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This is an intensely imaginative fantasy adventure about dead gods and fanatic cults and you should read it right now.
Author Frances Hardinge has thought way too much about the world she has created here, and I mean that as a compliment. Only someone who obsesses over minuscule details could have constructed such an elaborate thing.
The story presents a complete pantheon of gods in a complex, inviting fantasy world. In that brilliantly detailed setting, the story involves a mystery about dead gods and a teen who gets in over his almost instantly.
I am just now, with this book, discovering Frances Hardinge. Luckily for all of us, Hardinge has written more books, which I have sought out after reading this one.
I suggest you likewise seek out her other books. I would also suggest creating Dungeons & Dragons game statistics for the gods herein because they are perfect for Dungeon Masters to kill your players with.
You could, of course, make D&D stats and read Hardinge’s other books. Both ways, you’re doing something valuable for yourself and for other humans.
The Book of Dragons
Anthologies by their nature are fickle creatures. Sometimes they are mostly delightful, while sometimes they can be irritatingly bad with maybe two good stories.
The Book of Dragons defies such anthological expectation. It’s really good throughout.
All the authors have interesting takes on the subject matter, from poetry to fables to swords and sorcery. My personal favorite is Scott Lynch’s “Maybe Just Go Up There and Talk To It.”
I must award points to the title, a bold proclamation. THE book of dragons! When I searched for it on the webs, I found a veritable plethora of books claiming to be the book of dragons, but none with such a large font. So there you have it.
But for those who don’t generally choose books based on cover font size, the luminaries within include Jane Yolen, Ken Liu, Kelly Barnhill, Beth Cato, Peter Beagle, Michael Swanwick, Theodora Goss, and more than a dozen more.
Corporate Gunslinger by Doug Engstrom
This one is a brilliant, Twilight Zone-style speculation about a future ruled by corporate greed. It’s brutal and violent, and it’s smart and deep, too.
It’s tough to get into why this premise works so well without spoilers. It takes aim at a societal ill while also being a deeply personal story with a female hero.
It’ll make you ask questions, and that’s the best stuff that speculative fiction does (besides exploding spaceships).
Highly recommended.
Heir of Ra by M. Sasinowski
This book is so fun. It’s an Indiana Jones movie and a National Treasure movie and The Mummy and tons of other fun action flick-style stories in convenient book form.
The author clearly, absolutely loves what they’re doing. You can tell from the sparkling dialogue, the detailed storytelling, the crazy concepts.
This book is number 1 in a series, so naturally, you should start here. Right now. Have you started yet? What about now?
