Marc Aplin's Blog, page 243
February 25, 2014
Brian McClellan reveals The Powder Mage book 3 Cover
Last month we were excited to see one of 2013′s most popular debutantes, Brian McClellan, release a Novella, Forsworn, to keep us occupied whilst we waited for the follow up to his first book in The Powder Mage series. Well, yesterday, Brian gave us something else to tide ourselves over with by revealing the cover […]
February 24, 2014
Love in SFF – From True Love to BFFs
Romance in SFF is one of those things that people either love, hate, or are frankly indifferent about. I’m not one of those; I will eagerly admit that I love romance. Since Valentine’s has just been and gone in a flutter of rose petals, stuffed bears, wine, chocolates and the odd grumbling status update about […]
February 23, 2014
Fantasy Book Club – March 2014: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
For March, we were looking for books with a female protagonist. Our book club selected Seraphina by Rachel Hartman. I’ve seen some great reviews for this one, including on here on Fantasy-Faction where it earned a 10 star rating. I look forward to reading it myself and hope a number of people join us. In […]
Way of Kings Read Along (Chapters 1-3)
Hey there my WOK Readalongees, Firstly, I want to thank each and every one of you who has decided to commit and join me on this journey through one of the decade’s finest fantasy books. Whether you are simply following this readalong to catch yourself up and jog your memory ready for Brandon Sanderson’s Words […]
February 22, 2014
Reaper’s Touch by Eleri Stone
I’m a big fan of romance. I believe in love at first sight, flowers, and date nights (even if it’s just an hour out of the house, simply to get a break from the kids). However, when it comes to reading science-fiction and fantasy, I don’t find myself straying too close to the ‘romance’ sub-category. […]
Survey of Low Fantasy Subgenres
In my last article, I compared and contrasted two very popular low fantasy subgenres, urban fantasy and paranormal romance. In this article, I’ll continue with an overview of other major subgenres of low fantasy. As a review, my working definition of low fantasy—the label given to two basic types of works. The first is a […]
February 21, 2014
The Reaver by Richard Lee Byers
If you have d20’s on the brain then you’ll love The Reaver by Richard Lee Byers. This swords-and-sorcery adventure crosses through the Forgotten Realms, the destination of choice D&D campaigns. Aficionados of character sheets will have much to recognize and relish, especially the spells. The magic is the most dazzling element of the novel. A […]
‘Writers of the Future’ to change format after 30 years
In what can only be seen as a huge change of direction for The L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future anthology, Volume 30 is set to include a short stories from L. Ron Hubbard’s library, Orson Scott Card and Mike Resnick (both judges of the contest). Over the years, the anthology has been very strict […]
Unfettered – best anthology ever? – out now!
There have been some absolutely incredible anthologies released – and announced – lately that have been proving the theory that ‘fantasy and the short story can’t work in harmony together’ completely wrong. Dangerous Women was the first big one of 2014 (as much in terms of its physical size as its mass appeal and recognisable […]
February 20, 2014
The Shattered Crown by Richard Ford
I suppose there comes a time if you review books – and find yourself on a publisher’s mailing list – when you will get sent a book that is either part of a series, or the middle book of a trilogy. The Shattered Crown is such a book. It is the second in the Steelhaven […]
