Tag: Fantasy

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Book Review – Castle of Wizardry by David Eddings.

Castle of Wizardry (The Belgariad, #4)Castle of Wizardry by David Eddings

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Castle of Wizardry is an epic fantasy novel. It has a prophecy, a magical orb that only an innocent child can touch, sorcerers, magic and all that stuff that makes up a good fantasy.

The Cover: The cover feels a little dated, but you’ve got to expect that with a book that was published in 1984. Taking that into consideration, I think the cover has aged well and it has all the elements I would expect of a fantasy novel cover. I love the title font, it works really well for me and the image itself clearly resonates with me as a fantasy reader.

The Good Stuff: David Eddings writes a solid fantasy story with well developed characters in a well developed world. He tells a good story that will pull many readers in, even if they do not enjoy the style of writing. With so many fantasy novels to his name, if you do enjoy his books, Mr Eddings has the bibliographical ability to take you on an epic fantasy adventure.

The Bad Stuff: The writing style can have a tendency to tell rather than show. I have a personal dislike of strange spelling for names, eg. ‘Ctuchik’, I have to pause as I wonder at the pronunciation. This held me back from immersing myself into the book at the initial stages, but I got over it as I read on.

I enjoyed this book, David Eddings makes good use of his vocabulary in the novel and in my opinion, despite the tendency to tell, this book is still a thoroughly enjoyable read. This one gets 3 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.au
Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.com
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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The Witcher. What Do You Think?

Hello Readers,

I must admit that I am a big fan of Grimdark/Dark Fiction and I am also bit of a movie lover. So it is no surprise that I have long awaited the release of the Witcher series on Netflix. The computer game was highly regarded and raved about by many back in the day. I have yet to read the book, but it has high reviews and a relatively small amount of disappointed readers. As for the series… That has been compared to Game Of Thrones. I’m not sure I would put them on the same level, but one thing is for sure, there seems to be a lot of mixed feelings about the TV adaptation.

In my opinion it is slow to get started, but the more I watch it the better it gets. I really didn’t start to enjoy it much until episode 3, and after finishing the 1st season, I certainly would not liken it to G.O.T. It is nowhere near on the same level for me. If I had to make a comparison, I would compare it to the TV series Hercules or Xena. To be honest, I find Geralt’s character quite boring, but I think this is because the series portrays him to be void of emotions (and I am not sure if this is how the book portrays him). I find some issues around this as he clearly displays feelings for other characters, such as Yennefer. What Geralt lacks is made up for in the character of the bard, Jaskier. He can be annoying, but he’s funny and brings that little extra something to the show. I also like Yennefer’s character, she is likeable, but she has her own personal issues and a darkside to her that makes her very interesting to me.

Watching this series has prompted me to add the book to my ‘To Read’ list, and if you are after a copy of your own, you can purchase it from the following links:

Amazon.com.au
Amazon.co.uk
Amazon
Kobo

Anyway, overall I enjoy the show and will continue to watch through the next season when it comes out. If you have watched the show yourself, I’d love to know what you think of it. Just post your comments below.

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 libraries.

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Book Review – The Heir of Night by Helen Lowe

The Heir of Night (The Wall of Night, #1)

The Heir of Night by Helen Lowe

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Heir Of Night is a tale of Malian, heir to the house of night, finding lost powers and protecting the people of Haarth against the Darkswarm.

The Cover: I have a different version of the cover displayed here. The copy I have has a young girl with a sword standing in a brick archway as flames rise up in the background behind her. I prefer the one I have to be honest, but both of these convey a fantasy novel and fit well with the genre.

The Good Stuff: I found this book to be a well written with a richly crafted world. The protagonist and other main characters are well defined, and there are some very dark creatures.

The Bad Stuff: You may get the urge to give up on this book as it is quite slow to get started.

There seems to be a lot of mixed reviews about this book. I sit in the camp of those that enjoyed it. In my opinion it was an interesting read with a good storyline. I’m giving it 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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Book Review – The Magicians’ Guild by Trudi Canavan.

The Magicians' Guild (Black Magician Trilogy, #1)
The Magicians’ Guild by Trudi Canavan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Magicians’ Guild is basically a story about Sonea, a girl with innate magical abilities that appear when she throws a stone at a magician of the guild in anger. On realising she has magical power the guild search to find her before her magic consumes her, but she thinks they want punish her for throwing the stone and so is in hiding.

The Cover: There is a great cover on this book. The Black image on the white background is clean and crisp. The font works really well and the image is a good fit. All together it clearly represents the genre and targets the audience it is aimed at.

The Good Stuff: I liked the different characters and cultures within this story. The character is likeable and well developed and crosses a clear arc within the story. The world is also well established.

The Bad Stuff: Trudi Canavan tends to use a lot of internal thought to convey what she wants the reader to know or think, this irritated me a little. Some of the story was also a little predictable.

Overall this was a very enjoyable book, Trudy Canavan has created a solid fantasy world with interesting characters that will carry you through the story and leave you wanting more. I give 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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Book Review – The Orc King by R.A. Salvatore.

The Orc King (Forgotten Realms: Transitions, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #17)

The Orc King by R.A. Salvatore

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Orc King is a classic fantasy novel about the search for peace amid the struggle for power.

The Cover: I love this cover. The artwork is great and screams fantasy, but if it wasn’t clear enough the title cements it in the genre. The font also works with this title.

The good stuff: The characters are well rounded and interesting. I aslo liked the magical weapons, the creatures, and the locations. The story is set in a well established world and has all the elements of a good fantasy novel.

The Bad Stuff: There are some over technical explanations within the fight scenes that detract from the story. Some long and clunky sentences.

In my opinion, this is a great fantasy novel with Orcs, Elves, Dwarves, magic and magical weapons. What more could you ask for? 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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Book Review – Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy by David Gerrold

Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy

Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy by David Gerrold

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Worlds of Wonder – How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy by David Gerrold is a non-fiction title for writers who are looking to learn about the craft of writing in the genres of science fiction and fantasy.

The Cover: I really wasn’t sold on this cover. It didn’t really suggest the book was non-fiction, the picture didn’t really work for me, and I really didn’t like the font used on the title and author name. It made the book look less professional to me. If I took the text away from the cover all together, this could have been a sci-fi, horror, or thriller novel in my opinion.

The Good Stuff: Wow! I thought the last book I read on the craft of writing was good, but this book blew me away. This has to be the best book for writers that I have read. David Gerrold really has a firm grip on the craft. I am the target audience for this book and it did its job, really hitting the mark for me. The chapters are succinct, no waffle, no filler, no repeating the same thing 3 times, just solid direct writing. The words run smoothly and make perfect sense to me as a writer and to top it all off, my version was published in 2001. David Gerrold’s text is relevant today as much as it was back then and seems to be timeless.

The Bad Stuff: I’m pretty sure I have covered all the bad stuff in the cover section.

Overall, I found this book to be pretty amazing. If you can only afford to buy one book on writing this year I would recommend you make it this one. It is clear and concise, covers a wealth of information, provides some solid advice, and the writing is interesting. This one is getting a star making, writer creating 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 Done Your Christmas Shopping Yet?

selective focus photography of gift box on brown wooden surface
Photo by Thais Araujo on Pexels.com

Hello Readers,

It’s almost Christmas! With everyone shopping for pressies, I thought it would be a good time for me to apply to become an amazon associate. What does that mean? Well, if I’m accepted as an amazon associate and you go to amazon and purchase something via an affiliate link on my website, I get a small payment for the referral. But don’t worry, you do not get charged anything extra on your purchase, the payment I receive comes out of amazon’s pockets. So heads up… I will be using affiliate links in this post and on my site from now on.

With Christmas just around the corner you can pick up some great deals from amazon, and if you get in quick, they still have their Black Friday deals on.

For those fantasy readers out there, here are a couple of my own personal picks for you:

How about one of Australian author Alicia Wanstall-Burke’s fantasy novels:

Blood of Heirs (The Coraidic Sagas Book 1)

Blood of Heirs,

and her new release,

Legacy of Ghosts (The Coraidic Sagas Book 2)

Legacy of Ghosts,

Or if you’re thinking of taking a break from reading over the festive season, these escape games will get your mind working. And if you’re a writer, maybe they will give you some inspiration for your next novel.

Thames & Kosmos Exit Games: Polar Station, Forbidden Castle, and Forgotten Island (Set of 3)

Exit The Game

Happy reading and I hope you enjoy your Christmas shopping.

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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Do You Like Fantasy Creatures? Here’s A Few To Cast Your Eyes Over.

Hello Readers,

I’ve come to my last post depicting some of the miniatures I painted when I was younger. I’ve saved a group photo for this last post. I hope you enjoy it.

20191108_160226 (2)

This one is a band of orcs and goblins. These are a mixture of plastic and metal cast figures. Personally I prefer to work with metal figures, but I also do not mind the resin ones. Plastic is my least favourite, they just don’t have the same feel to them and I find they tend to lack the level of detail you get on the metal cast figures. At least they did when I used to paint them many tears ago.

I wish the picture quality was better, but alas this was the best I could do with photos that were taken on film many years ago. None the less, I hope you got some satisfaction out of them and that somehow they have tweaked your creativity.

If you’re looking for some more modern Orc’s, I recommend you check out Games Workshop.

What are you’re favourite fantasy creatures? Leave a comment to let me know.

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.

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Do You Like Fantasy Creatures? If So, Here’s A Few More Miniatures For You.

Hello Readers,

Here’s another post in my miniature series. Unfortunately I only have one more photo that is clear enough to put up and I will do that in a final post in this series. I have started all my previous miniature posts with a dragon, so I thought I would keep that trend going in this post.

20191108_160035 (2)

This first photo is of a baby Green Dragon, I love how the reptilian features stand out on this one. The base was made with an old lid of a jar covered with Plaster-of-Paris. The mushrooms and chili like plant were made by carefully heating/melting the plastic frame the skeletons in the last post came in (they were plastic moulded figures that come in pieces so you can mix and match to make personalised figures). The tree was from a model railway set.

20191108_160503 (2)

This one is a Hill Giant. You can’t really tell from the picture, but he is missing a finger on his left hand – hence the blood splatter. This one reminds me of a cross between a Muppet and Ben Grimm. Still, I wouldn’t like to bump into him in a dark valley.

20191108_160346 (3)

This next one is another Minotaur. I really like the way this one turned out, but the quality of the picture doesn’t do it justice here… Sorry!

If you are looking at getting some miniatures yourself, why not have a browse online.

Anyway, once again I hope you’ve enjoyed the pictures. If they help stimulate your imagination at all, then it has been worth posting them.

I have one more photo for my next post, until then.

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.

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Do You Like Fantasy Creatures? Then have A Look At These.

Hello Readers,

Here is my third post on fantasy miniatures. Again, I apologize for the poor quality of the pictures, but these are digital photos, of paper photos, of the minatures I painted many years ago.

20191108_160106 (2)

This first one is a Red Dragon (Pretty obvious really). I like to think of this one as a nephew of Smaug. A fraction of the size, but just as mean.

20191108_160403 (2)

This one is a Cave Giant. You probably can’t appreciate the size of him because there is no reference to gauge it against, but it is probably about 3 times the size of a human figure.

20191108_160558 (3)

And here we have a Minotaur, fearsome guardian of the labyrinth. The strange thing about this one is he has one clawed hand and one human hand. Still a scary Mo-Fo if you ask me and I’m guessing his breath isn’t too good, but I’m sure never getting close enough to one to find out!

I like to browse through the figures in store to choose the ones I like, but you can find a great selection of miniatures and the gear you need to paint them online.

I reckon I’ve got enough photos left for one or two more posts, we’ll see. Either way, I hope you’ve enjoyed them so far and that they have kicked your imagination into gear.

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.

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