Book #54 of 2021: Amari and the Night Brothers by B. B. Alston (Supernatural Investigations #1) Harry Potter comparisons can be a tad reductive and overdone, but that really is the vibe of this middle-grade adventure from debut author B. B. Alston, with a tween hero’s introduction to a hidden society of strange creatures and …
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Book #52 of 2021: A Man Rides Through by Stephen R. Donaldson (Mordant’s Need #2) This 1987 sequel is a significant step up in pacing and action from its already-great predecessor, but it exhibits the same disappointing levels of sexism, torture, and rape, which are not always treated with the care that such sensitive topics …
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Book #45 of 2021: Infinity Blade: Awakening by Brandon Sanderson This 2011 media tie-in novella is an odd curiosity, even with author Brandon Sanderson bringing his usual talents to the task. It takes place in-between two mobile games to apparently bridge their stories together, and I imagine it would read better for an audience familiar …
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Book #43 of 2021: Snuff by Terry Pratchett (Discworld #39) Another fine comic adventure, but not quite up to author Terry Pratchett’s best work, which makes it all the more regrettable that this is where we leave the stalwart Commander Sam Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. The writer finished just one or two further …
Book #41 of 2021: The Mirror of Her Dreams by Stephen R. Donaldson (Mordant’s Need #1) As with many of author Stephen R. Donaldson’s works, I have some complicated feelings towards the Mordant’s Need duology, and especially this first volume. In terms of worldbuilding and atmosphere, the story is top-notch. The mirror-based magical system is …
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Book #36 of 2021: Over the Woodward Wall by A. Deborah Baker (The Up-and-Under #1) This is a cute children’s fantasy adventure, sort of like a cross between The Phantom Tollbooth and L. Frank Baum’s classic Oz series. It’s also a bit metatextual, as “A. Deborah Baker” is a pen name for the real author …
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Book #35 of 2021: The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones It’s always neat to see a fantasy story built on Welsh mythology, but the plot to this one is a slower and pretty generic quest narrative, and I haven’t quite found the protagonists interesting enough to justify spending so much of the novel with just …
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Book #33 of 2021: The Last Battle by C. S. Lewis (The Chronicles of Narnia #7) What a depressing and offensive conclusion to a generally solid children’s fantasy heptalogy. Author C. S. Lewis has always had his share of mid-twentieth-century hangups, but they are seldom so blatantly awful as here, where traditional feminine interests like …
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Book #30 of 2021: When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain by Nghi Vo (The Singing Hills Cycle #2) Not quite as powerfully moving as the previous novella, but still well above much of the fantasy genre. In this story, returning protagonist Cleric Chih is waylaid on their travels by a pack of hungry tigresses, …
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Book #29 of 2021: The Courts of Chaos by Roger Zelazny (The Chronicles of Amber #5) These Amber sequels have never really lived up to the promise of their series debut, and since this fifth book brings the initial story arc to a close, I think it’s a good moment to cut my losses and …
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