Once she was Adrienne Satti, an orphan with a rags-to-riches story. Now she is Widdershins, a thief with a sharp blade, a sharper wit, and help from a secret god living in her head. But now something horrid, something dark, is reaching out for her, a past that refuses to let her go…
So declares the back of Thief’s Covenant by Ari Marmell.
I first encountered this title when researching books that read like video games, and after reading it, am surprised that it took me the effort of research to actually find out about it. It’s a title that has appeal for a wide variety of audiences. Fans of historical adventure, low fantasy, kick-butt heroines, good old-fashioned sneakery, and playing stealth games solely to climb on things will all find something to like in this novel.
The most perfect audience for Thief’s Covenant is the teen who just wants to play Assassin’s Creed but has a book report due tomorrow that hasn’t even been started yet. It’s quick, it’s witty, and its combination of stealth tactics, action, and political intrigue basically render it Assassin’s Creed with a girl.
Widdershins herself deserves to rank among fan-favorite heroines like Graceling’s Katsa and pretty much every Tamora Pierce heroine. She’s quick-witted, adaptable, determined, and in no way is she going to let the powers that be step all over her. When both the Davillon City Guard and Finders’ Guild (that is—ha—thieves’ guild) start harassing her for (mostly) unfounded reasons, she decides to show them both by stealing an item from a visiting dignitary—not because she actually wants the item, just to show that she won’t be so easily contained. Her very nickname suggests opposition, “widdershins” meaning “counterclockwise.” Of course, as exemplified by the aforementioned adventure, her determination sometimes (read: often) translates into headstrong recklessness. Widdershins frequently gets into trouble without the aid of any force but herself. For readers, this isn’t a bad thing. It’s fun to watch her fall into exponentially worsening trouble because it means she’ll have to do something equivalently clever to get out of it, which she frequently does.
She’s also too busy running from the City Guard, Finders’ Guild thugs, other people who generally want her dead, and oh, demons, to have time for a romance, which is a refreshing change from other heroines whose goals are complicated by the two hot guys vying for their attentions.
Her relationship with the god in her head, Olgun, is fascinating, too, as is the entire concept of religion in this setting. Davillon’s is a faith centered around a Pact of 147 acknowledged gods, from which families and organizations choose to take as household deities and official patrons. The gods are active in the city, visible through tangible boons granted to worshippers; Widdershins’ in particular helps her thievery in subtle ways. These gods also regulate the behavior of the city; organizations with patron gods of the Pact can’t openly attack one another without violating the Pact, which is why the City Guard can’t take on the Finder’s Guild without resorting to sneaky methods (or otherwise starting a war). The resulting tension, combined with a plot involving the history of Widdershins’ personal god, makes this religion one of the most interesting pieces of world-building in the book.
The writing itself is another strength of the novel. The prose is peppered with amusing, ironic wit, and the style balances the derring-do and drama quite well, never becoming too over-the-top or too melodramatic. Also, despite being the first book in a series, the story functions as a standalone, and thus is a welcome departure from the cliffhanger endings favored by other YA series starters.
For squeamish readers, it’s worth noting that the novel opens in the midst of carnage involving a ton of murdered bodies that have been hacked into such fine pieces that the characters can’t figure out which body parts belong to which victim. However, that is by far the worst of the violence in the book, and most that occurs is pretty standard for a book of this type.
Overall, Thief’s Covenant is a solid start to a promising series. I look forward to reading more!
***
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Department 19 – Book Review
From book jacket: When Jamie Carpenter’s mother is kidnapped, he finds himself dragged into Department 19, the government’s most secret agency. Fortunately for Jamie, Department 19 can provide the tools he needs to find his mother, and to kill the vampires who want him dead. But unfortunately for everyone, something much older is stirring, something even Department 19 can’t stand up against…
I read Department 19 at the frequent recommendation of one of my regular teens at the library. His enthusiasm for the series, combined with the first entry’s shamelessly and splendidly Expendables-like cover, led me to expect the best in ridiculous action movie-style epicness. Unfortunately, the book never truly lives up to the anticipated epicness, but it’s still a pretty fun read for readers who are willing to put up with its flaws.
Department 19 follows the classic Teenager Discovers Dark and Awesome Family History and Suddenly Has An Important Coming of Age Adventure plot. In this case, unbeknownst to his family, Jamie’s father was secretly a member of the titular vampire-hunting organization, and his family’s relevance in the organization ensures him an eventual place in it, as is Department 19 tradition. First, though, he has to rescue his mom and earn that place.
The novel is basically an entertaining read. It’s rarely short on action, there are plenty of fun vampire-hunting gadgets and codenames for things (The series’ main weapon is called a T-Bone because it’s a big stake GET IT? xD ), and the story’s world is derived from classic monster literature (Department 19 itself was founded by the main characters in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and Jamie’s partner/bodyguard is Frankenstein’s monster).
Its flaws are mainly found in its structure and characters. One would expect a novel with a cover like this to explode to a start and never really slow down; however, despite most chapters involving an action scene of some sort, the novel’s momentum takes a long time to build, and even then never hits a healthy stride. A lot of this is due to the fact that the novel is actually composed of several different stories taking place in different time periods—Jamie’s storyline, the founders’ and founders’ descendants’ storyline, Jamie’s father’s storyline, and a few random other storylines. None of the stories are necessarily uninteresting, but the way in which they’re interwoven slows the pace down a lot. Sometimes the amount of information gained from the non-Jamie chapters is so insignificant, too, that I wondered why the author chose to revolve a whole chapter and action scene around something that could have been conveyed in a single expository paragraph. A few chapters and even a few characters are introduced in detail only to have no impact on the story whatsoever! Also, most of the characters, while Action Movie Cool, are not very engaging on an individual level, and many of their decisions seem very noodly in logic. Characters switch allegiances and drop plot twist bombs out of nowhere, and near the end it happens so frequently that parts of the climax just make you go WHUT. But then vampires start attacking, and the high octane combined with the fact that these vampires explode gloriously (goriously?) when staked provides enough distraction to carry through the end of the novel.
Another major flaw is that the novel stretches suspension of disbelief a little far. One expects to suspend at least a little disbelief in stories like this, but Department 19 expects readers to believe that, despite his father being somewhat reviled in the organization, Jamie can sass and faux-tough-guy his way into getting Department 19 officers to give him the resources needed to help fight the vampires who kidnapped his mom. The organization does, but it’s in an “UGH, OKAY,” kind of way, which strikes me as highly unrealistic even in a setting like this. I can’t think of any functional government organization that would willingly, much less begrudgingly, bestow crazypants anti-vampire weaponry on a teenager who 1) didn’t even believe that vampires existed until yesterday, and 2) is not very good at acting tough or competent in the first place. Especially when he is stupid enough to run to the aid of a hot vampire girl and not expect her to try to tear out his throat (which also happens). Yet somehow, the novel also expects readers to believe that, after a mere 48 hours of training, Jamie can nearly ace a testing simulation that provides a challenge even to seasoned agents.
Pacing and believability flaws aside, though, Department 19 is ultimately an entertaining read. When taken as individual units, the chapters actually read pretty quickly, and though there were points when I became exasperated with Jamie’s silly heroics and the useless detail, I never stopped enjoying the book. I just wish that it had been written more efficiently.
Black Hole Sun – Book Review
Durango is a sixteen-year-old soldier with souped-up symbiarmor and a sassy AI planted in his brain. He once held a position of prestige in the Regulator forces of Mars, but has since been disgraced, reduced to a dalit—an outcast—surviving solely on small mercenary jobs. He’s just what the people of Fisher Four have been looking for. Children have been disappearing from this forgotten mining colony, taken as tribute by the Draeu, never to return. The Draeu are cannibals. They believe a treasure is hidden in the dead tunnels of Fisher Four’s mines, and they’ll do anything to get it. The miners are just as desperate to keep them out. They’ll even hire a dalit.
Black Hole Sun by David MacInnis Gill is an amusing, action-packed sci-fi romp through the dystopian dusts of Mars. Readers have seen stories like it before—Some have compared it to Firefly because of its (very) vague Western flair and the snappy interactions between its characters—so it doesn’t break any new ground, but that doesn’t stop it from being a fun read. The banter that flows between Durango and his AI, Mimi, and later the davos (squad) that he assembles keeps the story flowing at a jaunty pace. The story itself is heavily plot-focused, which makes it great for readers who just want a straightforward adventure, as opposed to loads of eccentric world-building and science-babble. There is just enough setting detail to make the world of futuristic Mars interesting, but it never gets bogged down in itself. It doesn’t even dwell very much on its dystopian elements—they’re just a part of the setting, which is refreshing, considering how heavy-handed dystopian reads can be about their settings’ injustices. Durango isn’t interested in overthrowing injustice, anyway, but just finishing up this job, and the scale that this lends to the novel is another of its refreshing parts. It’s cool to meet a hero who’s not out on an epic quest to save the whole solar system.
For the kind of novel that it is, its weak points are few. There’s not much in the way of character arcs, but the characters themselves are fun enough to read that it doesn’t matter. Some of the reveals are predictable, and the whole mechanic behind Durango’s disgrace—that, when a davos leader is killed in battle, his soldiers are expected to commit honorable suicide to follow him (Obviously, Durango didn’t)—is somewhat silly. Granted, it fits in with the Regulators’ strict adherence to their Tenets and their Viking-like interests in Valhalla and Beautiful Deaths, but on a basic level, a tradition like that is simply a waste of valuable soldiers.
Overall, though, Black Hole Sun is a space adventure well worth its quick read.
The Order of Odd-Fish – Book Review
In the pre-Adventure Time days, there was no easy way to describe James Kennedy’s The Order of Odd-Fish. After all, how does one simply describe a book that is equal parts the snap-quick grotesquerie of Roald Dahl, the cracked-out madness of every late-late-night cartoon, and even the bizarre randomness of a select band of comedy anime? There is no simple way to cover all that. Or at least there wasn’t. Not before Adventure Time. But now I can say this about The Order of Odd-Fish:
This book reads exactly like Adventure Time, and it is a glorious, glorious thing.
From the back cover: Jo Larouche has lived her thirteen years in the California desert with her aunt Lily, ever since she was dropped on Lily’s doorstep with this note: “This is Jo. Please take care of her. But beware. This is a DANGEROUS baby.” Soon worsening circumstances lead Jo and Lily out of California forever—and into the fantastical world of Eldritch City. There Jo learns the scandalous truth about who she really is, and she and Lily join the Order of Odd-Fish, a colorful collection of knights who research useless information. Glamorous cockroach butlers, pointless quests, obsolete weapons, and bizarre festivals fill Jo and Lily’s days, but two villains—one quite silly and one more demonic than you can possibly imagine—control their fate. Jo is inching closer and closer to the day when her destiny will be fulfilled, and no one in Eldritch City will ever be the same.
Odd-Fish is a book unlike any book that I’ve ever read. It shares similarities with the whimsical worlds of Roald Dahl and Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth, but takes the absurdity inherent in such worlds and turns it up to eleven, with hilarious results. It might actually be the most hilarious book I’ve ever read.
The amazing thing about Odd-Fish, though, is not that laugh-out-loud moments occur; it’s that they continue, and they keep continuing until you start wondering how much funny can possibly fit into a book and then realize that you’re still on the same scene, and there’s, blissfully, more to come. It’s not typical funny, though. I’ve read humor books that have literally kept me laughing from page to page, but these books all tackle rather normal topics—the humor and quirks of day-to-day activities, for example. Nothing in The Order of Odd-Fish is remotely normal. It is totally and utterly nonsensical and absurd and wonderful and I love it. It is a novel in which the main characters include a Russian colonel with digestion so sensitive it’s semi-conscious, a four-foot-tall talking cockroach who likes fancy purple suits, a Chinese millionaire who wants to be as evil as he can because he’s already done every good thing in the world that he can possibly do and is bored with it, a celebrity prankster terrorist (Just read the book), and a regular girl who is not as regular as she seems—a combination stranger and more eclectic than anything seen even in Eldritch City. It’s a setup so mad that, by all accounts, it shouldn’t work. But it does. Even when it’s using an idea that we’ve already seen (which is rare), it works, and it works brilliantly.
The book’s only significant shortcoming is, fittingly, as odd as the story itself. Odd-Fish is at its best for the first few hundred pages, when it’s simply a string of bizarre adventures involving Jo and her friends. Nearing its end, though, it decides that it needs to settle down and grow an actual plot. The conflict and climax that result are still entertaining, but they don’t have the spirit of the first chunk of the novel, which is disappointing.
Still, fans of the absurd are bound to find a favorite in this novel. The Order of Odd-Fish has a place of honor on my bookshelf, and I eagerly await James Kennedy’s next work, The Magnificent Moots, whenever it finally releases.
Humanity Machine – 2nd Draft Complete!
Can a person manufactured for war still be human?
The second draft of Humanity Machine is now complete, and Adam Burn has finished the stellar cover art and graphic design. Oh yeah, it’s coming together!
So what is Humanity Machine?
Humanity Machine is a story of Manufactured People. Soldiers created on demand using an advanced form of 3D printing. More precisely, this is the story of one such soldier: Vance. This is her journey as she grows from just one more cog in the machine to an individual that can shape the destiny of her people.
Humanity Machine is a story of Intense Space Battles. Highly advanced, self-modifying warships slugging it out in the depths of space. Vance serves as one warship’s drone controller, commanding her squadrons of interceptors and bombers against a powerful and tenacious foe.
Humanity Machine is a story of Divided Humanity. Not by politics or ethnicities or faiths, but by technology. It’s a story about how technology molds a society, and how that technology can make its people seem very alien to an outsider. Imagine a society with no families, no children, and no gender roles. Imagine a two-tiered society of the created and the creators. What would that society be like? What would its people be like?
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UPDATE: Where is Humanity Machine?
I have good news and news (which is really neither good nor bad). The good news is that Humanity Machine will be released. Eventually. The novel is now a very polished 3rd draft, and it’s coming out one way or another.
I honestly wish we could publish the book now, but here comes the neither-good-nor-bad news.
How the novel will be published is a bit of an open question. Actually two open questions. I know that’s horribly vague, but to say anything more at this time would be premature. There are some potentially exciting opportunities here, and the delay comes from H.P. and I taking the time to explore them properly.
So, yes. Humanity Machine will be coming out. You can count on that.
Warmachine Tactics – Cryx: Goreshade, Lord of Ruin
Warcasters are the stars of Warmachine, and Cryx has no shortage of powerful and fun-to-play warcasters. Today, I’m taking a look at Goreshade, Lord of Ruin.
IN SHORT: With two ways to inflict Stationary, some excellent buff spells, and a cheap way to bring back undead models, Goreshade is a force to be reckoned with. Did I mention he’s got a horse now too?
STRENGTHS: Where to begin with this guy?
How about, he’s a warcaster with Ghostly and cavalry rules. What does this mean? Well, for starters, no one’s getting free strikes against him, even if he misses impact attacks or performs a ride-by attack. That’s a chocolate and peanut butter combo if I ever saw one.
He’s also Tall in the Saddle, so he can ignore small and medium bases when making melee attacks. So forget about typical Shield Wall units preventing line of sight to a vulnerable warcaster when declaring a melee attack.
And while we’re on it, what a melee attack! His sword Voass is P+S 15 with Reach and Stationary. Even better, he’s effective MAT 9 when he charges (again because of those delicious cavalry rules). And after he’s hit once, every extra attack hits automatically.
So, a quick recap. No one gets free strikes against him. He can trample through enemy models. He hits like a truck, freezes enemies solid, and then is free to dish out hit after hit with impunity. That is an assassination vector opponents MUST respect!
But Goreshade is far from a one trick undead horse. He comes with a whole host of ways to support his army. Infernal Machine buffs one of his warjacks. +2 SPD and MAT on a Kraken anyone? Occultation gives out Stealth to units or models (potentially to himself for added safety). And Scything Touch enhances melee damage by +2, again to units or models.
For his feat, Winter’s Grasp, he can explode his own warrior models into 3” AOEs. And what do these AOEs do? Well, they inflict Stationary! He can literally freeze an enemy army dead in its tracks.
But the real gem in his spell list is Mockery of Life. For the cheap price of 2 Focus, Goreshade can bring back a friendly Faction Undead Grunt. Now, Cryx infantry does not lack for ways to increase its numbers. When combined with Goreshade’s new spell, this can get outright silly. Be sure to bring extra models!
He can even cast a spell for free once per turn if a living enemy model casts a spell in his control area. That gives him 4 potential Mockery of Life casts! I mean, seriously, even his basic magic attack spell is snazzy. With Siphon Bolt, he can strip 1 Focus or 1 Fury off models hit and add 1 Focus to his own pool, kind of making this a 1 Focus attack spell. Yikes!
Rounding out the package, Goreshade’s basic stats are solid. With DEF 14, ARM 17, Focus 7, and 17 hit boxes, so he can take a solid beating before going down.
Yeah, Goreshade comes fully loaded.
WEAKNESSES: Goreshade is sitting on a large base, which automatically makes him difficult to protect. He also has three upkeep spells and Mockery of Life vying for his Focus pool. Put those two together, and it’s easy to splurge and leave him vulnerable.
Ghostly and SPD 8 do help him use terrain to his advantage, and he can slap Stealth on himself for added protection, but the problem definitely exists.
Goreshade also lacks the conventional assortment of Cryx debuffs. While Scything Touch does aid damage output, Goreshade has very limited options when it comes to making Cryx models hit better. This mostly revolves around using his feat to inflict Stationary. Models that like DEF debuffs for more accurate attacks won’t find much support from this warcaster.
SYNERGIES: Goreshade loves undead infantry so he can bring them back with Mockery of Life, and that synergy is even better if those models can already add to their numbers. And if those models are self-sufficient, it gets even better.
For all of the above, Bane Thralls or Bane Knights with Tartarus provide an excellent option. For most of the above, Mechanithralls supported by Necrosurgeons do the trick.
Blackbane’s Raiders are also a potent choice. They’re undead and they can reanimate their enemies as long as Blackbane is around. But they’re also incorporeal with SPD 7, which allows them to race through the enemy lines and be detonated by Goreshade Stationary-inflicting AOEs. For this same reason, Machine Wraiths are an excellent vector for delivering Goreshade’s feat to enemy models.
Bane Riders are another choice with plenty of promise. They may lack a way to add more Riders, but they are highly self-sufficient when it comes to hitting their targets hard and accurately, plus each Rider that Goreshade revives packs considerable punch. Better than bringing Mechanithralls back for 2 Focus a model, right? Their large bases also provide a means to block line of sight to Goreshade.
JUST FOR FUN: It’s the Mechanithrall two-for-one sale! Enemy gun lines getting you down? Mechanithralls lying around in pieces? Well, have no fear!
With both Necrosurgeons and Goreshade on hand, each blown up Mechanithrall can come back not once, but TWICE! That’s because the Necrosurgeons and Goreshade both use a different resource to add models (a corpse token versus a destroyed status).
So yeah. Double-dip till your heart’s content. Even blow up some of your own Mechanithralls to get the process started.
Enjoy!
SUMMARY: Goreshade is back and comes loaded with cool tricks and abilities. He’s a powerful assassin all by himself, and he can play a downright demoralizing attrition game with Mockery of Life. Plus, it’s a steampunk undead dark elf on a steampunk undead horse! Do I really need to say anything else?
Check out the complete list of Warmachine and Hordes articles here.
Humanity Machine – Cover Work-in-Progress
The incredibly talented Adam Burn has begun working on the cover to Humanity Machine. This is merely the first element of the composition. Here you can see the SolFleet frigate Valor taking shape, which the main character Vance serves on as its drone controller. It’ll be under attack in the final version.
Pretty cool, huh? In Adam’s own words:
“Starting first with the massive capital ship, quite rough at the moment mostly throwing down shapes and basic lighting so the final will be more refined.”
Yes, ladies and gentlemen. What we have here right now is “quite rough.” I can’t wait to see the refined version. 🙂
So what is Humanity Machine? Well, I’m glad you asked!
Humanity Machine is a story of Manufactured People. Soldiers created on demand using an advanced form of 3D printing. More precisely, this is the story of one such soldier: Vance. This is her journey as she grows from just one more cog in the machine to an individual that can shape the destiny of her people.
Humanity Machine is a story of Intense Space Battles. Highly advanced, self-modifying warships slugging it out in the depths of space. Vance serves as one warship’s drone controller, commanding her squadrons of interceptors and bombers against a powerful and tenacious foe.
Humanity Machine is a story of Divided Humanity. Not by politics or ethnicities or faiths, but by technology. It’s a story about how technology molds a society, and how that technology can make its people seem very alien to an outsider. Imagine a society with no families, no children, and no gender roles. Imagine a two-tiered society of the created and the creators. What would that society be like? What would its people be like?
And if all goes to plan, it will be out this year!
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Time Reavers – Sequel
This is so exciting! People have started asking about the sequel to Time Reavers!
Please allow me to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has inquired about the next book. Your feedback is a precious, wonderful thing. So, on that note, I thought I’d take a moment to talk a little bit about the sequel.
Will there be a sequel to Time Reavers?
Oh, you’d better believe there’s going to be a sequel!
What’s it called?
The working title is Mind Reavers.
What will it be about?
The hidden war between the tau guards and the reavers is about to go loud in a big way. The barrier between our worlds is crumbling. The resolve of the tau guards is failing, and seventeen-year-old Nicole Taylor, with her unique ability to speak to the reavers, may be the only one who can save the Earth.
Also, expect to learn more about the true nature of the reavers in this book. A lot more. Many of the lingering questions from Time Reavers will have light shed on them.
What will happen in it?
Oh, come on. Like I’d answer that. 🙂
When are you going to finish it?
Well, I’ve got to start it first. It’s on the short list of upcoming projects along with the sequel to The Dragons of Jupiter. Right now, I’m focused on making Humanity Machine as awesome and exciting as possible.
FINISH IT FASTER!
I’m sorry. I wish I could write faster too. 🙁
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Holo Writing at SC Comicon 2014!
This past weekend, H.P. and I participated in the first ever South Carolina Comic Con, organized by the very hardworking Rob Young of Borderland Comics and Games. The event lasted two days and, according to one of the staff members, drew in over six thousand people! I can believe it too. The convention center was packed. The pictures we took do not do the crowd justice because, simply put, we were so busy when the crowds really hit!
H.P. and I had a blast interacting with people at the convention. We met I.R. Harris, author of the dark epic fantasy Bound Trilogy as well as plenty of talented artists. Tons of cool people, many in costume, stopped by our table.
Many of those who stopped by left with our books in hand. We almost blew through our entire stock. Bear in mind, we ordered extras after the success of Tangled Web’s Free Comic Day. Even with that, we still almost ran out. It was a great weekend for us!
To everyone who purchased our books, THANK YOU! Welcome to Holo Writing!
Holo Writing at SpartanCon!
This past Saturday, H.P. and I hosted a table at SpartanCon. We had a lot of fun doing it. A big, warm thank you to Spartanburg County Public Libraries for extending the invitation to us and letting us host a table at their event.
This picture was taken before things got crazy. And boy, did they get crazy! The head librarian mentioned to us that between eight hundred and a thousand people showed up. We had a wonderful day interacting with plenty of new readers. To everyone who bought our books, thank you! We hope you enjoy them!
The day was a resounding success for us. H.P. and I will definitely be participating in SpartanCon next year.
Of the people who attended SpartanCon, plenty came wearing some superb costumes. Not surprising, since the library hosted a cosplay contest with two 4-day tickets to DragonCon as the main prize. Here you can see me with the winner and her completely homemade Jawa costume.
Yes, there is a lovely young lady underneath all of that.
And there’s plenty more awesome cosplay where that came from. Early in the day, I had my picture taken with an Alucard cosplayer. The young gentleman stopped by our table afterwards and was so impressed with our books he brought his friends over to show them. They too left with our books in hand.
And here’s one more really cool cosplay. Why? Because it’s Dead Space. Does there need to be another reason? 🙂
Again, thank you to everyone who decided to give our books a try. You’re awesome!
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Holo Writing at Tangled Web Free Comic Day!
Daniel McAbee, owner of the Tangled Web, graciously invited us to host a table during his Free Comic Day special. Both H.P. and I stayed the entire day and had an absolute blast. So many awesome people stopped by our table to hear about our books. We really enjoyed getting to interact with our fellow sci-fi/fantasy fans, and a warm thank you to all of you who decided to give our books a try.
We also got very good at summarizing our books quickly. H.P. did a particularly awesome job.
Fan-in-the-Making: The Dragons of Jupiter? What’s that about?
H.P. Holo: Space ninjas versus space marines!
Jacob Holo: There’s more to it than that, but yeah.
Fan-in-the-Making: Cool. And Time Reavers?
H.P. Holo: Teens with super powers versus giant interdimensional cyborg insects!
Fan-in-the-Making: Sounds interesting.
We also had free buttons and bookmarks, which were a huge hit. We actually ran out of The Dragons of Jupiter buttons. People especially loved the “I’m a Dragon” buttons with a piece of the back cover art on the button. I thought a hundred was enough for the day, but the crowd cleaned us out!
Despite hosting the table for eight hours, the day went by in a flash. It’s a good thing we brought plenty of books, because people were in the mood to buy some action-packed sci-fi/fantasy! You can’t see them in the top picture, but there are boxes of books underneath our table. We emptied them. The books you see in the next picture are the only survivors from a fantastic day at Tangled Web (actually minus one, because we sold another shortly before we packed up).
Again, both H.P. and I had a really great time at Tangled Web. Thank you to Daniel McAbee for being a truly stellar host, and thank you to all of our new readers! Welcome to Holo Writing!
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Holo Writing – Fan Art
Here’s the first piece of fan art I’ve received! Please enjoy! 🙂
