Tag: Fantasy (portal)

Book Review: Paradisa

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Paradisa by Michelle Iannantuono

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Gods may be real, but the true heroes are human.

That includes ex-Navy SEAL Connor Bishara, whose life fell apart when a colleague outed him as gay. In the ten years since his discharge, he’s lived each day listlessly as a fry cook, supporting his sister Clara’s dreams instead of his own.

But as the political tensions of Paradisa – realm of the gods – start to bleed into Earth, a new door opens for saving the world. Taking the fight to them, Connor binds his soul to the enigmatic archangel Raphael—and struggles to cope with the sudden intimacy after years of shutting people out.

With the help of his sister and the varied pantheons of world mythology, Connor must open himself to love and defend men and gods from the encroaching war…or watch an army of evil destroy heaven from within.

 

MY REVIEW

Paradisa has the gorgeous scenery of a fantasy, the tech of a science fiction (clockwork style), and the pounding character action of an urban fantasy. For those who want a great fiction ride through mythology (and not just the Ancient Greek/Roman gods, though the focus is there since that is where the story starts), Paradisa is it.

The two point-of-view characters are brother and sister. The brother is ex-military and gay; the sister is an ace. They get caught up in saving some gods and dragged into a world beyond their imagining, but they journey together, providing support to each other. Mortals in an immortal world. Will they be able to survive – or will they end up in the Underworld, drowned in the waters of the Lethe?

A quick and enjoyable read.

Book Review: A is for Archivist by Al-Mohamed

Erin Penn 2 Comments

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The Labyrinth’s Archivist by Day Al-Mohamed

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Walking the Labyrinth and visiting hundreds of other worlds; seeing so many new and wonderful things – that is the provenance of the travelers and traders, the adventurers and heroes. Azulea has never left her home city, let alone the world. Her city, is at the nexus of many worlds with its very own “Hall of Gates” and her family are the Archivists. They are the mapmakers and the tellers of tales. They capture information on all of the byways, passages and secrets of the Labyrinth.

Gifted with a perfect memory, Azulea can recall every story she ever heard from the walkers between worlds. She remembers every trick to opening stubborn gates, and the dangers and delights of hundreds of worlds. But Azulea will never be a part of her family’s legacy. She cannot make the fabled maps of the Archivists because she is blind.

The Archivist’s “Residence” is a waystation among worlds. It is safe, comfortable and with all food and amenities provided. In exchange, of course, for stories of their adventures and information about the Labyrinth, which will then be transcribed for posterity and added to the Great Archive. But now, someone has come to the Residence and is killing off Archivists using strange and unusual poisons from unique worlds whose histories are lost in the darkest, dustiest corners of the Great Archive.

As Archivists die, one by one, Azulea is in a race to find out who the killer is and why they are killing the Archivists, before they decide she is too big a threat to leave alive.

 

MY REVIEW

The MC is queer, BIPoC, and blind. The last bit has the most impact on her ability to investigate her grandmother’s murder. The author is “write what you know” – with her day job being fighting for the rights of the differently abled. She does an incredible job painting a world where the MC can only see light and shadows.

As a novella, all the goodness is here – worldbuilding, family drama (doesn’t help when your family is also your co-workers), second-chance love (FF), murder mystery – but in a short easy read leaving you wanting more. While this is a stand-alone, Ms. Al-Mohamed has several other books to snap up.

Azuela wants to be an Archivist, but her vision issues create a barrier on a job expected to be done without accommodation. The only person who believed in her goal, who not only supported her but pushed her, was her grandmother. When her grandmother falls on some stairs, everyone else is sure it was an accident of old age, only Azuela sees it as murder. Can she bring clarity before someone else dies?

Flash: The Final Door

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Photo by Efe Kurnaz on Unsplash

The blue corridor leads to an illuminated red-orange door. You thought it would be a glowing white tunnel. That is what everyone said it would be. Those that came back. Maybe that is the waiting room version.

The beeps had stopped. So many beeps. Seemed like days. You remember jumping when every muscle in your body contracted while on the bed. Had you been sick? Or was it an accident? Were you young or old? A short life or a filled one? Were family mourning you or waiting on the other side of the door?

The short walk ends with two steps leading up to the bright door. Clearly a front door of some sort, there is no doorbell, no knocker, not even a thrice damn (should you be using that language here?) camera-speaker to explain why you are here.

You knock.

It’s the polite thing to do.

Were you polite before? Things are slippery.

You knock again.

Third time’s the charm. You knock a little harder.

You try the doorknob.

It rattles as you move it, but only moves so far.

The door is locked.

Is the door to the afterlife supposed to be locked?

How long should you wait for someone to answer?

You bang on it hard, but it makes no more noise than the polite knock.

You wait.

Not long. You do remember you don’t have much patience. It was either because you were too young and everything waited for took forever, or you were too old and you felt the press of time. Maybe you were an important person and always had a place to be. Or was it you were always running late?

You look back along the corridor to where you came from. The corridor that direction ends in a neon yellow-green door.

One last knock, just in case.

No answer, you go back the way you came.

Is this why there are ghosts? Or maybe reincarnation? The green door’s knob turns easily.

(words 330; first published 3/2/2025 – – created based on a visual prompt for a Facebook writer’s group, aim is about 50 words)

Book Review: A Doll’s Life

Erin Penn

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A Doll’s Life by Alledria Hurt

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First, Alesha lost him. Then she saved him, sort of. Now can Alesha save both of them when it comes down to a game of magical cat and mouse in a world where everyone has been turned into living wooden dolls? Glance, master magician, knows something Alesha needs to finish saving her brother from death, but Glance is not going to give up the information willingly. Good thing getting things no one wants to give up is kinda what Alesha does. If she’s good, and a little lucky, she’ll leave with her own life and that of her brother. If she’s not, she may be in for a doll’s life.

 

MY REVIEW

(Full disclosure – I helped edit this book, but that was way back in 2019. After 5 years, it’s still a pretty good read.)

FIRST REVIEW 6/26/2020
When a traveler in a portal universe step through a gate – or, more likely, desperately jumps through one of the doorways between worlds – they never know what is on the other side. It could be a planet of meat hills, or a silent world under the booted heel of a tyrant, or one where the ice pellets destroy nearly everything agriculture.

Alesha tumbles through one world to another until her final stop. She hopes it isn’t her final stop, but it just might be. The local ruler, seemingly bored by the few visitors that make it to his world, offers her food and shelter and questions – or inquisition, she isn’t sure just yet.

This book clicks off all the wonderful tropes of a portal story, as well as explores the meaning of death, life, soul, and what costs should one pay to keep others alive. You can explore from the action-adventure aspect. Or a book club can have a lively discussion on the deeper meanings. Whatever level you want to read the book at – you can find enjoyment.

SECOND REVIEW/READ 10/17/2023
It’s 2023 and I’m working on knocking out #23for23 – reading 23 BIPoC authors before the end of the year. Being spooky season, I decided to return to this gem – A silent world, a ghost of a brother, faceless giants, spooky castle, and doll people. Spooky, but more adventure than horror. Exactly what I wanted and as good as I remembered.