March 2025 - TBR
March is a month that I love; it has probably to do with the fact that we get longer days, warmer days, and there is so much potential for the rest of the year! So, while I am looking forward to exploring the potential for the year, I also know that I want to focus on completing series.
February threw in a small wrench in my plans as I became obsessed with Arthurian retellings (it was so compelling that I almost read The Warlord Chronicles by Bernard Cornwell in five days and I found myself compiling a relatively long list of books and series that belong to this category). So we shall cater to this need until this need nags at me.
Books
What’s positive? I am now two months into my one-chapter-a-day-Malazan. I am surprised that I kept going. And I find myself excited about starting the day with a Malazan chapter. Steven Erikson really colors my day, and reading his work gets me out of bed feeling quite excited about starting the day. I am currently in the middle of Memories of Ice and I believe I will get to House of Chains around the middle of the month!
So what are my open series?
Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch - I am about half way through the series and once I start a book, I tend to be locked in and I want to make sure I get through this journey during the month of March.
Temeraire by Naomi Novik - I admit that I have been neglecting this series and so I want to bring it back to the front line and make sure that I generally prioritize this series in the month of March!
Tawny Man by Robin Hobb: one series per quarter and it is important that I keep up with this process!
Shadowmarch by Tad Williams: I just have Shadowheart to finish and I am making progress on it already. I just need to make sure that I do not drop the ball.
His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman - and I only have The Amber Spyglass to read and I am planning to get there towards the end of the month.
Discworld by Terry Pratchett: I have not made any progress in the last month so I am hoping to read a couple of the novels in this world, especially when I need an emotional pick me up!
What else?
Now, granted I have a ton of things to read already - this is also the month where I am going to have quite a lot of days off and I want to prioritize my reading adventures and I want to surprise myself!
I would still love to bring the Library trilogy by Mark Lawrence back on my reading plans. I really want to make sure I prioritize at least one. On the positive, I know that I will not have the physical book for a while (after release date) so I am not in a hurry to be up to date; however, I want to re-read The Book that Wouldn’t Burn so I can work on my Fantasy Explorations episode dedicated to this book!
I have a soft spot for Mark Lawrence - personally. He is the first (and only as of today) who ever reached out to me to send me a signed arc. It is one of my most prized possessions. And I love the amount of work he does to give indie authors visibility. Truly a generous person, from what I can see, and I support him as much as I can!
In connection with my Arthurian retellings, I have one certainty: The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman. It’s a story set right after King Arthur (assuming he is the king the blurb refers to!) and there are only a few knights of the Round Table still around. And I am looking forward to this story, almost as a continuation of my journey through the Warlord Chronicles!
I have also a relatively sizable list of other Arthurian retellings, and I want to make sure that I pick a few women who told these stories too. I am truly quite excited about it and to see where this journey will take me.
Non-reading fantasy related entertainment
March is also a pretty cool month when it comes to fantasy (or adjacent) small tv stories!
The first is Daredevil Born Again - yes, I know this is not technically fantasy, it belongs more the the sci-fi world. However, as an MCU fan and having loved every single (Netflix) show in this space, I cannot wait to see a gritty and violent story telling of our favorite lawyer in the streets of Hell’s Kitchen.
The Wheel of Time also graces us with another season, the third so far! I confess that I need to catch up to season two; and so the goal of the first weeks in March? Re-watching and watching this show from scratch! I cannot wait to see Rosamund Pike and Daniel Henney in their roles of Moraine and Lan!
Incidentally, this is also a month in which I will continue my Reacher, season three journey, and it is glorious. It might be the best adaptation so far; so powerful, there is a continuous escalation of tones; or better, when we solve one problem, we immediately get a bigger one to solve. The tension can be cut with knives all the time!
March plans for Fantasy Explorations and Solseit
Fantasy explorations
While I have let myself down for not having being able to prepare the Color of Magic episode in time - in fairness, I was not happy with what I put together originally and I am glad I gave myself the space to reflect and review it so I will be publishing the episode shortly - I am planning to publish two more episodes in this month!
One will be dedicated to great individuals in fantasy. I am not sure what the title will be; the idea si inspired by Arthur himself. So I want to dive into some of the examples, not limited to one gender. We have plenty of examples, and I will also want to venture into the comic books / manga space!
The other episode will be dedicated to The Book that Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence!
Solseit posts
I want to spend time reflecting on why I am a fantasy reader. And while it sounds a personal introspection, the goal of the post will be to provide inspiration.
I also want to publish a new post about women who write fantasy - and I think I picked a very interesting one for this month (they are all interesting but I feel it’s an organic month).
Last but not least, we’ll have the post on the April TBR; I will continue with the forward looking approach. While it is important to dwell on the choices made during the month, I want the TBR post to be exclusively about potential and the enthusiasm that new beginnings or future plans bring to the table!
In summary
A lot of stuff is brewing. I cannot wait to get deeper into the month and feel like I tick stuff off the list and feeling I am making significant progress on series that I care about and want to keep experiencing!
What are your plans for this month?
