Previous SFF Author: A. Lee Martinez
(1962- )
Besides the fantasies listed below, Gail Z. Martin also writes the Thrifty Author’s Guide series on book promotion for authors. She also writes The 30 Day Results Guide series on Internet marketing. She is the host of the Ghost in the Machine Fantasy Podcast and the Disquieting Visions blog on paranormal fiction. Read excerpts of Gail Z Martin’s fantasy novels at The Chronicles of the Necromancer website. View a video advertisement for the epic here.
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The Summoner by Gail Z. Martin
The Summoner is the first book that I have read by Gail Martin, but I was happily impressed with this first installment of The Chronicles of the Necromancer. I didn’t love it, and there seemed to be some rough patches throughout the book, but on the whole it was interesting.
Central to this story is a lust for power and what happens as a result. The main character, Martris “Tris” Drayke, is not very unique,
John Hulet´s rating: 3.5 | Gail Z. Martin | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Blood King by Gail Z. Martin
The Blood King is the second book in The Chronicles of the Necromancer.
Gail Z. Martin has a decent writing voice, but the book as a whole really left me wanting. Perhaps it was the combination of good characters who were too good and bad characters who were too bad that I just didn’t quite feel comfortable with.
The first book, The Summoner, took us through the overthrow of the Kingdom of Margolan by the eldest son who is evil and selfish and cruel and lecherous and impatient… see where I am going with this?
John Hulet´s rating: 2.5 | Gail Z. Martin | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Ice Forged by Gail Z. Martin
There are some crimes that are so heinous that a person’s reaction to them is almost chemical, not logical. When Blaine McFadden is confronted by the sight of his beloved younger sister after she has been sexually assaulted, he loses control and in short order kills the man responsible. In that act, no matter how justified, Blaine seals his fate and is exiled to a distant, frozen penal colony to pay for having taken another man’s life.
Ice Forged is Gail Z.
John Hulet´s rating: 3.5 | Gail Z. Martin | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Trifles and Folly: A Deadly Curiosities Collection by Gail Z. Martin
I haven’t read any of Gail Z. Martin’s DEADLY CURIOSITIES novels, but Tantor Audio sent me Trifles and Folly: A Deadly Curiosities Collection (2016) and I thought it’d be a good introduction to the series.
The premise reminds me of Juliet Blackwell’s WITCHCRAFT MYSTERIES, which stars a young woman, Lily Ivory, who gets vibes from used garments. She has a vintage clothing store in San Francisco and,
Kat Hooper´s rating: 3 | Gail Z. Martin | Audio, Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Spark of Destiny by Gail Z. Martin & Larry N. Martin
Steampunk as a fiction genre has nearly disappeared. It’s become much more of a fashion or costume statement; or subsumed completely into alternate history. I understand the reasons; and expect the various sub-genres to ebb and flow like everything else. It was still a nice treat to read 2023’s Spark of Destiny by Gail Z. Martin and Larry N. Martin, a genuine steampunk adventure.
Here’s an incomplete list of what I expect in steampunk:
Marion Deeds´s rating: 3.5 | Gail Z. Martin | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Bull Spec is a print and electronic science fiction and fantasy glossy magazine named for its home of Durham, North Carolina. The word “Bull” seems to have become associated with Durham because of a tobacco factory in the city, which itself took the name from the picture of a bull that appeared on the label of a mustard that the tobacco factory owner believed was manufactured in Durham, England; it’s all very complicated, but at least we know that the magazine’s name is based on where it is published. The publisher, Samuel Montgomery-Blinn,
Magic: An Anthology of the Esoteric and Arcane edited by Jonathan Oliver
Magic is, almost by definition, esoteric and arcane; something known only to a few, kept secret from the masses, practiced only by initiates. Still, the grandiose title of this themed anthology of original stories may oversell it slightly, since many of the tales here are quite conventional. Jonathan Oliver gathered a shining collection of talent, though, and with fifteen stories spanning fantasy, dark fantasy, urban fantasy and horror, most readers will find something to enjoy.
The book has a lovely cover by Nicolas Delort.
Marion Deeds´s rating: 3 | Audrey Niffenegger, Dan Abnett, Gail Z. Martin, Gemma Files, Liz Williams, Storm Constantine, Will Hill | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Previous SFF Author: A. Lee Martinez
Thanks for the kind words, Marion! Coming as they are from a professional writer, they are much appreciated!
Wonderful review, Sandy.
The "body count" bothered me a bit less because being dead seemed more like an inconvenience than anything else... unlike…
Detailed, thoughtful review, Bill. I'm going to read it for two reasons. First, Karen Russell wrote it, and second, it…
this sounds like a fun one