Role: Writer and creator of The Whispering Codex
Joined: January 2026 (since the beginning)
Ben is a fantasy enthusiast with a huge love for the Cosmere, Discworld and Lord of the Rings. I’ve had my head in fantasy books for decades now, trawling my dad’s extensive bookshelves for my next adventure since I was a child. That process hasn’t always been easy though. Fantasy is a huge genre and there are many subgenres that don’t fit my tastes as much. Not every book is a phenomenal epic either.
Too often, I’ve found that while one reviewer found a book to be worthy of the highest praise, that it fell short in my eyes because it didn’t suit my personal tastes. I have limited free time to dedicate to my hobbies, like many others, so I decided to remedy this. The Whispering Codex is an attempt to remedy this by providing as much information about the type of books I’m reviewing as possible so readers really know if a book is right for them.
I’m also a huge D&D enthusiast and am the creator and writer of Dungeon Mister, a website dedicated to D&D and other tabletop RPGs.
Latest articles
The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories by Suzanna Clarke: Fantasy Book Review
The return to the world of Strange & Norrell sadly fails to live up to expectations. Susanna Clarke has very few books to her name. In fact her only full-length novel is Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell which she followed up with a series of short stories set in the…
Isles of the Emberdark by Brandon Sanderson: Fantasy Book Review
Another Cosmere secret project to take you into the wider universe. Sanderson has a habit of revealing secrets. A while back he wrote 4 secret project books in Tress of the Emerald Sea, Yumi and the Nightmare Painter, The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook to Surviving Medieval England and The Sunlit Man.…
Piranesi by Suzanna Clarke: Fantasy Book Review
The world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is back, but set in modern times After Clarke’s phenomenal success with Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, she went quiet on the publishing front. Considering the size and scope of her original book, it’s no wonder she needed a break. It took…
Feet of Clay by Terry Pratchett: Fantasy Book Review
Another strong helping of Discworld’s City Watch with more crime, wit and humour. Feet of Clay is the 3rd book in Pratchett’s city watch collection of Discworld books. It may lack some of the excellence that Men at Arms achieves (mainly due to re-treading old territory), but it remains a…
Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson: Fantasy Book Review
Epic fantasy at some of its most epic. I’ve had Gardens of the Moon on my to be read list for a while now and I went into it knowing full well that this is the kind of series that takes effort to get into but rewards readers substantially if…
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Suzanna Clarke: Fantasy Book Review
English magic is coming back in this 19th century historical fantasy. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was my wildcard read of the year. I’d heard wonderful things about this rather chunky book, but based on what I’d read, I had no idea if it was the right book for me.…
Going Postal By Sir Terry Pratchett: Fantasy Book Review
The postal system has never been so intriguing! Going Postal is the 33rd book in Pratchett’s ever popular Discworld series. It also introduced one of my favourite of his many protagonists, Moist Von Lipwig; the most loveable of rogues. Personally, I consider Moist’s escapades as some of my favourite on…
The Blacktongue Thief By Christopher Buelhman: Fantasy Book Review
Christopher Buehlman’s debut novel is a hit for dark fantasy fans. Most authors need a bit of time to truly find their voice when writing. Normally there’s some amount of growth as they become more familiar with the writing process. This may yet prove to be true of Christopher Buehlman.…