Review Items

Young Adult Fantasy
•   The Subtle Knife -
•   The Amber Spyglass - In concluding the spellbinding His Dark Materials trilogy, Pullman produces what may well be the most controversial children's book of recent years. The witch Serafina Pekkala, quoting an angel, sums up the central theme: "All the history of human life has been a struggle between wisdom and stupidity. The rebel angels, the followers of wisdom, have always tried to open minds; the Authority and his churches have always tried to keep them closed." Early on, this "Authority" is explicitly identified as the Judeo-Christian God, and he is far from omnipotent: his Kingdom is ruled by a regent. The cosmic battle to overthrow the Kingdom is only one of the many epic sequences in this novelAso much happens, and the action is split among so many different imagined worlds, that readers will have to work hard to keep up with Pullman. In the opening, for example, Lyra is being hidden and kept in a drugged sleep in a Himalayan cave by her mother, the beautiful and treacherous Mrs. Coulter. Will is guided by two angels across different worlds to find Lyra. The physicist and former nun, Mary Malone, sojourns in an alternatively evolved world. In yet another universe, Lord Asriel has assembled a great horde of otherworldly beings-including the vividly imagined race of haughty, hand-high warriors called GallivespiansAto bring down the Kingdom. Along the way, Pullman riffs on the elemental chords of classical myth and fairy tale.
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Urban Fantasy
•   The Magicians - Like everyone else, precocious high school senior Quentin Coldwater assumes that magic isn't real, until he finds himself admitted to a very secretive and exclusive college of magic in upstate New York. There he indulges in joys of college-friendship, love, sex, and booze- and receives a rigorous education in modern sorcery. But magic doesn't bring the happiness and adventure Quentin thought it would. After graduation, he and his friends stumble upon a secret that sets them on a remarkable journey that may just fulfill Quentin's yearning. But their journey turns out to be darker and more dangerous than they'd imagined. Psychologically piercing and dazzlingly inventive, The Magicians is an enthralling coming-of-age tale about magic practiced in the real world-where good and evil aren't black and white, and power comes at a terrible price.
•   Storm Front - Harry Dresden--Wizard
Lost items found. Paranormal investigations.
Consulting. Advice. Reasonable rates.
No Love Potions, Endless Purses, Parties, or Other Entertainment.

Harry Dresden is the best at what he does. Well, technically, he's the only at what he does. So when the Chicago P.D. has a case that transcends mortal creativity or capability, they come to him for answers. For the "everyday" world is actually full of strange and magical things--and most of them don't play too well with humans. That's where Harry comes in. Takes a wizard to catch a--well, whatever.

There's just one problem. Business, to put it mildly, stinks. So when the police bring him in to consult on a grisly double murder committed with black magic, Harry's seeing dollar signs. But where there's magic, there's a black mage behind it. And now that mage knows Harry's name. And that's when things start to get... interesting.

Magic. It can get a guy killed.

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Dark Fantasy
•   Elric of Melinbone - It is the color of a bleached skull, his flesh; and the long hair that flows below his shoulders is milk-white. From the tapering, beautiful head stare two slanting eyes, crimson and moody... He is Elric, Emperor of Melnibone, cursed with a keen and cynical intelligence, schooled in the art of sorcery and the hero of Michael Moorcock's remarkable epic of conflict and adventure at the dawn of human history.
•   Blood Street - My novel Blood Street is scheduled to be released on November 8, 2012 by True Grit Publishing, and I would like you to consider reviewing it for Best Fantasy Books. Enclosed is a brief synopsis.


Alexei chose the wrong neighborhood to claim his latest victim. Philadelphia mob boss Enzo Salerno is determined to hunt down the man who killed his associate in such a grizzly fashion in his South Philly row home.
Blood Street is a contemporary thriller that blends elements of the Sopranos and True Blood. Perplexed by this unnatural murder, Salerno uncovers clues that lead him to believe that this was not a mob hit, and that a vampire was responsible for this death. Magnus, the leader of Alexei’s brood, must now use all of his resources to save his brood from both the mafia and the FBI.

I think my novel would be a good fit to be reviewed in Best Fantasy Books. This novel will be available in print and electronically. If you are interested in reviewing my novel, can you please provide me with the necessary contact information and what format you would like to receive it in. I can provide a pdf file or advanced review copy of the novel. Please visit my website at www.carlalves.com. The ISBN # is 978-1-937148-18-8.


Thank you for your consideration.
Carl Alves
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Military Fantasy
•   Black Company - Darkness wars with darkness as the hard-bitten men of the Black Company take their pay and do what they must. They bury their doubts with their dead.
 
Then comes the prophecy: The White Rose has been reborn, somewhere, to embody good once more….

Celtic Fantasy
•   Daughter of the Forest - Lovely Sorcha is the seventh child and only daughter of Lord Colum of Sevenwaters. Bereft of a mother, she is comforted by her six brothers who love and protect her. Sorcha is the light in their lives, they are determined that she know only contentment.

But Sorcha's joy is shattered when her father is bewitched by his new wife, an evil enchantress who binds her brothers with a terrible spell, a spell which only Sorcha can lift-by staying silent. If she speaks before she completes the quest set to her by the Fair Folk and their queen, the Lady of the Forest, she will lose her brothers forever.

When Sorcha is kidnapped by the enemies of Sevenwaters and taken to a foreign land, she is torn between the desire to save her beloved brothers, and a love that comes only once. Sorcha despairs at ever being able to complete her task, but the magic of the Fair Folk knows no boundaries, and love is the strongest magic of them all...

Romantic Fantasy
•   Sword Dancer - He was Tiger, born of the desert winds, raised as a slave and winning his freedom by weaving a special kind of magic with a warrior's skill. She was Del, born of ice and storm, trained by the greatest of Northern sword masters. Together, they discover a kinship and friendship that grows to love while facing dangers of both sword and sorcery.
•   Ruin, The City of Life - Imaginitive, fascinating, complex and entertaining. This is the second book in the Ruin series by author, Isobel Noble. The books have psychological and sexual scenes that are very entertaining and entice you to read on and on. A great summer read.
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Steampunk
•   Imagers - I am currently reading this book and I have been (almost) unable to put it down.

It is great, contains an interesting magic system, a complicated, well fleshed out world of trade, commerce and politics. So far, so awesome, even though I haven't finished yet I think this should be in the Good/Great book category on the site!

Fantasy Books
•   THE ATRIUM OF MIRRORED WINDOWS - I was delighted to find this book a real alternative to the children with "secret powers" or trainee "wizard/witch"genre. Real kids in an unreal world. Sharply observed and written with pace and humour, Bailey never disappoints as the adventures come thick and fast.
Easy to read and hard to put down, I found the storyline gripping from the start and couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen next! My kids have been having this as a bedtime story all week and have thoroughly enjoyed the adventure, identifying with the main characters and happily cheering the demise of the various villains and monsters along the way.
Nothing disappoints in this story, the plot is enjoyable, the humour sparkling, the characters engaging and the writing is done in a brisk "no nonsense" style.
As a first novel, I think G C Bailey has quite a future ahead of them and I can't wait to see if there will be any further adventures of the Phoenix clan.
Overall, it's a great book and immensely readable and I hope will herald the start of a new era in children's fantasy/fiction. Highly Recommended!
•   Burn in Hades - Cross never forgives because he never forgets.



Haunted by the Hell of his past transgressions, he sets out on an epic journey across the underworld to paradise--not to frolic in the gardens with the righteous, but to drink from the river Lethe which causes complete forgetfulness.



He's a rare soul who remembers his life before death, known throughout the underworld as "The Man Who Remembers". There's a bounty on his memories, and envious spirits hunt his head to steal them.



Erasing his mind will get the spirits off his neck and allow him to keep his crown on its throne, but he will have to continue his afterlife in an ignorant bliss. Even more unfortunate for him, paradise is guarded by a great wall that annihilates any soul that gets too close. No member of the damned has ever broken in.



Burn in Hades is an action packed and fast-paced fantasy by Michael L. Martin Jr. It is the first book in The Life After Death Trilogy and is approximately 113,000 words long (about 400 printed pages).





FROM THE BACK COVER



Martin has built a world so rich and complex, fans are eagerly picking apart every word and hunting for clues! Burn in Hades bridges mythology from over fourteen different cultures with Martin's original concepts and will engage both loyal and casual fantasy readers.



Taking inspiration from Sergio Leone's epic spaghetti western, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Martin weaves a sweeping tale of battles, betrayals, and unlikely bonds. The plot revolves around three main characters: a human soul who goes by the name Cross; a fallen angel called The Raven, who follows her own law; and a demon named Diamond Tooth, who's simply terrifying.

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