Category: fantasy

Harry Potter and the Broader Context

Amidst the books which have accompanied me through summer, the most famous is the series about Harry Potter, undoubtedly. WARNING I can't say I've approached it with no prejudice, especially seeing all this awful transphobia of JK Rowling. Let me explain something: I'm sick with the misunderstanding around non-binary and trans people. I'm sick with … Continue reading Harry Potter and the Broader Context →

The Metaphors Behind “The Belles” by Dhonielle Clayton

Imagine there is an island kingdom where the people are born grey-skinned, red-eyed and overall ugly. And only the Belles, a group of girls gifted with magic, can make them beautiful and colourful. But it has a price. A price of pain and of even worse things of which the younger generation of Belles isn't … Continue reading The Metaphors Behind “The Belles” by Dhonielle Clayton →

The Shameless Retellings of Frances Hardinge

There is something exquisitely sincere about the books of Frances Hardinge set in the England's past. Exquisitely sincere and shameless. Because Hardinge doesn't conceal she writes from the progressive perspective and tells the past from the point of impassable classism, bigotry and sexism, and all this wrapped in unobvious fantasy elements. Each of her “past” … Continue reading The Shameless Retellings of Frances Hardinge →

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 →