Watching the Future
a column by Derek Johnson
Recently, on a panel Derek discussed with others which movies they would take if they were to be stranded on a deserted island.
All suggested some amazing movies, and fortunately Derek was the only one who turned film snob by saying he wanted to
bring along Stanley Kubrick's seminal science fiction motion picture 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Most of the other panelists groaned, which he understood, but would want to take it for the simple
reason that it still moves him in a way that no other SF movie can.
Later, he remembered a conversation that he had with Paul O. Miles about this cinematic gem.
New Arrivals
compiled by Neil Walsh
Newest arrivals to the SF Site include the latest from Connie Willis, Kage Baker, Dave Duncan, Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan, Joe R. Lansdale, Terry Brooks, L.E. Modesitt Jr., Robert McCammon, Terry Pratchett, and many others.
Babylon 5.1
TV reviews by Rick Norwood
This month the 2010 Fall Season starts late, as the networks vie to see which one can offer the least content
with the most advertising, and more and more people bypass the ads entirely using downloads and DVRs. It's
impossible to guess what the future of television will be like, but fun to try.
The Lost Fleet: Victorious by Jack Campbell
reviewed by Michael M Jones
After long months and great hardship, Captain John "Black Jack" Geary has accomplished the impossible: he's brought
the Alliance fleet home.
The fleet's suffered great losses in its desperate, prolonged escape from the heart of Syndic space, but
under Geary's anachronistic leadership, they've rediscovered what it means to be warriors and victors. But just because they've come
home doesn't mean the war is over.
The New Dead edited by Christopher Golden
reviewed by Mario Guslandi
In his Introduction, the editor acknowledges the fact that while the fascination with
vampires is understandable, that's hardly the case with zombies. So the fact that he set out to assemble an
anthology of zombie stories is a sign of the man's audacity.
Truth be told, he has been seeking tales which would go beyond the usual, rather narrow limits of the classical
clichés of zombie fiction.
Angel's Blood by Nalini Singh
reviewed by John Enzinas
Imagine a world like our own, except that instead of governments and corporations controlling our lives,
there is a council of Angels who have divided up the world into their own little fiefdoms where they
rule with an iron fist. These angels are very powerful winged humanoids but there is no explicit connection
with the divine. This is probably for the best as these angels have the ability to
transform humans into immortal servants who are vampires.
Greatest Uncommon Denominator #5, Winter 2009
reviewed by Seamus Sweeney
The good folks at GUD proclaim
on their site to be unconstrained by genre or form -- bringing the world sci-fi for the literary crowd and
literary stuff for the sci-fi crowd. The dichotomy between sci-fi and "literature" is of course a false one,
but it does reflect perhaps a divergence of interests among groups of readers who ultimately value originality
and literary quality.
God of Clocks by Alan Campbell
reviewed by John Enzinas
God of Clocks is the third book in the Deepgate Codex trilogy.
Its heros decide that their best plan is to split into two groups. The first, the sea god Cospinol and his anchor,
head to Hell to fight its king. The second group, composed of the former assassin Rachel, and the two escapees
from Hell, Mina and Hast, take their freed Arconite to see if they can rouse Heaven to clean up the mess Hell has
made of the world.
The Wizard, the Witch and Two Girls From Jersey by Lisa Papademetriou
reviewed by Dan Shade
In the tradition of National Lampoon's Bored of the Rings, William Goldman's The Princess Bride
and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure comes a fantasy novel that equals
them all. This book has all the elements of a good fantasy novel and all the fun of a roller-coaster-ride.
Nexus Graphica
a column by Rick Klaw and Mark London Williams
It started with an innocent quip from Rick Klaw's nephew Alex, aged 13. "Stan Lee created
Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four." As the primary progenitor of his geek existence,
which encompasses a passion for Godzilla, Monty Python, Dominion, Munchkin,
RPGs, and video games, Rick chimed in. "Not exactly." And with that, class was in session.
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The Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
The trilogy is a multi-layered sprawling tale that will keep even the most fickle of readers thoroughly
engaged throughout. The primary storyline tells the story of Azoth/Kylar. He is a young orphaned street-criminal
that has grown up in the seedy part of town known as the Warrens. In order to survive, Azoth becomes embroiled
in the criminal underworld known as the Sa'kage. In order to escape the Warrens, he apprentices with
legendary assassin Durzo Blint.
The City & The City by China Miéville
reviewed by Rich Horton
Beszel and Ul Qoma are two cities that occupy the same geographical space.
They are intricately interwoven, such that some areas are "total" -- all one city or the other -- but some
are "crosshatched," so that one building might be in Beszel and its neighbor in Ul Qoma. The residents have
been trained to "see" and "unsee" their surroundings.
Tyador Borlú is an Inspector for Beszel's Extreme Crime Squad. His new case is the murder of a young woman who turns out to be
an American graduate student in archaeology with an interest in the theory,
generally regarded as crackpot, that there is a third, invisible, city occupying the same area as Beszel and Ul Qoma.
Starplex by Robert J. Sawyer
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
Big spaceships, alien civilizations, the mysteries of the cosmos, and a story that roams through the vastness of time
and space. All of the elements of a big-scale, hard science fiction adventure story are present right from the start.
When it comes to piling on a sense of wonder, Starplex is right on point.
A Short History of Fantasy by Farah Mendlesohn and Edward James
reviewed by Jason Erik Lundberg
It is an ambitious task to lay out the entire history of the fantastic, as fantasy is perhaps the oldest literary
genre in the world, going back thousands of years with ancient myths of the gods of various pantheons. Such an
examination could easily fill a number of 500-page volumes, and still not tell the entire story.
The Business of Science Fiction: Two Insiders Discuss Writing and Publishing by Mike Resnick and Barry N. Malzberg
reviewed by Steven H Silver
The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America publish a quarterly magazine, the SFWA Bulletin,
which contains a variety of articles on the business of writing, markets, news about the members, and so on. One
feature of the Bulletin, which has run since the 90s, is a series of dialogues between Mike Resnick
and Barry N. Malzberg on the business of writing.
The Loving Dead by Amelia Beamer
reviewed by Rick Klaw
With her horrifically comic first novel The Loving Dead, Amelia Beamer taps into the cultural
zeitgeist of the early 21st century. Much like the great zombie film progenitor, Night of the Living
Dead, Beamer uses the undead to represent the fractured real world around her, albeit from a hyper-sexual
millennialist bent.
Graceling by Kristin Cashore
reviewed by Dan Shade
In a land of seven kingdoms and seven thoroughly unpredictable kings, a Graceling
is a child born with special powers. It may be in healing, science, spells, combat, etc. Gracelings cannot be
recognized until about age three. At that time, their eyes will undergo a change resulting in eyes of two
different colors. One eye may be blue and the other green such as Katsa's are. The color of the eyes does not
indicate what skill the Graceling will show but it will begin to manifest itself shortly.
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