Who is my favorite fictional hero (that’s not mine) and why?

 

The problem with picking a favourite hero is that all the rest will feel neglected. It’s a bit like having a favourite child - parents pretend they don’t have them but secretly they probably do. But if you won’t tell the others, I guess I can share.

Honestly, my favourite hero trope is the heart of gold and outside of glitter. The self-assured hero who knows absolutely that he is the god's gift to the whole wide world and isn’t afraid to flaunt it, preferably with an acerbic wit to match and possibly a love interest who completely flummoxes him. But deep underneath that acid and the flashy exterior, he’s probably hiding wounds of his own.

For that reason, there was only one hero that immediately came to mind. Rakken Tempestren, prince of the Court of Ten Thousand Spires, from A Rake of His Own by AJ Lancaster. We first meet him in the main series (Stariel) and I loved every scene that involved him, but it is in his own novel that he really gets the chance to shine. 

Rakken is a fae prince, one of the most talented living Fae sorcerers, and also a bit of a playboy. But underneath his attitude, he is unflinchingly loyal, and as the series and his own book progresses, we learn how much of his public persona is for show and that Rakken absolutely counts on people underestimating him because of it. He makes people believe he is the frivolous one so that he can be the weapon in the shadows.

But Rakken is absolutely at his best as a character when he meets his opposite. In this case, Marius Valstar, the nerdy botanist, whose bookish ways, immunity to Rakken’s powers and willingness to say no (something I doubt Rakken hears much) combine to put a big dent in Rakken’s armor. Sparks fly and Rakken finds himself drawn to Marius like a moth to the flame. We get to see him learning to care for mortals that he previously considered mostly interesting curiosities, and for the first time, being vulnerable with someone. 

Along the way, we see the pieces of Rakken that he hides - his sense of duty (to family, to those less powerful than him), and we see how no matter how much he wants to pretend to be aloof, Rake can’t help but let Marius into his heart. I love how Lancaster unfolds the story of Rakken like that, unveiling new hidden depths over time.

Rakken also shakes Marius up - makes him come out of his shell and breaks away pieces of his emotional armor. They change each other for the better, and call me sentimental, but that is my favourite part of a good romance hero.

Zack Bel writes about fairies, gothic fantasy and breathtaking romances. Based in far south Australia, they concoct their fantastical stories with occasional input from a menagerie of pets and house plants. Their debut novel The Nightingale Prince released in 2023. You can find them at https://zackbel.com/ 

Favorite Hero/Heroine Part 2!

I agree with KAK, this week’s topic is too close to asking ‘what’s your favorite book’ to which the answer always takes at minimum 15 min to talk about my top ten faves. We’re supposed to talk about who is my favorite fictional hero, that’s not one I wrote, and why.

In January we picked our favorite heroines we didn’t write…but I picked a favorite hero/heroine which ended up being Kvothe from Name the Wind. So I guess I’ll do the same thing, be contradictory to the topic, and pick another favorite hero/heroine…ugh, this is so hard!

Violet.

Violet from Violet Made of Thorns by Gina Chen was the most recent hero/heroine that really gave me pause. Violet is the savior of her country, gifted with the ability to glimpse the future she is plucked from the slums and provides prophecies directly to the king. Except, her moral compass is kinked at an early age and Violet is never the same after that. She is at odds with the crown prince and activates a curse that ensnares them both. 

What I loved about Violet was that she wasn’t the antagonist, there’s a greater evil out there, but she’s also not the shining heroine who will triumph over all to save the day. She is clever. And she has crazy ideas. you should definitely check out her story if you’re in the mood for a morally gray fantasy character. 

Violet Made of Thorns

by Gina Chen

Violet is a prophet and a liar, influencing the royal court with her cleverly phrased—and not always true—divinations. Honesty is for suckers, like the oh-so-not charming Prince Cyrus, who plans to strip Violet of her official role once he’s crowned at the end of the summer—unless Violet does something about it.

But when the king asks her to falsely prophesy Cyrus’s love story for an upcoming ball, Violet awakens a dreaded curse, one that will end in either damnation or salvation for the kingdom—all depending on the prince’s choice of future bride. Violet faces her own choice: Seize an opportunity to gain control of her own destiny, no matter the cost, or give in to the ill-fated attraction that’s growing between her and Cyrus.

Violet’s wits may protect her in the cutthroat court, but they can’t change her fate. And as the boundary between hatred and love grows ever thinner with the prince, Violet must untangle a wicked web of deceit in order to save herself and the kingdom—or doom them all.

Summer Book Recs!

Summer is winding down where I’m at—the fields of corn and beans are yellowing, the garden is slowing, and a few leaves have fallen. But we’re clinging on to the last bits of hot sun this week with our topic: Summer Promo! 

I don’t have anything new to share with you, but I have read some great books recently! In the beginning of August I shared a couple of sci-fi recs, which you can find here, Recoil and The Blighted Stars. And I can’t not put another science fiction book on the list, and this one has a heavy dose of romance to compliment the exemplary tech! Book three in the Starlight’s Shadow series:

Capture the Sun

by Jessie Mihalik

Acclaimed author Jessie Mihalik returns with the thrilling conclusion to her Starlight’s Shadow trilogy. An intergalactic thief must join forces with the charming teleporter who stole her last job—and may now be her only hope for saving her former crew. As a recovery specialist, Lexi Bowen’s jobs typically require more trickery and thievery than honest work. Her former captain might not approve of her flexible morals, but stealing artifacts for rich assholes pays the bills, and Lexi’s had enough of war and death. The FHP left her to die once; she doesn’t plan to give them a chance to finish the job. Unfortunately, her latest contract takes her to Valovia itself—and right back into the orbit of Nilo Shoren, a Valovian teleporter who already cost her one payday and nearly stole her heart. Armored against his clever charm, Lexi plans to get in, get the job done, and get out. But when her former crew goes missing in Valovian space, Lexi will have to work with Nilo to figure out what happened—and stop it—before the galaxy’s two superpowers can use the disappearance as an excuse to return to war.

If you’re in the mood for some fantasy on the high seas I highly suggest:

Dark Water Daughter

by H.M. Long

A stormsinger and pirate hunter join forces against a deathless pirate lord in this swashbuckling Jacobean adventure on the high-seas.

Mary Firth is a Stormsinger: a woman whose voice can still hurricanes and shatter armadas. Faced with servitude to pirate lord Silvanus Lirr, Mary offers her skills to his arch-rival in exchange for protection - and, more importantly, his help sending Lirr to a watery grave. But her new ally has a vendetta of his own, and Mary's dreams are dark and full of ghistings, spectral creatures who inhabit the ancient forests of her homeland and the figureheads of ships.

Samuel Rosser is a disgraced naval officer serving aboard The Hart, an infamous privateer commissioned to bring Lirr to justice. He will stop at nothing to capture Lirr, restore his good name and reclaim the only thing that stands between himself and madness: a talisman stolen by Mary.

Finally, driven into the eternal ice at the limits of their world, Mary and Samuel must choose their loyalties and battle forces older and more powerful than the pirates who would make them slaves.

And one last, fantastic read. The magic system and all their rules is so good and the relationships will suck you in, proving you can run but you can’t hide—book two in the Renegades of Magic series!

Rogue Familiar

by Jeffe Kennedy

He left to save her from herself… But who will save him from her?

When Lady Seliah Phel wakes from a drugged sleep to find herself abandoned by her newly bonded wizard, she vows revenge—and to hunt him down. Tracking him through the familiar wilds of the marshlands of her home is the easy part; learning to use her nascent magical skills is something else entirely. So is facing the vast, uncaring society of the Convocation in a time of brewing war.

Jadren El-Adrel is not known for doing the right thing, but getting as far away from Seliah as possible before he drains her dry will be his one noble gesture. So what if she weeps a few tears. Better than her dying in his service—or enabling him to become the ravenous beast that crawls beneath his skin. Unfortunately, in his self-imposed exile, and without the power of his familiar, Jadren quickly runs afoul of the enemy.

As her vengeful quest for recapture becomes a rescue mission, Selly faces all she still doesn’t know about the greater world of wizards and familiars. And Jadren, once determined to walk his own path and stay far, far away from the idealistic fools of House Phel, finds himself aligning with them against the house of his birth. War is coming to the Convocation, which means a clever wizard should pick the side most likely to win.

Sadly, Jadren has never been all that clever…

I’ve shared some of mine, do you have any book recs for me?

Sci-Fi Book Recs!

This week we’re talking about one of my favorite subjects—let’s talk about books! 

It never fails to blow my mind when a writer mentions they don’t read. Maybe you’re one of them. But I firmly believe, and will continue to say,  that reading will improve your own writing. 

Yes, you can take classes and get degrees that will teach you how to write. But if you don’t read and absorb emotions from the page, it’s like following a recipe step by step but never stopping to taste what your cooking. 

Back to my favorite topic! Books! I write both fantasy and science fiction, and though I read basically all genres (sorry gridmark, you’re a touch too dark for me) I glom SFF reads. Recently I’ve devoured some excellent sci-fi! So, let me gush:

Re-Coil by J.T. Nicholas

Out on a salvage mission with a skeleton crew, Carter Langston is murdered by animated corpses left behind on this ship. Yet in this future, everyone’s consciousness backup can be safely downloaded into a brand-new body, and all you’d lose are the memories of what happened between your last backup and your death. But when Langston wakes up in his new body, he is immediately attacked in the medbay and has to fight once again for his life—and his immortality. Because this assassin aims to destroy his core forever.

Determined to find his shipmates and solve this evolving mystery, Langston locates their tech whiz Shay Chan, but two members are missing and perhaps permanently killed. Langston and Chan are soon running for their lives with the assassin and the corporation behind him in hot pursuit.

What Langston and Chan ultimately find would signal the end of humanity. What started as a salvage mission just might end up saving the world.

This futuristic, as opposed to near-future, sci-fi plays off the idea of our souls consisting of the neural pathways that we’ve been able to contain on a computer chip and when you die, you can be re-coiled into a new body. 

There’s quite a bit of repetition in describing how different people mentally handle being re-coiled into various bodies. Some readers/writers go the repetitive route, some, like me, avoid it. To each their own. But the plot line is tight, intriguing, and the emotional connection between Langston and his former crew mate is intense. 

I highly suggest this if you’re in the mood for a sci-fi with a heavy dose of mystery, tension, and a nice romance sub-plot.

The Blighted Stars by Megan E. O’Keefe

When a spy is stranded on a dead planet with her mortal enemy, she must first figure out how to survive before she can uncover the conspiracy that landed them both there in the first place.

She’s a revolutionary. Humanity is running out of options. Habitable planets are being destroyed as quickly as they’re found and Naira Sharp knows the reason why. The all-powerful Mercator family has been controlling the exploration of the universe for decades, and exploiting any materials they find along the way under the guise of helping humanity’s expansion. But Naira knows the truth, and she plans to bring the whole family down from the inside.

He’s the heir to the dynasty. Tarquin Mercator never wanted to run a galaxy-spanning business empire. He just wanted to study rocks and read books. But Tarquin’s father has tasked him with monitoring the mining of a new planet, and he doesn’t really have a choice in the matter.

Disguised as Tarquin’s new bodyguard, Naira plans to destroy his ship before it lands. But neither of them expects to end up stranded on a dead planet. To survive and keep her secret, Naira will have to join forces with the man she’s sworn to hate. And together they will uncover a plot that’s bigger than both of them.

This sci-fi follows off the same theory that our souls can be downloaded into new bodies, making us near immortal. And it’s immortality that’s driving a dirty hunt for an element that will enable us to live even longer. 

Filled with political intrigue, undercover spies, a young scientist, and tangled emotions, The Blighted Stars is a fantastic other-world read!

I know, the second blurb was short. They’re both fantastic reads, I’m just running out of time. I need to catch a plane! And yes, I’ve packed two paperback books and have two queued up on my kindle….I hope I don’t run out of things to read! 

What are you reading this week?

Spring Book Promo of Alexia's Recent Reads!

Here in zone 4b the grass is turning green, there are buds on the trees, and sprouts are poking their heads up in my garden—it’s spring! Which also means, it’s spring promo week! 

I don’t have any new promo for myself, I still need to get the guts to do something with my current manuscript, but I’ve read some great SFF books recently that I’m excited to share with you today. 

Intergalactic Exterminators, INC by Ash Bishop is a humorous science fiction that’s perfect if 

you’re in the mood for a Men In Black type read—so good and funny!!

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett is a historical fantasy filled with the fae and a reclusive professor doing her best to research them. The main character, Emily Wilde, is so antisocial and anal which I found absolutely refreshing and adorable. Oh, and she does have an entire village grow on her, so it’s sweet too. 

Vampire Weekend is another fantastic book by Mike Chen. He’s able to write incredible stories with these deep platonic relationships, I can’t get enough! And this one has vampires—you can’t resist!

The Eterna Files by Leanna Renee Hieber will hit the spot if you’re in the mood for a creepy, historical fantasy with some steampunk vibes. Hieber has a way of writing that makes your skin prickle with unease. Keep her books in mind come October!

There’s my spring promo—of books I’m a fan of! What have you read recently that wowed you?

A Fantasy Book Rec: A Psalm of Storms and Silence!

 

This week’s topic is one of my favorites: Book Recommendations!!! 

As I’ve mentioned before, I love suggesting books and the book cover above is one that is waiting on my nightstand because book one was such a fantastic fantasy ride. And, the covers are absolutely gorgeous.

If you enjoy fantasy with strong characters and a dash of mythology and romance, you should check this series out!

A Psalm of Storms and Silence

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin #2

Karina lost everything after a violent coup left her without her kingdom or her throne. Now the most wanted person in Sonande, her only hope of reclaiming what is rightfully hers lies in a divine power hidden in the long-lost city of her ancestors.

Meanwhile, the resurrection of Karina’s sister has spiraled the world into chaos, with disaster after disaster threatening the hard-won peace Malik has found as Farid’s apprentice. When they discover that Karina herself is the key to restoring balance, Malik must use his magic to lure her back to their side. But how do you regain the trust of someone you once tried to kill?

As the fabric holding Sonande together begins to tear, Malik and Karina once again find themselves torn between their duties and their desires. And when the fate of everything hangs on a single, horrifying choice, they each must decide what they value most—a power that could transform the world, or a love that could transform their lives.

Bookshop | B&N | Goodreads

If you haven’t had the chance to check out book one, the blurb is:

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin

For Malik, the Solstasia festival is a chance to escape his war-stricken home and start a new life with his sisters in the prosperous desert city of Ziran. But when a vengeful spirit abducts Malik’s younger sister, Nadia, as payment into the city, Malik strikes a fatal deal—kill Karina, Crown Princess of Ziran, for Nadia’s freedom.

But Karina has deadly aspirations of her own. Her mother, the Sultana, has been assassinated; her court threatens mutiny; and Solstasia looms like a knife over her neck. Grief-stricken, Karina decides to resurrect her mother through ancient magic . . . requiring the beating heart of a king. And she knows just how to obtain one: by offering her hand in marriage to the victor of the Solstasia competition.

When Malik rigs his way into the contest, they are set on a course to destroy each other. But as attraction flares between them and ancient evils stir, will they be able to see their tasks to the death?

The first in an fantasy duology inspired by West African folklore in which a grieving crown princess and a desperate refugee find themselves on a collision course to murder each other despite their growing attraction.

Bookshop | B&N | Goodreads

You can find Roseanne online here.

If you haven't checked out this series yet, I hope you do! Happy reading!

Four books I loved in 2018

2018 was a weird year for me personally, and my reading habits reflect that. For the first time in a long time, I read books I just plain wanted to read -- not for market research or contest judging or what-have-you, but merely because I knew this particular thing was going to engage my brain and remove me from real life for a little while. And by and large, my selections did just that. These ones especially:

The Hollow of Fear by Sherry Thomas. I have loved all of Thomas's Lady Sherlock books, but this

one especially rocked. Charlotte Holmes protags in this gloriously feminist in-your-face-Victorian-England way, and I dig it so hard. In my estimation, she is the awesomest Sherlock ever. Fight me, Cumberbatch fans.

The Jane Hawk series by Dean Koontz, starting with The Silent Corner. I binge-read through this series and then pre-ordered the new one coming in May 2019. Jane Hawk y'all. Fear her. But also respect her.

Brief Answers to the Big Questions by Stephen Hawking. If popular science is your happy thing, this one won't disappoint. Also, the framing -- the book was published posthumously and has a long foreword by a colleague and an epilogue by Hawking's daughter, Lucy--is unexpectedly poignant.

And finally, John Scalzi's second Interdependency book, The Consuming Fire. Gotta confess I had two problems with this read: first, there's a lot of discussion of horrible people doing horrible things to each other, which is not my thing and frustrated me (horribly?); second, someone needs to, as Gwynne Jackson puts it, "de-fuck" this book. Seriously, the swearing is off the charts, and I am not in the least bit a prude when it comes to salty language. So, those two things might have caused some face-palming, but the story is strong and when the actual heroic characters get their hero on, they are such a pleasure to read. Plus, I won't spoil anything, but Scalzi threw some of my all-time-favorite tropes in here, and I luff them they are my own my precious. So yes, I enjoyed this book.

What about you? You got a 2018 read that we should all read?