Tag: urban fantasy
-
The 3 Tiers of Fantasy World-Building
Last week, I wrote a post about genre writing and it got me thinking about how to know when a book has enough world-building and if it has enough of the right kind of world building. (The post was a setting study for Monsters of Verity if you wanted to check it out.) Rather than…
-
RBR: The Fires of Vengeance, Wings of Ebony, Our Dark Duet, etc.
I’m excited to say that, after half a year of waiting, I’ve finally finished the second books of two series that had me hyped last year. Those being: The Fires of Vengeance by Evan Winter, part of a four-book series called the Burning; and Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab, the conclusion to the Monsters…
-
15 Fantasy Books For The Curious Reader
Most of my regulars on the blog are presumably avid fantasy readers like myself, but my romance reading challenge has made me wonder what books I might recommend for those who aren’t. After all, fantasy can certainly be an intimidating genre to step into. It’s incredibly difficult to find standalone novels, or to find books…
-
Five Branches of Magic Systems (Revisited)
Half a year ago, I wrote a blog post about different kinds of magic systems, hoping to be informative, not expecting it to continue garnering views in the way that it has. I certainly wouldn’t call it a throwaway post, but in the months since I’ve published it, I’ve come to realize that, although I…
-
Rapid Book Reviews! (The Song of Achilles, Long Way Down, This Savage Song)
In a rare reading victory on my end, I managed to wrap up three books in the last week. I don’t want to feature one single book for this week’s blog post, so we’re going to try something new today. No spoilers, no focus on any single book. I’ll give a little info on each…
-
Book Review: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue (+ Blog Update)
When Addie LaRue first came out, I didn’t expect I’d wind up reading it anytime soon. It wasn’t that I thought I wouldn’t like it; if it was anything at all like the Darker Shades of Magic series, it would be amazing. It’s just that I already have so many books to read, even have…
-
Discussing Fantasy Word Counts
When someone first begins writing books, one of the first things they learn is that page count is far, far less important on the writing end of novels than it is for the reading end. Books are rarely the same dimensions, whether that be in length, height, or both. Line spacing, margins, font and font…
-
Book Review: Storm Front (Dresden Files #1)
Okay so I know I’m not the only non-young adult reading mostly YA fantasy. It’s just a thing where young adult narratives remain far more compelling to me as a reader. But it’s also weird, and sometimes a little bit frustrating, being a verifiable adult stuck in the head of a teenager. I figure, you…
-
Raven Cycle Wrap-Up
Maggie Stiefvater will be my downfall. It is books like these that make me remember why I gravitate towards high fantasy; urban fantasy, when done well, can utterly destroy the heart. I like my heart. To me, urban fantasy is done at its best when infused with a touch of whimsy, but that whimsy makes…
-
Five Types of Magic Systems
Although magic is not a requirement for fantasy settings, they are a staple of the genre. When it comes to how new and unique a novel’s magic system is, well, they can be just as varied as fantasy as a genre. Yet there are a few categories that most magic systems either fall into or…
Katie Bachelder 