Sit, Write, Bleed... Talk!

Today, Sit.Write.Bleed posts a review of Frostborn (Thrones and Bones).I'm very gratified by the

words, which, though not without criticism, say:

This isn't my Hobbit, but after reading it twice through, I am almost certain it would have been if I was eleven in 2014. Anders has crafted a tale filled with ages-old themes and lessons that I think are often missing from a lot of today's fantasy, be it Middle-Grade or Adult. Friendship, Courage, Intelligence, and Trust--these are things that are often assumed to be in the background of every children's novel, but rarely are they talked about openly and pursued passionately, let alone done well. I believe this to be a major reason why I dislike Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series so much--when it is done out in the open it is too campy to my taste, and when it hidden in the background I just don't care. Anders falls more in with JK Rowling and Lloyd Alexander, so much so with the latter that I almost felt like I was reading The Book of Three (another classic everyone should read.) To put a point on it, I was taken on a great adventure and learned something.

Meanwhile, I'm interviewed on Adventures in SciFi Publishing. I used to be a frequent guest of the show, though haven't been on since host/founder Shaun Farrell stepped away. Now Shaun has returned (yay!) and I join him, Moses Siregar, and Brent Bowen for a discussion of:

• Worldbuilding with the help of modern technology;
• Gaming culture and how that works in medieval societies;
• The distinction between YA and middle grade writing;
• Traveling to Norway to research the setting and cultural inspiration for Norrengard;
• Working with Robert Lazzarreti;
• The incredible video game found on the Thrones and Bones website, not mention other media tie-in products and experiences!
• Fractal Terrains 3, which Lou used to design his world;
• Shooting Vikings (context in the interview!);
• How important gaming can be to developing world-building skills. Lou loves Skyrim, by the way;
• Testing the module for the Thrones and Bones game with Howard Andrews Jones, Howard Tayler, Scott Lynch, Dave Gross, and Saladin Ahmed.

Latest Frostborn Roundup

This morning, the wonderful Jay Requard hosts a Q&A with Yours Truly on his blog, where we discuss Frostborn,dragons, RPG games, and Norway.

Sit.Write.Bleed

Meanwhile, yet another bookstore has chosen Frostborn as a Staff Pick. Sue Mason at the Waucoma Bookstore of Hood River, Oregan recommends the novel and says:

"This is being touted as being in the same league with John Flanagan and Rick Riordan. It does have the feeling of a Flanagan story. Frostborn is a great adventure of a young boy and a girl who is half human/half giant.... The boys and girls will love this. Our giantess, Thianna, is a very brave adventurer and saves Karn mostly from himself. This will be a series so it will be fun to see where Thianna ends up next." 

Reading Rumpus Book Reviews, run by librarian Barb Middleton at the Taipei American School in Taiwan, has an incredible review this morning. WARNING: The review is very, very SPOILER heavy, but really says some wonderful things, particularly about Frostborn's depiction of being biracial and a minority. Such as:

"The action-packed, well-plotted story has plenty of humor and a female character that defies stereotypes. A biracial girl named, Thianna, searching for her identity along with the message to girls to embrace yourself no matter what your size makes this story rise above your average fare."  

And:

"Thianna's biracial background captures what it is like to be a minority." 

And concludes: 

"This will appeal to fans of Percy Jackson, The Lord of the Rings series, and The Inheritance Cycle. Don't miss it."