Category: Books

  • The Eye of the World (By the Cover): Representing the Genre, Not the Book

    I’ve got a soft spot for old book covers. They’ve got a sort of old, somewhat goofy charm to them. Which is part of what drew me to certain book series in the first place. Including the Wheel of Time. Question is: does the cover actually work for the story? Well… not really. What the…

  • Dolores Umbridge: The Pros and Cons of Introducing An Easily Hated Character

    Yes, I have been watching Harry Potter movies again. Yes, you can expect another review very soon. Yes, that has everything to do with this article. Dolores Umbridge is one of the most infamous fictional characters of recent years. No Harry Potter character and few characters in all of fiction have inspired as much pure,…

  • Fires of Invention (Mysteries of Cove, Book 1): A Thrilling Twist

    Fun fact/humble brag: I got this book signed by the author back at a Teen Author Boot Camp. Although I’m ashamed to admit that I haven’t finished reading it until now. Kids books have a charming simplicity to them. Simple themes, equally simple characters, just… simplicity. Not to mention short. A simple, charming, relaxing read.…

  • The Great Hunt: Building Momentum… Slowly

    The first book in this classic fantasy epic didn’t grab me. Let’s see if book number two can sink its hooks into me. The Great Hunt, book two of the Wheel of Time series, begins a few months after the events of The Eye of the World. Now more trained in the sword and aware…

  • Writer’s Diary: May 2021 Update

    I need to start doing these more frequently again. Productivity has been slow but steady since the last update. Progress on the two primary projects, Threads of Reality: The Approaching Storm and Energia: Titans of Verità, have kept up better than expected. The former is still a long ways off, but the ladder won’t be…