Book Reviews by Digital Amrit

tl;dr: 'One Day All This Will Be Yours' is a wickedly funny and inventive look at time travel.

The novella's protagonist is the sole survivor of The War to End All Wars. That epithet seems unlikely given how many wars the world has seen, with each conflict being named so. But in this case, it might actually be true, since the weapons used are time travel devices.

tl;dr: Ready Player Two is unable to recreate the same magic as its predecessor.

Ready Player Two starts with Wade Watts discovering a new Easter egg, hidden by the dead James Halliday, the creator of the online world 'OASIS'. This puzzle unlocks a new technology which has the potential to save the world or accelerate its ruin. Along with this new tech comes a new quest and a new villain. What will Wade Watts do with the revolutionary technology? Will his team save the world?

'Charmcaster' is book #3 in the Spellslinger series. You can check out the review of books 1 & 2 on earlier episodes in this podcast.

tl;dr: 'Gideon the Ninth' is innovative, but poor pacing, rough prose, and inconsistent mood, ruin the experience.

'Gideon', the titular character, is a bonded servant of the Ninth House of Necromancy, in a galaxy far away, in some leprous future. She wants to be rid of the House and strike out on her own. The Emperor invites Harrowhark, the heiress of the House, to take part in a series of trials. Harrowhark's current cavalier can't cut it, and so, Gideon gets pressed into service.

tl;dr: Benedict Patrick delivers yet again, with a wonderfully weird and touching story, in the Yarnsworld universe. 

'The Fires of Vengeance' is the sequel to 'The Rage of Dragons'. The book is well written with a break-neck pace, but it suffers from 'sequel-i-tis'. 

'The Queen's Gambit' is a fast-paced and captivating tale of a girl who conquers Chess.

The story's setting is the United States in the 1950s. Beth Harmon, an 8-year-old girl, who has lost her family in an accident, has joined the Methuen Home orphanage. Beth is socially inept and finds it difficult to make friends. The orphanage gives tranquillizers twice a day to its children and Beth gets addicted. At a low point in her life, she discovers Chess when she finds the janitor playing it in the basement. Soon, she is adept at it, and people around her realize that she is a child prodigy. The rest of the story is about her quest to become the World Champion while fighting the twin demons of alcohol & drug addiction.

Review of 'Code Name Verity' by Elizabeth Wein - an excellent story that showcases the friendship between two young women during World War 2.

'Daylight' is the third book in the 'Atlee Pine' series by Daylight. It is a passable thriller.

tl;dr: The 'Legion' series is an interesting take on a genius with multiple personalities.

Reviewed & Edited by Kartik; Narrated by Viji

Review of 'Wintersteel' by Will Wight - an outstanding second half to the Uncrowned story arc and is a notable entry in the Cradle series.

Synopsis & Review of 'The Dumb Things Smart People do with Their Money – 13 Ways to Right Your Financial Wrongs” by Jill Schlesinger' - which looks at the blindspots that even smart people have when it comes to money.

Review of 'Tower Climber' by Jakob Tanner; an entertaining Young Adult LitRPG with satisfying world-building. (ARC provided by the author for an honest review)