Tag: Fantasy
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The Making of Mythical Creatures (WoT Setting Study #3)
In continuation of our extensive Wheel of Time setting studies, I would like to turn a piece of world-building we have not touched upon at all, and that is the inclusion of mythical creatures. As with practically every other facet of world-building, Jordan was not content to pull from existing fantastical creatures, and chose instead…
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My Five Favorite Fantasy Magic Systems
Last week, I had the pleasure of doing a setting study about Wheel of Time’s magic system, and, knowing that many WoT fans claim it is one of the better systems of the fantasy genre, it got me thinking. I liked Wheel of Time. The complexities of channeling, the differences between saidin and saidar, the…
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Let’s Talk Tropes: The Lost Heir
In a genre that likes to play with monarchy, it’s no surprise that several fantasy stories have a big toolbox when it comes to throne-related tropes. For a genre, too, that frequently attempts to set its protagonist apart from everyone else, transforming them from something “common” to something “special,” it is perhaps also unsurprising that…
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Building a Magic System (WoT Setting Study #2)
Wheel of Time is known for many things, and for its readers, channeling is often touted as an impressive magic system. It is expansive, detailed, and well-thought-out. For those who are interested in a more present, harder magic system, the series offers as a template three major facets that differentiate channeling from other magic systems.…
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A Song of Wraiths And Ruin: Book Review
Back in June, in an effort to support black authors, I sought out a handful of books that I might add to my reading shelf. Of the five of them, A Song of Wraiths and Ruin was the book most aligned to my usual tastes: an epic fantasy tale promising some in-depth world-building. That said,…
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Let’s Talk Tropes: Love Triangles
To the dismay of many young adult readers, the number of love triangle plot-lines exploded, in thanks, no doubt, to the success of the Twilight series. Fortunately, it did not become a staple of the fantasy genre, but a reader browsing the shelves still wouldn’t be surprised to find that a book’s synopsis hinted at…
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Adult Reader vs. Middle Grade Book: Inkheart
Certain books, you’re bound to love. Others, you can’t help but hate. And some, you find you just couldn’t care less about. If you read my Reading Challenge Wrap-Up from Wednesday, you probably think that Inkheart falls in the middle category. It certainly felt that way sometimes as I read the book. But then I…
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The Winterkeep Cover Reveal!!
Back in May, we got one of the few pieces of good news that 2020 has to offer: the Graceling Realm series isn’t over. A new book is going to be released in early 2021, called Winterkeep. You can find all of the initial information in my blog post, plus some of my expectations for…
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Reading Challenge Wrap-Up
In case you didn’t catch the The Middle Grade Reread Challenge post, here’s a little TL;DR. Last month, I challenged myself to read five book that I hadn’t read or even thought of since my middle grade years, and I gave myself a month to do it. The books I chose are as follows: Here, There…
Katie Bachelder 