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Sunday, February 28, 2021

SPFBO Finalist: A Wind From Wilderness by Suzannah Rowntree review

Official Author Website

Order A Wind from The Wilderness: USA/UK


Thursday, February 25, 2021

Towers and Fever Dreams - a Guest Post by Yaroslav Barsukov


Order The Tower of Mud and Straw HERE
Wednesday, February 24, 2021

COVER REVEAL Q&A: A Game Of Gods ( The Great Hearts II) by David A. Oliver (by Mihir Wanchoo)



Tuesday, February 23, 2021

Timberwolf by Dominic Adler review

Official Author Website
Order Timberwolf over HERE

OFFICIAL AUTHOR INFORMATION: an ex-London policeman turned writer. Dominic is inspired by writers like Jack Higgins and Len Deighton, Mark Timlin and Philip Kerr. The stuff of hard-boiled thrillers and Sunday afternoon war movies, full of action, suspense and dark humour.

FORMAT/INFO: Self-published by the author in 2019, Timberwolf is 490 pages long. 
Monday, February 22, 2021

SPFBO: Interview with Suzannah Rowntree


Official Author Website
Order A Wind from The Wilderness over here: USA/UK

COVER REVEAL: Dances Of Deception (new edition) by J. C. Kang

 

Like Songs of Insurrection and Orchestra of Treacheries, Dances of Deception (Book 3 of the Dragon Songs Saga) has a brand new cover.  The new edition has several small changes, as well as new internal narratives to take into account the events of Complete Tales of the Floating World.
Sunday, February 21, 2021

Interview with Dorian Hart, author of The Ventifact Colossus & Giveaway



Order The Ventifact Colossus HERE.

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Dorian Hart is the author of the Heroes of Spira epic fantasy series, which currently includes The Ventifact Colossus, The Crosser’s Maze, and The Greatwood Portal. The fourth book, The Infinite Tower, should be out in February or March of 2021. 
Tuesday, February 16, 2021

SPFBO Finalist: Nether Light by Shaun Paul Stevens

Order Nether Light over here USA / UK
Monday, February 15, 2021

Cover Spotlight Q&A: Shards Of Earth (The Final Architects #1) by Adrian Tchaikovsky (by Mihir Wanchoo)

 

(Author picture courtesy of Pan Macmillan)

Official Author Website

Pre-order Shards Of Earth over HERE (USA) & HERE (UK)

Sunday, February 14, 2021

Bear Head by Adrian Tchaikovsky review

Official Author Website
Order Bear Head over HERE

Thursday, February 11, 2021

Interview with Krystle Matar, author of Legacy of the Brightwash


Legacy of the Brightwash is scheduled to be released on February 18, 2021! Pre-order it here
Wednesday, February 10, 2021

Hollow Empire by Sam Hawke (reviewed by Caitlin Grieve)


Official Author Website
Order the book HERE
Read Caitlin’s review of City Of Lies

OFFICIAL AUTHOR INFORMATION: Sam Hawke
Tuesday, February 9, 2021

SPFBO: Interview with Shaun Paul Stevens




AUTHOR INFORMATION: Born in London in 1972, Shaun spent his formative years in the shadows of the dreaming spires of Oxford, before moving to Nottingham where he graduated with a degree in English and Media.

Shaun lives in Brighton, on the south coast of England, where he splits his time between fiction, geekdom, and garlic bread.

Find out more at shaunpaulstevens.com
Sunday, February 7, 2021

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhoarse review



AUTHOR INFO: Rebecca Roanhorse is the New York Times bestselling author of Trail of Lightning, Storm of Locusts, Star Wars: Resistance Reborn, and Race to the Sun. She has won the Nebula, Hugo, and Locus Awards for her fiction, and was the recipient of the 2018 Astounding (formerly Campbell) Award for Best New Writer.

FORMAT: Published on October 13, 2020, by Simon&Schuster in USA & due on January 21, 2021 in UK (published by Solaris). Length - 464 pages (HC). Available in all formats. Cover art by John Picacio.

OVERVIEW:

Yeah, it was dark.

Black Sun focuses on the cost of vengeance, religious corruption, generational trauma, and politics. It features fascinating (and fun!) characters on their paths to change the balance of powers in their world. 

Serapio, a young boy raised (and maimed) to become the vessel of the god Grandfather Crow, has one goal - to end the Sun Priest’s reign. To do so, he needs to get to the city of Tova before the solar eclipse. Almost impossible, unless you can count on someone with the right skills. Enter Xiala, a foul-mouthed and hedonistic Sea captain, and general badass. Only she (and her magic) can make the seafaring adventure possible. 

Sun Priest Naranpa, the highest religious authority in the holy city of Tova, is a decent woman caught in political and religious machinations. Others judge her for her low birth and resent her drive to make priests more accessible to Tova’s people. Their stories, set on a collision course, reveal their layered and compelling personalities. Also, each POV character has a different perspective on the story’s events; highly appreciated, as it adds complexity to the world and characters’ fates.

Roanhorse digs into the worldbuilding right away. Ancient powers, god’s avatars, sentient crows, gigantic insects, mysterious powers don’t even begin to cover it. We get lots of detail and symbols that draw inspiration from the indigenous cultures of North and Central America. It felt fresh to me; while we observe a welcomed shift from pseudo-European settings, I haven’t read another epic fantasy inspired by the pre-Columbian culture and beliefs

Even more impressive, however, are Roanhorse’s characters, who keep her tale from getting bogged down in details, no matter how fantastical. Each is an outsider. Serapio is an avatar of the god, but he’s also a young boy speaking to crows and playing with shadows. Raised as a vessel destined to revenge his people, he deals with trauma and a rather narrow outlook on life. I mean, he is a chosen figure, only he’s not here to save the world... Xiala is a Teek, and most people loathe Teeks and see their value mostly as body parts worth a decent price (paid in cocoa). She’s brash and impulsive, but the story reveals her more vulnerable side. Naranpa, despite her high rank in the religious structures of Tova, doesn’t belong there because of her poor background. 

The ensemble of characters feels inclusive–we get queer, trans, and non-binary characters (Roanhorse uses neopronouns xe/xir/xirself to address them), as well as impaired or members of minorities. There’s no social stigma coming with gender-identity or sexual orientation.

I found the worldbuilding impressive, but Roanhorse takes her time to set the stage for the next books in the series. As a result, Black Sun ends on a lackluster cliffhanger and leaves many unresolved loose ends. Readers craving a satisfying closure won’t find it here. I found the characters’ interplay, magic, and the world engrossing and I have no problem with waiting for another fix.
Thursday, February 4, 2021

WORLDWIDE GIVEAWAY: Dragon Mage by M.L. Spencer

 



M.L. Spencer is one of the hardest working indie authors whom I know. Her newest book is an ode to classic epic fantasy and one that I’ve enjoyed immensely. We were privileged to do the cover reveal for it and today we have something even more exciting.

We at Fantasy Book Critic along with the author are ecstatic to be giving away one signed paperback edition of Dragon Mage!!!

To enter, please send an email to "fbcgiveaway@gmail.com" with your Name, Mailing Address, and the subject: Mage

Giveaway will end on Friday (02/19/20) 12:01 PM and is open to participants WORLDWIDE! Thank you for entering and Good Luck! 

GIVEAWAY RULES:
 1) Open To Anyone WORLDWIDE
 2) Only One Entry Per Household (Multiple Entries Will Be Disqualified)
 3) Must Enter Valid Email Address, Mailing Address + Name
 4) No Purchase Necessary
 5) Giveaway will end on Friday (02/19/20) 12:01 PM
 6) Winner Will Be Randomly Selected and Notified By Email
 7) Personal Information Will Only Be Used In Mailing Out the Prizes To the Winner
 

Wednesday, February 3, 2021

The Combat Codes (new edition) by Alexander Darwin review

 

Official author website

Order The Combat Codes over here: USA/UK
Read Fantasy Book Critic's interview with Alexander Darwin
Read Q&A with Alexander

Tuesday, February 2, 2021

Companion - Cover Reveal and Q&A with Luke Matthews


Pre-Order Companion: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo
Monday, February 1, 2021

The Book of Dragons by Jonathan Strahan (reviewed by Łukasz Przywóski)



Order The Book of Dragons over HERE(USA) or HERE(UK)

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Jonathan Strahan is an award-winning editor, anthologist and book reviewer. He co-hosts the multiple-award nominated Coode Street Podcast.

FORMAT: The Book of Dragons is 576 pages long and it contains 29 short stories and poems. Published on June 7th, 2020 by Harper Voyager (a division of Simon & Schuster) it's available in all fortmats from most retailers.

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NOTEWORTHY RELEASES

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NOTEWORTHY RELEASES

 Click Here To Order “Barnaby The Wanderer” by Raymond St. Elmo
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NOTEWORTHY RELEASES

 Click Here To Order “Barnaby The Wanderer” by Raymond St. Elmo
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