Dragons, Gnomes, and Blitzball

His Majesty's Dragon and No Country for Old Gnomes

This week has been a great reading week. I started reading His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik. It has been a tremendous book. I don't think I've read a book before that's a retelling of a historical even but with fantasy elements. The closest thing I can think of was James A. Owen's book, Here There Be Dragons, which was also a spectacular read. 

What I especially like about Novik's book is how she really captures the feeling of the time period in the main character. It is written with that sort of sophistication you would expect of a naval officer made so much cooler by the inclusion of dragons. I also have really enjoyed how the dragons are portrayed. It's a great mixture of them being completely intelligent but also having characteristics of animals. It's a very well written world and I'm in love with this book. 

I've also been reading No Country for Old Gnomes by Delilah S. Dawson and Kevin Hearne. It's been very fun to see how they twist all of the fantasy tropes and clichés and make a quirky and original world. I would suggest this book for anyone who loves humorous fantasy stories. The map at the beginning is my favorite part so far. 

Please Tidus... No More Laughing

On the gaming front I'm playing Final Fantasy X for the first time. I actually haven't played many of the Final Fantasy games. The only other ones I've played are very recently XI and one on the DS called Children of Light which I don't think is a main series game but I loved it a whole bunch. 

Just like FFXI I'm having a hard time tolerating the main character who makes me cringe in nearly every cutscene, but also like in FFXI I super love the supporting characters. They're fun, interesting, and the way they interact together is deeper than I've seen in a lot of JRPGs. The interactions I've seen between Lulu and Wakka so far have been painful at times but have felt real and I appreciate the writing. 

What are some funny fantasy books you've read? How much humor do you like to have in a fantasy book? Which Final Fantasy do you think's the best?