The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton by Edith Wharton
Perhaps because she is one of the most esteemed writers of the 20th century, Edith Wharton may not be immediately associated with the genre of horror. Today, she is probably best remembered for her novels The House of Mirth (1905) and The Age of Innocence (1920), which latter book copped her the Pulitzer Prize, as well as for her classic novella from 1911, Ethan Frome, a staple reading assignment for all English majors.
October 30th, 2019. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4.5 | Edith Wharton | Horror, Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
The House on Parchment Street by Patricia McKillip
I probably would never have known about The House on Parchment Street (1973) were I not such a huge fan of Patricia McKillip‘s fantasy stories, and while browsing her name on a library search engine, this title popped up. It was obviously one of her earliest published works, so I was willing to give it a go.
The House on Parchment Street is profoundly different from her later stories,
August 20th, 2019. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 2.5 | Patricia McKillip | Children, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
The Best of Arthur C. Clarke: 1937-1971 by Arthur C. Clarke
Arthur C. Clarke’s first short story appeared 15 years before his first novel, and much of his oeuvre is to be found in short fiction. In fact, despite the success of his novels — Childhood’s End, Rendezvous with Rama, and The City and the Stars among them — Clarke produced as much short fiction in the middle and end of his career as the beginning.
February 11th, 2018. Jesse Hudson´s rating: 2.5 | Arthur C. Clarke | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke
In 2131, humans are minding their own business when a large object thought to be an asteroid is detected at the edge of our solar system. As it gets closer to Earth it is photographed and found to be unnatural — obviously an alien spaceship. A team of scientists is sent to meet the ship dubbed “Rama” and to make our first contact with an alien species. When they get there, they find Rama uninhabited and they set out to discover all they can about the aliens who must have launched it.
May 19th, 2017. Kat Hooper´s rating: 4 | Arthur C. Clarke | BSFA Award, Hugo Award, Locus Award, Nebula Award | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
Burnt Offerings by Robert Marasco
For all those folks who have at times felt that their home and possessions owned them, rather than the other way around; for those folks who love a good haunted house/possession tale; and even for those readers who simply enjoy a well-told thriller of a page-turner, Robert Marasco‘s 1973 novel Burnt Offerings will be a real find. This was Marasco’s first novel in a sadly unprolific career; he came out with only two more titles – Child’s Play,
May 25th, 2015. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | Robert Marasco | Horror, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
The Cat Who Wished to Be a Man by Lloyd Alexander
No one does it better than Lloyd Alexander. One of his early children’s chapter books, The Cat Who Wished to Be a Man contains all of his trademark wit, wisdom and warmth, as well as a valuable lesson and plenty of delightful characters.
After giving his cat the gift of speech, the magician Stephanus is now harangued by requests to turn him into a man. Lionel is desperately curious about the world of mankind,
July 15th, 2014. Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 4 | Lloyd Alexander | Children | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Phssthpok is a protector of his race, the Pak. For thousands of years he’s been traveling space, looking for the Pak breeders that left his war-torn planet millions of years before. This is, biologically, the only thing Phssthpok lives for and if he doesn’t find them soon, he’s likely to stop eating and die. Finally, in our year 2125, Phssthpok thinks he may have found the lost breeders, though they have evolved so differently than they would have if they had remained at home that they are almost unrecognizable.
January 21st, 2014. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Larry Niven | Audio | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Hrolf Kraki’s Saga by Poul Anderson
Poul Anderson took the Viking saga of Hrolf Kraki and crafted this magnificent fantasy novel from the legendary king’s story. Hrolf was a sort of Arthurian equivalent in the northern folk tales and myths, but Anderson brought him to life in this novelized retelling of his exploits.
Like much of northern mythology the story is dark in spots, dealing with such themes as murderous sibling rivalry, incestuous relationships, and the everyday brutality that must have been common in the era that was rightly called “the Dark Ages.”
October 5th, 2012. Steven Harbin´s rating: 5 | Poul Anderson | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Like many people, I was familiar with the 1987 film The Princess Bride long before I read (or even knew about) William Goldman’s original novel, the extensively titled The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure. Like the film, the novel has a framing narrative that introduces the tale itself; unlike the film it is not of a young boy being read the story by his grandfather, but Goldman’s own experiences with the book both as a child and an adult.
December 14th, 2007. Rebecca Fisher, Ruth Arnell, Kat Hooper and Stuart Starosta´s rating: 5 | William Goldman | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 7 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…