iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Plus: this clown discovered he could climb on the boxes

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

This was cool and weird. It has this eldritch horror vibe. But also cannibalism. And a sapphic undertone? It makes sense, I swear.

Summary:

Aymar Castle has been under siege for six months. In this isolated setting, food is running low and there has been no sign of rescue. But just as the survivors consider deliberately thinning their number, the castle stores are replenished. The sick are healed. And the divine figures of the Constant Lady and her Saints have arrived, despite the barricaded gates, offering succor in return for adoration.

Soon, the entire castle is under the sway of their saviors, partaking in intoxicating feasts of terrible origin. The war hero Ser Voyne gives her allegiance to the Constant Lady. Phosyne, a disorganized, paranoid nun-turned-sorceress, races to unravel the mystery of these new visitors and exonerate her experiments as their source. And in the bowels of the castle, a serving girl, Treila, is torn between her thirst for a secret vengeance against Voyne and the desperate need to escape from the survival horror unfolding within Aymar’s walls.

As the castle descends into bacchanalian madness—forgetting the massed army beyond its walls in favor of hedonistic ecstasy—these three women are the only ones to still see their situation for what it is. But they are not immune from the temptations of the castle’s new masters… or each other; and their shifting alliances and entangled pasts bring violence to the surface. To save the castle, and themselves, will take a reimagining of who they are, and a reorganization of the very world itself.

000 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Auf Empfehlung meines Bruders hab ich's gehört und auch wenn ich den Twist vermutet habe, war dieses Ende wahrscheinlich das beste, was ich von Fitzek gehört habe. Aber ich werde einfach nicht warm mit ihm. Meistens mag ich die Figuren nicht und und irgendwas an den Auflösungens stört mich.

Inhalt:

Ein winziges Zucken im Mundwinkel, die kleinste Veränderung in der Pupille reichen ihr, um das wahre Ich eines Menschen zu "lesen": Hannah Herbst ist Deutschlands erfahrenste Mimikresonanz-Expertin, spezialisiert auf die geheimen Signale des menschlichen Körpers. Als Beraterin der Polizei hat sie schon etliche Gewaltverbrecher überführt.

Doch ausgerechnet als sie nach einer Operation mit den Folgen eines Gedächtnisverlustes zu kämpfen hat, wird sie mit dem schrecklichsten Fall ihrer Karriere konfrontiert: Eine bislang völlig unbescholtene Frau hat gestanden, ihre Familie bestialisch ermordet zu haben. Nur ihr kleiner Sohn Paul hat überlebt. Nach ihrem Geständnis gelingt der Mutter die Flucht aus dem Gefängnis. Ist sie auf der Suche nach ihrem Sohn, um ihre "Todesmission" zu vollenden? Hannah Herbst hat nur das kurze Geständnis-Video, um die Mutter zu überführen und Paul zu retten. Das Problem: Die Mörderin auf dem Video ist Hannah selbst!

Ihr einziger Ausweg führt tief in ihr Innerstes ...

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

I liked this and one thing really took me by surprise. I think it concludes the story well enough but I also think not all has been said about Vigrið. Not sure if that was intended that way or if the author wanted to finish it. (Which is understandable on a human level, not a critique.)

Summary:

Varg has overcome the trials of his past and become an accepted member of the Bloodsworn, but now he and his newfound comrades face their biggest challenge yet: slaying a dragon.

Elvar is struggling to consolidate her power in Snakavik, where she faces threats from within and without. As she fights to assert her authority in readiness for the coming conflict, she faces a surely insurmountable task: reining in the ferocity of a wolf god.

As Biorr and his warband make their way north, eager for blood, Gudvarr pursues a mission of his own, hoping to win Lik-Rifa's favour and further his own ambitions.

All paths lead to Snakavik, where the lines are being drawn for the final battle - a titanic clash that will shake the foundations of the world, and bear witness to the true fury of the gods.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

I listened to book 1 last year but I wasnt that into it. Maybe it was 3 Hero Journey Starts, maybe headspace. But I devoured this and loved it! I just love that the Gods take form as Kaiju size animals.

Summary:

Lik-Rifa, the dragon god of legend, has been freed from her eternal prison. Now she plots a new age of blood and conquest.

As Orka continues the hunt for her missing son, the Bloodsworn sweep south in a desperate race to save one of their own - and Varg takes the first steps on the path of vengeance.

Elvar has sworn to fulfil her blood oath and rescue a prisoner from the clutches of Lik-Rifa and her dragonborn followers, but first she must persuade the Battle-Grim to follow her.

Yet even the might of the Bloodsworn and Battle-Grim cannot stand alone against a dragon god.

Their hope lies within the mad writings of a chained god. A book of forbidden magic with the power to raise the wolf god Ulfrir from the dead . . . and bring about a battle that will shake the foundations of the earth.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Ab hier waren dann ganz neue und unerwartete Ereignisse. Der ganze Aufbau mit einem Charakter hat sich sehr gelohnt und ich hatte einiges an Emotionen. Super Bildsprache.

Lord of Mysteries - Clown 3 von Cuttlefish That Loves Diving. Deutsche Version mit zwei Sammelkarten

Inhalt:

Die Nachtfalken ruhen im Schlaf. Der Schrei des Ungeborenen zerreißt die Stille. Der Blick des Abgrunds und das wahnsinnige Geflüster – sind sie göttliche Gnade oder der Tod? Tiefgraue Augen, purpurrot durchzogen, die Asche der Heiligen Selena schwärzt die Träume. Auf der zur Tragödie bestimmten Bühne verfliegt der Tränenglanz des Clowns im Nu. Die Feder spinnt absurde Fantasien, denn jede Geschichte ist eine Lüge.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Short story set in 1370 Bohemia with a bunch of mercenaries. The idea is good? The horror's gory, tho. But I think it would work better as a movie and the author doesn't make a secret out of the plans to make this into a screen play. Kinda reads like it.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Maybe because I listened to the audio but I don't get how no one got that major hint for 7 years, lol? But it was still nice and I'm curious about the overarching story even if this case was just okay. I loved the casual repersentaion in that setting. And the colors of the cover.

Summary:

DI Sheridan Holler is used to solving crimes on Liverpool’s streets, but after a decayed corpse turns up in a cemetery, she finds herself reopening not one but two cold cases. Seven years earlier, two women were gunned down and the only suspect, small-time drug dealer John Lively, was never seen again. Case closed. Until the body in the cemetery is identified as his.

Holler needs to work out if Lively was killed out of revenge, or was just a victim of the criminal world he inhabited. When shocking evidence is revealed about the murder weapon, Holler’s cold case starts to look hopeless once more.

But defeat is not an option. Driven by the unsolved and traumatic murder of her brother when they were children, DI Holler’s pursuit of justice is relentless. As old wounds are reopened, the police close in on the killer, but the threat of them striking again is all too real. Can DI Holler put the pieces of the puzzle together before anyone else winds up dead?

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Auch wenn ich den Inhalt durch den Anime kannte, war's cool das so aufgedröselt zu lesen. Die Zusammenhänge sind so viel klarer und man baut auch mehr Sympathien für Charaktere wie die Geschwister oder Dunn auf. Hoffe aber, dass die Zeichensetzung ab Buch 4 hoffentlich besser wird.

Lord of Mysteries - Clown 2 von Cuttlefish That Loves Diving. Deutsche Version mit zwei Sammelkarten

Inhalt:

Der majestätische Palast auf dem Hauptgipfel des Hornacis-Gebirges und ein unsichtbarer Blick – sind sie eine verborgene Weisung oder die Versuchung eines finsteren Gottes? Der Zauberspiegel entweiht das Antlitz des Mädchens. Das einzelne Auge des Gehängten Riesen flammt blutrot auf. Selbst der wahre Seher darf seinen Augen nicht trauen. Der Tod naht, das Unheil kriecht heran, lautlos entfaltet sich eine verborgene Intrige. Über dem grauen Nebel neigt der Narr das Haupt und lauscht der Dissonanz des Schicksals…

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Alles mit der Romanze war immer noch nicht so meins (genau wie die innere Stimme), aber ich mochte das Buch als ganzes wieder lieber. Besonders das mit Dem aus der Tiefe war sehr cool.

Meeresglühen - Für immer versunken von Anna Fleck

Inhalt:

Schwere Seebeben erschüttern die Unterwasserwelt. Aber das ist nichts gegen Ellas ganz persönliche Naturkatastrophe: Aris' Hochzeit mit Prinzessin Elyria steht unmittelbar bevor. Doch dann stellt sich heraus, dass Ellas Mission in Pacifika eine uralte Macht des Meeres geweckt hat. Nicht nur Atlantis droht der Untergang, auch die Oberfläche schwebt in tödlicher Gefahr. Ella und Aris kämpfen um ihre Welten – und entdecken ein Geheimnis, das stärker an ihren Grundfesten rüttelt, als jede Naturgewalt es je vermögen würde ... Gibt es doch eine Zukunft für ihre unmögliche Liebe?

110 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Ist jetzt schon ein Jahr her, dass ich den 1. Band gelesen habe, aber ich glaub, ich fand den besser? Bzw. ich mochte die Story, das Abenteuer, die Umgebung, aber Ella mit ihrem Hyperfokus auf Aris und deren Beziehung war mir zu anstrengend? Aber vielleicht bin ich auch zu alt und zu ace.

Meeresglühen - Wiedersehen in Atlantis von Anna Fleck

Inhalt:

Ein Jahr ist vergangen, seit Ella an die "Oberfläche" zurückgekehrt ist – ein Jahr voller Liebeskummer, ohne ein einziges Zeichen von Aris. Und nun taucht er plötzlich wieder auf! Doch Atlantis steht kurz vor einem Krieg. Mitten im Taumel der Gefühle geraten die beiden zwischen alle Fronten. Werden sie dennoch füreinander einstehen können? Und was bedeutet ihre Liebe, wenn ein mythisches Unterwasserreich daran zu zerbrechen droht? Ella kämpft gegen übermächtige Feinde – und gegen ihr eigenes Herz …

110 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

Als ich den Donghua angefangen hatte, wollte ich sofort die Novel lesen, weil ich wusste, dass zu viel gekürzt wurde. Wunderschöne deutschsprachige Version, aber ich weiß nicht ob das am Editor liegt oder ob schweizerdeutsche Zeichensetzung anders ist, aber die wörtliche Rede war seltsam.

Lord of Mysteries - Clown, Teil 1. Von Cuttlefish That Loves Diving. Deutsche Version mit zwei Sammelkarten.

Inhalt:

Ein Mann aus unserer Welt erwacht im Körper des Geschichtsstudenten Klein Moretti – wenige Augenblicke, nachdem dieser sich das Leben genommen hat. Vor ihm liegt ein Notizbuch mit unheilvollen Worten: „Alle werden sterben. Auch ich.“ Gefangen in einer Welt, die dem viktorianischen Zeitalter gleicht, sucht er verzweifelt nach Antworten und einem Weg zurück. Doch jede Wahrheit, die er lüftet, zieht ihn tiefer in den Abgrund, denn sein größter Feind ist nicht die Welt, sondern das, was in ihm erwacht. Vor oder was ist das Geflüster, das im Nebel auf ihn wartet?

Zwischen sieben Kirchen, Geheimsorganisationen, mythischen Kreaturen, versiegelten Artefakten und finsteren Göttern entdeckt er die zweiundzwanzig Beyonder-Pfade. Sie verleihen unvorstellbare Macht, doch bergen zugleich verborgenes Grauen. Jeder Schritt könnte ihn dem Wahnsinn näherbringen, jedes falsche Wort ihn verraten, jedes Wissen ihn verdammen – bis er nicht mehr weiß, wer er tief im Inneren wirklich ist.

Durch einen mysteriösen Zufall gibt er sich als Gott aus und gründet den Tarot-Club mit zweiundzwanzig leeren Stühlen. Wie die Tarotkarte Der Narr steht er am Anfang einer Reise mit grenzenlosen Möglichkeiten.

Dies ist die Legende des Narren.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

Maybe because I didn't like the audio so it was less for me. (I was very surprised by the last chapter tho.) But it might be amazing for others. Thriller/horror? Girl meets girl and has a powerful Bi Awakening™, but ignores some strong red flags.

Summary:

Rosemary meets Ash at the farmers' market. Ash—precise, pretty, and practically perfect—sells bars of soap in delicate pastel colors, sprinkle-spackled cupcakes stacked on scalloped stands, beeswax candles, jelly jars of honey, and glossy green plants.

Ro has never felt this way about another woman; with Ash, she wants to be her and have her in equal measure. But as her obsession with Ash consumes her, she may find she's not the one doing the devouring…

Told in lush, delectable prose, this is a deliciously dark tale of passion taking an unsavory turn...

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

A dabble into the thriller genre. 2 best friend fight at a wedding and the next morning one is dead and the other has no memory of the night, but is a suspect. 5 years later a true crime podcast airs about the case. Highly recommend the audio! The podcast bits are great.

Summary:

After Lucy is found wandering the streets, covered in her best friend Savvy’s blood, everyone thinks she is a murderer. Lucy and Savvy were the golden girls of their small Texas town: pretty, smart, and enviable. Lucy married a dream guy with a big ring and an even bigger new home. Savvy was the social butterfly loved by all, and if you believe the rumors, especially popular with the men in town. It’s been years since that horrible night, a night Lucy can’t remember anything about, and she has since moved to LA and started a new life.

But now the phenomenally huge hit true crime podcast "Listen for the Lie," and its too-good looking host Ben Owens, have decided to investigate Savvy’s murder for the show’s second season. Lucy is forced to return to the place she vowed never to set foot in again to solve her friend’s murder, even if she is the one that did it.

The truth is out there, if we just listen.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

The 2nd Amina book and I think I liked this one even better than the first one. Everything on the Island was great!

The Tapestry of Fate by Shannon Chakraborty

Summary:

Amina al-Sirafi thinks she’s struck gold. Tasked with hunting down arcane artifacts for the council of immortal peris, she can savor the occasional rollicking adventure on the high seas with her cherished criminal companions while still returning home to raise her beloved daughter, Marjana. But when Raksh, the spirit of discord with whom she is reluctantly wed, provokes the council’s wrath, Amina is charged with a seemingly impossible quest: steal a spindle capable of rewriting fate from a mysterious sorceress on an island no one can escape.

Forced to leave Marjana—who is increasingly frustrated at being peddled what are clearly lies about her mother’s life and her own past—Amina finds her mission almost immediately thrown into peril. But deadly storms, an erratic poison mistress, and old enemies are the least of her worries. For the peris’ story is unraveling, hinting at a far deadlier game whose rules Amina must swiftly puzzle out. A game that sets her against an adversary more cunning and powerful than she has ever faced.

A game that not everyone on her crew wants her to win.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Das ist der deutsche Titel.

Screenshot vom Buchcover. Titel: All your pretty Lies - Glaubst Du deinen Lügen. von Amy Tintera

000 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Ich hatte mir noch gebraucht den 3. Band von Meeresglühen bestellt und ich find die Cover-Aufmachung von allen 3 Büchern voll schön. Dass die golden Elemente hervorgehoben sind und die Souletten in diesem Meeresmetallic sind. Der Buchrucken ist nur leider sehr weiß.

021 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Ich hatte mir für mein Exil so'n paar Bücher von meinem physischen SuB mitgenommen (und 2 gekauft) und meine letzten Bücher sind ne wilde Genre Kombi, lol. Meeresglühen Bd. 2: YA? Fantasy, Romance Lord of Mystery 1.1: Transmigration, Fantasy, Cosmic Horror The Starving Saints: Horror, Dark Fantasy

110 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

And two more for my mom. This time from a box for vacuum cleaner bags, lol.

020 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Unter dem Umschlag sieht es übrigens so aus. Ich hoffe wirklich sehr, dass der der Verlag die Reihe weiter rausbringt und nicht, wie sehr häufig auf dem deutschen Markt, irgendwann abbricht.

000 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Meine Ausbeute von gestern. Das mit dem Verlag war mir so lange so shady, aber die Quali vom Buch ist mega. Da sind sogar farbige Illustrationen und zwei Sammelkarten mit drin.

Lord of Mysteries - Clown. Part 1. Hardcover. German Edition.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

I needed some bookmaks, to not use a receipt, but only had washi tape, printer paper and cat food boxes in my exile. So that's what I made.

231 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Another of what I call "Fun Fantasy Romance"! (it's different from Romantasy for me, ok) A hero and a villain team up to be fake nemeses. Lovely gay shenanigans ensue.

Summary:

Fake nemeses. It’s a dastardly plan that can’t go wrong… until love crashes the act.

Nobody is more surprised than Cyrus to learn that he’s no longer considered the greatest villain in the land of Athaca. Sure, he’s lying about the fact that his magical power is making flowers grow. And maybe lately he’s spent more time embroidering pillowcases than tormenting the locals. But that doesn’t mean he’s ready to be yesterday’s evil news.

Enter the hero Maximillian: the realm’s golden boy, complete with a blinding smile, chiseled abs, and an infuriating habit of spreading hope and joy. (Gross.) If Cyrus wants to be taken seriously, he’ll have to take this guy down.

But Maximillian isn’t quite as perfect as he seems. When he proposes a scheme to fake an epic rivalry and increase their fame, Cyrus can’t resist. Stage the battles, soak up the spotlight, share the spoils—it’s a villainously good marketing plan.

There’s just one hitch. Pretending to hate your nemesis becomes a lot harder when you start falling for them instead.

120 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

This was just as fun as the first one and whatever its origins were, imo it stands completely alone. I'd gladly reread it someday too. If I have a critique, it's that I still think they shouldn't have separated what I suspect was one story into two books and release them a year apart

The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley

Summary:

When Osric first bribed Aurienne to heal him, he never imagined that her capable hands would mend both his body and his heart. Meanwhile, Aurienne, whose life has been flung into chaos by this devilishly handsome assassin, is appalled to find herself wrestling an attraction to him that threatens to slip into something else.

Things go superbly sideways when Osric and Aurienne discover more about the deadly Pox devastating the Tīendoms. The plague may have been unleashed intentionally by an Order far nastier than either of them can handle. As the lines between Osric and Aurienne continue to blur, the balance between peace and war, and love and hate, trembles, shifts and hinges on a heartbeat.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

Absolutely loved this! It's a great fantastical adventure of a retired pirate returning to sea. I loved Amina and that she's is in her fourties. There are a few nods to the Daevabad trilogy but it can be read separately.

The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty

Summary:

Amina al-Sirafi should be content. After a storied and scandalous career as one of the Indian Ocean’s most notorious pirates, she’s survived backstabbing rogues, vengeful merchant princes, several husbands, and one actual demon to retire peacefully with her family to a life of piety, motherhood, and absolutely nothing that hints of the supernatural.

But when she’s tracked down by the obscenely wealthy mother of a former crewman, she’s offered a job no bandit could refuse: retrieve her comrade’s kidnapped daughter for a kingly sum. The chance to have one last adventure with her crew, do right by an old friend, and win a fortune that will secure her family’s future forever? It seems like such an obvious choice that it must be God’s will.

Yet the deeper Amina dives, the more it becomes alarmingly clear there’s more to this job, and the girl’s disappearance, than she was led to believe. For there’s always risk in wanting to become a legend, to seize one last chance at glory, to savor just a bit more power…and the price might be your very soul.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Amazing conclusion to the series. I had theories that were confirmed, and it was so great. Even if you hate the villains, you get why they do the things they do, how everyone ended up where they are. Also my hoped couple became a thing and I loved the slow path to it. Highly recommend the series.

$Summary: Daevabad has fallen. After a brutal conquest stripped the city of its magic, Nahid leader Banu Manizheh and her resurrected commander, Dara, must try to repair their fraying alliance and stabilize a fractious, warring people. But the death of his people and loss of his beloved Nahri have unleashed the worst demons of Dara’s dark past. To vanquish them, he must face some ugly truths about his history and put himself at the mercy of those he once considered enemies. Having narrowly escaped their murderous families and Daevabad’s deadly politics, Nahri and Ali, now safe in Cairo, face difficult choices of their own. Though Nahri is finding peace in the rhythms of her old home, she is haunted by the knowledge that the loved ones she left behind and the people who considered her a savior, are at the mercy of a new tyrant. Ali, too, cannot help but look back, and is determined to return to rescue his city and the family that remains. As peace grows more elusive and old players return, Nahri, Ali, and Dara come to understand that in order to remake the world, they may need to fight those they once loved…and take a stand for those they once hurt.$

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

I was SO INVESTED that I read/listened to the whole thing within 2 days, lol. I love how this is about the intrigues and scheming but every time they had interactions I was rooting so bad for one couple.

The Kingdom of Copper by S. A. Chakraborty

Summary:

Nahri’s life changed forever the moment she accidentally summoned Dara, a formidable, mysterious djinn, during one of her schemes. Whisked from her home in Cairo, she was thrust into the dazzling royal court of Daevabad—and quickly discovered she would need all her grifter instincts to survive the political intrigue there.

Now, with Daevabad entrenched in the dark aftermath of a devastating battle, Nahri must forge a new path for herself. But even as she embraces her hidden heritage and the power it holds, she knows she’s been trapped in a gilded cage, watched by a king who rules from the throne that once belonged to her family—and one misstep will doom her tribe..

Meanwhile, the exiled prince Ali has been cast out for daring to defy his father. Hunted by assassins, adrift on the unforgiving copper sands of his ancestral land, he is forced to rely on the frightening abilities the marid—the unpredictable water spirits—have gifted him. But in doing so, he threatens to unearth a terrible secret his family has long kept buried.

And as a new century approaches and the djinn gather within Daevabad's towering brass walls for celebrations, a threat brews unseen in the desolate north. It’s a force that would bring a storm of fire and ancient magic straight to the city’s gates . . . and one that seeks the aid of a warrior trapped between worlds, torn between a violent duty he can never escape and a peace he fears he will never deserve.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

It takes a bit to get everyone together but in the meantime there's cool lore delivered. Didn't feel Dara/Nahri though, but I like how the characters are written. Very... human? By the end I was soooooo invested.

Summary:

Nahri has never believed in supernatural magic. Certainly, she has power; on the streets of eighteenth-century Cairo, this female protagonist is a con woman of unsurpassed talent. But she knows better than anyone that the trades she uses to get by—palm readings, zars, and a mysterious gift for healing—are all tricks, both the means to the delightful end of swindling Ottoman nobles and a reliable way to survive.

But when Nahri accidentally summons Dara, an equally sly, darkly mysterious djinn warrior, to her side during one of her cons, this portal fantasy adventure catapults her into a world she’s forced to reconsider her beliefs. For Dara tells Nahri an extraordinary tale: across hot, windswept sands teeming with creatures of fire and rivers where the mythical marid sleep, past ruins of once-magnificent human metropolises and mountains where the circling birds of prey are more than what they seem, lies Daevabad, the legendary city of brass—a hidden city to which Nahri is irrevocably bound.

In Daevabad, within gilded brass walls laced with enchantments and behind the six gates of the six djinn tribes, old resentments and political intrigue run deep. And when Nahri decides to enter this world, her arrival threatens to ignite a war that has been simmering for centuries.

Spurning Dara’s warning of the treachery surrounding her, she embarks on a hesitant friendship with Alizayd, an idealistic prince who dreams of rebellion. All too soon, Nahri learns that true power is fierce and brutal. That magic cannot shield her from the dangerous web of court politics in this high fantasy world. That even the cleverest of schemes can have deadly consequences.

110 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 18/07/2026

The setting is brilliant (Kowloon Walled City and GHOSTS? Hello?!) but I expected to read a different kind of story, I guess. Like the first third of the book. As the story progresses the focus shifts from mystery to something else. It's still good, though.

The Girl with a Thousand Faces by Sunyi Dean

Summary:

Mercy Chan is a triad exorcist with a mysterious past. After washing up on the shores of Hong Kong with no memory during World War II, she found a home in Kowloon Walled City, an infamous, ghost-infested slum full of lost and traumatised civilians. Since the war ended, Mercy has rebuilt her life and found work as a ghost-talker for the local triad, dealing with the angry and bitter spirits who haunt this place.

But the past she can’t remember won’t let her go. An unusually powerful ghost lurks in Kowloon’s waterways, drowning innocents and threatening the district. Unnervingly, it claims to know Mercy – and her forgotten childhood.

As Mercy is drawn into a deadly cat-and-mouse game with this malignant spirit, she begins to realise that the monster she fights within these walls may well be one of her own making.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

This was absolutely wonderful, I loved every bit of it! Highly recommend! Fatma is a great protagonist and I love her, but Hadia made my day every single time. She's so great. This world is amazing and I would read anything in it again.

Summary:

Cairo, 1912: Though Fatma el-Sha'arawi is the youngest woman working for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities, she's certainly not a rookie, especially after preventing the destruction of the universe last summer.

So when someone murders a secret brotherhood dedicated to one of the most famous men in history, Al-Jahiz, Agent Fatma is called onto the case. Al-Jahiz transformed the world fifty years ago when he opened up the veil between the magical and mundane realms, before vanishing into the unknown. This murderer claims to be Al-Jahiz, returned to condemn the modern age for its social oppressions. His dangerous magical abilities instigate unrest in the streets of Cairo that threaten to spill over onto the global stage.

Alongside her Ministry colleagues and a familiar person from her past, Agent Fatma must unravel the mystery behind this imposter to restore peace to the city - or face the possibility he could be exactly who he seems . . .

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

This was very nice, and I had fun with it.

The Legend of the Nine-Tailed Fox by Katrina Kwan

Summary:

Yue may be the last of her kind. At night, she stalks the streets of the capital city of Longhao, luring in unsuspecting victims with the mask of a beautiful woman, then consuming them in her true form of the nine-tailed fox.

When she is captured by a powerful demon hunter named Sonam and banished to Hell, she manages one final act of revenge: dragging him—and two of his subordinates—down with her.

Now trapped in an abyss with unimaginable terrors, they’ll need each other’s help to navigate Hell and bypass the gods who preside over each circle, each of whom presents the group with a unique and deadly challenge. Forced to depend on one another as they claw their way out of the underworld, both demon and demon hunter discover that there might be more to the other than meets the eye.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Cool story and cool horror; loved the German folk creatures! But the setting is quite gruesome (30 years war); definitely check your triggers before reading.

Summary:

A skull's grin is eternal…

The year is 1635.

Sister Ursula, a young nun fleeing the ruins of her convent, and Elsebeth, a sharp-witted peasant, escape a band of marauding soldiers and disappear into the Bavarian forest. War scorches the land, and no one survives it alone. Amid the devastation, they find something in the arms of a dying man: the gilded skull of a saint.

It is said that if you reunite the saint's skull with her body, a wish will be granted. Desperate for salvation, and each with secret desires of their own, Ursula and Elsebeth follow a ragged map across the blighted countryside. But darkness follows them. A necromancer, drawn to the relic's power. The saint herself, whispering at night. And as the lines between blessing and curse blur, the women must face a harrowing truth: the magic they seek comes at a cost.

At the journey's end, they'll face an impossible choice—one that could tear apart everything they know… or bind them to each other forever.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

This reminded me why I like the series so much. Around half of this is the Novella, the rest are short stories. I wouldn't mind a book about Augustine and Diana, but even more I would love a full trilogy about Arabella, too. I love her.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

This was like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, but make it Gentlewomen, and 2000s urban paranormal investigation books. And Slowburn Sapphic! Actually perfect but I think I'll read book 2 instead of listening.

Summary:

At the dawn of the twentieth century in Paris, Samantha Harker, daughter of Dracula’s killer, works as a researcher for the Royal Society for the Study of Abnormal Phenomena. But no one realizes how abnormal she is. Sam is a channel into the minds of monsters: a power that could help her solve the gruesome deaths plaguing turn-of-the-century Paris—or have her thrown into an asylum.

Sam finds herself assigned to a case with Dr. Helena Moriarty, daughter of the criminal mastermind and famed nemesis of Sherlock Holmes and a notorious detective whom no one wants to work with on account of her previous partners’ mysterious murders. Ranging from the elite clubs of Paris to the dark underbelly of the catacombs, their investigation sweeps them into a race to stop a Beast from its killing rampage, as Hel and Sam are pitted against men, monsters, and even each other. But beneath their tenuous trust, an unmistakable attraction brews. Is trusting Hel the key to solving the murder, or is Sam yet another pawn in Hel’s game?

110 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

I really enjoyed this! It's finally a proper slowburn rivals to lovers story where not the whole relationship happens in book 1. Lots of things DO happen and they ARE at a different spot by the end, but not EVERYTHING happened. Looking forward to book 2, whenever that will be announced 🥲

Summary:

Leovander Loveage is a master of small magics, content to spend his days thinking up charms that can summon butterflies or turn hair pink. That is, until a mishap with forbidden magic compels Leo to obey his longtime rival, Sebastian Grimm. Grimm is Leo's complete opposite - respected, talented and an absolutely insufferable curmudgeon. They need a counterspell, and fast.

Chasing rumours of a powerful sorcerer, Leo and Grimm enter the Unquiet Wood, a forest teeming with murderous monsters and dangerous outlaws. To break the curse, they'll have to uncover the true depths of Leo's magic, set aside their animosity and - much to their horror - work together. Even as an odd spark of attraction flares between them.

110 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

It's okay on its own but I still want to know a bit more about what's now happening in this universe. Wouldn't mind a novella but also fine if not. Not for everyone; it's about Earth sending remote fighting roboters to a colony planet to free it of the local population. I liked Roger-Roger.

Summary:

All New Sonoran colonist Oliver Lewis ever wanted to do is run the family ranch and keep their aging fleet of intelligent agriculture bots ticking.

But now the colossal Apex Corporation has been hired to commence an “eviction action” – exterminate all life on New Sonora in preparation for a reboot. And they charge bored Earthers for the opportunity to design their own war machines, remotely pilot them, and make it a game.

The game is called Operation Bounce House . . .

And New Sonora is its playing field.

Determined to defend the only home he’s ever known, Oliver and his friends find themselves fighting for their lives against these machines.

To earth it’s a game, but to Oliver, it's war.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

It was alright, I guess. I liked the queer rep and some part of the magic here coold be cool, but I also disliked some insta-horniness and misunderstandings where someone tried to say something but someone else understood innuendo.

Summary:

Lady Hildegarde Croft is accustomed to changes in position. After all, she rose from maidservant to lady of the manor when she married Lord Thorgoode Croft. But when he drops dead quite unexpectedly, the plans that would have protected her and the people of Croftholde from her malevolent brother-in-law die along with him. What's a widow to do?

Fortunately, potential salvation arrives in the form of Lord Erol Elmwood, who is fleeing the consequences of using his forbidden Charm to raise the dead and save his own life. Now he's injured, destitute, and miserable, stuck hiding out at the neighboring estate.

For Hilde, blackmailing Lord Elmwood to resurrect Thorgoode seems like the perfect solution. For Elmwood, beautiful Lady Croft seems like the ideal distraction from his troubles. The problem is, all she wants from him is the horrifying power he knows he can never use again.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

I loved this! In the beginning, it had the typical Isekai things that you either like or dislike but then came a moment, a reveal, that had me so hooked. I'm soooo invested now and can't wait for the next book. Liked all the books I've read by them so far. <3

This Kingdom will not kill me by Ilona Andrews

Summary:

When Maggie wakes up cold, filthy, and naked in a gutter, it doesn't take her long to recognize Kair Toren, a city she knows intimately from the pages of the famously unfinished dark fantasy series she's been obsessively reading and re-reading while waiting years for the final novel.

Her only tools for navigating this gritty world of rival warlords, magic, and mayhem? Her encyclopedic knowledge of the plot, the setting, and the characters' ambitions and fates. But while she quickly discovers she cannot be killed (though many will try!), the same cannot be said for the living, breathing characters she's coming to love—a motley band that includes a former lady’s maid, a deadly assassin, various outrageous magical creatures, and a dangerously appealing soldier. Soon, instead of trying to get home, she finds herself enmeshed in the schemes—and attentions—of dueling princes, dukes, and villains, all while trying to save them and the kingdom of Rellas from the way she knows their stories will end: in a cataclysmic war.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

This should have been right up my alley with occultism and magic and a poly relationship but... idk, it fell a bit flat for me. Maybe too little magic, maybe because I didn't vibe with the characters or relationships.

Summary:

The Devil knows your name, David Aristarkhov.

As a teen, David Aristarkhov was a psychic prodigy, operating under the shadow of his oppressive occultist father. Now, years after his father’s death and rapidly approaching his thirtieth birthday, he is content with the high-powered life he’s curated as a Boston attorney, moonlighting as a powerful medium for his secret society.

But with power comes a price, and the Devil has come to collect on an ancestral deal. David’s days are numbered, and death looms at his door.

Reluctantly, he reaches out to the only person he’s ever trusted, his ex-boyfriend and secret Society rival Rhys, for help. However, the only way to get to Rhys is through his wife, Moira. Thrust into each other’s care, emotions once buried deep resurface, and the trio race to figure out their feelings for one another before the Devil steals David away for good…

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Again, had great fun with the book and am sad that I have to wait for the next one in the series. Was getting progressively sadder the further I got and the less I had left to read, lol. It was mostly getting through the level but then: Lore™.

Summary:

As chaos and mass panic spread outside the dungeon in the wake of Faction Wars, Carl and Donut find themselves on the tenth floor, where they’re forced to compete in a surprisingly normal set of tasks. Well, normal for the dungeon.

Races. Get from point A to point B, and don’t come in last. After each race, they pick an upgrade for their vehicle and the track gets more challenging. It all seems a little too normal, a little too simple.

Ignore those strange glitches that are occurring with increasing frequency. Don’t listen to those whispers about what’s happening on the mysterious eleventh floor, something the system AI calls A Parade of Horribles. Nobody, not even the showrunners, knows what that means. Just that the AI has ominously dubbed it “a coming-out party for the ages.”

Everything is fine, Crawler. I repeat, everything is fine.

Carl hates that it’s business as usual. The rules of this floor have taken away his agency. That just will not do.

So Carl is planning a party of his own. It’s a plan so dangerous, so insane, he can’t even consult his friends lest the AI put a stop to it. Because if it goes wrong, it’s not just the end of Carl and Donut. No. The stakes are higher than they’ve ever been.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Now, with some distance and after watching someone else's review, I see even more what the author intended to do here, but I didn't have fun reading it. AT ALL. If it wasn't the last of a series I wouldn't have finished it. Would maybe read a novella not from Hadrian's POV.

Shadows Upon Time by Christopher Ruocchio

Summary:

The trumpet sounds.

The end has come at last. After his victory at Vorgossos, Hadrian Marlowe finds himself a fugitive, on the run not only from the Extrasolarians, but from his own people, the Sollan Empire he betrayed-and who betrayed him. Hidden safely beyond the borders of human space, Hadrian awaits the arrival of the one ally he has left: the Jaddian Prince Kaim-Olorin du Otranto.

What's more, the inhuman Cielcin have vanished, unseen for more than one hundred years. The armies of men have grown complacent, but Hadrian knows the truth: the Cielcin are gathering their strength, preparing for their final assault against the heart of all mankind.

Only Hadrian possesses the power to stem the tide: an ancient war machine, forged by the daimon machines at the dawn of time. The mighty Demiurge. With it, Hadrian must face not just the Cielcin horde, but their Prophet-King, and the dark gods it serves-the very gods who shaped the universe itself.

This must be.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

This delivered exactly what it offered: YA Urban fantasy where a teenage seer crushes on this popular werewolf boy all while having his first vision of a murder and trying to prevent it from coming true. Tremendously enjoyed it.

Summary:

Cam is planning to fly under the radar at his new school, which should be easy as a human among kids with super-cool paranormal powers. But after a very public psychic vision, he’s suddenly the centre of attention. With a mystery to solve to prevent a dark future, Cam teams up with handsome werewolf (and long-term crush), Mateo. As the two get closer and the mystery deepens, can they trust the sparks between them, or is Cam’s vision getting closer to coming true?

200 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

This could've been the best book of the series, 5 stars easy, if chapter 40 hadn't been so blatantly on the nose with its message. Before and after was great but I'm disappointed and feel a bit betrayed 7 books in.

Summary:

The end is nigh.

It has been nearly two hundred years since Hadrian Marlowe assaulted the person of the Emperor and walked away from war. From his Empire. His duty. From the will and service of the eldritch being known only as the Quiet. The galaxy lies in the grip of a terrible plague, and worse, the Cielcin have overrun the realms of men.

Now, a messenger has come to Jadd, bearing a summons from the Sollan Emperor for the one-time hero. A summons, a pardon, and a plea. HAPSIS, the Emperor's secret first-contact intelligence organization, has located one of the dreadful Watchers, the immense, powerful beings worshipped by the Pale Cielcin.

Called out of retirement and exile, the old hero-accompanied by his daughter, Cassandra-must race across the galaxy and against time to accomplish one last, impossible task:

To kill a god.

110 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

It's a novella set between the books and I really dislike these settings, I do like the character this is about and provides a lot of context for him.

The Dregs of Empire by Christopher Ruocchio

Summary:

For thousands of years, the icy planet of Belusha has served the galactic Sollan Empire as its most notorious prison planet. It is here the very worst men in the Empire are locked away: murderers, traitors, deserters—each condemned to toil on the oil rigs and scrapyards of the planet in bitter cold, preyed upon both by the men of the Martian Guard set to watch over them, and by the Outborn reavers whose fathers escaped the work camps to scratch a living from the icy wilderness.

It is a hard world. A desperate world.

And it is here that Lorian Aristedes finds himself: alone; friendless; betrayed even by his own failing, mutant flesh. Is it here that Lorian Aristedes has been sentenced to work himself to death for the crime of abetting his master’s escape from Imperial justice.

For any other man, it would be the end of his story…but for Lorian Aristedes—once the left hand of the Halfmortal, Hadrian Marlowe himself—it is only the beginning.

200 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

In the same line as the last book, I would say equally important but different? Both books shape Hadrian massively but in different ways. And in a comparatively short time as well.

Summary:

The galaxy is burning.

With the Cielcin united under one banner, the Sollan Empire stands alone after the betrayal of the Commonwealth. The Prophet-King of the Cielcin has sent its armies to burn the worlds of men, and worse, there are rumors...whispers that Hadrian Marlowe is dead, killed in the fighting.

But it is not so. Hadrian survived with the help of the witch, Valka, and together they escaped the net of the enemy having learned a terrible truth: the gods that the Cielcin worship are real and will not rest until the universe is dark and cold.

What is more, the Emperor himself is in danger. The Prophet-King has learned to track his movements as he travels along the borders of Imperial space. Now the Cielcin legions are closing in, their swords poised to strike off the head of all mankind.

110 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

I can't say that I "liked" this but it furthers the story a lot. Not just with what I've come to call Universe Lore but also the Horrors of the Cielcin and with the way Hadrian is broken.

Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio

Summary:
Hadrian Marlowe is trapped.

For nearly a century, he has been a guest of the Emperor, forced into the role of advisor, a prisoner of his own legend. But the war is changing. Mankind is losing.

The Cielcin are spilling into human space from the fringes, picking their targets with cunning precision. The Great Prince Syriani Dorayaica is uniting their clans, forging them into an army and threat the likes of which mankind has never seen.

And the Empire stands alone.

Now the Emperor has no choice but to give Hadrian Marlowe – once his favorite knight – one more impossible task: journey across the galaxy to the Lothrian Commonwealth and convince them to join the war. But not all is as it seems, and Hadrian's journey will take him far beyond the Empire, beyond the Commonwealth, impossibly deep behind enemy lines.

100 0

Lia 🌺 @aschefeder.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

This was a loooong journey after a bigger time skip. Not bad, but by the end I thought I had read more than one book, lol. Things that annoyed me before were at least addressed. We find out the "magic", which is arguably cool, and other cool/interesting stuff happens. Was nice.

Summary:

Hadrian and his Red Company have been serving the Empire in military engagements against the Cielcin, the vicious alien civilisation bent on humanity's destruction. And they've been successful: a cult-like fervour building around following a particularly impressive victory. but popularity comes as a price: an assassination attempt, triggered by those within the Imperial government who are scared of his rise to prominence.

Now the Empire has turned dangerous, Hadrian and his crew leave to pursue his true interest: a search for a long-rumoured connection between the first Emperor and the Quiet, the ancient, seemingly long-dead race. And he will find the next key to unlocking their secrets in a massive library on a distant world.

The coordinates for their origin planet.

A planet that no longer holds life, but may still contain answers.

100 0