The Fireside

It's not Book 6.....but it's the next-best thing. Before I provide links, here's the relevant really important info: "No, winter is not coming… not in 2018, at least. You’re going to have to keep waiting for THE WINDS OF WINTER." "This first volume covers all the Targaryen kings from Aegon I (the Conquerer) to the regency of Aegon III (the Dragonbane), along with their wives, wars, siblings, children, friends, rivals, laws, travels, and sundry other matters. For those not up on your Westerosi history, that’s Aegon I, Aenys, Maegor the Cruel, Jaehaerys I (the Conciliator), Viserys I, Aegon II (and Rhaenyra), and Aegon III (the regency). Oh, and there are dragons too." "Portions of the book have previously appeared here and there. The chapter about Aegon’s Conquest was published, pretty much as written, in THE WORLD OF ICE & FIRE. The section about the reigns of Aegon’s sons Aenys and Maegor came out last year as “Sons of the Dragon,” in Gardner...

Bit by bit, I'm getting around to doing my updates! I've been active on Spotfiy lately. I greatly enjoy the ability to make and share playlists. I get enjoyment out of this because it benefits me, as well as others may discover new music. You never know! So, without further ado, I'm going to provide a bunch of links in the post to playlists I've got - some I made, and some I 'have'. I hope you enjoy. This post includes all  my playlist links thus far, howeve,r in the future I'll make a post each time I make a playlist. Hell on Wheels  :  https://open.spotify.com/user/122417971/playlist/04hvC0fvnLnFdryMZw2vnj . This one was not made by me. If you enjoyed the music to the show (which is mostly bluegrass) give this a listen. It also features music from the soundtrack mixed in, as well) The Hobbit  :  https://open.spotify.com/user/2m9hbatw6n5kp0h2kp4o8k789/playlist/3eoErduJkJqyB5NAU0SG3w . This one is made by me. It is all three Hobbit  soundtracks back-to-...

Hard to believe that later this year one of the best video games of all time, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time , will celebrate it’s 20 th anniversary! I still remember getting the gold cartridge edition for Christmas the year it came out. To celebrate leading up to the game’s anniversary, bit by bit, I’ll be counting down my favourite moments. Before I begin, why not check out Hero of Time ? It was performed by those responsible that did the Symphony of the Goddess music tour, as well as the The Legend of Zelda 25 th Anniversary music CD. It exists on vinyl, as well as Spotfy, iTunes and Google Play. Definitely worth checking out. So without further ado, let’s begin this series of posts! The Beginning of the Game Well, it makes sense to start at the beginning, doesn’t it? I remember getting the Kokiri Sword, then the Kokiri Shield, all the while collecting as many Rupees as I can. I think I also bought Deku Nuts from the store as well…. Anyway, once I was all g...

I wanted to do a write up of my thoughts about the upcoming Amazon  Lord of the Rings  (or, rather, “Middle-earth”) series. Before I do so, however, there are some points that need to be made: 1) They are  only  using (and only allowed to use) material found within the pages of the books known as  The Hobbit  and  The Lord of the Rings , or from any of the six Peter Jackson films. (More on that to follow.) That means, anything found within the pages of  The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales,  or the History of Middle-earth is off-limits. 2) In terms of Middle-earth’s timeline, it will take place between  The Hobbit  and  The Lord of the Rings . If it takes place in the First or Second Age, it’ll be based on what Jackson has shown us in  Rings , or what was written in  The Lord of the Rings  that references those eras. Where it might get tricky is Beren and Luthien: Aragorn sang a song about them in  T...

Terrific news everyone!! The Fellowship of the Ring soundtrack is now EVEN MORE widely available!! Here are the links and formats (sorry let's assume that the vinyl set is sold out. did you get one? Either way, THIS is the one you need.). Expect The Two Towers (and possibly a 'remastered' (digital) edition of The Return of the King to come when their respective vinyl sets do [I say 'possibly' for The Return of the King because it's the newest, and therefore, already exists on some digital music / streaming services, whereas the first two hadn't previously] Anyway, here are the links no matter how you listen to music  I'm pushing this, because these are the soundtracks you SHOULD listen to, like how the extended editions are the ones you SHOULD watch. Here are the formats in which you can nab the 'definitive' Fellowship  soundtrack, no matter how you listen to music: CD (and blu-ray audio) set : https://www.amazon.com/Lord-Rings-Fellowship-...

I know I'm a tad late, but lookie here..... The Fall of Gondolin  is officially confirmed, and announced! I sort of had a very minor hunch even before this "Tolkien Untitled" book pre-order appeared: late last fall, Amazon UK had the 2019 Tolkien Calendar up for pre-order....with the artist credited as Alan Lee! I was hoping  for The Fall of Gondolin , however I wanted to be realistic and not get my hopes up. also, with his Hobbit sketchbook coming out that same year, I thought it may have been related to The Hobbit . Anyway, the book is coming out in a few editions. Now, "The First Age Trilogy" or "The Myths and Legend sof Middle-earth" or however you want to collectively all three books is now complete. The other installments are The Children of Hurin  (2007) and Beren and Luthien  (2017). These are 'The Three Great Tales' that are of great importance to the lore of Middle-earth. The Fall of Gondolin  is being published (as this editi...

This goes with that "Tolkien Untitled" post I did a while ago. We still don't have an official announcement or confirmation from HarperCollins, however, on Amazon UK, more details about "Tolkien Untitled" (now called The Fall of Gondolin  (YES!)) have emerged. Here is the "official" product info: " In the Tale of The Fall of Gondolin are two of the greatest powers in the world. There is Morgoth of the uttermost evil, unseen in this story but ruling over a vast military power from his fortress of Angband. Deeply opposed to Morgoth is Ulmo, second in might only to Manwë, chief of the Valar. Central to this enmity of the gods is the city of Gondolin, beautiful but undiscoverable. It was built and peopled by Noldorin Elves who, when they dwelt in Valinor, the land of the gods, rebelled against their rule and fled to Middle-earth. Turgon King of Gondolin is hated and feared above all his enemies by Morgoth, who seeks in vain to discover the marvellou...