http://www.sfsite.com/ The new issue of the SF Site is now online. Copyright 1996-2010 SF Site en-us http://www.sfsite.com/images/sfspot1.gif http://www.sfsite.com/ http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica361.htm Fri, 3 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT So as with his column about continuity -- which was engendered by a review of Stan Lee's how-to-write-comics book last year -- Mark London Williams is embarking on another of his "meta" discussions about comics, as he tries to figure what makes them tick as a medium, and how they're changing. This is kind of a two-fer, like one of those Ace paperbacks with back-to-back covers on each side (except, of course, those were prose and we're discussing the four-color panel). http://www.sfsite.com/columns/neil360.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT Here we are again, offering you your annual chance to let the world know what you thought was the best of all the speculative reading material you encountered from the past year. If you've been a regular visitor to the SF Site for more than a couple of years, you are quite probably already familiar with this annual event. If you're new to us, all you need to know is that we want to hear what you believe was the very best of what you read from the past year. If you've forgotten what you chose in previous years, you can find them all linked at Best Read of the Year including The Dervish House by Ian McDonald which was the top choice last year. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/nh361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT Now in its 22nd year, this anthology remains one of the few opportunities, for those unfamiliar with the secrets of the genre magazines and of the small, specialized press, to enjoy some good horror fiction through the mass market channels, available even at the local bookstore. For those who follow more closely the labyrinthine ways of horror fiction, the annual compilation always provides material which somehow had escaped their attention. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/rc361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT In this adventure, Jane starts out as a bodyguard to the envoy that Leo Pellissier has sent to Asheville for a parlay with a North Carolina vampire who seeks to become master of his own city. A fanged attack on campers quickly turns Jane into an investigator, facing enemies, both recognized and unrecognized, from her past. As usual, her mouth gets her in trouble on numerous occasions. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/cc361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT In the second of A Land Fit for Heroes series, our story involves Ringil's efforts against slave traders and the rescue of one of its victims from a fate that goes beyond indentured servitude. Meanwhile, the paths of three former comrades who fought together in the Dragon wars -- Ringil, Egar the Dragonbane and Arceth Indamaninarmal -- begin to intersect towards a quest to find a mythical island that shares existence with the Grey Places that may be a bulwark against a threat to civilization. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/hb361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT The craft of writing short stories is a very different skill to that of a novelist, and being able to accomplish one is never a guarantee that the other will be its equal. In this case, however, X. Trevelyan manages to produce something that has charm, style, and just enough substance to create its own micro-world. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/em361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT Claire Havilland is an acclaimed actress, perhaps just a bit past her prime. Her agent inveigles her into an interview with the niece of the Grand Marshal of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade -- said niece is a huge fan of Claire and a bit stagestruck. The kicker is that the Grand Marshal is a famous roboticist, Dr. Oakes -- and his "niece" is a robot -- or "artificial," which is the polite word. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/rs361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT James Barclay has created two series of books thus far, The Chronicles of the Raven and The Legends of the Raven, but essentially "The Raven" books are one long series of overlapping stand-alone adventures. Of course, there is some carry-over between books, but in a pinch you can probably pick any one of them up and not be lost in the storyline at all. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/pdf361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT "I used to plot things out in much more detail than I do now. Of course, I was never someone like Poul Anderson or Hal Clement who created immense binders of background info and character sheets for their projects. But I still used to have step-by-step breakdowns for plots. Now I'm much more looser and organic. I usually know beginnings and endings (mostly), and a few select key high points in between. But the passage from step stone to stepstone is Brownian motion." http://www.sfsite.com/02a/ab361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT Stories with a similar motif or concept tend to rub off on one another when gathered in one place, often conferring more power to each. In rock, these would be the concept albums of Pink Floyd and Roger Waters where, even if there were a weak song or two, you don't mind because they cohere well together as a whole. In the genre, similar strength came when Isaac Asimov collected his robot stories or Fred Saberhagen his alien, killing machines -- the Berserkers. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/ju361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT Rich has long characterized it as a distinctly old-fashioned magazine. By this he refers to both its focus on pretty much pure science fiction, but also its fondness for tropes and plots that hearken back to the 50s through 70s, more or less. This isn't of necessity a bad thing -- indeed it's nice to have a magazine or two that provides a home for such stuff. Still, there is a burden on such stories to make the old new -- otherwise, why bother? http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT The future used to be a destination. It used to be The Future. And like a Zeno paradox, the closer we got to it, the more unattainable The Future seemed... until we realized that the destination had been demolished, the hundred-story skyscrapers of Fritz Lang's Metropolis and the pristine courtyards of William Cameron Menzies's Things to Come are now a never-ending string of strip malls selling cheap cell phones and tax advice. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT The Doctor Who Christmas Special was the best sf Rick has seen on tv this year, and is a likely winner of the 2011 best sf drama Hugo, short form. While he's waiting for something else good to show up on television, he as been watching all the old good movies in chronological order, starting with Elmo Lincoln in Tarzan of the Apes. He also gives us a list of what SF is on TV in February. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/lm361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT In the middle an atomic war (pre-ICBMs) waged by fleets of bombers directed by a Soviet and a Western EMSIAC, Dr. Martine, a neurosurgeon in an airborne MASH plane, has had enough of the murderous madness. He steals an aircraft and, defying the computer, flies to a south Pacific island where he holes up for eighteen years, performing lobotomies on the locals, who have a tradition of skull-boring each other to control aggression. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/ls361.htm Wed, 1 Feb 2012 11:00:00 GMT This is Robert Silverberg tuning into his melodic voice to retell the myths surrounding this character. Those familiar with Greek myth can anticipate Orpheus' dive into Hades to retrieve his beautiful Eurydice, as well as his part in the story of Jason and the Argonauts. The story opens with the typical Greek bard's calling upon the Muse. Also, it establishes some of the themes to be visited throughout. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/neil360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Here we are again, offering you your annual chance to let the world know what you thought was the best of all the speculative reading material you encountered from the past year. If you've been a regular visitor to the SF Site for more than a couple of years, you are quite probably already familiar with this annual event. If you're new to us, all you need to know is that we want to hear what you believe was the very best of what you read from the past year. If you've forgotten what you chose in previous years, you can find them all linked at Best Read of the Year including The Dervish House by Ian McDonald which was the top choice last year. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/pdf360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT The author claims that two possibilities exist for why writers choose to tell single-idea SF: 1) According H.G. Wells, writers should not beleaguer readers with too many strangenesses in one narrative. 2) SF writers are stingy with their ideas. A third reason not mentioned by him may be that writers want to make a clear, philosophical extrapolation of a single idea or theme. If they add too much to the pot, they fear cooking something more like mud than stew. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/az360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT The stories here all qualify as Lovecraftian metafiction, ranging from parody to pastiche to homage. The author adds spice to this stew by calling in elements from authors as disparate as William Faulkner and James Herriot. The most surprising and surprisingly successful combination is the importation of P.G. Wodehouse's air-headed Bertie Wooster and Bertie's "gentleman's gentleman," the unflappable Reginald Jeeves, into the world of Lovecraftian weirdness. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/ab360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Absorption, the first book in the Ragnarok series, also marks a return to the world of the pilots and their infinite city of Labyrinth in mu-space. That said, one doesn't need to have read any of his other books to enjoy or understand this one. There is a lot going on in these pages, and perhaps too much, but Absorption is more of a setup novel than a plot novel in which he introduces characters and situations, and much more will hopefully be learned in future installments. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/sn360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT In a sequel to Iron Shoes, the story picks up a few years later: Guiare and Imogen have married and have had a child. And her devious fairy father, Mr. Finnegan, has shown up on her doorstep, wanting to get to know his long-lost daughter. Finnegan promises not to harm any of her family -- a promise he cannot break. But Imogen is unsure if her father can still do damage, playing with the wording of the promise. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/ju360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT The thirty-third issue is subtitled Euanthe, as ever after a moon of Jupiter. This issue has five stories, as well as two poems by Allen Ashley on astronomical subjects (Venus and Mercury). The issue opens with "Battlefield of Woe" by Alexander Hawes. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/dm360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT It starts with the manned expedition to the moon, but the real reason for doing so was hidden from the public gaze, wasn't televised and never talked about with the net result that it was considered top secret. The government were instead interested in finding out more of an alien ship that had crash landed on the planet. The story starts in the 60s with the scientists trying to find out what it all meant, and whether they could make any sense of what was buried under there. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/ba360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT First there was the Contagion, a modern-day plague that washed over Gotham City leaving its population decimated. Then came the Cataclysm, a massive earthquake with its center just miles from Gotham's downtown. Costing $100 billion to rebuild the wasted city, it was a price tag the government quickly decided they did not want to pay. Those who wanted out were evacuated but hundreds of thousands stayed, unwilling to leave their homes, or perhaps having nowhere to go. With the bridges to the mainland demolished, the United States government washed its hands of the whole affair. Gotham City was gone, now there is only No Man's Land. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/ka360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT "Kafkaesque" is a word used very often to describe bureaucratic snafus and paradoxes. Even people who have never read a word of Kafka use it to describe their encounter with the Department of Motor Vehicles, or airport security. So pervasive has "Kafkaesque" become that it has nearly lost its link with the works of Franz Kafka. When it comes to trying to summarise this wonderful anthology, there is something of a dilemma. It can be recommended unhesitatingly to anyone who has ever read any Kafka, but what about those for whom Kafkaesque is a noun they use but Kafka is not someone they've read? http://www.sfsite.com/01b/gc360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT This doorstopper of a book seeks to reverse the bog-standard LOTR-style hero quest by presenting the story from the perspective of the bad guys. As we soon learn, the machinations of Morthul, dreaded Charnel King of the Iron Keep, have failed. Centuries of plotting come to nothing, due to a band of so-called heroes sent by good King Dororam. The price paid for thwarting evil, is the cold blooded murder of Princess Amalia, Dororam's only daughter. As winter falls upon the Brimstone Mountains, a grieving Dororam begins to assemble a mighty army, with the intention of finally destroying the great enemy of humanity. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/la360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT This is first adventure of Jennifer Strange, adolescent foundling and indentured servant, who manages the Kazam Mystical Arts Management, a collective of wizards for hire. Also it turns out that Strange is a chosen one, the last of a long line of Dragonslayers, destined to kill the last surviving dragon, thereby opening up the heretofore magically protected Dragonlands to land development. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/cs360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Marooned in the Slow Zone, the last surviving human population has a clear goal; rebuild their technological civilization in time to protect themselves from the Blight that is surely coming their way. Unfortunately, almost all of them are teenagers or young adults, and they're not sure they believe an official story that includes their parents as the villains who freed the Blight. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/bt360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Apparently a village located in the south-east of England, Binscombe, is a place where odd things happen all the time, reality is not only what meets the eye and the supernatural and the paranormal are the bread and butter of everyday life. The living center of the village is the Duke of Argyll, the local pub, where, in the tradition of Arthur C. Clarke's White Hart and Pratt and de Camp's Gavagan Bar, things are discussed and revealed, old traditions are kept alive and odd events take place. http://www.sfsite.com/01b/dd360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Robert Silverberg's science fiction work has won him multiple Hugos and Nebulas. Are these justified? Do they stand the test of time? This is a five-story ebook which puts those questions to the test. All are very different: from culture SF, to classic SF, to contemporary SF, to hip and quirky SF, to a more literary SF. There's something here for every type of SF reader. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT After taking a month sabbatical from reviewing books for this column, Rick Klaw found himself with an abundance of material. In fact so many titles to cover, that they squeezed out his typical Nexus Graphica rantings. He'll be back in 30 with a more traditional piece. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new360.htm Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT This time it's a short list, but some of the highlights include the latest works from the likes of Orson Scott Card, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Mike Resnick, and Tad Williams. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica359.htm Tue, 3 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Mark London Williams opines that comic shops can become pillars of their local retailing communities, the way book and record stores are -- or were. But the mix of customers they attract are important for ancillary and neighboring businesses, and vice versa. As we move to increasingly digital means of delivery however, what happens to such public mercantile spaces? On which note, just because something can be delivered digitally, it doesn't mean there's an automatic audience aggregated for it. There's still the necessary "word of mouth," even if those mouths are digital. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/dt359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Few countries have had as dark a half-century as Argentina. Once one of the ten wealthiest nations on earth, and blessed with outstanding natural resources, Argentina's post-war history became a catalogue of repression, oppression, exploitation and (perhaps worst of all) a pervasive sense that justice was never done. The most intense and damaging period of repression was the so called processo, which introduced "disappeared" as a noun to the lexicon. We meet the narrator, Robert Cavenaugh, who works for a fictional American corporation whose Buenos Aires office was, it turns out, complicit in all this. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/lu359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Lucy Sussex is one of the best writers of fantasy and science fiction to emerge from Australia over the last 25 years or so, and one of the least well known outside that country. She has a respectable shelf full of Australian Awards, but has been largely ignored by the genre's international awards. She does not, apparently, have a regular publisher outside Australia. Paul is confident that those of you who do pick up the book and read it will wonder why. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/is359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT A widowed woman of the early 1900s tries to restore the family racing horse ranch to its former glory. Her husband had made some poor choices, which his mother and wife are now paying for. Now they either have to start selling horses or pin their hopes to Blue Streak, the horse who stands the best chance of winning the ranch some money. Enter a horse she just bought, sight unseen. Paddy, the ranch's best trainer, tells Imogen it's sick and he doesn't know what to do. Imogen knows immediately. The horse is a fairy trapped in the horse form. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/izo359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT There have been occasions when a new writer with a singular new style and vision appears whose fiction seems destined to have lasting impact on the field. Jason Sanford is one such a new writer. He writes with a confidence and skill that makes it difficult to believe that he burst onto the scene only in the past few years. The November-December issue of Interzone is a special Jason Sanford issue. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/izn359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT This issue features a celebration of 25 years of Nick Lowe's "Mutant Popcorn" film reviews that have so often been far superior to the work he is writing about, along with five well-written and imaginatively exotic science fiction stories by burgeoning UK writers that seem a bit too alike in their enigmatic settings and war-torn dystopian pessimism. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/ft359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT For readers who enjoy reading steampunk stories, the ones in this latest issue runs along similar lines except David B. Riley's chosen selection of stories are also featured in the Wild West of old. The caption on the front of the magazine, "Where science fiction meets the Wild West," is very apt as it shows what would happen if the technology of today was available to the few over a hundred years ago. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/sa359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Ten thousand years ago, the Atoners visited our planet. Rather than just observe our fledgling species, the Atoners meddled. In a grand experiment of their own devising, the Atoners altered the DNA of homo sapiens, while abducting a number of unaltered humans and depositing them on seven different planets. Were they just curious, or deliberately mean? Maybe they interfered with humanity the way humans sometimes interfere with ant colonies, or bee hives. No one knows for sure, but what they did irrevocably altered the course of our species forever. Now the Atoners are back, and according to their advertisement on the internet, they wish to atone for what they did. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/pl359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Merritt Abraham graduated from college but was too poor to pursue a higher degree in archeology (rather, polypolisology -- the study of many cities) as she wanted. Taking a job in a museum, she marks time until her boss learns of her true desire and helps her out. Merritt attends graduate school and falls in love with her offbeat professor, Scoria. They join an expedition team on a journey to Vayavirunga, the Jungle blocks of the Linear City. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/fm359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT Sophie's mother is dropping her off at the Oak Cottage in Louisiana with her aunt and grandmother -- people Sophie doesn't particularly enjoy -- so that the mother is freed to pursue her accounting degree since the father has left the family. Sophie, on the cusp of becoming a woman, doesn't feel like she has any power over her life, and these women don't help. Behind the Oak Cottage is a maze constructed out of tall shrubs. It is there that Sophie is first haunted by the Creature who taunts Sophie when she gets lost in the maze. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/fe359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT In this second novel in the series, the Vikings are intent on getting a French Count's sister, they want to take her and, in return, they will not slaughter the people. This, in turn, proves to be a no win situation for the count as he can either let them take her and protect his people, or face the Vikings and the wrath of his own people. As he is next in line to be the ruler of the Franks, he has to let his fate take its course. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT As we begin 2012, Derek is looking at upcoming science fiction releases and, as usual, finds himself indifferent to most of the proposed offerings. Granted, 2011 wasn't the complete disaster he anticipated -- despite the usual dogs and high-profile disappointments, a few modestly entertaining efforts, surprise hits and one or two gems played at his local multiplex and the nearest arthouse -- but for the most part he viewed much of his film-going experience with a mixture of apprehension and dread... and, sadly, he feels the same way whenever he thinks of the genre movies opening next year. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT The new year brings a fresh look at new works from such authors as Paul McAuley, Tim Powers, Karl Schroeder, Robin Hobb, Brian Herbert & Kevin J. Anderson, Ari Marmell, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT The big, blockbuster science fiction films of the Christmas season aren't science fiction at all. Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol and The Adventures of Tin Tin have the splashy special effects that suggest sf, without any sf story elements. They also lack characters you care about and interesting ideas. They are entertaining. Rick also tells us what's SF on TV in January. http://www.sfsite.com/01a/st359.htm Sun, 1 Jan 2012 11:00:00 GMT This is an updated version of the ground-breaking 1978 book How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way by comics writer Stan Lee and artist John Buscema, although much of the material is new. It includes work by 60s/70s artists such as Jack Kirby, John Romita, Sr., Neal Adams and Gil Kane, along with much more recent work by artists apparently associated with "contributing writer" Dave Campiti. Both volumes seek to demonstrate how to draw comic books in the super-hero and related genres. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/pr358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT The novel opens with Everett Singh going to meet his physicist father at a lecture -- but instead Everett witnesses his father's kidnapping. The police are little help, and neither is his divorced mother. Soon enough Everett realizes that his father was involved in some very interesting research, research which led to opening a gate between parallel worlds. And when his father's rather creepy boss comes around, it seems clear that Dr. Singh must have made an important discovery, and that the authorities are after it. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/sa358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT Not in the Christmas spirit yet? You might try this collection wich opens with a pair of mystery shorts, "Rehabilitation" and "Snow Angels." They are essentially psychological explorations of criminals who made their appearance on Christmas. In the first, Matt is a Mall Santa who stops young men from executing a jewelry heist. The police tongue-lash him for acting so boldly, but he had his reasons. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/mp358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT Less than a decade after the book's first appearance, it seems, if anything, even more science fictional, because a story about middle class revolt appears not just prescient, it is eerily predictive. Everywhere we look around us, from the Tea Party to the Occupy movement, from clashes over tuition fees to the sight of doctors and teachers and top civil servants on strike, we see the middle classes in revolt. Surely that is exactly what Ballard was writing about in this novel? http://www.sfsite.com/12b/ws358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT Don't let yourself be put off by the vulgar cover nor deterred by the ambiguous promise of "urban fantasy with an erotic edge" suggesting cheap, second-rate fiction by mediocre writers. This is a very good book, extremely engrossing and entertaining, including a couple of remarkable highlights of superior quality when compared with more celebrated anthologies. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/rp358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's the middle of the twenty-first century, the oil has run out, economies have collapsed, people are living in trailers stacked on top of each other, and the virtual reality known as OASIS is an attractive place for lots of people, including Wade Watts, his fellow students, and gamer friends. Oasis was the brainchild of James Halliday, a genius game designer with an obsession for 80s pop culture who built Oasis to encompass all the aspects of personal relationships. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/ns358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT It begins in Bohemia in 1741 with Bohdan Reznik, a priest who has to perform certain rites on a Hungarian princess before she is laid to rest. These are not ordinary rites though, as she has her head removed, holy water splashed over her corpse, and many other rituals, but no one other than him knows why this happens. This first part of the story brings readers into the mind of the priest who performs the rites without any emotion. He does as he is told and, strange as it seems, he also removes all trace that the princess ever existed. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/ww358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT It tells of lawyer Janine D'Angelo who defends an occult serial killer who won't help her help him cop a plea of insanity. It's not that he agrees or disagrees but that he's completely emotionless. Now that he's in the process of being sentenced, he appears not to approve of Janine's handling of the case (or maybe she insulted or doubted him), for he appears in her house with a showy display of ooze coming from the walls to tell her she must die on Halloween. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/gr358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is a collection of three short stories written by L. Ron Hubbard and published in science fiction pulp magazines during the 40s and 50s. These stories are brought to life with sound effects and a multicast performance reminiscent of old-time-radio, plus the sound quality is crystal clear. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/og358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT The theory is that humanity, thousands of years ago, was visited by aliens who built gigantic structures such as the pyramids and Stonehenge and were mistaken for gods by our ancestors. They are the inspiration behind much of the ancient mythology around the world and the fantastic beasts included in many of those myths are actually the result of genetic experimentation. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/wh358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT This collection isn't just about Christmas -- it treats Thanksgiving and New Year's as well -- but several also capture some of that old-time holiday spirit. Itn opens with a Thanksgiving mystery, "Pudgygate," where young men are bragging about their most embarrassing moments. Reuben claims his tale rivals them all. He manages to serve his secret love (Princess Diana), steal a kiss, and capture a criminal -- thanks to a turkey-crazed cat named Pudge. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/et358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT The human outpost Embassytown is on the far distant planet Arieka -- accessible only by a dangerous trip through extra-dimensional space dubbed the immer -- home to a diplomatic corps of specially cloned twins that are the only line of communication to the native Ariekei, whose unusual double-mouthed physiology makes their language unique in the known universe. Ariekene speech can only convey literal concepts, so Ariekei can't lie. But they will occasionally expand their language with the help of human volunteers. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/ba358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT The collection of short shorts, Bam! 172 Hellaciously Quick Stories, widely displays his ability for ideas: fiery tornados aswim with sharks, attempted murders on Barbie, a war conducted by clowns. His stories have a penchant for turning familiar ideas on their head: aliens abduct a human to conduct... a taste-test for to discover the superior cheesecake? Another book worth looting is his book on ideas, The Writing Engine. He discusses the psychology of finding and developing ideas. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT As promised last issue by Mark London Williams, Rick Klaw is presenting the finale of the fourth annual Nexus Graphica best graphic novels of the year. This year's selections offer the fewest crossovers of any of the previous lists with only one title making both top ten lists. Partially this occurs because the two of them are not always getting the same books for review and also a result of the natural deviations in personal taste. Whatever the reason, it results in a greater coverage for you, the reader. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/st358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT Stephenie Meyer's novels have interested many people over the past few years, and feature a lot of messages on love sexuality, class, race and cultural issues. This time around the characters in her books are discussed by lecturer Natalie Wilson using these themes of life, love and other cultural issues. Her interest is making this book happened when she was asked to do a series of talks. http://www.sfsite.com/12b/lf358.htm Fri, 16 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT This critical study of science fiction and other related genres is comprised of several chapters that deal with lesbian writing and the novels which feature prominent lesbian characters. Phyllis M. Betz leaves no stone unturned with her analysis of lesbians in famous fiction whether it is old or new. For many, lesbians have been seen as frightening characters in novels due to their differences to other more feminine heroines. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/cc357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT Presented as a series of recollections and reports, this sumptuous collection features contributions from popular artists and best-selling fantasy authors. It's a diverse and quirky entertainment, loosely connected by the late Thackery T. Lambshead, whose fabled Cabinet of Curiosities purportedly held a vast collection of rare and strange objects, around which each story is based. Rarely will you come across a collection that rattles and rambles along in such a fantastical, often meticulous, yet always engaging fashion. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/dr357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT As sick as Mario is of reading fiction about vampires, he couldn't miss the opportunity to get a copy of an Australian anthology whose contributors were (with the notable exception of Angela Slatter) completely unknown to him. His hope was to get a refreshing view of an old and overused topic by a bunch of writers not belonging to the circle of the usual suspects from the USA or the UK. In a way, his desire has been fulfilled. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/ct357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT This novel follows in the footsteps of her first novel, Forbidden Cargo, moving the action from Mars to an Earth that has already been affected by the developments recounted in the first book. That includes MAM, a technology that gives anyone endowed with its abilities access to the entire library of human knowledge, and the spread of a mysterious fungus that is threatening the habitability of buildings across the landscape of Los Angeles. Enter Rika Grant, a data thief charged with investigating one of the first buildings where the fungus has taken over. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/fsf78357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT In this issue of the magazine, there is a neat mix of fantasy and science fiction stories, plus novellas for those who like to read something more substantial. "Books to Look For," by Charles de Lint starts off with his review of a debut novel by Lish McBride; Hold Me Closer, Necromancer. It's a funny and endearing story that has readers interested in the characters before the story really gets going. That is the true mark of the writer, and it is understandable why Lish has the power to make SF readers laugh, as writing humour is one of the hardest things to make believable. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/fsf56357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's a mixed bag in this month's issue of Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction for May/June. From photographers and scientists to natural disasters, there is plenty to choose from as far as unusual stories are concerned, and in-between all that, there are the other things of interest, namely articles and book reviews. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/bs357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT This issue has all the features the reader needs to get into during the weekend when they are ready to let their hair down. Mur Lafferty reviews "The Wolf Tree," by John Claude Bemis, with an interview conducted by Don Campbell with the author and, at five pages, it is very in depth and gives enough of an idea to readers of what kind of writer he is. There are a good number of short stories, some shorter than others, and yet have very powerful endings. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/sp357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT From the front cover, readers will think that the poets inside this small sized digest think outside the box, and they would be right. These poems are all based on the imaginings of poets who have in them an interest in science fiction whether it is about spaceships, far off galaxies or robots. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/gi357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT It is the 24th century and technology has continued to advance by leaps and bounds. In fact, one very innovative organization, Dr. Zeus Incorporated, also known as "The Company," has discovered the secrets to both immortality and time travel. The mission statement of The Company is to use these inventions to improve the lot of human kind... while making a healthy profit, of course. As always, time travel comes with restrictions. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/dv357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT This novel opens with Jacob Burn taking an assignment to make a delivery to the zombie-like riverdwelling Fehn. Things quickly -- and predictably -- go pear-shaped, as the delivery seems to precipitate a change in the Fehn, who suddenly begin to invade Veridon in great numbers. Jacob and his "spider" friend Wilson are on the run. The mystery involves a man named Ezekiel Crane, and the ancient people who may have built Veridon, as well as Jacob's dying father and general uproar among the rulers of the city, include Jacob's old enemy, the half-machine woman Angela Tomb. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/fi357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT The first of four stories, "The Last Apollo Mission on the Moon" is about a young writer, Paula Austin, who thought she was headed for great things, but her career never panned out. Years after a long dry spell, Stanley Kubrick visits her in her job at a bookstore and recruits her to write a script about the moon for him -- a script to be shot on the Twin Towers. Strangely enough, two of Kubrick's henchmen are sent to corral Austin into delivering are Nicolas Cage and Scarlett Johansson although they never present themselves as a true menace. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/dl357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT "My goal as I set out was to be a writer and that was all. It was only through the pursuit of this practice that any other goal formulated itself, and that goal is constantly morphing. Lately I've actually been more interested in developing a consistent aesthetic or artistic stance beyond a vague surrealism." http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's that time of year again, folks, which is to say, the part of the year where there's little time left on the calendar. That means -- well, it means that next time Mark London Williams and Rick Klaw do this, it'll be on cusp of all the Mayan tumult of 2012! But it also means that it's time for their annual "that was the year that was" best-of round-up. Mark's caveat, of course, is there's no pretense that these are, somehow, the objective "best" graphic novels of the year, to the exclusion of others. They are, simply, the things that Rick and Mark have read, and written about here, that affected them most deeply, or stayed with them in some way. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT A couple of years ago Derek caught the movie Taken at the discount cinema outside of Austin. He paid $1.50 to watch ex-CIA officer Liam Neeson rescue his daughter from white slave traffickers and he can honestly say he got his money's worth, but no more, because he never completely engaged with the material. Part of it was due to the standard movie thriller ridiculousness but more of it had to do with its betrayal of how the best thrillers should work, a point driven home to Derek after catching a recent performance of John Frankenheimer's classic shocker Seconds. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT Newest arrivals in the SF Site office include forthcoming titles from Glen Cook, Lucius Shepard, the latest from L.E. Modesitt, Jr., a new series edited by Mike Resnick with the first book featuring authors Kevin J. Anderson and Steven Savile, plus plenty more. http://www.sfsite.com/12a/ft357.htm Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:00:00 GMT Most characters that populate young adult fantasy novels are beautiful, strong, secure and/or smart. Princess Lucero-Elisa possesses none of these traits or at least doesn't think she does. Elisa is fat, insecure and pales in comparison to her older sister when it comes to playing political games and socializing with strangers. So, she's terrified when she is to secretly marry Alejandro, the leader of a neighboring kingdom in the midst of its turmoil. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica356.htm Thu, 17 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT After the surprisingly entertaining first Austin Comic Con, Rick Klaw eagerly looked forward to this event. He arrived roughly 30 minutes before the con started to a line of some 400 people waiting to enter. The hall itself was smaller than last year which was actually a good thing. Not as much open space and easier to look around. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/mf356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT If you are one of those people obsessed with dragons, you'll not want to miss this series, unless of course you only like your dragons depicted as loyal, lovable, honorable and dutiful. If that is the case, you'll probably want to look elsewhere. However, if you like your dragons vicious, arrogant, telepathic and hell-bent on plucking your limbs off for an appetizer before moving on to your torso as the entree, you'll definitely want to check out this trilogy. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/jt356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT For those in the know, a new horror collection from Glen Hirshberg is cause for hopeful anticipation. And this one delivers with a striking and enjoyable mix of stories that showcases his uniquely personable brand of horror, in which external menaces are eclipsed by the inner demons that drive our deepest fears. The unifying theme for all the stories is death: thwarting it, defying it, accepting it, transcending it -- a black narrative thread that he weaves in some unusual ways. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/wm356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT In the present day, Christian is an architect whose father has died and phoned him to say that, due to a nuclear experiment gone awry, unreality is leaking from the world. Meanwhile, back during the confusion of the 2000 elections, his pregnant wife, a woman who feels empty both literally and figuratively (her chest holds an empty cabinet), begins spewing eggs from her mouth. Christian and his wife are then forced at gunpoint to exchange their clothes at neighborhood block party. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/va356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Gabrielle and Michael, two scientists, are investigating the Oak Island Treasure Pit, a haven for treasure-hunters, scientists and plunderers around. There is a lot spoken of what treasures may lay at the bottom of its vault, but so far no one has dared to plunge so far down due to the oxygen problems divers have found. Somewhere far from the original site, the two of them have found something else, another site that boasts of great treasures no one has ever seen before, but is it all hearsay, or the truth? http://www.sfsite.com/11b/up356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Multiple Hugo Award-winning author Robert A. Heinlein (1907-1988) changes his tone with the novella The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag. This audiobook seems much more like a Philip K. Dick story than a Heinlein story since it features none of the themes for which Heinlein is well-known, like space travel, alien contact or time travel. Instead, we get an extra helping of creepy with a surprise ending that truly demonstrates his ability to master a variety of styles. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/cy356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Miles finds himself on Kibou-daini, a planet with a highly unique political organization. The entire planet is controlled by competing cryonics corporations. Kibou-daini culture encourages people to be frozen prior to death, in hopes of a future in which their various illnesses and accidents and ravages of age can be cured. However, since the cryocorp then controls the votes of its patrons -- who are not, after all, technically dead -- cryo-preservation is much more common than cryo-revival. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/tt356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Santa Claus, one magical Christmas in the mid-1980s, brought Seamus a stash of Tintin books. "Comics" or "graphic novels" they aren't; they were and always will be "Tintin books." Bandes desinees, as the French call them, are a sort of hybrid form, don't seem to fit easily into either the American or Japanese comics/manga tradition, influential as they have been. Anyway, the haul of Tintiniana cemented his belief in Santa for a good few years, aided by a peculiar note (in writing completely unlike his parents) from the great man. Seamus also remembers it as shifting the focus of his attention from toys to books. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/db356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Let's give credit where credit is due. Others may be content to churn out endless series of medieval quests of good versus evil, vampires in love, zombies in suits, young wizards, elves and dragons, pirate stories, cyberpunk or faerie folklore. Justina Robson's ambition is to mash together an amalgamation of all these, while throwing in some thoughts about quantum mechanics and alternate universes, rock and roll, self-empowerment and probably a half dozen or so other things. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/yt356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT So many authors are known for a single work or even a single character that it practically becomes part of their names: "Mary-Shelley-author-of-Frankenstein," "Harriet-Beecher-Stowe-author-of-Uncle-Tom's-Cabin, Arthur-Conan-Doyle-creator-of-Sherlock-Holmes," "Bram-Stoker-author-of-Dracula." It's a rarity that this kind of lightning strikes the same author twice, but it happened to Robert Bloch. He became famous for his short story, "Yours Truly - Jack the Ripper," that appeared in Weird Tales in 1943. For a good many years he was known as "Robert-Bloch-author-of-'Yours-Truly-Jack-the-Ripper.'" But then one of his short novels was published by Simon & Shuster with little fanfare titled Psycho. And the author would be known for the rest of his days as "Robert-Bloch-author-of-Psycho." http://www.sfsite.com/11b/se356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT In a way, the story of this book is far more interesting than the story in the book. It was one of the last novels that Verne wrote before his death in 1905, and in 1904 he was writing to his publisher to say that he hoped to see the book in print before he died. It was not to be: the novel, indeed, was not quite finished at the time of his death as a couple of minor points in this text show. The novel went on to be one of the works published posthumously under the aegis of his son, Michel, but when Verne's manuscripts were made available in the 1980s it became obvious how extensively Michel had tampered with his father's work. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Books featured here include the latest from Naomi Novik, Jacqueline Carey, Paula Brandon, Kylie Chan, Elizabeth Moon, Christopher Paolini, Janny Wurts, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/11b/dv356.htm Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Online projects have been improving rapidly over recent years and we're relentlessly advancing towards a new era of entertainment. More and more of us are reading online, playing online and discovering exciting new TV series online. Finding that decent TV content can be tough but Divine: The Series had the advantage that actor Misha Collins was involved and he shared the news about his latest acting project to his dedicated minions on Twitter. Word of the new horror/fantasy series quickly went viral. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica355.htm Fri, 4 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Stan Lee has a new how-to book out, How to Write Comics, which makes more sense, really, than his earlier How to Draw Comics, though given the way he moves through the material and presents his ideas, he could get away with being a non-artist, since he acts almost more like a compiler, or editor. But what struck Mark London Williams were the sections he had on "continuity." http://www.sfsite.com/11a/fm355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT The book is named for a nursery rhyme, but it's also the distance from Richmond to the farmhouse where two bodies in various states of mummification are found. The Virginia State Police are spread thin since it's a holiday weekend, so Samuel (Sailor) Doyle is tasked to head up the investigation. A recent transfer to homicide from vice, this is Doyle's first opportunity and he's terrified. But that's only a piece of Doyle's problems. http://www.sfsite.com/11a/ng355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Iain Rowan is a very fine writer, one of those authors endowed with the ability to hook the reader in just a few sentences and keep him nailed until the very last word. The book assembles eleven tales, all fine examples of modern crime stories, gripping and perceptive, probing the dark secrets of the human soul, just like an old Alfred Hitchcock movie. http://www.sfsite.com/11a/be355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT The book itself is a must if you're a zombie-phile or looking to become one of the undead, provided you're lucky enough to retain most of your cognitive functions. It tells the story of a lab tech named J.D. who, having become infected with the PACE virus, embraces his zombiness and creates this literature to help others of his kind in the coming war between mankind and zombie. http://www.sfsite.com/11a/wf355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT For every budding writer there is a period in their lives when they think they will never manage to get published, that their name will simply never be seen on the cover of a bestseller. Back in 1983, there were plenty out there who had that viewpoint, but if science fiction and fantasy is what they are aiming for, then back in 1984, there was some good news, as a new contest had been organized especially for aspiring authors; The L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Contest. http://www.sfsite.com/11a/se355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Living in a grimy Moscow apartment with her mother and younger sister, Galina has recently returned home from a stay in a mental institution. She is determined to say nothing that might send her back to the psychiatric ward, but her world verges on another breakdown when her very pregnant sister, Masha, goes to the bathroom and simply vanishes. http://www.sfsite.com/11a/bo355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT The book follows a group of immortal people through their lives. These are regular people in every respect except that they never age. They were not all born at the same time -- some were born earlier (as early as 5,000 years ago), and some arrived later, but there seems to be no pattern that explains their immortality. Their ancestors are not necessarily long-lived and their descendents do not inherit their immortality. They recover quickly from injury but they can be killed by accidents, disease and battle. http://www.sfsite.com/11a/bp355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Several years ago when the reviewer was doing a lot more book reviewing, he devised something called the Lupoff First Paragraph Test. The LFPT is very simple. If you don't know whether a given book is going to be worth reading, just sample the first paragraph. If that is good -- most notably, if it makes you want to keep on reading -- there's a chance that the whole book will be good. That's no guarantee. It could fall apart at any time. But it might -- it just might -- hold up. On the other hand, if the book starts badly, there is almost no chance that it will ever get better. http://www.sfsite.com/11a/tk355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT There are two significant science fictional inventions here, either of which would justify a book in its own right. One is a big dumb object: a technological curiosity that hangs in space like a monumental question mark. The penetration and exploration of this object provides the main science fictional drive of the story. But it is the second invention, a low key political scenario, that holds the book together and leaves you wanting more. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT In the late 70s, Ridley Scott, hot off the success of Alien, and Harlan Ellison discussed the challenges inherent in making a film adaptation of Frank Herbert's Dune, to which Scott was, at that time, attached. Ellison, as he recounts in Harlan Ellison's Watching, pointed out the insurmountable challenges, but Scott remained convinced of its feasibility, telling Ellison, "The time has come for a John Ford of science fiction movies." Derek has a look at some possible candidates. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT This time features the latest works from Ray Bradbury, Jasper Fforde, Greg Egan, Maureen F. McHugh, Richard Morgan, Mark Hodder, Kathy Reichs, Stephen Baxter, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT Falling Skies and Torchwood, while not deathless classics, held Rick's interest to the end. Terra Nova did not. It wasn't terrible, it just didn't hold his interest. He is still watching Sanctuary, but if it wants to keep him as a viewer, it needs to start making sense. http://www.sfsite.com/11a/at355.htm Tue, 1 Nov 2011 11:00:00 GMT When marketing manager Katherine "Kitty" Katt instinctively, against all odds, kills a superhuman monster with nothing more than a pen, she's almost immediately dragged into a world of bizarre adventure unlike any she ever imagined. She's spirited away by a group of Armani-clad hotties who work for an agency so secret, it's literally out of this world. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/wo354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Webmind, the world's first true artificial intelligence, has finally revealed himself to humanity, sparking a firestorm of controversy and mixed reactions. Despite ingratiating himself by all but eliminating spam, he's already survived one attempt on his "life" and fears a repeat. Now he must convince his "creators" that he comes in peace, winning over a world conditioned to expect the worst of artificial intelligences who can break any encryption, invade any database, and learn any secret. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/ls354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT The collection has a range and sense of controlled exuberance. There is a disregard for easy genre categorisations. For instance, the title story is pretty much a mainstream literary piece about a lady with an eidetic memory, while the immediately following "Ever Seen By Waking Eyes" is a vampiric twist on Lewis Carroll's much-analysed and much-debated interest in young girls. Two very different "genres," yet both have the same tone and emotional impact. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/jp354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is very much a book of two halves, being two books in one connected only by basic theme. When one title is read, flip it over and start a whole new story from the other side. Halves come into play with the lead character of Judas Payne who is the product of rape by the Devil, and is half-white half-native American, who is in love with his half-sister, Evangeline. Flip the book over, and there's Webb's Weird Western Tales of Horror by Don Webb. This is a small collection of twelve unconnected tales, all with weird twists. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/fj354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Things seem to finally be going well for the Jedi and the Galactic Alliance. With the appointment of an interim Chief, the removal of Natasi Daala, the return of Luke Skywalker and the apparent disappearance of the Lost Tribe of the Sith, events seem to be favoring the Light Side of the Force. Or so you might believe with the eighth book in the Fate of the Jedi Expanded Universe series. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/bs354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT This issue has to be read to be believed, Peter Tennant's column being the best, Ray Cluley and Maura McHugh's stories captivate, and Mike O Driscoll's argument on genre fiction makes it a very enjoyable magazine that's well worth getting your hands on. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/di354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Miles and Ekaterin Vorkosigan deferred their honeymoon for a year after their wedding, but they've spent several months touring the nexus while their first children gestate in uterine replicators back on Barrayar. They're on their way home to be present for the birth when Miles's duties as Imperial Auditor intervene, and they are diverted to Graf Station to handle a budding diplomatic disaster. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/li354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Talk about a young hero coming up from reduced circumstances. Jamie O'Neill, at age 13, has lost his left arm and his voice as a result of a bout with bone cancer. The arm was amputated in order to provide a supply of healthy bone marrow to replace the diseased tissue and save his life, but Jamie was not consulted. He finds himself and his mother Anna living in a decrepit uptown tenement in New York City, not really making ends meet. Until one day Anna receives a letter revealing that a distant relative has died and left her the sole heir to a small island and a lighthouse off the coast of Northern Ireland. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/dd354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Westeros is a ravaged and war torn kingdom. House Lannister still controls King's Landing under Tommen's rule although it is tenuous at best. The Lannisters have earned themselves many enemies throughout the seven kingdoms and just about all of them are contending for the Iron Throne so the plotting, scheming and backstabbing are in full force. In the far north, Jon Snow has been promoted to Lord Commander of the Night Watch. He not only has to deal with the massive army of Wildings at his doorstep, but winter is coming. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT A unique melding of Frank Herbert's Dune, Jack Kirby's Fourth World, Michael Moorcock's The Dancers At The End of Time, A.E. Van Vogt's bizzaro, golden age space operas, and the Greek tragedies, The Saga of the Meta-barons (simply know as The Metabarons in the US) explores the multi-generational lineage of the universe's ultimate warriors. Originally introduced in May 1981 as a supporting player early on in Alexandro Jodorowsky and Moebius classic Incal series, the Metabaron played a prominent role throughout. Rick Klaw has a look at the first series of four graphic novels. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT This time we're looking at new works from Neal Stephenson, Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan, Charlaine Harris, Richard K. Morgan, anthologies of new horror in time for Halloween, and plenty more! http://www.sfsite.com/10b/no354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT The novel joins other notable society-wide apocalyptic fictions such as Stephen King's The Stand, Jose Saramago's Blindness, and Octavia E. Butler's Parable of the Sower: apokalypsis in medias res. Rather than give us the aftermath of catastrophe, we are thrust face-first into its genesis and immediate consequences. The effect is like the collision with an undivertable freight train, as society as we know it very quickly degrades into cataclysmic collapse. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/rh354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT When Robert Holdstock died, late in 2009, he left behind a body of acclaimed work that effectively constituted a paradigm shift in how we regard fantasy. But there was no equivalent body of critical work that his significance in the genre should warrant. This volume is a first step towards filling that gap. But only a first, and at times rather tentative, step. http://www.sfsite.com/10b/rd354.htm Sun, 16 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Red Dwarf. The Dwarf. The Boys From the Dwarf. Smeg Head. Kryten. Smeeeeg Head. Rasta Billy Skank. Holograms. SF trope rip-offs. Hell, every-decent-SF-movie-ever-made rip-offs!! And yes, that sentence does qualify a double exclamation in the best tradition of some seedy teen mag. Red Dwarf, then. Where to begin? http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica353.htm Wed, 5 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Mark London Williams has written about his life here as a middle-aged single dad. His readers's tolerance for the use of that "material" here is appreciated, by the way, but increasingly, he has become aware of how this affects his life as a comics-reader -- and an ostensible reviewer. So with DC working on new back stories now, he has been reading the new Animal Man, the Demon relaunch, the new Swamp Thing (his eldest became a huge fan after reading his collected Alan Moore editions) and the surprising Aquaman. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/sh353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Owen Adamo, a former Chief Sergeant of the Dragon Corps,now a professor of strategy at the university of Volstov, learns that Esar, the ruler of the capital, has a covert agenda to bring back magically powered sentient robot dragons, despite the likelihood of this action starting a new war. Adamo's confederates, the gay magician Royston, and the former corpsman, Balfour, would like to stop Esar's risky ambitions, but have to watch their step. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/al353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT The book takes place in the same world as the Mistborn Trilogy, but this time the story is about 300 years into the future. Guns, railroads and skyscrapers exist and electricity is just becoming commonplace. Kelsier, Vin and the rest of the gang have long since faded into the mists. As far as the plot goes, it has echoes of an old Sherlock Holmes novel and the author has created his own allomantic version of Holmes and Watson with Waxillium and Wayne, our two protagonists. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/fk353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT In recent years, Keith Brooke has been writing superior science fiction and fantasy novels such as Genotopia, The Accord and The Unlikely World of Faraway Frankie. His considerable skills were first honed writing juvenile novels and short science fiction in the late 80s and 90s. Faking It collects nine of those short SF stories (including one never before published), all of which are set in a common near future. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/sc353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Every few years, international science fiction appears to be spotlighted by an American editor, whether it is the excellent SFWA European Hall of Fame edited by James and Kathryn Morrow in 2007 or Tales from Planet Earth edited by Frederik Pohl and Elizabeth Anne Hull twenty years earlier. Here we have Sky City, with stories selected by Carl-Eddy Skovgaard and published by Science Fiction Cirklen, an anthology of Danish Science Fiction originally published in 2007 and 2008 with new translations into English. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/gm353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT At first glance, the little village of Claysville may appear to be just like any other middle American town of its size: families grow and blend, and everybody knows one another and pitches in when someone needs help. If it seems that the Claysville way of life is somewhat sheltered or removed from the hustle and bustle of contemporary American life -- well, that's to be expected in any small country town, even in the 21st century. But there are certain laws in Claysville, both the official kind and ones that go mostly unspoken. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/gl353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT This non-stop military techno-adventure is set in the middle of a war in Central Asia in the 22nd century. Russia and the United States are fighting over the resources of Kazakhstan. It turns out that the country is rich in rare metals that are needed for the 22nd century's technological devices. They have to be mined deep in the mountains of Kazakhstan and the mines, countryside, little villages and cities of Central Asia become battlefields. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/ra353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Imagine a future not so far away and not so fantastic, where humans are so dependant on robots that we hardly give them a second thought. They're in our homes, cars, phones, and work places. They clean out house, cook out food and take care of the dangerous and tedious work we don't want to do. And what would happen if they all turned against us? http://www.sfsite.com/10a/af353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Sirintha Jax saved the human race from the horrifying menace of the flesh-eating Morgut, but only by crippling interstellar travel for everyone. Worse, she may have stopped most of the Morgut, but a few ships still slip through, enough to devastate the planet of New Venice and kill several of her friends, a cost for which she'll never forgive herself. In the wake of her actions, it's time to pay the piper, and so Jax embarks upon a new phase of her life: war criminal and traitor. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/pkd353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT The second volume of this new edition of the collected stories of Philip K. Dick contains some 26 stories from the early period of his career. Written in 1952 and 1953, they represent an astonishing outpouring of talent. This kind of productivity was by no means unique for scriveners of the period. Writers working for the last of the pulps and newly burgeoning digest fiction magazines, especially those mired in low-end markets, had to produce at a frantic pace if they hoped to earn even a marginal living at their craft. The alternative was to keep a day job and write in stolen moments. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Recently, Derek attended a podcast on the "essential" science fiction films. What should every fan see? What are the linchpins of the genre? He served with a distinguished panel, and everybody mentioned so many different titles that after the discussion the moderator suggested the possibility of extending the topic. For example, could we name the worst science fiction movies? How about the best hard sf movies? What about science fiction movies from other countries? Maybe science fiction anime? Blends of science fiction and noir? He lost count but... http://www.sfsite.com/books/new353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Latest arrivals to the SF Site office include new and forthcoming works from James Barclay, David Drake, Greg Keyes, James Lovegrove, Justina Robson, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rick enjoyed the first fifteen minutes. The rest not so much. He was bored by the rebellious teen. The pretty girl who knows science and the adorable pre-teen were OK. None of the dialogue sounds like anything a human being might say in similar circumstances. But characterization is not what people tuned in to Terra Nova to see. As well, Rick gives us a list of what SF is on TV in October. http://www.sfsite.com/10a/ll353.htm Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rosalinda Fitzroy wakes up from 62 years of chemically-induced stasis in a forgotten subbasement to a kiss. Normally, her mother wakes her up from stasis to a champagne brunch and a warm welcome, so her awakening is as jarring as the world which has self-destructed and put itself back together in the time she's been gone. She may have lived for over 100 years, but she's still a 16-year-old girl, frightened, knowing no one and recognizing little from the time she left behind. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/fm352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Steampunk is quite the sub-genre de jour of late, its popularity having grown to the point over the past number of years where it has even acquired its titular name. As its audience has grown so have the number of writers jumping on this proto-SF bandwagon in both the novel and short form. It thus becomes necessary for the author to distinguish himself from the crowd by coming up with some sort of fresh take, or variation, on what have already become steampunk tropes. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/cr352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Boss has arrived at the planet Wyr, in the city of Vaycehn, against her better judgement. Her job is to find and recover stealth technology -- technology that was once used by those who built the Dignity Vessels, but technology of which human beings are no longer master, and that is now just part of a mythical age. And this technology has, until now, only been found on derelict ships, not deep underground. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/ut352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Paul is generally in favour of critical introductions to collections of stories. Except when it's a book he's reviewing. Then he tends to feel that he is being told how to read the book; especially if the critic picks up on an aspect of the work that he might otherwise have built his review around. Which is the case here. It's quite a good introduction by Steven Shaviro. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/sg352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT This book purports to collect all of the auhtor's work that has appeared since his last collection of short fiction, Scatterbrain, which appeared in 2003, and it does indeed do that. It also includes a number of short but usually quite interesting non-fiction works. What is perplexing is that fully a quarter of this massive volume consists of excepts from nine various novels. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/ju352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Another solid issue for Jupiter. The thirty-second issue is subtitled Eurydome, as ever after a moon of Jupiter. This episode, besides the usual list of 5 stories, features 3 poems, 2 by veteran SF poet G.O. Clark, and one by Chris Oliver. Each is readable, a bit clever, thoughtful -- and, like almost every SF poem Rich has read, fairly negligible as to the holy fire of great poetry. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/jc352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT The final story arc begins. Tahiri Viel's sentence for the murder of Admiral Pelleon is revealed. The Jedi take action against Daala's growing imperialism. Luke and Ben visit the home world of the evil droch insects in the hopes of finding leads on the missing entity Abeloth and Vestara Khai must finally face her father and her belief in the Sith way of life. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/we352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT A small-time crook gets nabbed during a bank heist. Unfortunately for the crook, a man was killed during the robbery and a death sentence could be handed down. To save his own life, the thug cuts a deal and agrees to name the mastermind behind the bank job, but as the police are escorting him to the DA's office, he suddenly falls to the ground in convulsions and within minutes, is dead. A quick examination shows that the crook's eyes have turned a perfect and unblemished white, like cue-balls. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/wf352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT This novella, originally published in the anthology, Irresistible Forces, takes place a few months after the events of A Civil Campaign. It's the Winterfair season, and Miles Vorkosigan is only a few days away from his wedding to Ekaterin Vorsoisson. Vorkosigan House is in an uproar with the preparations, only exacerbated by the arrival of a contingent of Galactic guests, including Miles's former comrades from the Dendarii Free Mercenaries. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/pa352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Pierce has been recruited by the Stasis, a seemingly omnipotent organization that has charged itself with the preservation and reseeding of mankind throughout Earth's extinction events, and collecting the knowledge of countless human civilizations in a vast library located literally at the end of the world. Stasis agents use timegates to carry out this work, traveling to any of the two and a half million human epochs to record the entirety of the human experience. But equally important as history to the Stasis is unhistory, and the timeline is riddled with palimpsests. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/hb352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Hellbent is the second volume of the Cheshire Red Reports series, "Cheshire Red" being the aka for protagonist Raylene Pendle, vampire thief-for-hire. In the previous Bloodshot, we're introduced to Raylene as a sardonic but basically good-hearted female criminal, even if undead and the blood-pumping organ presumably is out of warranty. She is hired to recover a set of magical bones that a schizophrenic witch intends to use to conjure forces of nature in an act of vengeance against her former NASA employer. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/br352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Although mainly a prolific, very brilliant novelist, Tim Powers occasionally tries his hand at the short story. This first new collection since 2005 assembles five stories and a novella, where he exhibits his extraordinary talent as a fantasist and his uncommon imaginative power. The title story is an enticing, offbeat tale featuring a jack-of-all-trades whose most peculiar talent is saving ghosts and lost souls. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Due to an influx of graphic novels at the Nexus Graphica Texas offices, Rick Klaw is opting out of his usual monthly missives in favor of an entire column devoted to reviews. Next month, he plans to return with a more traditional piece. Well, unless something similar happens... http://www.sfsite.com/books/new352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT New this time are the latest from Robert McCammon, Connie Willis, Tom McCarthy, Tim Pratt, some repackaged classics by Poul Anderson, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, and more! http://www.sfsite.com/09b/rp352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Scientists have noted that by the time the average student graduates from high school, they've spent as much time playing computer games as they have studying for their courses. In school you master your coursework and (hopefully) learn how to learn. So what are gamers becoming experts at? Maybe they're learning the skills needed to save the world. http://www.sfsite.com/09b/vv352.htm Fri, 16 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT While other books on this subject matter are made for fans of such series as Star Wars, Harry Potter and Twilight, this book is a refreshing change as it has essays based on the characters in the movies that are popular at the moment. This volume gives the reader a deeper understanding of what evil is when it is applied to villains in popular culture, and how it affects us in turn. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica351.htm Fri, 2 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT So here we have the rebooting of the DC universe, but Mark London Williams thinks we're going to tack against the grain of the comics press and not talk about that, or the new issue Justice League. Too much. He did not line up for the midnight madness events, though one wonders why, if the comics are available digitally, one would line up at all? Well, getting out has its own rewards, he supposes. http://www.sfsite.com/09a/ag351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Guns? Check. Tanks? Check. Mad explosions? Check. Insane missions? Check. Ba lance battles powered by energy from divine pantheons? Er... check. Rampant horny squabbling gods? Check. Gods running rampant over a futuristic Egyptianesque Earth? Check. British soldiers in love with hot fiery women? Check, check and triple check, sah! This is like no book Andy has ever read. And he means that in a good way. It's a kind of weird cross between Terry Pratchett's Pyramids, Neil Marshall's Dog Soldiers and that happy frisky comedy, The Mummy. http://www.sfsite.com/09a/aa351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT To begin with, these short fictions are funny. They are also experimental, wayward and surreal, any of which might make them seem far more serious and "worthy" than they actually are. They are not stories in the conventional sense. Some of them may offer a narrative, but if you try to follow them too closely you will find characters change, chronologies wander all over the place, and an obsessive interest in something mundane and irrelevant will suddenly intrude into the text. http://www.sfsite.com/09a/bf351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT "Your future hasn't been written yet. No one's has. So make it a good one!" Wise words from the enigmatic Doctor Emmett Lathrup Brown that drew to a conclusion the phenomenal Back to the Future trilogy. Since that moment when Doc and his family left Marty and Jennifer by the remains of the wrecked DeLorean and flew off into the unknown in the time traveling train, fans have wondered just what adventures (if any) existed in that unknown future. The deceptive "The End" that wrapped up the films seems to have closed things up... or did it? http://www.sfsite.com/09a/pa351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT The new Planet of the Apes movie is enjoyable, favoring appealing characters over heavy-handed satire. This film is a new beginning, and the setup for a new series. Whether it will take us all the way to the half-sunken Statue of Liberty remains to be seen. http://www.sfsite.com/09a/ca351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT They killed Bucky! No, just kidding. I mean, of course they killed Bucky, but they always kill Bucky. Joe Simon and Jack Kirby created Captain America in a simpler time, World War II, when comic book stories were complete in one issue, or even had several stories in one issue. http://www.sfsite.com/09a/fsf351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT The Bird Cage" by Kate Wilhelm opens with Grace Wooten who refuses to allow Edward Markham to use himself as a test subject in the study of Parkinson's disease. Grace believes the monkeys are enough for the time being, and her team are working round the clock trying to find the solutions to the mystery, but Markham isn't satisfied, and makes her use him, or he will cut the funding for her project. http://www.sfsite.com/09a/sm351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is the second novel featuring the daring escapades of Will Swyfte, England's greatest Spy of the Elizabethan Age. While the book can be read as a stand-alone, there is much to be gained from knowing what has gone before, as chronicled in The Sword of Albion. The year is 1593, plague is ravaging London, and no one feels safe, including Will Swyfte. When his friend, the playwright Christopher Marlowe, is killed in a pub brawl, Swyfte believes it is an assassination and vows to track down Kit's killer. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Fans and critics cite the 50s as the Golden Age of cinematic science fiction. Granted, the period saw so many groundbreaking movies that most cinema historians accept the period's classic status as a given -- mention of some of the decade's classic movies must include Forbidden Planet (1956), The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), This Island Earth (1955), Them! (1954), The Thing (From Another World) (1951), among others. Derek began wondering whether we should consider the 80s a second Golden Age, rather than, as some might term it, a Silver Age. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT New and forthcoming titles from Terry Brooks, Joe R. Lansdale, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, Cherie Priest, Adam Roberts, Brandon Sanderson, and many more. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rick gives us a list of those SF TV shows that have caught his attention recently. They include Doctor Who, followed by Torchwood. He also gives us a list of what SF is on TV in September. http://www.sfsite.com/09a/ve351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Jakob Douglas fought alien enemies he didn't understand for years before being dishonorably discharged for his part in a mutiny. But now his former CO has called him back into service. A thrilling, action-packed sci-fi debut, the book that takes place 300 years in the future. The war with the aliens has lasted 60 years and an end is nowhere in sight. But now one of Them has turned up in Jakob's hometown of Dundee, and he's the closest hope of destroying it. http://www.sfsite.com/09a/zh351.htm Thu, 1 Sep 2011 11:00:00 GMT Zombies continue their relentless, foot dragging, moaning assault on popular culture. And the concept of the "mash-up" has allowed many to meld two completely unrelated genres to create something entirely new and sometimes amazing. This book falls into the written word category and takes the simple premise of retelling early US history, but revealing through hidden files that the early untamed Americas were rife with the undead. http://www.sfsite.com/08b/wg350.htm Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Paul is coming to the conclusion that the worst disservice ever done to "science fiction" was saddling it with that name. In particular, the "science" part. It raises expectations and assumptions on behalf of both readers and writers that the genre mostly cannot, and should not, even attempt to fulfil. As long as we expect fiction to incorporate scientific rigor, we are doomed to disappointment. And if we expect science fiction writers to be better qualified than any other reasonably well-informed member of the public to comment on the scientific issues facing us today, we are deceiving ourselves. http://www.sfsite.com/08b/pn350.htm Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Have you ever had the inner yearning to write your own novel? Even if it started out as a short concept and you had got it down on paper or even as a draft on your computer. You needed to see it completed, and hope against hope to see it published, and gracing the shelves in book stores. It's what everyone wants to see, isn't it? Well, now you know what poor salesman Piers Langland is going through as he tries his hand at NaNoWriMo every year. http://www.sfsite.com/08b/dh350.htm Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT When promising young novelist Thaddeus Beaumont began to suffer from writer's block, he took the cue from one of his favorite writers and decided to try writing under a pen name, George Stark. Unlike Thad's earlier books, Stark's novels were darker and more violent, something the public seemed to crave since Stark's books were much more popular than Thad's had been. http://www.sfsite.com/08b/sd350.htm Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT This three-story volume is the first of several collections of Leiber's iconic Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser stories. Organized chronologically according to the character timeline, it contains two origin stories for the unlikely duo and the Nebula and Hugo-winning "Ill Met in Lankhmar" that narrates the duo's first caper together. http://www.sfsite.com/08b/mb350.htm Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Vampires are a part of us. They are the dark side within all of us. Who wouldn't want to have special powers, be able to live forever and keep looking young even though we might be over a hundred years old. Vampires, like werewolves and Frankenstein's monster have a special place in our hearts, and Dracula is the crown prince of all vampires. Since Bram Stoker penned his 1877 novel, it has been the basis for a whole host of writers who enjoyed its sinister premise, the characters and its dark outlook on life. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica350.htm Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rick Klaw's earliest comic book memory centers around an issue of Joe Kubert's Tarzan. His father, a Tarzan movie fan, probably picked it up and after looking through it gave it to his three-year-old son. While he wasn't quite reading yet, Kubert's powerful portrayal of the gorillas created a lasting impression. Shortly after, his younger sister destroyed the comic, ripping it to shreds. Apparently it scared her. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new350.htm Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Our latest crop of new arrivals includes the latest from Richard Kadrey, Richard K. Morgan, Stephen Hunt, Kim Harrison, Greg Keyes, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/08b/di350.htm Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT So let's get the painful stuff out of the way immediately. Philip K. Dick was a drug-taking, paranoid, wife-beating maniac; or so Lawrence Sutin presents him -- in the nicest way possible. But please, let us qualify these "facts" with more context. Drug-taking -- yes. Mr. Dick did indeed take handfuls of dubious tablets on a regular basis, and had many an interesting hallucinatory episode -- both on and, indeed, off drugs. In fairness, in later life, as he matured, Phil saw the "error of his ways" and according to Sutin denounced drugs as a social evil, whilst still puffing on weed and popping prescription mood stabilisers. But hey, the life of a tortured artist is never a easy ride right? http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica349.htm Tue, 2 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Since it's early August, Mark London Williams is back from his annual trek to Comic Con. He stayed for all four days this time (or at least parts of all four days) so took in more Con than usual. He went to see a crime writers panel one of the evenings which included renowned comics writer Mark Waid. When the panelists were asked who they were looking forward to seeing at the Con, Waid started to rave about the digital comics work of Parisian-based animator/artist Yves Bigerel and how it was changing his own thoughts about narrative form. http://www.sfsite.com/08a/rl349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Peter Grant, a probationary constable with the London Metropolitan Police, has issues with focus and faces a move to the Case Progression Unit, a group that does paperwork for the real cops when a conversation with a ghost changes his destiny. Returning to the scene to recontact the ghost, a detective inspector asks him what he was doing and he answers with the truth and becomes the first trainee wizard in fifty years under Inspector Thomas Nightingale. http://www.sfsite.com/08a/gs349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Grimscribe is an apt title for this definitive reissue of the 1991 collection of horror stories. There's almost nothing here that is humorous, or uplifting or anything other than, well, grim. The plural subtitle of "His Lives and Works" may refer to the multiple lives and works of characters whose individual stories vary in circumstance, but who are all engaged in the same discovery that our ordinary existence is permeated by nefarious forces of which we are ordinarily only dimly aware. The discoveries are not pleasant. http://www.sfsite.com/08a/tw349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Inducing suspension of disbelief is the necessary requirement for any work of fiction. This is especially true for stories dealing with the supernatural or the paranormal. But when the supernatural issue is addressed by a "detective," who has to use his skill to analyze and deduce things become even more difficult and only great writers can manage to achieve and maintain the required suspension of disbelief. http://www.sfsite.com/08a/ds349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT The novel begins in the time when Jardir was growing up in Karsia before he meets Arlen and the narrative tells of how he grew into power and the circumstances which led to his betrayal. In The Warded Man, Jardir's betrayal is shocking, but the focus on the events from Jardir's perspective casts him in a much different light as we slowly begin to see the reasons that led up to this point. The contrasting and changing perspective of The Desert Spear is really a breath of fresh air to the reader as the author is creating some very complex plot threads and some very interesting characters. http://www.sfsite.com/08a/su349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT On June 9, 2037, a major solar event occurred. All across the planet Earth, people experienced electrical blackouts, communications outages, and all other manner of electronic disruption. At a monitoring station on the moon, a Russian scientist registered the event and he and his colleague began investigating the matter. The results of the study were at once astounding and terrifying. The electronic interruptions experienced on Earth were found to be merely a precursor to a more devastating event that was yet to come. http://www.sfsite.com/08a/ff349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Hugh Farnham is prepared for nuclear war. As a contractor, he has designed, built and stocked a fallout shelter. Nuclear war begins while the entire Farnham clan (and a visitor) are home, so Hugh quickly moves his wife, college-aged daughter, her sorority sister, his lawyer son and their house servant Joseph into the shelter. They all survive the attack and emerge in a world that is not destroyed, but is actually a lush forest with wildlife and no radiation and no sign of the nuclear war that occurred. http://www.sfsite.com/08a/rs349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT If you have been following the series, the crew of the Catharand has successfully made it across the ruling sea, well most of them anyway, and now the really weird stuff seems to begin. You see, not only did the crew cross the untraversable ruling sea, it seems they have been transported 200 years into the future and some fairly significant changes have occurred to the human race. Meanwhile, Panzel, Neeps, Thasa and the host of supporting characters are still at odds with the evil sorcerer Arunis and his quest to master the power of the Nilstone in order to destroy Alifros. http://www.sfsite.com/lists/yb-sf-author01.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT In 1984, Gardner Dozois gathered together what he thought was the best short science fiction of the previous year. He scrutinized as many of the magazines, collections and anthologies published in 1983 that he could get his hands on and chose those which he felt best represented the science fiction field. Jim Frenkel published it as part of his Bluejay Books line (for three years) and it has been produced every year since then (by St. Martins's Press). Volume 28 has been added to the lists compiled by author, by title and by volume. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT The aliens are here. Again. And they're out to wreak havoc. Again. What started as H.G. Wells's commentary on imperialism in 1898 has turned, each summer, into an update on the art of special effects, possessing at best the merest sliver of intelligence that Wells and his myriad successors bring to any First Contact tale. Indeed, the Martian tripods loom large each time visitors arrive to cinema screens, often with far more noise but with far less visual frisson no matter why they decide to make Earth's prime real estate their battlefield. Derek Johnson imagines Herbert George spins in his grave faster with each retelling of his classic novel (and by now some enterprising MIT grad should hook him up to a generator). http://www.sfsite.com/books/new349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Some of the newest books to show up at the SF Site doorstep include the latest from Kelley Armstrong, J.G. Ballard, John Clute, Cory Doctorow, Tim Powers, Justina Robson, Brandon Sanderson, Chris Wooding, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/08a/ca349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Cowboys & Aliens is in the sf western genre, which goes back at least to The Phantom Empire, a Mascot serial starring Gene Autry. The movie starts well, finishes badly, and doesn't really have anything new to add. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick349.htm Mon, 1 Aug 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rick is back from Comic-Con where he heard Kevin Smith ask William Shatner if he was coming out of the closet, heard J. Michael Straczinski rate himself a 6 or a 7 to Alan Moore's 10 and attended comics fandom's fiftieth anniversary reunion. One thing he didn't do was to see any movies. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/kb348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT In more ways than one, the author has zipped up his boots and gone back to his roots. There are plenty of references, some subtle some a slap across the chops, to past fan favourites. Parallels, both natural feeling and a little forced, are drawn with favourite plot lines and vintage characters. There is a deliberate sense of history repeating in terms of what these characters are doing, but Feist neatly sidesteps the trap of writing them as if they were no more than alternate takes. http://www.sfsite.com/lists/yb-sf-volume07.htm#28 Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT In 1984, Gardner Dozois gathered together what he thought was the best short science fiction of the previous year. He scrutinized as many of the magazines, collections and anthologies published in 1983 that he could get his hands on and chose those which he felt best represented the science fiction field. Jim Frenkel published it as part of his Bluejay Books line (for three years) and it has been produced every year since then (by St. Martins's Press). Volume 28 has been added to the lists compiled by author, by title and by volume. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/ds348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Python Isle is a small, uncharted island somewhere between Australia and Africa. Its inhabitants are the direct descendants of King Solomon, trapped here for many centuries, and effectively cut off from the world by the savage storms which encircle the island. Here they remain, faithfully guarding Solomon's vast treasure. It was only a matter of time before their peaceful existence was disturbed. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/gm348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's tough being a teenager. It's even tougher being an unappreciated alien living on Earth. And when, like J!m, you're both of these things at the same time, there's enough adolescent angst to nuke the planet. In fact, nuking the planet is exactly what humanity did years earlier in order to defeat an alien invasion led by J!m's father. Now, J!m and his mother live in a run-down section of town and try not to attract attention. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/cc348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT While a lot of, if not most, science fiction has to do with the interplay between culture and technology, A Civil Campaign uses that interplay in service of a romance -- or, as the subtitle puts it, "a comedy of biology and manners." In this case, the manners come in the form of Barrayaran society, which is still clinging to the feudal government and rigid sex roles that it developed during the Time of Isolation. The biology comes primarily in the form of galactic uterine replicators. However, now that this generation of sons has grown up, they're suddenly feeling the dearth of marriageable women rather sharply. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/lj348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT In Jupiter, Bova introduced Grant Archer, a researcher that made fleeting contact with gigantic creatures (some are several kilometers wide) that live extremely deep in the oceans of Jupiter. Now, 20 years later, Archer is in charge of Jupiter's research station and he is determined to prove that those Leviathans are intelligent. He assembles a team of experts and the book follows those experts as they get to know one another and as they determine how they can best meet and interact with an utterly alien life form that may or may not be intelligent. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/et348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT The central idea is Language, which is the language of the Ariekei, the native intelligent species of the remote planet (remote as defined by its accessibility through human FTL travel, which is based on something like wormholes) of which Embassytown is the single colony city. Language is unique, in that it is spoken by two voices simultaneously, in that it will not support a lie, and in that it is unintelligible to the natives if not spoken by an intelligence. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/bd348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT One of the perhaps unexpected impacts of personal technology on our lives is a hyperlocalism. The futurism of days gone by has often emphasised the abolition of distance and the opening up of a global arena of action for all of us, but the smart phone and the social network seem to be instead opening up space for the nearby, the quotidian local. Science fiction has often tended to emphasise universal dreams. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/ao348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's an insider's book not just because of the myriad references to such iconic figures as Samuel R. Delany, Philip K. Dick, Robert A. Heinlein and, big daddy of them all, but perhaps not nearly as hip as it once was since the Peter Jackson cinematic trilogy, The Lord of the Rings. More importantly, it's the evocation of how you felt as a teenager in first discovering authors whose extraterrestrial or otherwise fantastical settings somehow seem to be speaking directly to your awkward, too-smart-for-your-own-good, virginal kid self. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT In the 50s the duo of Charles and Ira Louvin were the hottest thing going. With their countrified brand of gospel music, the brothers sang of fire, brimstone, and Satan. One of their biggest hits, the 1952 "Broadminded," told us that the Bible taught that broadminded is really spelled S-I-N. They talk about how things must remain how they are. That drinking and dancing are wrong. All this brings to Rick Klaw's mind the reaction of many SF fans to graphic novels. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Canadian postal workers were legislated back to work (boo!) so the mail is flowing again (yay!) bringing to the SF Site doorstep the latest from Lisa Goldstein, Jacqueline Carey, Holly Black, Timothy Zahn, Daryl Gregory, Fiona McIntosh, Harry Turtledove, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/tf348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT There is quite a good movie hiding inside the over-loud, over-long third film in the most recent incarnation of the venerable Transformers. It's likely that you have limited interest in watching two almost indistinguishable robots pound each other, and the plot contrivances that allow puny humans to determine the outcome of the battle become increasingly strained. But there are any number of small moments that make the film a joy. http://www.sfsite.com/07b/vm348.htm Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Our visions of Mars are subtle and complex, and have changed repeatedly over the years. It is, after all, not just a close neighbour but also the planet about which we have been able to learn most, there is a familiarity to Mars that cannot really be said about anywhere else in the solar system other than the moon. There is also something tantalizing about the place. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/ts347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's a dark time for the denizens of Orkney Farm, where a rogue mylodon has snatched the venerable Foud, Mr. Magnus Trefoil, out of his study. Now the giant beast has returned, sniffing around the bedroom windows of the late Foud's little daughter Mary. Telltales in the coffee room of the Hop Toad attribute this ill fortune to Trefoil's recent unearthing of a cache of mystical items belonging to his late ancestress Tronda Quickensbog, a sorceress of legendary repute. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/bw347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Dystopias have almost as long a history as their twin, the utopia. But it was the 20th century when dystopias really came into their own, in novels such as Zamyatin's We, Huxley's Brave New World, Orwell's 1984 and Karp's One. Indeed it is possible to view the 20th century as the dystopian century, not just because of the prevalence of dystopias as a literary form but also because of the political horrors that provided so much inspiration. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/th347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Tom Harris has the form of a detective story, one that consistently throws the reader off kilter, does not allow complacency or certainty, yet a detective story nevertheless. A detective thriller, even. A detective story that suddenly breaks down, for this is a book of two halves, the second very different from the first. Some questions are answered but most aren't. This is no classic whodunnit, partly because we don't quite know whatwozit in the first place. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/ft347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Still a rarity in fiction writing, science fiction meets the Wild West results in a wealth of time travel and steampunk adventures. In this issue of the magazine, we find nine tales in this rather well-presented glossy magazine that is really a book by the looks of it. It features works by C.J. Killmer, Laura Givens, David Lee Summers, Raymond Broadbeard and Lee Clark Zumpe. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/cd347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Imagine a world where books are valued -- not like we appreciate books in our society, but really valued. A place where authors are celebrities, first editions are coveted, people memorize and recite famous excerpts, and even crimes are committed over rare books. This is the world of Zamonia, a mythical lost continent. The story features an unlikely hero, Optimus Yarnspinner, a naive dinosaur-like creature from Lindworm Castle, a self-proclaimed author who has yet to be published. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/od347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT The story begins with an alien survey of Earth in the year 1415. The aliens are exploring and documenting all habitable planets and rate all inhabited planets on a technology scale. They find the Earth of 1415 backward technologically but decide to watch some military action in Europe. What they witness is the Battle of Agincourt between Henry V's England and France -- some of the fiercest fighting of the Hundred Years War and the site of horrific slaughter. The aliens that witness this slaughter are horrified. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/tt347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT There is a weapon that can change the course of the war against the Kurians. Captain David Valentine doesn't know what it is, or exactly where he can find it, but he does know that if he can get to Haiti with a large enough ship, he can meet up with a man called Papa Legba who can show him the way. To that end, he goes undercover for a year as a Coastal Marine in the Kurian Zone, getting promotion after promotion as his own worst enemy. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/tk347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT While walking through the wooded acreage of her Haven, Maine home, novelist Bobbie Anderson stumbles across something very interesting -- literally. After picking herself up off the ground, Bobbie looks back to see a thin piece of metal jutting out of the soil. Letting her curiosity get the best of her, Bobbie begins to dig, in spite of the strenuous protests of her faithful dog, Pete. Bobbie doesn't know it yet, but she is about to unearth something never before seen on this world. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/ko347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT For Miles's first assignment as an official Imperial Auditor, he is sent to investigate the crash of a space freighter into the Komarran Soletta Array -- a giant mirrored satellite that provides much of the light and heat needed to make Komarr habitable. Not to investigate the mechanics of the crash itself -- that much falls to Lord Auditor Vorthys, an engineering specialist -- but to probe the political currents that eddy around the incident. Miles is normally right at home in the waters of politics and intrigue. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/bg347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Black Gate first appeared in print as a quarterly zine. That idea evolved over fifteen issues to the present form, a book-length anthology that comes out when it comes out. The previous issue, at nearly 400 pages, was so successful that the decision was made to stay at that length. For the amount, the price is quite reasonable, and the online subscription is half that. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Mark London Williams is away so guest columnist Cullen Bunn stepped in to tell us that one of the perks of writing a comic book series like The Sixth Gun is that he gets to read (and re-read) a bunch of favorite Weird Western comics, short stories, and novels and watch (and re-watch) favorite Weird Western movies and TV shows. This, as they say in the biz (at least in his little corner of the biz) is research. Even when it's not research, it's inspiration. (One of the toughest battles any writer will face is convincing his or her loved ones that -- no, really -- watching that movie trilogy all afternoon is work!) http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Derek went to see Chariots of Fire at the Fox Theater in Austin in 1982. He tried to see Academy Award winners whenever they were playing. The preview that played before the movie began was for the major Harrison Ford release that summer, Blade Runner. Derek cannot remember a single scene from the movie, but he can tell you, almost shot for shot, nearly thirty years later, exactly what happened in that preview. He remembers walking out of the theater babbling about it, and how it was like nothing he'd ever seen. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/ca347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT The pilot episode begins with the poisoning of Uther Pendragon at the hands of his daughter Morgan Pendragon. Merlin gets Uther to sign over the succession of his kingship to his bastard son Arthur who has been kept hidden away and his identity unknown, even to himself, until Merlin shows up to gather Arthur up to take the throne and repair the now crumbling monarchy. In subsequent episodes Arthur establishes his court by gathering his knights and rebuilding the ancient fallen Roman stronghold known as Camelot while Morgan continues to plot for the throne using her dark powers. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT Falling Skies is the best new science fiction tv show since 2009's Defying Gravity, which was also a Summer series. Defying Gravity was cancelled half-way through its first season. Rick hopes Falling Skies has a longer run. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/gl347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT The Green Lantern movie isn't as bad as Rick had feared. He particularly liked the first face-to-face meeting between Green Lantern and Carol Ferris, where something happens that he has wanted to see happen for years. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/lp347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT The book starts somewhat deceptively with an image straight out of a Lovecraftian nightmare. Yamesh-Lot seems to be a cross between an evil demon and a malevolent god, summoning up the dead to create an army of terrifying reanimated corpses. A little Lovecraft with a touch of George Romero? The author doesn't stay in the supernatural horror mode for long, though. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/jj347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT You love the fantastic, it is in your blood. You have devoted a substantial part of your life to it, a part friends and colleagues have sometimes suggested has been wasted. Sometimes you wonder if they are right. You have poured your blood out through your pen but you find yourself unregarded, unrewarded and out of pocket. You are invested... so you want a return on your investment. How do you crystallise this labour into something that means something? How can you -- whisper it -- moneterise it? The answer is, of course, a book. http://www.sfsite.com/07a/et347.htm Fri, 1 Jul 2011 11:00:00 GMT The author is a man with much to say about the truth surrounding aliens and whether they exist. He starts the first chapter with the reason for this book, being his own encounter with aliens he describes as an actual close encounter as he felt nauseous at being in the craft itself. The fact there are a great deal of chapters in this novel means he has a lot of newly discovered information on aliens to back up what might be conceived as bizarre claims. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Amongst the various releases during May's Free Comic Book Day festivities, Boom! Studios premiered the initial installment of Elric: The Balance Lost, the first non-Michael Moorcock crafted Elric comic story in 35 years. Acclaimed writer Chris Roberson and artist Francesco Biagini usher Elric through his latest graphic epoch. The White Wolf initially leaped into the four color pages with Marvel's Conan the Barbarian #14-15 (1972). Rick Klaw takes a look at the history of Michael Moorcock's work in comics. http://www.sfsite.com/06b/bu346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Steampunk technology from Victorian England, along with fantasy tropes like zombies and vampires, come to 1880s Arizona at the time of the OK Corral gun fight in a light-hearted mash-up that cannot help remind one of the Wild Wild West television show of the 60s. But the author also throws in vampires, zombies and Indian magic, along with many of the most famous real historical characters of that era. http://www.sfsite.com/06b/dt346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Hanns Heinz Ewers (1872-1943) was a renowned German author of weird and decadent fiction, whose work nowadays is largely forgotten and/or scarcely available because of his personal involvement with the Nazi party. UK-based Side Real Press, which is endeavoring to translate and reprint most of Ewers' work, has produced an elegant volume of original short stories by contemporary writers, inspired to the fiction and the cultural milieu of the German author. http://www.sfsite.com/06b/im346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT The story is of an unnamed narrator, a fugitive from Venezuela after some unnamed crime, who comes to an island in what seems to be the Indian Ocean. As the narrator's informant, an Italian rugseller in Calcutta, puts it "Chinese pirates do not go there, and the white ship of the Rockefeller Institute never calls at the island, because it is known to be the focal point of a mysterious disease, a fatal disease that attacks the outside of the body and then works inward." http://www.sfsite.com/06b/bs346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Of all the work in this magazine, the fiction stands out most of all. First up is "Freedom Acres" by Andrew Magowan where Carolyn, a neighbour in Freedom Acres notices a new man moving in over the road from her, and, from the moment she sees him she has a deep sense of unease. She does not know why she feels this way, but she fears for herself, her husband and their child while he continues to move in. Up until now, the place has been quiet, and uneventful, but a dark cloud has come over Freedom Acres. http://www.sfsite.com/06b/sa346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rick wanted to like Super 8 more than he did. It is not a bad movie, neither is it a great one. There is a character in the movie who says that movies are not just about action, they are about making the audience care about the characters. Rick got the feeling that J.J. Abrams was trying too hard. http://www.sfsite.com/06b/xm346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT In two comic books, both with a cover date of Sept 1963, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created two new superhero teams, The Avengers and The X-Men. The Avengers was Marvel's answer to DC's Justice League of America, a team-up of their most famous solo characters. The X-Men was something else entirely, all new heroes attending a school for mutants. Jack Kirby based the story loosely on Wilmar Shiras's book Children of the Atom. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Two new genre tv shows premiere this month. The first, Teen Wolf, has already aired. It is roughly a half hour of typical teen high jinks with about eight minutes of werewolf spliced in. Falling Skies premieres June 19. Aliens conquer Earth. Humans fight back. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT New books from Kelley Armstrong, Stephen Deas, David Anthony Durham, Sara Douglass, Robert J. Sawyer, Robert Charles Wilson, and many more are featured here. http://www.sfsite.com/06b/gf346.htm Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is a compilation of several stories from some of the best-known fantasy and SF writers around. The reader can look forward to two bonuses, as the first half contains Fred Saberhagen's novel, Mask of the Sun, and later seven original stories by contributors: David Webber, Harry Turtledove, Walter Jon Williams, John Maddox Roberts, Jane Lindskold, Daniel Abraham and Dean Wesley Smith. http://www.sfsite.com/06a/wm345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT The Wise Man's Fear continues the story told in The Name of the Wind with Kvothe recounting his life's story to Chronicler at the Wayside Inn. His recollections pick up right where they left off with Kvothe attending the University. His conflict with Ambrose continues in earnest and his exploits in and around Imre continue to build his legend. When circumstances at the University compel Kvothe to take a term off, he travels to the distant land of Vintas to work for one of the wealthiest men in the world. During his travels in Vintas, besides conquering the world, Kvothe manages to uncover more about the Chandrian and furthers his quest to locate them in order to seek vengeance for the death of his parents and his entire troupe of Edema Ruh. http://www.sfsite.com/06a/dw345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Not as well known in the science fiction field is Vance's output as a mystery writer -- eleven novels under his full official name of John Holbrook Vance, three as Ellery Queen, and several more under other pseudonyms. The Vance admirer who knows him for the mannered, intensely colored writing of his science fiction will assuredly be surprised by the deliberately matter-of-fact, almost flat, style of his mysteries. http://www.sfsite.com/06a/sa345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Oscar Wilde once wrote to Robert Ross that "romantic surroundings are the worst surroundings possible for a romantic writer. In Gower Street, Stevenson could have written a new Trois Mousquetaires. In Samoa, he wrote letters to The Times about Germans." Looking at the lives of some the titans of imaginative literature, there is some justice in the remark. Jules Verne, creator of so many spectacular (not to mention fantastic) voyages, would have the vapours at the mere thought of leaving Paris; and of course Proust, confined to the cork-lined room, was the supreme literary pioneer of the exploration of time as well as space. http://www.sfsite.com/06a/ww345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's 1938, and America is at war. This is not the war in Europe that we are all familiar with, however. The United Slav Army, in a surprise attack on the American west coast, quickly gained a large foothold, encompassing most of California, and massacring the entire population of San Francisco in the process. The beleaguered American forces are barely hanging on against the overwhelming technology of the Slavs, but a new secret weapon just might turn the tide. http://www.sfsite.com/06a/me345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Miles Vorkosigan has made a lot of mistakes in his thirteen years of military service, but he's always been able to bounce back stronger than before. But at the start of Memory, Miles makes a series of errors in judgment that could cost him everything. After his brush with death in Mirror Dance, Miles's cryo-revival procedure has seemingly gone without a hitch -- except for the fact that he now has unexplained, unpredictable, and uncontrollable seizures. http://www.sfsite.com/06a/it345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT It is a bittersweet thing to come to an end of any good saga, and this is especially true for The Demon Wars Saga. It's the story of the land of Corona, where the Demon Dactyl, Bestesbulzibar, awakes -- wrecking havoc in the land. It took seven books to get through this adventure, but was it ever worth it! http://www.sfsite.com/06a/uq345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT The plot begins to thicken with the murder of Professor Galapogos, in his office at the Natural History Museum. Ulysses Quicksilver is soon on the scene, and determines that the killer has also stolen the professor's difference engine; the steam-punk equivalent to a personal computer. Throughout this work the author amuses with alternate tech, such as Ulysses Quicksilver's personal communicator; a brass and leather mobile phone, an Overground train network in Londinium Maximus, mechanical bobbies, and Beefeater-drones with clockwork craniums. We soon learn that Magna Britannia is the ultimate superpower, dominating a world where the sun never set on the British Empire, and Queen Victoria is almost 160 years old. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT So who has time to read comics these days (are comics really a young man's game, as opposed to something for harried middle-aged dads?) or even see Thor (which apparently is not bad) or contemplate DC's latest "universal reboot" with summer's upcoming Flashpoint/Justice League twofer, which gives the new/same heroes new origins (presumably), retooled identities, etc? Mark London Williams had these questions swirling around his head, when it occurred to him that even in a time of (seemingly) no reading, he had actually read some comics after all. http://www.sfsite.com/06a/sv345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Attention everyone. Attention: Superman has left the cornfield. After 10 years on the air and 217 episodes, Smallville is no more. Clark Kent has put on his tights and taken flight, finally donning the mantle of the Man of Steel and bringing the longest-running American Science Fiction series to a close, in a two-hour finale that can only be described as a glorious mess. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Over the Memorial Day Weekend, Derek decided to indulge himself by going to the movies for an entire day, something he hadn't done in a while -- something that used to occur regularly when he was in his teens and, on occasion, early twenties. But when most multiplexes screen anemic fare, to say nothing of advancing age, clawing his eyes out with rusty forks appeals more than the prospect of trekking from screen to screen at the local multiplex to view such cinematic atrocities. Fortunately, the Alamo Ritz in downtown Austin held a Day of the Apes: all five Planet of the Apes movies shown back-to-back, for, according to the Alamo Drafthouse's website, "over 8 armageddonlicious hours of blazing gorilla warfare." http://www.sfsite.com/06a/os345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT Better than Thor, not as good as Pirates of the Caribbean II and Pirates of the Caribbean III, not nearly as good as the first film in the series, this fourth Pirates movie has good acting, some clever dialogue, but a very weak plot. It's not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick345.htm Wed, 1 Jun 2011 11:00:00 GMT For most of his life, Rick claims there has only been one really good science fiction series on television: Star Trek. The last two decades brought half a dozen more, starting in 1993 with Babylon 5 and The X-Files. Now that Smallville has ended, the only new show he really looks forward to is Doctor Who. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/haj344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT "It is clear with all of these characters that they are stronger together than apart, and I definitely worked to show this with Dabir and Asim. Once they learn to trust each other and work together in this book, they are greater than the sum of their parts. I guess Asim came first, but only by a few seconds, because as soon as I could hear his voice, I knew he was talking about the adventures he had with his scholarly friend." http://www.sfsite.com/05b/fi344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT At heart, this is a straightforward thriller, the premise of which is a jobbing rock band, being stalked by a deranged sniper. The band are the Five, and they're portrayed as musicians, slogging away at their craft, but never quite getting the big break. Something starts going right, when a video for their latest song is commissioned. The problems begin when the video is broadcast as it gives the false impression that the band are disrespecting the US military in Iraq. The show is seen by one Jeremy Pett, a former US Marine sniper, now a dark shadow of his former self. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/sh344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Peter S. Beagle has a readily identifiable voice. It is weighed down with loss and regret; the voice of someone all too aware of the approach of death yet who regards it, if not with indifference, then with acceptance; it talks more easily about the past more than the future. And that voice is fully in evidence in this latest collection of stories. They are stories of memory, filled with sentiment that just occasionally slips over into sentimentality. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/df344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Subterranean Tales of Dark Fantasy was the beginning of a monster, and that monster spawned a second helping of stories under the guise of dark fantasy, in Subterranean Tales of Dark Fantasy 2. With some of the best known names in dark fantasy and horror, we get stories by Caitlin R. Kiernan, Bruce Sterling, Joe Hill, Kelley Armstrong, Glen Cook and William Browning Spencer. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/cd344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Editors of anthologies featuring only original stories have to make the best of the solicited or unsolicited submissions they receive and select what they think are the most accomplished contributions. On the other hand, when assembling reprint anthologies editors are free to include anything they deem to be suitable from the huge material already appeared in books and magazines. A great advantage indeed, especially when dealing with theme anthologies. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/hf344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Authors have been riffing off of Shakespeare just as Shakespeare himself lifted the plot of Hamlet off of Thomas Kyd. The trick to appropriating someone else's characters and story line, particularly those as canonical as Shakespeare is saying something beyond mere mimicry. Hamlet would be long since forgotten had not Will imbued an old (even for his time) Danish tale with personalities Harold Bloom famously termed "the invention of the human." http://www.sfsite.com/05b/jo344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Danny Shapiro's world is crashing down around him. His mother is slowly dying from heart disease. His father does not understand him. He is Jewish in the heavily Christian suburbs and as he gets older this is becoming much more of an issue. He cannot date the girl he wants to date because she is not Jewish and it would crush his already weak mother. His family is Jewish but does not attend services so Danny does not feel the comfort of ancient traditions. Danny is alienated, to say the least. His one and only outlet is his journal of his experiences with UFOs and UFO research. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/gr344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Galaxy Audio has taken 150 short stories written L. Ron Hubbard during the 30s through the 50s and turned them into a collection of audio pulp fiction. As you might imagine, many of these are science fiction, and each one has been re-imagined into two-hour audiobooks. This installment of the L. Ron Hubbard collection contains three stories that take a unique approach to science fiction story-telling -- "Greed," "Final Enemy" and "The Automagic Horse." http://www.sfsite.com/05b/bs344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Raylene Pendle (aka Cheshire Red) is a vampire who pretty much keeps to herself, even avoiding her own kind, with a personal moral code that doesn't allow for killing humans to suck their blood unless, of course, there's a good reason. She's even such a softie that she harbors two homeless kids in a Seattle warehouse where she stores her stuff. Not just any kind of stuff, but stuff she has stolen. She is a professional thief for both pay and pleasure, and when you're undead, things start to collect after a few centuries. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/gu344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT The cover image sets the tone for a somewhat darker collection this time. There seems to be a lot more poems (worthy of particular mention is Jim Pascual Agustin's "Sand Clings To Me Toes, Daddy" with its capturing of one of those moments in childhood that are both magical and sad, presaging the inevitable passage of time), the stories seem to be longer, and there are none of the short comics of the previous volume. As well as being longer, there seems to be a darker tone to these stories. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/ft344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT There is a lot to enjoy with this collection. Starting when the reader first looks at the book, they will be surprised at how small the book is, and also how well designed it is. Her poetry and stories are about several fantasy creatures; elves, centaurs, fairies, and nymphs. There are some erotic ones though too. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT New and forthcoming this time, we look at the latest from Terry Brooks, China Mieville, Mark Charan Newton, Cherie Priest, Harry Turtledove, several new Star Wars titles, plus a whole lot more. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT With summer rapidly approaching and a large selection of goodies arriving in the Texas Nexus Graphica offices, Rick Klaw decided to forgo his usual monthly missives in favor of a column devoted to a handful of recent reads (and views). Next month, he'll return with a more traditionally Nexus Graphica-style piece. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/booknews344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's all happening on the Supernatural TV show at the moment with Season Six drawing to an exciting close and the news breaking this week that the show's seventh season has definitely been picked up by the CW network. But as the series goes into its usual summer break, we'll all be looking around for somewhere to get our Supernatural fix during the long lazy evenings. So why not try listening to music from Supernatural convention veteran Jason Manns or delve behind the scenes in Nicholas Knight's Official Companion books? http://www.sfsite.com/th344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT When a major high-brow director makes a movie based on a comic book, it does not usually turn out well: witness Ang Lee's Hulk and now Kenneth Branagh's Thor. Rick loves Branagh's Oscar-winning film of Shakespeare's Henry V. Thor, not so much. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT The first two weeks in May brought us the season finale of Fringe and the series finale of Smallville. The end of Smallville was worth watching. If you have not seen these episodes but plan to, stop reading now. http://www.sfsite.com/05b/ta344.htm Mon, 16 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT A lone traveler in a battered blue police box traveling through time and space, righting wrongs and keeping the universe safe. Doctor Who is an amazing show with a phenomenal 40-plus year history. But more than being the longest running and greatest resurrected television show ever, it's a reflection of the culture that created it. The writer captures the show's cultural importance with here, a critical study of the impact the show has had on British society and, through that, the world. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/th343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Although he died when he was only 42, Henry Kuttner, in the late 30s and 40s published, under a score of pen-names, hundreds of tales in the most famous pulp magazines (Weird Tales, Thrilling Mystery, Strange Stories, Spicy Mystery, Marvel Science Stories, etc). And the present collection, subtitled The Early Kuttner, includes forty stories and, mind you, is only the first volume. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/ao343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT The magazine has, for a long time, borne the speculative fiction standard in Ireland. For a country with such a strong literary tradition, speculative fiction per se does not loom large in considerations of Irish literature. Of course, some of this is the same blend of snobbery and ignorance seen elsewhere, and some of this is due to the understandable but, as some think, rather tiresome preoccupation with exploring the same themes of "Irishness" again and again. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/sh343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT The novel sees The Raven having to survive a war that rages over their land as the mages of Balaia wage war on them in order to take their world for them by force. Ry Darrick has come back to his homeland to answer the charges laid against him for his past mistakes; treason, desertion and cowardice; accusations that are not normally associated with the warrior. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/pr343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT A hard-boiled detective novel, it is set in a future in which mankind has moved to new worlds far away from Earth and created any number of new technologies. But people still find themselves confronted by age-old problems that come from within humanity itself. In the end, despite all of the glitz of spaceships and high tech weaponry, this is really a book about freedom vs. tyranny, redemption, revenge, justice, and honor. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/ch343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Dennis Guilder has known Arnie since they were little, and he was with Arnie the first day he saw Christine. Dennis, more than anyone, is aware of the unhealthy hold the car has on his friend, and has witnessed first-hand the changes Arnie has undergone. But Dennis knows a few things that even Arnie doesn't. He knows, for instance, how much Christine's first owner loved her, how he poured his heart and soul into the car, and how Christine was still the most important thing to him, even after his wife and daughter died in her. Dennis doesn't understand how, but he is convinced that the malign spirit of Roland D. LeBay still inhabits Christine, and that now, that spirit is beginning to take hold of Arnie. When the people that get in the way of Arnie, or Christine, begin to die, Dennis knows the car must be destroyed. He can only hope that it is not too late to save his friend. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/rk343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT A knight-for-hire whose lord is ambushed in a chapel during a diplomatic expedition in the hostile kingdom next door. The infant heir is the only other survivor of the ambush. Add in an unwed, potato-faced baker's daughter with her baby on her back. When these characters converge, so begins a tale of political intrigue, high adventure, blood feud and diabolical enchantment in a land of ancient enmities and shifting alliances. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/im343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT The schemes of Adryan, son of Elbryan and Jilseponie, are revealed in this installment of the series. Before his birth, Adryan was taken from Jilseponie's womb by Lady Dasselrond, a leader of the Tu'elafar elves, and raised as a ranger in hopes that he would save their land. It turns out that not letting the child or the mother know of each other's existence has stained Adryan's view on life. Leaving the elves, Adryan comes under the tutelage of the renegade monk De'Unnero, and plots to take the throne and conquer the world. Those that don't bow to him will be destroyed. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/ma343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT The Malazan Book of the Fallen has single-handedly raised the bar for fantasy literature. Its full impact upon the world of writing in general probably won't be felt for several years, but for fans of the genre and of the series, its impact is immediate and world changing. After Dominic finished The Crippled God, he closed the book and reflected back upon what he had just read and realized that this series of books is surely the best fantasy series that has ever been written. In fact, he couldn't think of anything even close. However, he took it one step further and asked himself if this once obscure series genre writer from Canada has created the crown jewel of fiction? The answer is, arguably, yes and why not? If you don't believe him, read it and then you tell him the work that you believe surpasses it. Dominic dares you. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/am343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Jo Walton's latest novel is already being touted as one of the books of the year. Paul is not about to dissent from that opinion, except that what most critics have picked out for praise is one of the things that bothers him about the book, and what excites him about it hardly seems to have been noticed by other reviewers. http://www.sfsite.com/05a/gt343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT A Song of Ice and Fire began way back in 1996 with the publication of A Game of Thrones and here we are 15 years later and still just over half of this series has been published. When you compound that with the fact that this series was shaping up to be one of the greatest fantasy series ever written, it's easy to see why his readers were upset. However, when the news broke several years ago about a possible TV series... http://www.sfsite.com/books/new343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT We've been inundated with new books lately, including the latest from Eric Brown, Mark Chadbourn, Steven Erikson, Marie Jakober, Sarah Pinborough, Patrick Rothfuss, Catherynne M. Valente, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Civilization is a Faustian bargain. For every progressive step, individuals and societies pay some equal price. Farming allows us to feed large groups of people, but at the cost of settling populations to till the land, thus diminishing hunter-gatherers. Understanding the universe often means giving up our superstitions, forcing us to question our most basic religious beliefs. Circumventing this bargain poses the same problems as creating a perpetual motion machine. All of the schematics designed by the most earnest Da Vinci wannabe won't sidestep the first law of thermodynamics. But the dream persists. It fuels most science fiction, and has since the days of Victor Frankenstein. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT As the comics cognescenti you are, you've already read about Action Comics 900, that double-zero'd milestone of Super-ness which has made the rounds of "mainstream" news because Supes his own self appears be renouncing "truth, justice, and the American way," in favor of a more global perspective. Mark London Williams has a look at the furor raised over this nisunderstanding. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick343.htm Sun, 1 May 2011 11:00:00 GMT Fringe is better than Smallville, though Smallville used to be great when Al Gough and Miles Miller were writing it. Sanctuary is better than Fringe. But now Doctor Who is back. And Doctor Who is so much better than any other genre show on television that it makes Rick ashamed to have praised the others. Doctor Who is really good. As good as Firefly. As good as Babylon 5... http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica342.htm Sun, 17 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT The Cartoon Art Museum revealed to Rick Klaw many delights, chief among them exhibits featuring the works of Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Berkley Breathed and a behind-the-scenes peek at the making of the legendary Looney Tunes. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/vi342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Angels are generally represented as either God-sent messengers or guardians protecting our souls from evil. And we must remember that devils and demons are, supposedly, just fallen angels. All in all, angels are supernatural beings bringing either light or darkness into our life. What better topic, then, for an anthology of fantasy /dark fiction? http://www.sfsite.com/columns/best11.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Welcome to the SF Site's 14th annual Editors' Choice Best Books of the Year -- our official Best Reading recommendations from everything we read in 2010. You'll notice some overlap with the SF Site's Readers' Choice: Best Read of the Year, and plenty of variance. Undoubtedly you can find some gem of a book here that you might otherwise have missed, as every book mentioned on this page is worth a look. Enjoy! http://www.sfsite.com/04b/md342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT To the Jackson's Whole geneticists who created him, he's a perfect clone, a work of art. To the Komarran terrorists who raised him, tortured him, and trained him, he's the ideal assassin. To Barrayaran Imperial Security, he's a dangerously unknown quantity and potential threat. And to Miles Vorkosigan, he's a wayward younger brother. But who is Mark Vorkosigan, really? http://www.sfsite.com/04b/of342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Four years have passed since the events of Halfway to the Grave and Cat is now leading a crack team of recruits who track down and eliminate vampires. The team is a first-class vampire killing machine whose physical skills are finely honed with a brutal training regimen and a touch of vampire blood infusions to give them an extra bit of supernatural boost. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/ts342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT The Earth is too crowded and a research corporation called the Long Range Foundation has invested in several ships to seek out new planets that humans can inhabit. There are already colonies throughout the solar system but they are too expensive and can only hold a limited number of colonists. The trick with all of these ships will be communication. The Foundation has found that some very few people, especially twins, are actually telepathic and can be trained to speak to one another with their minds. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/at342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Called a "Master of Alternate History" by Publishers Weekly, Harry Turtledove continues on that track with a set of 12 short stories. Topics and eras range from pre-history to the Peloponnesian War to the Byzantine Empire to World War II, along with two stories set in modern times. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/di342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT The story takes a look at an America where terrorists, both foreign and domestic, all attack at once, threatening not only our creature comforts, but the Constitution of the United States of America. The year is 2024 and many factions are tired of America's slothfulness and reliance upon technology. They all band together in a movement called Daybreak and bring not only America, but the world, to its knees. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/mm342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Once again, listeners have the opportunity to visit the Golden Age of science fiction in this audio release of selected short stories written by L. Ron Hubbard for pulp magazines such as Astounding Science Fiction, Startling Stories, and Thrilling Wonder Stories. This audiobook contains four stories brought to us by a cast of performers and narrated by R.F. Daley. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/ao342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Morwenna is a Welsh girl, with an identical twin named Morganna (also called Mor), and with an involved family history, living in the valleys in South Wales. But some months before, there was a terrible accident and Mor's sister dies, while Mor is sufficiently injured that she still uses a cane and walks with pain. Mor blames her mother for what happened, though somewhat indirectly -- it seems her mother, a somewhat dreadful and rackety woman is also a magic user, and had plans to became a Dark Queen. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/cm342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Diana has been living out of her suitcase and couch-surfing for weeks, so she really needs a place of her own. So when she's shown an apartment that comes with a set of rules (Rule #3: Don't pet the dog) and Mr. West, a mildly weird landlord, she's willing to overlook the little bell going off in her head in order to get free utilities, a jukebox with her favorite songs, and a fridge already stocked with her favorite soda. The apartment, West tells her, likes her. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/ve342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT The premise is that in 1870 a terrible plague of vampires swept over the northern regions of the world, annihilating millions of humans outright, and condemning many more to death from disease and famine. The survivors fled south to the tropics, where vampires could not stand the constant heat. Aided by their steam-based technology and a determination to rise again, humans rebuilt their shattered societies. Princess Adele is the heir to the Empire of Equatoria, a remnant of the old British Empire. Adele is 19, and promised in marriage, for political reasons, to a man she has never met. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/wo342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT King Authun, son of the god Odin, has only daughters, so with the help of the witches who live on the troll wall, he finds a way to give himself an heir. He travels to a Saxon village to steal a baby, who in turn, was stolen from the gods. To his consternation, he finds twins instead of one child and takes both and their mother back with him, assuming the witches will know which should become his heir. King Authun leaves no witnesses to his crimes. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/ja342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT It is only ten years after the Martians had invaded Earth, at least according to H.G. Wells, where they were killed by viruses unknown to them. Professor Coffin has the remains of some of the Martians on display as a curiosity among many other unnatural attractions that are losing their interest quickly among the visitors. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/sc342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT An intelligent script can turn an old idea into an entertaining film. Source Code is that old chestnut about reliving the same experience over and over in the hope that, this time, it will not end badly. The filmmakers tacitly acknowledge that the idea is unoriginal by casting Quantum Leap's Scott Bakula in the voice role of the hero's father. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Doctor Who returns April 23. Rick missed listing it in the April issue, so here is a list of the episodes announced so far in the new season. http://www.sfsite.com/04b/bf342.htm Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT The story picks up six months after the close of Back to the Future III. It's 1986, Doc is missing and his possessions are about to be auctioned off by the city of Hill Valley. A saddened Marty McFly goes searching through his old friend's workshop when, suddenly, the DeLorean appears, containing only Einstein and a recorded plea for help from the Doc! http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica341.htm Wed, 6 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Many of you are already familiar with Carla Speed McNeil's gender-fuzzing sf opus, Finder, as installments have appeared for years on the web, and in indie comics form, and Voice is set in that same world, the domed city of Anvard, where genders seemed to shift and blend faster than in The Left Hand of Darkness, among a greater array of clans duking it out for control than you see in Dune. Mark London Williams has a look. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/best11.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Welcome to the SF Site's 14th annual Editors' Choice Best Books of the Year -- our official Best Reading recommendations from everything we read in 2010. You'll notice some overlap with the SF Site's Readers' Choice: Best Read of the Year, and plenty of variance. Undoubtedly you can find some gem of a book here that you might otherwise have missed, as every book mentioned on this page is worth a look. Enjoy! http://www.sfsite.com/04a/ub341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT The volume collects sixteen of his less available works beginning near the very start of his career in 1953 and spanning the next 40 years. The stories are arranged chronologically, and, with a few exceptions, are very emblematic of the times in which they were written. But throughout the decades, Farmer returns to several common themes, especially those dealing with religion and medical doctors. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/dc341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is a curious mixture; a cross-genre novel aimed at young adults, yet based on characters from classic fairy tales. The lead character is Henry Whelp, the juvenile son of the Big Bad Wolf who killed Little Red Riding Hood and her granny. A crime for which Whelp senior is now imprisoned at a maximum security facility. Henry, also begins the story incarcerated, in the St. Remus home for Wayward Wolves, for the crime of breaking a window. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/best11b.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Every year SF Site asks you, our readers, to tell us what you felt were the best books you read from the year that just ended. For the past several weeks, we've been reading your recommendations with keen interest, and tallying your votes for the best of the best. What follows is the list that you and your fellow readers have chosen as the best books from 2010. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/ue341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Clara Gardner is one-quarter angel which, among other things, makes her faster and smarter than her peers although she tries to hide this, so she can live as normal a life as possible. Being an angel-blood also means she has an individual purpose for her life but discovering the details isn't easy. She gets bits and pieces from a vision of a boy, a truck and a raging forest fire that lead her family to move from the Bay Area to Jackson, Wyoming. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/tm341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT The gathering storm has broken. Black clouds roil the skies and the Dark One's taint mars the land. Skirmishes rage along the borderlands as Trolloc hordes surge out of the Blight in horrifying numbers. The Black Ajah is still at large and death stalks the halls of the White Tower, with Aes Sedai found mysteriously murdered. And armies are marshalling too late under the banners of Andor, Malkier and The Dragon Reborn, as the Forsaken scheme in the shadows to thwart destiny and crush the Dragon before his final confrontation with Shai'tan at Tarmon Gai'don. And thus the stage is set for Towers of Midnight. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/ad341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Brood, a lieutenant of the local police force in Solar City, is a post-apocalyptic place of perpetual darkness. Brood uses drugs to suppress parts of his brain that control fear and loathing to be at his best to do his job, yet through them he gains memories of a better past spent with those he loved, when the light once lit the city showing its once glorious sights. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/pa341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rick had high hopes for this sf comedy, because Simon Pegg worked on the script of Shaun of the Dead, as well as playing Shaun, and did a wonderful acting turn as Scotty in the new Star Trek. As the bishop said of the egg, parts of it were very good. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/vn341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Alexander Humphries led the first manned expedition to Venus, and became among the first to die there. It was an unexplained equipment malfunction that doomed Alex's ship and crew to rest on the toxic surface of Earth's twin forever. In the two years since, there have been rumours that the malfunction may have been the result of sabotage. Alex's brother, Van, will have to make the long trip to Venus and descend onto the planet's broiling surface to discover the truth of what happened. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/zo341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Where were you when the zombiepocalypse hit? Running errands? In class? Asleep? For David and Sarah, it was simple: they were on their way to marriage counseling (which, by the way, wasn't going so well). But when they stumble across their counselor snacking on the appointment before theirs, it's cause to worry. Cue a nonstop fight for survival, as the bickering couple attempts to stay one step ahead of the hungry hordes of restless undead. Seattle's never going to be the same again. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/tg341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Eleven-year-old Tom is a rather ordinary English schoolboy, who fears bullies and enjoys games. He begins to experience unusual deja-vu episodes -- some of which are genuinely terrifying experiences of impending violent death; his parents bring him to a family doctor and then a psychologist. It seems that perhaps growing pains are taking their toll. But things don't add up, in true hero-with-hidden-special-powers-story fashion, and then, he encounters an adventurer Septimus Mason. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/pp341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Therez Zhalina is the daughter of a rich merchant in the city of Melnek in the country of Veraene. She hopes to have her life broadened when she accompanies her older brother to his university. Alas, all her plans are destroyed when her father decides to marry her off to an influential man. But Therez, on meeting the man, takes an immediate dislike to him, and is further furious at the lack of any consideration of her own future. So she decides to run away. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Derek first read Bram Stoker's Dracula when he was eleven years old. At the time, it fit in nicely with his other reading which leaned heavily on adventure fiction of the period. His cinematic viewing was limited to two screen iterations of the infamous Count Dracula, both in a comedic vein. He went on to read classic vampire stories along with watching horror films like The Lost Boys, Near Dark, Once Bitten and Bram Stoker's Dracula. And now along comes Red Riding Hood and Beastly. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT The big news in April is the beginning of the new HBO series Game of Thrones, based on the best-selling fantasy series by George R.R. Martin. HBO has a good reputation for doing things right, and fans of the books can be thankful that HBO bought them instead of SyFy. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/lf341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Uncle Forry. The Ackermonster. Dr. Acula. A few people despised him. Thousands loved him. He's been gone for three years now -- born 1916, died 2008 -- and Deborah Painter, a longtime friend of Forry's and sometime contributor to his magazines, has written a full-scale biography of the most Famous Monster of them all. Considering the long-term affectionate relationship between them, one would hardly expect this book to present an objective view of its subject. Nor does it. And that's all right. http://www.sfsite.com/04a/sm341.htm Fri, 1 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT Dominic had such a great time last year reading Memory Sorrow and Thorn for the first time that it was a no-brainer to continue to explore the work of Tad Williams. He discovered another fantasy trilogy called Shadowmarch. As was the case with Memory Sorrow and Thorn, the final volume of this planned trilogy just got too big and had to be published in two volumes. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/best11b.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Every year SF Site asks you, our readers, to tell us what you felt were the best books you read from the year that just ended. For the past several weeks, we've been reading your recommendations with keen interest, and tallying your votes for the best of the best. What follows is the list that you and your fellow readers have chosen as the best books from 2010. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/gb340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is one of those books that elicits comparisons with the classics, and, by so doing, arches the incredulous eyebrows of prospective readers. The book has been variously described as like Dickens, Sherlock Holmes and H. Rider Haggard, mostly by other writers. The premise is three very different characters, all of whom become embroiled in the same nefarious conspiracy. At heart, it is a good old-fashioned mystery, with plenty of action to keep things lively. But can it be as good as the illustrious names mentioned above, or do we have another case of Emperor's New Clothes? http://www.sfsite.com/03b/sa340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Messing with the timeline can drive a man insane. That's one of the lessons Richard Burton and several other characters learn as they are confronted with an apparition who, among his various crimes, asserts that the world they live in was never meant to be. That world is nineteenth century England, a world of coal-engine driven taxis, helicopter lounge chairs, and genetically engineered messenger pigeons that taunt and insult the message's sender and recipient. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/fo340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT The story picks up a year after Starkiller's final battle with Vader and the Emperor on the still-under-construction Death Star. His former pilot and romantic interest, Juno Eclipse, is now Captain in the fledgling Rebel Alliance and doing her best to help and keep control of Jedi General Rahm Kota. But on Kamino, Darth Vader has not given up on his apprentice, either bringing him back to life, as he did once before, or finally managing to clone a Force-sensitive individual. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/wf340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Every year budding fantasy and SF writers send in their short stories to be read and possibly published in the next Writers of the Future volume. Judges, four in all, run their eyes over the new talent, and offer their own opinion on how good they are and if they are good enough; the judges in this case are; Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Eric Flint, Dean Wesley Smith and Mike Resnick. These judges were also winners in previous contests. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/au340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT The latest issue of Aurealis is the 20th Anniversary issue. One highlight is a memoir by cofounder Dirk Strasser of the circumstances around the founding and early history of the magazine -- very entertaining. Patricia L. O'Neill's science article, "Underbelly -- A Feast for the Census II," looks at some of the critters we harbor internally. The book review column is former editor Keith Stevenson's farewell, and there is an editorial from current editor Stuart Mayne. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/td340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT The first thing that grabs you about this book of contemporary poetry is the fact it puts off the reader by using capital letters throughout its entirety, and due to the advent of the internet and netiquette, those who are aware of netiquette will feel the poetry on every page is shouting at them. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/ww340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT E. E. Knight's Vampire Earth series, of which Way of the Wolf is the first, is a tremendous work of post-apocalyptic science fiction with genetically engineered vampires. The story follows David Valentine, from his beginnings as the adopted son of a minister in the free territories, through joining the Wolves and becoming like a wolf himself, through his military career against Earth's new Kurian overlords. Most of the power in this story comes from its excellent and brilliantly executed world building. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/fc340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Let's see if we have this straight -- in some future battle, Darkseid is defeated and is sent hurtling backward through time. Eventually, he lands on Earth in our own present day. This causes an imbalance in our world, and also in the 51 other universes that hinge upon our own, and the whole big mess begins to slide into a black hole. There's also something about the anti-life equation, a mathematical proof that shows Darkseid is the true ruler of all. Darkseid broadcasts the anti-life equation all over the planet to enslave humanity and a few super-heroes as well. All the super-heroes of the world, and a few not of this world, will have to band together to save the 52 universes. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/cg340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT The Cetagandan Empire may be Barrayar's main military rival, but when the Cetagandan Empress dies, political niceties must still be maintained. In this case, the young officer Miles Vorkosigan, son of the Barrayaran Prime Minister, and his cousin Ivan are sent to Cetaganda to attend the galactic funeral proceedings. However, they've barely made it off their spaceship -- and haven't, to their knowledge, offended anyone yet -- when they're attacked by a servant of the late empress... The same servant who is later found in the middle of the mourning procession with his throat cut. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/sp340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT The anthologists of record for such subgenres as New Weird and pirates as well as the subject matter at hand stand out because of their sense of humor about genre classification lacking in most academic treatments and that they supplement terrific fiction with offbeat critical discussions, typography and other diversions of interest. A prime example here is "A Secret History of Steampunk," a collage incorporating graphics, multiple authors, and just plain weirdness to satirize the academic research and discussion of obscure literary fragments. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/bn340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Just an ordinary teen, Hikaru lives her life through hearing, and the only thing she hears is the sound of the music on her MP3 player, uninterested in the real-life world around her at school, at home or in the street. One day she has a disruption in her headphones, she goes outside to see what the trouble is and is met by a skeletal form known as Horizon who infects her bloodstream and controls her actions. The invader is an alien being, though it isn't the bad guy she thinks he is and he wants her to save humanity. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/vi340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT We find ourselves in the company of four 12- to 14-year-olds. Tory Brennan, Temperance Brennan's niece, is the youngest and the only female in the group. Ben, Hi, and Tory make up the rest of the pack. They are all science and sci-fi geeks and the luckiest kids in the world. Their parents are an elite group of scientists from the University of South Carolina who are fortunate enough to live on Loggerhead Island, off the coast of South Carolina, which is all but deserted except for the research labs, a small pack of dog/wolf mixes, and a bunch of Rhesus monkeys who seem to have lived on the island since escaping from the labs many years ago. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Mark London Williams talked with Gary Phillips awhile back when his Bicycle Cop Dave first appeared on the web. But this being the ides of March and all, it's time to talk to him again about the current state of crime-in-comics, and noir in particular. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Newest arrivals at the SF Site offices include the latest from Kim Harrison, Raymond E. Feist, Orson Scott Card, Daniel Fox, Elizabeth Moon, China Mieville, Lisa Goldstein, and others. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Each year Rick predicts which genre films will be best, based on the people who write the screenplay, people who have more to do with how good a film is than anyone else, people largely neglected by the popular media. According to the IMDB, 102 science fiction movies will be released in 2011 and 92 fantasy movies. Most will never make it to your local multiplex. Most will not be worth seeing. A random example: Evil Bong 3-D: The Wrath of Bong, written by August White, who also wrote the first two Evil Bong movies. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/ab340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT The Adjustment Bureau is about that old chestnut, predestination vs. free will, but it is fast and smart and a good way to spend a Saturday afternoon. It is also about the ever popular idea that every man and every woman have one true love, something Rick responds to as strongly as the next man, despite never having seen it in real life. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/ds340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Dabir and Asim are both members of the household of Jaffar, a prominent judge in Baghdad and an associate of the caliph. Asim is the Captain of Jaffar's guards, and Asim is the tutor to Jaffar's beautiful -- and very intelligent -- young niece, Sabirah. Attempting to raise Jaffar's spirits after the death of his beloved parrot, the two happen upon an escaping thief, and recover a valuable ancient door pull. Dabir soon realizes that the door pull is connected with the disappeared ancient city of Ubar. http://www.sfsite.com/03b/al340.htm Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Death isn't the end anymore. Play your cards right, be willing to abandon your old life, and you can be resurrected, courtesy of Fresh Start's secret cloning process. If you're really lucky, you might get as many as nine lives before things break down to the point of systems failure. Chaz Dominguez is a Babysitter in New Orleans, tasked with protecting and watching over recent resurrectees for the first week of their new lives, until they're settled in and can take care of themselves. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica339.htm Wed, 2 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT In 1923 the visionary Nikola Tesla unveiled his greatest invention: Atomic Robo, a robot with automatic intelligence. Over the next eight decades, the metallic marvel along with his allies investigate and battled para- and extra-normal phenomenon. If this is news to you, then clearly you have yet to experience the fascinating creations of Brian Clevinger and Scott Wegener. Rick Klaw has a look at this series that recalls the best of the 40s serials and 50s science fiction. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/bg339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Saloninus, our narrator, tells us he is the greatest living alchemist. Apparently that's true, though as he also tells us, he doesn't always tell the truth. Indeed, he opens the book by telling someone "In the morning, I discovered the secret of changing base metal into gold. In the afternoon, I murdered my wife." Whether either or both or neither of these claims is true is much of what the story is about. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/an339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT In the course of her daily, dreary duties, a nun named Evangeline discovers wartime correspondence between the philanthropist Abigail Rockefeller, and the abbess of the New York convent that is her home. The suggestion is that the now deceased women conspired to spirit away a valuable object, which has supernatural powers. Naturally, the location of this missing artifact is only accessible to those who can work their way through a series of codes. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/pp339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Therez is a typical teen, revelling in her own intelligence, sure she's figured out the world. Like many smart teens, when presented with her first big challenge (and it's a very big one) she cuts and runs, not really considering that there could be worse things out there than her problems at home. And she finds them when she joins a caravan. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/pn339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Why do you read science fiction? Has it is been a lifelong affair, immersing yourself in altered worlds? Do you come for the science or for the fiction? For the adventure, for the characters, or for the ideas? If you asked Seamus in his more sober, respectable moments, he would say his attraction is to both new and innovative ideas, but also at encountering our own world slightly altered, or with some little quirk taken to its logical conclusion. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/bs339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT As well as the usual array of short stories, and information on where to get new novels in this month's issue of Black Static, Peter Tennant's Case Notes has some reviews on the latest books out there and an interview of Stephen Jones, "Home is Where the Horror Is." This time out, Tennant reviews the latest anthologies in horror such as The Mammoth Book of the Best of Best New Horror: A Twenty Year Celebration edited by Stephen Jones, The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror Volume 21 also edited by Stephen Jones, and Zombie Apocalypse!, created by Stephen Jones. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/ju339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rich thought the previous two issues of the magazine among the strongest in its tenure. Alas, this issue doesn't work as well. It features four stories, plus four linked sonnets. The sonnets are by Ian Sales, and are collectively entitled "Jupiter Quartet," with the individual poems named for the Galilean satellites. They are the most interesting pieces in the issue. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/kh339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Kitty is back in this third installment of the Kitty Norville series. After a disastrous visit to the nation's capitol, Kitty decides to take a break from her radio show and disappear into the mountains of southern Colorado to lick her wounds. Free from the glare of the media, Kitty tries to take a stab at writing her memoirs. Being the first verifiable werewolf in the world has garnered Kitty more interest than she truly wants. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/wh339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT In the sequel to World Made By Hand, the author further develops his dark image of an America plagued by terrorism and terrorized by plague. Now, with no more oil or electricity, citizens struggle to survive. The Witch of Hebron focuses on Jordan Copeland, the eleven-year-old son of the resident doctor in small-town Union Grove. Believing he must leave Union Grove, Jordan decides he has learned enough from his father to start up his own doctoring business in another town. As you might suspect, that plan doesn't work too well... http://www.sfsite.com/03a/bf339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is not a novel proper, but rather a collection of Miles Vorkosigan novellas. All three deal with Miles (who was deformed from a prenatal gas attack on his mother) as he must use his considerable intellect to get out of -- and occasionally in to -- trouble. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/ob339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT David Duane is an American artist, adventurer and air ace who finds himself fighting for the Democratic People's Government of Finland, only because he is in that country when the war starts. As a veteran aviator and air ace, Duane instinctively goes after a group of Russian bombers. But his mission is interrupted when he sees a city in the clouds. This city turns out to be Puhjola, the mythical land of heroes. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/dk339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT What happens when the rebels win and become part of the system? That's one of the many themes explored in the third and fourth books of the Sirantha Jax series, starring the titular hot-tempered grimspace jumper and her motley assortment of allies and friends. After bringing down the corrupt Farwan Corporation and battling the deadly alien Morgut, Jax has reluctantly traveled to Ithiss-Tor as an ambassador for New Terra's ruling Conglomerate. Her job: to play nice with the reclusive race of alien insectoids. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/za339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT The cleverly designed collection of short stories, strung together as journal entries, police reports, emails, texts, medical records and classified documents, tells of a near future London that, over the course of about a month, goes from being a country trying to celebrate its history in a failing economy, to ground zero of a massive zombie outbreak. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/ld339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Never again will Mario read another zombie anthology. This is his last one, he promises. After such an indigestion of zombie tales (44 stories spread across almost 500 pages), he doesn't think he'll be ever be able to take more. Maybe the occasional tale in a non-themed anthology, but not a whole book such as this hefty volume (the sequel to the successful and critically acclaimed The Living Dead). Having said this, the book does address the subject of zombies from any possible perspective and situation the human mind can conceive and that many excellent tales are included herein. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Derek's love affair with cinema began when he was twelve years old, with John Williams's bombastic opening fanfare that began The Empire Strikes Back. It almost ended abruptly a year later, with Wallace Shawn's nasal pleading with Andre Gregory to keep his electric blanket in Louis Malle's My Dinner with Andre. At the time, he was trying to see everything that was given generally unanimous critical praise, especially to things that would not normally have come across his radar. Recently, he recorded it on his DVR and watched it again for the first time in nearly thirty years. And guess what? http://www.sfsite.com/books/new339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Some exciting stuff has recently arrived at the SF Site offices, including the latest from Steven Erikson, Martha Wells, Lewis Shiner, Ben Bova, Sheri S. Tepper, and much more besides. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/au339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT Opinions differ sharply, but it may be paossible to date the origins of our genre (at least in its modern form) pretty accurately. In May 1515, Thomas More travelled to Bruges on a trade mission and in July took time off to pay a visit to Peter Giles, a fellow humanist, in Antwerp. There he wrote a treatise about an ideal state that would become the second part of Utopia. The response from those fellow humanists who saw the work was so enthusiastic that, upon his return to England later in the year, he wrote the section that has come to be known as the Dialogue of Counsel. The whole thing was published, in Latin, in Louvain, in November or December 1516. Thus was a new word coined, a literary genre created, and innumerable political theories born. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/jd339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT For those who like to delve into the realms of the unreal and offbeat, this is a really good one. What other cover has a severed hand on it wearing green nail varnish? This is as good an indication as any that what's inside is a fun read. It is an unusual novel that has several influences from some of the most notable horror fiction writers around, H.P. Lovecraft, Stephen King and dare one say, Douglas Adams. http://www.sfsite.com/03a/nm339.htm Tue, 1 Mar 2011 11:00:00 GMT On an island of women alone, who is the real enemy? This is the question posed on the dust jacket of the novel and it takes some time for the truth to come out. We are only left to question why men have been chosen as the enemy and attributed with horrible actions. Some of it may be true and are remembered from the days of Tribulation. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica338.htm Wed, 16 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Perhaps we're not going to discuss "love" exactly -- more like its absence, and what happens in the negative space created by its void, or its loss. But we are discussing "one big book" this time -- and a slight variant in the usual columnar construction. Besides, how often do we get to reference the exact title of a Patty Griffin song? One ably covered by Emmylou Harris? Mark London Williams picked up Jeff Lemire's collected Essex County, from Top Shelf Productions. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/steven337.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Science fiction fans have always had a respect and understanding for the history of the genre. Unfortunately, science fiction has achieved such an age that each year sees our ranks diminished. Deaths in 2010 included Kage Baker, Philip Klass (William Tenn), Patricia Wrightson, George H. Scithers, Frank Frazetta, Everett Bleiler, Neil Barron, E.C. Tubb and Donald H. Tuck. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/mb338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Jane's vacation with her boyfriend, Rick LaFleur, is interrupted by an announcement that the weres are coming out of the closet. Leo Pellessier, master vampire of New Orleans, has planned an event to parlay with African weres, but before the party, he sends Jane to deliver a "get out of town" message to a persona non grata. Expecting to confront a vampire, Jane faces off instead against a pack of werewolves thirsty for blood. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/sh338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT On her way to Luna, Dr. Rita Shankar goes to Tranquillity City and there she meets up with Colonel Ross, Johnny Yuen and Captain Narayan. She is the guest in an important meeting disguised as an innocent dinner at a Chinese restaurant. Shankar is on a mission, and they want her to acquire Helium 3, destroying the leftover supply for them to be able to sell the other at a premium, but getting it will be at high risk. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/tm338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Herbert George Wells (1866-1946) was certainly not the first science fiction writer. Scholars quarrel endlessly over that puzzle, arguing passionately for Jules Verne (1828-1905), Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797-1851) or even dear old Lucian of Samosata (120-180). http://www.sfsite.com/02b/st338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT an audiobook review by Sarah Trowbridge In the kingdom of Mellinor, in the deepest dungeon below the castle Allaze, the master thief and gifted wizard Eli Monpress uses his talents to their best advantage to break out of prison and kidnap King Henrith right out of his own throne room. Eli is asking a king's ransom but this operation is just one part of an elaborate scheme that unfolds gradually over the course of the entire book. It turns out that Eli's goal is to force the bounty on his head higher and higher, aiming to become the thief who summons the price of one million gold standards. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/md338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's 1989, and while personal computers have been around for a few years, their full potential is still largely untapped. Only about one household in three owns a computer, and most that do own them don't really know what to do with them. But there are an elite few who understand instinctively that mastery of the computer means power. These few are almost always teenage boys, are highly intelligent, and are bored. It was fun at first, like a game, but when a couple of hackers gain access to New York Telephone's computer system, the stakes are suddenly much higher. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/hb338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT The author introduces yet another series with this first installment of a trilogy set in a relatively near-future Savannah, Georgia. In this interesting new world the direst predictions about global warming have come true. America's southern states have become near-tropical. Flooding ocean waters have buried coastal cities, forcing them to move onto stilts or to move inland. Much of Florida is underwater and the Everglades have swallowed the rest. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/vg338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Miles Vorkosigan -- crippled son of Barrayar's Prime Minister -- has just graduated from the Barrayaran Military Academy, and like every graduate is desperately hoping to be assigned to ship duty. But instead of being put aboard the Barrayaran fleet's newest interstellar cruiser, he's assigned instead to the post of meteorology officer at a remote arctic training base. But even in that far-flung outpost, Miles can't stay out of trouble for long. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/wa338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Born blind, Caitlin Decter receives a retinal implant that allows her to see. In the process, her doctor accidently gives her the ability to see webspace as well as the real world. With her online vision, Caitlin notices a presence in the background of the web and begins to explore. She soon finds that the presence is an accidentally created artificial intelligence which she dubs Webmind. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/im338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is the first of three parts of the final book in The Demon Wars Saga. This tale has been a great adventure in fantasy, with heroes which include wizards (of a sort), elves, dwarves, goblins, giants, a centaur that plays bagpipes, humans, and a dragon. The author includes everything one could ever want in a fantasy series and populates the Land of Corona with some great heroes and villains. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/neil335.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Happy New Year! Once again, it's time to voice your opinion about what your favourite reading was from the year that just ended. Long-time visitors to the SF Site are familiar with the process. If you're new, what this is about is that we want to hear what you thought was the very best of what you read from the past year. And since we know how hard it is to pick just one favourite, you can tell us what you would put on your personal top 10 favourites. We also understand that you may not yet have read all the books from 2010 that you meant to, so we're going to give you a chance to do that -- until March 4, 2011. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/ct338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Kate is not at all what she seems to be. She could be an exile from a weird old place with its shuttered carnival attractions out on the Maine coast next to a great grey sea. And Kate has more problems than she knows what to do with, and they seem to multiply like gnats every time she turns around. But there is a gallery of allies she collects along the way. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/cb338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT The novel is set on the planet Kibou-daini. Miles Vorkosigan has come there ostensibly to attend on conference on cryogenic technology, but in reality to untangle some suspicious business dealings between the planet's companies and interests on Komarr. But things go a bit pear-shaped when Miles and others are kidnapped. Miles ends up escaping and meeting an 11-year-old boy, Jin, a runaway, who has settled in a sort of squat. But this place also hides a secret cryogenic facility http://www.sfsite.com/02b/ma338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT "All art aspires to the condition of music." Walter Pater's famous axiom is directly invoked in one of the stories in this anthology of speculative fiction linked by the theme of music, and is one of the first quotes that springs to mind when considering the artistic challenge of capturing music in words. Another well-known quote about music and writing is one by Frank Zappa. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/fj338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT The evil entity Abeloth has been defeated. The madness-plague affecting young Jedi Knights has vanished. The alliance between Luke Skywalker and the Lost Tribe of the Sith still holds, although tenuously. But animosity between Galactic Alliance Head Natasi Daala and the Jedi Order continues to grow. Assassination attempts are being made on key Alliance figures and slave revolt outbreaks have been reported from Outer Rim worlds. And is all as it truly seems with Abeloth's corpse? http://www.sfsite.com/books/new338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT New and forthcoming books this month include the latest from James P. Blaylock, Steve Cash, Joe Abercrombie, Andy Remic, Elizabeth Bear, Claude Lalumiere, Raymond E. Feist, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Rick watched episodes of Being Human, Primeval and The Vampire Diaries but it was other series that held his interest. He also combed through his movie predictions for 2010 (based on how good the writers are) and it holds a few surprises. http://www.sfsite.com/02b/ke338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT It is remarkable that of all the science fiction writers of the Twentieth Century, Philip K. Dick is one of two whose works have had the greatest durability, and whose images and attitudes have penetrated the very fabric of world culture most extensively. (The other is H.P. Lovecraft, who wasn't exactly a science fiction writer anyway -- but close enough for present purposes.) http://www.sfsite.com/02b/on338.htm Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT The citizens of this unspecified but presumably not too distant future live a life that is exactly the same as their counterparts in mid-twentieth century America. The differences would appear to be all for the better: there are no wars, there is no crime, there seems to be no poverty; most people, understandably, are happy. The State (always capitalized) seems to have come into being about a generation before and is clearly a work in progress. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/da337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT "I'd probably have to say some of the characters in the Gaunt's Ghosts or Inquisitor series I write for Black Library. The first has run to thirteen books so far, the second six, and you really begin to get to know characters when you've been writing them that long. It's like working with good friends." http://www.sfsite.com/02a/ee337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Many readers will be familiar with the British TV show Primeval, that deals with anomalies, holes in time, which allow creatures from the age of the dinosaurs, and occasionally things from the future, to cross into the present. The TV show has returned for another series, with lots of glitz. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/neil335.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Happy New Year! Once again, it's time to voice your opinion about what your favourite reading was from the year that just ended. Long-time visitors to the SF Site are familiar with the process. If you're new, what this is about is that we want to hear what you thought was the very best of what you read from the past year. And since we know how hard it is to pick just one favourite, you can tell us what you would put on your personal top 10 favourites. We also understand that you may not yet have read all the books from 2010 that you meant to, so we're going to give you a chance to do that -- until March 4, 2011. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/ex337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT The world here revealed is a promising setting. Based on the briefish glimpse we see in this novella, the tech level is roughly Middle Ages, with, of course, magic. The kicker is that magic use has terrible consequences: it fosters the growth of a poisonous bramble. There was an "Old Empire" which seems to have mostly collapsed, and the rump of that Empire, apparently city-states, is under attack from the Paikans, who seem to be slavers. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/al337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT If Scheherezade, Sleeping Beauty, and a committee of Middle Eastern and possibly Russian supernatural creatures had got together to tell a tale, this tale would probably be the one they came up with. Evocative and atmospheric, with an underlay of alchemy and wild magic and Machiavellian politics, it's a slim volume which packs a world-building punch to it. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/im337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is a collection of short stories, only loosely tied together in the frame story of a man covered with tattoos. Each tattoo moves, and each tells a story. That is one of the many images Ray Bradbury re-imagines over and over again. The illustrated man who serves as the frame story is likely not the same illustrated man who serves as protagonist in the last story in the collection. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/de337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT In a far-distant future, the human race is part of a civilization known as the ConSentiency, which covers many far-flung galaxies and multiple species of sentient beings. It is two of these races that make the ConSentiency possible: the Taprisiots, who can make it possible for any two minds within the ConSentiency to connect and communicate, and the Caleban, who can create jump-doors, providing instantaneous travel between any two points in the universe. But these conveniences have their downside, the most glaring of which is the ability to abduct a person, or persons, and remove them to any spot in the universe, completely against their will. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/tr337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Sad to say, but adventures in the Land of Corona are coming to a close. With the finishing of this final part of book 6, Gil realizes there's only one more book left and the story seems to be ready for a huge finale. The Transcendence trilogy focuses on the new leaders in the land of Behren and Honce-the-Bear. In particular, this book covers the land of Behren and how the Behrenese have conquered the To-Gai. But Ranger Brynn Dhariell has arrived on the scene to set the To-Gai people free. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/steven337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Science fiction fans have always had a respect and understanding for the history of the genre. Unfortunately, science fiction has achieved such an age that each year sees our ranks diminished. Deaths in 2010 included Kage Baker, Philip Klass (William Tenn), Patricia Wrightson, George H. Scithers, Frank Frazetta, Everett Bleiler, Neil Barron, E.C. Tubb and Donald H. Tuck. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/he337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Joe Abercrombie is to fantasy literature what Quentin Tarantino is to action films. They are both decidedly twisted, prone to moments of extreme violence and write very real characters and acrid dialogue that doesn't pull any punches. High on any wish list is to see Quentin Tarantino direct an adaptation of The First Law Trilogy. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/ta337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Berren is a pickpocket who lives with a gang near the docks of Deephaven, a city with an underbelly as seedy as its palaces are rich. After watching an execution, Berren attempts to steal the winnings from the thief-taker who brought in the victims but gets a purse with just a few coins for his trouble. But because he succeeded in getting the thief-taker's purse at all, Syannis offers him a chance to become his apprentice. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/jr337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT This is the story of Margarita Haralson and her husband, Alex, whose desire to have grandchildren causes them to create a future race of robots and found a new Garden of Eden. The Haralson's story is told almost as a confessional, with Margarita describing a visit she and her husband had to their rabbi to tell him about the strange events which happened to them. http://www.sfsite.com/02a/am337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT When Secret Service agent Ronan Dooley witnesses his own death, he's thrown into the heart of a murder mystery which could topple everything modern society is built around. For in 2056, there are two kinds of people: the haves and have-nots, the mortals and amortals, and Ronan's one of the latter. When he dies, as he's done eight times now, he's immediately brought back to life as a clone. http://www.sfsite.com/books/new337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT This time we're looking at the newest works from Orson Scott Card, Adam Roberts, Robert McCammon, Peter S. Beagle, Jo Walton, Joe R. Lansdale, and many others. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/booknews337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT As promised last month, this is the second and final part of the looking back/looking forward articles. This time, two of the busiest men in genre -- PS Publishing's Pete Crowther and the ubiquitous Steve Jones -- share their recent releases in 2010 and their future plans for 2011. Hold onto your hats, there's going to be a lot going on... http://www.sfsite.com/columns/derek337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT It's January, a time when, traditionally, the pickings for quality movies tend to be slim. The studios have released what they consider to be their best work in time for Academy Award consideration, and so have made the beginning months of the New Year, often right through April, to release, to put it kindly, substandard product. For movie fans, this is a pretty bad time. What's a cineaste to do during this fallow, infertile period? Quite a bit, actually. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/rick337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Being Human is a horror comedy series based on a British show of the same title about a vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost who share an apartment. It debuted on SyFy in January to an audience in the two million viewer range. This would get a series cancelled on network television, but for SyFy it's huge. See when it and other SF series on TV will be broadcast in February. http://www.sfsite.com/columns/graphica337.htm Tue, 1 Feb 2011 11:00:00 GMT Before Rick Klaw's discovery of the French artist Jacques Tardi, how did he enjoy comics? The three reprints from Fantagraphics all appeared on his previous two best of the year lists: You Are There and West Coast Blues in 2009 and It Was the War of the Trenches last year. If he'd read their most recent Tardi publication (The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec Volume 1: Pterror Over Paris/The Eiffel Tower Demon) in time, it would have joined its brethren. Initially set in pre-WWI Paris, Les Aventures extraordinaires d'Adele Blanc-Sec relates the unusual escapades of the novelist title character as she uncovers plots involving a recently hatched pterodactyl, demonic cults, seedy underworld characters, and murder. http://www.sfsite.com/rssfeeds01.htm Sat, 1 Jan 2005 11:00:00 GMT After constructing our first RSS feed, it soon became apparent that the size of files could grow quickly. We decided to separate them into smaller ones, breaking them up by month. On this page you will find RSS feed files for all of our content beginning with January 2005.