Synopsis: Auralia and her colors are missing and the beastmen are amassing an army, while bereaved ruler Cyndere dreams of transforming the world. Review: So tough to do a one-liner of a fantasy series installment. My review of Cyndere’s Midnight will go up at The Curator next week. In the mean time, just go read the book, willya? I am such a fan!
Synopsis: Tigana is a country that has been obliterated by magic, down to its very name, yet a small group of rebels who remember decide to spark civil war to reclaim the honor of their homeland. Review: I wanted to love Tigana, I really did. Guy Gavriel Kay is a beautiful writer, excelling in exploring complex emotions and motivations within scenes that are startlingly original. There are scenes in Tigana that are achingly lovely without sacrificing dramatic impact. However, the overall story just never clicked…
Synopsis: A young woman discovers her destiny among a cadre of psychic dragons, and hatches a radical plan to save her planet from a deadly threat using time travel. Review: I wish I had discovered Pern when I was in high school. Dragonflight, one of Anne McCaffrey’s books set in the dragon-strewn world, is perfect YA sci fi fantasy. Lessa is a fantastic heroine whose impulsive acts have big consequences, and the book doesn’t try to achieve too much. It’s difficult to talk about a…
Synopsis: The first of two anthologies featuring short stories by George RR Martin, ranging from fantasy to science fiction to horror to genre hybrids. Review: I am one of those readers who had never heard of George RR Martin before encountering A Game of Thrones, book one in his Song of Ice and Fire series. What I did not know is that Martin has had a prolific career as a short story writer, primarily in the genre of science fiction. Dreamsongs Volume 1 includes some…
Synopsis: Book 2 of the Fionavar Tapestry finds five Canadian students returning to an alternate universe where they continue to fight an epic battle against a demonic demigod and step further into their unique destinies. Review: As with any good second book in a trilogy, The Wandering Fire deepens the Fionavar mythology and heightens the stakes for all involved.
I tried really, really hard to finish this book but halfway through it got deemed “life’s too short.” Winterbirth is epic fantasy of the George RR Martin variety–lots of loyalty oaths, warring kinsmen, and creeping winter. But the emphasis is on war, not on character adventure, and I find it hard to get into war stories under the best of circumstances.
Synopsis: The epic battle for control of Pandemia converges on Thume, a peaceful enclave that’s hidden from sight for two millenia. Review: I’m sort of relieved to be finished The Living God, thus concluding the four-part series by Dave Duncan called A Handful of Men. I loved every minute of this series, which is a sequel to a previous series known as A Man of His Word, but it’s just awfully hard blogging about epic fantasy when it’s this perfect.
Synopsis: Seventeen years after the conclusion of A Man Of His Word, Pandemia finds itself on the brink of a civilization-destroying calamity, and former sorcerer Rap is pulled from his peaceful family life in Krasnegar to play the hero once again. Review: The Cutting Edge kicks of a four-book follow up to the series that began with Magic Casement. While familiarity with A Man of His Word is recommended, for the most part this book does not rely too heavily on backstory. Fortunately, Duncan is…
Synopsis: The lives, romances, and fortunes of 3 prominent Russian families play out against the backdrop of Napoleon’s invasion of Russia. Review: It’s absurd to blog about War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy’s sprawling behemoth of a novel. The title alone is ludicrous and unfathomable. People laugh when you say you’re reading it, not because they think it’s not worth reading, but because of its reputation as one of the longest books ever written. Nevertheless, I, the Superfast Reader, who read this book for the Summer…
Synopsis: War looms ever closer as the dreaded Storm King’s forces grow in power. Review: To Green Angel Tower (Part 1) is the continuation of Tad Williams’s Memory, Sorrow and Thorn series. Parts 1 and 2 clock in at 800 pages apiece, but I don’t know why they’re one book split into two, unless it’s because trilogies are cool and four-book series aren’t.