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Babel: An Arcane History by R. F. Kuang

By John Folk-Williams

Babel An Arcane History

Babel, the new standalone novel by R.F. Kuang (author of the Poppy War trilogy), has the lengthy subtitle: or The Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution. It may seem strange to talk about violence, revolution and academic translators in one breath, but make no mistake, this is a compelling story […]

Filed Under: Fantasy Fiction Tagged With: alternate history, colonialism, empire, friendship, identity, language, power, R.F. Kuang, racism, revolution

The Dragon Waiting by John M. Ford – A Review for Wyrd & Wonder

By John Folk-Williams

The Dragon Waiting by John M. Ford

John M. Ford’s The Dragon Waiting is a brilliant reshuffling of fantasy tropes and alternate history but at heart also a beautiful study of a group of extraordinary characters. First published in 1983, this is the first of Ford’s novels to be republished since his death in 2006 when, apparently because no one could trace […]

Filed Under: Fantasy Fiction, Wyrd and Wonder Tagged With: alternate history, deception, dragons, empire, England, fantasy, John M. Ford, magic, power, vampire

The Pastel City, a Novel of Viriconium by M. John Harrison – A Review

By John Folk-Williams

A Storm of Wings Viriconium

The Pastel City (1971) is the first story by M. John Harrison in his Viriconium fantasy sequence. This short novel drew me in immediately with its luminous prose and its ability to depict a world in ruins and a world of hope with just a few brilliant visual strokes. Though it begins with a prologue […]

Filed Under: Fantasy Fiction Tagged With: alien minds, dead civilization, empire, M. John Harrison, power, reality, ruined earth, time, Viriconium

The Singing Hills Cycle by Nghi Vo #WyrdandWonder

By John Folk-Williams

Singing Hills - Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo

Look, I can’t pretend to keep up with the outpouring of fine SFF writing we are now witnessing, so I’m dipping into the recent past to discuss a pair of stories that are so perfect in their way that it’s hard to write about them. Nghi Vo is a storyteller of dazzling gifts, and her […]

Filed Under: Fantasy Fiction, Wyrd and Wonder Tagged With: Asian fantasy, empire, love, memory, nonbinary, shape-shifting, story-telling

The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri #WyrdandWonder

By John Folk-Williams

The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri

What an exciting and involving novel this is! Tasha Suri’s The Jasmine Throne takes a while to set its crowded stage but soon launches into a powerful story of two extraordinary women, each trying to gain power of very different types. When thrown together, despite their vastly different backgrounds, one (Priya) apparently a lowly servant, […]

Filed Under: Fantasy Fiction, Wyrd and Wonder Tagged With: empire, fire, power, rebellion, religion, sapphic love, South Asian fiction, Tasha Suri

Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa

By John Folk-Williams

Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa

I like writers who take risks in introducing their heroes. Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa sets this first book of The Nameless Republic series on the continent of Oon and its dominant country called Bassa. But unlike the image of the sleek figure on the cover art, the protagonist appears before us […]

Filed Under: Fantasy Fiction, Reviews Tagged With: caste, empire, fantasy, identity, magic, power, race

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Something is struggling to be born in this damaged and inspiring world, and I believe science fiction and its speculative cousins are helping us figure out what it is. It’s pushing the imaginations of fiction writers to bend and twist familiar forms to try to capture the forces that are hurling us into a barely conceivable future. This blog is my small way of exploring the half-perceived … Read More about About

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