U is for Unicorns #atozchallenge

[by A V Brown, using stock images.
See here for full list of sources.]

Today I'm continuing with the Blogging from A-Z Challenge hosted by Arlee Bird and his team of awesome bloggers. My theme is: Elements and features of speculative fiction and entertainment. So throughout April I will be blogging about characters, objects and themes that appear in sci-fi, fantasy and dystopian series. Today's post is all about Unicorns.

Unicorns are legendary animals from European folklore that resemble white horses with large spiral horns on their foreheads. They appeared first in ancient Greek natural history, rather than Greek mythology, as the Greeks were convinced that unicorns actually existed, believing that they came from India. Unicorns also appear in Chinese mythology and in The Bible.

O is for Ogres and Giants #atozchallenge

[By Émile Bayard, Public Domain]

Today I'm continuing with the Blogging from A-Z Challenge hosted by Arlee Bird and his team of awesome bloggers. My theme is: Elements and features of speculative fiction and entertainment. So throughout April I will be blogging about characters, objects and themes that appear in sci-fi, fantasy and dystopian series. Today's post is all about Ogres and giants.



Ogres are large, hideous monsters from mythology and folklore with  a penchant for devouring humans (particularly children). They were often described in fairy tales to scare children into obedience. The word ogre is French, but there are a lot of different possibilities as to where the myth comes from. Some say it is based on early descriptions of Neanderthals, or possibly on the real-life crimes of Gilles de Rais (a prolific child serial killer also thought to have inspired the Bluebeard fairytale).

B is for Birds #atozchallenge

[Carion Crow by Aomorikuma, GNU FDL]

Today I'm continuing with the Blogging from A-Z Challenge hosted by Arlee Bird and his team of awesome bloggers. My theme is: Elements and features of speculative fiction and entertainment. So throughout April I will be blogging about characters, objects and themes that appear in sci-fi, fantasy and dystopian series. Today's post is all about Birds.



Birds (both real and fantastical) are a prevalent symbol in religion, mythology and folklore throughout the world, so it's not surprising that they often feature in fantasy novels. Here are some examples: