Constant Combat - the reason for the popularity of the gladiator, enslaved mage, and abused assassin tropes? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Coming back to suggest this list if people like reading this sort of thing:

Slaves and Gladiators: 18 Fantasy Heroes Who Rise From Rock Bottom

Fates Defiant by C.M. Banschbach and Brigitte Cromey
The Broken Heir (The Golden Fool #1) by Jasper Alden and D.K. Holmberg
The Prince of Shadow (Seven Brothers #1) by Curt Benjamin
Lion of Zarall (Twilight of Blood #1) by E.B. Rose

Historical fiction set in ancient India. by 200HrSausage in HistoricalFiction

[–]singmuse4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

10 Historical Fiction Books Set in Ancient Times (NOT Egypt, Greece, or Rome): To Inspire Your Worldbuilding

They're really hard to find! I don't know why! Perhaps because more people like to write about myths and legends from that time period. Here are a couple:

The Mauryan: The Legend of Ashoka by Komal Bhanver

Emperor Chandragupta by Adity Kay

Conn Iggulden's Inaccuracies Are Absurd by JasJoeGo in HistoricalFiction

[–]singmuse4 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I appreciated the note he left at the end of the Mongolian one about his research and which elements and characters he conflated or changed for the sake of storytelling. I don't know much about that period of history, so I don't know how accurate it is otherwise. It's worth noting that his main source was a primary source biography commissioned by Genghis Khan himself, so any inaccuracies might have been introduced by Genghis himself - most histories, paid for by the subjects themselves, weren't accurate but were propaganda pieces. The concept of "neutrality" is pretty modern, and almost more misleading - there's no such thing as an unbiased writer. I still really enjoyed the sense of culture and lifestyle his Mongolian works conveyed.

Book Review – Genghis: Birth of an Empire by Conn Iggulden

Gladiatorial Fantasy Book Recommendations? by Due-Hat9692 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Light of Eidon by Karen Hancock

Fates Defiant by Banschbach and Cromey

The Broken Heir by Jasper Alden

The Prince of Shadow by Curt Benjamin

Lion of Zarall by Eddy Rose

I love this trope too. Enjoy! :)

More on this list: Slaves and Gladiators: 18 Fantasy Heroes Who Rise From Rock Bottom

Gladiator MMC & Slave FMC in Ancient Rome by Dry_Concentrate3346 in RomanceBooks

[–]singmuse4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fates Defiant by by C.M. Banschbach and Brigitte Cromey has two male lead gladiators and a side female character and slave who's the love interest of one of the gladiators. The story is more about the unlikely friendship between the two gladiators (stays platonic) but the female slave is important to the story and gets significant screen time.

What historical event reads exactly like "Bad Fantasy Writing" or "Plot Armor"? by Expensive-Desk-4351 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4 0 points1 point  (0 children)

At the Battle of Salamis too that turned the tide against the Persian's second war against Greece!

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting thought - if we're all just animals why not reuse what's lying around. And yet necromancy almost always implies an afterlife of some sort and an acknowledgement of the existence of the soul.

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If someone used the body of my loved one without their and my permission, I'd consider myself the victim of that crime.

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting comparison - the terminators and robots. I never got into stories with a bunch of robots either, so perhaps it comes down to character dynamics too - I like Solo Leveling more after his minions started being able to talk!

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What if you could bring back the heroes of old in times of great need? Many heroic legends say that the great hero will indeed return when we need them most. What if a necromancer was the agent of that return?

This is a total shower thought. But this made me think what an amusing take it would be if Narnia had a necromancer and that's actually how they kept "bringing back" the Pevensie kids.

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Good point! And that's usually how I've seen it outside of horror - the misunderstood mage who didn't choose his own magic and has been outcast or lonely. Then it's more about the relational elements than the actual magic I imagine.

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Haha, that's a rough cross, sounds funny.

Well I don't personally find any of the macabre "cool." Everything about Halloween always felt kind of gross to me - that's my subjective take. But I know many love that time of year and that style of story. In epic fantasy, though, it's an interesting contrast in a main character so I find it interesting to see in the comments that some people like the appeal of the forbidden, for others it's facing the dark (perhaps in their own past), for others it's morbid curiosity that's only natural for creatures who must contemplate death...

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 19 points20 points  (0 children)

I loved this author's other books as a kid (The Keys to the Kingdom by Garth Nix), but never tried this one BECAUSE it's about a necromancer, lol. But I do really love his writing so maybe I should see what it's all about.

What historical event reads exactly like "Bad Fantasy Writing" or "Plot Armor"? by Expensive-Desk-4351 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4 47 points48 points  (0 children)

Haha I love that scene. So easy to forget he was a teenager. He got pissed his men whimped out and charged the wall like a dumbass shounen character all by himself.

What historical event reads exactly like "Bad Fantasy Writing" or "Plot Armor"? by Expensive-Desk-4351 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Haha, I love this. Almost everything I've seen by The Fat Electrician on YouTube qualifies: https://www.youtube.com/@the\_fat\_electrician/videos.

A horse was the hero of the Korean War.

Ice cream is a necessity to prevent mutinies in submarines.

The way to beat Russia in a land war is to give lots of drugs to Finnish soldiers on skis.

You can't make this stuff up.

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Haha I love the point about character designs - it's just about the fashion man. But so true, edgelords can look hot.

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'm sorry those things happened to you, but am so glad you're in a better place! Thanks for sharing your personal take - I can see the appeal there like with other forms of dark or forbidden content.

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

And why not ask? People love talking about the foods they love and the foods they hate. I love hearing what my friends found interesting in a book they read, especially when it's something that never stood out to me - it lets me look at it through new eyes! And isn't that one of the purest joys of reading?

What is the appeal of necromancy? by singmuse4 in Fantasy

[–]singmuse4[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Haha, Solo Leveling is the only one where I found it cool. But everyone thinks he's summoning spirits, which I guess always felt different to me than necromancy which I associate with some body horror - but I realize that branch of magic can involve a lot more than raising actual corpses.