The post 17 Places to Find Book Reviewers | IBR Book Marketing Series (Part 8) appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>by Joe Walters
Book reviewers play an important role in the book-buying process.
As an author, you’re told early and often that you should try to get more book reviews. It’s great for marketing, they say. But is it really?
I’ve been a book marketer for three different indie presses now, having marketed and promoted hundreds of books, and I can say pretty confidently that the answer is yes.
Book reviews are incredibly important. Readers want to buy books that have been vouched by real-life people (like Amazon’s consumer reviews) and experts (like with blurbs & media). Nothing ever guarantees book sales, but getting reviews can at least help. Book marketing is all about about doing the things that can help.
So where you do you find book reviewers?
Let’s explore some options.
- Book review publications
Professional book reviewers are a good way to start this list. There are people out there who focus on books across a number of genres; their audience is readers, booksellers, and librarians. The content they publish is about books, and they are experts in the book field. This is different from someone who runs a niche publication, like one about ducks who could review your book about ducks.
If you want to get book reviews, you should definitely try to get reviews from review publications. Here’s a list of 30+ book review sites to get you started.
But there are way more than that. Just type keywords into Google like “[Your Genre] book reviews,” and you’ll find a number of them that are not on our list. Review publications will usually offer the chance of being reviewed for free or to guarantee a review by paying for it. More on that in the paid section!
Amazon is one of the most influential places to get your book reviewed. Not only is it the place that most people buy books, but it’s also the place with the most book & product reviewers.
You can find Amazon reviewers by searching for books similar to yours and reading those reviews. When the reviewer has a picture, click on their name. This means that they created a reviewer profile, and it’s possible they shared information on how to get in contact with them to request reviews in exchange for a free book.
Amazon used to share a list of their top reviewers, but they’ve recently gotten rid of that. This is probably because they were being bombarded by tons of review requests. Take it from me, a guy who gets tons of review requests.
It’s not easy to get book reviews from Amazon consumers, but it is possible. You can increase the amount of reviews you have on there in different ways (like building a launch team), but since that includes people you know, I’ll get to that in #8.
Goodreads is a social networking platform for readers, run by Amazon. Similar to Amazon, reviewers can create profiles and write reviews on book pages. You can find those reviewers by searching similar books to yours on Goodreads and reaching out to them if they share contact information and express interest in free books for review.
But the book pages aren’t the only places to find them! They also have groups and forums on Goodreads. It’s not easy to get reviews by requesting reviews on forums and groups, but it is possible. (Sensing a pattern here?)
- Social Networking Sites
Social media has made it easier than ever to connect with likeminded people. Search functions and hashtags enable you to find real people talking about your book’s topic in real time. That means you could find reviewers on Instagram, Facebook (including Facebook Groups), Twitter, the hundreds of Twitter alternatives popping up, TikTok, YouTube, and more.
Want to know the best way to get book reviews from social media?
Be real!
If you decide that a certain platform is your platform–the one where you will invest the most time and where you will build your following–then you will want to post often, be likable as a human (easy, I know! 
), and when your book is coming out and/or when it’s out, you can mention a few times how helpful reviews are and that you’d love their support in that regard. Let people know how they can get a free copy in exchange for review. (I like Google Forms!) And again, super important, don’t be pushy!
If you find a book reviewer who doesn’t follow you, follow them. Be real as a follower. Engage with their posts and support them long before you request help from them. Reviewers on social media are sent review requests in their DMs and emails all the time, and they don’t have time for most of them. Build a real relationship with these people—which definitely requires time!—and your chances of converting them into a reviewer for your book will increase.
- Book Review Directories & Lists
You can also find book reviewers in long lists and directories online. You have our list of review sites, IndiesToday, Bookbloggerlist, Book Reviewer Yellow Pages, Kindlepreneur, and more. There are a whole lot of reviewers in the world, and a whole lot of reviewers want to appear on those lists. It helps them get more and better books as well as drive more traffic to their websites.
You should definitely check out these lists and directories, but don’t get lost inside them. Some are so long that you could spend all your marketing time combing through them, and you might not even get that many reviews out of it. Since they appear on those lists, other authors have access to them too, meaning they get a ton of pitches. Find some that you like, send some pitches, test if it works, and if it doesn’t, get out of there.
- Book & Niche Blogs
Researching & pitching blogs could very well be my favorite way to get more book reviews. Some of the bigger book blogs will get boatloads of review requests per day, but the nice thing here is that NOT ALL BLOGS ARE BIG.
Some have small, dedicated audiences, and some have little to no audiences. I like them both! The nice thing about small blogs is that they’re not inundated with hundreds of review requests, and they often are willing to post their reviews on Amazon and/or Goodreads.
You’re dealing with one person a lot of the time, so you can cultivate a relationship by being kind, supportive, generous (like sending a physical book & a custom bookmark, playlist, etc.), and you can increase your chances of being reviewed for this book AND the next one. You can find blogs by using keywords on Google, social media, and on hosting platforms like WordPress.
There are also a ton of niche blogs out there. If you wrote a travel memoir, you could reach out to travel bloggers who want to read more. Wrote a business book? Business bloggers could be interested in that, especially since they’re not receiving hundreds of book review requests.
- Local publications & platforms
Don’t sleep on local platforms! In addition to national publications and review publications, you should definitely look close to home for book reviewers. I’m not saying you’re definitely going to get a review if you pitch a magazine with a local angle, but I am saying that your chances increase with smaller outlets. They may not leave their review on Amazon and their readership might not be in the tens of thousands, but if all it takes is a pitch and sending a book, then I’d say reaching out to local publications is worth it.
- Your personal connections
You may get the most traction out of this one. Other authors, friends, colleagues, former teachers, acquaintances, and non-household-sharing family members can be great book reviewers for you.
Here are a few ways you can turn the people you know into book reviewers:
- Ask fellow authors to blurb your book. They may want to write a blurb for you because they know you’ll use the blurb for your marketing material like on the back cover, in the opening pages of the book, and graphics. One great way to increase blurbs for your books is by offering to blurb their book first, at the same time, or afterwards.
- You can also get writer friends to write a review and submit a review for publication at various review, literary, and local platforms. Instead of asking that team’s staff to do it, you can increase your odds to have that writer offer something already written to them.
- Are you publishing with an indie press? Ask your fellow indie authors to write a blurb for you or simply to review it on Amazon and/or Goodreads!
- Build a launch team before the book is published. Add a bunch of people who you know will want to support you—like your best friend Jon and Aunt Kate—and ask if they’d join your launch team. Basically, a launch team member is asked to read a book before it is published and then share a review on the day of or a couple days after the book is finally available on Amazon. It is totally fine to get friends and family members to leave reviews, but do note that Amazon can flag family members with the same last name and/or the same address as you and remove the review from the site.
- If you run into someone who has read your book in person, it’s totally okay to ask for them to leave a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads. Don’t be pushy and probably don’t follow-up with them if they don’t—your relationship is more important!—but sometimes the first request can result in actual reviews.
- Your newsletter
Having (and actually using!) a newsletter is one of my favorite ways to market books. Social media is cool and all, but what happens when the platform you’ve chosen to focus on (like Twitter for example) up and changes everything about it?
Email is as close to direct person-to-person marketing that you can get online. It’s an excellent way to speak with your fans, keep them, and watch your fanbase grow. If you are operating a newsletter (particularly if you have multiple books), you should definitely ask them a few times to leave reviews for your books. Your biggest fans are probably in that email; make sure they know what could help you.
- The back of your book
In the back of books, authors and publishers share acknowledgement pages, author bios, and “More books from the author/publisher” pages. You can add a page at the back that requests readers to leave a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads! You can even make it a clickable link for the eBook after you’ve published.
If your reader has already finished reading your book, they are the best possible candidates for leaving book reviews. This means that every time you run a book promotion, you are asking that reader to review your book.
Here’s our guide to selling more books on Amazon.
- Sponsored & editorial book reviews
As you’ll see, you won’t get reviews from every single review platform. Sometimes you might not get any. There are not enough review platforms on the planet to cover all the books published on it.
Some review publications offer the chance to guarantee a review by paying for it. It is a chance for authors to appear on reader-focused websites; increase their validity & searchability; add blurbs to their book; get starred reviews and the recognition that comes with it; post something new and exciting to their existing fan-base; appear on book lists; and get real honest engagement with a piece of art they care deeply about.
Here are 5 reader-focused review platforms that offer sponsored or editorial book reviews:
Have you heard of Pubby? It’s relatively new, but it’s a rapidly growing community where authors review other authors’ books on Amazon. You can do a 10-day free trial, retaining the reviews you get during that time, but then you pay per month to stay on the platform. You’re not allowed to pay for Amazon reviews directly, but this site is a clever little workaround that offers incentives to those who participate.
I love Reedsy! It may initially be a site where writers can get freelance editors, designers, and marketers, but when you look a little further, you can see that they host a ton of consumer reviewers too. Reviewers can create a profile on there to get access to free books before they publish and earn tips for writing great reviews.
Netgalley is a place where readers & book reviewers go to get free copies of books in exchange for review. There’s a big pool of readers here, and it’s got a safe distribution process that a lot of publishers and review platforms like. It’s pretty expensive for solo indie authors, but publishers could find the expense worth it. Reviews are that hard to come by sometimes. Some authors team up with other authors by joining a co-op where they split the cost to join. Check those out too!
BookSirens is a clean, user-friendly site where authors upload books that are available for review, and reviewers browse available books for review. They also have a large list of book bloggers by genre. You do have to pay for the service, and it won’t always increase your reviews on Amazon, but it can work for the right books. I used it with some (varying) success during my time at Paper Raven Books.
Online Book Club is a review and social networking site somewhat similar in concept to Goodreads. There are a lot of readers on this platform, and you can advertise on them in hopes of getting reviewed. You can get some free reviews on Online Book Club too, by reaching out to different readers and being active in the groups. Keep that in mind too!
Hidden Gems sends out an email every day with new books available to review on it. They do a great job of curating their options, and they even send out review reminders to those who have agreed to review the books. They also share ebook deals—a nice addition to their ARC program. It is a much cheaper option than Netgalley.
Best of luck in finding great book reviewers! If you have any feedback on any of these platforms, please share them in the comments.
About the Author
Joe Walters is the editor-in-chief of Independent Book Review and the author of The Truth About Book Reviews. He has been a book marketer for Sunbury Press, Inkwater Press, and Paper Raven Books. When he’s not doing editorial, promoting, or reviewing work, he’s working on his novel, playing with his kids, or reading indie books by Kindle light.
Thank you for reading Joe Walters’s blog post “17 Places to Find Book Reviewers!” If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with us at the links below.
The post 17 Places to Find Book Reviewers | IBR Book Marketing Series (Part 8) appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>The post 30+ Top-Notch Book Review Sites for Readers & Writers appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>
Book reviews are for all of us.
Readers need to know whether books with the best covers are worth the time they’re about to put into it. They find it helpful (and fun!) to check out reviews after reading the books, too, so they can see what other real-life humans had to say about it.
Librarians & booksellers need to hear from trusted sources that the book they are about to buy for their collection has the capability to get picked up & to satisfy. Authors & publishers need to get and use book reviews to build buzz and credibility for their product.
Book review sites have transformed the book-recommending landscape.
We can write reviews on product pages, on social media apps, and some of us, for publications that have been around since before the internet. Book reviewing has changed. But maybe it also hasn’t.
What kind of book review sites are you looking for? Chances are, this list has you covered.
Here are 30+ book review sites to read, write, and bookmark.
Does this logo look familiar? (Hint: You’re sitting on it).
IBR, the website you’re on RIGHT NOW, is all about indie books. There are so many books in the world right now, but if you feel like you keep seeing the same ones recommended over and over, start reading indie!
Independent presses & self-published authors are doing some incredible work right now. IBR reviews books, curates lists, does indie bookstore round-ups, and uses starred reviews & best-of-the-year lists to show which books are going to blow your mind.
2. Book Marks
Lit Hub rules. You already knew this.
But do you know about Book Marks? They’re a branch of the Lit Hub network, and they are an excellent way for booksellers and librarians to get shorter recaps from multiple sources and voices.
Their staff peruses book review sites and shares pull-quotes from them in book lists & more. By reading all of these sites, they can give the book a rating based on the average: “Rave, Positive, Mixed, or Pan.”
My favorite book-buying platform, Bookshop, uses Book Marks’ scale for their books’ ratings, and I love getting access to that.
Publishers Weekly has been around since 1872. By now, they’re a review churning machine. They cover so much of the book industry in so many different ways, reviewing nearly 9,000 books per year and providing publication announcements, agency announcements, industry job listings, bestseller lists, industry stats, a self-publishing partner, and more.
Another one that’s been around since before the internet! 1933 to be exact. Kirkus is a widely recognized publication that book buyers & librarians follow carefully. I dare you to find a bookstore or library that doesn’t have multiple books with Kirkus Reviews plastered on their front and back covers.
5. Booklist
The American Library Association runs Booklist, a platform dedicated to helping libraries, educators, and booksellers choose books. They’ve got a magazine (since 1905!), book reviews, lists, awards, and one of my favorite bookish podcasts out there: Shelf Care.
6. Library Journal & School Library Journal
As you might be able to guess, Library Journal & School Library Journal focus on librarians too! They review a ton of books, and they write often about library-related news, collection management, technology, programs, and more. If you’re an author hoping to land your book in libraries, these are essential targets.
7. BookPage
You may have seen BookPage in your local library or bookstore. Some shops provide it for free so that patrons can look through it to find which books to buy in-store. Their website is clean and intriguing and always full of the most up-to-date releases and bestsellers.
Speaking of libraries! Have you seen our gifts for librarians?
8. Foreword
Foreword is such an enthusiastic and dedicated champion of indie books, and they’ve been doing it since the 90s! I love how much attention university presses get here too. Their reviews are well-written & thorough, in both print & digital, and I always find something to speed-purchase once the Foreword Indie winners come out.
9. LoveReading
LoveReading is a top book-recommendation website in the UK. They’ve got starred reviews, lists, staff picks, a LitFest, eBooks, and they even donate 25% of the cover price of their books to schools of your choice. It’s reader-friendly and apparent how much they appreciate the wonder of books.
10. Washington Independent Review of Books
What’s not to love about The Independent?
Back in 2011, a group of writers & editors were frustrated by newspapers dropping book review sections and decided to do something about it. The Washington Independent Review of Books is quite a lovely something! This nonprofit posts every day: from reviews to interviews to essays and podcasts. They host events too!
11. Book Riot
Try being a reader and not finding something you love on Book Riot. Book lists, podcasts, personalized recommendations, newsletters, book deals—this site is a haven.
It doesn’t post solo book reviews like other sites, but they do share mini-reviews in book lists and talk about reading in unique & passionate ways. The Book Riot Podcast is such a winner too! I love listening to Jeff & Rebecca laugh about the latest in books & reading.
12. Electric Lit
From novel excerpts to original short fiction & poetry, they might not only be a book review site, but they do offer a lot in the world of book recommendations. Their Recommended Reading lit mag features unique staff picks and short, insightful book reviews.
13. The Millions
The writing in The Millions is something to behold. They are an artful source for all things book reviews & recommendations. They write stunning essays about books & reading and long reviews of new and old books. They’ve got some of my favorite Most Anticipated lists too.
What are the biggest benefits of reading? 
14. Bookforum
Did you hear? Bookforum is back! This book review magazine announced in December 2022 that they were closing, and my heart sank a little bit. This company means so much to the publishing industry and has for 20+ years, so when I saw (last week!) that they are returning, I did more than a few jumps for joy.
Welcome back, Bookforum! Can’t wait to see what you’ve got coming for us in book world coverage.
15. BOMB
BOMB is in it for the art. Art, literature, film, music, theater, architecture, and dance. There are reviews and interviews, and the literature section is a real delight. The reviews are like poignant essays, and the author interviews are in-depth and feature some fascinating minds.
The only dedicated pan-Asian book review publication! It’s widely cited and features some of the best in Asian books and art, so booksellers and librarians have a source to trust to stock their collections with high-quality pan-Asian lit.
Have you seen our gifts for book lovers yet?
I love so much of what Chicago Review of Books does. They have a clean & sleek design that features some of the buzziest books as well as plenty of hidden gems from our favorite indie presses. I’m a particularly big fan of the spotlight they put on books in translation.
18. Rain Taxi
I love Rain Taxi’s style! They champion unique books, publish their own fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, and put a real emphasis on art for their magazine covers. It’s a beautiful print magazine to subscribe to, but they also share free online editions & digital archives. They even run the Rain Taxi Reading Series & Twin Cities Book Festival if you’re a real-lifer in Minnesota!
19. The Rumpus
Oh, The Rumpus! This mostly volunteer-run online magazine publishes reviews, interviews, essays, fiction, and poetry. The reviews are in-depth and personal and heart-melting, and in addition to the site, they’ve got cool perks like the Poetry Book Club and Letters in the Mail. The book club is where you get a pre-release book and meet the poet via Slack with other club members at the end of the month, and Letters in the Mail are actual postcards sent in the mail to you twice a month from your favorite authors.
20. Book Reporter
The selection in Book Reporter is carefully curated & enticing: hot new releases, forthcoming books, major presses, & indies. And there are plenty of unique ways to learn about them, like video interviews and monthly lists & picks. It launched in 1996 and is in The Book Report Network, which includes Reading Group Guides, a super useful resource for book clubs.
21. BookTrib.
BookTrib does such a great job of making their site browsable. The different ways you can enjoy what they offer—from book lists to giveaways to ebook deals—are difficult to keep your purchase finger off of.
23. Lit Reactor
Writers & readers—where bookish people meet! LitReactor’s book reviews are in the magazine portion of their website, and they’ve got plenty of them! Reviews, interviews, lists, introspectives, writing tips, and reading discussions. I’ve found some really unique content on Lit Reactor, like this ranking of literary parents. The website is a haven for writers especially, as there are workshops, writing blog posts, and even a forum to participate in.
Dark alleys. Stray bullets. Hard-boiled detectives. Runaway thrills. If you’re a mystery-thriller reader, you’ve got to know about Crime Fiction Lover. They’ve got a passionate group of readers and writers talking about the best books in the genre and the ones that are soon to come out too.
25. SF Book Reviews
Speculative fiction fans unite! SF Book Reviews has been reviewing sci-fi and fantasy books since 1999, and while they’re a relatively small staff, they publish regularly, feature books of the month, and work wonders for their fantastical community.
For all you historical fiction fans out there, the Historical Novel Society has reviewed more than 20,000 books in its twenty years. This one works like a membership for “writers and readers who love exploring the past.” You get a quarterly print magazine as a member, and if you’re a writer, you can join critique groups and ask for book reviews.
The Poetry Question writes about poetry published by indie presses and indie authors. They are a small passionate team dedicated to showing the world why indie presses continue to be a leading source for award-winning poetry.
28. Goodreads
Did you know that there are over 125 million members on Goodreads? When users review books, they can have conversations with fellow readers and follow reviewers too. If you’re looking for the biggest community, there’s no doubt Goodreads is the one. I like using sites like this because it helps you catalog books, one of my favorite ways to build a strong reading habit.
29. The Storygraph
A big community of active users that’s Amazon free! Come review books, use half & quarter stars (!), and complete reading challenges. You got this.
29. Bookwyrm
Bookwyrm is small (around 5,000 members at the time of this writing), but doesn’t that sound kind of nice? There are active members and a genuine collective goal in talking books. Grow with it. I think you’ll be comfy here. There are other communities within the Bookwyrm umbrella too, like Bookrastinating.
30. Reedsy Discovery
I hold a special place in my heart for book review sites dedicated to helping writers! I got into this business as a book marketer, and I experienced first-hand, through hundreds of books, how hard it was to get exposure & validation for small press and self-published authors.
Reedsy Discovery is a branch of Reedsy (the author resource company) that connects authors & reviewers so that people can read free books, sometimes receive tips for it, and authors can get more reviews in the process. Readers can choose from the latest books as well as the ones that are getting the best reviews.
31. Netgalley
Netgalley is a book review site for pre-released books. Reviewers sign up for a free account, request galleys from publishers and indie authors, and get to read them before they’re published so that they can leave reviews for the book, preferably on Amazon, Goodreads, or their blog. They also run Bookish, the editorial arm of Netgalley, which has book recommendations, interviews, and more.
32. Online Book Club
This review site combines a bunch of cool things! The 4-million member community gives me a lot of Goodreads vibes, especially with the Bookshelves app. But Online Book Club is a place for you to get eBook deals and talk about books in reviews and forums.
What are your favorite book review sites to follow? Let us know in the comments!
Thank you for reading “Top-Notch Book Review Sites for Readers & Writers!” If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with us at the links below.
The post 30+ Top-Notch Book Review Sites for Readers & Writers appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>The post Book Review: Darcy Lane appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>
Darcy Lane
by James T. Graham
Genre: Young Adult Fiction / Contemporary
ISBN: 978-1398400177
Print Length: 130 pages
Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
Reviewed by Jaylynn Korrell
How far must you go to escape your past?
After witnessing the death of her mother as a small child, Elise can’t ever seem to get it out of her mind. In an effort to restart her life after a mental hospital stay, she sets her sights on a future much brighter than her past.
Darcy Lane does an excellent job of capturing the willpower necessary to continue on, the aching need to find purpose in life, and the risks that some people take to achieve it.
After returning home from a 2-year stay at a local mental hospital, Elise is more than ready to restart. She moves back in with her grandfather, but it doesn’t go as smoothly as she hoped. Just when the memories of her deceased mother begin to bog her down, she takes a chance on the local bus, and that one long ride gives Elise something to live for.
A house on Darcy Lane becomes her new obsession, and the possibility of one day calling it home drives her to do things she never thought she was capable of.
At just under 130 pages, this is a quick and satisfying story to read. Graham grips you with his introduction of Elise. With no context of what sent her to the mental hospital, readers quickly feel a sense of hopefulness in her situation and somehow confidence in her ability to succeed. I loved the mystery behind her past experience, as well as the lead-up into her future.
Generational trauma pulses through the veins of this book. Much like Elise herself, her mother also lost her mother early in life. The pain of that experience for her, as well as the repercussions that came with it, are the backdrop for Elise’s childhood.
Now it seems that she’s always outrunning the ghost of her mother in both her body and her mind. Upon her return, she’s put into contact with a couple of her mother’s childhood friends. With every piece of new information she learns about her mother, she unlocks a more similar version of herself. Our main character seems to unravel herself as she’s put into situations similar to ones her mom was put in at her age, and the path she chooses is one that turns her around.
What is ultimately a story of grief becomes entangled with the possibility of overcoming it, a wild pipe-dream that comes in the form of a quaint country home. With the house on Darcy Lane always in the background, I couldn’t help but imagine her life there—a life without the grief she’s forced to drag around. I am constantly hopeful that she’ll reach this goal too—a testament to Graham’s ability in character creation.
Thank you for reading Jaylynn Korrell’s book review of Darcy Lane by James T. Graham! If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with us at the links below.
The post Book Review: Darcy Lane appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>The post Book Review: Rise of the Tobian Princess appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>Reviewed by Alexandria Ducksworth
Armed with wizard-level storytelling, author D.L. Gardner thrives in this action-packed female-led fantasy adventure
There is nothing quite like an unexpected hero.
A great evil is rising steadily toward the magnificent Tellwater Kingdom. King Tobias is sending troops to ward off the dreaded skura who are causing chaos wherever they go. But when Princess Erika follows her brother to battle the skura and defend their home, she ignites the most prominent change of her known world—she kills the Cho Nisi king by accident.
Ridden with guilt, she travels to the Cho Nisi kingdom to clear things up. But things are about to get even more complicated—as Arell, the son of the fallen king, falls in love with her. How will he react once he discovers she is his father’s killer?
Meanwhile, the leader of the skura is bringing his army closer to Tellwater and Cho Nisi. It’s only a matter of time before both kingdoms unite to battle this common enemy.
The storytelling in this novel is wonderful. D.L. Gardner brings readers all the familiar fantasy-adventure elements we love—wizards, powerful kingdoms, whispers of legendary dragons—but it also keeps things fresh, particularly in how effective the themes are of powerful women doing powerful things even though they’re not expected to.
Princess Erika is entirely different from her royal sisters. While the pampered sisters prefer the court life, Erika prefers battles and adventures outside of her kingdom. King Tobias and Prince Barin are accepting of this unusual preference up until the moment she kills the Cho Nisi king. They are soon filled with regret and wondering if she was ever really meant to hold a bow and arrow in the first place.
Rise of the Tobian Princess asks the question, “What is a woman’s real place?”
And it answers back: it does not matter.
Gardner’s story reminds me of the great Tamora Pierce’s Alanna: The First Adventure. Like that novel, we have a strong female lead who’s better off as a knight than some of the male knights could ever be. This is particularly true in regards to King Tobias’s dependence on Prince Barin. Without Erika, Tobias’s kingdom (and the Cho Nisi) would have fallen. This story of a strong female warrior is a testament to how women have the strength to hold major positions—and to save us all.
The romance between Arell and Erika is a strong and well-balanced one. It recognizes its role as a secondary storyline, but it still gives us enough narrative moments where it makes itself known, where we know there could be something brewing here. These characters have time to get to know each other and to develop a strong deeper relationship we all hope for in fantasy romances.
Overall, Rise of the Tobian Princess is a nicely packaged fantasy adventure with a good secondary romance. There’s never a dull moment in here; it’s jam-packed with monumental events and action to look forward to. Princess Erika is one hero that readers are going to be thrilled to discover.
Genre: Fantasy / Romance
Print Length: 340 pages
ISBN: 978-0578889344
Thank you for reading “Book Review: Rise of the Tobian Princess” by Alexandria Ducksworth! If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with us at the links below.
The post Book Review: Rise of the Tobian Princess appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>The post Book Review: Arid Dreams appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>Reviewed by Joshua Ryan Bligh
Arid Dreams by Duanwad Pimwana deposits you among the triumphs and struggles of working class that is at once foreign and familiar.
In this collection of thirteen stories by Duanwad Pimwana, money is sparse, the workday is long, and the sun relentless. Arid Dreams is far from a peaceful reverie, but rather an exacting look at the moments of joy and tragedy, of hope and desire, that can be found in the working class of Thailand.
Arid Dreams takes the reader across a series of themes and scenes with a no-nonsense style that carries you through each tale steadily and at the right speed. The language fits the subject. That is not to say it is by any means banal but rather that flowery language and experimentation would only detract from the immediacy of the stories’ events. Pimwana’s style, filtered through Mui Poopoksakul’s translation, echoes the clarity and familiarity the characters have with their surroundings, of a life that does not bear the frills and lace of the elite and/or privileged.
But at the same time, the stories read in a dreamy way—not because they are filled with the fantastic or with the surreal, but instead that each comes with an atmosphere of inevitability, that there is something driving your life, a routine that is at once inescapable and unsatisfactory. There is the sense that either one’s will is impotent, or it is so confused about what it really wants that it amounts to a stagnation or even regression.
“Who suffered more, a person who knew only the first half of a story or a person who knew only the last?”
The various characters are often unhappy because of issues like failed romances, collapsed ambitions, or parental demands. They know they don’t like where they are, but they also don’t know which path to take to improve. This, however, does not stop them from trying, to varying degrees of success.
But Pimwana’s stories are not without optimism and humor. The titular “Arid Dreams” brings the narrator a greater understanding of human connection, while “How a Lad Found His Uncle and Learned a Lesson” is a short tale redolent of the not-so-short Idiot by Dostoevsky. And, even through some dark moments, Pimwana’s characters exude a sense of life. They may hide from themselves, commit acts of violence, and be filled with regret, but they struggle onward.
“It’s so much easier for me to keep living life as a failure, letting each day go by—like a stray dog.”
Yet the message stands that the way to a better life is rarely concrete and clear. As the stories navigate themes of identity, delusion, lust, friendship, and unfulfilled desire we see that there is no single direction toward that thing or place one wishes for. Though it may be right ahead of us, our steps lead us in detours and roundabouts.
By the end, we get the sense that the arid dreams of the title encompass both the characters’ aspirations and the lives they inhabit day by day. The worlds in Pimwana’s stories are not desperate or dark but simply difficult. They are not devoid of hope, but rather they are real and complicated, places where the right thing to do is murky at best.
Publisher: Feminist Press
ISBN: 978-1936932566
Thank you for reading “Book Review: Arid Dreams” by Joshua Ryan Bligh! If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with IBR at the links below.
The post Book Review: Arid Dreams appeared first on Independent Book Review.
]]>