Wow, that was fucking terrible. I mean, I’d been warned that this book would not be as brilliant as its predecessor Forest Of A Thousand Lanterns, a book so good that I put it in my Top 10 of 2018, but a lot of the (valid) criticism is that the main character, Jade, is extremely …
Category: Mythology
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2019/01/16/kingdom-of-the-blazing-phoenix-rise-of-the-empress-2-by-julie-c-dao/
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Dec 21 2018
The Willow By Your Side by Peter Haynes
A few years ago, I bought a boxed set of Susan Cooper’s The Darkness Rising series, eager for the nostalgia of English children fighting evil, mythical forces in semi-allegory for real world conflicts. It was, sadly, a disappointing experience because, as an adult, the stories are frightfully simplistic in a way that they weren’t to …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/12/21/the-willow-by-your-side-by-peter-haynes/
Nov 03 2018
Traitor to the Throne (Rebel of the Sands #2) by Alwyn Hamilton
I am so glad I decided to read this book! I had a bunch of misgivings after the overall good but uneven first in the series, Rebel Of The Sands, and had prepared myself for more of the same here, but Traitor To The Throne far surpassed my expectations. There were several annoying lapses in …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/11/03/traitor-to-the-throne-rebel-of-the-sands-2-by-alwyn-hamilton/
Jun 11 2018
Circe by Madeline Miller
(I’m quite proud of myself for cramming this book into my schedule before I had to return it to the library, so props to meee!) Circe is a fantastic meditation on the stages of womanhood and on what it means to be human, bringing a minor character from Greek mythology to the forefront with her …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/06/11/circe-by-madeline-miller/
May 02 2018
The Changeling by Victor LaValle
The fairy tales that we’re familiar with have spent centuries being smoothed down by retelling after retelling, retaining their magic despite the years and multiple minor tweaks because, as stories, they make sense to us. Some might argue that those minor tweaks Disney-fy the process, but I believe that they whittle away the things that …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/05/02/the-changeling-by-victor-lavalle/
Apr 30 2018
Snow by Night Volume 2: Dissolution by Eric Menge & Brittany Michel
Devoured this in one sitting. I’m a huge fan (and personal friend) of Eric Menge’s and I strongly believe that Dissolution builds on the terrific first volume to really immerse us in the fantasy world of Corthis. This book contains chapters 5 to 8 of the excellent webcomic, as well as five vignettes that give …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/04/30/snow-by-night-volume-2-dissolution-by-eric-menge-brittany-michel/
Apr 30 2018
Snow by Night Volume 1: Calcination by Eric Menge & Brittany Michel
Several things to admit: first, I’m friends with the creators of this excellent webcomic. Despite this friendship, and my knowledge that Eric Menge is a brilliant writer, I’m absolutely wretched at keeping up with webcomics as they publish, even his. I get sidetracked and forget to check in, and while I’m not one of those …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/04/30/snow-by-night-volume-1-calcination-by-eric-menge-brittany-michel/
Feb 04 2018
Beren and Luthien by J.R.R. Tolkien
Beren and Lúthien mainly reminded me of why I never finished The Silmarillion. There is a paragraph late in the book that explains as well as any. Editor Christopher Tolkien is describing a misunderstanding that arose between his father and his father’s publisher after the apparently unexpected success of The Hobbit. Tolkien had sent the …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/02/04/beren-and-luthien-by-j-r-r-tolkien/
Jan 17 2018
Forest of a Thousand Lanterns (Rise of the Empress #1) by Julie C. Dao
I fucking devoured this book. It is dark and brutal and cruel and one of the most honest portrayals of what it means to be a woman with ambition when everyone around you automatically assumes you lack agency because of your youth and beauty OR views you as a threat simply because of those last …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2018/01/17/forest-of-a-thousand-lanterns-rise-of-the-empress-1-by-julie-c-dao/
Al Singh
Doug Merrill
Doreen Sheridan
John Pitzel
Lars N. Goldschlager
Laura Eilers
Professor X
Robert Maedgen
Sylvere Ap Leanan
The Shire