The Book Plank

Best Books of 2014 So it has finally come down to the list of lists. The Best Books of 2014. I read many different kind of books this year, all my friends and family said I read way to much... and I always reply with: there is always more to read! It was really hard to make this final list, in many different subgenre I read some ace books. After a lot of contemplation I have made this final list.  Just as last year where Emperor of Thorns made the list as well, Mark Lawrence once again made it on my yearly favorites list. Prince of Fools , the first book in The Red Queen's War was released this summer and with this book Mark Lawrence proofs that he is far from a one time success with his The Broken Empire series. Prince of Fools takes place within the same universe of his first series but focuses on a completely different protagonist Jalan. The Broken Empire gave the gritty grimdark setting and a dark protagonist, in Prince of Fools, Mark Lawrence shows the story is a ...

Best Epic Fantasy When you tell that you are a big fantasy reader people always ask me if I like Lord of the Rings, I say yes. But from this question you can see that a lot of people automatically associate the fantasy genre with Epic Fantasy. In essence Epic Fantasy has rules and regulations and is a genre that many authors have ventured into, with good and sadly sometimes also bad results. However the current books that are published in this genre all have something interesting working for them. They are and aren't comparable to Lord of the Ring, yes that have the same elements but the writing style is much more from our time. The authors below are helping to breath new air into this age old genre. Mark Lawrence's Prince of Fools , is the sort of continuation sort of not continuation of his The Broken Empire series which he finished last year, creating a new protagonist that is flawed and an cowered, but taking place in the Jorg era, his writing style is super. Forge of Da...

Best First in Series (no debut!) The first in series is a category I actually just came up with. I wanted to mention some books that aren't debuts but that do kick off a new series as most new series are often debuts. Why I wanted to name this category in particular is to show that many authors write second series that are just as or even better as there first. Writing books is difficult but coming up with a compeltely new series ust be even more difficult (I think). Authors oftentimes also write a new series in their earlier divided universe which in itself is also difficult as some storylines have been established in the earlier series so you have to thread carefully, ensuring all that has been written before. This brings me to the first book on the list. Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence. Taking place in The Broken Empire but following a completely new protagonist. In Prince of Fools Mark Lawrences' writing never falters and produces another winner, though the universe is...

 May Review Round-up 1. Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson, Tor/Gollancz In April I read the start of the Stormlight Archive, The Way of Kings and was immediately sucked into the amazingly rich world that Brandon Sanderson managed to show in it. I was fortunate enough not to have to wait a few years for the sequel to be released as it was already sitting on my TBR pile. In Words of Radiance , Brandon Sanderson nicely broadens the scope of his story still lying the focus on Kaladin and Shallan but also involving more and more different characters to neatly draw a complete picture. Both the books have been clocking in at about 1000-1100 pages and with such an epic scope it's can be hard to keep the focus on the main drive of the story, here it clearly comes to show that Brandon Sanderson has gained a lot of experience from continuing Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. There is never a dull moment in Words of Radiance , Brandon Sanderson managed to grab me from start ...

Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence, The Red Queen's War The Red Queen is old but the kings of the Broken Empire fear her as they fear no other. Her grandson Jalan Kendeth is a coward, a cheat and a womaniser; and tenth in line to the throne. While his grandmother shapes the destiny of millions, Prince Jalan pursues his debauched pleasures. Until he gets entangled with Snorri ver Snagason, a huge Norse axe man, and dragged against his will to the icy north. In a journey across half the Broken Empire, Jalan flees minions of the Dead King, agrees to duel an upstart prince named Jorg Ancrath, and meets the ice witch, Skilfar, all the time seeking a way to part company with Snorri before the Norseman’s quest leads them to face his enemies in the black fort on the edge of the Bitter Ice. Experience does not lend Jalan wisdom; but here and there he unearths a corner of the truth. He discovers that they are all pieces on a board, pieces that may be being played in the long, se...

(p)review forecast May part two 1. The Leopard by K.V. Johansen, Pyr In the days of the first kings in the North, there were seven devils… Ahjvar, the assassin known as the Leopard, wants only to die, to end the curse that binds him to a life of horror. Although he has no reason to trust the goddess Catairanach or her messenger Deyandara, fugitive heir to a murdered tribal queen, desperation leads him to accept her bargain: if he kills the mad prophet known as the Voice of Marakand, Catairanach will free him of his curse. Accompanying him on his mission is the one person he has let close to him in a lifetime of death, a runaway slave named Ghu. Ahj knows Ghu is far from the half-wit others think him, but in Marakand, the great city where the caravan roads of east and west meet, both will need to face the deepest secrets of their souls, if either is to survive the undying enemies who hunt them and find a way through the darkness that damns the Leopard. To Marakand, too,...

Author interview with Mark Lawrence Author bio: Mark Lawrence is married with four children, one of whom is severely disabled. His day job is as a research scientist focused on various rather intractable problems in the field of artificial intelligence. He has held secret level clearance with both US and UK governments. At one point he was qualified to say 'this isn't rocket science ... oh wait, it actually is'. Between work and caring for his disabled child, Mark spends his time writing, playing computer games, tending an allotment, brewing beer, and avoiding DIY.  ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hi Mark, Welcome over to The Book Plank and for taking your time to answer these few questions! BP: First off, could you give us a short introduction as to who you are? What are your likes and dislikes? What are your hobbies. ML: I could list the hobbies from my dust jackets but the tr...