The best books of the past few years

Get reading with an exciting book curated by the review team at Phraset.

Underland by Robert Macfarlane (Landmarks, The Lost Words, The Old Ways)

The latest in MacFarlane's unofficial "series" of books on humanity's relationship with natural phenomena, Underland is a tremendous undertaking, often spiritual in its scope, detailing the many ways humans have created our connections with the world underneath the Earth's surface, from swathes of cave paintings within our remotest mountains to webs of grisly catacombs beneath our oldest cities to mines so deep and so silent it's the only place where scientists can listen for the breath of the universe. The winner of 2019's Wainwright Golden Beer Book Prize, a UK-based award for nature books, Underland is a true masterpiece of naturalism, one that will have you in complete and total awe of our world.

Gingerbread by Helen Oyeyemi

Gingerbread is undoubtedly the weirdest book you'll read all year. Helen Oyeyemi's prose pushes and pulls in ways that make every sentence essential; skim too lackadaisically through a paragraph, and you probably missed a crucial detail. In this way, Oyeyemi's writing here feels almost refreshingly dangerous while recounting an unbelievable, hilarious, and wry story about three generations of Lee women hailing from the nonexistent (according to Google) farmstead countryside of Druhástrana, catapulting to Britain, and back. A story within a story (within an account), the novel asks you to trust in its methods -- talking dolls which might also be trees, the suggestion of wealth managing Stormzy, and, of course, the mythic Lee women's gingerbread recipe -- and wholehearted buy-in with few spoilers is the best approach to this cleverly reimagined twisting of the Grimm fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel, which is practically unrecognizable in this form. Never without an ominous cloud hanging over it despite its whimsical airiness, Gingerbread is one of the rare finds where the first reading is a head-spinning delight. Still, a second and third turn would inevitably open the door to the novel's delirious true genius.

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Tips and Tricks to Write Your Action/Adventure Novel Pt 1

Are you an aspiring writer looking to write your next (or your first) action/adventure novel? That’s great! Here are some tips and tricks that may help along the way.

Shorter sentences make for a faster pace. A long, laborious, sentence, filled with unnecessary commas, pauses, and way too many details, makes for a long, slow, read. Short sentences mean action. Fast paced reading. No time to waste. It’s happening now. Understanding the effect of sentence length on pace is a valuable tool for any writer, especially if you’re you’re looking to throw some action into your story.

Actions need to be goal oriented. Everyone loves reading about an exploding building or a fast paced car chase, but action has to advance the plot, not just provide a shiny distraction. Writing action scenes are tricky, but if you hone that skill without having the action lead to a goal (the bad guys are blowing up the building to distract the cops from their true caper, for example) then the novel as a whole will lack substance, and the action will ultimately fall flat.

Don’t let your characters overthink. As mentioned above, the action definitely needs to be goal oriented, but when setting those goals don’t let your characters get too carried away in their thought process. Actions, not thoughts, are what audiences crave when it comes to action/adventure novels.

Looking for some action and adventure? Visit our online library at www.phraset.com for a wide variety of ebooks, audiobooks, music, and more. Accessible anytime, anywhere, from your favorite devices.

Tips and Tricks to Write Your Action/Adventure Novel Pt 1

Are you an aspiring writer looking to write your next (or your first) action/adventure novel? That’s great! Here are some tips and tricks that may help along the way.

Shorter sentences make for a faster pace. A long, laborious, sentence, filled with unnecessary commas, pauses, and way too many details, makes for a long, slow, read. Short sentences mean action. Fast paced reading. No time to waste. It’s happening now. Understanding the effect of sentence length on pace is a valuable tool for any writer, especially if you’re you’re looking to throw some action into your story.

Actions need to be goal oriented. Everyone loves reading about an exploding building or a fast paced car chase, but action has to advance the plot, not just provide a shiny distraction. Writing action scenes are tricky, but if you hone that skill without having the action lead to a goal (the bad guys are blowing up the building to distract the cops from their true caper, for example) then the novel as a whole will lack substance, and the action will ultimately fall flat.

Don’t let your characters overthink. As mentioned above, the action definitely needs to be goal oriented, but when setting those goals don’t let your characters get too carried away in their thought process. Actions, not thoughts, are what audiences crave when it comes to action/adventure novels.

Looking for some action and adventure? Visit our online library at www.phraset.com for a wide variety of ebooks, audiobooks, music, and more. Accessible anytime, anywhere, from your favorite devices.

Who Says Boys Should Have All the Fun?

When you’re ready for something different, here are two great action/adventure novels with alternative female leads. Who says boys should have all the fun?

This Is Devin Jones by Kristen Conrad. A Beverly Hills cop with a somewhat messy life, Devin finds herself recently dumped after a secret affair with a closeted leading lady of Hollywood and dealing with a dead body that turns up on the lawn of a washed-out Hollywood legend. Can things get any worse? Of course they can! While on a terrible blind date to the Hollywood Screen Awards Devin realizes that a madman has taken 25 of the biggest Hollywood stars hostage. Unarmed and with no backup, can she save the day, and herself? This Is Devin Jones is Kristen Conrad’s debut effort, and makes us wonder what Die Hard would be like with a strong female lead!

Shell Game by Benny Lawrence. Who says pirate fiction can’t be hilarious? Our story begins when Darren, a ruthless female pirate captain kidnaps Lynn, a poor damsel in distress in a remote fishing village in the middle of a civil war. In what may be a somewhat bizarre case of mistaken identity, however, it turns out Darren may not be as ruthless or morally bankrupt as Lynn had thought, and Lynn is by no means as helpless or innocent as Darren perceived her to be. As the adventure continues, Darren and Lynn encounter bounty hunters, ex-girlfriends and “slow death involving marmalade.”

Looking for action and adventure? Visit our online library at www.phraset.com for a wide variety of ebooks, audiobooks, music, and more, accessible anytime from your favorite devices!

Could These Be The Best Adventure Books Ever?

If you have adventure in your heart, the next best thing to being able to get out there and explore, is reading about someone else doing it. There are lots of adventure books but we think we’ve tracked down the very best. Here’s a selection of exciting adventures from all kinds of terrain that are guaranteed to excite.

Kon-Tiki - Thor Heyerdahl

Convinced that the Polynesian islands were settled by natives from South America long before Columbus set sail, Thor Heyerdahl recreated the conditions to test the theory for himself. Taking to the waters with no more than a balsa log raft and a team of kindred spirits, they set sail on the Pacific Ocean. Traveling 4300 nautical miles over 101 days, Thor Heyerdahl and his crew arrived. A true tale of man versus nature, this story is nothing short of a triumph.

Into Thin Air - Jon Krakauer

This story is about one tragic season where many mountaineers lost their life trying to reach the peak of Mount Everest. The author is one of the few survivors from 1996, which claimed the lives of 15 climbers. Excruciating in its honesty, Krakauer speaks with candor about what really happened and the mistakes that were made.

Wild - Cheryl Strayed

Not every adventure has to take place in a far-flung land and for Cheryl Strayed, it simply meant hiking along Pacific Coast Trail. At more than 1000 miles, this was no meager undertaking but the 26-year-old wanted the opportunity to heal her heart and experience the wilderness solo. Beautiful in its simplicity, this tale will inspire every reader to plan their own adventure.

If your appetite has been whetted for adventure, you’ll find many more at www.phraset.com. A great library with a vast range of titles, there are all types of exciting literary escapades just waiting to be discovered.