolf sent me was Lanny by Max Porter, which will be published May 14th.
This will be Max Porter's second book published ( both with Graywolf Press), the first being Grief is the Thing With Feathers.
I don't know too much about this book, yet, but I did a very quick flip through, and the way that the text is done, looks fascinating.
(The copy of Lanny I received)
For More Graywolf Press:
🐉
...Should I post more book mail?
🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉
As I mentioned, the reason I didn't post anything last week was because I was sick and sleeping. Another down side to being dead to the world sick was that I had to miss an author event that I had been really looking forward to for awhile.
Last Tuesday, another great local bookstore, Red Balloon Bookshop, hosted two Young Adult authors: Kristen Simmons, who's book The Deceivers was published earlier this month, and Susan Dennard, with The Bloodwitch, that was published just last week.
Last Tuesday, another great local bookstore, Red Balloon Bookshop, hosted two Young Adult authors: Kristen Simmons, who's book The Deceivers was published earlier this month, and Susan Dennard, with The Bloodwitch, that was published just last week.
Both books contain a lot of action and a bit of thievery. They also have strong, complex characters trying to survive their circumstances. Check 'em out.
Despite not being able to make it to the event, I want to talk about the authors and their books anyway.
(my copies of The Deceivers and Bloodwitch)
I first met Kristen Simmons in the Fall of 2016, at The Heartland Fall Forum. I was there as a bookseller for my previous job. Simmons's book Metaltown had just been published.
(My Copy of Metaltown)
Her new book, The Deceivers, is action-packed contemporary novel, set in urban Michigan.
🐉
I was first introduced to Susan Dennard and The Witchland Series, when I saw her talk on a panel at BookCon a couple of years ago. Now, the third in the series is available. (side note: it is the fourth Witchland book published overall.)
I also follow her on Instagram. On there she talks about all kinds of things; writing tips, tv fandoms, to more universally personal issues.
I also follow her on Instagram. On there she talks about all kinds of things; writing tips, tv fandoms, to more universally personal issues.
(BookCon 2017 (L-R: V.E.Schwab, Cora Carmack, Susan Dennard) Photo Credit: Me)
More Susan Dennard:
🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉
One last order of business. (Again sorry - not sorry- for the looooooong post.)
I have been working on getting the reference pages up and running, so that there is any easy go-to central place for all of the links for the books and their authors. It is quite the data entry task.
Well, I now have January up and running! I am hoping to have February's live sometime next week. Maybe.
We shall see...
🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉
The other books that have come out in the last two weeks:Last Tuesday (The 19th)
R is for Rebel by J Anderson Coats (Paperback, $7.99)
Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen (Paperback, $10.99)*
The Familiars by Stacey Halls (Hardcover, $26.99)*
The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas ( Hardcover, $26.99)
The Heavens by Sandra Newman ( Hardcover, $26.00)*
This Tuesday ( The 26th)
We Are Okay by Nina LaCour (Paperback, $10.99)*
Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte (Hardcover, $17.99)*
Hired by Zoey Castile (Paperback, $15.95) *
I'll Be Gone In The Dark by Michelle McNamara ( Paperback, $17.99)*
Women Warriors by Pamela D. Toler (Hardcover, $28.95)*
Last of Her Name by Jessica Khoury (Hardcover, 17.99)
Tell Me Everything by Sarah Enni (Hardcover, $17.99)
🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉
And Remember:
And Remember:
Physical books are available to order from Moon Palace Books , or your favourite indie bookstore
Prefer E-Books? Check out Kobo
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