Tell Me Something Tuesday: Debut Authors/New to Me Authors. What Books Have You Read Lately by New Authors That You Want to Read More From?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings, where the blog's owner Heidi discusses a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

Here is what is on deck this week:

DEBUT AUTHORS/NEW TO ME AUTHORS. WHAT BOOKS HAVE YOU READ LATELY BY NEW AUTHORS THAT YOU WANT TO READ MORE FROM?

Confession: I'm very much a "book reader" as opposed to an "author reader". Apart from a few classic thriller writers (Agatha Christie, Ellery Queen, John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickson/Carr Dickson and Rex Stout) my only modern go-to-author used to be Christopher Pike (here is the blog page I set up for him), because I love his crazy plots 😂. Except for the authors I have an ongoing blogger/writer relationship with, I wasn't going steady with any, and I rarely did read more than one book by the same author (series aside, of course). But lately (does "during the latest three years" qualifies as "lately"? 😄), I've read a handful of books that put their authors on my radar. In strictly alphabetical order...

A Tennant gif? How...Ood 😂 (...yes, non-Whovians, Ood are a thing LOL. Or better, an alien people)

Tell Me Something Tuesday: Are You More Inclined/Less Inclined to Read Books That Are Compared to Other Popular Books or Authors?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings, where the blog's owner Heidi discusses a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

Here is what is on deck this week:

ARE YOU MORE INCLINED/LESS INCLINED TO READ BOOKS THAT ARE COMPARED TO OTHER POPULAR BOOKS OR AUTHORS?

Premise: I rarely read popular books/authors as it is. It's not out of snobbery - it's just that I usually want something out of a book that most of them don't provide. I very rarely read straight-up fantasy - unless there's a specific premise. I'm not particularly keen on vampires, werewolves, elves or whatever. Me and retellings are mortal enemies 😳😂. I only read contemporary that have little to no romance - and we all know how rare that is.

Tyrolin Puxty: "Down to Oath"

Title: Down to Oath [on Amazon | on Goodreads]
[*Friendly advice: beware of the Down to Oath page on Amazon, and the duplicate page on Goodreads (not the one I linked to). Their blurb hints at the twist in its very first line]
Series: None
Author: Tyrolin Puxty [Site | Goodreads]
Genres: SPOILER - revealing the genre(s) would partially ruin your reading experience...If you want to go into the book without knowing anything vital about it, I recommend you not read the Labels at the end of my review either. No need to worry though - the review itself will be spoiler-free...
Year: 2018
Age: 10+ (I was told this one falls into the MG category, but I think children under 10 years of age will struggle a little with its concept. Then again, this book is likely to appeal to anyone regardless of age - adults will definitely take something away from it)
Stars: 4/5
Pros: Light and deep at the same time. Weaves reflection with adventure and surprises. Tackles a theme we rarely get to see in MG/YA.
Cons: For the story to work, the parallel town system needs to be inherently flawed in a couple of instances.
Will appeal to: Kids and adults looking for a quick, simple-yet-profound, offbeat story.

Blurb: Codi lives in the exceptionally drab town of Oath; a settlement without colour, children or personality. When a child manifests in the library and introduces Codi to parallel towns that contain aggressive, manic versions of herself, she must decide between saving Oath...and saving herself. After all, how much can you truly trust yourself? (Goodreads excerpt)

Review: First off...DISCLAIMER: I am a semi-regular reviewer of Curiosity Quills titles (like this one), but if you look back at my ratings, this never prevented me from being unbiased. And all the books I received from them were generously sent with no strings attached.

A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE

You all know I've never reviewed a MG book on the blog - when I requested this one, I thought it was YA (I had read the first chapter on Amazon to get a taste of it). The fact is, when we first meet the protagonist (whose age we aren't privy to), she comes across as a young woman, and the writing style is accessible but not simplistic - so I just assumed those things settled the matter once and for all. Then the publisher told me it was, in fact, MG. After reading it, I can see that the label is appropriate, but even if you're an adult who doesn't usually read in that age range, don't let that discourage you from trying this one. Down to Oath is a deceptively simple book, with as many layers as you can peel away. You can even be at odds with a certain theory the book puts forth, but that very likely won't detract from your reading experience - as it didn't from mine 🙂. [...]