Tough Travels: Assassins

May 1, 2017June 11, 2017 / Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy / 31 Comments

It’s Tough Travelling time again! This is a feature hosted by Laura Hughes at Fantasy Faction (originally created by Fantasy Review Barn). Every month, with the help of Diana Wynne Jones’s classic Tough Guide to Fantasyland, it puts the spotlight on a particular fantasy trope, theme or cliché, and invites bloggers to list stand-out books related to that week’s theme.

This month’s theme is assassins: Continue reading →

Poisons, Antidotes and Remedies in Fantasy

September 28, 2016 / Nicola @ Thoughts on Fantasy / 13 Comments

Image: Box of old vials containing medicinal and poisonous substances.

Box of old vials containing arsenic, belladonna and other substances at the German Pharmacy Museum.

The dramatic regicide-by-poison in Game of Thrones may have placed them centre-stage, but poisons have always been rife in the fantasy and science fiction genres, along with antidotes and remedies.

Poisoning may simply seem like a convenient (if dastardly) way to kill a character, but poisons and antidotes are used in a variety of ways to add twists, tension, and complexities to fantasy plots. Continue reading →