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Book submission: Mass Effect: Revelation by Drew Karpyshyn

Submitted by: anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: Science fiction, video game tie-in, action, thriller.

Trigger Warnings: Violence, themes of racism, suggestive situations.

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: I randomly got it at a thrift store, and I think it's a very fun read that goes deeper into the universe of the Mass Effect games. While a tie-in novel, I read it before I had played any of the games, and thought it was a good introduction to the setting.

Anything else you would like to mention?: It's a fun book. I especially like the way aliens and their cultures are described throughout. I think it's written by the same person who wrote the overall story of the games, and you can tell it's written with love for the characters and setting.

Summary: Every advanced society in the galaxy relies on the technology of the Protheans, an ancient species that vanished fifty thousand years ago. After discovering a cache of Prothean technology on Mars in 2148, humanity is spreading to the stars; the newest interstellar species, struggling to carve out its place in the greater galactic community.

On the edge of colonized space, ship commander and Alliance war hero David Anderson investigates the remains of a top secret military research station; smoking ruins littered with bodies and unanswered questions. Who attacked this post and for what purpose? And where is Kahlee Sanders, the young scientist who mysteriously vanished from the base hours before her colleagues were slaughtered?

Sanders is now the prime suspect, but finding her creates more problems for Anderson than it solves. Partnered with a rogue alien agent he can't trust and pursued by an assassin he can't escape, Anderson battles impossible odds on uncharted worlds to uncover a sinister conspiracy . . . one he won't live to tell about. Or so the enemy thinks.

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Book submission: Neuromancer, by William Gibson.

Submitted by: anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: Cyberpunk, Thriller, science fiction, crime.

Trigger Warnings: Intense Violence, Sex, language, outdated social references, racism.

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: It's dated, but an absolute classic that created the genre known as "cyberpunk". It's a very fascinating story of revenge, action and mystery set in a dark and hopeless vision of the future run rampant with greed. A mixture of prescient and very inaccurate attempts to predict the modern age, but well worth the read.

Anything else you would like to mention?: The way this book is written is wonderful, inspired by beat poetry, but it can make it hard to read. Still, a very good book for those interested in the genre.

Summary: Hotwired to the leading edges of art and technology, Neuromancer is a cyberpunk, science fiction masterpiece—a classic that ranks with 1984 and Brave New World as one of the twentieth century’s most potent visions of the future.

The Matrix is a world within the world, a global consensus-hallucination, the representation of every byte of data in cyberspace...

Henry Dorsett Case was the sharpest data-thief in the business, until vengeful former employees crippled his nervous system. But now a new and very mysterious employer recruits him for a last-chance run. The target: an unthinkably powerful artificial intelligence orbiting Earth in service of the sinister Tessier-Ashpool business clan. With a dead man riding shotgun and Molly, mirror-eyed street-samurai, to watch his back, Case embarks on an adventure that ups the ante on an entire genre of fiction.

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Book submission: In Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson

Submitted by: anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: Cyberpunk, Science Fiction, Action, Mystery, Thriller.

Trigger Warnings: Intense and brutal violence, language, sexual scenes and situations, themes of racism and sexism.

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: It's an extremely fascinating and fun read, if a bit dense. Considered one of the I portmanteau works in the "cyberpunk" genre, Snow Crash explores the idea of a harsh and purposefully exaggerated version of modern live through a mixture of classic cyberpunk fiction elements combined with things like Sumerian mysticism and intense action. It's an extremely unique and bizarre book, but absolutely worth the read.

Anything else you would like to mention?: The story uses a strange form of present tense narration to showcase how characters "live in the moment", which makes sense as you continue to read but is odd to get used to. Still a very good book to recommend for those interested in the "cyberpunk" genre.

Summary: In reality, Hiro Protagonist delivers pizza for Uncle Enzo's CosoNostra Pizza Inc., but in the Metaverse he's a warrior prince. Plunging headlong into the enigma of a new computer virus that's striking down hackers everywhere, he races along the neon-lit streets on a search-and-destroy mission for the shadowy virtual villain threatening to bring about infocalypse. Snow Crash is a mind-altering romp through a future America so bizarre, so outrageous . . . you'll recognize it immediately.

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Book submission: In the Land of Leadale, Vol. 1, by CEEZ

Submitted by: anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: Fantasy, Isekai, Japanese Light Novel.

Trigger Warnings: violence

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: It takes the genre of Isekai power fantasy, and turns it into a very cozy, sweet and cute story where the stakes are deliberately low and the story is more about comedy and mystery than non-stop action. It's a very nice light read.

Anything else you would like to mention?: I love the main character, Kaya. She's such a unique point of view for a story like this, and helps elevate the book quite a lot.

Summary: New Beginnings in Familiar Lands

After a horrific accident put her on life support, the last vestige of freedom Keina Kagami had was in the VRMMORPG World of Leadale. When she wakes up in the body of her game avatar, though, Keina-now Cayna-finds that the worries of her old life appear to be a thing of the past, but somehow this new land doesn't seem to be quite the Leadale she remembers...

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Book submission: The Hichhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams

Submitted by: anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: Science fiction, comedy, surreal fiction

Trigger Warnings: Outdated language, sexual references.

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: I think it's an extremely clever and smart book, with humor that feels timeless and touches on a lot of elements of the human experience.

Anything else you would like to mention?: No, but I do think it's a good book to recommend

Summary: Seconds before the Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been posing as an out-of-work actor.

Together this dynamic pair begin a journey through space aided by quotes from The Hitchhiker's Guide ("A towel is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have") and a galaxy-full of fellow travelers: Zaphod Beeblebrox--the two-headed, three-armed ex-hippie and totally out-to-lunch president of the galaxy; Trillian, Zaphod's girlfriend (formally Tricia McMillan), whom Arthur tried to pick up at a cocktail party once upon a time zone; Marvin, a paranoid, brilliant, and chronically depressed robot; Veet Voojagig, a former graduate student who is obsessed with the disappearance of all the ballpoint pens he bought over the years.

Where are these pens? Why are we born? Why do we die? Why do we spend so much time between wearing digital watches? For all the answers stick your thumb to the stars. And don't forget to bring a towel!

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Book submission: Hunger Games: "The Scorpio Races" by Maggie Stiefvater

Submitted by: @quill-n

Genre & Sub-genres: YA fantasy, mythology, paranormal adventure, romance

Trigger Warnings: Death and blood

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: I read this in 8th grade and I remember really enjoying how the mythology was tied into the story. It also deals with family and some themes of feminism

Anything else you would like to mention?: I should probably reread it, it's been a while.

Summary: It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.

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Book submission: Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

Submitted by: anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: Dystopian action & adventure

Trigger Warnings: Death

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: I really enjoyed it, it gives an amazing idea of the Hunger Games prior to Katniss’s story. It perfectly encapsulates how the games got so popular.

Anything else you would like to mention?: It’s amazing book that the movie can’t even compare to.

Summary: It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capital, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.

The odds are against him. He's been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined -- every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute... and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

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Book submission: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardguo

Submitted by: anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: fantasy

Trigger Warnings: violence, sexual abuse, and slavery, as well as descriptions of substance addiction, forced sex work, and child abuse

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: This book was such a wild ride (in a good way) it has so many twists and turns, but the characters are really the star of this book. Each character is so unique and has their own fleshed out backstory that plays really well into their present selves as well as the themes of the story. I read this once (then the sequel) and then immediately read it again because it was so good (I should really go back for round 3).

Anything else you would like to mention?: Good Boom. Do Read.

Summary: Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can’t pull it off alone...

A convict with a thirst for revenge

A sharpshooter who can’t walk away from a wager

A runaway with a privileged past

A spy known as the Wraith

A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums

A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes

Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz’s crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don’t kill each other first.

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Book Submission: “Ship Breaker” by Paulo Bacigalupi

Submission by: @quill-n

Genre & subgenres: YA dystopian survival

Trigger Warnings: N/A

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: I found it in a thrift store and it caught my eye. The world building was intriguing to me, it was a fun read.

Anything else you would like to mention?: I like the captain, even though he was a pretty minor character.

Summary: In America's Gulf Coast region, where grounded oil tankers are being broken down for parts, Nailer, a teenage boy, works the light crew, scavenging for copper wiring just to make quota--and hopefully live to see another day. But when, by luck or chance, he discovers an exquisite clipper ship beached during a recent hurricane, Nailer faces the most important decision of his life: Strip the ship for all it's worth or rescue its lone survivor, a beautiful and wealthy girl who could lead him to a better life..

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Book Submission: “Allegedly” by Tiffany D Jackson

Submitted by: @thedragonsbooknook

Genre & Sub-genres: Young Adult, suspense

Trigger Warnings (if any): Violence, murder, abuse, r@p3

What's your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: I remember picking up this book because my librarian at my old high school off handedly mentioned it and after reading the background behind the book, I couldn’t put it down. I love how it showed a viewpoint of what a girl’s home can be like.

Anything else you'd like the mention?: Though its not a true story, its based off of the author’s experience living in a girl’s home

Summary: Allegedly. She didn’t say much in that first interview with detectives, and the media filled in the only blanks that mattered: A white baby had died while under the care of a churchgoing black woman and her nine-year-old daughter. The public convicted Mary and the jury made it official. But did she do it? She wouldn’t say.

Mary survived six years in baby jail before being dumped in a group home. The house isn’t really “home”—no place where you fear for your life can be considered a home. Home is Ted, who she meets on assignment at a nursing home.

There wasn’t a point to setting the record straight before, but now she’s got Ted—and their unborn child—to think about. When the state threatens to take her baby, Mary must find the voice to fight her past. And her fate lies in the hands of the one person she distrusts the most: her Momma. No one knows the real Momma. But who really knows the real Mary?

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Book Submission: "This Girl’s a Killer” by Emma C. Wells

Submitted by: Anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: Thriller, slasher

Trigger Warnings (if any): Graphic Depictions of Violence and Death, Murder, Implied Sexual Content

What's your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: This book was such a fun read! It was fast-paced and action packed, and the character building was very strong. It was marketed to me as a book about "supporting women's rights and women's wrongs" which interested me a lot.

Anything else you'd like the mention?: It's such a fast-paced read, and Cordelia is such a fascinating character. She's introduced as a kind of stock character of the femme fatale but we see her develop in such a beautiful way.

Summary: Ask Cordelia Black why she did it. The answer will always be: He had it coming.

Cordelia Black loves exactly three things: Her chosen family, her hairdresser (worth every penny plus tip), and killing bad men.

By day she's an ambitious pharma rep with a flawless reputation and designer wardrobe. By night, she culls South Louisiana of unscrupulous men—monsters who think they've evaded justice, until they meet her. Sure, the evening news may have started throwing around phrases like "serial killer," but Cordelia knows that's absurd. She's not a killer, she is simply karma. And being karma requires complete and utter control.

But when Cordelia discovers a flaw in her perfectly designed system for eliminating monsters, pressure heightens. And it only intensifies when her best friend starts dating a man Cordelia isn't sure is a good person. Someone who might just unravel everything she has worked for.

Soon enough Cordelia has to come face to face with the choices she's made. The good, the bad, and the murderous. Both her family, and her freedom, depend on it.

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Book Submission: “The Way of Kings” by Brandon Sanderson

Submitted by: Anonymous

Genre & Sub-genres: Epic Fantasy

Trigger Warnings (if any): Violence, slavery, murder, references to outdated political customs, depression, suic1de.

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: I think it's one of the best fantasy books every written, a little hard to get into but very worth it.

Anything else you’d like the mention?: The book is very long, but shows you a world completely unlike Earth and well worth exploring. It's a fantastic read.

Summary: Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soilless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter.

It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them, and won by them.

One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable.

Brightlord Dalinar Kholin commands one of those other armies. Like his brother, the late king, he is fascinated by an ancient text called The Way of Kings. Troubled by over-powering visions of ancient times and the Knights Radiant, he has begun to doubt his own sanity.

Across the ocean, an untried young woman named Shallan seeks to train under an eminent scholar and notorious heretic, Dalinar's niece, Jasnah. Though she genuinely loves learning, Shallan's motives are less than pure. As she plans a daring theft, her research for Jasnah hints at secrets of the Knights Radiant and the true cause of the war.

The result of over ten years of planning, writing, and world-building, The Way of Kings is but the opening movement of the Stormlight Archive, a bold masterpiece in the making.

Speak again the ancient oaths.

Life before death.

Strength before weakness.

Journey before Destination.

and return to men the Shards they once bore.

The Knights Radiant must stand again.

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Book Submission: “Scythe” by Neal Shusterman

Submitted by: @quill-n

Genre & sub-genres: YA sci-fi, biopunk, adventure, dystopia

Trigger Warnings (if any): Heavily deals with death

What’s your experience with this book and why would you recommend it to people?: You recommended it to me! (I did ^-^) and I really really enjoyed it! The dystopian aspect of it is really intriguing and the way the characters play into the story and overall theme is very cool.

Anything else you would like to mention?: It's a trilogy!!!

Summary: Thou shalt kill.

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own

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Welcome travelers, to this little nook of books!…Don’t worry I’m not going to go full fantasy speak. I am simply your dragon guide to the many books you can find in this cozy place. So kick back and have a look at what you can find! New readings are posted every Thursday and Tuesday!

Got any recommendations to increase my hoard? Please submit a form so I can showcase your recommendations! Submit one or twelve, I don’t care, that just means there’s more for me and others to see.