fantasy

Starving Review: Out of Ordure (The Fairies Book 1) by Ramon Terrell

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Out of Ordure (The Fairies Book 1) by Ramon Terrell (Amazon, Goodreads)

Today’s selection from the literary pantry is a light, fluffy pastry of a novella, but the size of the meal is never a measure of culinary quality. To be more specific, Out of Ordure promises a mix of humor and fantasy with a tale of a most unusual fairy. Will Mr. Terrell dish out the perfect mix to fill that pastry or will it just be too little to be filling?

Before we take a bite, let’s recite the Starving Reviewer’s pledge:

  1. I attempt to rate every book from the perspective of a fan of the genre
  2. I attempt to make every review as spoiler-free as possible

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Starving Review: Witchy Eye by D. J. Butler

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Witchy Eye by D. J. Butler (Amazon, Goodreads)

They say that every literary recipe has been made, that every menu theme has been explored, and that’s true. But as they say, the devil really is in the details. While the recipes and themes have been told, there are always new ingredients and new elements that can inject a fresh, delicious filling to an old theme. Often, in modern fiction, we do this by fusing genres and recipes, taking elements from a variety of meals and turning it into a fresh one. So, after that long preamble, we get to today’s meal, Witchy Eye, an alternate-history epic fantasy 19th-century historical fiction tale by D.J. Butler. Does Mr. Butler find new life with this fusion dish or does it fall like a bad souffle?

Before we prime our pistols, let’s recite the oath of the Starving Reviewer:

  1. I attempt to rate every book from the perspective of a fan of the genre
  2. I attempt to make every review as spoiler-free as possible

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Book News: A Wild Cover Has Appeared! a.k.a. Cover Reveal for Rune Service!

It’s been too long, I know. Two months off my initial ETA but Rune Service is imminent. Ah, the travails of an indie author, eh?

To show how close things are, here is the cover (after the bump), crafted by the talented Kayla Suppapong of Suppapong Studios!

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Starving Review: The Thieves of Nottica by Ash Gray

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The Thieves of Nottica by Ash Gray (Amazon)

Good Friday, my literary foodies, it is time once again to throw open the pantries and pick up a (hopefully) delightful meal to read through! This week, I have an intriguing steampunk fantasy meal on my plate, distinctive at the very least for the unique cover. The Thieves of Nottica has a notable subtitle as ‘A Humorous Steampunk Adventure’, so without further ado, let’s grab our forks and knives to get started carving down to the truth!

Before we gather our tools, let us put our hands over our hearts and recite the Starving Review oath:

  1. I attempt to rate every book from the perspective of a fan of the genre
  2. I attempt to make every review as spoiler-free as possible

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Starving Review: Blood Curse (Waves of Darkness Book 1) by Tamara A. Lowery

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Blood Curse (Waves of Darkness Book 1) by Tamara A. Lowery (Amazon, Goodreads)

You know, for post-holiday literary cravings, one could do worse than pick up some fresh seafood. That being the case, that’s exactly what I did! Today’s literary meal is a spicy bit of historical fiction set during the Golden Age of Piracy. Magic, vampires, creatures, pirates, and rum are the promises of the day in Blood Curse so let’s hit the waves and see it the meal is as filling as it promises!

Before we tip back the rum barrel, let us swear our oaths to the rules of the Starving Review:

  1. I attempt to rate every book from the perspective of a fan of the genre
  2. I attempt to make every review as spoiler-free as possible

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Starving Interview: Tamara A. Lowery, author of the Waves of Darkness series

Good morning and happy post-Christmas to those that celebrate it! After my holiday food coma, it is time to get back to work here at Starving Author Industries and we start that work off with a fresh Starving Interview!

Today’s guest is Tamara A. Lowery, author of the Waves of Darkness series, the first of which will be this week’s Starving Review subject! Enjoy!

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Starving Review: AlterWorld (Play to Live Book 1) by D. Rus

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AlterWorld (Play to Live Book 1) by D. Rus (Amazon, Goodreads)

The world of literary cuisine is constantly shifting, flowing, and adapting with new sub-genres popping up all the time. One of the newest in the science-fiction and fantasy recipe book is being called the LitRPG. Concerned with merging concepts of virtual reality, video game role-playing games, and other sci-fi concepts, it is a cuisine I’ve heard of and sampled in its ur-examples, such as Sword Art Online and Ready Player One, I have yet to take a bite out of the vast array of other meals that have spawned in their wake. Today, we’ll find out exactly how well one of the most prominent of those meals, AlterWorld by Russian chef D. Rus, matches up to those previous meals.

Before we log in and strap on our swords, let’s take a look at the Starving Review Wiki:

  1. I attempt to rate every book from the perspective of a fan of the genre
  2. I attempt to make every review as spoiler-free as possible

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Writing Is A Bad Habit: Talk to Me Like One of Your French Girls a.k.a. Foreign Languages in Writing

Writing in the sense that we talk about it here relies on the artistic use of language. We use words to inform, influence, and most importantly of all entertain. It’s understandable then that when we use foreign settings, fantasy universes, and alien worlds, we might want to use elements of foreign languages to match those settings.

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