https://reviews.brianseitel.com/ 2026-07-04T00:00:00Z Brian Seitel https://reviews.brianseitel.com/nobody-told-me-dragons-use-libraries.html 2026-07-04T00:00:00Z

Quick little romance-lite about a dragon prince and a librarian. I thought it was cute, easy to read, and nice overall. If you want a quick read and like dragons kissing humans, this might be up your alley.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/the-stone-of-farewell.html 2026-07-03T00:00:00Z

Slow, plodding story, but I enjoyed the Simon and Miriamelle plot lines the best. A few characters I kept forgetting who they were, because nothing seemed to happen and I just plain forgot. I'll wait a while for book 3, I think.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/kushiels-avatar.html 2026-06-21T00:00:00Z

Phenomenal conclusion to the trilogy. I vividly connected with every character, even the villains. My one nitpick is that this turned into a real-world story instead of a secondary world story, hence the only reason I didn't give it 5 stars.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/kushiels-chosen.html 2026-06-14T00:00:00Z

I forgot how much happened in the first book. A similar amount happens in this one! And the characters are SO memorable. Melisande has to be one of the best villains I've read in a long time. Onto book 3!

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/magician-master.html 2026-06-07T14:00:00Z

Fantastic sequel to the first book. If the first book felt a little derivative of normal 80s/90s fantasy, this one really takes it to the next level and to something different. I thoroughly enjoyed Pug's journey, and the politics at the end were so well done!

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/between-two-fires.html 2026-06-01T00:00:00Z

I expected more in the world of Blacktongue Thief, but this is a straight up real-world medieval alternate history adventure. Very much the same vibe though. I enjoyed the story, the characters, the worldbuilding quite a bit. But I'm not sure I get the hype.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/katabasis.html 2026-05-29T00:00:00Z

Kuang took the most interesting parts of academia and the most interesting parts of Hell and threw them directly in the trash, then took the scraps of what's leftover and created a mediocre, bland version that satisfies only people who think getting a PhD is the peak of life. Two thumbs down, arguably one of the most bland and boring books I've readi n years.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/the-bright-sword.html 2026-05-19T00:00:00Z

I'm a sucker for Arthurian legends, and this is a good take on it. It didn't blow me away, though. There are a lot of flashbacks where you get the backstory of different knights, and I didn't feel that most of them led anywhere other than worldbuilding, and the world of Camelot is already so established, it felt like a waste of time to me. But it's an enticing story, so if you're like me and love King Arthur, read this.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/a-parade-of-horribles.html 2026-05-14T00:00:00Z

I've been waiting for a year for Book 8, and it does not disappoint. The comedy and action nature of the series is hard to match, and even though I was thoroughly satisfied by the ending, I'm craving more. Cannot wait for book 9.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/the-blacktongue-thief.html 2026-05-02T00:00:00Z

After enjoying The Daughter's War, I decided to give this one a shot again. I enjoyed it much more the second time around, though I still don't get the hype. It's quite fun and the characters are interesting, but nothing really grabbed me and shook me by the shoulders and said FINISH THIS NOW.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/magician-apprentice.html 2026-04-22T00:00:00Z

Dunno how I never read this, but it's a great classic fantasy book... with aliens! Quite good. Looking forward to the rest!

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/a-thousand-brains-a-new-theory-of-intelligence.html 2026-04-20T00:00:00Z

The first third is pretty mind-blowing, no pun intended, and led to a lot of revelations about how the brain works. I loved it and recommend it to anyone who wants to understand how humans work!

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/ryder.html 2026-04-12T00:00:00Z

Just as enjoyable as the rest, but this one felt a little more rushed and contrived than the earlier ones did. Also, I think I'm tired of the trope of 5 horny brothers that are all dominant and horny but only for vanilla sex.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/the-fifth-season.html 2026-04-09T00:00:00Z

This was my second attempt. I DNF'd the first time. I wasn't super impressed this time either. Characters were not really compelling and the worldbuilding felt weak. Even after finishing the book, it's not clear to me what the plot was other than a mechanism to get to the 'twist'. Given that everyone raves about this one, I hold it to a higher standard than some other books, so I give it 3 stars.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/duke.html 2026-04-04T00:00:00Z

More of the same, which is a good thing. Very predictable books, great characters. Peterson is fantastic at conveying emotional stakes and getting you to care about the characters, and the Lucky River Ranch family is so warm and cozy, it makes you want to move there.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/sawyer.html 2026-04-02T00:00:00Z

As a parent, this one hit home more than the previous two, but it also came with the same caveats as those as well: cringe sex, but great story. It's interesting seeing the female gaze here. I'm taking notes!

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/warlords-of-wyrdwood.html 2026-04-01T00:00:00Z

This one was as good as the first one, which is to say that it's good... it's just missing something that makes me want to devour it. I'll read the third, but I'd say this is just a decent trilogy so far and nothing blowing me away.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/wyatt-lucky-river-ranch-2.html 2026-03-21T01:00:00Z

Again, not a huge romance guy, but I do secretly want to be a cowboy, so after reading CASH, I picked this one up. It ticks all the right boxes for a cowboy romance: cringe sex, cowboy hats, line dancing, and a father holding a rifle to his daughter's boyfriend's face. But all's well that ends well at Lucky River Ranch. Will I pick up #3? Time will tell...

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/war-of-the-flowers.html 2026-03-20T12:00:00Z

This was a reread, a favorite of mine from my college years. It's a dark fantasy that follows Theo Vilmos, kind of a loser musician who gets dragged into the world of Faerie in the midst of a war between the seven most powerful families known as The Flowers: Hellebore, Thornapple, Violet, Daffodil, Foxglove, and more. It's dark, it's fantastic, it's one of my favorite books. Highly recommend it.

https://reviews.brianseitel.com/cash-lucky-river-ranch-1.html 2026-03-09T12:00:00Z

I secretly want to be a cowboy, and I don't mind a good romance, so I picked this up. It was a fun, light read, with enjoyable characters and a nice setting. The romance buildup was great, but the sex scenes were cringe AF. I'll read the next one!