#WITCHMARK BY C.L. POLK

[betterbooksandthings]

"All fantasy authors have to start somewhere. The best debut fantasy books ever written are a testament to what that starting line can look like. In fantasy, the delicate dance between worldbuilding, character, and craft is always difficult. Somehow, these authors got it just right with the first books they had published."

[queereads-bracket]

Queer Adult SFF Books Bracket: Round 2

Book summaries below:

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

A groundbreaking work of science fiction, The Left Hand of Darkness tells the story of a lone human emissary to Winter, an alien world whose inhabitants spend most of their time without a gender. His goal is to facilitate Winter's inclusion in a growing intergalactic civilization. But to do so he must bridge the gulf between his own views and those of the completely dissimilar culture that he encounters.

Embracing the aspects of psychology, society, and human emotion on an alien world, The Left Hand of Darkness stands as a landmark achievement in the annals of intellectual science fiction.

Science fiction, classics, speculative fiction, anthropological science fiction, distant future, adult

Witchmark by C.L. Polk (The Kingston Cycle series)

In an original world reminiscent of Edwardian England in the shadow of a World War, cabals of noble families use their unique magical gifts to control the fates of nations, while one young man seeks only to live a life of his own.

Magic marked Miles Singer for suffering the day he was born, doomed either to be enslaved to his family's interest or to be committed to a witches' asylum. He went to war to escape his destiny and came home a different man, but he couldn’t leave his past behind. The war between Aeland and Laneer leaves men changed, strangers to their friends and family, but even after faking his own death and reinventing himself as a doctor at a cash-strapped veterans' hospital, Miles can’t hide what he truly is.

When a fatally poisoned patient exposes Miles’ healing gift and his witchmark, he must put his anonymity and freedom at risk to investigate his patient’s murder. To find the truth he’ll need to rely on the family he despises, and on the kindness of the most gorgeous man he’s ever seen.

Fantasy, romance, mystery, paranormal, secondary world, adult

[rains-of-words]

“Magic is the echo of a wish too strong to be silenced.”

— C.L. Polk, Witchmark

[douwatahima]

i saw some people doing this over on the bird app, but i know that place is a hellhole so i thought i'd bring it over here! reblog this post and tell me what book (or books!) you would recommend to a character in ofmd! 📚

[bookcoversonly]

Title: Witchmark | Author: C.L. Polk | Publisher: Tor (2018)

[fullibooked]

If you boiled these books down to their bare essentials, I think you'd get a murder mystery and a political mystery, but these are just the foundation.

C.L Polk has enriched these mysteries with war, medicine, family drama, romance, royalty, class systems, PTSD, asylums, aether, intrigue, and most importantly, witches.

The magic, witches, mages, and weather of Witchmark and Stormsong are all new and wonderful explorations of the theme. But the thing that struck me the most was how seamlessly the worldbuilding worked.

When given a new fictional world as readers we need to suspend our disbelief, but even with the invented names of seasons, places, species and even weekdays, Polk blended it all so easily with the narrative that I forgot it wasn't real-life for a solid two-books-worth of time.

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

So I know you have that post w the big list of black woman authors, and at least a couple times people have added authors that are in fact Not women, so I was curious… do you have a list of black non-binary authors you’d recommend?

yeah absolutely!

obviously my #1 ride or die is Akwaeke Emezi, although I do want to be conscientious to emphasize that while Emezi does use the word transgender to describe themself their self-concept is also deeply tied to the specifically Igbo concept of ogbanje, which they wrote about here. their first novel, Freshwater, is a work of autofiction that delves deep into that part of their life, but all of their work is gorgeous! they've got a a gorgeous novel called the Death of Vivek Oji about a family trying to make sense of a mysterious son's mysterious death, a wiiild romance novel called You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty, a sort of grimy, dark thriller set in Lagos called Little Rot, a heart-shattering memoir called Dear Senthuran, and even some YA novels. they've also been teasing a high fantasy series for YEARS and god, I am ready. being an Akwaeke Emezi stan is the gift that just keeps on giving.

Eloghosa Osunde is a visual artist and friend of Emezi's. their debut novel, Vagabonds!, contains multiple overlapping stories of queer lives in Nigeria, with the titular vagabonds doing their best to live beyond the notice of the laws that criminalize queerness. they've got another novel, which I believe is called Necessary Fictions, coming out this year and I'm super excited for it.

C.L. Polk is the author of one of my very favorite fantasy/mystery trilogies, which begins with Witchmark. the setting is a sort of a gaslamp fantasy set in not!England, and each book has a new main character pursuing a delightfully queer love story and also organizing against societal ills. these books said FUCK the patriarchy and MEANT IT.

Rivers Solomon writes resonant, eerie genre fiction; of faer books that I've read, one is called The Deep and explores the collective grief of mermaids who are descended from enslaved Africans who jumped off of slave ships in the Atlantic, and Sorrowland follows a queer, pregnant teenager's escape from a Black separatist cult that honestly reminds me a lot of Octavia Butler's work.

I actually JUST listened to a brand new novel by Bob the Drag Queen (yes, she's nonbinary!) called Live in Concert: Harriet Tubman, which takes the zany premise of Harriet Tubman miraculously coming back to life (Do Not worry about it) and deciding to drop a mixtape with the help of a washed up gay producer and turns it into something really heartfelt. it's a little messy, but it did make me almost cry several times. I strongly recommend listening to it narrated by Mx. the Drag Queen to really get the full effect.

also on the memoir front, I have GOT to shout out George M. Johnson's memoir All Boys Aren't Blue, one of the MOST consistently banned and challenged books in America baby!!! and all because it deals with real shit like sexual violence, the pressures of masculinity, and a child realizing they may not be growing up to be the boy they're expected to be. it's really moving, I can't wait to pass my copy to my nephew when he's the right age to take it in.

[duckprintspress]

Celebrate J.R.R. Tolkien’s Birthday with 54 Queer Fantasy Books!

Today, January 3rd, is J.R.R. Tolkien Day—the day we celebrate the legend’s birthday. It’s hard to imagine the fantasy genre without Tolkien’s influence on it. That’s why, we figured, what better way to celebrate than by having an adventure with an awesome fantasy book? And, as this is the first time we’ve done a queer fantasy rec list, our reccing crew got very excited, with the result that this is one of the longest lists we’ve ever posted. We asked our contributors for great queer, fantasy recommendations, and boy, did they deliver! We collected a list of whooping 54 titles, all thanks to Sanne, Kelas, Shadaras, Nina Waters, Shea Sullivan, E. C., Adrian Harley, Alex, D. V. Morse, Zel Howland, Shannon, Dei Walker, Linnea Peterson and an anonymous contributor.

Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Fire Logic by Laurie J. Marks

The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water by Zen Cho

The Black Tides of Heaven by Neon Yang

The Angel of the Crows by Katherine Addison

The Witch King by H.E. Edgmon

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

Witch King by Martha Wells

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Heaven Official’s Blessing by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

The Witness for the Dead by Katherine Addison

The Husky & His White Cat Shizun by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou

Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner

Devil Venerable Also Wants To Know by Cyan Wings

Ruin of Angels by Max Gladstone

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows

Call Down the Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater

Someone You Can Build a Nest In by John Wiswell

Ash by Malinda Lo

Shubeik Lubeik by Deena Mohamed

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley

Rust in the Root by Justina Ireland

A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske

A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark

When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb

The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

Little Thieves by Margaret Owen

Siren Queen by Nghi Vo

The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez

The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry by C.M. Waggoner

Reforged by Seth Haddon

The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson

Luck in the Shadows by Lynn Flewelling

The Bone Doll’s Twin by Lynn Flewelling

Umineko: When They Cry by 07th Expansion

The Will of the Empress by Tamora Pierce

Witchmark by C.L. Polk

Lord of Eternal Night by Ben Alderson

These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling

The Brilliant Death by A.R. Capetta

Consort of Fire by Kit Rocha

First Test by Tamora Pierce

Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Weak Heart by Ban Gilmartin

The Shepherd’s Crown by Terry Pratchett

Six Of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

The Demon’s Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan

What are your favorite queer fantasy books?

You can find all these books on our Goodreads bookshelf of queer fantasy books.

Did something here spark your curiosity? You can buy it through the Duck Prints Press Bookshop.org affiliate shop. 

So many books means so much to talk about! Come, join our Book Lover’s Discord server to chat with us about aaaaaall the books!

[nobie]

Get to know me better

tagged by @tapemonkey21 Ty bby <3

Last Song: This is How it Feels (with Laufey) by d4vd

Favorite Color: GREEN (forest green especially) and orange

Last book: Witchmark by C.L. Polk (I listened to the audiobook cuz it was narrated by Sam Roukin I fckn loved it and its GAY)

Last Movie: John Wick (rewatching the trilogy to finally watch the fourth one)

Last Show: Paradise, Blue Box, and Sakamoto Days

Sweet/Spicy/Savory: Spicy and Savory

Relationship Status: single as a Pringle (that’s not even accurate cuz pringles come in a can with other pringles and I have NOBODY)

Favorite Food: Korean bbq

Last thing I Googled: Brendan Fraser (wanted to find a movie my mom was taking about)

Current Obsession: Sonic the Hedgehog, Codywan, Coryxkenshin, Dandadan, Squid Game and few other hobbies (glass painting, digital painting, etc.)

Looking Forward to: Tomorrow I guess (don’t have much to look forward to rn just taking it day by day)

no pressure tags: @sodacaps @solasgf @bo-katan @a-kyber-star @usersukuna (most recent moots in my notifs have nominated heheheh)

[ratsreading]

Did you enjoy A Marvellous Light, by Freya Marske?

Try Witchmark, by C.L. Polk!

Magic, murder mystery, fighting for what's right, uncovering secrets and plots, queerness.

[milktoast-femboy]

help me decide what book to read next! (part ii)

i know, i know, my first poll still isn't done, but i'm already halfway through ruins and rising and i'm just an impatient beast. ૮ฅ・ﻌ・აฅ

[betterbooksandthings]

"Even though we love them, we have to admit there are some fantasy books that would be impossible to adapt into movies or TV shows. Not all magic and world-breaking fantasy elements are film-friendly.

Although book-to-film adaptations of fantasy novels have been getting better over time, there are still a few things even the best visual effects (VFX) and Computer-generated imagery (CGI) cannot pull off. I am a big fan of well-done practical effects, even if they are mechanic at times. For me, the way actors tend to engage with practical effects reads as more sincere. So, when it comes to this list of fantasy books, I mostly included books I think would require too much green screen or CGI to be worth it. Sometimes, magic is best left on the page and off the screen."

[queereads-bracket]

Queer Adult SFF Books Bracket: Round 1

Book summaries below:

The Bone Season series (The Bone Season, The Mime Order, The Song Rising, The Mask Falling, The Dark Mirror, and other stories) by Samantha Shannon

The year is 2059. For two centuries, the Republic of Scion has led an oppressive campaign against unnaturalness in Europe.

In London, Paige Mahoney holds a high rank in the criminal underworld. The right hand of the ruthless White Binder, Paige is a dreamwalker, a rare and formidable kind of clairvoyant. Under Scion law, she commits treason simply by breathing.

When Paige is arrested for murder, she meets the mysterious founders of Scion, who have designs on her uncommon abilities. If she is to survive and escape, Paige must use every skill at her disposal – and put her trust in someone who ought to be her enemy.

Fantasy, dystopia, paranormal, urban fantasy, near future, series, adult

Witchmark by C.L. Polk (The Kingston Cycle series)

In an original world reminiscent of Edwardian England in the shadow of a World War, cabals of noble families use their unique magical gifts to control the fates of nations, while one young man seeks only to live a life of his own.

Magic marked Miles Singer for suffering the day he was born, doomed either to be enslaved to his family's interest or to be committed to a witches' asylum. He went to war to escape his destiny and came home a different man, but he couldn’t leave his past behind. The war between Aeland and Laneer leaves men changed, strangers to their friends and family, but even after faking his own death and reinventing himself as a doctor at a cash-strapped veterans' hospital, Miles can’t hide what he truly is.

When a fatally poisoned patient exposes Miles’ healing gift and his witchmark, he must put his anonymity and freedom at risk to investigate his patient’s murder. To find the truth he’ll need to rely on the family he despises, and on the kindness of the most gorgeous man he’s ever seen.

Fantasy, romance, mystery, paranormal, secondary world, adult

[gefdreamsofthesea]

I just saw a post about C.L. Polk's Stormsong (the sequel to Witchmark) that was like "Why is the straightest character ever in a relationship with another woman? I think the author was pressured into putting a queer romance into the book."

Yes, a queer nonbinary author whose previous book had a queer romance was totally pressured into including a queer romance in her book.

Seriously, what are you smoking? It sounds wild.

[fullibooked]

Is that a summoning sigil you've embroidered, Miss M? - Why yes it is. And did you summon something while stitching? - No comment. Now I'm not saying C.L. Polk missed a trick by not having her Austen-esque universe include magic cross-stitching, but if I were me (which of course I am, why would you think otherwise) and I were stuck in the misogynistic politics of a magic-ified regency era, I might be inclined to stitch all manner of hexes up my sleeves. Suspicious embroidery aside, The Midnight Bargain is absolutely gorgeous. The drama, the balls, the dresses, the money troubles, the romance all shouted regency period accuracy, but throw in magic and you've got a hell of a lot more fun. I never knew that I wanted my Austen to include naughty luck spirits or coded grimoires, but now that I've got it, I just want more. Polk's style of magic is so different in this to her other series - Witchmark - and yet both magic worlds are so rich and interesting. I'm itching to read more.

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

no parameters. Any book of your choosing

okay here are some books I loved so much that they made me unwell but I don't bring up as much as, say, books by Octavia Butler or N.K. Jemisin or Akwaeke Emezi or Nghi Vo:

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Becky Chambers, 2014)

The City of Brass (S.A. Chakraborty, 2017)

America Is Not the Heart (Elaine Castillo, 2018)

Witchmark (C.L. Polk, 2018)

Luster (Raven Leilani, 2020)

Milk Fed (Melissa Broder, 2021)

The School For Good Mothers (Jessamine Chan, 2022)

Babel (R.F. Kuang, 2022)