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As a style, fantasy has a status for tremendous lengthy books. Several years in the past, The Guardian ran an essay entitled “Fantasy Must Shake Off the Tyranny of the Mega-Novel.” If you have a look at the work compiled by The Fantasy Inn on phrase counts of a number of the longest SFF sequence, nicely, it’s a bit staggering (we’re speaking a number of tens of millions).
If we rely books as a substitute of phrases, we are able to begin small: three books in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, seven in The Chronicles of Narnia, eight in The Dark Tower sequence, ten in The Chronicles of Amber, 41 in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld sequence. You get the image, proper? This isn’t even starting to get into a number of the heftier single-volume tomes on the market.
Some even argue that good fantasy novels have to be longer than non-fantasy novels as a result of worldbuilding takes time (and phrases). For the document, I disagree with this angle, regardless that I recognize high quality worldbuilding as a lot as the subsequent avid fantasy reader.
Put merely, not all good fantasy is chonky. In reality, a few of it’s downright brief. And I’m not simply speaking about flash fiction. There are some unbelievable fantasy novels and novellas on the market, which is good news for readers who aren’t able to learn an epic novel or sequence proper now.
Uncommon Charm by Emily Bergslien and Kat Weaver (94 pages)
Bergslien and Weaver’s humorous novella facilities on lovingly rendered younger buddies, Julia and Simon, who reside in a magic-infused alternate Twenties London. Julia returns residence after being expelled from faculty, whereas Simon is quiet and deeply invested in learning magic. Julia’s mother is Simon’s trainer, and the 2 teenagers develop a friendship fairly shortly. As Julia struggles to grasp her fraught relationship along with her mom and Simon’s magical powers (that are intertwined together with his Jewish religion) develop, the pair discover themselves with a thriller on their arms — one involving Julia’s mom. You’ll burn by means of this one shortly, however its memorable characters will persist with you.
The Return of the Sorceress by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (96 pages)
Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s fantasy all the time delivers on magic and grit, and this brief guide is not any exception. The magic on this story world is bloody and has ties to Nahuatl figures and ideas. Protagonist Yalxi has, er, dedicated some fairly darkish deeds in her time. That’s how she got here to be Supreme Mistress of the Guild of Sorcerers…and misplaced to her traitorous lover. His betrayal units her on the trail of revenge that types a lot of the story. Her quest forces her to revisit her previous in actually attention-grabbing methods, and if she desires to regain her highly effective place, she’ll need to get her arms slightly soiled.
The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw (112 pages)
If you’ve ever learn Cassandra Khaw’s work, you’ll be supremely unsurprised to be taught that this guide is a bloody darkish fantasy with components of horror. Like their different works, this one is certainly not for the faint of coronary heart. The key characters are a badly wronged mermaid searching for escape from her captivity and a plague physician who’s grappling with their very own traumatic previous. The obstacles they encounter as every aids their very own and the opposite’s escape are, let’s assume, disturbing and mysterious. This is not any kids’s fairy story; it’s a fantastical work of physique horror that can hang-out you for a very long time.
The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo (128 pages)
This one’s a novella, but it surely’s additionally guide one among 4 in The Singing Hills Cycle. Happily, the books actually kind a cycle, so you may learn any of them on their very own or a number of volumes in no matter order you please. This specific quantity begins with information of Empress In-yo’s demise, uncovering particulars of her life as empress by means of a cleric’s analysis and a lady named Rabbit who as soon as served In-yo. What involves gentle by means of the pair’s interactions is a story directly feminist, queer, empowering, and uncooked.
Once More Upon a Time by Roshani Chokshi (144 pages)
This novella is delivered by means of exceptionally written and enjoyably humorous prose. Through a intelligent mash-up of two fairy tales, Chokshi creates a completely new fairy story (assume: princess from story A meets prince from story B, leading to story C — this guide). Imelda and Ambrose fall in love and get married inside days, however when Imelda eats a poisoned tomato throughout their marriage ceremony feast, Ambrose consents to sacrifice their love for each other to a witch in an effort to save Imelda’s life. After a yr and a day of loveless marriage, the witch returns to ask a favor and to plant a seed that simply would possibly lead the sad pair to a more true happily-ever-after.
The Archive of Alternate Endings by Lindsey Drager (168 pages)
This is greater than only a retelling of a fairy story. Drager’s novel is a captivating reimagining of “Hansel and Gretel” by means of characters in numerous eras who have interaction with the story ultimately. Whether that’s the 14th-century siblings behind the characters, individuals who write or illustrate or learn variations of the story because it evolves throughout the centuries, or the story’s continued circulation two centuries from now, every fragment of this uncommon guide brings focus to a unique facet of the story and its potential relevance.
The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia (176 pages)
For such a slim quantity, Jamnia’s novella positive covers loads of floor! Practicing blood magic is harmful, which is why queer protag Firuz has to flee for their life amidst a horrible plague. Firuz manages to flee to Qilwa as a refugee and begins a brand new life for themself. Unfortunately, the security they’ve begun to construct crumbles after they use their blood magic and discover themself the goal of concern and misunderstanding as soon as extra. It’s a compelling story that raises necessary questions for modern readers.
The Way Home by Peter S. Beagle (224 pages)
This one might sound slightly lengthy for a novella, however that’s as a result of it’s really two novellas referred to as Two Hearts and Sooz. If you really liked The Last Unicorn, you then’re in luck as a result of these novellas are each set in the identical world. The beforehand revealed Two Hearts offers readers a brand new character to get pleasure from within the younger Sooz. When we meet her, she’s attempting to avoid wasting her village from a griffin. Some previous favorites (anybody else keep in mind the lovable Schmendrick?) come to her assist, and Sooz catches up along with her years after the occasions of Two Hearts.
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