SPFBO 10 Semi-Finalist Reveal: Andy

This year, we decided to mix things up a bit and we are not waiting to finish up with the Elimination Round to start having Semi-Finalist Reveals as well. You can just never know what’s going to happen in this Asylum. It’s Andy’s turn to bring our sixth and last SPFBO 10 Semi-Finalist Reveal! He will share his thoughts on his remaining 3 titles, and tell you if he picked a semi-finalist!

A bit about our process ICYMI. Each of us cuts 2 of our titles in the Elimination Round. During the Semi-Finalist Reveal, we look at our remaining titles and at the end of the post we announce our semi-finalist. Fair warning: not all of us might pick a semi-finalist. Once we are all done, we’ll be reading each others’ picks and reviewing those titles individually. Finally, we reveal our finalist in October.

We’d like to thank each and every author who submitted their book to SPFBO this year. We know how hard it must be, but sadly, we can’t forward all of you to the finals. As a reminder, you can check out our SPFBO 10 page to see how we allocated our books and follow our progress.

Andy previously said goodbye to two titles: Trial of the Berserker by Noël Traver and Elegy of a Fragmented Vineyard by Kaden Love (full Elimination Round post here). Now it’s time to bid his farewells to some more titles and find out how he felt about them.

The Thief’s Keeper by Kyrie Wang

A runaway thrall. A “cursed” thief. One last quest to defy fate.

In the aftermath of a rebellion against William the Conqueror, northern England lies in ruins, its people scattered and starved.

Aelfric, a 14-year-old thrall, flees from his master and stumbles upon a cache of stolen laundry. The thief? Aliwyn, a girl around his age ostracized for being “cursed.” In her care is a lost toddler she has rescued from the clutch of greedy thrall traders.

Forced to cover each other’s secrets, Aelfric and Aliwyn form an unlikely friendship…and maybe something more. They embark on a perilous journey to reunite the child with his family and seek a cure for Aliwyn’s mysterious condition.

But time is running out. Aelfric’s master is on the hunt, and the shadows of death loom ever closer over Aliwyn. Will they find the courage and faith to press on, or will their quest end in capture and ruin?

Dive into a tale of heart-stopping challenges and unforeseen twists. The Thief’s Keeper is a thrilling YA historical fantasy that transports you to an alternative medieval world, where Celts and Norman knights live alongside the last Vikings. Begin your adventure today!

Read: 30%

Set in Northern England around the time of William The Conqueror this prequel novel tells of Aelfric, a 14 year old thrall on the run and Allwyn, 13 – a girl looking after a lost toddler. Once they have met the two unlikely friends set off to try and reunite the child with its parents but their enemies are on their trail . . .

I really wanted to like this one but after a while it became quite clear I was not the target audience. The times of William The Conqueror have always been one of my favourite periods of English history but I just wasn’t feeling it with this story. It felt more aimed at a teen audience and I am sure they will like it but not for me I’m afraid.

City in the Dragon’s Eye by Jordan Loyal Short

Red Dragons. Black Comedy. White-Knuckled Adventure.

Viktor’s magic is turning him into a dragon. And it’s not pretty.

To save his friends who’ve bumbled into a deadly ambush, Viktor draws too deeply on the power of the Dragon Well, and now a magical tumor has begun to change him…one scale at a time.

Viktor sets off on an irreverent quest for a cure that will lead him to a remote sanitarium. Here, he will uncover a mad doctor’s strange experiments, a stubborn dwarf with stinky feet, and rumors of an ancient mirror that may hold the key to Viktor’s very survival.

As a mustache-twiddling secret society of dragon fanatics closes in, Viktor must choose between the power his transformation offers, and the hope of finding a cure.

To the fabled Tyrant’s Tomb, Viktor races the mysterious Thule Society, where deadly traps and cryptic puzzles protect a treasure of unspeakable power. With every heartbeat the tumor’s corruption spreads. Can a court dandy and a disgraced scholar help Viktor find his cure? Or is it too late to save the city from a mad doctor’s dark designs?

Read: 27%

This was more my thing. Right from the off we have Viktor who has a tumor (of the magical variety) which is slowly turning him into a dragon. He attends a sanitarium in search of a cure and ends up in your usual type of fantasy quest to save the day with mismatched friends. I think what stopped me enjoying it as much as I expected is the fact that I didn’t really click with any of the characters here. The world-building was decent though I would have liked to see more – and maybe in future volumes there will be more but for now this didn’t quite cut it for me.

Mother of the Fallen by J.R. Manga

“HELL HAS NO FURY LIKE A MOTHER SCRONED”

Detective Garcia is plunged into a world of betrayal and darkness. Ritualistic murders are plaguing the city, and she is unknowingly linked to these phenomena. Demons are real, and they threaten the life of her son. What would a mother do to protect her child, what steps would she take to keep them safe? Natalia will have to answer these questions like any other parent, but the answers will take her down a path of blood and torment, a path she may never be able to come back from. This path may lead Natalia Garcia into the pit of Hell itself.

Read: 21%

This was the one I really had the highest hopes for. I enjoy fantasy, horror and detective fiction and Mother of the Fallen is pretty much a mash-up of all three. Detective Garcia is caught up in a string of ritualistic murders that seems to link somehow to her young son. There is a long, dark and nasty path ahead, seemingly into the very depths of Hell. All good stuff you’d think but somehow, again, it just didn’t click for me (and I guess in this day and age I must make it known that it does get very dark at times). I may well pick this up again in a few months’ time as I like the ideas but it wasn’t the right book for right now I guess.

Okay, this is my first at SPFBO and I told myself from the off that to make it to a semi-finalist spot a book would have to stand out, would, I guess WOW! me and unfortunately none of the books in my bundle really did. I don’t feel it is fair to put a book forward just because I didn’t like it a bit less than I didn’t like the others. Don’t let my opinions put you off though, if you feel any of these books or authors appeal to you then go for it, enjoy their stories. They might be just the thing you are looking for.

Our commiseration to the fallen, and we wish you all the best!

To keep up with our progress and the competition, please check out our SPFBO 10 page!