From the Files of the Time Rangers by Richard Bowes
reviewed by Matthew Cheney
The Time Rangers are a band of people orphaned from the Timestream, plucked from the loneliness of their particular
circumstances by the Fagins of an almost-eternity ruled by the Titans of the Greek pantheon. The job of the Time Rangers is
to maintain the multiverse, to prevent events and eruptions that could lead to, among other things, a future death of the gods.
Galileo's Children edited by Gardner Dozois
reviewed by Mario Guslandi
Theme anthologies are a challenge for fiction editors. If they seek original material they have to rely upon the authors'
ability to properly cope with the subject, whereas if it's a reprint anthology they need a good memory and an extensive
knowledge of the literature addressing that particular issue. No problems there for an experienced editor/writer,
even when the topic (science vs. superstition), although quite intriguing, is far from being a simple one.
Brass Man by Neal Asher
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
It begins with a salvage vessel, whose pilot is seeking fortune out beyond the limits of Polity-controlled
space. He finds an asteroid, rich in rare metals, and containing the wreck of a dreadnought, which proves too tempting to
resist. Meanwhile, on a world named Cull, outside of Polity space, an old timer named Anderson and his young
protégé, Tergal, are on a mission to kill a dragon.
The Year's Best Science Fiction and Fantasy for Teens edited by Jane Yolen and Patrick Nielsen Hayden
reviewed by Steven H Silver
Ninety percent of everything, according to Theodore Sturgeon, is garbage. The golden age of science fiction, according
to Peter Graham, is at thirteen. In a long overdue attempt to help those thirteen-year-olds separate the creamy ten percent,
the editors have compiled this first volume.
With the editors' tastes, this should prove to be the first of a long series of anthologies.
Babylon 5.1
TV reviews by Rick Norwood
In the next two weeks, most of the new Fall season debuts. For the first time in... in... well, actually
for the first time ever -- all of the new network shows are about young contemporary Americans. It is as if our entire
society was closing in on itself, focused obsessively on the young, the here, and the now.
Quicksilver & Shadow by Charles de Lint
reviewed by Michael M Jones
This is the second collection of early de Lint stories to be released by Subterranean Press. This volume
brings together seventeen of his lesser-known works, covering dark and contemporary fantasy, horror, science fiction, and his
Bordertown novellas. Along the way, we're treated to his thoughts on these early works, and we get a very real look at
both his beginning successes, and his occasional missteps.
A Stroke of Midnight by Laurel K. Hamilton
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
The fourth book in the Meredith Gentry series is a curious mixture. No doubt many of the readers who have made
Laurell K. Hamilton a New York Times bestselling author will lap this one up, but for those who are interested primarily
in a good read, the reception might not be so warm.
Scurrying Over The Rocks: an interview with Ben Bova
conducted by Sandy Auden
"The Asteroid Wars start when the Earth faces an ecological collapse.
Greenhouse warming has struck, suddenly and disastrously. Most of the world's major cities are either
inundated by global flooding or bursting at the seams with refugees.
Faced with this, some people look out to the natural resources to be found in space, particularly the metals and minerals of the asteroids."
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In the Palace of Repose by Holly Phillips
reviewed by Donna McMahon
This collection contains nine finely crafted, atmospheric stories with settings ranging from the Russian steppes
in the 20s to contemporary Vancouver. Although very realistic, the settings are just slightly sideways of reality, and
the author gives us a dark, complex glimpse of what might happen if dreams really did come true.
New Arrivals
compiled by Neil Walsh
We're bursting at the seams with good books to read, including the latest from Jack Williamson, Terry Brooks, Jacqueline Carey, Jennifer Fallon, Cory Doctorow, Ed Greenwood & Elain Cunningham, Kim Stanley Robinson, China Miéville, and many others.
Plundering The Abyss: an interview with Alastair Reynolds
conducted by Sandy Auden
"It's often taken for granted that you can't have well rounded characters in hard, nuts-and-bolts SF stories because by the
time you've put all the science in, there's no room for characters. I just don't see that as the case. And there's been
plenty of good books over the years that have bucked that trend."
Night Train to Rigel by Timothy Zahn
reviewed by Rich Horton
Earth is the twelfth of the Twelve Empires: twelve alien races linked by an explicitly
train-like interstellar travel system.
The system is run by the Spiders, inscrutable aliens who do not allow details of their FTL method to be understood
by anyone. But they do allow races access to this transportation network -- for a price.
The Riot at Bucksnort by Robert E. Howard
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
Along with historical tales of the East, American Western tall tales were the other
form that Robert E. Howard was increasingly exploring. In particular his humourous adventures of Breckenridge Elkins the big,
two-fisted, gun-slinging, good-hearted but naive galoot from Bear Creek and
similar tales of Pike Bearfield and Buckner J. Grimes were the complete antithesis of his dark tales.
The Carpet Makers by Andreas Eschbach
reviewed by Charlene Brusso
The novel opens on a subsistence-culture desert planet where the most respected industry is the construction of intricate carpets
woven of human hair. So detailed, so fine is the weaving, that each maker can only produce one carpet in his lifetime. The hairs
themselves come from the bodies of his wives, chosen for the silkiness and shade of their tresses.
Watching Anime, Reading Manga by Fred Patten
reviewed by Kit O'Connell
Few English-speaking authors on anime or manga could have the credentials of Fred Patten, purely by virtue of having been
one of fandom's earliest members in the United States, not to mention a founding member of the Cartoon/Fantasy Organization,
America's first anime fan club.
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