Following Jana's New Year, New Series bandwagon, I've put together a list of firsts in a series. Something other than our pillars of comics; Batman and Avengers and etc. Granted, most of these series do not run on as long as the series Jana has covered but they are great jumping-off points for readers to find other similar series in my stacks.
Phoebe and Her Unicorn by Dana Simpson
It all started when a girl named Phoebe skipped a rock across a pond and
accidentally hit a unicorn in the face. Improbably, this led to Phoebe
being granted one wish, and she used it to make the unicorn, Marigold
Heavenly Nostrils, her obligational best friend. But can a vain mythical
beast and a nine-year-old daydreamer really forge a connection?
Amelia Cole and the Unknown World by Adam P. Knave
Amelia Cole lives in two worlds — literally. One runs on magic; the
other is built on technology. When the barriers between both worlds
start to break down, Amelia and her Aunt Dani must take extreme action.
It's the start of a whole new world in adventure, magic, and excitement
as Amelia Cole steps forward to do what she knows is right, even when
the consequences might be wrong.
Bigfoot Boy: Into the Woods
Bored while visiting his grandmother for the weekend, Rufus, an ordinary
ten-year-old boy, ventures into the nearby woods after he spies his
young neighbor Penny heading there. A city kid, Rufus quickly loses
sight of Penny, but while making his way back to Grammy's, he's drawn to
an unusual object he sees hidden inside a tree: it's a totem, carved
out of wood and hung on a cord. Rufus places the odd-looking thing
around his neck and reads out loud the word inscribed on it:
"Sasquatch." Suddenly, strange things begin happening all around him —
and to him.
Hildafolk
Hilda sits in her tent listening to the thunder passing overhead when
she hears a bell. As she hurtles towards the vanishing tinkling sound,
Hilda unwittingly embarks on an adventure into strange worlds ruled by
magical forces. Luke Pearson tells this exciting tale for kids and
adults alike.Hilda is also coming to Netflix in 2018.
The Flying Beaver Brothers
Meet Ace and Bub, the flying beaver brothers! Ace loves extreme sports
and is always looking for a new adventure. Bub loves napping and, well,
napping. But when penguins threaten to freeze Beaver Island for "resort
and polar-style living," the brothers put their talents to work saving
their tropical island paradise. Can they save Beaver Island from
environmental destruction? And can they do it in time to still win the
annual Beaver Island Surfing Competition?
A story can tell the truth, she knew, but a story can also lie. Stories can bend and twist and obfuscate. Controlling stories is power indeed.
Deep in the bog lies the Protectorate, an isolated city shrouded in sorrow and misery. For the downtrodden people of the Protectorate believe that they are at the mercy of a cruel and evil witch who demands a yearly sacrifice of their youngest child. Yeah, that sounds like a delightful children's book! I confess that as the mother of four, the youngest of which is only eight months old, I had difficulty reading portions of The Girl Who Drank the Moon. It was far too easy to empathize with the despair and madness experienced by Luna's mother when she is forced to surrender her infant to the elders.
The premise of The Girl Who Drank the Moon actually reminded me slightly of The Hunger Games (albeit a fantastical, less bloody version). Obviously, both stories involve the government requiring the people to sacrifice their own children for the "greater good". Like those in the districts, the subjugated people of the Protectorate are hopeless, impoverished, and controlled by fear.
I promise that The Girl Who Drank the Moon is not all doom and gloom, though. There is a witch who lives in the forest, but Xan is kind and generous. Not knowing why the people of the Protectorate abandon their children, Xan rescues the babies and gives them to loving homes on the other side of the forest in the free cities. One year during the journey to the free cities, Xan feeds a baby girl moonlight and imbues her with magical powers. Knowing that the infant will eventually need to be trained in the art of magic Xan decides to raise the child, whom she names Luna, as her own granddaughter. Luna, Xan, a silly little dragon named Fyrian, and Glerk, an ancient and wise swamp monster live happily together in the forest until circumstances force them to confront the true evil that reigns in the Protectorate.
I know that I compared it to The Hunger Games (loosely) and, no doubt, there is some weighty subject material in The Girl Who Drank the Moon. Also, Barnhill's sophisticated prose and frequent flashbacks throughout the book may prove challenging for younger readers. Despite these issues I believe The Girl Who Drank the Moon is a beautifully written story that will enchant children, teens, and adults.
So, this week I am sharing a few of my favorite fantasy series for adults that are perhaps not as well known as The Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones.
1. The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss
You do not have to be a fantasy geek to get sucked into the mesmerizing world of The Kingkiller Chronicle. According to The Onion: The Name of the Wind is quite simply the best fantasy novel of
the past 10 years, although attaching a genre qualification threatens to
damn it with faint praise. Say instead that The Name of the Wind is one of the best stories told in any medium in a decade.
Over the course of three days (each book in the planned trilogy is one
day) a mysterious innkeeper named Kvothe shares his remarkable life
story with a traveling scribe. What follows is a first person narrative
fraught with joy, tragedy, intrigue, magic, and music. I have read the
first two books twice and now I am desperately waiting for the
publication of The Doors of Stone, which according to this May 2016 interview Patrick Rothfuss is in the process of editing so hopefully it will be coming out soon!
Lin-Manuel
Miranda (Yes, the Hamilton guy!) must be a kindred spirit because he
has said that "Pat Rothfuss' 'Kingkiller' books are among the most read
and re-read in our home". Speaking of Lin-Manuel Miranda, the Rothfuss
uber fan has signed on with Lionsgate to compose original music and produce the film and television adaptations of the Kingkiller Chronicle
(Woot Woot!!!). Ok, you may be wondering "Why original music?". Well,
Kvothe is a gifted musician and since music is a recurring theme
throughout the Kingkiller Chronicle it is hard to imagine a movie or tv
series that did not highlight music.
As you know I am a
children's librarian so I have to share this video of Patrick Rothfuss
at the San Diego ComiCon last year leading a little story time of his
own. I love it when an author turns out to be just as awesome as his
books!
2. The Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks
The Night Angel Trilogy is a grittier, more realistic fantasy but not
quite as soul-sucking as Game of Thrones. So, what do I mean by that?
Well, nothing against Game of Thrones. It is a superbly written,
enthralling fantasy, but George R. R. Martin does seem to relish in killing off every character a reader can become emotionally invested in. Not that I need sunshine, rainbows, and happy endings in every book that I read, but I do like a hero or heroine that I can root for (especially in a fantasy).
The appealing, albeit flawed, characters are what make The Night Angel Trilogy a truly spectacular read. The story is primarily set in the dark, criminal underbelly of Cenaria in the mythical world of Midcryu. Azoth is an orphan trying to survive by any means possible, when he witnesses the legendary wetboy, Durzo Blint in action. Seeing an escape from his impoverished existence, Azoth begs Durzo to train him in the magical and deadly arts of the wetboy, which "are to assassins like a tiger is to a kitten".
Yes, The Night Angel Trilogy is grim and many of the characters are thieves, assassins, prostitutes, and worse. However, Weeks makes you care and interjects themes of friendship, loyalty, and hope into an intricate and fascinating magical universe.
So now we have the opposite of gritty, realistic fantasy. I fell in love with David Eddings (and Leigh Eddings, his wife and frequent coauthor) when I was in middle school and first started obsessively reading a lot of high fantasy fiction. In The Belgariad young farm boy, Garion, discovers that he is the subject of a centuries' old prophesy. Now Garion and a loyal group of companions are on an epic journey to find a magical orb and destroy the evil Kal Torak.
I would classify The Belgariad and the sequel series, The Mallorean, as fantasy light. If you want to read a series that is just escapist fun and a little more humorous Eddings is a great option. In fact, I find myself rereading the The Belgariad every few years because it is so entertaining. For parents out there that have tweens or teens that are interested in reading high fantasy Eddings' books are a little bit easier to read and do not include graphic violence or sex.
4. The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan
When I think of epic fantasy series The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan is the first one that comes to mind. Fans of fantasy will happily lose themselves amidst the massive cast of characters in Jordan's expansive and detailed magical universe.
Rand, Matt, and Perrin are best friends living in the isolated mountain village of Emond's Field. Their simple, yet happy lives are turned upside down after the arrival of Moiraine, a powerful sorceress (Aes Sedai), and her warder, Lan. For one of the three young men is the Dragon Reborn, destined to save the universe by returning Shai'tan, the Dark One, to his prison.
Jordan died in 2007 while writing the 12th book. Brandon Sanderson, who is an amazing fantasy writer in his own right (check out his Mistborn series which I probably should have included in this blog), was chosen by Jordan's family to finish the series. Books 12-14 were written using extensive notes and audiotapes left by Jordan and, in my opinion, Sanderson did an excellent job in concluding the The Wheel of Time.
If you do not want to read all 14 books of The Wheel of Time series the audiobook versions are amazing . The male characters are read by veteran narrator, Michael Kramer, and the female point of view is read by Kramer's real life spouse, Jennifer Mendenhall (aka Kate Reading). Listen to a sample in the youtube video below.
5. The Sword of Truth by Terry Goodkind
If you read both The Sword of Truth and The Wheel of Time you will probably notice more than a few similarities. The protagonist of both series is a brawny, country bumpkin who discovers latent magical abilities and becomes a master swordsman before going on a harrowing quest to save the world. The Wheel of Time has the Aes Sedai, a powerful group of women who wield the one power and rule from the White Tower. Whereas, The Sword of Truth has the Sisters of the Light, sorceresses who have mastered the gift and reside in the Palace of Prophets. Despite the obvious parallels to The Wheel of Time, The Sword of Truth is an exciting and inventive fantasy with a memorable cast of characters.
The Sword of Truth series, was adapted for television by Terry Goodkind and Sam Raimi in 2008. Legend of the Seeker, which loosely follows Wizard's First Rule, only lasted two seasons but it was entertaining and featured gorgeous New Zealand scenery. If you're a fan of shows like Merlin, Xena, or Hercules and you enjoyed Goodkind's books Legend of the Seeker is definitely worth streaming on Hulu.
6. Shannara by Terry Brooks
Shannara may sound familiar since MTV launched a television series based on the books in 2016. I have not watched it so I do not know how faithful it is to Brooks' novels, but it looks intriguing. Also, it is exciting that John Rhys-Davies stars as Eventine Elessedil, king of the elves. I wonder if the makeup job to play an elf was easier than that required for Rhys-Davies to play Gimli the Dwarf in The Lord of the Rings. It looks like all he needed to play an elf were the ears.
John Rhys-Davies as Eventine Elessedil
Okay, back to the actual book series which is vast, complex, and completely unique. Whereas the majority of fantasy series take place in alternate worlds created in the authors' imagination, Shanarra is actually set in a post-apocalyptic earth. The original Shanarra Trilogy (Sword of Shanarra, The Elfstones of Shanarra, and The Wishsong of Shanarra) is set two thousand years after a nuclear holocaust known as the Great Wars wipes out most of earth. The majority of technology is lost but magic and elves have been rediscovered and mankind has mutated into distinct races of men, dwarves, trolls, and gnomes.
Of the fantasy series that I have highlighted in this post, Shanarra requires the most commitment. There are already nearly 30 books that take take place in the Shanarra universe. I am not going to go into all of their plot lines because I would be typing for days and I have found that it is really difficult to summarize a fantasy series without sounding cheesy and/or confusing. Check out Terry Brooks' website for descriptions of all of the books as well as suggested reading orders of the books for new and old fans of Shanarra.
I know that thirty books seems excessive, but Brooks' brilliant story telling is worth the time and effort. The good news is The Black Elfstone, the first book in the The Fall of Shanarra, which is a four book conclusion to the Shanarra series is due out this June.
Phoebe and Her Unicorn by Dana Simpson
Amelia Cole and the Unknown World by Adam P. Knave
