Advance Review (or sometimes called Reader) Copies are books released to reviewers ahead of publication. These reviewers then post their honest opinions about the book on release day across multiple platforms (like Amazon and GoodReads). Whether it’s a 5 or a 1 star, an honest review is worth it’s weight in gold—which is one of the reasons ARC editions are free to the reviewer.
Our first read is FOURTH WING, by Rebecca Yarros! Book club starts today, but if you're seeing this after Sept. 1 2023 don't worry: you have until the end of October to join and finish the book!
Life has been a little all over the place for the past couple months. I had surgery, my sister had surgery, my husband was let go from Twitch, and now we're in the middle of moving! So with all that excitement, the newsletter and Book of the Month went to the wayside.
I want a way to continue Book of the Month, but in a way that lets me get to know you all better, and lets you see what an author looks for when analyzing and learning from a novel. That means, Book Club Time!
1. Sign up for a Fable.co Account
2. Join the Sword & Board Discord
3. Click on the Fable Link pinned in #Book-Club
4. Follow the Fable instructions on how to pick up the book.
As an author, my mantra is to tell challenging stories and minimize harm. The major failing I see with sexual violence in many media forms is where the point of view and gaze fall. Particularly in western media, that gaze is often heterosexual masculine. That means sexual violence comes from that same perspective, and makes grotesque GoT Sansa scenes where her rape is all about the men (either perpetrator or witness). The violence is there to horrify and titillate the viewer. We should be horrified. We should never be titillated. Respect for the survivor is missing in these situations. I could break down where this failing is in a lot of media, but I don’t think that is the most important conversation to have. I think the more important questions are: 1) should sexual violence be included in stories for shock value, and 2) how can sexual violence be written.
If you’re looking at this before May 1, 2022, we’re currently running a special promotion on our Patreon where when you sign up at any tier, you receive the patron-only Gods Chronicle Anthology, volume 1. It is an alpha read edition that gives a great deal of backstory for characters within The Dying Sun, such as Merikh, Loralee, and Nikias. It also gives perspective to oft talked about characters Mansur and Rajiya.
Below are snippets from each of the shorts within the anthology. If you’d like to read them in full, please consider becoming a patron. Tiers start at $5/month. Thank you!
The Tiger at Midnight follows Esha, the rebel assassin known only as the ‘Viper’ to her enemies, and Kunal, a Blood Fort soldier tasked with hunting the Viper. But nothing is as it seems, and quickly both Esha and Kunal are forced to reevaluate their beliefs as they struggle to fulfill their missions.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy is a book that likely needs little introduction. Douglas Adams’ extremely popular absurdist and surreal sci fi (if not sci fantasy) series begins with Arthur Dent being whisked away from earth on one improbable adventure after another. The movie is a surprisingly faithful adaptation to the book, although per the usual idiom ‘The Book Was Better’.
I want to get a couple of things out of the way right away:
Rights are not pie. Everyone can have them without diminishing anyone else
Your freedom ends where my freedom begins. We all have some sacrifices we agree to make for the betterment of society and civilization. For example, George Flynn’s right to life means no one had the right to murder him, badge or no badge.
Saying ‘Black Lives Matter’ does not mean no one else’s lives matter. It is a reminder, a call to action. It means ‘Black Lives Matter Too’.
I just finished Kingdom of Copper by S.A. Chakraborty yesterday, so I don’t have a blog post reviewing it. That one will be in 2 weeks. But until then, I thought it might be well worthwhile recommending several books to read while you’re social distancing or self-quarantining. Each of these books can be found either for order on Amazon (U.S.) or on Audible. They may also be available as ebooks at your local library.
Note: I am not affiliated with any of these authors, nor sponsored by Audible or Amazon. These are just books I’ve read and loved, and hope you do too!
