The Hotel Under the Sand by Kage Baker
reviewed by Rich Horton
Stranded on an isolated island, Emma digs up something wonderful -- an old hotel.
And with the hotel comes a ghostly Bell Captain named Winston who tells Emma the hotel's
story -- a century or so in the past, a rich inventor named Wenlocke built the hotel. Along with
it, he created an
invention: the Temporal Delay Field, which would allow hotel guests to stay as long as they
like, while no time passes in the outside world.
Crystal Nights and Other Stories by Greg Egan
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
There are hard science fiction writers, and then there is Greg Egan. No one stays truer to the precepts of hard SF
to the point where several of his novels, and even a few short stories, come replete with footnotes and
explanations pointing the reader towards a fuller detailing of the ideas presented in the story. In much the way that a work
like John Coltrane's Giant Steps showed the limits of where jazz could go, Greg Egan's stories
show just how far the concept of hard science fiction can be pushed and still retain its appeal as fiction.
The Dragon Keeper by Robin Hobb
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
The story picks up where it left off in Ship of Destiny, but shifts the action completely over
to the Rain Wilds. Tintaglia has successfully led the tangle of serpents up the Rain Wild River to hatch into
dragons, but the tangle is in bad shape when they begin to cocoon. The dragons that emerge are nothing like the
majestic creatures that once roamed the skies. These dragons are incapable of flight, feeding and other
essential daily activities. The task of feeding and housing the dragons then falls on the people of the rain
wilds in the town of Cassarick.
1942 by Robert Conroy
reviewed by David Maddox
The year is 1942. The Japanese have just bombed Pearl Harbor. The American forces are in disarray. But
what if Japanese Admirals Nagumo and Yamamoto had continued their attack? What if they had won the battle
that day? What would the repercussions be then?
New Audiobooks
compiled by Susan Dunman
Recent audiobook releases received by SF Site include works by
Christopher Moore, Rachel Caine, E.E. Knight and Lev Grossman.
At times it's more convenient (and enjoyable) to hear the latest in science fiction and fantasy.
Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold
an audiobook review by Nicki Gerlach
Cordelia Naismith, like all inhabitants of Beta Colony, has heard of the reputation of the Barrayaran military: efficient,
soulless, and ruthlessly brutal. So when the base camp of her Astronomical Survey team is destroyed, and she is taken
prisoner by Barrayaran Captain Aral Vorkosigan, the Butcher of Komarr, she has more than a little reason to worry.
Blood Groove by Alex Bledsoe
an audiobook review by Jennifer McCann
If you're looking for a vampire romance like Twilight, this is not the story for you. No, this is a
dark, wet, sticky, ugly, gritty visit to the anti-Twilight. Beginning many years earlier, at the
staking of the vampire, Baron Rudolfo Zginski, this is a tale of Old World vampiric culture clashing with
the "tuned in, turned on, dropped out" culture of the 70s. Picture Roller Boogie meets Bram Stoker.
The Demon Spirit, Part 1 by R.A. Salvatore
an audiobook review by Gil T. Wilson
After destroying the Demon Dactyl, there is hope that the end of the Dactyl means the end of evil in the land. Unfortunately,
this is not the case. Instead, the armies of the Dactyl are now scattered throughout the land of Corona with no leader
and are wreaking havoc on the countryside. Heroes from the earlier conflict meet Juraviel, the elf, who tells them how
the Dactyl may have ruined the lands of the elves forever. Determined not to let the same fate befall humanity, the
group decides they must now rid the land of the Demon Spirit that still inhabits Corona.
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Mercy Thompson: Homecoming by Patricia Briggs and David Lawrence
reviewed by Charles de Lint
There's a growing trend of authors scripting comic books based on popular characters from their prose series. As
a long-time comic reader, Charles often wonders if the readers of these tie-in comics are ever intrigued enough with the
medium to go on and try other titles. He hopes so. And this particular title is good enough that it should certainly
pique their curiosity.
Metatropolis edited by John Scalzi
reviewed by Steven H Silver
Originally conceived as an audio anthology, the book is a shared world anthology
set in a future in which cities have begun to be transformed from their traditional form. John Scalzi and the four
other authors, Elizabeth Bear, Tobias Buckell, Jay Lake, and Karl Schroeder, have worked together the create
new types of cities which co-exist in their world of the future.
Dog Days by John Levitt
reviewed by Katherine Petersen
Mason excels at improvisation, both in his jazz guitar playing and in his magic. He could probably play better music
and be a better magical practitioner if he wanted, but he's content with his life as it is. Well, content enough
until magical attacks start coming from nowhere to affect the status quo. He manages to deflect them by improvising
magic from the feel, emotion, scent and physicality of his environment.
Nexus Graphica
a column by Rick Klaw and Mark London Williams
The last time Rick Klaw wrote an original story for comics, it never even made it to
press. In 1997, he crafted the five-page "Pox," a Twilight Zone-like
eco-thriller for an anthology that was never completed. Since
then, he has adapted several Joe R. Lansdale stories -- most notably for
Avatar's By Bizarre Hands series -- and penned lots of comic book
criticism, but no original comic creations.
But he spent the past week crafting his first original comic book story in over
a decade. Seems odd that it has been so long since, for the first half of his
writing career, all he wanted to do was write comics.
News Spotlight -- Genre Books and Media
a column by Sandy Auden
This month's column features Mike Carey on the latest supernatural exploits of exorcist Felix Castor in
The Naming of the Beasts; Mick Sims and Len Maynard leave their safe house to
reveal the truth about Department 18; and Mark Newton reveals his light touch
during an interview about Nights of Villjamur.
The Case of the Dragon Slayer by Kouhei Kadono
reviewed by John Enzinas
The book is a cross between a typical buddy story and a serial killer profile
story. One of the world's seven Dragons has been killed. As these dragons are god-like beings of near infinite
power, this changes everything.
The story follows the path of three people as they rush to discover not only who killed the dragon, but how.
Jupiter, Issue 25
reviewed by Rich Horton
Jupiter's issue XXV is subtitled Erinome. (As ever, these names of obscure Jovian moons make Rich
feel terribly mythologically ignorant!) The feel of the magazine remains constant (Fantasy is welcome, but SF, even
slightly old style SF, dominates), but Rich thought this was even better than the last issue, which he thought pretty good.
Babylon 5.1
TV reviews by Rick Norwood
Rick takes a look at the movie, District 9, and the TV series, Defying Gravity.
He also gives us a list of what SF is on TV in September.
Intergalactic Gazette by Madeleine Hart
reviewed by John Enzinas
Remember the first time you read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy? Remember those delightful tangents
that Mr. Adams went on to give you amusing little details about the world? Remember all the fun non-sequiterish
conversations that the various characters would occasionally have?
Now, imagine a book where the majority of the text is made up of those tangents and conversations instead of the plot.
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