Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

Author: Marion Deeds

Where the Axe is Buried: Thoughtful SF spy thriller

Where the Axe is Buried by Ray Nayler

Ray Nayler’s 2025 SF geopolitical spy-thriller novel, Where the Axe is Buried, explores totalitarian regimes and the role of AI in a dystopian near-future. The story moves among many characters; Lilia, a scientist; Palmer, her London boyfriend; Zoya, a famed activist in the repressive Federation, now living in exile; Nurlan, a government functionary who is deeply in love; Nikolai, the Federation president’s personal physician, and Krotov, the president’s head of security.

The Federation is ruled by one man,

WWWednesday: June 25, 2025

Locus awards were announced last Saturday. Best Science Fiction Novel: The Man Who Saw Seconds, by Alesander Boldizar; Best Fantasy Novel: A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher; Best Horror Novel: Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle.

Surfing around, I found this piece of short fiction from Garth Nix from last month on Reactor.

They also feature an excerpt from The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst.

Canada’s Sunburst Award longlist is out.

June 25th, 2025. Marion Deeds | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |

WWWednesday: June 18, 2025

This Friday is 2025’s summer solstice. The Farmer’s Almanac provides some information on the event.

Last Saturday, people all over the USA participating in a protest event called No Kings. The Facebook page called Alt National Park Services tracked attendance and reports a final number of 13.1 million people.

The Guardian provides a Best Of round-up of new speculative novels. Esperance has caught my attention—although the horror of sleepless zombies is intriguing too.

I tried to say “femfanzines”

June 18th, 2025. Marion Deeds | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Crimson Road: A treat of a magical vampire-hunter-quest book

The Crimson Road by A.G. Slatter

The first A.G. Slatter book I’ve read, 2025’s The Crimson Road was a treat. Violet Zennor is a smart, witty, bitter young protagonist with an unusual upbringing, who reluctantly embarks on a quest she has no desire to undertake. The story is a vampire-themed fairy tale, filled with magic and danger. I wanted to know how Violet would fare against the dreaded vampire Leech Lords, who rule in the north. Violet has been trained to fight and kill, but she’ll need more than the arts of war to prevail against the being who has risen as their new leader.

WWWednesday: June11, 2025

The Tony Awards included some speculative plays this year.

Last Thursday was the anniversary of the drive-in movie theater. Here is a nice article about the first drive-in.

Two small-press bankruptcies made the news this week—bad news for writers and readers. Unbound and Albert Whitman and Co have both had financial troubles in the past, and both leave many writers unpaid.

Thanks to File 770 for the link to this long article discussing 100 years of film “stunts.” Some are way more dangerous and convoluted than mere “stunts;”

June 11th, 2025. Marion Deeds | World Wide Wednesday | 1 comment |

The River Has Roots: Lush, beautiful fairy tale retelling

The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar

I use up all my superlatives whenever I review anything by Amal El-Mohtar, whose prose is always exquisite and imaginative, flowing like syrup. In the case of 2025’s The River Has Roots, the hardcopy version of El-Mohtar’s lovely, original fairy tale is enhanced by woodcut-style illustrations. The story is short, novella-length, and draws on familiar elements, but the themes of the river and music form the story’s main currents, which drew me in immediately.

Esther and Ysabel Hawthorn are sisters,

WWWednesday: June 4, 2025

Salem’s Lot is beloved by many Stephen King fans, yet adaptations to film and screen remain largely unsuccessful. Reactor analyzes these offerings in depth.
|
This YouTube site is streaming science; 100 hours of 5-minute segments by noted scientists, explaining the importance of their field.

Warning, spoilers: The Doctor Who finale swings for fences, jumps a couple of sharks, and generally invokes every other metaphor-for-outrageous.

Oh, wow! Captain Nemo is back, with the Nautilus! This might even be good.

June 4th, 2025. Marion Deeds | World Wide Wednesday | no comments |

Notes from a Regicide: A hell of a book about art and love

Notes From a Regicide by Isaac Fellman

If Notes from a Regicide were just a book about two artists who become involved in a revolution, it would be one hell of a book. If it were just a story about a man who learns to see his parents as people, it would be one hell of a book. If it were just a love story between two artists, dealing with addiction and mental illness, it would be one hell of a book, too. If it were just about a trans gay man navigating his life,

Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame: A luscious little book

Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame by Neon Yang

Neon Yang’s 2025 novella Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame, is a luscious little book, a tasty way to spend an hour or two. Yang’s words shimmer like a silk pennant rippling in the breeze. There is color, there is food, there are scents, and sensations. At the level of sentences and paragraphs, I enjoyed every moment of Yang’s fantasy. The characterizations and plot choices meant this wasn’t a story that stuck with me or made me think.

WWWednesday: May 28, 2025

This article about the original Charlie’s Angels movie with Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu, and the “wrong” bird used in a pivotal scene, is long, but it’s written in an engaging way and I learned more about birds that I ever planned to. I enjoyed it and I hope you do.

After three seasons, Amazon Prime has canceled Wheel of Time.

At least with Reactor, Murderbot continues to please. (Warning, spoilers.)

It’s almost summer, which everyone knows is cannibal novel season.

May 28th, 2025. Marion Deeds | World Wide Wednesday | no comments |

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

We have reviewed 8493 fantasy, science fiction, and horror books, audiobooks, magazines, comics, and films.

Subscribe to all posts:

Support FanLit

Want to help us defray the cost of domains, hosting, software, and postage for giveaways? Donate here:

You can support FanLit (for free) by using these links when you shop at Amazon:

US UK CANADA

Or, in the US, simply click the book covers we show. We receive referral fees for all purchases (not just books). This has no impact on the price and we can't see what you buy. This is how we pay for hosting and postage for our GIVEAWAYS. Thank you for your support!

SFF Deals

Recent Discussion:

Sandy Ferber on The Druid Stone: Ugony and the EcstasyJune 30, 2025
COMMENT Was I hinting that? I wasn't aware of it. But now that you mention it.... 🤔
Paul Connelly on The Druid Stone: Ugony and the EcstasyJune 30, 2025
So it sounds like you're hinting Fox may have had three or so different incomplete stories that he stitched together,…
Sandy Ferber on Late Star Trek: The Final Frontier in the Franchise EraJune 29, 2025
It's hardly a private conversation, Becky. You're welcome to add your 2 cents anytime!
Paul Connelly on WWWednesday: June 25, 2025June 27, 2025
If the state of the arts puzzles you, and you wonder why so many novels are "retellings" and formulaic rework,…
Marion Deeds on The Potency of Ungovernable Impulses: An award-winning series that’s not for meJune 26, 2025
I picked my copy up last week and I can't wait to finish my current book and get started! I…