My new novel, homage/satire/love-letter to ASOIAF/Game of Thrones/internet-fandom is out!

[iiandyiiii]

Better sales so far on this one than the last, though nothing astronomical yet.

[iiandyiiii]

I entered my book into author Mark Lawrence’s (he wrote the “Prince of Thrones” series about Jorg Ancrath) fantasy-novel contest “The Great Self-published Fantasy Blog-off”.

For the first round, my book will be competing with another 26 books that fantasy blogger Mihir Wanchoo will be reading. If he likes mine best, then I’ll go on to compete against the 9 other bloggers’ chosen winners.

Fingers crossed!

[iiandyiiii]

Here’s a few new book reviews:

A book blogger all the way from Benin.

And here and here from Goodreads authors (with some thoughtful criticism). Plus a couple of short reviews on Amazon.

[bobkitty]

Is the final version much different than the one you sent out previously? I’ll most likely pick up a copy anyway, but I was wondering if I needed to put it on the ‘re-read soon’ or ‘re-read later’ list.

I find it interesting that folks are commenting about the lack of fleshed-out characters; usually that’s among my top complaints, but I didn’t really notice it here. Maybe because, as the one reviewer said, the action carried it along well so it’s not obvious.

Congrats!!

[iiandyiiii]

@bobkitty

Is the final version much different than the one you sent out previously? I’ll most likely pick up a copy anyway, but I was wondering if I needed to put it on the ‘re-read soon’ or ‘re-read later’ list.

I find it interesting that folks are commenting about the lack of fleshed-out characters; usually that’s among my top complaints, but I didn’t really notice it here. Maybe because, as the one reviewer said, the action carried it along well so it’s not obvious.

Congrats!!

Thanks so much!

It’s a bit different – especially the ending. I took the feedback very seriously and I think it improved the book a lot. If you read both versions, you can let me know what you think (if you like). I’m so glad you enjoyed it!

[dasmoocher]

Congrats.

Although, I must admit I had a flash of Darrell Hammond as Sean Connery on SNL Jeopardy as I read the OP.

[iiandyiiii]

@dasmoocher

Congrats.

Although, I must admit I had a flash of Darrell Hammond as Sean Connery on SNL Jeopardy as I read the OP.

That was on purpose!

[iiandyiiii]

Maybe my most positive review yet, from Dianne at the Tome Tender book blog!

[asterion]

Hmmm, I’m interested, but right now I’m engrossed by the series of various dinosaurs and other creatures turning men gay. How about you write something along those lines?

Nah, don’t do that. I still can’t believe people are buying those things. I’ll give your book a shot instead.

Serious question: Have you considered Kindle Unlimited? I’ve wondered what authors think of that whole setup.

[iiandyiiii]

@asterion

Hmmm, I’m interested, but right now I’m engrossed by the series of various dinosaurs and other creatures turning men gay. How about you write something along those lines?

Naah, my next idea is all man-on-megatherium action.

Nah, don’t do that. I still can’t believe people are buying those things. I’ll give your book a shot instead.

Great I hope you enjoy it! Let me know what you think when you’re done, if you don’t mind.

Serious question: Have you considered Kindle Unlimited? I’ve wondered what authors think of that whole setup.

Serious answer – other authors have told me that their income dropped precipitously on Kindle Unlimited. Further, I think I’d have to commit to Amazon-only for sales, and I’m not willing to do that yet. Not that my sales are particularly high in any sales outlet.

[iiandyiiii]

Perhaps my most positive review yet – and, most encouragingly, from someone in the community my book is most focused on: hardcore fans of ASOIAF. Here’s an excerpt:

Let me start by saying this: everything in this book is accurate. No, not the fictional elements, I mean about the fantasy fandom, and I find that enjoyable to no end. From the Wiki articles about the books to the petty arguments on the reddit page, Andy Crawford has hit the nail on the head with his representation. Another thing he got absolutely right was the comedy. I see that in places this book could be considered a satire, but I say go into it thinking more of an homage. This is Kill Bill, not Monty Python. The book has plenty of good humor, but searching for satirical elements could potentially take away from the aspects of the story that are funny in their own right. That being said, when the story wants to be funny, it’s funny, which I’ll touch on again shortly.

I really think (perhaps with a teensy bit of bias) my book has a chance to catch on with fans of ASOIAF and Game of Thrones… if I could just determine how to get the word out.

[Broomstick]

And… at long last, here is my review of the book, as promised. In keeping with feedback that authors should get feedback, if anyone notes spelling or grammar goofs in this let me know so when I post it to Amazon I don’t look like a complete idiot.

Disclaimer: Mr. Crawford did provide me with a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This book is, at heart, a satire of the massive epic fantasy and the fandom around such epics but it’s a satire written by someone who clearly loves the genre. This is not the same sort of book as Crawford’s first, so those familiar with Sailor of the Skysea should not expect similar. This is, in fact, a high fantasy novel with swords and sorcery…well, half of it is. Other reviewers have mentioned the core aspect of people from our world traveling to a fantasy world so I won’t rehash that here.

Although it satirizes lengthy epic fantasy it is emphatically not one itself. The use of wiki-entries to reference the epic fantasy the action centers on allows us to get information on the tangled plot of the “fictional” universe, and I found it comparable to the use of letters between characters seen in some types of older novels but updated for current times. If you like massive epics with highly involved plots you should know this is emphatically not such a story, the main plot is much more straightforward, while there is character development it’s not massive in nature, and it’s a much lighter read than Game of Thrones which is clearly referred to, albeit indirectly. If you prefer the massive epics this may not be for you. If you prefer a lighter read you might well enjoy this novel more than a lengthy series.

One of the running themes are the difference between reading about exciting adventures and actually experiencing them – what makes a novel interesting and exciting is often the sort of event you would probably want to avoid directly experiencing yourself. Another theme is the responsibility of the author towards his creation as well as the people paying him to write it. A third theme is the conflict between authors and publishers which deals with some of the realities fans usually don’t think about or even know about, such as rights, contracts, creative control, and ghostwriters.

There are some weaknesses in the novel, which I must mention to make this an honest review. The first chapter or two aren’t a good representative of the rest of the story, which means if you’re browsing them as a free sample to determine if you like the book or not you may be disappointed by the rest of it… or maybe pleasantly surprised as I think Mr. Crawford hits his best stride several chapters in. Some of the characterizations and descriptions are a bit superficial even in the context of a light read. The magical system in the fantasy universe isn’t very well defined, which may or may not be a weakness depending on how you feel about such things. Sed (the main character and your point of view) knows pretty much nothing about magic other than how to manipulate an item after instruction, so it’s the viewpoint of an outsider to the system. Structurally, the first couple chapters and the wiki entries are awkward at points, although that did not spoil my overall enjoyment of the story it might be an obstacle to some readers.

[iiandyiiii]

Thanks so much Broomstick! I’m so glad you enjoyed it, and I really appreciate that you took the time to put down your thoughts.

[iiandyiiii]

With the help of GuanoLad, my cover has been redesigned! See the new cover here.

[Maserschmidt]

It’s a significant improvement!

[iiandyiiii]

@Maserschmidt

It’s a significant improvement!

Thanks very much. We’ll see if this makes any difference in sales.