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aroaessidhe · 6 months

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Aro & ace books: DRAGONS

The Dragon of Ynys - an aroace knight and dragon go on a quest

Royal Rescue - high fantasy about being aroace and making friends with a dragon

A Day of Fallen Night - high fantasy with one of four MCs being aroacespec (sequel also has 2 word-of-god aspec MCs)

An Accident of Stars - portal fantasy with a major POV character who's aro

After The Dragons - sff novella with an ace-spec mlm MC

So Let Them Burn - YA fantasy, one MC is demisexual

See also: The Siren the Song and the Spy, The Grimrose Girls, Adrift In Starlight (include dragons, though not as significantly)

#aspec books / aspec database / tumblr masterpost

#aspec books #asexual books #dragon books #book list #The Dragon of Ynys #a day of fallen night #an accident of stars #after the dragons #so let them burn

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lgbtqreads · 3 months

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Fave Five: Queer Fantasy with Dragons, Part II

For Part I, click here. So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole (YA) Hearts Forged in Dragon Fire by Erica Hollis (YA) Dragonfall by LR Lam Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon After the Dragons by Cynthia Zhang

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#After the Dragons #Cynthia Zhang #Dragonfall #Epic Fantasy #Erica Hollis #Fantasy #Hearts Forged in Dragon Fire #Kamilah Cole #LR Lam #Priory of the Orange Tree #Samantha Shannon #So Let Them Burn

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bi4bihankking · 3 months

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Fingersmith Summary:

In Victorian London an orphaned thief takes part in a scheme to defraud a young heiress. Sue's role is to play the maid and confidant of the sheltered Maud Lilly, convincing her to elope with a con-artist known as 'the Gentleman' so that he can inherit her fortune and dispose of her. However, as the scheme progresses Sue begins to realise that not everything is as it seems.

After the Dragons Summary:

Kai has a terminal illness but won’t stop rehabilitating abandoned dragons, Eli a med student who’s grandmother died of the same disease just wants to help. They both might just find something they need.

#fingersmith #sarah waters #after the dragons #cynthia zhang #lgbt books #lgbt literature #queer books #queer literature #lgbtqia #poll

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litandroses · 2 years

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Haven’t had time to read lately, I’ve been studying for licensure so I’ll be giving these very few recs for Pride Month instead! I think I’ve mentioned some of these books before but giving them another boost wouldn’t hurt.

1. A Door Behind a Door by Yelena Moskovich

In Yelena Moskovich's spellbinding new novel, A Door Behind A Door, we meet Olga, who immigrates as part of the Soviet diaspora of '91 to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There she grows up and meets a girl and falls in love, beginning to believe that she can settle down. But a phone call from a bad man from her past brings to life a haunted childhood in an apartment building in the Soviet Union: an unexplained murder in her block, a supernatural stray dog, and the mystery of her beloved brother Moshe, who lost an eye and later vanished. We get pulled into Olga's past as she puzzles her way through an underground Midwestern Russian mafia, in pursuit of a string of mathematical stabbings.

2. Waiting on a Bright Moon by Neon Yang

Xin is an ansible, using her song magic to connect the originworld of the Imperial Authority and its far-flung colonies— a role that is forced upon magically-gifted women “of a certain closeness”. When a dead body comes through her portal at a time of growing rebellion, Xin is drawn deep into a station-wide conspiracy along with Ouyang Suqing, one of the station’s mysterious, high-ranking starmages.

3. The Terracotta Bride by Zen Cho

A tale of first love, bad theology and robot reincarnation in the Chinese afterlife. In the tenth court of hell, spirits wealthy enough to bribe the bureaucrats of the underworld can avoid both the torments of hell and the irreversible change of reincarnation. It's a comfortable undeath … even for Siew Tsin. She didn't choose to be married to the richest man in hell, but she's reconciled. Until her husband brings home a new bride. Yonghua is an artificial woman crafted from terracotta. What she is may change hell for good. Who she is will transform Siew Tsin. And as they grow closer, the mystery of Yonghua's creation will draw Siew Tsin into a conspiracy where the stakes are eternal life – or a very final death.

4. After the Dragons by Cynthia Zhang

Dragons were fire and terror to the Western world, but in the East they brought life-giving rain…

Now, no longer hailed as gods and struggling in the overheated pollution of Beijing, only the Eastern dragons survive. As drought plagues the aquatic creatures, a mysterious disease—shaolong, or “burnt lung”—afflicts the city’s human inhabitants.

Jaded college student Xiang Kaifei scours Beijing streets for abandoned dragons, distracting himself from his diagnosis. Elijah Ahmed, a biracial American medical researcher, is drawn to Beijing by the memory of his grandmother and her death by shaolong. Interest in Beijing’s dragons leads Kai and Eli into an unlikely partnership. With the resources of Kai’s dragon rescue and Eli’s immunology research, can the pair find a cure for shaolong and safety for the dragons? Eli and Kai must confront old ghosts and hard truths if there is any hope for themselves or the dragons they love.

After the Dragons is a tender story, for readers interested in the effects of climate change on environments and people, but who don’t want a grim, hopeless read. Beautiful and challenging, focused on hope and care, this novel navigates the nuances of changing culture in a changing world.

5. The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez

A "highly imaginative and utterly exhilarating" (Thrillist) debut that is "the best of what science fiction can be: a thought-provoking, heartrending story about the choices that define our lives" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).A mysterious child lands in the care of a solitary woman, changing both of their lives forever. I expected many things from this trip. I did not expect a family.

A ship captain, unfettered from time. A mute child, burdened with unimaginable power. A millennia-old woman, haunted by lifetimes of mistakes. In this captivating debut of connection across space and time, these outsiders will find in each other the things they lack: a place of love and belonging. A safe haven. A new beginning.

But the past hungers for them, and when it catches up, it threatens to tear this makeshift family apart.

6. Robbergirl by S.T Gibson

SAVE THE WITCH, KILL THE SNOW QUEEN

In a Sweden wracked by war and haunted by folk stories so dark they can only be spoken of in whispers, Helvig has been raised by her brigand father to steal whatever treasure catches her eye. When her men ambush a girl on the road with hair pale as death and a raven perched on her shoulder, Helvig cannot resist bringing home a truly unique prize: a genuine witch. Drawn irresistibly into the other woman’s web, Helvig soon learns of Gerda’s reason for walking the icy border roads alone: to find the Queen who lives at the top of the world and kill her. Anyone else would be smart enough not to believe a children’s story, but Helvig is plagued by enchantments of her own, and she struggles to guard the sins of her past while growing closer to Gerda. As Christmastide gives way to the thin-veiled days when ghosts are at their most vengeful, the two women find themselves on a journey through forest and Samiland to a final confrontation that will either redeem them or destroy them entirely.

7. The Pearl Thief by Elizabeth Wein

Before Verity . . . there was Julie.

When fifteen-year-old Julia Beaufort-Stuart wakes up in the hospital, she knows the lazy summer break she'd imagined won't be exactly what she anticipated. And once she returns to her grandfather's estate, a bit banged up but alive, she begins to realize that her injury might not have been an accident. One of her family's employees is missing, and he disappeared on the very same day she landed in the hospital.

Desperate to figure out what happened, she befriends Euan McEwen, the Scottish Traveler boy who found her when she was injured, and his standoffish sister, Ellen. As Julie grows closer to this family, she witnesses firsthand some of the prejudices they've grown used to-a stark contrast to her own upbringing-and finds herself exploring thrilling new experiences that have nothing to do with a missing-person investigation.

Her memory of that day returns to her in pieces, and when a body is discovered, her new friends are caught in the crosshairs of long-held biases about Travelers. Julie must get to the bottom of the mystery in order to keep them from being framed for the crime.

This exhilarating coming-of-age story, a prequel to the Printz Honor Book Code Name Verity, returns to a beloved character just before she first takes flight.

BONUS:

The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez (release date: August 30, 2022)

Two warriors shepherd an ancient god across a broken land to end the tyrannical reign of a royal family in this new epic fantasy from the author of The Vanished Birds.

The people suffer under the centuries-long rule of the Moon Throne. The royal family—the despotic emperor and his monstrous sons, the Three Terrors—hold the countryside in their choking grip. They bleed the land and oppress the citizens with the frightful powers they inherited from the god locked under their palace.

But that god cannot be contained forever.

With the aid of Jun, a guard broken by his guilt-stricken past, and Keema, an outcast fighting for his future, the god escapes from her royal captivity and flees from her own children, the triplet Terrors who would drag her back to her unholy prison. And so it is that she embarks with her young companions on a five-day pilgrimage in search of freedom—and a way to end the Moon Throne forever. The journey ahead will be more dangerous than any of them could have imagined.

Both a sweeping adventure story and an intimate exploration of identity, legacy, and belonging, The Spear Cuts Through Water is an ambitious and profound saga that will transport and transform you—and is like nothing you’ve ever read before.

Note: This bonus is UNIQUE fantasy, I swear it.

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rhetoricandlogic · 1 year

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After the Dragons, Cynthia Zhang

(Stelliform Press 978-1-77709-174-3, $19.99 160pp, tp)

August 2021. Cover by Wang Xulin.

“Shaolong. Throat scorch. Caused by long exposure to poor air quality, especially common in cities with high pollution indexes and poor environmental regulations – the same disease that killed his grandmother.”

Cynthia Zhang’s After the Dragons is a queer SFF novella that follows Xiang Kaifei (Kai), a jaded college student, and Elijah Ahmed (Eli), an American medical researcher, as they search for a cure for shaolong, a terminal lung disease that ravages human populations. Perhaps they can even save the dragons, the former gods and revered beings of the East that now live like stray animals on the streets of Beijing. Focusing largely on climate change, the environment, and its impact on people and other earthly inhabitants, After the Dragons follows the Kai and Eli through science labs and street alleys as they tackle questions of a dying planet and their blossoming love for one another.

Beijing native Kai is terminally ill with shaolong and spends his days rescuing abandoned dragons in the streets. His caring yet stand-offish nature captures the attention of Chinese-American Eli, who is in Beijing to do immunological research before starting medical school and to learn more about the disease that killed his grandmother. Connected through this shared pain and tender kindness for the abused, forgotten dragons, their small yet meaningful attempts to make positive change are quite heroic, even if not filled with intense action scenes or brutal romantic heartbreak. They’re very sweet boys who have found one another through their shared caring for others. While it can be unclear exactly what attracted them to one another, aside from shared interests, it’s not of particular concern in the grand scheme of the story; they simply enjoy one another’s company and want to see one another survive.

Cynthia Zhang’s depictions of Beijing are built in part on Kai and Eli’s conversations about the differences between American cities and Chinese cities like Beijing. This happens quite often, despite their rigorous studies and Kai’s deteriorating health. It’s unclear why they are so fascinated with these constructed differences, and it seems more of an intrusion of the author’s interests than the characters. Yet they both appear to have wandering minds that direct the plot in various, unexpected directions. Kai and Eli are very much focused on their studies, and sorting out their place in a dying world rather than trying to change political systems and prevent planetary destruction. In a way, it makes the book less overwhelming, even if the stakes are still high. They’re average people, but just above-average enough to make an attempt at change a part of their life’s mission.

Due to the generous use of reflective inner dialogue, I found some passages a little too obvious, particularly as it related to Eli and Kai’s thoughts about imperialism, capitalism, and consumption. Not that their critiques of American cultural and moral imperialism and global consumption were unfounded, but they were written in an academic way rather than from the characters’ point of view, which removed me from the story and did not quite fit the rest of the novella’s tone. This wasn’t a fatal flaw, but it made it difficult to get into the story without losing my focus, and made it harder to understand the characters’ immediate, day to day aspirations.

Conversations between Kai and Eli become more relatable and less rehearsed as their relationship deepens and the physical space between them shrinks. It’s quite cute to see the pair grow increasingly comfortable around one another. I’m biased towards romance in SFF, so I can’t give an even and balanced take on whether this took off too quickly or not, I was just thrilled to see it happen.

There are many beautiful moments nestled in After the Dragons – like the subtle, two-sentence summaries that convey how the poor and the wealthy experience natural disasters amid slice-of-life depictions of Kai and Eli’s day to day life in the city. Kai’s walks through the city to search for dragons are a clever way to introduce readers to this fictional depiction of Beijing. The dragons flit in and out of the narrative like color splashes against the polluted city before taking on personalities of their own. Mei is a particularly well-written dragon, even if she has no dialogue – her personality is conveyed well enough that she is just as memorable, if not more so, than some of the human characters in the story.

It was very unusual to read a climate change novel devoid of a looming and sudden global extinction event – there were no large super storms or floods, just increasingly bad air, droughts, and sickness as a result. I quite enjoyed it, even with the slightly too-close-to-home feeling that much of this (dragons excluded) is already a reality for people….

#Cynthia Zhang #After the Dragons #mahreviews #long post

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poorly-drawn-mdzs · 20 days

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Knowledge Revenge.

#dungeon meshi #chilchuk tims #senshi #Somewhat of an unofficial sequel to the Dragon Comic. I promise I have more versatility in my jokes. I just had to take this opportunity.#Senshi is pretty much a recluse. I think he would know a few of these 'gottems' but not all.#Chilchuck would know gottems that are nearly lost to time. The deep cuts. The ones that you fall for because they are that obscure.#I would also like to take a moment to confess that after the last comic in which I posed a gottem -#I fell victim to a Mind Goblin Attack. I was thoroughly got. I will be on higher alert this time.#So NOBODY be funny in the tags. I am gullible and I like to share things with my friends. Who are *ruthless*.#I have a mild resistance to Vicious Mockery at this point but I can only take so much.#Happy Thistle Thursday Everyone! See you next week!

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hexbloode · 1 year

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#dungeons and dragons #dnd #magic the gathering #mtg #wotc #wizards of the coast #d&d #magic: the gathering #wotc having a fucking normal one after OGLgate huh

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ladysiryna · 7 months

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The Nightsong is no more.

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #dame aylin #baldur's gate 3 aylin #dnd #forgotten realms #dnd aasimar #aasimar #fantasy illustration #dungeons & dragons #angel #dnd art #faerun #In this house we respect dame aylin #she helped me to beat *redacted*'s ass after all this years and I can't not to admire it #bg3 art #Siryna's art

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eff-plays · 8 months

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Ok so I watched the interview with Stephen Rooney, Astarion's writer, and here are some highlights. (I'm an aspiring writer and current game design student who wants to write for games so I'm sorry if some of these insights aren't as interesting to you as they are to me <3)

He calls Astarion his "horrible little vampire boy"

He loves seeing the fandom around Astarion<3

He did write other characters in the game, but mostly NPCs surrounding Astarion or his storyline, so it mostly revolved around Astarion

Astarion is not as connected to other companions/Origins as, for example, Lae'zel and Shadowheart, or Wyll and Karlach are to each other, but he is still reactive to their stories, even if it's just to stand off to the side and laugh when something terrible happens

He had a clear sense of where Astarion's story would start and end, but it got "muddy in the middle", but those are also moments where the best ideas come from

They write from the general idea that every character has one "good" and one "evil" ending, in order to give the player choice. RIP Ascendant apologists :(

According to Stephen, two of the most important aspects of Astarion's character (to keep consistent when bringing him to Idle Champions, at least) is that he enjoys violence, but is also fun about it

"He has a certain appreciation for violence, I guess? A bit of a murdery streak. [...] He's a vampire, he's all about blood, and he's all about, kind of, those darker sides of humanity. [..] But at the same time, he is ... He is really fun, he's really fun to write, he's really fun to have in your party, and it's very important for me that that is also represented."

"He's gonna stab you, but will have a smile on his face as he does it? I mean, I dunno. That's kind of him in a nutshell."

Larian would not have allowed for Astarion to be a typical brooding Dracula type, and there were scenes that were shot down for not being original enough

The main thing about Astarion was trying to get a "sense of fun." It would be easy to write a character that was very unlikable, and they absolutely did not want to do that

Rooney says Astarion is consistently terrible throughout the game and awful in a whole lot of ways, but he also needed to be charming enough that you could tolerate his presence and wanted him around

Rooney also had a lot of input on Astarion's stats (meaning the 10 Charisma is probalby 100% intentional)

He also had input on how certain lines should be delivered, even though the writers didn't directly work with voice actors

The way Astarion moves and poses is "all Neil"

Apparently, Neil Newbon worked on the character for years and Rooney did not speak to him once, though his voice work did influence how Astarion's lines were written and it became a "feedback loop" (Possible context for "ONLY SLIGHTLY, NEIL")

There were no points where a line delivery drastically changed Astarion's writing; rather it was a constant, slow evolution

However, there was one very spoilery moment where Neil gave such emotion to some "basic" lines that it fundamentally changed the scene (WHAT IS IT OMG)

It's difficult to balance approval, as you don't want to straight up write a monster. Every character needs to have some humanity in them. So if it comes to leaving the party, it needed to be the result of something central to said character. They wanted to be mindful of situations that would cause actual rifts between characters. (I assume this is why most generic disapprovals/approvals are +/- 1 or 2, while character-related ones give +/-5 or more)

However, as they don't write straight up horrible people/monsters, it doesn't come up as often as one might think.

The interviewer makes a point about how characters like Astarion and Lae'zel are good examples of how to play "evil" characters, as they are maybe not the best people but are still eager and willing to stick around the other party members

They worked to make sure the characters would work as a group, no matter the configuration of the group. The characters needed to be on the same path, even if they don't always agree or walk that path the same way.

Stephen Rooney is very proud of the "climactic" scene of Astarion's story. (AS HE SHOULD BE.) He even had to step away from the computer and have an emotional moment. Me too, man.

He's also "extremely pleased" that there's a point where you can punch Astarion in the face. "Actually, that one might be my favorite part" A MAN OF THE PEOPLE!!

Stephen Rooney's tip on what specific thing you should try out with Astarion: When he's trying to get a "sneaky nibble" at night, you should "probably" let him bite you. Way ahead of you there, sir.

No discussion about Astarion's romance unfortunately, but that's that!

#bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #astarion #anyway ... after dragon age it feels so mindblowing to have writers who aren't apologists for their characters

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dragondawdles · 11 months

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the beastie <3

#totk spoilers #<- (? yet another schrödinger's spoiler she shows up during the beginning sequence but uhhh just 2 be safe)#totk #light dragon #the light dragon #totk light dragon #loz #tloz #zelda #id in alt #dragon doodles #(I don't know the TAGS for this fandom grrgrhgrgrhg I'll decide eventually)#hiiiiiii so the uh new zelda game was good. I beat that after 140 hours like a week ago (explode emoji)#and now I'm brainrotting zelda HARD which means I have feelings about like 17 dudes all at once #we'll have to see if that means I'll bombard you with characters!! lately art's been blah but I've got some stuff cooking hopefully #hey I'm happy with this tho!! happy with tha beastie :]#this worm is my best friend

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aroaessidhe · 1 year

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These two fantastic climate-fiction novellas are currently on sale for $1.50us!

#weird fishes #after the dragons #climate fiction #book sale #ebook sale #weird fishes is weird and fun and about friendship (but Please take note of content warnings)#(because the end is Not fun)#after the dragons is gay and aspec and has cool little dragons

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lgbtqreads · 1 year

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Fave Five: LGBTQ Cli-Fi Novels

Eleutheria by Allegra Hyde Depart, Depart! by Sim Kern The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders After the Dragons by Cynthia Zhang Blackfish City by Sam J. Miller Bonus: These are all Adult, but in YA, check out Want and Ruse by Cindy Pon.

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#After the Dragons #Allegra Hyde #Blackfish City #Charlie Jane Anders #Cindy Pon #Climate Change #Cynthia Zhang #Depart Depart #Eleutheria #Ruse #Sam J. Miller #Sim Kern #The City in the Middle of the Night #Want

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monstermonger · 5 months

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I recently bought an art book on Caspar David Friedrich, whose emotional work stuck with me since I first saw it in a museum years ago. Over the course of a few weeks, I read about his life and at the same time did studies/interpretations of many pieces. It was a really enjoyable and fulfilling project; here's a good lot of them together :)

I was happy to see many people enjoyed Friedrich's work+my interpretations while posting them individually. It took way too long, but I FINALLY set up a print shop for some of these + some other pieces for those who expressed interest. Thank you so much!

#hi again :D im back after my bimonthly haitus #friedrich #caspar david friedrich #art #fantasy art #fantasy creatures #dragon #dragons #god i had so many issues trying to put together a print shop yall....#i'm glad it's finally done #i'll put a more print-focused advertisement together later #ty for the patience :"D #i've been working on a TON of stuff lately #I actually really like this setup-- where I quietly work on lots of things for months #and submit it in bulk over the course of a few weeks of activity #mentally a really nice method for me

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introverted-bard · 9 months

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