Books We Love

Welcome to the Friday Feature of our Fantasy writers group, A Drift of Quills! We Quills get together once a month to chat up aspects of reading and writing. Here we are again with a few of our book besties, applauding Stephen King’s advice that  (read a lot, write a lot)

 Read on to see what’s carrying the Quills away!

My grandmother used to call me “Robin the Hood” when I was very little. I was understandably confused—and then I learned about the legendary Robin Hood. The nickname became something of a badge of honor, though I have no idea why should would compare me to a thief. I was innocent! Naturally, I read and watched several versions of the tale, but when I read Lady of the Forest, by Jennifer Roberson, I fell in love. The characters were so real, and so believable. Robin is convincingly traumatized and haunted by his past, Marian boldly struggles with her present, the love story is natural and beautiful. The story is a lovely, rich, and poignant retelling of the classic tale. The author has an extended major in British history, and I love how she uses that without beating the reader over the head with it. I want to write like that when I grow up! Roberson writes prolifically in the fantasy, sci-fi, and historical genres — and you can read a fun interview with her at Fantasy Book Critic (the site’s very first author interview!)

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Author of the short story, Sanguis Dei and a poetry collection, Light and Dark

In 1995 an author team wrote “Relic,” a murder mystery/suspense novel about the “New York Museum of Natural History,” in which paying customers to the museum wind up brutally murdered in the dark corridors and closed off rooms. Graduate student Margo Green believes the murderer might not be human. 

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Author of Oathtaker

While I love to read fantasy, I have not selected a fantasy story to share. Rather, I am going back in time to a great and timeless classic. Specifically, my choice is Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo.

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