Today, the guys in the Goodreads Top 5 Wednesday group have an interesting topic, one which is straight forward and to the point: “Ideal Mash-Ups — You know those comp titles they list in synopses that read something like “perfect for fans of Harry Potter and Game of Thrones”! What would be some of your favorite mash ups, that would make you pick up a book? “A mix of ________ and ___________.

To be honest, I’ve become a bit suspicious whenever books are advertised like this.  Guess I’ve purchased too many loser books which were suppose to be a mixture of Tolkien and Game of Thrones.  But I can certainly list a few mash-ups which would excite me enough to take a longer look at a novel.

kings-of-the-wyld5. George R.R. Martin meets Terry Pratchett!

Think of it: jokes, cleverness, and still enough violence and blood to satisfy even the most demanding fantasy fans out there.

Huh?  Nicholas Eames’s books have already done it, telling a story about a band of over-the-hill mercs getting back together.

Purchase Kings of the Wyld at Amazon

shards of heaven4. Magic mixed with real world history!

History and fantasy are favorites of mine, so I’d love a historically accurate story where magic is seamlessly incorporated into real world events.  If the author was also an expert in the historical field, then it would be even more amazing.

Oh, Michael Livingston has already done that.

Purchase The Shards of Heaven at Amazon

promise of blood3. Gunpowder and magic! 

Wouldn’t it be awesome if someone took magic and placed it into a world of firearms and science.  I could see some damn cool stories coming out of that.

Seriously?  It’s already been done.

Purchase Promise of Blood at Amazon

the midnight front2. Magic and modern war!

How about magic taking part in a modern war.  No, not like in Naomi Novak’s Temeraire.  What I’m envisioning is sorcerers kicking it in the middle of World War I or II.

Stop.  Don’t say it.  I remember: it’s been done already.

Purchase The Midnight Front at Amazon

dinosaur lords1. A cross between Jurassic Park and Game of Thrones!

Damn, that sounds good.  A story which can’t go wrong.  I mean, dinosaurs and George R.R. Martin macabre fantasy will be amazing.

What?  This is a mash-up already.  Oh yeah, it is.  Well, it was a great idea and a book which had a lot of promise.

Purchase The Dinosaur Lords at Amazon

Add some others . . . if you can!



  1. If I randomly heard “Gunpowder and Magic”, I would instantly think of The Powder Mage trilogy!

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Saddest thing is the first book in my head was ‘Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies’.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. H.P. says:

    Ian Tregillis’ Milkweed Triptych featuring sorcery during WWII and the Cold War is one of my all-time favorite series.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Bookstooge says:

    I pretty much will skip a book if I see a big “Popular Series X and Y!” splashed across the cover. If the author can’t live, or die, on their own writing merits, they don’t deserve my attention…

    Liked by 2 people

  5. Kathy @PBTVS says:

    I definitely side-eye any books that give me the “___ meets ____!” pitch. And Jurassic Park and Game of Thrones sounds incredible and I love the premise of The Dinosaur Lords, but I’m guessing the “had a lot of promise” means it doesn’t hold up.

    Liked by 2 people

  6. Reblogged this on Archer's Aim and commented:
    This is a good list of five books. I’ve only gotten to read Into the Wyld which was a lot of fun.

    Liked by 1 person

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