Annafromuni

reading and discussing books

Welcome to my book blog

My name is Anna, and this is my blog where I talk about books. I will be reviewing books, giving my two cents on a number of topics related to books and the reading world right now, and discussing writing techniques and how they shape novels. I hope you enjoy, and I hope you have a lovely day!

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A Trade of Blood by Robert Jackson Bennett Welcomes Back My Reading Bug

Long-awaited, put-off, and set aside during busy times, Robert Jackson Bennett’s A Trade of Blood has final been read and thoroughly loved from start to finish, as I strongly suspected it would be. This is the third instalment in the Shadow of the Leviathan series, also known as the Ana and Din Mystery series, and it came packing punches and roundhouse kicks! I keep thinking the last book couldn’t be topped, but Robert Jackson Bennett…

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by annafromuni

Is Emperor Mage My Favourite of Tamora Pierce’s Work?

Emperor Mage, third in The Immortals series by Tamora Pierce, changed the pacing and setting of the story in a way that threaded together more political intrigue, conflicts, external influences, and complications than we have seen previously in Wild Magic and Wolf-Speaker. Not only did it provide more narrative interest, entertainment, and complexity, but it has left a big question for The Realm of the Gods – what is the book meant to consist of…

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by annafromuni

Black Sugarcane by Nafanua Purcell Kersel is the Epitome of All-Encompassing, Hearty Poetry

Black Sugarcane has been on my radar for several months now thanks to its award-winning status courtesy of the Ockhams 2026 Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry. but outside of that, I have wanted to read this poetry collection for a long while. I am slowly finding my preferences with poetic prose, creative non-fiction, and poetry, and I am relishing in the plethora of incredible authors in Aotearoa New Zealand. Nafanua Purcell Kersel is…

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by annafromuni

Drawn in for More in Tamora Pierce’s Wolf Speaker

A little late to post due to personal circumstances, but Wolf-Speaker by Tamora Pierce is done and dusted and I am loving this series more and more with every novel. From the characters, the social and contextual layers creating conflict and concern, and the development of Daine as a character, so many things make this book so awesome. When humans start cutting down trees and digging holes in peaceful Dunlath Valley, the wolves know that…

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by annafromuni

Shocking Historical Details in Anna Lee Huber’s A Bitter Cut

I didn’t know what book would get me out of my slumpish reading, especially considering how busy things have been for me as of late. I was thinking it may be a NZ fiction from my shelf, or a translated novel given my library pick up at the end of August contained several. But I was pleasantly surprised, thought perhaps shouldn’t have been, when the title went to the new instalment in a historical fiction…

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by annafromuni

Sucked into the World of Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce

I have had this a quarter read for so many weeks, but I finally got into a groove and finished my read of Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce, first book in The Immortals Quartet, and it is so much fun! From the magic system and familiar faces from the Songs of the Lioness Quartet to the new characters and new plights needing a couple heroes, this book had me hooked. Wildness is a kind of…

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by annafromuni

Settling Back in September

Hello, I am back! My posting has been inconsistent over the last few months, but I do feel I am back into a good rhythm with my work-life balance now, allowing me more time to read and not feel so guilty doing so. While I would love to commit myself to Series September or Standalone September, I think the better, more Anna-friendly way to make reading fun this September is to do a simple Settling…

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by annafromuni

How to Stay Sane in an Age of Division by Elif Shafak is Still Relevant Today

As soon as I started reading How to Stay Sane in an Age of Division by Elif Shafak, I felt like I was sitting in a lecture room, awaiting what would be the most wonderful guest lecture. It felt like I had stepped into a space that was intimate and intellectual, friendly yet focus on educating the minds of those rattled by the direction of global unease and uncertainty. It felt right, like I had…

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by annafromuni

My August 2026 Reading Summary

Overall mood: unsure – this has been a busy month, an exciting month, a stressful month, and a sombre month all rolled into one, but my reading surprisingly picked up more than I anticipated. With my daily routine slowly returning to standard proceedings, and my data analysis for my PhD well underway, I have been finding more time to read. I have also been creating routines and schedules for my daily and weekly workloads so…

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by annafromuni

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