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I’m a big fan of the original series, Thieves’ World, which ended over a decade ago. When I’d finished the last page of the last book of Thieves’ World, I’d experienced for the first time what I would come to judge all other books by: that bittersweet feeling of a triumphant conclusion to a great story mingled with slight sorrow at the parting with its characters.
So I started Sanctuary with apprehensions. One of them being that this book was written by a single author while Thieves’
December 22nd, 2009. Greg Hersom´s rating: 3.5 | Lynn Abbey | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
Palimpsest by Catherynne Valente
The first thing that strikes you about Palimpsest is the gorgeous prose. Every sentence is crafted with the utmost care, resulting in a novel that almost reads like poetry. It simply begs to be read out loud. I’ve read many books that attempt this kind of lush prose, but Palimpsest is one of the most successful and most beautiful.
Palimpsest is a sexually transmitted city. People who have been there have a small tattoo — a piece of the city’s map — somewhere on their body.
December 21st, 2009. Stefan Raets, Bill Capossere and Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 3.5, 4.5, 5 | Catherynne M. Valente | Audio, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 9 comments |
Deryni Rising by Katherine Kurtz
Katherine Kurtz is truly a mistress of fantasy — she’s been writing high epic fantasy for 40 years and should be considered one of the post-Tolkien “parents” of our genre.
The setting of the Deryni saga is an alternate medieval Europe (clearly analogous to our medieval England and Wales) and the Deryni are a magical race who look just like, and can interbreed with, humans. They have been persecuted for years by the Church (clearly meant to be our medieval Catholic church) and most people with Deryni blood choose to hide and/or deny their lineage and magical powers.
December 20th, 2009. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Katherine Kurtz | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Red-Headed Stepchild by Jaye Wells
Sometimes being unique is not a requirement for writing a good story. Jaye Wells’ Red-Headed Stepchild is not unique. In fact, it’s cookie-cutter urban fantasy with all the clichés. But, Wells uses all the same old urban fantasy elements to crank out a decent story.
Sabina Kane, a half-vampire / half-mage assassin for the vampire governing body, has been raised by her maternal grandmother after the ill-starred match of her vampire mother and mage father leaves her an orphan. Sabina is just as sassy,
December 20th, 2009. John Hulet´s rating: 3.5 | Jaye Wells | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Mervyn Peake’s magnum opus began in Titus Groan, and continued in Gormenghast, two brilliant (though door-stopping) books that explored the lives of those that exist in a self-contained, self-sufficient edifice known as Gormenghast: a labyrinthine world of towers, mansions, slums, and the corridors that connect them all. It is ruled by ancient and meaningless ritual, something that the titular character of Titus, Seventy-Seventh Earl of Gormenghast, has rejected. In the final passages of Gormenghast,”
December 18th, 2009. Rebecca Fisher and Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Mervyn Peake | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Vampire Sunrise By Carole Nelson Douglas
Vampire Sunriseis the third book in the tales of Delilah Street, Paranormal Investigator in the world of post-Millennium Revelation Las Vegas by Carole Nelson Douglas. First, let me say that while I personally struggled through parts of Vampire Sunrise and the series as a whole, it offers several things that are worthy of high praise. For instance, this is one of the more unique urban fantasy settings I’ve read in a while.
Post 2000 Las Vegas is inhabited not only by the standard cast of werewolves and vampires but also by Cin-Sims,
December 5th, 2009. Stephen B. Frank´s rating: 3.5 | Carole Nelson Douglas | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Child of Darkness by Jennifer Armintrout
In Child of Darkness, Jennifer Armintrout continues the unique, genre-convention-defying story she began in Queene of Light. As before, it says “Paranormal Romance” on the spine, but while Queene of Light tweaked the conventional romance novel structure, Child of Darkness breaks it almost completely. (No happily-ever-after, at least not in this installment.) Nor does Child of Darkness follow the current tropes of urban fantasy,
December 5th, 2009. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3.5 | Jennifer Armintrout | SFF Reviews | no comments |
December 2nd, 2009. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Salman Rushdie | Audio, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Raider’s Ransom by Emily Diamand
Raider’s Ransom is set in and around the British Isles, where the survivors of a major global disaster (caused by technology) live much more primitively than their predecessors did. After major weather phenomena and amazing flooding, those who lived were left to clean up and move on with what was left.
Now war is stirring between the crumbling government and the families. The daughter of the Prime Minister is kidnapped, wreaking havoc on the fishing village where she was taken from.
November 27th, 2009. Skye Walker´s rating: 3.5 | Emily Diamand | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Nightingale’s Lament by Simon R. Green
The Nightside stories are so hard boiled that it’s hard to put in perspective, but I’m going to try anyway: If you took Dashiell Hammett’s corpse, rolled it in batter, then deep fried it till black, you would have a pretty good approximation of what Simon R. Green is going for.
Nightingale’s Lament is the third book in the Nightside series, and follows the same pattern as the previous books do: basically,
November 24th, 2009. Justin Blazier and Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Simon R. Green | Audio | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
This reminds me. I want to read Addie LaRue.
We’re in total agreement David!
I felt just the same. The prose and character work was excellent. The larger story was unsatisfying, especially compared to…
Hmmm. I think I'll pass.
COMMENT Was I hinting that? I wasn't aware of it. But now that you mention it.... 🤔