Closure

It is with great regret that I inform you this will be the last blog entry I will be making for Fictiongarden.

It was a good run while it lasted, but due to financial troubles I cannot afford to keep the site going. I shall still supply the odd review here and there on Amazon/Goodreads but outside of that I'm done.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me over the last few years and all the kind words and intriguing submissions. It was probably the most entertaining time of my life and I'll miss it.

Last but not least: keep writing.

- J.R.

Temporarily ceasing my reading of new submissions.

Just a quick heads up to let everyone know that I will be taking a break from reading and reviewing the latest self-published submissions.

My reason for doing so is selfish but simple: Fool's Quest by Robin Hobb has finally been published and I must read it.

While I almost exclusively read self-published or small press fantasy works, this is one of those rare exceptions that I need to read immediately. I appreciate your patience in this matter and I'll be getting back to my reviews in due course.

SPFBO and Storybundle book enters the Recommended Reading list.

It's that time again, where I foist a brief and addled update upon you to let you know that I've uncovered yet another great piece of self-published fiction.

In this case it was hard to miss, given that it was both part of Mark Lawrence's Self Published Fantasy Blog-Off and making an appearance in a fantasy Storybundle. Clearly I had to check it out, and I'm glad I did.

Sand of Bone is a character-rich desert-based fantasy that doesn't pull punches. It's precisely what the modern fantasy world needs and I hope that it propels Blair into penning a long and successful series.

More Recommended Reading, you say?

It has been an exciting time for me over the last month, moving to a different country and everything, but nobody came here to read about my life!

Fortunately I was able to get some reading in, and the result is one of those books stood out enough to enter it into the Recommended Reading section.

The Penitent Assassin by Shawn Wickersheim is another book on Mark Lawrence's Self-Published Blog Off competition, but I was aware of it long before then. Thankfully I got round to reading it and wasn't disappointed.

While there are flaws, they are easily forgiven due to the quality of the writing and the superb plotting of this dark and gruesome tale of vengeance.

So if you're not above graphic descriptions of violence, you'll definitely want to give this a shot!

You Benem believe it! Another addition to the growing Recommended Reading section!

David Benem is our newest entrant to the Recommended Reading section with his delightfully dark What Remains of Heroes.

Benem is another quality author brought to my attention by Mark Lawrence's excellent self-published blog-off that I've spoken about before.

So if you're looking for a solid gritty fantasy in the style of Stover and Abercrombie then give this a shot. Yet more proof that self-published work can hang with the best of them.

Harry Connolly joins the Recommended Reading list.

It was obvious from the word 'go' that Harry Connolly was an author worthy of inclusion into the Recommended Reading section of Fictiongarden.com. To be honest, I could probably make a second entry and stick him in our hall of fame!

The Way Into Chaos is a rollicking, fast-paced fantasy adventure with all the grit and determination of its contemporaries. An excellent kickstarted book which sports a glorious cover and excellent prose.

Then again, if you've been even remotely following the fantasy self-publication scene over the last year or so you already know that.

I can only hope that the next book I read will be anywhere near as good as this one.

Thievery at its finest! A new addition to the Recommended Reading list.

After a month of reading a number of books that certainly qualified for my 'grinding through the pile' section (good enough to finish, not good enough for this site) I've finally struck gold again with another great piece of fantasy.

Michael McClung's The Thief Who Pulled on Trouble's Braids is a classic thief-based Sword and Sorcery tale, but instead of your typical heists we have a tale of a woman hunting down a murderer.

The book rips along at a fast pace and doesn't let up, giving various nods to the works that came before it but never borrowing from them wholesale.

When last I checked this title was free on Amazon, so go pick it up and give it a read. It's short and punchy and full of intrigue!