Jim C. Hines Books In Order

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Publication Order of Jig the Goblin Books

with Martin H. Greenberg

Publication Order of Princess Books

Publication Order of The Faery Taile Project Books

Publication Order of Magic Ex Libris Books

Publication Order of Fable Books

Publication Order of Janitors of the Post-Apocalypse Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Jim C. Hines is an American author that is best known for his contribution to the Fantasy genre. Hines is actively involved in causes that oppose bullying and sexual harassment in the science fiction and fantasy literary fields.

+Biography

According to Jim C. Hines, he isn’t that complicated a person. He was born in 1974. He wrote a couple of short stories before finally finding his footing as a renowned author of fantasy.

Hines, who is married with two children and several pets, has won a Hugo Award.

Jim C. Hines can trace his writing career all the way back to 1995. Like most authors, Hines had experimented with writing as a child. But it wasn’t until 1995 that he began making more of a concerted effort to succeed in publishing.

The results were not exactly positive. The author accrued a discouraging number of rejections before finally getting his big break. Hines’ first notable success came in the form of ‘Blade of the Bunny’.

The short story was submitted to the Writers of the Future contest in 1998. It won first place and it holds a special place in Jim C. Hines’ heart because it marked the author’s first professional story sale.

Boasting a degree in Psychology and a Masters in English, Hines is pretty active online either engaging in discussions about science fiction and fantasy or promoting efforts and resources that oppose sexual harassment in the publishing field.

+Literary Career

Jim C. Hines is most commonly associated with three literary properties. The first is ‘Goblin Quest’, the author’s first series of novels which was also responsible for putting him on the publishing map.

The books, which began publication in 2004, where lauded by the likes of Wil Wheaton for their distinct approach to storytelling and character development. And some have argued that they paved the way for Hines’ involvement in the ‘Fable Legends’ games.

Fable Legends is a free-to-play game for which Hines was asked to produce accompanying literature. ‘Fable: Blood of Heroes’ was lauded for its humorous yet fantastical tone. It was the perfect blend of Hines’ own style and the Fable Legends look.

Hines had to delve into Fable Legends lore to write the companion stories, not to mention researching popular folklore. While ‘Fable: Blood of Heroes’ did not exactly grow Hines’ brand, it cemented his popularity amongst his fans.

The author also relished in the opportunity to write a full-length novel in a universe he had not created. Though, it was the ‘Magic Ex Libris’ books that truly announced Jim C. Hines’ entry into the mainstream fantasy arena.

Hines’ editor once expressed a desire to see certain aspects of his ‘Goblin Quest’ series come into the real world, particularly the fire-spider Smudge. Whether or not Hines took that request seriously at the time, it eventually inspired him to write ‘Mightier than the Sword’, a story about a character that can pull things from the pages of books into the real world.

Because of the similarity in concepts, it was initially theorized that ‘Mightier than the Sword’ was a prequel to the Magic Ex Libris series. Those books also chronicle the adventures of characters that can take things out of books.

But Jim C. Hines has since refuted those suggestions, simply referring to ‘Mightier than the Sword’ as a fun story that paved the way for Libriomancer.

The Magic Ex Libris books were, at their core, inspired by a desire for Hines to revel in his love of books. The author was enthralled by the concept of a fantasy novel led by librarians for heroes. And he had plenty of fun dropping hints and references about some of his favorite science fiction and fantasy books and novels.

Jim C. Hines isn’t exactly a superstar in the fantasy arena. He isn’t even really mainstream. However, he has a cult following of readers that are extremely loyal to his work.

+Activism

While he might not necessarily call himself an activist, Jim C. Hines is very passionate about bullying, sexual harassment, and sexism in the publishing industry. The author went so far as to create an online list of resources that science fiction and fantasy communities can use to report sexual harassment.

Hines was always aware of the presence of sexism in the publishing business. But it wasn’t until he went to one particular science fiction and fantasy convention that the stark reality of the problem was made clear to him.

Hines kept running into women with stories about all the times they had been harassed by people in publishing. The author wasn’t seeking these stories out. But they kept creeping into conversations and it was at that point in time that he realized how prevalent harassment was, especially in publishing.

Jim C. Hines’ sensibilities did not allow him to confront the publishing personalities he was told were frequent sources of sexism. But he saw it as his duty to create tools that would make the reporting of sexual harassment much easier.

Hines’ activism doesn’t always elicit positive responses. In fact, over the years, the author has been nicknamed ‘the PC Monster’ for what others perceive to be Hines’ determination to overwhelm the science fiction and fantasy fields with political correctness.

The reactions have not daunted Jim C. Hines from his objective. Though, the author’s passion for activism has never manifested in his stories. Hines has admitted to fighting the urge to get too preachy in his novels.

+Libriomancer

Centuries ago, Johannes Gutenberg founded a secret organization of libriomancers, individuals with the power to drag items out of the pages of books and into reality.

Isaac Vainio is a libriomancer and a member of Gutenberg’s organization. And there are vampires leaping from the pages of books with the intention of killing him. When he escapes the first attempt on his life, Isaac discovers that he isn’t the only magic-user that has been threatened.

In fact, some of his peers were not fortunate enough to escape with their lives. With the help of a dryad, Isaac tries to turn the tables by hunting the dark power that’s trying to destroy him.

+Goblin Quest

When adventurers ambush a patrol of goblins, Jig wastes no time in surrendering, as is expected of him. When his captors force the goblin to guide them through labyrinthine tunnels, Jig has no idea how much adventure awaits him.

As Prince Barius Wendelson’s desire for ancient artifacts drives them further down the mountain, Jig comes across creatures he thought were a myth. It will take every skill the goblin has mastered, not to mention a touch of heroism, to survive what comes next.

Book Series In Order » Authors » Jim C. Hines