A Book by its Cover: SHARED by Sara Fields & Korey Mae Johnson
A Book by its Cover is a monthly joke column featuring a review based on the cover of a book and nothing else. Any similarities in our review to the actual book are purely coincidental and proof that we are awesome. You can find a true informational blurb about the novel and find a link for its purchase at Stormy Night Publications. Aiden Drake and Ignaz Lindwurm are the reigning tag-team champions of the Magical Wrestling Association holding the prestigious Xcaliber Belt and the Castlereagh Cumberbund. But their success has put a target on their shredded, oil-rubbed back with all the other magician/wrestler teams of the realm looking to topple them. The Abattoir quickly becomes the top contender as challengers. Consisting of Roderic Boucher and Theo “Meathook” McGuire, the Abattoir first annoy Aiden and Ignaz by raiding their lockers and stealing all their shirts, preventing them from being able to enter any of the pubs of the realm that post signs of “No Shoes, No Shirt, No Service.” A confrontation between the two teams in the courtyard quickly leads to hurled vulgarities and spells. The Abattoir manage to hit Aiden and Ignaz with a curse that removes all their tattoos, severely weakening their ability to harness the Dragon fire they are known for. Unable to back away from this affront and challenge, Aiden and Ignaz agree to meet Roderic and Theo in the ring during the upcoming MWA Plunder in the Palace. But can they successfully defend their title without their full connection to the Dragons? Complicating matters even more, as their animosity escalates with the Abattoir leading up to the fight. Soon, the strong emotions and physicality fuel a raw, unbridled sexual energy that unites these enemies in an unexpected way. How will what these two pairs share together in the bed end up affecting the battle they must face in the ring? In this novel Fields and Johnson masterfully explore the ins and outs of sharing, mental and physical, with erotically charged prose sure to thrill the reader. The pair of authors share their strengths here as a literary tag team, with Fields’ sure-footed plotting and genre expertise balancing the lyricism and artistic depth of Nobel-winning poet Johnson. Human sharing (even with magic) involves the good and the bad, for better or for worse, and Shared covers that idea throughout. At the start the focus is mainly on the separate partnerships of Aiden and Ignaz, contrasting with the more S&M styles of Roderic and Theo. Gradually, the sharing begins to cross between these pairs, even in ways where their magical skills show signs of blending and going awry (one bout of sex literally lights a bed on fire and cuts sheets into strips, and one match in the ring has flaming butcher knives cutting into opponents. Through the sharing, however, each team becomes something more. Aiden & Ignaz discover passion and drives they never dared dream, while Roderic and Theo begin to learn some compassion and forgiveness. Even though the final match during the Plunder in the Palace demands a clear winner and a loser, Shared finds a way to give a happy ending to all its characters and for the fans of this series. A Book by its Cover is a monthly joke column featuring a review based on the cover of a book and nothing else. Any similarities in our review to the actual book are purely coincidental and proof that we are awesome. You can find a true informational blurb about the novel and find a link for its purchase at Stormy Night Publications.
377. Dragonheart (1996) — Torture Cinema #101
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/sand-f-377-dragonheart/SandF_377_Dragonheart.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSDragon friends, creeper kings, Dennis Quaid, oh my! Shaun Duke, Paul Weimer, and Alex Acks join forces for another Torture Cinema foray into the obscene. Or is it? Together, they journey into the wild world of Dragonheart, discussing its anachronistic treatment of history, whether its CG holds up, the wonders of its casting choices, some of its creepy sexism, and more! Plus, there are dragons. DRAGONS! We hope you enjoy the episode!
Bedtime Stories: Dragon Dancer
Bedtime Stories is a new column that will highlight Children’s Books with a diverse, global perspective. It is the eve of Chinese New Year! Lanterns are hung in the shopping malls and Yao is preparing to wake the ancient sky dragon, Shen Long, from his year-long sleep. Soon Yao will be propelled on a magical journey to battle the bad luck of the previous year and usher in the good. Will he succeed? Will his grandfather watch over him and protect him from harm? Dragon Dancer, written by Joyce Chng and illustrated by Jérémy Pailler, was originally published in the UK by Lantana Publishing, but just became available in the US in January and we are the richer for it.
Book Review: No Good Dragon Goes Unpunished by Rachel Aaron
The reward for a job well done, is another job. Or another challenge, anyway. Julius Heartstriker has defeated his mother, Bethesda, head of the Heartstriker Clan. Instead of killing her, as a Dragon would be expected to, he has simply defanged her, and proposed a power-sharing arrangement for a council, not an autarch, to rule his clan. This is rather unprecedented for dragons, where might makes right is a way of life. Julius can propose a council, but actually getting his siblings and his mother to go along with this plan is nothing but trouble. And given the large size of the Heartstrikers clan, bringing everyone back to the homestead to meet for this council is a recipe for intrigue…or disaster. Actually getting a bunch of dragons to come together to elect and cooperate in a council, however, isn’t even the biggest problem that Julius faces. Algonquin, the powerful river spirit that rules Detroit, has announced her intent and desire to wipe out all Dragons from the face of the Earth, everywhere, and might have the power to make that threat more than an idle one. Other Dragon clans are rather interested in Julius’ feat in defeating his mother, and scheme and plot as to what this means. The US Government is awfully interested in Julius, the Heartstrikers, and his human mage partner Marci. Especially Marci, given her strange connection to Ghost, who in the two novels of the series has revealed himself to really be much more than Marci first thought.
Book Review: A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan
I would normally begin with the fact that the name Lady Isabella Trent is known to every schoolchild and adult of the slightest education, but such assumptions have gotten me into trouble before here at the S&F Herald. While it’s possible that some villagers in far off corners of the world, or even in quiet corners of our own Scirland, have not heard of the life and times of the foremost studier of dragons, I would expect most of our readers to be familiar with her and her work. Breaking conventions of her time in regards to her sex, Lady Isabella Trent’s more salacious and popular accounts of her adventures have no doubt gotten many young boarding school readers into trouble for possessing and passing around. To say nothing of askance looks from one’s social peers to find such volumes on their bookshelf.
135. Folklore, Myth, and Narrative w/ Marie Brennan
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode135TalkingFolkloreAndNarrativeWMarieBrennan/SandF%20–%20Episode%20135%20–%20Talking%20Folklore%20and%20Narrative%20w%20Marie%20Brennan.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSFolklore, narrative, and dragons, oh my! Marie Brennan, author of A Natural History of Dragons: A Memoir by Lady Trent (among other great novels), joins us to discuss the influence and relevance of folklore to narrative, her new book, genre fiction, and much more. We hope you enjoy the episode! Note: If you have iTunes and like this show, please give us a review on our iTunes page, or feel free to email us with your thoughts about the show! Here’s the episode (show notes are below): Episode 135 — Download (MP3) Intro and Discussion (0:00 – 1:24:40) Marie’s Website You can also support this podcast by signing up for a one month free trial at Audible. Doing so helps us, gives you a change to try out Audible’s service, and brings joy to everyone. Our new intro music is “Time Flux” by Revolution Void (CC BY 3.0). That’s all, folks! Thanks for listening. See you next week.
