My Favourite Fantasy Books

OK - time has moved on so here is my latest update - in a more sensible order of priority (I think). This is a list of my favourite fantasy authors and characters: Check out more reviews on https://www.goodreads.com/

1. J R R Tolkien. I especially liked the Silmarillion and the tale of Turin Turambar. I am on tenterhooks that there will be a film one day!! The problem is the Silmarillion is not for everyone. What an epic tale though, sweeping through generations of elves and men. Brilliant. A bitter sweet tale in many ways.

2. George Martin's Games of Thrones. Brilliant series, but where is it going and who will be left in it? Lots of good characters and Tyrion Lanister is definitely a favourite. What a great character. So cool and flippant under pressure. The TV series (I'm on the second series) is excellent, but already taking significant short cuts over the books!

3. Brent Weeks - Beyond the Shadows, my favourite character has to be Kylar. Very long books. Really good characterisation. Lightbringer is also an excellent series, although I've only read books 1 and 2 so far. Not as good as the first series in my opinion. Longer books again and lots of description. Very readable though and once again brilliant characterisation. Quite hard to follow in places but worth a read.

4. Michael Sullivan's Riyria series (Theft of Swords). I had given up reading books for enjoyment for a while and found that I was forcing myself to read. These books re-awoke the joy of reading a good book. Excellent characters. Hadrian and Royce are complete opposites but that is the part of the joy about the books, who can tame who?

5. Elle Casey's War of the Fae. A light-hearted romp with some every likeable characters. well worth a look and book 1 was FREE on Kindle. What's not to like? A modern day tale from a teens perspective but a very adult read.

6. Ian Irvine - Nish, a cracking character who first appears in The Geomancer, The Well of Echoes Novels. Ian has created several really good characters. A master of creation!

7. Terry Goodkind. The Sword of Truth series are cracking reads. No one character leaps out though. I liked the first few books but struggled with Soul of the Fire. It's worth reading up to that point and/or omitting that book.

8. Weiss and Hickmann - Raistlin is my favourite character and the Twins novels my favourite series. This is the original Dungeons and Dragons story for me. Time travel is dealt with brilliantly and is quite spooky in its way.

9. J K Rowling - Harry Potter books. Many really good characters! Luna Lovegrove has to be high on the list! Excellent books leading to a really good ending. Perhaps should be higher on my list? For a while I didn't consider this fantasy as it's a novel in its own right.

10. Edgar Rice Burroughs - Mars series. Nostalgic value for me as this was my first read.

11. David Gemmell - Druss is my favourite character in the Legend of Druss. Well worth a read. Other books by this author are good but some less so. The Greek series was poor.

12. Joe Abercrombe - The Blade Itself and in particular Glokta. One of the best characters for a while. Very readable books but a little meandering with a long build up in the plot. Excellent for those that like politics in a fantasy novel. This is full of intrigue.

13. Michael Moorcock - He has written many good books, my favourite character were Elric, Hawkmoon and Corum. I really liked the Eternal Champion concept, bring several heroes together for one epic battle. Jerry Cornelious series based at the end of time is a good read as well.

14. Robin Hobb and the Farseer and Tawny Man Trilogies were excellent. I found the Mad Ship series was very difficult to get into.

15 Stan Nicholls, Orcs. Quite a brutal tale. Takes a long time to get going but excellent read and teh dwarves are trully inspirational characters.

16. Raymond Feist and Magician and Talon of the Silver Hawk. I far preferred Magician and if all his novels were of this standard he would have been higher on my list. Magician is a seriously good read.

17. James Clemens - The Wit'ch Fire series. I need to reread this series. I don't remember much from it which may be a bad sign.

18. Robert Jordan - Wheel of Time series. Book 9 was a stinker. Nothing really happened and it was so bad I gave up on the series. I have since read book 11, having been persuaded to continue and again found much of the story to be too slow. Book 12 (by another author) is starting to look promising. this was a cracking series to start with and books 1-3 were really good. such a shame.

19. Christopher Paolini, Eragon, but I didn't enjoy later books as much.

The Prophecy of the Kings, a Fantasy Trilogy.

Fantasy Dreams - Castles.

Kilchurn Castle, Scotland. You can almost imagine the dragon's steam encapsulating this one!

Fantasy Dreams - The Ultimate in Bling!

Amazing helmets. One I saw was silver (not sure these ones) - recreation of the Sutton Hoo helm. Amazing and amazing price tag!! The hours taken to make these is also amazing

Godzilla - Not bad. Not bad at all.

On a rainy bank holiday, after running and tidying the house I treated myself to see Godzilla. Don't question where the monsters come from, but apart from that it's very entertaining. Shame to see US cities flattened, but hey, you allowed the monsters to fight there. Generally getting good reviews and  LOT OF SITES ARE 7/10, or there abouts. Think I preferred X-Men but Godzilla was worth seeing

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0831387/

Amazing Review - Prophecy of the Kings: Give it a try.

I love this site and especially Mulluane's reviews. 4 stars from her is pretty good given she doesn't normally read self-published works. I feel very honoured.
http://dragonsheroesandwizards.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/Series-Review-Prophecy-of-the-Kings-by-David-Burrows.html

♦" What I liked. Pretty much everything. I loved the premise of alternate realms. I loved the interplay of dragons, demons, dwarves, heroes and magic. I liked the fact that though there was a prophecy, it was not used as an excuse for everything that took place. Much the opposite. It hardly played a role at all except to explain why the main characters came together how and when they did. Beyond that, the outcome rested squarely in their hands. I never got the impression that some all powerful, all knowing prophecy dangled them along like puppets on a string. I also enjoyed the tension filled, edge of your seat, pace of the entire story.

♦ What I didn't like. As a rule, I consider character-driven fantasy to be the best of the best. I like getting into a character's head, seeing what they see, feeling what they feel. I enjoy living the story along with the protagonists and occasionally, their sidekicks. This however, is not a character-driven story. Not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing really. As powerful as this story is, if it had been "shown" instead of told I would be seriously sleep deprived at this point not to mention lightheaded from forgetting to eat. As it was, it was still hard to put down, easy to pick up and far too easy to get lost in. This is a case where its weakness may very well be its strength. The story itself was enough to keep me glued to the pages.

♦ Conclusion. If you want to sit back, relax, drink a glass of wine and enjoy a deep, character driven old-fashioned fantasy, this isn't it. But, if you want to rapidly turn pages, hold your breath - alot - get thrown for a loop by unexpected twists, get more story in 170 pages than most books relay in 600, this is a series you will thoroughly enjoy. Worried that this story is told instead of shown? Don't be. What it loses in emotional characterization, it more than makes up for with strong, engrossing narrative."

Go on - give the books a try - http://davidburrows.org.uk/

The Joys of Meeting a Fellow Author

Strange to meet an author at a re-enactment event, but then again his book was Napoleonic era-ish. It's also set in Rye so we had quite a good chin-wag about that medieval town. For those that remember I posted some pictures of Rye fairly recently.

Nice to have a chat though about all the difficulties writing and selling books entail. It's encouraging meeting someone in a similar vein with similar aspirations and issues.

Did I buy a book? how could I not support a fellow writer. :)

Good luck David and hope the day went well.

How Selfish Can a Wife be?

Wife has left me for a week. Selfish bism. How do I tell the difference between the washing machine, oven and tumble dryer?? 

Today I have had to cook AND washing up, whereas if I pull a sickie T typically get away with one or the other. AND I have had to do the laundry and also put it out on the line. The wicker basket for laundry ISN'T working and clean clothes don't appear (as per normal) folded in the correct drawer. 

This afternoon, it's a toss up between longer on the hammock in the sun, reading a book and having an ice-cream OR mowing the lawn!! 

Come back dear, I miss you!!

Today? I Went Back in Time.Hunton Court Napoleonic Event.

Love it or hate it - re-enactment certainly gives you a flavour of what happened in the past. Today was Napoleonic at Hunton Court, Maidstone. Glorious sunshine (in parts), this morning, lent a hand to make this a very pleasant experience.

 This bridge looked old enough to have seen troops from this period for real. Spooky.

Old Nosey himself. The chap looked the spitting image of Wellington.

More photos at https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.670733106327350.1073741827.285259951541336&type=3

X-man - Days of Future Past

Very entertaining but also confusing. Worth watching but there's lots of "trust me" moments in the film. I thought Professor X had died in the last film? Certainly if every one of my atoms were scattered across a wide area I think i would have problems. Still - very entertaining.

Fun Friday - Which Witch is Which

Pick your favourite witch at http://oldbatsbelfry.blogspot.co.uk/

It's just for fun so have a look.

Free Fantasy Short Stories - Download

I've put several short stories together in a free download. Check it out at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/430719  I did the artwork for the cover - it's my sword and helmet. Happy to discuss the stories or the cover art. The flowers are forget me nots - I think
David

Shadow of the Demon - Book 3 of the Prophecy of the Kings

Michael Sullivan's Heir of Novron

Heir of Novron by Michael J. Sullivan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Excellent book and the plot was rounded off nicely without being obvious. Characterisation good until the very end. Definitely an improvement on the previous book. A good author and well worth reading.


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Fantasy Dreams - Amazing Medieval Archway

This is an awesome archway, Jedburgh - Scotland. Not as cool as the one in Canterbury, but still not bad. You can imagine Orcs sweeping through this. well, not sweeping...marauding. Canterbury entrance below. Late 16c.

Ultimate Hobbit Home :)

Even has a penthouse.

Fantasy Dreams - Picturesque Castle

This is an awesome picture. Love the reflected image in the still waters.
 https://www.facebook.com/pages/Du-kilt-%C3%A0-la-Harpe-errance-celtique/273913239290674?fref=photo

Fantasy Dreams - Inaccesable Castle

 This would be impressive if it was real!! I'd worry about an earthquake. Or even an earthtremble. https://www.facebook.com/FairiesDragonsAndOtherMythologicalCreatures?fref=photo

Dragon Rider - Book 2 of the Prophecy of the Kings

Britain in Bloom - Hole Park Kent

What a gorgeous garden - Hole Park in Kent. Very beautiful and some nice crannies to hide in, enjoy the view and read a good book.

Fantasy Dreams - Castles

Castillo Fenis - Italia - This is a fairly inspirational castle. I like the inner wall overlooking the outer -- a bit like the defences in the city of CarCamel in my novel. Definitely a tough nut to crack!

Brilliant Tolkien Artwork

This is really great artwork. Check out this site https://scontent-b-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc3/t1.0-9/p180x540/10001413_10152178641378865_1746967238741716455_n.jpg

Fantasy Creatures - Fairies

beautiful artwork. I love the sunlight through the wings. https://www.facebook.com/FairiesDragonsAndOtherMythologicalCreatures

Vikings. What an Amazing Series.

This series is really good. Excellent tale and the settings seem very realistic. The boats are gorgeous. Definitely on my favourite list!!

http://www.history.com/shows/vikings

Stunning photo - Rome

This is amazing.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/+EliaLocardi/posts/XxYEbStL1Ds

London Taken Over by Blue Cockrell

very bizarre scene in Trafalgar square. Only in London!! It was quite eye catching - but made Trafalgar Square loose it's meaning, as a monument to the greatest naval battle of its time.

Amazing Medieval Street in Rye

In Rye there is a street where every house is 1420 ish. I think the French burned Rye to the ground in the later 14th century. There's some lovely houses with one called - house with a bench!! Now that's living.

Fantasy Dreams - Cooking

Cooking is not something you would consider in fantasy but in medieval times cooks were on the go all day long. At Hampton Court i saw a cooking pot built into the brickwork and the pot was so large it was never moved. Probably used a small child to clean it out once a year!!

The photo above is spits for roasting meat. One man would rotate two spits - each containing meat of about his own body weight

Above is a range of cooking pots and wood burners to cook with. Feeding a garrison must have been a nightmare.

Fantasy Creatures - Not Sure What This is? Griffin?

Gorgeous picture. 

Bad Day for Cats!!

Don't worry - I'll save them!! Cats are great.

Fantasy Dreams - Weapons

Very nice selection of hand weapons from medieval times. I like the spiked weapons which look particularly fierce. The largest axe is gorgeously decorated which seems bizarre but reflects nicely the warriors status.

This silver-inlaid axe is AD 900 and the workmanship is amazing. Anyone carrying this would be a target for any warrior looking to be high status. think I'll stick to spears!!

Legacy of the Eldric - by ME!!

Battle of the Five Armies - Not long now!!

Looking forward to this and who cares what the title is!! There and Back Again is OK. Battle of the Five Armies was a chapter in the Hobbit so is equally good. In any case - AWESOME

http://moviepilot.com/posts/2014/05/02/the-hobbit-battle-of-the-five-armies-reveals-title-card-1394208?lt_source=external,manual#!MIhsM

Geomancer - Ian Irvine

Geomancer by Ian Irvine
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Well of Echoes is my favourite Ian Irvine series. Geomancer starts very oddly in a manufactory set in a world where life is hard and full of strange and wonderful machinery. The characters are a mixed bag. Nish is clearly central and a bit of a toady in this early phase. Tiaan is an artisan with a hidden talent who is framed for a crime she did not commit and she is forced to flee. The world is beset by war with brutal alien creatures. Clankers are the main weapon to defeat the enemy and these are powered by an unknown force which is starting to fail in some regions of the world. Nish and Tiaan’s future are clearly intertwined as he sets off in pursuit of her. The novel is beautifully written and full of surprises. Characterisation is brilliant with a slow but good development of each person. Nish’s father is superb and you eventually start to feel sorry for Nish as eventually he starts to show a glimmer of heroics.


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Fantasy Creatures - Dragon versus Wizard

Once again - the wizard is toast! Or is he? https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dragones/1408913149363557?fref=photo

Cannibal Joke

A father and son cannibal are walking through the jungle when they spot a dusk maiden bathing in a sunlit pool. The son says "Dad, are we taking her home to eat?"

Father says "Let's take her home and eat your mother."

https://www.facebook.com/DarkAndLight83?fref=photo Nice artwork. 

Very Scary, but Took a Moment!

https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=190460531051462

Fantasy Dreams - Castles

Dutch castle and compared to many we've seen -- a bit wimpy. Perhaps a later manor house rather than castle?? Couldn't see a dragon of any worth living here!

UFO sighted over Herne Bay!! Finally, proof of UFOs.

https://www.facebook.com/scifibythesea?fref=photo

15th June SciFi by the Sea. Looks good. 

Rise of Empire - Michael Sullivan. Not as epic as previous epics

Rise of Empire by Michael J. Sullivan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Another good book, but I found this lacked the flair of the earlier books. At times it felt a bit aimless and the adventurers were wandering for the sake of it. A ship voyage was well researched and well written but as to the point...

Having said that - I love the characters and I am hoping the next novel picks up. The characters have been left in dire peril and everything seems very very bleak. All their hopes and aspirations seem to have reached a very low point and I'm not sure how the author will recover the tale from this point. Could be interesting.


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Scared the Pants Off Me!!

Saw this horror film last night. Please stop me from watching Horror films. I cannot take it!! Haunting in Connecticut...

Why Dragons are Special in Fantasy?

The most poignant use of dragons was Tolkien in the Silmarillion. That, to my mind, brought out why dragons are so utterly special (in fantasy of course). The High Elves were being destroyed and a man joined the Elves after his people heroically defended the Elves retreat in the Battle of Unnumbered tears. He persuades the Elves to do battle - but this is before dragons came to Middle Earth. 

Unfortunately a dragon does appear and the Elves have a very hard time of it. Dragons are killing machines and very damned successful ones too. Dangerous and unpredictable, even the enemy are not certain that they control dragons.

In real life the West (a pretty large Chrristian army) lost a majorbattle against the Mongols. The defeat was so epic (God was on our side) that the people blamed dragons. Understandable really.

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2012/077/0/2/0256902b4a1a5c90f4cfedf1ae3a02b0-d4sxkxg.jpg&imgrefurl=http://sigbjornpedersen.deviantart.com/art/Dragon-attack-290460724&h=2160&w=3240&tbnid=qHzVqhc6ea0SQM&zoom=1&tbnh=183&tbnw=275&usg=__WM1hyCHB53M8APyIifcx7bmGy-Q=

Nice artwork!!

Pompeii - Awesome

I love tales about Rome so I am biased. This was an excellent film and it brought Pompeii back from the ashes.  The story erupts from the viewpoint of a gladiator, newly arrived in Pompeii. Brilliant and nicely done.Non typical Hollywood ending and rightly so. (pardon the puns :) ).

The tale is bitter sweet as you might expect. I visited Pompeii and was impressed by the intact streets and some building. This film captures all that and painstakingly recreates the city in all its glory. Well worth seeing - and more so if you've actually seen the ruins. Very sad and poignant.

Loch Ness Monster Found

Well - this convinced me. https://www.facebook.com/weirdtalesmagazine

Fantasy Dreams - Moonlit Castle (Germany)

This has quite nice appeal. Must be from inside the castle otherwise the low roof is a good opportunity to help get in.

Currently Reading

Michael Sullivan's Rise of Empire. I'm about 60% through (kindle doesn't give page numbers) - Royce and Hadrian are setting off through a jungle/forest. I'm finding the direction of the plot less good than the previous books. Still an entertaining read but more opportunity to put the book down and forget to pick it up for a while. Not too keen on sea voyages but it is handled quite well.

DragonLance Characters

Just found this site https://www.google.co.uk/dragonlance

Some graphics for some of the characters. I really enjoyed War of the Twins series. Very excellent fantasy and some interesting twists. Recommended.