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Two books and a film
Sep. 18th, 2024 08:23 pmA friend of mine sent me a quiz recently, which had titles and short descriptions of fantasy novels that may or may not have been real. I didn't do particularly well at guessing - but was delighted to discover that To Journey in the Year of the Tiger by H Leighton Dickson was actually real. I bought the whole trilogy immediately and thoroughly enjoyed this first instalment.
The description reads:
"This is a powerful, post-apocalyptic story of lions and tigers, wolves and dragons, embracing and blending the cultures of Dynastic China, Ancient India and Feudal Japan. Half feline, half human, this genetically altered world has evolved in the wake of the fall of human civilization."
And, frequent annoying typos and surface errors aside (I'd love the opportunity to correct them all so they don't detract from other readers' experience because this book deserves more readers), it's pretty good. It's a little bit turgid to start with (too much clunky exposition), but the array of really fantastic characters really brings it to life once it gets going.
Captain Kirin Wynegarde-Grey is tasked by his Empress with taking a disparate group of anthropomorphic cats on a quest to discover why the Seers of Sha'Hadin are dying one by one. I love a 'group of antagonistic misfits on a mysterious quest' stories and this is a good one. The various inter-relationships are great and all the characters are interesting and very layered.
There are also some fascinating and very unexpected developments as the plot progresses - and I look forward to finding out what happens in the next book.
Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne is the next in my cosy fantasy audiobook kick. It's about a mage and a palace guard who fall in love the flee the abuses of a tyrannical queen to open a bookshop that also sells tea in a remote mountain town.
I mean, what's not to love? Queer romance, books and tea are pretty much everything I want out of life! And, overall, it's a pretty fun book. I like the fact that the romance is already established before the book starts, and the cast of characters is varied and engaging. I love how they deal with the bandits whose hideout they co-opt for their shop. And the larger threat is also resolved in a satisfying way.
I didn't realise going in that it was a series rather than a standalone, but I'm not mad about that.
My only criticism is that both protagonists are a bit too insecure and some of the relationship stuff is a bit overwrought for a cost fantasy, in my view. But I had fun listening to it and I've put the next one on my wish list.
Today, Dave and I also went to the cinema to see Ian McKellen in The Critic, which we both thought was excellent (very glad I didn't read the Empire review beforehand or we might not have gone!). McKellen is incredibly compelling as a 1930s newspaper drama critic, who instigates a blackmail plot against the owner of the paper when threatened with the loss of his job. There's a great deal of truly phenomenal acting on show, particularly from Mark Strong as the newspaper owner. I found it completely involving throughout (despite having had a rather stressful week and feeling under time pressure to prepare for going on holiday tomorrow), though I wasn't wholly sure about the ultimate conclusion. Dave and I did manage to pull it rather to pieces in various ways on the walk home - but I think it's a testament to the quality of the production that none of those issues pulled us out of the story while we were watching it.
The description reads:
"This is a powerful, post-apocalyptic story of lions and tigers, wolves and dragons, embracing and blending the cultures of Dynastic China, Ancient India and Feudal Japan. Half feline, half human, this genetically altered world has evolved in the wake of the fall of human civilization."
And, frequent annoying typos and surface errors aside (I'd love the opportunity to correct them all so they don't detract from other readers' experience because this book deserves more readers), it's pretty good. It's a little bit turgid to start with (too much clunky exposition), but the array of really fantastic characters really brings it to life once it gets going.
Captain Kirin Wynegarde-Grey is tasked by his Empress with taking a disparate group of anthropomorphic cats on a quest to discover why the Seers of Sha'Hadin are dying one by one. I love a 'group of antagonistic misfits on a mysterious quest' stories and this is a good one. The various inter-relationships are great and all the characters are interesting and very layered.
There are also some fascinating and very unexpected developments as the plot progresses - and I look forward to finding out what happens in the next book.
Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne is the next in my cosy fantasy audiobook kick. It's about a mage and a palace guard who fall in love the flee the abuses of a tyrannical queen to open a bookshop that also sells tea in a remote mountain town.
I mean, what's not to love? Queer romance, books and tea are pretty much everything I want out of life! And, overall, it's a pretty fun book. I like the fact that the romance is already established before the book starts, and the cast of characters is varied and engaging. I love how they deal with the bandits whose hideout they co-opt for their shop. And the larger threat is also resolved in a satisfying way.
I didn't realise going in that it was a series rather than a standalone, but I'm not mad about that.
My only criticism is that both protagonists are a bit too insecure and some of the relationship stuff is a bit overwrought for a cost fantasy, in my view. But I had fun listening to it and I've put the next one on my wish list.
Today, Dave and I also went to the cinema to see Ian McKellen in The Critic, which we both thought was excellent (very glad I didn't read the Empire review beforehand or we might not have gone!). McKellen is incredibly compelling as a 1930s newspaper drama critic, who instigates a blackmail plot against the owner of the paper when threatened with the loss of his job. There's a great deal of truly phenomenal acting on show, particularly from Mark Strong as the newspaper owner. I found it completely involving throughout (despite having had a rather stressful week and feeling under time pressure to prepare for going on holiday tomorrow), though I wasn't wholly sure about the ultimate conclusion. Dave and I did manage to pull it rather to pieces in various ways on the walk home - but I think it's a testament to the quality of the production that none of those issues pulled us out of the story while we were watching it.
