Wizards and Warlocks Vol. 1: The Shadowmarch Series by Tad Williams

Hello friends,

This is the first installment of a weekly, "what I am listening" to post. I am proudly addicted to fantasy novels and heavy metal, and I thought it would be nice to get the word out about those authors and bands that help get me thought the long hours of painting. I love audio books, and I have a subscription to audible.com. If you like audio books too, then check out audible.com, you won't be sorry.

This week:

The Shadowmarch series, by Tad Williams

There are four books in this series and I am at the very end of the last book. It has been a pretty fun ride, filled with awesome monsters, memorable characters, and great story.

And because I am to lazy to write my own summary, here is the plot summary taken from wikipedia:

"The first Marchlands kingdom, Southmarch (commonly called "Shadowmarch"), lies directly on the edge of the mysterious Shadowline, a shroud of endless mist that marks the entrance to the realm of the fairy-folk, the Qar. Crossing the Shadowline is said to drive any human mad, but, as far as anyone knows, the line has not moved any further south for centuries. Now, inexplicably, it has begun to creep slowly but surely deeper into the lands of Southmarch, bringing an unknown menace with it.

Coupled together with this threat is the dissension and endless political maneuvering of many of Southmarch's nobles. The king of Southmarch has been captured and is imprisoned in a distant land, and when the prince regent is murdered, the burden of rule falls to the inexperienced princess, Briony, and her moody brother, Barrick. Faced with invasion, betrayal, and conniving nobles seeking to take advantage, it is up to them alone to hold Southmarch together." -wikipedia

One thing the summary forgot to mention was that the fairy-folk in this series are actually brutal demons lead by the "Porcupine Queen", named after the black spikes that cover her armor. Rad! Anyway, I highly recommend this series and I think the title "Shadowmarch", would make a super heavy band name. Next week I will talk about metal, and maybe post some videos, in my other bi-weekly series, called "Into the Pit".