Order [book in series=yearoffirstbook.book# (eg 2014.01), stand-alone or one-author collection=3333.pubyear, multi-author anthology=5555.pubyear, SFM/MM=5000, interview=1111]: 2009.01

Immortal: I never felt anything but déjà vu

Immortal by Gillian Shields

Evie Johnson is a new student at Wyldcliffe Abbey School for Young Ladies, which resides in (you’ll never guess) a gothic mansion on the moors. Surprisingly, there are some severe headmistresses there (coiffed with scraped-back buns) and a clique of mean rich girls. They tease Evie for arriving on the train and make discourteous comments when the school mistress announces that Evie is their new “scholarship student.”

You won’t believe it, but Evie has red hair and a seemingly innocuous silver pendant which belonged to her mother (who was drowned),

September 4th, 2011. Kat Hooper´s rating: 1.5 | Gillian Shields | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

Evermore: Not recommended

Evermore by Alyson Noël

Evermore is the first in the Immortals series by Alyson Noël. Immortals are a bit like vampires… but not. Ever Bloom is a teenage girl who becomes entangled in the world of the Immortals.

Ever’s backstory feels pieced together from other works. Like Buffy Summers, she was one of the popular girls at her old school, but after a disaster, has to start over at a new school where she’s considered a freak and only has two friends.

Once a Witch: Avoids most YA tropes

Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough

Tamsin comes from a family of witches. At her birth, her grandmother prophesied that she would become one of the most powerful of all — but Tamsin’s powers have never manifested, making her odd one out in the clan. If this were Harry Potter, she’d be a Squib.

Unsurprisingly, Tamsin is insecure about her magical deficiency. When a stranger comes to the family’s shop, looking for someone to help him find a lost item, Tamsin’s insecurity leads her to make a fateful mistake.

The Edge of the World: Did Not Finish

The Edge of the World by Kevin J. Anderson

I’m not a fan of belaboring why a book is bad, so this will be a pretty brief review. Suffice to say that I did not finish Kevin Anderson’s The Edge of the World, the first book of his Terra Incognita series. Not finishing is rare for me, even if a book is mediocre, so that gives you some sense of what I thought of The Edge of the World.

July 20th, 2011. Bill Capossere´s rating: 0.1 | Kevin J. Anderson | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

Dark Time: Technothriller disguised as urban fantasy

Dark Time by Dakota Banks

Dark Time by Dakota Banks is a technothriller disguised as an urban fantasy. For it to reach its ideal audience, it should instead be titled something like “The Anu Tablet” and have an ominously lit historic building on its cover.

The story begins in colonial times, when Susannah Layhem is accused of witchcraft and sentenced to burn at the stake. (Never mind that nobody was burned as a witch in the American colonies; they were hanged.) As she is dying,

July 11th, 2011. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 2 | Dakota Banks | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Ice Song: This is a fairy tale

Ice Song by Kirsten Imani Kasai

I’ve never been a big science fiction reader, and so it took me far too long to get around to reading Kirsten Imani Kasai’s Ice Song. Its beautiful cover would draw my eye again and again in the bookstore, then I’d flip it over to read the back cover copy and think, “Oh. Submarines. Mutations. This is that science fiction book again.” Now that I’ve read it, I wish the blurb had contained one brief sentence that would have had me snapping up the book right away: This is a fairy tale.

June 24th, 2011. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4.5 | Kirsten Imani Kasai | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |

Green: Mixed reviews

Green by Jay Lake

Green is barely a toddler when her father sells her to Federo, a man who travels around looking for young female children on behalf of a faraway Duke. Taken halfway across the world, not even able to speak the local language, Green is imprisoned in the Pomegranate Court, where she endures a ruthless training program designed to mold her from an innocent, illiterate child into a sophisticated courtesan or concubine for the Duke’s court. Various Mistresses teach her the skills a lady needs and punish her cruelly at the slightest misstep or shortcoming.

June 15th, 2011. Stefan Raets, Rob Rhodes, Bill Capossere and Terry Weyna | Jay Lake | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |

Some Girls Bite: A light read, with chick-lit overtones and cute dialogue

Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill

Merit is a Chicago grad student with a wealthy family she tries her hardest to ignore. One night she’s attacked by a vampire and left for dead, then saved when another vampire, Ethan Sullivan, finds her and brings her over. Now Merit is a vampire whether she likes it or not — and embroiled in vampire politics, again whether she likes it or not. Chloe Neill’s vampires are divided into Houses, which are sort of a cross between corporations, mob families, and frats.

May 15th, 2011. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3 | Chloe Neill | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Prophecy of the Sisters: Deliciously Gothic

Prophecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink

The year is 1890. Lia and her twin sister Alice have just been orphaned by the death of their father, and in the aftermath, Lia discovers that she and Alice have roles to play in an ominous prophecy. The prophecy pits the two against each other: one is the Gate, who has the potential to open the doors between the underworld and Earth; and the other is the Guardian, who is supposed to make sure that doesn’t happen. But while Lia just learned about the prophecy,

May 2nd, 2011. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3.5 | Michelle Zink | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |

A Madness of Angels: The magical soul of London

A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin

I think maybe I love Kate Griffin’s A Madness of Angels. It’s a mature love, too, not just a crush, because I can see the faults in the thing and I love it anyway. It’s a hard book to write about without spoiling the fun for everyone, so instead of discussing the plot I will focus on what I loved.

I love Griffin’s view of magic. Reviewers compare A Madness of Angels to Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere,

March 23rd, 2011. Marion Deeds, Rebecca Fisher and Ruth Arnell´s rating: 3.5, 4 | Kate Griffin | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

We have reviewed 8292 fantasy, science fiction, and horror books, audiobooks, magazines, comics, and films.

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:

Bill Capossere on Giveaway! What’s the best book you read last month?May 2, 2024
Best fiction I read in April was Ian C. Esslemont's new Malazan book, Forge of the High Mage. Best non-fiction…
John Smith on Giveaway! What’s the best book you read last month?May 2, 2024
I read the first four books in the "Children Of the Lamp" series by P.B. Kerr. The name of the…
Marion Deeds on WWWednesday: May 1, 2024May 2, 2024
When I first saw the headline I assumed North Dakota, but this one is Texas, and they were actively breeding…
Becky Ashwell on WWWednesday: May 1, 2024May 2, 2024
There is a herd in North Dakota that produces a whilte calf from time to time. I've seen it!
Paul Connelly on WWWednesday: April 24, 2024May 1, 2024
It's discouraging that even somewhat successful authors rarely seem to be able to keep publishing for more than about 10-12…