Why You Should Care About “Kristin Lavransdatter” even if You Disagree with the Author

As much as I am angry about all the puritanism in Robin Hobb's books, I accept the notion of sin in Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset. I accept the strong religiosity of its characters and all the deliberation about guilt and grace. Why have I ever come to it although it's not my cup of … Continue reading Why You Should Care About “Kristin Lavransdatter” even if You Disagree with the Author →

Deverry Series Vs Deryni Series—a Preview

I love Celtic elements in fantasy. That's why I've been looking for some series which not only contain such elements but which are entirely Celtic. I've chosen two of them—Deryni and Deverry series. They are both quite looong—the first one contains more than fifteen books, and the second one consists of three tetralogies and one … Continue reading Deverry Series Vs Deryni Series—a Preview →

Strange the Dreamer Duology

I don't like all the "Why you must read the book X/Y/Z". Still, I think that the story of Lazlo Strange the librarian and Sarai the Muse of Nightmares trapped in the citadel on the sky over the city of Weep deserves such a "must". Because the books about them are just enchanting and wise, … Continue reading Strange the Dreamer Duology →

All Quiet in Six Duchies

I've just been through Tawny Man trilogy by Robin Hobb. And it seems to me that what is good and bad in her writing was enhanced alike. As a result, nothing has been changed at all. The good thing which I can say about the trilogy is that, at least, the plot and the grey … Continue reading All Quiet in Six Duchies →

Why I Stopped Reading the “Outlander” Series in the Middle of It

It's time for yet another one anti-review, I'm afraid. Maybe it's just me; I like writing about things I dislike or I disagree about. So, supposedly you've heard about a wanna-be-doctor Claire Randall who travels in time to the eighteenth-century Scotland and meets the local god of sex Jaime Fraser, haven't you? You must have … Continue reading Why I Stopped Reading the “Outlander” Series in the Middle of It →

The Case of Marion Zimmer Bradley

Marion Zimmer Bradley was a paedophile abusing her own kids. She should have been put into a prison. The readers don't need to boycott her books necessarily, assuming that the incomes are to be given to NGOs fightning paedophilia. The sad and alarming thing is that some friends of her claim that they didn't observe … Continue reading The Case of Marion Zimmer Bradley →

Why I Stopped Reading Santa Montefiore on Two Books (or Rather, Why I Will Always Return to Victoria Hislop)

Or maybe, one thing about the hidden neo-colonialism of our culture? Reading A Room with a View can explain us, I think, an Anglosphere phenomenon. It's the phenomenon of the people born into relatively influential and wealthy countries fascinated with the countries more “exotic” and less influential at once. Fascinated to such an extent that … Continue reading Why I Stopped Reading Santa Montefiore on Two Books (or Rather, Why I Will Always Return to Victoria Hislop) →

My Problem with The Magicians Trilogy

Do you know this feeling when there is something very good in one's writing, and yet you despise it because of some toxic or highly disagreeable content? Or when you disagree strongly with an author but you love his/her books anyway? The latter apply to me and Marquez, Undset and Dostoevsky. I mean, in Marquez's … Continue reading My Problem with The Magicians Trilogy →

The Wonderful World of Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar

This time I'd like to introduce you to the series which isn't the best written one, the most original one, and yet it is one of my beloved fantasy series. And why? Why is it never as irritating as some books of Guy Gavriel Kay or Robin Hobb, the writers actually more skilled than Lackey … Continue reading The Wonderful World of Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar →

My Love-Hate Relationship with Books of Guy Gavriel Kay: Mediterranean Revisited, or The Children of Earth and Sky and A Brightness Long Ago

Having written about quasi-China, quasi-Saxon England and about contemporary Provence, Guy Gavriel Kay returned to the Mediterranean part of his Jadiverse. His newest books are: The Children of Earth and Sky and A Brightness Long Ago. They are both loosely connected and set in a quasi-Early Renaissance period. The first one is focused on many … Continue reading My Love-Hate Relationship with Books of Guy Gavriel Kay: Mediterranean Revisited, or The Children of Earth and Sky and A Brightness Long Ago →