Many of you may already know that this is out, but while we wait patiently for The Winds of Winter, George R.R. Martin has released a book comprised of three novellas he wrote some time ago about a hedge knight in Westeros and his diminutive squire. I picked up a copy last week and can’t…
I’m pulling from the archives once again due to a hectic week. This one is about the book that helped inspire my own novel, Enoch’s Device. On a lazy weekend back in the early ‘90s, I stumbled across a movie on TV that helped me discover one of the finest books I have ever read –…
Tomorrow, the Kindle edition of Enoch’s Device will be featured as a daily deal on BookSends. But I decided to start the sale a day early on Amazon and run it for the rest of the week. (It’s on Amazon UK too.) If you’ve already read and liked the book, now is a great time to tell a friend. Here’s…
With no time to blog this week, I’m digging into the archives. This one’s from January 2012.In one of my earliest blog posts, I talked about the fine line between the genres of historical fiction and historical fantasy. Earlier this month, two of my favorite authors, George R.R. Martin and Bernard Cornwell, touched on this issue in a joint…
Once again I’m pleased to feature a guest review by Bill Brockman, this time of The Lord of Vik-Lo by James L. Nelson. Bill is an avid reader of historical fiction, but he’s also devoted his life to public service as a Battalion Chief of the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department and a 31-year part-time airman in the Air National…
The entire Game of Thrones watching world is talking about last night’s season finale. So here are my thoughts. Obviously, huge *SPOILERS* to follow if you missed last night’s show. Last night, Jon Snow played the role of Julius Caesar, apparently stabbed to death by the brothers of the Night’s Watch. Kit Harrington, who plays…
This Sunday’s episode may be the last time I watch HBO’s Game of Thrones and have any idea what might happen. The show is about to exhaust the core material in George R.R. Martin’s series through his fifth book, A Dance With Dragons. After that, we’re in uncharted waters. And for many of the storylines,…
There is little time to write this week, but I have a minute to offer my quick take on last week’s episode of Game of Thrones titled “Hardhome.” In short, it was the best episode of the year and further proof that despite the show’s divergence from the books, HBO’s writers are doing their job…
The last two weeks I’ve been fairly critical of the way HBO’s Game of Thrones has deviated from George R.R. Martin’s books. But after last week’s episode, “The Gift,” I’m feeling better about how everything might work out in the end. As usual, some *SPOILERS* will follow. Cersei’s story is progressing like GRRM intended. My…
Before this season began, I predicted there would be some changes between the show and George R.R. Martin’s books, particularly because the show’s writers are running out of source material given Martin’s delay in producing The Winds Of Winter, the sixth book in his series. But I never imagined a change as big as last…
Work has left little time to write this week, so I’m re-running a post that relates in a way to my recent posts about Ragnar Lothbrok. Leading up to my next installment in my series on Medieval Fiction, I thought I’d pose some questions about one of the late Fifth Century’s most legendary figures: Who…