New on my blog is the second half of my top 10 imaginary worlds. I get a bit deeper this time (or go on a bit more!), as these are ones that have shaped me as a writer.
Off the top of my head I don’t remember how much the book of #Dune talks about the Harkonnen use of gladiatorial combat, but the movie draws a relatively subtle link between their idea of it and bullfighting - the guys in the wide black hats are like picadors, who stab the bull with lances to weaken it. I’ll avoid spoilers on a 60-year-old book or the new movie, but it’s a fun subtle thing.
I’m not really talking about the challenging. That’s just like duels and having stand-ins so the nobles express discontent while killing other people instead of themselves. It’s more how both houses have ways of proving the butch manliness of their leaders in front of the masses - the #Atreides kill bulls, the #Harkonnens kill captives. Even if the other houses have versions of that, there’s a very specific resemblance between Atreides and Harkonnen.
I think Herbert mentions how Leto’s father died fighting a bull, but that’s about it, unless that comes up in books after the first. I need to read Messiah, which is conveniently next on the list after #InfiniteDetail.
including a signed hardcover copy of Sheree Renée Thomas's #BlackPanther: Panther's Rage, a 1st ed signed CHILDREN OF #DUNE, some GRRM stuff, enamel pins, fantasy novels. Zoom chats with writers, and more. Only 36 hours left to check it out!