January flew by and I’m awfully disappointed at how few books I was able to read and review:-( The Gutter Prayer slowed down my schedule, but that can’t be the only reason. In any case, I do have a few January hold overs that I’m going to try to get to, in addition to these February releases. And of course, there are always surprises that come up. In fact, I’m waiting for confirmation that I’m on a certain blog tour, and if that happens I’ll be adding one more book to the pile!
Murder Theory by Andrew Mayne. I know several bloggers besides me (I’m looking at you, Mogsy and Lynn!) who LOVE this series, and it’s probably the most anticipated of my February books.
Gates of Stone by Angus Macallan. I’ve already seen some very enthusiastic reviews for this debut, and although the page count intimidates me a bit, I’m excited to dive in.
The Beast’s Heart by Leife Shallcross. This was a surprise review book, but it’s one I immediately knew I would read. It’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling and I’ve already read a positive review from my pal Barb. I trust her, so I’m looking forward to this!
Smoke & Summons by Charlie N. Holmberg. I hadn’t even heard of this when it arrived on my doorstep, but now I’m very excited to read it. In fact, I’ll probably be reading it by the time this post goes up.
I just recently received a copy of How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin, even though it came out last November. And I thought the timing would be good if I read it during Black History Month (February). So that’s what I’ll be doing! Expect a review by the end of the month.
Crown of Feathers by Nicki Pau Preto. Oh, I sure hope I can fit this in! I received an unsolicited review copy so I’m not giving it priority, but wow I really want to read it!
The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons. This book is definitely intimidating to me, with its nearly 600 pages and epic fantasy vibe. But I do want to read it, so we’ll see how my schedule goes.
The Loosening Skin by Aliya Whiteley. I feel like I got a digital review copy months ago and just forgot about it, but the publisher was kind enough to send me a finished paperback, and now it’s definitely on the schedule for this month! Whiteley’s stories are odd and magical and I highly recommend her work.
Finally, my weekly reviews of Serial Box’s series Ninth Step Station continue this month, with a new episode reviewed each Wednesday! This futuristic police procedural set in Japan is getting good, and I’m actually enjoying posting short recaps/reviews for each episode.
Did you miss any of my January reviews? Even though I didn’t read that many books, I loved them all:-D
Polaris Rising by Jessie Mihalik
The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Hanrahan
The Wicked King by Holly Black
January is always such a busy month and you still read some really good books so don’t be too disappointed! 🙂
How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? is on my wishlist but, as much as I adore Jemisin’s books, her short fiction is very hit or miss for me so I’ll be waiting for your review of it!
Maryam recently posted…Favorite Books of 2018
I’m curious to read her short fiction. I really enjoyed the Introduction where she talks about how she got her start as a writer by having short stories published.
I’ve been enjoying your reviews and have so many new books on my wish list now! And it looks like I’ll be adding some more. LOL
Laura Thomas recently posted…The Friday 56 #197 ~ Match Me If You Can
Ha ha, sorry not sorry?? 🙂
You have some good books slated. Boy I hope you end up enjoying The Beast’s Heart. Even though it’s been over a month since I read it, I still find myself looking back on it fondly. I may decide to tackle Gates of Stone sometime so it’s nice to know you’ve heard some good things about it. Hopefully February will be a great reading month for you and you read and reviewed some good books in January!
I’ve read other reviews since yours of The Beast’s Heart so I’m very excited to start:-)
I’m curious to hear what you think of Smoke and Summons, I also have a copy and have debated where to prioritize it. And I didn’t need to know how big Ruin of Kings was! I plan to read that as well
Lisa @TenaciousReader recently posted…Monthly Musings – January 2019
My review of Smoke & Summons goes up tomorrow. It was pretty good? I liked parts but had trouble with other parts.
It looks like a wonderful month in review and also a terrific month ahead, Tammy! I hope you get to all the books you want to this month. I have The Beast’s Heart coming up this month, too. I hope we both enjoy it!
Me too, I’ll be looking forward to your review:-)
This is a great list of reads! I’ll be checking some of these out. Thanks 🙂
Hope you get the chance to read some of them!
My TBR list just got way bigger I love the cover of Gates of Stone. I fancy reading The Beast’s Heart too. Hope you enjoy all these.
Pages and Tea recently posted…Booking Ahead: February 2019
Thanks, I hope to read The Beast’s Heart very soon:-)
Happy Reading!
Thanks Paul!
The 600 pages of Ruin of Kings might look daunting, indeed, but a book with such a beautiful dragon on the cover just begs to be read… 🙂
Maddalena@Spaceandsorcery recently posted…Short Story Review: DEATH ON MARS, by Madeline Ashby
Ha ha, you are right! I feel much better:-)
January flew by in a blink. My reading was decent but I fear I may start to slip in February. It’s woman in horror month and we have SO much going on. I’d love to read The Loosening Skin & The Beast’s Heart as but for now they’re going on my “someday soon” list. They both look fantastic.
I noticed that Ladies of Horror Fiction is very busy this month. I’m looking forward to checking out all your posts:-)
We are so incredibly busy, it is fantastic. I’m sure my own blog will suffer for it but I’m okay with that 🙂
How Long till Black Future Month is one I was intrigued by. I’ll be interested to read your review. I should probably have done more about the books I finished in my wrap-up post for January, but I did list my February TBR. It’s in the link below!
Lisa Mandina (Lisa Loves Literature) recently posted…January 2019 Wrap-Up Post and Looking Ahead to February
I’m headed over to check out your link now:-)
Looks like a full month of reading! I just love that Gates of Stone cover more every time I see it. I’m really looking forward to seeing your reviews for a lot of these. Hope you enjoy them all and have a wonderful month!
Jordan recently posted…Month in Review: January 2019
Thanks Jordan! That cover is spectacular, right?
Some goodie there to read! Hope you enjoy them all! I am curious about The Beast Heart!
Me too, I’ve read some mixed reviews but a lot of bloggers I trust loved it.
I just started Smoke & Summons, after finishing The Beast’s Heart. It was lovely, made me curious to know why there might be so many mixed ratings on Goodreads!
I’m really excited to read it now, Lynn loved it too:-)
Looks like you’ve got another interesting reading month ahead of you, even if some of the books are intimidating in size! I hope you enjoy these 🙂
Kristen @ Metaphors and Moonlight recently posted…Book Review + Giveaway: Undercurrent (Under Book 2) by M.N. Arzu
Thanks Kristen, I have WAY too many but I guess I’ll pick and choose:-)
So many of these look awesome! Happy reading, Tammy!
Thanks Lauren!
I love the sound of nine Step Station ! I didn’t know anything about it so I went over and read the blurb and it sounds kinda cyberpunk-ish and right up my alley haha! I’ll be checking that out!
Greg recently posted…Comic of the Week #56
Serial Box has a lot of great serials, and it’s fun to have more than one author writing the story.
Looks like you’re going to have a fantasy February! Fingers crossed 🙂
I’m almost planning on read How Long ‘Til Black Future Month?
Looking forward to your review of Gates of Stone!
You’re right, my February is definitely fantasy heavy!
Looking forward to The Beast’s Heart too, so many retellings this year!
They seem to be everywhere! I’ve heard good things about The Beast’s Heart, I can’t wait to get to it.
Glad to hear you did enjoy your 5 books even though you didn’t read as much as you wanted. They are great books indeed! All on my TBR ty for reminding me of How Long ’til Black Future Month! I need that on my Black History Month TBR
Daniela Ark recently posted…Genre and mind bending, what means to be human and gender identity: Reading Beast News January 2019!
It’s a perfect book for Black History Month, right? I’m trying to read a story or two a day so I can finish by the end of the month:-)
You’ve got some excellent plans. Hope you like the Beast’s Heart – I enjoyed it to be honest and thought it was a good retelling.
I read the latest Mayne and really enjoyed that too.
Currently reading Ruin of Kings but still early days so too soon to call – plus the formatting seems to be a little bit messed up on the kindle for some reason which is making it difficult to read – I might not get on well if it continues for 600 pages!
Lynn 😀
I’ve had issues with Kindle formatting before too. I hope it doesn’t last the entire book!
I hope you enjoy all of your new books. Crown of Feathers is one that I’ll be reading soon as well. I’m curious to see what you think of The Ruin of Kings. I thought I had an ARC and started reading it, but then it turned out to only be a lengthy preview so I stopped reading.
Suzanne @ The Bookish Libra recently posted…Early Review: THE LOST GIRLS OF PARIS
I hope we both love Crown of Feathers!
Man none of what’s on your list is on my radar. Looking forward to all of it to see what I’m missing.
Ha ha, hopefully I will convince you to try something new:-)
I’m a little surprised and disappointed by my January. I usually start the year out a bit better. I grabbed a copy of Smoke & Summons. I’m anxious to hear what you think.
My review is going up tomorrow, I enjoyed parts of it, it didn’t blow me away. But a lot of reviewers really love it, so maybe it’s just a matter of taste.
You look like have you have a pretty solid set for February! Prolly no surprise, but I definitely recommend The Ruin of Kings, despite it’s size. The way it is written is just too good to pass up!
Good to know! I’ll definitely have to prioritize it, thanks Nicole!
I continued to fall behind in January too but you loved Polaris Rising and The Gutter Prayer which I still have to knock out so at least I have something good to look forward to. 🙂
Bonnie @ For the Love of Words recently posted…Something To Look Forward To – Week of February 4th, 2019
I read some awesome books last month for sure. I just wish I could read faster!!
You and me both!
I hope you can get to Crown of Feathers, I am eyeing that book a lot but won’t have the time to prioritize it due to my reading slumps. Happy reading, Tammy!
Kaleena @ Reader Voracious recently posted…Reading Around the Globe: Clo in England
I really hope to get to it too, I may wait for one or two fellow bloggers to read it first:-) Hope your slump is better soon!
I am so hyped for Crown of Feathers even though I haven’t even preordered it yet because who is ever on time with that. But it sounds so good!
Annemieke recently posted…Down Among the Stick and Bones / Beneath the Sugar Sky / Wayward Children Books 2 and 3 // Mini Reviews