Browsing all articles by A. M. Justice.
The Dreaming Land by E. P. Clark – Series Review: Books I-III
I discovered E. P. Clark a couple years ago when I read (and loved) the first book in the Zemnian series, The Midnight Land. Set about a hundred years later, The Dreaming Land books provide a highly entertaining finish to this series set in a fantasy version of the Russian Empire, in which women hold […]
Fantasy-Faction Game of Thrones Discussion: Season 8, Episode 6 – “The Iron Throne”
*Spoilers*This is the final episode. Spoilers for the entire Game of Thrones series ahead! “The Iron Throne” is a fitting title for the finale of Game of Thrones. For the past eight years, we’ve watched the characters kill and die over this MacGuffin-seat, only to see the chair itself turned into molten slag during the […]
Fantasy-Faction Game of Thrones Discussion: Season 8, Episode 4 – “Last of the Starks”
It was the best of times and the worst of times in episode four last Sunday. The show opened with tear-jerking goodbyes and some sorely needed joy and relief from the long strife that has plagued the Seven Kingdoms. Unfortunately, it included one of the most poorly staged battles in the show’s history. Nevertheless, the […]
Fantasy-Faction Game of Thrones Discussion: Season 8, Episode 3 – “The Long Night”
*Spoilers* Watch through Season 8, Episode 3 before reading! Episode three of GoT’s final season made for a long night indeed. In my case, I had to catch up on episode two (which I had missed while away on vacation) as well as watch episode three, which was so exciting I logged into our discussion […]
Fantasy-Faction Game of Thrones Discussion: Season 8, Episode 1
*Spoilers* Watch through Season 8, Episode 1 before reading! In March I posted a poll in the Fantasy-Faction Facebook group asking people to name their all-time favorite fantasy serial (either TV or streaming). HBO’s Game of Thrones ran away with the number one spot, garnering almost twice as many votes as the number two series, […]
The Blighted City by Scott Kaelen
The Blighted City begins with a quest and ends with a beautiful contemplation of filial love, loyalty, duty, and grief in a story that blazes a trail out of standard epic fantasy into a really fresh, original science fantasy narrative. The novel starts with an engaging first chapter in which Maros, a retired mercenary and […]
Between the Shade and the Shadow by Coleman Alexander
Between the Shade and the Shadow has a haunting, fast paced narrative that kept me enchanted from beginning to end. A gripping coming-of-age story about a rebellious adolescent girl and her wolf companion, it’s Island of the Blue Dolphins meets The Golden Compass meets The Hunger Games, except in this case, the heroine isn’t human. […]
Wraith Knight and Wraith Lord by C. T. Phipps – Double Book Review
Spoiler Warning: This review contains spoilers for book one of the series. Please read with caution if you have yet to finish Wraith Knight. When Wraith Lord, the sequel to C. T. Phipps’ outstanding Wraith Knight, opens, protagonist Jacob Riverson has a few problems: 1. He has two wives, and they’re mad at each other. […]
El Ministerio del Tiempo (Ministry of Time) – TV Series Review
I am a sucker for costume dramas. If a show involves somebody wearing farthingales, I will give it a try, and I’ll usually hang in there even if it’s not that great. Usually on the stationary bike, I’ll pedal along, admiring fashions, upholstery, and candelabras. I’ve watched my share of mediocre historical dramas and fantasies, […]
Warriors by Erin Hunter – Series Review
When I hear my twelve-year-old weeping, I know one of two things is happening: a) she’s reached the climax of another Warriors book, or b) there’s been another tragic death in a Warriors book. This massive series has been my daughter’s singular book obsession for roughly a quarter of her life. She occasionally takes a […]
Temporal Anomalies: Timekeeping in Fantasy
Humans are OCD about time. We obsess over birthdays and anniversaries and are ruled by the work week. We live for the weekend and look forward to holidays with either joy or dread, depending on which relatives are coming over. We count the seconds until midnight on New Year’s, and we count the billions of […]
Great Fantasy Films From Yesteryear
Before I begin, as I wrote this title I thought, “How did the 1970s become yesteryear?” I have to keep reminding myself that there are adults out there—many of them friends—who were born two decades after my childhood years. So yes, Amanda, your own lifetime includes yesteryears and bygone eras. But let’s get to it. […]
