CSFF Blog Tour: Venom and Song Day Three

Much of Venom and Song focuses on the development of cohesion among the seven lords. They begin the story as a loose-knit set of teens with little in common other than the bizarre events that have taken over their lives. Grimwarden wisely understands that a few individuals with some extraordinary gifts will fail before the power and discipline of the Spider King. From the instant their training at Whitehall begins, Grimwarden concentrates on teamwork, on transforming the seven into a military unit that is more powerful than the sum of its parts. The team-building exercises demonstrate that as a team, the seven lords can accomplish what the individuals cannot. All seven have unique gifts and important roles to play and no one, not even Jett with his strength or Johnny with his fire, can carry everyone. Along with cohesion comes trust and friendship and sacrifice. When they first arrived at Whitehall, they bickered and lashed out at each other when the tasks became difficult. All that had changed by the time they reached Terradym Fortress. They went to extraordinary lengths to save one another from death in the various traps and worked together to unlock the secrets of the cistern.

Initially, the lords understand the conflict with the Spider King as a battle between good and evil. They are the "good guys" while the Gwar and assorted company are the "bad guys." Their Elvish handlers are content to leave them in ignorance, but a chance meeting with a scarlet raptor leads Kat and Tommy to a shocking discovery. The Elves once enslaved the Gwar and treated them cruelly. The Gwar have good reason to feel some antipathy toward the Elves. The revelations, which Kat and Tommy share with the others before approaching Grimwarden and Goldarrow, threaten to wreck the Elves' plans. Jett threatens to leave Allyra and return to Earth. Grimwarden and Goldarrow eventually convince the seven that despite the wrongs of the past, the Elvish cause is just in the face of the Spider King's tyranny and vengeance. "[H]ow much Elven blood must be spilled to pay the debt in full?" asks Grimwarden (p. 179). The seven learn that history is more gray than black and white and that righting past wrongs with more violence and wrongs does not resolve the original issue.

Finally, Venom and Song makes an interesting comparison on the nature of power in the contrast between the Spider King and the seven lords. The Spider King is all about physical power. He does appear to be stronger than the combined powers of the seven. He has an answer to all their tactics, but he is puzzled by some of their decisions. After Jett sacrifices his life to save Kiri Lee, the Spider King says, "And the strong one made the choice to let the air walker live? How strange, given that he was the greater warrior" (p. 367). The Spider King values physical strength above all else and when their battle with him reaches a stalemate, the Spider King taunts them, asking them what they know about power.

"Look, look behind you. See my armies, my fortress, my lands? I KNOW power, real power! Power to create life, power to take it . . . even power to wake the dormant volcano to vomit up FIRE!" (p. 380)

The irony soon becomes evident. The Spider King knows very little about real power as water soon washes away his armies, his fortress, and him. The Rainsong calls on the real power of Ellos (God) to unleash the torrent that dooms the Spider King and his plans. To the response of Ellos, the Spider King has no answer. And the key to the Rainsong is Kiri Lee, the person that the physically strongest member of the seven gave up his life to save.

Venom and Song is an exciting narrative that addresses friendship, trust, sacrifice, and power in thought provoking ways. It's well worth reading.

In conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour, I received a free copy of Venom and Song from the publisher.

To learn more about the authors, visit their blogs:

Wayne Thomas Batson  – http://enterthedoorwithin.blogspot.com/
Christopher Hopper – http://www.christopherhopper.com/blog/

To learn what the other CSFF bloggers are saying, follow the links below:

Angela Brandon Barr Keanan Brand Amy Browning Beckie Burnham Morgan L. Busse Melissa Carswell Valerie Comer Amy Cruson CSFF Blog Tour D. G. D. Davidson April Erwin Tori Greene Ryan Heart Bruce Hennigan Timothy Hicks Becky Jesse Cris Jesse Jason Joyner Julie

Carol Keen Krystine Kercher Dawn King Leighton Rebecca LuElla Miller John W. Otte Donita K. Paul Sarah Sawyer Chawna Schroeder Tammy Shelnut James Somers Kathleen Smith Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Fred Warren Jason Waguespac Dona Watson Phyllis Wheeler Jill Williamson

CSFF Blog Tour: Venom and Song Day Two

So what's not to like about Venom and Song? The section on the various training exercises becomes a tad tedious. In the first exercise, Grimwarden places the seven in a pitch black cave beneath Whitehall and asks them to find a clay pot further along the tunnel and return it to the starting point without breaking it. The exercise teaches them to work as a team. Training in fighting and other techniques receive scenes or summaries. Then the authors devote a chapter and a half to dramatizing another exercise in going from one place to another in darkness. Grimwarden also gives the lords some additional restrictions. He tells Jimmy, for example, that he "may only use the words yes and no" (p. 138). They may use their powers in a restricted manner this time but the exercise is very similar to the team-building done in the cave with the clay pot. Grimwarden tells them that if they break the rules, they fail the test. Initially, they adhere to the rules but then Jimmy breaks them repeatedly: "'Quick! What's next?' Jimmy hollered. 'Come on!'" (p. 145); "'Jett, the boulder?' 'I'm on it, Jimmy,' Jett said, annoyed." (p. 147); and "'Three minutes?' Jimmy threw his hands up. 'I canna' believe this!'" (p. 148). Jimmy speaks a few more times on pages 148 and 149. So, do the rules apply or not? The lapse with Jimmy caused me to read the whole section with a hypercritical eye and took me out of the fictional dream. I felt annoyed when I finished that chapter.

I suspect this book was written under some pressure to complete it by a deadline. In the acknowledgments, Batson states that writing Venom and Song was thrilling but "also enormously time consuming" (p. 402). He later thanks his children "for understanding why Dad just had to write sometimes" (p. 402). I found other mistakes. The most glaring (no pun intended) occurs in the first paragraph of chapter 44: A New Dawn.

The entire Elven army stood on the west bank as the morning sun broke through the clouds on the eastern horizon. (p. 394; emphasis mine)

Compare that to the last paragraph in chapter 8: Safety Above.

Outside the flet, the sun had dipped below the eastern horizon. Night had come swiftly. (p. 89; emphasis mine)

Compare to a description from chapter 15: The Scarlet Raptor.

The sun was setting red on the far eastern horizon, and a misty blue shroud was creeping up on the forest below. (p. 160; emphasis mine)

It's neat that Allyra spins in the opposite direction of Earth, but I don't recall the characters remarking on it or being confused about direction because of it. That does not ring true for me. The sun is the most basic source of direction and is most likely ingrained in our thinking by a young age. The mistake at the end of the book drove me nuts and sent me paging backwards to find examples to see if I had read something wrong earlier.

Another bothersome omission occurs during the attack on Vesper Crag. Where are the Gwar women and children? The Spider King's troops are shown slaughtering non-combatants during the sack of Berinfell, but the Elves never contend with the issue of civilian casualties. The Gwar women and children are suspiciously absent. No orders are given as to how to treat them if found and no one asks if there will be any or provides an explanation as to why Gwar non-combatants are not there. Perhaps Vesper Crag is solely a military outpost, but that begs the question of why the Elves do not need to occupy or attack the Gwar's principle city. The Elves once enslaved the Gwar. They are capable of crimes. Why give the Elves a free pass here?

The authors missed a great opportunity with the Johnny-Autumn storyline. In Curse of the Spider King, we learn that Johnny and Autumn have been raised as siblings. Their adoptive parents believed the pair were biological brother and sister. Early in Venom and Song, they learn that they are not biological brother and sister. Their Elvish handlers treat the issue with a combination of gravity and cruel indifference. Grimwarden and Nelly break the news to Johnny in front of Jett, Jimmy, and Tommy then refuse to let Johnny see Autumn.

"We're very sorry to have to tell you like this," Nelly said.

"Does Autumn know?" [asked Jimmy].

"Yes, she knows."

"I really can't see her?"

"No, not now," said Nelly. "She needs time to . . . to come to terms with this in her own way. That's why we didn't allow you to see her earlier. You'll have to wait until the lordship ceremony."

That exchange strikes me as indifferent if not cruel. The Elves provide no guidance to Johnny or Autumn on how to deal with the revelation. Throughout the remainder of the story, Johnny and Autumn share a close relationship. Johnny is extremely protective of Autumn in a brotherly way and we see them playing a chess-like game together. They also bicker like a brother and sister. Unfortunately, the authors do not delve into the resolution Johnny and Autumn come to regarding their relationship. We are not privy to their conversations. It's impossible to believe that they did not discuss the matter during their months at Whitehall. I think the novel would be stronger if the authors cut some of the training material and investigated the nature of siblinghood as Johnny and Autumn discuss their feelings.

The Elves put great stock in blood relationships. There are various races of Elves, some with distinct physical characteristics, and their ancestral bloodlines appear to be integral to their identities. The Elves' beliefs are not unusual, but the lords have all experienced adoptive parents. To what extent are the seven lords' virtues and flaws attributable to their biological versus their adoptive parents.Grimwarden thinks Jimmy's recklessness is a product of his adoptive parents' cruel treatment, but I do not recall converse statements attributing the lords' virtues to their adoptive parents. Why does Jett choose to heal Kiri Lee and not himself? Is this fateful decision derived from his royal bloodline or the values learned from his adoptive parents? Again, I think Venom and Song would be a stronger novel if the authors had explicitly investigated the nature versus nurture theme.

Tomorrow I'll discuss some themes from Venom and Song.

In conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour, I received a free copy of Venom and Song from the publisher.

To learn more about the authors, visit their blogs:

Wayne Thomas Batson  – http://enterthedoorwithin.blogspot.com/
Christopher Hopper – http://www.christopherhopper.com/blog/

To learn what the other CSFF bloggers are saying, follow the links below:

Angela Brandon Barr Keanan Brand Amy Browning Beckie Burnham Morgan L. Busse Melissa Carswell Valerie Comer Amy Cruson CSFF Blog Tour D. G. D. Davidson April Erwin Tori Greene Ryan Heart Bruce Hennigan Timothy Hicks Becky Jesse Cris Jesse Jason Joyner Julie

Carol Keen Krystine Kercher Dawn King Leighton Rebecca LuElla Miller John W. Otte Donita K. Paul Sarah Sawyer Chawna Schroeder Tammy Shelnut James Somers Kathleen Smith Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Fred Warren Jason Waguespac Dona Watson Phyllis Wheeler Jill Williamson

CSFF Blog Tour: Venom and Song Day One

Time for another blog tour. This month's offering is Venom and Song by Wayne Thomas Batson and Christopher Hopper, the second volume in The Berinfell Prophecies series. Many readers of the first volume, Curse of the Spider King, complained about the large number of characters. There are seven protagonists and a host of other "people" from at least six different races as the authors call them. Fortunately, readers don't have to keep track of the arachnids. I read the first book a month ago in preparation for this tour so the protagonists were fresh in my mind when I picked up book two.

To briefly summarize the story, Venom and Song begins where Curse of the Spider King ended. The seven lords and their Elven protectors have crossed through the portal from Earth to Allyra. A force of Elves meets them to escort the lords to Nightwish Caverns, where the Elves have lived since the sacking of Berinfell. A detachment of Gwar attack them. The elves fight their way back to the caverns, giving the lords a chance to test their formidable but still immature gifts. The lords are feted and crowned (a bit overwhelming for some Junior High kids) then taken to Whitehall--a remote castle--for military training. The Elvish leaders want the lords to lead an attack on Vesper Crag, the Spider King's stronghold, as soon as possible. They learn much about fighting and, more importantly, teamwork. They also discover some unsavory facts about Elvish history. Events force the lords to leave Whitehall on their own. They travel the forest in search of the keystone and the rainsong mentioned in the prophecies. With the help of the Gnomes, they complete their quest and return to Nightwish to prepare for the attack on Vesper Crag. The epic battle between the forces of the Elves and the Spider King dominates the last quarter of the book. The Elves ultimately prevail, thanks in large part to the rainsong which brings help from the creator in the form of an overwhelming change in the weather. The Spider King meets his end (we think) but the victory is not with cost. One of the lords dies.

That brief synopsis does not do justice to the panoply of exotic creatures and places that Batson and Hopper present in Venom and Song. Allyra is a vast place waiting to be explored. Nor does it cover the various subplots, the most chilling of which is the Spider King's unfolding plan to invade and conquer Earth. I'm guessing that seed will be the focus of the next book in the series.

Unlike Curse of the Spider King in which the point of view jumps around between the seven protagonists, Venom and Song is primarily Tommy's story. Early in their training at Whitehall, Tommy emerges as the natural leader of the seven. He is an unlikely candidate, a misfit back on Earth with little self-confidence. Only Kat and Jimmy are more unlikely leaders. Jett, the star athlete with incredible strength and healing powers, would have been the obvious choice, but Tommy's innate sense of caution and sense that he cannot carry the team on his own shoulders makes him the perfect choice for leadership. He grows into his role as the story progresses and the others defer to him. As Tommy's role as the point-of-view character in the story expands, we come to know him more than the others. The exception is Kat, the mind talker who can read other's thoughts and push her own thoughts into other's heads. She and Tommy share a budding romance though neither has openly expressed their feelings to the other.

A Dr. Evil impersonator.

The previous book in the series tells much of the back story in Allyra through a series of excerpts from a book on the history of the Elves. I enjoyed those book-within-a-book sections and am sad to report that Venom and Song contains nothing like them. Venom and Song also lacks a map of Allyra. While a map is not essential for following the action, the story moves between various locations and without a map, it is difficult to understand the geographical relationships.

Before I end this post, I have to mention something amusing. The Spider King, who lurks backstage for Curse of the Spider King, comes on stage, front and center, for this volume. Every time he appears in a scene, an image flashes through my head. It's Dr. Evil from the Austin Powers movies. I tried to fight it at first but gave up and just equated the Spider King with Dr. Evil. It's easy to picture Dr. Evil sitting in some map room, playing with figurines, imagining that he's controlling the world. I hope that doesn't ruin the story for anyone, but it's a good excuse to post a picture of Dr. Evil.

Tomorrow I'll discuss aspects of the story that bothered me.

Photo Credit: Attributed to Edans. This image is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

In conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour, I received a free copy of Venom and Song from the publisher.

To learn more about the authors, visit their blogs:

Wayne Thomas Batson  – http://enterthedoorwithin.blogspot.com/
Christopher Hopper – http://www.christopherhopper.com/blog/

To learn what the other CSFF bloggers are saying, follow the links below:

Angela Brandon Barr Keanan Brand Amy Browning Beckie Burnham Morgan L. Busse Melissa Carswell Valerie Comer Amy Cruson CSFF Blog Tour D. G. D. Davidson April Erwin Tori Greene Ryan Heart Bruce Hennigan Timothy Hicks Becky Jesse Cris Jesse Jason Joyner Julie

Carol Keen Krystine Kercher Dawn King Leighton Rebecca LuElla Miller John W. Otte Donita K. Paul Sarah Sawyer Chawna Schroeder Tammy Shelnut James Somers Kathleen Smith Rachel Starr Thomson Robert Treskillard Steve Trower Fred Warren Jason Waguespac Dona Watson Phyllis Wheeler Jill Williamson

Word of the Week: Termagant

Death of Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux.

The word termagant has followed a strange path in its etymological journey. It first sprang from religious and cultural ignorance then took on a more pedestrian meaning.

During the middle ages, Christians assigned the name Termagant to a deity or idol that they believed Muslims worshiped. The claim has no basis in fact but the belief that Muslims worshiped Termagant became widespread throughout Christian Europe. Middle English speakers rendered the name as Tervagant while in Old French it was Tervagan and in Italian Trivigante. In the epic French poem La Chanson de Roland (The Song of Roland) from the late 11th century, the Muslims desecrate their idol Termagant after losing the battle of Roncevaux.

E Tervagan tolent sun escarbuncle, / E Mahumet enz en un fosset butent,
They strip the fire-red gem off Termagant / And throw Mohammed down into a ditch. (lines lines 2589–90)

Another example appears in Syr Guy of Warwick--a Middle English romance--in which a Sultan says:

So help me, Mahoune, of might,
And Termagant, my god so bright.

Geoffrey Chaucer uses the term in the Tale of Sir Thopas--a parody of chivalric romances--from The Canterbury Tales.

Til that ther cam a greet geaunt,
His name was Sir Olifaunt,
A perilous man of dede;
He seyde "Child, by Termagaunt,
But if thou prike out of myn haunt,
Anon I sle thy steede
With mace.
Heere is the queene of Fayerye,
With harpe and pipe and symphonye,
Dwellynge in this place." (lines 117-26)

The origin of the word is uncertain. One theory argues that the original term was Trivagante, meaning "thrice wandering," a reference to the moon known by the three names: Selene, Artemis, and Persephone. The use of the crescent moon in Islamic imagery may have suggested the relationship to Islam. A second theory posits an Old English source, tying the word to the Germanic god Tiw and the phrase tiw migtig r, meaning "very mighty." A third theory suggests that the word came from tyr-magian, meaning "Magian god" when Europeans confused Muslims with Zoroastrian Magi.

Termagant became a familiar figure in medieval morality plays. Often clothed in a turban and long, flowing Eastern style robes, he was a ranting, violent, and overbearing villain who threatened his servants and worshipers. Shakespeare mentions the stock figure in Act III, scene 2 of Hamlet when Hamlet cautions some actors to not rant and rave.

The Shrew Katherina

by Edward Robert Hughes (1898).

I could have such a Fellow whipt for o'erdoing Termagant: it out-Herod's Herod.

Through popular usage, the term became an adjective for a violent, overbearing person or bully. Because the character Termagant from the plays dressed in long gowns similar to those worn by European women, the adjective termagant became associated with women instead of men, so that today, a termagant is an overbearing or nagging woman, a shrew.

Short Stuff Take 4

For today's post, in the tradition of all those massive eighteenth-century novels, we have a triple-decker.

"A Day Better Spent," by Kat Heckenbach in The Absent Willow Review

The narrator of "A Day Better Spent" is a workaholic, a company president's dream come true. He has worked himself out of his marriage and into a massive coronary. When he at last sees his life for what it is, the Grim Reaper takes pity on him and offers him a chance to relive the day. The narrator agrees, promising that everything will be different. He awakes to find everything as it was the previous morning. True to his word, he changes everything, quitting his job and winning back his wife. However, the mistakes of a lifetime cannot be undone in a single day and there are timetables that the Reaper cannot alter. This kind of story has the potential to become sappy and preachy, but Heckenbach avoids both pitfalls, driving home her point through action and dialogue. The wife's reaction to the protagonist's about-face is believable and engaging, telling us much about her character and the depth of her feelings for the narrator. We hope the protagonist is truly on the verge of altering his life and feel his pain when the Reaper returns.

"Angels of Stone," by Kelly Dillon in Residential Aliens

"Angels of Stone" is a strange story, haunting and beautiful in its simplicity. Much lies beneath the surface. After multiple readings I'm still puzzled but in a good way. The story is narrated by an angel who resides in a cathedral with only the stone gargoyles for companionship. The angel remarks on the past glories of creation and hints at the horrors of Lucifer's treachery and humanity's misunderstanding of angels. Each year, God visits the angel in human form, asking that the angel return with him to heaven, but each year the angel refuses, answering God's entreaties with "'I need more time yet.'" Many years later, the angel makes a decision. The ramifications are not clear but the result brings tears to God's eyes. In the comments to the story, Dillon states that "this short story is based in part on a novel that I’m looking to publish which deals with the Fall of Lucifer, the creation of the Nephilim, and many other misunderstood aspects of angelic mythology."

"The Stable Master’s Tale," by Rachel Swirsky in Fantasy Magazine

Dragons do not make good pets, ever, at all. "The Stable Master’s Tale" weaves together the stories of a runaway noblewoman and a captured dragon. Dissatisfied with the prospect of married life, the narrator flees to a neighboring kingdom and uses her skills with horses to become the king's stable master. One day, the king's knights return unexpectedly with a large amount of treasure taken from a dragon that they had slain. They also bring with them a baby dragon, harmless in its infant state, which becomes a pet for the king's daughter. As the keeper of the king's beasts, the task of caring for the dragon falls to the stable master. She warns the king against keeping the dragon but the king believes the presence of a "pet" dragon in his household will frighten his neighboring enemies. As the dragon grows, the king's men cripple it's wings and forelegs, remove its claws, and file down its teeth. Only the stable master shows the dragon, whom she names Ember, any kindness. The king discovers the foolishness of his plans and pays for it. The characters in this tale are well-drawn. The king's hubris comes under attack in this cautionary tale but he does not act out of cruelty or pride alone.

Photo Credit: StAn at the Polish language Wikipedia. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Word of the Week Haggis

European Magpie

A traditional Scottish dish, haggis is a type of sausage made from sheep's heart, liver, and lungs that is minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt. Traditional recipes call for this mixture to be simmered in a sheep's stomach or intestine for a few hours. Commercial haggis is usually prepared in a casing. Robert Burns' poem "Address to a Haggis" raised it to the status of Scotland's national dish.

Is there that ower his French ragout,
Or olio that wad staw a sow,
Or fricassee wad mak her spew
Wi perfect scunner,
Looks down wi' sneering, scornfu view
On sic a dinner?

Poor devil! see him ower his trash,
As feckless as a wither'd rash,
His spindle shank a guid whip-lash,
His nieve a nit:
Thro bloody flood or field to dash,
Oh how unfit!

But mark the Rustic, haggis-fed,
The trembling earth resounds his tread,
Clap in his wallie nieve a blade,
He'll make it whissle;
An legs an arms, an heads will sned,
Like taps o thrissle.

from "Address to a Haggis"

Now that we know what haggis is and what it can do for you, we ask why is it called haggis? Why not something like "sheep stuff sausage" or "mutton offal" or something more descriptive?

The first recorded usage of the word dates to the fifteenth century. There are two theories on the word's origins. The first posits that the Middle English word hagese derived from the Old English word haggen, which means to chop. So, haggis refers to chopped up stuff. The second theory traces haggis to the Old French word agace, meaning magpie. In this case, haggis is analogous to the "odds and ends the bird collects" (from haggis entry in the Online Etymology Dictionary). While the chopping theory sounds more likely, I'm cheering for the bird.

Photo Credit: Adrian Pingstone in January 2005 and placed in the public domain.

Short Stuff Take 3

Sessile Oak.

"All The Raven’s Disciples," by John Grover in Silver Blade.

Set in pre-Christian, Celtic Britain,  "All The Raven’s Disciples" tells the story of Ceridwen's struggles to free her sister Seren from the abusive tyranny of her husband, the warrior  Angor. Ceridwen calls on the goddess Morrigan to arrange Angor's death. Morrigan is a female figure from Irish mythology who often appears as a crow and is an analogue to the Germanic Valkyries. Ceridwen's people, the Dumnonii, are involved in a protracted war with the Brigantes, another Celtic tribe, over rights to the valuable tin mines in southern Britain. Unbeknownst to Ceridwen, Angor has also made some sort of pact with Morrigan to aid him in battle with his enemies. Grover tells the story from both Ceridwen's and Angor's perspectives although Ceridwen is clearly the protagonist. Seren cautions Ceridwen against invoking Morrigan's aid but Ceridwen's ignores all the warnings and dangers, believing that Angor's death will deliver Seren from her unhappy union. Ceridwen ultimately gets her wish, but not in the way she expected and Morrigan exacts a heavy toll on Seren. The pagan deities do not freely give their assistance. Grover's depiction of Ceridwen's meeting with Morrigan is well done, visually memorable.

"The Trees of Angar Forest," by Scott Appleton in Mindflights.

In "The Trees of Angar Forest," Appleton presents a fresh look at sentient trees. The story centers on a young man named Phillip, who wishes to marry Angeline. According to the traditions of his people, a young man cannot marry until he wrestles a tree in Angar Forest and returns with lumber to build a new house for his bride. An ambitious young lad, Phillip selects the largest and most ancient oak that he can find. After a bout that appears to end in a draw, the tree asks him to describe his love for Angeline. Phillip prattles on in praise of Angeline for three hours. As expected, the tree listens patiently. In an unexpected move, the tree grabs Phillip and cuts out his heart. The scene shifts to the village, where Angeline worries, waiting for Phillip's return. The trees of the forest assist the giant oak as it snatches Angeline and carries her deep into the magical forest. The lovers are reunited, but Phillip is crippled without his heart, which the tree holds in its branches and squeezes to inflict great pain on him. The tree is unwilling to give up its life for just any love and pushes Phillip and Angeline to the limit to test the quality of their affection. The tree is neither good nor evil, but an independent character with its own agenda and set of morals. It sees no wrong in killing Phillip and Angeline as they see no great wrong in killing it. "The Trees of Angar Forest" is a very sad tale. The death of the oak is necessary for the continuance of life in the village and one hopes that the tree, being magical, will live on in the timbers of their home, providing wisdom to its occupants, but Appleton suggests that is not to be.

Picture Credit: Jean-Pol Grandmont. Licensed under the Creative Commons.

Recent News

Bookshop in Much Wenlock, UK.

This is a short FYI to let everyone know what's going on with my writing. (Yes, this is shameless self-promotion, but I don't have a publicist so the work falls to me.)

Part 1 of my story "The Master and the Miller's Daughter" is now out at Residential Aliens. Part 2 will be published in the October issue.

"Esme's Amulet" is forthcoming in the October print edition of Golden Visions Magazine. The issue will be available as an ebook (pdf) or hard copy.

"The Princess and the Vampire" will bite you in The Midnight Diner: Volume 3. You can read an excerpt here. The anthology is available as a hard copy or ebook (pdf). Pre-sales (i.e. lower prices) are underway through September 11. Go here to order your copy.

Picture Credit: Photo by Michael Maggs, Wikimedia Commons.

Short Stuff: Take 2

Jan van Eyck, "Knights of Christ"

(detail from the Ghent Altarpiece).

Here are a couple short works of fantasy that comment on heroism from a third party's perspective.

"Regarding Sir Chahan," by Matthew Wuertz in Mindflights.

Cole of Arkessler, the narrator of this story, is a scholar tasked with recording a biography of Sir Chahan for the "annals of the knights of Salincia." Cole tells his story with a charming voice and wry sense of humor. After much traveling, Cole finds Sir Chahan at a festival. Cole's meeting with Chahan is comic and not at all auspicious. Chahan appears to be a boorish jerk, and Cole learns that Chahan will soon be leaving for a tournament. Cole travels with the party of seventeen knights, including their squires, pages, and followers. He interviews Chahan at night around the campfire. Towards the end of their journey to the tournament, they come across a merchant and his daughter, Mydrianna. Being citizens of Salincia and traveling to the same place as the tournament, the knights offer to escort the merchant. Cole finds the tournament, which lasts for weeks, bewildering and less than enjoyable. The merchant comes to Cole's room one morning with a wild story, claiming that Mydrianna has been kidnapped by darivs, evil creatures that live in the forest. Cole takes the news to Chahan and a group of knights and warriors leave the tournament to rescue Mydrianna. Cole sees a different side of the knights during the ensuing battle. The self-centered knights willingly sacrifice themselves to defend someone in peril. In this wonderful mix of humor, sadness, and heroism, Wuertz comments on human nature through Cole's transformation and growth. I so enjoyed the narrator's voice that I was sad to reach the story's end, but according to the author's website, "Regarding Sir Chahan" is the first of three stories about Cole. The second and third stories in the series will also be found in Mindflights.


"Homecoming," by Fran Jacobs in Golden Visions Magazine.

Most fantasy stories cover the run up to a confrontation, a fateful battle between good and evil, the story's climax. How many readers number the last chapters of The Lord of the Rings, when Frodo fades into obscurity and finally leaves the Shire, as their favorites? "Homecoming" tells the sad story of a hero after the heroism is done. Plucked from his life as a farm boy in a rural village, Tyran learns that he is really the Sun Prince of the prophecies, the one who would wield the Crystal Blade and banish the Dark One, restoring vigor to the land. Told by his sister Myla, the story begins when Tyran arrives home with a Princess in tow after vanquishing the enemy. Myla finds her brother much changed and not for better in her opinion. From Myla's perspective, we see the public and private sides of Tyran. Late one night, he confesses to her his doubts. He admits that the victory over the Dark One had nothing to do with his skill or strategies. Others planned everything. His only contribution, he laments, was his ability to use the Crystal Blade. Tyran is uncomfortable with his fame and status and longs for the life he once hoped for that is now forever lost. He leaves a celebration in his honor, returning home drunk. He insults his betrothed the Princess. After talking with his mentor, Tyran seems to recover some of his old cheer but not for long. Tyran's battle with self-doubt proves far more difficult than any confrontation with a physical foe.