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Dannii Elle

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Dannii’s recommended-reading shelf

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The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow

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Dannii is Currently Reading

Dannii Elle is currently reading

Lightlark (Lightlark, #1)

by Alex Aster (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading, young-adult-books-read, fantastic-fabrications, romantic-recollections

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Aug 01, 2026 02:45PM

Dannii Elle rated a book really liked it

The First Binding (Tales of Tremaine #1)

by R.R. Virdi

bookshelves: adult-books-read, fantastic-fabrications, currently-reading

Reading for the 2nd time

read in January 2023

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Dannii Elle said: " Updated Thoughts Midway During Second Reread
This is on track to be a five star read, the second time around. The intricacy and detail put into this story is just astounding and I am having the best time revisiting Ari's life, as he learns the horrors Updated Thoughts Midway During Second Reread
This is on track to be a five star read, the second time around. The intricacy and detail put into this story is just astounding and I am having the best time revisiting Ari's life, as he learns the horrors the world has to offer as well as the power inside of himself. Virdi is such a masterful storyteller and the writing style is exactly what this style of epic fantasy deserves.

Original Review

Actual rating 4.5/5 stars. This is the first instalment in the Tales of Tremaine series.

I feel I can accurately claim that if you enjoyed The Name of the Wind then you would also love this book. A similar narrative structure appeared, where the reader was introduced to the adult protagonist who then returned to his youth, in a series of lengthy tales, to reveal his life story up until the present moment.

Similarities also appeared in the plucky and hard-headed nature of these characters, who are resilient in the face of the many grievances they face and who prove themselves magically capable in pressurised situations. Due to this, the novel was as full of as much magic and wonder as it was grief and loss and both brought about strong emotional reactions, which further aided in my bonding with the characters who appeared.

Despite my love for the contents of this book, I did feel like a very lengthy read. I anticipated it would take some time, given the page-length, and some brainpower, given the high fantasy setting and magic system. Some portions were less personally interesting than others and I sometimes would set the book aside for days, or read only a handful of pages at a time, before becoming invested again. Once I reached a point in this character's life that appealed, however, I would fly through a hundred pages in a sitting without realising I had failed to move for hours at a time. The latter were more present than the former, hence my high star rating.

This novel was detailed and intricate but also gripping and action-packed, providing the best of the fantasy genre in one gigantic portion. I can't wait to find where this author takes us next!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, R. R. Virdi, and the publisher, Tor, for this opportunity. ...more "

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(50%)
"Slow-moving and intricately detailed epic fantasy will never not be my favourite genre!" — Jul 29, 2026 12:02PM

Jul 29, 2026 12:16PM · see review

Dannii Elle is currently reading

Les Misérables

by Victor Hugo

bookshelves: currently-reading, adult-books-read, classic-captivaton

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Aug 01, 2026 02:46PM

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Dannii’s Quotes

“May the forces of evil become confused on the way to your house.”
― George Carlin

tags: benediction, evil, goodwill, humor, inspirational, wishes

3524 likes

“She had the perpetual sense, as she watched the taxi cabs, of being out, out, far out to sea and alone; she always had the feeling that it was very, very, dangerous to live even one day.”
― Virginia Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway

917 likes

“All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

tags: frost, glitter, gold, lost, poetry, roots, strength, strong, wander, wither

58320 likes

“Human life is but a series of footnotes to a vast obscure unfinished masterpiece”
― Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita

1430 likes

“Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
― Steve Jobs

68365 likes

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