Fantasy Books
Review – Silver and Lead (October Daye, Book 19) by Seanan McGuire (3.5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Length: 393 pages
Publisher: Tor Books
Release Date: September 30, 2025
ASIN: B0DQJ76DMG
Stand Alone or Series: 19th book in the October Daye series
Source: eGalley from NetGalley
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
“Something is rotten in Faerie. In the aftermath of Titania’s reality-warping enchantment, things are returning to what passes for normal in the Kingdom in the Mists—until it’s discovered that the royal vaults have been looted, and several powerful magical artifacts are missing. None are things that can be safely left unsecured, and some have the potential to do almost as much damage as Titania did, and having them in the wrong hands could prove just as disastrous.
At least the theft means that Sir October “Toby” Daye, Knight errant and Hero of the Realm, finally has an excuse to get out of the house. Sure, she’s eight and a half months pregnant, but that doesn’t mean she can’t take care of herself. But with the sea witch offering to stand godmother to Toby’s child, maybe there are greater dangers ahead for Toby and her family than it appears….
Old enemies will resurface, new enemies will disguise themselves as friends, and Queen Windermere must try to keep her Hero on the case without getting herself gutted by the increasingly irritated local King of Cats. Sometimes, what’s been lost can be the most dangerous threat of all.”
Series Info/Source: This is the 19th book in the October Daye series. I got this on ebook through NetGalley for review.
Thoughts: I liked this book better than the last couple books in the series, which isn’t saying much. The previous couple of books have felt like filler. While it still feels like McGuire isn’t quite sure where this series is going, this book does progress the story some. I ended up finishing it even though I skimmed some of the exposition.
Toby is back at home and much more pregnant than she expected to be because of everything that happened in the previous book. Tybalt is driving her a bit crazy with his protectiveness, especially since she still has a couple weeks before her due date. Tybalt and Toby are called to court to testify against Titania. While there, Arden pulls Toby aside to ask for her help; some very dangerous items from the royal vaults are missing…including a Hope Chest. Arden would like Toby to investigate.
I continue to love the world and the characters here. I enjoyed watching our characters find happiness and family amidst all the craziness going on.
However, there was a lot I struggled with here as well. Over half this book is exposition; McGuire spends way too much time recapping and too much time rehashing thoughts in the characters’ heads. While reading this, there were huge sections that I noticed myself skimming through so I could get back to dialogue and characters actually doing things. I felt like this book needed some serious editing; it would have been a better story at half the length.
I also struggled with both everyone’s over-protectiveness of pregnant Toby and with Toby’s irrational decisions. The characters seemed to be making decisions that were very…well…out of character. Even Arden asking Toby to do this investigation this late in Toby’s pregnancy felt weird to me; it was explained away as Toby being the only knight in the realm who could do it. However, given the size of the realm, that makes no sense. It didn’t feel like something Arden would normally do as a character either.
For many, many years, McGuire was a go-to author for me. The last five or so years that has tapered off. I am not sure what changed, me or her as a writer. I feel like no one edits these books and makes sure they are tight and well paced. McGuire’s writing has gotten slower, the pacing more drawn out, and she spends way too much page space on both exposition and re-running thoughts through her characters’ head. Readers are smart; they don’t need this much over-explaining.
There is a nice novella at the end that dives into Simon’s return to the Undersea. It was nice to get some insight into Simon’s thoughts and feelings and get a look at how his new home is treating him.
My Summary (3.5/5): Overall I was happy that this was a bit faster in pace than the last few previous books but still frustrated by how wordy and over-explained things were. For the last four of five books, I have felt like this series is getting tired and needs to be wrapped up. I hope this book is on the way to doing that. I almost didn’t picked this up to read at all, but I have been reading this series forever so decided to give it a chance. I am even more on the fence now about whether I will pick up future books in this series.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Half A Century of Reading Tolkien: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, translated by JRR Tolkien
From beside the queen Gawain
to the king did then incline:
‘I implore with prayer plain
that this match should now be mine.’
Somehow, I’ve never read Prof. Tolkien’s, let alone anyone’s, translation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (late 14th cent.), an English poem written by an unknown poet. Thinking on it, I know there’s a cheesy looking movie, Sword of the Valiant, from the eighties starring Miles O’Keeffe and Sean Connery, but it was only David Lowery’s 2021 The Green Knight and its critical acclaim that made me think it was maybe time to read the poem. Now I have. Additionally, and most valuable to me wrestling with my understanding of the poem, I’ve also read the professor’s 1953 WP Ker lecture on work.
The poem recounts the temptations of Sir Gawain, youngest member of King Arthur’s Round Table, as he attempts to meet the suicidal obligation he accepted when he entered a contest with a mysterious green knight. More precisely, as told, it’s about the conflict between chivalrous virtues of honor and courtesy and, specifically religious, morality.
Gawain was written in Middle English, the evolution of the language used between the Conquest in 1066 and the late 15th century. Gawain, son of Morgause, one of King Arthur’s half-sisters, is a major figure in many of the assorted Arthur tales. His roots descend back into older Welsh tales, where he was known as Gwalchmei. Pre-Christian elements, including the Beheading Game and the Wild Hunt, are integral parts of the story, despite the tale’s overt Christianity. The Beheading Game is a recurrent motif that tracks back to at least the Irish tale Fled Bricrenn featuring the hero Cú Chulainn and the Wild Hunt occurs across various Northern European myth cycles.
The poem begins with a recounting of Britain’s founding by Brutus of Troy. Noble as he was, young King Arthur of Camelot was nobler still. One Christmas season, as Arthur’s knights were celebrating with a games and contests, a strange figure entered the hall.
For hardly had the music but a moment ended,
and the first course in the court as was custom been served,
when there passed through the portals a perilous horseman,
the mightiest on middle-earth in measure of height,
from his gorge to his girdle so great and so square,
and his loins and his limbs so long and so huge,
that half a troll upon earth I trow that he was,
but the largest man alive at least I declare him;
and yet the seemliest for his size that could sit on a horse,
for though in back and in breast his body was grim,
both his paunch and his waist were properly slight,
and all his features followed his fashion so gay
in mode;
for at the hue men gaped aghast
in his face and form that showed;
as a fay-man fell he passed,
and green all over glowed.
Even his stallion is green. He has arrived at Camelot, he declares, to see how brave the knights of the Round Table really are. Not in combat, though, as they are “but beard less children.” No, what the Green Knight wants is to strike blow for blow with his great axe anyone brave enough to accept his challenge. For playing along, he will let that person keep the axe.
When no one steps forward, King Arthur, himself, raises his voice to take on the Green Knight, himself. At once, Gawain steps in to put himself between the king and any harm that might befall him. In a sharp bit of commentary, Gawain calls out his own weaknesses even while upbraiding his fellow knights for their apparent cowardice.
For I find it unfitting, as in fact it is held,
when a challenge in your chamber makes choices so exalted,
though you yourself be desirous to accept it in person,
while many bold men about you on bench are seated:
on earth there are, I hold, none more honest of purpose,
no figures fairer on field where fighting is waged.
I am the weakest, I am aware, and in wit feeblest,
and the least loss, if I live not, if one would learn the truth.
If his the knight’s green cast hadn’t hinted that strange things were at hand, it’s made abundantly clear once Gawain delivers his blow and lops the challenger’s head from his shoulders. Just because he’s headless, it doesn’t mean Arthur’s champion is off the hook. Never faltering, the Green Knight reaches for his head and holds it aloft to the king and his household.
For the head in his hand he held it up straight,
towards the fairest at the table he twisted his face,
and it lifted its eyelids and looked at them broadly,
and made such words with its mouth as may be recounted.
‘See thou get ready, Gawain, to go as thou vowedst,
and as faithfully seek till thou find me, good sir
as thou hast promised in this place in the presence of
these knights.
To the Green Chapel go thou, and get thee, I charge thee,
such a dint as thou has dealt — indeed thou has earned
a nimble knock in return on New Year’s morning!
One might think Gawain would set forth as soon as able, but he doesn’t, instead remaining with Arthur until All Hallows. As he prepares to leave, the poet provides a detailed description of the young knight’s livery. On both his baldric and his shield is a pentangle, a five pointed star.
First faultless was he found in his five sense,
and next in his five fingers he failed at no time,
and firmly on the Five Wounds all his faith was set
that Christ received on the cross, as the Creed tells us,
and wherever the brave man into battle come,
on this beyond all things was his earnest thought:
that ever from the Five Joys all his valour he gained
that to Heaven’s courteous Queen once came from her
Child.
Tolkien describes this as instrumental to understanding the poem’s Christian context, as it represents the highest Christian ideals, the things Gawain aspires to embody and uphold:
For the significance that the pentangle is to bear in this poem is made plain — plain enough , that is, in general purport: it is to betoken ‘perfection’ indeed, but perfection in religion (the Christian faith), in piety and morality, and the ‘courtesy’ that flows therefrom into human relations; perfection in details of each, and a perfect and unbroken bond between the higher and lower planes.
For nearly two months, Gawain roams the land in search of the Green Chapel and its lord. Traveling across the wild countryside in search of the Green Chapel, his adventures, while extensive by any hero’s standard, are described in only a few sentences. They are merely something Gawain endures prior to the real struggle he must face in fulfilling his obligation to the Green Knight.
At every wading or water on the way that he passed
he found a foe before him, save at few for a wonder;
and so foul were they and fell that fight he must needs.
So many a marvel in the mountains he met in those lands
that ‘twould be tedious the tenth part to tell you thereof.
At whiles with worms he wars, and with wolves also,
at whiles with wood-trolls that wandered in the crags,
and with bulls and with bears and boars, too, at times;
and with ogres that hounded him from the heights of the fells.
Only a few days before New Year’s Day, Gawain comes across a castle, “the castle most comely that ever a king possessed,” deep in the wild forest. He is welcomed there by the lord and his wife. Aside from the lord and lady and their servants, there is a mysterious ugly old woman in the castle, whom everyone treats with great respect. They are honored and pleased to welcome such a notable as Arthur’s knight. On hearing of his quest, the lord tells him nearby is a path that lead to the chapel which is only two miles away. He also suggests that Gawain rest and recover until New Year’s Day, an offer the knight readily accepts. The lord also proposes a bargain; he will go hunting while the knight rests. At day’s end, the lord will give him whatever he catches in return for whatever gift the knight might receive during the day. Again, Gawain accepts the offer.
The poem continues the next morning with a detailed accounting of the lord’s hunt for deer in the forest. Tolkien points out that this is a realistic portrayal of a lord’s necessary activity during the winter as well as a providing a realistic reason for him to be away from the castle. That is important for the next part of the Gawain’s story.
It is on the very next morning that the real nature of Gawain’s struggle is revealed. What follows are three days of escalating temptation for Gawain. He is awoken by the castle’s lady with clearly lascivious intent. Her servants and maids are still asleep, and she’s “the door closed and caught with a clasp that is strong.”
To my body will you welcome be
of delight to take your fill;
for need constraineth me
to serve you, and I will.’
He is able to hold her off, though he finds doing so without being discourteous difficult. Nonetheless, he resists her persistent ardor and she retreats after giving him a single kiss. He dresses at once and proceeds to Mass.
She was an urgent wooer,
that lady fair of face;
the knight with speeches pure
replied in every case.
‘Madam,’ said he merrily, ‘Mary reward you
For I have enjoyed, i n good faith, your generous favour,
and much honour have had else from others’ kind deeds ;
but as for the courtesy they accord me, since my claim is not equal,
the honour is your own, who are ever well-meaning.’
The lord returns from his hunt with supply of venison which he gives to Gawain. When the knight gives him a kiss in return, he asks him “where you won this same wealth by the wits you posses.” Gawain responds ‘That was not the covenant,’ quoth he. ‘Do not question me more.”
This is the template for the remaining two days, but in each, the risk for Gawain increases. The lady becomes more forward and direct with each new morning. The young knight finds it increasingly difficult to hold off her advances, again, remaining courteous, faithful to the lord’s hospitality, and true to Christian values.
This, Tolkien explains, is the real heart of the poem and Gawain’s challenge: “The author is chiefly interested in the competition between ‘courtesy’ and virtue (purity and loyalty); he shows us their increasing divergence, and shows us Gawain at crisis of the temptation recognizing this and choosing virtue rather than courtesy, yet preserving a graciousness of manner and a gentleness of speech belonging to the true spirit of courtesy.” He fins this made clear in the following lines.
for she, queenly and peerless, pressed him so closely,
led him so near the line, that at last he must needs
either refuse her with offence or her favours there take.
He cared for his courtesy, lest a caitiff he proved,
yet more for his sad case, if he should sin commit
and to the owner of the house, to his host, be a traitor.
‘God help me l ‘ said he. ‘Happen that shall not !’
On the second day she is more forceful and he ends up receiving two kisses. On the third, it’s three kisses, but he doesn’t escape with quite intact. The lady presses on Gawain a green girdle she wove that will prevent any who wear it to be killed “by any cunning of hand.” Prompted as much by courtesy as fear, he accepts it. More important, he does not present it to the lord as one of the gifts he received that day, instead only giving him three kisses.
As I reach the poem’s climax, I’ve realized I haven’t said anything about my own reactions to it. I guess I’d have to say I’m swayed by Prof. Tolkien’s interpretation. In the poem’s final stanzas, it’s made clear that not only was the Green Knight’s challenge a game, but everything in the tale is a game. That is, the lady’s attempted seduction of Gawain is never real, only an effort to force him to fail to uphold his professes virtues, broken on the contradictions between his obligations to the lord, the lady, and Christian morality. It was all planned as an attack on Arthur, Guinevere, and the Round Tables and its knights. I didn’t have to be swayed very much, as the poet’s intent seems fairly clear, nonetheless, I appreciate his explication.
There’s real power in the poem, as I think is clear from lines I’ve included. The moments of weirdness serve as a connection to the deeper stories that run back to very roots of myths and legends. But there’s also a real, psychological depth to Gawain that’s often lacking in characters from fairytales and the like. There’s real anguish in his struggle to simultaneously maintain his honor and his virtue. It isn’t a simple morality play, but possessed of real human complexity. It’s not without value studying Gawain’s efforts in this parlous age.
Confessing his sins the night before, on New Year’s Day, Gawain sets out. Instead of the expected chapel, the Green Knight’s abode is a cave set in an earthen mound, with more hint of Devil than Christ to it. What follows is the direst test of the young knight as he braves the “Danish axe newly dressed the dint to return, with cruel cutting-edge curved along the handlefiled on a whetstone, and four feet in width” of his challenger.
When the Green Knight swings his axe, Gawain flinches. Reproached for cowardice, a second strike is delivered, though this stops short of touching Gawain’s neck. When Gawain demands a third, true blow, he is rewarded with a slight wound to his neck. At this point, all is revealed.
The Green Knight is none other than the lord of the castle and the whole thing was planned by the old woman at the castle. She is, in fact, Morgan le Fay, Arthur’s half-sister and Gawain’s aunt. She hoped the sight of the Green Knight’s talking severed head would scare Guinevere to death and that one of Arthur’s knights would fail to maintain his virtue. He only wounded Gawain at all because he hid his receipt of the girdle.
This last breaks Gawain. He believes he has failed, giving into cowardice and not remaining true to his promise to the lord, condemning himself: ‘Cursed be ye, Coveting, and Cowardice also I In you is vileness, and vice that virtue destroyeth.’ No one else, though, agrees. The lord laughs and rejects this as Gawain, save for valuing his life a little too much, has met the other challenges perfectly and extends an invitation to his New Year’s celebrations. On returning to Arthur, the king and his knights also reject Gawain’s self-denouncement, instead, choosing the green girdle as a reminder of Gawain’s adventure and virtue.
I need to think about Sir Gawain and the Green Knight some more and reread it a few more times before I come to anymore conclusions on in it. As with Tolkien’s translation of Beowulf, I enjoyed reading this and found it flowed and moves with a nice rhythm. There are two other poems in the collection I have, Pearl and Sir Orfeo, which I haven’t read yet, but will the next time around.
Half a Century of Reading Tolkien: Part One
Half a Century of Reading Tolkien: Part Two – The Fellowship of the Ring by JRR Tolkien
Half a Century of Reading Tolkien: Part Three — The Two Towers by JRR Tolkien
Half a Century of Reading Tolkien: Part Four — The Return of the King by JRR Tolkien
Half a Century of Reading Tolkien: Part Five — From the Beginning: The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien
Half a Century of Reading Tolkien: Part Seven — The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks
Half a Century of Reading Tolkien: Part Eight — The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien
Grimmer Than Grim: The Children of Húrin by J.R.R. Tolkien
Fletcher Vredenburgh writes a column each first Sunday of the month at Black Gate, mostly about older books he hasn’t read before. He also posts at his own site, Stuff I Like when his muse hits him
Categories: Fantasy Books
Exploring the Dark Side of Life: Remains, edited by Andrew Cox
Remains, issues 4 and 4. Cover art by Richard Wagner
There are readers who, like me, prefer dark fiction in short form, because their suspension of disbelief is too brief to sustain — with a few exceptions — a full novel.
For people like us here’s a real treat: the new magazine/anthology Remains, edited by Andy Cox and illustrated by Richard Wagner, both well known for their previous work with the mythical Black Static magazine.
The first two issues are already sold out, but volume 3 ( published in late 2025) and the brand new volume 4 are available to entertain and disquiet.
Art for “Hiroshima Was Another Word For Love Then” by Andrew Hoo, from Issue 3, by Richard Wagner
My favorite stories from vol 3 are the following:
“Atrophy Wife” by Gary McMahon, a superb, deeply unsettling tale where two boys discover the headless body of a murdered girl
“Hiroshima Was Another Word for Love Then” by Andrew Hook, an insightful, slightly sad piece depicting the fleeting encounter between a man and a woman whose lives will be separated forever
“Gehenna” by Steve Rasnic Tem, an engrossing, moving story featuring a cancer patient riding the bus to his chemo infusions
The list of contributors includes Allison Littlewood, Danny Rhodes, James Sallis and Stephen Hargadon.
Art for “Loon” by Danny Rhodes, from Issue 3, by Robert Wagner
From volume 4 my personal choices are
“Station to Station” by Stephen Bacon, a fascinating, life-long trip in the network of London Underground in search of a friend lost forever
“Development Conversation” by Stephen Hargadon, a very unusual, fascinating piece of weird fiction set in an office where unexpected changes are going to take place
Other contributors are: Sean Padraic Byrne, Kay Vandail, James Sallis, Annie Neugebauer, Craig Bernardini, Steve Toase and John Possidente.
Copies are $10 each in the US, and a 4-issue subscription is $33. Order directly from the Remains website.
Mario Guslandi was born in Milan, Italy, where he currently lives. He became addicted to horror and supernatural fiction (too) many years ago, after accidentally reading a reprint anthology of stories by MR James, JS Le Fanu, Arthur Machen etc. Most likely the only Italian who regularly reads (and reviews) dark fiction in English, he has contributed over the years to various genre websites such as Horrorworld, Hellnotes, The British Fantasy Society, The Agony Column and many more. See all his recent reviews for us here.
Categories: Fantasy Books
“Little Failure ~ A Memoir” & “The Company”
The post “Little Failure ~ A Memoir” & “The Company” appeared first on LitStack.
Categories: Fantasy Books
JITTERBUG by Gareth L Powell
“On Earth, they depicted justice as blindfolded and impartial, but out here on the frontier, she was red in tooth and claw.” It’s not every book that begins with the unanticipated dismantling of a planet. But that is what happens here, when people in South London watch through a telescope the disassembling of the planet…
Categories: Fantasy Books
SPFBO XI - The Third Update (Mihir's Batch)
Read FBC's SPFBO11 First Update (Lukasz's batch)
Read FBC's SPFBO11 Second Update (Jack's batch)
Aah SPFBO, we are back in a new time period for the start. I got my batch of six titles and I was off. With all six books, I read 20% of them before deciding whether to read each title in its entirety. For me, this time all six titles were very cool looking. Mine is the third batch to be read and you can read what Lukasz and Jack thought of their batches in the links above.
My thanks to all six authors for their submission and being brave to submit their babies for being reviewed by unknown people. It takes a special kind of mental fortitude to toil away in creating these stories and then setting them free into the world for being read and judged. I applaud you all.
So here are my thoughts on all of them:
Chalmach Chronicles by Torbjørn Øverland Amundsen – I started my SPFBO read with this book because I found the blurb to be very intriguing. In my previous years in SPFBO, I read a book like this, and I had enjoyed it immensely. The Chalmach Chronicles follows on in this manner, and I very much enjoyed it. Each story was a different one and highlighted the magic present within the world as well as the different aspects of the city. I really enjoyed how the author showcased the city’s geographical aspects within each story as it added to the story’s depth. The stories also reference characters from the other stories, and this adds to the plot depth.
Overall I would really recommend this book as I very much enjoyed it for its ingenuity, and I will be buying the sequel as well.
Night of The Illumination by Jacob Montanez – Night Of The Illumination is an epic fantasy that has dark edges and great prose. I enjoyed reading this book but had to DNF it around the 50% mark as the book’s pace had slowed down significantly. This book had a lot of epic feel to the main plot, it was also very dark. The world settings are constantly hinted at but never properly revealed
I think I wasn’t the right reader for this story. The writing style is very in-depth and while it isn’t the purple kind, it has beauty to it. Overall, this would be great for those who are looking for something different. Think along the lines of Mark Lawrence, Michael R. Fletcher and Brian Staveley, Jacob Montanez is a writer with a unique voice and style.
The Golden Scarab of Balihar by Michael Grayford – The Golden Scarab was a fun and fast read set in a world that’s reminiscent of South-West Asia. The writing was very succinct, and the pace of the story was smooth. Overall I enjoyed this story wherein the female MC uses her wits and the world has a very Arabian nights feel. This story flowed quickly and was a bit predictable but that’s not a knock on the book or the author. The humour quotient especially with the Jinn is a solid factor for the enjoyment of the story and alongside the brilliant and plucky protagonist is a plus for the story.
This is a good effort, and it's a fun twist on the Aladdin fable but it’s also geared for newer fantasy readers and older/experienced fantasy readers might not find anything new within bar the settings. I would easily see this story be in much demand for younger (tween and teenage) readers and would make a great animated show or movie. This
The Dragon of the Dread Deep by C.D. McKenna – This was a book which I was most excited for as it featured nautical fantasy and pirates. I finished this book as quickly as I could as it featured dragon riders, action and magic. For me however, this book had a very slow start but the characters, especially the main protagonist Cassian was enticing enough for me to continue. As I read on, I realized this book while a standalone is set in the world of the Vorelian Saga books. There might have been nods to the main events but because I haven’t read those works, I couldn’t tell.
The story kicks into proper gear by the middle and from there it’s all about battles, treachery, dragon magic and being decent in a cutthroat world. I wouldn’t call this world grimdark but it occupies the space nicely between dark and grimdark fantasy. There’s not a lot of good people, just folks with various plans and agendas and some who are trying to do the decent thing. The world introduced within is a complicated one and for fans of high fantasy, will be very pleased.
The Dragon of the Dread Deep is a dark fantasy that explores how doing the right thing can lead to more problems. Full of magic, action, betrayals, TDOTDD is a book for those looking to get lost in a complex world.
The Sins of Steel and Shadow by Steve Pannett – The Sins of Steel & Shadow was another title which beguiled me with its blurb. This is a world wherein humans and vampires co-exist with simmering tensions and navigating these landmines is out protagonist Bail Neren. He is deemed a Turned, not entirely Vampyr but far away from a human. Hated by one and deemed lowly by other, Bail often stays in the shadows for his safety.
TSOSAS is a dark, gritty story with strong focus on characters. For me, I enjoyed the slow reveal of the world, Bail’s cautious wanderings in the world and his alliances within the city. There’s a proper mystery afoot within the main plot and this book is very much for fans of Daniel Polansky and RJ Barker.I had read the previous book by this author and while that was a western fantasy, this book was another different one. The mystery plot was nicely unveiled and the ending was a complete shocker for me. For readers who enjoy character-driven stories, mixed in moral ambiguity, socio-political intrigue, and low fantasy settings, this book will be for you.
Throne of Darkness by Spencer Russell Smith – I’m going to say this right upfront this is one of the wildest fantasy books I’ve read since I started reading fantasy in 1999-2000. The prologue is like Wheel Of Time epic but juiced up with BSG SF richness.
There’s no way for me to describe it but to implore readers to just read and decide for themselves. This book is for lovers of Tolkien, Sanderson and Christopher Ruocchio, those worldbuilding gods whose skills leave us readers wowed. Spencer Russell Smith can easily labelled in their level as one can easily see in this book. Besides the worldbuilding, this book has a lot of characters and it is action-packed to its gills. The story while straightforward, does require a lot of attention as the author drops us into the world of Efruumani and handholds us while giving us all the details and intricacies of the system within (I very much was reminded of my first read of R. Scott Bakker’s The Darkness That Came Before)
For me, this was such a wild read, that I had no comparison for it. The writing does take a while to adjust to and the prose is kept steady because of the way the main story unfolds. I had to go with the flow a lot as I was trying to take in all the world info and story details. This wasn’t the most enjoyable way, but this story demanded as the main story occurs over the space of 4 days and some hours and it ends with an explosive resolution that’s buttressed with two epilogues.
All I will say about Throne Of Darkness is that this book is unlike any that you have read before, and while it does have its shortcomings (prose, information overload), the story pace, worldbuilding and magic system (gem, metal based, and light enhanced) simply overpowers those flaws. This is one of those titles which will have its fans and detractors in equal order but it is a hidden gem and Spencer Russell Smith can be proud of what a unique story he has envisioned. Throne Of Darkness is a unique science-apocalpytic epic fantasy in a league of its own. Read it and find out where you stand in its wake.
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So after finishing my lot, I had a very heavy choice to make. There were four obvious titles which I read and while they challenged me, each of them was enjoyable in their own special way. So I would like to highlight these four titles and implore SPFBO readers to check them out as it’s only due to the nature of the competition that I must select one among these four:
1) Chalmach Chronicles
2) Throne of Darkness
3) The Dragon of the Dread Deep
4) The Sins of Steel and Shadow
For choosing my SPFBO semifinalist, it came down to my personal enjoyment as to which book provided a full story and had the least flaws. I must apologize to all the authors as I don’t mean to imply that there was anything wrong with their stories. In choosing one among these four, the remaining three aren’t unworthy. They would have been my top choice in any previous edition, and I hope readers do check them out irrespective of my choice below….
So, without any further waiting, my SPFBO semifinalist is
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The Sins of Steel and Shadow by Steve Pannett was the one book which I enjoyed the most and will be putting forward for my FBC co-judges to read in our quest to select a finalist. Many congratulations to Steve Pannett and my commiserations to all the authors in my lot of six. I want to thank you for allowing me to read your books and giving me an opportunity to provide my thoughts on them.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Forgotten Authors: Theodora Du Bois
Theodora Du Bois
Theodora McCormick was born on September 14, 1890 in Brooklyn, New York. Her father died when she was a year old and she was raised by her mother and stepfather. She attended the Barnard School for Girls in Manhattan and the Halsted School in Yonkers. Although she wanted to attend Vassar College and was accepted in 1909, her parents did not support her attending the school. Her plans to go anyway were dashed when she was diagnosed with tuberculosis and she found herself in a TB sanitarium instead. Eventually, in 1916, she enrolled in the Dartmouth Summer School for Drama.
While in the sanitarium, McCormick began writing poetry, although most of her poetry was written during this time and after she was healthy she focused on various forms of prose writing. In 1918, she married Delafield Du Bois and took the name Theodora Du Bois. Theodora gave birth to a daughter, also named Theodora, in 1919 and in 1922 had a son, Eliot.
The Devil’s Spoon
Perhaps best known as a playwright and mystery author, she wrote historical romances using the name Theodora McCormick, and other works of fiction and plays as by Theodora Du Bois. Her first published play, The Sleeping Beauty: A Play With or Without Pageantry, was first published in 1919 and, as the name implies, is a fantasy. Her first book, Amateur and Educational Dramatics was written with coauthors Evelyne Hilliard and Kate Oglebay and was published in 1917.
She began publishing fiction in 1920 with the short story “Thursday and the King and Queen,” which appeared in Woman’s Home Companion. She branched out to novels in 1930 with The Devil’s Spoon about a devil who possesses a human in order to fight against Satan’s plans to dominate the world (originally published as a novel, it would be reprinted in the June 1948 issue of Famous Fantastic Mysteries). Du Bois would return to the theme of possession in 1948 with The Devil and Destiny.
Later works, such as Murder Strikes and Atomic Unit and High Tension fell into the science fiction/thriller genre and other works during the 1940s and 50s also tackled the cold war, with Du Bois being dropped by her publisher in 1954 after her novel Seeing Red took on the issue of McCarthyism.
In addition to her dramas, mystery novels, historical romances, and science fiction works, Du Bois also wrote numerous juvenile works, beginning with Rocks and Rills: A Cartoon in Three Dimensions in 1932 through The High King’s Daughter in 1966.
When Delafield Du Bois worked on the Manhattan Project during World War II, the couple formed a committee at Yale University to help academics from Oxford and Cambridge who found themselves in the United States during the war. Delafield died in 1965.
Titles published using the McCormick name included the medieval novel The Emerald Crown, the American Revolution novel Freedom’s Way, and the Irish novel The Love of Fingin O’Lea.
Du Bois died on February 1, 1986 in New York. She is buried in Moravian Cemetery in New Dorp, New York.
Steven H Silver is a twenty-one-time Hugo Award nominee and was the publisher of the Hugo-nominated fanzine Argentus as well as the editor and publisher of ISFiC Press for eight years. He has also edited books for DAW, NESFA Press, and ZNB. His most recent anthology is Alternate Peace and his novel After Hastings was published in 2020. Steven has chaired the first Midwest Construction, Windycon three times, and the SFWA Nebula Conference numerous times. He was programming chair for Chicon 2000 and Vice Chair of Chicon 7.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Book Review: House of Splinters by Laura Purcell
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
House of Splinters by Laura Purcell
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing (February 10, 2026)
Length: 346 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
My queen of gothic horror is at it again! Laura Purcell returns to the haunting concept she first introduced in The Silent Companions, bringing back those creepy wooden figures in House of Splinters. As a long-time fan of the author, stepping back into that eeriness and uncanny atmosphere felt like coming home, though as it turns out, home might not be the best choice of word.
The story follows Belinda Bainbridge, who has spent most of her life under the thumb of her anxious, overbearing mother. So when her father-in-law dies, prompting her husband Wilfred to relocate his family to take over management of his ancestral estate, Belinda quietly hopes the change will give her the chance to build a life of her own. With her young son Freddie approaching his breeching and another child on the way, the move feels like a turning point. However, the one tie from her past that she insists on bringing with her is her lady’s maid, a steady source of familiarity and reassurance as she prepares to leave her old life behind.
But when they arrive at the estate, known as the Bridge, Belinda quickly realizes it is nothing like the future she imagined. The place had never seemed particularly cheerful during her earlier visits, but now it’s practically falling apart. The house is in disrepair, the gardens neglected and lifeless. The villagers, long under the Bainbridges’ care, are resentful and wary of the family, whispering that they are cursed. Indeed, the Bridge has had its share of dark history, including an ancestor rumored to have been executed as a witch, the mysterious death of Wilfred’s sister when they were children, and the accidental death of a servant. Then there are the wooden figures known as silent companions, flat wooden cutouts once popular as household decorations during the Dutch Golden Age. Those that once belonged to Wilfred’s mother are found locked away in a room Belinda hopes to turn into a nursery, but once they are uncovered, strange things begin to happen. Freddie becomes oddly fascinated with them, talking to them and treating them like real people. And with the birth of her second child drawing closer, Belinda begins to fear that something is deeply wrong with the house and that something is haunting her family.
Considering The Silent Companions was the novel that first made me fall in love with the author’s work, one of the most exciting aspects of House of Splinters is how it reconnects with the world of the earlier book. While this novel tells a completely new story with completely new characters, Purcell cleverly revisits some familiar ground by returning to the Bainbridge family and the Bridge. Fans will recognize certain elements echoed in this one, like a pregnant protagonist, the rundown estate, the unwelcoming villagers, and of course, the stars of this horror show which are the silent wooden figures themselves. At the same time, this isn’t a rehash of the original plot with just a few things tweaked. Rather, it feels more like another chapter in the wider legacy of the unfortunate Bainbridges, exploring how multiple generations continue to become haunted by the house and the companions.
One of the things Purcell always does so well is atmosphere, and House of Splinters certainly delivers on that front. The Bridge is practically a character in its own right, and it serves as the perfect gothic setting with its isolation and decaying front, full of secrets that quite literally refuse to stay buried. You never know what might emerge from its overgrown grounds or from the shadows within the house, because the entire place carries an air of unease and the sense that something isn’t right. I’ve also always felt the companions concept had far more potential to explore, and they are again put to excellent use.
Beyond the paranormal elements, the novel also heartily embraces all the classic gothic themes. We have Belinda, a particularly sympathetic protagonist who wants so badly for her new life in her new home to work out, but feels increasingly trapped by the family secrets, societal pressures, and the guilt brought on by unrealistic expectations. And whenever children are involved, the horror becomes even more disturbing. Let’s just say there’s a reason why the “creepy child” trope has become so embedded in the genre, and Purcell taps into it big time here through Freddie’s increasingly strange behavior. The idea that something evil could be influencing a child or threatening a baby makes the implications especially chilling and difficult to shake.
If there’s any downside, it’s that the story takes some time to get going. But then again, it’s a gothic novel. Slow-building tension is par for the course. But once those threads start coming together, particularly with the arrival of Wilfred’s estranged brother Nathan, and the opening of the floodgates with regard to the Bainbridge secrets, things start gaining serious momentum. Is there something supernatural at work at the Bridge? Or is superstition and paranoia getting the better of our characters’ perceptions?
In the end, this ws another strong addition to Laura Purcell’s growing catalogue of spectacular gothic horror. If you enjoy slow-burning tales filled with atmosphere and uneasy mysteries, do yourself a favor and pick one up now. Dark and unsettling, House of Splinters is full of the creeping sense of dread that she does so well, and fans of her work will find plenty to enjoy here, along with the return of the eerie silent companions.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Early Review – So Far Away by Kat Mellon (4/5 stars)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Contemporary Fantasy/Science Fiction
Length: 324 pages
Publisher: Tarsier Publishing
Release Date: March 27, 2026
ASIN: B0GFQ82RXW
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: eGalley from NetGalley
Rating: 4/5 stars
“After two months of intensive group therapy, six individuals embark on a Thera Quest Inc. session—a simulated fantasy adventure guaranteed to incite lasting behavioral change in the real world. For thirty-year-old Elizatine, this means overcoming her beastly shopping addiction alongside five strangers with their own problems: Tanner and Lana, two middle-aged alcoholics; Amara, a young ambulatory wheelchair user with POTS mourning her loss of agency; Rowan, a thirty-something wracked by guilt from the death of his younger brother, and Felix; a charming and depressed entertainer. Within the simulation, the six must work alongside each other to deliver a cursed book while encountering whimsical hybrid creatures, unsettling personal trials, and hulking manifestations of their inner demons.”
Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book. I got this on ebook through NetGalley for review.
Thoughts: I picked this book on a bit of a whim from NetGalley for review and was surprised how quickly I was engaged in the story. This is a fast-paced easy read that has an interesting premise. I think the only downside to this was that the world, the characters, and the plot were a bit simpler than I expected.
Six individuals are embarking on a fantasy quest through Thera Quest Inc. Their personal quest is to confront their issues using a new type of immersive therapy. Their fantasy quest is to deliver a cursed book to a frog person. We hear from each person individually, but the story really focuses on Elizatine (who has a shopping addiction) and Tanner (who is a recovering alcoholic).
This was a super quick and easy read that was fast-paced and engaging. In general, I liked all of the characters. They all (obviously) have some pretty big issues from their pasts that they are trying to work through. The premise of doing that through an immersive fantasy game is a fun one. The characters are all fairly likable, if a bit simpler than expected. There is a bit of a romance in here as well.
My biggest complaint about this is that everything is just a bit too straight-forward and simple. The characters working through their issues seem to do so easily and without many complications. The characters themselves are also somewhat two dimensional; they have easily explained issues they are working through from well defined past traumatic events. People are rarely that straight-forward. The plot itself is also fairly simple and straight-forward.
I do think maybe the simplicity of this story might be part of its charm. It is a fun concept, a quick read, the characters are likable, and the ending leaves you feeling hopeful. I guess I was just left feeling like there should have been a bit more to these characters and their stories. While I read this quickly and vaguely enjoyed it, I don’t think it is one of those books that I will ever think back on. This was more of a quick read that you are like “huh that was fun” and then you move on.
My Summary (4/5): Overall I liked this. This was a fun and fast-pasted read that has an interesting premise and likable characters. I did struggle with how easily these characters’ issues were solved and with how simple both the characters and the plot were. However, that may have been part of the charm to this story. It is simple, straight-forward, fun, and easy. While I don’t think this story left a lasting impact on me (it’s not the type of story I will probably even think about again after writing this review), it was a fun diversion. I would recommend if you think the premise sounds interesting and if you don’t mind more simplistic and straight-forward stories.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Old Maids: Unnatural Death by Dorothy Sayers
Unnatural Death by Dorothy Sayers (Avon Books, 1964)
“I know who you are now,” said Nurse Philliter, slowly. “You — you gave evidence against Sir Julian Freke. In fact, you traced the murder to him, didn’t you?”
In Unnatural Death, the third Wimsey novel, Sayers again makes medical issues vital to the plot and the mystery. In this case, Wimsey learns of his case entirely by accident: He and his close friend Charles Parker are talking about crime over dinner, and Wimsey tells Parker that, unlike police officers, who have a public duty to voice their suspicions, doctors have no such duty and can get in trouble by doing so.
This is overheard by a doctor seated at a nearby table, who tells them a story of his own experience with doing so: A rich old woman in his care died unexpectedly — she was suffering from a terminal cancer, but that was not the cause — and he found the death puzzling and asked to do a post-mortem, which found no cause of death, followed by a chemical analysis, which revealed nothing either.
[Click the images for unnatural-sized versions.]
Unnatural Death (Bourbon Street, January 7, 2014)
This sets us up for a neat medical mystery, which in fact has a solution that’s fairly widely known now, but that apparently was obscure a century ago. The doctor tells the other two that the local gossip that followed from this ruined his practice, and he had to move away and start over elsewhere.
Intrigued, Wimsey offers to look into the case, but the doctor turns him down, remarking with satisfaction that Wimsey doesn’t know his name and won’t be able to pursue the matter. Wimsey decides to do so anyway, sends the doctor, Dr. Edward Carr, a short note, and says to Parker, “If you want to be immune from silly letters, Charles, don’t carry your monomark in your hat.”
Unnatural Death by Dorothy Sayers (New English Library, 1976)
(According to Wiktionary, a monomark is a short alphanumeric sequence used as a postal address, brought into use by a British mail forwarding company two years before Unnatural Death was published. Naturally Lord Peter would have spotted and memorized the monomark!)
In an early chapter, Wimsey takes Parker to meet a woman whom he describes as a friend. Parker takes this to be a euphemism, and is embarrassed, privately ironic about how “they always seem to think it’s different,” and trying not to show the disapproval he feels. Then he and the readers meet “a thin, middle-aged woman, with a sharp, sallow face and very vivacious manner.”
Unnatural Death (Avon Books, 1964)
Miss Climpson is, as Wimsey says, an old maid (an increasing problem in the years after the Great War) and, as Parker says, a sort of inquiry agent; in Wimsey’s words, “She asks questions which a young man could not put without a blush.”
In fact, she is part of an agency which Wimsey has created and is funding, which amounts to his version of the Baker Street Irregulars (with single women instead of street urchins!), and he sends her off to find which town Dr. Carr formerly practiced in and who was his deceased patient there — the first stage of her active role in the entire investigation.
At this point the story acquires a subtext that Sayers never makes explicit. The patient was Agatha Dawson — Miss Agatha Dawson, for she never married; she lived most of her life with her cousin, Miss Clara Whittaker, to whom she was deeply attached. Neither of them cared for marriage; Clara supported them as a successful horse breeder, and wanted nothing to do with men, except on matters of business.
Unnatural Death, back cover (Bourbon Street, January 7, 2014)
After Clara’s death, her niece, Mary Whitaker, a trained nurse who steps in to manage Miss Dawson’s care, is also, to Miss Climpson’s eye, “not of the marrying sort,” and is much admired by a younger woman, Vera Findlater, of whom Miss Climpson thinks “It is natural for a schoolgirl… in a young woman of twenty-two it is thoroughly undesirable”; the two have plans to buy a chicken farm together.
Finally, Wimsey has two interviews with yet another woman, Miss Forrest, at the second of which she attempts to seduce him, but when he takes the lure and kisses her, she involuntarily shudders away in revulsion.
It’s a point in Sayers’s favor, I think, that she doesn’t have one stereotype of “the love that dare not speak its name” (however politely hinted at) but shows everything from lifelong devotion to naïveté to cynical manipulation. What’s unnatural, in this novel, is not one woman’s passion for another, but murder.
Unnatural Death (HarperCollins, 1995)
Finding out about the two cousins gives Wimsey and Parker a start on discovering the family relations (some American editions were titled The Dawson Pedigree), and also meeting the solicitor who took over from their retired former solicitor. This brings up some complex issues that follow from a recent change in the law (I imagine Sayers reading about the change and thinking that it could be a motive for murder) and that supply a motive.
The story supports one of Wimsey’s ideas: That one crime can lead to more crimes as the criminal tries to cover up the first. The investigation heats up with the death of Bertha Gotobed, formerly a servant of Miss Dawson, and with the death of Vera Findlater. All this builds up to a dramatic climactic scene and to the revelation of how the original death was brought about.
Unnatural Death (Perennial Mystery Library, 1987)
Sayers also shows Wimsey troubled by his own involvement in the case: asking the vicar of the town where Miss Dawson and Miss Whittaker lived for moral advice on a “hypothetical” case; thinking that his own investigations may have created the motive for two more murders; and in the end, “cold and sick” at the outcome. Inner conflict over his own vocation of criminal investigation makes him an increasingly complex character, and makes this a psychological novel as well as a murder mystery.
William H. Stoddard is a professional copy editor specializing in scholarly and scientific publications. As a secondary career, he has written more than two dozen books for Steve Jackson Games, starting in 2000 with GURPS Steampunk. He lives in Lawrence, Kansas with his wife, their cat (a ginger tabby), and a hundred shelf feet of books, including large amounts of science fiction, fantasy, and graphic novels.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Spotlight on “Aviary” by Maria Dong
Other LitStack Spots LitStack has also spotted other books that we want to add to…
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Categories: Fantasy Books
Book review: Discovery by J.A.J. Minton
Book links: Amazon, Goodreads
ABOUT AUTHORS: J.A.J. Minton is the pen name for Jakob, Amy, and John Minton, a family living in North Carolina. Together, they produce and host the YouTube channel, "Talking Story: A Fantastical Fiction Channel." Between them, they have lived nine lives in theatre, comic book retail, indie filmmaking, academia, undercover shopping, dog kennel cleaning, advertising copywriting, old-school video store management, and hot dog delivery for Harlan Ellison. This is their first book.
Publisher: Keyhole Books (May 15, 2025) Page Count: 461 pages Formats: audiobook, ebook, paperback
Discovery is an ambitious book and you notice that immediately. It opens big with strange forces moving pieces on a board humanity barely understands, Then it quickly shifts into newsroom, and later missing expeditions, and government secrecy. It’s juggling cosmic horror, conspiracy thriller, historical mystery, and character drama all at once.
Surprisingly, a lot of it works.
The mystery surrounding the Rosie expedition hooked me, fast. Something clearly went very wrong in the South Pacific, and the slow reveal through letters, tapes, and investigations kept things exciting. I also enjoyed the newsroom scenes. Nessa Decker is a good lead because she reacts how a reasonable person would - she’s cautious, skeptical, and trying to separate fact from spectacle while everything grows increasingly hard to explain.
The atmosphere is great, too. The horror always hangs in the background. Even when characters are just talking in offices or arguing over evidence, there’s an unease that something larger is already in motion.
That said, ambition sometimes works against the book.
The prose gets dense and performative, especially early on. Long monologues and stylized narration slow the pacing when the story would benefit from getting to the point faster. The cast is large, and while many characters are memorable, it takes time to understand who matters most. The shifting perspectives add scope, sure, but also feel unfocused. Just as you start to vibe with it, the book moves elsewhere. Eventually the pieces come together, but the middle stretch demands patience.
Tone is another mixed success. At times the book balances dark humor, horror, and thriller elements well. At other moments, the theatrical style feels excessive. The story clearly enjoys its own weirdness, which is part of the appeal, but it tends to lean a bit too hard into it.
Still, the central mystery remains compelling, the cosmic ideas are unsettling in a good way, and the gradual realization of what humanity may have uncovered gives the later sections weight. You start with a missing expedition. You end up asking much larger questions about knowledge, power, and whether some discoveries are survivable at all.
It’s uneven, but interestingly so. Even though I struggled in places, I’m glad I’ve read it.
Categories: Fantasy Books
7 Author Shoutouts | Authors We Love To Recommend
Here are 7 Author Shoutouts for this week. Find your favorite author or discover an…
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Categories: Fantasy Books
Marvel’s Conan Paperbacks
Marvel’s Conan paperbacks: Conan the Barbarian: The Official Marvel Comics Adaptation of the Movie by Michael Fleisher and John Buscema (1982), and Stan Lee Presents Conan the Barbarian, Volumes 2 and 3, by Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith (Ace Books, 1978). Covers by Earl Norem and Barry Windsor-Smith
I don’t systematically collect comic book materials but I pick up Edgar Rice Burroughs or Robert E. Howard related stuff when I see it. Found all three of the Marvel paperbacks above at various book sales.
Conan the Barbarian: The Official Marvel Comics Adaptation of the Movie stayed true to the movie plot. Being a Howard purist, I wasn’t a big fan of the movie when it came out, but it’s grown on me over time. I just don’t really think of it as a Howard Conan movie. Earl Norem did the cover for this one, based on movie images.
The Stan Lee Presents Conan volumes are in color. I don’t have Volume 1 and likely won’t be getting it since it lists at 250 bucks on Amazon, but here are 2 and 3, which I bought for a buck or so. Both were written by Roy Thomas (1940 – ) and drawn by Barry Windsor-Smith (1949 – ).
[Click the images for Conan-sized versions.]
Conan the Barbarian #4 & 5, by Roy Thomas and Barry Barry Windsor-Smith
(Marvel Comics, April and May 1971). Covers by Barry Windsor-Smith
Volume #2 collects issues 4-6 of Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian comic, including an adaptation of Howard’s Conan story called “The Tower of the Elephant,” a story expanded from Howard’s poem “Zukala’s Hour,” which did not feature Conan, and a final piece called “Devil Wings Over Shadizar,” which is a new story not directly connected to Howard. It was nominated in 1971 for best story by “The Academy of Comic-Book Arts,” and is interesting for its use of two characters named Fafnir and Blackrat.
Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian 6 (June 1971). Cover by Barry Windsor-Smith
Fafnir = big man, dressed as a barbarian, heavy red beard. Blackrat = little man, called rodent, more fancy in dress and in swordsmanship. Remind you of anyone? Maybe the story should have been called “Ill Met in Shadizar.”
Volume #3 reprints issues 7-9 of Conan the Barbarian, including “The Lurker Within,” which was adapted from Howard’s “God in the Bowl,” a Conan piece, “The Keepers of the Crypt,” loosely based on a Howard synopsis, and “The Garden of Fear,” which transforms Howard’s story of the same name into a Conan tale. The original featured the character of James Allison, who is remembering his past life as Hunwulf the Wanderer.
Conan the Barbarian #7-9, by Roy Thomas and Barry Barry Windsor-Smith
(Marvel Comics, July-September 1971). Covers by Barry Windsor-Smith
The stories were enjoyable. Roy Thomas, who I briefly met, seemed to have a pretty good feel for Conan, and Windswor-Smith has long been identified with his Conan art.
Charles Gramlich administers The Swords & Planet League group on Facebook, where this post first appeared. His last article for us was a review of two Sword & Sorcery anthologies, Savage Heroes and Heroic Fantasy. See all of his recent posts for Black Gate here.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Early Review – Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett (5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Length: 356 pages
Publisher: Del Rey
Release Date: February 17, 2026
ASIN: B0F92B9CCF
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: eGalley from NetGalley
Rating: 5/5 stars
“Agnes Aubert leads a meticulously organized life, and she likes it that way. As the proudly type-A manager of a cat rescue charity, she has devoted her life to finding forever homes for stray cats.
Now it’s the shelter that needs a new home. And the only landlord who will rent a space to a cat rescue is a mysterious man called Havelock—who also happens to be the world’s most infamous magician, running an illegal magic shop out of his basement. Havelock is cantankerous and eccentric, but not not handsome, and no, Agnes absolutely does not feel anything but disdain for him. After all, rumors swirl about his shadowy past—including whispers that his dark magic once almost brought about the apocalypse.
Then one day a glamorous magician comes looking for Havelock, putting the magic shop—and the cat shelter—in jeopardy. To save the shelter, Agnes will have to team up with the magician who nearly ended the world . . . and may now be trying to steal her heart.
Havelock is everything Agnes thinks she doesn’t need in her life: chaos, mischief, and a little too much adventure. But as she gets to know him, she discovers that he’s more than the dark magician of legend, and that she may be ready for a little intrigue—and romance—in her life. After all, second chances aren’t just for rescue cats. . . .”
Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book. I got this on ebook through NetGalley for review.
Thoughts: I really enjoy Fawcett’s Emily Wilde series and expected (given the subject matter) I would enjoy this as well. I really loved this book right from the start. This is set in a vague Victorian type of fantasy world (at least it felt vaguely Victorian to me) where magicians exist.
Agnes is trying to find a new place for her cat shelter after dueling magicians blew up her last cat shelter. She finally finds a place that seems too good to be true….and….it is too good to be true. The new location harbors a horrible evil magician. However, as events play out, Agnes and the magician learn that they can support each other and maybe even make this new situation work to their advantage.
This was very well done with an intriguing world, interesting characters, lots of cats (obnoxious and cute ones), and lots of magic. There are some politics here and some light romance as well.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story about a normal woman who just wants to rescue cats and ends up thrown into the middle of a magical battle of sorts instead. The writing flows well, is easy to read, and is humorous, entertaining, and heartfelt. This is a self-contained story but I would love to see more books in this world.
My Summary (5/5): Overall I really loved this story. I enjoyed the characters, the magic, the cats, and how cozy this feels. Yes, there is danger and action, but in the end this is about Agnes finding a home for herself, her cats, her employees, and maybe even an evil magician. I loved the glimpse into this world and would love to see additional stories set here. If you are a fan of cozy Victorian fantasy, magic, and cats, definitely pick this one up. I am eagerly awaiting Fawcett’s next book!
Categories: Fantasy Books
The 13th Warrior: Twelve Vikings and an Arab Walk into a Bar
The 13th Warrior (Touchstone Pictures, August 27, 1999)
The 13th Warrior (102 minutes; 1999)
Written by William Wisher and Warren Lewis. Directed by John McTiernan
Based on the novel, Eaters of the Dead, by Michael Crichton, who also served as a producer and uncredited director.
What is it?A version of the Beowulf story, as witnessed by an aristocratic Arab who accompanies a dozen Viking warriors into battle against a mysterious army of cannibalistic cavemen.
Touchstone Films produced The 13th Warrior as a vehicle for star Antonio Banderas, bringing in John McTiernan (Die Hard) to direct. When test audiences proved unhappy with the results, famed writer Michael Crichton, who had penned the novel on which it was based, took over production. He reshot numerous scenes and took a broadsword to what McTiernan had already filmed. He even went so far as to toss out the… let us be charitable and say “interesting” musical score by Graeme Revell and replace it with unquestionably great new compositions by Jerry Goldsmith. The result is a film that is uneven in places, as one might expect from having multiple cooks in the kitchen, but spectacular in others.
The studio shelved the finished product for roughly a year, before unceremoniously shoving it out under a different title and with little fanfare to theaters in the summer of 1999. There it was promptly given a Viking funeral at the box office by bigger fish such as The Matrix, The Phantom Menace and The Mummy, despite it being better than any of those.
Omar Sharif and Antonio Banderas in The 13th Warrior
Banderas plays the central character, Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan, known to his Viking cohorts as “the Arab” and “Ibn.” The film also stars Scandinavian actors Dennis Storhoi and Vladimir Kulich, with Diane Venora as the queen – one of the very few female characters in the movie – and Tony Curran (Gladiator; League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) as one of the Vikings. The great Omar Sharif (Lawrence of Arabia; Dr Zhivago) appears briefly in the opening scenes as an aide to Banderas’s character.
Michael Crichton wrote the novel Eaters of the Dead in 1976 as a “found manuscript” supposedly composed by Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan, a real person who actually did journey up the Volga River and encounter Vikings during Medieval times. In Crichton’s fictional telling, the king of those Vikings is called Buliwyf, better known today as Beowulf. Fahdlan travels with them and documents their adventures.
An exiled Arab diplomat (and dandy) finds himself among a group of Vikings led by King Buliwyf. He is chosen to accompany them on a journey to save a distant Viking kingdom from attack. That kingdom is menaced by a mysterious, perhaps supernatural force called “The Wendol.” (“Stop saying it,” warns one survivor of their attack, who fears even the mention of their name.)
The Wendol turn out to be a group of mysterious, cannibalistic cave-dwellers. Crichton cleverly has them stand in for the “Grendel” creature of Beowulf fame, and in his novel suggests that they are from some other branch of humanity; perhaps the last of the Neanderthals, surviving into Medieval times.
During his travels and travails with the Vikings, Fahdlan grows tremendously as a warrior and as a man. He learns the Viking language, improves his fighting skills, and impresses the rugged men around him with his growing tenacity, courage and determination.
They fight off attacks by the Wendol against the Viking village, battle them deep in their creepy underground caves, and face them one last time on the surface.
At last, Ibn Fahdlan sails away for home, probably destined to chronicle the story of Beowulf. He has earned the friendship and the respect of the Vikings and, more importantly, his own self-respect.
Some would argue that Fahdlan learning to speak with the Vikings so quickly, simply by listening to them during their travels together, constitutes some kind of magic. For my part, I think the movie simply doesn’t make it clear enough that an enormous amount of time passes during this journey. Time enough for the Arab to pick up the basics of their language.
There’s sorcery by the “old woman” who rolls the bones and chooses Fahdlan to accompany the Viking squad on their mission, and there’s sorcery by “the Wendol’s mother” down in her cave. But this is all fairly light stuff. What this movie really is, at its heart, is a buddy-cop team-up quest. Fahdlan, a fish out of water (or rather, out of desert), finds himself having to accept the ways of a civilization he initially looks down on, and learn fighting skills from them, in order to survive and succeed against a truly terrifying enemy.
And we do get some fantastic battles between Vikings and cannibals! I mean, it’s not Pirates vs Ninjas, but still…!
After fighting off the Wendol hordes the first time, Builwyf chooses to take the fight to them. He leads his band of warriors down into the cave network where they lurk. There we get a great set of underground battle scenes to rival those in the Mines of Moria in The Fellowship of the Ring, with climbing, running, swinging over chasms, jumping and swimming – all while being pursued by an army of cannibalistic half-men! Hell yes!
The very beginning and the final act are both uneven, resulting from rewrites and reshoots by Crichton. It’s easy to see that a great deal of the opening, including much of Omar Sharif’s time in the film, was cut. Similarly, the final battle in the village feels tacked on in a way, as if we needed to see one more heroic stand by the team, and check off the box for one more victory by Buliwyf, to properly put a bow on things.
The original McTiernan cut of this movie might well be weaker than the version we got. But I’d still like to compare them, to find out for myself who was right – if only the McTiernan cut would ever be released. That “interesting” Revell score, however, is available for listening on YouTube.
Dennis Storhoi plays the Viking translator, Herger (or “Joyous”), who befriends Banderas’s character first. His performance is indeed joyous. He brings energy, warmth and light to the film, reacting to every situation, no matter how dire, with an upbeat sense of optimistic fatalism – if that can be called a thing. In other words, his attitude from start to finish is, We’re probably all going to die on this crazy mission, but let’s have fun in the meantime!
His attitude is summed up when he admonishes a terrified Fahdlan, “Go and hide in a hole if you wish, but you won’t live one instant longer. Your fate is fixed. Fear profits a man nothing.”
Later, a Viking tosses the Arab a huge sword, and Fahdlan complains that he can’t even lift it. Herger’s response is instantaneous, his solution all too logical and delivered with a warm smile: “Grow stronger!”
The 13th Warrior might, in some ways, be a mess of a movie. But it is a glorious, delightful, and extremely fun mess! Let’s be honest: There are many worse ways to spend a couple of hours than watching Antonio Banderas and his merry band of Vikings fight the Wendol.
The Wendol?
Stop saying it!!
Van Allen Plexico is a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), a Grand Master of Pulp Literature (2025 class) and a multiple-award-winning author of more than two dozen novels and anthologies, ranging from space opera to Kaiju to crime fiction to superheroes to military SF. Find his works on Amazon and at Plexico.net.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Review: This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews
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Read Mihir's Review!
OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: While waiting long years for the third and final book to come out in her favorite dark fantasy series, Maggie has had plenty of time to obsessively read the first two books in the trilogy. Which is why when she wakes up in an unfamiliar city, it doesn't take her long to realize she's in the world of Kair Toren - and the events of book one are just beginning to happen. With no clues as to how to return to her own world, Maggie decides she might as well try to help Kair Toren out and prevent a deadly civil war that will destroy the city and many of her favorite characters. Of course, Maggie's knowledge only helps her figure out things written in the books...and as she quickly remembers, this is a series with an unwritten ending....
This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me is a smart and engaging portal fantasy that grounds the story by taking the stakes of its fantasy world seriously. When we meet Maggie, she's been in Kair Toren for a few days, and has already come to terms with the fact that somehow, some way, she's in a fantasy setting, one that is every bit as brutal as it is portrayed in the book. Maggie doesn't try to carelessly pull shenanigans or run off to romance a tall dark handsome hero. Instead, she decides that if she accepts that this world and these people are real, then she has to do everything in her power to stop the deadly future that will destroy countless lives.
One thing I really liked about the approach to this story is that Maggie doesn't set herself up in the castle in the middle of the limelight. She decides to work from the shadows, hoping to nudge events while staying unnoticed. She rallies a crew, establishes some connections, and tries to become a credible source of information without drawing too much interest. In this game of intrigue, Maggie knows all the story threads; it's just a matter of figuring out which ones to pull.
There were a few times I felt like Maggie's "trick" of knowing things about people or events was a little overdone, occasionally making her feel like a one-trick pony as she rattles off another monologue detailing intimate knowledge of a character's backstory. But there's enough other things going on that those were minor bumps in the road. There's still so much skullduggery, blackmail, and tense negotiations that I frequently found myself forgetting that Maggie was from our world, until an occasional throwaway line would reference Netflix. It does genuinely feel like another gripping dark fantasy novel, which is key to making this story work.
The other slight hiccup was the romance subplot. While there were many parts of the romance in this book that I liked, it also started to veer into a trope that isn't my favorite. Time will tell how things play out in the long run, but I definitely preferred some sections over others.
(For those curious, this is a no spice story, and the romance subplot IS a subplot. This is not a fantasy romance.)
For a story featuring a protagonist who should know how everything is supposed to go, This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me had plenty of twists and turns. The more Maggie meddles, the more unexpected things become as events unfold differently. I have a feeling we'll be fairly off the rails when the second book comes around, and I am absolutely dying to see where things go.
Categories: Fantasy Books
THE BODY by Bethany C. Morrow
A young couple – Mavis and Jerrod – have what seems to be a wonderful marriage despite the tension that has been simmering for years between Mavis and her parents. The novel’s action kickstarts early when Mavis gets into a very bad car accident. The first oddity she realizes is that she knew the other…
Categories: Fantasy Books
Spotlight on “The Keeper” by Tana French
Titles by Tana French LitStack has spotted some other books to add to your TBR…
The post Spotlight on “The Keeper” by Tana French appeared first on LitStack.
Categories: Fantasy Books
Once We Were Spacemen
Nathan Fillion and Alan Tudyk have become geek icons. A Knight’s Tale, Castle, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, Resident Alien, The Rookie: they’ve built successful careers over the years. Their real-life friendship, and their nerdy idol status, tracks back to Firefly.
Some day I’ll go in depth on this ill-fated cult classic. Fox aired the episodes out of order, switched nights, then canceled it with some episodes unaired. A ‘tie up some loose ends’ movie (Serenity) followed. Firefly developed a dedicated following and Fillion and the actors became popular at fan conventions around the country. Fillion’s profile skyrocketed when Castle ran for eight hit seasons on ABC. And as his mainstream popularity soared, he became one of the most recognizable figures in the geek world.
Tudyk and Fillion had worked together several years ago on Alan’s hilarious web series, Con Man (mentioned below). Three months ago, they started a podcast together, and it’s fantastic. Episodes of Once We Were Spacemen are 45 minutes to 1 hour long, and it’s two long-time buddies hanging out. They share stories from their friendship, acting careers, and geek experiences. And they are as likable and funny as you hoped. Even more so.
There have been 16 episodes so far. It’s a two-hander about half the time, with a guest about every other show. So far, they’ve brought on Jewel Staite (FF– Kaylee), Gina Torres (FF – Zoe), Mark Addy (A Knight’s Tale), Alexi Hawley (Showrunner, The Rookie), Melissa O’Neill (Lucy, The Rookie), Seth Green (Austin Powers), Sean Maher (FF – Simon), and Summer Glau (FF – River).
There is so much laughter, so many funny stories. Their guests legit love these two guys, who seem to be genuinely awesome people. Hearing Fillion ‘make’ Tudyk get a Playstation when they became friends, so Alan could play Halo with Fillion’s buddies, on a LAN, shows these are real guys. Not Hollywood twits.
The insights into acting, and steps along their career paths, is terrific. Tudyk was an ass during one audition. And later, that very nearly kept him from getting Resident Alien. Just cool stuff.
I only discovered this show last week, and I’m ten episodes in. I’ve loved every one. Time flies. I watch The Rookie, and Fillion talking about that with his boss, and then also with a co-star, was neat. And the bonds formed during Firefly bleeds out with those guests.
If you are a fan of either actor (and you should be), and/or one of their shows or movies, you’re gonna like this. It’s all podcast; no video. I Youtube it. They add special effects, and fill in missing info in post-edit.
I hope there’s some Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog content. Maybe get Neil Patrick Harris, or Felicia Day. But I can unreservedly recommend this podcast.
UPDATE – Also, Nathan Filion is, currently, going around and visiting the actors from Firefly, in little Instagram reels. He has visited Zoe, Simon, River, and Inara. All with the message “Is it happening?” “Oh, it’s happening.”
Fillion later added it’s not a convention, podcast, or cross-over. I doubt it’s a reboot of Firefly. There are new Firefly Funkos coming out (announced last Summer). But the 2014 ones are still available. It will be disappointing if that’s all this is about. But it’s fun so far. I twas told Jewel is commenting on the reels.
CON MAN
Somewhat related, I’ll talk a little about Con Man. Tudyk talks about the making of this 2015-2017 web series, which was crowd funded and cost him his agents at the time. There are 25 episodes of about 12-15 minutes each, and it’s a pure homage to sci-fi/geek fandom. There are a TON of cameos (mostly sci-fi, but Sean Astin and Lou Ferrigno have big parts, for example). It’s very much a Firefly tribute, with Tudyk and Fillion’s characters’ having starred in a short-lived cult classic called Spectrum. Season two is about a Spectrum reunion, which every Firefly fan can relate to. There’s an amusing scene where Sean Mahan (as himself) corrects Tudyk’s character: “It’s Firefly. Serenity is the movie.” And Tudyk is like “Yeah, whatever.”
Casper Van Dien keeps popping up as the bartender (in different bars), and it’s a Who’s Who of sci-fi faces. Alan’s manager, played by Mindy Sterling, is beyond insanely funny. Amy Acker, Felicia Day, Tricia Helfer – some folks are in multiple episodes.
These are short, easy to binge episodes. Tudyk is simply fantastic (he yearns to be in a Clint Eastwood Western, not this sci-fi stuff). Tudyk had a superb one-episode guest stint on Justified (no humor at all), and he references that in his character’s woes. This is a really funny show which I appreciate on multiple levels.
I’ve watched it multiple times and am still looking for cameos. I know it streams on Prime, and the Roku Channel.
OTHER PODCASTS
I’m gonna write about two other geek podcasts (one ongoing, one dead) sometime.
The Psychologists are In is my all-time favorite podcast. It’s a dream come true. Maggie Lawson (Juliet) and Timothy Omundson (Lassiter) go through my all-time favorite show – Psych – episode by episode. Plus they do some other stuff. Partners on show, they are real life best buds, and it couldn’t come through more.
The behind-the-scenes info on Psych is priceless, and they have a slew of guests on. If a Psych fan asked for a podcast about the show, this is the best they could have hoped for. I love it.
The Friendship Onion was Lord of the Rings nerd heaven. Billy Boyd (Pippin) and Dominic Monaghan (Merry) are also real life friends who hang out together in LA. They did a video podcast which was nerd-filled fun. As a weekly feature, they had listeners suggest a food to try. They would picks something they’d never had, and record their reactions to it.
Behind-the-scenes money issues led to the show’s cancellation. Sounds like corporate shenanigans. They did well over a hundred episodes, and they really had fun. If you like the hobbits, or LoTR, you should go back and listen to the show. There’s a LOT to hear.
Bob Byrne’s ‘A (Black) Gat in the Hand’ made its Black Gate debut in 2018 and has returned every summer since.
His ‘The Public Life of Sherlock Holmes’ column ran every Monday morning at Black Gate from March, 2014 through March, 2017. And he irregularly posts on Rex Stout’s gargantuan detective in ‘Nero Wolfe’s Brownstone.’ He is a member of the Praed Street Irregulars, and founded www.SolarPons.com (the only website dedicated to the ‘Sherlock Holmes of Praed Street’).
He organized Black Gate’s award-nominated ‘Discovering Robert E. Howard’ series, as well as the award-winning ‘Hither Came Conan’ series. Which is now part of THE Definitive guide to Conan. He also organized 2023’s ‘Talking Tolkien.’
He has contributed stories to The MX Book of New Sherlock Holmes Stories — Parts III, IV, V, VI, XXI, and XXXIII.
He has written introductions for Steeger Books, and appeared in several magazines, including Black Mask, Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine, The Strand Magazine, and Sherlock Magazine.
You can definitely ‘experience the Bobness’ at Jason Waltz’s ’24? in 42′ podcast.
Categories: Fantasy Books
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