Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

Month: September 2009

City of Fire: A bit thin, even for youngsters

City of Fire by Laurence Yep

City of Fire is the opening book in a new YA fantasy trilogy by Laurence Yep, set in an alternate version of 1941 where humans and magical creatures (trolls, lap griffins, shapeshifters, dragons, etc.) freely intermingle and society employs a mix of magic and technology. The novel opens in San Francisco with a tense and mysterious pov, as the assassin narrator Bayang observes her target — a young boy named Leech who somehow poses a threat to Bayang’s “people” and who has yet to come into his “true power.” The scene then shifts to another pov,

Sphinx’s Princess: Ancient Egypt comes to life

Sphinx’s Princess by Esther Friesner

Nefertiti has had a wonderful childhood, living with her adoring father, stepmother, and half sister. She is the beauty of her small country town on the Nile River, and has the gift of dance as well as a desire to learn to do something almost no women can do — write and read.

But Nefertiti’s life takes a sharp curve when her aunt, the great Pharaoh’s wife, decides that she is beautiful enough to wed to her son Thutmose, the crown prince of Egypt. Before she knows it,

Imager: A new series to please Modesitt fans

Imager by L.E. Modesitt Jr

Imager is the first book in the IMAGER PORTFOLIO, the newest fantasy series by the incredibly prolific L. E. Modesitt Jr. I usually enjoy the author’s work very much, and Imager was no exception, despite the fact that it’s so recognizably L. E. Modesitt Jr.’s work that it verges on the predictable. I’m actually sure that some Modesitt fans could predict the early part of this novel’s plot just by looking at the included map: hmmm…

September 21st, 2009. Stefan Raets and John Hulet´s rating: 3.5 | L.E. Modesitt_Jr | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Alchemaster’s Apprentice: Fun for everyone

The Alchemaster’s Apprentice by Walter Moers

First, my hearty thanks to the translator. I saw Walter Moers’s previous novel, The City of Dreaming Books, in the Berlin Airport in German. As a German linguist, I can’t imagine how difficult it must be to translate prose like this. Simply amazing.

Walter Moerstakes us back into the world of Zamonia, but this time to a completely different city and with all-new characters. You don’t really need to have read previous books because he provides enough background as the story flows.

Night’s Cold Kiss: Several things to cheer for

Night’s Cold Kiss by Tracey O’Hara

I have a love-hate relationship with vampires. There have been vampire novels that I’ve absolutely adored. There have been others that have flown from my hand into the wall with frightening velocity. Mostly, I just wish there weren’t so darn many vampire novels. My favorite urban fantasies, lately, have been the ones where there aren’t any vampires, or the ones where vampires play a very minor role. When an urban fantasy does feature vampires, my favorite aspects of the book tend to be the places where the author departs from the standard vampire “canon.”

September 18th, 2009. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3 | Tracey O'Hara | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Queene of Light: I love this idea!

Queene of Light by Jennifer Armintrout

Many urban fantasy authors have written about supernatural races coming out of the shadows and living among humans. Few have done anything like this: The supernatural races crossed the Veil to live among humans, but war broke out, and the humans won. The otherworldly beings, along with any humans found to have paranormal abilities, have been banished to an underworld of sewers and subway tunnels, while the humans rule the world above. I love this idea. Jennifer Armintrout gives the reader a setting that feels both archetypal (because the fae have often been said to live underground) and fresh (because I’ve never seen it done quite like this).

September 18th, 2009. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4.5 | Jennifer Armintrout | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Thoughtful Thursday: Cinemutation

Few things have filled my heart with as much dread as watching this video:

The thought that they were going to turn my beloved Where the Wild Things Are into a feature length movie scared me. How were they possibly going to capture the sense of wonder and magic that pervades the few short pages of the story and not completely destroy it by stretching it to over ninety minutes?

This is a problem that is regularly faced by readers: What do you do when a favorite book is mutated into something unrecognizable as it arrives at the local cinema?

September 17th, 2009. Ruth Arnell | Thoughtful Thursday | 13 comments |

Stalking the Vampire: One of the best urban fantasy series

Stalking the Vampire by Mike Resnick

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Mike Resnick has won an impressive 5 Hugo Awards, been nominated for 26 more, and is the all-time award winner — living or dead — for short fiction. He has sold 54 novels, more than 200 short stories, and has also edited 50 anthologies. His work ranges from satirical fare, such as his LUCIFER JONES adventures, to weighty examinations of morality and culture, as evidenced by his brilliant tales of KIRINYAGA. The series, with 66 major and minor awards and nominations to date,

September 17th, 2009. Robert Thompson´s rating: 3.5 | Mike Resnick | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

The Midnight Charter: Deep themes for YA, but weak world-building

The Midnight Charter by David Whitley

The Midnight Charter by David Whitley is an intriguing YA book with some deep ideas behind it, though it doesn’t quite meet its potential in terms of the story itself. The book is set in the city of Agora, a walled-off dystopia whose workings revolve around a barter-for-everything system: Food, art, labor, even emotions, are commodities of trade. The system has stood for some time, but as the story opens, the needed disruption (otherwise there wouldn’t be much of a story) is about to occur.

Webmage: Fun Science Fantasy!

Webmage by Kelly McCullough

It’s time for another round of Beth vs. The Urban Fantasy Genre. Today’s contender is WebMage by Kelly McCullough. Mind, the quote on the cover has it right: Science fantasy is really a better term for it. But Webmage can and does fit into the urban fantasy genre as well. Only there’s a distinctive lack of vampires, werewolves, and love dodecagons. In fact, WebMage is kind of like the illegitimate lovechild of The Dresden Files,

September 16th, 2009. Beth Johnson Sonderby (guest)´s rating: 4.5 | Kelly McCullough | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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