Browsing all articles tagged with Marie Brennan.
Tough Travels: Dragons
At the start of every month, Fantasy-Faction will lead you (yes, YOU!) on a tour of the fantasy genre. From high to low, from classics to new releases, from epic to urban; each month, we will guide you in search of a different trope, theme or cliché. Lest we become lost, we’ll be referring to […]
Within the Sanctuary of Wings by Marie Brennan


The fifth – and final – of Lady Trent’s memoirs is a difficult beast to review without lurching firmly into spoiler territory, both for the preceding books and for the plot of this one. So, in order to set the scene for this review, the next paragraph will contain brief spoilers from the previous entry. […]
In the Labyrinth of Drakes by Marie Brennan


The fourth book of an ongoing series is a troublesome prospect. Stagnation and repetition are potential pitfalls, and there is no doubt that Marie Brennan totters on a precarious ledge at times during In the Labyrinth of Drakes. Isabella, not-quite-yet Lady Trent, certainly has to deal with many of the recurring themes from the first […]
The Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan


When writing memoirs, or indeed anything, it seems essential to cluster events thematically, throwing away all the boring bits in the process (such as laundry and visits to the bathroom) to tighten the story into something resembling a plot. The first two volumes of Isabella Lady Trent’s fictional life story, A Natural History of Dragons […]
The Tropic of Serpents by Marie Brennan


Society doesn’t look kindly on women who want to expand the world’s knowledge of dragons through scientific study, scandalous affiliations and hazardous adventures across the globe but, as we well know by now, Isabella, Lady Trent cares not a whit for society’s glances or approval. The Tropic of Serpents is the second volume of fictional […]
A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan


A Natural History of Dragons is exactly what it sounds like. A memoir written by a Victorian naturalist who has an obsession with dragons and embarks on an adventure to be on of the first to study them. What follows is a half travelogue, half whodunnit book that was fun every step of the way. […]
Women to Watch Out For in 2013
The blog post listing the most anticipated fantasy books of 2013 got a bit of negative attention because of the complete absence of women from the top ten. I thought I would lend a hand by listing a few 2013 books by women that people might find interesting. Of course any such list does depend […]