{"id":2833,"date":"2017-01-15T10:25:51","date_gmt":"2017-01-15T10:25:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/?p=2833"},"modified":"2017-01-15T10:25:51","modified_gmt":"2017-01-15T10:25:51","slug":"five-self-published-gems-of-2013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/2017\/01\/five-self-published-gems-of-2013\/","title":{"rendered":"Five self-published gems of 2013"},"content":{"rendered":"

Edit: This is my original post, reposted here because it got lost in a cyber-black-hole.<\/p>\n

Self-publishing gets a bad rap. Some wit once said: the best thing about self-publishing is that anyone can do it; and the worst thing about self-publishing is that anyone can do it. Occasionally, trawling through the endless heaps of optimistic offerings on Amazon, it seems as if half the world\u2019s population sat down at the computer, rattled off that novel they\u2019ve always wanted to write, and without a single further thought clicked the \u2018Publish\u2019 button. Bad spelling, bad grammar, no punctuation at all, wooden characters, trite plots…<\/p>\n

But there are authors out there who write as well as any of the big names, and better than many of them. They take the time to edit thoroughly, they add professional cover art, they take endless trouble with formatting. Their work is indistinguishable in quality from anything put out by the traditional publishers. And the great virtue of taking control of your own publishing is freedom. Self-pubbers can write what they want, in the way they want, as long or as short as the story needs to be. They\u2019re not constrained by genre or perceived marketability or what\u2019s hot. They can be as original as they like, and many are astonishingly imaginative.<\/p>\n

The very best of my self-pubbed reading this year will be noted in the forthcoming Barney Awards, but here are a few others that gave me terrific reads this year.<\/p>\n

\"\"The Wandering Tale by Tristan Gregory<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is a collection of four novellas set in a single world, and only loosely connected: a minor character from one story becomes more important in the next one. Each one is published and sold separately. Start with The Swordsman of Carn Nebeth. When a man returns to his village after nineteen years away fighting in the wars, young William is fascinated by his stories of the life of a soldier, and the battles he\u2019s been in. But when other former soldiers start to cause trouble, he realises that bravery isn\u2019t just for kings and soldiers. This is a cracking story of a boy growing to manhood in a small village, and learning the truth about being a hero. Great characterisation, a well judged balance between action and slower passages, a perfect ending and with more emotional resonance than I\u2019ve seen in some well-regarded works many times its length. A beautifully crafted piece which I loved. There’s a lot of subtlety in these stories. People are honourable without being stupid or caricatures, they behave in believable ways and display both intelligence and strength of character. Even the bad guys have reasonable motivations. Below the surface are some thought-provoking themes – of war and honour and duty and bravery, the responsibility of power and the pragmatism of politics. Each episode is a little gem in its own right, but together they add up to something much more interesting.<\/p>\n

\"\"The Five Elements by Scott Marlowe<\/strong><\/p>\n

A cracking read with elements of steampunk, alchemy, a fairly standard form of elemental magic plus there\u2019s a fair dose of science in the mix as well. The main character, Aaron, is a sorcerer\u2019s apprentice, but unlike the usual such character, he\u2019\u2019s a scientist, using logic and scientific knowledge to investigate effects related to his master\u2019s work. He\u2019s a terrific character, both immature yet intelligent and enterprising, perfectly aligned with his age. I absolutely loved his ability to approach any problem in a logical, scientific way, and find a rational solution. This is so refreshing in fantasy, which all too often turns to magic at such moments. The pace is rapid and there\u2019s a dizzying array of twists and turns, to the point that I had absolutely no idea what was going to happen next, or who was a good guy and who was a villain, almost to the end. The ending is appropriately grandiose and with unexpectedly thoughtful undertones. The author is to be commended for not taking the easy way out at this point. One of those books I tore through at high speed – that just-one-more-chapter syndrome; it\u2019s an unusual, pacy story, with an unexpected plot-twist in almost every chapter, and great fun to read.<\/p>\n

The Tattered Banner by Duncan Hamilton<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"Soren is eighteen, trying to survive on the streets, when a theft gone wrong results in a street fight and a passing swordsman recognises some talent in him. He is taken to the Academy to learn to wield a rapier and be a gentleman. It\u2019s refreshing to read a story where the rapier is the the weapon of choice, and I found it a refreshing change from the more usual broadswords and bows. The book sidesteps all the street-boy-goes-to-posh-school cliches, and quickly gets Soren out and about wielding his rapier and discovering the extent of his extraordinary gift. These early battles are beautifully described, the highpoint of the book for me, and I loved every moment of each one (especially the belek, which was one of those awesome moments that stays with you long after the book is finished). The world behind all the action has great depth, one where magic was once widespread by is now outlawed. A terrific page-turning read, and the follow-on book, \u2018The Huntsman\u2019s Amulet\u2019, looks like reaching the same standard.<\/p>\n

The Fall of Ventaris by Neil McGarry and Daniel Ravipinto<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"The first book in this series, \u2018The Duchess of the Shallows\u2019, was a breath of fresh air, a fantasy work set in a single city, with compelling characters and a beautifully woven plot, filled with double-dealing and double meanings, where nothing and nobody can be taken quite at face value. This follow-on is more of the same, but with even more depth, showing more of the city itself, its history, and the three main religions. The authors skillfully weave the many different strands together to create a brilliantly nuanced picture of Rodaas and its people. Duchess\u2019s many schemes take her all round the city and below it, and these adventures bring the book to vivid and dramatic life. Some of her encounters are unforgettable: the strange candlelit ceremony at one temple, the meeting with the facet (priestess) in another and the events underground, for instance. The facets are a truly spine-chilling invention, a sort of hive-mind of masked women, all identical, and there\u2019s a moment near the end, when the hive-mind slips slightly, which is awesome. Great characters, a compelling plot and terrific world-building; this is a polished and cleverly thought out book which would repay a second read to understand all the nuances and subtexts.<\/p>\n

And All The Stars by Andrea K H\u00f6st<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"A YA post-apocalypse story in the literal sense, beginning the very instant after, as main character Madeleine finds herself amidst rubble from a disintegrated underground station. And dust, vast amounts of dust which coat everything, including Madeleine herself. And as she makes her escape through the ruined station, she encounters the base of the Spire, a black spike, which has instantaneously risen into the Sydney skyline, along with numerous others all around the world. The dust is the key, for those who encounter it are irrevocably changed. Finding out about the dust and the strange Spires, as well as simple survival, creates a pacy adventure which rattles along nicely. The characters aren\u2019t the standard issue beautiful people who leap into perfectly honed action when called upon. These are relatively ordinary people with odd combinations of talent and weakness. Problems are solved by intelligence, common sense and teamwork, rather than brute force. Nor is everyone uniformly heterosexual. And then, just when you think you\u2019ve got the book neatly pigeon-holed, there’s a moment which changes everything, one of those magical OMG moments when your perception simply shifts sideways to open up the story in innumerable different ways. I love it when an author manages to do that to me. An interesting and thought-provoking read.<\/p>\n

And a bonus novella: Sunbolt by Intisar Khanani<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"I discovered the author\u2019s debut novel, \u2018Thorn\u2019, quite accidentally, one of those magical reads where you start on the sample and find yourself so swept up in the story you just can\u2019t put it down. This is just as good, the first in a projected series of perhaps six novellas altogether. This has to be one of the most unpredictable stories I’ve ever read, a new twist at every turn, and as the book is incredibly fast-paced, that means a breathtaking ride. Hitomi is a lovely heroine – spirited, enterprising and imaginative, and never, ever prepared to be pushed aside. She always does exactly what she wants to do, regardless of whatever instructions she\u2019s given. I loved the way the author managed to fudge the question of who were the good guys and who were the villains; things just aren\u2019t that simple here. One doesn\u2019\u2019t expect much in the way of world-building from a novella, but there\u2019s surely enough background here to fuel a full-sized trilogy at least. This is a wonderful book, with memorable characters, some great world-building, an action-packed plot that never lets up for a moment and a surprising twist every few pages, and beautifully written.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Edit: This is my original post, reposted here because it got lost in a cyber-black-hole. Self-publishing gets a bad rap. Some wit once said: the best thing about self-publishing is that anyone can do it; and the worst thing about self-publishing is that anyone can do it. Occasionally, trawling through the endless heaps of optimistic offerings on Amazon, it seems as if half the world\u2019s population sat down at the computer, rattled off that novel they\u2019ve always wanted to write, and without a single further thought clicked the \u2018Publish\u2019 button. Bad spelling, bad grammar, no punctuation at all, wooden characters, trite plots… But there are authors out there who write as well as any of the big names, and better than many of them. They take the time to edit thoroughly, they add professional cover art, they take endless trouble with formatting. Their work is indistinguishable in quality from anything […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[107,152,63],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2833"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2833"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2833\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2835,"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2833\/revisions\/2835"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2833"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2833"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulinemross.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2833"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}