DRAGONMOUNT

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.

This is a special edition of Dragonmount's Fantasy Reivew: a look at Peter Orullian's Trial of Intentions, which will be released May 26.     Synopsis: After their victory at Tillinghast, Tahn and his companions set out on the next stage of their adventure—and that means parting company.   Tahn seeks to end the war before it begins, by completing his studies in Aubade Grove, and finding a way to strengthen the Veil.  If the Veil is strengthened, the Quiet cannot break through.  There, he reconnects with people from his past, and reconnects with a lost part of himself.   Mira sets out on a quest to rid herself of the stain Tahn's sin has marked on her.  She seeks out a distant race of handsingers who may hold the key to her salvation, and the way for her to produce an heir to the Far king.   Wendra must continue her studies as a Lieholan, learning not only her skills but some of the past memories she's forgotten.  Her powerful abilities may help her unravel the reason why the Song of Suffering is changing.   Vendanj and the rest of the group must go to Convocation to bring the kingdoms together in case the Quiet are able to break through the Veil at last.  They are opposed by Roth—the leader of the League of Civility—though unexpected allies may be able to help.   Pros: This installment is action-packed from the very beginning.  The pace of the novel is well done, with a few moments for the reader to catch their breath, but a pull that lasts through the very end of the story.    New players are introduced.  Though mentioned and explained in The Unremembered, The League's importance becomes central to the storyline.  Their motives become clearer and fleshed out; we can understand their line of thought more—yet they are still at odds with the Sheason, and may even be working against humanity.    The start of the story hammers home the fact that Tahn is an anti-hero.  He's flawed, and is not going to be the perfect savior those around him need him to be.  That's exactly what makes this tale so interesting. It's not about the black and white of the world, but about the gray areas that all people inhabit.   Tahn grows a lot in this book.  He's come a long way from his home in the Hollows, and the insecure boy he was.  With his memories returned, conflicting him and helping him at the same time, he struggles with grasping the state of his life right now—needing to find out why he can render the Will with pieces of himself, why the Quiet keep referring to him as the Quillescent,  and the simple fact that he's unable to be with the woman he loves.  Yet, despite all this, he does everything in his power to help his allies in their fight.   His time at the Grove really expands his character.  Before, he was a boy from a small town who set out on an adventure.  But here, he's a scholar, arguing the nature of the world and its magic.  It's such a completely different side of him, and it's interesting to watch him embrace it. Cons: While the dialogue does have some humor in it, sometimes it feels like the characters try too hard to say witty things.  This is also a flaw in some of Brandon Sanderson's works.  While I appreciate humor and laughing at characters' antics, it can seem a bit forced in this book.   Conclusion: Though the major plotlines all end on a bit of a cliffhanger—Tahn finishing one part of his Succession, Sutter and Mira off to save King Relothian, and Vendanj running from the Leaguesmen—it doesn't feel like it's unfinished.  Each character is so far along in their own mission, working separately to find a common solution.    This was a great read, keeping in line with the epicness of the genre, and the complications expected from realistic characters.  This series grows more in depth in each book, and I'm hoping for that trend to continue with the next installment.  Orullian's world is absorbing and I can't wait to return to it again.   Rating: 4/5     For more from Mr. Orullian, you can see an interview discussing his first novel in the Vault of Heaven series here.  You can also purchase The Unremembered from the Dragonmount eBook store.  Trial of Intentions will be released May 26, and can be preordered from Dragonmount.  Make sure to check out Mr. Orullian's website for all the latest information on this series.

Greeting all! It is Thursday again meaning it is time for another installment of the Rotating Features blog! The dice have been been tossed and the featured topic has been chosen. 
   I now have a favorite YouTube channel, Geek and Sundry! Admittedly I knew about this channel when it was created, but never gave it a chance, even though my one of my personal crushes (Felicia Day) started the channel. None the less a good friend of mine got me hooked by sending me links to a show hosted by Wil Wheaton called Tabletop. I became hooked instantly. I love tabletop gaming and this show has it all. Everything from straight dice games like Zombie Dice, to cooperative role playing tabletop...and everything in between. The basics of this show is once a week, Wil Wheaton chooses a game and invites three to four friends, some of which are celebrities, to play the game. It is a great way to see new games in action and laugh at some people at the same time. This show also has AWESOME personalized trophies for the winners! After watching almost all of the Tabletop episode I had to see what other shows I might like. This lead me to start watching Co-optitude. This is a show where Felicia Day plays video games with her brother Ryan Day. Each week they play a different console based game, mostly dated games, but they throw in a newer game from time to time. Most of the time, the games played are very odd, obscure games most people have never heard of, but the show is actually less about the actual games and more about the two people playing said games. The interaction between these siblings is hilarious! They may actually be the worst or best team mates I have ever seen. As an additional bonus, you really get to see how these two individuals actually are, as they do not hold back their personalities despite the cameras being on them. I honestly didn't think I would like this show, despite it having Felicia Day, when I heard of the concept, but the sincere and honest interactions make this a musty watch on my subscriptions! On a side note, me best friend told me in one of the Co-optitude episode Felicia Day makes a Wheel of Time reference, so if anyone can tell me which episode, they will be awarded cool points and a shout out in a future Rotating Features blog! Lastly I began watching Craft Lab as well. This is a great short show where the main crafter and an assistant create a random geek culture characters and/or items out a random material. Seriously, they use a spinning wheel to determine both what they are making and the materials they will make it out of. Some of the most memorable for me were the Sonic the Hedgehog out of chicken bones, the Bat-Mobile out of deli meats, and Smaug out of plastic spoons. What I love the most about this show is the creative ingenuity to create awesome items out of crazy materials. In my opinion this is a must watch show for cosplayers as it helps you think outside of the box on potential items to use when making props to take your costuming to the next level. I highly recommend the Geek and Sundry channel on YouTube.  As always I hope you enjoyed this installment of the Rotating Features blog. Sorry again for my recent absence. As always feel free to comment with your thoughts and any topics you would like covered in future Rotating Features blogs. Until next time, this is Azeryn signing off to prepare for my two hour run to support the Relay for Life. Don't know what the Relay for Life is? Google it!

Welcome to the latest installment of the Forum Roundup.  Here I aim to bring you the most interesting and noteworthy things to be found in the Dragonmount forums.    I've chosen to begin this week with a post from the Shayol Ghul Social Group, a question: who is your favorite villain of all time? Loki, Voldemort, Kanye West?  There is a huge list to choose from, each more dastardly than the last.  Give your opinion in the Shayol Ghul Social Group and see who is voted the winner.   Secondly is another probing question from the White Tower, this time asking for the reason that you joined Dragonmount or the White Tower Social Group.  Some answers are quite revealing and even surprising with some members having not even read The Wheel of Time series, some being part of the way through, and one member sighting the reason of "being bored." (Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit.) You know who you are!    The White Tower and Warder Social Group are having a Reunion for anyone who is was, or is contemplating, being a member of their forum.  There are links to activities to draw your attention, including a Wheel of Time Guess Who game and a Scavenger Hunt.   We can mark the end of another successful JordanCon this week.  Dragonmount's Facebook and Twitter pages are the best places to see what has been happening, including the winners of the costume contest.  It looks to have been a superb event with fun had by all.  You can look at Mashiara Sedai's photo gallery of the event, here.

The White Tower and Warders Social Group is kicking of it's first ever Reunion. We'd like to invite all members--new and old--as well as anyone interesting in the Social Group in anyway. Everyone is welcome to join in the games and discussions. Our Keeper of the Chronicles, Daruya, has this to say: Please take a moment to check out our games--as well as some interesting discussions about the White Tower and Warder Social Group, now and then.