Beth Tabler's Blog, page 190
April 30, 2022
#Tour – Spotlight: Escaping First Contact by T. S. Beier
“Once in the metal labyrinth’s clutches, it is clear the unlikely allies will not escape”
What is Escaping First Contact About?
At the far edge of cultivated space, a derelict ship rests. Ten times larger than the biggest Terran dreadnaught, the ship is not recognized by any of the five species tenuously coexisting in the galaxy.
Small crews are sent to investigate. What they find is a trap.
Once in the metal labyrinth’s clutches, it is clear the unlikely allies will not escape unless they can work together as a team. Unfortunately, trust and cooperation are entirely out of the question.
An immersive tale of escape and comradery, Escaping First Contact brings together an unforgettable cast of characters, richly detailed alien cultures, deft humour, and explosive action.
What Folks are Saying About Escaping First Contact
“Fantastic world-building, believable aliens, and lots of snappy action. T.S. Beier is on her way up!”
– S.D. Perry, author of Aliens vs. Predator: Prey, Aliens vs. Predator: War, and the Resident Evil novel series.
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Saturday Book Cook Up – Deadpool or “I can say Chimichanga in seven languages.”
Deadpool vs. Cable #13
According to wikipedia “Chimichanga (/tʃɪmiˈtʃæŋɡə/; Spanish: [tʃimiˈtʃaŋɡa]) is a deep-fried burrito that is popular in Tex-Mex, Southwestern U.S. cuisine. The dish is typically prepared by filling a corn tortilla with a wide range of ingredients, most commonly rice, cheese, beans, machaca (dried meat), Carne adobada (marinated meat), Carne seca (dried beef), or shredded chicken, and folding it into a rectangular package. It is then deep-fried and can be accompanied by salsa, guacamole, sour cream or cheese.”Deadpool loves it citing multiple times throughout the various comics and movie that he loves some chimichangas or more importantly, he enjoys saying the word chimichanga. Also beloved are pancakes, enchiladas, and tacos. All are welcome in his twisted world.
Fun Fact: Chimichangas possibly came about in the 1920s when an owner of a Mexican restaurant, when dropping a burrito in the fryer accidentally, began to curse. Having stopped herself before the cursing came to fruition, she said the word chimichangas.
Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1 can (16 ounces) refried beans
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
3 cans (8 ounces each) tomato sauce, divided
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
12 flour tortillas (10 inches), warmed
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies
1 can (4 ounces) chopped jalapeno peppers
Oil for deep-fat frying
1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Directions
In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the beans, onion, 1/2 cup tomato sauce, chili powder, garlic and cumin.
Spoon about 1/3 cup of beef mixture off-center on each tortilla. Fold edge nearest filling up and over to cover. Fold in both sides and roll up. Fasten with toothpicks. In a large saucepan, combine the chilies, peppers and remaining tomato sauce; heat through.
In an electric skillet or deep-fat fryer, heat 1 in. of oil to 375°. Fry the chimichangas for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes on each side or until browned. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with cheese. Serve with sauce.
Nutrition Facts
1 chimichanga: 626 calories, 41g fat (9g saturated fat), 37mg cholesterol, 1094mg sodium, 46g carbohydrate (5g sugars, 6g fiber), 19g protein.
Originally published as Beef Chimichangas in Quick Cooking May/June 1998
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Cook with me! The Weekly Cookup
Starting on 30th of April of 2022, I will be starting a fun series called, “Weekly Cook up.” In this series, I will talk about a book that features food of some sort and relates it to an actual recipe. There are rules:
It has to be based on a graphic novel or book passage. It has to actually taste decent.It has to have available ingredients.Doable for the home cook.The recipe needs to be able to be scaled.
This is not so much a review of the book or graphic novel featured, but a fun offshoot for a passage mentioned in the book. I know I love cooking and I am sure some of you out there do as well.
If anyone has any ideas about fun recipes you would like me to feature, let me know!
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#SPFBO7 – Hall of Bones by Tim Hardie
What Hall of Bones is About?
In the remote land of Laskar the seven ruling clans have vied with each other for power for over a century. The son of the Reavesburg Clan Chief, Rothgar, has been groomed all his life for a role supporting his elder brother, Jorik, in leading their kingdom when their father’s time finally comes to an end.
However, the rulers of their greatest rivals, the Vorund Clan, are in the grip of something older and far darker. They have been conquered by evil, a remnant from the time when the gods warred with one another and the world of Amuran collapsed into the Fallen Age.
Everything is about to change …
The first book in The Brotherhood of the Eagle series, Hall of Bones begins a tale of epic fantasy, magic, and intrigue.
My Review of Hall of Bones:
I am thrilled that I was introduced to this book. How I had not heard of it before is beyond me! Now, before you start reading, grab a notebook to keep track of all the characters that will be presented to you. You can thank me later. It is hard to keep track of everyone.
Dark evil? Check. Battles between clans? Triple check. Well-rounded characters? Check. Get ready for an adventure that you are not going to forget easily. When Rothgar’s father is killed, he and his brother are forced into leadership positions earlier than was expected. Although life could be rough, one always wants to think they have more time than they do. The clans will start asking questions, looking at the young men as inexperienced, which is going to start an unwinding of the way things have been, something they are forced to confront.
As the book continues, it seems as though the author runs out of the storyline, and it falters a bit, which makes reading it a bit hard. We will meet quite a few more people (again, add to your list from above), and then the author seems to have a lightbulb moment, and the pace picks up again – bringing us to an enjoyable ending to the book.
I enjoyed reading through this one, and I cannot wait to see what happens in the second book.
Rating: 8 out of 10
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April 29, 2022
Dungeons & Dragons Lore
We all create little libraries of random facts in our Dungeonmaster’s notes over the years. By the time you’re forty-one, like me, you might start turning them into novels. Which, given I’m an author, I have. However, these are some fun tidbits I’ve accumulated and thought I’d share. Some are ridiculous, others serious, and others ridicu-serious or dramedic. I hope they bring a smile to your face and the more you know about Dungeons and Dragons, specifically the Forgotten Realms, the more you’ll probably enjoy these.
1. Asmodeus suffers a massive penalty to any interactions with a PC of peasant background, named “Jack”, or a hero who challenges him to a fiddle contest.
2. The Dungeons and Dragons cartoon protagonists are real in the Realms. Some deranged gnomish archwizard transported a bunch of teenagers to Toril in order to torment them. Decades later, they’re all hardcore killers and want to kill him.
3. Psionicists and Sorcerers instinctively dislike each other for stealing each other’s bit.
4. The fact good and evil are literal things in the world mean that evil and good don’t actually mean positive or negative things to many races. Realms alienists have divided the brain into Good (Superego), Id (Evil), and Neutral (Ego) terms.
5. Gruumsh plays the game of golf and it is a popular orcish sport.
6. By the time of the Sundering, the “time of the adventurer” is largely over and most of the ruins, tombs, and easily slaughtered humanoid tribes are played out. This reflects the changes in gaming styles between editions.
7. Historians take a very dim view of adventurers who went into humanoid territory to kill things for treasure. Changing morality and all that.
8. Nuances exist even in alignment planes. Acheron is LAWFUL evil and a place for repressive and callous gods. The Nine Hells are lawful EVIL where the cruelty is the point. Mount Celestia is for orderly good people and Arcadia is stiflingly conformist Ned Flanders land.
9. A class exists in my game called “Heretical Priest” where they claim to be a representative of a god but actually get their powers from Asmodeus while spouting the exact opposite of their deities’ dogma. It’s just the Devil’s way of screwing with people.
10. See 9#, Asmodeus does this with evil gods too and has Lawful Good priests of Bane and priests who believe Lolth is just a misunderstood CG nice girl.
11. Elves fetishize humans every bit as much as the reverse. All the muscles and curves.
12. Goliaths are just orcs, half-orcs, and ogre descendants with better hygiene.
13. Drizzt Do’Urden copiers are in fact a thing in-universe. Many surface drow tried to ape his look to avoid being murdered. Drizzt notably HATED this.
14. A lot of Realms deities are actually elf gods and vice versa: Corellon = Lathander, Sehanine = Selune, Hanali = Sune, Mask = Vhaeraun. This is because gods love worshipers and know their followers are racist.
15. Tieflings really are the product of demonic/human couplings. No one wants to admit just how many voluntary ones have happened throughout history or how quick to get busy with the forces of evil people are.
16. Elminster and the Chosen of Mystra among other forces of good are almost never available to do anything due to near constant distractions. Whenever there’s a threat to the Realms like Tiamat coming to Toril or Auril covering the place in eternal winter, they’re often trapped in Barovia or visiting an alternate Toril stop their evil alternate universe counterparts.
17. See 16#, in fact there are about 3-4 equally powerful forces of evil for every champion of good and about 20-1 lesser but still potent evil doers. While their stats don’t reflect it, Manshoon, Fzoul, and Szass Tam among other archbaddies could kill the good guys in a straight fight. Which is why neither side ever has them.
18. See 17#, this leads to the humorous fact the only reason the Realms hasn’t been overwhelmed by evil is because the forces of evil are usually fighting each other. Thays, Zhents, and Sharists all agree that if they can’t rule the world then the other guys can’t either.
19. See 18#, the forces of good are more interested in keeping evil at each other’s throats and being subtler than trying to beat it outright. Whether this is a good idea or not is anyone’s guess but they’re often afraid of evil power vacuums.
20. The Wall of the Faithless finally came down during the Spellplague. All of the souls in it, even those thought destroyed, have been released. Some have begun a lawsuit against Myrkul, Kelemvor, Jergal, and other deities. Obviously, it’s being conducted from Sigil with the help of the Athar as well as Fraternity of Order. They’re not stupid. No one is sure how they would enforce any judgement, though.
21. Faithless souls now go to their alignment plane or may stay in the Fugue Plane, which has some nice places even if it’s distressingly neutral.
22. There are copies of the Hand and Eye of Vecna among other Oerthian artifacts on Faerun. It is widely speculated this is just Vecna and other deities being an ass.
23. [Dragonlance] Kender actually know exactly what they’re doing, and the childish kleptomaniac thing is a popular scam.
24. Gnomish lack of safety standards and questionable steam technology is actually not that funny as well as the result of Victorian Era-esque capitalism.
25. Halfling is a slur but if it’s any consolation, they have their own versions for humans (“Doublings”) as well as some nastier versions.
26. [Ravenloft] Strahd has been killed literally hundreds of times by adventurers. It’s part of his curse and really as much a cure for his boredom as searching for Tatiana.
27. A lot of settings are magically post-apocalyptic with their walled cities, hordes of monsters, and shattered ruins of greater cities. A lot of people don’t realize this because they’re used to thinking of it as normal.
28. There really are just 666 layers of the Abyss but since every layer is infinite and chaotic, it’s kind of a moot point.
29. Drow skin tones come in purple, slate gray, and midnight black. Similarly, surface elves have solid gold, green, marble, and various browns.
30. Yes, there’s plenty of non-evil drow just like Feanor and company illustrate how even the nicest elves can go off the deep end.
31. Good, Evil, and Neutral actually come off in a spectrum even beyond Law and Chaos. If your paladin pings someone as evil, beware if they’re not just a self-centered jerkass whose behavior can be corrected with a stern talking to versus a guy who eats kidneys.
32. Kobolds are quite terrifying as if you leave them unchecked, your town will rapidly become the one from Gremlins.
33. Kobolds are not remotely related to dragons, but no one is willing to point out the Napoleon syndrome at work here.
34. Tiamat literally does not notice Kobold worship and pays it less attention than human cultists.
35. [Spelljammer] There are technological realms in the universe but the Crystal Spheres and giant physics breaking beings cause most starship captains to be dismissed as lunatics when they report them. The “Dungeon Sector” and its worlds is considered something akin to the Warp from Warhammer 40K outside it.
36. There are worlds where hit points actually aren’t an abstraction and some people can just tank being shot in the face. This is as terrifying to other people as it sounds.
37. Fzoul and Manshoon are lovers (Fzoul bi, Manshoon gay). Alusiar and Caladnei were consorts (with open relationships to several others–mostly adventurers). Same sex relationships are just accepted as normal in the Realms.
38. The protagonist from Baldur’s Gate became a good-aligned minor deity while Abdel Adrian is just another Bhaalspawn who survived.
39. Halastar Blackcloak has monitoring spells set up all around Undermountain and literally spends most of his time munching on popcorn while viewing adventurers get killed in his obstacle courses. All the treasure lying around are “prizes” for the winners/survivors.
40. Being a Lich is a particularly crappy existence as “transcending all mortal flesh” turns out to be not so much fun. Many Liches possess mortals or hang around Outer Planes to get back their old sensations.
41. Talos is the most avuncular pleasant Chaotic Evil god you’re likely to meet. He loves exploding things, heavy metal, and expects nothing from his followers but making big booms. He’s basically Mr. Torg from Borderlands (or Macho Man Randy Savage for an older reference).
42. Incredibly impractical sexy armor exists all across the Realms. They come in male loin cloths like Conan, Chainmail decolatage for women, and other fashionable choices for both sexes. Magic makes them work.
43. Mirt the Moneylender runs the equivalent of the World of Warcraft bank. Trading magical items, storing massive amounts of coin, and selling adventuring equipment is his primary stock and trade. He’s also the only one you can trust with it all.
44. Torm is basically Luke Skywalker. Unlike Disney Luke, he got over his enormous reboot-induced funk, though.
45. The Girdle of Masculinity/Femininity isn’t a cursed item but a medical device. You can certainly figure out who and what it was made for as well as why it was designed not to be removed.
46. Maztica is the reason why a lot of modern foods and vegetables are inside Faerun. It’s avoided the majority of colonialist problems, though, in part because Cure Disease is a 3rd level spell.
47. Cure Disease provides immunity to whatever nonmagical disease it is used against after being cast. Which increases its utility considerably.
48. Yes, Paladine is Bahamut and Takhasis is Tiamat. We always knew it to be true.
49. Velsharoon the God of Undeath and Necromancy is incredibly pathetic as a deity with not even Thayans worshiping him. Myrkul is considering stealing his portfolios but isn’t sure if it would be worth it.
50. See #49, Velsharoon is considering wholesale plagiarizing Vecna’s religion and impersonating him. The problem is that due to the way the Outer Planes work, it could very well end with Vecna absorbing him and becoming a Faerun god.
51. [Ravenloft] The Dark Powers of Ravenloft aren’t nearly as awesome as they seem and are really just petty dicks. Their secret origin? It’s a pantheon of gods exiled from other pantheons for being petty dicks.
52. Archdemons and Archdevils are not gods in any shape or form and can be slain on their home plane. The exceptions being Asmodeus and Lolth who are gods-gods. They can grant spells, though.
53. Much like Mutants and Masterminds, I grant some beings a Challenge Rating of X. Like meeting a god on their home plane, it has the stats of “You lose.” You can, however trick them or defeat them with plot Macguffins. The Ultimate Nullifier, Rod of Seven Parts, or what not.
54. Mongrelmen are the result of wizards patching together a bunch of dead bodies with a shoddier cheaper version of making a golem (Create Monstrous Assistant is a 5th Level Spell). Almost all of them are named Igor or Boris some other common name as well as inherently servile to spell-casters or mad scientists.
55. Princess Glaysa of the Nine Hells often shows up to party with adventurers, dump them in horribly threatening situations, and then peace out after the high of sex as well as drugs wears off. Disturbingly, she may be the eternally rebellious teenage avatar of Asmodeus.
56. Asmdoeus will occasionally ask for a hero’s marriage instead of their soul. This is an incredibly stupid thing to take, and no true Chaotic Good hero would do it.
57. Bane is so painfully Sauron that it hurts with all the spikes, black armor, orc minions, and so on that it hurts.
58. Cyric was never able to be taken seriously as a god until he started dressing up in clown makeup. Now there’s just something about him that terrifies people.
59. There’s speculation that Bane, Bhaal, and Myrkul never came back. That it’s actually Xvim (Bane), Velsharoon (Myrkul), and Cyric (Bhaal) impersonating them. But if you impersonate a god too well, they become real due to the way belief works in the Outer Planes, so what does it matter?
60. Lolth squandered being a Greater Goddess and is back to being a Lesser Goddess because she got bored and wrecked everything. She doesn’t have plans, she has whims.
61. Each of Tiamat’s heads is a genius and scheming against the others. Except the White Dragon head, who is easily distracted by shiny things and just wishes they could make friends. If you’re a dragon cultist, pray to the White Dragon head. Just don’t expect much in return.
62. [Planescape] Eventually, the Lady of Pain let all of the Factions back into Sigil but they’re now on probation with lots more philosophical oddballs having joined their ranks. The Victorian Pratchetness of the place has only increased.
63. Lawful Stupid Paladins are very rare because of the Wisdom requirement but when they do screw up, they tend to screw up EPICALLY. It doesn’t help when Asmodeus does the Heretical Priest thing with them too.
64. A multiverse of alternate Torils, Oerths, Krynns, and so on exists in addition to the Prime Material Plane. Thus all games are canon.
65. Vecna’s rampage was organized by, you guessed it, Asmodeus. Alternatively, it could be Orcus but they’re the two sides with brains.
66. Asmodeus is responsible for the D&D Satanic Panic on our world.
67. Gra’azt is either Asmodeus’ wayward son or another avatar.
68. Orcus isn’t a god, he’s an UNDEAD god. He’s responsible for the destruction of the Knights Templar on alternate Earths, is quite the party animal, and many a goat sex joke.
69. The side of good, despite being outnumbered, is STILL prone to infighting as the Order of the Gauntlet considers the Harpers to be a terrorist organization and works to eliminate it.
70. The Lords Alliance also considers the Harpers to be a terrorist organization but uses it whenever it is convenient.
71. Tyr is significantly less humble, kind, compassionate, and forgiving than Torm. Tyr tends to favor Helm over Torm and thinks the world would run a lot smoother if not so much that he conquered it but everyone was converted to worshiping Lawful gods under him. Other deities have to remind him he’s NOT the king of the gods or Ao’s favored son.
72. Bahamut bears a suspicious similarity to certain alternate Earths’ idea of God in many respects and is the god who lives at the top of Mount Celestia. He, Torm, and Ilmater have been suspiciously known to hang out.
73. Archdevas exist just like Archdemons, but you almost never hear of them because they’re not trying to make waves.
74. Io is just the dragons’ name for Ao (and vice versa) as they’re a race with a better understanding of celestial alignments.
75. Helm and Tyr are survivors of a now-defunct pantheon from displaced humans in Icewind Dale. I can’t imagine what they were like.
76. Realms coinage is debased and a gold piece is actually about 10% pure gold. Ditto all the other coinage except coppers and everyone hates coppers.
77. Your typical Realmsian doesn’t worship a single patron god but the entire pantheon. You pray to Talos for rain and Chauntea for good crops with no contradiction.
78. Durnan of the Yawning Portal tavern is Sean Connery. They look and sound identical.
79. In my games, if you pass the 20th level, you automatically ascend to demigod status. Mind you, that doesn’t make you invincible as many have found. You become the smallest fish in a larger pond.
80. In modern Realms times, orcs, bugbears, and other humanoids live normal lives among other races. The Spellplague brought everyone together. Mind you, tensions still exist as do them generally being dicks.
81. Xanathar the Beholder has the personality of Jabba the Hutt, including his bizarre court as well as monster musicians. There’s absolutely a pit trap over a basilisk lair in his headquarters.
82. Despite how the books have portrayed them, Manshoon and Fzoul are deadly enemies and genius schemers equal to Lex Luthor and Doctor Doom. Yes, they’ve failed a lot but they’re still hanging around too.
83. For all the elves claims of back to nature tree-hugging, their cities are incredibly intricately designed biospheres and magically engineered lifeforms. They can sit around all day and do nothing because the trees provide baked bread and clean water at will.
84. See #83, this is also why elves react so negatively to humans because it’s not chopping down random trees that ticks them off but the fact they’ve chopped down power lines and sewer systems.
85. Dwarves love dogs. This is an underdocumented feature of their race.
86. Elves primarily love cats. Much is explained.
87. There’s a not entirely unbelievable argument by certain elves and dwarves that humans, in fact, are just orcs that became “civilized” due to their lack of a racial creator god. Either that or were some magically altered or hybrid race. People who argue other gods made their races from humans get a thorough beating in an alleyway after class, though.
88. The Zhentarim are the best people to have as merchants in your area due to the fact they’re as happy to supply weapons, magic, and party supplies to “good” parties as “evil” parties. It’s an awkward situation that many Harper-funded revolutions and underdefended towns deal with.
89. There are many stories of humans being abducted by strange creatures, experimented on, and returned to their homes. These are absolutely true and done by Spelljamming Illithids. We’re not sure why they also take cattle and leave intricate pretty circles in crops.
90. Psionics are related to ancient Illithid experimentations on humanity and touching the Far Realms.
91. Clerics generally don’t charge for their spells unless it’s dirty-dirty adventurers. It’s just they usually devote their spells to the caring of their parishioners. After all, every Raise Dead they waste on you is one less for a child who died prematurely.
92. Adventuring is usually a euphemism in the realm and generally means some combination of mercenary, assassin, exterminator, legbreaker, grave robber, and (oddly enough) archaeologist.
93. See #92. Most adventurers ARE some combination of such and generally have a “day job” in-between looking for the next big score. It is a thoroughly disreputable profession.
94. It says something about life in the Realms that Shar promises oblivion to her followers and still has a consistent number of worshipers.
95. Ghaundaur, Tharizdun, and Jubilex are all the same entities. The archdemon is actually an avatar of the former two to give you a sense of how powerful it is.
96. See #95, Jubilex’s pet parrot from Castle Greyhawk is, in fact, canon.
97. Dragons routinely crossbreed and produce members of their various colors and types. These include temporary matings between Chromatic and Metallic dragons. The salvation of the race is at stake, though.
98. See #97, shockingly, as a result, all dragons take adventurers destroying eggs personally.
99. Chultian Elves REALLY hate if you call them Jungle Elves or confuse them with Drow.
100. Bards are generally considered less like annoying minstrels and more like professional spies and assassins. You’re more likely to get James Bond from them than Jaskier/Dandelion.
101. The huge number of monsters just wandering around Faerun are primarily due to wizards of Netheril having some weird hobbies and menageries. Plenty of them are immortal constructs while others are descended from breeding pairs. How do you think they got the owlbear and displacer beast? Very popular pets circa -3876 DR.
*banner image found here
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#SPFBO7 – Shadows of Ivory by Bryce O’Connor and T. L. Greylock
Hello again dear reader, welcome to another SPFBO entry review, this time for a book that made me feel rather conflicted.
Shadows of Ivory opens with an intriguing premise and a variety of characters, with main protagonist Eska having a lot of history/culture-loving archeologist Indiana Jones in her, which makes her rather likeable, but still a grumpier, more abrasive, and mildly drug-addicted version of him as well. Add to the mix a librarian, several other treasure hunters of varying morals, and magic wielders, and you also have something very reminiscent of vibes from The Mummy (1999) which I honestly believe is one of the best movies out there but I digress.
So why the conflicting feelings?
For starters, I really liked that all the pov characters have their own struggles and demons to wrestle, trying to meet their respective goals at the cost of mostly anything, but they don’t blend into each other either; it makes for a multitude of imperfect protagonists, and that always makes for a more interesting read. The brand of humor throughout was delightful, the action sequences pretty cool and, another small detail I enjoyed was that each chapter was headed by a quote that would later appear somewhere within that same chapter – I just think it’s pretty neat heh.
However, there are several instances throughout this book where phrasing and fanciful prose got an extra helping of dramatic flair, so to speak, breaking up the flow of the narrative in those given moments. In fact, it comes rather at odds with the way the plot unfolds, which isn’t a straightforward exposition sort of storytelling that info dumps on you (mostly a good thing), but rather a medias res narrative that asks for the reader to play a lot of catch up and extrapolate plenty, simply from what they are privy to in the present of the story.
This can have a double edge as on the one hand, it trusts its reader to figure things out for themselves and that can work towards keeping one’s interest. It can be great fun to gradually unfold a character’s past and what led to their present circumstances. But at the same time that feeling I already mentioned of constantly having to wait and see what it is that the narrator alludes to even for relatively minor happenings, paired with prose that is at times overly heavy, overall made for a tiring read, with very uneven pacing. Regardless though, we can feel that there is plenty of worldbuilding behind the scenes, and the way that it organically seeps through certainly adds to the ambiance.
If you can tell, I felt quite torn with this novel! It might be a case of the right story wrong time since I ultimately enjoyed the content, but I simply could not click with the way it was written and presented, so this is definitely very subjective. Ultimately, I was a little disappointed because of this as well, as I had hoped to immerse myself well and truly in this story and all its appealing elements. After all, interesting magic, imperfect and harried protagonists, a ‘looks like a cinnamon roll but could kill you’ character (must protect Perrin at all costs), being framed for a murder, and resolving the mysteries behind ancient artifacts, are all elements/tropes that make me jump into a story headfirst!
Also, the book’s cover is perhaps a tad misleading, atmosphere/genre-wise, as the inside feels far more the lighthearted adventure with high stakes than the cover would lead to believe, but that’s mostly a minor sidenote as the art is pretty darn cool in any case and we never judge a book on its cover of course!
I definitely want to try and read this book again, maybe when the rest of the series is out, in the hope that it’ll work better for me then.
Until next time,
Eleni A. E.
Score 6.5/10
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April 28, 2022
Review – Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent
“Ripped from a forgotten homeland as a child, Tisaanah learned how to survive with nothing but a sharp wit and a touch of magic. But the night she tries to buy her freedom, she barely escapes with her life.
Desperate to save the best friend she left behind, Tisaanah journeys to the Orders, the most powerful organization of magic Wielders in the world. But to join their ranks, she must complete an apprenticeship with Maxantarius Farlione, a handsome and reclusive fire wielder who despises the Orders.
The Orders’ intentions are cryptic, and Tisaanah must prove herself under the threat of looming war. Even more dangerous are her growing feelings for Maxantarius. The bloody past he wants to forget may be the key to her future… or the downfall of them both.
But Tisaanah will stop at nothing to save those she abandoned. Even if it means gambling in the Orders’ deadly games. Even if it means sacrificing her heart.
Even if it means wielding death itself.”
It’s funny how things work out. I picked up Daughter of No Worlds before Kushiel’s Dart, but because I had a deadline on Kushiel’s Dart, Daughter of No Worlds had to wait.
First impressions of Daughter of No Worlds were very good. The prose is strong and beautiful, the premise that Broadbent sets up is familiar (I mean this in the best way—stories that are most memorable to me blend the familiar and the new, and this is something that Broadbent accomplishes fabulously, but I digress.) That familiar concept: Tisaanah is sold into slavery after conflict tears apart everything she knows. She is beautiful and unique. When we see her in the first chapters, the slave trade has landed her in a brothel/bawdy house/performance house setup, where she is on the verge of buying her freedom. Things go wrong (as they do) and Tisaanah survives in an incredibly moving scene where she— is it a spoiler if it happens in the first chapters? I don’t know, I’m new at reviewing! Suffice it to say “Look at me” gave me goddamn SHIVERS and I knew I was going to fall in love with Tisaanah in a hurry.
And then I paused to read Kushiel’s Dart.
When I came back to Daughter of No Worlds, I suddenly had greater understanding of how special this book is. Things that bothered me about Kushiel’s Dart (consent issues, anyone?) were unflinchingly addressed in Daughter of No Worlds. The man that owns Tisaanah is truly an owner and not a saviour, and I applaud how Broadbent handled the complicated and traumatic emotions that Tisaanah experiences through her entire arc.
Like I said, Tisaanah escapes captivity, bearing marks of what she went through, and this aftermath of the premise is where Broadbent’s skills truly shine. Tisaanah now must learn to use her magic and she throws herself at it with all the stubbornness (determination?) that allowed her to survive the “Look at me” chapter. And truly, the magic in this world is gorgeous. Fascinating and engrossing and at times terrifying. She’s being taught by her reluctant teacher Maxantarius (I love me a grumpy reluctant/positive sunshine dynamic) who is bitingly hilarious. Most of the passages I highlighted were because I laughed literally out loud at Max’s dialogue, or Tisaanah’s impression of him. For example:
On a particularly cold day, he stepped outside, shivered, looked up at the sky, and declared, “I’m not made for this,” before wandering back into the house. I quickly learned that Max was apparently only “made for” an exceptionally narrow set of environments, temperatures, activities, and interactions.
What follows is a slow-burn romance between Max and Tisaanah, but the stakes are so high. Tisaanah’s escape and her desire to go back to save the people she left behind when she fled get her wrapped up in Big World Politics
, but the context for them is doled out carefully, with a measured hand. Never too much that I was lost, but always enough that I knew what the big picture looked like. Through the romance and Tisaanah’s education with her own (stunning) magic, we feel the dread bubbling in the background. The knowledge that this beautiful couple are going to hit big fantasy bloodshed lurks, giving the joy a bittersweet flavour that I couldn’t get enough of.
And let’s talk about how beautiful they are. There’s something about Broadbent’s writing that conveys that beauty so effortlessly and believably. Tisaanah’s beauty is remarked on, but so too is her character and her abilities and her wit—but also she has the room to be flawed and grounded and human. Max is, well, he’s Max. We love him. We’re rooting for him when he finally starts flirting. And oh boy is the flirting good. So good. So good that I had to pause the audiobook and pick up the Kindle version and find the quote so that I could highlight it and bask in how perfectly it was delivered. It’s understated and emotional and funny and I’m running out of adjectives for this book!
The violent climax, when it arrives, is delivered with perfectly controlled chaos. It’s visceral without becoming gratuitous; it’s traumatic and busy without becoming confusing.
Daughter of No Worlds felt like it was written just for me, an impeccable balance of all my favourite things in Romantic Fantasy executed with grace and with the kind of weight that I like to see. It almost feels like a conversation with Kushiel’s Dart. The premise is so similar and yet the execution is miles apart. Kushiel’s Dart wanted to have a conversation about women and sex in SFF, but Daughter of No Worlds wanted to celebrate women and romance in SFF.
I’m so ready to continue celebrating in Broadbent’s world; the trilogy was just completed and I’ve already bought the next two books.
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Review – The Sword of Kaigen by M.L. Wang
This review has taken me a few days to write. Please be aware I talk about grief and mental health in this review and it turned into quite a personal piece of writing for me.
I’ve been reading fantasy for a long time. I am in my near-mid 40’s and read Lord of The Rings at the age of 15. I have read fantasy books that have blown me away, taken me to worlds of incredible depth and imagination and introduced me to characters that have had a profound impact on my life.
Then Sword of Kaigen came along and completely and utterly changed the way I think about the fantasy genre. M. L. Wang grabbed me by the throat and didn’t let go for 600+ pages of intense, emotionally charged, exquisitely constructed storytelling.
I’m a broken man, but a better one because of this book.
I read this as part of Literature and Lo-Fi’s fantastic month long event, ‘February She Wrote’, promoting and celebrating female authors and authors who use the She/Her pronouns and wow, what a book to start this event with.
The book follows the Matsuda family, leaders of a warrior clan who live in the mountain village Takayubi. They are the first and last defence of the Kaiganese Empire and live by a strict moral code in a feudal system. With the rumblings of war in the wind, the once peaceful lives of the Matsuda’s is about to be shaken to its very core. Embedded in Eastern philosophy and mysticism, Japanese social culture and belief, M. L. Wang has created a rich, complex and engrossing world which draws you in to the point where you can feel the snow between your fingers, smell the blacksmiths smelters and breathe in the sea air.
The world-building in Sword of Kaigen is astonishing. What can take some authors a trilogy of books to accomplish, M. L. Wang does so in one volume. The attention to social order; Kaiganese society is patriarchal, boys train to be warriors at the school, girls are raised to be obedient wives to provide children that will bring new generations of warriors to protect the mighty empire. The detail in clothing, how it moves in combat, how it feels against the skin adds a realism to this book that I really appreciated. The geography of the world is clearly laid out and the environment that the characters inhabit is essential to their magic system. More on that later.
The historical and political background of this story is also incredibly detailed and layered with such expertise throughout the novel. M. L. Wang allows exposition to be delivered to the reader when the characters are required to know a new bit of information. Again it gives this book a realistic foundation, conversations feel organic, never giving information for the sake of information. Much exposition is given through action and M. L. Wang excels at battle prose.
The action in this book is brutal, visceral, and bloody. Be warned if you are not one for violent fantasy this book may not be for you. As well as battle violence, there is also rape and torture, but it is never excessive or exploitative. M. L. Wang makes every word on the page, every violent action, mean something to the characters, to their motivation. No page space or word is wasted. Everything has meaning in The Sword of Kaigen.
Also essential to the action is the magic system and M. L. Wang has developed an almost scientific approach to the magic. The people of Kaigen have the ability to control water, in all its phases, and thus have the ability to control and alter water on a molecular level. What the characters can achieve with this is so imaginative, so different to other magic systems I have encountered. I was really wowed and caught up in the history and culture behind the different magics. Your bloodline and race determines what type of magic you have and interbreeding brings up many intriguing, and sometimes problematic, issues.
Now to characters. I am still struggling to put into words what an impact some of the characters in this book had on me, especially our female lead. Though the book’s POV is primarily through the eyes of two people, Wang makes sure that all the supporting cast are fully rounded, memorable characters. Everyone of them has a unique voice and presence and there is a huge cast of characters. M. L. Wang has a lot to juggle, but at no point does it feel like she’s struggling to give any one of them room to breathe. Like I said earlier, not a page or word is wasted.
Mamoru is the eldest son of the Matsuda’s. Desperate to make his stoic and strict father, Takeru, proud, fully aware of the responsibility on his shoulder to carry on the tradition and power of the clan, he is beyond his years in maturity, yet, his handle on his emotions is his Achilles heel. His character arc is so good, I loved him. His friendship with foreign student and outsider Kwang is a fascinating one with so many layers to think about and thematically it fascinated me. As his awareness of the political and cultural world outside grows, his belief in his culture starts to waver. I can’t tell you how many themes and topical issues you could talk about in this book. It’s primed for an academic paper.
Then we have Misaki, wife of Takeru and mother of Mamoru. Even now, typing this, I have a lump in my throat and goose bumps. No other character and their journey has impacted me as much as she has in the fantasy genre. Married into the Matsuda family by her father, she has had to repress her violent past and be the good mother and the obedient wife. I cannot stress the complexity and conflict within Misaki enough and M. L. Wang conveys this with such ease and such poetry that even though I am a man and I can never truly understand what Misaki is going through, I was on the journey with her. Wang draws you into Misaki’s mind, into her heart and lays it bare on the page. Sometimes it was so raw and painful it was hard to read, but its so beautifully written I couldn’t peel my eyes away from the page.
Takeru, the Patriarch of the Matsuda family is mostly viewed from the outside in. We get to know him, or not get to know him in some cases, through Mamoru and Misaki. His character was the hardest nut to crack, but boy, what he goes through in the later stages of the book is remarkable and all the resentment or negative feelings I had towards him, changed. M. L. Wang expertly constructs Takeru then deconstructs him. It’s wonderful to behold.
The themes that M. L. Wang weaves through the book are on a macro and micro level. From imperialism, nationalism, insularism to brotherhood, parenthood and free thinking. Hope and grief were the two themes that hit me the hardest and Wang absolutely stripped me of my armour. This book deals with the death of loved ones in a brutally honest and empathetic way and M. L. Wang approaches it with an unvarnished and devastating manner. I have had to deal with the death of my father years ago and what Wang writes about hit me in a deeply personal way.
Mental health is also an aspect that Wang weaves into the narrative, not just in dealing with death, but dealing with a young persons pressure to meet a parents expectations, to discovering things that shake the very foundation of your existence. For someone like me, who suffers from depression and anxiety, again, M. L. Wang’s characterisation and words really spoke to me, really affected me. At times it was cathartic and healing for me, even though the situations the characters are in are fantastical and extreme. But the beauty of fantasy, well written and beautifully characterised fantasy, is that the genre can approach subjects that are hard to tackle, are hard to face and isn’t afraid to talk about it.
The Sword of Kaigen was a profound reading experience for me. It may not be for everyone, I think we all bring our own baggage, our own experiences to a book when we read it. But M. L. Wang is a master of her craft and if you are looking for a standalone epic fantasy with beautifully realised characters, breath-taking narrative, exquisite world-building, a wonderfully constructed magic system and incredible action, then you need to put this one on your TBR.
This book is the easiest 5/5 I have ever given a book and its in my top 5 books of all time…in fact its my favourite book and it will take a lot of knock it off the top spot. For me, its a masterpiece of fiction.
A week later and Mamoru, Misaki and Takeru are still in my thoughts, their stories still linger in my mind and I think they will for a long time.
Wholeness, she had learned, was not the absence of pain but the ability to hold it.
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April 27, 2022
Review – The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
In The Atlas Six the story asks, “Who would you be if given everything, money, power, life, and magic?”
There is an age-old saying first uttered by English historian Lord Acton, but it is now in common parlance that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. But, I think in terms of The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake, unlimited power, wealth, and magic doesn’t corrupt per se, but it brings the chosen six more into who they already are. Weak, strong, or cruel the seeds were planted long ago amongst the students. With all of the political maneuvering, drama, and such this novel, while beloved to some did not land with me as a reader.
The story follows six advanced magic students with unusual or substantial magical gifts. They are those that float to the top as the cream of magical society.
“- Libby Rhodes and Nicolás Ferrer de Varona: inseparable enemies, cosmologists who can control matter with their minds.
– Reina Mori: a naturalist who can speak the language of life itself.
– Parisa Kamali: a mind reader whose powers of seduction are unmatched.
– Tristan Caine: the son of a crime kingpin who can see the secrets of the universe.
– Callum Nova: an insanely rich pretty boy who could bring about the end of the world. He need only ask.”
All so young, or beautiful and enchanting, or both. All, frankly, rather boring. A mysterious and powerful man invites these six people to a unique library where they can study and have access to the great collections of the lost Library of Alexandria, with a possibility of future advancement. Here they can further their skills if they work hard enough, except there is a catch. There is always a catch. Five, they are told, will be initiated. One will be eliminated.
“We are the gods of our own universes, aren’t we? Destructive ones.”
In the blurb, it sounded fascinating. I love good dark academia. The darker, the better, as I am a little tramp for any that fall into this category. Plus books. Who knows what one could achieve if given access to these resources. The possibilities of where this plot could take me were endless.
But, nothing. Nothing really happens. Frustratingly so. Don’t get me wrong; there is plenty of turmoil, relationship drama, and inner monologuing about “what does it all mean!?’ The interpersonal relationship woes reminded me of a pseudo Dangerous Liaisons mixed with characters from the tv adaption of Lev Grossman’s The Magicians. Especially Parisa as Margo Hanson and Callum as Elliot. While they are not carbon copies, the characters’ attitudes reminded me of them.
“A flaw of humanity,” said Parisa, shrugging. “The compulsion to be unique, which is at war with the desire to belong to a single identifiable sameness.”
This is a darling of BookTok and gets talked about endlessly; much of what is hailed about The Atlas Six are the characters, but not so much the plot. Again, many of these characters have the depth of a teaspoon. So much so that I had a difficult time telling them apart. Libby and Nicolás Ferrer de Varona are easy to tell apart as they are unnecessarily swiping at each other because of “sexual tension.” Out of the bunch of characters, I enjoyed Nicolas the most. He had more depth than any of the other characters as we learned more about what was happening in his life outside of the competition.
Reina as a naturalist, was odd. I could differentiate her character by the amount of plant squealing and chatter she had to endure. Parisa was a seductress. I enjoyed her openness and freedoms, but it sometimes came off as forced. Tristan was a character that blossomed but got lost in the Libby, Parisa, and Callum machinations. Callum seemed like a sociopath.
The ending upset me so much that I stood in awe at it; either it is brilliant and above my intellect or, um, “what?”. I don’t even know what to say about it other than, “wow that came out of the left field. Other than that, I have got nothing. There is a plot of something something, but it all gets lost in pretentious self-absorption.
I know The Atlas Six is beloved by many people, which is lovely! Not every book is for every reader, and this book was certainly not for me.
Check Out The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
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Interview with Author Richard A. Knaak
“Richard Knaak has created a fantastic homage to classic Pulp fiction and Golden Age superheroes. Full of exciting protagonists, gadgets, and nefarious villains. Oh and zeppelins.” C.T. Phipps, Author of The Rules of Supervillainy
—–
An alternate 1930 Chicago beset by ‘rogues’, the newspaper-christened costumed villains kept only in check by the mysterious hero, the Legionary. However, when the Legionary goes missing, and there is no one left to stop the reign of crime, what is the city to do?
Inspector Franklin Merrett would desperately like to know the answer to that, especially as the only one who has dealt with the Legionary. Worse, with what appears to be a war brewing between some of the most powerful and dangerous of the rogues, he fears that the city may not have long to survive…
ROGUES GALLERY…when only the villains remain
[CTP] So tell us about Rogues Gallery.
ROGUES GALLERY is a pulp-style urban fantasy taking place in an alternate 1930 Chicago where the city’s champion, the Legionary, appears to have vanished. This means that the costumed villains that have risen up after the World War I — called “rogues’ by the headline-hungry press — pretty much have free rein. This is obviously bad for the city, but when the various rogues start colliding, things take unexpected turns.
[CTP] What separates Rogues Gallery from other similar fiction?
A unique setting and characters, with a look at the repercussions desperate situations bring.
[CTP] Why write a superhero novel set in the 1930s?
It’s a fascinating time period, plus one that was influenced by pulp heroes like the Shadow and Doc Savage. It’s a period where the previous century still lingers, but the future is just over the horizon.
[CTP] What fascinates you about the 1930s Chicago era? You wrote another of your series, Black City Saint, there as well.
I grew up in the area and often heard the stories about the Roaring Twenties and just after. I became fascinated with the period and the unique, if unsavory at times, society that was birthed in it. Chicago has a particularly interesting reputation at that time that lends a lot of flavor to the stories I write. The clothing, the cars, the decorations…there’s just so much that snares the attention.
[CTP] Tell us about the protagonists.
The protagonists, if the term can be used for them, are all rogues with the exception of Inspector Franklin Merrett, a black detective who worked with the Legionary and still hopes for his return. The rogues who have some interest in not seeing their city brought entirely into chaos are the Plunderer (who is an art thief with an autogyro, not to mention a scarred veteran of the Great War), Doctor Arcanum (a female rogue obsessed with finding true magic and willing to steal anything that will aid in her quest. In the meantime, she uses stage tricks), the Shadow Master (a veteran rogue with the ability to create artificial darkness and who is a seasoned manipulator), Mirror (a female rogue seeking revenge for those who caused the death of her lover and whose reflective mask can both hypnotize and drive one mad), the Roach (a murderous dweller of the sewers), and, maybe, the Fourth Horseman (who rides a clockwork steed and hides more than one terrible secret).
[CTP] Tell us about the antagonists.
That’s easier. There’s Bloodwyrm (a gas mask-wearing pyromaniac obsessed with locating the Legionary, even if the entire city has to pay in the process). Lady Cain (a beautiful blonde woman wearing a top hat and what seems a dancer’s version of a tuxedo. She is sadistic, certifiable, and has deadly little weapons like her cigarette holder and lapel flower. She and Bloodwyrm are lovers, of course.) The Wolf Pack (a specialized group of henchmen willing to work for anyone at the right price. Faceless with their wolf emblem masks. If the current alpha of a pack perishes, the next in seniority simply replaces him. They have large numbers, all working for Bloodwyrm right now). Behemoth (a huge Irish thug, more of a henchman, so long as you pay him right and don’t betray him. Extremely strong and so dense of muscle it’s hard to stop him).
[CTP] What do Pulp heroes mean to you?
A time of pure adventure, with heroes who will face all odds to do right. Heroes that will confront evil without hesitation and do what must be done.
[CTP] Do you have a favorite character among them?
Well, likely the Plunderer. I just found myself enjoying his character most of all.
[CTP] Is this meant to be a standalone or part of a series?
It’s a standalone for now (with one short story in the back and two more for those who order the ultra limited edition hardcover from me). However, I would like t
o return. There’s more to tell about some of these characters, plus, I have some additional rogues in mind. Then, of course, there’s the question of the Legionary…or is there?
[CTP] How has the reception been for the novel so far?
Excellent. Those who have read it appear to have overwhelmingly enjoyed it. It was self-published and word seems to be spreading. I’m pleased.
[CTP] What can we expect from you next?
I’m working on my REX DRACONIS saga, both the next novel — War of the Dragon Moon — and a series of novellas concerning the minotaur empire there (stories of honor and loyalty). After that, a new Dragonrealm novel, followed by Black City Angel, 4th in my series.
Check Out Some of Richard A. Knaak’s Books
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