Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

Month: November 2016

Thoughtful Thursday: Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving may be my favorite holiday. There are no gifts. Instead, we set time aside for family, friends, and good food. And we are invited to consider those things we are grateful for, a reminder to keep things in perspective.

Well, one thing I’m grateful for is science fiction and fantasy stories. They were the first books that appealed to me when I was a young reader. Though I’ve met readers who dismiss these genres, I would like to think SFF can inspire us to be better people and to live more fully realized lives.

These novels often follow heroes who stand up for others.

November 24th, 2016. Ryan Skardal | Giveaway!, Thoughtful Thursday | 11 comments |

WWWednesday: November 23, 2016

Awards:

Colson Whitehead won the National Book Award for The Underground Railroad. Read Bill’s 5-star review here. The graphic novel series March, written by John Lewis, who is also a congressional representative, won for best children’s literature.

John Lewis, author of March, talks in his acceptance speech about being turned away from a library because it was “for whites only.”

Conventions:

The co-chair of WorldCon 75 is stepping down from her position,

November 23rd, 2016. Marion Deeds | World Wide Wednesday | 6 comments |

Chasm City: Gothic cyberpunk at its dark best

Chasm City by Alastair Reynolds

Chasm City (2001) is the fourth Alastair Reynolds book I’ve read in his REVELATION SPACE series, though it is a stand-alone and a much better book. The main trilogy (Revelation Space, Redemption Ark, Absolution Gap) featured a lot of good hard SF world-building, but was heavily weighed down by clunky characters, dialogue, and extremely bloated page-count.

The Last Wish: Engaging dark fantasy stories

The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

The Last Wish (1993 in Polish, 2007 in English) is the first book in the WITCHER series by best-selling Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. You might recognize the name from the popular video games based on the books. The series features a hero named Geralt of Rivia who, when he was an orphaned child, was transformed into something more than human through a process involving magic and drugs. Now he has white hair and some subtle superhuman powers — for example,

The Origins of Everything in 100 Pages (More or Less): A master class in concision

The Origins of Everything in 100 Pages (More or Less) by David Bercovici

The Origins of Everything in 100 Pages (More or Less) by David Bercovici, in his own words, “covers the Universe’s greatest hits, recounting when and most importantly how its various pieces emerged.” That’s a tall order for any book, let alone one that is so short, but Bercovici tempers the readers’ expectations early on, letting us know that:

“There are other excellent books, far more comprehensive than this one,

November 22nd, 2016. Bill Capossere´s rating: 4.5 | Non-fiction, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |

SHORTS: Baker, Chatham, Watts, Fawver, Liu

Sharing our finds in free and inexpensive short fiction available on the internet.

“The Likely Lad” by Kage Baker (2002, Asimov’s Science Fiction, Starship Sofa podcast #23)

Kage Baker is one of my favorite authors. I love her sense of humor and sardonic voice. She’s at it again in “The Likely Lad,” a funny novelette that you can find in print in Asimov’s Volume 26(9) or free in audio format from Starship Sofa’s podcast #23 (which I listened to and recommend).

Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy: “Best” sets the bar high and these stories clear it

Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2016 edited by Karen Joy Fowler & John Joseph Adams

Karen Joy Fowler is the guest editor of the Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2016. This is the second book in the annual series, which John Joseph Adams conceived of, and he still plays a large role in the selection process.

It is worth reading both Adams’ and Fowler’s introductions. Fowler’s is brilliant because she talks about the world, fiction, fantasy and language. Adam’s is instructive.

November 21st, 2016. Marion Deeds´s rating: 4 | Catherynne M. Valente, Charlie Jane Anders, Dexter Palmer, Karen Joy Fowler, Kelly Link, Kij Johnson, Maria Dahvana Headley, Rachel Swirsky, Salman Rushdie, Sam J. Miller, Seth Dickinson, Sofia Samatar, Ted Chiang | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |

A Taste for Monsters: Strong characterization and premise but plotting a bit pale

A Taste for Monsters by Matthew Kirby

Matthew Kirby’s first two books, The Clockwork Three and Icefall are, I think, two of the best constructed and ambitious YA books out there. I haven’t been equally impressed with the ones since, though they still show marks of a fine craftsman in various aspects. Where then does his latest, A Taste for Monsters, fall? I’d say somewhere in between — better than the last few thanks to more vivid characters,

Wrath of Betty: Has its issues, but will still make you laugh (and think)

Wrath of Betty by Steven Erikson

If you’re going to parody a TV series, as Steven Erikson did with Star Trek in Willful Child, then you can’t stop at just one book, can you? Think of all those other episodes ripe for the plucking! And so we’re back for more interstellar hijinks with the crew of the Starship Willful Child and their erstwhile leader Captain James T–, er, Captain Hadrian Sawbuck as they face hostile aliens, robots run Amok,

November 18th, 2016. Bill Capossere´s rating: 3.5 | Steven Erikson | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |

The Whizbang Machine: An original MG mystery with execution issues

The Whizbang Machine by Danielle A. Vann

Fifteen year old Elizabeth Yale has been living alone with her mother for eight years, since her father suffered an untimely death and her beloved grandfather Jack, unable to cope with the tragedy, left town to travel around the world. Elizabeth has missed Jack terribly, so she’s delighted when she gets a letter from Jack announcing that he’s coming home, and even more excited when her mother agrees to let her take a trip to Morocco with Jack in a few days.

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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