A Few of My Favorite Fantasy Novels

Fantasy vies with mystery for my favorite genre. I love the unique worldbuilding and characters. 

In which I marvel at A. R. Kahler's Immortal Circus series. I have since enjoyed his Ravenborn and Pale Queen Rising series. He has a new series out which I just added to my TBR pile Runebinder. 

http://dianahurwitz.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-magic-of-voice-and-r-kahler.html

In The Immortal Circus, Vivienne finds herself part of Queen Mab's immortal circus and along with the intriguing Kingston, a stage magician with real magic, and new friend Melody, she must find the culprit behind a series of deaths that should be impossible. However, the answer she seeks might reveal more about her own bloody past—and future—than she bargains for.

In Ravenborn, Keira goes to a boarding school for magical students deep in the woods of Michigan to hide. But when students start dying, she is the only one who can stop the killer.

In Pale Queen Rising, royal assassin Claire is sent to the Immortal Circus, one of the many places where “Dream” is harvested from the imaginings of mortals. There she must find the culprit who is causing Dream to mysteriously disappear before the Winter Kingdom’s supply is depleted enough to threaten its very survival.

In Runebinder,

Tenn is a Hunter in a dystopian world filled with Howls and the powerful Kin who make him their pawn in a war of magic versus humankind where the stakes are his friends, his life, and the entire world.

Follow A. R. Kahler on Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/A-R-Kahler/e/B006N8JB12

In which I praise Sarah J.Maas's Throne of Glass series:

http://dianahurwitz.blogspot.com/2019/08/review-of-throne-of-glass-by-sarah-j.html

Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince Dorian and offered her freedom so long as she acts as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom. Her trainer, Westfall is a harsh taskmaster and sparks fly.

The Court of Thorns and Roses was equally enjoyable. 

Feyre lives in the human world but always wonders what life is like on the other side of the wall where magic resides. She kills a wolf in the woods and is taken to a palace where shifter faery Tamlin rules.  She becomes his captive and is at first captivated. When taken prisoner by Faerie Queen, she meets the villainous Rhysand. But enemy becomes ally and Feyre becomes the most powerful weapon in the war between worlds. 

Follow Sara J Maas on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Sarah-J-Maas/e/B0070291GK

In the Shattered Realms series  by Cinda Williams Chima, Adrian sul’Han, known as Ash, is a trained healer with a powerful gift of magicand a thirst for revenge. Ash is forced into hiding after a series of murders throws the queendom into chaos. Now he’s closer than ever to killing the man responsible, the cruel king of Arden. With time running out, Ash faces an excruciating choice: Can he use his powers not to save a life but to take it? Abandoned at birth, Jenna Bandelow was told that the magemark on the back of her neck would make her a target. But when the King’s Guard launches a relentless search for a girl with a mark like hers, Jenna assumes that it has more to do with her role as a saboteur than any birth-based curse. Though Jenna doesn’t know why she’s being hunted, she knows that she can’t get caught. Eventually, Ash’s and Jenna’s paths collide in Arden. Thrown together by chance and joined by their hatred of the ruthless king, they will come to rescue each other in ways they cannot yet imagine.

In the Seven Realms series, Adrian sul’Han, known as Ash, is a trained healer with a powerful gift of magic—and a thirst for revenge. Ash is forced into hiding after a series of murders throws the queendom into chaos. Now he’s closer than ever to killing the man responsible, the cruel king of Arden. With time running out, Ash faces an excruciating choice: Can he use his powers not to save a life but to take it?  Abandoned at birth, Jenna Bandelow was told that the magemark on the back of her neck would make her a target. But when the King’s Guard launches a relentless search for a girl with a mark like hers, Jenna assumes that it has more to do with her role as a saboteur than any birth-based curse. Though Jenna doesn’t know why she’s being hunted, she knows that she can’t get caught.

Eventually, Ash’s and Jenna’s paths will collide in Arden. Thrown together by chance and joined by their hatred of the ruthless king, they will come to rescue each other in ways they cannot yet imagine.

Follow Cinda Williams Chima on Amazon: 

https://www.amazon.com/Cinda-Williams-Chima/e/B001JS6VP0

In the Blood and Ash series by Jennifer Armentrout, Poppy is kept in seclusion as the next "maiden." Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers. When Ahen Hawke, a golden-eyed guard honor bound to ensure her Ascension, enters her life, destiny and duty become tangled with desire and need. He incites her anger, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden.

I have not yet worked my way through the rest of her list of series, but I will. 

Follow Jennifer Armentrout on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Jennifer-L.-Armentrout/e/B004E5J5N0

In Leigh Bardugo' Grishaverse series, starting with Shadow and Bone, the capital has fallen. The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne. Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army. Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.  Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she's fighting for. The first book of this trilogy has been made into a television series as a mash up with Six of Crows.

In Six of Crows, in my opinion the best part of the Grishaverse, Ketterdam is a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone. Like any good Con/Heist story he has a magnificent crew: six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don't kill each other first.

The Grishaverse continues with the duology King of Scars which follows Nikolai Lantsov who was attacked during the battle between the darkling and Alina and now has a secret and a goal: to rebuild his shattered kingdom. Nikolai must find a way to refill Ravka’s coffers, forge new alliances, and stop a rising threat to the once-great Grisha Army. Yet with every day a dark magic within him grows stronger, threatening to destroy all he has built. With the help of a young monk and a legendary Grisha general, Nikolai will journey to the places in Ravka where the deepest magic survives to vanquish the terrible legacy inside him. He will risk everything to save his country and himself. But some secrets aren’t meant to stay buried—and some wounds aren’t meant to heal.

I have her new book Ninth House on my Kindle.

Follow Leigh Bardugo on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Leigh-Bardugo/e/B005ZZ8XQS

A new discovery well worth your time, Jack Castle's Stranger World series, a fantastic SciFi/Fantasy series. I describe it as if  Alice in Wonderland and Westworld had a baby. George Stapleton is killed in Afghanistan in 2012, but wakes up and finds himself in a Strange World dystopian theme park and must save his daughter and find his wife in this six book series.  One of the most engaging fantasy worlds I have read. Quick paced and fun for all ages. I devoured all six books in a wonderful book binge week. 

Follow Jack Castle on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Jack-Castle/e/B01068ZUPA

Stay tuned for Science Fiction recommendations next week. 

First Lines Don't Have to Be Complex

Writers are instructed to craft riveting first lines for their books, which causes many writers undue stress. While it would be an achievement to craft the most perfect first line ever written, such as "It was the best of times; it was the worst of times," it isn't necessary to live up to that expectation. A first line just needs to be interesting. 

I took a random sampling of the books I've read recently to illustrate how simple a first line can be and still draw a reader in.

1. "The island appeared first as an inky smudge on the horizon, beaded with pinholes of light against the greying sky." While you sleep, A Novel by Stephanie Merritt

The sentence immediately transports us to an interesting place. An island functions as a locked room. Characters can be trapped there, suggesting suspense.

2. "Shadow Market nights were Kit's favorite." Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

A Shadow Market is something different, suggesting a fantasy world. The character likes to go there, suggesting interesting things are about to happen. We get a sense of anticipation.

3. "I've always considered myself to be, basically, a lucky person."  The Witch Elm by Tana French

Introduces the POV character's voice and suggests a "but," so we know that he will not be a lucky person much longer.

4. "If only the swans would swim side by side on the dark green lake, this picture might turn out to be the crowning achievement of the wedding photographer's career." Lethal White by Robert Galbraith

There is a wedding. It isn't going perfectly. There will be conflict ahead and we want to know what that is.

5. "We believe what we want to believe." Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker 

Suggests the character is fooling herself and we want to find out the truth.

6. "Kitten - that is what everyone called her." The Weight of Lies by Emily Carpenter

The nickname suggests something cute and harmless, but kittens have claws and we want to know more about her.

7. "I used to think that drawing studio would be my favorite way to start the school day. Then we started doing nudes, and I realized - after spending an hour and a half staring at an old dude's junk - that no amount of coffee or optimism could get me through the full two-hour class." Shades of Darkness by A. R. Kahler

Okay, I included the second sentence here because I love Kahler's word sorcery. The first sentence places us at an art school. By saying "used to think" we know things aren't going as well as hoped.

8. "They say when you are about to die, your entire life passes before your eyes in a flurry of poignant images, but all I could think of, rather absurdly, was that I should have worn the blue hat." This Side of Murder by Anna Lee Huber

Introduces the POV character's sense of humor and the fact that her life is threatened. We want to know when, why, what, and how.

9. "The peace and quiet never last." Locked Tight by Susan Kaye Quinn 

We know something is about to disrupt the status quo. We will read to find out what it is.

10.  "To say that I met Nicholas Brisbane over my husband's dead body is not entirely accurate."  Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn

Dead body suggests a mystery is ahead and Nicholas Brisbane will be a figure of interest to the point of view character, hinting at a future relationship.

I studied examples like these to come up with my first line in the Mythikas series. I decided to start every chapter with an interesting first line, which isn't essential, but can add that special something to your manuscript.

"My day of glory was at hand." Mythikas Island Book One Diana by Diana Hurwitz


We know the main character is about to get something she wants, or thinks she will. We will stay tuned to find out if she does.

You don't need to agonize over a first line until you are on your final revision layers. Does your first line hint at something more to come? If not, it is an easy fix. Just read the first line and if the words "and then" naturally follow, you've succeeded. If not, change it until it does.

A good closing line can make the difference in getting the reader to turn the page too.

You can see more examples of opening and closing lines here.