Travis interviews fantasy author Anna Smith Spark about her latest book, The House of Sacrifice, which marks the conclusion of her debut grimdark fantasy series, The Empires of Dust. They talk about spectacular shoes, defining the grimdark genre, and the philosophy behind our fascination with violence.

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Detailed show notes can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com

Travis interviews fantasy author Devin Madson about her latest book, We Ride the Storm. They talk about respectful decapitations, applying the scientific method to magic, and landing a seven-book deal from Orbit Books.

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We mostly talk about books at The Fantasy Inn. But we love all things fantasy, so this episode we discuss... all things SFF that aren't books.

For an extended cut of this episode (featuring haunted houses, wacky graphic novels, and podcast musicals), you can support us on Patreon.

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Detailed show notes can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com

Travis interviews fantasy author Daniel Olesen about the historical details writers get wrong about medieval Europe, how to properly research and portray cultures outside one's own experience, and misconceptions many people have about the vikings and Norse mythology.

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History Books Mentioned

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Calvin from the Under a Pile of Books podcast joins Travis in discussing Will Wight's Elder Empire series. The series is composed of two parallel trilogies, where the protagonist in each is the antagonist in the other.

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To close out the year, the Fantasy Inn dives into what exactly makes a favorite book stand out among the many stories we read. Why do some books leave us thinking about them long after we finish them, and why can a "Top Read of the Year" for one person be quickly forgotten by another?

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Detailed show notes can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com

Travis interviews fantasy author Timandra Whitecastle about her new novel, Queens of the Wyrd. They talk about how to grow an audience as a self-published author, Norse mythology, and the role of women in fantasy stories.

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Detailed show notes can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com

Kristen from the Superstardrifter blog joins Travis and Sara to squee about The Last Sun by K.D. Edwards. It's a high-magic urban fantasy mystery taking place in New Atlantis, with epic fights, evil liches, and a political infrastructure based on tarot cards. And witty banter. So much witty banter.

And the sequel, The Hanged Man, releases on December 17th! You have just enough time to read The Last Sun and catch up before the story continues.

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Detailed show notes can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com

Travis interviews writers Heli Kennedy and Eugene (E.C. Myers) about their role in Orphan Black: The Next Chapter, a serialized science fiction story from Serial Box. Orphan Black: The Next Chapter continues where the hit TV series left off and is narrated by the show's star, Tatiana Maslany.

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If you're a fan of speculative fiction you might recognize certain awards like the Hugo, Nebula, or Locus. But how are winning books determined? And what other awards are out there? We offer our (definitely non-comprehensive) thoughts on several of these prestigious awards and some of the books that have won them.

Book Awards Winners Lists:

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Detailed show notes can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com