DRAGONMOUNT

It's with great pleasure that I get to write about the first ever official Wheel of Time Convention held in Australia—The Land of Madmen Convention.   This Convention will take place on September 26, 2015, at Fitzroy Hall in Burwood, Sydney.  Tickets are available at the discounted price of $32.79, until September 11, 2015.  After that, ticket prices will be $38.  They can be ordered online, or can be purchased at the event the day of.   This year's Guest of Honor will be Linda Taglieri, creator of the Wheel of Time fansite The Thirteeth Depository.     The Convention will host several events, including Wheel of Time discussions, trivia, costume contest, and workshops.     For more information, you can check out The Land of Madmen's website, or their Facebook page.  You can even talk about the event on the Dragonmount forum here.

This edition of "Fantasy Review" looks at Greg van Eekhout's Pacific Fire, the second in the Daneil Blackland trilogy.  You can find a review of the first in the series here.     Pacific Fire By Greg van Eekhout   Synopsis: Ten years have passed since Daniel defeated the Heirarch and liberated the Heirarch's golem—who now goes by the name Sam Blackland.  But, the powers in Los Angeles have a plan to cause more chaos, reviving an ancient Pacific firedrake, and Daniel and his osteomantic abilities are needed to destroy it.  When an attack leaves him weak and on the verge of death, Sam decides it's up to him to step in and save the day.   Pros: This is another tale full of action, adventure, danger, and compelling characters.  From start to finish, this book never let up.  Though Sam takes center stage as—arguably—the main character, Daniel is still relevant and important to the plot.  After his near-death experience, he sets off for Los Angeles to save Sam, and calls on his old friend, Moth, for help.  There's also some significant secrets about Daniel's past that come to light, mainly, what happened to his mother in the Northern California Kingdom.   Daniel's character is such a badass.  He's ten years older than in the previous book, and that mean ten years more experienced, and ten years more jaded.  He's hard and tough, but at the same time has a soft spot for the child he raised, feeling a paternal connection to Sam.  These two sides of him—a rage against the world and a deep love for Sam—give him strong motivation in this book.  But at the same time, he's still as snarky and arrogant as he was when he was younger.  He's an amazing character.   Sam is equally as interesting.  His life with Daniel is unfulfilling—never staying in any place longer than a few days, learning osteomancy as well as self-defense, not able to from relationships with anyone—yet he is alive.  But when Daniel is attacked with a rare poison, he needs the help of the Emmas.  There, he teams up with one Emma—called Em—and she agrees to help him take on Daniel's mission.  For once in his life, Sam gets to be the hero, not relying on Daniel's protection, and of course, everything goes wrong.   Getting to see Sam return to Los Angeles, his birthright, and finally get to use his osteomancy, really grew his character.  Living under Daniel's influence did cause Sam to be jaded as well, but he's still young enough to have a sense of wonder at the world around him.   There were so many scenes within this book that were so touching.  These characters worm their way into your heart, and their pains and struggles and hopes and dreams are so tangible to the reader.   Cons: A few elements of the story relied too much on coincidence and chance meetings.  Sam and Em crash a plane, but are still able to get to Los Angeles within the scheduled timeframe.  They don't have a way to get to Catalina Island, but a passing celebrity happens to invite them to an illegal party on a ship where there's a submarine they can steal.    Coincidences occur in fiction, but it did feel like it happened a few too many times to be believable.   Conclusion: This book was incredible, just as intriguing as the first in the series.  It was teemed with emotion and adrenaline, sure to keep the reader's attention.  The relationships between the characters are what make this story worth reading.  Both Daniel and Sam are sympathetic, relatable protagonists.  And despite both of their tragic beginnings, they still fight to make the world a better place.   Rating: 5 out of 5     This book can be purchased in the Dragonmount eBook store, here.  And the first book in the series, California Bones, is also available.  The third and final story, Dragon Coast, comes out on September 15th, and can be preordered here.

Tor.com has posted a preview of "The Creature That Had Once Been Padan Fain", one of several art pieces that will be included in the upcoming Wheel of Time Companion. "Padan Fain" is by Chesley award winning artist Paul Bielaczyc. The Companion is scheduled for release November 3rd, 2015.      Paul Bielaczyc might be a familiar name to some of you. In addition to his award winning art, he and his brother, Mike and sister, Sara form Aradani Studios, who are popular vendors at conventions and renaissance festivals around the south eastern United States. If you've ever bought a pair of elf ears at DragonCon, Paul or Mike were probably there to glue them on for you. Paul is also the co Director of the JordanCon Art Show where he works with artists from around the country to build JordanCon's Art Show into an attraction of its own. An avid cosplayer, Paul is best known to Wheel of Time fans for his Rand al'Thor cosplay or his award winning Trolloc cosplay (that was so good, someone called the police!)         His art can also be found on some of Ta'Veren Tees shirts and "Padan Fain" is also featured in this year's Wheel of Time calendar.  Paul was also the mastermind behind the hilarious "Rand on the Run" prank in 2014.   Oh, you don't know that one? Settle back, this is a good one.    JordanCon owns a cardboard cutout of Rand al'Thor. You might recognize it from this picture with George R. R. Martin from ConCarolinas last summer.     In 2011, the cutout disappeared from JordanCon and was thought lost. We were all sad, and then Rand mysteriously resurfaced at the JordanCon Opening Ceremonies in 2014. After the convention, Paul wanted to keep the mystery going and took Rand home with him and created a Facebook account to chronicle it.  The cutout was the star of many adventures, some more plausible than others.    As you can see, Paul Bielaczyc is a fantastic artist and longtime fan of The Wheel of Time. We are incredibly pleased to see his art featured in The Wheel of Time Companion and can't wait to see what other artists are included.

Welcome to another installment of the Forum Roundup.  Here I aim to bring you all of the brightest and best from around the Dragonmount forums, and all of the big news from The Wheel of Time world.   I will begin with something dark; almost as dark as the souls of the members of the Shayol Ghul Social Group. They have continued their thread entitled "Which Wheel of Time character would you kill off?"  They really should seek some kind of help.  I have featured this post before but it seems to be rather popular and keeps popping up on my radar.  Faile seems to be a popular one, although I can't imagine why!  The last time I mentioned this thread I decided that Galad would be my victim of choice and I'm sticking with that.     On a lighter note, member Elgee has started a thread on the Tuath'an Social Group entitled "I color you Tinker."  She has posted some lovely and colorful pictures of possible Tinker garb.  Click the link above to see some fashions that would make a Tinker blush.   The Ogier are feeling a tad mischievous lately.  They have a thread that is sure to ruffle some feathers: "Which Wheel of Time is honestly the best?"  If there was ever a question to cause some heated debate then this would be it!  I personally am a sucker for a prequel, so New Spring is my favorite.  The dynamic between Lan and Moraine is superb!    To finish up, I want to confess something really weird.  Or at least share some of the weird confessions coming from the Wolfkin Forum.  This post confirms something that I have feared for quite some time now--that the Wolfkin bunch are all a bit strange.   Some of the highlights of this "Weird Confessions" thread include:   Hiding snacks from there own off spring so they don't need to share. Hating the Goonies (What? Why?) And Smeagol being someones hero!   And lastly, Tor.com is releasing previews of The Wheel of Time Companion, due out November 3rd, 2015.  The first preview has been posted on Tor's website, and we have a thread dedicated to discussing it.  This post covered strength of men and women in the One Power.  Join in the conversation!     Remember to keep checking Dragonmount's Facebook and Twitter pages for the latest news.  Thanks for reading.

This edition of "Fantasy Review" covers California Bones by Greg van Eekhout.  It is the first in the series, followed by Pacific Fire, and Dragon Coast due out September 15, 2015.  Slight spoilers will follow.     California Bones By Greg van Eekhout   Synopsis: In an alternate universe Los Angeles, Daniel Blackland is the son of a powerful magic user, Sebastian.  However, to cut down a rival, the Kingdom's ruler, the Hierarch, kills Sebastian and cannibalizes him right before his son's eyes, absorbing the magic embedded inside Sebastian's bones.  Daniel escapes, and years later, is brought in to steal his father's most precious artifact, a sword made out of Daniel's own magical essence.  Daniel puts together a crew of his friends, and someone on the inside of the Hierarch's organization.  But Daniel has a hard time trusting someone he doesn't know.  Could this insider ruin the heist of the century and send Daniel into the clutches of the Hierarch?   Pros: This story is about so much more than a heist.  While Daniel—growing up on the streets, orphaned—needs to steal for a living, that is only one thread of the plot.  More important is Daniel himself, his innate magic, what he gathers for the robbery, and his relations to the people around him.  Daniel is a very deep, well-round character with clear motivations, strengths, and weaknesses.  He's never been obsessed with vengeance for his father's murderer, showing that he's smart enough to realize the rules of the world.  If he sought vengeance, he'd be dead by now.  Instead, living is how he gets back at the Hierarch.   The other point of view character is Gabriel Argent, the Heirarch's great-nephew, and a bureaucratic worker in the government.  His family connections are more a hindrance than a help—Gabriel's own mother was eaten by the Heirarch during the Third Correction, the same event that lead to Sebastian Blackland's death.  Gabriel is clever, keeping quiet and unnoticeable within the government, until certain circumstances lead him to the knowledge that Daniel is alive.  He goes to higher-ups with his discovery and suddenly becomes a target himself.    Gabriel is fascinating.  The story could have easily been told with him as the hero.  His view of the world—his morals of working within the system—differ greatly from Daniel, but the two have very similar motivations: only wanting to live and work in peace.   Mr. van Eekhout's writing style is quick and a tad gritty.  It needs to be when it details a society that is ruled by a cannibal.  But it's expertly done, adding to the overall atmosphere of the Los Angeles setting.  The magic system, osteomancy, was refreshing; a new way for power to be used, stolen, and processed.  This book barely scratched the surface of what osteomancy can do, and I hope it's explored more as the series progresses.   Cons: Daniel's crew—Moth, a healer, Cassandra, a good shot and lock pick, and Jo, a shapeshifter—are very important to the plot line of stealing the sword.  Yet, they could have been more developed as characters.  Part of what makes them this way is Daniel's own magic; he makes them loyal to him.  So, it could be seen that they only act the way he wants them to.  Still, I would have liked to know more about them and their backstories—especially more about Moth's abilities, and how Jo got hers.   Conclusion: This story kept me eagerly reading; it was difficult to put down.  I'm really excited to start the sequel and find out how much more the magic system will be explored.    Rating: 5/5     California Bones can be purchased from the Dragonmount eBook store, and so can the sequel, Pacific Fire.  

Curious about what's in the forthcoming Wheel of Time Companion? So are we!    If you haven't heard, the Wheel of Time Companion is a supplemental book to the series. Taken from Robert Jordan's unpublished notes and edited by Harriet McDougal, Robert Jordan's wife and editor, and Jordan's two assistants, Maria Simons and Alan Romanczuk, the Companion will contain new details on characters, locations, the One Power and more. New, never before seen art has been commissioned for this book as well. The Companion is scheduled for release November 3rd, 2015.   Tor.com is running a fun contest to determine what content is previewed this summer. From Tor.com:    Every few weeks Wheel of Time fans and Tor.com readers will get a chance to SPIN THE WHEEL. Here’s how it works: Leave one comment in this “Spin the Wheel” post with the Companion encyclopedia entry that you’d like to see revealed. (Such as “Aginor” or “Eelfinn” or “sniffing.”) We will close the thread for this post at 1 PM Eastern Standard Time on Friday, June 19 and randomly select a comment using a random number generator. The entry specified in that comment will be revealed the following week! Be sure to comment on Tor.com, not here. Comments posted here are NOT eligible.

Ta'veren Tees is releasing a new shirt design--inspired by Alan Romanczuk, one of Robert Jordan's assistant, and member of Team Jordan.  The Trolloc themed shirt is available for preorder, with shipments going out on June 30th. Here's what Ta'veren Tees has to say:   Ta’veren Tees is excited to release the newest tee shirt in our line today for preorder. "Spirit Animal" is a unisex tee available at TaverenTees.com/spiritanimal           Now, we know technically the closest anyone comes in The Wheel of Time to a spirit animal is Perrin and the wolves. But who doesn't feel a little Trolloc-y sometimes? And, of course, there is a story behind the making of this shirt:   Alan Romanczuk, part of Team Jordan and assistant to Robert Jordan, has been working feverishly on the forthcoming The Wheel of Time Companion, due out this fall. For a while, he was spending a lot of his time compiling information on Trollocs. The team was under a lot of stress, and so Alan found his way to a masseuse with "shaman abilities"  (a woman unfamiliar with WoT) who often reads people's auras. As she looked at Alan, she said she could see around him strange, frightening creatures. Apparently, the Trollocs had followed him out of the office. Of course, once this story was relayed back to us at Ta'veren Tees, we felt it was only appropriate Alan had a shirt declaring his spirit animal is a Trolloc. His shirt went over well with Harriet and the crowd at JordanCon, and the rest is history.   (Photo: Kiley from Ta'veren Tees, with Alan of Team Jordan, whose experience spawned the idea for the shirt (bad lighting caused the grainy photo, apologies!) Photo courtesy Amy Romanczuk)     The "Spirit Animal" shirt is 100% preshrunk, lightweight cotton and available on an adult unisex tee. Preorders will ship as soon as it is ready by June 30th. All other items (except costumes, jewelry, and art of Paul Bielaczyc) ordered at the same time will be held and shipped at the same time as the preorder item.   In honor of Father’s Day, you can also use coupon code TAMLIN15 for 15% off your entire order at www.TaverenTees.com (www.TheWheelofTimeStore.com), good through June 21!

Welcome to another edition of Fantasy Review! The book being reviewed this time is Prince of Thorns. Prince of Thorns is the first book in The Broken Empire trilogy. It is followed by King of Thorns and Emperor of Thorns. This review may contain a few spoilers.   The Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence     Synopsis The story of Prince of Thorns follows the life of Prince Jorg who at the starting of the book vows to be a king by the time he is 15 years old. At the time he is 13 years old but shortly after he grows to be 14. Jorg is living with his Brothers, who are some mercenaries, and destroying some villages. He had decided to take revenge on Count Renar but for years he found destroying some peasants' houses served him better, even if this didn't make sense.   Another story that goes on simultaneously is Jorg's story four years ago. This story tells about how his mother and brother were killed, how his father did nothing, how he left the castle and the memory of thorns.   All events shape up how Jorg wishes to be king by time he is fifteen and how he sets about to make it so. From being the heir to be closed to displaced in favor of his yet to be born half-brother to winning his father's approval back, is a main plot of the story. Filled with a stubbornness and a determination to not be led on strings, Jorg sets out to become the next king and he does not care how many lives he has to take to do this.     Pros  The setting is quite realistic and the characters are so too, even if they may make you cringe at times. Jorg's story that took place four years ago provides an interesting read to understand how Jorg became who he is.   The characters who work behind the scenes and pull strings to control rulers and effectively rule are shown to be important characters. They lend some unpredictability to the story.   The ties of friendship lend a warming quality to this otherwise harsh story. There are few honorable characters who provide a silver lining.     Cons The first problem I had was the lack of magic. Magic exists but is hardly shown in the story. I find it hard to come terms with fantasy without much magic.   Jorg. He is a pro and con in himself. He provides an interesting dimension to story but he is a character you can love and hate at the same time. His actions will make you cringe.   Worldbuilding is too much borrowed from real world. if you look at map for long, you get a slight feeling that it looks somewhat like map of Europe. There are others things like EM, nuclear radiations (poison as referred to by Jorg), dena (for DNA) which make it too near reality (I like when it is close to reality but this is too much at times).      Rating I will give this a rating of 5/5 because this book is good enough to be read once at least.

[Editor's Note: Dragonmount is very pleased to have Peter Orullian, author of The Vault of Heaven series, talk a bit about Resonance within the world he's created.  Mr. Orullian's second book in the series, Trial of Intentions, is available today.  Buy it from the Dragonmount eBook store, here.  You can also learn more at Mr. Orullian's website.]     One of the things I developed in the world-building phase of my epic fantasy series is something I call: Resonance. It’s a governing dynamic. Think of mechanical laws from our own world—things like magnetism and gravity. But my intention with it was more than just another physical law. It had to be a source of power. And more.   In our world, we already have the notion of resonance as a principle of acoustics. Often, you’ll find this in relation to what makes a tuning fork hum or even a building shake; it’s when a vibration finds the resonant signature of a thing, and causes it to “stir.”   But what if Resonance could be more? What if Resonance didn’t need a medium of transference? And what if we elevated it beyond just a principle of physics? Well then, you might do as I did and establish an underpinning for not just one but many different magic systems. This is some of what you’ll find in my second book, Trial of Intentions. And by the way, I wrote Trial as an entry point to my world. So, if you haven’t read any of my other work, you’re good to jump in with Trial, if you’d like.   Now, because I’m a musician, I suppose it was natural that I use the principles of Resonance—as I’ve defined them for my series—to build a music magic system. But once I’d established these principles, I began to see how different cultures could tap into Resonance to do magic in ways that made sense for them. Which means that the magic systems are all distinct from each other—some based on movement, some on song, some on thought, some on language, and others—but all have this through-line that readers can see and understand. This appealed to the geek in me.   But as fun as that was, I wanted Resonance to do more. I wanted it to have the power (if understood and used correctly) to affect things at a distance—a great distance—without having to traverse the space between. This led me to research quantum entanglement.   As you might imagine, quantum entanglement is a big idea. Much too big to explore and discuss in a short article like this. Suffice it to say that it gave me a pattern for Resonance—one part of Resonance, anyway—to have an effect on something simultaneously in a distance place. No need for power or energy to “travel.” I love this idea. Perfect for my needs.   And one of the things I did in Trial of Intentions is create a society entirely dedicated to science. In fact, I established colleges of mathematics, astronomy, physics, cosmology, and philosophy. Kind of made sense, since my series is entitled: The Vault of Heaven. This society of scientists is dedicated to research. To establishing principles that help explain how the world works. And their inquiries, as you might also imagine, have far reaching impacts in my series.   So, Resonance has a rational component. And it’s the principle that fuels many magic systems in my world.   But it also becomes a way to understand the human connections between some of my characters. One example: When two people become close—friends, lovers—they share something more than evening meals or marital vows. They establish a connection that brings them into Resonance with one another. Deeper understanding, empathy, and awareness. Even if they’re separated by half a world. I like this gentler, more personal side of Resonance quite a lot. It’s a counterpoint that I think gives the idea of Resonance greater breadth and depth.   Of course, Resonance is also fuel for some wicked power. And right at the beginning of Trial of Intentions, one of my characters who possesses music magic . . . well, it’s not pretty.   Things escalate fast. And while some characters are trying to understand Resonance in order to find more peaceful solutions to war, others are learning (and be changed by) the use or Resonance as a power to do battle. A power to take to war . . .

Welcome to the latest installment of the Forum Roundup.  Here I aim to bring you the brightest and best from around the Dragonmount forums.   I will begin with a post from the Aiel Social Group entitled "Naming kids after Wheel of Time characters." A son named Rand, a daughter named Aviendah? Where do you stand on this?  To dig a little deeper into the subject, what is in a name?  Could you trust a man named Mazrim? Would you leave your husband alone with a woman named Berelain? Is this maybe a little too far to go as a fan?  Have your say on the Aiel's forum.   If you are familiar with the Forum Roundup, you may have noticed that I am a poetry enthusiast.  So any poetry posted is sure to find its way on to my posts.  This offering was posted by Shadar Alantin during a night of insomnia. The darkest verse, and therefore the best in my opinion, reads:   If this has piqued your interest, find the rest on the Wolfkin Social Group.   Again from the Wolfkin's forum, who are feeling especially inquisitive at the minute: "Where do you read?"  This should be a topic close to all of our hearts.  Definitely mine.  I love to read in bed or in front of a roaring fire--if I can find one.  Other offerings are at a desk, on a couch, and on a train, in Spain, in the rain. If you have anything else to add, visit the Wolfkin and join the discussion.   The latest "Fantasy Review" is of Peter Ourillion's Trial of Intention, due out May 26th.  It can be preordered from Dragonmount's eBook store here!   Remember to keep checking Dragonmount's Facebook and Twitter pages to keep up to date with everything Wheel of Time.