Archive for best fantasy stories
The opening scene in Storm Born is one of the most unique I’ve read in a while. Eugenie Markham, a female shaman who makes her living banishing evil spirits that have crossed over from the Otherworld to our world, has been asked to exorcise a haunted sneaker. Yes you heard right, a haunted sneaker. Here’s an excerpt:
“Look, Miss . . . Odile . . . or whatever. I’m not crazy. That shoe is haunted. It’s evil. you’ve gotta do something, okay? I’ve got a marathon coming up, and until this started happening, these were my lucky shoes. And they’re not cheap, you know. They’re an investment.”
It sounded crazy to me - which was saying something - but there was no harm in checking. I reached into my coat pocket, the one without ammunition. I’d seen weirder things than a haunted shoe, but not many. Sending some of my will into the wand, I tapped it against the shoe and spoke in a sing-song voice.
“Come out, come out, whoever you are.”
“Go away, bitch.”
Great, a shoe with attitude.
Too bad most of her cases aren’t that easy; unfortunately for Eugenie, her next one takes her into the Otherworld, a place inhabited by the gentry, magical fairy beings notorious for their dislike of humankind (don’t think small creatures with wings though; the gentry look just like humans). Eugenie hates the gentry and often sends them to the Underworld if needed. She’s been taught to loathe them since childhood and as such avoids crossing over whenever possible but her new case her to make the journey into their world.
She’s looking for a young girl recently abducted by the gentry, who are also known for stealing adolescent human girls for white slavery and prostitution purposes. Fortunately Eugenie doesn’t have to make the trip alone; she summons the 3 spirits bound to her for protection. It’s through them that she learns that the young girl, Jasmine, has been taken by Aeson, a powerful gentry king. At the advice of one of her spirits she approaches Dorian, a rival of Aeson’s, asking him to accompany her on her mission to rescue Jasmine. Dorian refuses to join her but does offer the help of one of his guides. He then proceed to tell her a story about a powerful ruler called the Storm King who had the ability to control the weather. He tells her of a prophecy in which the Storm King’s daughter will have a child that will rule over both humankind and the Otherworld. Imagine her surprise to learn that she is that daughter and that her child will become the prophesied ruler. Eugenie refuse to accept the prophesy because it puts her in direct conflict with what she’s been taught. Her heritage, her upbringing, and her entire childhood would be reduced to mere lies if Dorian’s tale were true.
Eugenie soon takes her leave of Dorian and takes her run at Aeson but is unsuccessful in part because Jasmine flatly refuses to leave. Eugenie herself is only able to flee Aeson’s minions just in the nick of time.
Back in the human world Eugenie’s next and most important task is to discuss Dorian’s story with her parents. If what he told her is true, they have some splainin’ to do.
The backdrop for Richelle Mead’s book is a social commentary on prejudice and misguided hatred but it primarily takes a back seat to the action-packed storyline.
Eugenie eventually learns the truth about her past which forces her to once again seek Dorian’s assistance, but this time she wants him to help her control her newly discovered powers. The exchanges between Dorian and Eugenie provide many of the comedic elements in the book. Dorian is, at his core, a wise and very powerful gentry king but he’s also incredibly bored with his life in the Otherworld and therefore welcomes the opportunity to travel to the human world to give Eugenie her lessons and ogle human women. He also does his share of propositioning Eugenie but she never really takes him seriously. Eugenie’s romantic interest is Kiyo, a gorgeous kitsune (shapeshifter) who saves Eugenie’s life on more than one occasion. Kiyo’s help is integral to Eugenie’s survival because someone from the Otherworld doesn’t want the prophesy to come true and is gunning for Eugenie. Additionally, some of the Otherworld beings have determined that they can increase their powers by fathering her next child. As such she spends a lot of time fighting for her life and battling creatures wanting to mate with her.
All of this leads up to an incredible climax rife with surprises and suspense.
In some ways this book reminds me of a modern day Elizabethan court piece; there’s intrigue, romance, betrayal, and characters jockeying for power. Mead manages to balance these elements by writing believable characterizations and fleshing out a very detailed fantasy setting. As a matter of fact, she does a great job with world building. The Otherworld she creates is as varied as our world but it’s also magical, frightening, and fascinating. The book ends with an unanswered mystery that I can’t wait to read more about. I’ve got my ideas but there are lots of possibilities so I’ll have see how good I am at predictions!
All of this makes for a thoroughly entertaining, enjoyable, and captivating read.
This is the first book in the Dark Swan series and a great addition to the urban fantasy genre. Richelle, get the second book finished!
New Releases: Best New Urban Fantasy Books for September 2008
Posted by: Fantasy Books | Comments (7)The following fantasy books are being released this month. With new releases by authors like C.E. Murphy, Lilith Saintcrow, Chris Marie Green, Justina Robson, L.A. Banks, and Richelle Mead, you can’t go wrong. There’s something here for everyone!
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Hands of Flame (The Negotiator Book 3) by C.E. Murphy War has erupted among the five Old Races, and Margrit is responsible for the death that caused it. Now New York City’s most unusual lawyer finds herself facing her toughest negotiation yet. And with her gargoyle lover, Alban, taken prisoner, Margrit’s only allies—a dragon bitter about his fall, a vampire determined to hold his standing at any cost and a mortal detective with no idea what he’s up against—have demands of their own. Determined to rescue Alban and torn between conflicting loyalties as the battle seeps into the human world, Margrit soon realizes the only way out is through the fire. See my review of C.E. Murphy’s urban fantasy book, Heart of Stone (The Negotiator Book 1). |
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Haunting the Nightside (Nightside Omnibus Book 2) by Simon R. Green This is a popular urban fantasy book series by Simon R. Green, a great urban fantasy writer. |
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Break of Dawn by Chris Marie Green Hollywood can really suck… To save her father Dawn must enter the Vampire Underground, where she will encounter an unthinkable betrayal, and where the question of who is truly good and who is truly evil will become a matter of life, death—and undeath. See my review of Night Rising (Vampire Babylon Book 1), a great introduction to this urban fantasy series. |
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Going Under (Quantum Gravity Book 3) by Justina Robson Lila Black is off with the faeries . . . Ever since the Quantum Bomb of 2015 things have been different; the dimensions have fused and suddenly our world is accessible to elves, demons, ghosts and elementals and their worlds are open to us. Things have been different for Special Agent Lila Black too: tortured and magic-scarred by elves, rebuilt by humans into a half-robot, part-AI, nuclear-fueled walking arsenal, and carrying the essence of a dead elfin necromancer in her chest, sometimes she has trouble figuring out who she is. And a mission to the world of the fae may not help her work it out. See my review of Keeping It Real (Quantum Gravity Book 1), the first book in the Lila Black urban fantasy series. |
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Succubus Dreams (Georgina Kincaid Book 3) by Richelle Mead Some days, a girl just can’t catch a break … especially when the girl in question is Georgina Kincaid, a shape-shifting succubus who gets her energy from seducing men. First there’s her relationship with gorgeous bestselling writer Seth Mortensen, which is unsatisfying on a number of levels. It’s not just that they can’t have sex in case Georgina inadvertently kills him (generally a turn-off for most guys). Lately, even spending time together is a challenge. Then there are the dreams. Someone, or something, is preying on Georgina at night, draining her energy, and supplying eerie visions of her future. Now Georgina faces a double challenge-rein in her out-of-control love life, and go toe-to-toe with an enemy capable of wreaking serious havoc among mankind. Otherwise, Georgina, and the entire mortal world, may never sleep easy again. See my review of Storm Born, another great book by Richelle Mead. |
See also: Best Selling Urban Fantasy Books for 2008
Hot New Releases: Best Fantasy Books for August 2008
Best Selling Fantasy Books for 2008
The following fantasy books are being released this month, August 2008. Several of these books are written by very popular fantasy book writers and are sure to be good.
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Breaking Dawn (The Twilight Saga Book 4) by Stephenie Meyer This is the last book in the incredibly popular Twilight Saga series. |
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Storm Born (Dark Swan Book 1) by Richelle Mead I’d seen weirder things than a haunted shoe, but not many. Sending some of my will into the wand, I tapped it against the shoe and spoke in a sing-song voice. “Come out, come out, whoever you are.” “Go away, bitch.” Great, a shoe with attitude. Fantasy Girl: I just bought this one - check out my Storm Born review! |
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The Gypsy Morph (The Genesis of Shannara, Book 3) by Terry Brooks |
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Legacy (Anna Strong Vampire Chronicles, Book 4) by Jeanne C. Stein “The sinister vampire who transformed her is dead, and Anna is entitled to his vast fortune. But a predatory werewolf comes forward, claiming the inheritance as her own—and she’ll kill to get what she wants most: blood and money.” Fantasy Girl: I have every book in the Anna Strong urban fantasy vampire series and highly recommend them! Reviews: |
See also: Best Selling Urban Fantasy Books for 2008
Best Selling Fantasy Books for 2008
In this, the 3rd book in the Julie Kenner soccer mom urban fantasy series, our heroine, Kate Connor is back attempting to keep her town (San Diablo, California) safe from body swapping demons.
It appears as if the town is being overrun with newly made demons that are targeting Kate, her teenage daughter Allie, and Allie’s hunky teacher, David. If you read California Demon you know that in that book Allie was kidnapped by a demon who had endeared himself to the family. Because of that ordeal Allie now knows that her mother does a lot more than just bake cookies (badly) and care for the family.
Unfortunately, Allie has decided she wants to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become a Hunter. This makes for some interesting exchanges between mother and daughter:
“No, you can’t go demon hunting with me. It’s a school night.”
“But Mom!”
“No, and that’s final.”
“Whatever!”
Okay, I totally made up that scene but you get the picture. My point is that Allie is a typical American teenager who sometimes does the exact opposite of what her parents tell her to do. This potentially puts her in harm’s way since it looks like the local demon population has her in its cross hairs. However, as we discover in the book, Allie’s a fairly smart and resourceful young lady.
Which brings me to the main mystery in the book: the demons are attacking Kate, Allie, and David, but they’re not going for the kill shot. Instead they’re attempting to extract information about a mysterious stone in which one of their fire-and-brimstone leaders has been imprisoned. Kenner does a nice job keeping us in the dark about the stone while the 3 main characters race against time to find it ahead of the bad guys.
Demons Are Forever further promotes Kate’s growth as a main character. In some of the earlier books we saw more of the domestic side of Kate, primarily because she was trying so hard to keep her hunter persona secret from her family and friends. In this book she’s forced to share her secret with a close friend and as such, I believe her character gets more fleshed out. In this book Kenner downplays the “soccer mom” aspect of Kate’s life and focuses more on the well-trained, smart and calculating kick-butt demon slayer persona. It’s a good move.
David, Allie’s high school teacher, is still somewhat of a mystery to Kate (and to us). In the previous book Kate began suspecting that David was hiding something - that he wasn’t exactly who/what he appeared to be. That mystery continues in this book and adds a level of suspense and uncertainty that keeps the storyline interesting.
As in previous books Kate’s husband Stuart is totally in the dark about her secret life. In the earlier books I was exasperated with his character because he seemed to be too preoccupied with building his political career and not plugged in to what his wife was going through. In this book he’s still clueless but we get to see a different side of him which makes him much more endearing. I still think he’s too easy to accept Kate’s explanations about her bruises and injuries but it’s clear that seeds of doubt are starting to take root. I used to wish he’d walk in on her while she was in slayer mode but to be quite honest it’s sometimes funny watching her rush to kill a demon before Stuart comes around a corner. However, I’m still eagerly awaiting the day when he discovers the truth - uh, he will eventually learn the truth right?
I really love the fact that these books don’t take place in an urban city. Likewise, there are no sophisticated weapons, the heroine doesn’t have magical powers, and leather bustiers/stiletto heels are never mentioned. These books are about a woman who uses her intuition, common sense and physical training to rid her little part of the world of evil.
If you’re looking for something different from your average Hunter/Slayer type urban fantasy book pick up one or all of the books in the series:
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| Book #1 | Book #2 | Book #3 | Book #4 |
Give the series a spin - I think you’ll like it.
Here’s the list of fantasy books that will be released in July 2008. There are some good pickins here based on the reviews I’ve read!
See also: Hot New Releases: Best Urban Fantasy Books for June 2008
Here’s one that makes my “best fantasy books” list:
Rachel Morgan is back and as usual has a cast of characters gunning for her. The main storyline in this book focuses on a string of werewolf murders that have recently occurred in Cincinnati. Rachel gets involved in the investigation when Glen, the illegal tomato-loving FIB agent asks her to come down to the morgue to help him determine the cause of death for a female werewolf.
After other bodies begin surfacing Rachel begins wondering if there’s a link between these deaths and an object that Nick (Rachel’s former loser boyfriend) stole from a group of werewolves. Rachel’s involvement increases when a friend of hers is arrested for the murders.
Now, if you’re a Rachel Morgan fan you know that every book contains demon visitations. This fantasy book is no exception. There are lots of demon visits in this book. I mean, lots.
As a matter of fact this fantasy book begins with Rachel being visited by Newt (the top demon from hell) who thinks Rachel has an object of his. Newt has gone insane and has occasional memory lapses. As such Rachel immediately grasps the seriousness of the situation: if Newt doesn’t find the object he’s looking for he may retaliate by killing Rachel and everyone in the vicinity. Rachel has to think fast to survive and does so only with the help of Ceri. This proves very tricky because Newt, because of his powers, can enter her (or anyone else’s) protection circles.
After dispatching Newt back to his place of origin its business as usual for Rachel which means she continues to struggle with her feelings for Ivy, her living vampire roommate. Rachel and Ivy are great friends but Ivy wants to take their friendship to the next level. Yes, the “next level” definitely includes a few loving bites but it also includes having a more intimate girl-to-girl relationship. To complicate matters Ivy is currently in a relationship with Skinner, a former girlfriend of Ivy’s who’s also a living vampire (as opposed to a dead vampire). Skinner has practically moved in with them and has made it very clear that she’s not a fan of Rachel’s. So, on top of being fearful of Newt suddenly appearing at any time at the church, Rachel also has to worry about Skinner and how far she’ll go to make sure Rachel isn’t competition for her affections for Ivy.
And, as in most of the fantasy books in this fantasy series, Rachel comes into contact with Trent. Trent wants Rachel to work security at his wedding because he just got an RSVP from Al (the demon determined to make Rachel his familiar).
Speaking of Trent, we learn even more about him in this book. I’ll let the readers decide whether it’s good or not. Needless to say, one particular scene between he and Rachel (at the Rachel’s home) left me absolutely speechless. Not that I talk to my books or anything – it was just shocking to me.
And if that wasn’t enough, Rachel receives news that Piscary, the master vampire who was incarcerated because of Rachel’s testimony, has been released from prison. This adds another person to the list of would-be assassins for Rachel. Let’s see there’s Al (a demon), Newt (a master level demon), Skinner (a vampire), and Piscary (a master level vampire). Okay, that seems about right for Rachel!
Our favorite pixy Jenks is back with his ever expanding family. Jenks provides the usual funny and insightful wisecracks we’ve come to love him for. Sadly, Armstrong introduces the idea that Jenks and his wife have almost reached the normal life span of pixies and are therefore in danger of going into a hibernation that they might not be able to survive. I really love Jenks’ character and hope he stays around for many more books in the series.
At over 500 pages this is a fairly long book as fantasy books go but Kim Harrison does an admirable job of juggling all of the plotlines described above (in addition to some I left out) in a manner that’s entertaining and exciting. Her pacing is top notch as always and she does a bang up job of climax building. “For a Few Demons More” is another solid contribution to the Rachel Morgan series and one which fans and newcomers alike will enjoy.
See also: Fantasy Book Quickie: Haunted by Kelley Armstrong
Best Fantasy Stories Pick: Kitty and the Silver Bullet by Carrie Vaughn
FANTASY LOVERS:
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Enjoy!
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