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14 Sep

How The Wheel of Time Adapts a Sprawling Epic Fantasy

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Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time series would seem to defy adaptation with its massive cast of characters, centuries of history, and sprawling world map. The danger of alienating longtime fans of the books with inaccuracies or confusing newcomers with too many details is very real. However, showrunner Rafe Judkins was up to the challenge, deciding which aspects of the novels made the story original and bringing those key aspects to television. “I think it’s our job to both be true to the Wheel of Time books but also be mindful of… the things that could feel repetitive [and those]…
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13 Sep

Final Fantasy’s Multiverse Fan Theory Will Change How You Look at the Franchise

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Many beloved video game franchises try to maintain a semblance of continuity and worldbuilding. Usually, those attempts consist of linear a-to-b narratives across sequels, but there are times when the connections between games in a franchise can be a bit perplexing. For instance, each Legend of Zelda game seems insular at first, but they actually take place in a shared world and timelines. The timeline barely makes sense, but it’s there. Final Fantasy, meanwhile, seemingly reinvents its wheel with each entry. Every title takes place in its own world with its own history and lore that is, on paper, completely…
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06 Sep

Top New Fantasy Books in September 2021

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Magic and adventure await in the hottest fantasy book releases in September 2021 … The Wisdom of Crowds by Joe Abercrombie Type: NovelPublisher: OrbitRelease date: Sept. 18 Den of Geek says: It’s a month for sequels as much-lauded Abercrombie’s The Age of Madness series is coming to an end. High fantasy with a focus on politics and monarch might scratch that Game of Thrones itch. Publisher’s summary: Some say that to change the world you must first burn it down. Now that belief will be tested in the crucible of revolution: the Breakers and Burners have seized the levers of…
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01 Jun

Top New Fantasy Books in June 2021

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Fantasy novels provide escape, new perspectives, and some of the most inventive and diverse work happening in genre spaces today. Take a look at what’s coming up in June 2021 … The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo Type: NovelPublisher: TordotcomRelease date: June 1 Den of Geek says: One of the buzziest fantasy releases of the month is an alternate universe adaptation of The Great Gatsby, keeping the dazzle of the 1920s while adding the challenges of being a queer Vietnamese adoptee. Plus, ghosts both metaphorical and perhaps literal. Publisher’s summary: Jordan Baker grows up in the most rarefied…
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26 May

Final Fantasy Origin Rumors Hint at Dark Souls Style PS5 Game

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It wouldn’t be E3 season without a few good rumors, and one of the biggest E3 2021 rumors we’ve heard so far involves a Final Fantasy spin-off currently known as Final Fantasy Origin. Seemingly inspired by the critical and commercial success of the Final Fantasy 7 remake, Square Enix is reportedly interested in pursuing a variety of Final Fantasy related projects at the moment. While we already knew about Final Fantasy 16 and the upcoming PS5 port of the Final Fantasy 7 remake (which will include new content), recent rumors and a report from Fanbyte that cites Square Enix sources…
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03 May

How to Write a Good Fantasy Ensemble, with Victoria Aveyard

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This article is sponsored by Writing compelling characters can be one of the most difficult parts of the craft, especially when it comes to ensemble stories, which focus on groups of characters and their relationships with one another. In an ensemble story, each character needs their own desires and roots, their own challenges and voice. At their best, reading a good ensemble story can feel like hanging out with a clever, loving, bickering group of friends. It’s one of the reasons we love The Lord of the Rings or Six of Crows or The Expanse. It’s also one of the…
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02 May

Top New Fantasy Books in May 2021

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Epic fantasy can transport us to entire nations in other worlds, while other stories revisit classic myths. Both are on display in this month’s selection of our most anticipated books. Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa Type: NovelPublisher: OrbitRelease date: May 11 Den of Geek says: This Nigerian-inspired fantasy epic from a prolific short fiction author looks bold and inventive. Mysterious warriors and magic bring some spark to a story of a city’s mysterious past. Publisher’s summary: In the ancient city of Bassa, Danso is a clever scholar on the cusp of achieving greatness—only he doesn’t want it.…
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28 Apr

Shadow and Bone’s Alina is What a Modern Feminist Fantasy Heroine Looks Like

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This Shadow and Bone article contains some spoilers. Young adult fantasy fiction is one of the most popular literary genres on shelves today, full of a seemingly endless variety of stories about faeries, demons, and the sort of complex magical systems that occasionally need a flow chart to explain. It’s also full of young women, both as central characters and primary readers, all struggling and striving to figure out who they are and how they might find their own magic in the world around them.   Yet there’s a certain kind of genre fan that loves to disparage these kinds of…
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15 Apr

Chinese-Inspired Fantasy Books That Reframe Familiar Fairy Tales

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Reframing fairy tales has long been a common subgenre of fantasy fiction and, at the end of 2020, three authors put their own spins on stories (or fairy tale structures) familiar to most Western audiences by incorporating Asian mythology and settings. S. L. Huang combined European fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood with the Chinese tale of Hou Yi the Archer to form a story of redemption, love, and family in Burning Roses. Chloe Gong cast tragic English characters Romeo and Juliette as gangsters in 1920s Shanghai—pitting them against a Lovecraftian monster rising from the depths of the Huangpu River…
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23 Mar

Shadow and Bone: Why Netflix Cast Its Fantasy Adaptation With Relative Unknowns

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In the film and television industry, the idea of an “unknown” is extremely relative. Just because an actor isn’t one of the Hollywood Chrises doesn’t mean a media-literate viewer hasn’t seen them before. That being said, there is a difference between Chris Evans and an actor from a Doctor Who guest spot, and Netflix’s latest series—Shadow and Bone, an adaptation of Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse books—is mostly banking on the latter. While Ben Barnes, who you will probably recognize as Logan from Westworld or Prince Caspian from The Chronicles of Narnia series, will be playing the mysterious and enigmatic General Kirigan…
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16 Mar

Link Tank: Fantasy Books Based on Irish Mythology to Read

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Add these amazing magical fantasy books inspired by Irish mythology to your reading list ahead of St. Patrick’s Day tomorrow. “For those who want to sample some fantasy books inspired by Irish mythology and legend, we’ve assembled some tales that draw directly from that well, from fables of faeries and changelings, to gargoyles and corpses just looking for a place to rest.” Read more at The Portalist. AMC and BBC drama Killing Eve, starring Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer, is officially ending with season 4. “Killing Eve, the AMC/BBC drama starring Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer, is set to end…
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09 Mar

Where Are All of the Mothers in Fantasy Fiction?

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This is a guest post from Gabriela Houston, the London-based Polish author of Second Bell, a Slavic fantasy debut described as a cross between His Dark Materials and The Bear and the Nightingale. You can find out more about the book here. Historically speaking, the fantasy genre has a thorny relationship with motherhood. Technically, it’s acknowledged that the protagonists must have sprung from somewhere. But it is often solely their paternity that is seen as important—while the mothers, if mentioned at all, are usually either dead of irrelevant: unmentioned or languishing in a convent somewhere.  If the mothers (or stepmothers: a different type…
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03 Feb

Why Final Fantasy XII’s Story is the Best in Franchise History

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The Xbox team’s recent announcement that Final Fantasy 12: The Zodiac Age will be added to Game Pass in February means that we’re this much closer to being able to experience every main entry into the RPG franchise via Microsoft’s subscription service. It also means that we have a chance to revisit Final Fantasy 12‘s story. It’s a plot that’s been called a disappointment by fans as well as its own creators who felt that the title’s production problems ultimately hindered their efforts. Final Fantasy 12 received a warm welcome in 2006, but there’s long been this asterisk next to…
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02 Feb

Is It Better to Reinvent Fantasy Tropes or Pay Homage to Them?

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In August, we brought you the first part of this roundtable conversation between three of speculative fiction’s most exciting up-and-coming authors: Emily Tesh (Silver in the Wood and its sequel Drowned Country), A.K. Larkwood (The Unspoken Name), and Everina Maxwell. In honor of today’s publication of Maxwell’s queer space opera Winter’s Orbit, we’re publishing the second part of their conversation. In it, the writers and IRL friends have a funny and insightful conversation about elves and the value of a homage, the difficulties of writing sequels, and how to name a book. Q: EVERINA MAXWELL: Fantasy as a genre is…
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11 Jan

Top New Fantasy Books in 2021

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New year, new books. After a tumultuous 2021, we’re hoping 2021 treats us a bit better. Either way, we have the following titles to help us take a break from reality when we need the respite. From harvesting vessels that sail on mythical prairie seas to an update to one of our favorite fantasy novella series, 2021 promises to be a good one when it comes to fantastical fictions. Here are some of the fantasy books we’re planning on checking out this year… Top New Fantasy Books January 2021 Across the Green Grass Fields by Seanan McGuire Type: NovelPublisher: TordotcomRelease…
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24 Dec

Promising Young Woman Review: a Revenge Fantasy for the Modern Female

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Rape-revenge never looked so gorgeous in Promising Young Woman. Bright colors, exquisite clothes and Carey Mulligan’s beautiful face light up the screen even when the film is at its darkest. This is a very modern and very female take on that particular sub-genre for a post- #MeToo world and it’s one of the most compelling films of the year – one which is bound to provoke much discussion after the credits roll. This is the directorial debut of Emerald Fennell, writer and showrunner on Killing Eve Season Two who is also known for portraying Camilla Parker Bowles in The Crown.…
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30 Oct

Best Non-Western and POC Fantasy Books in 2020

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The world of fantasy is expanding (as you can see from the awesome, expansive titles we covered in 2019). While I still love a good tale of a farm boy from a feudal nation saving the kingdom (or the world), I’m thrilled that so many great titles from beyond the traditional fantasy white European setting (so, you know, a majority of the world) are hitting American bookshelves.  This list of most-anticipated non-western fantasies has some ongoing series titles, as well as conclusions to fantasy sagas, and brand new series starters. So whether you’ve been following titles inspired by world locations…
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30 Oct

Final Fantasy 16 Already Features Some of the Franchise’s Best Clichés

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The Final Fantasy 16 team released a small preview of the game’s world, protagonists, and plot, and it is loaded with many of the clichés that define the Final Fantasy series nearly 33 years after its debut. It’s understandable if your mind goes to a negative place when you hear the word “cliché.” The word is most frequently used in a derogatory fashion (sometimes rightfully so), but when you’re talking about a series as old and celebrated as Final Fantasy, thoseclichés become more like traditions. They’re these little plot beats we dance to every time they come up because they…
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25 Sep

Final Fantasy 16 Release Date “Coming Sooner Than People Think,” According to Report

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Final Fantasy fans may be getting the next installment in the beloved RPG series sooner than they think. At the very least, it sounds like fans won’t have to wait another decade to play the game like they did with Final Fantasy 15. Speaking on his Triple Click games podcast (via Games Radar), Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier revealed that Final Fantasy 16, which was only announced earlier this month, has been in development for quite some time. “I’ve heard from people who are familiar with the game’s development that it’s actually been in development for at least four years in…
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23 Sep

Each of Us a Desert: How Mark Oshiro Crafted Their YA Latinx Fantasy

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Mark Oshiro’s Each of Us a Desert is about finding your place in this world through the most unexpected means, while staying true to yourself. Part coming-of-age story, part fantasy, this book not only delivers an enchanting tale, but also has some of the most creative world building happening in speculative fiction right now—all told through a Latinx lens. The Each of Us a Desert story follows Xochitl, a cuentista of her home of Empalme. As a cuentista, Xo has the ability and responsibility of retaining the stories and sins from the villagers and returning them to the sun, aka…
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DVD Guide reviews current dvd releases of movies and TV shows. The reviews of these dvd releases are my thoughts and understandings of the movie, dvd releases or TV show and not be taken as fact.

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