One week from today, on October 1st, Waiting for Fairies will be hosting Dorchester author L.J. McDonald. She is the author of the Sylph series, consisting of The Battle Sylph, The Shattered Sylph and the recently released Queen of the Sylphs. L.J. will discuss with us how she chooses names for her characters, the likes of which are Solie and Heyou. WFF will also be giving away a download code for a digital copy of Queen of the Sylphs to one lucky commenter – so stay tuned!
If you’ve never heard of L.J. McDonald before, that’s okay. I hadn’t either until I was contacted for this guest blog. Since that time, I’ve read The Battle Sylph, courtesy of Dorchester, and I thought it was pretty darned nifty. This is a fantasy romance about a girl who escapes being used as a virgin sacrifice by a rescue from the very demon whose summoning was supposed to be completed by her death.
Regular readers here will know that if there’s one genre I’m prejudiced against (At least I’m self-aware and working on my flaws, okay?), it would be romance. I find most romance novel plots weak, contrived, and the sugary-sweet HEAs (Happily Ever Afters) nauseating. If you’re like me, I think The Battle Sylphs would be a pleasant surprise. (And if you’re not like me, then you’ll probably enjoy this series even more than I did.)
The world was original; the plot was engrossing. Secondary characters were more than mere cardboard cut-outs. The best part? Reading the series digitally means there are no “man-candy” covers to be embarrassed about if you’re reading in public!
This series reminds me of Jim Butcher’s Codex Alera, with less focus on the military aspects and more on the relationship and human interactions. It also, unexpectedly, says quite a bit about misconceptions and prejudice, if you’re paying attention. And if you’re not, it’s still an entertaining read that left me frankly shocked at how late it kept me up. I’ve come to the conclusion that Dorchester publishes some damned good stuff!
