Kyle Robert Shultz's Blog, page 27

The Silmarillion Awards: Least Competent Henchman Nominations

Welcome to the 2nd Annual Silmarillion Awards! I’m very excited to be participating in this fun blogging event, which gives you a chance to vote on your favorite fantasy book characters in a variety of categories. You can find out more about the Awards on Jenelle Schmidt’s website. Here’s a full list of the categories and their corresponding blogs:

Wisest Councillor Silmaril – Tracey @ Adventure Awaits

Silver Tongue Silmaril – Madeline @ Short and Snappy

Most Epic Hero Silmaril – Abbey @Regar...

Coming Soon–The Silmarillion Awards!

Hi everyone! This is just a quick post to let you know that I’ll be participating in the very fun, very funny Silmarillion Awards this year. This blog event gives you a chance to vote on your favorite fantasy characters in a variety of categories. I’ll be tackling the “Least Competent Henchman” Category.

Doctor Who: “The Eaters of Light” Review

A scholarly disagreement between the Doctor and Bill sends them on another journey into history. But how can a battle between Roman soldiers and Pictish warriors possibly lead to the end of the universe?

The Quick & Spoiler-Free Verdict

An intelligent and moving story that gives each member of the main cast a chance to shine. This is definitely one of this year’s better stand-alone episodes, despite a few unnecessary injections of politics. Plus, it sets the stage for the finale in an interes...

Doctor Who: “Empress of Mars” Review

The Doctor and Bill battle monsters in a bygone era. Aliens interfering in Earth history again? Not this time…

The Quick & Spoiler-Free Verdict

A fun hour of Who that ticks all the right boxes, even if it doesn’t turn out to be quite as groundbreaking as the premise implies. Also, there’s a surprise appearance from a character who wasn’t supposed to show up this week. Definitely recommended viewing.

The Good

I love Mars. Any sci-fi having to do with Mars instantly intrigues me. There’s just s...

Indie Author Interview: Daley Downing

This month’s interview is with Daley Downing, author of Masters and Beginners: The Order of the Twelve Tribes, Book 1 (which was featured in my June newsletter). Her book is a delight from start to finish, turning threadbare YA fantasy tropes upside-down to deliver a fresh and engaging story. You have to read it. It’s got YA protagonists with PARENTS. Whom they TALK TO. And who are interesting, worthwhile characters in their own right instead of being either dead or part of the furniture. Pl...

Announcing the Winners of The Beast of Talesend Giveaway!

The giveaway celebrating the upcoming release of The Beast of Talesend audiobook is now complete! I want to thank everyone who entered, and to congratulate our three (randomly selected) winners!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Claire M. Banschbach,  E.B. Dawson, and Lea Doue will each be receiving two signed paperback copies of The Beast of Talesend, as well as a custom 80-page notebook with a design based on Beast’s cover.

The ebook of The Beast of Talesend is currently available for purchase on Am...

Doctor Who: “The Lie of the Land” Review

The Monk Trilogy concludes with an explosive episode that pits the Doctor, Bill, and Nardole against their most insidious foe yet. High stakes. Clever sci-fi. Missy. This should be one of the best episodes of Series 10. Is it?

The Quick & Spoiler-Free Verdict

Actually, this story is a very mixed bag along the lines of “Hell Bent.” There’s a lot of great stuff, and some very, very annoying moments. You’ll probably enjoy it, but don’t set your expectations too high.

The Good

The Monk mythology...

Doctor Who: “The Pyramid at the End of the World” Review

Finally, my Doctor Who review for last week. Sorry for the lateness. The Monk Trilogy continues as the Doctor attempts to save the world yet again…only this time, he’s got competition.

The Quick & Spoiler-Free Verdict

Despite an exciting premise and the promising set-up of last week’s episode, this episode does end up suffering from sagging-middle syndrome. Fortunately, the surprising ending goes a long way toward making up for that. It’s a global-crisis episode in the mold of the Russell T....

Doctor Who: The Pyramid at the End of the World Review

At last, my Doctor Who review for last week. Sorry for the lateness. The Monk Trilogy continues as the Doctor attempts to save the world yet again…only this time, he’s got competition.

The Quick & Spoiler-Free Verdict

Despite an exciting premise and the promising set-up of last week’s episode, this episode does end up suffering from sagging-middle syndrome. Fortunately, the surprising ending goes a long way toward making up for that. It’s a global-crisis episode in the mold of the Russell T....

Penprints Flash Fiction Dash Entry: Poisoned Time

At long last, I’m posting my entry for Rosalie Valentine’s Penprints Flash Fiction Dash. I’m just under the wire with this one–the deadline is today–BUT, I managed to get my story down to nine hundred words. Huge milestone for me. I’m not sure I’ve ever written anything that short. Even my shopping lists tend to become YA trilogies with spinoff novellas.

This is the image I was given as a prompt:

 

And somehow, it ended up being about time travel. *shrug* Enjoy!

Poisoned Time

The man who had...