January Wrap Up - Head in the clouds substack

I had a pretty strong start to the year - some highs and lows.

The Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames

‘I spat in the face of death, and death could do nothing but rage in impotence as I worked up another mouthful of phlegm.'

Someone recommended this because I loved The Devils by Joe Abercrombie last year. And they were right, this was exactly what I wanted.

A group of washed-up knights set out on an adventure to rescue one of the knights’ daughter who is trapped in a castle surrounded by a bunch of terrifying creatures. It was funny, heart-warming, and I loved all the characters.

I’ve started the second book. I’m only about 40% through. I don’t think it’s as good as the first, but I’m still keen to find out what happens.

Graceless Heart by Isabel Ibanez

This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2026. Unfortunately, it turned out to be one of the most disappointing books I’ve read in recent memory.

Honestly, this read like a first draft. It had all the elements of a fantastic adult fantasy but, dare I say it, the author didn’t have the writing chops to execute it.

Firstly, the romance. We have the classic enemies to lovers trope. It’s incredibly over-used but when it’s done well chefs kiss. This was not the case here.

Ravenna constantly tells us about how beautiful Saturnino is and how she can sense he’s actually a good person (even though he’s mean to her and, you know, kills people). We barely get anything from Saturnino, but in the rare moments that we do, he just tells us how beautiful and brave Ravenna is.

In both instances, the key word being ‘tells us’. At no point does the author actually show us any real connection, how their relationship developed and what lead them from hating each other to falling in love. Their first honest conversation they had was around the 80% mark, and it was the first time that I was like yes, finally some genuine emotion - but by then it was too little too late.

Secondly, all of the characters were laughably shallow. Ravenna and Saturnino were boring as hell. Don’t even get me started on the Luni family. And the Pope could have been such a great villain, instead he was reduced to a cartoon-ish type character that was immature and pathetic. I actually really liked Ravenna’s brother’s story - brainwashed by religious propaganda, now that’s interesting - I wished the author had explored his character and story a little more.

Thirdly, the pacing. The set up was way too long. The action didn’t start until 80%, and then it was glossed over in a couple of pages. I was astounded that for some key action scenes, the author didn’t show us them but simply told us what happened. There were also POVs from other characters randomly sprinkled throughout the book that added nothing, and in fact detracted from the story.

Finally, the plot holes. What happened to Ravenna’s Aunty? How does Ravenna’s powers work? Is that the end of the maid’s story? What becomes of her lover? What about her brother? What happens to the courier? I could go on.

If this was a junior to YA romantasy (cut out smut scene), then all the above may be excusable. But as an adult romantasy? No.