Book one in an epic fantasy of intrigue and empire, for fans of George R. R. Martin and Douglas Hulick.

The circle is closing. The stakes are high. And old truths will live again . . .

The Emperor has been murdered, leaving the Annurian Empire in turmoil. Now his progeny must bury their grief and prepare to unmask a conspiracy.

His son Valyn, training for the empire’s deadliest fighting force, hears the news an ocean away. He expected a challenge, but after several ‘accidents’ and a dying soldier’s warning, he realizes his life is also in danger. Yet before Valyn can take action, he must survive the mercenaries’ brutal final initiation. Continue reading “Review of The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley (Members review by J. Audrey Hammer)” →

Definitely an interesting choice for BOTM. To say it was a mixed response would be an understatement but it definitely generated discussion.

Not one I really enjoyed and my review was as follows –

An extremely rare 1 star read for me (my first rating this low in several years. Continue reading “Book of the Month Review Sci-Fi May – Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein” →

Over on Dragons & Jetpacks we have a thread (Geeky Bakery) devoted to all things geeky to come out of the kitchen.

It is a place to share (read ‘politely brag’) about the awesome things we have created that have been inspired by the books we have read, games we have played and films and TV we have watched…

…and we have some super talented people! Book-shaped cakes, Haunted House cakes, biscuits and faerie cakes… I must stop or I will start to drool – go check it out and show us  your bakes!

I love food and books so what better than food inspired by the books we love. I often find that food and feasts are so well described in science-fiction and fantasy, it really immerses you in the cultures and situations of the story and you can almost taste the food as you read.
Continue reading “Here be dragons…” →

Welcome to the brand new blog for Dragons & Jetpacks! A book group for science fiction and fantasy based on Goodreads, the moderators of the group thought it would be fun to make it even more accessible to all. So, here we are…

If you’re wondering what we’re planning on sharing on the blog, here’s what we’re thinking:

• Book Reviews: an opportunity for members to share their book reviews of our Books of the Month on the blog
• Books of the Month: we’ll share the ‘Books of the Month’, as voted by the group on Goodreads, at the beginning of each month
• Yearly Reviews: what has the group been up to over the past year? Which books proved most popular?
• Challenges: one of the best features of D&J is the regular challenges, particularly those organised by MPauli – now we can share and discuss them on this blog
• Sir Lancer Recommends: by popular demand (and a petition!), one of our members, the wonderful Sir Lancer, will be sharing his SFF recommendations – and you better listen 😉
• Discussions about D&J: how did you find the group? What is your favourite thing about it?
• Other Discussions: if any members have top ten lists, themes they want to discuss etc, this is the place!

Hopefully this will be a great addition to our already thriving Goodreads group – and if you’re not a member, go and join now!