The Age of Ra by James Lovegrove
reviewed by Andy Remic
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.
The Age of Ra by James Lovegrove
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
The ancient Egyptian gods have defeated all other pantheons, and now rule the Earth, which they have divided into
warring factions. Lieutenant David Westwynter, of His Pharaonic Majesty's Second Paratroop Regiment is leading a covert
operation into northern Africa, when his contingent are ambushed. Soon he finds himself in a very sticky situation, and
looks certain to die. Fate, however, has other plans.
Worldstorm by James Lovegrove
reviewed by Victoria Strauss
On this world, everyone is born with one of four Inclinations: Air, Earth, Water, or Fire. Each
Inclination confers on its owner a particular set of abilities, which derive their nature from the element for which
the Inclination is named. The Worldstorm is an enormous, permanent storm that roves the earth, wreaking havoc wherever it
passes. Many people believe that there's a relationship between human beings and the giant storm -- though
just what that relationship is, and how it came about, neither logic nor philosophy nor legend can properly explain.
Untied Kingdom by James Lovegrove
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
The novel is a near-future fiction with a razor sharp edge. The story is set in an England ravaged by war, and deliberately
cut off from the rest of the world. The government has fled to Bermuda, leaving the battered population to pick up the pieces. Those
who live in the countryside try to maintain something similar to normality.
They are assisted by individuals who have taken up the names and leadership of legendary figures such as
Robin Hood, Lady Godiva and the Green Man. In savage contrast to this typically English eccentricity, marauding gangs now rule
the big cities.
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The Hope by James Lovegrove
reviewed by Victoria Strauss
Built by a philanthropist whose mad dream it was, the Hope journeys across an apparently endless sea, carrying more than a
million people in its gargantuan belly. Once, the passengers believed they sailed toward a better life on a distant shore, but so
many years have passed without a landfall that this dream has been mostly forgotten, and many of the Hope's denizens no longer
remember why they came aboard. Some, born on the ship, have never known another existence. Over time the Hope has corroded,
eaten up by rust and salt, and so have the lives of the people on board. Violence and privation are everywhere; safety and compassion
Imagined Slights by James Lovegrove
reviewed by Martin Lewis
This short story collection is a winner from the very first page. Thanks to the helpful "Contents of Imagined
Slights (expressed in the form of a pie chart)", the shortest story takes up 2.77% of the book and the largest 11.27%.
For a writer most commonly associated with science fiction, this represents something of a mixed bag, tending strongly to hybridisation; urban
fantasy, SF and horror spliced together.
The Foreigners by James Lovegrove
reviewed by Donna McMahon
Jack Parry got his start in the London Metropolitan Police, battling urban violence in a world rapidly descending into
brutal anarchy. But 17 years ago all that changed overnight when the aliens arrived on Earth.
Since the Foreigners appeared, striding in golden, enigmatic majesty through the streets of every city, Earth has been at
peace. Alien "crystech" has replaced polluting human technology, and large resorts have been built to lure alien
tourists. Now a Captain of the Foreign Policy Police in the wealthy resort city of New Venice, Parry is deeply grateful
that this shining new future has given him a career as a moral persuader instead of a uniformed thug.
The Foreigners by James Lovegrove
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
For a good murder mystery set in a technologically advanced future, the
rules are the same as those for any mystery: the reader must have access to
the clues. There are plenty in this near future story, set in a time shortly
after the world culture nearly collapsed into chaos. Jack Parry of the
Foreign Policy Police, believes that the Foreigners' arrival saved his
world, and he admires them greatly. He is stunned to learn that one of them
has been murdered.
The Krilov Continuum by J.M.H. Lovegrove
reviewed by Todd Richmond
In 1908 on the Central Siberian Plateau, Valentina Aleksandrovna has tracked
her target, Professor Anton Krilov, to an old farmhouse, where he is at work
on an experimental flying machine that is centuries beyond the Wright
Brothers' invention. In the present time, we are introduced briefly to Tony
Byrne, a researcher at a top-secret government research facility in Nevada.
Meanwhile, in London, Cecil Evans, a homeless man, is seized by a vision on
the street. This is obviously not the first time this has happened to him.
And the adventure begins...
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