March 2020 - Gary David Gillen

Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks

Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks.

Introduction

Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks is the fourth book of The Lightbringer series. The three main characters set up their roles for the final book in the series. Gavin has lost his powers, must escape his prison, and face the god Orholam. Teia must become a master assassin and destroy the Order of the Broken Eye. Kip must prepare his army to face the White King and defeat him, or risk the colors going out of balance leading to their destruction. Their missions lead to one ultimate question. Who is the Lightbringer and will the Lightbringer bring balance to the world?

Summary

Chromaturgy is the magical system of the Seven Satrapies. They call magicians who use Chromaturgy drafters and the best drafters live on the Chromeria, the seat of the Satrapies government. Drafters can take a part of the spectrum of light and make a substance called luxin. They can shape luxin into items, with the color of the luxin determining the properties of the item. Most drafters can draft one or two colors, while the Prism can draft all the colors. There is only one Prism alive at one time and the Prism is the military, spiritual, and political leader of the Satrapies.

Summary for Principal Characters

There are three principal viewpoint characters and three minor viewpoint characters.

Gavin was the Prism but has lost his powers. He is imprisoned in the special cells he made to hold a special prisoner. He must get help from an unlikely person to break out of his cell and to go on an important mission in the last book of the series.

Kip is fighting against the forces of the White King. The Color Prince has taken a new name, the White King, and he increases his power by taking half of the satrapies. The White King wants to take the Blood Forest because if he succeeds then the Chromeria’s ability to wage war against him will be damaged. Kip’s goal is to defeat the White King’s lieutenant, who is trying to take the Blood Forest. Kip has his exiled group named the Mighty and various motley troops from the Blood Forest. It helps that Tisis Malargos, his wife, has contacts in the Blood Forest.

Teia is tasked by Karris, the new White, to infiltrate the secret Order of the Broken Eye. It is a dangerous mission, complicated by her interaction with the assassin named Murder Sharp. The Order sends her on an important mission, and she must succeed or face her death.

Summary for Minor Characters

Karris White Oak is the new White. She must marshal her forces against the White King with the help and hindrance of Andross Guile. Corvan Danavis has become the satrap of Seer’s Island and is married to the Third Eye, a woman who knows the future. Liv Danavis serves the White King and has come into a significant power.

Recommendation

In Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks, the three principal characters have important tasks to perform. The tasks are straightforward but are not complete by the end of this novel. It feels like the characters are spinning their wheels leading up to the last book of the Lightbringer series. Gavin’s story seems redundant. Kip’s story leads up to him fighting a mini-boss before taking on the White King in the last book. Teia has a dramatic mission to complete. The stories were interesting, but I’m ready for the next book now. The last novel in the series is named the Burning White and was published on October 22, 2019. I plan to read the book soon.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29467232-the-blood-mirror

Review of The Broken Eye by Brent Weeks, book 3 of The Lightbringer series. Gavin, Kip, Teia, and Karris fight the Color Prince and the Order of the Broken Eye. They face a climactic confrontation at the Chromeria. Another excellent book in the series.

Broken Eye by Brent Weeks

This is the link to my review of the Blinding Knife by Brent Weeks.

The Blinding Knife by Brent Weeks

This is the link to my review of Black Prism by Brent Weeks.

The Black Prism by Brent Weeks

Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch, Book #1 of Gentleman Bastard series.

Introduction

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch is book one of the Gentleman Bastards series. Locke Lamora is an orphan of the island city of Camorr. The Thiefmaker turns the orphans into thieves. Lamora learns quickly and soon becomes more trouble than he is worth. Many years later, Lamora is grown up and collects his own crew, the Gentleman Bastards, who work confidence games. Another crew headed by the Gray King threatens to expose and kill them. To what lengths will Lamora go to defeat the Gray King and secure the Gentleman Bastards’ retirement?

Summary

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch starts with young Lamora learning the craft of theft from the Thiefmaker. The Thiefmaker soon learns that Lamora will steal anything at any time, and the risk that commands worries him. Lamora ends up with Father Chains, who runs a con game. They run the con with the twins, Calo and Galdo.

Locke Lamora, Calo, and Galdo leave Father Chains to form a new crew. They have unrecorded adventures until they try to pull a con on Don Lorenzo Salvara. The two other members of this crew are Jean Tannen, a powerful man, and Bug, a fresh recruit. Their fifth member is Sabetha, but she is on a mission in another town. Their goal is to amass a fortune large enough to escape Camorr forever.

All the thieving crews in Camorr pay tribute to Capa Barsavi. A new thief threatens them, named the Gray King. The Gray King has issues with Barsavi and with Lamora. The three groups struggle with each other. They lose fortunes and lives. Lamora wants to survive and escape Camorr with his fortune. It will be a hard task, but he vows to survive and win.

Recommendation

I read The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch from March 22, 2017, to April 17, 2017. There were three books I read in 2017 for which I did not write a book review at that time. This is the second of the three retro posts I will write. The Lies of Locke Lamora is an interesting mix of influences. It serves as a history book for the society of Comorr. The author based the society on Renaissance Venice with magic added. Locke Lamora’s early thieving career has aspects of Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens. The main storyline follows a caper path like the movie Ocean’s Eleven.

They published the next two books in the series in 2007 and 2013. I held off reading them at that time because I had heard that there would be a delay in releasing the fourth novel, The Thorn of Emberlain. On his website, he stated that he completed a draft for the book in May 2019. It must come out soon, so I plan to read the next two as soon as I can.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29588376-the-lies-of-locke-lamora

The series that this novel reminds me most of is the first book the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson. Mistborn has a crew of thieves that must pull off a difficult heist. The series goes in a different direction, but it starts in a similar spot. This is the link to the Goodreads page of Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68428.The_Final_Empire

I posted a review on a book with a similar background to The Lies of Locke Lamora on Port of Shadows by Glen Cook. Port of Shadows has a similar magic system and features a medieval technology level.

In Port of Shadows by Glen Cook, The Black Company searches for rebels but finds dozens of identical young girls. Can Croaker unravel the mystery before the rebels open the Port of Shadows and free a powerful sorcerer?

Port of Shadows by Glen Cook

Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold

Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold, Book #1 of the Vorkosigan saga.

Introduction

Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold is book one of the Vorkosigan saga. Commander Cordelia Naismith is the leader of the Betan Astronomical Survey studying the unclaimed planet named Sergyar. The crew of Captain Aral Vorkosigan’s ship mutiny and drive off the Betans, leaving Cordelia behind. Vorkosigan takes her prisoner and they must hike five days to a Barrayaran supply cache to be rescued. Will they make it to the supply cache, or will they kill each other before they arrive?

Summary

In Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold humans populate many solar systems connected by wormhole gates. Each solar system is independent. Beta Colony is a technology-rich but resource-poor system. The Betan Astronomical Survey sends Commander Cordelia Naismith to peacefully examine an unclaimed planet named Sergyer for resources. Her spaceship is called the Rene Magritte. Barrayar is an isolationistic materialistic society ruled by an Emperor. Some factions of the government are pushing for war. They secretly claim the planet named Sergyer and the important wormhole gate that the system contains. A warship named the General Vorkraft, commanded by Aral Vorkosigan, is sent to Sergyer to control the system. The Barrayaran aristocracy uses the honorific of Vor and Aral is a high-ranking member.

The pro-war faction stage a mutiny against Vorkosigan, kill Cordelia’s shipmates that are on the surface of the planet, and leave Vorkosigan to die. Vorkosigan takes Cordelia and Ensign Dubauer, her brain scrambled crewmember, as his prisoners. Cordelia sends her ship away to warn the Beta Colony. Vorkosigan, Cordelia, and Dubauer walk five days to a Barrayan supply cache. Vorkosigan plans to get resupplied and retake his ship. During the walk, Vorkosigan and Cordelia develop a mutual respect that leads to a romance.

Through the course of the novel, they are separated and reunite. Vorkosigan faces challenges on Barrayar, and Cordelia faces challenges on Beta Colony. Some Barrayans they face are Sergeant Bothari, Emperor Ezar Vobarra, Crown Prince Serg Vobarra, Admiral Vorrutyer, Imperial Lieutenant Simon Illyan, and Ensign Koudelka. Cordelia faces the Betans; Dr. Sprague, Dr. Mehta, and Betan President Steady Freddy. There is enough plot in this novel for at least a trilogy.

Recommendation

Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold is a fun-filled space opera mixed with a romance. Cordelia and Vorkosigan are meant for one another, and I was happy to follow them on their adventures. I thought the Betan claims were almost plausible that Vorkosigan brainwashed Cordelia to be his spy. I would have liked to see more of that storyline, but I am glad that I can continue with the follow-up novel, Barrayar (Book #7 of the Vorkosigan saga), which continues examining the complicated politics of Barrayar.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61903.Shards_of_Honour

In Falling Free (Book #4 of the Vorkosigan saga) by Lois McMaster Bujold, space engineer Leo Graf must decide between retiring or risking his life protecting his students. The novel is a fun, self-contained space opera romp.

Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold

Writing Progress Report March 2020

This is my Writing Progress Report March 2020.

I went hiking at the West Woods in Russell, Ohio in February.

Writing Progress from February 2020

I wrote four blog posts for garydavidgillen.com including my writing progress report for February 2019 linked below.

Writing Progress Report February 2020

In July 2018, I completed the first draft of Assassin in New Marl City totaling 99,981 words and 36 chapters. Completed pre-second draft (30 chapters long) in December 2018 at 89,072 words. Finished second draft edits for Chapters 26 and 27 in August, chapters 28, 29, and 30 in September, and chapters 19 and 20 in October. I reviewed chapter 21 in November and chapter 25 in December to complete the second draft edit. I started writing a new Chapter 1 in February 2020 and plan to finish it in March 2020. The third draft will have 32 Chapters and I will start the third draft edits in March 2020.

In February, I submitted chapters 27 and 28 of Assassin in New Marl City to the Novel Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.

Writing Progress from February 2020 Continued

In February, I submitted the story “Dear Allie” to the Introductory Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.

I made five posts on my Goodreads account in February.

In the past, I submitted the stories The Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, Get to the Point, LARP Film noir, Sleeping Sickness, and Popular Mechanics Re-brewed to magazines.

I submitted “Caliburnus” to Daily Science Fiction online magazine in February.

Magazine submissions for 2020 are; 2 different stories submitted 2 times with 0 accepted, 1 pending, and 1 rejection.

Events from February 2020

The next conference I plan to attend is Cleveland ConCoction on March 20 to 22, 2020.

This is a link to the Cleveland ConCoction website.

http://www.clevelandconcoction.org/

Writing Goals for March 2020

I plan to write five blog posts for garydavidgillen.com including my Writing Progress Report for March 2020.

I plan to work on third draft edits for Assassin in New Marl City using comments from the Novel Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio. In July 2019, I started the third draft edit for my earlier Chapter One and used it in the first pages workshop at Confluence 2019. I plan to complete third draft edits for chapters 2, 3, and 4 in March 2020.

Polish and submit the stories Caliburnus, Space-Dog Confession, White Bracer, Mage Squad, I Shall Not Return, Prisoner of Tarnal, and Kay-Eye for submission to short fiction magazines.

Submit the Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, LARP Film noir, Sleeping Sickness, and Popular Mechanics Re-brewed to other short fiction magazines.

Writing Goals for March 2020 Continued

Put the novel, Assassin in New Marl City, into the writing program, Scrivener.

Buy an e-book cover for Assassin in New Marl City from Fiveer.

Write a story for the Introductory Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.

In March 2020, I plan to make five posts on my Goodreads account and update ten posts on my website to improve their SEO.

Planned Events for March 2020

The next conference I plan to attend is Cleveland ConCoction on March 20 to 22, 2020.

This is a link to the Cleveland ConCoction website.

http://www.clevelandconcoction.org/

Planned Events for March 2020 Continued

I also plan to attend the Western Reserve Writers Conference on March 28, 2020, at the Cuyahoga County Public Library at South Euclid, Ohio

Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

Introduction

Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski is a fantasy short story collection featuring Geralt of Rivia. Geralt is a Witcher, a human transformed to fight monsters for money. He kills monsters from fables come to life in this fantasy version of Europe. The beasts and monsters are receding from the world. What will a Witcher do when there are no more monsters to fight?

Summary – Introduction

There are seven stories in this collection. The first story of the series, The Witcher, was published in the Polish science fiction and fantasy magazine, Fantastyka. Five other stories are self-contained. The seventh story is a framing story told in seven chapters that appear between the other six stories. The seventh story called The Voice of Reason tells a complete story and illuminates and connects the other six stories into one narrative. Netflix released the first season of the TV show The Witcher on December 20, 2019. They adapted five of the stories in this collection in season one. The TV episodes combine three narratives into each episode. The three narratives are the short stories in the collections the Last Wish and the Sword of Destiny, Yennefer’s backstory, and Ciri’s backstory. Summaries of each of the seven stories follow.

Summary–The Witcher

The first story is The Witcher. The story gives a great introduction to the characters and the world they inhabit. Geralt’s first mission is to defeat a striga, preferably without killing it. A striga is a being created from a curse. Geralt must risk being killed to break the curse. They adapted the story in the Netflix Show in Episode 3, Betrayer Moon.

Summary–A Grain of Truth

A Grain of Truth is the second full story of the collection. The author based the story on the Beauty and the Beast fable. Geralt finds two people killed by an animal that he does not recognize. He follows the animal’s trail and must unravel a mystery involving a vampire-like being called a bruxa. They did not adapt this story for the Netflix show. I think the audience is too familiar with the Beauty and the Beast fable because of the Disney movie, so the showrunners felt that it would be too hard to adapt and stay interesting.

Summary–The Lesser Evil

The Lesser Evil is a story that introduces important actions he takes that define Geralt’s character. To start the story Geralt kills a kikimora, a large spidery beast, and he looks for payment at the nearby town of Blaviken. The alderman sends him to a wizard, Stregobor, whom he realizes that he knows when they meet. Geralt is stuck between the wizard and a woman thief, Renfri, who both want the other dead and both want Geralt to help each other do the deed. Geralt maintains that he hunts monsters and will not be an assassin for hire. Which lesser of two evils will Geralt choose?

Geralt prefers to choose neither, but events will get beyond his control. The events of this story will earn Geralt the title of Butcher of Blaviken. There are subtle aspects of the Snow White fable in the written story. They adapted the story in the Netflix show in Episode 1, The End’s Beginning. It is the first episode of the show and features exciting visuals and twisting plot points, so I see why the showrunners placed it first in the Netflix show.

Summary–The Question of Price

The Question of Price is the next story in the collection. There are two ideas in this story that are interrelated. The story has aspects of the Rumpelstiltskin fable. In the fable, Rumplestiltskin asks for the miller’s daughter’s firstborn child to spin the straw into gold for her. The fable is mixed with the honor code called the Law of Surprise. It’s the rule that if someone saves another’s life, then the rescuer can take a boon unknown to both at the time of the rescue. Queen Calanthe of Cintra hires Geralt to do an unspecified deed that she assures him has something to do with his profession as a monster hunter. Geralt doesn’t want to be an assassin, so he is dubious, but he lets the scenario play out. The occasion is the betrothal feast of the queen’s daughter, Pavetta. The resulting situation will have effects down the line in Geralt’s ultimate destiny.

They adapted this story in the Netflix show in Episode 4, Of Banquets, Bastards, and Burials. The written story features a troubadour, but that part is given to Jaskier in the show. Jaskier is called Dandelion in the written stories. He is a bard who is Geralt’s best friend and companion on some of his adventures, but not this written story.

Summary–The Edge of the World

The Edge of the World is the next story in the collection. It features a beast the villagers of Lower Posada hire Geralt to kill. Geralt discovers the beast is a sylvan, a creature of the woods, and he learns of the plight of the elves. Geralt must make a difficult decision balancing the wishes of the villagers and the elves. This is the first story that features Dandelion (Jaskier in the Netflix show). They adapted this story in the Netflix show in Episode 2, Four Marks.

Summary–The Last Wish

The Last Wish is the last full story in the collection. Geralt and Dandelion are fishing for food and catch a bottle containing a Djinn. Dandelion’s neck swells and Geralt searches for a sorcerer to heal Dandelion because without his voice he will cease to be a bard, Geralt finds Yennefer, a witch who will heal Dandelion for a price. She has her own hidden motivations to help them. Will Geralt pay her price? They adapted this story in the Netflix show in Episode 5, Bottled Appetites. Dandelion and Yennefer are both in the Netflix show as the characters they are in the written story.

Summary–The Voice of Reason

The Voice of Reason is a story in seven chapters spaced between the other six stories in the collection. In this story, Geralt comes to the Temple of Melitele to recover from his injuries sustained in his encounter with the striga. He is under the care of the priestess Nenneke. He dreams or tells about the other stories in the collection. The prince of Ellander wants Geralt to leave his territory because he doesn’t like witchers and what they represent. Geralt must carry out an impossible task to win his escape. They used aspects of this story in the Netflix show, but the story is mainly a framing device to bring the stories to hang together as a cohesive whole.

Recommendation

Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski is a great collection of stories. It’s like a sword and sorcery version of Grimm’s Fairy Tales. The story has a fable put in it, and Geralt must face a difficult decision to carry out his goals for each story. Dandelion and Yennefer are wonderful foils to Geralt, and I’m glad to know they continue with important roles in the series. They adapted five of the tales in The Last Wish in the Netflix show, and the last three episodes of the Netflix show were adapted from story stories from the second collection called The Sword of Destiny.

Links

Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski Goodreads page is linked below.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40603587-the-last-wish

Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski is similar to Red Country by Joe Abercrombie. Red Country has a similar magic system and features a medieval technology level. It is linked below.

Red Country by Joe Abercrombie