Art is Fanfiction of Life

Long ago, Baron Valdemar and his people fled the mighty Eastern Empire and founded a new nation in the west. But soon the question of succession arose: how could he be sure future heirs and leaders were worthy? In desperation, King Valdemar prayed to all the gods of his people’s many religions, and his plea was answered with the appearance of pure white horses. Except they weren’t horses, they were Companions, magical beings that would Choose and bond to those with psychic powers and good hearts. These Heralds would serve the kingdom as leaders, diplomats, warriors, lawkeepers, and scholars.

The Heralds of Valdemar series spans over 2300 years of history in Valdemar and the surrounding lands. It’s a huge series, with over 30 books divided into (mostly) trilogies, each focusing on a different time period and set of characters. The main part of the series is composed of the Arrows, Mage Winds, and Mage Storms books, but parts of the Last Herald-Mage and Gryphon trilogies are crucial to the plot.

It’s one of my favorite fantasy worlds, full of interesting characters and settings, lots of magic, good-hearted heroes, and a lot of diversity. The Collegia in Haven train not only Heralds, but Bards and Healers as well, so you end up with a lot of different perspectives- and that’s before we even see the other countries. Ethical questions also come up often, from the proper use of telepathic powers to the troubles a magic sword causes when it sends its bearer to the aid of any nearby woman in danger, and even questions of good and bad parenting.

NOTE: Some of what I discuss here involves mid-series plot developments.

Captain William Laurence of the British Navy is content with his ship and his duty to fight the French at sea. And then he comes into possession of a valuable dragon egg, and very soon a hatchling who will accept no other rider.

Laurence at first resents being saddled with young Temeraire, but by the time he’s shipped off to Scotland to begin training, the two are inseparable.

“If you would like to have your ship back,” Temeraire said, “I will let someone else ride me. […] I will not make you stay.” Laurence stood motionless for a moment, his hands still on Temeraire’s head, with the dragon’s warm breath curling around him. “No, my dear,” he said at last, softly, knowing it was only the truth. “I would rather have you than any ship in the Navy.” (His Majesty’s Dragon)

Laurence must now join the Aerial Corps of dragon-mounted fighters, a secretive force he believes to be inferior to his beloved Navy. But he will find his beliefs on this matter, and on many, many other matters, challenged by the experiences that are to come. Having only recently learned that dragons are intelligent, he arrives at Loch Laggan to find a dragon running training drills.

He is further astonished to find women serving in the Corps on equal footing with men. Captain Catherine Harcourt, tough-as-nails veteran Captain Jane Roland, and her daughter Emily Roland feature heavily in the books to come.

All Our Worlds: Diverse Fantastic Fiction

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Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Reasons for Inclusion: Japanese characters and setting, gay protagonists

Publisher’s Summary:

Hour of the Lotus General Sho Iwata is devastated when the man he secretly loves, Prince Narita, is struck with a mysterious illness. Iwata’s current lover, Hiroshi, is well aware of the general’s unrequited passion. But that isn’t his biggest problem. His sister is Narita’s favorite consort, but Hiroshi believes she has been replaced by an imposter. When they discover the true cause of the illness, they will have to battle an ancient spirit and survive.

Fox Hunter Lord General Iwata Sho sets out in search of the mysterious Fox Hunter. When he finds his former lover, Hiroshi, he discovers a changed man, scarred inside and out and consumed by vengeance. Together with Narita’s grown son Daigo, Iwata and Hiroshi pursue the malicious spirit as it leaves bloodshed in its wake. Iwata worries about what will become of Hiroshi when the fox is defeated—if Hiroshi’s revenge doesn’t kill him first.

My Review:

(4.5/5 stars)

In a mythical Japan where spirits haunt the living, loyal General Sho Iwata struggles to protect the men he loves.

The first story is fast-paced and reminiscent of folktales and legends. Iwata and his lover, Hiroshi, must save the Prince from a spirit that is draining his life, a spirit that has disguised itself as Hiroshi’s beloved sister.

The second, longer tale picks up eight years later. Iwata sets out to find Hiroshi, who has become consumed by his quest for revenge against the kitsune that killed his sister. But the years have changed both of them, and they will have to deal with both the spirits and their relationship on the journey.

These stories draw on Japanese culture and mythology without ever stumbling into awkward exposition. The magic is an indispensable part of the landscape, smoothly woven together. The characters are as believable as their world.

Iwata is all about military precision and merciless disipline. Hiroshi is more endearing in the first story. He shows his emotions a little more, which makes his transformation into the cold Fox Hunter even more shocking.

The second story gives more insight into the characters’ personalities. Their quest allows time for them to interact, to argue, to yearn for their goals. And eventually, to express their love.

All Our Worlds: Diverse Fantastic Fiction

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Reasons for Inclusion: Lesbian romance, queer-normalized world

Publisher’s Summary: Only a blackbird girl can set her free…

Envy is a lucky lady with a secret vice: she’s one of the best thieves in the kingdom–something her current employer, the king himself, has no knowledge of. When one of her more audacious gambles gets her caught, Envy thinks her luck’s run out. Infuriated, the king banishes her to Bran Tower, a haunted, forgotten prison of no escape.

But, by day, a mysterious blackbird brings Envy crumbs of food–and, by night, the beautiful ghost Merle befriends her. Or so Envy thinks. When Merle, no ghost at all, reveals her terrible truth–cursed to spend daylight as a blackbird, night as the mortal woman she once was–Envy confesses, too: that she’s fallen for the blackbird girl.

But love has made them reckless in a forest of dangerous men. On the night of their planned escape, Merle is kidnapped by a band of brigands seeking the treasure of her father, the Blackbird King. Envy is brave but is now faced with an almost impossible task: to journey through the cursed forest in the hopes of saving her beloved Merle.

My Review:

(5/5 stars)

This is exactly the sort of book I love to curl up with. I read it in one sitting, enjoying every moment.

Envy’s world is a fairytale kingdom, where kings lock people in towers, girls turn into blackbirds, witches keep cats and brew magic potions, bandits rule the wild, and love can save the day.

The settings were beautifully realized: a patchwork shantytown, the dark forest, the witch’s cabin.

The romance was sweet and the characters were enchanting. The story took an original twist on old fairytale tropes while keeping enough tradition to feel warm and familiar.

All Our Worlds

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(a few) Reasons for Inclusion:

Tesa in Silent Dances and Silent Songs is Native American and Deaf. The Elspind species in Shadow World use neutral pronouns until maturity. Minor recurring character Dr Blanket is genderless and uses “seloz” as a pronoun starting in Book 2. Etsane in Ancestor’s World is Ethiopian. Cara in Shadow World is black. Jib in Silent Dances is Maori. Serge in Serpent’s Gift has prosthetic hands. Alexis in Voices of Chaos is lesbian. Magdalena in Voices of Chaos is Hispanic. Secondary characters are very racially diverse.

First Book Summary:  

Earth’s first contact with an alien race turns to disaster when a friendly encounter erupts into inexplicable violence and the threat of interstellar war.

But two ordinary individuals–Mahree Burroughs, an ordinary woman with a gift for friendship, and Dhurrrkk’, a male Simiu with boundless curiosity–have forged a bond of understanding that bridges their many differences.

Along with a reluctant Robert Gable, brilliant young ship’s physician, they make an astounding journey across the stars, to seek a way to save the future of both species!

My review:

At first glance, the Starbridge series looks like fairly ordinary 90s science fiction. But behind the sometimes-awkward prose is a hell of a lot of spirit, and diversity proud on every page.

A C Crispin, taking after the traditions of genre-builders Andre Norton and Anne McCaffrey, begins Starbridge with a teenage girl hero. Of course, Mahree Burroughs isn’t yet the legendary figure she’ll become. For now, she’s just a girl on an unremarkable spaceship.

But then the Desiree encounters the Simiu, the first aliens humans have ever met. What follows is a truly amazing First Contact story, filled with all the realistic concerns of communication with an alien species.

Mahree quickly finds a friend among the Simiu. And then it all goes wrong- a misunderstanding turns to violence turns to distrust, and the First Contact threatens to fall apart.

Mahree and Dhurrrkk’ steal a spaceship and save the day, making even more allies and friends in the process. Their story culminates in the founding of Starbridge Academy, a school where students from all species learn to work together.

The rest of the series follows the stories of various Starbridge students. Of particular note is Tesa Wakandagi, featured in Book 2, Silent Dances, and Book 5, Silent Songs. Tesa is Native American (Lakota), and she’s Deaf. Her assignment: to work with the Grus, a species of bird-like aliens who use a signed language.

“Being Indian is part of what makes me who I am… my culture, my identity. Well, so is being Deaf”

Both Native American and Deaf culture are discussed in Silent Dances. Tesa’s parents want her to get an implant to “fix” her condition, something she doesn’t want.

“To you, deafness is a physical condition. To her, it’s a cultural one.”

Tesa stands up for herself on those issues, but that’s only a part of her plot. 

Her mission puts her in a unique position to not only forge a connection between humans and Grus, but to meet yet another species and build a long-awaited peace. 

And that’s only three of the seven books.

The characters are treated with respect- nobody is ever reduced to stereotypes or made into a plot point. Acceptance and respect are the expected norm at Starbridge Academy. The stories are fun and filled with characters from all sorts of species, not just humans.

This is a humane and fun series- science fiction that leaves behind war and technobabble to focus on connections and relations, and most of all the importance of communication.

All Our Worlds: Diverse Fantastic Fiction

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Publisher: Bold Strokes Books

Reasons for Inclusion: Rosetta’s family is Jewish, and all the main characters are queer.

Publisher’s Summary: Billiwack, California, 1884. When translator Rosetta Stein comes across her rival, Bartholomew Vincent, under attack by weird, raven-headed man-beasts behind the infamous Puckered Rosebud Gentleman’s Club, she senses opportunity. She rescues him in exchange for a crack at the commission he stole from under her nose—a strangely inscribed artifact found by Big Sur bigwig George Taylor Granville in the Santa Lucia mountains. Misfortune has stalked Vincent from the moment he took on the project, and he’s only too happy to share it. In the meantime, a lady marshal has come to Billiwack, investigating rumors of strange, unlicensed weapons, and she can’t seem to decide if she’d rather kiss Rosetta or arrest her. And Vincent is suffering romantic complications of his own, in the forms of Rosetta’s charming layabout brother, and an amorous professor who won’t take God, no! for an answer.

My Review:

(4.5/5 stars)

This one was really good! Steampunk weapons, a lady Marshal, supernatural rituals, and a cast full of gay. The settings- dank lamplit alleys, warm libraries full of books and experiments, stormy streets, felt as much alive as the characters. The conversations moved the plot and the action never got tedious.

Rosetta Stein (punny name) caught me from the beginning, where she put herself in danger to rescue her rival. She’s fought for a long time for her place in academia, because as a gay Jewish woman the conservative heads of the school are always looking to push her down.

The rest of the characters were interesting and entertaining, especially Erin St George, the tall and imposing government marshal Rosetta finds herself pitted against.

All Our Worlds: Diverse Fantastic Fiction

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Reasons for Inclusion: Human characters are racially diverse, one alien species is poly-normative, and there’s a F/F relationship midway through.

Publisher’s Summary: Somewhere within our crowded sky, a crew of wormhole builders hops from planet to planet, on their way to the job of a lifetime. To the galaxy at large, humanity is a minor species, and one patched-up construction vessel is a mere speck on the starchart. This is an everyday sort of ship, just trying to get from here to there. But all voyages leave their mark, and even the most ordinary of people have stories worth telling. A young Martian woman, hoping the vastness of space will put some distance between herself and the life she‘s left behind. An alien pilot, navigating life without her own kind. A pacifist captain, awaiting the return of a loved one at war. Set against a backdrop of curious cultures and distant worlds, this episodic tale weaves together the adventures of nine eclectic characters, each on a journey of their own.

My Review:

(5/5 stars)

Sunsets:

The Swamp:

Waterfalls:

And my personal favorite!

The Night Sky:

Make these 2 things clear to everyone you know: 1) We MUST vote in primaries. If we do not vote in primaries corporatists, oil, and lobbyists win. You will be told by the under-educated that “A vote for bernie is a vote for the Republicans” - this is because they don’t understand the difference between the primary elections, and the actual elections.

The primary decides whether our *THIRD PARTY CANDIDATE* Bernie GETS to replace one of the 2 “parties”, with a man who is against the 2 party system. - That’s the most important part.

Second – Make sure that everyone you know understand this: The youth decide this election. – For the first time in history, there are MORE PEOPLE interested in a 3rd party person breaking the system, than are interested in supporting either of the two parties. 45% of american voters want a win from a third party. Which means that 1) They are within a 3% margin of a totally smashing defeat of the 2-party system, and the establishment’s ACTUAL plan to defeat it is: Hope that nobody notices. All the adults are trained into their stupidity.

When Barak Obama ran he almost doubled young voter turnout. We need just HALF of that to happen again, and for the 3rd-party believers to be united. United. From Anarchists to Libertarians, we need them all to agree to start out, by breaking the system.

THAT’S the primary. - If he gets the votes on the floor, and they REFUSE to give him the nomination? Then we’re at war. Period. We are no longer ruled by consent.

THEN, after he has the nomination, he will have a campaign team. A good one. We want to know who they are and then call them and ask them what they want and then do what they say. To the finish line. That’s about it.

Characters: Korra & Asami

Series: Legend of Korra

Photos by Bhorn

Which I’m sure isn’t what was meant, but it’s what it sounds like.