The Fireside

  This is a day I've long anticipated.  Farmer Giles of Ham  has finally arrived on eBook. That statement has a few meanings to me.  First, the fact that it  actually exists  as an eBook.  Secondly - and this is the big one for me - is that this release was delayed a few times. I'd have to dig through my e-mails (correspondence with HarperCollins) to find out the past release dates, or how many times, though I believe it was initially supposed to come out Fall 2023. Then, it was delayed to Winter 2024, then Spring 2024, and now, finally  it's out.  You may be wondering 'ok, it got delayed a few times. That's unfortunate, but now it's finally out. But why is that a big deal?' I'll go into it.  Back in 2008, HarperCollins re-issued Tales From the Perilous Realm  and integrated Roverandom  into it. It featured 'On Fairy-Stories' as an appendix (great placement) and some words from Alan Lee as well as Tom Shippey. The artwork was d...

Recently, I got three 'new' books : The Pagan Lord by Bernard Cornwell, The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, and The Fall of Arthur by Tolkien. The last two, it was because I found the physical book too 'small' for a dustjacket, if you know what I mean. I wanted a physical print edition so I decided to hold out for the paperbacks. The books I named aren't 'brand new' but they have been recently published in the format I wanted them, so they're new to me. Anyway, this post is about me recommending some books to you, the blog readers, for your summer reading.

I am a great fan of books. I of course enjoy reading, but I'm referring to the actual books themselves. However, I do enjoy and appreciate ereaders. For me, as I've mentioned before, they come in handy when a print edition is out of print (or otherwise very hard to find), and I dislike the $10 mass market paperbacks. They are too cheaply made, the font is often smooshed, and often times too thick and wide. Had ereaders existed way back when I was buying the Wheel of Time series, I'd most likely had gotten them as ebooks, as they are many and they are large. This brings me to Brandon Sanderson. Brandon Sanderson is an author whom I greatly admire in both reading and writing standpoints. The others being George R.R. Martin, Patrick Rothfuss, Stephen King, and a few others (Neil Gaiman, J.R.R. Tolkien, Bernard Cornwell, Ken Follett, J.K. Rowling, Daniel abraham, Chalres Dickens, Alexandre Dumas....) Brandon has a great interaction with his fans in reg...

Last night, after taking a video game break, I pre-ordered the giant cross-genre anthology by George R.R. Martin & Gardner Dozois called Rogues for my Kobo ereader.  It's coming out June 17. This their follow-up to Dangerous Women . This is what all the excitement is about: A thrilling collection of twenty-one original stories by an all-star list of contributors—including a new  A Game of Thrones  story by George R. R. Martin!   Twenty-one all-original stories, by an all-star list of contributors, will delight and astonish you in equal measure with their cunning twists and dazzling reversals. And George R. R. Martin himself offers a brand-new tale chronicling one of the biggest rogues in the entire Ice and Fire saga. Follow along with the likes of Gillian Flynn, Joe Abercrombie, Neil Gaiman, Patrick Rothfuss, Scott Lynch, Cherie Priest, Garth Nix, and Connie Willis as well as other masters of literary sleight-of-hand in this rogues’ gallery of s...

From Pat's Fantasy Hotlist "Thanks to the cool folks at Bantam, here's an extract from  Rogues , a new anthology edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois."  I myself will be getting the ebook (should Kobo ever post it to their site for pre-order...) Here's the preview of "The Lightning Tree" by Patrick Rothfuss:

... But not from me. Here are some by Book Depository, as well as some readers:  http://www.bookdepository.com/yourbestbooksever?utm_source=NL-Body&utm_medium=email-Newsletter&utm_term=blurb&utm_content=Your-Best-Books-Ever&utm_campaign=May-Best-Books-Ever-14 Their List:  http://www.bookdepository.com/bestbooksever Reddit, and 'Under the Radar' :  http://www.tor.com/blogs/2014/05/reddit-fantasy-top-underrated-and-underread-books?utm_source=exacttarget&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_term=tordotcom&utm_content=-na_readblog_blogpost&utm_campaign=9780765333117 Have a look at what some other people recommend

Well, the weather is for the most part much nicer. That means more reading, potentially outdoors for those who like to take books or e-readers outside. The books I recommend throughout my blogging history won't change much. I may highlight certain genres or authors or series from time to time, but this season let's spring into some fantasy. You all know how much I like George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series by now...so I won't talk about it that now. All you need to know is that the name of the first book is called A Game of Thrones. I'm going to recommend a few other fantasy titles for you to check out. I promise you'll most likely like them: THE KINGKILLER CHRONICLE (Trilogy) by Patrick Rothfuss The Name of the Wind The Wise Man's Fear Book 3 (being written) THE DAGGER AND THE COIN by Daniel Abraham The Dragon's Path The King's Blood The Tyrant...

The problem with being a reader, and one who visits bookstores often, is that you constantly discover new books and authors. When your reading pile is large, that can be a problem. However, the obvious benefit is that you get exposure to lets of (hopefully) good books.       That being said, one author who I've heard of in passing a few times over the years but haven't read yet, is Guy Gavriel Kay. Tolkien fans may recognize the name, as he worked with Christopher Tolkien on a little book called The Silmarillion . Wiki p edia states: When Christopher Tolkien needed an assistant to edit his father J. R. R. Tolkien 's unpublished work, he chose Kay, then a student of philosophy at the University of Manitoba , whose parents were friends of Baillie Tolkien's parents. Kay moved to Oxford in 1974 to assist Tolkien in the editing of The Silmarillion . There he learnt a lot about writing and editing, and later admitted of Tolkien's influ...

So what have been reading lately, you ask? Well, for the past while I've been working my way through the fantasy series Wheel of Time . It's been part of my life for a while now - first heard of and started getting the books as far back as '03. I'm about to finish Book 10, then it's onto 11-14. After that, I'm taking a break from series / big books by reading Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl (also want to read that before the movie comes out). For the next series, I'm undecided on reading Daniel Abraham's Dagger and Coin, or Stephen King's Dark Tower . I'll read both, but which first?  I have quite a few books to last me a while. My next purchases tho, will be Maurice Druon's Accursed Kings series. I'll buy all seven in paperback the day the seventh is released, all at once. I'm also getting George R.R. Martin's material. Winds of Winter is a given, as well as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms .  I also like some good YA...

Can't wait to read Brandon Sanderson's next Stormlight book? Well, here's a big tease.... The book will be out in various formats, such as ebook, in March. 

As you may know by reading this blog, I am a fantasy books. However, I'm not all that familiar with the genre. I know of the big names by fame mostly, or if a book (series) got adapted as a film. This post will focus on some un-sung (to me, anyways) fantasy books which may be worth your time. Please note, I haven't mentioned these before on this blog.

By now I am pretty sure that A Song of Ice and Fire Book Five, A Dance With Dragons , is now out in all countries and all formats on the planet. I don't track international or foreign editions, so excuse my ignorance if you're still waiting for the book in some or form where you live.  It exists as an audio book. It exists as an ebook. It exists in hardback. It exists in softcover (in some countries, split into subsequent volumes).  In short, all the editions should be out by now. Since 'winter is coming' in exactly one month (and Christmas shortly after) I should also remind you that the first four books (as well as obviously the most recent one. George is working on the next book) are now out in all formats as well, allowing yourself or whoever you're buying for an easy catch-up in the series. Although, waiting for things can be painful so I don't blame you if you're waiting for the final book to come out before even buying the seri...

I am about half-done the Wheel of Times book series by Robert Jordan, and completed by Brandon Sanderson.  

Here is the cover art for Words of Radiance , Book 2 in Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight series by Michael Whelan.....

This was posted on the internet by Robert Jordan in 1996. Back then, that basically means that it's free...and it's circulating long enough that by now it's sure to be. This short piece explains the imprisonment of the Dark One, and the events surrounding it. Read more....

With a change of season, book reading seems to come into play. Here, I offer some books worthy of notice. Some I've read, others are in the reading pile...

  From Brandon Sanderson's latest newsletter:

The Tyrant's Law, the third of five books in Daniel Abraham's fantasy series, The Dagger and the Coin, is now out. I received my copy not last Friday, but the week before. George R.R. Martin's blurb on the first book, The Dragon's Path , reads "Everything I look for in a fantasy". If you're looking to pick up a new series, or waiting for a book to come out, give this one a shot.  The Tyrant's Law includes a preview of the fourth book, currently titled The Widow's House , and that is expected to be released next year. Read more for the prologue, posted by the publisher. Book 1 sample: http://www.orbitbooks.net/the-dragons-path/ Book 2 sample: http://www.orbitbooks.net/the-kings-blood/  

The Wheel of Time  series is now complete, as today the final book was released in ebook format. There is no 'complete series' download bundle which includes all 14 books, but books 1-14 are ready for download. So if you read, or plan to read this series not as a printed book, you're in luck.  Myself? I'm waiting for  A Memory of Light  in mass market paperback, as I have the previous thirteen books in that format. I'm going to guess  that it should be out as early as October of this year, as late as next Jan, as the publisher is pretty good for releasing paperbacks in a timely manner. I'll also keep you posted on the 'trade paperback' re-issues, as well.  Sometime ago I posted the series prologue. Here is something a little more....

I am not a full time writer. I write as a hobby, and an interest of mine. I may blog more often than I write, but I still enjoy and am continuing to  breath e life into my Kalvel series. With the return of Game of Thrones , and possibly The Winds of Winter arriving next year (just my guess, we will have to see) I have become more motivated to write more in one sitting, and more often. So it will be a little less blogging lately, and more effort put into my novel as well as the series it is a part of. I wi ll still stop by and say hello every so often. It may once a week, or once every two weeks…nah, that’s too long. About once a week. Most of the planning for Vol. 1 is pretty much done. I know who the main five viewpoint characters will be, and where Vol. 1 will end, and Vol. 2 will begin. I have a few chapters written, as well as the Interlogue. I have a good idea of what will happen to who in Vol. 3-5, and some ideas on where to end one volu...