Audely Bensen Writes

I'm not sure that Sorrowland can be called reviewed as fantasy, since I believe technically it's shelved as a horror novel. I've never read horror before.  I think that's why I struggled with this book. Usually I love everything by Rivers Solomon. I dove into Sorrowland wanting to be in love. Instead, the narrative didn't quite fit into the genre conventions I expected.  To be honest, I'm not sure what I wanted--fantasy, but darker? The stomach-clenching fear of a thriller? This was neither of those experiences. Sorrowland has the world-building of fantasy, the slow, steady release of information, the steady realization that someone, somewhere, is a monster--but I never quite settled into knowing what I was reading, or what to expect next. Fear never came, nor the usual structure of commercial fantasy.  The narrative built in a way I wasn't used to, and the truth shifted in a way I didn't expect. Maybe that's the point of horror--I don't know ye...

I found The Chosen Ones by Veronica Roth by skimming the "recently added" section of my (pre-move) favorite bookstore's online inventory. They were doing one of their quarterly 1/2 off everything sale, so I got this book for $3.50 plus shipping. When I got it and realized it was published in April of 2020 I was a little concerned. I know that adult fantasy book twitter isn't quite as active as YA book twitter, but still--I had assumed this book was a couple years old since I heard absolutely nothing about it.  In the beginning, this book sucked me right in. I read the first half in a day--and then once I got to Part Two, shelved it for a couple weeks. The shift in setting threw me enough to knock away some of my ability to continue plowing through.  This makes me think of something that Sarah Maclean said in a recent podcast interview --although she writes romance and not fantasy, she said something along the lines of, if it takes you more than 6 hours to finish rea...

The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin was one of those books that I pre-ordered, and then steadily refused to read. I got a thrill of anticipation each time I looked at my TBR shelf and saw that black-and-neon spine.  I'm happy to report that the payoff was worth the wait. Throughout the pandemic, my ability to focus on books has really taken a hit, and that is especially true for fantasy. The City We Became sucked me in completely. I read it in 2 days instead of my usual week or more for novels of this size. That hasn't happened to me in months.   I loved the characters in this book, and the way that Jemisin overlaid the individuals wants and needs with those of the city. This was my first Jemisin book and I can see why she's so highly regarded--I've never read anything like this before. I also really liked the way that science and math were present in the book without the facts pulling away from the plot. This was an excellent example of soft sci-fi.  *Spoilers below...