James Nicoll Reviews

Who will take up the mantle and slay the evil in the Frozen North, saving all from death and destruction? Not Kell Kressia, he’s done his part… 

Kell Kressia is a legend, a celebrity, a hero. Aged just seventeen he set out on an epic quest with a band of wizened fighters to slay the Ice Lich and save the world, but only he returned victorious. The Lich was dead, the ice receded and the Five Kingdoms were safe. 

Ten years have passed Kell lives a quiet farmer’s life, while stories about his heroism are told in every tavern across the length and breadth of the land. But now a new terror has arisen in the north. Beyond the frozen circle, north of the Frostrunner clans, something has taken up residence in the Lich’s abandoned castle. And the ice is beginning to creep south once more. 

For the second time, Kell is called upon to take up his famous sword, Slayer, and battle the forces of darkness. But he has a terrible secret that nobody knows. He’s not a hero — he was just lucky. Everyone puts their faith in Kell the Legend, but he’s a coward who has no intention of risking his life for anyone… **

A heart-pounding, claustrophobic new story from Melissa Grey, the author of RATED.Ten years ago, disaster struck the remote town of Indigo Falls. A horrific event drove the residents underground, into shelters that keep them safe from the danger on the surface. No one speaks about what happened that fateful day, but even the youngest still remember the fear and, most of all, the searing pain when sunlight touched their skin. Now, a handful of families inhabit this bunker together, guided by a charismatic leader named Dr. Imogen Moran. There are many rules Dr. Moran has instilled to govern life belowground. You must always tell the truth. You must avoid the light of the sun. You must never touch skin to skin. But the most important rule, the one that was drilled into their heads from the moment the hatch slammed shut all those years ago, was at the very end of the list. It rattled around in their skulls when all was silent, echoing in the quiet, lonely dark. You must never go outside. 

This Jamaican-inspired fantasy debut about two enemy witches who must enter into a deadly alliance to take down a common enemy has the twisted cat-and-mouse of Killing Eve with the richly imagined fantasy world of Furyborn and Ember in the Ashes. Divided by their order. United by their vengeance. Iraya has spent her life in a cell, but every day brings her closer to freedom — and vengeance. Jazmyne is the Queen’s daughter, but unlike her sister before her, she has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother’s power. Sworn enemies, these two witches enter a precarious alliance to take down a mutual threat. But power is intoxicating, revenge is a bloody pursuit, and nothing is certain — except the lengths they will go to win this game. ​“A thundering waterfall of magic, vengeance and intrigue.” —Samantha Shannon, New York Times & Sunday Times bestselling author of The Priory of the Orange Tree and The Bone Season.

“When science unravels the mystery of eternal life, a grand conspiracy emerges from the darkness of history.” 

Berlin, July 2008. After giving a lecture, Max Knight, a Nobel Prize candidate and professor of genetic research, is kidnapped. His captors show him part of a corpse, a left hand, discovered when a bomb exploded at a neo-Nazi rally. Although the hand appears to be that of a male in his forties, it actually belongs to a Nazi lieutenant, who must be 111 years old. To solve the mystery, Max and his assistant Katya head for Domba, deep in the Amazon rainforest, where they meet the enigmatic village-leader’s daughter, Tania, and soon find themselves involved in a far-reaching Nazi plot. As they race against time from Berlin to the Amazon, California and Rome, will their romance grow? Even if Max has a fatal secret? 

Is eternal life immoral or our salvation? 

This science thriller was published in Japan (2002, 2011) and China (2013) and became an international best seller. The fast-paced, action-packed story includes adventure, intrigue, romance, history and more. **