Tough Travelling hosted by Fantasy Review Barn.
Each Thursday, inspired by ‘The Tough Guide to Fantasyland’ we have in hand, we shall tour the mystical countryside looking for adventure and fun (and tropes) from all over fantasy.
This week’s topic is EXTREME CLIMATES
Perhaps the hansom prince lives in a castle surrounded by green countryside and sunny days. The rest of the land is forced to deal with freezing cold, searing heat, and every other extreme climate mother nature can throw at you.
I have to mention Hoth in Star Wars.
Savage Land: In the Marvel Universe, the Antarctica has a secret land which is a jungle with dinosaurs. The X-Men adventure there sometimes.
Dune by Herbert: It’s been a few decades since I read it, but I still remember the sand dunes and the huge worms which travel it.
Narnia by C. S. Lewis: In the first book (the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe) Narnia is enchanted into perpetual winter but without a Christmas.
The Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson: In this series, ash falls from the sky so much that it’s hard to farm enough food for everyone. During the night, mist covers everything.
All the Windwracker stars by Elizabeth Bear: The book starts with Ragnarok but the extreme weather comes after that. The next time the world is near the end, Eiledon is the last human city and it’s still alive in the middle of acid rain and desolation because of the Techonmancer Thjierry Thorvaldsdottir who protects the city.
The King’s Bastard and sequels by Rowena Cory Daniells: The first book is set in the kingdom of Rolencia during mid-winter and the characters are almost always moving in deep snow or skating across frozen lakes.
Tongues of Serpents by Naomi Novik: Temeraire and his Captain Laurence have been sent to Australia as prisoners. The hot and humid weather is new to them.
July 17, 2015 at 3:02 am
Tongues of Serpents I think is one book beyond where I stopped on the series.
July 17, 2015 at 7:17 am
Yes, I noticed that a lot of people dropped the series around that time.
July 17, 2015 at 7:21 pm
I really need to read Dune but I also have The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe on my list 🙂
July 22, 2015 at 7:13 pm
Lewis is certainly quicker to read. 🙂 You’ve got great books in you list.
July 19, 2015 at 9:04 pm
Narnia was the most popular choice this week, I think 🙂 And winter without Christmas (or actually: winter without gifts) isn’t really worth the freezing!
Ah! The Mistborn series! This is a great choice, I completely forgot about that noxious land.
July 22, 2015 at 7:17 pm
Narnia is so memorable and lots of people have read it or seen the movies, so I’m not surprised by its popularity.
While reading Mistborn I sometimes wondered how people can survive the climate but it’s certainly cool.
July 21, 2015 at 9:15 pm
Yep, Narnia definitely has the crown this week – and in spite of the fact that I usually miss no opportunity to throw it on a list – I, ahem, forgot it! hehehehe
Lynn 😀
July 22, 2015 at 7:14 pm
What a shame. 🙂