The Fox Woman and Other Stories by Abraham Merritt
The Fox Woman and Other Stories is the only collection of Abraham Merritt’s shorter works, and contains seven stories and two “fragments.” These short stories span the entire career of the man who has been called America’s foremost adventure fantasist of the 1920s and ’30s. Several of the tales boast the lush purple prose of Merritt’s early period (as seen especially in his first two novels, The Moon Pool and The Metal Monster),
February 11th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | Abraham Merritt | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Time of the Great Freeze by Robert Silverberg
Given that global warming seems to be an almost universally accepted fact of life these days (except by obstinate conspiracy theorists such as my buddy Ron, who also denies that men ever walked on the moon), it might strike a reader as strange to come across a sci-fi novel that posits the advent of a new Ice Age in the early 23rd century. And yet, such is the case with Robert Silverberg’s Time of the Great Freeze,
February 4th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | Robert Silverberg | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 7 comments |
Recalled to Life by Robert Silverberg
True to his word, after announcing his retirement from the science fiction field in 1959, future Grand Master Robert Silverberg’s formerly prodigious output fell off precipitously. Although he’d released some 16 sci-fi novels from the period 1954 – ’59, not to mention almost 250 (!) sci-fi short stories, AFTER 1959 and until his major return in 1967, his sci-fi production was sporadic at best. In 1960, Silverberg only released one sci-fi book, Lost Race of Mars (a so-called “juvenile”),
January 29th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | Robert Silverberg | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Elissa & Black Heart and White Heart by H. Rider Haggard
Editor’s note: Because they are in the public domain, both Elissa and Black Heart and White Heart are available for free on Kindle. To find them, click on the Kindle covers in this review.
The H. Rider Haggard novels Elissa and Black Heart and White Heart are usually to be found (when they can be found at all) together in a single volume,
January 27th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | H. Rider Haggard | Free! | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Those Who Watch by Robert Silverberg
There is a certain aptness in the fact that I penned this review for Robert Silverberg’s Those Who Watch on January 15, 2015. That day, you see, happened to be Silverberg’s 80th birthday, so my most sincere wishes for many more happy and healthy birthdays must go out to the man who has become, over the years, my favorite sci-fi author.
These days, of course, Silverberg is one of the most honored and respected writers in his chosen genre;
January 20th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | Robert Silverberg | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
Master of Life and Death by Robert Silverberg
Future Grand Master Robert Silverberg’s fifth sci-fi novel, Master of Life and Death, was originally released as one-half of one of those cute little “Ace doubles” (D-237, for all you collectors out there), back to back with James White’s The Secret Visitors. Published in 1957, this was one of “only” three novels that Silverberg would release that year (the others were The Dawning Light and The Shrouded Planet),
January 14th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 3.5 | Robert Silverberg | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
Rivals of Weird Tales edited by Robert Weinberg, Stefan R. Dziemianowicz & Martin H. Greenberg
From 1923 – ’54, over the course of 279 issues, the pulp publication known as Weird Tales helped to popularize macabre fantasy and outré horror fiction, ultimately becoming one of the most influential and anthologized magazines of the century, and introducing readers to a “Who’s Who” of American authors. I had previously read and reviewed no fewer than six large collections of tales culled from the pages of “the Unique Magazine,” and had loved them all.
January 12th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 5 | Anthony Boucher, C.L. Moore, Clark Ashton Smith, Fritz Leiber, H.P. Lovecraft, Henry Kuttner, Jack Williamson, L. Sprague De_Camp, Manly Wade Wellman, Norvell W. Page, Philip K. Dick, Richard Matheson, Robert Bloch, Robert E. Howard, Theodore Sturgeon | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Dwellers in the Mirage by Abraham Merritt
After taking a brief respite — in the hardboiled yet outre crime thriller Seven Footprints to Satan — from the tales of adventurous fantasy at which he so excelled, Abraham Merritt returned in fine form with Dwellers in the Mirage (1932). In this terrific novel, Merritt revisits many of the themes and uses many of the ingredients that made his first novel, The Moon Pool,
January 8th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | Abraham Merritt | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Henry Kuttner and C.L. Moore, the foremost husband-and-wife writing team in sci-fi history, produced their novels and short stories under a plethora of pen names, as well as their own, and for the past half century it has been a sort of literary game to puzzle out which author was the primary contributor to any particular work. This has apparently been far from a simple task, as either writer was perfectly capable of picking up the other’s thoughts in mid-paragraph and carrying on.
December 30th, 2014. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | C.L. Moore | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
The Well of the Worlds by Henry Kuttner & C.L. Moore
Henry Kuttner and C.L. Moore’s final science fiction novel, Mutant, was released in 1953. There would be sporadic short stories from the famous husband-and-wife writing team throughout the ’50s, as well as a mystery series from Kuttner featuring psychoanalyst/detective Dr. Michael Gray, not to mention a superior sci-fi novel from Moore herself, Doomsday Morning, in 1957, but Mutant was, essentially, the last word,
December 24th, 2014. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 3.5 | C.L. Moore, Henry Kuttner | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
What a fascinating exploration of Edwige Fenech's contributions to the giallo genre! I love how the post highlights her unique…
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…