Posts Tagged With: George R.R. Martin

Fantasy Blogosphere: April 11, 2010

A triage of interviews with heavy hitters this week: Jim Butcher, Guy Gavriel Kay and George R.R. Martin. The Martin interview is a podcast with boatloads of good content. We’ve also got a pair of reviews of Peter V. Brett’s work, as well as a post on one of my secret pleasures: epic fantasy comics. I’ve got graphic novel editions of Feist’s Magician and Martin’s Hedge Knight, so finding quality fantasy translated into comic form is always a fine hunt for me. We cap this week with a hilarious rant at The Rejectionist on my new favorite holiday: International Raistlin Majere Day. Enjoy.

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Fantasy Blogosphere: April 4, 2010

Do we have some golden eggs this week? I think so! Its Easter, and we’ve found reviews of books by Brandon Sanderson, Guy Gavriel Kay, Daniel Abraham and more. Also, check out an interview with George R.R. Martin and Daniel Abraham, and get GRRM’s most recent update on the 2011 Song of Ice & Fire calendar. Those calendars are so hard to find! I ordered my 2009 one on Amazon.com, only to receive an e-mail from Amazon three months into the year that they gave up trying to fill stock. Happy Easter!

And just for kicks this week (and to feature a video again, its been so long!), here’s some advice from your favorite super hero, Aquaman:

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Fantasy Blogosphere: February 21, 2010

Winter is almost here. George R.R. Martin announced that he’s 1,261 pages into A Dance with Dragons, supporting my prediction the novel would be released in 2010, and in general giving me a good feeling all over. Jim Cameron plans to release an Avatar prequel novel in 2010, which he has not begun writing yet. Ambitious, but what do you expect from one of the most ambitious filmmakers in history. Perhaps the the interview of the decade, with R.A. Salvatore interviewing Margaret Weis on her new novel with Tracy Hickman and writing in a world based on role-playing games in general. We cap this week where I turn back my clock an hour here in Brazil by turning back the clock and remembering countless hours spent with the red box, the first in the old Dungeons & Dragons boxed set.

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Fantasy Blogosphere: February 14, 2010

We kick off this week with a review of A Feast for Crows over at The Wertzone, and follow it up with reviews of books by Daniel Abraham, Mark Chadbourn, R.A. MacAvoy, and Robin Hobb.

We’ve also got some great interviews this week, featuring Robin Hobb, David Drake, and the first sci-fi author interview we’ve ever highlighted with Daniel Suarez. I heard the interview with Daniel Suarez on The Dragon Page podcast this week, and even though we cover mainly fantasy topics, this interview is just too good to miss. I love the idea of an author knowing more about internet security than the federal government, and will likely check out Daemon.

And finally, the e-book market is getting a bit rowdy, with Amazon and Macmillan doing a bit of bickering over prices this week.

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Fantasy Blogosphere: February 7, 2010

We’ve got a boatload of reviews this week, covering everything from more recent titles like The Gathering Storm and Dragon Keeper to young classics such as A Storm of Swords, The Hero of Ages and The Lies of Locke Lamora. The Stormcaller by Tom Lloyd also looks promising, having potentially been looked over in a year when other authors like Scott Lynch were making their big debuts. The Dragon Page recently intervieweed Gail Z. Martin, and Ursula K. Le Guin continues to fight for her rights against Google. We cap off a stellar week with news of an inmate in Wisconsin being prohibited from playing D&D in prison. What will inmates want next, a renaissance festival on prison grounds?

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Fantasy Blogosphere: January 24, 2010

If our last Fantasy Blogosphere post was the most eclectic yet, then this is the most abundant. Chock full of review goodness, this post features reviews of books by Robin Hobb, David Anthony Durham, Ken Scholes, George R.R. Martin, Guy Gavriel Kay, Daniel Abraham, James Barclay and Terry Pratchett, and a triage of Jim Butcher reviews from NextRead. Pat’s got a fresh interview with Joe Abercrombie, and there’s exciting news all around; its looking like we’re really going to see A Game of Thrones as an HBO series, R.A. Salvatore signs for 6 additional Forgotten Realms books, and the movie rights for Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn trilogy have been optioned. What a great time to be a fantasy fan!

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Fantasy Blogosphere: January 10, 2010

I don’t think we’ve ever had a more eclectic brew on the Fantasy Blogosphere. We start this week off with a pair of reviews at Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist and Grasping for the Wind, and balance those out nicely with three interviews, including the second we’ve spotlighted in the “Patrick Rothfuss interviews other fantasy authors” series. He’s following up his interview with Joe Abercrombie with a conversation with Brent Weeks. We touch on a new novella by Steven Erikson, give Brandon Sanderson the nod for his work on The Gathering Storm, and round out the week with a lesson on writing from George R.R. Martin, and the icing on the cake: a cage match between Steven Erikson and R. Scott Bakker. Mmm, Tasty.

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Top 10 Fantasy Books for 2010

Here’s my list of the books I’m most excited to read in 2010. The first three are not released yet, and are possibly the most highly anticipated fantasy novels slated for (potential) release in 2010. Picks 4-6 are historical fiction, or some twist on the sub-genre. Books 7-9 are continuations, if not necessarily in the same series, of authors I’ve already read at least once. And my final pick is a classic thrown in for good measure.

A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin

I know its been five years since A Feast for Crows. But Pat over at Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist has this book slated for release in 2010, and he knows George R.R. Martin personally. Coincidence? Hopefully, for legions of A Song of Ice and Fire Fans, its a bit more.

A Dance with Dragons

The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch

The first two books in Scott Lynch’s fantasy debut series have redefined the meaning of action fantasy. Saying the third book in this seven book series is highly anticipated is like saying Tiger Woods made a boo-boo. In other words, its going to be huge.

The Republic of Thieves

The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss

Patrick Rothfuss delivered a home run with his first novel, The Name of the Wind, and rightfully earned himself a seat among the top dogs in the fantasy novel industry. We’ll keep our fingers crossed that we’ll see this one drop in 2010.

The Wise Man's Fear

Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson

With a degree in anthropology, Steven Erikson’s ability with characterization should be fantastic. Gardens of the Moon is the first book in the ten book Malazan Book of the Fallen series. With historical fiction gaining traction in the industry and the popularity of the later novels in this series recently, I’m interested to get Erikson’s take on fantasy novels.

Gardens of the Moon

Acacia by David Anthony Durham

Durham has traveled the world, and lived in Scotland for a number of years, before landing in California as a Creative Writing professor at California State University. He’s made a name for himself writing novels involving The American Civil War, Carthage and the war with the Roman Republic. Acacia is his first attempt in the epic fantasy genre, and has made some noise in the industry.

Acacia

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Fantasy Blogosphere: January 3, 2010

Happy New Year! With everyone either on vacation or still in hangover mode, the fantasy book blogosphere is expectantly slower than usual. Still, we’ve got a few reviews including books by Scott Lynch and Steven Erikson, along with a review of the classic first novel in George R.R. Martin’s ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ series, A Game of Thrones. Cheers!

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Top 10 Fantasy Books of 2009

Okay, so I want to make sure we’re clear before diving in: this is not a list of the best fantasy books released in 2009, but rather the top books read and reviewed here at Fantasy Book News in 2009. That said, there are some newer books, and some classics, but overall this is an elite list of fantasy novels that any avid reader should check out. And away we go.

A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

While this series is going on fifteen years, I gave a re-read to the first novel in the Song of Ice and Fire series in 2009, in audio book format. The book still has the same enchanting effect as the first time I read it, and is still the standard to which I compare most other fantasy books, and absolutely any epic fantasy books. Check out the full review of A Game of Thrones.

a-game-of-thrones

Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch

The second book in Lynch’s seven book Gentlemen Bastards series delivered what many creative people struggle to accomplish time and time again: give the audience a better experience than the original. Red Seas Under Red Skies upped the stakes from The Lies of Locke Lamora, and hit ended up hitting a grand slam. Read the full review of Red Seas Under Red Skies.

red-seas-under-red-skies

The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

This whopping freshman fantasy novel by Rothfuss completely transports you to another world, which is one of the goals that every fantasy novel aspires to. Believe me, I read most of it while lounging poolside in Araxa, Brazil, and I can’t tell you how many times I forgot my beautiful surroundings for the world that Rothfuss creates. Check out the full review of The Name of the Wind.

name-of-the-wind

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

The quintessential fairy tale, The Last Unicorn is simply a beautiful story. Get lost in a world of fantasy and magic, complimented with a fantastically original plot and a genuine sense of humor. Read the full review of The Last Unicorn.

the-last-unicorn

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

Mistborn is an absolutely beautiful novel. Its got everything that a fantasy reader looks for: insanely original devices, characters you can identify with, tons of action, and wholesome undercurrents. We have a full review of Mistborn over here.

mistborn

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