Some books improve with age–the age of the reader, that is. Such is certainly the case with Philip Pullmans heroic, at times heart-wrenching novel, The Golden Compass, a story ostensibly for children but one perhaps even better appreciated by adults. The protagonist of this complex fantasy is young Lyra Belacqua, a precocious orphan growing up […]
With The Golden Compass Philip Pullman garnered every accolade under the sun. Critics lobbed around such superlatives as “elegant,” “awe-inspiring,” “grand,” and “glittering,” and used “magnificent” with gay abandon. Each reader had a favorite chapter–or, more likely, several–from the opening tour de force to Lyras close call at Bolvangar to the great armored-bear battle. And […]
From the very start of its very first scene, The Amber Spyglass will set hearts fluttering and minds racing. All well say here is that we immediately discover who captured Lyra at the end of The Subtle Knife, though weve yet to discern whether this individuals intent is good, evil, or somewhere in between. We […]
It began with Eragon . . . It ends with Inheritance. Not so very long ago, Eragon – Shadeslayer, Dragon Rider – was nothing more than a poor farm boy, and his dragon, Saphira, only a blue stone in the forest. Now, the fate of an entire civilization rests on their shoulders. Long months of […]
A tale of twelve princesses doomed to dance until dawn?? Galen is a young soldier returning from war; Rose is one of twelve princesses condemned to dance each night for the King Under Stone. Together Galen and Rose will search for a way to break the curse that forces the princesses to dance at the […]
“You want to know the truth.” Sonea has learned much since she was but a penniless urchin possessing an awesome untapped ability. She has earned the grudging respect of her fellow novices and a place in the Magicians Guild. But there is much she wishes she had never learned??what she witnessed, for example, in the […]
“Even if a magicians powers surface of their own accord, he will soon be dead if he does not gain the knowledge of how to control them.” Alone among all the novices in the Magicians Guild, only Sonea comes from lowly beginnings. Yet she has won powerful allies??including Lord Dannyl, newly promoted to Guild Ambassador. […]
“We should expect this young woman to be more powerful than our average novice, possibly even more powerful than the average magician.” This year, like every other, the magicians of Imardin gather to purge the city of undesirables. Cloaked in the protection of their sorcery, they move with no fear of the vagrants and miscreants […]
When Britain intercepted a French ship and its precious cargo??an unhatched dragon??s egg??Capt. Will Laurence of HMS Reliant unexpectedly became master and commander of the noble dragon he named Temeraire. As new recruits in Britain??s Aerial Corps, man and dragon soon proved their mettle in daring combat against Bonaparte??s invading forces. Now China has discovered […]
??A splendid series.? ??Anne McCaffrey ??Naomi Novik has done for the Napoleonic Wars what Anne McCaffrey did for science fiction: constructed an alternate reality in which dragons are real in a saga that is impressively original, fully developed, and peopled with characters you care about.? ??David Weber, author of the Honor Harrington series After their […]
Tragedy has struck His Majesty??s Aerial Corps, whose magnificent fleet of fighting dragons and their human captains valiantly defend England??s shores against the encroaching armies of Napoleon Bonaparte. An epidemic of unknown origin and no known cure is decimating the noble dragons?? ranks??forcing the hopelessly stricken into quarantine. Now only Temeraire and a pack of […]
Naomi Novik??s triumphant debut, His Majesty??s Dragon, introduced a dynamic new pair of heroes to the annals of fantasy fiction: the noble fighting dragon Temeraire and his master and commander, Capt. Will Laurence, who serves Britain??s peerless Aerial Corps in the thick of the raging Napoleonic Wars. Now, in the latest novel of this dazzling […]
It would be sheer folly to try to conceal the true nature of Althalus, for his flaws are the stuff of legend. He is, as all men know, a thief, a liar, an occasional murderer, an outrageous braggart, and a man devoid of even the slightest hint of honor. Yet of all the men in […]
Meet the smart, sexy – supernatural – women of the otherworld. This is not your mothers coven… Kelley Armstrong returns with the eagerly awaited follow-up to Dime Store Magic. Paige Winterbourne, a headstrong young woman haunted by a dark legacy, is now put to the ultimate test as she fights to save innocents from the […]
When half-demon Xavier calls in the favour Elena owes him, it seems easy enough, steal Jack the Rippers From Hell letter away from a Toronto collector who had himself stolen it from the Ripper evidence boxes. But nothing in the supernatural world is ever as simple as it seems. Elena accidentally triggers a spell placed […]
The continuing adventures of the smart, sexy??supernatural??Women of the Otherworld Eve Levine??half-demon, black witch and devoted mother??has been dead for three years. She has a great house, an interesting love life and cant be killed again??which comes in handy when youve made as many enemies as Eve. Yes, the afterlife isnt too bad??all she needs […]