#anne elisabeth stengl

[rayless-reblogs]

Goldstone Wood and the Oddness of Christian Fantasy

Princess Varvare in a kingdom of roses

I want to share some illustrations inspired by the Tales of Goldstone Wood series by Anne Elisabeth Stengl. It's a Christian fantasy series that I really like. Give me a moment to talk about that – unless you absolutely love Christian fantasy, all Christian fantasies, in which case, maybe skip this.

I spent a chunk of the early 2000s defending fantasy as a genre to a variety of Christians I ran across – not the majority, but still a variety of them – both in my head and to their faces. The preacher who said, from the pulpit, that Harry Potter was Satanic. Writers explaining why JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis were (of course) okay, but all other fantasy novels were suspect. Websites that dissected the occult symbolism you never realized was buried in fantasy media. My friend who frowned at me in concern and said she wouldn't want to have to explain to God why she read “that kind of thing” when she met him after death.

This is Rosie (and her goat Beana, who talks.) I love Rosie utterly, she tries so hard and she feels things so much. The next image is a spoiler, showing her unveiled.

I think that's partially why I'm interested in the genre of Christian fantasy, this attempt to make these two things fit. For me, the fusion often doesn't work. Either writers mix theology and fantasy in a weird confusing way. (Wait, you just had your heroine marry an angel. Do you actually think that happens? Which parts of this actually reflect your belief system?) Or they play things extremely safe and traditional. (Oh boy, another story about a young farm boy who's going to go on a quest and fight the Satan figure and become a hero while his girlfriend does... something peaceful off-screen.) Or they try to be another Lewis in the belief that since Lewis and John Bunyan did it, allegory is an acceptable vehicle for fantasy, and let's be really obvious about the symbolism. (I bet this demon symbolizes evil.) I read Christian fantasy, but it's partially optimistic curiosity, it's partially pessimistic irony, and I haven't found many that I'd recommend.

Rosie unveiled.

But I do like Tales of Goldstone Wood, at least what I've read so far (still missing a few of the installments). I like it enough that I would recommend it to a Christian who wants to read fantasy, or a fantasy reader who doesn't mind Christian themes. Anne Elisabeth Stengl often approaches the Christian elements indirectly, from less obvious angles, so you don't have all the heavy-handed symbols you see in the Lewis and Tolkien knockoffs. She has many, many interesting female characters and a lot of humor. Her series also builds, adding complexity to the world and characters with each installment, many of the characters showing up in multiple books.

Varvare and the unicorn. This unnamed unicorn is one of my favorite elements of the third book – beautiful but dangerous and eldritch. Corrupted – but not exactly evil.

Stengl's also not afraid to get weird and fey with her fantasy elements, at times reminding me strongly of things like Labyrinth, The Neverending Story, and no end of Celtic and European folklore. Her magical characters are unpredictable, merry, fearsome, and unabashedly over the top. Her heroes have depth, flaws to go with their heroism, and never become morally perfect even after their conversions – unlike in so much Christian fiction. Much of Christian fantasy bears the thumbprint of CS Lewis; in Stengl's case, though her writing shows clear nods to Lewis (and not just his Narnia books), she isn't trying to replicate him. These aren't books that Lewis would have written.

Daylily and Lionheart. If the series has a protagonist, it's probably Lionheart there on the right. He seems to be doomed to keep showing up in different story arcs, and he's always interesting.

I recommend you begin with the first one, Heartless. Though Heartless is the least ambitious/unique entry – it's straightforward and, of all of the books, the most directly allegorical. (I bet this guy's the Jesus figure. Yep, yep he is.) But it lays the foundation for the world and establishes many of the central characters, including my favorite Eanrin, the blind cat-shapeshifting bard-knight with the heroism of a knight, the selfishness of a cat, and endless flair. Stengl does explore Christian themes, but at the same time she clearly wants to create beautiful language, memorable characters, and engrossing stories. The stories and characters don't feel secondary to the message.

Eanrin, I like him a lot. He also shows up in almost every book, at least the main books, sometimes pre-injury, sometimes post-.

My favorite book is Starflower, the fourth, because of its courageous heroine (who grows into the librarian-knight Imraldera we see in other books), its twisted echoes of “Beauty and the Beast” and Till We Have Faces, and its focus on, who else, Eanrin in his younger years, before he's really gotten that whole hero thing worked out.

Imraldera. (She's looking at Eanrin.) The series is allegedly over, but I feel like there are still some narrative threads hanging, including with Imraldera here. My hope is that the author returns to the series someday.

As with any recommendation, this isn't a blanket recommendation; you may find things in here you don't like. I don't sign off on every element as perfect. But Christian fantasy is a small genre, it's a weird genre, in my opinion it's often a clumsy genre. Goldstone Wood is proof that it can produce interesting, original material – stuff not merely “good for a Christian fantasy”, but just a good series, period.

[theribbajack]

"Know this, my husband, and know it well: The moment you set foot beyond the Circle of Faces will be your last. For I shall send the Black Dogs!"

In honor of spooky season now upon us, I decided to do a quickie from one of my favorite ever books, Starflower by Anne Elisabeth Stengl, depicting the fall of Amarok the Wolf Lord. If anyone is into high fantasy/Celtic mythology, I highly recommend her Tales of Goldstone Wood series. I first read it almost ten years ago and it still lives in my brain and writing style rent-free to this day.

[masterfuldoodler]

Bard Eanrin from Tales of Goldstone Wood! There's no illustrations so I gotta work out a design so I can draw him!

[x-heesy]

𝙳𝚘 𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 🆎𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚎?

Real love brings pain. Real love means sacrifices and hurts and all the thousand shocks of life. But it also means beauty, true beauty. -Anne Elisabeth Stengl

All is full of luv by lady bjÖrk 🎧

[lover-of-the-starkindler]

Imraldera, curious to see why the poet, even in his man's shape, bristled from head to toe, pressed up behind him and, standing on tiptoe, peered over his shoulder. She gasped at the sight that met her eyes. She had seen waterfalls in the Land before, places where the rivers met and rushed white over steep drops, and she had thought them beautiful. But nothing in the Land compared to this. A vision of absolute power. The beauty of it, the awfulness made her tremble. For a moment, she was thankful--she would change nothing from her previous life and risk losing the chance to gaze upon something as marvelous as Cozamaloti.

--Starflower by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

[valiantarcher]

1, 2, 4, 9, and 24 for the book asks? :D

Thank you!

1. A book that drew you in right away. I think Piranesi by Susanna Clarke and The Invisible Boy by Alyssa Hollingsworth both had me from the get-go, though Dare by Tricia Mingerink had me thoroughly hooked by the second chapter.

2. A book that was difficult to get into, but turned out to be good. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke. Took two tries and it didn't start gripping me until about three-quarters of the way through, but it was worth it.

4. A popular book you dislike. Depending on values of popular, so many. But let's say Thorn by Intisar Khanani.

9. A book that you found yourself thinking about a long time after you finished it. So, there's a four-book series I read over ten years ago about a boy who's lost his memory and goes by the moniker of Ram (turns out to actually be RAM as in the computer RAM). He's chased all over the countryside (though now I can't recall if he crosses between England and Scotland or stays on one side of the border there) and there are spies and it turns out his father is a computer scientist or something and tangled up with the spies. At any rate, I can't remember the series title, the author, or the title of any of the books, but I think about it occasionally, particularly when someone is talking about RAM. (And that's probably not what this question is asking, so if you feel cheated, I'll try again. XD)

24. A book where you agree with its message but dislike the story. I'm sure there are a number of poorly written Christian fiction that fits this category, but I'm struggling to come up with anything concrete. I don't remember the message/moral for sure, but I'm going to guess Veiled Rose by Anne Elisabeth Stengl falls into this category.

[queensoftheresistance]

Rose Red, from the Tales of Goldstone Wood, by Bliz on Instagram. Check out her art!

[kelseypaigeart]

So I started trying to paint Starflower...it’s probably going to change a lot still but I’m having fun!

Edit 1/23/17 adding in the second and third images

[miriel-therindes]

Tagged by @jarruss ! Thank you so much for the tag!

Rules: Tag nine people you want to know better.

Three ships: Morwen x Hurin, Denethor x Finduilas, Earendil x Elwing

First ever ship: Either Elizabeth Bennet & Darcy or Ron Weasley & Hermione Granger? Narnia was my first ever literary obsession but I never shipped anything in it much.

Last song: brutal by Olivia Rodrigo

Last film: I honestly don’t remember...I haven’t watched a film in a while.

Currently reading: Starflower by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

Currently watching: The netflix series adaption of A Series of Unfortunate Events

Currently consuming: Chocolate-and-toffee covered matzoh, at an alarming rate

Currently craving: Strawberry popsicles 

Tagging: @softlypause @lesbianhaleth @merilles @wigilda @wren-of-the-woods @hopefullystillliving @yellow-feathered-faerie @mad-hermit @crescendoofstars

[rayless-reblogs]

20 Book Challenge

I saw this challenge on a post by @theresebelivett. The idea is you pick 20 of your books to take with you to a desert island, but you can only pick one book per author and series. Here are two further guidelines I set myself: They have to be books I actually own, as if I really am gathering them up under my arms and heading to the island; and I'm defining "book" as a single volume -- so if I just so happen to have 100 novellas squashed between two covers, it still counts as one book.

We'll go alphabetically by author.

Charlotte Bronte: Jane Eyre. An old standby, a classic, I can jump into it at any point.

Daphne du Maurier: Rebecca. Have only read it once, but loved it and I suspect I'll get more from it each time.

Clare B Dunkle: The Hollow Kingdom. If I can only take one book from this excellent and unusual goblin series that captivated me in the mid-2000s, it'd better be the first one.

William Goldman: The Princess Bride. This book had an outsize influence on my own writing. I can quote a lot of it, but I wouldn't want to be without it.

Shannon Hale: Book of a Thousand Days. I love the warmth and humility of its heroine Dashti. Plus, Shannon Hale very kindly wrote a personal response to a fan letter I sent her years and years ago, so her work always has a special place in my heart.

Georgette Heyer: Cotillion. I don't actually own my favorite Georgette novel, but the funny, awkward, and ultimately romantic Cotillion is definitely not a pitiful second-stringer.

Eva Ibbotson: A Countess Below Stairs. Countess was my introduction to Eva's adult romances, and she is the past master of warm, hardworking heroines who should really be annoying because they're way too good to be true, but somehow you just end up falling in love with them.

Norton Juster: The Phantom Tollbooth. I first read this when I was like eight, and even for an adult, its quirky humor and zingy wordplay hold up, no problem.

Gaston Leroux: The Phantom of the Opera. Can't leave without Erik, nope, the French potboiler has got to come. Perhaps I will spend my time on the island writing the inevitable crossover fanfic, The Phantom of the Tollbooth.

CS Lewis: Till We Have Faces. Faces is my current answer for what my favorite book is, so I'm taking that, though it feels criminal to leave The Silver Chair behind.

LM Montgomery: The Blue Castle. As much as I love Anne and Emily, it came down to Blue Castle and A Tangled Web, and I'm a sucker for Valancy's romantic journey.

E Nesbit: Five Children and It. Probably the most classic Edwardian children's fantasy, though still a hard choice to make. Nesbit is another author who had a huge influence on me as a writer.

Robert C O'Brien: Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. A childhood book I'm really sentimental about. I should re-read it.

Meredith Ann Pierce: The Darkangel. The first in the archaic lunar vampire trilogy. This will always be frustrating, only having the first in the series, but if I can only read the first, maybe I'll forget about how angry the third novel left me.

Sherwood Smith: Crown Duel. At one time, this swords-and-manners fantasy duet was one of my absolute favorite fandoms, and clever me has both books in one volume, so I don't have to choose.

Anne Elisabeth Stengl: Starflower. My favorite of the Tales of Goldstone Wood series. We'll have to test whether I can actually get sick of Eanrin.

JRR Tolkien: The Lord of the Rings. I've never actually read it through as an adult and, look at that, I have a three-in-one volume. Cheating!

Vivian Vande Velde: Spellbound. I've read much of VVV's YA fantasy and liked a lot of it, but none more so than The Conjurer Princess and its fast-paced tale of revenge. The Spellbound edition includes the prequel and a bonus short story, so I'm good to go.

PG Wodehouse: The World of Mr Mulliner. There are some hilarious novels I'm leaving behind here, including all the Bertie Wooster stuff. But there are some absurdly fun Mulliner stories and this edition is like three hundred pages. That'll keep me happy for a long while on my island.

Jack Zipes (editor): Spells of Enchantment. This is an enormous compilation of western fairy tales. I've owned it since 2004 or so, and I've still never finished it. Now, on my island, I'll no longer have the excuse.

Tagging anyone else who feels like doing this!

[theribbajack]

I see them running, running, stumbling Running as the heavens Break and yawn, tear beneath their feet, Devouring, hungry Death!

[masterfuldoodler]

"In the tree opposite him sat a man in bright scarlet, tawny hair sticking out from under a jaunty cap. Both his eyes were covered with silken patches."

Moonblood by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

This whole scene was probably one of my favorite parts of the book lol

[hellocoraco]

"A mirror? What would you need a mirror for?

To admire my pretty face, obviously."

- Anne Elisabeth Stengl

[valiantarcher]

Sketchbook ask: wildcard

After some searching through my sketchbook, I believe I've found a sketch that you haven't seen before but might like to: fanart of Queen Bebo from Anne Elizabeth Stengl's Moonblood (August 2020).

Thank you! :)

[taleweaver-ramblings]

I have two questions for you. Number one, have you ever read the Beyond the Tales series by Tricia Mingerink? It's a allegorical Christian fairy tale retelling series, and the third one is easily my favorite 12 Dancing Princesses retelling ever!!

Number two, what are some of your favorite 12 Dancing Princesses retellings?

First question: I have read books 1 and 3 of the Beyond the Tales series! I didn't love book 1, but then I was helping with the release for book 3, and ended up getting an ARC and very much enjoyed that one. I can see why it would be your favorite! (I think my expectations were too high for book 1, so when I went into book 3 knowing I'd be frustrated with certain things, it was easier to appreciate what was good).

Second question: Ok ok ok. You have just asked one of my FAVORITE questions. My top picks, roughly in order of how much I love them:

Entwined by Heather Dixon — I love pretty much everything Heather Dixon has written, but this is my favorite of hers and my favorite take on 12DP. I love the setting, the style, the relationship between the sisters . . . just everything.

A Branch of Silver, A Branch of Gold by Anne Elisabeth Stengl. This is a loose retelling, but it's dark and gorgeous, and the emphasis is entirely on sisterly love and loyalty, and ahhhhh! Note that you can read it without having read Tales of Goldstone Wood! It's the same world, but you won't need to know anything from the main series to enjoy this.

The Dark King's Curse by Wyn Estelle Owens. Ok, look. It's indie fantasy, and it may still be a little rough around a few edges. But it's SO GOOD. I love Wyn's writing, and I love the characters and the story!!! The best part of the novel is Laisren, but all the characters are delightful! And it's Celtic-y, and has the fae courts, and it's just awesome.

The City Beyond the Glass by Suzanne Rowntree. This is a dark, low-magic retelling, and I do mean dark. It kind of explores the fact that, in certain respects, certain sisters seem downright villainous in the choices they make. But the story and the allegory in it is magnificent!

Wrought of Silver and Ravens by E.J. Kitchens. Another indie fantasy. A bit long as fairy tale retellings go, so be aware of that, but very good! It's a very clever take on the tale, and I liked the setting and the magic system. I did get a bit frustrated with the MC, and I had trouble telling some of the sisters apart, but otherwise it's a lot of fun.

I would be remiss in not mentioning Princess of the Midnight Ball, though I suspect you've already read it, since it's the most well-known retelling I'm aware of — it's the story that . . . well, it didn't make me fall in love with the tale; the Jim Weiss audio version of the story did that. But it did remind me of how much I loved the tale.

[esmemoonblood]

“I can't believe in the impossible," he whispered as though trying to convince himself against what he had just witnessed. "A man can't be big and small at once. He can't be a freak and a hero."

The cat glared. "Do you believe in justice?"

The Chronicler hesitated. Then, only once, he nodded.

"Do you believe in mercy?" pressed the cat.

"Yes."

"Ha!" Eanrin lashed his tail again. "What an impossible contradiction. Ha!”

― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, Dragonwitch