Tag Archives: Fantasy

Ionheart

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Lukas Kummer. Top Shelf Productions, (168p) ISBN: 9781603095587. Graphic Novel, read 21/05/25, eBook ★★★★☆

Ionheart

Ionheart

I’m pretty much asking for any non-Manga graphic novels from Net Galley at the moment (I received this in exchange for an honest review) as there is so many good ones coming to print right now across so many different genres.

Ionheart initially places us in a world of knights, demons, princesses, castles, and quests, with a returning knight and a some nods to Arthurian legends.

This is suddenly all upturned when the demon is revealed, though there are quite a few hints when magic items are shown.

Transdimensional high jinx then ensues, identities are revealed, motives and back story is expanded upon and the twists and turns get better and better.

The graphic style of the story telling is nice and crisp with a great use of bold colours and theming short sections of the story together with one main colour as an indicator really works and keeps the story going.

The story of Billy is a brilliantly twisting one with a fascinating ending (?) and lots of different threads weaving backwards and forwards through time and universes.

Mayowa and the Sea of Words

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Chibundu Onuzo. Bloomsbury Children’s, (288p) ISBN: 9781526661005. Middle Grade, read 14/05/25, Paperback ★★★★☆

Mayowa and the Sea of Words

Mayowa and the Sea of Words

I’ve got to admit when I received this I was a bit trepidatious as the cover reminded me of so many book in the past several years and the blurb reminded me of a couple of books I had read and enjoyed in the past.

I needn’t have worried as the story of Mayowa and her growing ability to channel emotions through jumping on books, or as her Grandad calls it logosalting (yes I know, a bit of a mouthful) turned into an amazing adventure with appropriate baddies.

This is the first of a new series which explores this power and follows Mayowa as her skills develop and a good first book it is.

Mayowa has always been told by her mum and dad not to jump on books and not to copy Grandpa Edwards, but circumstances conspire to have her staying a summer with him and this is where she learns about her family secret (on dad’s side anyway), logosalting and how it has been used in the past for good and evil and that it should only be used if it causes no harm.

Mayowa and her Grandpa (Baron Edgerley) get involved in foiling nefarious racist bigots from getting a piece of legislation through parliament that would mean refugees would be left to drown if they capsized, this is being pushed through by evil logosalters who shouldn’t exist according to Grandpa.

Lots of adventures, training montages, upsets, evil twins, new friends, and family, always family makes this a well-paced read that you don’t want to put down. Read it in three commute sessions and would have read it in one long sitting if given half the chance.

“These aren’t the droids you’re looking for.”

The end was exciting and satisfyingly left a lot open for book 2, especially mum’s side of the family, I think…

I received this from Bloomsbury Children’s in exchange for an honest review.

Checkpoint Miniatures (was CP Models)

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Old Mage

Old Mage

CP Models is based in Hinckley, Leicestershire and have been going for quite a while now, and are now called Checkpoint Miniatures (this is an old post from Blogger)

I’ve bought a few models from here over the years and one of my favourites has always been the Old Mage and their other adventurer fantasy range.

I’ve also used a few of their models for In Her Majesty’s Name, and a few of the Night Terrors for D&D.

Always pleased with the quality of the casts and the quality of the service.

Website: https://www.checkpointminiatures.co.uk

Address:

Mark Dixon
Checkpoint Miniatures
7 Tennyson Road
Hinckley
Leicestershire
LE10 0TH

The Secret Romantic’s Book of Magic

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edited by Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane. Titan Books, (384p) ISBN: 9781835410912. Romantasy, read 23/04/25, Paperback ★★★★★

The Secret Romantic’s Book of Magic

The Secret Romantic’s Book of Magic

I knew I had to get a copy of this as soon as I saw it, I even know where it’s going to go in the shop as soon as it’s released!

An anthology of 12 short stories from some of the best writers in Romantasy at the moment, what could go wrong?

Nothing, that’s the answer, absolutely nothing!

I’ve got to admit I stormed through these stories as each was perfect in itself making the book as a whole irresistible.

I loved them all; the twists of traditional tales, forays into worlds known and unknown, enemies to lovers, all of it.

This is the perfect book to have and dip into now and again, as each short story deserves attention, but you could like me consume it all in two sittings looking forward to going back to savour the stories once again.

I think my favourites must be: The Larkspur, The King’s Witch, and San’t Marten’s Book of Mild Melancholy, though this is really splitting hairs as I enjoyed them all.

I’m really hoping the finished product has pink sprayed edges and a keyhole cut in the dust cover as going full on is what this book really deserves.

I received this from Titan Books in exchange for an honest review.

The Lighthouse (2019)

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The Lighthouse (2019)

The Lighthouse (2019)

This is going to be the first of the reviews that I’m going to be putting out there, learning how to write about film (and writing words down in general). I’ve always been a huge film/TV fan and never really felt I was allowed to have an opinion, but you know what? I do and I’m going to be sharing it through semi-regular posts on this blog.

The format of the review may change as I go along and gain more confidence and skill in writing but I thought if I don’t get one out now I never will.

You can always follow me over on Bluesky for the occasional live watch through of TV series as and when I do them and various ramblings about whatever seems to take my fancy.

Shot in (almost) square format which gave an old-fashioned feel to the film, though the black and white was crisp and had none of the greyness associated with older films. The deep black tones of the film matched the deep tones of the constant fog horn setting a mood that got darker and darker as the film progressed.

“The light is mine”

The darkness is so oppressive that the counterpoint and beat of the lighthouse light felt alive, a heartbeat, a seductive creature in itself, maybe the real inhabitant of the island.

Both Patterson and Dafoe portray their characters brilliantly, this is emphasised with stunning direction and camera work, every frame is redolent with depth and meaning, with the solitude being carefully crafted and counterbalanced with foreboding and foreshadowing.

There is a definite Lovecraftian feel to the oppression, the sea, and madness. This tone then ups a gear a third of the way into the film changing from a pure portrait of solitude to something else as the wind changes.

The slow creeping horror builds throughout the first part of the film to what became a necessary conclusion.

Touching on a lot of different themes this is a great, though harrowing, watch with stunning performances from both actors and I’m sure it will improve from multiple watchings.

A well-crafted portrayal of a bleak existence and descent into alcohol-fuelled madness where myth and reality blend into one wind-swept and rain-lashed nightmare.

The Lighthouse | November 1, 2019 (United States) 7.4
Director: Robert EggersWriter: Robert Eggers, Max EggersStars: Stars, Robert Pattinson, Willem Dafoe, Valeriia Karaman, Summary:
Source: imdb.com