Hello, hello, book fans! We’re back with one last semi-finalist announcement and an update on where we’ll be going from here. We’re also announcing our last cuts.
Let’s set with the cuts:
Errant Gift by Rhys Price
What the judges had to say:
Graham: I didn’t enjoy this as much as others seemed to. It has strong characters and a great villain. The author did a brilliant job of each POV being immersive and descriptive however it did draw me out the story in most aspects and had me skipping some parts because it didn’t read well. The story felt slack and did nothing to keep me interested.
When the Stars Alight by Camilla Andrew
What the judges had to say:
Dave: When the Stars Alight has a lot of things I love in a book: romantic fantasy in a well-structured gaslamp fantasy setting, courtly intrigue, and some enemies to lovers goodness. While Andrew is certainly a talented writer, I found the prose was often flowery to the point it pulled me out of the story. There are some seriously beautiful descriptive passages here, but at the same there are other parts that just feel overdone, and I struggled to get fully immersed. I also found myself struggling to connect with the characters, and things seemed to be happening without any cohesive threads. I’m a character focused reader, and I just want to love some characters, but I just couldn’t connect here. As I said, there’s some amazing prose in here, and I’d recommend this book to people who love lush descriptions, gaslamp fantasy, and lots of morally gray characters. In terms of SPFBO, I put this book down at 33%.
Isabelle: When the Stars Alight by Camilla Andrew is a fantasy story with interesting world building, descriptive prose, and plenty of darkness underneath its pretty surface. I enjoyed getting multiple POVs in this cool world where I wanted to learn so much more about the creatures and cultures, but I quickly realized that there were some that I much preferred over others. The politics were intriguing but the pacing felt too slow at times and the character development not as deep as I would’ve liked. It felt like the prose almost distracted from that aspect for me. Though I didn’t feel it was strong enough to beat out our semifinalist choices, I am intrigued enough to return to this eventually.
Ferrian’s Winter: Book one of the Sorcerer’s Valley
What the judges had to say:
Will: This is the longest book in the entire SPFBO XI contest, but overall, I’m glad I read it. I felt that (for the most part), the work that Leigh put into the three main characters paid off. They were interesting and pushed the narrative along. The world she puts them in is a fairly standard fantasy land that feels very familiar.
As for the negatives, the book’s length definitely is an issue. It could have been packaged into two or maybe three separate books with tighter narratives and pacing. And while the main characters work, there is barely any meaningful female character representation until close to the end and the POV sometimes swings from one character to another within the same scene.
The Heart of the North by Patrick McNaughton
What the judges had to say:
Graham: The Heart of the North had the makings of something great. Coming of age, kingdoms, political drama. But where the dialogue and world was at a high, the characters and story was at a low. There were moments where the decisions taken weren’t thought through and it became too fantastical in itself. It’s a story that’s been done before and needed something new to succeed.
Threadbound (The Girl Who Cheated the Wind) by M.E.Moirin
What the judges had to say:
Will: Threadbound by M.E. Moirin bills itself as a folk story with its roots in Eastern Europe and the Middle East. There are hints of Shaharazad from The Thousand and One Nights. Moirin certainly wove a similar tale to some of those and I enjoyed my time in Jasna’s world.
While there is a lot to like about Threadbound in terms of the main character and the folk story journey she embarks upon, the side characters need some work. Often characters just pop up without backstory and we are just expected to piece them into Jasna’s life. I also felt the pacing was a bit backward at times. But in the end, I couldn’t help but like what I found in Threadbound.
Isabelle: Threadbound by M.R. Moirin is a fantasy book with lush world building based on Slavic folklore with Ottoman influence and dark magic that draws the reader in. While the plot did eventually lose me and I struggled with the young MC, I enjoyed how the book felt dark yet also whimsical in its dreaminess? Her journey allowed us to meet many interesting creatures, which was definitely my favorite part (I’ve always been a sucker for world building).
And our fifth semi-finalist:
Flint in the Bones by Eva St. John
What the judges had to say:
Will: Flint in the Bones is one of my favorite reads from the FanFiAddict SPFBO allotment. The unique world that Eva St. John paints for us is a fascinating one that combines various historical time periods along with unique magic. In the initial stages of Flint in the Bones, I felt a momentum pushing the narrative along, revealing secrets from this world all while getting our main character, Bish, to where she needs to be to solve the mystery in front of her. But when we get to the middle portion, the momentum slows to a trickle. We’re told that it’s imperative that she tracks down a wayward mage, but once she travels to Norwich, she seems to almost forget about her primary mission. There’s also a lot of…Britishness to this book as well that may make it a little tricky for non-UK audiences to latch onto. I do love a good British mystery, but there seems to be some unspoken elements about the city of Norwich that are left unsaid and it almost feels like if I lived across the pond, I’d simply understand some of this book a tad better. Ultimately when Bish gets her groove back and the mystery becomes a little clearer, the book gets back on pace and sets up a sequel very nicely.
Isabelle: Flint in the Bones by Eva St. John was my first SPFBO read this year and weeks later, I’m still thinking about it, especially its world building, which was my favorite part. The way it affected both the people and the plot was so interesting. Though I struggled with some of the plot details and it took me a while to really like the MC, overall I had a good time with this book, especially once the MC’s confidence grew and she had more emotional development as well. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series!
Congrats to Eva!
Now, the judges who didn’t have the semi-finalists in their original allotment will be reading those books. Expect to see some reviews pop up here on Fanfiaddict before we reveal a finalist nearer to the end of the first round. We had a really strong first 30 and some great books didn’t make the final 5. Thanks to all the authors for submitting!
Leave a Reply