fantasy and science fiction book reviewsFor your daily dose of pretty: Many of you probably remember the series of painting of Disney princesses in historically accurate clothing. Well, the same talented artist, Claire Hummel has started doing the Disney villains, and look at her first offering. Maleficient. Gorgeous. Click through for a bigger image and to see the rest of the series.

Coulson lives. Coulson lives!! I’m pretty sure that this is the equivalent of the Marvel fandom pulling an “I believe in fairies!” moment. Also, here’s the full trailer for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Which authors write the best action sequences?

The nominees for this year’s Mythopoeic Award have been announced. This is one of my favorite awards because of their willingness to look at the field broadly. The graphic novel Digger  is included with the best novel, and it also looks at trilogies as a whole, rather than breaking them into parts. If you’re interested in the academic study of fantasy literature, this award also has separate categories for that. Also, the nominees for the Shirley Jackson award have been announced, which honors fantasy at the horror end of the spectrum.

You can currently download a copy of Neil Gaiman’s short story “How to Talk to Girls at Parties” on Amazon for free, and it includes an excerpt of his upcoming novel, The Ocean at the End of the Lane.

Science fiction for economists, a list by the Nobel Prize winning Paul Krugman.

You can win a copy of this year’s Nebula Awards Showcase anthology over at The Book Smugglers.

And we got this information from Albino Dragon, a games publisher.

Albino Dragon, a tabletop game developer and publisher, is proud to announce their newest project, a customized Bicycle playing cards based on celebrated fantasy author Patrick Rothfuss’ The Name of the Wind. The company has teamed up with Rothfuss to provide fans with a breathtaking deck of cards that will sweep you into the land of faeries folk, bards, tinkers and more.

Inspired by the incredible world built by Rothfuss, each card will be lovingly designed by artist, Shane Tyree, lead artist and graphic designer with Albino Dragon, who has contributed artwork to a number of projects including projects by Wizards of The Coast, Fantasy Flight Games, Alderac Entertainment Group, Ace of Spies & Genegrafter (Albino Dragon), and the wildly successful Call of Cthulhu and White Rabbit playing cards.

The project will be funded by Kickstarter and it joins the family of already successful projects Albino Dragon has created using crowdfunding. Pledges from the Kickstarter will go to offsetting printing, shipping, and production. Albino Dragon strives to make the most of their Kickstarters through innovative rewards and updates. For example, the company has regular Google Hangouts with backers and fans so they can give their input into projects. Previous projects have included incorporating backer’s likeness or ideas into card designs.

To find out more about The Name of The Wind Kickstarter please visit: (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1460165270/the-name-of-the-wind-playing-cards ) Or ‘like’ Albino Dragon on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/AlbinoDragonGames) or follow them on Twitter (https://twitter.com/thealbinodragon)

Be warned, Kickstarter can be dangerous to your wallet.

Have a wonderful Wednesday, and good reading!

 

Author

  • Ruth Arnell

    RUTH ARNELL (on FanLit's staff January 2009 — August 2013) earned a Ph.D. in political science and is a college professor in Idaho. From a young age she has maxed out her library card the way some people do credit cards. Ruth started reading fantasy with A Wrinkle in Time and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe — books that still occupy an honored spot on her bookshelf today. Ruth and her husband have a young son, but their house is actually presided over by a flame-point Siamese who answers, sometimes, to the name of Griffon.

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