Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

Rating: 2.5

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Tower Hill: Feels like a formula

Tower Hill by Sarah Pinborough

Religion is ripe soil for horror writers. If you squint a bit when you read the Bible, it’s a vast catalog of horror itself: Adam and Eve’s eviction from paradise, the invention of death, Cain’s killing of Abel, the torture of Job — and we haven’t even gotten past Genesis! But the Bible is the source of salvation as well, as God provides his people with manna in the wilderness, preserves the human race despite a flood that covers all the earth, and rescues Moses from the bulrushes.

Birdbrain: A depressing account of a disastrous vacation

Birdbrain by Johanna Sinisalo

A man and a woman go on an extended hiking tour of Australia and New Zealand, and especially Tasmania, Australia’s island state, in Birdbrain by the Finnish writer Johanna Sinisalo. Neither is a particularly likable person, or has a particularly interesting voice.

Jyrki makes his living as a roving bartender, spending a few months here, a few weeks there. He is a snob about hiking and camping, expressing nothing but disdain for any campsite that offers bunk beds in a bare bones cabin instead of a place to pitch your tent.

Ayesha, the Return of She: Slighter than the first

Ayesha, the Return of She by H. Rider Haggard

Free Kindle version.

H. Rider Haggard returns to his story of star-crossed lovers Ayesha and Leo Vincey in Ayesha, the Return of She. The sequel was published in 1905, nearly twenty years after the publication of She. The world has changed, and Haggard’s storytelling has changed to match.

Haggard remains best known for King Solomon’s Mines, and She is the book of most interest to literary scholars.

July 6th, 2011. Marion Deeds´s rating: 2.5 | H. Rider Haggard | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Shadow Men: Could have been a better novel

The Shadow Men by Christopher Golden & Tim Lebbon

The Shadow Men is the fourth book in Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon’s THE HIDDEN CITIES series. If (like me) you’re not familiar with the previous books, it may be good to know that all four books can be read as standalone novels that share a common premise but (as far as I know) no major characters or plot elements. In the series’ fantasy universe, cities have something like a soul or consciousness,

June 24th, 2011. Stefan Raets´s rating: 2.5 | Christopher Golden, Tim Lebbon | SFF Reviews | no comments |

A Place Among the Fallen: Strong beginning, then loses its appeal

A Place Among the Fallen by Adrian Cole

In the world of Omara, belief in gods or magical power can be punishable by death. But when Korbillian arrives from out of a storm-tossed sea, there is no denying something is at work that’s beyond explanation. Korbillian hails from another world and he’s on a mission to destroy the evil growing from an earthen mound in the distant land of the east. However, as powerful as Korbillian is, he can’t do it alone. Along the way, he must recruit as many others to the cause as he can.

June 22nd, 2011. Greg Hersom´s rating: 2.5 | Adrian Cole | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Blood of the Wicked: Made me cry for all the wrong reasons

Blood of the Wicked by Karina Cooper

I can be a sap sometimes, and I confess that a good love story can move me to tears. Blood of the Wicked, however, made me cry for all the wrong reasons.

Blood of the Wicked is the first in the Dark Mission paranormal romance series by debut author Karina Cooper. It appears that each installment will be self-contained and focus on a different couple. The setting is an alternate future: witches existed and were known to exist in the story’s past,

June 8th, 2011. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 2.5 | Karina Cooper | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Empire of Gut and Bone: Hard to recommend

The Empire of Gut and Bone by M.T. Anderson

The Empire of Gut and Bone is the third book of the Norumbegan Quartet by M.T. Anderson, coming after The Game of Sunken Places and its sequel The Suburb Beyond the Stars. Unfortunately, it has many of the same problems as those first two books, which led to my ranking them relatively poorly. Which is a shame, because there are some good ideas at the core of this series,

The Difference Engine: Thickly veiled and imperceptible

The Difference Engine by William Gibson & Bruce Sterling

William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, two major SciFi powerhouses, joined forces to produce The Difference Engine, a classic steampunk novel which was nominated for the 1990 British Science Fiction Award, the 1991 Nebula Award for Best Novel, and the 1992 John W. Campbell Memorial Award and Prix Aurora Award. I listened to Brilliance Audio’s version which was produced in 2010 and read by the always-wonderful Simon Vance.

The Difference Engine takes place in a nearly unrecognizable Victorian England.

The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man: A good story, but messy

The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man by Mark Hodder

The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man is Mark Hodder’s second steampunk novel with Sir Richard Burton as the protagonist, following The Strange Affair of Spring-Heeled Jack. Though it is a sequel, and reading the first book will give you a fuller sense of setting and character, Clockwork Man stands pretty independently, so not having read the first certainly doesn’t preclude you from starting here. Unfortunately,

April 20th, 2011. Bill Capossere and Marion Deeds´s rating: 2.5 | Mark Hodder | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Cast in Shadow: Inadequate world-building and poor writing

Cast in Shadow by Michelle Sagara

Cast in Shadow by Michelle Sagara is a book about outgrowing a victim mentality, finding your strength and embracing your purpose. It would be a nice book to give to a 12- or 13-year-old girl, especially one who may be struggling with identity or self-esteem issues. Two things would stop me from sharing it: inadequate world-building and poor writing.

Cast in Shadow’s Kaylin is a “Grounded Hawk,” a human in a law enforcement / espionage unit controlled by the winged race called the Ariens,

April 6th, 2011. Marion Deeds´s rating: 2.5 | Michelle Sagara, Michelle Sagara West | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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