I am amazed, really. Back in May a group of eleven bloggers started out highlighting Tim Frankovich’s site, Christian Fiction Review, in particular his Focus on Fantasy page. Today we head into our December tour with thirty-nine participants, fifty CSFF members, and over sixty interested persons on our mailing list.
God is gracious to give us this kind of growth. The word is spreading more and more rapidly that there are Christian science fiction or fantasy books on the market, there are writers who want to glorify God through speculative stories.
I am delighted. Just think of each of these bloggers telling their readers about CSFF books.
This, of course, is my intention as well. The selection this month is Kathryn Mackel’s Trackers. To be honest with you, I entered this tour with a little fear and trepidation. Well, that’s hyperbolic, and I said I would be honest. Let’s say, I had reservations, based on a supernatural thriller of Mackel’s I reviewed earlier in the year. That genre is not the kind I enjoy. Would Mackel’s fantasy tend toward this same kind of darkness?
Yes and no. Yes, there is darkness because, after all, fantasy is about a struggle between good and evil. Evil, therefore, has to be present … and formidable. But the presence of good is stronger, not just in the external conflict but in the emphasis of the book. It is about redemption and forgiveness much more than it is about sin’s power.
I’ll be giving a full review of Trackers on Wednesday.
In my post over at Speculative Faith, I gave an introduction to it, and I encourage you to read that, as well as Beth Goddard‘s interview with Mackel at her blog, Writing with Fire.
Of course, those are just starting places. The others in the tour this month are as follows:
Jim Black Jackie Castle Valerie Comer Frank Creed Gene Curtis Chris Deanne Janey DeMeo April Erwin Beth Goddard Todd Michael Greene Karen Hancock Elliot Hanowski Katie Hart Sherrie Hibbs Sharon Hinck Joleen Howell Jason Joyner Karen and at Karen’s myspace Oliver King Tina Kulesa Lost Genre Guild Kevin Lucia and The Bookshelf Reviews 2.0 – The Compendium Terri Main Rachel Marks Shannon McNear Caleb Newell Eve Nielsen John Otte Cheryl Russel Hannah Sandvig Mirtika Schultz James Somers Stuart Stockton Steve Trower Speculative Faith Chris Walley Daniel I. Weaver Timothy Wise
Enjoy touring. 😀
![PowerElementsCharacterDevelopment[1000][1]](https://rebeccaluellamiller.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/powerelementscharacterdevelopment10001.jpg?w=205)
A Christian Worldview of Fiction 
The darkness was very noticeable in Trackers, but I think I came to the same conclusion you did.
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IN some ways it’s a reminder of LOTR–the darkness there was –black! But the light overpowered it. Likewise, Mackel handles the darkness well in her series.
Beth
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Hi Rebecca–back from Disney.
I can’t wait to read people’s reviews. I loved the premise.
So many books so little time.
Best regards–Chris
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Hey, All!
Oh, I don’t have much to say. I’m mentally pooped from not sleeping enough for two days and driving around this nutty city.
But I’ll also be posting a review later (Wed).
Catch ya on the tour.
Mir
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It is so amazing how much this thing has grown. The list just gets longer and longer…
This month was fun cause I discovered a new author (my favorite thing in the world). 🙂
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Elliot, I’m glad you saw what I did in Trackers. I value your opinion, so it makes me think I’m not seeing something that isn’t quite there.
Beth, your comparison with LotR is interesting. I so seldom think of that as dark, but it certainly has many, many dark moments. Which I think is a tribute to Tolkien’s ability to show the light.
Glad you’re back safe and sound, Chris. I’ll look forward to reading about your trip (assuming you’ll be posting about it) And Mir, even your sleep-deprived comments are worth reading, so thanks for stopping by.
Yea, Rachel! It is fun to discover a new favorite, isn’t it! 😉
Becky
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