#the bone shard emperor spoilers

[reviewsthatburn]

*Contains spoilers for THE BONE SHARD DAUGHTER and THE BONE SHARD EMPEROR.

I love this book so much! I did not want it to be over and I lingered over it as much as is possible with an audiobook, having a fantastic time. THE BONE SHARD WAR is the conclusion of the Drowning  Empire Trilogy, a story of memory, identity, and connection in the context of a war filled with greed, shifting loyalties, and magic arising from unexpected sources. 

As a sequel, and the final book in the trilogy, THE BONE SHARD WAR wraps up pretty much everything I could think of in ways that range from surprising to satisfying, but all of them wonderful to read. Jovis has an entirely new phase in his life, this time he is coerced and magically enslaved by an enemy rather than his previous state of voluntarily working with Lin. Lin, two years after being told that Jovis was dead, is trying to do what is necessary to hold the empire together, slowly beginning to understand that holding the empire together at any cost might not be what's best for the people within it. None of the storylines are wholly new, but they are in new phases which are distinct from the first two books. Finally the characters start to understand the connections between the various sources of magic, and solve mysteries related to the white bladed swords. 

[unbloomingmoonflower]

another life

Mentions EW spoilers. Kind of divergent but kinda not. 

With a candle through time I could still see your ghost But I can't close my eyes, for it For it is there where you haunt me most Where you haunt me most - Motionless in White, Another Life

The same woman appeared in Amon’s dreams more times than he could count.

A woman with long, ebony hair that flowed within an invisible wind; the skirts of her pure, white dress billowing, stained with dots of crimson. In a field of wild blossoms she stood, also pure white before they slowly turned pitch black. 

“Hermes...” a soft voice echoed. “You are too gentle-hearted for this world.”

Hermes. Why did she keep calling him that?

Even with his devotion to Emperor Xande, Amon found himself endlessly curious about the woman. Something had stirred within him, some form of recognition despite having never seen her before. Who was she? Why did she feel important to him?

Until she appeared to him in the flesh when Amon executed his plan to resurrect Xande, to bring the empire back to its former glory. Her silver eyes were devoid of emotion, her countenance a mask of stone. Instead of the splattered dress she donned in his dreams, she wore robes of pure black, her hair pinned back from her face. Her hardened mask had broken for the briefest moment, for her lips had spread into a wide, malicious smile, her arms spreading wide as though to encompass the bloody war Xande had executed. Her eyes shattered into a mania that matched the laugher that rang out. It was a sound of manic delight. 

Here she was, the woman who haunted his very dreams, and he could feel himself falling into a desire of a different sort; he wanted to hear more of this woman’s maniacal laughter, to see that deranged smile adorn her lips for all of an eternity. 

In a flash, the woman’s form had changed; she had horns, scales, and a tail studded with stars as the night sky, snow-white hair flowing and mismatched eyes wide with innocent wonder. The apparition was here and then gone--just as the woman was, having disappeared into thin air with her maniacal laugh a song that faded within moments. 

It wasn’t until the Ascian known as Emet-Selch reawakened the memories of the previous Fandaniel within him, the man known as Hermes, that the identity of the woman that had haunted his dreams as Amon. The sister and entelechy of Emet-Selch, Lilith, who had once frequently visited him in Elpis. The Lilith of Hermes’ memories were different from the woman Amon had beheld; the Lilith of the past was pure, with a smile as bright and innocent as the sun. The Lilith of now was mad, driven by a darkness unknown to him.

When he finally was face-to-face with the Warriors of Light, Fandaniel beheld the vision that had flashed before Lilith vanished into the aether. The woman with the starry scales and mismatched eyes, tensed in preparation for a battle--only for her expression to twist into surprise at the sight of the Lunar Bahamut. 

How could two versions of the same person exist, Fandaniel did not know. However, the despair as Amon that he felt, the cravings of wanting to end his life, suddenly had another facet. 

He wanted to take this woman with him, this woman that was undoubtedly part of Lilith. Was it an desire stemming from Amon or from his former incarnation of Hermes?

Having captured the woman--Shuri, she was called by the Scions--and beholding her in her unconscious form, Fandaniel was reluctant. He knew his plan, knew the plan of Zenos yae Galvus, and yet his bones screamed to lock this shard away. However, he had a plan and he had to see it fulfilled...

“So, you were sundered, weren’t you? I thought I sensed you, then and now.”

The distorted voice reached his ears and Fandaniel watched as Shuri lifted her head; however, instead of the mismatched irises he had seen in his vision during the Third Astral Era, the eyes were pure silver--the eyes of Lilith. 

A smirk graced Fandaniel’s lips as he spread his arms wide. “Well! I never thought I’d see shards merge together like this. Especially from a woman who has haunted my dreams for so long as you have!” he declared, before leaning in close, his eyes clashing with hers. “You’ve appeared to me before, Lilith. A shame you didn’t stay for long.”

“I stayed to watch the calamity befall your precious Allagan Empire.” Lilith’s tone was almost bored as she sat upon the chair Fandaniel had left her upon, back straight and shoulders back like a queen. “Yes, I remember your title, Fandaniel. The you that was sundered had visited my little prison on the moon, where Zodiark is also sealed. The man who was inducted after his predecessor was a gentle-hearted man. Such ways of this world would torment his soul so.”

“And you yourself are steeped in darkness.”

“As is my wont. Your eccentric reincarnation was easily convinced by my brother to create a clone of yourself while you strive to pull the edge of the world to your death.”

Lilith leaned close, lifting a hand to ghost beneath Fandaniel’s chin, not once breaking their gazes. “You could just destroy this star instead of going through such a lengthy plan.”

“I could, but then--” Fandaniel grasped Lilith by her wrist, pulling her to her feet to wrap an arm around her, the free hand pressing against the small of her back while the other was a shackle around her wrist “--however will I be able to indulge in your presence, dear Lilith? I want to see that deranged expression of yours as I plunge this world into its Final Days, before I finally die. Perhaps, I’ll even take you to the hells with me, for us to dance together for eternity. I want to keep you. ”

Lilith’s expression was stone, despite such an innocent face that was before him. “Is this your bolder incarnation’s attempt to tell me your feelings, Hermes?” she intoned at last. “To convey a fondness for me you otherwise kept in your heart?”

Fandaniel’s expression darkened as Lilith pulled away, barely a shift in her expression. “What is left of my heart is not yours to claim,” she announced, pressing a hand over her chest. “The shard of my Lucifer is on this star. And I intend to hide him away, no differently than how you intend to do so to me. However, I am not yours to claim. I am not yours to pull to the end. Not when I intend to usher it along.”

“If you intend to usher along the end,” Fandaniel replied with a dramatic bow. “Then you may as well stay at my side, Lilith.” Where you belong.

A scoff left crimson lips as Lilith turned away--and Fandaniel reached out to render the woman unconscious, catching her in his arms. “I suppose I’ll have to put you in a different body for now, so m’lord can do what he intends to. I am not going to let you leave my side for a moment.” 

She looked so elegant even when unconscious. He couldn’t help shift her in his arms so that he could free one hand to caress it against her cheek. Even in his suicidal desires, Fandaniel’s heart swelled within his chest. He had one of the things he desired, even if her heart was not his.

Her presence will do nicely.    

[mydarlinginej]

read my full review of the bone shard emperor by andrea stewart here.

The Bone Shard Daughter was hailed as “one of the best debut fantasy novels of the year,” (BuzzFeed News), an “amazing start to a new trilogy,” (Culturess), and a “richly told, emotional, action-laced debut,” (Library Journal, starred). Now, Andrea Stewart returns with The Bone Shard Emperor, the second installment of this unmissable, action-packed, magic-laced fantasy epic.

The Emperor is Dead. Long live the Emperor.   Lin Sukai finally sits on the throne she won at so much cost, but her struggles are only just beginning. Her people don’t trust her. Her political alliances are weak. And in the north-east of the Empire, a rebel army of constructs is gathering, its leader determined to take the throne by force.   Yet an even greater threat is on the horizon, for the Alanga – the powerful magicians of legend – have returned to the Empire. They claim they come in peace, and Lin will need their help in order to defeat the rebels and restore peace.   But can she trust them?

my review:

While I enjoyed the first book, I had some reservations about the sequel after reading other people’s reviews. Unfortunately, I shared the same opinions. The Bone Shard Emperor suffered strongly from second book syndrome, with frustratingly slow pacing that distracted from any plot or character development.

This review contains spoilers for book one.

Now the emperor, Lin struggles to gain the support of the people and to find the answers of the mysteries her father has left behind. Jovis is a double spy, reporting on Lin while working as her captain of the guard while also growing close to her. Meanwhile, Phalue and Ranami deal with the turmoil on their island, and Nisong brings her rebellion closer and closer to the heart of the empire.

I don’t want to say that I didn’t enjoy this book at all because I did like parts of it. Three stars is still a decent rating! I liked the writing; Stewart writes with an attention to detail that really places you in the scene. Mephi, as expected, was one of my favorite parts, and I loved reading his parts. The concept of bone shard magic was also intriguing to me, and I can see where Stewart pulls from her software developing background in the worldbuilding. I truly think many other people who enjoyed the first book will like this sequel. However, I was so frustrated with the pacing and some of the character decisions that my irritation with the book grew.

read my full review here.

[celiabowens]

july-december sff releases

self-explanatory title here!

July:

Unconquerable Sun (7th, Adult): the summary says this is a gender-swapped Alexander the Great retelling in space. Yes, a space opera following a female Alexander, with family feuds, politics and cultures/societies inspired by real ones. Also reviews say Hephaestion’s gender-swapped too.

The Book of Dragons (7th, Adult): an anthology featuring some of the most interesting names of adult SFF writing about dragons. It has a great mix of known authors (Scott Lynch, Ann Leckie, Garth Nix etc) and more recent names of the genre (R.F. Kuang, Zen Cho etc). Also...it’s illustrated!

Girl, Serpent, Thorn (7th, YA): featuring Persian mythology, a f/f relationship and apparently morally gray characters.

The Shadow of Kyoshi (21st, YA): the second book following avatar Kyoshi’s life. No spoilers, but if you like ATLA and you’re even just a tiny bit curious about Kyoshi (who isn’t) you should check out book one.

August:

Harrow The Ninth (4th, Adult): follow up to Gideon The Ninth, which was probably one of the hottest debuts of 2019. Anyway, it’s a good crossover-YA title if you want to get started on Adult SFF and was pitched as lesbian necromancers in space so. 

September:

Master of Poisons (8th, Adult): epic fantasy following a spymaster trying to save his dying world.

The Bone Shard Daughter (10th, Adult): epic fantasy inspired by Chinese mythology + bone magic. Featuring political intrigue and a female lead trying to regain her position as the emperor’s heir. Also f/f.

Piranesi (15th, Adult): Susanna Clarke’s long awaited return to fantasy. The book’s been a mystery from the start, but it apparently features a mysterious house with infinite rooms and a research that could possibly lead to disaster.

A Deadly Education (29th, Adult): Naomi Novik’s latest series (already optioned for a movie lol), set in a sort of dark magic school and following a MC that will potentially become a dark sorceress? 

Burning Roses (29th, Adult): SFF novella following two older women in love?? Mixing Chinese and Western folklore? Sounds very cool.

October: 

The Invisible Life of Addie Larue (6th, Adult): V. E. Schwab, newest book (and long in the making), following a French girl who makes a deal with the devil in order to live forever, but is fated to always be forgotten.

Return of the Thief (6th, YA): last book of the Queen’s Thief series, which you should totally binge read before October 6th.

Ring Shout (13th, Adult): historical fantasy novella by the author of The Black God’s Drums, set during the Ku Klux Klan’s reign of terror.

The Once and Future Witches (13th, Adult): historical fantasy set at the end of the 19th century and following a family of witches who join the suffragists. 

Black Sun (13th, Adult): first book in an epic fantasy trilogy set in Pre-Columbian Americas, featuring crow mythology, apparently mermaids and lady captains and a visually impaired fighter.

The Midnight Bargain (13th, Adult): I can’t seem to find much about this one, but it seems a sort of historical fantasy about a young woman trying to escape her fate (arranged marriage) to become a sorceress.

Phoenix Extravagant (20th, Adult): Yoon Ha Lee’s latest book! Fantasy following a painter, set in a silkpunk world reminiscent of the Korean-Japanese occupation. From early reviews it looks like, as usual in Yoon Ha Lee’s books, there’s a lot of casual lgbt rep.

November: 

The Betrayals (12th, Adult): historical fantasy set in an exclusive (magic?) academy, following a man whose political career was ruined, featuring a mysterious contest.

These Violent Delights (17th, YA): Romeo and Juliet retelling featuring rival gangs in 1920s Shanghai. 

The Burning God (19th, Adult): the conclusion to The Poppy War’s trilogy, a grimdark fantasy inspired by 20th century China. 

December:

When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain (8th, Adult): fantasy novella set in the same world as The Empress of Salt and Fortune (which you should totally read).

[sneakyhomunculous]

PT New Kamigawa Report!

9-6 last time, need to try because a couple more medium results could get me into worlds. Oh, also Huey is making an OP announcement in a few weeks and retroactivity is a constant of new OP announcements!

Alchemy is weirdly frustrating. I want UR turns to still be good, the nerfs dont seem big enough. Unfortunately the hearthstone kids on the team quickly teach me that nerf=ban.

Runes looks horrible, but is annoyingly good. Alchemy doesn’t have many good cards somehow. UR combo seems promising though, invoke calamity is very powerful. 2+ weeks of all hands on deck tuning invoke decks still can’t really beat runes at a comfortable clip, sadge.

Sort of content to just lock in runes, then we try WW. Aspirant is banned (nerfed?) but inquisitor captain is strong and Thalia/archon/nekraatals seem good.

WW smashes runes. WW also holding up nicely vs UW and just feels powerful. Locking in WW.

Expect 30-40% Runes, there just are no other decks?

Oops we dismissed citystalker decks as being too weak to runes, and I didn’t know mirror fabled thing was a card. LMAO at venturing into a dungeon. Deck 1 Cave of the Frost Dragon 4 A-Faceless Haven 3 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire 17 Snow-Covered Plains 4 Inquisitor Captain 2 Elite Spellbinder 2 The Wandering Emperor 4 Hopeful Initiate 3 Archon of Emeria 4 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben 4 Sigardian Evangel 4 Skyclave Apparition 2 Brutal Cathar 2 A-Luminarch Aspirant 2 Portable Hole 2 Fleeting Spirit

Sideboard 2 Fleeting Spirit 2 Portable Hole 2 Elite Spellbinder 1 Intrepid Adversary 2 Valorous Stance 1 Guardian of Faith 1 Archon of Emeria 1 Ao, the Dawn Sky 3 Adeline, Resplendent Cathar

As far as historic goes, it’s the classic rock paper scissors Phoenix/Control/Food.

However Phoenix has been very popular and is doing well. Control could play red to be better vs Phoenix, but then it’s worse in the mirror and maybe vs other stuff too.

I played Phoenix last time and went like 4-3 or 3-4, I’m over it. Let’s try food! I’ve spent the last few years completely avoiding food/cat/oven. I haven’t played a tournament with it and maybe not even a couple matches.

Regret…

It’s quite fun!

We have a decent plan vs control and it seems like a powerful deck, I’m in.

Companion 1 Lurrus of the Dream-Den

Deck 4 Cauldron Familiar 4 Deadly Dispute 2 Mortality Spear 2 Hive of the Eye Tyrant 2 Phyrexian Tower 2 Cursebound Witch 4 Trail of Crumbs 2 Fatal Push 4 The Meathook Massacre 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire 4 Gilded Goose 2 Boseiju, Who Endures 4 Ravenous Squirrel 2 Khalni Garden 2 Soul-Guide Lantern 4 Blooming Marsh 4 Witch's Oven 4 Darkbore Pathway 4 Overgrown Tomb 1 Swamp 1 Bone Shards 1 Castle Locthwain

Sideboard 1 Phyrexian Reclamation 4 Thoughtseize 2 Graf Reaver 1 Lurrus of the Dream-Den 2 Tormod's Crypt 1 Arguel's Blood Fast 2 Outland Liberator 2 Culling Ritual

Unfortunately all of my girls have a stomach virus and I start feeling bad the day before the PT. I woke up feeling decent but am not 100%.

R1 vs No Ah Mah BW Venture I’m playing WW bc It beats runes and is decent against control and I expect that to be 50-60% of the field minimum. Turns out half the field brought black decks 🙄 (Spoiler alert, I play against 0 runes) G1 seems pretty close but this stupid triumphant adventurer is getting so much value, I eventually have enough and decide to just double block it and thankfully he doesn’t have removal. I immediately peel evangel and get excited but then I realize his adventurer is still in play???? I double check my creatures and they were certainly sized correctly? I check adventurer again???

Oh, it has deathtouch. Lmao oops.

G2 I have a nice draw but he has his 1 meathook on time and then a good follow up to slowly claw back and steal it. 0-1 and feel like shit, at least now I might be in the runes bracket! R2 vs Marcela Almeida on Wr aggro. It’s basically a mirror but she plays showdown Kumano and rabid battery.

G1 I am a bit behind on board and life total but I have t4 captain and then the wandering emperor to pull ahead, I realize that I’m actually at 8 and bc she has rabid battery I am sort of at risk to her peeling a flier (has 2 elite spellbinder a 2 reidane) but I fade that for the turn or two I need to close it out.

G2 I believe she mulligans and I have a very strong hand and win without much sweat.

1-1 and back in it

R3 vs Ryosuke Nishiura on RB sac. We tried this deck a few times, including the days before submission with Shota’s upgraded list. However it was still a little shaky against runes and we had done so much work on WW I never seriously considered it. What I did learn is that it absolutely smashed WW 😞

I won my first die roll and had the best possible start, hopeful initiate into Thalia into spellbinder into captain and I just ran him over after he mulliganed and had an awkward hand.

In game 2 I got him to use a doom blade on a spellbinder and a voltaic surge on something before slamming a turn 5 Ao that went unchecked and solo’d the game!

2-1 and ecstatic to get out of there with a winning record after that pairing.

Onto Historic where I’m hoping to massacre some phoenixes (spoiler, I play vs UW control 4 times)

R4 vs Ilya Manin on UW control. He has only 60 cards so no yorion, and his MD has 3 teferi 2 narset 1 wandering emperor, 1 farewell, 2 divine purge, 4 March 2 veto 3 deluge 2 soul guide lantern.

All things considered it’s not so bad. He doesn’t have portable holes and only 1 farewell. g1 goes very long as expected but somewhere around turn 10 I know I’m going to win. I’ve just gotten too far ahead with trails/disputes and I have castle + manland etc. but it just takes so long. I’m trying to not get beat by farewell + teferi so it’s taking longer than I’d hoped, then he does play farewell + teferi but I kill it and rebuild and eventually win with like 14min on my clock. If i had played tighter I could’ve saved 3+ minutes but oh well. G2 I am ahead and think I’m a big favorite but he peels a farewell for turn 6 and then follows up with teferi + backup and it starts to slip away. I may still be 10-20% to win but I only have 7 minutes so I concede. G3 I am pressing and know I am like 99% to win from turn 4. unfortunately it’s still very slow. I go as fast as possible and have him down to no hand, I am deploying two squirrels and have cat oven 2 trails manland etc. He untaps and cycles a shark and peels divine purge. I’m under 1 minute so I untap and slam my 3 mana squirrels plus get cat oven into play. he untaps and says go, I’m under 15 seconds and when I attack he steals a squirrel with the charm he drew… I try to start sacraficing stuff but I run out of time.

2-2 and on sky tilt. It’s my own fault for playing too slow, but losing this way hurts extra. I hadn’t practiced quite enough and I also still wasn’t 100% myself; I tried to calm myself down and relax but it wasn’t easy.

R5 Bernardo Santos on Jund Food. He has 4 mayhem devil 3 Karn 1 korvold, and another korvold in the board. This matchup is bad bc his karns and red cards are just very strong.

G1 is going pretty well but he just has his 1 korvold turn 5 and I die to it from a position that was crushing otherwise.

G2 is going well again but my advantage starts to slip as I flood a bit and he fetches bolas’ citadel with Karn… he’s on 5 lands and empty handed otherwise but he quickly finds the 6th land and slams it at 10 or 11 life. Immediately hits a free korvold… I have some damage tho and I get him down to 3, I have to fade him finding any food and miraculously I do! I survive and just untap and kill him.

G3 is just wild, I forget what he plays t1 some creature, I Thoughtseize and see trail korvold random other cards, he only has 1 other land but I take the korvold bc I have 2 trails and think I can keep up and korvold will just crush me if he does find lands naturally. Unfortunately he slams a turn 3 Karn after I had t2ed trail. he goes to get oven to go with his cat and trail. Next turn I just have to deadly dispute my food + use trail, he gets chitterspitter and plays it so he has like squirrel chitterspitter cat oven Karn vs my 3 lands trail no food. Somehow I turn it around slowly. I kill squirrel with bone shards or something after playing a 2nd deadly dispute, and I set up a culling ritual the turn his karn is up to 3 which kills everything but chitterspitter and Karn, and lets my hive finish off Karn. The chitterspitter is brutal though the squirrels keep coming and I’m at a low life total. I manage to fade and then barely hang on at 1 life before assembling cat/oven/meathook and I come back and win!!

3-2

R6 Riku Kumagai UW yorion. Their list looks pretty tough, but it is 80 cards and only has 3 teferi.

I win the die roll and have T1 squirrel t2 cat oven off a manland. t3 I have like goose + another oven and I’m just rumbling, on t4 I’m trying to decide exactly how to proceed before attacking and he just concedes without playing a spell all game 😂

G2 goes quite long and he outplays me, the wandering emperor + a timely farewell put me on the backfoot and I’m still way ahead but somehow his yorion into a baneslayer are able to get me down to 2, and despite me having cat multiple ovens and trail I can’t actually get traction and I am digging hard for a goose, I put myself up to 6 or 7 life before finally finding a goose and tapping out to play it. He’s empty handed so I am just fading removal on goose for 1 turn and I’ll untap and win, but he peels a March and I lose a game I had no business losing

G3 also goes very long and this time he’s pressuring me with hall and making my plays awkward. But I’m always ahead and feel like I’m going to win, I’m under 1min tho and get a bit of a sweat. On the last turn I am attacking for lethal but I’m under 20 seconds and if he has any charm/even just removal it should break things up and I’ll need another attack step. Good guy Riku just concedes as I’m declaring attackers with 14 seconds though. I imagine he just had nothing, but still a huge relief.

I need to play faster 😩

  4-2

R7 Kenta Harane playing the same 75 as Riku UW yorion 🙄

G1 I am on the draw and keep khalni garden 2 goose 2 trail squirrel mortality spear. I brick and t2 my goose missing my land drop after he went tapped land tapped land. Turn 3 he goes for a mainphase omen by the sea bottom bottom and doesn’t have a 3rd land 😂 I brick again and just play a trail so I have garden trail goose 1 food gif

He untaps and omens again, bottom bottom again! But he peels a UW dual and portable holes my trail 😔 I hit a land my next turn and end up losing a long game where I’m always behind because he kept hitting land drops from there.

G2 I keep a loose 6 and resolve deadly dispute and then another, but I never find anything meaningful and just get crushed.

A brutal 4-3 finish day 1. I played meh and too slow; I had some tough pairings though, so I don’t feel too bad.

Day 2 It looks as though of the 50+ people that are 4-3 only 4 of them are playing runes 😬

R8 Rizer playing GB the rock G1 Is a bit back and forth but he eventually kicks a dig up and as I expected plays a bankbuster with his remaining 2 mana. He untaps and slams his 1 tovolar‘s huntmaster and I can’t come back from that.

g2 is very back and forth but I manage to keep him under pressure and he floods a bit and dies. g3 he has t2 bankbuster t3 briarbridge tracker shutting down all of my attacks, and he starts grinding me down but I am managing to keep pressure. unfortunately he peels his 1 meathook massacre on a key turn after I had spent 3-4 turns in a row forcing him to activate lair of the hydra to eat an attacker, leaving him unable to use bankbuster or crack his clue.

the meathook keeps him alive but I push him down to 1 life and he needs to peel a spell just to stay alive. He draws his 1 tovolar 🤦‍♂️ I immediately draw a spellbinder and got excited because he needs removal, but then I remembered he can just pass, go to night, and trade wolves with my fliers so I’m locked out.

4-4 and dead for T8

I have to try my hardest to get worlds points, but this loss was crushing.

R9 Andrey Zhilin WW Mirror

I don’t remember the first two games of this match very well, but I know we split them.  In G3 I am ahead and make what I believe was a bad strategically error. I had a big captain getting pumped from luminarch and my wandering emperor, and I decided to press my advantage and keep using emperor to + and get in attacks. I got him low and had 2 eiganjo in my hand so I figured I would keep pressing as he had 2 luminarchs to my 1 and I needed to end the game quickly. What I should have done was just started minusing my emperor to make tokens and go wide, I had 4 evangel to his 0 amnd he was in no position to ever start attacking me anytime soon. He played very well and kept growing his brutal cathar which he had flipped, so he had a 7/7 first striker. Now I am also worried about this thing flipping back and make my big attack, he blocks well so I use one egainjo but he is able to just untap and attack down my 7 loyalty wandering emperor and still have stuff back to not be dead, a few turns later he has pulled ahead and I lose a game I should really not have.

4-5 and feeling really dejected.

R10 Jakub Toth on UW control

This is my first matchup in the tournament where I get some relief. They do have a decent UW list but I think our matchup is just very good, we have 4 fleeting spirit etc.

He steals game 1 despite me drawing a fleeting spirit, the wandering emperor just owns me multiple times.

I get the SB bug, so I contact an admin and have to send him our clocks and we restart the match. I scoop and we SB fine and go to a game 2.

I win a medium length game 2.

Now in G3 things slow down a lot and we have a lot of critical moments. However I come out ahead due to fleeting spirit(s) and I am in a great spot.  He is also getting low on time, I have like 3.5 minutes to his 2:45, and he’s still tanking. He has a hall of the storm giants and has me down to 5, so I am also trying to be extra careful. I have plenty blockers and 2 manlands, but he does play divine purges and has a field of ruin in play so it’s a little tricky. I could go for the win multiple times but he’s now under 1 minute and I see no need to risk it. I just play it safe and he ultimately times out.

I send screenshot to the admin asking if he timed out (bc we had to restart the clocks got reset and you have to do the math, and the admin confirms that yes he timed out and he will contact Jakub).  During my next match I get a DM from the admin that we were both awarded byes for the previous round, because the admin who reached out to Jakub never mentioned the time situation and therefore we were “Playing to different victory conditions” and this is the fairest way to resolve things. Awkward, but I guess it makes sense.

5-5

R11 Teammate Arne Huschenbeth playing the WW mirror

This match was nice, Arne won the die roll but gets stuck on 2 lands for a turn or two, unfortunately I draw both portable holes and they both get skyclaved as he gets back his luminarch each time.

Luminarch puts a hurting on me and I am not able to capitalize on his stumble while he crawls out of it and wins a long game.

I win a g2 where i don’t really remember what happened, I was ahead most of the time.

G3 we both have very nice hands but him being on the play is just too much. We spellbinder each other so we know what’s up, but his adeline just pushes too much damage and I can’t come back.

5-6 

R12 Nico Bohny playing Rakdos Arcanist

This is one of the good matchups for food, and this match shows me why. He has t1 inquisiton t2 arcanist but I’m able to answer it with a bone shards and i slowly pull ahead and win a long game with meathook/cat/oven draining him out.

G2 he has multiple timely hidetsugu’s and beats me down.

G3 is wild, I go for a turn 3 khalni garden and I’m going to deadly dispute the token. But khalni garden trigger never hits the stack and my arena seems to be frozen. Ok, restart arena. It lets me in no problem and the game takes 10 seconds to load I hear the exploding animations and I’m back. The token is now in play so I go to play deadly dispute and it hits the stack but no mana is tapped and my game is frozen again...... I panic and switch off my laptop to the backup computer. I open arena and fumble around trying to get gmail open so I can lookup my username/pass for this PT account. I find it and copy paste, but arena tells me incorrect password. I assume ive just been DC but google and internet is working fine... I try copy paste again and this time it works!

Except now arena starts doing an update hahahahaha. Somehow it only takes like 20 seconds and the client loads up, it has me VS nico screen and the timer ticking up to like 20-25 seconds I assume the match is just broken/I’ve already timed out and died. But suddenly I get the animation noises and the match loads! It’s his turn, he had a hidetsugu that’s now a creature? he has a magmatic channeler in play I hadn’t seen yet, I am trying to cast my deadly dispute but apparently I roped out this turn already bc I can’t click anything. Somehow I untap and he still only has 3 lands and I just have a bunch of life still and a meathook massacre and other stuff, and I just end up winning easily anyway. Sorry arcanist :(

6-6

R13 Noboyushi Suzuki playing Jund Food. This time there is no karns, but he has 4 oni-cult anvil

Now that I think about this match, I think I confused the beginning of one of those R5 games vs bernardo with one of these lol. I thoughtseize and take korvold over trail in g3 of this one, not vs bernardo. So who knows what actually happened in that one!

G1 I kill 2 mayhem devils but a 3rd one just unleashes on me and I die from some high life total.

G2 and 3 I get off some nice culling rituals/thoughtseizes and I fade korvolds and manage to squeak out wins. I know in one of the games I was dead to half his deck for a turn or two and faded.

7-6

R14 Dominik Gortzen on UR phoenix

Another matchup I was hoping to play, and it’s even better bc he cut some fliers for 2/2′s for 2 that seek instants/sorceries.  He draws and plays a 2/2 for 2 both games and I have good draws and win rather easily.

In g2 it was a bit funny bc he actually brings back 3 phoenix’s and it’s a little scary, but he immediately attacked with all 3 putting my to like 4 or 5, but leaving himself open to an already 6/6 squirrel (He was at like 11 or 12) and I had an oven and cat and another oven + tower in hand etc. so I just easily killed him on the backswing.

8-6

R15 Yo Tezuka on UW control

I lose a long g1, win a long g2.

G3 I have t1 thoughtseize t2 graf reaver t3 graf reaver, he divine purges I turn 4 a 4 mana graf reaver, he misses his land drop and purges again, I turn 5 a 4 mana graf reaver plus a goose, he misses again and I think I play a 6 mana graf reaver lmao. I know he has teferi and 2 deluge and I know I’m gunna win bc I have manland and multiple removal spells. He just bricks 1 more time I believe and dies to these reavers ggs yo.

9-6 and still alive in the worlds race!

Props to Ginky for making his first T8

Slops to no runes opponents and me for playing so slowly and poorly

[litandroses]

ARC Review - The Bone Shard Emperor (The Drowning Empire #2) by Andrea Stewart

Rating: 3★ out of 5

Release Date: Nov 11, 2021

The sequel to the Bone Shard Daughter! If you loved the magic, the world, the characters, the creatures, and the writing in the first book, those are pretty much the same here. This did not disappoint but wasn’t step up either. 

Here’s the synopsis for this sequel:

The Emperor is Dead. Long live the Emperor. Lin Sukai finally sits on the throne she won at so much cost, but her struggles are only just beginning. Her people don't trust her. Her political alliances are weak. And in the northeast of the Empire, a rebel army of constructs is gathering, its leader determined to take the throne by force. Yet an even greater threat is on the horizon, for the Alanga - the powerful magicians of legend - have returned to the Empire. They claim they come in peace, and Lin needs their help to defeat the rebels and restore order. But can she trust them?

To elaborate on what I said above, let’s first start with the world. Lin does more travelling here - so worlds will collide - we get to visit other islands and the stark differences in their cultures was something I appreciated. As for the characters, we get to meet new ones. The most notable for me being Ayesh, an eleven-year old gutter orphan who may or may not be hiding secrets of her own, and Jovis’s mother, clearly a very steadfast, strong-willed, unstoppable woman (hope to see more of her in the next book). In addition to that, Mephi and Thrana shone in this book, sometimes acting as Jovis and Lin’s respective moral compasses. 

The lack of Lin’s political alliances was very much highlighted here and from which stemmed the conflict, as well as the people’s lack of trust. This book involved a lot of political maneuvering, more so than book 1. This was one of the aspects that drove me mad, I felt a rollercoaster of emotions from embarrassment, confusion, annoyance, to anger, and a lot more. I won’t elaborate on these since my thoughts are quite spoiler-y. It may sound like the plot was a mess, it could be described to be so especially in the beginning; there were some times I wanted to step into the book and handle some things myself. The narrative may have been a bit repetitive in certain parts, and the pacing was off; more things happened in the last 70% or so than in the rest of the book. It was hard for me to keep interested so this took me quite a while to finish. I also wasn’t a fan of the romance here, I felt like it could have done without. The events all boiled down together well though, but the loose ends felt forced.

In a nutshell, there were a lot of questions answered in this sequel, but also more to ask.  An arc was granted in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the arc!

[henbooks]

NaNoPlanMo #20

(I’ll only be doing one more of these- a wrap up, and the last part of this myth!

So, here’s the housekeeping before the myth starts.

Middles: Huge. This is most of the book, which is seven parts with on average 10 chapters in each part, each chapter averaging about 6,600 words. This book, as projected right now, is huge. Editing it is going to be fun, because my goal is going to be to dial it back quite a bit.

Either way, this is most of the mystery. By the end of the middles, I feel like the reader will have figured out the murderer. (As projected right now- might change.) This is the part where most of the secrets leading into the plot come to light. Where we will see my character’s change the most as time goes on. The most sudden changes happen at the end, but I feel like these moments are overall more important to my arcs.

The Midpoint: OOoh this is a certain point which I am very excited to write, but it is a huge spoiler. Let’s just say that someone dies, and it’s dramatic and I love that character and I’m not prepared.

The Final act: This is when everything comes together. My timelines converge completely at this point, and that act causes for the murderer to be revealed! (Now they have to catch them.)

The Climax: Magical, action-packed fight scene with all of my characters. ‘Nuff said.

Lastly, How to NaNo: My plan as it stands hinges on writing a lot on the weekends. I’ve set up a plan on Pacemaker that will have me write about 1,300 words on weekdays, then 2,600 on weekends. I hope I can keep it up alright, but my life and school will come first. I’m doing it again in December, so I’m hoping to get about 100,000 words over the space of two months.

And now, here’s part 2 of the myth. Part three comes on Halloween, if all goes as planned. :D (Part One, if you missed it.)

Laurus wasn’t sure what to do. Somnia, on the other hand, had an agenda to fill.

She immediately took off, disappearing from the room. Metus made no moves to stop or follow her, instead choosing to walk boldly to the corner and pick her sword up from the corner. She turned it over in her hands before unsheathing it and stabbing her arm in a swift moment. She grunted, but did not recoil from the wound, instead positioning her blade underneath so that the blood fell onto the tip.

“Where do I go, my king?” Her eyes didn’t eve lift from the red-tipped blade.

Laurus was struck with both wonder and fear. A power- some unknown magic- coursed through her blood. Everything she said and did was with an authority that he, a king, couldn’t fully understand.

“Where do I find the invaders?” She lowered the blade and took a step towards him- covering more space than should have been possible in a single stride. Had he not been against the wall, he would have backed away from her.

“They’ve stayed to the southern edge,” he said. He was surprised his voice didn’t tremble. “The southeastern corner. I last heard of their presence in Peiraine.”

Metus nodded and took two steps, covering the distance to the door. As she was about to leave, she turned back, smiling. A trickle of blood leading from the corner of her mouth to her chin was still there, beginning to dry in the air.

“Thank you, my king. I shall see you soon. I will bring you the emperor’s head on my sword.”

With one movement, the medals on her chest clattered to the floor, the threads connecting then severed by her sword. She turned on her heel, digging them into the ground and disappearing through the door.

Laurus was the last to leave the accursed room.

Laurus didn’t hear anything of Metus for another fortnight. Rumors spread like wildfire, but he didn’t believe any messages that came to him until a young woman showed up at his throne.

“My sister is losing control.” Somnia looked wildly different. Her hair had been cut to nearly the scalp, revealing everything about her face- the bones, the freckles, and the eyes. “Last I saw her, she was cutting off the heads of anyone who spoke out against her. The people are scared- they’re worshipping her to preserve their lives.”

“And the invaders?”

Somnia shrugged. “They don’t concern me.”

“They concern me an awful lot.”

“A King should first worry about his people-”

“What do you think I’m doing, woman? Your sister is the only hope we have at the moment. What do you expect me to do?”

“I came to donate my blood.”

Laurus fell silent. He hadn’t considered trying again. “I still need all of the other’s as well. And a warrior’s…”

“Warriors are easy to come by. As are artists and scholars. I’m sure you could call your original choices anyhow.”

Laurus called in Cartus, Lituus, Matercula, and a guard and a slave in the palace who were willing to volunteer. Occasus appeared without being summoned, but shared a knowing smile with Somnia as he approached.

“I doubt my blood is sufficient anymore, but I came to witness the event,” he said, smiling.

The knife came out again, the cup was again stained red. Matercula immediately began to dress the cuts.

Laurus paused before reaching for the cup. Metus’s actions still echoed in his mind.

“Does anyone wish to use this cup for themselves?”

He wasn’t surprised when Somnia raised her hand. “I wish to stop my sister’s reign of terror. I know her far better than any of you can claim.”

“And you agree to dispel the invaders as well?” Laurus asked.

“They do not concern me, but they concern you, my king. I will do as you ask me.” She held out her hand, and Laurus delivered the cup to her. She lowered her head, murmuring into the cup again. When she was silenced, she looked among the group.

“Please, could you fetch me some wine to wash this down with? I’m not quite as brave as Metus is.”

Lituus smiled. “Ah, yes. Fetch some wine for all of us. A celebration is in order!”

Occasus and the slave disappeared down a corridor, heading for the kitchens. They returned, carrying a wineskin and several goblets.

Somnia helped them pour, dumping some of the blood into her own glass. She turned towards the others with a smile, offering a goblet to Laurus. Occasus and the slave passed them out to the others.

Somnia sipped at her cup daintily, Matercula took one sip before setting the drink aside to again turn to her duties, Laurus kept it in his hand, occasionally swallowing the liquid. Lituus’s was gone almost immediately, Cartus took one sip to be polite, then gave his glass to Lituus.

It hit Lituus first. He fell to the floor, his wine glass shattering. Matercula bent over him, checking him over in horror.

“What happened to him? I’ve never seen someone get drunk so fast!”

“He’ll be fine. It didn’t harm my sister in any way.” Somnia said, taking another swallow of her wine. “I assume I’ll fall next. Then it will be you, my king.”

“What did you do?” Laurus asked, staring at the cup of wine in his hand.

“It only takes a drop for the powers to manifest themselves. Lituus is experiencing his turning right now.” She fell down, a smile still on her lips. Matercula ran over to her, making sure she had not fallen on any shards of glass. The others began to panic, the wine and pleasantries forgotten.

“I hope you will not be offended,” Occasus said, turning towards the soldier and the slave. “Somnia believes one soldier goddess in the world is enough, and she wished me to fulfil the role of the slave. I suppose I’ll never fully shake the title.”

The slave and the soldier didn’t answer. They still didn’t touch the wine, instead choosing to support their king as he started to fall.

Occasus dropped after that. Then Cartus. Then Matercula.

And so, Six of the Seven Saviors lay on the castle floor. A single guard and slave passed from person to person, panicked.

And then, they rose.

[beneathathousandskies]

Book Review: The Bone Shard Daughter (The Drowning Empire #1) - Andrea Stewart

Book Review: The Bone Shard Daughter (The Drowning Empire #1) – Andrea Stewart

Hello!

         Today  I am reviewing ‘The Bone Shard Daughter’ by Andrea Stewart. Spoiler: I loved it, and I hope you will check out the author and this stunning fantasy debut which is out next week!

Book Summary:

In an empire controlled by bone shard magic, Lin, the former heir to the emperor will fight to reclaim her magic and her place on the throne. The Bone Shard Daughter marks the debut…

[reviewsthatburn]

*Contains spoilers for THE BONE SHARD DAUGHTER.

As the middle book of a trilogy, THE BONE SHARD EMPEROR moves several things to new stages but doesn't completely close off anything. Mephi and Jovis's bond is getting stronger. Phalue and Ranami are newly married and figuring out what kind of governor Phalue will be. Sand now calls herself Nisong and has begun invading the other islands with her fellow constructs. Lin is traveling to several of the islands in order to obtain promises of aid and loyalty from the various governors. The Shardless Few are more of a threat, with their leader pulling strings to destabilize Lin's reign. Lin now has a companion of her own, and a Cloud Tree monk has appeared to help her learn about the Alanga. There's a much stronger focus on information about the Alanga, since it appears they're coming back. I like the reveal of what they are, and I'm very intrigued by some late-book answers about their reemergence and connection to shard magic. 

Full Review at Link.