November 2023 Monthly Spotlight

Every year, I am surprised by the cold wind and dark evenings as winter approaches here in the UK. Even more baffling is that some parts of the world are experiencing summer and high temperatures right now! The good news is that whatever the weather you are experiencing, there are new releases for that season this month! Here are a few to check out:

MALICE by John Gwynne

I completely adored the descriptive writing style with its simple, vivid prose. Multiple points of view (POVs) are also neatly used to introduce the world’s rich history, mystical creatures and political landscape. However, I initially struggled with the constantly shifting POVs and information dumps, though these gradually became less jarring as the story progressed.

STAR BRINGER by Tracy Wolff and Nina Croft

As someone who doesn’t read much sci-fi, I was glad that the writing style was simple and easy to understand. Enough details are provided to bring the story to life, and multiple points of view (POVs) give the full scope of what key characters encounter and their emotions. Only the worldbuilding made this aspect of the story underwhelming, as it is presented in information dumps at the start and then poorly developed over the course of the story.