a million times a trillion more (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
dolorosa_12) wrote2020-07-14 02:44 pm
dolorosa_12) wrote2020-07-14 02:44 pm
Two excellent novellas
In almost every fic exchange in which I have participated, I have requested the same thing: post-canon hurt/comfort with Paige and Warden from Samantha Shannon's Bone Season series.
And now I don't have to request it again, because the author herself has written it: an excellent little novella called The Dawn Chorus, which bridges the gap between the third book in the series, and the fourth, which is due to be published next year.
I am really loving this trend of authors writing what amounts to professional fanfic of their own series in novellas. As well as Samantha Shannon's book, Aliette de Bodard published Of Dragons, Feasts and Murders, a post-canon novella in her post-apocalyptic Dominion of the Fallen series in which my favourite pairing of characters, fallen angel Asmodeus and his Vietnamese dragon prince husband Thuan solve a murder mystery, uncover corruption in the dragon kingdom under the Seine, and finally get a chance to work together instead of at cross purposes.
What I appreciated most about the two novellas was the space they afforded to their characters' emotions and explorations of their relationships. This is why I describe them as 'published fanfic' — one of the things I love most about fanfic is that character or relationship studies are so often at the heart of the writing, but you don't see this in most published fiction, unless it's romance. I'd love to see it in more SFF series.
I've reviewed both novellas together over at my reviews blog. As always, I welcome comments and discussion either here on Dreamwidth or at the original post.
And now I don't have to request it again, because the author herself has written it: an excellent little novella called The Dawn Chorus, which bridges the gap between the third book in the series, and the fourth, which is due to be published next year.
I am really loving this trend of authors writing what amounts to professional fanfic of their own series in novellas. As well as Samantha Shannon's book, Aliette de Bodard published Of Dragons, Feasts and Murders, a post-canon novella in her post-apocalyptic Dominion of the Fallen series in which my favourite pairing of characters, fallen angel Asmodeus and his Vietnamese dragon prince husband Thuan solve a murder mystery, uncover corruption in the dragon kingdom under the Seine, and finally get a chance to work together instead of at cross purposes.
What I appreciated most about the two novellas was the space they afforded to their characters' emotions and explorations of their relationships. This is why I describe them as 'published fanfic' — one of the things I love most about fanfic is that character or relationship studies are so often at the heart of the writing, but you don't see this in most published fiction, unless it's romance. I'd love to see it in more SFF series.
I've reviewed both novellas together over at my reviews blog. As always, I welcome comments and discussion either here on Dreamwidth or at the original post.