Fantasy Book Critic: Fantasy Book Critic’s 2008 Review/2009 Preview

2008 FAVORITES:

It seems like I never read new books because I'm always trying to catch up on old books. I'm never going to get ahead. But I did manage to read some new books this year—it helped that some of my favorite authors had new books out. My favorite was “Chalice” by Robin McKinley. Now, I'm biased because McKinley has been my favorite writer since I was 15. “Chalice” has that fairy tale quality that I've always loved about McKinley's writing, especially her short stories. I know lots of fantasy books get described as having fairy tale qualities, but McKinley's kind of fairy tale is different. It's down to earth while still feeling magical and epic. The main character, Mirasol, has to save the world. But she's a beekeeper who worries about her bees while helping a fire wizard stop being a wizard so he can perform the day-to-day business of running the country he has inherited. Mirasol succeeds because she's a beekeeper, and McKinley's writing is so sharp I can imagine walking down the path to her home one day and being invited in for tea and biscuits with some of her marvelous honey.

ON THE HORIZON FOR CARRIE VAUGHN:

I have two books coming out. “Kitty and the Dead Man’s Hand”, the fifth in the series and should be out in just a couple of weeks (Feb 1st is the official day, I think). I have to warn you—it ends on a cliffhanger. But that's okay, because the next one, “Kitty Raises Hell”, is due out March 1st. A double feature!

I have lots of short fiction coming out as well. I didn't realize how much until I wrote it all down. “The Temptation of Robin Green” will appear in The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance, edited by Tricia Telep, in April. “The Girls from Avenger” will be appearing in Warriors, edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois. It's unusual in that it's a straight historical piece, but I'm pretty proud of it. A new Kitty short story, “Kitty Learns the Ropes,” will be appearing in Darrell Schweitzer's Urban Werewolves, and a horror story called “Watching” will appear in Killer Bunnies and Zombie Raccoons, edited by Kerrie Hughes and Martin H. Greenberg (the title on that one may have changed...) And, as always, I'm always working on new things so stay tuned!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Carrie Vaughn is the New York Times Bestselling author of the Kitty Norville urban fantasy series. Carrie has also published over thirty short stories and was a contributing writer for the Wild Cards mosaic novels “Inside Straight” and “Busted Flush” edited by George R.R. Martin. She holds a Masters in English Literature and was a 1998 graduate of the Odyssey Writing Workshop. For more information, please visit the author’s Official Website and Official Blog.

NOTE: For more author responses, please visit Fantasy Book Critic's 2008 Review/2009 Preview index HERE.

6:00 PM |

Posted by Robert |

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2 comments:

Adele said...: I can't wait for the new Kitty books!; January 21, 2009 at 6:04 AM
Princess Allie said...: The new one just hit the Borders shelves near me (Dallas). I just picked mine up. Te-he! I just need to finish Silver Bullet. I've been holding off on it because I knew the next 2 were going to take a while to come out.; January 21, 2009 at 7:34 PM