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We are an opinionated group of friends reviewing all sorts of fantasy and science fiction media. Don’t forget to get to know the curators and visit our curated Collection, where we discuss the stories that never cease to transport us to another world.
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- Novel written by Robin Hobb
- Published 12 August 2014
- Part one of the Fitz and the Fool trilogy
Fitz is slowly adapting to his new life at Withywoods, far away from courtly politics and his former life as an assassin. However, he still struggles to let go of old friends and the echoes of his past. When his wife Molly comes with a surprise announcement and a mysterious messenger appears, it becomes clear his former life still haunts him in more ways than he knows…
It’s been a good while since my last Robin Hobb book. I finished Blood of Dragons around two years ago. Since then, I’ve found book 2 and 3 of the Fitz and the Fool trilogy in thrift stores. They’re really nice, too. Both are those fancy hardcovers that I would never buy new. Unfortunately, I just couldn’t find part one, Fool’s Assassin, in the same edition. After my fortune finding the first two books, I figured the first installment of the series would also eventually just… fall into my lap. It didn’t. I ended up asking for the paperback version as a birthday gift from my work. At least this way I could finish the series, even though it meant I wouldn’t have the full set for my bookshelf. It’s fine. I’m fine and cool with that.
After the last trilogy, Fool’s Assassin was an absolute breath of fresh air. Or perhaps not fresh, but certainly good, decent, quality air. I wasn’t a huge fan of the characters in the Rain Wild Chronicles, and I have to admit I have my issues with the cast of Fitz and the Fool as well. However, it’s much more of an “Oh, you” kind of feeling than the annoyance I felt at Thymara and co. Fitz is a little bit dumb but we love him and he’s been through a lot so we’ll let it slide. Molly has never been my favourite but she’s a character stuck in a story she never wanted to be in, so like, I get it. More characters get introduced, whom I won’t say too much about except to say that one of them is frustrating in much the same way as Fitz, but there are also side characters I’ve grown extremely fond of, like Riddle.
There are a couple of fun twists in this book. A lot of it I saw coming because literally anyone reading this book is smarter than Fitz, but there were also a couple of twists that surprised me and left me very intrigued as to where the story is going.
It’s always a little awkward reviewing a book in a series like this. If you love Hobb’s work, you won’t need me to tell you to read this book. If you’ve never read a book by Robin Hobb, then read Assassin’s Apprentice first.
Like any book by Robin Hobb, this one read like an absolute dream. I can’t wait to get started on the next installment in the series!
For years, reality seemed that The Tawny Man trilogy would be the end of Fitz’s story. It was a satisfying ending, one I could have lived with. Still, my heart kept on hoping for more, while I kept imagining what the epilogue of Fitz and all the other characters I came to love would look like. A decade later, my yearning was unexpectantly rewarded with Fool’s Assassin. And, once again, I enjoyed every scene Robin Hobb gave me.
Apart from my fond memories of being reunited with all the loveable (and less loveable) characters of the Six Duchies, as well as meeting a few new interesting faces, the first thing that comes to mind when I think of Fool’s Assassin is its very unusual narrative. Some would probably call it a slow build-up to a bigger plot, and I could see how they’d come to that conclusion. When it comes to plot, it seems we mostly follow Fitz during his lowkey day-to-day business. However, from very early on Robin Hobb manages to create a tension that is hidden between the lines. You just know things are going to get disastrously wrong, as if you are witnessing it coming in your peripheral vision. You just don’t know how and when precisely. And then, when you have somehow lowered your guard, misfortune strikes. And it strikes hard…
Robin Hobb’s books – especially those about Fitz – frequently manage to make me weep for its characters, and Fool’s Assassin is not an exception. By this point, we’ve spent a lot of time with these characters and Robin Hobb knows how to build on this and use it to her advantage. Fitz and his (found) family are still the heart of the story. Their relationship dynamics, just as complicated as we know in real life, are masterfully written and deserve every praise we can give them.
Fool’s Assassin is unique in the Fitz series because it introduces a new and younger POV-character, the character of Bee. And I love her. It was refreshing to alternate between her and Fitz’s perspectives.
If you’re new to this world, I’m not quite sure if this is where you should start. Though Robin Hobb does her best to summarize the key events of earlier books, I still suspect the history is a little overwhelming at times. Starting at Assassin’s Apprentice might be the smarter move.
If you are already invested in Fitz or the mysteries of the Realm of the Elderlings, I can promise you this trilogy dives deeper into some loose ends and unexplored mysteries. You’ll not be disappointed.
- Book written by James S.A. Corey
- Published 15 June 2011
- Part one of the Expanse
Jim Holden serves on an ice hauler that ferries frozen water from Saturn’s rings to the inhabitants of mankind’s colonies in the Kuyper Belt. But when disaster strikes, he and a handful of his crewmates are thrust into the center of an encroaching conflict between the superpowers of the solar system: Earth and Mars. Joe Miller works security on Ceres, the most populous station in the Belt, and initially watches from afar, until his investigations for a dirty side job lead him to a mysterious connection with the cause of the looming war.
I have to admit that before I read Leviathan Wakes, I already watched some episodes of The Expanse (before I knew they were adapted from a book). So before I dove in, I was already familiar with some of the plot points. But it was sufficiently long ago that I wasn’t bothered, and there is enough of a difference between the two versions of the story that each is entertaining in their own right.
Leviathan Wakes is set in an interesting future that hovers between near-future stuff like Neuromancer or The Martian and distant future settings such as Altered Carbon or Foundation: humanity has colonised to the planets (Mars, the Kuyper Belt, some attempts at Venus) but not the stars. This creates a thought-provoking intersection between relatively hard, relatively believable sci-fi with real limitations on, for example, travel time and resources on the one hand, and space battles and spaceships that are more reminiscent of Star Wars than Apollo 13 on the other (though, come to think of it, who has ever seen an airlock in Star Wars?).
In addition, Corey takes some time to lay the groundwork for the political tensions between the different factions (which, I understand, will pay off in the next instalments), which nicely hints at a deeper layer without the need to actually delve into it in this book (the ‘raft’ the iceberg is floating on, so to speak; I’m sure we’ll get more ice under the waterline in future books!).
This original setting is the basis for an engaging plot, which is wrapped in high paced easy-flowing prose that kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the book. Though not quite as addictive as Andy Weir’s style, I found that Corey’s writing shares some traits, including relatively unshakeable characters with a can-do attitude that keep the plot moving, and wry jokes at the right juncture to put all the horrors of interplanetary war into perspective. Interestingly, the book also borrows (in plot and in tropes) from noir detective novels (and in that, actually shares a lot of similarities with Altered Carbon).
My nitpick with Leviathan Wakes is probably that while it straddles the divide between different sub-genres of sci-fi (and that is one of its main selling points), I felt the further it strayed from the relatively hard near-future stuff, the cornier it got. Now, for example, Star Wars is corny. But Star Wars (for all its flaws) embraces the corniness and gives us such a spectacle that sometimes it doesn’t matter that it’s not all that original or well-written. Leviathan Wakes, however, juxtaposes some of that more tropical and more handwavy sci-fi with the really well thought out relatively hard near-future sci-fi – which was unfortunately jarring at times. Once I’ve strapped in for G’s of thrust, Δv and spaceship heat signatures, don’t hit me with the ‘it just works, it’s way beyond our understanding’ type stuff.
Anyways, you probably have to be a hardcore ‘realism’ nerd like me for any of that to bother you. And please don’t let it scare you away from the book – it is very much worth the read for its original setting alone. I finished it in just over two weeks, which is probably the fastest I’ve finished a book this year. Definitely grabbing Caliban’s War off my father’s bookshelf the next chance I get!
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- Movie directed by James Cameron
- Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Steven Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, and Sigourney Weaver,
- Released December 2009
- Runtime: 162 minutes
- Part one in the Avatar series
In this visual spectacle that launched the era of 3D in cinema’s, Jake Sully, a disabled marine, travels to the distant moon of Pandora to join a team of scientist attached to a corporate mining operation. He will replace his twin brother in the avatar-programme, whose members transfer their consciousness to human-alien hybrid clones to communicate with the local population. When he finds out that the humans care only for their bottom line and nothing for Pandora’s wildlife or native inhabitants, Jake is faced with a choice.
Full disclosure: I watched this movie once when it came out, and then maybe an hour last week.
I struggle to find the right way to write this review. Everything that could be said about Avatar has been said a thousand times over, so let me start by telling you this: Avatar is a fun film you’ll enjoy watching. Don’t expect it to blow your mind and you’ll be fine. Aside from the black-and-white plot, most of the problems this movie suffers from have to do with its age.
Avatar is basically a reskinned Pocahontas. In space. As a concept, I think that’s definitely fine – if a little contrived. It shows us a futuristic society in which humanity has learned absolutely nothing from its past and happily chooses to colonise other planets to harvest their resources. It feels a little bit unnuanced but let’s be honest: that’s exactly what humanity would do and you know it. You won’t be walking away from this movie with any kind of new perspective, but you’ll have enjoyed yourself. The characters aren’t particularly interesting but the acting is fine.
The CGI aged quite well, even though most of the movie looks like a video game, which is honestly pretty cool (just think how much more realistic video game graphics have become – kinda rad). As long as you remember how old the movie is and how impressive the CGI was for the time, you will likely be able to look past this. Even 13 years later, most of the graphics are beautiful and I’m sure would have looked lovely in IMAX 3D.
Why should you watch Avatar? Because it’s famous. No really, that’s it. If you were to ask me the most important reason to watch this film it’s just so you can be part of the cultural narrative. Or maybe because you want to be prepared for James Cameron’s 4 sequels to hit theatres.
I remember watching Avatar in the cinema back in 2009, and being blown away by the visual effects, and the 3D, and the visual design of the world and the human technology. Unfortunately, Avatar kicked off the era of unnecessary 3D in cinemas (since Avatar, I’ve found that it takes about two minutes for my mind to adjust, afterwards, I don’t even notice), and equally unfortunately, though it is still entertaining, the 2020s home screen experience is not the same as the 2009 cinema experience.
Avatar’s visual design is still stunning. The human mech suits, aircraft and base are a perfect mix of sci-fi and modern military, with great attention lavished onto little details like warning stickers or printed instructions. The real eye catcher, however, is the world, Pandora, and Pandora’s wildlife. Ranging from floating mountains and trees taller than skyscrapers to six-legged panthers and pterosaurs with butterfly wings, the art department poured their hearts out on the design of the world. Even though the CGI has started to age (especially in a couple of campfire-lit scenes), most of it still looks amazing – though it does look like watching a video game or animated feature more than a live action blockbuster at times. It doesn’t quite live up to the 2009 cinema magic, but it still works.
Unfortunately, because it works a bit less well than it did in 2009 in cinema, the viewer is less distracted by the visuals and pays just a little more attention to the story – or rather, the lack thereof. The story is basic – predictable – but functional. Avatar does nothing that you won’t expect it to do. It doesn’t miss any beats you’re expecting to see. At times though, the story is so functional that you can almost see the gears moving underneath the script as you’re watching.
Clearly, the story is not why you’re watching so Avatar deserves some leeway here. But even to someone like me, who can usually stomach a lot of action, the focus on the fighting and lengthy combat scenes can be a bit much. We watched Avatar because we were planning on seeing Avatar II: The Way of Water in cinema, and at some point just before the climax (or so we thought) we paused for a sanitary break and additional snacks – only to find out that there were still 45 more minutes of non-stop violence ahead (which ended up boring Robin to sleep – hence the absence of her review here).
Still, it’s not just the visual team that makes Avatar. The script itself may be basic, but some of the worldbuilding – the concepts – are actually pretty cool. The avatars themselves, creatures cloned from mixed human and alien DNA for humans to ‘drive’, are perhaps the most innovative, and the concept is used well in the plot. Another is the bioelectric communication between different creatures on Pandora, and the implications of the trees forming a neural network. On the other hand, some of the choices in worldbuilding are questionable – the anti-colonialist message of the story is well received, but the reliance on the ‘noble savage’ and ‘white saviour’ tropes are painful, as is the Earth-indigenous-coding of the Na’vi. This reliance on familiar plotlines and visual markers is, in my opinion, lazy. And why would you choose to design female aliens with breasts, only to then constantly contrive to cover them back up? Here, I think Avatar shows its true colours: there was probably a team with creative ideas, that was reeled in for mass market appeal.
So, know what you‘re in for: Avatar focusses on visuals and non-stop action. There is some neat worldbuilding, but the creative is submerged in a pool of the familiar. Story, characters, motivations – all as barebones as possible without breaking the immersion. It is testament to how incredibly good the visual design of this movie is that I’m still giving it three stars with that kind of summary.
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- Book written by R.F. Kuang
- Published 23 August 2022
- Stand Alone
In a fictionalised version of the 1820s-1830s, Robin Swift is taken from his mother’s deathbed in his native Kanton (now mostly called Guangzhou) as a young boy. He is sent to Oxford in Britain to study translation: the art of producing magic from the difference in meaning between translated words in different languages. The more time he spends in Britain, the more he is torn by the contradiction between his love for Oxford’s translation institute Babel and the study of languages on the one hand, and his growing unease at Britain’s role in the world and Babel’s role in Britain. Almost as much as it is Robin’s story, Babel is a political statement on the exploitation of the Third World, both in the 1830s and now.
Listened to the audiobook with Chris Lew Kum Hoi and Billie Fulford Brown – great rendition, which allowed me to actually hear what the Chinese languages sound like.
There are two things which are particularly remarkable about Babel. The first is the magic system, and the second is its message.
Kuang came up with a very original, creative magic system based on the loss of meaning when a word is translated from one language to another. When both words are inscribed in a bar of silver and spoken aloud, the bar produces a spell similar to the meaning lost in translation. This means the book is littered with ‘match pairs’ of not-quite-translatable words, and constantly invites you to come up with combinations of your own. This amazing idea rightly came up in social media under our post on cool bits of worldbuilding and was the reason I decided to pick up this book. Unfortunately, while I absolutely loved the magic system in concept, I felt the execution was a bit lacklustre, in that the bars’ actual effects, while based in the lost meaning, felt quite random to me (and sometimes conveniently conformed to the plot’s demands). It is still a great idea and especially initially I was just as awed as Robin and his fellow students. But for how central the concept of translation is in the book (it is, after all, a book set in a magic school), I would have liked to see more effort spent on nailing it down a bit more. But I tend to like my magic systems either pretty hard boiled, or super soft – so take that into account.
Perhaps even more importantly, this book is remarkable because reading it feels like reading a pamphlet on anti-colonialism almost as much as it feels like reading a fantasy book. Many of the main characters, having been forced from their native countries to study in Britain and to put their language skills at the service of the British Empire, experience fierce racism at the hands of the social structure they are helping to maintain – and that is maintaining them. Kuang writes convincingly on how this experience shapes them, and on how the characters struggle with living life in (relative) luxury at the expense of an institution that they equally love and abhor.
The book’s full title is “Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution”. As one might imagine, therefore, the necessity of violence is a recurring theme in Babel. The central question the characters in this book are dealing with is not so much ‘is colonialism bad?’ (it clearly is), but rather, ‘what means are justified to fight an unjust system?’. While the ‘case study’ is colonialism, that moral/philosophical question is applicable more broadly. I will leave it up to you to answer that question for yourself, and interpret the book to find Kuang’s answer.
I have to admit that a fantasy book with such an overt political message took some adjusting from my side (as I’ve argued, politics tends to be the field of sci-fi). But I think Kuang dodges some of the more questionable aspects of fantasy as a medium for political expression by firmly grounding her work in reality: as an alternate history/historical fantasy, the book is set in a recognisable Victorian Britain. While clearly there are some differences due to silverworking, the social structures we are presented with are – on the whole – comparable to historical reality. I have to admit that it was actually rather refreshing to read a book which is so openly activist. I do not want to take anything away from more subtle treatment of 21st-social century themes (such as, for example, in the Murderbot Diaries or She Who Became the Sun) – but this book has a message and is very upfront about it.
So – what do I actually think of – you know – the story itself? It’s not bad, but I do think it is a bit overshadowed by the message. The plot didn’t always make complete sense (to me, at least), sometimes seemingly just trying to move to the end to raise the questions this book is really about. And some characters felt more like personified moral positions or political messages than people of flesh and blood. Having said that, I think Babel is very much worth reading, not only because of its refreshing message but also because of its worldbuilding. And I repeat: the story is not bad, just not as good as some other books out there. What is more, I think that activist fantasy in the vein of Babel should exist and should be read, if only to spark debate on the historical patterns of exploitation that are often recycled in fantasy stories with little or no criticism.
Babel is a very impressive book. Right from the start, it dives head first into themes of colonialism, racism and oppression. It confronts you with the horrors of colonialism and forces you to consider the consequences of looking away from suffering in order to maintain a comfortable lifestyle.
For me the strength of the whole book rests on an uncomfortable tension between despising the colonialist system and the people who keep it functioning, and recogising that I myself am making many of these same choices today in order to maintain my own comfortable lifestyle.
Despite these heavy subjects at the heart of the book, it is still a surprisingly enjoyable read. The characters are complex and interesting, and I finished the book quite quickly considering its length. My favourite part of the book is the focus on language and translation. The research that must have gone into this is considerable, and it provides even more food for thought to an already fascinating story.
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- Video Game developed by Supergiant Games
- Directed by Greg Kasavin
- Published by Supergiant Games
- Published 17 September 2020
- Rogue-like, Action
- Platforms: Microsoft Windows, MacOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
- Playing time: 20 to 100 hours (or as much as you can sink in!
Zagreus, son of Hades, god of the dead, wants to escape from the underworld to see the surface, where the mortals live, and to discover his heritage. His father is dead set on preventing this from happening. In this rogue-like video game, battle through chambers filled with hordes of Hades’ minions, slain heroes, and mortals undergoing punishment as you enlist the help of the Olympian gods to fight your way to the surface.
Hades is a charming, Greek mythology-inspired roguelike where you play as the prince of the Underworld. Your goal? To break out of the Underworld, fighting your way through Tartarus, Asphodel, Elysium, and the Temple of Styx.
Now, it took me roughly 80 attempts to escape from the Underworld. That is: 80 attempts before I realised that escaping wasn’t the end of the game, but the beginning. I think it’s fair to say that I am Bad At This Game.
Being awful at this game puts me in an excellent position to review it, of course. Difficult games are probably fun if you’re good at them (this is wild conjecture as I have never been good at a game ever). However, if you suck at a game and you still enjoy it and spend over 100 hours on it, the game probably has more to offer than just the challenge of beating it.
The absolute highlight of Hades for me is the music, written by Darren Korb (who also voices protagonist Zagreus). Do you need to focus? I swear the Hades soundtrack will whip you right into gear. The gameplay is also great, and while you can apply “technique” to your play, you can also smash some buttons over and over and still win – eventually. The game is visually stunning as well. Both the character portraits and environments are atmospheric and charming. Last but not least, Hades has a story that keeps you coming back. You may need to turn on God mode eventually to keep from dying all the time, but I can guarantee that you won’t put the game down until you’ve reached those end credits.
Lotte recommended Hades to me at a time when I could really use a quick-paced game with relatively little stakes to distract me, and I’ve played it since whenever I need to get my mind off things. I remember running the game for the first time after I installed it, seeing the Supergiant logo, and going ‘oh, that’s why’ – every singe one of their games I’ve played or seen is great. Hades is no exception.
Hades is a rogue-like in which you battle through four regions of the underworld and several bosses to finally escape to the surface to progress the story. Along the way, you receive rewards that upgrade your character for the duration of the run, as well as currency and rewards that you can spend between runs to make your character stronger for next runs or add variety to your encounters.
Like other rogue-likes, Hades is the kind of game that constantly makes you want to do another run just to try to get the perfect build, to try to get right combination of powers and upgrades to completely destroy this time. Luckily, the game gives you some tools to ensure some level of control over your build, so you actually have a decent chance to get to the combos you’re trying for.
Unlike, for example, Vampire Survivors, Hades actually requires a fair amount of skill (or, if you’re Lotte, you just button mash and it takes you 80 attempts to escape the first time… up to you :p). Especially the tougher boss battles are difficult to beat if you’re not constantly moving and positioning to get your attacks off. I found that as I was playing, I did not only get better because of the upgrades I bought, but also because I got better at dashing Zagreus around the chambers without accidentally ending up in the magma.
What is fascinating about this game, is that it constantly pretends you are done – only to then reveal there is another layer you haven’t yet discovered, be it more regions, more bosses, more weapons, weapon upgrades, abilities, difficulty settings, etc. Like Lotte, I was at first hyper-focussed on trying to reach ‘the end’ of the game and to escape to the surface, only to realise that that was effectively the ‘start’ of the main story. I’ve continued playing since, and now I mostly focus on either escaping with a number of handicaps turned on, or on getting the coolest build I can think of. And it keeps being fun!
There are just two things I can think of that would improve this game in my opinion. The first is adding slightly more guidance on the directions your progress can take you. I found that I was regularly just doing a thing hoping for the thing to be relevant, only to realise later that I I just spent my precious currency on an upgrade that would only help in about 20 more hours of gameplay. I was chatting with Lotte and she recommended equipping a certain thing, only for us to realise a couple minutes into the confused conversation that it was simply something that I hadn’t unlocked yet, but had no idea even existed. I still haven’t unlocked it, and I have no clue how to. I could look it up, of course, but that feels like cheating. The second possible improvement would be shortening the runs just slightly. Right now, I think they take up to about ~45 minutes (I have about 30-35 minutes on the timer in my quicker runs, but some interactions stop time). I feel a runtime of 20-30 minutes would make it just that bit easier to squeeze out a second run an evening, finish one during your commute, or quickly wrap up a run that’s not going your way.
I realise I’ve written almost an entire review about this game without mentioning the aesthetic – shame on me. Hades looks fantastic. Combat is clear and each of the gods has a distinctive style that is easy to recognise on the screen. More importantly, the character illustrations that pop up whenever you are talking to someone are amazing – my jaw dropped the first time I saw one. Combined with great voice acting, the art makes your encounters with the denizens of the underworld and the Olympians, which might easily have been annoying interruptions, an absolute pleasure.
Overall, Hades is a great game that I think everyone with an interest in action-packed games or Greek mythology should give a shot. And don’t just believe us – Hades won the first and so far, only Hugo awarded to a video game! Now that’s impressive.
Hades II, the first Supergiant sequel, has just been announced, and I cannot wait for it to drop – so make sure you play the first instalment during the wait!
- Written by J.R.R. Tolkien
- Published 21 September 1937
- Stand-alone prequel to The Lord of the Rings
The hobbit Bilbo Baggins is very content with his comfortable life, when the Wizard Gandalf and a company of thirteen dwarves invite him on a quest to travel the continent and rob a dragon of his treasures.
Bilbo soon finds himself in a dangerous world, where trolls, goblins, spiders and mortal’s greed make for thrilling adventures.
When you go to your preferred search engine and use the prompt “classic fantasy book”, it’s almost a given you’ll find The Hobbit among the search results. The tricky thing with classics is that – though the reason for their initial popularity can probably always be recognised – it’s not always garantueed they withstand the test of time. After recently rereading this book, however, I’d say Tolkien’s The Hobbit still holds up.
People often refer to The Hobbit as a children’s story. This is indeed how it originated, but I believe most people tend to forget that children’s literature often contains themes and stories that are also relevant for adults. Furthermore, Tolkien’s prose in The Hobbit is a lot less dense than in The Lord of the Rings, making it a lot more accesible.
Sure, The Hobbit is at times prone to silliness and has a severe lack of female characters, but it’s fast-paced and ultimately contains some very serious morals. Furthermore, the clever use of an omniscient (unreliable?) narrator makes it a very relevant study case for people interested in writing themselves. For people that are already familiar with the extensive lore of Middle-Earth, The Hobbit also provides a lot of intruiging questions, if you’re willing to read between the lines.
If you’re still not convinced, I’d like to emphasize that this story contains musical dwarves and one of the coolest dragons in dragon history. Just saying…
I saw Jop uploaded a review of The Hobbit, so I knew I had to follow suit some time soon.
The Hobbit is an amazing children’s fantasy book that also works for adults. Even though the scope and worldbuilding of The Lord of the Rings make that the real bible of the fantasy genre, I find The Hobbit to be Tolkien’s best work in terms of writing and pacing.
Part of why The Hobbit is so great, is that Bilbo is such a great main character. He is both courageous – often described as ‘plucky’, which I find an amazing word – and at the same time, his emotions feel very real. He is afraid, he is homesick, he is lonely at times, he wants to do the right thing and not disappoint his friends but he also wants to just be at home and be done with it all. That makes his courage all the more inspiring – easy to be a hero when you’re Conan the Barbarian, quite different when you’re Bilbo the fifty-year-old halfling with food and comfort as main passions in your life.
Even though Bilbo is a relatively unorthodox main character, the rest of The Hobbit is quite traditional (though it leans a bit more towards fairy tale and a bit less towards grim fantasy). I love the mischievous elves, the bickering trolls, the song-singing goblins, the riddles in the dark. The world feels perilous and mysterious right from the start of the book, while the stakes, danger and violence slowly build towards the climax.
As a kid, I absolutely loved The Hobbit and as an adult, I still do. If you haven’t read it, please go do so – it’s easy to get into and an absolute cornerstone of the Fantasy genre.
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Review: Fool’s Assassin – Robin Hobb
Fitz is slowly adapting to his new life at Withywoods.However, he still struggles to let go of old friends and the echoes of his past. When his wife Molly comes with a surprise announcement and a mysterious messenger appears, it becomes clear his former life still haunts him in more ways than he knows…
Review: Leviathan Wakes – James S.A. Corey
Jim Holden serves on an interplanetary ice hauler when disaster strikes. He and a handful of his crewmates are thrust into the center of an encroaching conflict between the superpowers of the solar system: Earth and Mars. Joe Miller works security on the most populous space station in the Kuyper Belt until his investigations lead him to a mysterious connection with the cause of the looming war.
Review: Avatar – James Cameron
In this visual spectacle, a disabled marine, travels to the distant moon of Pandora to join a corporate mining operation. He will enter the avatar-programme, whose members transfer their consciousness to human-alien hybrid clones to communicate with the local population.
Review: Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution – R.F. Kuang
Robin Swift is taken from his native Kanton to Oxford to study translation: the art of producing magic from the difference in meaning between translated words in different languages. He is torn by the contradiction between his love for Oxford’s translation institute Babel and the study of languages on the one hand, and his growing unease at Britain’s role in the world and Babel’s role in Britain.
Review: Hades – Supergiant Games
Zagreus, son of Hades, god of the dead, wants to escape from the underworld to see the surface, where the mortals live, and to discover his heritage. His father is dead set on preventing this from happening. In this rogue-like video game, battle through chambers filled with hordes of Hades’ minions, slain heroes, and mortals undergoing punishment as you enlist the help of the Olympian gods to fight your way to the surface.
Review: The Hobbit – J.R.R. Tolkien
The hobbit Bilbo Baggins is very content with his comfortable life, when the Wizard Gandalf and a company of thirteen dwarves invite him on a quest to travel the continent and rob a dragon of his treasures.
