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931 ratings | 900 reviews | avg rating:4.22

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William C. Tracy

Goodreads Author

Born

in The United States

Website

http://williamctracy.com/

Twitter

wctracy

Member Since

March 2013

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William C. Tracy writes and publishes queer science fiction and fantasy through his indie press Space Wizard Science Fantasy (spacewizardsciencefantasy.com).
His largest work is the Dissolutionverse: a space opera with music-based magic including nine books and a TTRPG. He’s also published Fruits of the Gods, an epic fantasy with seasonal fruit magic, How To Operate Your Body, a nonfiction book about body mechanics and correct posture, The Biomass Conflux, a sci-fi trilogy with colony ships and a planet covered by a sentient fungus, and The Shifting Lands, his current work, which is a progression fantasy series about martial arts and moving islands.
William is an NC native and a lifelong fan of science fiction and fantasy. He has a master’s i ...more

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William C. Tracy’s books

Average rating: 3.99 · 1,062 ratings · 405 reviews · 32 distinct works • Similar authors

	Of Mycelium and Men (The Biomass Conflux, #1) 3.69 avg rating — 189 ratings — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Seeds of Dissolution (Dissolution Cycle, #1) 3.89 avg rating — 101 ratings — published 2017 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	To a Fungus Unknown (The Biomass Conflux #2) 4.03 avg rating — 87 ratings — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Spores of Wrath (The Biomass Conflux, #3) 4.16 avg rating — 64 ratings — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Tuning the Symphony (Dissolution Cycle, #0.5) 4.09 avg rating — 45 ratings — published 2016 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Fruits of the Gods: An Epic Fantasy 3.88 avg rating — 32 ratings — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Merchants and Maji (Dissolution Cycle, #0.7) 3.87 avg rating — 31 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Five Hive Plateau (Dissolution Cycle, #0.2) 3.76 avg rating — 26 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Facets of the Nether (Dissolution Cycle, #2) 4.40 avg rating — 20 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Tales of the Dissolutionverse (Dissolution Cycle #4) 4.50 avg rating — 18 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by William C. Tracy…

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William C. Tracy's Blog: Meanderings of my noggin

SPSFC 2021

Just a quick update that I will be a judge/reviewer for the first ever Self-Published Science Fiction Contest (SPSFC), going on now! We’ve got over 300 entries, and through the next year, we’re going to be whittling them down to the top 30, then the top 10, then the one winner next July!

So stay tuned. I’m going to start posting reviews to this site as I read through books, and hopefully I’ll find

Series by William C. Tracy

The Biomass Conflux (3 books)
by

William C. Tracy (Goodreads Author)

3.86 avg rating — 340 ratings

Dissolution Cycle (4 books)
by

William C. Tracy (Goodreads Author)

4.02 avg rating — 286 ratings

The Shifting Lands (3 books)
by

William C. Tracy (Goodreads Author)

3.83 avg rating — 21 ratings

William is Currently Reading

William Tracy is currently reading

Dragonsteel Prime

by Brandon Sanderson (Goodreads Author)

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Aug 22, 2025 09:51AM

William Tracy is currently reading

A Touch of Death (The Outlands Pentalogy #1)

by Rebecca Crunden (Goodreads Author)

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William Tracy said: " Read for SPSFC Semifinalists!

Overall Thoughts
This is a post-apocalyptic story, with some elements of traditional fantasy fare. There is a king, the court, and a strict hierarchy, but there are also cell phones, and hover cars, and vaccines. But the m Read for SPSFC Semifinalists!

Overall Thoughts
This is a post-apocalyptic story, with some elements of traditional fantasy fare. There is a king, the court, and a strict hierarchy, but there are also cell phones, and hover cars, and vaccines. But the main thrust of the story concerns Nate and Kitty, two people thrown together by a strange affliction: their touch heals each other, while others touching them burns their skin. Most of the story concerns their journey, which had some interested elements, but I would have liked a little more worldbuilding, especially at the beginning, and I wasn’t really happy with a cliffhanger-ish ending.

Plot
Most of this book concerns the long journey Nate and Kitty take to find a cure for their affliction, learning about each other, and coming closer together. It’s got some good romance elements to it, but I felt they were hampered a bit by the lack of some steeper challenges. Most hindrances to them are solved with little permanent danger to either party, until near the end of the book, where a lot of things start to change. I understand this is the beginning of a larger series, but I felt like the ending came rather abruptly, while I was waiting for Kitty to get out of her latest predicament.

Setting
This was definitely the weakest aspect of the book for me. I’ve read a lot of scifi and fantasy, and the beginning was still pretty confusing for me until I started to catch up to the ways this world works. I felt like there was a bit of a disconnect right at the beginning as well, with some of the reasons they were originally afflicted with their condition simply not stated until later in the story, when it was relevant to finding a cure. I would also have liked more information about the mutants and rabids (I’m still not sure if they’re the same thing) that inhabit the world. Only much later do we learn some of the history of how people hid underground for a long time, and then came back up to repopulate. I felt jarred each time a new technology was introduced, like hovercars or cellphones, because it’s in contrast to the medieval-like setting of the story.

Character
The characters were certainly the best aspect of the story, with both Nate and Kitty developing a lot during the story. I was also happy to see some queer representation in the book, even if it was in passing. I would almost say this story was a romance and a journey first, and then a dystopian novel second, as those aspects were not as important as how the characters changed. Again, I wasn’t really engaged at the end of the book, however, as there’s a sort of Beauty and the Beast dynamic that starts up after most of the characters problems are solved. I wonder if it might have been better to start the second book before that point, and leave some of that conflict out of the first book?

Score out of 10 (My personal score, not the final contest score)
An interesting dystopian romance, clouded by some worldbuilding issues and an abrupt ending. 6.75/10. ...more "

Aug 15, 2022 04:26PM · see review

William Tracy is currently reading

Upright Women Wanted (Sand in the Gears, #1)

by Sarah Gailey (Goodreads Author)

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William Tracy said: " Read for 2021 Hugos
Overall Thoughts
Another excellent story from Gailey, dealing with queer culture and how to be yourself. This starts out like a straight western, but is revealed pretty quickly it’s likely an alternate future rather than an alternat ...more "

Sep 03, 2021 06:43AM · see review

William’s Recent Updates

William Tracy rated a book it was amazing Soulbrand (Weapons and Wielders, #3) by Andrew Rowe (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Another great entry into the Weapons and Wielders arc! This progresses a lot of the behind the scenes enemies who are only starting to make an appearance in the Arcane Asension. series. Lots of great fights and great swords. Looking forward to the ne ...more
Nov 10, 2026 06:34PM · like · see review
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing Hyperion (Hyperion Cantos, #1) by Dan Simmons	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I've had this one on my list to read for a long time. Glad I finally did! It's a far-future sci-fi story, but modeled in concept on the Canterbury Tales, which becomes a really interesting technique in the story. Each pilgrim's story reveals a little ...more
Oct 22, 2026 09:47AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Hyperion by Dan Simmons. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Hyperion by Dan Simmons <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing The Chosen One Con (Lost in the Aether Book 1) by Trudie Skies (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this book! On the surface, it's a gaslamp romp with a high-magic society, mimicking some of our social troubles of drug and screen addiction, and those in power helping themselves rather than the people they're supposed to be serving ...more
Oct 09, 2026 01:07PM · like · see review
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing A Trade of Blood (Ana and Din Mysteries, #3) by Robert Jackson Bennett (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Another excellent entry in the Ana and Din mysteries! This time, the duo takes on a murder in the powerful beef industry of the empire. What might be standard fare for another writer turns into a captivating look into the ancestry and nobles of the e ...more
Sep 16, 2026 09:47AM · like · see review
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing A Parade of Horribles (Dungeon Crawler Carl, #8) by Matt Dinniman (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Yet another fun Carl book! This one is setting up a LOT for what will probably the final arc of the story, which is likely why some reviewers have said it's a weaker story. I really enjoyed all the machinations of what was coming, as well as some ans ...more
Sep 03, 2026 01:43PM · like · see review
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing Wire Mother by Isabel J. Kim (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Read for 2026 Hugos What happens when virtual people are a part of everyday life and people have relationships with them. It's likely coming, and this is a cautioning take on it. ...more
Jul 19, 2026 07:53AM · like · see review
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing Six People to Revise You by J. R. Dawson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Read for 2026 Hugos A good story on what a person would go through if they could revise their personality to be more pleasing to others. Great character development in such a short format.
Jul 19, 2026 07:52AM · like · see review
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing Six People to Revise You by J. R. Dawson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Read for 2026 Hugos A good story on what a person would go through if they could revise their personality to be more pleasing to others. Great character development in such a short format.
Jul 19, 2026 07:51AM · like · see review
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing Missing Helen by Tia Tashiro	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Read for 2026 Hugos What happens when a woman's husband divorces her for her younger clone? An interested take on how we look at ourselves. ...more
Jul 19, 2026 07:51AM · like · see review
William Tracy rated a book it was amazing Missing Helen by Tia Tashiro	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Read for 2026 Hugos What happens when a woman's husband divorces her for her younger clone? An interested take on how we look at ourselves. ...more
Jul 19, 2026 07:50AM · like · see review

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Quotes by William C. Tracy (?)

“The grasping fingers of the gravity well reached for him.”
― William C. Tracy, Of Mycelium and Men

tags: gravity-quotes, science-fiction

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“The original timeline for finishing the colony was ten years, but that was when we thought we would have materials, and didn’t account for the homicidal fugus outside our gates.”
― William C. Tracy, Of Mycelium and Men

tags: mushrooms, science-fiction

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