The Battle of Science and Magic – Part One: Particles and Pixie Dust
Victoria Hooper
For a long time we have separated magic and science, drawing a line between fantasy and science fiction, associating magic with the past – usually a pre-industrial society – and…
WOLFHOUND CENTURY – Intro & Free Extract
Overlord
Today we have an extract of a book that many fantasy fans have been keeping a close-eye on, Wolfhound Century. Those who have already received the book (mostly my fellow…
Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hearn
Steff Humm
Eastern settings have an exotic magic all of their own even without traditional fantasy elements. From the title and beautiful Japanese-style cover art alone (variants of which can be found…
The Hounds of the Morrigan by Pat O’Shea
Hierath
A hambone is sweet, but a pot of jam is the supreme comforter… Mythology Thirteen years in the writing, The Hounds of the Morrigan was finally published in 1985, one…
Ack-Ack Macaque by Gareth L. Powell
Alister Davison
Let’s start with the blurb. In 1944, Britain’s best hopes for victory lie with a Spitfire pilot codenamed ‘Ack-Ack Macaque’. The trouble is, Ack-Ack is a cynical, one-eyed, cigar-chomping monkey,…
The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson: Cover Reveal
The Rithmatist is one of Brandon Sanderson’s debut novels for the young-adult audience. Sanderson’s no stranger to experimentation with genres. In the past couple of years he has done traditional,…
The Art of Conflict
Sandra Norval
It was raining. Not just ordinary rain but the horizontal type where the wind just drives it into your face and your eyes sting with the salty grittiness of it.…
Tuf Voyaging by George R. R. Martin
Ryan Howse
George R. R. Martin is best known for his high fantasy epic, A Song of Ice and Fire. Yet he is an endlessly inventive writer, and long before ASOIAF, he…
The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde
Liz Fellshot Ambrose
I’ve had people tell me that I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. While I understand (and agree with) the metaphor as it applies to people, I think that…
Brandon Sanderson Video Interview
When you talk about mainstream fantasy, one of the first names you have to mention is Brandon Sanderson. Making his debut with the interesting Elantris in 2005, before going on…
Magic In Fantasy – Part Two: Real Magic
Leo Elijah Cristea
This is the second in our Magic In Fantasy series. If you missed part one you can read it here. First off, shall we—cynic, dreamer and scholar alike—agree, for at…
Robin Hobb Spotlight
Jacob Topp-Mugglestone
With her latest release – The Inheritance, a volume of short stories – Robin Hobb has definitely earned her place among secondary world fantasy’s most prolific authors. Although a pseudonym,…