Of Dragons, Feasts and Murders by Aliette de Bodard
Last Friday night, I was feeling indecisive about what to read, so I emailed Jana and listed the options I was considering: YA Historical Fantasy? Creepy Medical SF? I admitted I was leaning toward Snarky Murder Novella. “It’s Friday,” she said, encouraging me to treat myself with Snarky Murder Novella, and I’m very glad I did.
Of Dragons, Feasts and Murders is part of Aliette de Bodard’s DOMINION OF THE FALLEN series,
July 21st, 2020. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4 | Aliette De_Bodard | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor by Hank Green
Hank Green’s A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor (2020) is the sequel to his 2018 debut, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing which you’ll need to read first. There will be spoilers for An Absolutely Remarkable Thing in this review.
It’s been a few months since the life-shattering events that occurred at the end of An Absolutely Remarkable Thing. The Carls are all gone and it appears that April died in a fire that was set by some extremists influenced by anti-April vitriol on social media.
July 21st, 2020. Kat Hooper´s rating: 4 | Hank Green | Audio | SFF Reviews | no comments |
When Jackals Storm the Walls by Bradley P. Beaulieu
You had me at “The Story so Far.”
Really. It was all gonna be good after that.
“The Story so Far.”
Say it with me: “The Story so Far.”
Sweet Nana jam on toast, that curls the toes.
“The Story so Far.”
That’s how When Jackals Storm the Walls (2020), Bradley P. Beaulieu’s fifth novel in his THE SONG OF THE SHATTERED SANDS series begins,
July 20th, 2020. Bill Capossere´s rating: 4.5 | Bradley P. Beaulieu | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova
Labyrinth Lost (2016) is the first in Zoraida Córdova’s BROOKLYN BRUJAS series.
Alejandra “Alex” Mortiz is the middle daughter of a Puerto Rican bruja (witch) family in Brooklyn. Alex has been trying to suppress her power for years, because she believes it was the reason her father left the family.
Her sixteenth birthday is approaching, however, and with it her Deathday ceremony, a coming-of-age ritual during which she will receive a blessing from her ancestors.
July 20th, 2020. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4 | Zoraida Cordova | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Jana: This week I read Zen Cho’s novella The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water, and it was lovely, of course. I’m currently reading Katherine Addison’s The Angel of the Crows, and as much as I’m enjoying Addison’s world-building and descriptive talents, I have to agree with Bill and Tadiana that there are times when her Holmes pastiche is jarringly faithful to Arthur Conan Doyle’s source material. Those few unfortunate moments aside,
July 19th, 2020. Tim Scheidler | Status Update | 1 comment |
B.P.R.D. (Vol. 7): Garden of Souls by Mike Mignola (writer), John Arcudi (writer), Guy Davis (artist), Dave Stewart (colors), & Clem Robins (letters)
B.P.R.D.: Garden of Souls starts in London in 1859 at the scene of a mummy “unrolling.” Langdon Caul puts in an appearance, and as those who have been reading the B.P.R.D. series up to this point know, Abe Sapien and Caul are the same person, so the presence of Caul is central to the overall story. And the mummy’s unrolling leads to quite a surprise .
July 18th, 2020. Brad Hawley´s rating: 5 | Mike Mignola | Comics | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Shadow Over Mars by Leigh Brackett
Shadow Over Mars (1944), also sometimes reprinted as The Nemesis from Terra, was the first full-length novel by space opera author Leigh Brackett. (“Full-length” is relative here, though, as Shadow Over Mars is quite short, only 145 pages in the edition I read.) It is currently in the running for a 2020 Retro Hugo for Best Novel.
The book begins with the hero, Rick, running through a Martian city,
July 17th, 2020. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3 | Leigh Brackett | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
The Relentless Moon by Mary Robinette Kowal
With a new protagonist and definite resistance to expanded space colonization coming from Earth, The Relentless Moon (2020) provides increasing tension, drama and action, giving us, in part, a spy thriller set on a lunar colony.
The third book in Mary Robinette Kowal’s THE LADY ASTRONAUT series follows Nicole Wargin, one of the original six women astronauts and wife of the politically ambitious Kansas governor. Nicole has been tapped for a trip to the nascent lunar colony with a group of civilian colonists,
July 17th, 2020. Marion Deeds and Jana Nyman´s rating: 4 | Mary Robinette Kowal | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
Conjure Women (2020) by Afia Atakora is a first novel that I can hardly believe is a first novel. It’s a beautifully written, hard-hitting story of an African American healer just before and just after the end of slavery in the US. It’s not a fantasy novel, but I’m reviewing it here at FanLit because it has a few magical realist elements, and because it’s in part about magic, and people’s belief in magic, even when none is actually taking place.
July 16th, 2020. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 5 | Afia Atakora | Edge, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Mera: Tidebreaker by Danielle Paige & Stephen Byrne
This is one in a series of graphic novels starring DC heroines in their teenage years, not compliant with any comic-book continuity, but which are aimed at slightly younger readers who might be interested in some of the female characters to have appeared in the recent influx of superhero movies (other titles in the series include Catwoman, Raven and Harley Quinn).
Having enjoyed Aquaman starring Jason Momoa and Amber Heard, I picked Mera: Tidebreaker up on a whim to learn more about the character of Mera,
July 16th, 2020. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3 | Comics | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Kind of you to say. I certainly like to think so!
BTW, Steve Sterner will be performing at seven films during this upcoming fest: https://filmforum.org/series/clara-bow
As far as I know, Bill, Steve Sterner is the only person who does the live accompaniment to silent movies…
And I'm positive that Kaidan will fondly remember watching these movies with his old man for the rest of his…
You bet, Marion!