.jpg)
If your name is Lex Luthor, you're probably thinking about a green rock that saps the superhero of his powers, and it's true that kryptonite is one way to inflict physical damage on Superman. But that's a dull story, reducing the conflict surrounding a powerful, godlike creature to a round of fisticuffs. And what hurts Superman physically doesn't destroy him. He's not driven by a sense of self-preservation; he would readily martyr himself for a good cause. No, Superman's true vulnerability is his love of humanity, his love of Lana and Lois and Jimmy and the Kents. He is deeply human at his core. Take down the people he loves, and you can shatter Superman.
Although I'll always be a Bat-fan at heart, the idea of spinning compelling stories about an invulnerable character like Superman has always intrigued me. He might deflect bullets with his chest, but Lois Lane can't. It's that gaping flaw that has made Superman one of the most beloved comic book characters in America's pop culture history.
But how could you hurt a godlike character that doesn't have Superman's deeply moral core, who wasn't beloved by the Kents as a child, who cares little about what's right and a lot about his goals? Normally, that's how you would design someone like Zod, fellow Kryptonian and villainous sociopath. He has all the same power but is driven by selfish needs. His goal is to restore Krypton, with no regard for the billions of lives that restoration would end.
Yet if you make an amoral, all-powerful character's goals conveniently align with what's “right” most of the time—even if not for the sake of rightness—you end up with an antihero that could destroy everything just as easily as she saves it. Elise Kavanagh has the Superman powers without the Clark Kent upbringing. She's driven by selfish need. Fortunately, her selfish desire is to create a world that's safe for her to live in undisturbed, and consequently safe for the rest of humanity, too. But if her safety came at the cost of the world—well, that wouldn't be her problem!
Although I'll always be a Bat-fan at heart, the idea of spinning compelling stories about an invulnerable character like Superman has always intrigued me. He might deflect bullets with his chest, but Lois Lane can't. It's that gaping flaw that has made Superman one of the most beloved comic book characters in America's pop culture history.
But how could you hurt a godlike character that doesn't have Superman's deeply moral core, who wasn't beloved by the Kents as a child, who cares little about what's right and a lot about his goals? Normally, that's how you would design someone like Zod, fellow Kryptonian and villainous sociopath. He has all the same power but is driven by selfish needs. His goal is to restore Krypton, with no regard for the billions of lives that restoration would end.
Yet if you make an amoral, all-powerful character's goals conveniently align with what's “right” most of the time—even if not for the sake of rightness—you end up with an antihero that could destroy everything just as easily as she saves it. Elise Kavanagh has the Superman powers without the Clark Kent upbringing. She's driven by selfish need. Fortunately, her selfish desire is to create a world that's safe for her to live in undisturbed, and consequently safe for the rest of humanity, too. But if her safety came at the cost of the world—well, that wouldn't be her problem!
When I decided to write The Descent Series and its follow up, The Ascension Series (a dyad much like two standalone seasons of a TV show), I wanted to take this idea to its entirely unreasonable maximum. The series are a long journey for Elise from reluctantly heroic exorcist to a godlike character always on the brink of destruction, and in order to build a world that can challenge “amoral Superman,” I've had to construct enemies and conflicts on an epic level uncommon to urban fantasy. As Riley once mused on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, “What's the plural of apocalypse?” Once you've threatened to destroy the world—or, in the case of The Descent Series, once you've killed God—how do you raise the stakes after that?
What results is a big-scale war story about Heaven and Hell on Earth, with Elise at its crux—who, as benefactor of demon powers, is never quite on either side. Each book is a few degrees crazier than the last one, and it's marching toward an intense, balls-to-the-wall climax that can only happen on the scale of gods. I really enjoy getting to toe the line between epic and urban fantasy. It gives me the freedom to write the kind of huge stories that I used to love in my comic books as a kid, with a bit of a twist.
If you'd like to see how Elise Kavanagh goes from exorcist hiding from God to a god in her own right, you can start with The Descent Series Collection #1 (available for free on Amazon)—the first three titles of The Descent Series, which is where the mythology begins. They're currently free to download on most major vendors (Smashwords, B&N, Amazon UK). I may not be a bald multi-billionaire tycoon, but I've broken Superman more than a few times, and I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I have.
What results is a big-scale war story about Heaven and Hell on Earth, with Elise at its crux—who, as benefactor of demon powers, is never quite on either side. Each book is a few degrees crazier than the last one, and it's marching toward an intense, balls-to-the-wall climax that can only happen on the scale of gods. I really enjoy getting to toe the line between epic and urban fantasy. It gives me the freedom to write the kind of huge stories that I used to love in my comic books as a kid, with a bit of a twist.
If you'd like to see how Elise Kavanagh goes from exorcist hiding from God to a god in her own right, you can start with The Descent Series Collection #1 (available for free on Amazon)—the first three titles of The Descent Series, which is where the mythology begins. They're currently free to download on most major vendors (Smashwords, B&N, Amazon UK). I may not be a bald multi-billionaire tycoon, but I've broken Superman more than a few times, and I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I have.
Official Author Website
AUTHOR INFORMATION: S. M. Reine was born in the midwest, has lived overseas for a few years, and came back to the United States to settle down in beautiful, barren Nevada. She always wanted to be a writer from a young age, and wrote her very first book when she was twelve. She loves watching movies (of all kinds) and later discussing them. She also loves video games and her current favorite game of the week is Kerbal Space Program.
NOTE: Lex Luthor picture courtesy of Villains Wiki. Author picture and Descent series omnibus picture courtesy of the author.
AUTHOR INFORMATION: S. M. Reine was born in the midwest, has lived overseas for a few years, and came back to the United States to settle down in beautiful, barren Nevada. She always wanted to be a writer from a young age, and wrote her very first book when she was twelve. She loves watching movies (of all kinds) and later discussing them. She also loves video games and her current favorite game of the week is Kerbal Space Program.
NOTE: Lex Luthor picture courtesy of Villains Wiki. Author picture and Descent series omnibus picture courtesy of the author.
12:00 AM | 
Posted by
The Reader |
Monday, January 20, 2014
“Grave Mercy” and “Dark Triumph” by Robin LaFevers (Reviewed by Casey Blair)
Order
“Grave Mercy” HERE
Order
“Dark Triumph” HERE
This
is a joint review of the first two books in Robin LaFevers' His Fair Assassin trilogy, Grave Mercy and Dark Triumph.
It will be short, because there's only so much I can say without spoiling one
or both of them for you. Both of these books are stories I did not know I had
been waiting for until I stumbled across them, and they hit every note
perfectly.
Let
me begin by saying this is a series about assassin nuns in medieval France.
That
may sound far-fetched, but LaFevers
has done an incredible job with research and world-building, and she makes that
premise completely plausible.
Each
book is told from a different POV, and we are deep inside each character's
head. In the first, Ismae's
quietness touched me: the girl who would be overlooked but has so much inside
of her. This is the introvert who saves the day without having to compromise
herself, which is something we don't see enough.
But
then I loved, loved Sybella's anger. It's not just temper:
she burns. Unapologetically wrathful heroines are possibly even rarer. She's not psychotic, but
she's also not ashamed that she enjoys fighting — and winning — and isn't bothered that it isn't “ladylike.”
These
are two very different protagonists, each terribly compelling with terrible
choices to navigate. Each goes from having no control in their life, to
believing they have no control, to knowing better, struggling, and making their
agency matter. These are girls who think they're broken yet prove otherwise
beyond a shadow of a doubt.
Grave Mercy and Dark Triumph are YA historical fantasy
books, but really they could be marketed as adult novels just as easily. They
do each have a strong romantic subplot. One of the things I liked best about
those is that physical beauty is a non-issue in the heroes' characterizations:
neither the women nor their love interests' looks are relevant to their attractiveness.
I wish I could say more about this here, but this is a spoiler-free zone, so
you will have to read the books to see what I mean.
I
stumbled across the first one, read it in hours, and promptly picked up the
second one and inhaled it too — seriously, read the
ending of the first and I dare you not to run for the sequel.
This
series is at once heart-wrenching and inspiring. I can't adequately express how
much I adored them.
Fantasy Book Critic is pleased to introduce the newest member to our team: Will Byrnes! We hope you’ll give him a warm welcome :)
A NYC native, Will Byrnes has worked in the Postal Service, (no, no AK 47) driven a yellow cab, been a health planner for the city and a computer guy on Wall Street, among other things. The first word he can recall reading is "Beginning" from that literary classic "Beginning to Color." The 60s introduced him to Heinlein, Asimov, AC Clarke and the usual gang of idiots, in addition to the classics of Tolkien, ERB, Jules Verne and HG Wells. He has been reviewing books, many, many books, on Goodreads since 2008. He has been a fan of the New York Metropolitans since before their birth, and even coached fifteen seasons of little league. He dabbles in photography and loves to visit National Parks.
It should be known that Will's book goddess, his wife, works at Harper Collins. So if you believe that negates his reviews for Harper books, feel free. In fact, she has no say in what he writes and only rarely reads his little offerings even after he posts them. Will currently lives in Brooklyn with his wife, and a herd of cats. His three children are all grown, well, nearly. He can be found at Goodreads and on his website, just don't tell the NSA.
Note: Thanks to Will for the use of The Eyes Of Acadia picture.
It should be known that Will's book goddess, his wife, works at Harper Collins. So if you believe that negates his reviews for Harper books, feel free. In fact, she has no say in what he writes and only rarely reads his little offerings even after he posts them. Will currently lives in Brooklyn with his wife, and a herd of cats. His three children are all grown, well, nearly. He can be found at Goodreads and on his website, just don't tell the NSA.
Note: Thanks to Will for the use of The Eyes Of Acadia picture.
Friday, January 17, 2014
"The Screaming Staircase: Lockwood & Co. #1" by Jonathan Stroud (Reviewed by Cindy Hannikman)
Visit Jonathan Stroud's Official Website Here
Read Fantasy Book Critic's Review of Heroes of the Valley Here
OVERVIEW: When the dead come back to haunt the living,
Lockwood & Co. step in . . .
For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions.
Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career. Instead she finds herself joining the smallest, most ramshackle agency in the city, run by the charismatic Anthony Lockwood. When one of their cases goes horribly wrong, Lockwood & Co. have one last chance of redemption. Unfortunately this involves spending the night in one of the most haunted houses in England, and trying to escape alive.
Set in a city stalked by spectres, The Screaming Staircase is the first in a chilling new series full of suspense, humour and truly terrifying ghosts. Your nights will never be the same again . . .
For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions.
Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career. Instead she finds herself joining the smallest, most ramshackle agency in the city, run by the charismatic Anthony Lockwood. When one of their cases goes horribly wrong, Lockwood & Co. have one last chance of redemption. Unfortunately this involves spending the night in one of the most haunted houses in England, and trying to escape alive.
Set in a city stalked by spectres, The Screaming Staircase is the first in a chilling new series full of suspense, humour and truly terrifying ghosts. Your nights will never be the same again . . .
FORMAT: The Screaming Staircase is book 1 in a series of books
in the Lockwood & Co. series. It is a YA novel that has mystery, ghost
hunting, modern day England, and a little humor mixed in with adventure. It
stands at 390 pages. It was published on September 17, 2013 by Disney-Hyperion
in the US and August 29, 2013 by Doubleday Children's Books in the UK.
ANALYSIS: Jonathan Stroud's novel Heroes of the Valley was
one of the first few novels I read and reviewed for Fantasy Book Critic. It was
not a favorite novel of mine and I was very critical of it. The premise for the
Lockwood & Co. series seemed interesting, so I figured I'd give it a try.
After all, all authors are allowed to have one bad novel – in this case Heroes
of the Valley.
Let me just say that I loved Lockwood & Co. The entire
book was interesting, captivating, and just all out amazing.
Lockwood & Co. is essentially a modern-day version of
the Ghostbusters. The only difference is the ghosts have completely overtaken
the world and are causing multiple problems for people throughout England and
the 'Ghostbusters' in this case are young teenagers.
Young teens and young adults are the only ones to handle the
issue, as they are the only ones who can 'see' the ghosts. And we all know you
can't fight what you can't see. This leaves a bunch of teenagers working for
various firms throughout England that cater to the elimination of ghosts and
other spooky objects.
Lockwood & Co. is a small, private firm. It does not
have the manpower or access to resources/money that other, larger firms may
have, yet they are one of the best firms and given a very prolific case – after
a string of some other odd misfortunes.
The entire novel is extremely fast paced and well-written.
The main characters are extremely detailed with backstories and unique
personalities. Lockwood, the owner of the firm, is mysterious and a bit quirky
at times, while Lucy is a bit timid, facing tough times and plagued by a past
that won't seem to leave her alone.
One of the main things that really made this book shine is
its spooky, eerie feel to it. It wasn't scary, as in 'horror' scary. It was
scary in a sense of ghost stories around the campfire scary. The ghosts that
are faced in this novel are dangerous, have a past they keep reliving, and are
not afraid to attack anyone who might try to eliminate or compromise their
ghostly bodies.
There are several quirky/humorous elements to the novel that
help relieve some of the spook/eerie factor. For example, one of the characters
tests a ghostly object by bathing with it. There are also several humorous
asides thrown in there that really made the book shine.
It should be noted that while this may sound like just any
other middle school/YA ghost novel. It isn't. There is mystery, adventure, and
spooky factors that really make this novel stand apart from the what seems like
dozens of ghost novels published for this audience.
Everything about this book just screams (no pun intended)
excellence. If you are familiar with Stroud's previous work in the Barimaeus
series, you will find this fairly similar in writing style.
Overall, this is another amazing read for 2014. Even though
it is a YA novel, it is written in a style that makes it ideal for audiences
both young and old – NOTE: some of the backstories for the ghosts are a bit
graphic and scary, so I wouldn't say to go too young.
One of the best and most captivating novels I've read in a
long time.
Official Author Website
Read Fantasy Book Critic Interview with Peter Clines
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Ex-Heroes
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Ex-Patriots
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Ex-Communication
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Ex-Purgatory
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of The Junkie Quatrain
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of 14
Read I See Dead People by Peter Clines (Guest Post)
At Fantasy Book Critic, we are huge fans of Peter Clines and his Ex-Heroes series. So it's our great pleasure to announce that Broadway books and Fantasy Book Critic are giving away a signed set (signed bookplates) of “Ex-Heroes”, “Ex-Patriots”, “Ex-Communication” & “Ex-Purgatory” to One Lucky Winner!!!
To enter, please send an email to fbcgiveaway@gmail.com with your Name, Mailing Address, and the subject: EXES. Giveaway has ENDED and will be open to participants in USA & CANADA ONLY.
Read Fantasy Book Critic Interview with Peter Clines
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Ex-Heroes
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Ex-Patriots
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Ex-Communication
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Ex-Purgatory
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of The Junkie Quatrain
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of 14
Read I See Dead People by Peter Clines (Guest Post)
At Fantasy Book Critic, we are huge fans of Peter Clines and his Ex-Heroes series. So it's our great pleasure to announce that Broadway books and Fantasy Book Critic are giving away a signed set (signed bookplates) of “Ex-Heroes”, “Ex-Patriots”, “Ex-Communication” & “Ex-Purgatory” to One Lucky Winner!!!
To enter, please send an email to fbcgiveaway@gmail.com with your Name, Mailing Address, and the subject: EXES. Giveaway has ENDED and will be open to participants in USA & CANADA ONLY.
Thank you for entering and Good Luck!
GIVEAWAY RULES:
1) Open To Anyone in USA & CANADA ONLY
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 has ENDED
6) Winner Will Be Randomly Selected and Notified By Email
7) Personal Information Will Only Be Used In Mailing Out the Books To The Winner
GIVEAWAY RULES:
1) Open To Anyone in USA & CANADA ONLY
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 has ENDED
6) Winner Will Be Randomly Selected and Notified By Email
7) Personal Information Will Only Be Used In Mailing Out the Books To The Winner
Order
“The Summer Prince” HERE
Read
An Excerpt HERE
I
hardly even know where to start with Alaya
Dawn Johnson's The Summer Prince.
There is SO MUCH going on in this book.
The Summer Prince is a post-apocalyptic
YA, which isn't really my thing, but this book is not about how to survive or
recover from the apocalypse: the city is flourishing, except for those the
government prefers not to see.
It
also gets major points for me for not being based in North America. We hear a
little about the state of North America, but more about other places,
especially Japan, and the story itself is set in future-Brazil. Alaya evokes the feeling of this place
so well that I don't just want to visit Brazil, I want to learn capoeira, and samba.
I
didn't like the main character. I didn't like most of the characters, really,
which normally kills my ability to get into a story, but not this time. I
didn't need to like the characters for them to carry the story. I understood
what I needed to, and the characters called each other on their bullshit as it
arose.
Alaya uses a pretty
interesting structure: the POV of the interludes was a pretty quick mystery to
solve, which made them even more effective. The prose of those interludes is
even more lyrical than the rest of the book. There are some truly breathtaking
moments.
The
story challenges gender biases: in a city that is ruled by Aunties, with a
mythology that men destroyed the world, rule by women is no better or worse. It
was so refreshing to read a story where the characters' different sexualities
and preferences mattered NOT AT ALL. Whatever “scandalous” behavior the main
characters could — and were — accused of, this was not one of
them.
There were some
moments where I felt like the text was being provocative and including elements
that scandalize YA-haters just to prove the point that they're not a big deal,
not because they actually helped the story at all. But as narrative criticisms
go, I'm almost not sure I can even count that.
Alaya problematizes technology and
accessing it: the speed of evolution and the relative merits of controlling its
spread, and to whom. She deals with social perception, how image and media can
be manipulated for or against people and spiral out of their control even if
they started deliberately. How gestures (or founding political documents…) are
interpreted and distorted, sometimes even generations later. She explores the
power of youth to change the world, even when their elders treat them like
tokens. Characters have an array of perspectives on age, on family, on
friendship, and on the responsibility that comes with each. We see class
struggles in the lack of general public awareness of what goes on that the
people in power don't want to have seen, and how art can highlight those
things.
Art
is very much a thread through every part of this story: how do you define art,
and what makes it valuable?
The
characters arrive at different answers, but they're asking the kinds of
questions I love to see in all books, but especially in YA: how far is it okay
to go to get what you want? When is sticking by principle and losing everything
you want the right choice, and how do you know where to draw that line? Because
actions and choices have consequences. There are a lot of struggles with
agency: fighting to have it, to make choices that matter and that personally
effect (no, not a typo) their own lives.
I
have a lot of mixed thoughts about some of the choices that get made, but the
story itself is so thought-provoking that I highly recommend looking into The Summer Prince.
Urban Fantasy authors usually build their worlds on the questions, “What would our world look like today if [insert myth or monster here] actually existed?” Typically, the answers is that our world would be a lot more violent, dangerous, and/or sexy. For me, answering this question is one of my favorite parts of writing the genre. My Sabina Kane series posed three main questions:
1) What would happen if vampires were the product of a dalliance between Lilith and Cain?
2) What if vampires and mages were enemies?
3) How would a woman born of a forbidden love affair between an vampire and a mage survive in our world?
Answering these questions took five books, a novella, and a few short stories to answer. Hell, I’m not sure I answered it completely, but that’s a post for another time.
So when it came to building the world for my new Prospero’s War series, I approached it with the same idea of revising our present to include some sort of speculative element. In this case, the question was, “What would our world look like if some people are born with the ability to turn mundane ingredients into magical potions?”
To answer that question, I had to decide what part of our world I’d be exploring. After all, each region and culture would be affected differently by the addition of Adepts in the general population. As it happened, around the time I was beginning the project, I’d seen several images of rundown buildings in our nation’s Rust Belt. Once glorious theaters, churches, mansions, and office buildings now laying in ruin in cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Gary, IN, and many other towns. Like this image below of the old United Artist’s Theater in Detroit, which closed in 1974.
1) What would happen if vampires were the product of a dalliance between Lilith and Cain?
2) What if vampires and mages were enemies?
3) How would a woman born of a forbidden love affair between an vampire and a mage survive in our world?
Answering these questions took five books, a novella, and a few short stories to answer. Hell, I’m not sure I answered it completely, but that’s a post for another time.
So when it came to building the world for my new Prospero’s War series, I approached it with the same idea of revising our present to include some sort of speculative element. In this case, the question was, “What would our world look like if some people are born with the ability to turn mundane ingredients into magical potions?”
To answer that question, I had to decide what part of our world I’d be exploring. After all, each region and culture would be affected differently by the addition of Adepts in the general population. As it happened, around the time I was beginning the project, I’d seen several images of rundown buildings in our nation’s Rust Belt. Once glorious theaters, churches, mansions, and office buildings now laying in ruin in cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Gary, IN, and many other towns. Like this image below of the old United Artist’s Theater in Detroit, which closed in 1974.
In order to pull of any sort of revisionist exploration of our world, you first have to figure out at what point the real past split off to become the imagined past that led to the revised present. In the case of Kate Prospero’s world, that moment happened in the 1970s around the time of the great steel bust in America. In the real past, factories abroad were able to create steel more cheaply than the American behemoths who everyone thought were too big to fail (sound familiar Americans of today?). Once the steel factories failed, entire towns lost the jobs that employed the majority of their citizens.
Where this very real history breaks off in Prospero’s world is that the ascendancy of cheaper Asian and German steel was created by enterprising alchemists who figured out how to produce stronger, cheaper steel using alchemical magic.
For the first time in history, the world saw that the magic that had been written about in folklore and used to scare children had actual practical applications. Science started studying things and realized that certain people are born with a genetic talent for turning mundane ingredients into magical elixirs and products. In short, the industries and governments of the world realized that there was a lot of money to be made in magic, so they started throwing resources behind developing the talents of Adepts.
Where this very real history breaks off in Prospero’s world is that the ascendancy of cheaper Asian and German steel was created by enterprising alchemists who figured out how to produce stronger, cheaper steel using alchemical magic.
For the first time in history, the world saw that the magic that had been written about in folklore and used to scare children had actual practical applications. Science started studying things and realized that certain people are born with a genetic talent for turning mundane ingredients into magical elixirs and products. In short, the industries and governments of the world realized that there was a lot of money to be made in magic, so they started throwing resources behind developing the talents of Adepts.
Of course, governments and industries are the only greedy forces in our world. For every government sanctioned product made using expensive clean magic, there were hustlers on the streets making illegal but cheap dirty magic potions. The same magic we hoped would save our economy also became the devil that would curse our society with addiction and the violence that goes along with it.
It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the battle of clean versus dirty magic was heavily inspired by our very real War on Drugs, as well as the influence of Big Pharma on our society.
As an author, I see novels as fun-house mirrors held up to society. The images of reality become somewhat distorted, but the distortion (the revision in this case) also may help illuminate things in a new way. By taking very real themes that plague our society and exploring them through the metaphor of magic, I’m able to tackle things indirectly that might be hard to talk about head on. I think that’s the beauty of all revisionist fiction. It helps us process our real histories, our present as we understand it, and make choices about our yet-to-be-determined futures.
But mostly, it’s pretty fun to use facts we take for granted, flip them on their heads, combine them in new ways, and see what shakes out. I hope you’ll find the Prospero’s War world as fun to read as I had creating it. The first book in the series, Dirty Magic, debuts on January 21.
It doesn't take a genius to figure out that the battle of clean versus dirty magic was heavily inspired by our very real War on Drugs, as well as the influence of Big Pharma on our society.
As an author, I see novels as fun-house mirrors held up to society. The images of reality become somewhat distorted, but the distortion (the revision in this case) also may help illuminate things in a new way. By taking very real themes that plague our society and exploring them through the metaphor of magic, I’m able to tackle things indirectly that might be hard to talk about head on. I think that’s the beauty of all revisionist fiction. It helps us process our real histories, our present as we understand it, and make choices about our yet-to-be-determined futures.
But mostly, it’s pretty fun to use facts we take for granted, flip them on their heads, combine them in new ways, and see what shakes out. I hope you’ll find the Prospero’s War world as fun to read as I had creating it. The first book in the series, Dirty Magic, debuts on January 21.
Official Author Website
Pre-order "Dirty Magic" HERE
Win a stunning necklace by pre-ordering Dirty Magic
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Jaye Wells is a USA Today-bestselling author of urban fantasy and speculative crime fiction. Raised by booksellers, she loved reading books from a very young age. That gateway drug eventually led to a full-blown writing addiction. When she’s not chasing the word dragon, she loves to travel, drink good bourbon and do things that scare her so she can put them in her books. For more about Jaye’s books, please visit her website.
Note: Sabina Kane cover montage courtesy of Barbara B. United Artists theater picture courtesy of Cinematreasures.org. Author picture courtesy of the author. Dirty Magic review to come next week and also look out for a Q&A with the author.
Pre-order "Dirty Magic" HERE
Win a stunning necklace by pre-ordering Dirty Magic
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Jaye Wells is a USA Today-bestselling author of urban fantasy and speculative crime fiction. Raised by booksellers, she loved reading books from a very young age. That gateway drug eventually led to a full-blown writing addiction. When she’s not chasing the word dragon, she loves to travel, drink good bourbon and do things that scare her so she can put them in her books. For more about Jaye’s books, please visit her website.
Note: Sabina Kane cover montage courtesy of Barbara B. United Artists theater picture courtesy of Cinematreasures.org. Author picture courtesy of the author. Dirty Magic review to come next week and also look out for a Q&A with the author.
Official Author Website
Order the book HERE
Read Fantasy Book Critic Interview with Peter Clines
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Ex-Heroes
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Ex-Patriots
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Ex-Communication
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of The Junkie Quatrain
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of 14
Read I See Dead People by Peter Clines (Guest Post)
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Peter Clines was born and brought up in Maine, he moved to California when he grew up and worked in Hollywood for a number of years. He has also been a prop master for several movies and TV shows. He has published several pieces of short fiction and countless articles on the film and television industry, as well as the recent novel 14, named best sci-fi novel of 2012 by Audible.com and voted one of the best horror novels of 2012 on Goodreads and Bloody Disgusting.
He has previously written reviews for the Cinema Blend website and for the Creative Screenwriting magazine as well interviewed many famous film personas such as Frank Darabont, Paul Haggis, Kevin Smith, George Romero, Akiva Goldsman, David Goyer, Mark Herman, Nora Ephron among many others. He currently lives in Southern California.
OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: When he’s awake, George Bailey is just an ordinary man. Five days a week he coaxes his old Hyundai to life, curses the Los Angeles traffic, and clocks in at his job as a handyman at the local college. But when he sleeps, George dreams of something more.
George dreams of flying. He dreams of fighting monsters. He dreams of a man made of pure lightning, an armored robot, a giant in an army uniform, a beautiful woman who moves like a ninja.
Then one day as he’s walking from one fix-it job to the next, a pale girl in a wheelchair tells George of another world, one in which civilization fell to a plague that animates the dead…and in which George is no longer a glorified janitor, but one of humanity’s last heroes.
Her tale sounds like madness, of course. But as George’s dreams and his waking life begin bleeding together, he starts to wonder—which is the real world, and which is just fantasy?
FORMAT/INFO: Ex-Purgatory is 352 pages long divided over a prologue, thirty-six numbered/titled chapters, and two epilogues. All chapters are either divided into “Then” or “Now” sections. Narration is in the first-person for all “Then” chapters and in third person for all the “Now” sections. The POV's both first person and third person are via George Bailey (St. George), Madelyn Sorenson, Danielle, Stealth, Captain John Carter Freedom, Zzzap (Barry Burke), and Christian N. Ex-Purgatory has a self-contained plot and is the fourth book in the Ex series. Readers can read this book without having read the previous ones but there as with the last book, there are some significant spoilers for the preceding titles.
Ex-Purgatory will be published in paperback and e-book format on January 14, 2014 via Broadway Paperbacks (Crown Publishing) in the US. Del Rey UK will be releasing it in paperback and e-book form (see cover below) on January 16, 2014 in the UK. US Cover art is provided by Jonathan Bartlett.
CLASSIFICATION: Mixing zombies with superheroes in a desolate world, Peter Clines’ Ex series is George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead crossed with The Avengers (Marvel).
Order the book HERE
Read Fantasy Book Critic Interview with Peter Clines
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Ex-Heroes
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Ex-Patriots
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s review of Ex-Communication
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of The Junkie Quatrain
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of 14
Read I See Dead People by Peter Clines (Guest Post)
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Peter Clines was born and brought up in Maine, he moved to California when he grew up and worked in Hollywood for a number of years. He has also been a prop master for several movies and TV shows. He has published several pieces of short fiction and countless articles on the film and television industry, as well as the recent novel 14, named best sci-fi novel of 2012 by Audible.com and voted one of the best horror novels of 2012 on Goodreads and Bloody Disgusting.
He has previously written reviews for the Cinema Blend website and for the Creative Screenwriting magazine as well interviewed many famous film personas such as Frank Darabont, Paul Haggis, Kevin Smith, George Romero, Akiva Goldsman, David Goyer, Mark Herman, Nora Ephron among many others. He currently lives in Southern California.
OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: When he’s awake, George Bailey is just an ordinary man. Five days a week he coaxes his old Hyundai to life, curses the Los Angeles traffic, and clocks in at his job as a handyman at the local college. But when he sleeps, George dreams of something more.
George dreams of flying. He dreams of fighting monsters. He dreams of a man made of pure lightning, an armored robot, a giant in an army uniform, a beautiful woman who moves like a ninja.
Then one day as he’s walking from one fix-it job to the next, a pale girl in a wheelchair tells George of another world, one in which civilization fell to a plague that animates the dead…and in which George is no longer a glorified janitor, but one of humanity’s last heroes.
Her tale sounds like madness, of course. But as George’s dreams and his waking life begin bleeding together, he starts to wonder—which is the real world, and which is just fantasy?
FORMAT/INFO: Ex-Purgatory is 352 pages long divided over a prologue, thirty-six numbered/titled chapters, and two epilogues. All chapters are either divided into “Then” or “Now” sections. Narration is in the first-person for all “Then” chapters and in third person for all the “Now” sections. The POV's both first person and third person are via George Bailey (St. George), Madelyn Sorenson, Danielle, Stealth, Captain John Carter Freedom, Zzzap (Barry Burke), and Christian N. Ex-Purgatory has a self-contained plot and is the fourth book in the Ex series. Readers can read this book without having read the previous ones but there as with the last book, there are some significant spoilers for the preceding titles.
Ex-Purgatory will be published in paperback and e-book format on January 14, 2014 via Broadway Paperbacks (Crown Publishing) in the US. Del Rey UK will be releasing it in paperback and e-book form (see cover below) on January 16, 2014 in the UK. US Cover art is provided by Jonathan Bartlett.
CLASSIFICATION: Mixing zombies with superheroes in a desolate world, Peter Clines’ Ex series is George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead crossed with The Avengers (Marvel).
ANALYSIS: Peter Clines has to be admired, after three titles in the Ex series, he still knows how to keep this series fresh. I was a little skeptical as to how he would go ahead with this story considering the events of the last book but the blurb of the book was simply irresistible. It seemed to be taking the series in a new direction and I was curious to see where the author was taking the series and characters.
With this fourth volume, we begin in a world wherein George Bailey (St. George/The Mighty Dragon) is a simple janitor and not the superhero we know him to be. He has no inkling of his other life wherein we have met him and many others in a world overrun by zombies or Ex-humans as they are known. This world however has no such apocalypse happening to it, but there's a girl who call herself Madelyn Sorenson and sort of remembers a different world.
Madelyn frequently reminds George that this is not the world they are supposed to be in and this might be an alternate reality, which they need to get out of. Soon George finds out that there are others like Stealth, Zzzap, Freedom and Danielle (Cerebrus) who are also trapped in with him. What happens next and what is actually happening is the meat of the plot and the way they discover it is the icing on the cake for the readers. The author plants several nods to various famous SF works and several episodes from some epic SF shows in this one, and the story unfolds like a classical mystery, which adds to heightened tension throughout the story.
The basic story follows in the same “then” and “now” patterns of the previous books. However this book focuses almost exclusively on George Bailey. While there are other characters who get screen time from time to time. George gets about 90-95% of the POV time and this basically streamlines the story. Another plus point of this story is that we get a lot of major revelations about Stealth and her background. Namely that we get to know her real name, find out about her father and with this move, I believe the author connects his Ex-Series to his Junkie Quatrain short stories (though more information will have to come from the author as to how it all ties in). I happened to really enjoy this link-up and I believe it will be of special interest to regular readers of Peter’s work.
The plot pace and the twists are top-notch and keep the reader completely hooked onto the story. The author has to be commended for keeping this series fresh by taking the series in directions that are very unpredictable. Beginning with the second book, the author explored the military aspect of the world, the third book focussed on magic, religion and the afterlife and this one is even more intriguing from a plot perspective. Plus the story climax along with all the revelations definitely help in blowing the reader’s minds and kudos to the author for thinking up this slick story.
How good/effective the final revelations are, will depend on each reader for gauging them. For me the revelation of the main villain was a bit anti-climatic, as the explanation given, seemed a bit out of the rabbit's hat. What I mean, is that the author seemingly wanted to explain the plot and provide a neat conclusion that would tie everything properly. While the story is complete, the explanation about the main antagonist proved to be very flimsy IMHO. In that regard I didn't quite enjoy the final revelation but because this entire story was so tightly plotted, it was too good, for it to be entirely spoiled for me. I thought that besides this small foible, this book was technically the best in the series in terms of story, pace and plot twists. I'm also hoping that the author plans to conclude this series in a sensible manner and not extend it with too much.
CONCLUSION: All in all, this was an excellent continuation of a series that I’ve come to enjoy so much. Ex-Purgatory is a solid story that will entertain and keep the reader guessing as to what is truly happening. I perhaps didn’t quite enjoy a particular aspect of the story but this was entirely personal and might not be shared by other readers. So keep that in mind and enjoy Ex-Purgatory. I'm already looking forward to Ex-Isle and the surprises it brings.
With this fourth volume, we begin in a world wherein George Bailey (St. George/The Mighty Dragon) is a simple janitor and not the superhero we know him to be. He has no inkling of his other life wherein we have met him and many others in a world overrun by zombies or Ex-humans as they are known. This world however has no such apocalypse happening to it, but there's a girl who call herself Madelyn Sorenson and sort of remembers a different world.
Madelyn frequently reminds George that this is not the world they are supposed to be in and this might be an alternate reality, which they need to get out of. Soon George finds out that there are others like Stealth, Zzzap, Freedom and Danielle (Cerebrus) who are also trapped in with him. What happens next and what is actually happening is the meat of the plot and the way they discover it is the icing on the cake for the readers. The author plants several nods to various famous SF works and several episodes from some epic SF shows in this one, and the story unfolds like a classical mystery, which adds to heightened tension throughout the story.
The basic story follows in the same “then” and “now” patterns of the previous books. However this book focuses almost exclusively on George Bailey. While there are other characters who get screen time from time to time. George gets about 90-95% of the POV time and this basically streamlines the story. Another plus point of this story is that we get a lot of major revelations about Stealth and her background. Namely that we get to know her real name, find out about her father and with this move, I believe the author connects his Ex-Series to his Junkie Quatrain short stories (though more information will have to come from the author as to how it all ties in). I happened to really enjoy this link-up and I believe it will be of special interest to regular readers of Peter’s work.
The plot pace and the twists are top-notch and keep the reader completely hooked onto the story. The author has to be commended for keeping this series fresh by taking the series in directions that are very unpredictable. Beginning with the second book, the author explored the military aspect of the world, the third book focussed on magic, religion and the afterlife and this one is even more intriguing from a plot perspective. Plus the story climax along with all the revelations definitely help in blowing the reader’s minds and kudos to the author for thinking up this slick story.
How good/effective the final revelations are, will depend on each reader for gauging them. For me the revelation of the main villain was a bit anti-climatic, as the explanation given, seemed a bit out of the rabbit's hat. What I mean, is that the author seemingly wanted to explain the plot and provide a neat conclusion that would tie everything properly. While the story is complete, the explanation about the main antagonist proved to be very flimsy IMHO. In that regard I didn't quite enjoy the final revelation but because this entire story was so tightly plotted, it was too good, for it to be entirely spoiled for me. I thought that besides this small foible, this book was technically the best in the series in terms of story, pace and plot twists. I'm also hoping that the author plans to conclude this series in a sensible manner and not extend it with too much.
CONCLUSION: All in all, this was an excellent continuation of a series that I’ve come to enjoy so much. Ex-Purgatory is a solid story that will entertain and keep the reader guessing as to what is truly happening. I perhaps didn’t quite enjoy a particular aspect of the story but this was entirely personal and might not be shared by other readers. So keep that in mind and enjoy Ex-Purgatory. I'm already looking forward to Ex-Isle and the surprises it brings.
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Announcements: Tor Anthologies Winner, Ex-Purgatory by Peter Clines, Dirty Magic by Jaye Wells and Most Anticipated 2014 books
Congratulations to Chris Miller, who was randomly selected to win a SET of the following titles:
- Twenty-First Century Science Fiction
- Year’s Best SF 18
- Dangerous Women
Many congratulation Chris and we hope you enjoy these titles.
- Twenty-First Century Science Fiction
- Year’s Best SF 18
- Dangerous Women
Many congratulation Chris and we hope you enjoy these titles.
Next Monday I’ll be reviewing Ex-Purgatory by Peter Clines, this is the 4th book in the series and over on the author's site, they have a cool promo running if you pre-order his newest:
"Preorder EX-PURGATORY at your favorite retailer, and we'll send you a free bookplate signed by Peter Clines. By pre-ordering you will also be eligible to participate in a video chat with the author via Spreecast (you will be contacted via email with event details at a later time)."
So for all those interested, head over to his site & fill out the form.
"Preorder EX-PURGATORY at your favorite retailer, and we'll send you a free bookplate signed by Peter Clines. By pre-ordering you will also be eligible to participate in a video chat with the author via Spreecast (you will be contacted via email with event details at a later time)."
So for all those interested, head over to his site & fill out the form.
Also Orbit Books is releasing a brand new book from Jaye Wells which is also the start of a new series called Prospero's War. I’ll be reviewing Dirty Magic in the week of it’s release and Orbit is also running a pretty cool contest for pre-orders of Dirty Magic:
"All pre-orders will be eligible to receive a free, signed bookplate and one lucky winner will receive this stunning necklace made by RockLove Jewelry, which was featured on the cover of DIRTY MAGIC."
That’s some cool looking stuff and so fill out the form and best of luck.
"All pre-orders will be eligible to receive a free, signed bookplate and one lucky winner will receive this stunning necklace made by RockLove Jewelry, which was featured on the cover of DIRTY MAGIC."
That’s some cool looking stuff and so fill out the form and best of luck.
As the new year begins, there have been various lists about the most anticipated SFF titles and in that regard, I have found these two lists by Dominick Swennen and Abhinav Jain to be the best ones out there. So give them a look and see which new titles catch your fancy.
Dominick's list can be found over at his blog Fantastical Imaginations and is neatly compiled in to four parts:
- Part I
- Part II
- Part III
- Part IV
Lastly check out Abhinav's list on his blog, which is combined into one magnificent post of covers, blurbs and anticipatory goodness.
My heartfelt thanks and admiration to these two gentlemen for their hard work and time and most importantly their love for books.
Dominick's list can be found over at his blog Fantastical Imaginations and is neatly compiled in to four parts:
- Part I
- Part II
- Part III
- Part IV
Lastly check out Abhinav's list on his blog, which is combined into one magnificent post of covers, blurbs and anticipatory goodness.
My heartfelt thanks and admiration to these two gentlemen for their hard work and time and most importantly their love for books.
Read
An Excerpt HERE
Read
FBC’s
Review of “Graceling”
Over
the holidays I've been thinking of my favorite books that I would recommend
under any circumstances, and one book that makes the list without question is Bitterblue, which I realize I haven't
actually reviewed here on Fantasy Book
Critic. So I'm addressing that oversight immediately.
I
love absolutely everything about this book. It's the third in a series, and you
do need to read the first two to get the most out of the third. It's not a
hardship: I enjoyed each, but while Bitterblue
is in the same series, it is not at all the same kind of book. It blew me away.
Bitterblue is the third (and
final, I think) installment in Kristin
Cashore's Graceling series. While I love this world, I'm fine with this
book being the last of it, because Cashore
has wrapped up the necessary loose ends. The first is Graceling, and the second is Fire.
Chronologically, Fire takes
placed earliest, followed by Graceling,
and Bitterblue is set eight years
after the events of Graceling. If you
haven't read the previous two, characters from previous books do appear in Bitterblue, but everyone's relevant
background is covered.
I
don't mean to discourage anyone from reading the previous books, because Cashore does some really interesting
things with them. But while I thought Graceling
was interesting and Fire even
more so, Bitterblue completely blew
me away.
Many
people haven't appreciated the pacing. Bitterblue
isn't exactly fast-paced, nor is it terribly linear, and those are what we
are trained to expect. Our protagonist has a problem, our protagonist is
overwhelmed by said problem, our protagonist decides to tackle said problem,
other forces get in the way, and our protagonist overcomes everything and
triumphs.
For
a while, Bitterblue isn't even sure
that there is a problem, or what the
nature of the problem is, and it keeps changing on her. She doesn't know that
she's supposed to deal with the problem, and then if she is, what she can possibly do? Unlike previous books, her unique
magic can't be part of the solution, because she doesn't have any magic.
So,
no, the book is not linear. Problems close around Bitterblue from all sides, and when she thinks she has a handle on
one, something else complicates it, and she is struggling to process
conflicting information from all around her and trying desperately to save her
people. And I love this, because I think the pacing of the book reflects Bitterblue's mental and emotional state—and
life. Bitterblue's problems and
goals are abstract, and so her approach is also abstract.
There
also isn't really an antagonist in Bitterblue,
because [BRIEF SPOILER ALERT] the source of all the problems was Leck, but he's been dead since Graceling. Life would be simpler if
there was a single villain at the source of all our problems and defeating said
villain would magically make everything better, but the problems remain, and
the victims, and somehow people have to deal when there is no one to defeat or
take the blame.
Despite
the inherent narrative difficulties, Bitterblue
does triumph, and the end isn't just
satisfying, it's uplifting. In many ways, Bitterblue
is about dealing with grief — politically, socially, economically,
personally — and there is no simple answer for that. So, some people were
bothered by the pacing, but I don't think this book would work with any other
kind, and for me, it really worked.
Some
readers felt Cashore dwelled too
much on the ciphers. I loved the ciphers. They were fascinating, accessibly
explained, and they were incredibly tied into the plot, the world, the themes,
and Bitterblue, because Bitterblue is also about secrets. And
language: I love that a character is attempting to write the first dictionary,
and that we see the introduction of the very concept of a different language.
Some
people were bothered by the romantic endings in all of the Graceling books, but I appreciate that Cashore hasn't been pressured into having her heroines follow more
traditional understandings of what “happily ever after” means: namely, that it
must entail marriage and children. I'm really surprised by how many people seem
to be bothered by the heroines' choices — or what they perceive to be Cashore's heavy-handed authorial
intervention — because the heroines have very good and well-explained reasons
for their choices, and they nevertheless find love and happiness.
I
love how Cashore deals with issues
of what it means to be queen, for Bitterblue's
understanding of the world and her place and relationships within it, and
we understand exactly how hard it is. Bitterblue's
strengths as a character, and as a queen, are her compassion and wisdom, and
that's unusual enough in a protagonist to pull me in, but her slog through the
problems raised through the book is what makes me love her.
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