debut authors Archives | Reader Voracious

ARC Review: Fireborne (Aurelian Cycle #1) by Rosaria Munda

January 9, 2020

What a tense and wild ride this was! Fireborne is an amazing fantasy debut that looks at the period just after a revolution succeeds and asks important questions about politics in general.

“And as with God’s the world quaked, to see them fireborne.”

I love the way that the story unfolds, acclimating the reader to the world and the way that the regime has improved society over the last ten years. By the time talks of war began, I was rooting for the new regime that I really connected with Lee and Annie’s actions. Is new always better? A regime called by any other name is still that: a ruling power.

Book Reviews

ARC Review: Gravemaidens (Gravemaidens #1) by Kelly Coon

December 26, 2019

Holy hell, this book. THIS BOOK. What a beautiful story about love and sacrifice. I laughed, I cried. Sometimes at the same time. This was the best book to buddy read because it features such an iconic ride or die friendship, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this with Haley & Ruby. You can read some of our thoughts in this twitter thread as we read the book.

“It was a tradition almost everyone considered an honor. Everyone but me.”

All that you really need to know about the plot is provided in the synopsis: the Lugal (king) is dying, and that means that three gravemaidens have been chosen to usher his soul into the afterlife. But when Kammani’s sister is chosen as one of the sacrifices, she vows to use her knowledge of healing to save the lives of not on the Lugal, but Nanaea as well.

Book Reviews

Review: Do You Dream of Terra-Two by Temi Oh

November 28, 2019

Narrative style: third person | Perspective(s): multiple (six)

Holy crap, I am so mad at myself for letting my copy languish on my bookshelf since February! This wasn’t quite what I was expecting, but I loved it all the same. This is a character-driven and captivating story that kept me thoroughly engaged until the very end. If you’ve ever dreamt of exploring the universe, Do You Dream of Terra-Two? is a must-read!

The book is told from the perspectives of the six teenagers chosen to embark on a critical mission: travel to the habitable planet – known as Terra-Two – to lead the colonization efforts. Because it will take 23 years to even reach their new home, they are leaving everything and everyone they have ever known on Earth for the hope of a better tomorrow.

“We’re leaving behind a world where slavery happened. Two world wars. Genocide A world where people have used atomic bombs. Terra-two will be different. Better. We will make it better.”

Book Reviews

ARC Review: Tarnished Are the Stars by Rosiee Thor

November 26, 2019

Narrative style: third person | Perspective(s): multiple (Anna, Nathaniel, Eliza)

This science fiction debut is so incredibly special, friends. I didn’t expect to adore these characters, but here I am, utterly attached and wishing it wasn’t a standalone novel so I could go on more adventures with them.

“There was nothing quite like the first tick of a new heart.”

The book instantly sucked me in with its opening chapter, situating the reader within the world and providing so much backstory in an easily digestible way. It starts at the operating table; a young boy named Roman needs a mechanical heart to stay alive. Lucky for him, they are outside the walls of the Settlement and the life-saving technology is available to him.

Anticipated Reads, Random & Bookish

Interview with Novel19 Debut Author Rosaria Munda of Fireborne, available NOW!

October 16, 2019

Welcome friends to my sixth author interview as a part of my Novel19 Class! This year I wanted to do something to help boost new author voices and stories, and this is a project that I am really excited about! For more information about my Novel19 Class and the other five books that I’ve chosen, please check out my announcement post.

“I hope it’s found by people who like books that ask questions. For me, the books in my youth stayed with me far longer than the others were the ones that broke my heart while leaving me thinking. Ender’s Game, The Once and Future King, Watchmen. If readers have a fraction of the feelings for Fireborne that I did for those books, I’ll feel like I’ve done my job.”

Today I am so excited to have Rosaria Munda on the blog to talk about her debut fantasy novel, Fireborne, which released into the wild yesterday! Read on to learn how political science courses helped shape this story, how studying the Latin language broke us, with some really amazing fan art as well!