#charlie n holmberg

[freckles-and-books]

Hoping this one will help get me out of my slump.

#books #keeper of enchanted rooms #charlie n holmberg #currently reading #fantasy

[caribeandthebooks]

Caribe's Historical Fiction TBR - Part 2

#stone blind #natalie haynes #spellbreaker #charlie n holmberg #babel an arcane history #r f kuang #gods of jade and shadow #silvia moreno garcia #the direction of the wind #mansi shah #between shades of gray #ruta sepetys #book tumblr #books #bookblr #booklr #tbr list #tbr jar #historical fiction

[lacependragon]

2024 Book #1: The Hanging City by Charlie N. Holmberg

Intended Audience: Adult Genre: Romantasy (Romance-focused fantasy) Length: 335 pages Finished: February 17th, 2024

Narration: single narrator, first person pov

Summary: In a fantasy world consumed by an endless drought, a young woman on the run from her father has arrived at the last place that might take her in: the troll city under the greatest bridge ever built. But in order to get in, she must tell the leaders of her strange magic ability - she can push fear onto others, though she'll feel it too. As Lark, our MC, tries to fit into trollis (their preferred term) society, she finds herself struggling to fit in when kindness and compassion don't get you far in a society of strength. But some trollis soften to her, especially a handsome one named Azmar that Lark can't stop thinking about, no matter how dangerous it is.

Review: This is a very good book. Lark is a fun, compassionate, and quick thinking main character whose mistakes are understandable and who uses all the information at her disposal in clever ways. I loved how her compassion and struggle to fit in led to so much of the conflict in the story, and I loved how it also was a huge part of her success in the story, too. Lark's relationships with other characters, including Azmar and Unach, who she lives with, are just so, so good. I loved the job that Lark ended up with - monster hunting - and I really appreciate how it never stops being relevant to the story, both in activity and in social situations. In fact, this is just a very tightly written little book and everything circles around in some very fantastic ways.

The writing is lovely, too. I really enjoy the way this author writes books - I own a few of them - and I find there's a nice cadence to the words. It's smooth to read. And that spreads into how information is given to the reader, as well. Everything feels very smooth and easy flowing.

And, just to come back around, I really, really love compassionate protagonists. I love when characters want to help others, no matter the cost, and sometimes make stupid decisions because of that. Lark is such a fantastic protagonist who works around everything she is given. I love her. I love Azmar, too.

I think my biggest problem is that this is a seriously closed door romance. A few on-screen kisses and that's about it. Some light references. I would have loved to see more - I prefer my romances a little smuttier - but YMMV.

Just a fantastic book, seriously. So glad it was my first of the year.

Things I liked, specifically:

The romance was good. I understood why Lark was attracted to Azmar, and even though we never get Azmar's point of view, it was clear to me why he liked her. Watching them fall for each other was just adorable. Also, I love when a romance doesn't rely on badly done miscommunication for its third act drama. This does something SO GOOD that has nothing to do with that!

The worldbuilding was really neat. This is a standalone, so there's a lot of questions left unanswered, but the answers we got were fun. I also loved how it tied into the plot, as well as the culture of the trollis. You really get a sense for what their people value when the architecture is described. It's very evocative. And the cultural bits we get, the government and tax and law systems, the currency and caste stuff. God it's all so good and intriguing. Layered in just enough, in my opinion.

The friendships. There are so many good supporting characters in this story, including Unach, the trollis woman originally assigned to look over Lark. She's Azmar's sister and she's basically my fave. She's so gruff and short-tempered but also fantastic. Love her. I loved all of the supporting characters. All of them were well-written, well-rounded, and had motivations that were clear to me.

LARK. Again, emphasizing that Lark is just a fantastic, compassionate and kind protagonist. She is tired of fighting. Tired of having to hurt others. She wants a family, friends, and peace, and it is beautiful to watch her strive for her.

The themes. Sometimes you can't change a place, only you can change. Family isn't what your born into, but the people who will accept you no matter what you are. It is always right to try and save others. What is a monster? What is a man? Just to name a few that I personally pulled out of the story that I just adored the execution of. It's so good. And the trollis society embodies both good and bad, and you get to see the way it echoes into the themes and guh.

Rating: 4 1/2 stars.

Recommended for: Fans of romance who enjoy good worldbuilding, fans of Holes, fans of Gentle Giant men.

#book reviews #books #reading #bookblr #charlie n holmberg #the hanging city #amreading #lace speaks #lace reads #lace reviews #lace reviews books

[exordium-graphx]

The Hanging City by Charlie N. Holmberg WIP

#charlie n holmberg #bookaholic #book blog #bookish #booklover #kindle books #books #books & libraries #booksarelife #booksbooksbooks #graphic art #the hanging city #thehangingcity #Charlie Holmberg #larkandazmar

[bishkebab]

Me when a 40-year-old dates someone under 25 irl:

Me reading fiction with the “young magic protege falls in love with their much older wizard mentor” trope:

#look. I think I imprinted on chrestomanci when I was a teen #anyway thank you to #Naomi Novik #Tamora Pierce #Patricia Wrede #Charlie N Holmberg #I feel like Robin McKinley has done this or something similar #honorable mentions to Diana Wynne Jones for her Tam Lin retelling #sometimes you gotta fuck that old man. for science

[phile-comma-biblio]

“No mortal should ever have to be convinced they were worthy of every breath they took, and no celestial being should have to, either.”

Title: Star Mother by Charlie N. Holmberg.

Genre: fantasy/romance/mythology

Trigger/content warnings: pregnancy, death, violence

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I’m baaaack! I accidentally took a nice long break from reading much of anything through the end of February and all of March, such is life. But I had this one in my kindle library for a while, and at only 268 pages, I figured this would be a good way to get back into the swing of things!

Star Mother follows Ceris, a young girl who heeds the call of her god, the Sun, to become a Star Mother and literally give birth to a star. However, all Star Mothers perish during labour. When Ceris unexpectedly survives the birth of her celestial child, she is returned to her village on Earth, but is shocked to discover that 700 years have passed. This novel explores themes of family and motherhood through the lens of a fantasy setting.

This book was such a breath of fresh air. It had such a unique premise; when the stars die, a new one must be born by a mortal woman of the Sun god’s choosing. This is my first read from Charlie N. Holmberg, and I was thoroughly impressed. While I felt that the world building could have been a bit more in depth, her characters were well written and all of their choices and decisions made sense. I enjoyed it!

I’m still working my way through A Little Life at the moment, but I also picked up Pirate Girls by Penelope Douglas today and, seeing as her books are 100% my guilty pleasure, I will be reading thing at as fast as I can for the foreseeable future lol.

#bookworm #bookish #books #books and reading #bookblr #booklover #reading #booklr #book #books & libraries #star mother #charlie n holmberg #book review #book recommendations #book thoughts

[andreai04]

Bruises from those who should love you sting more than others. Deep and lasting, they bleed into your spirit, no matter how common they become. Something shatters with each strike, and it isn’t always bone.

#reading #books read in 2024 #bookblr #books #book photography #book blog #bibliophile #books reading #books and reading #the hanging city #charlie n holmberg #charlie holmberg #new adult fantasy #new adult #paranormal romance #trolls #troll city #lark #lark x azmar #found family #found love #beautiful story #the power of fear #finding a home #review #four stars #i really enjoyed this #march reads

[bookishlyvintage]

current e-read: The Paper Magician, Charlie N Holmberg

#current read #the paper magician #charlie holmberg #charlie n holmberg #fantasy #ebook #prime reads #currently reading #cr #coffee and currently reading #bookblr #booklr #books

[unread--hotmess]

Review: Keeper of Enchanted Rooms, Charlie N. Holmberg

4.5-4.8/5 Stars  “Have you ever wondered,” he followed up without missing a beat, “if we’re all characters in another’s book? If all of our actions, whims, thoughts, and desires are being controlled by some omniscient author?”  

A strange notion. “By God?”  

“If He’s writing it, I suppose it would classify as nonfiction.” 

 Hulda laughed. “I would hope so, because fiction would mean none of us were real.” 

Keeper of Enchanted Rooms is a quaint book by Charlie N. Holmberg and the first book in the Whimbrel House series, taking place in 1800’s New England. It follows Merrit Fernsby and his adventure surrounding a house enchanted and abandoned for years before he inherited it.     I will be honest, I did get this book through the Amazon First Picks program, and I am usually dicey over anything I get through Prime Reading already, but I was pleasantly surprised with this book! I had this on my ‘To Be Read’ list for a couple of weeks before I found it through First Picks because I love reading books which incorporate magic into its story. This was a very homey novel for me and one that went from “this may be something I can enjoy” to being placed on my Goodreads bookshelf of favorite books. 

As I said previously, I love books with magic in their story. The magic system in the Whimbrel House universe was one that I absolutely adored. Magic types are separated into 9 divisions, each focusing on a specific sect of magic in the universe. There comes, with each sect, their own side effect of overexertion and dedicated minerals to assist and strengthen the skills of the magicians, which was something completely new to me, but fit naturally in the universe and came to be something that I loved. The inheritance of magic was interesting as well; the idea that not only magic was passed down genetically but the type – or types - of magic that a magician could use is a unique and refreshing concept that I wish more people had in their stories.  

The romance was something I was not expecting genuinely but was also something that felt very natural. I kept pushing myself to read the book for Merrit and Hulda as they developed an understanding of each other and started pining over each other. That was a surprise to me, as I typically hate slow burning romances like the one that was presented. Their chemistry was just something that I loved seeing act out as something secondary to the plot. 

The second book in the series, Heir of Uncertain Magic, is already in development and has a cover right now as of writing the review, and I am excited to see the book when it comes out!! 

#cyn reviews #book review #4.5+ #keeper of enchanted rooms #charlie n holmberg #whimbrel house #fiction #fantasy #magic #historical fantasy #bookblr

[illustration-alcove]

Micaela Alcaino’s illustrated book covers for Charlie N. Holmberg’s Spellbreaker and Spellmaker.

#micaela alcaino #book covers #spellbreaker #spellmaker #charlie n holmberg #american literature

[sheilajsn]

Series, series, series – 2024 update

Si ustedes llevan algún tiempo en Nuestro Rincón de Lectura, ya deben saber que yo tengo un problema empezando a leer series que luego se quedan sin terminar. Hace algunos año, después de darme cuenta de que tenía una cantidad absurda de series empezadas, yo empecé un proyecto de terminar series que había tenido olvidadas, algunas por años. Y, poco a poco, me he dado a la tarea de terminar esas…

View On WordPress

#Abby Jimenez #Agatha Christie #Amanda Quick #Catherine Bybee #chanel cleeton #Charlie N Holmberg #christopher paolini #Colleen Hoover #Dan Brown #Danielle Arceneaux #Denise Mina #Dianne Freeman #Douglas Adams #Elizabeth C Bunce #Ella Maise #Eve Dangerfield #Gemma Halliday #Hannah Nicole Maehrer #Harini Nagendra #Heather Fawcett #J Robert Lennon #J. Paul Drew #James Patterson #Jane Pek #Jeffrey Archer #Jennifer Armentrout #JK Rowling #Josiah Bancroft #JS Scott #Julia Quinn

[shesamreads]

At least Charlie thinks I'm funny.

#SheSamReads #The Hanging City #Charlie N Holmberg #TBR #Romance #Monster Romance #apparently #fiction #fantasy #book #books

[caribeandthebooks]

Caribe's Mystery/Thriller/Horror Fiction TBR - Part 2

#the dinner #herman koch #a taste of darkness #strange sally diamond #liz nugent #everyone in my family has killed someone #benjamin stevenson #angels and demons #dan brown #the fifth doll #charlie n holmberg #book tumblr #booklr #bookblr #tbr jar #tbr list #mystery #thriller #horror

[thebestbookrecommendations]

Series Recommendation:

The Paper Magician Series - Charlie N. Holmberg

The Paper Magician (The Paper Magician #1)

The Glass Magician (The Paper Magician #2)

The Master Magician (The Paper Magician #3)

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Historical Fiction

Keywords: Magic, Romance, Apprenticeship

Length: Short

Rating: #1 - 3/5, #2 - 4/5, #3 - 4/5

Find on Goodreads:

Find on StoryGraph:

#the paper magician #the paper magician series #Charlie n holmberg #the glass magician #the master magician #book recommendations #reading list #book lovers #must reads #book blog #literature #booktok #booklr #goodreads #StoryGraph #reading suggestions #what to read next #good books #bookshelf #reading #books #book quotes #what to read #ya fantasy #historical fiction #magic #romance books #magic apprentice

[sai-mami]

Whimbrel house glasses are coming along. I have a messy bedroom, an upside down desk, broken toilet (not period accurate but aesthetic AF) a typewriter and a whimbrel go on the next slots.

#whimbrel house #whimbrel #merit fernsby #charlie n holmberg #glasses #zenni #keeper of enchanted rooms #boy of chaotic making #heir of uncertain magic

[exordium-graphx]

I have three words for you The Hanging City. Do it. It’s sooooooo good. Very little to mild spice 🌶️. But the feels are 🔥.

#bookaholic #book blog #bookish #booklover #kindle books #books #books & libraries #booksarelife #booksbooksbooks #graphic art #booktok #bookstagram #fantasy romance #larkandazmar #thehangingcity #charlie n holmberg