Interview: K.D. Edwards on his debut Fantasy novel, THE LAST SUN
K.D. Edwards’ debut novel, The Last Sun, is now out from Pyr Books. The author very kindly answered my questions about the world and characters of The Last Sun.
Blog Posts
Blog Posts
Blog Posts
Book Review: Kill the Farm Boy by Delilah S. Dawson and Kevin Hearne
Kill the Farm Boy is the literary love child of Delilah S. Dawson and Kevin Hearne, who partnered up to create a fantastical, trope-skewering romp of a Pratchett-esque novel. That was a lot of words, but I promise they’re all accurate. Within the pages of Kill the Farm Boy, readers will find plenty of laughter and an abundance of interesting fairy tale problems, ranging from botched adventures to a nice-guy troll to a sand witch whose wand is the prettiest thing on the beach. Even when you think you’ve finally grasped their mischievous style, Dawson and Hearne surprise you again and again with unique villains and intense violence. A tale of the hero’s journey it may be, but the journey itself is not typical in the slightest. This book almost feels like a D&D campaign with a ridiculously imaginative DM and a fantastic group of players, and that’s the opposite of a bad thing.
Blog Posts
My Superpower: R.S Ford
My Superpower is a regular guest column on the Skiffy and Fanty blog where authors and creators tell us about one weird skill, neat trick, highly specialized cybernetic upgrade, or other superpower they have, and how it helped (or hindered!) their creative process as they built their project. Today we welcome A Demon in Silver author R.S. Ford. I’ve had to give this a lot of thought. What superpower could possibly aid in my writing? Most of the time, as most writers, I feel crushed under the colossal weight of a super-impediment rather than a superpower. At various points all writers will take on the role of Imposter Syndrome Boy, Captain Excuses or Procrastinato Woman. Life is full of things that hinder our creative flow. That stop those words spilling onto the page. That’s why there’s one superpower that we all share as writers. One we couldn’t be successful without.
Blog Posts
Short Fiction Review: May 2018
This month, I have two stories that will give you heavy, negative feels (but in a good way, I promise!), and one story that can probably cheer you up afterward. In “One Day, My Dear, I’ll Shower You with Rubies” by Langley Hyde, which appears in Podcastle Episode 520 (May 1, 2018), a genocidal wizard is put on trial years after the war, and his daughter is called to testify against him. She won’t forgive him, and he won’t apologize. This story is challenging, unique, surprisingly real. Want a story about a succubus in the age of social media? Check out “Sucks (to Be You)” by Katharine Duckett, which appears in Uncanny Magazine Issue 22 (May/June 2018). It’s thoughtful and deeply unsettling in the very best way. Finally, I loved “Our Side of the Door” by Kodiak Julian, which appears in Lightspeed Magazine Issue 96 (May 2018). It’s a warm, beautiful portal fantasy that left me thinking about ethics and gender.
Blog Posts
Book Review: BLOOD ORBIT by K.R. Richardson
I don’t recall exactly what drew me to picking Blood Orbit out of the many options for potential reviewing here. Likely it was a combination of good experience/trust in the publisher and the description of a crime noir/science fiction blend, a combo of two of my beloved genres. I certainly didn’t recognize the name of the author, and upon finally beginning the novel I had no memory of what that blurb said it was even about. I started reading the electronic copy Pyr had provided expecting a typical slow start. Without the ease of a physical copy I find getting into a novel really challenging while trying to ‘turn’ back to firmly get characters or the seeds of plot to stick in mind. Instead I found little need for that, and my finger tapped through pages in a focused rush to read more. Blood Orbit is exceptionally crafted from its opening, and at no point through its last page did I ever end up feeling like it faltered. Happening to be at Barnes & Noble at the time, I soon decided to get up and just get the actual book, because I already had a feeling this “Gattis File” debut would be one series I’d want to keep up with.
Blog Posts
Book Review: The Realms of God by Michael Livingston
Drawing together strands, plots, and conflicts from the first two novels, The Realms of God winningly completes Michael Livingston’s Shards of Heaven trilogy. In the Shards of Heaven series, Michael Livingston has been weaving the real-life history of the early Roman Empire with magic and myth in a potent combination. Starting with The Shards of Heaven and through The Gates of Hell, the author has been telling the story of the Shards, pieces of Divine power on Earth, and those trying to win control of them, mastery of them, and mastery of the world as a result. The series features both historical characters as well as (especially in The Gates of Hell) supernatural ones, telling stories that sit within the known history but do not contradict it or change it. They are good examples of Secret historical fantasy, eschewing any changes from our own world, but also grounding the novels in real events and real history.