Book Corner News & Reviews: Fantasy

Showing posts with label Fantasy. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 10, 2025

Fantasy Review: Thieves Carousel by Briana Chen

This morning, I have a fantasy novel to share in our book review feature spot! Learn about Thieves Carousel, the first book in The Carousel Series by Briana Chen. Read my thoughts on the book and be sure to enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.

Book Title:  THE THIEVES' CAROUSEL by Briana Chen
Category:  Adult Fiction (18+), 300 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Z-Choice International
Release date:  August 2025
Content Rating: PG-13 +M: Some bad language, violence, and dark themes (implied abuse, self-harm)

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About the Book

What price would you pay to undo a death?

In the shadowed streets of Aspizia, two thieves—Lyo Morandi and Jasper Bray—risk everything to rewrite the past. Haunted by the death of their friend Milo, they set their sights on a forbidden prize: a ring reputed to alter time.

To steal it, they must infiltrate the Thieves’ Carousel, a ruthless exhibition where the city’s most dangerous criminals flaunt their treasures—and fight to keep them. But as Lyo and Jasper descend deeper into the catacombs beneath Aspizia, they uncover a truth far more dangerous than they imagined: the ring’s power comes at a devastating cost.

Loyalties splinter. Betrayal lurks around every corner. Loyalties splinter. As the game turns deadly, they must ask themselves: How far will they go to rescue the past and save the future—and how much of themselves are they willing to lose?

The Thieves’ Carousel is a gripping tale of ambition, sacrifice, and the haunting price of second chances.

My Review

The Thieves' Carousel Builds the Series' World. The author does an excellent job of creating the darkness of her fantasy world — and bringing her characters' stories into it. The novel is action-packed, but slows at times as the scenes are set and the world develops for readers. The book is a great series opener that introduces readers to the characters and builds the world while still leaving some mystery and unknowns for revelation in future novels.

Expect to Root for the Main Characters. Lyo and Jasper are the perfect duo in this novel, and the author builds their relationship and complex character traits to create a team readers will root for from beginning to end. While the characters face fantasy elements, the author's realism makes them relatable and intense.

Would I Recommend The Thieves' Carousel by Briana Chen? IF you enjoy dark fantasies, this is a good series opener. I love the characters and really look forward to seeing future adventures with them. The novel does have some slow stretches, but your patience is rewarded with an overall clever storyline and strong characters.

Buy the Book

Amazon ~ B&N
add to goodreads

Meet the Author

BRIANA CHEN is an award-winning fantasy author and repeat offender when it comes to falling headfirst into fandoms. She loves morally gray characters, unpredictable plot twists, and books that make her stare at a wall for hours afterward.

She is also a digital artist, gamer, and graduate of Carnegie Mellon University. She currently spends her time battling artist’s and writer’s block—sometimes simultaneously—and pursuing more adventures to add to her hoard of treasure.

connect with the author: website ~ instagram ~ goodreads

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Wednesday, November 19, 2025

Angela Thompson 5:38 AM 0

Cover Reveal Spotlight: Seven Point Eight - Virago by K.M. Gruchelska

This morning, we are joining the cover reveal for fantasy novel Seven Point Eight - Virago! Check out the cover, learn about the book and author K.M. Gruchelska!

Science-Fiction / Fantasy

Date Published: 11th December 2025

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About the Book

The Price of Salvation

The OOBE Project reached its shocking finale, leaving Tahra’s friends trapped in worlds they were never meant to enter.

Haunted by the mission’s catastrophic end, Tahra must put aside her own trauma and use her expanding abilities to stage a dangerous rescue. But as Paul faces the political consequences of failure, the manipulative Max seeks to weaponize Tahra’s unique power for his own agenda.

To bring her friends home, Tahra must walk the fine line between salvation and madness. Can she resist the dark temptation Max offers without compromising her soul, or will the very act of saving her friends destroy them all?

Written in the style of a TV series, Seven Point Eight has a twist of sci-fi intrigue which appeals to readers who love Stranger Things, Fringe, the X Files, and other paranormal thrillers with deeper layers.

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Pre-Order Today

About the Author

K.M. Gruchelska is a speculative fiction writer who travels extensively, having lived in Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia. Her career has been varied and exciting, from a stint as a fitness instructor, to working abroad teaching English as a Foreign Language in schools and universities. She is currently based in Uzbekistan, where she coordinates a centre for academic writing.

She is a child of the world, full of conjecture and imagination, and she regards herself as a global citizen. Her characters and situations reflect the diversity and wonder that she experiences during her travels, combined with a philosophical flavour and human drama.

In everyday terms, she enjoys different cuisines and making bougie tea, and has a cat that she adopted from Saudi Arabia. She considers the cat to be her soul animal because she hates water but loves tuna. Her secret dream is to own a pancake bar and an English school.

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Wednesday, November 12, 2025

Angela Thompson 2:06 AM 0

Young Adult Fantasy Spotlight: Lost by L.M. Preston

My daughters and I loved fantasy stories when they were tweens and teens! Today, I have a young adult fantasy novel to share! Learn about Lost, the first book in The Mistfits series and author LM Preston!

The Mistfits Series, Book 1

Fantasy

Date Published: October 1, 2025

Publisher: Phenomenal One Press

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About the Book

Penelope Pawn had an addiction. She liked candy, sword-fighting shadows, and boys. Still, something was seriously wrong and she couldn’t put her finger on it. Being homeless wasn’t as bad for her as it was for most. She had a way of collecting kids that turned into family, like brothers and sisters. Unfortunately, every time another kid agreed to come with her to the hiding place she’d created, a rush of power would surge through her like she’d consumed a drug, sealed a deal, or done something wrong.

There was one guy, though, who wouldn’t come. When Terek showed up at her doorstep, a place well hidden from most others, and demanded she heed his warning, it was the first time she feared an enemy's strength. Was he a challenge that could become her savior, revealing the truth of her past to her? Could this boy show her how to repair the fiber of the world she’d unknowingly ripped apart, causing a catastrophic end to the home she’d built for herself and the lost ones?

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About the Author

L.M. Preston, a native of Washington, DC. An avid reader, she loved to create poetry and short-stories as a young girl. She is an author, an engineer, a professor, a mother and a wife. Her passion for writing and helping others to see their potential through her stories and encouragement has been her life’s greatest adventures.She loves to write while on the porch watching her kids play or when she is traveling, which is another passion that encouraged her writing.

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Friday, August 8, 2025

Angela Thompson 8:20 AM 0

Friday Book Teaser: Trouble in Heaven by J.C. Worthington & R.G. Ryan

This morning, I have a fantasy novel in our book teaser feature spot! Learn about Trouble in Heaven, read a quick excerpt from the book and learn about authors J.C. Worthington and R.G. Ryan!

Fantasy / Fiction / Spirituality

Date Published: 11-17-2024

Publisher: Made for Success

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About the Book

In the beginning The Alpha created the heavens and the earth. This story takes place before that.

Read an Excerpt

Shamayim. A perfect place filled with perfect beings living in perfect peace. The Alpha was love, and love was The Alpha, a trait he took great pains to embed within all his created beings. It would have been, therefore, perfectly understandable for this perfect existence to continue unabated. And it would have, had The Alpha not chosen to endow his created beings with the power to choose. But he did, and with that choice came trouble. Trouble in Heaven.

Meet the Authors

J.C. Worthington

JC Worthington, author of the Trouble Series, is a ministry leader and teacher, driven by his love of God. His imaginative storytelling blends timeless biblical truths with untold stories, taking readers on a mind-bending journey to explore the mysteries woven into Scripture.

Website

Facebook

R.G. Ryan

R.G. Ryan started writing seriously following a long and satisfying career in the music industry as a songwriter, recording artist, arranger, producer and director of A&R for a couple of record labels. As a songwriter he has over one hundred and fifty songs in publication worldwide and has produced over one hundred album projects. He is the author of the Jake Moriarity series of thrillers, The Voices In My Head (the biography of late Las Vegas entertainment icon, Danny Gans), and the popular Snapshots At St. Arbuck's series. He lives with his first wife on the coast of somewhere beautiful. Can sing a little.

Twitter

Goodreads

Buy the Book

https://mybook.to/TroubleinHeaven

Amazon

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Monday, July 21, 2025

Angela Thompson 6:12 AM 0

Science Fiction Fantasy Book Blitz: Standing At Heaven's Doorstep by Judy Cohen

This morning, I have a science fiction fantasy novel in our book blitz spotlight. Learn about Standing at Heaven's Doorstep by author Judy Cohen.

Fantasy and Sci-fi

Date Published: 05-11-2025

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About the Book

Standing at Heaven's Doorstep is a book of 31 short stories. They are of fantasy and science fiction. I have revised old fairy tales. We will ravel to new worlds and assist in solving their problems. You will meet three devils, I have known. Tooth fairies and dreamers are waiting. Join me... Judy

About the Author

My name is Judy Cohen. I taught kindergarten, and new teachers for 27 years. During that time i was a blogger and a part time writer. My family encouraged me to write my book. The question they posed was, what am i waiting for? Standing at Heaven's Doorstep was born..

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Monday, June 30, 2025

Angela Thompson 5:11 AM 0

Spiritual Fantasy Adventure Spotlight: The War in Heaven by Mano Sotelo

This morning, we have a spiritual fantasy adventure in our book spotlight! Learn about The War in Heaven by author Mano Sotelo!

Fantasy / Adventure / Religious & Spirituality

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About the Book

After a third of Heaven's angels rebel, a fearful archangel struggles to save Heaven, humanity, and his older brother from absolute ruin.

Moving beyond that, The War in Heaven is an epic allegorical myth that explores humanity’s endless struggle with a multitude of psychological, ideological, and emotional conflicts. It ultimately presents a transformative journey of two brothers that discover peace in the face of addiction, diversions, anger, fear, and desire.

As mentioned, The War in Heaven is an allegory. It’s a story of one’s relationship with reality. It’s an invitation to look at our identities, our relationship with ourselves, other human beings, and the world around us. It’s about facing internal and external conflicts and ultimately obtaining peace.

About the Author

Mano has always been interested in belief and value systems (i.e., philosophy, psychology, religion, and mythology), and the study of inherited truths. Specifically, how we create our realities every day through the adoption of prescribed precepts and largely unquestioned thoughts. Mano is an award winning visual artist that has over 23 years of higher education teaching experience. His work has been highlighted in national and international competitions and has been exhibited in art museums and galleries across the United States. Mano’s formal education includes a BFA, MFA and MBA degree.

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Tuesday, May 27, 2025

Angela Thompson 9:56 AM 2

Young Adult Fantasy Book Review Feature: The Web of Time by Flavia Brunetti

Today, I have a young adult novel with a magical realism theme to share! I enjoy reading young adult books--especially those with unique concepts. Learn about The Web of Time and author Flavia Brunetti, read my thoughts on the book and be sure to enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.

Book Title:  THE WEB OF TIME by Flavia Brunetti
Category:  YA Fiction (Ages 13-17), 298 pages
Genre: Grounded Fantasy
Publisher: Blue House Literary
Release date:  May 2025
Content Rating: G + M: While this is fully G, it does touch on matters including physical abuse and trauma. This is done in a very gentle way, but perhaps worth noting.

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About the Book

Far beneath the ground, a web quietly spins. The threads are keeping time, marking history. What’s done is done. Until now.

Protected by the gods and powering the three Great Portals of Art, Language, and Kindness, The Web of Time rearranges itself as humans change their minds, fall in love, or cause empires to rise and fall. When the Great Portals close from the world, time begins erasing itself, histories start to disappear, Earth falls into chaos, and the gods don’t know how to stop it—until Jack meets Anna.

Anna is a passionate and solitary writer who is protected by her companion, Nafusa of Libya, the cat god. When Jack, a young painter harboring a traumatic past, falls through the Great Portal of Art in Tunis, he stumbles into Anna, and his fate.

Helped and hindered by a rotating cast of deities, the two embark on a journey that connects three ancient cities in different times: Rome, Tunis, and Tripoli. They realize that it is Anna’s gift for healing words and Jack’s natural talent for drawing places as they were that can reinstate the Great Portals and restore the world’s balance, but some of the darker gods who thrive on chaos will stop at nothing to derail their quest. As time tears faster than they can heal it, Anna and Jack must come together in time to save history, and the possibility of a future.

My Review

The Web of Time is a Unique Young Adult Fantasy. I really enjoyed the blend of history, fantasy and magical realism throughout this book. The storyline has a mythology element and a "save the world" style theme that still blends realistically with the teen characters' stories and abilities. The book is a clean read with characters that readers will enjoy growing with throughout the book.

The Writing Style May Require Some Focus. While the book is well-written and engaging, the back-and -forth movement between times, places and points of view is sometimes difficult to follow. It doesn't make the book too difficult to read, but there were times when I found myself initially a little confused during transitions. The book has wonderful characters and a unique storyline that will pull you in and keep your interest--but, I wasn't always immediately "on the same page" as the author during some of the shifts and would need to re-read a section.

Would I Recommend The Web of Time by Flavia Brunetti? I enjoyed the characters, the settings and the magical realism presented in the storyline. I did sometimes need to re-read a paragraph or two if I found myself in a different time or point of view during a chapter--but this didn't greatly affect the story flow. If you enjoy mythology and realistic, clean teen fantasy that is presented in a unique style, this story is an interesting one for your reading list.

Buy the Book

Web of Time
Amazon ~ B&N
add to goodreads

Meet the Author

Born just outside of Rome, Flavia grew up bouncing back and forth between Italy and California and has lived between a myriad other countries, so her writing often revolves around place and identity and is usually written on a plane where she inevitably apologizes to the person sitting next to her for bumping their elbow. She is the author of the novel All the Way to Italy. Her second novel, The Web of Time, a YA grounded fantasy adventure set in Rome, Tunis, and Tripoli, will be published by Blue House Literary in May 2025.

Today, Flavia continues learning about the world while working for a humanitarian organization and getting lost in her Eternal City, writing flash fiction and non-fiction stories, and connecting with other readers, writers, and adventurers (also the armchair travel variety).

connect with the author: website ~ X ~ facebook ~ instagram ~ goodreads

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Wednesday, May 14, 2025

Angela Thompson 8:22 AM 0

Young Adult Fantasy Book Release: Fate of the Storm by Valerie Storm

Today, I have a new release, young adult fantasy novel to share! Check out Fate of the Storm, from the Demon Storm series by Valerie Storm, learn about the author & enter for a chance to win a prize in the book tour giveaway at the end of this post.

Demon Storm, Book Eight

Young Adult Fantasy

Date Published: 05-13-2025

Publisher: Shadow Spark Publishing

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About the Book

The shadows have retreated with Raven's downfall, but darkness still curls at the edges of the world. For a moment, though, Kari and Ari have a moment of peace. There is a glimmer of light that threatens to wash away the darkness as they finally bind their fates together in a formal ceremony.

But Raven hasn't given up, and there's an older, crueler foe who hasn't forgotten Kari - the Lord of Demons, the very one who crafted the Catalyst which Raven sought to control, still trapped in an ancient Tree.

Kari's moment of joy comes to a halt as the world shakes and Taris is ripped apart.

Velthas has risen.

About the Author

Valerie Storm was raised in Tucson, Arizona. Growing up, she fell in love with everything fantasy. When she wasn’t playing video games, she was writing. By age ten, she began to write her own stories as a way to escape reality. When these stories became a full-length series, she considered the path to sharing with other children & children-at/heart looking for a place to call home.

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Thursday, March 27, 2025

Angela Thompson 10:44 AM 0

Fantasy Novella Blitz: INNATRAEA by E.R. Zaugg

Today, I have a fantasy novella in our book blitz spotlight! Check out INNATRAEA and learn about author E.R. Zaugg!

Small Footsteps

Fantasy

Date Published: January 16, 2025

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About the Book

Magic is in her blood...

The destiny of Innatraea is in her hands…

Can she rise to power, or will the forces against her prevail?

"Every legend begins with the small footsteps of ordinary Innatraeans." -Tavid the Traveler

Rosalie Sharone, one of the strongest magic wielders ever born, has been waiting and training for this moment all her life. Orphaned as a baby, the child prodigy was raised in the small farm town of Aliselle Falls, away from suspecting eyes. Now she is a young woman ready to fulfill her destiny by traveling across Innatraea to become an initiate of The Weavers, an ancient and powerful order on the island kingdom of Sceotan. In doing so, she must leave her adoptive mother, her first love, and her friends behind. Yet emotional trials are not the only challenge awaiting Rosalie and those closest to her. Weavers especially attract danger, and Rosalie will face her share as she makes her way to her destiny. This is only the beginning of her story however. Once on Sceotan, her magic and intellect along with The Weavers’ influence across all of Innatraea will either make her the most powerful woman in history or completely destroy her.

Power, sacrifice, and destiny collide—get your copy today and dare to walk the path with Rosalie as she begins the journey to her ultimate fate.

__________________

Innatraea Novella Two: Am'ayim

Coming July 26, 2025

"Ele o aiga uma e toto. O nisi e fananau mai i Di Asin.

Not all families a blood. Som a dem born inna Di Saalt.

Not all families are blood. Some of them are born in the Salt."

-Am'ayim Saying

Rosalie has finally left the dangers of Aedonia behind in her quest to reach Sceotan and the Weavers. She now embarks upon another leg of that long journey aboard an Am'ayim vessel known as Di Ariela. Here, she will meet new friends amongst the ship's crew and face new threats and challenges, all while still grappling with the loss of her mother and parting ways with her childhood friends. Rosalie must now find the strength to go on alone and become the woman she's meant to be. But the twisting tides of destiny and fate are tricky and may yet claim them all or unite them as her journey across Innatraea continues. Destiny is no easy thing, though; fate may have more in store for her than she ever imagined.

Amazon

About the Author

E.R. Zaugg has published several articles on being the parent of a vulnerable child, won poetry contests, and been an avid reader and world traveler for decades. His work is inspired by seeing the world and encountering different religions, spiritual beliefs, and cultures in both literature and actual journeys. These experiences have led to a body of deeply poetic work that explores what it means to be human. The Innatraea novella series highlights the value of vulnerable cultures, children, and strong women, with the goal of imparting to its readers a greater understanding and love of humanity.

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