Category: Fantasy

Next Up in Beloved Speculative Series from TOR!

on the cover of queen demon by martha wells, a figure in a hat and jewel toned clothing looks left

For me, it takes a certain amount of faith to read an ongoing series – I need to either know that I will feel satisfied after each installment, or I need to trust the author has a plan for the following books, which will stick the landing eventually. I absolutely trust T Kingfisher to do …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/09/30/next-up-in-beloved-speculative-series-from-tor/

Lizard Boy #2: The Most Perfect Summer Ever by Jonathan Hill

Readers who’ve already enjoyed Book 1 will likely warm up to this quicker than I did, but once I realized this wasn’t just escapist (sub)urban fantasy, I was all in! The Lizard Boy series revolves around the titular middle schooler, Tommy Tomkins, who fled with his mom and older sister Tiffany from the underground realm …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/09/29/lizard-boy-2-the-most-perfect-summer-ever-by-jonathan-hill/

The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison

The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison

The Tomb of Dragons is that rare third book of a trilogy that makes me view the first two books very differently. All three of the “Cemeteries of Amalo” share a world and time with Addison’s classic, The Goblin Emperor. The first-person narrator of the trilogy is Thara Celehar, a cleric of Ulis and a …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/09/20/the-tomb-of-dragons-by-katherine-addison/

Stone & Sky by Ben Aaronovitch

Stone & Sky by Ben Aaronovitch

Peter Grant and Beverly Brook have survived the first two years as parents of twins, and unsurprisingly they are in need of a vacation. Peter’s family being what it is, and his job being what it is, the trip up to Scotland more closely resembled a circus caravan than a cozy family outing. To be …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/09/14/stone-sky-by-ben-aaronovitch/

A Drop Of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett

How serendipitous that I could finally dive into this right as the preceding book in the Shadow Of The Leviathan series (also an Ana And Din mystery) deservedly won the 2025 Hugo for Best Novel! I’d venture to say that A Drop of Corruption is even better than The Tainted Cup, and not just because …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/09/04/a-drop-of-corruption-by-robert-jackson-bennett/

T. Kingfisher BINGO and Hemlock and Silver Review!

This T Kingfisher Bingo card created by Emily and Larisa has many of Ursula Vernon's oft-used elements, with a free space in the middle

Hemlock and Silver by T. Kingfisher comes out this week, August 19th! As always with T. Kingfisher’s prolific work, Hemlock and Silver is both creepy and kind, thought-provoking and comforting. It’s a must-read for any of T. Kingfisher’s existing fans and a fabulous first T. Kingfisher book for those who have not yet read her. …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/18/t-kingfisher-bingo-and-hemlock-and-silver-review/

How To Spot A Magical Woodland Creature by Sarah Glenn Marsh & Lilla Bolecz

Wahey, I’m back to my regularly scheduled review programming! And what lovelier way to return than with a gorgeously illustrated children’s book that artfully blends science with fantasy, for a delightfully whimsical read. This field guide to enchanted creatures starts with several very important caveats to young readers, in a way that absolutely aligns with …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/13/how-to-spot-a-magical-woodland-creature-by-sarah-glenn-marsh-lilla-bolecz/

A year of Diana Wynne Jones: Wrap-up!

Emily's photo of her bookcase shows her copies of all the Diana Wynne Jones books to be read in the readthrough. Many are tattered.

This post concludes my year of reading all of Diana Wynne Jones’s books! After her death in 2011, Earwig and the Witch was published the same year, and a collection of her nonfiction writing was published in 2012. Much more recently, Moondust Books has published collections of her plays and poems! In this post I’ll …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/11/a-year-of-diana-wynne-jones-wrap-up/

Two Short Takes

Fathomfolk by Eliza Chan

I’ve read that The Innkeeper’s Song is Peter S. Beagle’s favorite among his novels, and I think I can understand why. He writes the novel from no less than ten points of view — including a shapeshifting fox — allowing him to show events from numerous different perspectives, to show how the same actions have …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/10/two-short-takes/

My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, Vol. 2 by Emil Ferris

This graphic novel took Emil Ferris something like seven years to write and draw, and it was honestly worth every minute. My only quibble with it is the idea that it somehow serves as a conclusion. Sure, it solves the murder, presented in the first volume, of who killed Anka. But the emotions are still …

Continue reading

Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/07/my-favorite-thing-is-monsters-vol-2-by-emil-ferris/