The sock-blasting, jaw-dropping, side-swiping phenomenon that is QI serves up a sparkling new selection of 1,342 facts to leave you flabbergasted.
Author:Rob
Born in 1966 in the Netherlands, now living abroad and reading primarily in English.
I do prefer history, fantasy and suspense books.
My reviews are not books on it's own but short, to the point and honest.
Every Mountain Made Low by Alex White
Ghosts have always been cruel to Loxley Fiddleback, especially the spirit of her only friend, alive only hours before.
Loxley isn’t equipped to solve a murder: she lives near the bottom of a cutthroat, strip-mined metropolis known as “The Hole,” suffers from crippling anxiety and doesn’t cotton to strangers. Worse still, she’s haunted.
Only Daughter by Anna Snoekstra
She’d been enjoying her teenage summer break: working at a fast food restaurant, crushing on an older boy and shoplifting with her best friend. Mysteriously ominous things began to happen—blood in the bed, periods of blackouts, a feeling of being watched—though Bec remained oblivious of what was to come.
The Steam Man of the Prairies by Edward S. Ellis
One of the earliest examples of steampunk literature, this 1868 story was actually written during the Victorian era and was among the first American science-fiction novels. In fact, the tale features the very first literary instance of a mechanical man, published long before the term “robot” was coined. Extremely popular and much imitated in its day, The Steam Man of the Prairies recounts a teenage inventor’s road test of his automaton, in which he conducts a party of gold prospectors across Indian territory.
Drakon Book I: The Sieve Book #1 by Drakon by C.A. Caskabel
Da-Ren, an infidel barbarian, arrives at the Castlemonastery, his only offering a jar of honey. Baagh, the Cross Sorcerer, follows him there under orders of the Emperor, demanding from the monks to transcribe the warrior’s story.
Monstress Volume 1: Awakening (part 1) by Marjorie Liu
Set in an alternate matriarchal 1900’s Asia, in a richly imagined world of art deco-inflected steam punk, MONSTRESS tells the story of a teenage girl who is struggling to survive the trauma of war, and who shares a mysterious psychic link with a monster of tremendous power, a connection that will transform them both and make them the target of both human and otherworldly powers.
The King’s Shadow by Cheryl Sawyer
England. 1660. King Charles I has been dead for eleven years. England is a republic.
But for how long?
In a country divided by factions after the English Civil War the desires of the most powerful players are deadlier for being concealed.
The Fireside Grown-Up Guide to the Husband by Jason Hazeley, Joel Morris
The international publishing phenomenon and ridiculously funny new parody series that helps grown-ups learn about the world around them using large clear type, simple and easy-to-grasp words, frequent repetition, and thoughtful matching of text with pictures.
Practical Letter Book by J. H. Kaemmerer
Created during an exciting period in the evolution of graphic design, this volume was initially published in 1911 as Kaemmerer’s Practical Letter Book: Containing Several Hundred Alphabets in 140 Plates; Together with Descriptive Text, For the Use of Sign Painters, Show Card Writers, Decorators, Artists and Craftsmen. A century later, this magnificent compendium offers a useful reference for graphic artists and designers in many fields.
The Complete Masters of the Poster by Stanley Appelbaum
Les Maîtres de l’Affiche (The Masters of the Poster) is one of the most prestigious and influential art publications in history. Its 256 color plates have preserved for each succeeding generation a wide- ranging selection of outstanding posters from the turn of the century, when the popular art form had reached its first peak. This Dover edition is the first complete republication of the legendary Maîtres set to devote a full large page to each plate.
Infernal by Mark de Jager
Stratus wakes alone, with no memory of his past. All he knows is his name and that he is not human. Possessing immense strength, powerful sorcery and an insatiable hunger, he sets out across a landscape torn apart by a war, as a dark magic drives the world to the brink of destruction.
Disoriented and pursued relentlessly by enemies, he will have to learn what he truly is, or risk bringing the world into ruin…
Highway Thirteen to Manhattan by Kourtney Heintz
Kai is recovering from a near-death experience when she realizes something isn’t right. Her body is healing, but her mind no longer feels quite like her own. Her telepathic powers are changing, too. She can’t trust herself. The darkness growing inside of her pushes her to use her telepathy as a weapon.
The Six Train to Wisconsin by Kourtney Heintz
There is one person that ties Oliver Richter to this world: his wife Kai. For Kai, Oliver is the keeper of her secrets.
When her telepathy spirals out of control and inundates her mind with the thoughts and emotions of everyone within a half-mile radius, the life they built together in Manhattan is threatened.
The Extinguished Flame by Nigel McCrery
In August 2016 the world will be spellbound by the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro as 10,500 athletes from 206 countries compete in 306 events. Tracing their origins back to the Greeks in 776 BC, the history of the Olympics is a glorious one but it has had its darker moments.
Ned’s Circus of Marvels by Justin Fisher
Ned Waddlesworth has always considered his world to be exceptionally ordinary. Until the day he discovers it ISN’T. AT ALL. Because on Ned’s thirteenth birthday he discovers that everything magical he’s ever read about or imagined is REAL.
And without him, the world will soon be engulfed in monstrous beasts and beings.
Living Spectres by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
It’s been three months since crime reporter Poppy Thornton was left to die in an abandoned warehouse by her cousin Stacy, chief suspect in a high society murder. Rescued by the quick thinking of Chesterton Holte—her “gentleman haunt”—and Police Inspector J.B. Loring, Poppy is determined to get the real story and see justice done. But Stacy has fled Philadelphia with the widow of the man he is accused of murdering, and now an international manhunt is on for the suspected conspirators.
Nightshades by Melissa F. Olson
Alex McKenna is the new Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago office of the Bureau of Paranormal Investigations—the division tasked with investigating crimes involving shades.
HEROIKA 1: Dragon Eaters by Janet Morris
Dragons have been eating humans for centuries. Now heroes throughout history stalk their legendary foe. Learn how to hunt, kill, and eat the wild dragon. Never before has revenge tasted so good. A literary feast for the bloody-minded.
Of This New World by Allegra Hyde
Allegra Hyde’s debut story collection, Of This New World, offers a menagerie of utopias: real, imagined, and lost. Starting with the Garden of Eden and ending in a Mars colony, the stories wrestle with conflicts of idealism and practicality, communal ambition and individual kink. Stories jump between genres—from historical fiction to science fiction, realism to fabulism—but all ask those fundamental human questions: What do we do when we lose our utopia? What will we do to get it back?
The Well of Tears by R. G. Thomas
Thaddeus Cane’s life changed when he learned he is the son of a witch and a wizard, and now he’s undertaken a mission to find his mother, who was cursed not long after Thaddeus was born.
The Tudor Kings and Queens by Alex Woolf
Tudor Kings and Queens is the ideal, handy guide to what is a perennially popular era in British history. Beginning with the accession to the English throne of Henry VII, the author guides the reader through a succession of monarchs, who also included the infamous King Henry VIII, Mary I, Edward VI and Elizabeth I.
The Life of Elves by Muriel Barbery
The villagers had never seen anything like it: dense white curtains of snow that instantly transformed the landscape. Not in autumn, not here in Burgundy. And on the same night a baby was discovered, dark-eyed little Maria, who would transform all their lives.
The Kite Family by Lai-chu Hon
Hon’s first full-length book in English, The Kite Family brings a glowing voice to contemporary English literature. With this collection, renowned translator Andrea Lingenfelter (known for her translation of Lillian Lee’s famous Farewell My Concubine) has brought another masterpiece to extraordinary life.
Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet by Charlie N. Holmberg
Maire is a baker with an extraordinary gift: she can infuse her treats with emotions and abilities, which are then passed on to those who eat them. She doesn’t know why she can do this and remembers nothing of who she is or where she came from.