#shrike butcher of blackthorn

[the-parted-glass]

I finished reading Oak King Holly King by @nothwell and I had to try my hand at drawing the favorite bird man, so here is Shrike, the Butcher of Blackthorn! It's also my first digital attempt at an oil paint style so it was a fun experiment!

[nothwell]

I am a human author telling human stories to other humans. Supporting human artists to illustrate these human stories is the only logical and ethical choice.

@thistlearts is my cover artist. He did incredible paintings for Mr Warren's Profession, Oak King Holly King, Tales from Blackthorn Briar, and Fiorenzo.

@lauravian_arts designed adorable stickers for Oak King Holly King. (Available now in my etsy - and perhaps soon, a Kickstarter?)

Collaborating with human artists is a joy and a dream.

AI is unethical, illegal, and dangerous theft from real human beings. No excuses.

(And thank you to @noahhawthorneauthor for inspiring this post!)

[mollymagician]

This was going to be my project during Yule but I needed something to keep me sane this past week. So here’s Shrike and Wren from @nothwell ‘s delightful Oak King Holly King

I just like to imagine, if Wren hangs out with the fae long enough, he’ll get to go flying with Shrike eventually somehow

These boys don’t take the world’s bullshit lying down and neither will we.

[ettawritesnstudies]

Since I couldn't accept all the applications for interviews, I wanted to shout out a couple of the titles that didn't make the cut! These don't quite fit my target audience but that being said, I think the indie community should have solidarity regardless of age category and genre, so I still want to help y'all with promotion however I can!

If you want to support some cool authors, you can check out their books here, and if you want to support me, you can watch through my playlist backlog of interviews. My channel isn't monetized yet but the watch hours certainly wouldn't hurt lol

If you want to see the lineup for the rest of the year, you can sign up for my newsletter! I'll be sharing the list at the end of the month!

Oak King Holly King by Sebastian Nothwell @nothwell

queer romantasy; historical fantasy; adult

Shrike, the Butcher of Blackthorn, is a legendary warrior of the fae realms. When he wins a tournament in the Court of the Silver Wheel, its queen names him her Oak King - a figurehead destined to die in a ritual duel to invoke the change of seasons. Shrike is determined to survive. Even if it means he must put his heart as well as his life into a mere mortal’s hands. Wren Lofthouse, a London clerk, has long ago resigned himself to a life of tedium and given up his fanciful dreams. When a medieval-looking brute arrives at his office to murmur of destiny, he’s inclined to think his old enemies are playing an elaborate prank. Still, he can’t help feeling intrigued by the bizarre-yet-handsome stranger and his fantastical ramblings, whose presence stirs up emotions Wren has tried to lock away in the withered husk of his heart. As Shrike whisks Wren away to a world of Wild Hunts and arcane rites, Wren is freed from the repression of Victorian society. But both the fae and mortal realms prove treacherous to their growing bond. Wren and Shrike must fight side-by-side to see who will claim victory - Oak King or Holly King.

Spirits and Sunflowers by A.D. Armistead @adarmisteadwrites

MM adult contemporary fantasy romance

Devastated by the recent death of his husband, Adrian has been relying upon his necromantic gifts to try and bridge the gap between the living and the dead, feeling more and more like a ghost himself with each failure. After a young girl named Tula with an uncanny ability approaches Adrian on a visit to the cemetery, he begins to hope that the husband he lost may still be within reach. Over time, he falls into an easy friendship with Tula’s father, Lucas Halpern. As Adrian is drawn into the orbit of the handsome, mysterious single father, Adrian begins to emerge from his grief, wondering whether it’s possible to find love again. Together, in a contemporary world laced with magic, Adrian embarks on a journey in recovering from loss, building trust, and finding love and family where they are least expected. Spirits & Sunflowers is the first book in the Maligned Magic series, a group of cozy queer romances set in an alternate version of our world. There, magic is tightly regulated by a distant and inflexible organization. All stories can be read as standalone novels, but benefit from reading the previous books in the series in order.

Hills of Heather and Bone by K.E. Andrews (@/k.e.andrews on IG)

Fantasy, adventure, cozy dark fantasy

Hills of Heather and Bone The bones of the dead hold stories.

On the fringes of Errigal, Morana longs to exchange a life of hiding for a peaceful one with her husband, Percy. While Percy's bloodgift lets him grow plants and heal broken bodies, Morana's a boneweaver, despised and feared because she can hear bones and raise the dead. Morana doesn't want to be seen as a villain from the old stories and instead spends her time gardening, writing the stories of the dead, and fending off a spiteful chicken.

Morana and Percy's lives are shattered when a group of Failinis tasked with capturing boneweavers and rogue bloodgifted find them. On the run and battling the elements, ancient creatures, and the loss of all they called home, Morana and Percy search for any sanctuary left in Errigal. Morana must choose between the call in her blood or the family she holds so close to her heart if she and Percy are to survive.

Please be aware that this book contains some scenes of violence, death, depression, mentions of miscarriage, birthing scenes, suicidal thoughts, suicide, and cannibalism

Keep Me Breathing by U.R. Holm

Soft Sci-Fi/Subterrainean/Adult

Keep Me Breathing

Fubuki has no reason to leave the comfort of her home. No desire to see the cave system outside.

Sakura has no desire to stay put. Even as a single mom, she brings her son with her on her travels. But when her son goes missing, Fubuki joins her across the cave system to find him.

The pair is joined by Alexandr, the alternative drummer, and Casey, the fraud who insists he wants to help.

In the search for the boy they all have to face their own personal struggles and insecurities. And while they travel to find the boy, the boy is fighting his own battles against his captors and in a world between adults and children.

While Keep Me Breathing is a novel with fantastical elements, it's even more a novel about friendship, love and familiar bonds.

[theoldgaylion]

I just learned that shrikes are known as butcher birds because they impale their victims on... pikes and thorns... That's why Shrike's house is surrounded by thorns!! Wow!! Now I love him even more

[elaine-white-author]

Fangirl Friday: Oak King, Holly King

Fangirl Friday: Oak King, Holly King

Blurb Shrike, the Butcher of Blackthorn, is a legendary warrior of the fae realms. When he wins a tournament in the Court of the Silver Wheel, its queen names him her Oak King – a figurehead destined to die in a ritual duel to invoke the change of seasons. Shrike is determined to survive. Even if it means he must put his heart as well as his life into a mere mortal’s hands. Wren Lofthouse, a…

[lucifer-kane]

Looking at getting Oak King Holly King by Sebastian Nothwell and ohhh my god the description of this book is literally. It’s SO my tastes

“Shrike, the Butcher of Blackthorn, is a legendary warrior of the fae realms. When he wins a tournament in the Court of the Silver Wheel, its queen names him her Oak King - a figurehead destined to die in a ritual duel to invoke the change of seasons. Shrike is determined to survive. Even if it means he must put his heart as well as his life into a mere mortal’s hands.

Wren Lofthouse, a London clerk, has long ago resigned himself to a life of tedium and given up his fanciful dreams. When a medieval-looking brute arrives at his office to murmur of destiny, he’s inclined to think his old enemies are playing an elaborate prank. Still, he can’t help feeling intrigued by the bizarre-yet-handsome stranger and his fantastical ramblings, whose presence stirs up emotions Wren has tried to lock away in the withered husk of his heart.

As Shrike whisks Wren away to a world of Wild Hunts and arcane rites, Wren is freed from the repression of Victorian society. But both the fae and mortal realms prove treacherous to their growing bond. Wren and Shrike must fight side-by-side to see who will claim victory - Oak King or Holly King.”

[nikotron]

The bird with a zorro's mask.

The blood is dripping down the thorn. The little sparrow-like bird is sitting on the branch of a dried-out bush. He’s looking at the once beautiful blackthorn that now looks like a mournful cemetery.

Why is this bush strewed by mutilated corpses of little birds, mice, lizards... What went wrong there?

Cold eyes are shaded by his chalk-black mask; there's his territory, he observes his butchery. But, even if he has a lot in common with other Passeriformes, he's a natural-born killer. First, he kills victims and hooks them up on thorns; he waits when it begins rotting on purpose; thereafter, the meat becomes more gentle, melting in the mouth, oh, sorry, in the beak.

Let me introduce Shrike, aka Lanius, which means butcher in Latin.

His target is bugs, lizards, little mammals like mice, even birds and snakes... It seems murder is too dull for him; that's why he does it with morbid sophistication; thereby, he turns the world into martyrdom for his victim that came to his crawl by a miserable chance.

[nothwell]

@mollymagician i didn't wanna make a reblog mess on OP's post but yes you are so correct this is true and good

[nothwell]

reading the Wikipedia article on owl pellets for normal reasons when suddenly

[nothwell]

OKHK3 aka Shrike the Butcher of Blackthorn and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

[nothwell]

inspired by a recent poll

[nothwell]

the thing about Shrike responding conversationally to the cat is that he can probably actually talk with it.

Aubrey, Morgan, and Enzo are just being polite.

[nothwell]

folks keep putting Hozier on Oak King Holly King playlists and while that's very sweet and all i just need everyone to know that this is the track playing on loop in Wren and Shrike's minds at any given moment

[nothwell]