Book Review: Glass Rhapsody by Sarah Chorn

I’m often at a loss when it comes to figuring out what I want to say in a review. This is especially true when a book and/or an author just utterly and completely wows me with story, and language, and craft. We’ve all been there right? Our minds firing off all these little snippets to use but you can’t string them together into anything coherent when the time comes to post a review. That’s been my experience with anything and everything I’ve read from Sarah Chorn. Her latest novel, Glass Rhapsody is no exception to this phenomenon. As with the rest of the Songs of Sefate series, Glass Rhapsody gutted me….it continued to work away at a wound opened with Of Honey and Wildfires, but, it healed as well. It worked at that wound, cleaned it up, and let me recover. This series is an emotional experience as much as it is a story, one that carries you through the pain to redemption and recovery on the other side.

What I’m Reading: Glass Rhapsody by Sarah Chorn

We all have books we can’t wait for. I mean…unless you don’t like to read books of course but then you wouldn’t be following my boring posts. But if you love to read books then you have new stories you can’t wait for. My current read is one of those. The author has quickly risen to the list of authors on my auto buy list and is one whose style and prose will hit you in the feels; hit you hard, and leave you on your knees gasping for air only to beg for more when you can finally draw that breath. Why would you look forward to that raw emotional pain you ask? It’s because it’s so damn good.

So am I reading? Well…it’s Glass Rhapsody by Sarah Chorn.

Book Review: Oh That Shotgun Sky

Do you ever read a book, series, or author because you intentionally want to be wrecked? That seems weird right? Like it’s one thing for a book to wreck you and to enjoy how good it was, and it’s another to seek it out because you want it. I feel like that with Sarah Chorn’s books. I know what to expect now and eagerly look forward to what they will do to me. I think that’s because Chorn writes about pain and emotion so well. She has a way of getting into the soul of her characters and into yours. And all the while she protects the reader so they feel safe on the journey. It’s a marvelous skill I’m not even sure she’s aware she possesses. Sarah Chorn has quickly become one of my favorite authors and is on my auto-buy list. If you haven’t started reading her books you should rectify that situation.

Today I give you my review of Oh That Shotgun Sky, book 1.5 in the Songs of Sefate. An exploration of fate through pain, emotion, and trauma…with a glimmer of hope and healing.

Book Review: Shadow Debt

Welcome to my stop on the Shadow Debt book tour hosted by Storytellers on Tour!

William Ray has done it again. By that I mean he’s offered readers another fantastic story in his Tales of The Verin Empire series. This one comes with gun slinging outlaws, a no-nonsense sheriff, a claim rich mining town, indigenous tribes chaffing at a colonial presence, fantastical monsters, and a dose of shadowy magic just to keep things interesting.

Book Review: Of Honey And Wildfires

I sat down on a recent Wednesday night to start reading Of Honey And Wildfires. This would be my third read for Self-Published Fantasy Month and the first book from Sarah Chorn I’d ever read. I was relaxed, in a good mood, and looking forward to the read because I’d seen nothing but great reviews for Sarah’s books. But I also knew from those reviews that I might be in for some feels. Reader…I wasn’t prepared.

What I’m Reading: Of Honey And Wildfires

Wednesday night I started reading Of Honey And Wildfires by Sarah Chorn.

“From the moment the first settler dug a well and struck a lode of shine, the world changed. Now, everything revolves around that magical oil.

What began as a simple scouting expedition becomes a life-changing ordeal for Arlen Esco. The son of a powerful mogul, Arlen is kidnapped and forced to confront uncomfortable truths his father has kept hidden. In his hands lies a decision that will determine the fate of everyone he loves—and impact the lives of every person in Shine Territory.

The daughter of an infamous saboteur and outlaw, Cassandra has her own dangerous secrets to protect. When the lives of those she loves are threatened, she realizes that she is uniquely placed to change the balance of power in Shine Territory once and for all.

Secrets breed more secrets. Somehow, Arlen and Cassandra must find their own truths in the middle of a garden of lies.” – Goodreads blurb

It’s my third read for Self-Published Fantasy Month and I’ve been looking forward to it for a while.

I only managed to finish a few chapters and had to stop. I couldn’t read anymore. I just couldn’t. I had to set it down and walk away. Why you ask? Well…

Yep. Gutted. And the book had just started. It just hit me hard. I seriously got up, poured myself a finger of bourbon, sat down and sipped a while. I don’t claim this was healthy, but <sigh> I did it anyway. I was thinking of picking the book up again but Sarah Chorn replied to my comment with this…

So I decided nah…I’ll stop for the night.

It isn’t often that an author has an impact with their writing and use of language and emotion in such a short span of pages. Those kinds of authors are out there. Alix E. Harrow comes to mind. But they don’t show up every day and plop down in your favorite reading chair with you and settle in. Sarah Chorn did that on Wednesday night and I was wrecked.

I have no idea if the rest of the book will live up to the first few chapters. I have no idea if I’ll need a new bottle of bourbon before this read is done. I have no idea if I’ll end up loving it or hating it before it’s all over. But what happened to me on Wednesday night doesn’t happen often, and I thought you should know about it.

– Jason

Guest Post: Sarah Chorn on Character Inspiration

Please welcome Sarah Chorn, author Seraphina’s Lament to Off The TBR. Her second novel Of Honey And Wildfires releases Tuesday, April 28, 2020.

Monthly Reading Goals: February 2019

Nicole over at Thoughts Stained With Ink talked me into trying out this post topic last month and I’m giving it another go. This isn’t something I usually do because I hate locking myself into a specific reading list. It just never works out for me. And as my Month In Review for January revealed, though I read more books than I’d set out to read, only half of them were from my original list.

So my ongoing rule for this topic will be…

So yeah…I’m gonna look at them as more what you’d call guidelines and post my monthly reading goals. These are goals, or guidelines for what I would like to read during the month. I reserve the right at any time to chase the next shiny object that comes by and read something else. I also add the disclaimer that life can get in the way at any time. With those things being said, here’s my list of reads for February 2019…