Hello friend. Today’s Indie Recommends Indie post features author K.R.R. Lockhaven. Let’s meet him and learn about the indie books he loves! I am excited to dive into his latest book, The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon, and you can learn more about it at the end of the post.
Kyle, welcome to Armed with A Book! Since it’s your first time on the blog, can you please tell me and my readers about yourself?
I’m a fantasy author who tends to lean toward humorous, fun fantasy books. My first book, The Conjuring of Zoth-Avarex, is a self-published, sometimes silly, pop-culture-reference-laden story set in modern times. Since then I have been lucky enough to sign on with Shadow Spark Publishing, who will publish my new book, The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon, on August 20, 2022. This book is a nautical fantasy set in another world. It’s (nearly) free from pop culture references and has a lot more heart, although it still relies heavily on humor and fun. When not writing, I’m a husband and a dad and a firefighter/paramedic.
Do you primarily read indie books or big publishers books as well?
For the most part, I try to read indie books. Sometimes I am enticed by a book from a big publisher, but it’s usually indie books for me. I would say that at least 75% of my reading is indie. There is just so much good indie stuff out there! And to be honest, the last three DNFs I’ve had have been books from big publishers. I love the risks that indie authors are able to take. In some of my recommended books below, the things I love the most about them are things that a big publisher might not be willing to take a chance on. I think that, often, the cutting edge of the fantasy genre can be found in indie books, and the big publishers are just trying to keep up.
Kyle’s Indie Recommendations
Legacy of the Brightwash by Krystle Matar
Gaslamp Fantasy
2021
Book 1 of Tainted Dominion Series
Follow the law and you’ll stay safe. But what if the law is wrong?
Tashué’s faith in the law is beginning to crack.
Three years ago, he stood by when the Authority condemned Jason to the brutality of the Rift for non-compliance. When Tashué’s son refused to register as tainted, the laws had to be upheld. He’d never doubted his job as a Regulation Officer before, but three years of watching your son wither away can break down even the strongest convictions.
Then a dead girl washed up on the bank of the Brightwash, tattooed and mutilated. Where had she come from? Who would tattoo a child? Was it the same person who killed her?
Why was he the only one who cared?
Will Tashué be able to stand against everything he thought he believed in to get the answers he’s looking for?
It’s actually difficult for me to pin down why I love this book so much. It’s darker than most books I enjoy, and has much more romance than I usually like. But it just works! I found myself immersed in the story immediately. The world is so vivid and real. The story and relationships are extremely compelling. The characters are so complex and true-to-life. They’re flawed in such heart-breaking ways, yet so relatable and lovable. Nothing is missed in this book. Everything about it kept me turning the pages faster than anything I’ve read in years. Matar’s attention to detail and emotion, while keeping the pace churning, is something to be admired.
I would recommend this book to anyone, really, with a warning that it does get awfully dark at times. But if they can handle that, this is a book no one should miss!
📖 Previously recommended by Dan Fitzgerald. See what he said about this book here.📖
Why Odin Drinks by Bjørn Larssen
Humorous Fantasy
2022
Book 1 of Series
In the beginning there was confusion.
Then Gods created people.
Confusion was better.
Well, have YOU ever woken up not knowing how to God properly? Poor Odin must restrain his brothers, who create offensive weapons such as mosquitoes and celery; placate his future-telling wife, Frigg, who demands sweatpants with pockets; listen to Loki’s Helpful Questions; hang himself from Yggdrasil for nine days with a spear through his side (as you do); teach everyone about nutritional values of kale (but NOT celery); meet a Wise Dom, Sir Daddy Mímir, in order to outwit those who outwit him; and, most importantly, prove he is The All-Father, while his brothers are, at best, Those-Uncles-We-Don’t-Talk-About.
This nearly (except in Vanaheim) universally acclaimed retelling of the Gods’ first millennium answers way too many questions, including ones on Freyr’s entendre, horse designing… and why Odin drinks.
Why Odin Drinks, a Norse Mythology retelling for fans of Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, Jenny Lawson, and Calvin & Hobbes is suitable for readers aged 14+. The book features no graphic descriptions, although some characters wish it would.
The thing I loved most about this book was that it knew it was a book, more than any other book I’ve ever read before, and it used this knowledge to make me blurt out laughing every other page. It’s obviously heavy on humor, but I wouldn’t say too much so. It has just the right amount of story and humor interlaced to make an easy, enjoyable, fun-as-hell read. The humor is somewhat reminiscent of Terry Pratchett in that the jokes are relentless, and the observations of life are so simple, yet so hilarious. Larssen’s style is very different from Pratchett, but the spirit is there for sure!
I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to laugh. I think anyone who knows anything about Norse mythology might get an extra kick out of it, but I don’t know anything about it, and the book cracked me up anyway.
Miss Percy’s Pocket Guide to the Care and Feeding of British Dragons by Quenby Olson
Humorous Fantasy
2021
Book 1 in A Miss Percy Guidebook Series
Miss Mildred Percy inherits a dragon.
Ah, but we’ve already got ahead of ourselves…
Miss Mildred Percy is a spinster. She does not dance, she has long stopped dreaming, and she certainly does not have adventures. That is, until her great uncle has the audacity to leave her an inheritance, one that includes a dragon’s egg.
The egg – as eggs are wont to do – decides to hatch, and Miss Mildred Percy is suddenly thrust out of the role of “spinster and general wallflower” and into the unprecedented position of “spinster and keeper of dragons.”
But England has not seen a dragon since… well, ever. And now Mildred must contend with raising a dragon (that should not exist), kindling a romance (with a humble vicar), and embarking on an adventure she never thought could be hers for the taking.
I can sum up why I love this book in one word: DELIGHTFUL! Alright, maybe I can use a few more words: cozy, fun, heartwarming, hilarious, clever, and cake. I absolutely loved the footnote-like parentheses and the fourth wall breaking. The narrator is a wonderful character in her own right, and all the on-page characters are multi-dimensional and believable. I found myself wanting nothing more than for Miss Percy to be happy, and to me, that’s a sign of a well-written story. I have never read anything like this before, and I mean that in a 100% positive way.
I would recommend this book to anyone who doesn’t mind a slower, cozier pace in their fantasy. Also anyone who appreciates cleverness on another level. If you enjoyed Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree, you’ll probably enjoy this book, too. They’re very different, but have the same cozy spirit.
📖 This is a book I loved. You can find my review here and interview with the author here.📖
The Sword in the Street by C.M. Caplan
Fantasy
2021
Standalone
Hired blades ought to be better at making ends meet. John Chronicle bleeds his patron’s foes in savage duels. While he’s disgusted by the petty grievances and corporate laws he champions, even the promise of security is better than nothing at all. But how long can he depend on a wage that barely pays enough to cover his rent?
His boyfriend Edwin is familiar with dependency. Reliant on his parents’ goodwill to supply the drugs that keep the spirals of his mind in check, he wants nothing more than to get out from under their thumb. A solution comes when he finds a document full of knowledge that was, impossibly, forgotten. But while he could use those secrets to rewrite the gentry’s unjust laws, it might cost him his relationship – or John’s life.
The two find themselves entangled in the web of intrigue surrounding the laws, the swordsmen, and their sponsors. They’re forced to question how bloody they’re willing to get for a shred of agency. But will they survive this tangle of deceit together?
I love this book for how utterly different it is. The relationship depicted in it is unlike anything I’ve read before. The neurodivergent and queer representation is done in such a real, messy, loving way. It’s another book where a big portion of it is about a romantic relationship, and that usually isn’t my thing, but this really worked for me. I really cared for the characters and wanted them to be happy. Also there was a lot of cool sword fighting, and an extremely interesting magic system. The swordplay is described in a very engaging way. I learned a lot about a sword fighter’s footwork and economy of movement. A sword fight is a flowing, evolving thing in which one can fall behind or gain an advantage in a fraction of a second. It was fun to read about!
I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in neurodivergence or queer romance in fiction, but doesn’t want it anywhere near cookie-cutter neatness.
Lucky Jack by Sue Bavey
Memoir/ Autobiography
2022
Standalone
Meet Jack Rogers. Born in 1894, he once locked eyes with Queen Victoria and was one of the first travellers on London’s ‘Tube’. An early car owner, he had many escapades on his days out to Brighton, including a time when his brakes failed and he had to drive through central London without them!
His skills as an entertainer earned him popularity throughout his life, and kept him out of the deadly mines while a prisoner during the First World War. At the tender age of 103 Jack earned the title of ‘The World’s Oldest Columnist’ as he began dictating his life’s exploits to a reporter from the local newspaper.
For my last book, I couldn’t help jumping outside of the fantasy genre. I’m not being hyperbolic when I say that Lucky Jack was life-changing for me. I expected that it would be an extremely interesting window into the past, which it definitely was, but I didn’t expect that I would get such a profound lesson about living life with gratitude and joy. Lucky Jack (the man) has this ability to find the good in any situation, even as a POW in WW1! I was repeatedly blown away by his positivity and willingness to brighten the lives of those around him. Sue Bavey does a fantastic job of weaving all of his stories into a coherent, fun-to-read narrative. This book may inspire you to try and emulate Jack and the way he lived his life. I know it did for me!
I would recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in history, including WW1, or anyone who wants to be inspired by an amazing person.
Kyle’s Book Spotlight
The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon
Fantasy
Published 2022
To say that Azure Brine is at odds with her father would be an understatement. A new governor has emerged in the League of Islands, and her father has completely bought in to his “Humans First” rhetoric, pushing their once-strong relationship to the breaking point. Their connection is truly put to the test when her father decides to join the governor’s ship on a voyage to the Capitol Isles for the inauguration. But when Azure learns the governor has nefarious plans for the islands, and her father is in danger, she and her best friend (a foul-mouthed bird named Robin) set out across the archipelago to save him.
Along the way they meet a reanimated skeleton with confidence issues, a group of pirates who just want to sing and have adventures, and…a dragon.
Readers who enjoyed The Princess Bride or anything by Terry Pratchett might like the spirit of this book. If any reviewers are interested in an ARC, contact the author at kyle.lockhaven@gmail.com.
Connect with Kyle on Twitter and TikTok. Learn more on his website.
Did you add any books to your TBR today based on this post or did you see any you have already read? Tell us in the comments!
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Thanks for hanging out with us today!
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Banner Photo of library by Alfons Morales on Unsplash
Great post Kyle – I’ve read all of these books and agree that they are all pretty special!! So pleased that you enjoyed Lucky Jack so much! (Review copies are free on booksirens.com if anyone’s interest is piqued)