In Between by R.A. MacAvoy
reviewed by Rich Horton
The story is about a Chinese-American painter named Ewen Young. He lives a peaceful
enough life, and he's a fine painter, though his personal life has had some disappointments,
including a live-in girlfriend who left him. But overall, things seem fine. Then he is attacked by a couple of thugs, who
state that he's a message for his beloved but rather disreputable Uncle Jimmy, who apparently owes
a mobster a lot of money.
Destroyer of Worlds by Mark Chadbourn
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
This is the final book in a trilogy of trilogies from an author whose work has redefined the boundaries
of dark fantasy. The colossal story has never been less than fascinating, and at times easily rivaled the most
riveting, original work of the genre. As with the author's other books in the epic sequence, Destroyer of Worlds
could be read and enjoyed as a stand-alone piece, but doing so would be to deprive oneself of subtlety, context, and
a whole lot of excitement.
The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror Volume 20 edited by Stephen Jones
reviewed by Mario Guslandi
The annual Best New Horror anthology edited by Stephen Jones celebrates its twentieth anniversary
with flying colours providing one of its more compelling and satisfying selections in years.
With a few exceptions, the large majority of the twenty pieces of dark fiction included in the latest volume
of this long lasting, successful series are either outstanding or simply excellent.
Drag Me to Hell
a BluRay review by David Newbert
In this movie we see Alison Lohman get
tackled, punched, slammed into walls, and dangled in midair; she has an arm shoved down her throat,
is vomited upon, has to fight for her life in drowning mud, and is forced to wrestle with the same
corpse not once, but twice. Oh, and she gets her hair pulled -- several times. Combine that with
the little-noticed fact that horror movies tend to allow good actors to go from zero to sixty over
a wide highway of emotions, and it's a very impressive performance that Ms. Lohman gives us.
Star Trek
a DVD review by Rick Klaw
After thirteen years, two dismal feature films, and a failed television series since the
last quality installment (First Contact), the 43-year-old Star Trek franchise
received a much needed facelift. In Star Trek, director J.J. Abrams managed a true rarity in
creating a reboot that honored and embraced its predecessor in a movie that excited both hardcore and casual fans.
Hitler's War by Harry Turtledove
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
The assassination of Konrad
Henlein in 1938 gives Hitler the excuse he needs to follow his desire to invade Czechoslovakia. England
and France are appalled by the German aggression, and refuse to sign the treaty offered by Hitler. Even though
neither side is really ready for another big war, the die is cast, and before anyone can pull back, an alternate
take on World War II is well underway.
Succubus Heat by Richelle Mead
reviewed by Sandra Scholes
Georgina is a succubus in need of counselling after breaking up
with her boyfriend Seth, a human novelist, and seeking solace in another man's company. She made the great mistake
of sleeping with her councillor, a man of lesser morals than her, him being a married man. As if that is not
enough to contend with, suddenly her demon lord Jerome decides to have another woman as his spy then, for no
apparent reason, he becomes the victim of a kidnapping.
The Demon Spirit, Part 3 by R.A. Salvatore
an audiobook review by Gil T. Wilson
The third part of GraphicAudio's adaptation of The Demon Spirit brings to a close the second book in
R.A. Salvatore's series, The Demon Wars Saga. It's the second in a seven-book epic and
this title ends with an extreme cliffhanger. Listening to these productions makes you feel as though
you've been launched into the magical/mythical land of Corona and are sitting alongside the
characters, watching the story unfold.
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Return of the Crimson Guard by Ian C. Esslemont
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
The timeline in Return of the Crimson Guard is just after the events in The Bonehunters. In
this story, the action shifts to the continent of Quan Tali, the home continent of the Malazan Empire. The
empire is in bad shape. It is stretched thin and insurrection threatens to rip the empire apart from
the inside out. To make matters worse, it appears that the rumors that the Crimson Guard, a mortal
enemy of the Malazan Empire, is returning are finally coming to fruition.
Doomsday Can Wait by Lori Handeland
reviewed by Katherine Petersen
Second of The Phoenix Chronicles, continues the adventures of
Elizabeth Phoenix, a psychic who used to work as a cop until her abilities got in the way of her job and
freaked out her colleagues. Here, she gets a glimpse of
her true enemy during a run-in with a naye'i, a Navajo spirit whose top priority is Liz's execution. The naye'i also
happens to be mother to Sawyer, the mystical skinwalker who gave Liz more insight into her abilities.
Flinx Transcendent by Alan Dean Foster
reviewed by John Enzinas
It starts with Flinx's exploration of the home world of the AAnn where Flinx has disguised himself in a special
costume and is pretending to be an AAnn. He's there as a result of learning that for some reason he is the only
one capable of saving the galaxy. After encountering nice AAnns, he decides to not let the galaxy be destroyed by
evil just because he had a crappy childhood and a couple of bad break-ups.
News Spotlight -- Genre Books and Media
a column by Sandy Auden
It's a busy time of year for editor and author Stephen Jones. October saw the release
of The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror Volume 20 -- a book which is also his 100th title -- and November
kicked off with the re-release of The Mammoth Book of Wolf Men.
Nexus Graphica
a column by Rick Klaw and Mark London Williams
Gary Phillips, author of The Jook, and the Ivan Monk mystery series, knows his L.A.,
and more of it is cropping up in comics form -- web comics form -- at FourStory.org,
a social advocacy/journalism website, whose slogan is "better living conditions for everyone."
On the edge of those conditions is Bicycle Cop Dave -- done in collaboration with artist
Manoel Magalhães -- which has its own slogan: "Patrolling the underside of gentrification."
References to shifting economic sands are everywhere.
Mark London Williams thought it'd be a good time to catch up with Gary, now that he's taken to writing like Dickens -- which
is to say, in installments.
New Arrivals
compiled by Neil Walsh
New Arrivals this time include new and forthcoming works from Connie Willis, Cory Doctorow, L.E. Modesitt Jr., Robert Conroy, Robert V.S. Redick, reprinted classics from A.A. Attanasio, Robert E. Howard, Damien Broderick, Paul Cook, the long-awaited conclusion to The Wheel of Time series, and much more.
Babylon 5.1
TV reviews by Rick Norwood
There was a time when science fiction meant something new, different, original. Now, too often, science fiction
means something old, familiar, predictable. Now, too often, science fiction means a remake of an old tv series.
Rick offers his thoughts on V and The Prisoner.
On Joanna Russ edited by Farah Mendlesohn
reviewed by Paul Kincaid
Anyone who came into science fiction during the late 60s and 70s would have been aware of Joanna Russ. Even if you
never read any of her relatively few novels or stories, you couldn't avoid the name. Of the three great women
writers who did so much to transform science fiction at this time, Ursula K. Le Guin, James Tiptree Jr., and
Russ, Russ was far and away the most controversial. So much so that it was known for her name to be greeted with
boos at an sf convention, and believe me even in the conservative world of fandom that was unusual.
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