Interview: Lee Modesitt, Jr joins Michael and Michael to discuss Viewpoints Critical, his long overdue collection of short stories, about his prolific writing output over the years, and everything in between.
fantasy
Cover to Cover #308A: Tracy Hickman
Interview: Michael and Michael are bored because Summer isn’t around. So they decided to call up Tracy Hickman and cause a ruckus.
“The Lost Chronicles” is the final series in the vast expanse that is the Dragonlance sequence that Tracy is writing with Margaret Weis.
Cover to Cover #304A: James A. Owen
Interview: Illustrator and author James A. Owen joins us in studio, in the midst of his school and library tour to talk about The Search for the Red Dragon, the second book in the “Imaginarium Geographica” series.
The stories and the artwork in this series are wonderful, with the grand scope of history, geography, literature and mythology that are intertwined. Now, combine this with the 7-book “Mythworld” series that will eventually tie into the 7-book “Imaginarium” series, plus a tie-in with the “Starchild” graphic novels, and you’ve got a truly rich world that needs it’s own book of footnotes just to keep track of all of the references.
Review: “A Companion to Wolves” by Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear
Now this was a surprise. Here is one of those rare books not produced as a precursor to a series.
This is not to say that the land Monette and Bear have created couldn’t support multiple visits. It is merely to say that they have constructed a tale that is complete and unconcerned with possibilities and marketing strategies beyond its own ken.
Review: “The Awakened Mage” by Karen Miller
Okay, okay, so Asher really is the Innocent Mage. No devastating, unexpected twists, despite the possibility. But just because Asher is the mage of prophecy, the Olken who can wield his own magic as well as Doranen magic, does not mean he has to like it. And it does not mean that he has to answer the call that prophecy has made.
Review: “The Innocent Mage” by Karen Miller
The quick summary to The Innocent Mage sounds shockingly cookie-cutter. A farmer fisherman of low birth, from a rural part of Middle Earth the kingdom of Lur has a destiny. And his destiny is to save the kingdom and all its inhabitants from the Great and Looming Evil that no one knows is coming, save a chosen few who have seen the signs. How this is going to happen no one, least of all the hero, has any idea.
Cover to Cover #299A: David Keck
Interview: Mike M and Summer talk with David Keck about In A Time of Treason, the anticipated sequel to In the Eye of Heaven. Discussing the setting of faux-medieval fantasy, delving into the process of writing and publishing sequels, and writing despite the life that’s happening around you, we chat about making stories where the world feels lived in, and the reader connects with both the smaller and the larger scopes of the story at the same time.
Review: “Swimming Without a Net” by MaryJanice Davidson
My initial attraction to this book was simply this: human male and mermaid female? How is that going to work? From a biological perspective, you see. Not just the scales, but, you know. How?
Review: “Queen of Dragons” by Shana Abé
If you want to read a book about dragons that can change into a human form or disappear into smoke, read this book. If you want to read a romance where the woman and man are both strong leading characters, read this book. I loved this book and can’t wait to find out what happens next. And I’ll have to go back and find The Smoke Thief and The Dream Thief, the previous books in this series.
Review: “Queen Ferris” by S. C. Butler
The second book in S. C. Butler’s Stoneways Trilogy continues where Reiffen’s Choice ends. The story spans more than seven years beginning with Reiffen’s return to the Three magical instruction. This book focuses equally on the growth of Reiffen, Ferris and Avender to good effect.
Guest Review: “The Princes of the Golden Cage” by Nathalie Mallet
The Princes of the Golden Cage is a rewarding read for anyone with a taste for historically based fantasy, a supernatural mystery or just a fondness for charmingly flawed, heroic characters struggling to find their way in life. It is suitable for readers of any age sophisticated enough to understand the historical setting and young enough at heart to enjoy evil genies and a bit of sword play.
Review: “The Princes of the Golden Cage” by Nathalie Mallet
The Princes of the Golden Cage is a good little read. It’s not an uber mystery and it’s not an epic fantasy but it’s a nice amalgam of both. After the story gets moving along there are some interesting twists and turns with some not so typical resolutions. There are a nice variety of characters and the settings are gorgeous in my mind’s eye.
Cover to Cover #292A: Terry Goodkind
Interview: Michael, Summer, Michael and Brian talk with Terry Goodkind about Confessor, the third book in the Chainfire trilogy which also concludes the 11-volume epic “Sword of Truth” series.
Terry shares his thoughts on crafting a story that’s taken 11 years to finish, and how the overarching story is concluded with all of the pieces from the previous books coming together finally.
Review: “Magic Study” by Maria V. Snyder
Poison Study was the first book in a long time that I read in a single sitting. Magic Study is the second. It was everything I wanted from a sequel.
Review: “Poison Study” by Maria V. Snyder
Enraptured. I cannot remember the last time I read an entire book in one sitting. I could not, did not, put it down.
Yelena is everything you could ask for in a heroine: courageous, clever, resourceful, vulnerable, and strong. From the outset, her situation is dire. She is given a poison that will kill her if she does not return for her daily antidote. And even if she doesn’t, she may simply die from doing her job well.
