Tag: K.R.R. Lockhaven Page 1 of 2

Top 5 All-Time Desert Island Books
“K.R.R. (Kyle Robert Redundant) Lockhaven used to love writing as a kid. Starting at about ten years old, he wrote about anything from dragons to sentient jellybeans. Somewhere along the line, he lost that love. But now as a firefighter, husband, and father of two sons, he found it again. Unfortunately, he couldn’t find the really good stuff from back then…

“Kyle is a huge proponent of summer camps for burn survivor kids. [A portion] from every book he ever sells will go to the Washington State Council of Firefighters Burn Foundation, sponsors of Camp Eyabsut. For more info, or to donate money or time, go to www.campeyabsut.org.”

I’m truly delighted to close out the second run of this series submitted by authors with the return of K.R.R. Lockhaven to the series. He wanted to take another shot at this after last year. Who am I to deny him that?

Desert Island Part 2

In his infinite mercy, the Irresponsible Reader has allowed those of us stranded on deserted desert islands to double the number of books we can have during our stays. The first five books I chose can be found here (you should probably warm up with a few gentle eye rolls before you read it). In the last installment, I picked several of my favorite books, as well as a guide to building a boat from scratch so I could eventually get back home to my loved ones. In this edition, I’m going strictly with books I haven’t yet read. Also, I finally got my delete key fixed so there won’t be any embarrassing blunders this time. I can write stuff like poop poopy poopoo and simply erase it….

Damn.

Apparently, my stupid delete key is broken again.

Anyway, on to books 6-10 that I would take to a desert island:

6. What to Say When You Talk to Yourself by Shad Helmstetter, Ph.D.

When I’m stranded on said island, there will be a serious lack of people to talk to. So, I’d better learn how to talk to myself, right? But what does one say to one’s self? I wouldn’t have a clue where to start. This book will show me the way.

Its description says it’s “Considered by many to be one of the most important and helpful personal growth books ever written.” As an author, I know it’s impossible to lie on the book description, so this is fantastic. Many, it says. More than two people consider this to be one of the most important and helpful personal growth books ever written. I’m sold!

But seriously, it looks kind of good. Eliminating negative self-talk will be important for me on the island.

7. House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
House of Leaves Cover
I have been fascinated by the idea of this book for a while, but I feel like I’ll never be able to give it the time and effort it demands of readers. Until now! Once stranded on the island, I’ll have more time than I know what to do with.

If you haven’t heard of this book, a picture might help you get the basic gist:
House of Leaves Sample
This is just one example of the strange formatting of the book. It’s an epistolary metafiction written in an academic format that focuses on a story within a story and is rife with exhibits, appendices, and footnotes. All of this sounds a bit daunting, but, again, I’m going to have lots of time to kill. From what I can gather, the book is about a larger-on-the-inside labyrinth in a house, so it has some serious Piranesi (written by Susanna Clarke) vibes, which I love.

8. Cain’s Jawbone by Edward Powys Mathers
Cain's Jawbone Cover

In a similar vein to House of Leaves, this book challenges the shit out of the usual novel format, only this one requires reader participation.

Cain’s Jawbone, first published in 1934, is a puzzle that consists of a 100-page prose narrative with its pages arranged in the wrong order. I would prefer to take the second edition, which is a boxed set of page cards, to the island. To solve the puzzle, the reader must determine the correct order of the pages and figure out the names of the murderers and victims in the story. The pages can be arranged in 9.33×10¹⁵⁷ possible combinations, but there is only one correct order, so this could be a great way to pass a LOT of time. The solution to the puzzle has never been made public, and, at the time of this writing, there have only been three people in the world who have solved it. That number will be four by the time I get home!

9. Legacy of Brick and Bone by Krystle Matar
Legacy of Brick and Bone Cover

I can’t believe I haven’t read this yet! What is wrong with me? I absolutely loved Legacy of the Brightwash, yet I have let this likely-wonderful book sit unread on my shelf for much too long.

For those who don’t know, Legacy of Brick and Bone is book 2 in the Tainted Dominion series. I would describe the series as dark Gaslamp fantasy. At times, it might be considered grimdark, but those labels are a whole different thing I can ponder while alone on the island. The first book in this series surprised me. I had heard all the praise about it but assumed it wasn’t going to be for me. The main reason, I suppose, was that I had heard a big part of it was romance. I have nothing against romance but it’s usually not something I seek out. I loved the romance in this one, though. I loved the romance, the worldbuilding, the complex characters, the action, the prose, and, most of all, the emotions. Matar is fantastic at writing and eliciting the entire spectrum of emotions. Letting out emotions will be important for me on the island.

10. In Defense of Sanity by G.K. Chesterton
In Defense of Sanity Cover

While alone on this island, my sanity will be in danger of slipping. Hopefully, I have some kind of ball I can befriend. If not, this book might help me defend my precious and fragile sanity.

In Defense of Sanity is a collection of essays written by the prolific G.K. Chesterton. To be honest, I wasn’t aware of Mr. Chesterton until researching books for this list. I thought, haha, a book about defending sanity will be perfect and funny and clever and everyone else will think so too and everyone will like me and respect me for my cleverness. What I didn’t expect was that this author would be a genius! At the time of this writing, the sample size justifying this assessment is rather small. I have only read two of his essays: Cheese and On Running After One’s Hat.

Cheese is a hilarious essay about how cheese doesn’t get the respect it deserves in poetry and literature. He goes on and on about cheese as if it’s the most important thing in the world (and he might be right!) I can only hope to have some cheese with me on the island.

On Running After One’s Hat is a slightly more serious rumination on life. In it, Chesterton challenges the idea of inconvenience, giving the example of chasing one’s hat in the wind. He chooses to see this act as an opportunity for fun and adventure instead of an embarrassing inconvenience. Throughout the essay, he challenges the reader to shift their perspective about…everything. The way someone looks at the world can greatly influence their mood as they go through the unavoidable ups and downs of life. Mr. Chesterton and I are kindred spirits in that regard. Perspective isn’t everything, but its power, in my opinion, is often overlooked. My favorite quote from this essay (and one of my favorite quotes full stop) is:

An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered.

Being stranded on a deserted island will be quite an inconvenience. Maybe a bit of a perspective shift could do me some good!

Thank you, again, H.C.! Writing posts for your blog is always fun. It’s an honor to be asked to return 🙂

Lockhaven is the author of a hopepunk trilogy, a cozy fantasy, a nutty multiverse dragon novel, and its Choose Your Own Adventure-esque sequel. All of them are well-worth your time. Go check out his site to learn about them!

Top 5 All-Time Desert Island Books Footer

Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

My Favorite Non-Crime Fiction of 2023

By HCNewton

On January 5, 2024

In Fantasy, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, News/Misc., Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy

2023 Favorite Non-Crime
Back when I started this site, I knew the content would be largely “genre”-oriented. I’d have wagered the content would be roughly 1/3 Mystery/Detective fiction, 1/3 Urban Fantasy, and slightly less than 1/3 SFF, with “non-genre” fiction, humor, and non-fiction being enough to make my one-thirds just an approximation (honestly, if you asked me what I read regularly, that’s pretty much how I’d describe it today). Actual numbers show that’s wrong—it’s typically almost 40% Crime/Thriller Fiction, the rest of fiction is around 30% combined. This is just a long-winded way to get to these two points: because Crime Fiction takes such a big chunk of my reading, it gets its own “Favorite” list, but none of the others really garner enough numbers for their own.

When it comes to this particular list of favorites this year, it was harder than I expected. I got it down to 17 with relatively no problem. But trimming those last 7 was difficult. I waffled a bit—and considered a top 15, but I talked myself out of it and have a list of 10 favorite non-Crime Fiction Novels of 2023 that I really like. Hopefully, you will, too.

As always, re-reads don’t count—only the works that were new to me.

(in alphabetical order by author)

Chain-Gang All-Stars

by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

My original post
If there’s a book I’ve recommended more frequently this year, I can’t think of it. I’ve also bought more copies of it to give away than any other. At the core, this is a satire and critique of the American culture–particularly as it relates to sports, mass entertainment, and (most importantly) the carceral system. Pitting convicted felons against each other in gladiatorial fights-to-death, selling merch featuring them, turning them into Reality TV personalities between bouts…Adjei-Brenyah holds up the worst of the US to look at.

It’s a book about death—violent death at the hands of violent people who only hope to go on so they can kill again—However, in a serious way the book is really about life. It’s a celebration of life, a call to protect it, a call to see it for what it is. It’s a reminder that “where life is precious, life is precious.” It’s impossible to read this without being moved–perhaps to action. But it’s also a visceral and exciting read that can entertain you without forcing you to think deeply about what it wants you to.

(I don’t know why I knocked it 1/2 a star at the time…I can’t think of a reason for it now, but…)

4 1/2 Stars

Partial Function

by JCM Berne

My original post
This has none of the socially redeeming characteristics of the above book. But it does have wuxia-inspired magical martial arts, super-powered dinosaur-like monsters, a John Wick/Bryan Mills character if played by Michelle Yeoh, and snappy dialogue. It’s a story about a retired warrior who gets back to work so she can rescue her kidnapped daughters and the wake of destruction that follows (a mighty wake it is, too). And it’s just fun from beginning to end.

5 Stars

The Perception Of Dolls

by Anthony Croix, Edited by Russell Day

My original post
I did an inadequate job of describing this book and what I was blown away by in 15 paragraphs. There’s no way I’m going to manage it in the 1-2 paragraphs I give myself for this.
I’m dazzled by this book. I was hooked to an extent I’m not used to. I was captivated. I was (at least momentarily) obsessed with it. That’s worn off in the 50 weeks it’s been since I’ve finished, but it would take me no more than 5 pages of a re-read to get back to that. This is a recounting of one investigative reporter’s look into a triple homicide and attempted suicide in a home, the paranormal research that occurred in that home decades later, and the very strange (to put it mildly) things that happened to everyone involved in both of those things.

Russell Day takes you on a ride that you will find difficult to articulate (which is fine, he does a fine job of it on his own) and that will linger in the back of your mind for a long time.

5 Stars

The Hero Interviews

by Andi Ewington

My original post
The child and sibling of heroic adventurers, Elburn Barr, has taken a different path in life—one fit for someone with his particular set of skills (or lack thereof). He is a Loremaster—no spells, weapons, or danger for him, thank you very much. At this point in his life/career, Elburn has set out to understand what makes a hero tick—what is it that drives them, what early influences molded them, how do they keep going on? Does it vary from type to type? Are Barbarians made of different stuff from a Cleric or a Thief? What about a Ranger or a Wizard? In addition to interviewing various leading examples of each type of hero, he talks to non-heroes, too. Like a farmer whose farm was saved(?) by some heroes from a dragon, the curator of a hero museum, people who run/design dungeons, etc.

This is a novel trying to look like a series of comic episodes/scenes/lines. It takes a while to see the plotlines emerge—it really does seem to be a light-hearted look at D&D clichés, stereotypes, tropes, etc. at the beginning—but eventually, you start to see the story arcs emerging and even start to see the protagonist grow and develop. That’s something I didn’t expect to see when I started reading this because I did think it was just a series of comedic bits. It’s hard to tell if Ewington is more interested in telling a story or making his jokes—in the end he gives you enough of both that the question is academic.

4 Stars

Not Prepared

by Matthew Hanover

My original post
Hanover’s fourth novel is the first to have a protagonist outside of their 20s, and the added maturity pays off. While this book is at heart a Rom-Com, the romantic story takes a backseat to the love story between the girl who needs a family and a bachelor who didn’t expect one. There’s still plenty of “rom”, and a good amount of “com” of a handful of stripes (particularly when it comes to a single man being thrust into dealing with a young girl at the cusp of puberty)—but there’s a lot more, too. Told with Hanover’s trademark wit, charm, and grace—prose that moves so smoothly you don’t realize how long you’ve spent sucked into his book. The emotions are real and grounded—both positively and negatively. His depictions of anxiety really impressed me, and there are scenes that got me choked up.

4 1/2 Stars

An Inheritance of Magic

by Benedict Jacka

My original post
Any fears anyone had about Jacka’s post-Alex Verus career should have been assuaged by this book. It’s an introduction to a new kind of magic, a new kind of magic society, and a protagonist who is so different from Verus that you wouldn’t guess that Jacka wrote it if you didn’t have his name all over the place. This is kind of the reverse of the Hanover book—Jacka moves on from a mature character who knows his place in the world to one who is immature, unsure of his own abilities, and a complete beginner to the magical society of England (and, presumably, the rest of the world). And Jacka nails all of it. I couldn’t believe how easily I took to this world and I anticipate getting more immersed in it.

4 1/2 Stars

Mrs. Covington’s

by K.R.R. Lockhaven

My original post
The thing with Cozy Fantasy is that the plot comes second (if not tertiary) to things like character and atmosphere. Mrs. Covington’s shines here–it’s such a pleasant, comfy atmosphere that it trumps everything else. A treasure hunt with the staff of the friendliest bar this side of Cheers! might be the plot of this cozy fantasy novel. But the book’s core is kindness, community, optimism, and helping. Also, Nachos. Brought to you in a great fantasy world with a light and engaging voice, Mrs. Covington’s will leave you snug and content.

4 Stars

On the Savage Side

by Tiffany McDaniel

My original post
This was just a brutal read. Every time you get a glimmer of hope, a glimmer of a feeling that things might be okay for some of these characters—something snuffs it out. But there’s another source right around the corner. But there’s beauty in the darkness. And a drive to keep persevering shared by the reader and the characters. I wondered more than once why some of them kept trying—but they did. There’s a serial killer on the loose, and a good deal of the plot is about that. But this isn’t about the hunt for the killer or anything like that. It’s a novel about the women who may be his target and their fears about it. It’s also about the rest of their lives—how they got to the point where the killer might be hunting them and what might happen if they get out of there.

Like always, Tiffany McDaniels delivered a book that’s going to stay in my subconscious for a while—lurking there, making me rethink what I read from time to time. It’ll probably stay there until her next novel comes along (Betty‘s been there for a couple of years, and really only was dislodged by this one—and The Summer that Melted Everything is still there all these years later). It’s somber, it’s sober, and it’s difficult to read. But it’s so worth it in ways I cannot adequately explain. It’ll make you think. It’ll make you feel.

4 1/2 Stars

According to Mark

by H. B. O’Neill
Unlike the first 8 books on this list, I haven’t written anything about this until now. The pitch I was given about the book was, “It’s about a love affair gone wrong and a guy who’s obsessed with Mark Twain who becomes a voice in his head that eventually leads to Twain pushing the fella towards suicide.” I don’t know if this makes it sound appealing to you or not. So let me say this: If Chain-Gang All-Stars is the book I’ve recommended most this year, then According to Mark is in 3rd or 4th place. Given that I read it at the end of November, that tells you how much I’ve been talking about it lately. It’s comic. It’s dark. It’s disturbing (on more levels and in more ways than I can describe). There’s a fantastic and real love story in the center of it. It’s heartbreakingly sad. If you’ve read anything like this before now, I’d be surprised (and I want to know what it is!), but you’re going to want to read this when it’s published soon.

There’s more I should say, but I’m going to do it in a longer format.

5 Stars

Guards! Guards!

by Terry Pratchett
I spent some time earlier this fall asking for recommendations to get me to give Discworld another shot—and overwhelmingly, this book was recommended to me. Everyone who did that was utterly correct. It’s one of the best mixes of story and comedy that I can recall reading and I can see after a re-read or two (which it’ll almost certainly get from me) that at least one book in this series within the Discworld series is going to end up in my pantheon of comedic greats. I’m working hard to ensure I get to the rest of these in 2024 because now that I understand what I was missing with Pratchett, I don’t want to miss out any longer.

4 1/2 Stars

UPDATE: Mrs. Covington’s: A Cozy Fantasy Novel Kickstarter

By HCNewton

On April 6, 2023

In Books, Fantasy, Fiction, News/Misc.

Before this Kickstarter launched I assured you that you’d be hearing a lot about this book over the next few weeks–I might as well keep going now. Yesterday, the book hit the funding goal, and is a couple of hundred past it. So, congrats to K.R.R. Lockhaven!

Now, I’m no longer trying to encourage (read: pressure) you into supporting this book for the sake of Lockhaven and his fans (like me), at this point I’m telling you to help yourself. You want this book in your life and you’ve got 6 days to do it easily (and to help him hit a stretch goal or two to make the experience better for everyone).

Last week, I blogged my thoughts on the beta version of the novel and was joined by Lockhaven for a Q&A about the book and Kickstarter campaign. If you haven’t read those yet, I encourage you to do so. Also, in case you’re not familiar with the name, I’ve said plenty of good things about Lockhaven’s previous books, and you should read those–not so much because what I’ve said is all that worth reading, but so I can point you to those books.

For those who haven’t looked into it yet, here’s the skinny on the campaign:

Check out the video:

What do you know? I’ve been pronouncing the “o” in Covington wrong…anyway.

Look into the book and then pitch in to help Lockhaven put a better version of this out there in the world. I think you’ll be glad you did. I won’t be so bold as to suggest that the publication of Mrs. Covington’s will make the world a better place, but it will brighten the day of whoever reads it. So it’ll feel like the world is a better place for a while.

Go kick that start.

A Few Quick Questions about…The Mrs. Covington’s Kickstarter

By HCNewton

On March 30, 2023

In A Few Quick Questions With..., Fantasy

I posted about the novel earlier, and now I have the wonderful opportunity to talk about the Kickstarter campaign and the novel with the author, K.R.R. Lockhaven. Lockhaven is no stranger to the readers of this blog (and I anticipate that will continue to be the case). I hope you enjoy this and decide to contribute. This is a selfish request on my part–I want this cover on my shelves. Even if you’re not that interested, kick in for my sake, will you?

Here’s another quick look at the camptaign

And now…a few quick questions about The Mrs. Covington’s Kickstarter:

I think the big question that everyone who’s read your twitter feed and/or your last two books has—and the curiosity will only grow once they’ve read this one—what’s with your fascination about the capybara?
The easy answer is that I just love them. But the deep, philosophical answer delves into how capybaras behave, and how they can be seen as examples that people might want to emulate. You may be shocked to hear this, but I’ve never actually seen a capybara in real life (yet!). But from what I can gather, they are the kindest animals on the planet. I love seeing pictures of a monkey riding a capybara’s back or a bird standing on a capybara’s head. Capybaras have a very chill vibe and seem to get along with everyone who isn’t trying to eat them. I just really dig that vibe and think it has a ton of crossover potential with the cozy fantasy genre.

You’ve talked in various places lately about cozy fantasy, but what I don’t think I’ve seen is you talk about why you wanted to write one now? Is the draw toward cozy for you as a writer different than the draw for you as a reader?
I’m currently in the middle of writing a fantasy series called The Azure Archipelago. There are two books out now, with the third to be published early next year. Those books have been described as having cozy elements, but not being cozy stories, and I totally agree with that assessment. I found while writing the series that I got the most enjoyment out of writing the cozier parts. I love writing characters getting along and being nice and supportive to each other. So, like many writers, I started formulating an idea when I probably should have put it on the backburner until the series was finished. But the idea grew and grew and forced its way to the front of my mind, so I wrote it.

I think the draw toward cozy is the same for me as a reader or a writer. There’s just something about characters being decent to each other that checks some kind of box for me.

It’s got to be quite the balancing act trying to decide what parts of contemporary “bar culture” (for lack of a better term) to import into your fantasy world, and what would be a step too far. I’m only going to mention nachos as an example because you’re using them in your pitch for the book—were there things you thought about and then rejected because it would be a step too far? Similarly, why were nachos used? I’d think part of it would be from how low-tech they are—really easy for any generic fantasy world to make. Are you just a big nacho eater in the first place? (I hope so, because I’m pretty sure you’re going to have to be in the future, they’re part of your brand now)
The Occam’s Tortilla Chip explanation is that, yes, I just like them. And if I have a brand, I’m glad it includes capybaras and nachos! But, yeah, I find that the balancing act is always difficult in my writing. I have a silly side that just doesn’t care if a fantasy world could possibly have nachos and/or karaoke, but my more serious side wants to make sure that, at the very least, the things in my books are believable. Walking that line is tough, but my editor on this project, Nathan Hall, really helped me ground the story. There were several things that he found to be a step too far in terms of silliness, but as far as innovations in a fantasy world, I stuck to just nachos and karaoke. He helped me show these things being invented organically and believably.

This is similar to my first question, but far-less-tongue-in-cheek. I know (and am relieved by it) that I wasn’t the only reader who had to look up ciguapa when you introduced the species to your Azure Archipelago series. Of all the various fantasy races out there to choose from, what about them made you want to feature them? Now that you’ve started using them, are they going to be around as much as the capybara?
Because my books are set in a very Caribbean-like world, I wanted to have a fantasy race based on Caribbean folklore. I loved the name “ciguapa,” but the actual ciguapa of folklore ended up being far from the ciguapa people you’ll see in my books. My writing often has a multiverse element to it, and originally, I wanted to have ciguapa as a misunderstood race from another world that interacted with Earth from time to time. This evolved over time until the beautiful ciguapa people I write about were born. If I ever write something that isn’t in the same world, I’ll probably leave the ciguapa behind to live in peace.

Can you take a minute to talk about the cover art for this book and the artist behind it? You’ve always had good covers in the past, but…wow. This is a giant leap forward.
The cover artist is Daniel Wekellis, who I met at my one and only book signing when he attended with his wife, Lilly from the Fiction Fans Podcast. My wife and I hung out with them that night. They gave us two bottles of wine from their little home operation that had these wonderful labels that we came to find out Daniel had made himself. I either asked him about doing cover art sometime during that night, or after they had gone home. My memory of our night out is a little fuzzy. He agreed and I couldn’t be happier with the result!

The whole point of this Q&A was to help promote the Kickstarter campaign, so we’d better talk about it a little — How’s the campaign going (especially compared to what you’d expected/hoped)? What do you want people to know about the campaign that you haven’t already said?
At the time of this interview, it’s sitting at 57% funded with 75 backers and 18 days to go (72% with 92 backers and 13 days to go when I put the last touches on this post). To tell the truth, I really didn’t know what to expect. I hoped it would be one of those Kickstarter projects that gets funded in a matter of hours, but it appears I’m going to have to grind this one out. I’m optimistic, though. In the coming weeks, it’s going to be featured on several blogs and a local newspaper, so I hope that can build a little momentum. The main thing I want people to know is that there are many different options available—from eBook to naming a capybara in the story—and that I don’t think they’ll be disappointed if they join me on this journey. I am SO thankful to the 75 backers who have joined so far and look forward to getting across the finish line with them!

Why did you decide to go with Kickstarter this time around? Are you thinking about using it in the future (or does that depend on how the next couple of weeks go?). What have you learned about crowd-funding that you wish you knew a month ago?
I’ve wanted to try a Kickstarter project for a while. I think it’s a good idea to diversify as much as possible, and running a Kickstarter seemed like a good way to put my work out there where it may not have been before. I figure if people like Mrs. Covington’s, they might be interested in my trilogy, and vice versa. When (I’m using the power of positivity) this project gets funded, I think I’ll have to strongly consider doing another one someday.

I wish I would have prepared a little better. I wish I would have fought the relentlessly positive, don’t-worry-this-will-get-funded-in-a-matter-of-days side of my brain a little harder. I didn’t reach out to book bloggers/YouTubers/podcasters (besides the people I knew really well, like you) until the campaign was 10 days in! That kind of air-headedness is probably best avoided. I also thought that the “Project We Love” label was the golden ticket to success. It turns out, unfortunately, that it isn’t. When I got that news, I was jumping up and down thinking that I had been blessed by the Kickstarter gods and that it would be smooth sailing from there on out. It’s hard to determine how much of a boost it gave me, but it didn’t catapult me to the finish line quite yet.

Thanks for your time—and I do hope to see that campaign reach the magic number so we can see Mrs. Covington out in the wild!
Thank you for this interview and the wonderful continued support you’ve shown me throughout my writing career! I really can’t express enough gratitude to you 

Mrs. Covington’s by K.R.R. Lockhaven: Friends, Nachos, Friendly Rodents, and an Utter Absence of Crow Noodle Soup. What More Could You Want?

By HCNewton

On March 30, 2023

In Fantasy, Fiction

When I took part in the Cover Reveal for this novel, I warned you that I’d be talking a lot about it (and have lived up to that). I’m putting a big push in today. I’ve got this post about the book as well as a Q&A with K.R.R. Lockhaven coming up about the Kickstarter campaign and the book itself (you really need to check it out. I might have another post about the book to come today, too—but no promises, I’m running into a creative issue. Keep your eyes peeled, though.

Before I blather on a bit, let’s focus on the main thing: to get this book funded.

And now…let me blather:

Mrs. Covington’s

by K.R.R. Lockhaven

DETAILS:
Publisher: Self
Publication Date: TBD
Format: Beta Version
Read Date: March 6-16, 2023
Kickstarter Page

First things first

I read a Beta copy of this—but a late-stage one, I think—so not a lot will have changed between what I read and what you’ll hopefully read. Still, there’s a chance that some things will have improved by the time you get to it.

What’s Mrs. Covington’s About?

This is a cozy fantasy, and as holds true for most of them, the plot could be summarized in a sentence or two. So I’m going to try to do that in a way that leaves some mystery.

Jacob is the son of one of the wealthiest businessmen in the Archipelago*, and is being pressured to join the family business, groomed to take it over, and so on. But he wants his own life. He wants something more than just carrying on his father’s work. Possibly even adventure. A life at sea perhaps?

* Yes, it takes place in the same world as the Azure Archipelago series, but it’s independent of that series and you don’t need to know anything about it to read this.

He’s dissuaded from pursuing that by someone he respects and looks for a new way to establish his own path. While doing so, he stops by a quiet pub in the city he’s visiting for a drink. While there the owner (mostly) jokingly offers to sell him the place. After thinking it over a bit, Jacob does that.

The bar is named for its resident capybara—Mrs. Covington—at sea, the capybara is supposed to bring good luck. She hasn’t seemed to do much for the pub yet, but maybe soon.

The first thing he has to do is find a way to make a profit—he offers the two employees there (a human, Tadrick, and a cigupa, Cora) full partnerships if they help him get this place in shape. Together they come up with a new business plan, redecorate, and start to devise new ways of bringing in customers (not all at once and not necessarily in that order, but I’m trying to summarize). The other thing Jacob does is befriend his neighbor, a widowed faun trying to raise two children and run a restaurant.

These four become friends and start to collaborate in a handful of ways.

When he bought Mrs. Covington’s, Jacob also received the parchment describing a local treasure hunt that belonged to the pub. People have been looking for the treasure for a while, and there’s no reason to think that Jacob and his new friends will have more success than anyone else. But like Wade Watts and his chums, they might as well try, right?

Platonic Relationships FTW

There are plenty of romantic relationships in this book, but none of them are the focus (as much as Cora’s parents try to steal focus with theirs). There’s even a nice past romance and the promise of a potential future one by the end of the book. But the relationships between the core characters are entirely platonic.

I don’t mind romantic stories or arcs—I think they’re a great way to show character, develop character, advance a plot, etc. But a good platonic friendship is one of those things that I admire more and more all the time—particularly between people who’d likely be coupled up in other books.

If the studies and stories I read hold true, friendships between adults are less and less common, and (American, at least) adults are more and more lonely and isolated. So maybe books about good friends are a new form of aspiration/fantasy? We don’t need to read books about swooning over someone we fancy anymore, just stories about falling into deep like?

Whatever lies at the root of it—I liked these friendships. All of them—the mutual support and encouragement in whatever configurations of characters were solid. Mrs. Covington’s sounds like a great place to hang out—maybe if you can’t hang out there with your own friends, reading about others doing it is a handy substitute?

Interludes

Something I should’ve mentioned in my beta feedback are the Interludes.* Three times we walk away from the story to get a glimpse of what’s going on with good old Mrs. Covington.

* Whoops. Sorry, K.R.R.! I’ll make it up to you next time.

These don’t advance the plot, give insight into the other characters, or anything like that—I’m not even sure they give insight into Mrs. Covington, because that would require a level of self-awareness that the rodent doesn’t seem to possess.

They are simply interludes. Nice, short, and quiet breaks from the novel. They’re the literary equivalent of taking a brief break to watch nature videos on Youtube or something. I’m just theorizing here, but it wouldn’t surprise me to find that they’re largely inspired by Lockhaven taking writing breaks to watch capybara videos.

I’m not sure why I used the term “quiet” there, it’s not like I’m talking about an audiobook here, but it fits. I guess it felt to me like there’s a film score playing quietly in the background (except when the band, Bilge Rat, is performing), and then the music dies for these interludes and all you get is crickets in the background or the sound of birds in the distance.

I’ve spent far more time than I originally intended to trying to describe the effect of these breaks. All I meant to say is that they’re an unexpected (unless you just read this) and thoroughly pleasant little addition to this book—and the kind of thing that most authors wouldn’t have thought to throw in.

I doubt that Lockhaven would be able to find enough of a story to justify a novella or novel along these lines. But a collection of scenes/episodes/random days in the life of the titular capybara would be something I’d jump on and probably return to often. Especially if he could get a great illustrator on board.*

* There’s your next Kickstarter, K.R.R. You’re welcome. Maybe this evens the score?

So, what did I think about Mrs. Covington’s?

I joked earlier about the plot being minimal—although it’s true. That’s not to say that the plot is inconsequential or bland. It’s a fun little story–Treasure Hunts have been a tried and true story engine since at least the time when Jason and his pals went on that cruise. And who can’t relate to a group of friends coming together to build something special? There’s enough plot to get your teeth into even while it’s not likely to be what you focus on.

I’ve made it this far and haven’t even talked about the villain of the piece. Ugh. You can tell how much importance I put on him. Think Charles Durning’s Doc Hopper from The Muppet Movie or Chris Cooper’s Tex Richman from The Muppets, or a good number of the men behind the masks in the original Scooby-Doo series. I’m not sure why I’m stuck on examples like them instead of something more highbrow, but that’s the frame of mind I’m in. He’s mean (actually, I don’t think he cares enough to be mean…maybe spiteful?), he’s power- and money-hungry, and doesn’t like anyone not acceding to his whims. He’s perfect for this story—and not that important ultimately. Yes, he’s standing in the friends’ way, so they have to do something—but he’s not as present as other obstacles.

I do have some quibbles about the timing of some of the elements. I think some of the relationships develop too quickly, and I wonder about the timeline for a couple of things. I don’t know if Lockhaven’s able to massage that a bit before the final version comes out, but I do think it needs some tweaking. That said—they’re only quibbles. I liked where every relationship went, how they developed, and so on. And all the events that happen too suddenly for my comfort? I enjoyed them all and understand why he put them where he did. So ultimately, I don’t care if that kind of thing works well because I enjoyed the results. To paraphrase Joel Hogson, “repeat to yourself, “It’s just a book, I should really just relax.”

And it’s easy to relax with this book—because it’s such a pleasant, comfy atmosphere. A treasure hunt with the staff of the friendliest bar this side of Cheers! might be the plot of this cozy fantasy novel. But the book’s core is kindness, community, optimism, and helping. Brought to you in a great fantasy world with a light and engaging voice, Mrs. Covington’s will leave you snug and content.

The book delivers on what it promises—comfort. Warm fuzzies. Kindness. Good times. It’ll brighten your day, and make the world feel like a better place for a bit.

Read it when you can. And pitch in to the Kickstarter before April 13!

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

Mrs. Covington’s: A Cozy Fantasy Novel Kickstarter

By HCNewton

On March 14, 2023

In Books, Fantasy, Fiction, News/Misc.

I told you yesterday that you’d be hearing a lot about this book over the next few weeks–and I’m starting to make good on that promise now. I’ve said plenty of good things about Lockhaven’s previous books, we’ve asked each other Qs and As on our respective sites, and so on. So it’s not a huge surprise that I want to encourage you to support this Kickstarter.

I’m currently beta-reading this book (I hope to finish it tonight) and I’m doing a lousy job of taking notes for feedback, because I keep getting sucked into the story. This novel, “Set in a capybara-themed pub, this book includes a clue-based treasure hunt, found family, kindness, empathy, and nachos,” is going to charm readers–but it needs to get out into the world for that to happen. As of the moment I’m writing this, the campaign is 20% of the way to the goal–help it get a little closer.

Check out the video:

What do you know? I’ve been pronouncing the “o” in Covington wrong…anyway.

Look into the book and then pitch in to help Lockhaven put this out there in the world. I think you’ll be glad you did. I won’t be so bold as to suggest that the publication of Mrs. Covington’s will make the world a better place, but it will brighten the day of whoever reads it. So it’ll feel like the world is a better place for a while.

Go kick that start.

COVER REVEAL: Mrs. Covington’s by K.R.R. Lockhaven

By HCNewton

On March 13, 2023

In Book Tour, Fantasy, Fiction

I’m very pleased to welcome the Escapist Book Tour’s Cover Reveal for K.R.R. Lockhaven’s Mrs. Covington’s to The Irresponsible Reader this morning!

You’re going to be hearing a good deal about this book over the next few weeks around here, and what better way to start than with this very spiffy cover? But first, let’s talk about things. Do not, I repeat, do not cheat and jump down to the cover below. Let the suspense build.

Book Details:

Book Title: Mrs. Covington’s by K.R.R. Lockhaven
Series: N/A, Standalone (but the world might feel familiar)
Genre: Cozy Fantasy
Intended Age Group: Adult
Length: 276 pages
Release date: Forthcoming, Kickstarter launches 3/14
Publisher: Self-published

About the Book

When Jacob Bright strikes out on his own and moves to a new island, he quite unexpectedly finds himself the owner of a failing, capybara-themed pub named Mrs. Covington’s. He quickly learns that he’s going to have to make new friends and innovate if it’s going to succeed. But when he learns that a neighboring Faun food restaurant, run by his kindhearted new friend, might have to close its doors, his priorities change.

Years ago, a reclusive wealthy woman lived on the island, and she wrote a clue in poem form which leads to a mysterious buried treasure. The treasure may be just the thing they need to save the restaurant, but they aren’t the only people seeking it.

Mrs. Covington’s is a cozy fantasy book brimming with kindness, empathy, found family, and nachos.

Book Links

Kickstarter (Launches 3/14–hey, that’s tomorrow!)

About the Author

KRR (Kyle Robert Redundant) Lockhaven started out writing humorous fantasy (hence the stupid pen name) but now finds himself being pulled in the direction of cozy fantasy.

[N.B.: “Stupid” is the verbiage supplied to me by Escapist Book Tours, and (it seems) the author. I happen to like the pen name.]

Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

and now…

The Cover

Mrs. Covington's Cover

That’s a cover that’d make me stop and take a second and third look. Everything about that just pops off the screen. It’s the kind of image that begs for a full wrap-around cover, right? Like this:

I’d buy a (reasonably priced) print of that one! (to see it in its full glory, click the image or here.)

Be sure to check out the website and/or Instagram page of the artist, Daniel Wekellis.

My thanks to Escapist Book Tours for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided. The opinions expressed by me are honest and my own.

The Foundling, the Heist, and the Volcano by K.R.R. Lockhaven: Exactly What the Title Says

By HCNewton

On February 20, 2023

In Fantasy, Fiction

I didn’t think I had much to say about this book until I was about halfway finished with the post and realized I was nowhere near done with it. I’m not certain it’s all that coherent now, but it’s done, or as close to done as I can get without another two-three days to tweak it and wring all the stream-of-consciousness out of it.

The Foundling, the Heist, and the Volcano

by K.R.R. Lockhaven

DETAILS:
Series: The Azure Archipelago, #2
Publisher: Shadow Spark Publishing
Publication Date: January 20, 2023
Format: e-Book
Length: 313 pg.
Read Date: February 13-15, 2023

What’s The Foundling, the Heist, and the Volcano About?

It’s been a year or so since the events of MD&D* when we rejoin our friends on Adventure Ship as they pay a quick visit to Azure’s father.

*I’m just not going to refer to these books with their logorrheic titles, I’m just using initials. And to be snotty, I’m taking out all the T’s.

The visit is cut short when Azure receives a job offer—getting the Marauders a reliable flow of income is Azure’s top priority and it’s not going well. A raven named Sir Terry brings this lucrative offer to her and they have to jump on it—the fact he gets such an auspicious name, tells you how much we’re going to see Sir Terry for the next couple of books, I think. The Mauraders are on a hunt for buried treasure on behalf of the man who buried it and cannot seem to find it. For those thinking about the title, the treasure is buried near a volcano.

Along the way to the treasure, they get attacked by a pirate which proves to be a test of the new captain, who acquits herself well. They then discover that the treasure has been discovered by someone else very recently—requiring the titular heist. They also find the foundling—a young girl who stumbled into this world from Earth (getting her home also requires the titular heist). The girl isn’t the only one who came to this world from Earth—later on, a gargoyle on the hunt for a certain dragon does, too.

That’s a lot for a novel to tackle in 313 pages—but Azure and the Mauraders are up to it. Probably.

Before I Dive Into the Book

Pre-Chapter One, Lockhaven gives us a recap of the first novel. This is to be commended, and I try to make a point of saying it when any author does this because it needs to become a standard.

He gets bonus points for having a character do it in a very organic way, helping the reader get back into the feel of things in addition to remembering the events.

The Foundling

Oh, boy. I don’t know if I can remember a more adorable kid in fiction than Oriana.* It took me a freakishly small amount of time to fall under her charms—she’s brave, she’s sweet, she’s adaptable, she’s resilient, and she’s incredibly vulnerable.

* Oh, okay. Maggie Dresden. But it’s close.

The reactions of the crew—especially Elijah and Azure—to her are believable and do a great job of enforcing what the reader is already thinking about her.

What strikes me about Oriana is that really, Lockhaven doesn’t spend that much time on her—it’s actually largely the reactions of others to her that endear her to the reader. All the Maurauders take her in, Elijah dotes on her, but it’s Azure thinking about her, attempting the heist to get her home, and (being incredibly vague) going through a lot of introspection because of her. It’s through that that the reader really makes the connection to Oriana—as Azure and the others grow in their affection for her, so does the reader.

The Heist

It seems that people associated with a casino on Mirth Island took both the treasure and a tool that would return Oriana to her home (not recognizing it for what it is). Azure foolishly/full of belief in the goodness of people asks the Casino owner for them back. He takes a quick break from twirling his mustache to refuse her, so she has to come up with a new solution. One more suited for the Marauders.

I’m not sure why either Lockhaven or Azure bothered with that—although it does give us a chance to meet the owner, Mr. Pierce, and look around a bit at the Casino. Pierce—and the people (and the falcon) who work for him are pretty despicable—they have ties to Gov. Pratt, and display the species-ism and sexism we’d associate with the former governor, with a heaping side-order of avarice. Not that the reader wouldn’t have been cheering for the Marauders to succeed in their extra-legal efforts to get the property back, but Lockhaven makes sure that we have no sympathy for him.

The design of the heist itself is pretty clever—and Azure has definitely watched or read her fair share of stage plays and novels about them (or listened to epic songs about them?)—and draws on those to design her plan. Sure, it resembles a Rube Goldberg device, but if it works, it’ll be a thing of beauty. Like a good Rube Goldberg device. If it doesn’t…

The Volcano

Well, yeah, there’s a volcano. There’s not much more to say. It’s been dormant for a while now, but it’s waking up at the point we encounter it—and it gets closer and closer to being very not-dormant as the story progresses.

It honestly doesn’t play as much of a role in the novel as I expected, but it does play an important role—and it does loom over most of the novel.

The Ending

So MD&D wrapped up nicely—it really could’ve been a stand-alone and that would’ve been fine. Readers would definitely want more with these characters, but that’s just because we’re greedy when it comes to things that make us feel good and characters we like. There was nothing in it that demanded a sequel.

That is not at all the case with FH&V. Yes, there’s the greedy reader, feel-good stories, likable characters, etc. But that’s not what I’m talking about. There are at least three things that we need another book to address. There’s one thing that will likely consume most of the action/plot of the next book, there’s something that we need to know more about and that will likely be a running subplot to the main action—and then there’s something we need to see a resolution about in the first twenty pages or so. Two cliffhangers and one thing that we’re staring down at the cliff’s edge from a safe vantage point. And we’re hanging onto a strong, but not that strong, plant with one of those cliffhangers.

So, what did I think about The Foundling, the Heist, and the Volcano?

By skipping ahead a year, we miss out on the early, swoony days of romance between Elijah and Azure—we’re at the committed stage, and they’re trying to figure out how to navigate their relationship. I adore this—sure, those early, swoony days can be fun—but a couple doing the work (our focus is on Azure’s internal work, but we get glimpses of Elijah doing the same) within the commitment to make things go well? That’s what I want to see. Not a relationship falling apart, in danger of it, or blossoming—I see enough of those (and I’m not saying I want those stories to go away)—but it’s people navigating life together that I can’t get enough of. While on that idea, I really should spend a few paragraphs talking about the really healthy and robust marriage between our favorite Orcs, Nargol and Orok, but I’ve blathered on too long. One of the best marriages in fantasy.

Speaking of internal work—we get a lot of that from Azure. MD&D was about her working to patch things up with her father. Here she’s coming to terms with her new position, balancing it with her relationship with Elijah, and what to do with Oriana. Oriana just being around forces Auzre to think about her mother, how she related to her, and how her mother might have been inclined early on toward a Human First philosophy.

These two things aren’t as flashy and gripping as the Heist or anything going on with Zoth-Avarex—but they add meaning and depth to the work. Ultimately, it’s more important to this series and is what is going to make these books stick around in minds of readers.

All the fun stuff of the first book—the goofy characters, the songs (fantasy songs I want to actually read and not skip), the adventures, and the antics—is back. The heist is full of slapstick and tension. Everything clicks here and will satisfy readers of the first volume.

As far as new readers? Eh, I’d start with MD&D first for context—you’d probably be okay jumping in now, but why? I don’t think I’d call this a cozy fantasy—but it’s adjacent (too much violence for cozy if I understand the term correctly, but just a tad).

Labels aside, I’d sum it up by saying that FD&V is a lighthearted fantasy with a lot of heart. But that’s mixing heart metaphors, so I won’t say that. So imagine I said something pithy like that, but without the deficiencies, okay? Then go buy the book.

4 Stars
This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon by K.R.R. Lockhaven: Adventure and Second Chances on the High Seas

By HCNewton

On September 5, 2022

In Fantasy, Fiction

The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon

by K.R.R. Lockhaven

DETAILS:
Series: The Azure Archipelago, #1
Publisher: Shadow Spark Publishing
Publication Date: August 16, 2022
Format: eARC
Length: 331 pg.
Read Date: August 1-3, 2022

A Couple of Preliminary Matters

I was supposed to post something about this a couple of weeks ago in return for my advanced copy—August 23 was my plan—but I just didn’t like anything I wrote there (and have ended up deleting almost all of it, almost everything here is new today). It was one of those perfect-is-the-enemy-of-done situations. I want to apologize to Lockhaven for that, and stress that you should all do what I did: go buy a copy of this book and enjoy a bit of happiness. Also, go check out the Q&A we did about this book.

I’m still not crazy about this post, but it’s done. So it’s got that going for it. Here it is in a nutshell: this novel is appealing, sweet, and earnestly fun. You should read it.

What’s The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon About?

The League of Islands has a new governor. He came to power by tapping into, and exacerbating, human prejudices against other species—orcs, ciguapas, fauns, and so on. One of those humans, is the co-owner of the Red Dragon Inn, John Brine. John’s daughter, Azure (yes, she’s “The Daughter”) is not a fan of the new governor or his “Human First” policies. Years ago, the two were incredibly close, but things have been increasingly strained for some time, her father deciding to close the Inn to accompany the governor on the ship he’s taking to his inauguration, was the last straw. The two have a major blow-up before he leaves.

Azure regrets things almost immediately and tries to catch him before he leaves. It doesn’t work, so she and her friend/companion/might-as-well-be-sister, Robin (a talking bird summoned from another dimension), finagle their way on board. Azure has to swallow her objections and pretend to be a supporter, so she can stay on board and try to patch things up. While there, Azure becomes convinced that there’s an ulterior motive for this voyage and tries to suss it out. Whatever it is, it’s going to be big and bad for a good portion of the populace of the League.

That doesn’t work and Azure and two non-humans on board are cast off and end up on an island. They encounter a group of quasi-pirates (the “Mauraders) who bring them on board and end up agreeing to help Azure put a stop to whatever the governor is up to.

And, yes, there’s a dragon along the way. But I don’t want to tell you anything about him.

The Daughter

It’s Azure’s status as “the Daughter” that provides the heart for the novel—without it, there wouldn’t be a story. She wouldn’t be the protagonist of anything—she’d have stayed home, working in the Inn. She’d likely have griped about the political situation, but wouldn’t have done anything beyond that.

But she loves her father, and can’t stand to see him taken in by this Governor. So she abandons the inn, pushes down her anxieties, and sallies forth to save her father and hopefully, their relationship.

There are other storylines, other emotional arcs—some you may appreciate more than this one. But none of them happens without this—and the novel doesn’t care about the rest as much as it does this one. It’s also incredibly relatable—sure, not every daughter (or son) who reads this will have that kind of relationship with their father (or mother), but there are very few of us who don’t have some sort of relationship they’ll risk everything for.

The Marauders

I do not know how someone couldn’t like this group. It’s a group of men and women who, for various and sundry reasons, have embraced life on the seas, of swashbuckling their days away (at least until they have to embrace responsibility or parenthood)—they’re not ambitious enough to make a serious effort at transporting passengers or cargo. They like the idea of a life of piracy but aren’t that into all the violence or theft and all that. They like to sail, have adventures, and sit around drinking, telling stories, and singing songs all night. If not for the fact I get seasick just thinking about getting on a boat, it sounds like a great life to me. Oh, and that no one should have to hear me sing.

The camaraderie of this group and the way they embrace Azure and the others is more attractive than their way of life. You can’t help but want a group of people like this to spend your days with.

I should mention their songs. I have little patience for songs/poetry/etc. in the middle of a novel. My brain just turns off when I encounter them, despite years of trying to do otherwise—it doesn’t matter how good they might be, I just can’t do them. But these songs? I actually read most of them on my first attempt. And I enjoyed them.

The Dragon

Yeah, this is too risky to talk about without spoilers. There’s a dragon, it flies around doing dragon-y things.

Comparing Lockhaven’s Works

Comparing this novel to Lockhaven’s previous novel is a classic case of comparing apples to oranges (making Zoth-Avarex’s Escape Plan a Clementine, I guess). The Conjuring of Zoth-Avarex was a comedy with a bit of satire. MD&D, is a humorous fantasy or maybe a light fantasy (last year, Lockhaven described it as “hopepunk” in our Q&A). The former went for as many laughs as it could while telling a story. This tells a story, and throws in a few laughs (or grins or chuckles) along the way. The comedy isn’t the focus, it’s the characters and their journey.

So, what did I think about The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon?

I want to talk more about some of these characters and ideas—Elijah, the talking skeleton; Nargol and Orok, the orc couple; I don’t believe I’ve even heard of ciguapas before, and now I want them everywhere; Roger, the happy and nice crew member on the Governor’s ship—but in the interest of space, and of just getting something completed, I’m going to pass over it. But I assure you that this collection of characters is just fantastic and you’ll want to spend a lot of time with them.

There is a sweetness to this book that you just don’t find very often—particularly in Fantasy. There is that hope implied in the way Lockhaven described it, and an earnestness, a straightforwardness to almost every character and their motivation that fuels this hope and sweetness. It’s worth reading the novel just for this.

That’s also part of the problem—just about everything is too straightforward, there’s almost no nuance, no shades of anything, no complexity. I’m not saying the book or the characters needed to be complicated, obtuse, murky, or compromised, etc. But it leads to the book feeling shallow on occasion.

The magic system is intriguing—and I’m curious to see how it is expressed outside of the circumstances of this book. I don’t often encounter a multiverse in a fantasy novel, and that alone would almost be enough to bring me back.

While reading, I got caught up in the spirit of the book—that doesn’t happen that often—that hope and earnestness seeped into my subconsciousness and affected how I saw the world for a couple of days. I like this book—I heartily recommend it, and the overall impact more than makes up for any shortcomings (real or perceived). I’m eager to see what lies ahead for Azure and the rest.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from the author in exchange for this post and my honest opinion.

4 Stars

A Few (more) Quick Questions with…K.R.R. Lockhaven

By HCNewton

On August 25, 2022

In A Few Quick Questions With..., Fantasy

Life keeps interrupting me when I try to write my post about K.R.R. Lockhaven’s new book, The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon, the first in his new trilogy, The Azure Archipelago. So, I’m going to post this today just to get a little something up about the book. Hopefully, I can get my post up tomorrow, so check back if you’re curious (or just to help my pageview count).

We did a similar Q&A for his first novel, The Conjuring of Zoth-Avarex: The Self-Proclaimed Greatest Dragon in the Multiverse last year–and Lockhaven interviewed me for his series on Humor in Books, and Other Places, Too!. Some of what he says here echoes and/or builds off of things he’s said in those.

Talk about the genesis of this novel a little bit. Can you pinpoint where it came from? What was it about the idea that grabbed your focus?
I’ve been thinking about trying a nautical fantasy for quite a while. I’m fascinated by pirates, sailing ships, and tropical locales, and I’ve been wanting to create my own fantasy world, so I made my own little magical archipelago.

The idea for the main plot is very personal. Unfortunately, the relationship between my dad and I has been really rocky for the past several years because of a deep political divide. He became obsessed with…a certain political figure, and it made dealing with him very difficult. We’re in a much better place now, and I feel that writing this book may have helped me in that regard. But anyway, the basic plotline involves a tumultuous relationship between the main character, Azure, and her father. The split between the two ends up sending her on a mission across the islands to ultimately try to save his life. I wanted to focus on the difficulties that an ideological divide can create in families, as I know A LOT of us have been there. My goal was to show that love can heal damn near anything, and that common ground can be found with the right treasure map (okay, that was extremely cheesy, but I’m leaving it in!)

When talking about writing The Conjuring of Zoth-Avarex, you said the floodgates opened and you embraced the silliness. The tone of The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon is very different from TCoZA. Yes, the humor is still there—and frequently juvenile—but this isn’t a comedy. There’s an earnestness to the characters and plot, the story and characters are more important than the laughs. Is that more natural for you or did you have to reign it in a little? Or given the subject, did that not really enter your mind?
Thank you for this question! I’d love to talk about this real quick. The subject is something I’ve thought about a lot.

When I’m reading, I’m really drawn to moments that resonate emotionally. I haven’t always trusted myself as an author to make that kind of thing work, though. I did a lot of time thinking about where I wanted to go with my writing, and came to the conclusion that I needed to go in a more earnest, and hopefully emotionally resonant, direction. I trusted myself to do that effectively this time because the subject matter of this book was so emotionally meaningful to me. I still fully embrace the silliness, but it’s no longer the main point. Many of my (favorite) characters have mirthful spirits, and that kind of joyous levity is very important to me. I’ll probably always have an element of that in my writing. Maybe it’s just semantics, but I like to think of myself as having traded in humorous fantasy for fantasy with humor.

Where did Elijah come from? Is he your attempt to bring Marvin the Paranoid Android into Fantasy, or was that just me reading into things? His demeanor is so different from everyone else’s—Pratt is confident, driven, and full of bluster; Azure has that determined optimism; the Marauders are full of their intentional romanticism; and then there’s Elijah’s defeatist outlook. He really stands out.
That wasn’t exactly my intention, but there are undeniable similarities between Elijah and Marvin. Elijah is more hopeful, though, and his negativity is directed only at himself. I’m not really sure where the idea came from, to tell the truth. I knew I wanted a reanimated skeleton character, as it’s such a cliché part of pirate-themed entertainment, but I wanted him to be completely different than people might expect him to be. I went with self-deprecating because I always find that to be endearing in people I know in real life.

A sidekick named Robin, really? Did you have your shame surgically removed?
Shame? What’s that?

I actually didn’t think of that angle until quite a few chapters were written. face palm Robin’s origin story started in a different book that will likely never see the light of day. After The Conjuring of Zoth-Avarex, I wrote two sequels, but I ended up deeming both of them not good enough to put out there. They had their moments, and I actually like them quite a bit, but they were just more non-stop silliness and references. Anyway, Robin was a very minor character in these little snippets from other worlds that I wrote. I loved her so much that I eventually transported her into the MD&D world. And she’s more of a sister than a sidekick, anyway. If she heard you call her a sidekick she would probably threaten to peck out your eye 🙂

Setting aside the tone/tenor/etc. idea for a moment, how was the process of writing The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon different from TCoZA? Did having that under your belt give you a confidence boost? Or did you find a whole new batch of issues/problems to work through?
The writing flowed fantastically. I loved writing in this new world, and the subject matter just poured out of me. There were challenges in regard to creating a new fantasy world, but those are fun challenges. Everything one would take for granted in a book set on Earth has to be created and thought through. It was also challenging to strike a balance between the emotional through line and the humor. I wanted the main plot to feel serious and urgent, but not so much so that fun along the way would feel out of place.

Since this book is so different from TCoZA, let’s play “Online Bookstore Algorithm” again: What are 3-5 books whose readers may like The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon?
This is always the hardest question to answer! I feel like it’s almost obligatory when talking about fantasy books with humor, but I do think that readers of Terry Pratchett might enjoy the spirit of my book. I’m not completely sure about this next one, but possibly readers of The Princess Bride, too? Again, I believe it shares the same spirit of adventure and fun. Also The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True by Sean Gibson and Duckett and Dyer: Dicks For Hire by G.M. Nair.

How’s the rest of the trilogy going for you? Any word on when we can expect that? Have you decided what’s next, or are you too deep in the weeds on The Azure Archipelago to get serious about that?
I’m sending in Book 2 for the first round of edits in a few days! It is due to be published January 20th, 2023. I think I’m going to put the title out into the world for the first time right here… It will be called (with 93% certainty) The Foundling, the Heist, and the Volcano. These titles are wordy! Book 3 will be out a few months after that.

I actually have become way too serious about what’s next, as I’m currently trying to write Book 3 and this new project at the same time. another face palm My new idea was heavily inspired by Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree. It’s a standalone cozy fantasy set in the same world as my trilogy, but having almost nothing to do with it. I’m very excited about it, and I love it already.

Thanks for your time—and thanks for The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon, I can’t wait to see what’s next and hope it finds its audience.
Thank you! These questions were challenging and fantastic! It’s so cool to talk about my little world with someone who has really dived into it! Your support means a lot to me 🙂