Assaph Mehr's Blog, page 39

Book Review: The Society of Two Houses, by William C. Tracy

Good things lie off the beaten path, and this book is one of them. It’s a short, twisty mystery set in a fantastical, unique world.

What to expect

This is a standalone novella in an ongoing series. Tracy does an amazing job of creating a unique world, with different alien species, a rich psychic-like magic system based on music, and a Steampunk-ish feel. It’s a prime example of science-fantasy blend, and why sometimes indie authors offer the most original works.

The story itself...

Aurora (of The Descendants, by Nikki Lee Taylor)

Dear readers, tonight with me is woman born to a Scythian mother and a vampire father. She is here to tell us about the threats to her world – and how she enlisted the last remaining vampires to fight the demons.

Tell us a little about where you grew up. What was it like there?

I grew up in a rural village on the...

History, Fantasy, and Food

Take one of the greatest empires the world has ever seen. At its peak it controlled vast swathes of land and many different cultures – including their associated cuisines. But what happens when you add a fantastical element to the mix?

As anyone who read my short stories or novels knows, though they’re set in a fantasy world the background cultural tapestry is based on the culture of ancient Rome. To give this world authenticity and richness I do a lot of research into ancient daily li...

Marcus Corvinus (of his eponymous series, by David Wishart)

Dear readers, tonight with me is a Roman nobleman, scion to the patrician Valerii Messallae family. Living in the times of the emperor Tiberius, he was privy to some of the most interesting events of the early Caesars, from a unique behind-the-scenes view. He’s here to tell us about h...

Secrets of Ancient Egypt

In a twist of my ancient history section of the blog, some news from ancient Egypt rather than Rome.

I came across a few articles recently, which just make me itch to send Felix on a long road-trip… I think you’d agree they’re just delicious

Caelynn Creed (of Songs of Tarros, by Kelly Phillips)

Dear readers, tonight with me is a woman whose studious life is shattered when a museum robbery exposes her father’s secrets – including that she is the key to the brutal Alfath gaining the magic and taking over the world of Thelios.

Tell us a little about where you grew up. What was it like there?

Physically, Thelios is much like Earth, though with some differences like the color of our vegetation, our planet is a little larger and we have two moons instead of one. We have four conti...

Book Review: Reasons to Kill God, by I.V. Olokita

Having grown up in Israel, I was drawn to this book by the subject matter of Nazi war criminals, especially considering the author and unique point-of-view used.

What to expect

The story is told by a Nazi war criminal, Klaus Holland, hiding in Brazil post WW2. When he’s found out and sent to trial, he’s sentenced to recounting his life’s story. The novel is therefore is autobiography, written hastily in the hours before his execution, and covers some major episodes before,...

Alexandra Renai (of Heroic Lies, by Stephanie O’Brien)

Dear readers, tonight with us is a spunky reporter, on the front line of an alien invasion. She’s here to tell us about her friends (and what she’d do to save them), and about alien abductions (which involve more video games than you might think).

Tell us a little about where you grew up. What was it like there?

It was a pretty regular neighborhood, until I grew up and it became the site of regular abductions.

Y’know, cute suburban houses, UFOs in the form of unidentified airbor...

How to Murder. (Your darlings.) (In prose.)

We’ve all heard the advice to writers to “murder your darlings”. While I’ve been killing characters in entertainingly gruesome ways, the advice relates to prose.

I’ve recently went through an extensive exercise of tightening my prose (for a particular submission), and thought I’d share my experience and lessons I’ve learned — both good and bad, together with practical advice on how to handle this.

I’ve blogged about the Honourable Menti...

Sage (of Foresight, by Brant von Goble)

Dear readers, tonight we reprint an interview with an artificial intelligence. More than an AI, she’s an all-knowing, globally distributed, human-prediction supermind — though we think you’ll find her insightful, and rather sweet.

—From a transcript provided by the Beijing Institute of Consumer Research And Prosperity [BI-CRAP] International Public Relations Office—

INTERVIEWER [WILLIAM ABLE MUCKRAKER, JOURNALIST]: Hello, is anyone here? The screens are all dark, and this l...