Category Book of the Week 2017

Jun 16 2016

BOTW: ‘Serpentine’ by Cindy Pon

Sorry I haven’t posted a book feature for so long!

I love the artwork on this cover, and the story sounds interesting too. It’s going on my YA reading list! I think the sequel is due out in September…

‘Serpentine’ by Cindy Pon

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Blurb:

SERPENTINE is a sweeping fantasy set in the ancient Kingdom of Xia and inspired by the rich history of Chinese mythology.

Lush with details from Chinese folklore, SERPENTINE tells the coming of age story of Skybright, a young girl who worries about her growing otherness. As she turns sixteen, Skybright notices troubling changes. By day, she is a companion and handmaid to the youngest daughter of a very wealthy family. But nighttime brings with it a darkness that not even daybreak can quell.

When her plight can no longer be denied, Skybright learns that despite a dark destiny, she must struggle to retain her sense of self – even as she falls in love for the first time.

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Find all buy links on Goodreads

Visit Cindy Pon’s website

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And a quick reminder to writers: submissions for ‘Insignia: Asian Fantasy Stories’ will close June 30. I hope to see some more great stories come in during the next two weeks. 🙂

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Feb 19 2016

BOTW: ‘Stone-Cold Fox’ by Hailey Edwards

Has anyone read the Black Dog Series? Looks pretty cool!

Stone-Cold Fox (Mai Hayashi #1)

By Hailey Edwards

stonecoldfox

 

Blurb:

Mai’s plans for a weekend of cosplay fun and games at Fan Expo come to a screeching halt when a smokin’ hot fae with a vendetta against her father decides the best revenge is claiming her for his own.

Her father cost Ryuu everything: his home, his family…and his mate. Ryuu wants his pound of flesh, and he’s willing to take it out of Mai’s hide, bite by sensuous bite.

While she’s quick to bare her teeth and snap at Ryuu’s gentling hand, she sheathes her claws once he offers her secrets about her life and her father that rock the foundation of her world.

Caught between Ryuu’s tender persistence and her father’s iron will, Mai’s not sure who to trust, but before it’s all over this kitsune will show them both why she’s one stone-cold fox.

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| Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon AUS |

| Goodreads |

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About the Author

A cupcake enthusiast and funky sock lover possessed of an overactive imagination, Hailey lives in Alabama with her handcuff-carrying hubby, her fluty-tooting daughter and their herd of dachshunds.

You can also connect with Hailey at:

Website: HaileyEdwards.net

 

Jan 14 2016

BOTW: ‘Best of Philippine Speculative Fiction’

It’s a shiny new year, and I don’t know about you guys, but I’m excited to start my 2015 Goodreads Reading Challenge.Feel free to follow me and set your own reading target.

Also, I’m looking for new Asia-Pacific fantasy fiction books, anthologies, or short stories to share here on The Insignia Series blog. Please post a link in the comments or email me at: blackwingsandwhitepaper@gmail.com if you can recommend a good book or author!

This weeks book recommendation is ‘Best of Philippine Speculative Fiction’ 2005-2010′, edited by Dean Francis Alfar and Nikki Alfar . There are more volumes in the Philippine Speculative Fiction series available on Amazon as well. Volume 9 was published in October 2014.

Best of Philippine Speculative Fiction 2005-2010

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Blurb:

The Horsemen of the Apocalypse are all born to a Filipino family; an aswang nanny passes on her powers to her young gay ward; a family’s freezer gets a surprise visitor; a young boy discovers how his brother turns into a superhero locked in an eternal struggle with the Forces of Chaos; a company makes a fortune selling diseases. The Philippine Speculative Fiction series showcases the rich variety of Philippine literature. Between these covers you will find magic realism next to science fiction, traditional fantasy beside slipstream, and imaginary worlds rubbing shoulders with alternate Philippine history—demonstrating that the literature of the fantastic is alive and well in the Philippines.
This anthology is a collection of what the editors consider thirty of the best stories from the first five volumes of Philippine Speculative Fiction, published from 2005 to 2010.

Buy from Amazon.com

Add on Goodreads

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Do you write Asian fantasy? We’re still looking for a few more stories for our Southeast Asian fantasy themed anthology. Deadline is January 31 so there’s still time to write a piece or finish off a wip! We’re also interested in reprints.

For full details, visit the Submissions Page.

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Nov 19 2015

BOTW: ‘Wolf at the Door’ by J. Damask

Insignia Series contributor, Joyce Chng, has a new novella out, released under the pen name J.Damask.

‘Wolf at the Door’ by J. Damask

https://dwtr67e3ikfml.cloudfront.net/bookCovers/97a45b248ea41632a8122dcb63564fc962209944

Blurb:

Book 1 of the Jan Xu novels

Being an ex-teen vigilante comes with its own set of problems.

Housewife, ex-teen vigilante…and shape-shifting wolf…Jan Xu has enough problems without adding her sister’s to the mix. Marianne is returning to Singapore and she’s filled with strange ideas. She’s also not alone. She’s coming home with a new boyfriend who has a dark agenda of his own.

With sibling rivalry threatening the inevitable: a battle-to-the-death with fang and claw, Jan and Marianne must overcome their issues if they’re ever going to find peace within their troubled relationship.

Available from Smashwords

Oct 30 2015

BOTW: ‘Phoenix Song’ by Tutu Dutta

Recently I met (online) Malaysian-based author, Tutu Dutta, and discovered her wonderful fairytale-like stories.

Her latest book is featured below, but please check out her YA and middle-grade readers as well.

Phoenix Song by Tutu Dutta

Phoenix-Song-Cover-Image-300x300Blurb:

Arohan is desperate for a guitar. What eight year old boy isn’t? So when Arohan’s grandmother gives him a plain old bamboo flute for his birthday, he is understandably a little upset. But the xiao is no ordinary flute. An instrument steeped in the myths and legends of China, the xiao has its own special magic, as Arohan is soon to discover. When his brothers go missing on the slopes of the hill behind their home in Malaysia, Arohan must ensure they return safe and sound. But does he have what it takes to placate the guardian of the bamboo grove and summon the mythical phoenix? A touching and courageous story of a young boy’s love for his family and the magical things that can happen when you listen to your heart.

Available from Lantana Publishing

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About the Author:

Tutu Dutta was born in India, but grew up in Malaysia. She has travelled and lived in Japan and France as a student and later in Singapore, Nigeria and New York as the wife of a diplomat. Her educational background is in environmental science and she has a BSc from Universiti Putra Malaysia. She also devoted a few years researching this subject for a Master s degree in the University of Malaya before embarking on a career in public relations. Her lifelong interest in culture, folklore and children s literature inspired her to research and retell the stories in Timeless Tales Of Malaysia, which are based on folktales and legends from the Malay archipelago. She has a teenage daughter, Shona a self-professed harajuku-emo child who was born in Singapore. At present, she is living in Kuala Lumpur.

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Other books by Tutu Dutta:

Timeless Tales of Malaysia

Miyah and the Forest Demon (The Jugra Chronicles)

Eight Fortunes of the Qilin

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Jul 30 2015

BOTW: ‘The Tree of Life’ Lisa M. Collins

Today’s Book of the Week is a Japanese short story by Lisa M. Collins.

The Tree of Life by Lisa M. Collins

516Gl3F4tfL._SX311_BO1,204,203,200_Blurb:

The starfaring Ryukyuan clans have lived under a single guiding philosophy for nine millennia. Will one tragic mistake, one secret, destroy them?

*16 pages*

| Amazon US | Goodreads |

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Jul 16 2015

BOTW: ‘Amok: An Anthology of Asia-Pacific Speculative Fiction’

This week’s choice for our Book of the Week feature is ‘Amok: An anthology of Asian-Pacific Speculative Fiction’ edited by Dominica Malcolm.

Amok: An Anthology of Asia-Pacific Speculative Fiction

20741911Blurb:

In an anthology that spans from India in the west to Hawai‘i in the east, and as far south as Australia and New Zealand, 24 authors bring you an exciting range of tales set in the past, present, and future.

Discover characters like the Moon Rabbit from Chinese mythology, a kitsune from Japanese mythology, and the aswang from Filipino mythology.

Find out what arises when a struggling Malaysian student seeks help for her studies in Chinatown, and what happens when the garbage in the Pacific Ocean is seen as a valuable treasure.

Futures imagined stretch from amazing advances in technology to depressing dystopias.

Read these stories and so many more in Amok: An Anthology of Asia-Pacific Speculative Fiction.

Featuring stories by:
Brett Adams, Jo Wu, Kris Williamson, Recle Etino Vibal, Tabitha Sin, Ailia Hopkins, KZ Morano, TR Napper, Terence Toh, Kawika Guillermo, Barry Rosenberg, Eeleen Lee, Jax Goss, Jo Thomas, Daniel A. Kelin II, Fadzlishah Johanabas, Shenoa Carroll-Bradd, Dominica Malcolm, Aashika Nair, Celeste A. Peters, Agnes Ong, Rebecca Freeman, NJ Magas, and Tom Barlow

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| Amazon US | Goodreads |

Jul 2 2015

BOTW: ‘Xiao Xiao & the Dragon’s Pearl’ by Joyce Chng

Book of the Week:

Xiao Xiao & the Dragon’s Pearl

By Joyce Chng

xiaoxiao

Blurb:

Enter the world of Xiao Xiao, daughter of an imperial courtesan, and a fantastical historical Qing China, with dragons and magic and traditions. What happens when her mother adopts a baby girl found in a rice field? What does – can – the green pearl do?

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| Amazon US | Goodreads |

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Jun 11 2015

BOTW: ‘The Castle of all Nightmares (Tales of Crow 2)’ by Chris Ward

New release!

The Castle of all Nightmares (Tales of Crow 2)

By Chris Ward

TOC 2 - ebook coverBlurb:

A group of stranded tourists, a missing billionaire, and a dead woman in the woods, killed by some kind of giant bird. As lights blink on and off in the seemingly deserted Heigel Castle, it appears that Professor Crow is back …

Seven years after the tragic events at British Heights, Jun Matsumoto is now lead singer for Plastic Black Butterfly as they tour across Europe. Their shows bring them to the quiet Romanian town of Heigel, where a series of brutal animal killings have been followed up by the murder of an old local woman. The clues point to Jun’s old nemesis, Professor Crow. Despite the danger, Jun is unable to resist the chance to take revenge on the man who left so many of his friends dead. However, Professor Crow has his own scores to settle …

The Castle of All Nightmares is the second novel in Chris Ward’s Tales of Crow series, following on from They Came Out After Dark. The third volume, The Puppeteer King, will be published later in 2015.

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| Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon AUS |

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Preview They Came out after Dark (Tales of Crow I)

Chris Ward’s Author Page

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May 28 2015

Book of the Week: ’13 Moons’ by Ee Leen Lee

I apologise for not posting on this blog in months. Very bad of me….I will try to post more regularly from now on!

I’m keen to add more Asian fantasy book recommendations to this site, so please let me know if you have read or seen any that look good.

Today’s book is a collection of short stories, written by an author I recently ‘met’ on twitter. I’ve read half of the stories so far and really enjoy Lee’s concepts and literary writing style.

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13 Moons by Ee Leen Lee

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13 horror stories of the macabre by Malaysian writer Ee Leen Lee.
13 Moons will provide you with instant chills.
Office workers discover the gruesome secret behind the puppets used as workplace décor. A man tries to help the ghost of a murdered child haunting a playground. An abandoned well and a banana tree in a village garden conceal a decades-old crime. A couple struggles to keep their family together when their son becomes a zombie. And a nightclub with a supernatural door policy — depending on when you choose to go.
These stories reveal the darkness that threatens to seep through the veneer of day-to-day life.

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Amazon US 

Smashwords

Ee Leen Lee on Twitter

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