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Book Review – The Cloud by K.I Zachopoulos

The CloudThe Cloud by K.I. Zachopoulos

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Cloud is a fantasy graphic novel about a boy and his wolf who go on a journey to find the boy’s father and return a wish that was stolen from him.

The Cover: This is a beautiful cover that clearly defines the fantasy elements of the story, however it does not convey that the book is a graphic novel. This is fine if it is housed on the bookshelves under graphic novels, but my suggestion to the author would be to add some subtext to make it clear. Something along the lines of ‘A fantasy graphic novel that will take you on a beautifully illustrated adventure.’

The Good Stuff: There is an interesting tale here set in an interesting world and it is beautifully illustrated. The layout and quality of the artwork is done to a professional standard, and it certainly looks like a graphic novel should do.

The Bad Stuff: While the tale is interesting and the artwork is visual feast for your eyes, by all accounts the story seems to be a little hard to follow. If you are a die-hard graphic novelist/comic reader, you may not be fazed by this, but for me, well… the artwork made it well worth a read.

Overall, if you are a lover of good art you will enjoy this book, but if you are after a smooth flowing, easy to understand story this may leave you a little unsatisfied. I’m giving this one an eye opening, mind marvelling 3 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

amazon.com
amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review: The Writers Complete Fantasy Reference

The Writer's Complete Fantasy Reference: An Indispensable Compendium of Myth and MagicThe Writer’s Complete Fantasy Reference: An Indispensable Compendium of Myth and Magic from the editors of Writer’s Digest Books

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Writers Complete Fantasy Reference is a non-fiction title for writers. It covers aspects of the genre that will help the writer to create a believable fantasy world.

The Cover: This is a beautiful cover and screams fantasy, however if it were not for the title and other elements on the cover, I would not have picked it as a non-fiction book. The cover designer made good choices with these additional elements to consolidate the genres.

The Good Stuff: This book is packed with useful information for a fantasy writer. Ever wondered what the parts of a castle are? Look no further. Need to know what weapons were around in the middle ages? This is the book for you. What did peasants wear? It’s all in this book.

The Bad Stuff: It is only a non-fiction title and with such a great cover, I wanted more. The book is informative, but a lot of the details are common knowledge. Did I really need this book? Probably not. Will I ever refer to it? Probably, now I know what’s between the covers it will be easy to refer to if I need more details. It could even be used for some inspiration.

Overall, this is a good reference guide. It covers different cultures across our evolution and will certainly make you think a little more about things when you are writing your next fantasy novel. I appreciate the content, but reading a reference guide is a little boring for me, better suited as a reference, but it’s kind of a catch 22, without knowing the content how do you know what to refer to? I think there is value in this title and it certainly reminded me of the deeper level of thought required when planning your novels. For that reason I’m ranking this one 3 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

amazon.com
amazon.com.au

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries. 

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What Are Your Favourite Horrors?

close up creepy dark darkness
Photo by Toni Cuenca on Pexels.com

Hello Readers,

Halloween, All Hallows Eve, Samhain… whatever you want to call it, it’s rapidly approaching. I always loved Halloween when I was a kid, maybe it was all those Hammer House of Horror stories I used to watch on TV, the Twilight Zone, Tales of the Unexpected, or just the old black and white horror movies. Whatever it was, I loved it. So in the lead up to the big night itself, I thought I would list some of my favourite horrors (books and movies) for you all. Here they are:

  1. Interview with the Vampire
  2. Van Helsing
  3. The Lost Boys
  4. Fright Night
  5. 30 Days of Night
  6. The Grudge
  7. The Ring
  8. Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Slayer
  9. Priest
  10. The Number 23
  11. Let the Right One In.

Okay, maybe some are not exactly scary horror, but I like them none the less. What are your favourite horrors?

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in some libraries.

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Book Review – The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie.

The Blade Itself (The First Law, #1)

The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Blade Itself is a fantasy novel about … well, a host of characters and the parts they play in this tale of feuds, conspiracies, and wars. Set in a vicious world with well-established cultures and classes, magic and science, superstitions and beliefs.

The Cover: I do get the feeling that this is a fantasy novel. The blood splatter suggests there will be some violence. It’s quite plain and doesn’t really grab me.

The good stuff: This book has a full cast of characters from Logen Ninefingers, Bayaz and Jezal Dan Luthar, to Major Collem West, Sand dan Glokta, and Ferro. Their paths woven seamlessly into the story in a world where life is neither fun nor fair. The characters own their individual personalities, their individual traits and their individual problems, while war broods all around. Abercrombie weaves a tale of respected men who lie and scheme, barbarians who have honour and respect and strong women who kick some serious arse.

The Bad Stuff: The only bad thing about this book is it comes to an end and leaves you wanting more.

In my opinion, this is a superbly written fantasy novel with a mix of aristocratic society and down-in-the-gutter, bang-to-rights hard men. This action packed novel packs a punch and deserves a place on the shelf of any true fantasy fan. I’m giving it 5 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

amazon.com
amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Have You Tried to Loan a Book this week?

Picture of the local library
My Local Library – West End.

Hello Readers,

I thought I would write a quick post to remind you all that my stories (both print versions and e-books) are available in libraries. I know that here in Australia they are available in The National Library, The State Library of Queensland, Brisbane City Libraries and Logan City Libraries. It is very possible they are also available in others. You can even check online to see if they have a copy and if not you can request that they order one in, all from the comfort of your own home.

Our libraries only remain open if we use them, so why not help your local library and loan a book today. You never know… you may just enjoy it!

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in some libraries.

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One for the Book Lovers

Hello Readers,

I’m still exploring the suburb I’ve recently moved to and I thought I would share this photo of one of the local pubs. It is called ‘Archive’.

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The really awesome thing about this place is – the bar is made of books. How cool s that!

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in some libraries. 

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Book Review – Magician by Raymond E. Fiest.

Magician (The Riftwar Saga, #1-2)

Magician by Raymond E. Feist

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Magician is an epic fantasy novel about the lives of Pug and those around him, their victories, their defeats, their friendships, oh… and there is magic.

The Cover: A good traditional fantasy cover that clearly demonstrates the genre and gives you some idea of what sort of story you’re going to get.

The good stuff: While Magician bears some similarities to Tolkien’s work, it is an epic tale in its own right. Feist has put an original spin on a plot that has been used before and has some well rounded characters. His world building is done well, creating different races and cultures in worlds far apart. The Magician has everything a great fantasy epic should have: magic, magical weapons and armour, dragons, elves, dwarves and more.

The Bad Stuff: If I said I had just read a book with wizards, dwarves, elves, goblins and a mad king, what would you think of? Well, The Magician is not the title that most people would think of. As mentioned above, there are a few similarities to another well read epic fantasy in this book. There’s also some over explaining and repetition, with a fair bit of telling in the writing style.

In my opinion, this is a great fantasy novel and is a much loved classic that deserves a space on the shelf of any true fantasy fan. This one gets 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks from me.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

amazon.com
amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries. 

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Ups and Downs and Silver Linings… Oh My.

Hello Readers,

A lot has been happening in my world lately. My partner and I have recently moved house. She hates that word by the way – ‘Partner’. She says it sounds like a business relationship – wants me to ‘make an honest woman’ of her. But I have digressed… we had our old place on the market; the sales market is slow, so we switched it to a rental and now have tenants in place. We are still trying to organize the new place. It’s much smaller, so we have had to refurnish and get rid of a lot of stuff.

I’ve also been out and about, exploring my new neighbourhood… and I’m loving it! I’m living in a Brisbane suburb called West End and it is really diverse. A crazy juxtaposition of new and old, rich and poor, shabby and chic. This makes it really interesting. There is so much to do here with all the transport options, cafes and bars, markets and communal gardens, the museums and theatres, thrift shops and second hand book stores, the list goes on…

In my day job I manage a team,  but we’ve all been told our jobs are being made redundant. I’ve been trying to support them through this and manage my own situation at the same time. Luckily I am a glass-half-full kind of guy, and as much as this is changing my life as I know it, I’m looking for the opportunities that come from these changes and encouraging them to do the same.

On the writing front I have been trying to maintain a presence at my Writers’ groups and critique the submissions that go hand-in-hand with them. All the change has taken a bit of a toll on my creativity though. With so much going on it’s been hard to knuckle down and write. So I took the opportunity to dig out an old book I was working on. One I finished a few years ago and never got around to publishing. It’s a non-fiction title that has been sitting on my hard drive collecting virtual dust. It’s a guide to self-publishing, but the longer it sat there the older the information was getting. Now I have pulled it off the drive, done an update to ensure the info is relevant and published it. Until things settle down a little I’m not sure when I will get back to the fiction titles I have been working on. I have started running a new ad for my ‘Blood Rage’ series and I’ll see how that goes as time ticks by. I’ve also pulled a couple of stories down from KDP select (which made them exclusive to amazon) and I have now published them across multiple channels.

For those that follow my blog, you may (or may not) have picked up that I’m a bit of an art lover. Well, West End is full of art, hopefully it will start to stimulate my creativity again. Anyway, while on my explorations I have been taking some photos and I thought I would share some with you. Here they are, enjoy!

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Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in some libraries. 

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New Release – Get Published: An Author’s Guide to Self-Publishing


Cover of book 'Get Published'

Hello Readers,

Here is another quick post to let you know about my latest book release,  ‘Get Published: An Author’s Guide to Self-Publishing’. This one is a non-fiction title that covers the topic of self-publishing from setting yourself up, to publishing your books. If you’ve always wanted to know how to go about self-publishing , why not grab yourself a copy here.

Happy Reading.

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in some libraries. 

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Book Review – Outlining Your Novel by K.M. Weiland

Outlining Your Novel: Map Your Way to SuccessOutlining Your Novel: Map Your Way to Success by K.M. Weiland
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Outlining Your Novel by K.M. Weiland is a non-fiction title that looks at the benefits and process of outlining a novel before you start writing.

The Cover: The cover is a great fit for this title. The image reflects the craft of writing and works well in the non-fiction genre.

The Good Stuff: This book covers the techniques of outlining well. The author shares her experience in a clear and concise manner. There is some great information in this book that would steer an author on a straight path with their writing.

The Bad Stuff: There are a lot of author interviews interspersed between chapters. At first, I found them interesting, but then they all became a bit boring. They all seemed to say the same thing, drumming home the message that outlining is good. It seemed like filler to me and I would have much preferred just one or two examples at the end of the book.

Overall, there is some great information in this book. If you want to learn about outlining, I would recommend you read this, it will certainly tell you what you need to know. If you already have a good grip on outlining, you probably won’t learn so much. If this is you, it may just confirm that what you are doing is the same as other authors, or maybe you’ll learn something new. I was going to give this 3 out of 5 golden bookmarks as I did learn a little and I enjoyed the book. On reflection, I think it holds a lot of value for beginner to intermediate writers and for that reason I’m ranking this one 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

amazon.com
amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here. You can also find his titles available in libraries. 

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