PicoBlog

Hey everyone! 💜 It's been a week, in the parlance: literally, physically, metaphorically; in the realm of bodies, in the realm of beasts, in the realm of spirits, in the realm of dream.

I have traveled hundreds of miles twice now in the span of that week and I am, alas, not simply being cute about a publishing thing; I have spent about 18 of the past 96 hours in Some Kind of Transit. Miles to go before I sleep, and all that.

In that time, my book has been out there in the world and honestly, it’s been nerve-wracking in a mostly-favorable sense—I have gotten several really lovely comments from readers and my very first-ever experience getting FAN ART! (thank you Kriss!!)

As ever, my book is available now on just about every ebook platform—and, for Friday, October 6th, 2023, it’s available FOR FREE along with 130+ other titles I hope you will be interested in checking out!

(I, for one, am making a list AND checking it twice…)

Fantasy Free-For-All is hosted by the magnificent Toni of From Pages to Portals—give her Substack a look-see if you aren’t already reading, that’s the best place to snag the update email when the event goes live!

There are at least nine other Derby books that will be available during this free book bonanza, and I highly recommend all of them!

I have in-depth reviews coming for all of these books, but for now, a brief overview of a bunch of books by fellow authors in the Derby trenches with me:

Witch of the Lunar Order, by Tara Davis: I really love Nyssa; as a main character to follow through the story, her voice is very enjoyable, and Tara’s worldbuilding details are really charming and delightful. I have been following this story since the early drafts here on Substack and the latest version is even better.

The Sunset Sovereign: A Dragon’s Memoir, by CD Houck: I have been banging the drum for this book for a while, and I have a longer review coming. I really love a good story-within-a-story, and the core conceit, the dragon’s point of view in a tale of dragon-slaying, is dramatically impactful. I love this story so much I have trouble explaining it without spoiling the whole thing but just trust me, it’s a delight and you should read it.

Not Your Mountain, by Greg Yates: This is a delightful and funny cozy fantasy adventure that tweaks the conventions of capital-F Fantasy genre reader expectations. The main character, Matty, is a dwarf set in his ways, of digging for treasure and not going off on adventures, until he meets someone really special who might just turn everything he knows upside down. The characters in this book are lovely and larger than life, I really enjoyed it.

The Warhog Paladins, by Jer Patch: this is the first gamelit story that gave me a real sense of what sort of fun things can be done with this particular subgenre. I really liked Mia Lark, the underdog protagonist from a bleak dystopia whose last chance to find and make a future for herself hinges on her performance in the game world of Revivium… where the in-game currency translates to real-world cachet, but only if you find a way to survive the game—or else die trying.

The Light Must Hold, by Kriss Gallom: a fascinating grimdark adventure fantasy with an engaging mystery at its core. The story follows a band of monks from an eccentric order on a world where there is no starlight and where all manner of terrible threats lurk in the gloaming. Lior, an orphaned elf raised in this brotherhood of various fantasy folk, must figure out the link between his strange powers and the escalating threats to their way of life… The prose is grim and delicious, and the worldbuilding really captured my attention.

Soultaming the Serpent, by PM Hammond—my longer review of that book went into an earlier newsletter, but my tldr is: a wonderful and engaging story of prophecy thwarted by a trio of engaging characters, with charming and delightful prose. I loved this wonderful found family, especially for being unconventional-even-for-the-conventions-of-found-family. The prose is crisp and lovely.

Arctic Druid, by Stephen Reeves: A YA adventure fantasy following the struggles of Eamon, a young would-be hunter whose village needs help from the titular Arctic Druid, a figure of legend who may not even be real. Eamon decides to take on the dangerous trip north in search of the Arctic Druid in order to stave off the encroaching Darkness—will he get there in time? I really liked the way this book approached the coming of age quest plot.

Dude, I’m Completely Lost, by James N. Griffith: Honestly and sincerely, a darkly comic sendup of all the worst parts of online gaming today in an “isekai misadventure” package—Jack has gotten himself into a terrible freemium game system plagued with bugs, microtransactions, and the dubious help of Shadesy, a virtual assistant possibly even less helpful than his classical counterpart…

Take Me Out to the Soul Game, by Finley Peterson: Rounding out the batting order, this story is truly balls-out in the best possible way. This cozy reapercore urban fantasy follows two very different characters through a series of screwball events in a magic-norm urban fantasy setting: ZuZu Honeypot, a Reaper of souls who would like to retire from the gig, and his hapless potential replacement, Kelsey Davenport, who would just like to have an ordinary day playing in an ordinary softball game, please and thank you. I really loved the clever conceit at the core of this book and I don’t want to spoil anything, but it is a lovely Douglas Adams-esque tale that does not waste any opportunity to make you chuckle.

And that's not all! I am checking this list against my longer TBR just to see what other gems I'm looking forward to on Friday!

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