Hi, everyone,
I have Tonyblack's blessing to post this shameless promo for my Trilogy. If you are in any doubt about these books, please follow the link to Amazon and check out a few of my reviews. Also, if you read this blurb to the end, you will note I am suggesting a rather radical approach to the reading order to perhaps enhance your enjoyment of the story. I am happy to reply to any questions you may have. Cheers, Rich
Now that the summer hols are nearly here, I thought I'd throw my own books into the post-heatwave pot for anyone wondering what their next Pratchet-esque read could be since, sadly, there are to be not going to be any further Discworld stories. Here's a quick precis:
Do you ever wish you had a magic so powerful, so ferocious and eager that you could finally exact revenge on all your childhood bullies; and maybe a few adult ones too? Walter Farmfound, a reluctant apprentice wizard, does, and the kicker is that he really does have magic. Unfortunately, Walter’s incredibly potent thaumaturgy is Wild Magic, which is completely uncontrollable and utterly untameable; but in a pinch, it should do the trick, right?
There’s just one teeny problem standing in his way: Walter cannot wield, or even release his power unless the mental barriers preventing him from accessing it are down; and the only way he can do this, he's discovered to his cost, is to get completely inebriated first; that is to say he has to get well-and-truly Pickled. What could possibly go wrong?
Join Walter and his disparate bunch of companions as he struggles to keep his magic in check just long enough for some well-deserved payback. Although vengeance is way down the list of the apprentice’s problems as he encounters wizards, a dragon, an ancient, long-dead sorcerer, Hellves, trolls, a witch who is possibly more powerful than he is, warring Barons, a warrior with a past, a pair of irreverent and very naughty Royal Twins, chrysanthemums and a crazy duck; because what funny fantasy story doesn’t feature an insane duck? If your humour is even the slightest bit on the naughty side – or even if it’s not – you are going to love this trilogy of books and the wonderfully wicked characters within.
In deference to a few of my readers’ comments, here is a rather large disclosure-decision regarding the Pickled Magic Trilogy:
As with all writers - and people - my style has changed and evolved over the years. For those who have bought all three books (and for that I am grateful beyond words) some of you have said that the story really takes off about a third of the way into Book 2 and then it just gets better and better.
The reason for this is quite simple: most of Book 2 and all of Book 3 - Sorcerers and Demons - is how I write and think now. Book 1 was penned a long time ago and my style has changed (improved?) significantly since then.
So, what am I saying?
If anyone is unsure about buying any of my books, you could start with Book 3, since it is also my opinion that this one is the funniest and best book of all of them - and it is double the length of any book in this genre. You may miss out a little of the history of some characters and of Walter, the Main Character, and why he is the way he is - his anti-bullying, anti-drinking stance, for example - but it's easily possible to pick up the story without reading the first two. Once completed, the reader may then wish to buy the missing books to discover something extra about the characters and the continent of Amess.
I realise I may lose a few sales this way, but in order for people to enjoy the ‘best’ of the Pickled Magic Trilogy this is a possible way forward; after all, several of the earliest books of my own author-heroes are not as good as their later ones. Having said that, there's plenty of laughter, naughtiness and magic in Books 1 and 2 to keep the reader entertained for hours.
If it helps, I will put some spoilers, What Happened In Books 1 and 2 on my own website: www.pickledmagic.com for those who wish to dive into Book 3 first, in order to bring themselves up to speed with prior events.
The alternative is to buy the Giant Omnibus Edition - which is very reasonably priced, but currently only for sale as an e-book - skip the first third and dive in at the point when the Quest sets off from the city? Just a thought…..
WIZARDS and DRAGONS: https://amzn.eu/d/grFeWBP
WITCHES and QUESTS: https://amzn.eu/d/4wSxfnH
SORCERERS and DEMONS: https://amzn.eu/d/hgBVpSI
The Pickled Magic Trilogy is an anti-bullying, pro-coffee-spilling, laugh-out-loud tale that will keep the reader amused and giggling for hours. Take a chance, you won’t be sorry. And if you enjoyed any of the books, please leave a positive review on Amazon. They are the lifeblood of any author.
Thank you,
Richard J. Watts.
I have Tonyblack's blessing to post this shameless promo for my Trilogy. If you are in any doubt about these books, please follow the link to Amazon and check out a few of my reviews. Also, if you read this blurb to the end, you will note I am suggesting a rather radical approach to the reading order to perhaps enhance your enjoyment of the story. I am happy to reply to any questions you may have. Cheers, Rich
Now that the summer hols are nearly here, I thought I'd throw my own books into the post-heatwave pot for anyone wondering what their next Pratchet-esque read could be since, sadly, there are to be not going to be any further Discworld stories. Here's a quick precis:
Do you ever wish you had a magic so powerful, so ferocious and eager that you could finally exact revenge on all your childhood bullies; and maybe a few adult ones too? Walter Farmfound, a reluctant apprentice wizard, does, and the kicker is that he really does have magic. Unfortunately, Walter’s incredibly potent thaumaturgy is Wild Magic, which is completely uncontrollable and utterly untameable; but in a pinch, it should do the trick, right?
There’s just one teeny problem standing in his way: Walter cannot wield, or even release his power unless the mental barriers preventing him from accessing it are down; and the only way he can do this, he's discovered to his cost, is to get completely inebriated first; that is to say he has to get well-and-truly Pickled. What could possibly go wrong?
Join Walter and his disparate bunch of companions as he struggles to keep his magic in check just long enough for some well-deserved payback. Although vengeance is way down the list of the apprentice’s problems as he encounters wizards, a dragon, an ancient, long-dead sorcerer, Hellves, trolls, a witch who is possibly more powerful than he is, warring Barons, a warrior with a past, a pair of irreverent and very naughty Royal Twins, chrysanthemums and a crazy duck; because what funny fantasy story doesn’t feature an insane duck? If your humour is even the slightest bit on the naughty side – or even if it’s not – you are going to love this trilogy of books and the wonderfully wicked characters within.
In deference to a few of my readers’ comments, here is a rather large disclosure-decision regarding the Pickled Magic Trilogy:
As with all writers - and people - my style has changed and evolved over the years. For those who have bought all three books (and for that I am grateful beyond words) some of you have said that the story really takes off about a third of the way into Book 2 and then it just gets better and better.
The reason for this is quite simple: most of Book 2 and all of Book 3 - Sorcerers and Demons - is how I write and think now. Book 1 was penned a long time ago and my style has changed (improved?) significantly since then.
So, what am I saying?
If anyone is unsure about buying any of my books, you could start with Book 3, since it is also my opinion that this one is the funniest and best book of all of them - and it is double the length of any book in this genre. You may miss out a little of the history of some characters and of Walter, the Main Character, and why he is the way he is - his anti-bullying, anti-drinking stance, for example - but it's easily possible to pick up the story without reading the first two. Once completed, the reader may then wish to buy the missing books to discover something extra about the characters and the continent of Amess.
I realise I may lose a few sales this way, but in order for people to enjoy the ‘best’ of the Pickled Magic Trilogy this is a possible way forward; after all, several of the earliest books of my own author-heroes are not as good as their later ones. Having said that, there's plenty of laughter, naughtiness and magic in Books 1 and 2 to keep the reader entertained for hours.
If it helps, I will put some spoilers, What Happened In Books 1 and 2 on my own website: www.pickledmagic.com for those who wish to dive into Book 3 first, in order to bring themselves up to speed with prior events.
The alternative is to buy the Giant Omnibus Edition - which is very reasonably priced, but currently only for sale as an e-book - skip the first third and dive in at the point when the Quest sets off from the city? Just a thought…..
WIZARDS and DRAGONS: https://amzn.eu/d/grFeWBP
WITCHES and QUESTS: https://amzn.eu/d/4wSxfnH
SORCERERS and DEMONS: https://amzn.eu/d/hgBVpSI
The Pickled Magic Trilogy is an anti-bullying, pro-coffee-spilling, laugh-out-loud tale that will keep the reader amused and giggling for hours. Take a chance, you won’t be sorry. And if you enjoyed any of the books, please leave a positive review on Amazon. They are the lifeblood of any author.
Thank you,
Richard J. Watts.
