Sneak Peek of Books. Fantasy. Fandom.

Fun news, guys! Ashley Nixon and I are starting a book review and reading blog! You may have seen the hints on Write Me A World already. While we both love (and will continue) our writing blogs, we also wanted a site where we could fan out as readers. And we figured you might too!

The result is Books. Fantasy. Fandom. Or, BFF for those who like clever acronyms.

On the site, you’ll find:

• Weekly reviews of fantasy books across all ages
• Friday Fandom posts about our favorite fandoms on the large and small screen
• Q&As with authors like Kate Elliott, KA Stewart and more
• Categories and tags that help you find reviews in our archives (even tricky finds like “YA for boys”)
• Our review policy in case you’ve got something you think we’d love!

As you can probably tell by the number of exclamation points, we’re really excited about BFF and hope you are too!! In fact, we hope you’re so excited you’ll spread the word and stop by to enjoy. We can’t wait to share our favorite books and new reads with you!

If you have questions, salutations or are interested in a guest post, email us at booksfantasyfandom[at]gmail[dot]com.

Happy reading!

The Eyes Have It...Or Do They?

© Socrates | Dreamstime Stock Photos

If you're anything like me, you've watched your share of gut-punchingly emotional scenes in movies or TV shows where the characters seem to say EVERYTHING with their eyes.

No words.

No actions.

Just the subtle play of their eyes in that split second to capture what they feel: heartbreak, hope, fear, disappointment, anger, love.

Even in our daily lives, the eyes tell a story of someone's moods, thoughts, and reactions. Talented actors and actresses can convey even more. (The 100's Bellamy Blake seems to have a corner on the expressive eye emotion market.)

So, if you're FURTHER like me, you watch these great scenes and think, "That! That right there is what I want to capture in my novel."

And here's where those eyes begin to lead us astray. The danger is that, while eyes can be a powerful nonverbal cue on-screen, readers can't actually SEE them on the page. We end up describing the eyes (telling) rather than the emotion itself (showing). All that great potential too often fizzles in feeble phrases like "He looked..." or "Her eyes widened."

This last one is a good example of the limitations. While "eyes widened" is a nice lead-in phrase, what does it actually tell us? People's eyes can widen in surprise, in hurt, in fear. Which one is your character facing?

On TV, we naturally intuit the answer from tiny clues. A frightened eye looks different than a surprised eye. But those are nearly impossible to communicate on page via eyes alone. In order for it to have meaning, we need to take it deeper and that can be danger-ground for telling.

But it doesn't have to be. Instead of letting the eyes do all the work, opt for other supports and alternatives that pack more punch on page:

• Facial expressions and movement - What does your character do with her eyebrows, forehead, lips, nose, chin that helps convey what she's feeling?
• Action - Make your character DO something. Even a subtle shiver or the clenching of a hand can speak volumes. Action is doubly effective for emotion, because it can be seen, and sometimes felt, by both the POV character and any other characters in the scene with him.
• Internalized actions - Showing action doesn't mean your character needs to physically move. Throats can tighten, stomachs can turn cold, spines can stiffen.
• Inner dialogue or thoughts - A character can't see her OWN eyes to describe emotion, so unless you're writing omniscient, sprinkle in some thoughts to give us a peek at her internal reaction.
• Dialogue - This is your best bang-for-the-buck at conveying emotion and advancing the story. Dialogue on the page is what eyes are on-screen. Readers intuit the tone, subtle undercurrents, and what's left unsaid as much as what your characters discuss aloud.

Now, go forth and make us weep!

CUTLASS: Pirate Sails & Fan-worthy Tales

Everyone sufficiently recovered from A-to-Z? Good, because I've got a fun read for you guys today with Ashley Nixon's CUTLASS. Those of you who don't know Ashley, check out her blog. She's got funny, heartwarming posts about writing and life.

Synopsis:

Notorious pirate Barren Reed has one thing on his mind: Revenge against the man who killed his father. So kidnapping his enemy’s fiancée seems a perfect plan…until he actually does it.

Larkin Lee is more than a pretty face and fiancée to a powerful man. Her fierce personality is enough to make any pirate want to push her overboard.

But when the King of the Orient comes to Barren with a task—to find the Bloodstone, a powerful gem thought only to exist in legend, Barren sees another opportunity to destroy his enemy. Together, Barren, Larkin and a crew of pirates set off to find the stone, only to discover it caused the death of Barren’s own mother and Larkin’s, too. As his  strongest allies turn into his greatest enemies, and the life of the girl he kidnapped becomes more important than he ever dreamed, Barren’s quest for revenge becomes a fight to save the Orient.

My Thoughts:
When Ashley Nixon first began talking about her debut novel, CUTLASS, I knew it’d be right up my alley. Tall ships! Pirates! Swords! Magic! I’d have been excited about any one of those elements—put them all together and that book’s definitely finding a place on my shelf.

CUTLASS didn’t disappoint. It’s a rollicking, adventurous tale, centered around young pirate extraordinaire Barren Reed and his kidnappee (aka daughter of an important lord, aka his brother’s fiancée, aka his eventual love interest-of course!) Larkin Lee. I liked the dynamic between Barren and Larkin a lot. It’s sweet, yet challenging. I always enjoy reading about couples who push each other, who become better together than they are apart. You can see the beginnings of that type of relationship in CUTLASS. Barren and Larkin are both outspoken, which also led to fun snarky exchanges like this one:

          Barren: “And how can I trust that you won’t tell the entire population who I am?”

          Larkin raised a brow and smirked. “You gave me a sword,” she said.

Gotta love a lady with a sword!

Nixon also builds a colorful and believable cast of secondary characters, including my favorite, Leaf. His background as an Elfin-lord-turned-pirate was interesting in itself, but what I liked most was how he acted as Barren’s conscience and moral compass through much of the book. The two of them have a deep rock-solid friendship, even though they’re very different.

The world of CUTLASS is well-developed and, though I wished we could spend a little more time in each location, Nixon does a nice job describing the various ports. I am a sucker for tall ships (they’re the main setting in my first book), so I really loved passages like this:

Barren stood on the dock, staring at the ship. It was a beautiful creation—intricate in its woodwork with detailed spirals carved along the rail, awash in gold. The cabin and main hold were all lined in ebony wood, which caused the white sails to stand out like stars against the night. In contrast to the black, the hull of the ship was a rich rosewood. It was unbelievably fancy, and Barren almost mourned what would become of it on this journey.

Makes you want to be out on the open deck with the spray in your face, right?!

I found the plot enjoyable too, with a couple key twists to keep readers guessing. It was neat to see how Nixon wove magic into the pirate world, and I really liked the history behind that pivotal part of the story. Overall, there were places I wanted the book to delve a little deeper, but I’m excited to see where this story and this author take us next! 

Purchase:

Paperback

Kindle

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AUTHOR BIO

Ashley was born and raised in Oklahoma, where the wind really does sweep down the plains, and horses and carriages aren’t used as much as she’d like. When she’s not writing, she’s hard at work on her Master’s degree in Library Science and Information Technology, working out, or pretending she’s Sherlock Holmes. Her obsession with writing began after reading the Lord of the Rings in the eighth grade. Since then, she’s loved everything Fantasy–resulting in an unhealthy obsession with the ‘geek’ tab on Pinterest, where all things awesome go.

Catch up with Ashley:

Twitter

Goodreads (CUTLASS page)

Facebook

Website

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Scarlet Review: No, NOT the Cinder/Red Riding Hood Scarlet

I first saw this book at Marie Landry's blog as part of a read-along and immediately knew I MUST get my hands on it. Why did I love it so, you might ask? Let me count the ways:


Get it here!

• First of all, the cover. Can I even explain how perfect it is? Do you see it there? It is gorgeous! Right down to the details of her eyes and her scar.
• Secondly, I'm a sucker for all things Robin Hood, and my cousin and I have had an ongoing inside joke about Will Scarlet for years. I think I'd had the book all of five minutes before texting her a pic of the cover: How awesome is this? Will Scarlet is a girl! And she looks badass! It's next on my list to read.
• I'm a huge fan of plucky female characters who can handle themselves with weapons. Enter, Scarlet! A.C Gaughen writes her beautifully. Tough, tender, scrappy and stalwart. She's such a fun character to hang out with, and I loved watching her get into (and out of) trouble.
• I'm a character author through-and-through, and characters are the biggest reason I fall in love with books. Every single character here shines. From Rob to John to Tuck to Gisbourne, Gaughen keeps them fresh and real while staying true to the time period and giving a nod to tradition. You can tell she truly loves the Robin Hood legends. This isn't written from a new perspective simply for a twist; everything fits into place and still honors the overall narrative. I cannot tell you how much I love and admire that decision on her part as an author.
• Scar's dialogue. Think Huck Finn meets gritty streets of London. I fell in love with it from page 1, and it added immensely to Scar's character. Such a delight! It made me laugh (and almost cry) multiple times. It never felt heavy-handed, and when it does change, it does so with purpose. Honestly, everyone's dialogue is pretty stellar throughout.
• Gaughen's attention to detail. This book is the rare combination of a wonderful, heartfelt retelling and an author who has mastered her craft to make it sing. There are so many great subtle lines or plot points, and scenes that are so poignant about life's truths without stalling the action. That takes skill, and it was a sheer joy to read. 

 

A.C. Gaughen is a writer I immediately and deeply respect. She does so many things right in this book. She gives us fantastic, vibrant characters and a frankly awesome plot, and does so in a way that leaves a lasting impression and leaves us a little better for having read it. I am counting down the days until the sequel releases next February.

 

Are you?

 



My ‘Poison’ of Choice

I bought Poison a few months ago after reading about Bridget Zinn’s story in the blogosphere. Her situation is enough to tug at the heartstrings of any author, so I was absolutely delighted when I fell head-over-heels for Poison!

Get it here!

Kyra is the kingdom’s best potions master, but she’s also on the run after a failed assassination attempt on the princess…who happens to be her best friend. Throw in a charming vagabond and a piglet who puts tracking dogs to shame, and you’ve got one heck of a fun cast.

Kyra is a plucky heroine – my favorite kind! Her actions and dialogue are believable and often funny. She starts out as a tough, go-it-alone skeptic, and I especially love how Zinn’s plot helps her change by book’s end. She’s one of those wonderful, dynamic characters who seem like they could walk off the page.

The supporting characters are also great! I liked Fred from the beginning – he was sort of like Tristan from Stardust meets Flynn from Tangled. His carefree attitude made a nice match for Kyra’s tenacity. And then there’s Ariana, the princess and Kyra’s friend. I didn’t like her at all when she was introduced. I pictured her as spoiled, a little sickly and basically a whiner…boy, was it a joy to be proven wrong. She ended up being the character who made me laugh most!

Throughout, Zinn strikes the perfect balance of tension and playfulness. If you’re in the mood for a rollicking adventure with lots of heart, Poison is a sure bet!

And if you need more convincing, the back cover alone is priceless.

P.S. The last paragraph of Peggy's blog post (see link above) explains what Bridget hoped to do for her readers. She wanted to make people laugh and hoped readers would enjoy spending time with the characters she created, and she really wanted to write a book with pockets of warmth and happiness. I just want to let you all know she accomplished that mission. Hats off to you, Bridget. Hats off!

 

Week #3 Giveaway Winner

And the winner from last week's comments is Cherie Reich!! Congrats! Send me an email to let me know which prize you prefer.

And, don't forget, the giveaways go on all month. Get the details here.

Book Review: Name of the Wind

I have to admit I’m lukewarm on this book. In many ways, there’s a lot of talent in these pages. At certain points, I caught glimpses of Rothfuss’ skill – I cared for the characters, I was intrigued by the plot, the dialogue had a nice twist.

Unfortunately, those elements rarely felt like they were all working together for me. I struggled with how to put my finger on it, and I think it comes down to this: The story is a fantastic concept. I simply would have told it in a different way.

Name of the Wind is told in multiple layers, stories within a story.  At times, this worked really well for me. Others, not so much.

Layer 1: Real Time
These were some of my favorite scenes. I actually wished we got more time with these. In my opinion, Bast is the most intriguing character in the entire book. There’s so much left unsaid in these snippets, it drives a lot of emotion and mystery. There is one scene, where Kvothe is alone, reacting to a painful memory – it's one of the most touching moments in the book.

Layer 2: Flashbacks to Kvothe’s life
The best part of these, by far, was any scene involving his music. That’s where the character shines…otherwise, he’s kind of obnoxious and the pacing is a little off.

Layer 3: Storytelling in the Flashbacks
At various points, secondary characters break out into extended storytelling mode, relating the myths and legends of Rothfuss’ world. I actually loved these sections! They felt like mini stories in themselves, and often hung together better than other aspects of the overall book. They had rhythm, emotion and power that pulled me in.


Though I didn’t connect with the book completely, I will probably eventually finish the trilogy because I’m curious to see where Kvothe’s story goes.