Tag Archive for fantasy

A Foundational Fantasy Reading List

May 15, 2018 / Randy Henderson / No comments

I was recently asked for recommendations for “entry books to fantasy.”

Well, different people like different things of course, and there are many subgenres of fantasy so for this list to be of manageable size I will limit myself to the more classic second-world sword and magic type fantasy (and we will just assume Lord of the Rings is somewhere in there).

The list is also, naturally, limited by the books I’ve actually read (which may not be the books others have read).

I will start with a few modern fantasy series, then dig into the more classic series that I think are broadly popular and would form a pretty solid foundation in fantasy for a reader.

My recommendation would be to alternate between reading one of the modern fantasy series recommendations, then a classic series, then another modern series, etc.

RECENT FANTASY:

I will get into the most trouble here for omissions probably, but that is just because nobody can have read all the books that everyone else has read, and I can’t even remember all the books *I* have read and LIKED, there are just too many. And again, tastes vary, and I am not covering things like Urban Fantasy here. But off the top of my head:

The Fifth Season by NK Jemisin. An example of the best of what modern second-world fantasy can be.

Farseer: Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb. A great series for well-developed characters and emotional rollercoaster plots.

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. An Avatar Last Airbender/ Korra homage done right, that swaps in West African culture for the Asian culture and is deeply impactful in the world it depicts and the story it tells. I think this is a good example of how to make readers feel impacted by an issue you care about without it being preachy or an essay.

City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett. A nice break from McEuropean worldbuilding. Starts slow then you can’t stop turning the pages.

Category: Books and Ebooks, fantasy / Tags: books, fantasy, recommendations

FINN 3 BOOK BIRTHDAY!

March 7, 2017 / Randy Henderson / No comments

TODAY IS THE BOOK BIRTHDAY FOR BOOK 3: SMELLS LIKE FINN SPIRIT!!!

Logan says RUN to your bookstore and buy the Finn Fancy series! First day sales are a big deal.

Logan gets Finn Fancy!

Tor (US) Version Available for Purchase:

Amazon

University Bookstore (Seattle)

Powell’s (Portland)

Mysterious Galaxy (CA)

Tattered Cover (CO)

Barnes & Noble

Indiebound

And for UK readers, it is available at (among other booksellers):

Smells Like Finn Spirit at Amazon UK

Smells Like Finn Spirit at Waterstones (UK)

Smells Like Finn Spirit

Smells Like Finn Spirit – Tor Cover

Book Description:

Finn Gramaraye is back in the third installment of Randy Henderson’s Familia Arcana series, which began in Finn Fancy Necromancy, and Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free.

Finn’s re-adaptation to the human world is not going so well. He’s got a great girlfriend, and is figuring out how things like the internet work, but he is still carrying the disembodied personality of Alynon, Prince of the Silver Demesne, the fae who had occupied his body during his imprisonment. And he’s not getting along at all with his older brother. And oh, by the way, an enemy from his past is still trying to possess him in order to bring about Armageddon.

Read the First Three Chapters

Or add it to your library on Goodreads.

Book Details:

Hardcover: 448 pages
Publisher: Tor Books (March 7, 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0765378124
ISBN-13: 978-0765378125

Smells Like Finn Spirit UK Cover

Category: Books and Ebooks, fantasy, Finn Fancy, humor / Tags: books, fantasy, Finn Fancy, humor

And Book Makes Three!

February 17, 2017 / Randy Henderson / No comments

Squee! (Er, manly squee!).

I grew up reading trilogies. I grew up watching trilogies. I lived in trilogies, walked the lands of trilogies until I knew them better than my own neighborhood, lived many lives through trilogies, fought evil and triumphed in trilogies. I dreamed of writing a trilogy. It is surreal to have actually done so. And wonderful. But really, it doesn’t feel real. Yet there it is. Three books. That I can hold in my hands. With my name on them. It’s like I’m living in some bizarro alternate universe. And it is pretty dang cool.

And I love the UK versions from Titan as well!

Book 3 comes out in the US on March 7th, and I can’t wait for people to read it!

Category: Books and Ebooks, Finn Fancy, writing / Tags: books, fantasy, Finn Fancy, writing

Bigfootloose Paperback Release Day, and Finn Fancy Giveaway!

January 17, 2017 / Randy Henderson / One comment

Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free is now out in Trade Paperback! (links below)

Now is the perfect time to jump into the series if you have not already, with book 3 coming out in March to complete the trilogy arc.

In fact, Tor has re-posted the first three chapters to book 1 on the Fantastic Firsts online series if you want to check it out, and is also sponsoring a Goodreads Giveaway for book 1.

Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free

About Bigfootloose: In this sequel to Randy Henderson’s acclaimed debut novel, Finn Fancy Necromancy, Finn Gramaraye is settling back into the real world after his twenty-five-year-long imprisonment in the otherworld of the Fey. He’s fallen in love with a woman from his past, though he worries she may love a version of him that no longer exists. He’s proved his innocence of the original crime of Dark Necromancy, and he’s finding a place in the family business–operating a mortuary for the Arcane, managing the magical energies left behind when an Arcane being dies to prevent it from harming the mundane world.

But Finn wants more. Or different. Or something. He’s figured out how to use the Kinfinder device created by his half-mad father to find people’s True Love, and he’d like to convert that into an Arcane Dating Service. It’s a great idea. Everyone wants True Love! Unfortunately, trouble always seems to find Finn, and when he agrees to help his friend, the Bigfoot named Sal, they walk right into a Feyblood rebellion against the Arcane Ruling Council, a rebellion being fomented by unknown forces and fueled by the drug created by Finn’s own grandfather.

Links for Book 2: Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free:

Bigfootloose Trade PB on Amazon

Bigfootloose Trade PB at University Bookstore (Seattle)

Bigfootloose Trade PB at Powell’s (Portland)

Bigfootloose Trade PB at Mysterious Galaxy (CA)

Bigfootloose Trade PB at Tattered Cover (CO)

Bigfootloose Trade PB at Barnes & Noble

For UK readers, it remains available in paperback from Titan UK at:

Bigfootloose at Amazon UK

Bigfootloose at Waterstones (UK)

Links for Book 3: Smells Like Finn Spirit:

Smells Like Finn Spirit (Tor US) on Amazon

Smells Like Finn Spirit (Tor US) at University Bookstore (Seattle)

Smells Like Finn Spirit (Tor US) at Powell’s (Portland)

Smells Like Finn Spirit (Tor US) at Mysterious Galaxy (CA)

Smells Like Finn Spirit (Tor US) at Tattered Cover (CO)

Smells Like Finn Spirit (Tor US) at Barnes & Noble

And for UK readers, it is available at (among other booksellers):

Smells Like Finn Spirit at Amazon UK

Smells Like Finn Spirit at Waterstones (UK)

Category: Books and Ebooks, fantasy, Finn Fancy / Tags: books, fantasy, Finn Fancy

Where Are the Interactive Books We Were Promised?

January 12, 2017 / Randy Henderson / No comments

CYOA and Adventure Gamebooks

One of my big nerdjoy moments recently was when I found a virtual Choose your Own Adventure book while adventuring in Skyrim, titled Kolb and the Dragon.

And that got me remembering all the big predictions and promises at the dawn of ebooks and tablet computing about living, interactive books.

And that made me think of all the awesome IF games I used to enjoy, such as Zork and Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

And then I ran downstairs to our library and grabbed a handful of my “interactive” books, pictured above.

There are, of course, the classic CYOA books, like Space Vampire, and the awesome new breed of CYOA books, like the Choose-o-matic series from Matt Youngmark.

In fact, he did create one specifically intended to be easily played on your tablet or phone: U, Robot.

Some CYOA books, such as Wizards, Warriors and You, present an option in the story itself to choose between a set of characters, and then continue the adventure as the chosen character, increasing the variety of readings.

But there were also books that tried to take it even further, incorporating character stats and other RPG elements.

Category: Books and Ebooks, fantasy, video games / Tags: books, CYOA, fantasy, gaming, interactive fiction, video games

The Real 2016 Election Map

October 13, 2016 / Randy Henderson / No comments

I created this handy election map in case folks were trying to understand where we stand.

Polls show that much of the blue areas are due to Hobbit, High Elvish and Good Wizard influence, thus the movement to #unmakethe3rings that gave the elves and Gandalf power to influence the vote, and the push to send all Hobbits back to the Shire and build a wall around them.

Per Sauron, “It would be great. It wouldn’t even have to be a tall wall. Have you seen the Hobbits? Even smaller than those fat ugly dwarves. But believe me folks, there’s nothing small about me.”

Category: fantasy, humor, politics / Tags: election 2016, fantasy, humor, lord of the rings, politics

Why I Talked to Word Sluts at WorldCon

August 23, 2016 / Randy Henderson / One comment

I found myself in a number of conversations at WorldCon where persons were seeking my advice or thoughts on their writing, or seeking advice of a group in which I sat, and would say some variation on:

“People seem to have a problem with me calling it Warrior Wanda the Space Slut. But I mean slut in a positive or ironic way, because she is a powerful woman so she can have sex with whoever she likes.”

“I have a pretty graphic rape scene in my novel, but if I didn’t have it she wouldn’t have that motivation to get stronger from it and learn to fight that is so important in my story.”

These persons were clearly seeking someone to say, yes, that is okay.

And I engaged in these conversations in a calm, friendly, positive way.

Why?

Because I have the privilege to do so.

By this, I do not mean the honor, though really it is an honor to be asked my opinion on anything. Rather, I mean that had such questions been asked of someone who identifies as female, for example, such questions would have been understandably offensive and anger-inducing, and made the person feel unsafe, along with a host of other reactions.

I’m not saying I found the questions pleasant and encouraging, but I recognize that my con experience as a cis white male who presents as het is entirely different from that of anyone who is other than that.

So while I cringed internally, I did not walk away, or mock these persons then, or later with my friends. I gave them a clear but disgust-free expression of “Oooooo, I wouldn’t do that,” and proceeded to lay out in positive terms how they could improve their stories, and their chances of reaching a broader audience.

Here is an example of the types of thing I try to say in these cases, with the goal not being to score points or put him in his place, but to help guide the writer in the right direction where they will hopefully learn for themselves in time what cannot be forced into their understanding in a single argument (And to be clear, I am not in any way saying there are not other approaches, or that outright anger is in any way not a valid response for others to have):

Category: Conventions, diversity, Equality, fantasy, Personal, scifi, writing / Tags: conventions, fantasy, fantasy magazine, personal

Finn Fancy 3 Cover: Smells Like Finn Spirit!

May 31, 2016 / Randy Henderson / 2 comments

Two big bits of news for book 3, Smells Like Finn Spirit:

First off, revised Finn 3 has been officially delivered to my editor! And I am so proud of it. Of course, I’m biased, but honestly there are just so many parts I can’t wait for people to read — funny moments, emotional moments, fantastical moments, moments that made me tear up or laugh on my own re-read — and I think that’s a pretty good sign. It has more of the humor of Finn Fancy Necromancy, and expands on the world building of Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free, with some deep character moments I think reflect all I’ve learned as a writer while working on these books, and it completes a nice three book arc (with seeds for future books of course should Tor buy more). Not trying to sound braggy, or like I think so much of my skill or anything, I just am proud of what I created, and feeling pretty happy about being a writer right now.

And second, COVER REVEAL! Thanks to the awesome Peter Lutjen!

Category: fantasy, Finn Fancy, humor, writing / Tags: books, fantasy, Finn Fancy, humor, writing

The Fate of Grimdark the Grimdarian and the Rise of Shiny Fantasy

January 13, 2016 / Randy Henderson / No comments

Like most people I think, I read by both taste and mood. Sort of like how I eat. Or make lo — uh, make the food I eat.

While I enjoy dark fantasy and so-called “grimdark” (official term and sponsor of the 2000’s Stuff Nobody Agrees What the Official Term Should Be For-athon), it feels like heavy lifting to me, as it is often filled with a sense of hopelessness, of fear, of pain, etc. that, even when cut with the occasional moment of joy, can still feel draining to read (at least for me). I have to take my dark in small doses, like absinthe, or Carrot Top, or the awareness of my inevitable death.

Swallow My Darkness!!!

Don’t get me wrong. I think that Shakespeare guy has a real future with those crazy dark tragedies of his. And when done well, “grimdark” can be satisfying reading in the sense that you feel these complex and sometimes uncomfortable emotions evoked by the work, and feel rewarded for that heavy lifting. It also is able to explore deep and difficult themes and subjects in a more focused way than other fantasy, topics such as the darker side of human nature, moral ambiguity, torture, the origins of cruelty, etc.

In the words of that wise bard Trent Reznor, “I hurt myself today, to see if I still feel.”

Category: fantasy, writing / Tags: fantasy, Finn Fancy, writing