High Fantasy
High Fantasy, also known as Epic fantasy is generally defined as fantasy fiction that's set within a fictional world and describes use of many fantasy elements such as magic, fantastical creatures and different races. Generally speaking High Fantasy is the standard fantasy genre such as created by Tolkien, Brooks and Jordan and is the default standard of fantasy novels, much fantasy falls into this genre.
Books Reviewed
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![Blood of the MantisAdrian Tchaikovsky]()
FantasyBlood of the Mantis is the third volume in Adrian Tchaikovsky's Shadows of the Apt sequence, published in August 2009 and following directly on from Dragonfly Falling. At three hundred and twenty pages, it is also half the length of either of its predecessors, which is the first interesting decision...
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![Dragonfly FallingAdrian Tchaikovsky]()
FantasyDragonfly Falling is the second book in Adrian Tchaikovsky's Shadows of the Apt sequence, published in 2009 and following directly on from Empire in Black and Gold. The premise of the whole series, just to get this out of the way early, is insect people. Tchaikovsky has built a secondary world in wh...
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![Empire in Black and GoldAdrian Tchaikovsky]()
FantasyEmpire in Black and Gold is the first novel in Adrian Tchaikovsky's Shadows of the Apt sequence, published in July 2008, and the book that gets the whole insect-people experiment off the ground. It is also, for the record, Tchaikovsky's debut. There is something faintly unfair about a writer arrivin...
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![House of Open WoundsAdrian Tchaikovsky]()
FantasyThere are authors that you love because you can pick up one of their books and know what you are going to get, like putting on your favourite pair of comfortable slippers again. There is also that rarer breed of author that you love, maybe even a little bit more. Those authors that will not be pigeo...
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![A Palace Near the WindAi Jiang]()
FantasyHow do you like your science fiction and fantasy? I will admit to being someone who loves a simple and accessible tale, but the genres can offer so much more than this. There are few genres better equipped to take a reader to truly alien places, to worlds that feel like they were designed in a fever...
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![BrittleBeth Overmyer]()
FantasyFor any author magic is a tricky beast as you can easily paint yourself into the corner. You can make the magic too powerful, or you can develop a whole magic system that is unbalanced. Things become even trickier when you add those tricksy Fae. Fairy magic is all about breaking rules on a contract...
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![The Dragons of Deepwood FenBradley P. Beaulieu]()
FantasyI love Fantasy and read enough to know that there are so many layers to the genre; from high to low, from Tolkien, through the Golden Age to modern darker fantasy. The genre twists and turns through the ages. A lot of modern Fantasy is shorter and darker, and I miss a stonking big slice of High Fant...
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![ElantrisBrandon Sanderson]()
FantasyI must admit that prior to the announcement than Brandon Sanderson would finish that little known series known as "The Wheel of Time" I hadn't heard of the author, I know he already had a big following but I think this was more US based prior to the WOT announcement. Now though he has clearly gained...
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![The Way of Kings Part 1Brandon Sanderson]()
FantasyReleased in hardback last year, The Way of Kings was such a weighty tomb that it was decided it would need to be split into two volumes for the paperback version, lest people developed a bad back carrying it home. Reviewed here is the first part of the first novel in the Stormlight Archive, written...
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![The Way of Kings Part 2Brandon Sanderson]()
FantasyThis is the second part of the Way of Kings, the first novel in the Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson and the start of an epic series. As this is the second part of a book, it makes sense that you read the The Way of Kings Part 1 first. Starting to read this second part it becomes clearer why...
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![Moon CrossingCathy Farr]()
FantasyMoon Crossing is the second novel in the Fellhounds of Thesk series and the follow-up to the young adult fantasy novel Moon Chase . We are once again joined with Wil Calloway and those huge Fellhounds and this time its to rescue one of Wil's friends, continuing on from the cliff-hanger ending of the...
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![EragonChristopher Paolini]()
FantasyEragon is the first volume in the Inheritance Cycle and has been written by Christopher Paolini. Eragon, a 15-year-old boy and lives with his uncle and cousin on a farm near a small village. While hunting in a large range of mountains nearby, Eragon is surprised to see a polished blue stone appear i...
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![Legacy of the EldricDavid Burrows]()
FantasyLegacy of the Eldric is the first volume in the Prophecy of the Kings trilogy, written and published by David Burrows. The version being reviewed here is the Omnibus volume which contains all 3 novels in the series. In the distant past an all but forgotten race called the Eldric fought against the d...
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![Shadow of the DemonDavid Burrows]()
FantasyShadow of the Demon is the third and final novel in the Prophecy of the Kings trilogy by David Burrows. Kaplyn, Lars, Lomar and the brave defenders of Thrace have earned a respite from the horrors of the war they find thrust upon them. The Seige was only the start though and they must now find out j...
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![Map's EdgeDavid Hair]()
FantasySince the days of The Lord of the Rings the fantasy genre has had a close relationship with the idea of a fellowship of characters. A group of disparate people o f all races brought together to fight for a common cause. This produces a sense of shared responsibility and brotherhood. Map’s Edge...
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![World's EdgeDavid Hair]()
FantasyFantasy books are often bulky reads. Not only this, they also often come as part of a series. A series of chunky books. That is a lot of story to tell and the trickiest part is the middle. Book one introduces you to the characters, while the final book concludes all that has gone before. How do you...
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![Sorcerer's EdgeDavid Hair]()
FantasyEndings are not easy, especially in epic fantasy series. Hundreds or thousands of pages all building up to this. Famously one TV adaptation finale did not go down very well with the fans, so if authors did not know it before, they know it now. David Hair’s Tethered Cathedral trilogy comes to an end...
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![Where it Rains in ColorDenise Crittendon]()
Science FictionThe future is full of an almost infinite sea of possibilities and that’s what makes science fiction such a great genre. Whilst I may imagine a dystopian future of bleak radioactive zombies, you may think of a utopia. The best books should be a mix of the two, a dark future with a glimmer of hope, or...
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![Songs of the EarthElspeth Cooper]()
FantasyThere has been a lot of good things said about Songs of the Earth and a consummate amount of praise given to the author of this debut novel. It has even been described as the "fantasy debut of 2011" when it was first released in hardback last year and has been on my list of books to read for some ti...
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![Death on the CalderaEmily Paxman]()
FantasyI read a lot of genre fiction that has been mixed with a crime drama as it is an excellent way of giving a story a solid throughline. A murder mystery can concentrate the narrative when exploring a high concept Science Fiction world. It is also a great way of giving grit to an Urban Fantasy story, g...
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![ScorpicaG. R. Macallister]()
FantasySometimes it is hard to see that something is not quite right as it has always been that way. Why in children’s cartoons does there always seem to be a misbalance between the male and female characters? Will boys not watch girls on screen? Will men not read about women in books? Fantasy has more tha...
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![ArcaG. R. Macallister]()
FantasyFantasy is one of my favourite genres for a reason. It is a genre that can tell epic storylines through several different characters and span the years. G R Macallister’s Five Queendoms trilogy does just that focussing on the female characters. This is a land dominated by powerful Queendoms and expl...
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![The Sun and The VoidGabriela Romero Lacruz]()
FantasyFor a long time, the Fantasy genre felt very Western European. So many of the fantasy worlds seemed to be based on a version of Medieval Europe, but that has not been the case for some time now. It does not take much searching to find a book that very much still feels like fantasy but has a differen...
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![Angel MageGarth Nix]()
FantasyIt sometimes feels that if you have read one fantasy novel, you have read them all. The same tropes crop up again and again. This may be comforting to fans of the genre, but people that dabble may soon become bored. Those of us in the know realise that there is a wealth of variation if you are willi...
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![The Legends of LightGill Shutt]()
FantasyLegends of Light is a high fantasy saga told as a series of poems, each building upon the last to weave a tale of magic, romance and creatures of the dark. I must admit that I am not really one to read poems, they have never interested me in the slightest and so when I was asked to review this book...
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![Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to DieGreer Stothers]()
Fantasy has a rich history of heroes who fight against the odds to ensure that good triumphs over evil, but what about the cowards? What about the people who would rather live in peace and quiet faraway from the front and have no truck with prophecies, even if they are the centre of them? In Greer S...
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![Second SightGreg Hamerton]()
FantasySecond Sight follows on from the events of the Riddler's Gift and is the second novel in the Lifesong series by Greg Hamerton. Tabitha Serannon has not only survived the horrors brought by the shadowcasters led by the Darkmaster, but has become a miracle healer and a fledgling wizard, but already he...
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![The Riddler's GiftGreg Hamerton]()
FantasyThe Riddler's Gift is the first volume in the Lifesong series by Greg Hamerton. There is a song that drifts on the breeze through all the world. Its rhythms are echoed in our breath, the music is caught in our laughter, hidden in our language, woven through our life... Most of the old world has been...
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![MaliceHeather Walter]()
FantasyAre villains made or are they born? I believe more in nurture over nature, that someone is not born inherently evil but is made so by their experiences. Alyce is not a bad person, but her heritage as half-Vila makes her a pariah in the Kingdom of Briar. The people hate her, but her elixirs are usefu...
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![MisruleHeather Walter]()
FantasyEveryone knows the story of Sleeping Beauty, or do they? Malice by Heather Walter retold the story leading up to Aurora falling asleep, but with far more detail on Aurora and her relationship with Alyce, the person responsible for her curse. Misrule opens 100 years later and tells the second part of...
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![Together We BurnIsabel Ibanez]()
FantasyI love fantasy novels, especially when an author takes the genre in a different direction. Together We Burn by Isabel Ibanez is a fantasy book unlike the others. The difference is that this fantasy world is based on Latin culture and the dragons are hunted and caught. Once captured this menace is n...
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![The Hobbit: Illustrated EditionJRR Tolkien]()
FantasyLike many people who read fantasy my journey into this wonderful genre was largely propelled at a young age by JRR Tolkiens classic "The Hobbit". For me it came from a completely unlikely source too - from my Gran who didn't seem to read much (at least that I noticed), didn't have many books and yet...
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![The Blackfire BladeJames Logan]()
FantasyHow do you push a story forward? One method used in movies is known as a MacGuffin, a meaningless plot device that someone must find that will drive all their intentions. It does not happen as often in literature, but in the case of The Blackfire Blade by James Logan it has one of the most Macguggin...
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![Academ's FuryJim Butcher]()
FantasyThere is a surprising amount of Fantasy that is essentially an epic game of magical rock, paper, scissors. Various mages, witches and Gods all fighting each other with differing powers. They are strong against one power, but weak against another. The balance of the world rests on all these powers ca...
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![The BrandedJo Riccioni]()
FantasyThere are all types of fantasy from the high to the low, but for some fans it can be tricky to enjoy one type or the other. For someone interested in starting to read low fantasy they may be turned off by the violence and darkness that this part of the genre emits. On the other hand, high fantasy ca...
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![WayseekerJustina Ireland]()
Science FictionOver the years Star Wars has become a complicated beast, even the first film was a Space Opera that had a lot going on. Throw in various timelines and you have an epic on your hands, but some of the simpler stories are the ones that work the best. The Acolyte was series that expanded on The High Rep...
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![The Kinshield LegacyKC May]()
FantasyThe Kinshield Legacy is a fantasy novel by KC May. For two hundred years a mysterious stone tablet embedded with five magical gems has sat abandoned in a cave, while the kindom around it falls to ruins. But then, the gems in the tablet, one by one, disappear and the next King of the realm may finall...
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![EmpressKaren Miller]()
FantasyEmpress is the first volume of the Godspeaker trilogy, by Australian author Karen Miller, and a book that does something unusual enough to be worth describing carefully. Most fantasy novels with a slave-girl protagonist follow a fairly well-marked road: the heroine is mistreated, escapes, gathers al...
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![The Reluctant MageKaren Miller]()
FantasyThe Reluctant Mage is the second volume in the Fisherman's Children series by Karen Miller. Rafel has been gone for months, last seen heading over Barl's Mountains into the unknown in a desperate quest to find help in the legendary magical Library but such time has passed and all hope appears lost....
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![BitterblueKristin Cashore]()
FantasyBitterblue is the third novel in the Seven Kingdoms series, following on from the events of Fire and Graceling. The story begins eight years after the events of Graceling and is more a direct follow up to this novel with only the occasional crossover from the Fire storyline. The focus is placed on h...
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![PodLaline Paull]()
General FictionNature, red in claw and tooth. It is a world of the strong surviving the weak dying. Therefore, fiction that tells a story from the animal perspective can be full on. Watership Down and The Animals of Farthing Wood have managed to traumatise many a youth and even the jolly Redwall books I used to re...
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![TouchstoneMelanie Rawn]()
FantasyTouchstone is the beginning of a fantasy journey quite different to the traditional tale. While it is set in the medieval style world full of magic and monsters it takes a unique path in the way the various races and magic are presented. In this world theaters are a place of magic where bands perfor...
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![ChangesMercedes Lackey]()
FantasyChanges continues the story of Herald trainee Mags, following on from the events of Foundation and Intrigues - all set within the long running Valdemar series. As with the previous two books, Changes manages to disarm the reader and surround them in a warm, soothing embrace - yes we are firmly in th...
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![FoundationMercedes Lackey]()
FantasyA veteran of the fantasy scene, Mercedes Lackey has enjoyed a great deal of success in the US but until now hasn't really had a great deal of exposure over here in the UK. This is set to change however thanks to Titan Books with the release of Foundation, the first volume in the Collegium Chronicles...
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![IntriguesMercedes Lackey]()
FantasyIntrigues is the second book in the Collegium Chronicles, following the trainee Herald Mags who we first met in Foundation , situated within the realm of Valdemar. Foundation set the scene pretty well and allowed us to learn about Mags and the Heralds college, I was struck by the quality of the pros...
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![SeabornMichael Livingston]()
FantasyWho doesn’t love a good pirate story? What about a story that has flying ships that drop gunpowder bombs? Or a story that has magic and mysterious civilisations living on remote islands? These all sound great and are wrapped together in a lovely fantasy package in Michael Livingston’s Seaborn , a bo...
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![We are the DeadMike Shackle]()
FantasyThe Fantasy genre has the unwarranted reputation of being staid. If you do not read it, you may think that it is all still elves and dwarves hanging out in some sort of fellowship. Fantasy fanatics know different. There are distinct fashions within the genre that has evolved between high and low, ma...
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![The Hundred Thousand KingdomsNK Jemisin]()
FantasyThe Hundred Thousand Kingdoms is the first volume in the The Inheritance Trilogy and the debut of N. K. Jemisin. This review has been written for the David Gemmell Morningstar award . Yeine Darr, ruler of her people is still mourning the untimely death of her mother when she is summoned to the magni...
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![The Wizard of Crescent Moon MountainOldman Brook]()
The Wizard of Crescent Moon Mountain is firmly rooted within the high fantasy genre, telling the tale of the wizard Greybeard and little elf Beezle who set off on an adventure after a magical weapon proves to have a distinct life of it's own. The novel draws heavily from Lord of the Rings with nods...
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![Legends of Marithia: Darkness RisingPeter Koevari]()
Back in May last year I reviewed a novel by Peter Koevari, a promising new Indie author who has been creating an epic fantasy series known as Legends of Marithia. This is the second novel in that series and follows straight on from the events of the previous book - Legends of Marithia: Prophecies Aw...
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![Legends of Marithia: Prophecies AwakeningPeter Koevari]()
Legends of Marithia is a fantasy novel by Peter Koevari. After her sorceress mother and vampire father are horrifically murdered right in front of her, Kassina makes a pact with the Lord of Darkness Shindar and swears revenge over the lands responsible for her parents demise. With Sindar's help she...
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![Druid's BanePhillip Henderson]()
FantasyDruid's Bane is the first volume in the Arkaelyon Chronicles, written by Phillip Henderson. The Illandian Spring Tournament is about to reach its crescendo. With the king’s only daughter, Danielle de Brie, and her twin brother, Kane, preparing to face each other in the tourney ring for the deciding...
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![Demon GatesRobert Day]()
FantasyDemon Gates is a high fantasy novel by Robert Day. The land of Kil’Tar has a long and bloody history of war between the Kay‘taari and the Ashar’an. Aided by Dragonkind, the Kay’taari have protected the world against the Ashar’an and their demonic followers for many centuries. With demonkind banished...
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![A Crown Of SwordsRobert Jordan]()
FantasyA Crown of Swords is the seventh volume in Robert Jordans epic fantasy series, the Wheel of Time. Following on from the events in The Lord of Chaos, the book begins with the aftermath of the battle at Dumai's Wells. Elayne, Nyneave and Mat manage to finally locate the legendary "Bowl of the Winds" t...
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![A Memory of LightRobert Jordan]()
FantasyAnd it came to pass in those days, as it had come before and would come again, that the Dark lay heavy on the land and weighed down the hearts of men, and the green things failed, and hope died. For those who have been following the journey of Jordans' epic fantasy series, reaching this book will li...
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![Crossroads of TwilightRobert Jordan]()
FantasyCrossroads of Twilight is the tenth novel in the incredible epic series, the Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan. Many of the events in Crossroads of twilight run concurrently with the previous volume, Winters Heart. Ewgene is on the outskirts of Tar Valon, laying seige but wary to start a full scale wa...
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![Knife of DreamsRobert Jordan]()
FantasyKnife of Dreams is the eleventh volume in the epic Wheel of Time series and is the last full volume written by Robert Jordan. If you have like me arrived here after reading the first 10 volumes then you will appreciate this moment, a long journey, hugely rewarding and it is with a sense of trepidati...
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![The Dragon RebornRobert Jordan]()
FantasyThe Dragon Reborn — the leader long prophesied who will save the world, but in the saving destroy it; the savior who will run mad and kill all those dearest to him — is on the run from his destiny. Able to touch the One Power, but unable to control it, and with no one to teach him how — for no man h...
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![The Eye Of The WorldRobert Jordan]()
FantasyThe Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and go, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth return again. In the Third Age, an Age of Prophecy, when the World and Time themselves hang in the balance, a wind rises in the mou...
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![The Fires Of HeavenRobert Jordan]()
FantasyThe Fires of heaven is the fifth novel in the epic series the wheel of time, written by Robert Jordan. Rand, the Dragon reborn continues to try and re-unite the Aiel, leading them over the spine of the world, hunting the Shaido. Meanwhile the Forsaken are free and plotting Rands downfall. While Rahv...
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![The Gathering StormRobert Jordan]()
FantasyThe Gathering Storm (formally under the working title A Memory of Light) is the 12th novel in the outstanding fantasy epic, the Wheel of Time by the late Robert Jordan, originally started in 1990 with "The Eye of the World". As Jordan passed away before completing what was thought to be the last vol...
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![The Great HuntRobert Jordan]()
FantasyFor centuries traveling gleemen have told the tales of The Great Hunt of the Horn. So many tales about each of the Hunters, and so many Hunters to tell of . . . Now the Horn itself is found: the Horn of Valere long thought only legend, the Horn which will raise the dead heroes of the ages. Rand al'T...
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![The Lord Of ChaosRobert Jordan]()
FantasyThe Lord of Chaos is the sixth novel in the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan, following on from the events in the Fires of heaven. On the slopes of Shayol Ghul, the Myrddraal swords are forged, while in the mountain itself, the Dark one waits patiently in his ever weakening prison. Now Rand has...
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![The Path Of DaggersRobert Jordan]()
FantasyThe Path of Daggers is the eighth volume in Robert Jordans fantasy epic, the Wheel of Time series. Following the events in A Crown of Swords, Elayne, Nyneave, Aviendha and a coalition of women who can channel the one power finally manage to use the "Bowl of the Winds" to reverse the un-natural heatw...
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![The Shadow RisingRobert Jordan]()
FantasyThe Shadow rising is the fourth book in the Wheel of Time series, by Robert Jordan. Prophecy has been fullfilled, the Stone of Tear has been breached and Callindor - the sword that is not a sword has been wielded, the Dragon is reborn. Selene finally reveals to Rand that she is Lanfear, one of the F...
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![Towers of MidnightRobert Jordan]()
FantasyTowers of Midnight is the penultimate novel in the Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan and completed by Brandon Sanderson. The Last Battle has begun and the seals on the Dark One's prison continue to crumble to dust. The very pattern itself is unravelling and the armies of the Shadow are boldly mo...
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![Winters HeartRobert Jordan]()
FantasyWinters Heart is the 9th volume in Robert Jordan's epic fantasy series, the Wheel of Time. Now that the natural weather has returned to the land, Winter sets in with a vengeance, almost making up for lost time after the oppressive heat of the Dark One's spell. Rand is finally confronted by the 3 wom...
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![Picus the ThiefRobin Bennett]()
FantasyPicus is one of those people who act as a magnet for trouble, disowned by his parents (or at least his quite scary mother) for not being blood-thirsty enough, hunted by the violent vampire Raben for the theft of an item that wasn't really his and wanted by the leader of the faie Queen Mab (the tooth...
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![The Throne of the Crescent MoonSaladin Ahmed]()
FantasyOne the greatest advantages of this ever shrinking world is being able to read stories that break out of the "western" mindset. Initially The Throne of the Crescent Moon may seem like a traditional sword & sorcery that was a stable of fantasy in the 80's however look a little deeper and you will fin...
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![The Last Phi HunterSalinee Goldenberg]()
FantasyI love fantasy, from the low to the high, but I love it even more when it is tackled in an interesting way. The Last Phi Hunter by Salinee Goldenberg has all the elements of High Fantasy, packed with more magic than a Paul Daniels Appreciation Society AGM, but this is not a book of wizards and elves...
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![Way of the WalkerSalinee Goldenberg]()
FantasyNaming your book The Last Phi Hunter comes with some idea that this will be the last of their kind, but Salinee Goldenberg proves this is not the case with a sequel, Way of the Walker . But is this Walker an actual Phi Hunter? If your job is to find and kill the undead (Phi), befriending them and he...
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![Tome of the UndergatesSam Sykes]()
FantasyTome of the Undergates is the first volume in the Aeons' Gate fantasy series by Sam Sykes. Lenk is in theory the leader of a band of "adventurers", in practice he struggle's to keep control over the unruly misfits - with Gariath the dargon man seeing humans as little more than prey, only happy in a...
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![BattleaxeSara Douglass]()
FantasyThe Beginning of the Axis Trilogy by Australian fantasy author Sara Douglass, Battleaxe is also the first novel of The Wayfarer Redemption in the USA. This first book revolves around Axis, Battleaxe of the Axe-Wielders, and Faraday, daughter of Earl Isend of Skarabost. The story begins with in the w...
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![The Gryphon KingSara Omer]()
FantasyI have read a lot of epic fantasy, and it comes in many flavours, but it does not always feel like it. Often, it feels like an alternative Medieval Europe with a few elves thrown in. This is less so today as innovative ideas and visions come to the genre, taking a typical fantasy novel and giving it...
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![Wings of Steel and FurySarah Daley]()
Science FictionIf you read about the gods, most of them are a little messed up. If they are not descending to pretend to be a swan so they can sleep with woman, they are basically ignoring all the human suffering going on. Are gods omnipotent or just much more powerful than humans? Everything feels like magic, unt...
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![The King of the CragsStephen Deas]()
FantasyThe King of the Crags is the follow up to The Adamantine Palace by Stephen Deas. Prince Jehal is now reaping the fruits of his new found power after murdering, poisoning and backstabbing his way to the top, enjoying the confidence (and Bed) of the new speaker. Those loyal to the old regime are still...
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![The Illearth WarStephen Donaldson]()
FantasyThe Illearth War follows straight on from the events in Lord Foul's Bane and just as Thomas Covenant is getting used to the idea that his recent experiences were just a dream he is again summoned to the Land. On his return however he discovers that 40 years have passed in his absence with the Counci...
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![The One TreeStephen Donaldson]()
FantasyWe last saw Thomas Covenant and Linden Avery getting ready to set sail with the Giants and embark upon the quest to find the fabled One Tree; the force that can remake the staff of law and free the land and people from the evil influence it has become infected by. One Tree rejoins these brave souls...
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![The Power That PreservesStephen Donaldson]()
FantasyThomas Covenant is once again summoned to the strange alternative world where magic exists and an ancient enemy threatens the land. Although for Thomas mere days have passed, for the inhabitants of "The Land" it's been over seven years since the unbeliever was abroad. The land is much changed since...
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![The Glass AbyssSteven Barnes]()
Science FictionI have always enjoyed the Star Wars extended universe novels, be they the Legend set, or the newer relaunched series. The books allow us to explore the Skywalker saga in more depth, but for me the most fun is exploring the deeper cuts. I have read fantastic novels that have delved into the lives of...
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![Deadhouse GatesSteven Erikson]()
FantasyDeadhouse Gates is the second book in the Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson. Picking up where Gardens of the Moon left off, Deadhouse Gates reunites a host of old characters and throws some new ones into the fray. This time the action is focused not on Genabackis, but on the continent of...
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![The Sorcerer and the NecromancerSusan Ann Walker]()
FantasyI adore the fantasy genre and as someone who reads it a lot, I have seen the ebbs and flows in the genre over the years. There have always been outliers, but there is a certain style of fantasy that dominated for each of the decades. Until recently, I have read a lot of Low Fantasy, a genre low on m...
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![Nettle and BoneT Kingfisher]()
FantasyI have read many genre books and I see trends in what is currently popular or going through a period of high quality. The dark gothic fairy tale is having a moment in the sun as I have recently read some excellent stories that hark back to a feel of past fables but are their own modern take. T Kingf...
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![Betrayal at FaladorT S Church]()
FantasyBetrayal at Falador is the first novel set within the Runescape universe, written by T S Church. The Knights of Falador are the beacons of order and chivalry throughout the lands of Asgarnia but their very order is being threatened by the forces of chaos which plot to shatter the peace of the realm....
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![Return to CanifisT S Church]()
FantasyReturn to Canifis is the sequel to Betrayal at Falador, set within the Runescape Universe and written by T S Church. Varrock is considered to be one of the greatest cities in the known world, but even here danger lurks - people have been dissapearing, or their bodies discovered ripped apart. Some ar...
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![Stone of TearsTerry Goodkind]()
FantasyStone of Tears is the second volume in the epic Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind. Darken Rahl has finally been defeated and Richard and Kahlan race off back to the mud people to marry. Nothing goes to plan however and as they are waiting for the wedding preparations to be completed three Sist...
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![Wizards First RuleTerry Goodkind]()
FantasyWizards First Rule by Terry Goodkind is the first volume in the sword of truth series and follows the adventures of Richard Cypher, an young woods guide who makes a life changing decision to help a lady in distress. The woman richard rescues is Kahlan Amnell (Mother Confessor), who has crossed the b...
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![Temptation of the ForceTessa Gratton]()
Science FictionAs Star Wars fans we take the lore for granted. We know our Wookie from our Ewok, but to the casual person they are just two different types of furry alien. Take a step back and it is a complex universe, full of planets and species. It was tricky enough with just the three films, but six films later...
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![Discord of Lupinda: The AwakenedTony Elliott]()
FantasyOne man's quest for the justice of his wronged mother brings war to a land made soft by a forced but enduring peace. As the conflict spreads a few survivors flee into an alien world of currency, corruption, commerce and cruelty while behind them a long buried darkness returns, something that the wor...
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![Legends and LattesTravis Baldree]()
FantasyWhat is Comfy Fantasy? It is a new name for the type of fantasy that does not have you on edge all the time. As a genre fantasy can often feel epic, but also stressful. The heroes on the run from a darkness they cannot fathom, or a fellowship were hardly anyone can be trusted. Sometimes you just wan...
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![Dragon WingWeis and Hickman]()
FantasyArianus, the World of Air, is composed entirely of porous floating islands, aligned in three basic altitudes. In the Low Realm, the dwarves (called "Gegs", an elven word for "insects") live on the continent Drevlin and cheerfully serve the giant Kicksey-winsey, a city-sized machine that is the sourc...
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![Elven StarWeis and Hickman]()
FantasyPryan, the World of Fire, does not orbit a sun— at least, not in the normal manner. It is a giant stone sphere containing four suns (similar to a Dyson Sphere), and it is always daytime. The "ground" is not the ground at all, but rather moss and the leaves of huge, mile-high trees; most people don't...
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![Fire SeaWeis and Hickman]()
FantasyAbarrach, the World of Stone is just that: lava, stone, poisonous fumes, and precious little food that can be grown. The peoples of Abarrach rely on giant rune-inscribed stone pillars called colossi to provide warmth and breathable atmosphere, but the colossi have been failing slowly for many years....
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![Into The LabyrinthWeis and Hickman]()
FantasyOn Abarrach, Xar is attempting to learn the secret of necromancy, but he needs a corpse to test it on. He interrogates the lazar Kleitus about the location of any living Sartan, and Kleitus reveals that Haplo lied to Xar about all the Sartan dying at the hands of the dead; Balthazar and his group re...
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![Serpent MageWeis and Hickman]()
FantasyThe novel picks up just where Fire Sea left off. Alfred jumps into Death's Gate as Haplo's ship passes through it, and finds himself in a stasis room like the one he woke up in; in fact, he believes he's on Arianus. Tired, he decides to put himself back to sleep... Only to find someone in "his" stas...
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![The Hand of ChaosWeis and Hickman]()
FantasyHaplo takes a submersible back to Draknor to retrieve his ship. He finds Samah there— wet, haggard, and lost. The leader of the Council has opened Death's Gate, allowing the dragon-snakes free access to all the four worlds. Haplo decides he is too tired to physically capture Samah and uses his ship...
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![The Seventh GateWeis and Hickman]()
FantasyIn the Labyrinth, Marit and Hugh venture out to try and find Alfred. He turns out to be the prisoner of a Labyrinth dragon, which are almost the equal of the dragon-snakes in cruelty and savagery. With the help of the Cursed Blade, they drive it off and rescue Alfred. On Abarrach, Haplo is dying. He...
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