The Sum of All Men by David Farland
Gaborn Orden, the next King of Mystarria is headed to the kingdom of Heredon to ask the lovely Princess Iome for her hand in marriage. Castle Sylvarresta however is under attack by the evil Raj Ahten, the Runelord of all Runelords. With thousands of endowments taken from other men and women, he is truly a man among men, and he takes over Castle Sylvarresta without a single drop of blood being shed. Gaborn however can see through this ruthless man. Endowed with the Gift of the Earth and deemed to be the future King who will seek revenge upon Raj, Ahten Gaborn flees with the Princess and King Sylvarresta to beat Raj Ahten to the fortress where he has mistakenly hidden several thousand forcibles — the key to his power. With the power of the Earth behind him, Gaborn must turn away from the lessons he was taught as a child in order to defeat the powers of evil and he learns the lesson that all rulers must learn: ... Read More
Worldbinder by David Farland
Way back in 1998 I was sent David Farland’s The Sum of All Men because I forgot to check ‘no’ on one of those mailings sent out by the Science Fiction Book Club. Since I had the book in hand, I figured “what the heck” and proceeded to read the novel. While I wasn’t completely blown away by the book, it showed enough potential, especially the whole concept of Runelords — a magic system where individuals are granted endowments of certain attributes such as strength, speed, eyesight, hearing, stamina, beauty, et cetera — that I picked up the next two volumes (Brotherhood of the Wolf, Wizardborn) in the series, which to this day I feel are the best in the bunch. With 2003’s The Lair of Bones, Mr. Farland delivered what I thought was a satisfactory, but somewhat antic... Read More
Out of Avalon: An Anthology of Old Magic and New Myths by Jennifer Roberson
Out of Avalon: An Anthology of Old Magic and New Myths is an anthology for everyone who loves re-takes on the Arthurian legends, and especially those readers who loved The Mists of Avalon and are seeking more of the same sort of retellings, laced with gender politics, religious issues, and romance.
As in all anthologies, some of the stories are to my taste, some aren't, and there is probably something for everyone. In my opinion, the stunner of the bunch is Rosemary Edghill's "Prince of Exiles." Set among bloodthirsty warlords rather than knights-n-ladies, it is narrated by Ator (Arthur)'s bitter illegitimate son, as he unfolds his intricate plan for revenge against his father. It's a darkly engrossing story until you get to the l... Read More
March 5th, 2008.
Kelly Lasiter´s rating:
4 |
David Farland,
Diana Gabaldon,
Jennifer Roberson,
Judith Tarr,
Katharine Kerr,
Kristen Britain,
Laura Resnick,
Marion Zimmer Bradley,
Michelle Sagara West,
Mike Resnick,
Nina Kiriki Hoffman,
Rosemary Edghill |
Short Fiction |
SFF Reviews |
no comments
The Mad Scientist’s Guide to World Domination edited by John Joseph Adams
The Mad Scientist’s Guide to World Domination is the latest themed anthology edited by John Joseph Adams — and it’s another good one. This time, Adams has collected a set of short stories featuring the hero’s (or often superhero’s) traditional antagonist: the mad genius, the super-villain, the brilliant sociopath who wants to remold the world in his own image — or occasionally, maybe, just be left alone in his secret lair to conduct spine-tingling experiments that, as an unfortunate side-effect, may cause drastically rearranged geography, rampant mutation, or major extinction events.
Under the editorial direction of John Joseph Adams, this anthology offers an impressively varied view on this archetypical character. Some stories refer back to mad geniuses you’ll be familiar with (Frankenstein, Lex Luthor). Some of them feature ... Read More
August 7th, 2013.
Stefan Raets (RETIRED)´s rating:
3.5 |
Alan Dean Foster,
Austin Grossman,
Ben H. Winters,
Carrie Vaughn,
David D. Levine,
David Farland,
Diana Gabaldon,
Genevieve Valentine,
Harry Turtledove,
Jeffrey Ford,
L.A. Banks,
L.E. Modesitt_Jr,
Laird Barron,
Marjorie M. Liu,
Mary Robinette Kowal,
Naomi Novik,
Seanan McGuire,
Theodora Goss |
Short Fiction |
SFF Reviews |
2 comments
More by David Farland
Ravenspell — (2005-2007) Ages 9-12. Publisher: More than anything, Benjamin Ravenspell wants a pet. But when he buys a mouse named Amber, he gets more than he bargained for. No sooner does Ben take her home, than Amber turns him into a mouse too. You see, Amber has magical abilities, and it so happens that Ben is a familiar — a creature that stores magical energy. Together they each form half of a powerful wizard. Alone, they’re just vermin. Soon Ben and Amber will find themselves pitted in an epic battle against a magical enemy who is as crazed as he is evil — and the fate of the world will rest on them learning to work together.
Available for download at Audible.com 
The Golden Queen — (2011-2012) Publisher: When Gallen O’Day is hired to as a bodyguard to escort a young woman through the woods to the forbidden ruins at Geata Na Chruinn, it seems like an ordinary job — but all too soon, he finds himself fleeing for his life from creatures that seem like escapees from a nightmare — the alien dronon, led by their golden queen. With his best friend, a genetically engineered talking bear named Orick, and his girlfriend Maggie, Gallen soon finds himself tangled in an interstellar war that he never knew existed, racing across a host of worlds, confronted by a future unlike any that he had ever imagined. Originally published under the name of Dave Wolverton.
Nightingale — (2012) Publisher: Grand Prize Winner of the Hollywood Book Festival, placed first in all genres, all categories. Winner of the 2012 International Book Award for Best Young Adult Novel of the Year! Finalist in the Global Ebook Awards. Some people sing at night to drive back the darkness. Others sing to summon it… Bron Jones was abandoned as a newborn. Thrown into foster care, he is rejected by one family after another, until he meets Olivia, a gifted and devoted high-school teacher who recognizes him for what he really is–what her people call a “nightingale.” But Bron isn’t ready to learn the truth. There are secrets that have been hidden from mankind for hundreds of thousands of years, secrets that should remain hidden. Some things are too dangerous to know. Bron’s secret may be the most dangerous of all. In his remarkable young adult fantasy debut, David Farland shows why critics have called his work “compelling,” “engrossing,” “powerful,” “profound,” and “ultimately life-changing.”
On My Way to Paradise — (1989) Originally published as Dave Woolverton. Publisher: Won the Philip K. Dick Memorial Special Award for “Best Novel in the English Language.” Here is a powerful first novel, at once disturbing and compelling–the chronicle of one man’s odyssey of self-discovery within a world at war. ON MY WAY TO PARADISE. In a world of ever-worsening crisis, Angelo Osic is an anomaly: a man who cares about others. One day he aids a stranger… and calls down disaster, for the woman called Tamara is also a woman on the run, the only human with the knowledge that will save Earth from the artificial intelligences plotting to overthrow it. Fleeing the assassins who seek him as well as Tamara, Angelo seizes the only escape route available: to sign on as a mercenary with the Japanese Motoki Corporation in its genocidal war against the barbarian Yabajin. Jacked into training machines that simulate warfare, Angelo “dies” a hundred times… and is resurrected to fight again. In a world of death, he dreams only of life — and the freedom to love once more.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE BY DAVID FARLAND
(1957- )
