65: Our Favorite Books of 2020

`Tis the season... for Best Of lists! We'll be posting a separate blog post for our collective favorite reads of the year later, but for now we have Sara, Jenia, and Travis sharing their favorites with you here.

To get the standard disclaimers out of the way, these are simply the books we read during 2020 that we enjoyed the most. We don't pretend this list is objective or comprehensive in any way. After all, what list is?

What We're Reading:

Our Favorite Books of 2020:

Sara

  1. Stariel by AJ Lancaster
  2. Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
  3. The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
  4. Jade City by Fonda Lee
  5. The Empire of Gold by S.A. Chakraborty

Travis

  1. The Diviners by Libba Bray
  2. Unconquerable Sun by Kate Elliott
  3. The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk
  4. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
  5. The First Sister by Linden A. Lewis

Jenia

  1. The Trojan War Will Not Take Place by Jean Giraudoux
  2. Debt: The First Five Thousand Years by David Graeber; Owls of the Eastern Ice by Jonathan C. Slaght; An Odyssey: A Father, A Son, and an Epic by Daniel Mendelsohn
  3. Turning Darkness Into Light by Marie Brennan
  4. Zone by Mathias Énard
  5. Ten Thousand Stitches by Olivia Atwater

Other Things Mentioned:

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

This episode of The Fantasy Inn podcast was recorded in the unceded territory of the S’atsoyaha (Yuchi) and ᏣᎳᎫᏪᏘᏱ Tsalaguwetiyi (Eastern Cherokee Band) peoples.

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

64: Jordan Cobb Interview

Travis interviews actor and podcaster Jordan Cobb about her newest audio fiction show, Primordial Deep from No Such Thing Productions. The show's tagline is "There's no such thing as extinct" and follows a crew as they descend to the depths of the ocean floor to research the sudden reappearance of prehistoric creatures.

Jordan and Travis discuss the differences in performing on stage and behind a mic, making the most of creative burnout, and adorable prehistoric monsters.

About Jordan Cobb:

Jordan is a New York City based actress and writer. She trained at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where she studied at the Experimental Theatre Wing, Classical Studio and Stonestreet Studio and minored in creative writing.

After graduating, she founded two production companies—Black Lace and Laser Beams, and No Such Thing Productions—which focus on the development of new and innovative audio drama podcasts. Jordan works as head writer and producer for both companies, and she voices the characters in numerous audio fiction shows.

You can find Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, or at her website www.jordanvcobb.com.

Like Jordan's work? Support her an Ko-Fi or Patreon.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

This episode of The Fantasy Inn podcast was recorded in the unceded territory of the S’atsoyaha (Yuchi) and ᏣᎳᎫᏪᏘᏱ Tsalaguwetiyi (Eastern Cherokee Band) peoples.

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

63: Sam Hawke Interview

Travis interviews fantasy author Sam Hawke about her latest book, Hollow Empire, out now from Tor Books. This concludes the Poison War duology, which stands out for its mystery elements, political intrigue, and optimism toward humanity. Plus, poison. So much poison.

Sam and Travis discuss her contractual obligation to bring her fellow lawyers cake, the difficulty of rewriting an entire book from scratch, and the pure joy that comes with poisoning your friends.

About Sam Hawke:

Sam Hawke considered several careers (including zookeeper) before choosing law, getting a black belt in jujitsu and starting writing. She grew up and still lives in Canberra, Australia, where she and her husband are currently raising two small ninjas and two idiot dogs.

You can find Sam on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or at her website https://samhawkewrites.com.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

This episode of The Fantasy Inn podcast was recorded in the unceded territory of the S’atsoyaha (Yuchi) and ᏣᎳᎫᏪᏘᏱ Tsalaguwetiyi (Eastern Cherokee Band) peoples.

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

62: Jonathan Sims Interview

Travis interviews podcaster and author Jonathan Sims about his debut novel, Thirteen Storeys from Gollancz. The book follows the tenants of a haunted building who are invited to a dinner party with the billionaire who lives in the penthouse on the top floor. At the end of the party, the host is dead... and none of the guests will say what happened.

Jonny and Travis discuss how horror writers evoke fear, how societal fears change over time, and his future career in horror.

About Jonathan Sims:

Jonathan Sims is a writer, performer and games designer whose work primarily focuses on the macabre, the grotesque, and the gentle touch of creeping dread. He is the mind and the voice behind acclaimed horror podcast The Magnus Archives, as well as story-game design duo MacGuffin & Co., and some of your favourite nightmares. He lives in Walthamstow with the two best cats and an overwhelming backlog of books that he really should get round to.

You can find Jonathan on Twitter, YouTube, or at his website jonathan-sims.com/.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

61: How to Run an Online Convention

This year has seen an explosion of online science fiction and fantasy conventions. Existing conventions were forced to switch to a virtual format, new conventions were formed, and fringe programming provided content for those of us unable to attend conventions.

While most of this was out of necessity (thanks, 2020), these online events will likely stay around for the foreseeable future. Since this is an area that hasn't been around long enough to have widely implemented standards, now is the time to look back and reflect on what went well and what could be improved.

Joining us this week are L.D. Lewis (director of FIYAHCON), Allie Charlesworth (co-chair of MultiverseCon), and Adri Joy (CoNZealand Fringe).

Useful Things:

Find L.D. Lewis Online:

Find Adri Joy Online:

Find Allie Charlesworth Online:

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

60: V.E. Schwab Interview

Travis interviews author V.E. Schwab about her latest book, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue from Tor Books. The book follows the story of an immortal woman cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets as she attempts to leave her mark on the world.

Victoria and Travis discuss the time she was arrested for hitchhiking in France, the behind the scenes details of the Addie LaRue film, and holding onto defiant joy in the year that is 2020.

About V.E. Schwab:

VICTORIA “V.E.” SCHWAB is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen books, including the acclaimed Shades of Magic series, Villains series, This Savage Song, and Our Dark Duet. Her work has received critical acclaim, been featured in the New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, Washington Post and more, translated into more than a dozen languages, and has been optioned for television and film. When she’s not haunting Paris streets or trudging up English hillsides, she lives in Edinburgh, Scotland and is usually tucked in the corner of a coffee shop, dreaming up monsters.

You can find Victoria on Twitter, Instagram, or at her website veschwab.com.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

59: Anna Stephens Interview

Travis interviews fantasy author Anna Stephens about The Stone Knife, the first book in The Songs of the Drowned trilogy from Harper Voyager. It's set in a Central American inspired jungle world where a magical empire is attempting to conquer its neighboring tribes, who happen to be a bit busy fighting the reptilian siren monsters lurking in the water.

Anna and Travis discuss dealing with imposter syndrome, historical Italian longsword fighting, and why grimdark fantasy books should never be shelved in the children's section of the book store.

About Anna Stephens:

Anna is a UK-based author of gritty epic fantasy. Her debut novel, Godblind, was published through Harper Voyager in June 2017, with the sequels coming in 2018 and 2019. You can sign up to her newsletter here: https://anna-stephens.com/get-in-touch/

Anna has a BA (Hons) in Literature from the Open University and has wanted to be a writer for as long as she can remember. She much prefers the worlds she makes up to the real thing, even if most of her characters meet sticky ends.

Anna lives with her husband, a huge book, music and movie collection, and no pets. She intends to remedy this lack of furry friends as soon as fame and fortune strike.

You can help her realise her twin dreams of being an author and a proud dog-walker by buying her book. Thanks.

Find Anna Stephens on Twitter, Instagram, or at her website anna-stephens.com/. Check out her Patreon at patreon.com/annastephenswordseeker.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

58: Essa Hansen Interview

Travis interviews author and sound designer Essa Hansen about Nophek Gloss, her debut space opera from Orbit Books. It has a bit of everything: an epic quest for revenge, a vast multiverse full of alien creatures, and a wholesome crew that becomes a found family.

Essa and Travis discuss sound designing the Marvel Cinematic Universe, how to write found families, and the process of creating a bubble multiverse that bends the laws of physics.

About Essa Hansen:

Essa Hansen grew up in beautifully wild areas of California, from the coastal foothills to the Sierra Nevada mountains around Yosemite, before migrating north to the Canadian Rocky Mountains. She has ranched bison and sheep, trained horses, practiced Japanese swordsmanship, and is a licensed falconer. She attended the Vancouver Film School and works as a sound designer for SF and fantasy feature films (IMDB). Essa lives with her British Shorthair cat Soki in the San Francisco Bay Area.

You can find Essa Hansen on Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram, or at her website essahansen.com.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

57: Christopher Paolini Interview

Travis interviews author Christopher Paolini about To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, the first Fractalverse novel from Tor Books. Paolini's debut science fiction novel is a massive standalone space opera following a xenobiologist. It has first contact gone wrong, meticulously researched faster than light travel, and an epic adventure across the universe.

Christopher and Travis discuss the secret Eldest film that almost was, what readers can expect for the future of the Fractalverse, and perhaps most importantly: the timeless art of the terrible pun.

Things Mentioned:

About Christopher Paolini:

Christopher Paolini is the author of the international bestsellers Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr, and Inheritance, as well as The Fork, the Witch, and the Worm. His debut science fiction novel, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, is now available. He resides in Paradise Valley, Montana, USA.

You can find Christopher Paolini on Twitter as Paolini, Instagram as Christopher_Paolini, or at his website paolini.net.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

56: What Makes a Great Character?

It's all in the title really: what makes a great character? This week, the Fantasy Inn tries to work out their feelings on the topic.

Things Mentioned:

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

55: R.F. Kuang Interview

Travis interviews author R.F. Kuang about The Burning God, the final novel in The Poppy War trilogy from Harper Voyager. The series reimagines the Second Sino-Japanese War set in a fantasy analogue of the Song Dynasty following a protagonist who parallels Mao Zedong's rise to power.

Rebecca and Travis discuss her conflicted emotions at saying goodbye to the Poppy War series, revisit her powerful acceptance speech after winning the Astounding award for best new writer, and question the role of fantasy in a world whose problems may demand a more direct response.

About R.F. Kuang:

Rebecca F. Kuang is a Marshall Scholar, Chinese-English translator, and the Astounding Award-winning and Nebula, Locus, and World Fantasy Award nominated author of the Poppy War trilogy. Her work has won the Crawford Award and the Compton Crook Award for Best First Novel. She has an MPhil in Chinese Studies from Cambridge and an MSc in Contemporary Chinese Studies from Oxford; she is now pursuing a PhD in East Asian Languages and Literatures at Yale.

You can find R.F. Kuang on Twitter and Instagram as @kuangrf, or at her website rfkuang.com.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

54: Yoon Ha Lee Interview

Travis interviews author Yoon Ha Lee about Phoenix Extravagant, his latest novel from Solaris Books. This standalone story follows a nonbinary painter as they team up with a pacifist mecha dragon against an evil empire, and it takes place in a magical version of Korea during the Japanese occupation.

Yoon and Travis discuss Yoon's experience with watercolor and animation, the important role of art in culture, and how colonization seeks to undermine and destroy that role.

About Yoon Ha Lee:

A Korean-American sf/f writer who received a B.A. in math from Cornell University and an M.A. in math education from Stanford University, Yoon finds it a source of continual delight that math can be mined for story ideas. Yoon’s novel Ninefox Gambit won the Locus Award for best first novel, and was a finalist for the Hugo, Nebula, and Clarke awards; its sequels, Raven Stratagem and Revenant Gun, were also Hugo finalists. His middle grade space opera Dragon Pearl won the Locus Award for best YA novel and was a New York Times bestseller. Yoon’s short fiction has appeared in publications such as F&SF, Tor.com, and Clarkesworld Magazine, as well as several year’s best anthologies.

You can find Yoon on Dreamwidth, on Twitter as @deuceofgears, and on Instagram as @deuceofgears. You can find his art at deuceofgears.com and his music at soundcloud.com/deuceofgears.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

53: Alix E. Harrow Interview

Travis interviews fantasy author Alix E. Harrow about The Once and Future Witches, her latest novel from Redhook. This standalone story follows three sisters whose fight to bring back witchcraft parallels the women's suffrage movement.

Alix and Travis discuss the power of stories, her unique method for crafting memorable prose, and weaving witchcraft into an alternative history.

About Alix E. Harrow:

Alix E. Harrow is an ex-historian with lots of opinions and excessive library fines, currently living in Kentucky with her husband and their semi-feral children. She won a Hugo for her short fiction, and has been nominated for the Nebula, Locus, and World Fantasy awards. Find her at @AlixEHarrow on Twitter, or at her website alixeharrow.wixsite.com/author.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

52: P. Djèlí Clark Interview

Travis interviews fantasy author P. Djèlí Clark about Ring Shout, his newest novella from Tordotcom. It follows three Black women in the 1920s as they fight the literal demons within the Ku Klux Klan, and blends fantasy, horror, and historical fiction.

Djèlí and Travis revisit his blog post on diversity in the Wheel of Time TV show, discuss the founding of FIYAH Literary Magazine, and talk about the history of slavery in film.

About P Djèlí Clark:

Born in New York and raised mostly in Houston, P. DJÈLÍ CLARK spent the formative years of his life in the homeland of his parents, Trinidad and Tobago. P. Djèlí Clark is the author of the novellas The Black God’s Drums, winner of a 2019 Alex Award from the American Library Association; The Haunting of Tram Car 015; and A Dead Djinn in Cairo. His short story “The Secret Lives of the Nine Negro Teeth of George Washington” (Fireside Fiction) has earned him both a Nebula and Locus award. He is loosely associated with the quarterly FIYAH: A Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction and an infrequent reviewer at Strange Horizons. He currently resides in New England and ruminates on issues of diversity in speculative fiction.

You can find him on Twitter as @pdjeliclark, at his website www.pdjeliclark.com, and at his blog disgruntledharadrim.com.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

51: (Patreon Bonus #1) The Books We Love

It's time for our first bonus episode! We've been promising to release one as soon as we reach $25 on Patreon, and we finally hit it! Thank you so much for helping to make this happen, we really could not do this without you. This is an extra episode in addition to our weekly releases... after all, it's a bonus!

For a while now, we've been asking podcast guests to share a couple of books that they just absolutely love. The only requirement? They have to be from currently-writing authors. We've compiled the recommendations from ten amazing authors into one special episode.

S.A. Chakraborty Loves:

Kate Elliott Loves:

Devin Madson Loves:

Jonathan Strahan Loves:

Benedict Patrick Loves:

Linden A. Lewis Loves:

Django Wexler Loves:

Karen Osborne Loves:

Andrea Stewart Loves:

C.L. Polk Loves:

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

50: C.L. Polk Interview

Travis interviews fantasy author C.L. Polk about their latest novel, The Midnight Bargain. It's a standalone fantasy of manners story from Erewhon Books about a woman who must choose between love and magic, set in a world where women are forbidden from practicing the art of summoning and binding magical spirits.

Cee and Travis talk about adding emotional churn to your writing, the big gorgeous dresses of 18th century fashion, and her time as an extra in the Canadian television industry.

About C.L. Polk:

C. L. Polk (she/her/they/them) is the author of the World Fantasy Award-winning debut novel Witchmark, the first novel of the Kingston Cycle. Her newest novel, The Midnight Bargain, is upcoming in 2020 from Erehwon Books.

After leaving high school early, she has worked as a film extra, sold vegetables on the street, and identified exotic insect species for a vast collection of lepidoptera before settling down to write silver fork fantasy novels.

Ms. Polk lives near the Bow River in Calgary, Alberta, in a tiny apartment with too many books and a yarn stash that could last a decade. She rides a green bicycle with a basket on the front.

She drinks good coffee because life is too short. She spends too much time on Twitter. You can subscribe to her free newsletter on Substack.

Her website is clpolk.com.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

49: Andrea Stewart Interview

Travis interviews fantasy author Andrea Stewart about her latest novel, The Bone Shard Daughter. It's the first book in a new epic fantasy series from Orbit Books, set in an archipelago empire where the islands are slowly sinking and the reclusive emperor controls his subjects through his twisted bone shard constructs.

Andrea and Travis talk about treating magic like computer programming, what she learned from querying for 13 years, and the real-life bone shard that inspired the novel.

About Andrea Stewart:

Andrea Stewart is the daughter of immigrants, and was raised in a number of places across the United States. Her parents always emphasized science and education, so she spent her childhood immersed in Star Trek and odd-smelling library books. When her (admittedly ambitious) dreams of becoming a dragon slayer didn't pan out, she instead turned to writing books. She now lives in sunny California, and in addition to writing, can be found herding cats, looking at birds, and falling down research rabbit holes.

You can find Andrea on Twitter as @AndreaGStewart or at her website, www.andreagstewart.com.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

48: Karen Osborne Interview

Travis interviews science fiction author Karen Osborne about her debut novel, Architects of Memory. It's the first book in the new cinematic space opera from Tor Books, set in a universe where corporations have replaced governments and humanity finds themselves at war with a truly alien species.

Karen and Travis talk about her experience playing the most sci-fi of all musical instruments, what her research on the psychology of confined spaces recommends for getting through quarantine, and why private companies will ultimately win the space race.

About Karen Osborne:

Karen Osborne is a writer, visual storyteller, and violinist. Her short fiction appears in Uncanny, Fireside, Escape Pod, Robot Dinosaurs, and Beneath Ceaseless Skies. She is a member of the DC/MD-based Homespun Ceilidh Band, emcees the Charm City Spec reading series, and once won a major event filmmaking award for taping a Klingon wedding. Her debut novel, Architects of Memory, is forthcoming in 2020 from Tor Books.

You can find Karen Osborne on Twitter as @karenthology or at her website, www.karenosborne.com. You can also support her through her Patreon, where you can get access to exclusive short stories and behind the scenes content.

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

47: How We Talk About Books

If you are reading this, there is a good chance you enjoy reading fantasy books. You may also like talking about fantasy books... or at least listening to others talk about them.

This week, Calvin Park (from Under a Pile of Books) and David Walters (from Authors on a Podcast Talking Books) stopped by the Fantasy Inn to talk about how they talk about books. How exactly does one write a review? And how does the relatively formal structure of written book reviews differ from a podcast or BookTube format?

Things Mentioned:

Find Calvin Park Online:

Find David Walters Online:

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

46: Reading Outside the Fantasy Genre

The Fantasy Inn is rather fond of fantasy books... it's in the name. But when and why do we read outside the fantasy genre? After all, there are so many truly incredible books out there.

Please note that our reading skews toward fantasy, so this is not an episode that extensively explores other genres. Instead, we examine our reading habits, the appeal of other genres, and why we sometimes find it difficult to read outside our comfort zones.

Note on Acronyms: We mention "TBRs" multiple times throughout this episode, which refers to "To Be Read" lists... essentially a list that some readers create to organize the books they plan to read in the future.

Books Mentioned:

Find Us Online:

Support Us:

Music:

The blog post accompanying this episode can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com, along with fantasy book reviews, author interviews, and more fantasy content.

Copyright 2019. All rights reserved.