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Search results for tag #fantasy

[?]Stephen Hayes » 🌐
@hayesstw@c.im

People often ask questions on social media platforms like "Which genre do you like?"

My initial response is to say fantasy, but reading other people's posts it seems that most of them assume that fantasy must have two things that I don't particularly like: (1) "Worldbuilding" and (2) a main character with defined superpowers.

I don't mind villains having superpowers, but not the good guys.

So what kind of books can I say I like (and try to write too, for that matter)?

    [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
    @solarphasing@mastodon.social

    Illustration by Enric Torres-Prat. Cover of the Comic Dracula #3. Vol 1.

    imgur.com/gallery/illustration

    Illustration by Enric Torres-Prat. Cover of the Comic Dracula #3. Vol 1.

    Alt...Illustration by Enric Torres-Prat. Cover of the Comic Dracula #3. Vol 1.

      [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
      @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

      As GOOD as YOU are

        [?]The Inquisitive Biologist » 🌐
        @inqbiol@scicomm.xyz

        This week's at the library:
        - The last of the books from the NHBS January sale: Michael Ruse's The of Human , published by Cambridge University Press
        - A lovely version of Humphrey Carpenter's highly praised J. R. R. : A Biography, published by HarperCollins
        - A second-hand copy of Ant Ecology, published by Oxford University Press

        @bookstodon

        A photo of three books standing upright on a small, brown, wooden table. The out-of-focus background shows black shelves full of books. On the left, The Philosophy of Human Evolution, showing a blue hardback with a colour photo of a human diver shot from below encircled by a funnel-shaped school of fish. In the middle, J. R. R. Tolkien: A Biography, showing a white hardback bound quarterbound in brown faux-leather standing on top of a brown slipcase. The book's spine is facing the view and both the front and back covers are visible, showing Tolkien's logo in gilded print. On the right, Ant Ecology, showing a white hardback with a close-up photo of a train of ants passing over each other and feeling each other up with their antennae. This is the army ant, Eciton burchelli.

        Alt...A photo of three books standing upright on a small, brown, wooden table. The out-of-focus background shows black shelves full of books. On the left, The Philosophy of Human Evolution, showing a blue hardback with a colour photo of a human diver shot from below encircled by a funnel-shaped school of fish. In the middle, J. R. R. Tolkien: A Biography, showing a white hardback bound quarterbound in brown faux-leather standing on top of a brown slipcase. The book's spine is facing the view and both the front and back covers are visible, showing Tolkien's logo in gilded print. On the right, Ant Ecology, showing a white hardback with a close-up photo of a train of ants passing over each other and feeling each other up with their antennae. This is the army ant, Eciton burchelli.

          [?]Curt Johnson - Indie Genius » 🌐
          @indiegenius@mastodon.social

          Movie TV Tech Geeks 10 Fantasy Books That Will Keep You Hooked From Start to Finish dlvr.it/TT7HSV

            [?]Leanpub » 🌐
            @leanpub@mastodon.social

            No Direction: The Severed World, Book One by Max Guernsey, III is a new release on Leanpub!

            For more than a millennium, the Council has ruled the world. Now it sends three hunters after a seemingly weak man whose trail may be leading them exactly where he wants them to go.

            Link: leanpub.com/no-direction

              [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
              @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

              Just letting everyone know that I’ve sold 3 more books today…..twice in 2 days 🙂‍↕️

                [?]Harry Dehrian » 🌐
                @harrydehrian@mastodon.social

                Book Promotion: Sci-Fi & books on Kindle Unlimited

                A collection of 59 for you to read free on KU. Read my

                @bookstodon

                books.bookfunnel.com/sci-fi-fa

                  [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                  @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                  Some one has found a page turner

                  They have discovered my book

                    [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                    @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                    I sold 2 more books! This has been a pretty good week!

                      [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                      @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                      Self published marketing struggles

                        [?]Owen Tyme » 🌐
                        @OwenTyme@mastodon.social

                        Ebook and paperback: books2read.com/TheNextHorizon

                        Amelia and The Book of Newts are in conflict. She wants to explore her feelings. It wants to explore space, taking back the gift for mathematics and piloting it gave her. She’s left unable to plot a direct course home. She’s desperate to see the man she loves, lest she lose him forever and The Book is in her way…

                        @bookstodon

                        (Left) The cover of The Next Horizon, by Owen Tyme. The black silhouette of a man and woman embracing. They stand atop the dark side of a planet or moon in space, which has a slim crescent along the right side. The background is the stars of space, but some have been highlighted with a heart shape that surrounds the couple. Everything is in shades of blue. (Right) Deep space, displaying the edge of an orange and blue gaseous cloud from a nebula, while most of the stars appear golden in color. Floating in space is a square, red leather book with the image of a newt stamped on the cover. Over the top of everything is the following text: “You can back down and cooperate, right now, or Marta will hit you so hard, you should reach a tenth the speed of light…” “No one will ever find you again, but even if someone does, there’s no way they’ll have the capacity to safely slow you down, before you’re gone to them!” (Bottom) https://books2read.com/TheNextHorizon

                        Alt...(Left) The cover of The Next Horizon, by Owen Tyme. The black silhouette of a man and woman embracing. They stand atop the dark side of a planet or moon in space, which has a slim crescent along the right side. The background is the stars of space, but some have been highlighted with a heart shape that surrounds the couple. Everything is in shades of blue. (Right) Deep space, displaying the edge of an orange and blue gaseous cloud from a nebula, while most of the stars appear golden in color. Floating in space is a square, red leather book with the image of a newt stamped on the cover. Over the top of everything is the following text: “You can back down and cooperate, right now, or Marta will hit you so hard, you should reach a tenth the speed of light…” “No one will ever find you again, but even if someone does, there’s no way they’ll have the capacity to safely slow you down, before you’re gone to them!” (Bottom) https://books2read.com/TheNextHorizon

                        Sample page from The Next Horizon.

                        Alt...Sample page from The Next Horizon.

                        Sample page from The Next Horizon.

                        Alt...Sample page from The Next Horizon.

                        Sample page from The Next Horizon.

                        Alt...Sample page from The Next Horizon.

                          [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                          @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                          This is one of the most fulfilling feelings a writer can experience. Someone has chosen to spend their valuable time immersing themselves in the world and words I've created.

                            [?]Ami Angelwings » 🌐
                            @ami_angelwings@urusai.social

                            what's a work/piece of media/franchise/series/game/etc that people would be surprised to find out that you like and why?

                              [?]Martin Rundkvist » 🌐
                              @mrundkvist@archaeo.social

                              Fletcher Pratt (1897-1956) seems to be best remembered for his 1948 fantasy novel "The Well of the Unicorn". It has by far the most ratings on Goodreads of his books. Sadly though, it doesn't seem to be very good, scoring only 3.4 out of 5.

                              goodreads.com/book/show/117136

                                [?]Roger BW 😷 » 🌐
                                @RogerBW@discordian.social

                                The Fairy Godmother, Mercedes Lackey blog.firedrake.org/archive/202

                                  [?]Kelson » 🌐
                                  @kelson@notes.kvibber.com

                                  New  book review on my website!

                                  Tehanu, Ursula K. Le Guin
                                  ★★★★★

                                  A character-driven look at the lives of ordinary people in a world of magic, especially the women and children (and not a few men) caught underfoot when wizards, heroes and villains fight. And (of course) dragons.

                                  https://kvibber.com/reviews/books/tehanu/
                                  #UrsulaKLeGuin #fantasy #Earthsea #magic #trauma #books #review #Tehanu

                                    [?]Curt Johnson - Indie Genius » 🌐
                                    @indiegenius@mastodon.social

                                    Movie TV Tech Geeks 10 Forgotten Fantasy Books That Are Perfect From Start to Finish dlvr.it/TT5VZ3

                                      [?]Dave Dawkins (D. Harrigon) [He/Him] » 🌐
                                      @golgaloth@writing.exchange

                                      I woke up way too early this morning to get to . There was fog and everything.

                                      There is some light in the darkness of this photo. What it reveals is unclear.

                                      Alt...There is some light in the darkness of this photo. What it reveals is unclear.

                                      You can see the dim Street clearer, thanks to not one but two streetlights.

                                      Alt...You can see the dim Street clearer, thanks to not one but two streetlights.

                                        [?]Olivier Norion » 🌐
                                        @oliviernorion@mastodon.social

                                        Tirak raised the red flag.
                                        The city erupted.
                                        By the time the priests understood, he was already at the lighthouse.
                                        The Gods would come next.

                                        The rest of the record still exists, somewhere...

                                          [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                                          @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                                          First Draft vs Final Book

                                            [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                                            @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                                            Organic 4️⃣🌟 review, what a nice thing to have

                                              [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                                              @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                                              Amazing 😍
                                              So excited I sold 2 books
                                              My books are reaching visiability

                                                [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                                                @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                                                WOW 😳 238 Pages 📄 read in a single sitting

                                                  Heather 👻 boosted

                                                  [?]drachenmagier » 🌐
                                                  @drachenmagier@mastodon.art

                                                  Sometimes the lights we carry to illuminate our way become the new path we can tread.

                                                  aka

                                                  me: "I could draw digitally again. It is fun too!"
                                                  ipad: "I'm out of battery" :)
                                                  …
                                                  pen: "I'm out of battery too!" :)
                                                  …
                                                  computer: "your art program needs an update" :)
                                                  …
                                                  ipad: "I do not recognise this pen." :)
                                                  …
                                                  computer: "I have never seen this tablet in my life." :)
                                                  ……………

                                                  Fuck it. Traditional it is.

                                                  Unicorn with moon

                                                  Alt...Unicorn with moon

                                                  Unicorn with moon

                                                  Alt...Unicorn with moon

                                                    [?]Quasit » 🌐
                                                    @Quasit@beige.party

                                                    Quasit's Daily Book Recommendations: "Assignment In Eternity" (1953) by Robert A. Heinlein

                                                    "Assignment In Eternity" is from the "golden" part of Heinlein's career, well before the viral success of "Stranger In A Strange Land" drove him a bit mad with power and allowed him to defy editors (and, unfortunately, start packing his books with the grossest sort of old-man sex and incest). But all that was in the future when I read "Assignment In Eternity". It was one of the first science fiction books I ever read. It's also still one of my very favorite books. As Heinlein books go, it's relatively obscure; undeservedly so.

                                                    There was a painting of a naked woman on the cover of my old paperback copy, so I made a book-jacket out of a brown paper bag for it. That's how much of a prude I was. Of course I was...let me see...probably twelve years old or so when I first read it.

                                                    The book contains three novellas and one short story. They're among Heinlein's best, in my opinion: classic examples of his early peak period (all of the content of AiE was written in the 1940s).

                                                    The novellas include "Gulf", which Heinlein used much later as the background for his novel "Friday" (which many believe inspired the James Cameron/Jessica Alba show "Dark Angel"). The novella begins as a near-future spy story, and expands from there with some very interesting ideas about human potential, intelligence, and what it means to be a "superman". It includes quite a bit about the work of Samuel Renshaw, a topic which obviously interested Heinlein a lot (much as semantics did). In that regard, Heinlein was rather Campbellesque; he tended to get something of a bee in his bonnet about some new scientific "breakthrough" and include it in his works. Since there are no Renshawing or semantics centers on every street-corner, I think we can say that Heinlein's track record on these particular points was not great (although it was nowhere near as bad as John W. Campbell or Mark Twain, of course).

                                                    In any case, "Gulf" is classic Heinlein; exciting, provocative (not in the sexual sense, as this is relatively early Heinlein), and gripping. The ending isn't necessarily happy, and comes with jarring suddenness. For some reason Heinlein didn't use so much as a paragraph break to indicate a discontinuity or passage of time; this was, I think, a mistake that he would not have made later in his career. But still, it's only a minor flaw.

                                                    The next novella is "Lost Legacy", in which a doctor, a psychologist, and one of their female students at auniversity discover a way to unlock psychic powers in the human brain only to find that they're not the only ones with these power—nor the first. Because it's a novella, Heinlein gets to develop the characters of the protagonists more than he would in a short story; they're quite likable people. And because this is early Heinlein, the characters aren't constantly having sex with relatives, showing their utter moral superiority over anything non-Heinlein, or ranting about the moral perfection of libertarianism.

                                                    The development of those powers is extremely well written. You can really place yourself in the story; for all that it's fantastic, it's very believable. Of course, the story is based on the idea that the majority of the human brain has no known function, and my understanding is that that theory has since been disproved. But that doesn't affect the story, which is just a great read. And the end is quite touching.

                                                    "Elsewhen" is much closer to pure fantasy, but has a lovely gentle quality. A professor teaches a seminar in which he shows students how to use their minds to move through time and probability to anywhere or anywhen. Inevitably, complications lead to more probability-hopping and transformations.

                                                    The professor himself is a bit unusual for a Heinlein protagonist, in that he's actually rather gentle and academic; less, well, "Heinleinish" than most of Heinlein's later heroes, who tend to be virtual supermen in almost every sense of the word. It's worth noting that both "Elsewhen" and "Lost Legacy" feature strong-willed and competent heroines, which was somewhat unusual for that time.

                                                    The end of "Elsewhen" always leaves me in a warm glow.

                                                    "Jerry Was A Man" is the short story that finishes off the book. It's about a rich, not-too-bright woman who is horrified when she learns that enhanced worker apes are being killed and made into dog food when they can no longer work. She brings Jerry, the ape that first caught her attention, home with her (she owns stock in the company that created him). To win basic civil rights for the enhanced apes she employs a legal firm and and a "shyster" (Heinlein's word, not mine). The shyster is rather reminiscent of Jubal Harshaw in "Stranger In A Strange Land"; in this future setting shysters are essentially smart fixers, beyond the legal pale but necessary to the system. In any case, Jerry is the test case they use to try to establish anthropoid rights.

                                                    Along the way her even-more-stupid trophy husband makes difficulties for a while. There's also some interesting and imaginative discussion of genetic manipulation in the earlier part of the story. I've never thought of Pegasus the same way since I first read it. Neither will you.

                                                    I have some spoilers of sorts for the end of "Jerry Was A Man", but I'll place them in a CW'ed comment on this post.

                                                    Despite that, "Assignment In Eternity" is one of the most compulsively readable collections of stories by a single author in the field of science fiction. Heinlein was in many ways a modern Rudyard Kipling (just as Kurt Vonnegut was the modern analog of Mark Twain), with all of his gift for storytelling; he captures the reader's imagination from the first page and takes you with him on fantastic journeys. You'll want to make that trip again and again.

                                                    I think that this book is still in print, but it's probably fairly rare. You might find it in used book stores...but then again, you might not. It's available as an ebook from the usual publishers, and you can borrow it for free from the Internet Archive at
                                                    archive.org/details/assignment

                                                    Happy reading! 🤓📖

                                                    ⁨⁨⁩⁩ ⁨⁨⁩⁩ ⁨⁨ ⁨⁩ ⁨⁩ ⁩
                                                    ⁨⁨ ⁨⁨⁩⁩ ⁨⁨⁩⁩

                                                      [?]Skip Scherer - Author » 🌐
                                                      @skipscherer@mastodon.social

                                                      RE: mastodon.social/@skipscherer/1

                                                      Delve 141!
                                                      —
                                                      When shadows walk, fear rises.
                                                      —
                                                      Feel that sudden cold down the back of your neck? It’s already too late. That isn't the fear of a trap being set...
                                                      —
                                                      It’s the realization that it has already closed.
                                                      —
                                                      Serial New Tue and Fri

                                                        [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                                                        @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                                                        EVERYONE- I SOLD ONE MORE COPY JUST NOW! BE HAPPY FOR MEEEE 🕺🏽

                                                          Lazarou Monkey Terror 🚀💙🌈 boosted

                                                          [?]Brian Davis » 🌐
                                                          @intrepidhero@mastodon.social

                                                          New instance, new time.

                                                          Formerly intrepidhero@vmst.io.

                                                          I post a lot of , , and pictures, , , projects, esoteric and grumpy and thoughts, and , both my own and attributed. I like and and when I post about politics it will get a CW.

                                                          Posts are meant to be ephemeral. Anything I want to keep up long term will end up on my website.

                                                          ☮️

                                                            [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                                                            @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                                                            "What did you do at work today?" "Read half a book in one sitting."

                                                              [?]Quasit » 🌐
                                                              @Quasit@beige.party

                                                              Quasit's Daily Book Recommendations: "The Crystal Cave" (1970) by Mary Stewart

                                                              The first of a four-book series, Mary Stewart's "The Crystal Cave" is an impressively mature and subtle take on the Arthurian Legend. It's more adult and, I'd say, more •realistic• than any other attempt at an Arthurian series. And that's probably because Mary Stewart was a highly experienced author long before she wrote it—and I think it might have been because most of her books before this one were romantic mysteries, a genre in which she was a pioneer.

                                                              The take is a new one; it focuses on a boy named Myrddin Emrys, also known as "Merlin". The bastard son of a Welsh princess with no known father, he's a scrawny and odd boy. Other boys bully him, so he spends a lot of his time hiding in odd places and outdoors.

                                                              This is not a book with obvious magic and spells. Merlin sees things that others can't, but he's no D&D magic-user blasting fireballs and magic missiles; the magic in that world is much less blatant and crude. It really •works•.

                                                              More than anything else, Merlin is a tool of a power he doesn't understand: Fate? Gods? The Future? God? Whatever it is, he trusts it as much as he can and lets it work it's will through him.

                                                              [I stood still, with the big bright apricot cupped in the palm of my hand. The garden was very hot, and very still, and quiet except for the humming of insects. The fruit glowed like gold, and smelled of sunshine and sweet juice. Its skin felt like the fur of a golden bee. I could feel my mouth watering.

                                                              "What is it?" asked my uncle. He sounded edgy and impatient. The juice of his apricot was running down his chin. "Don't stand there staring at it, boy! Eat it! There's nothing wrong with it, is there?"

                                                              I looked up. The blue eyes, fierce as a fox, stared down into mine. I held it out to him. "I don't want it. It's black inside. Look, you can see right through."

                                                              He took his breath in sharply, as if to speak. Then voices came from the other side of the wall; the gardeners, probably, bringing the empty fruit-baskets down ready for morning. My uncle, stooping, snatched the fruit from my hand and threw it from him, hard against the wall. It burst in a golden splash of flesh against the brick, and the juice ran down. A wasp, disturbed from the tree, droned past between us. Camlach flapped at it with a queer, abrupt gesture, and said to me in a voice that was suddenly all venom:

                                                              "Keep away from me after this, you devil's brat. Do you hear me? Just keep away."]

                                                              The sequel is "The Hollow Hills" (1973), followed by "The Last Enchantment" (1979), and "The Wicked Day" (1983). A fifth book is not part of the series, but refers to it: "The Prince and the Pilgrim" (1995). Personally I prefer the first two books in the series.

                                                              The series is still in print physically, and is available in ebook format from the usual publishers. It was a •very• popular series, so your odds of finding copies in used book stores is still pretty good.

                                                              And, of course, it's available to borrow for free from the Internet Archive:

                                                              archive.org/details/crystalcav

                                                              It's a magical, wonderful book.

                                                              Happy reading! 🤓📖

                                                              ⁨⁨⁩⁩ ⁨⁨⁩⁩ ⁨⁨ ⁨ ⁨⁨ ⁨⁨⁩⁩ ⁨⁨⁩⁩

                                                                [?]Game Master's Book Club » 🌐
                                                                @gamemastersbookclub@mastodon.social

                                                                Day 15: Queer Book that made me lol The Lightning Struck Heart - TJ Klune

                                                                  [?]Solar Phasing » 🌐
                                                                  @solarphasing@mastodon.social

                                                                  Merlin The Enchanter. Illustration by Gustave Doré (1878)

                                                                  imgur.com/gallery/merlin-encha

                                                                  Merlin The Enchanter. Illustration by Gustave Doré (1878)

                                                                  Alt...Merlin The Enchanter. Illustration by Gustave Doré (1878)

                                                                  Cagey5 boosted

                                                                  [?]Metin Seven » 🌐
                                                                  @metin@graphics.social

                                                                  Dragon (2025)

                                                                  Graphic-style, cartoonish dragon design.

                                                                  Alt...Graphic-style, cartoonish dragon design.

                                                                    [?]Author Krishna Prasanth Guttikonda » 🌐
                                                                    @krishna-author.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy

                                                                    Omg I sold 1 book today !!!!

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