Marc Aplin's Blog, page 245
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 […]
John Brown splits with Tor as way to finally publish Book 2
So, a few years ago I read a book called Servant of a Dark God by John D. Brown. I picked it up after it got a good review from Brandon Sanderson, enjoyed it a great deal and looked forward to the sequel… That was in 2010 and after I’d not heard any word about […]
Want to Write for Fantasy-Faction?
Hey guys, We’ve got a couple of staff positions just opened up for HUGE fantasy fans who love writing articles or have a knack for reviews. About Fantasy-Faction We were formed in December 2010 and in just over 3 years we’ve managed to amass a loyal fan-base resulting in 3000 average hits a day, gain […]
February 19, 2014
Memories of Ice by Steven Erikson
Ahhh, Memories of Ice, Book Three of The Malazan Book of the Fallen, what an enjoyable tropical holiday you are – that is if tropical holidays contained relentless waves of cannibalistic armies, unspoiled (or should I say utterly tormented) elder races and, of course, friendly Bridgeburner staff! No doubt, a tropical holiday is needed after […]
New Game of Thrones Covers (UK)
The UK’s largest bookstore chain revealed this week that they have decided to give George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series a brand new look. The brief Waterstones gave to designers was rather open and basically allowed the design team to follow their own initiative, the covers were to be ‘beautiful, epic […]
