10th Anniversary of Stars Uncounted!

Did I hear myself correctly? Because it sounded like it has been ten years since I wrote these words:

"Greetings Fantasy book lovers and/or guests!! Welcome to my Hall. Come, sit back and relax – maybe have a mug of ale (though I prefer water and apple cider) – while I tell you about myself.

My name is Ian, called the Riddle Maker due to my love of inventing riddles, and I have begun this blog because so many of my friends have said that I should (or would be good at such) that I can ignore them no longer; their statements derived from my Facebook posts regarding my reading and general obsession with Fantasy books and the genre at large. I cannot promise that this blog will be any more edifying that my Facebook posts, and it certainly will not be a bunch of standard Fantasy book reviews. Think of this thus as a public diary of sorts – a record of my subsequent and continued journey through the Realm of the Fantastic."

 

Honestly I can scarcely believe I am writing this. As stated in the quoted Welcome Post, I first started Stars Uncounted - Ian's Fantasy Bookshelf at the ceaseless urging of my friends to do so back in college and, despite my bold tone, I never believed the blog would last this long – much less gain any kind of audience. Now I am a school librarian, an author of Epic Fantasy, and someone whom other authors very occasionally ask to review their books. Had anyone told me this was my mostly humble blog's fate (because it began as entirely if not below humble) I would have thanked them for their faith in me while laughing on the inside. Even now, at the beginning of every year, I am amazed I find enough to write about each month! I guess, as usual, J.R.R. Tolkien spoke true: "It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

So here we are and, much as I would like to wax poetic about this monumental 10th Anniversary moment, I actually wrote this post back in January and set it to automatically publish itself today because I was afraid I would forget when the time came. Point of order, one of the reasons Stars Uncounted has seen a decade when most blogs never do is because it is not a standard review site. Because it is a public diary of sorts, it relies only on me. As Sarkhan Vol said: "Do you understand that you must always fail, as long as your goal is not truth, but guidance? That as long as you seek dragons around you, you will never become the dragon within you?" Wise words, even if the man in question took the whole "dragon within you" part a bit too literally. So I will simply say: a toast to another ten years! Goodness knows I am not going anywhere.

"Faerie is a perilous land, and in it are pitfalls for the unwary and dungeons for the overbold...The realm of fairy-story is wide and deep and high and filled with many things: all manner of beasts and birds are found there; shoreless seas and stars uncounted; beauty that is an enchantment, and an ever-present peril; both joy and sorrow as sharp as swords. In that realm a man may, perhaps, count himself fortunate to have wandered, but its very richness and strangeness tie the tongue of a traveler who would report them. And while he is there it is dangerous for him to ask too many questions, lest the gates should be shut and the keys be lost." - J.R.R. Tolkien

“When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty, I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.” - C.S. Lewis

"Only thin, weak thinkers despise fairy stories. Each one has a true, strange fact hidden in it, you know, which you can find if you look." - Diana Wynne Jones 

I have finished The Last Dragon of the East by Katrina Kwan

I have finished The Last Dragon of the East by Katrina Kwan.

“And the Old Matchmaker of the Moon said to the lovers, 'This red thread I bestow upon you. It may stretch and it may tangle, but it will never break. Across cycles and worlds and lifetimes, your souls are now destined,” wrote Amélie Wen Zhao, referencing the ancient East Asian legend of the Red Thread of Fate – an invisible red cord tied by the gods linking Fated Ones, soulmates destined to be together. 

But destiny is never clean and, in this case, the threads are not limited to humans. Alas, there is truly almost nothing I can say that would not qualify as a major spoiler. So I will simply note that those who seek to quash the immortal love and power of Dragons, those whose give in to boundless greed and realize too late how soul-destroying it is, will always fail. It may take lifetimes and near mind-crushing heartbreaks, but those thread-bound will find and fly with each other again, finally free of a seriously mad Emperor. (Oh, and my Dragon-related instincts proved correct again.)

Fare ye well, Sai & Jyn. I would wish you a long and happy life but for the fact that it is already a forgone conclusion, so no wishing required.

Star Trek vs. Star Wars: An Analysis of Story and Ships

Star Trek vs. Star Wars. An endless debate, and one I have posted on in the past. Now, however, I put all my points in a single post. I will start with analyzing the differences in story then proceed to the spaceship technologies of the two.

Story

Ever do people make comparisons between the ships and technologies of Star Trek and Star Wars, yet I now make a different comparison – one which explains why I prefer the former over the latter. I can hear you saying: "What? But Star Trek is pure sci-fi, which you avoid almost as rule, while Star Wars is almost a Fantasy in space given the never ending battle between the Jedi and the dark side of the Force." 
A very good point, and I do like Star Wars very much as it is an exemplary tale, a true coming of age story and hero's journey complete with brilliantly complex characters both good and evil. Even mythologist Joseph Campbell acknowledged it as such; indeed, George Lucas credited Campbell's work as influencing his own. Who could forget the revelations and inner conflicts regarding and within Anakin and Luke Skywalker? The wisdom of their mutual mentors Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda (who are cultural icons on and above the level of most characters in literature, on par with Gandalf and Dumbledore)? Han Solo wrestling with self-identification, caught between his roguish past and his relationship with Luke and Princess Leia? As said, a stellar tale by all definitions and, better yet, the Force brings a spiritual element seldom seen in Sci-Fi and on a level rare even in many Fantasies. It is no secret that Masters Kenobi and Yoda (and the Jedi in general) are based off the ancient Samurai and their Zen spiritualism.
Which again begs the question, why do I prefer Trek to Wars. The answer is in their names, added by a famous quote from one Ben Kenobi: "For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times, before the Empire." In short, and as of the pitiful Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars amounts to a near-pessimistic tale as the Jedi are always on the verge of being wiped out by the dark side. All the wisdom and power of people like Yoda and Luke amounting to just barely enough to keep hope for better future alive while the Sith terrorize the Galaxy. Not exactly a cheerful, nor hopeful, story.

Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek, however, is a different kettle of fish. Purely Sci-Fi and set in our own future and Milky Way Galaxy rather than a long time ago in one far far away, it is not about war but rather exploration. About searching out the wonders of the universe even while trying to prevent interstellar wars and other similar catastrophes. About showing what humanity might develop into if it would learn from the lessons of the past, most specifically by ending violence; an ideal epitomized in the United Federation of Planets that, in the words of Captain James T. Kirk, is "a dream that became a reality and spread throughout the stars." A reality that, unlike the Jedi Order, is not constantly on the verge of total collapse. And when the Federation is threatened, namely by the Borg and the Dominion, while war does admittedly become the focus, the characters – namely Captain Sisko and the crew of Deep Space Nine – take great pains not to fall victim to the phrase "war makes monsters of us all." Also, critically, and unlike the Jedi Order, the Federation not only wins but remains more or less intact.

This may sound simple, and it is, yet this is the key as to why I prefer Trek over Wars. Not only does Trek offer greater variety, as is natural being a TV series as opposed to movies, it explores themes Wars never touches. Lieutenant Commander Data is not beloved for his superhuman abilities that come with being an android so much as because he is Pinocchio: totally benign and desiring nothing so much as understand humanity, to be human. As Captain Picard once said of him, "In his quest to be more like us, he helped us to see what it means to be Human... his wonder, his curiosity about every facet of Human nature, allowed all of us to see the best parts of ourselves. He evolved, he embraced change because he always wanted to be better than he was." Frankly I could keep going, not just about Data but about basically everyone, and not just Next Generation but Deep Space Nine and Voyager too. So I will be brief and just add that wise sages are not lacking even if Jedi-style spiritualism is, as wisdom is often just a solid and true moral compass built of deep compassion and practical experience. As to mysticism, characters like Guinan fill that need quite nicely.

In sum, while Star Wars may have more Tolkienesque elements, Star Trek truly follows the Spirit of Tolkien because it not only embraces, but empowers and delivers on hopes for betterment on an interpersonal as well as intergalactic scale. In Star Trek, the most powerful, most thought-provoking, most memorable moments often have nothing to do with war and, when it does, it is trying to prevent one from starting.

Ships

Ever do people make comparisons between the ships and technologies of Star Trek and Star Wars, namely a hypothetical battle between the Millennium Falcon vs. the USS Enterprise, so now I shall. And I will begin by saying that I deem the comparison silly beyond belief. Why? Well, let us delve into broader technological differences between the 24th century Milky Way and those in a galaxy far far away.

Millennium Falcon

It begins with speed. In Star Wars the Galactic Republic/Empire is just that, galactic, spanning basically the entire galaxy. On a routine basis across all the films ships – be they Star Destroyers, Queen Amidala's royal starship, to one-man ships like Luke's X-Wing – traverse half the galaxy and back again in a matter of days or less. Which makes sense, as how else can a galaxy-spanning political entity keep together? 

USS Voyager

In Star Trek, however, it is completely different. The entire series Star Trek: Voyager was the USS Voyager getting thrown over 70,000 light years away from the Federation, across the Milky Way, and having to seek out new technologies to shorten what would at Maximum Warp be a 75 year journey home. And the same can be seen in Next Generation, each episode often referencing in the Captain's Log and through dialogue how many days it would take to reach Point A to Point B. For example, it would take a Starship traveling at Warp 9.975  one month to traverse 132 light years. A month. Now Star Wars does not get into the intricacies of tech as much as Star Trek, but, again, I point to the fact that Star Wars ships travel across galaxy and back in a matter of days. Luke's X-Wing, much less the Millennium Falcon, would have seen the USS Voyager's 70,000 light years journey as nothing to sneeze at; an average flight. In short, Star Wars hyperdrive engines are worlds superior to Star Trek Warp Drives.

Death Star

Now onto weapons. In Episode IV: A New Hope when Obi-Wan Kenobi says that Alderaan was destroyed by the Empire Han Solo replies "the entire star fleet couldn't destroy a whole planet, it'd take a thousand ships and more fire power than I've seen in a..." though a Tie Fighter interrupted him, the Captain of the Millennium Falcon told us all we need to know. Namely how many imperial ships – all armed with the best weapons, mind – it would take to destroy a planet. In short, in Star Wars it takes nothing less than a fully operational Death Star to do the job.

USS Defiant

Now on to Star Trek, which is where the irony comes in since the Federation loathes war and Starfleet is not strictly a military organization. Ironic because Federation weapons leave Galactic Republic/Imperial ones in the dust, the proof lying in the fact that there are several episodes where the USS Enterprise uses its phasers to drill into planets, and the Deep Space Nine episode the Broken Link Worf catches Garak attempting to gain control the USS Defiant's phasers and quantum torpedoes to destroy the Founders' homeworld; as Garak puts it, "we have enough fire power on this ship to turn that planet into a smoking cinder." Granted that the USS Defiant is one of the most heavily armed ships in the Federation, but it is also one of the physically smallest. Bottom line: basically a single Federation Starship can do what, in Star Wars, only the moon-sized Death Star can.

So, to recap, Star Wars hyperdrive engines wipe the floor with Star Trek Warp Drives in the speed contest, yet Federation phasers make Galactic Republic/Imperial laser cannons looks like outdated pistols. Again, let us appreciate the irony that something called Star WARS actually has the weaker weapons.

USS Enterprise-D

Which brings us back to the age-old Sci-Fi question of: Who would win, the Millennium Falcon or the USS Enterprise? Like I said before, it is a silly question – and the reason why should by now be clear. In an even battle the Enterprise would blow the Falcon to pieces without breathing hard, yet the Falcon would not give it the opportunity since it could outrun it as easily as a regular falcon would a robin. Indeed, even in Star Wars how often does the Millennium Falcon truly fight? Usually only when trying to escape; since speed is the ship's claim to fame, the whole purpose behind it is that the Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca can outrun the Imperials; indeed, it is made very plain that Millennium Falcon cannot best even a single Imperial Star Destroyer. The USS Enterprise, however, is an utterly different animal: the flagship of a vast interstellar power and home to over a thousand people, it was designed to hold its own in a fight against the best the enemies of the Federation had to offer. Whereas the the Millennium Falcon is a freighter; the faster freighter in the galaxy and capable of taking out several one-person attack ships, but a freighter still.

Imperial Star Destroyer

Hence my belief that the whole Millennium Falcon vs. the USS Enterprise debate is silly because, to employ an aphorism, it is comparing apples and oranges. The two ships are so utterly different, both in technology, size, and purpose, and if the two ever did cross swords it would end  as I described above: with the Falcon either in pieces or leaving the Enterprise literally half a galaxy behind. Indeed, it would be the same between the Enterprise and its nearest Star Wars analogue, a Star Destroyer. Given the overwhelming superiority of Federation weapons, a Starship could fry a Star Destroyer easily, leaving the Imperial ship no option but to employ its overwhelming superior hyperdrive engine to escape.

Ravens Don't Tell

"Among other things, the raven is an ancient symbol of prophecy and insight, creation and transformation, knowledge and prestige, associated with ancient wisdom and intelligence." - Me (What? Am I not aloud to quote myself?)

Like comfort books, we all have comfort music and it should come as no surprise that mine tells a tale. What is surprising is that it is a relatively new song, the debut single of Finnish indie folk band Aeldfire. A song that tells, like the old Bards, a dark fairy tale of forbidden love and mysterious magic. It – story, lyrics, and the very sound the singer's voice – continues to draw me back to this glade of ravens.

"All that I have seen and all that I've known
I, the Raven Queen, swear on the bloodstone
To honor and protect the righteous minds,
Ravens don't tell and ravens don't lie."

Quote of the month

"It's an odd and wonderful thing, to barely dare to hope you might be tolerated as you are, only to find out the real you is beloved the way the false you never was." - Sophie Gonzales

I started The Last Dragon of the East by Katrina Kwan

I have started The Last Dragon of the East by Katrina Kwan.

While Romantasy is not my typical cup of tea, I recently noted that the sub-genre is often wedded to Asian-inspired Fantasy and that I have a special fondness for those featuring the Red Thread of Fate. Hence how I could I resist a book where the Red Thread is a key element, features a bold quest for a lost Dragon amidst a terrible war, and was highly recommended to me by my sister? Spoilers, I did not. And while this single-standing book may be tiny compared to the series I am used to, the same could be said for Axie Oh's The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea which introduced me to both Asian-inspired Fantasy and the Red Thread, so I am fully expecting a wild ride and beautifully unique fantasy.

Luck to you, Sai, for I have a feeling your greying, fraying thread may lead you better than any map to this Dragon. (And my Dragon-related instincts are usually good.)

I have finished Ava Richardson's The First Dragon Rider Trilogy

I have finished Dragon Mage, the third and final book of Ava Richardson's The First Dragon Rider Trilogy.

Thus ends the age of the Draconis Monks, their Dragon God, and the bloody evils their tyranny both open and subtle, physical and arcane, wrought upon all Three Kingdoms but most especially the Middle. Now begins the age of the Dragon Riders of what is effectively the Kingdom of Torvald, where only brigands and would-be tyrants need fear dragonfire. All because Neill Torvald & Char Nefrette, two bastard-born children sent unwillingly to the Monastery, dared to dream and do what nobody else had even considered in an age, and fight for a better future against the crazed, the corrupt, and even their own kin. To be the people they were meant to be or, and Paxala puts it, to fly free and not judge themselves through the eyes of others.

Fare and fly well to Neill & Char, Dorf, Jodreth, Lila, Sigrid, Terrence, and all the Dragons of the crater on Mount Hammal!

Is this the last Ava Richardson book I will read? Let us just say that I may one day want to find out what happened to, and see the final dispersion of, the Darkening.

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE FRSL

One often hears about J.R.R. Tolkien's tour of duty in the First World War and how it impacted him, and of course all the countless ways The Lord of the Rings founded and continues to shape the Fantasy genre, and whose works continue to be published so many years after his death. Goodness knows I wax poetic about the man often enough and I mean to re-post some of my older ones simply because they are too good not to do otherwise.

Anyway, it occurred to me today that one thing people hear less of are the official honors Tolkien received for his colossal achievements. Let me correct that now. He was John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE FRSL. CBE stands for Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, an English Order of chivalry rewarding prominent national/regional achievements across disciplines. The rank of Commander, which Tolkien held, being the highest rank short of knighthood within the Order. 

Point of order (no pun intended), I am of the unshakable opinion that had he been so honored today he would have received a full knighthood. A conclusion based on the fact that other British Fantasy authors have been so honored since, namely Sir Philip Pullman and Sir Terry Pratchett, within the Order of the British Empire. Indeed, J.K. Rowling was offered a damehood (a female knighthood) as well as a seat in the House of Lords, yet turned both down for "entirely personal reasons", stating "I’ve never wanted a title". Though she is an OBE, Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, which is the rank below Commander.

Meanwhile, FRSL stands for Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, which naturally recognizes an individual’s exceptional contribution to literature.

I do not pretend to understand all the intricacies regarding British titles, for Sir Terry Pratchett was never made a FRSL, yet they are interesting, for a certainty.

The Golden Oakleaf - RIP John Flanagan

RIP John Flanagan

Back in 2006, when I was in Middle School, my family was visiting one of my Uncles and Aunts and naturally we found ourselves in a bookstore. There I was, perusing the Fantasy section with my father, when we came across a book.

Neither of us had ever read it, though of course our first thought was of Aragorn son of Arathorn, the Ranger whom in the town of Bree is known as Strider. Yet this new series, called Ranger’s Apprentice, seemed to be only about Rangers and it caught our interest enough to buy it. Now back then I was new to the genre, and though I had Tolkien and a few other great works such as Christopher Paolini's The Inheritance Cycle and Garth Nix The Abhorsen Series under my belt, they had, to a book, been recommended to me either by my friends or my father. Ranger’s Apprentice had no such personal accolades and in consequence it sad unread yet often considered on my shelf for several months before I started it...

...Beginning an Age of my life. I was hooked. Riveted. Falling so utterly in love with the story that I suggested it to my father and sister, who took it up and were similarly enchanted. But that does not describe how much we would go for the books. Being an Australian author, back then (before the series achieved internationally bestselling stardom) new Ranger’s Apprentice books came out in Australia many months before being released in the United States. Yet we were not content to wait. When Book 4, titled The Battle for Skandia, first came out in America I had already read it months prior under its true title and original cover: Oakleaf Bearers. How? Buying books from overseas has never been an issue for my father, and Oakleaf Bearers was but one of many new Ranger’s Apprentice books I read and had on my shelves long before they first graced American bookstores. Original Australian editions I still have, sitting on the exact same shelf. And let me tell you, I watched the Book Trailer for Erak's Ransom at least two dozen times. Watching it still rekindles that feeling of excited anticipation of epic adventure, if naturally tinted by nostalgia.

One time I finished reading the series up the last currently out book... and I picked up Book 1 again and started over. Something I have, to this day, NEVER done before or since.

Then on on January 3, 2014 – two years before I started Stars Uncounted – I wrote the following post on Facebook:

John Flanagan...Thank you so much. Thank you for teaching me how to wield a bow, move silently, throw a knife, and track a foe. Never did drink coffee though, so, sorry about that. Thank you for writing the Ranger’s Apprentice series and giving me 8 years of joy and laughs. You proved that Fantasy need not have magic to be phenomenal

Farewell Will Treaty, Sir Horace, Halt, Evanlyn (Cassandra), Erak, Alyss, Gilan, Tug, Crowley, Gundar, Selethen, Baron Arald, King Duncan, and Maddie.

I have just finished The Royal Ranger, the last book of John Flanagan's Ranger’s Apprentice Series. An Age of my life has ended.

I was devastated to be done, yet understood why John Flanagan was finishing because one could hardly expect him to write a whole other series with with Maddie as the Apprentice and Will the Master, right?

Haha. Right. Famous last words. Because on Saturday December 1, 2018 – two years after I started this mostly humble blog – I go to the bookstore and find The Red Fox Clan, book #2 of the new Ranger's Apprentice: The Royal Ranger series which was nothing less that an entire sequel series follow-up to the now-old book #12 of the main Ranger's Apprentice series! Of course, my full reaction was rather more complicated, humorous and aggravating in equal measure, but the fact remained that it was not the end! Merely a new beginning, and Flanagan had already been, and continued to, write The Brotherband Chronicles (which I have never read yet now just might). Nor, in fact, have I finished The Royal Ranger series since shelf space is far more limited than Flanagan's pen. But now I think I will finish, for while the literary world has lost a titan with John Flanagan's passing, he left us with over two dozen Fantasy masterworks without magic that teach strategy over strength and that physical height is overrated and often a hindrance to heroics. But humor is where he really strikes gold, because there is something about Halt's scowling face that brings and special light to all ours days

"Sarcasm isn't the lowest form of wit. It's not even wit at all." – Halt

“Once you best a man, never gloat. Be generous and find something in his actions to praise. He won't enjoy being bested, but he'll make a good face of it. Show him you appreciate it. Praise can win you a friend. Gloating will only ever make enemies.” – Halt

“I forgot how much fun it is having an apprentice.” – Halt

“People will think what they want to...Never take too much notice of it.” – Halt

"Sometimes we tend to expect a little too much of Ranger horses. After all, they are only human."  – Halt

Last but not least, there is the matter of the long tradition of Rangers which Flanagan continued. For that, read my Rangers: From Merry Men to Dúnedain (and beyond) post.

I have started Dragon Mage, Book Three of Ava Richardson's The First Dragon Rider Trilogy

I have started Dragon Mage, Book Three of Ava Richardson's The First Dragon Rider Trilogy.

Dragon Monks give way to Dragon Riders as a cry for help gives the Draconis Order new purpose – to help those whom nobles and royals cannot or will not. Royals who will not sit idly by as Neill Torvald, Char Nefrette and their friends usher in a new and better future astride their dragon-sisters and brothers. Yet to save the lands from interminable bloodshed Neill will have to embrace leadership and the hard, sometimes bloody, choices that come with it. A task made harder still when a certain evil Dragon Mage and Bull Dragon have vengeance on their sick minds.

I finished Dragon Dreams, Book Two of Ava Richardson's First Dragon Rider Trilogy

I finished Dragon Dreams, Book Two of Ava Richardson's First Dragon Rider Trilogy.

Two tyrants fled, one human one dragon, with a wall shattered alongside a web of murderous lies. For once there were more Dragon-friends in the world. Once the Three Kingdoms were united, ruled by revered Queen Delia, wearer of her Great Crown. But that crown had a secret, red with the blood of Dragons and identical to the dark rot at the bottom of the Draconis Order. All broken thanks to Char Nefrette and Neill Torvald and mighty Paxala, and now the sky above the Draconis Monastery upon the slopes of Mount Hammal ring with the music of dragons. Yet tyrants fled are sadly not dead, and that does not even account for three human Princes. A new era is approaches...the time of the Dragon Riders.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | Official Teaser | HBO Max

As I said before, this carries limited emotion resonance with me since I never watched the Harry Potter movies. But I LOVE the books and this proud Ravenclaw will not mince words: HBO – and the new cast – have some very large broomsticks to fly. Firebolts all, to say the least.

Tolkien Reading Day

Naturally here on Stars Uncounted we celebrate Tolkien Reading Day, an annual event launched by The Tolkien Society, the date of March 25 being chosen for the simple reason that that is when the One Ring was cast into the Cracks of Doom and Sauron fell. Traditionally one celebrates by posting a quote The Lord of the Rings:

“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.” - J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of The King. 

Quote of the month

"A constant image [in myths] is that of the conflict of the eagle and the serpent. The serpent bound to the earth, the eagle in spiritual flight - isn't that conflict something we all experience? And then, when the two amalgamate, we get a wonderful dragon, a serpent with wings." – Joseph Campbell

The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender

HUZZAH! The only thing I want to know is who the buff guy with Airbender tattoos is behind Katara. Beyond that, no one should be surprised that the original Team Avatar has new voice actors. Tis called "growing up" folks, which mean voices change and deepen.

I started Dragon Dreams, Book Two of Ava Richardson's First Dragon Rider Trilogy

I started Dragon Dreams, Book Two of Ava Richardson's First Dragon Rider Trilogy.

The world has changed, for Char and Neill have ridden Paxala the crimson red. It takes friendship, the Bond, to ride a mighty Dragon. Yet still the world is ruled by tyrants, humans by three Princes and dragons by he who is called the Dragon God. So what does he want with a human crown enough to let dragons chose riders? Nothing good and much magical most likely, and I never cared much for arranged marriages even to prevent war. So Char and Pax will have to bring down two tyrants if they are to fly free and not be relegated to the roles others would put upon them. Tis time, I think, to uncover the secret past of dragons before casting it aside to blaze (with literal dragon fire, of course) a brighter future. Fortunately Char has Neill Torvald to help.

I finished Dragon God, Book One of Ava Richardson's First Dragon Rider Trilogy

I finished Dragon God, Book One of Ava Richardson's First Dragon Rider Trilogy.

Treachery and deception, bigotry and death, magic and war rage within and without the Draconis Monastery upon the slopes of Mount Hammal, home of dragons. Yet there also blossoms unlikely friendships that become oaths, and a bond the likes of which has never been seen yet will change the world forever – for now, for the first time, humans have ridden a mighty dragon. Yet Neill Torvald, Char Nefrette, and Paxala the crimson red are a long way from out of fire yet, as war still looms alongside whatever a certain Abbot cooks up. To say nothing of he who is called the Dragon God...

I just finished playing Triangle Strategy (True Ending on the first run)

Morality, Liberty, Utility.

I just finished playing Triangle Strategy, a game that famously tests the one's convictions. For while multiple endings, including bad ones, have become common in tactical role-playing games, Triangle Strategy takes it a step further by not giving the player total control either. Like life, there is not one but many paths through the story based entirely upon one's choices, yet when the time has come to make a choice it is not Lord Serenoa Wolffort who makes it but rather democratically by all his closest friends casting votes upon the Scales of Conviction. Serenoa may speak with his friends, using the knowledge he has gained and the strength of his convictions to influence their vote, but in the end the path that receives the most votes is the one taken regardless of the player's preferences.

Which is one of the two key things that makes Triangle Strategy notably different from other RPG: it is not simply battlefield tactics but also personal ones, as you must know your friends well in order to convince them to vote to follow the path you desire. So be sure to save the game before trying convince, else otherwise you may find yourself walking an undesired path and dooming the land of Norzelia in the process. Truly dooming. In the game Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology, Lippti says: "Countless possibilities fade into the darkness. Yet there exists a razor-thin path of light." Such is even more true here, for Triangle Strategy's three main endings are all bad ones. Yet there exists a Fourth Path, a Golden Route, a True Ending in gamer lingo: one that can only be reached by making a very specific certain set of choices.

Most say that the True Ending is too hard to achieve on the first play-through, but I did not accept that. I will never accept a bad ending nor have ever led characters, my friends, into one and was not about to start. Nor did I, for I am happy to say that on this my first play-through I successfully unlocked and completed the True Ending of Triangle Strategy! The key is proper unit deployment, and yes, spend a little time leveling up on training maps, but it was hardly intense grinding. You can unlock the hidden fourth ending during the Chapter 17: If Griefs Could Passions Move and you will have to split up your forces into three units which, moving forward, cannot be altered so save a backup file and choose wisely because a single mistake can doom you. I will not spoil much, but suffice to say that putting Anna and Hughette in Benedict's Unit to defend Castle Wolffort is critical, as is putting Ezana, Narve, Archibald, and Erador in Frederica's. You will have three hard-fought battles to win, plus a couple more afterwards, but the result is so very worth it. You save Norzelia from descending into varying levels of dystopia. 

What else makes this game different? Not the battle system but rather the plotline. While there is of course magic, the story is very political: House Wolffort navigating a treacherous landscape of conquest, deception, murder, political intrigue, shifting alliances, and of course the various priorities and convictions of its members. I personally was most drawn to the plight of the Roselle, Frederica's people, who are treated as sinners and enslaved by the Holy State of Hyzante, and had grim push come to dreadful shove would have chosen her bad ending to free them. Fortunately through the True Ending I freed them and the rest of Norzelia, but the fact remains that Triangle Strategy is a grittier game, forcing one to weigh difficult choices and sometimes choosing the seemingly less moral one for the sake of survival. I admit that the level of political intrigue (including very specific events) and fighting over resources at times put me in mind of the GRRM's A Song of Ice and Fire. Still, thanks to the True Ending that is joy incarnate a cunning strategist can avoid the worst treachery and needless bloodshed, so never give into despair. All told, a most enjoyable game (though I doubt I enjoyed it as much as others due to how heavy the political intrigue was).

Farewell and eternal happiness to you Serenoa Wolffort & Frederica Aesfrost, Roland Glenbrook, Benedict Pascal, Hughette Bucklar, Geela Breisse, Anna Pascal, Erador Ballentine, Corentin Jenner, Symon Wolffort, Narve Oparyn, Hossabara Freyya, Julio Wrightman, Lionel Khapita, Piccoletta, Jens Macher, Ezana Qlinka, Medina Alliam, Archibald Genoe, Groma Jurgina, Flanagan Grutte, Jerrom Laesmi, Milo Yuelle, Avlora, Svarog Aesfrost, and Lyla Viscraft. Let the future of Norzelia be led by the brightness of your convictions.

Frederica: "I shall think of the new era before us as I walk beside you on the path we have chosen—together."
Serenoa: "So long as you are at my side, I can continue on, however far. Let us work together to ensure the path we have chosen is the right one."
Frederica: "But of course. That is the way of House Wolffort."

NewInBooks Editorial Review Blurb for The Dragonkin Legacy

I always appreciate reviews, even if the source is largely unfamiliar to me.

"Vast, immersive, and brimming with prophecy and peril, The Dragonkin Legacy Omnibus delivers a sweeping epic of rediscovered magic, searing battles, and unforgettable heroes, perfect for fantasy lovers who crave richly layered worldbuilding, high-stakes adventure, and the thrill of an ancient song rising again to decide humanity’s fate." – NewInBooks

Re-post: The Treason of the Intellectuals and Isengard

Given how long I have been doing this mostly humble blog, it feels wrong that I should post a great piece then we never see it again. So here is a re-post of one of my most popular (relatively speaking) posts:

British academic, critic and novelist Adam Roberts describes the Grimdark sub-genre as one "where nobody is honourable and Might is Right," and as "the standard way of referring to fantasies that turn their backs on the more uplifting, visions of idealized medievaliana, and instead stress how nasty, brutish, short and dark life back then 'really' was." He critically notes, however, that Grimdark has little to do with re-imagining an actual historic reality and more with conveying the sense that our own world is a "cynical, disillusioned, ultra-violent place." 

Of course, one who has read my opinion of GRRM the Anti-Tolkien already knows that I wholeheartedly agree with this. However, this post is not just another long rant regarding A Song of Ice and Fire but, rather, an attack on the cynicism that fuels it and which goes beyond George R.R. Martin. A cynicism which amounts to another concept known as the Treason of the Intellectuals, in which academics accept and espouse cynicism because – in a nutshell – they believe that Power and Politics will near-always emerge triumphant over morality. Hence the best, wisest, course of action is to embrace this truth and put forth one's intellectualism to working with thus shaping the policies of the Powerful until they resemble/accomplish the political agenda of the academics.

Permit me to offer a quote from the J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings:
"A new Power is rising. Against it the old allies and policies will not avail us at all. There is no hope left in Elves or dying Númenor. This then is one choice before you, before us. We may join with that Power. It would be wise, Gandalf. There is hope that way. Its victory is at hand; and there will be rich reward for those that aided it. As the Power grows, its proved friends will also grow; and the Wise, such as you and I, may with patience come at last to direct its courses, to control it. We can bide our time, we can keep our thoughts in our hearts, deploring maybe evils done by the way, but approving the high and ultimate purpose: Knowledge, Rule, Order; all the things that we have so far striven in vain to accomplish, hindered rather than helped by our weak or idle friends. There need not be, there would not be, any real change in our designs, only in our means."

Sound familiar? If not, then recall these words as the ones spoken by Saruman to Gandalf when trying to convince him to join him in an alliance with Sauron. What is striking, however, is how neatly the Treason of Isengard matches the description of the Treason of the Intellectuals. Saruman and Gandalf had been sent to Middle-earth with the purpose of overthrowing Sauron, something that Saruman clearly still intends to accomplish, except that rather than fighting Mordor he now means to become Sauron's ally so as slowly twist and replace him on his dark throne.
Naturally Saruman is an very extreme case, as it would be far from fair to call cynical intellectuals ambitious agents of clear evil. Yet the crux of the matter is that, like Saruman, those academics who engage in intellectual treason believe that fighting Power and Politics with human determination and basic morality is a fool's errand and thus join the other side if they see any hope in altering it from within to suit their visions. In short, it is the temptation to accommodate oneself to the nature of the times, as Niccolò Machiavelli would have put it, and to ally – cautiously but definitely – with the Power that is rather than the principles that were. Saruman's mad vision may have been to replace the Lord of Mordor as the tyrant of Middle-earth, but, as can be seen, when striped down to their essential organs there is very little separating Treason of Isengard from the Treason of the Intellectuals.

Which, to bring this post to a full circle, is one of many reasons why I am the Enemy of the Grimdark. Because A Song of Ice and Fire and the genre as the whole offers a cold and cynical view of humanity coupled with the apparent lesson that the honorable and compassionate usually end with their heads upon a stake. It teaches that treachery is profitable; that morals do not pay and are near powerless to effect the wider world.

"Our knowledge has made us cynical. Our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery we need humanity. More than cleverness we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost." - Charlie Chaplin

"Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don’t learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a rejection of the world because we are afraid it will hurt us or disappoint us." - Stephen Colbert

The cynic is one who never sees a good quality in a man and never fails to see a bad one. He is the human owl, vigilant in darkness and blind to light, mousing for vermin, and never seeing noble game. The cynic puts all human actions into two classes — openly bad and secretly bad. - Henry Ward Beecher

"A cynic is not merely one who reads bitter lessons from the past; he is one who is prematurely disappointed in the future." - Sydney J. Harris

"The problems of the world cannot possibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. We need men who can dream of things that never were...and ask why not." - John F. Kennedy

"Cynicism isn't smarter, it's only safer. There's nothing fluffy about optimism." - Jewel Kitcher

"The greater part of the truth is always hidden, in regions out of the reach of cynicism." - J. R. R. Tolkien