Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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]: 2012

Dark Companion: Respectable spooky-boarding-school story

Dark Companion by Marta Acosta

Jane grew up as an unloved foster child in a rough neighborhood full of gangsters and pimps. Inspired by a friend’s death to excel in school, Jane has earned a scholarship to the exclusive Birch Grove Academy for Girls. She sees this as a ticket out of the violence and exploitation she sees all around her, but instead she finds that there are predators among the rich as well…

Dark Companion by Marta Acosta fits comfortably in with the “dark supernatural secret at a girls’ boarding school” subgenre of novels — though the main secret isn’t technically supernatural,

The Broken Lands: Loved it from beginning to end

The Broken Lands by Kate Milford

Kate Milford’s The Boneshaker was one of my favorite books when it came out, and at the end of my review I said it was clear there were more stories to tell in Arcane (the novel’s setting) and “I for one would love to see them.” Now Milford is back with a follow-up novel, The Broken Lands, and though it is set in a different place at a different time (though sharing some characters),

No Sharks in the Med and Other Stories: A horror collection

No Sharks in the Med and Other Stories by Brian Lumley

Brian Lumley became a name in horror fiction in the late 1980s. He was inspired by H.P. Lovecraft, like many others, then branched out into different types of horror. He is probably best known for the NECROSCOPE series, but he has also written short fiction, and Subterranean Press has published a collection titled No Sharks in the Med and Other Stories.

Subtitled “The Best Macabre Stories of Brian Lumley,” the book contains pieces picked by the author.

The Incarceration of Captain Nebula and Other Lost Futures: Excellent collection

The Incarceration of Captain Nebula and Other Lost Futures by Mike Resnick

I find many story collections to be mixed affairs and, unless it’s a “Best of” collection, I open the book with the assumption that I’m going to find a few stories I like among more that I won’t get particularly excited about. But I’ve loved the stories I’ve read by Mike Resnick, so I had high hopes when I opened The Incarceration of Captain Nebula and Other Lost Futures, a collection recently published by Subterranean Press who are known for their lovely productions.

Hidden Things: An almost-there book

Hidden Things by Doyce Testerman

In Hidden Things, by Doyce Testerman, Calliope Jenkins gets a strange phone call, then an even stranger phone message from her ex-boyfriend (now partner) in a private detective firm. The odd part in the phone call is his closing warning: “Watch out for the hidden things.” The even weirder part about the later message is that it comes several hours after his corpse was found. Soon after, Calliope finds herself on the road to Iowa where her partner Joshua was killed,

The Dog Stars: Carves out its own successful niche

The Dog Stars by Peter Heller

Peter Heller’s The Dog Stars is the newest entry into the post-apocalyptic genre (at least, it was when I began this review, by now it’s probably been succeeded by a dozen others), but despite joining an ever-growing list of such novels, The Dog Stars does a nice job of standing out amongst the crowd.

The Dog Stars follows Hig, a small plane pilot who took up refuge at the local airport after a devastating plague tore through the world,

August 22nd, 2012. Bill Capossere´s rating: 4 | Peter Heller | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

I, Zombie: Revolting and highly recommended

I, Zombie by Hugh Howey

Imagine a zombie. An image springs instantly to mind. A rotting corpse, shuffling along, arms held out clumsily, grunting and groaning as it makes its way inexorably forward. Now imagine you, yourself, your ego, inside that zombie. You are that zombie, your consciousness trapped inside a brain that no longer has control over your body, your life, your insatiable hunger. You watch yourself feast on the flesh of those who are no longer survivors of the plague that has infested New York City, revolted by the feel and taste of human waste in your mouth as you gorge yourself on intestines and flesh.

The Prankster: We’ve been Punk’d!

The Prankster by James Polster

We’ve been Punk’d!

It seems that lots of the interesting stuff that happens on Earth is caused by Pom Trager, an arrogant time travelling alien who plays tricks on us and shows the results on his reality TV show called The Prankster. While humans think that significant historical events are happening, or that our culture is advancing, aliens on another planet are laughing at us.

When one of his tricks goes awry, Pom Trager gets trapped in Santa Fe. To escape,

City of Saints: Alternate LDS history

Editor’s note: When Ruth reviewed this book in 2012, she reviewed the “first part” of CITY OF SAINTS called Liahona. Since then, the series has been released as one novel called City of Saints.

City of Saints by D.J. Butler

It’s the days leading up to the Civil War, and both the North and the South are desperate to bring the Kingdom of Deseret, with President Brigham Young, in on their side. Both forces send envoys to the remote kingdom,

August 17th, 2012. Ruth Arnell´s rating: 0.1 | Dave (D.J.) Butler | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Constantine Affliction: A witty gender-bending romp

The Constantine Affliction by T. Aaron Payton

T. Aaron Payton’s The Constantine Affliction (2012) is a witty gender-bending romp through Victorian London as it never was. Most of us will call this “steampunk.” Payton prefers “gonzo-history.” I say, “whatever works.”

Ellie Skyler, who is assumed to be male, makes her living as a journalist using the pen name “E. Skye.” She plans to go in male attire into one of the city’s clockwork brothels, where the prostitutes are nearly perfect simulacra of human women, to write an expose.

August 8th, 2012. Marion Deeds´s rating: 3.5 | T. Aaron Payton | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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