Always Me

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: Evil for Evil ( Engineer Trilogy #2) by K.J. Parker Published: November 21, 2007 Genre: Steampunk Fantasy Sci-fi My Copy: Format: Trade Paperback Pages: 684 Where I Acquired It: A thrift store Summary (From Goodreads): Civitas Vadanis is in trouble. The Mezentines have declared war; and the Mezentines are very focused on their goals when it comes to killing. Duke Valens, of Civitas Vadanis, has a dilemma. He knows that his city cannot withstand the invading army; yet its walls are his only defence against the Mezentines. Perhaps the only way to save his people is to flee, but tha...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: Race to the End of the World ( The Mapmaker Chronicles #1) by A.L. Tait Published: October 14, 2014 Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy Adventure My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 239 Where I Acquired It: Goodwill Summary (From Goodreads): A map of the world? Why did the King want that? Everyone knew if you went too far in either direction you'd fall off the edge, into the jaws of Genesi, the fire-breathing dragon. A reluctant adventurer. A ship captained by a slave. A mysterious sea monster. And a race to the end of the world. The first thrilling book in The Mapmaker Chronicles ...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: Damnation ( The Burned Man #3) by Peter McLean Published: May 2, 2017 Genre: Urban fantasy My Copy: Format: Mass market paperback Pages: 349 Where I Acquired It: Goodwill Summary (From Goodreads): Shambolic demon-hunting hitman Don Drake is teetering on the edge of madness in this smart, witty urban fantasy novel. Don Drake is living rough in a sink estate on the outskirts of Edinburgh, doing cheap spells for even cheaper customers while fending off the local lowlifes. Six months ago, Don fled from London to Glasgow to track down his old girlfriend Debbie the alchemist. With the Bu...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: Moonbreaker ( Secret Histories #11) by Simon R. Green Published: February 4, 2020 Genre: Urban fantasy My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 336 Where I Acquired It: Goodwill Summary (From Goodreads): Ride shotgun with a "James Bond-of-the-supernatural"* as the Secret Histories Novels take you careening through an alternate London where around every corner a new kind of danger awaits.... My name is Eddie Drood, aka Shaman Bond, the very secret agent. And I am a dead man walking. I've been poisoned by Dr. DOA. There is no cure, no treatment, no chance of a last-minute miracle. ...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: A Star Named Vega by Benjamin J. Roberts Published: November 17, 2021 Genre: YA Sci-fi My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 363 Where I Acquired It: Antique shop Summary (From Goodreads): The 30th Century is a technological paradise. Androids have built a utopian future of advanced robotics, augmented reality, and simulated worlds. Humanity thrives across the Thirteen Suns. Why not spread some chaos, shake things up a bit? Aster Vale leads a secret life as the Wildflower, a competitive street artist with dreams of infamy. When her father joins a mysterious research project in the Veg...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: Robots vs. Fairies edited by Dominik Parisien and Navah Wolfe Published: January 9, 2018 Genre: Fantasy and Sci-fi Anthology My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 384 Where I Acquired It: Thrift shop Summary (From Goodreads): A unique anthology of all-new stories that challenges authors to throw down the gauntlet in an epic genre battle and demands an answer to the age-old question: Who is more awesome—robots or fairies? Rampaging robots! Tricksy fairies! Facing off for the first time in an epic genre death match! People love pitting two awesome things against each other. Robots vs. F...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: The Queen Is Dead ( The Immortal Empire #2) by Kate Locke Published: February 5, 2013 Genre: Steampunk Urban Fantasy My Copy: Format: Hardback Pages: 333 Where I Acquired It: Ollie's Bargain Outlet Summary (From Goodreads): Nothing lasts forever---and immortality isn't all its cracked up to be.  When her brother Val gets in over his head in an investigation of Half-Blood disappearances and goes missing himself, it's up to Xandra, newly crowned Goblin Queen, to get him back and bring the atrocities to light. Xandra must frequent the seediest parts of London, while also coping...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: The Game by Linsey Miller Published: August 4, 2020 Genre: YA Mystery Thriller My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 240 Where I Acquired It: Goodwill Summary (From Goodreads): If you loved American Horror Story 1984 , you'll die for this paperback original thriller mashup of Agatha Christie's The A.B.C. Murders and Riverdale in which a game turns deadly with a killer who picks his victims one by one, letter by letter. Every year the senior class at Lincoln High plays assassin. Lia Prince has been planning her strategy for years and she's psyched that not only does she finally ...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: The Graverobber's Apprentice by Allan Stratton Published: March 6, 2012 Genre: MG Fantasy Adventure My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 288 Where I Acquired It: Goodwill Summary (From Goodreads): Hans doesn’t know who he is or where he came from. When he was a baby, he washed ashore in a wooden box and was adopted by the conniving grave robber Knobbe the Bent. Now fate has thrown him together with Angela von Schwanenberg, a young countess fleeing for her life from the evil Archduke Arnulf and his dreaded Necromancer. Together, these friends go on a daring quest to discover Hans’s true...

.         Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon.  This week, in honor of Summer of Horror 2026 , a celebration of all things horror running from June through August and hosted by Tammy @ Books, Bones & Buffy , I'm featuring a horror novel. This Week's Neglected Book: Emma and the Vampires by Jane Austen & Wayne Josephson Published: June 9, 2010 Genre: Historical fantasy horror classic retelling My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 292 Where I Acquired It: A library book sale Summary (From Goodreads): What better place than pale England to hide a secret society of gentlemen vampires? In this hilarious retelling of Jane Austen's Emma , screenwriter...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: These Rebel Waves ( Stream Raiders #1) by Sara Raasch Published: August 17, 2018 Genre: YA Fantasy My Copy: Format: Hardback Pages: 474 Where I Acquired It: A library book sale Summary (From Goodreads): Adeluna is a soldier. Five years ago, she helped the magic-rich island of Grace Loray overthrow its oppressor, Argrid, a country ruled by religion. But adjusting to postwar life has not been easy. When an Argridian delegate vanishes during peace talks with Grace Loray’s new Council, Argrid demands brutal justice—but Lu suspects something more dangerous is at work. Devereux is a pir...

.         Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon.  This week,  in honor of Summer of Horror 2026 , a celebration of all things horror running from June through August and hosted by Tammy @ Books, Bones & Buffy , I'm featuring a horror novel. This Week's Neglected Book: Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison Published: September 19, 2023 Genre: Horror My Copy: Format: Hardback Pages: 289 Where I Acquired It: A yard sale Summary (From Goodreads): A cynical twentysomething must confront her unconventional family’s dark secrets in this fiery, irreverent horror novel from the author of Such Sharp Teeth and Cackle . Nobody has a “normal” family, but Vespe...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: The Wizard's Ward ( Queen's Quests #1) by Deborah Hale Published: 2004 Genre: Fantasy Romance My Copy: Format: Mass Market Paperback Pages: 464 Where I Acquired It: A yard sale Summary (From Goodreads): The once-peaceful land of Embria now suffers under the occupation of cruel conquerors. Enchantress Maura Woodbury has spent her young life trying to avoid their notice at all costs. Until her wizard guardian reveals that she has been chosen to seek and waken a legendary warrior who is destined to free their people. First she must procure an ancient map which will reveal The Waiti...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: An Import of Intrigue ( The Maradaine Constabulary #2) by Marshall Ryan Maresca Published: November 1, 2016 Genre: Fantasy Mystery My Copy: Format: Mass Market Paperback Pages: 386 Where I Acquired It: A library book sale Summary (From Goodreads): The neighborhood of the Little East is a collision of cultures, languages, and traditions, hidden away in the city of Maradaine. A set of streets to be avoided or ignored. When a foreign dignitary is murdered, solving the crime falls to the most unpopular inspectors in the Maradaine Constabulary: exposed fraud Satrine Rainey, and uncircle...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: The Dark Mirror ( The Bridei Chronicles #1) Juliet Marillier Published: March 6, 2007 (originally 2004) Genre: Historical fantasy romance My Copy: Format: Mass Market Paperback Pages: 561 Where I Acquired It: A yard sale Summary (From Goodreads): Bridei is a young nobleman fostered at the home of Broichan, one of the most powerful druids in the land. His earliest memories are not of hearth and kin but of this dark stranger who while not unkind is mysterious in his ways. The tasks that he sets Bridei appear to have one goal-to make him a vessel for some distant purpose. What that pu...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: The Great Train Robbery by Michael Crichton Published: July 2, 1994 (originally May 12, 1975) Genre: Historical thriller My Copy: Format: Mass Market Paperback Pages: 304 Where I Acquired It: A yard sale Summary (From Goodreads): In teeming Victorian London, where lavish wealth and appalling poverty live side by side, Edward Pierce charms the most prominent of the well-to-do as he cunningly orchestrates the crime of the century. Who would suspect that a gentleman of breeding could mastermind the daring theft of a fortune in gold? Who could predict the consequences of making the extr...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: Framed! ( Framed #1) by James Ponti Published: August 26, 2016 Genre: Middle Grade Mystery My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 320 Where I Acquired It: A library book sale Summary (From Goodreads): Get to know the only kid on the FBI Director’s speed dial and several international criminals’ most wanted lists all because of his Theory of All Small Things in this hilarious start to a brand-new middle grade mystery series. So you’re only halfway through your homework and the Director of the FBI keeps texting you for help…What do you do? Save your grade? Or save the country? If you’re F...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: Three Can Keep A Secret ( Greer Hogan Mystery #3) by M.E. Hilliard Published: December 24, 2024 Genre: Cozy Mystery My Copy: Format: Paperback Pages: 320 Where I Acquired It: A yard sale Summary (From Goodreads): Librarian Greer Hogan is an avid reader of crime fiction who possesses an uncanny knack for deduction. So when Anita Hunzeker, chair of the library board of trustees, is run off the road and killed, Greer is drawn into yet another murder case. No one in the idyllic village of Raven Hill seems all that sorry—Anita was widely disliked. But the more Greer digs, the more it se...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: Ship of Smoke and Steel ( The Wells of Sorcery #1) by Django Wexler Published: January 22, 2019 Genre: YA LGBT+ Fantasy My Copy: Format: Hardback Pages: 367 Where I Acquired It: An antique shop Summary (From Goodreads): In the lower wards of Kahnzoka, the great port city of the Blessed Empire, eighteen-year-old ward boss Isoka enforces the will of her criminal masters with the power of Melos, the Well of Combat. The money she collects goes to keep her little sister living in comfort, far from the bloody streets they grew up on. When Isoka's magic is discovered by the government, ...

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to  Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by  Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon.   By the way, all this month I'm featuring fantasy books in  honor of  Wyrd & Wonder 2026  (a month long celebration of all things fantasy co-hosted by Lisa @  Dear Geek Place , imyril @  There’s Always Room For One More , Ariana @  The Book Nook , Annemieke @  A Dance With Books , and Jorie @  Jorie Loves A Story  with artwork by Varvara Gorbash). This Week's Neglected Book: The Story of King Arthur and His Knights ( Pyle's King Arthur #1) by Howard Pyle Published: November 1, 1903 Genre: Historical Fantasy Adventure My...