Suicide Kings edited by George R.R. Martin
Suicide Kings is the third part in the latest reincarnation of the long-running WILD CARDS series. Together with Inside Straight and Busted Flush it forms the Committee trilogy. I guess you could consider this trilogy WILD CARDS the next generation. These books are meant to be an entry point for new readers. Like most of the previous novels, Suicide Kings is a collaborative effort. This volume is written by six authors — Daniel Abraham,
December 22nd, 2014. Rob Weber´s rating: 3 | Daniel Abraham, George R.R. Martin, Ian Tregillis, Melinda Snodgrass, S.L. Farrell, Victor Milan | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Suki: A Like Story by Clamp
Suki: A Like Story is a three-book story by Clamp. Clamp is one of my favorite modern creators of manga, and I’m particularly intrigued by the fact that Clamp is an all-female collective. Though they’ve had in the past a rotating membership, for the most part, Clamp now consists of a fairly stable roster of four women: Nanase Ohkawa, Mokona, Tsubaki Nekoi, and Satsuki Igarashi. They started out in the 1980s as an eleven-member group of amateur, self-published indie writers (known as “dojinshi” in Japan),
December 22nd, 2014. Brad Hawley´s rating: 3.5 | Comics | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Madame Xanadu (Vol. 2): Exodus Noir by Matt Wagner
Exodus Noir, the second volume of Matt Wagner’s Madame Xanadu series, is an impressive follow-up to the first collection, even though there is a new artist on board. However, there’s no loss in artistic quality. If I prefer the first volume to the second, it’s primarily because I love an origin story. So, my preference is less a fault of the second volume than it is the inherent focus of the first.
December 20th, 2014. Brad Hawley´s rating: 4 | Comics | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Breath of Bones: A Tale of the Golem by Steve Niles, Matt Santoro, & Dave Wachter
Though I’ve read multiple golem tales over the years, I became aware of their history the most fully after having read the extremely well-researched SF novel He, She and It by Marge Piercy. That was about twenty years ago, and I’ve been on the lookout for quality golem stories ever since. Breath of Bones: A Tale of the Golem is one of the best I’ve ever read,
December 20th, 2014. Brad Hawley´s rating: 5 | Comics | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
Today we’re participating in a blog tour and scavenger hunt to promote Alex Hughes‘ new novel Vacant, book four in her MINDSPACE INVESTIGATIONS series. This is my current favorite urban fantasy series. There are two chances to be a winner (you can try for both):
1. We’re giving away an ebook copy of any of the novels — your choice. Just comment below to enter the giveaway.
2. In the following post, you’ll find the next clue in a “CLUE-like”
December 18th, 2014. John Hulet | Alex Hughes | Giveaway!, Thoughtful Thursday | 15 comments |
I really love Sherlock Holmes. I’ve read all of the original stories, several literary adaptations, and regularly watch not only the BBC but also the American television show, both of which are great (gonna talk smack about Elementary? Come at me, bro!). Last year I had the privilege of teaching an entire class on Holmes and Holmes adaptations. Sherlock himself is such a fascinating character that he is the “most portrayed” character in TV or film.
So it disappointed me that I didn’t like Anthony Horowitz’s book,
December 18th, 2014. Kate Lechler´s rating: 2 | Anthony Horowitz | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
In Dzur, the tenth book in Steven Brust’s VLAD TALTOS series, Vlad is finally back in the city of Adrilankha. I suspect that most fans will be thrilled to return to that decadent cosmopolitan city; it’s just so much more interesting than watching Vlad roam around the countryside. Fittingly, each of the chapters in Dzur is named for one of the items Vlad is served at his favorite restaurant during a gourmet meal that runs parallel to the main plot of Dzur.
December 18th, 2014. Kat Hooper | Steven Brust | Audio | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Busted Flush edited by George R.R. Martin
Busted Flush is the nineteenth entry in the Wild Cards series of mosaic novels edited by George R.R. Martin. The previous book, Inside Straight is something of a new beginning for the series, a new trilogy with new characters and a couple of new writers. It’s a good point to get started. Unfortunately Busted Flush falls a bit short of the standard set in the first book of the Committee trilogy.
The story picks up some time after the events in Inside Straight.
December 18th, 2014. Rob Weber´s rating: 2 | Carrie Vaughn, George R.R. Martin, Ian Tregillis, Melinda Snodgrass, S.L. Farrell, Victor Milan | SFF Reviews | no comments |
On this day in 497 BC, the first Saturnalia festival was celebrated in ancient Rome. Happy Holidays!
Writing, Editing, and Publishing:
The winners of the Rhysling Award, an award for SF/F and horror poetry, have been announced. Check it out here!
Philip Pullman, author of HIS DARK MATERIALS trilogy, has a new short story available online. He’s also hard at work on a fourth book in the series, called The Book of Dust.
December 17th, 2014. Kate Lechler | World Wide Wednesday | 1 comment |
Sinbad the Sailor by Phil Masters
I’ve read a good numbers of titles in Osprey Publishing’s MYTHS AND LEGENDS series and while the individual books vary in quality, that variation runs between good and excellent, making the series as a whole top notch. My latest read, Sinbad the Sailor, by Phil Masters, continues the positive run, falling somewhere in the middle of its predecessors.
The bulk of the book is a retelling of Sinbad’s seven voyages (including an alternate seventh voyage), keeping the original frame of Sinbad the Sailor telling the story to Sinbad the Porter,
December 17th, 2014. Bill Capossere´s rating: 4 | Myths-&-Legends | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
I believe you are missing the point of this book here. I don't believe the purpose is to tell a…
I love it!
Almost as good as my friend: up-and-coming author Amber Merlini!
I don't know what kind of a writer he is, but Simon Raven got the best speculative-fiction-writing name ever!
[…] Its gotten great reviews from Publishers Weekly (starred review!), Kirkus, Locus, Booklist, Lithub, FantasyLiterature, and more. Some of whom…