Marc Aplin's Blog, page 127

The Warded Man to become a movie?

Well, we all know books being ‘optioned’ doesn’t mean they are actually going to become movies anytime soon, but every time it happens we get a little bit excited. Last night, Peter V. Brett threw out the following Tweet: Following the link, Variety report that Spike Seldin and Hans Futterman’s New Harlem Partnership banner has acquired movie rights […]

The Raven by Aderyn Wood – SPFBO Review: And Then There Were Two

The SPFBO team are making steady progress in our search for a finalist. To avoid cruelly stretching things out, we’ll be posting (in no particular order) individual reviews for those who don’t make it as and when we eliminate them. Now, only two books remain as we say farewell to Aderyn Wood and The Raven. […]

A City Dreaming by Daniel Polansky

A City Dreaming by Daniel Polansky is the story of M, a very old and very powerful magician, who has returned to New York City after some time away. Although he’d much rather spend his time getting drunk, getting high, and getting laid, he can’t avoid taking a subway train through hell, sidestepping into a […]

Detritus In Love by Mercedes M. Yardley & John Boden + Interview with the Authors

Detritus in Love opens with a fourteen-year-old boy discovering that he can see and hear dead people. Three years later he’s not only made some dead friends, but he’s fallen in love with one of them, though her being dead is actually the least of his many reasons for not bringing her home to the […]

Potions, Alchemy, & Apothecaries: Inspirations from the Real World

A witch hunched over a bubbling cauldron; a reclusive alchemist searching for the secret to eternal life; a hooded figure procuring a poison from a shady apothecary… While these are classic images from fantasy and storytelling, they are rooted in history. People tried as witches often “confessed” to making potions and salves that caused others […]

COLD COUNSEL Cover Reveal

Our friends over at TOR.COM have been in touch to tell us about an upcoming fantasy epic they’ve got scheduled for early next year called, Cold Counsel. Once they told me a bit about it, I surmised that Cold Counsel would combine a huge battle axe, anti-hero trolls and a Norse-inspired story that sounds truly epic… As you […]

Mark Lawrence Interview

Mark Lawrence’s first published work Prince of Thorns attracted some controversy on its release and Mark has been as robust as he is generous in his online engagement with fans, fellow writers and critics. There is a rare gift and a sharp wit to all his writing such that even his most ardent critics would […]

Song of Blood & Stone by L. Penelope – SPFBO Review: And Then There Were Three

The SPFBO team are making steady progress in our search for a finalist. To avoid cruelly stretching things out, we’ll be posting (in no particular order) individual reviews for those who don’t make it as and when we eliminate them. Now, only three books remain as we say farewell to L. Penelope and Song of […]

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab

Corsai, Corsai, tooth and claw, Shadow and bone will eat you raw. Malchai, Malchai, sharp and sly, Smile and bite and drink you dry. Sunai, Sunai, eyes like coal, Sing you a song and steal your soul. Monsters, monsters, big and small, They’re gonna come and eat you all. What a hook. That “nursery rhyme” […]

A Different Kind of Hero

The heroes in our novels come in all shapes and sizes. Their nature and actions are crafted at the whim of the author. Some heroes are larger than life, giant personalities with immense powers, while others are regular people thrust into grand events. Some are born great, chosen by destiny and circumstance, others make their […]