They’re taking the hobbits to Isengard..
28 August 2014
Filed under Uncategorized
Tags: Fantasy Review Barn, Tough Travelling, Towers
This week Nathan from the Fantasy Review Barn is taking us travelling through the tropes of fantasy and focusing on towers:
‘TOWERS stand alone in waste areas and almost always belong to Wizards. All are several storeys high, round, doorless, virtually windowless, and composed of smooth blocks of masonry that make them very hard to climb.’
Surprisingly I found this more difficult than I thought! I’ll start off by chucking in Rapunzel – no doors so it counts – and it belongs to a witch.
This is a cheat – The Once and Future King by T H White – in which Merlin is banished to a remote and crumbly tower in Sir Ector’s castle. This is only a cheat because I never finished the book – not because I wasn’t enjoying it but because it was a library book and I had to return it – I just need to go and get it out again!! Duh…
The Tower of Raven’s Reach – the setting of the grande finale from Scott Lynch’s Lies of Locke Lamora. No witches or wizards and there are doors into the place – but it’s a very tall tower! In fact I seem to remember the lovely Locke suffering from a fear of heights at one point! Plus there are the Glass Towers where all the elite live. Not really any magical connections though…so, grasping at straws at all!
The Two Towers – LoTR by Tolkien – if you chuck a stick anywhere in middle earth you pretty much hit a tower – this is definitely a bona fide entry – however it’s a very easy and rather obvious one. Still, never miss an opportunity to get Lord of the Rings on a list seems to be my motto and therefore it would be folly not to include this!
Two cheats – although I do own both books I haven’t read them so I’m assuming that there are towers involved because it says so in the title!:
The Tower Lord by Anthony Ryan
The Dark Towers by Stephen King
And, finally – thinking outside the box…
Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer – this is a bit of a twisted one really – four explorers are sent to explore zone ‘x’. They find a circular staircase that goes down into the ground – for some reason throughout this is called a tower – given that this isn’t really a tower I could also mention that there is a lighthouse in area x – which also plays a very prominent part?? Trying to think along different lines here – not quite sure it’s working out for me though! Anyway, much creepiness – stay away from area x is my general advice ! – although do read the book I hasten to add.
Tough Travelling to the rescue…
Every Thursday Nathan at the Fantasy Review Barn takes us travelling through the tropes of Fantasy. This is a really fun weekly event and all are welcome. This weeks topic is SAVING THE WORLD
SAVING THE WORLD is something many Tours require you to do. You have to defeat the DARK LORD or WIZARDS who are trying to enslave everyone.
‘That is right, we are upping the stakes. I don’t want to see any personal journeys, or tight political thrillers. Next week it is all about emanate destruction. If the world isn’t about to end, or at least going to change in horrible ways for EVERYONE in it, save it for another time.’
I am Legend by Richard Matheson which is one of the first novels to deal with worldwide apocalypse brought about by disease. Robert Neville is a survivor. He goes out every day trying to eliminate those who have become the threat. At the end of the day though – who is the monster?? Threat: virus
Black Feathers by Joseph D’Lacey – a book that deals with environmental impact on a massive scale. Destruction and the resultant aftermath. Plus the rise of a new ‘messiah’ type character. Threat: environmental
Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham. Following a meteor shower the vast majority of the population are left blind allowing a particularly aggressive plant to attack people across the world. Another apocalyptic book based on a different threat than virus. Threat: alien/plant life
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams – following the comic adventures of Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect as they flit through space. This is a tenuous link based on the start of the book where a Vogun Constructor Fleet blows up the planet earth in order to make way for a new expressway. Read it and laugh. Threat: Alien/planet destruction.
Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey – the main threat to the world of Pern comes in the form of spores called threads which consume at a voracious rate. The story is a combination of sci fi and fantasy. Combining time travel, dragons and imminent threat to the planet. Threat: plant life/spores
Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess…
31 July 2014
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Fantasy Review Barn, Princesses, Tough Travelling
It’s Thursday again which means we’re off travelling through the tropes of fantasy with Nathan from the Fantasy Review Barn. This week we’re taking a look at Princesses:
PRINCESSES come in two main kinds:
1. Wimps.
2 Spirited and wilful. Spirited Princesses often disguise themselves as boys and invariably marry commoners of sterling worth.
My contributions this week below – and don’t forget to check out the other participants – there are usually some pretty good books floating around this event that you might just want to add to your tbr – another one couldn’t hurt – you know you want to!
Princess Miana – King of Thorns by Mark Lawrence. Married to Jorg at the tender age of 13 – don’t let her age deceive you. This young lady is no shrinking violet. She has been raised a Princess and she certainly acts like it! She can give Jorg a run for his money.
Princess Aisha – Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff. Sister to the Shogun – her initial introduction to the story makes her look like a spoiled and pampered princess with long lacquered fingernails, fancy clothes and ladies in waiting. In truth she is far from this initial impression and for me I would have appreciated the role being developed more. Stormdancer – Japanese steampunk and griffins – oh yes! Plus – look at the gorgeous cover!
Princess Eowyn – this is a slight cheat as I’m not totally sure that Eowyn was a princess. Anyway, it’s LoTR so it has to have an obligatory mention. Eowyn is the niece of King Theoden. She dressed as a man in order to ride with the Riders of Rohan and take part in the battle of Pelennor Fields. She played rather a crucial role as it happens. Suffering the slimy interest of Grima Wormtongue and brought low by the unrequited love of Aragorn – hey lady, take a ticket and join the queue!
Princess Clarice – The House of the Four Winds by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory. Clarice dresses as a young man in order to experience travels on her quest to become a master swords woman! Having 11 other sisters requires that all these princesses can hold their own. They’re sent into the wild world to learn a trade. High seas adventures with pirates and sea monsters. Much fun.
Princess Daenerys Targaryen – Game of Thrones by GRRM – no introduction really needed here methinks. And, she has three dragons!!!!
That’s it for this week – stopping at five – but I would like to give mentions to Princess Buttercup – can’t miss an opp to throw in the Princess Bride and also Sarah Pinborough’s fairytale retellings Poison/Charm/Beauty – twisted retellings I might add. Cinderella, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty like you’ve never seen them before!
‘Death is only the beginning’
3 July 2014
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Fantasy Review Barn, Tough Guide to Fantasy, Tough Travelling
Every Thursday The Fantasy Review Barn takes us through various fantasy tropes where we get to display our favourite books with that particular week’s theme. This week at tough travel we’re looking at necromancy
‘NECROMANCY is, in Fantasyland, the art of raising the dead and you need a specialized MAGIC USER to do it.’
As I’ve just read this book – Deadbeat by Jim Butcher. In this particular edition necromancy is running rife – in fact it’s fairly central to the plot and dark magic is needed to bring back the dead. There is a very funny scene where Harry practices his own dark magic!
Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs – I can’t remember the first story that we meet the Vampire called William Frost – who is also a necromancer. Let’s say that Frost is a particularly nasty piece of work and in Frost Burned there’s going to be a showdown!
Chella from the Broken Empire series by Mark Lawrence. This is necromancy on a massive scale – an army of the undead no less! And the King of the Dead has plans…
Sauron from Lord of the Rings – also known as The Necromancer of Dol Guldur – I actually thought LoTR wouldn’t make it this week – but then I couldn’t resist! I’m sure I need say no more!
Tough Travel Guide – Minions!!!
26 June 2014
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Fantasy Review Barn, Tough Guide to Fantasy
Every Thursday The Fantasy Review Barn takes us through various fantasy tropes where we get to display our favourite books with this week’s theme. Today is minions (not these little yellow guys) –
So, I’ve been trying to deny it but I simply can’t leave off The Lord of the Rings this week:
Grima Wormtongue. He definitely fits this description. Working for Saraman he infiltrates King Theoden’s court where he acts as a spy and insinuates himself into the King’s life. He has his eye on Eowyn – which – just eugh!
Orcs – they seem to be pretty minion-y – ruled by either Sauron or Saraman. They’re not a particularly brave bunch, and to be honest they need to floss and moisturise a little bit more, but, they have the whole safety in numbers thing nailed. There’s a bloody lot of them! I simply had to have a trip to Middle Earth this week. It would be unforgivable, positively scandalous, not to mention Tolkien in a discussion about minions!
The Narnia minions who serve The White Witch in CS Lewis’s The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. This woman knows how to gather a diverse flock of minions including: lude wolves, Dwarves, Giants, Werewolves, tree spirits, ghouls, boggles and ogres to name but a few! Below is the dwarf who serves her, he is unnamed in the book.
Justine, girlfriend to Thomas in Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files. She’s a bit of a Renfield character – in thrall to Thomas who feeds off her emotions effectively draining her of life little by little. She adores him so much that she will risk herself again and again. And again.
The Kandra from Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn series, They are used as spies as they can mimic any person – they have to, injest the body to do so. They do not however kill. Their services can be bought but ultimately they are the Lord Ruler’s creation.
That is it for me – not a lot that’s original this week!! Stop over to the Fantasy Review Barn and check out the other posts.
Books and travelling with Lynn 