Exploring Dune's Muslim Roots and Ageless Aes Sedai

To view this email as a web page, go [here.]( [Tor.com Newsletter]( [Forward to a Friend]( WHEEL OF TIME [The Mystery of Aes Sedai Agelessness]( Five books into the Wheel of Time series, there are so many wonderful plot lines and worldbuilding elements that have unfolded. But there is something about Aes Sedai agelessness that just doesn’t add up. Sylas K. Barrett dives into how the Power really does—or does not—affect the age and appearance of a channeler. [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( READING DUNE [The Muslimness of Dune: A Close Reading of “Appendix II: The Religion of Dune”]( It is common knowledge that Frank Herbert’s classic Dune novels are chock-full of Islamic and MENA (Middle Eastern and North African) references, but these influences go much deeper than most readers comprehend. In this detailed analysis, Haris Durrani shares his experience of the profound “Muslimness” of Dune and the ways the novels embrace Muslim ideas, histories, and practices. [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( A GOOD BITE [Five Books for People Who Crave More Vampires]( When the weather turns cooler and the nights grow longer, when leaves begin to turn the color of pumpkins, it’s time for some good vampire stories. And vampire books are like vampires themselves: one feeding just isn’t going to cut it. Linden A. Lewis shares five books with an inclusive approach to the vampire myth. [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( ONE FLESH ONE END [Chivalry Is Undead: Kink, Sword Lesbians, and The Locked Tomb]( Sapphic swordswomen show up just often enough that if you’re a certain kind of queer nerd, you’re familiar with the trope. But these aren’t just stories about swords, they’re stories about queer relationships and the ways we negotiate them, and about chivalry. Grace Johnson and Carolin Dithrich dive into chivalric romances and their influence on the sword butch/femme dynamic in Gideon the Ninth [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( AND MORE BOOKS [Managing My Ever-Expanding TBR Stack]( Like many of you, Alex Brown’s To Be Read list is in constant fluctuation. It’s hard to realistically tackle the ever-expanding pile of new books to read, but even people who read a lot simply don’t have time for everything. Alex takes a look at the top ten books on their list—be sure to add your own in the comments! [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( SHE ISN'T GONE [Droning and Dread: How Hereditary Gets Under Your Skin]( In Ari Aster’s feature film directorial debut, the 2018 horror film Hereditary, viewers are led to believe that the Graham family, haunted by various forms of grief, is unraveling into violent paranoia. But there are so many ways in which the director and sound designer come together to create fear and a sense of inevitable horror. In this close read, Sarah Brunstad digs into Hereditary’s soundtrack of suspense. [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( TAKE THE WHEEL [Five SFF Books About Road Trips]( In SFF, we’re treated to many quests, adventures, and travels to faraway lands. But there are very few road trips, free of agendas or goals, where characters just explore and go wherever the road takes them. R.W.W. Greene shares five books featuring low-stakes road trips. [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( KEEP WATCHING [The Roots and Rebirth of the Anthology Series]( Whether it’s Marvel’s What If…? or American Crime Story: Impeachment, in 2021 it can feel as though anthology series have become a staple of television output. So, what has caused the sudden ubiquity of this format? The short answer is that they provide benefits and flexibility to storytellers, actors, and audiences alike—but there’s a little more to it than that. Faefyx Collington takes a look at the evolution of the modern anthology series. [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( THIEF IN THE SHADOWS [The Desolation of Smaug Soars to New Highs and Plummets to New Lows]( It’s easy to see why Tolkien’s The Hobbit was such a success. The book aptly portrays the fear of finding oneself thrust out into a bigger world, encapsulated by Bilbo’s encounter with Smaug the dragon. The Desolation of Smaug, the second of Jackson’s three Hobbit movies, captures this scene perfectly, but the film as a whole is a bit of a mixed bag. Austin Gilkeson looks at how Jackson’s adaptation both lived up to and let down its source material. [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( ORIGINAL FICTION [“Small Monsters” by E. Lily Yu]( All its life, a small monster with emerald scales has been a source of never-ending food to larger and more powerful creatures who feast on the small monster’s limbs each time one regrows. This is the story of how the small monster meets an industrious artist and reforms into someone new—someone who can’t be eaten. [Read more]( SHARE THIS: [Publish to Facebook]( [Publish to Twitter]( Follow Tor.com to get updates on all of our original fiction. 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