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]: 2018.01

A Study in Honor: Strong character- and world-building, but a weak mystery

A Study in Honor by Claire O’Dell

I enjoyed quite a lot about A Study in Honor (2018), the first novel in Claire O’Dell’s near-future mystery series THE JANET WATSON CHRONICLES. Her twists on the Holmes-and-Watson dynamic are fresh and interesting, the characters themselves are compelling and beautifully real, and her portrayal of an America gripped by conflicts and changes brought on by unrest at home is all-too-relevant. As a mystery novel, however, it falls a little short, with most of O’Dell’s attention going toward establishing who the primary characters are and bringing them together despite their personality conflicts,

October 11th, 2018. Jana Nyman´s rating: 4 | Claire O'Dell | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

Shadow of the Fox: An exciting tale of magic, revenge, and friendship

Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa

Shadow of the Fox (2018) is the first of Julie Kagawa’s books that I’ve read, but based on how much I enjoyed reading it, this certainly won’t be the last. Readers don’t have to know anything about feudal-era Japanese culture, language, folklore, and customs that influenced the SHADOW OF THE FOX series, nor do they have to be ardent fans of manga/anime to appreciate what this first volume offers, but having even a little background in either will greatly enrich their reading experience.

You May Now Kill the Bride: Nostalgic fun for fans of FEAR STREET

You May Now Kill the Bride by R.L. Stine

If you’re an adult who enjoyed R.L. Stine’s GOOSEBUMPS series as a kid and/or his FEAR STREET series as a teenager, then his new RETURN TO FEAR STREET series, beginning with You May Now Kill the Bride (2018), will surely pluck some of your nostalgic heart-strings. (The distressed, much-read appearance of the cover is an obvious nod to that very appeal.) I devoured Stine’s work as a young reader, so I wondered,

The Silence of the Girls: Powerful retelling of The Iliad from the female perspective

The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker

Toward the end of Pat Barker’s newest novel, her main character Briseis thinks to herself:

“Yes, the death of young men in battle is a tragedy … worthy of any number of laments — but theirs is not the worst fate. I looked at Andromache, who’d have to live the rest of her amputated life as a slave, and I thought: We need a new song.”

The eloquently powerful The Silence of the Girls (2018) is Barker’s attempt to create just that,

Meddling Kids: The Scooby-Doo gang faces the Elder Gods

Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero

“And I’d have gotten away with it too, if it weren’t for you meddling kids.” –attributed to nearly every villain on Hanna-Barbera’s Scooby-Doo animated series, 1969-1971.

In the early 1970s, cartoon quintet Daphne, Velma, Fred, Shaggy and Great Dane Scooby-Doo drove around in a painted van, solving supernatural mysteries — which always turned out to be staged by all-too-human villains. Edgar Cantero latched onto these cultural icons and flipped the script, asking the story what would happen if one of those ghostly,

September 21st, 2018. Marion Deeds´s rating: 4 | Edgar Cantero | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |

The Storm Runner: An unfortunate misstep in this young imprint’s worthy mission

The Storm Runner by J.C. Cervantes

The Storm Runner (2018) by J.C. Cervantes is the second book put out by Disney-Hyperion as part of their Rick Riordan Presents imprint. Aimed at Middle-Grade readers, the imprint’s goal is to “elevate the diversity of mythologies around the world” and publish “entertaining, mythology-based diverse fiction by debut, emerging, and under-represented authors.” The first, which focused on Indian mythology, was Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi. Here the underlying mythos is Mayan,

Drop by Drop: A boring small-town soap opera

Drop by Drop by Morgan Llywelyn

I’m going to make this short. There was nothing — absolutely nothing — that I liked about Drop by Drop (2018), the first book in Morgan Llywelyn’s new STEP BY STEP trilogy.

The story is about a small town where everybody seems to know everybody else. Suddenly one day, the plastic gradually starts to melt. Everything that is made of plastic eventually fails (they call it “The Change”) and the society has to learn to live without plastic.

The Grey Bastards: Engaging action and characters, has trouble with language and tone

The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French

So let’s get this out of the way early with regard to Jonathan French’s The Grey Bastards, winner of the 2017 Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off (SPFBO) contest. (Kevin, who originally reviewed this novel for Fantasy Literature, rated it 7 stars out of 10; Tadiana DNF’d it because of the pervasive offensive content.) It’s foul-mouthed, has a good amount of graphic language (warning: I’m about to give a few examples. Seriously — bad words ahead), sex, and violence,

August 21st, 2018. Bill Capossere´s rating: 2.5 | Jonathan French | SFF Reviews | 7 comments |

Stars Uncharted: Pleasant but lacks originality

Stars Uncharted by S.K. Dunstall

I’ve read a lot of books and seen a lot of shows with this basic premise: several individuals, each with their own secrets and special skills, end up together (in this case, on a spaceship) and must bond with each other so they can outwit and overpower the evil enemy that’s chasing them. That’s what’s happening in S.K. Dunstall’s version of this classic storyline in Stars Uncharted (2018).

There’s Nika Rik Terri, a famous body modder (think artistic genetic engineer) who is trying to hide from the criminal organization her ex-boyfriend belongs to.

The Calculating Stars: A fight for the right to go into space

The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

Elma York has a PhD in physics, and her husband has one in engineering. They are enjoying a much-deserved weekend getaway in the Poconos in 1952 when a huge meteorite destroys Washington DC and much of the North American eastern seaboard. Experts fear the aftermath will create an extinction-level event, and this accelerates the race to the stars. Elma has a front row seat, but she wants more; she wants to go into space.

2018’s The Calculating Stars is the first novel of Mary Robinette Kowal’s LADY ASTRONAUT series.

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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