Fantasy
APOTROPAIA / Vol. I
Reviews and reflections on fantasy: invented worlds, magical systems, and the stories that make them feel alive.
5 selections
Featured / Book Reviews
Disclaimer: I received this book as an advanced copy, but the review is my own! What happens when the terrifying woodland beast an elite…
admin · 3 min read
Book Reviews
The Demonic Inventions of Aurelie Blake Mara Rutherford Harper · 2026 Mara Rutherford’s The Demonic Inventions of Aurelie Blake promises a high-stakes, anti-progress dystopia with a dark “enemies-to-lovers” romance, but the novel…
By admin ↗4 min read
Fantasy · Mara Rutherford · Romance · The Demonic Inventions of Aurelie Blake · Young Adult
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The Demon Overlord's Retirement Plan humorously blends cosmic warfare with cozy farming and community bonds.
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Book Reviews
A language-policing space empire, forbidden poetry, and a novel that makes you work for every pleasure. Yoon Ha Lee’s Code and Codex frustrated me—and won me over.
By admin ↗Book Reviews
Peter S. Beagle’s dragon-slaying tale starts with wit, warmth, and a hero who dreams of being a valet. For me, its later turn toward familiar fantasy tropes loses some of that promise.
By admin ↗Follow a thread
Bottle trees, gestures, prayers, and the places where doubt and devotion meet.
Explore the thread ↗Marshes, rivers, old trees, and the changing geographies of memory.
Explore the thread ↗Oral histories, family stories, and the ethics of passing something on.
Explore the thread ↗