This month I’m recommending a Young Adult novel which is set in a world based on Eastern and Central Asia but which uses elements from European folklore. Spin The Dawn (2021) by Chinese-American author and composer, Elizabeth Lim, is the first in a two volume story known as The Blood of the Stars. The second… Continue reading
I tried very hard to resist T J Klune’s best-selling feel-good Fantasy The House in the Cerulean Sea (2020) but I failed so here it is as this month’s recommendation. The novel is easy to find in paperback, with charming cover-art, or as an ebook. I think that this is a story particularly suited to… Continue reading
My recommended read this month is Dragonsbane (1985) by the versatile American author Barbara Hambly. In some ways this is a very traditional Fantasy novel populated by heroes, dragons, witches and gnomes; in others it is still ahead of its time. Dragonsbane can be enjoyed as a stand-alone story but there have been three sequels… Continue reading
For the second month running I’m recommending a story with a feline central character but the two books couldn’t be more different. Inges was a long baroque novel set in a dark and violent period of British history. The Cat Who Saved Books (2017) by Sosuke Natsukawa is short, delicate and set in modern Japan.… Continue reading
For this month’s recommendation I’m sticking with Historical Fantasy but Inges (2021) by British author John Brunsdon is set in a very different era from last month’s Regency Fantasy. A subtitle describes this novel as A Jacobean Tragedy of Murder Witchcraft Revenge and Cats and the title character is an imp in feline form. Already… Continue reading
Regency Romance with added magic is now a popular sub-genre of Fantasy Fiction but such books are not all the same. As a contrast to last month’s choice of the charming and funny Teacup Magic novellas, I’m now recommending the first in Canadian author, Olivia Atwater’s dark and distinctive Regency Faerie Tales series. Half a… Continue reading
The Omicron Variant sounds like a trashy SF film but since it happens to be real, 2022 is getting off to a rather dismal start. Cheering people up is still the priority so I’ve decided to recommend something light and funny. My current top pick for entertainment value is Australian author Tansy Rayner Roberts’ Teacup… Continue reading
Every December I like to recommend a Children’s Classic. With a new kitten in the house, the obvious choice seems to be Paul Gallico’s Jennie. This is the story of a boy who is transformed into a cat and adopted by a streetwise older cat called Jennie. First published in 1950 I don’t think Jennie… Continue reading
Every December I like to recommend a Children’s Classic. With a new kitten in the house, the obvious choice seems to be Paul Gallico’s Jennie. This is the story of a boy who is transformed into a cat and adopted by a streetwise older cat called Jennie. First published in 1950 I don’t think Jennie… Continue reading
After last month’s ghost stories I’m continuing the afterlife theme by recommending The Library of the Unwritten by American author A.J. Hackwith. This novel opens in an area of Hell known as the Unwritten Wing and takes its characters on a journey through the afterlife worlds of several ancient religions. The Library of the Unwritten… Continue reading