What did you guys read this month? I must admit, it was not the most successful reading month for me. And August is usually the best! But you know what? I got plenty of writing done so perhaps I sacrificed one for the other.
Nevertheless, the month was filled with some cute reads so here goes:
Eldbärare, or Fire Bearer as it would be called in English, is a Swedish high fantasy for YA. I read the first one about a year ago and enjoyed it. It is a slow burn. The world is absolutely wonderfully painted and exciting. Clearly a lot of thought has gone into culture and society and the hierarchy of this world. However, it's very slow, and although exciting things happen, they are few and far between. I am tempted to read the third one because I want to know what happens, but the time spent reading these books does keep me away from other books I tend to read at a completely different speed - faster that is.
I read this book as it is probably the most famous Viking inspired fantasy on the YA shelves. I scan the charts all the time for YA fantasy based on Vikings or Norse mythology and can hardly ever find any (so if you have recommendations shoot them my way!) This one is not obviously based on Norse Mythology or Vikings. Young's world in fictional and the religion has its own God and Goddess. The word 'viking' never pops up and the people have their own names like Riki and Aska. Having said that, there are obvious correlations between this world and that of he Vikings. Their names, their values and their way of living is similar and it was a fun read it to see how Vikings might have influenced this story.
I picked this up thinking it might be inspired by Vikings. There was actually nothing that suggested it might be, but the axe and general feel of the book made me think perhaps there was something to it. There wasn't. Apart from the great emphasis on axes and some Nordic sounding names there were no Vikings as far as the eye could see. However, it was a fantastic read! The world building was superb, the dialogue was fun and witty. I did struggle to find time to sit down and read for the first 80 pages, but then I flew through the middle half of the book. As much as I wish there was more to read, I'm also content knowing that this is a stand-alone. I had a great reading experience and am still happy to not have committed to a whole new series (I'm halfway through so many at the moment.) I highly recommend this book if you're a world building fan and want to see how it's done exceptionally!
What did you read this month? Let me know in the comments and if you have any suggestions or recommendations I'd love to hear them!