Black Light by Patrick Melton, Marcus Dunstan & Stephen Romano
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan wrote the screenplays for Saw IV, Saw V, Saw VI, Saw 3D, and The Collector, which Dunstan also directed. Currently, they are filming The Collection — a sequel to The Collector — and have written Piranha 3DD, which came out this Thanksgiving from Dimension Films. Black Light is their debut novel.
December 5th, 2011. Robert Thompson´s rating: 4 | Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Emperor’s Knife by Mazarkis Williams
The Emperor’s Knife first came to my attention thanks to an interview I did with Night Shade author Teresa Frohock. Because of Teresa’s glowing comments about the book and Night Shade’s recent track record with debut authors, expectations were high for The Emperor’s Knife, and for the most part, Mazarkis Williams’ debut lived up to those expectations. What impressed me the most about The Emperor’s Knife were the characters, specifically the main POVs of Prince Sarmin,
December 2nd, 2011. Robert Thompson´s rating: 4 | Mazarkis Williams | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
When Hollywood makes a movie of Ganymede — and they have to — I hope they subtitle it “The Battle of Barataria Bay.” That sequence comes near the end of Cherie Priest’s latest CLOCKWORK CENTURY novel, and is fasten-your-seatbelt, grip-the-arms-of-your-chair exciting.
Priest’s books always feature strong women, and in Ganymede, the main character is Josephine Early. Josephine lives in New Orleans, running an upscale bordello. Nearly twenty years into the American civil war,
November 24th, 2011. Marion Deeds and Robert Thompson´s rating: 4 | Cherie Priest | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The House of Silk: A Sherlock Holmes Novel by Anthony Horowitz
FORMAT/INFO: The House of Silk is 304 pages long divided over a Preface, twenty numbered/titled chapters, and an Afterword. Narration is in the first person, exclusively via Dr. Watson. The House of Silk is self-contained. November 1, 2011 marks the North American Hardcover publication of The House of Silk via Mulholland Books. The UK edition (see below) will be published on the same day via Orion Books.
November 2nd, 2011. Robert Thompson´s rating: 4.5 | Anthony Horowitz | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Dead of Night by Jonathan Maberry
CLASSIFICATION: Dead of Night is a zombie/horror/techno-thriller hybrid that combines the relentless pacing and action of Dean Koontz and James Rollins with the characterization of Stephen King and the gore and terror of George A. Romero and The Walking Dead.
FORMAT/INFO: Dead of Night is 368 pages long divided over 105 chapters, with each chapter denoted by location. Narration is in the third-person via numerous POVs, but mainly follows two characters in Officer Dez Fox and reporter Billy Trout.
October 24th, 2011. Robert Thompson´s rating: 4.5 | Jonathan Maberry | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Ashes of a Black Frost by Chris Evans
PLOT SUMMARY: Amidst a scene of carnage on a desert battlefield blanketed in metallic snow, Major Konowa Swift Dragon sees his future, and it is one drenched in shadow and blood. Never mind that he has won a grand victory for the Calahrian Empire. He came here in search of his lost regiment of elves, while the Imperial Prince came looking for the treasures of a mystical library, and both ventures have failed. But Konowa knows, as do the Iron Elves — both living and dead — that another,
October 18th, 2011. Robert Thompson´s rating: 3 | Chris Evans | SFF Reviews | no comments |
FORMAT/INFO: Eyes to See is 320 pages long divided over 56 numbered chapters. Each chapter is subtitled either ‘Now’ to represent the present, or ‘Then’ to represent the past. For the most part, narration is in the first person via Jeremiah Hunt, but the narrative switches to various third-person POVs (hedge witch Denise Clearwater, an unnamed creature, etc.) throughout the novel. Eyes to See wraps up some of the book’s main storylines, but it is the first volume in the Jeremiah Hunt Chronicle and will be followed by King of the Dead in 2012.
October 11th, 2011. Robert Thompson and Terry Weyna´s rating: 3.5 | Joseph Nassise | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Revisionists by Thomas Mullen
[In our Edge of the Universe column, we review mainstream authors that incorporate elements of speculative fiction into their “literary” work. However you want to label them, we hope you’ll enjoy discussing these books with us.]
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Thomas Mullen is the author of The Many Deaths of the Firefly Brothers and The Last Town on Earth, which was named Best Debut Novel of 2006 by USA Today,
September 30th, 2011. Robert Thompson´s rating: 4 | Thomas Mullen | Edge | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Monster’s Corner: Stories Through Inhuman Eyes edited by Christopher Golden
FORMAT/INFO: The Monster’s Corner is 400 pages long and consists of 19 short stories. Also included is an Introduction by the editor Christopher Golden, and biographies of all of the anthology’s contributors. September 27, 2011 marks the North American Trade Paperback publication of The Monster’s Corner via St. Martin’s Griffin. The UK version will be published on the same day via Piatkus Books.
ANALYSIS: The New Dead was one of my favorite books of 2010,
September 26th, 2011. Robert Thompson´s rating: 4 | Christopher Golden, Clive Barker, Jonathan Maberry, Kelley Armstrong, Kevin J. Anderson, Sarah Pinborough, Simon R. Green | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham
The most pleasant surprise about The Other Lands, the previous book in the ACACIA trilogy by David Anthony Durham, was that it broadened the scope of the series tremendously. Ushen Brae, the setting for a large part of the action in that book, proved to be a complex and interesting place, with its non-human Auldek tribes, several strata of human Quota slaves (from a warrior caste to an organized “Free People” resistance movement),
September 17th, 2011. Stefan Raets and Robert Thompson´s rating: 3.5 | David Anthony Durham | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Pretty challenging book. Cut by half, speed up the cadence. Trying to figure out the plot, the main point of…
Thanks for the kind words, Marion! Coming as they are from a professional writer, they are much appreciated!
Wonderful review, Sandy.
The "body count" bothered me a bit less because being dead seemed more like an inconvenience than anything else... unlike…
Detailed, thoughtful review, Bill. I'm going to read it for two reasons. First, Karen Russell wrote it, and second, it…