Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

Rating: 4

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Merlin’s Ring: Historical fantasy with a strong dose of romance and optimism

Merlin’s Ring by H. Warner Munn

H. Warner Munn’s Merlin’s Ring is one of the odder fantasies I have come across in my reading, but also one for which I have a deep affection. The book is equal parts pseudo-Arthurian Romance (in both the medieval and modern sense of the word), era-spanning historical fantasy à la Edwin Arnold’s Phra the Phoenician, and epic hero’s journey; there is even some mild pulp sci-fi thrown in for good measure. Despite (or maybe because of) all of this melding and mixing,

December 27th, 2012. Terry Lago´s rating: 4 | H. Warner Munn | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Ghost Kings: A very fine novel from Haggard’s middle period

The Ghost Kings by H. Rider Haggard

Free Kindle Version.

The Ghost Kings was H. Rider Haggard’s 32nd novel, out of an eventual 58. Written during the years 1906 and 1907, it first saw book publication in September 1908. This novel was penned immediately before Haggard set to work on another African adventure tale, The Yellow God, but of the two, The Ghost Kings is the superior creation. It is more exciting and more detailed,

Atomic Robo and the Fightin’ Scientists of Tesladyne

Atomic Robo and the Fightin’ Scientists of Tesladyne Volume One, Issues 1-6 by Brian Clevinger (author) & Scott Wegener (artist)

Atomic Robo is a fast-paced story about a robot who was invented in 1923 by the great mad scientist Nikola Tesla. Therefore, though the story is set in the present, Atomic Robo looks like people in the 1920s thought a robot should look like. He’s roughly humanoid, with large clunky-looking arms and legs and large blue eyes with functioning metallic eyelids that the artist uses to express much of Robo’s emotions.

December 14th, 2012. Brad Hawley´s rating: 4 | Comics | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |

Gateway: Science fiction with depth and purpose

Gateway by Frederik Pohl

At heart a psychological drama which explores one man’s attempts at dealing with the negative aspects of existentialism (what Sarte called “nausea”), Gateway nonetheless utilizes the tools of science fiction for effect. Less than 300 pages, the tropes of each are blended perfectly in succinct fashion so as to satisfy the readers of both genres.

After finding an abandoned alien base deep in an asteroid, humanity has learned the basics of piloting the remaining spaceships. Emphasis on the word “basics,” not all the important details of light speed have been mastered,

The Metal Monster: Exotic setting, great action sequences

The Metal Monster by Abraham Merritt

Abraham Merritt’s second novel, The Metal Monster, first saw the light of day in 1920, in Argosy magazine. It was not until 1946 that this masterful fantasy creation was printed in book form. In a way, this work is a continuation of Merritt’s first novel, The Moon Pool (1919), as it is a narrative of America’s foremost botanist, Dr. Walter T. Goodwin, narrator of that earlier adventure as well. As Goodwin tells us, he initially set out on this second great adventure to forget the terrible incidents of the first;

December 11th, 2012. Sandy Ferber´s rating: 4 | Abraham Merritt | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

The Gunslinger: The world has moved on

The Gunslinger by Stephen King

Stephen King’s The Gunslinger is a post-apocalyptic Western-fantasy hybrid about the gunslinger Roland Deschain and his pursuit of the man in black across a desert.

At first glance, the Western plays the largest role in The Gunslinger. Roland carries two heavy six shooters with sandalwood handles, and he can fire them both with deadly accuracy. He wears a duster, leads a pack mule when we first meet him, and is chasing his quarry across a seemingly endless desert.

December 3rd, 2012. Ryan Skardal and Marion Deeds´s rating: 4 | Stephen King | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |

Cold Days: Urban fantasy doesn’t get much better

Cold Days by Jim Butcher

If the Harry Dresden stories have ever had a problem (reflecting, I think, an issue with urban fantasy in general), it’s that they can tend to feel a little repetitive. A monster of the week shows up, and Harry goes through hell both emotionally and physically to stop him. Along the way we get the requisite number of quips, film references, attractive non-humans, old-fashioned courtesies, and cackling villains with vaguely British syntax. At the end of it all, Harry goes back to his Batcave apartment and gets to be the snarky private eye pastiche for a little bit before the credits roll.

November 30th, 2012. Tim Scheidler and Kat Hooper´s rating: 4, 4.5 | Jim Butcher | SFF Reviews | 7 comments |

Red Country: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly with swords

Red Country by Joe Abercrombie

As a fan of Joe Abercrombie’s other books, such as The Heroes, Red Country was a must-read for me. Even though I had no idea what Red Country was about, or how it might be related to his previous stories, it didn’t really matter because I was certain that Joe Abercrombie would entertain me.

Red Country feels almost like a Western in the way that the towns are laid out — there’s a quasi general store and a the local saloon,

November 29th, 2012. John Hulet and Justin Blazier´s rating: 4 | Joe Abercrombie | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

Exile: The OUTCAST CHRONICLES mature and deepen

Exile by Rowena Cory Daniells

Exile, the second book in Rowena Cory Daniells’s OUTCAST CHRONICLES, simultaneously raises the stakes and deepens the narrative that began in the first installment, Besieged. It’s a good bit of work, and readers will be pleased to find Daniells addressing some of the issues that were problematic in Beseiged while at the same time keeping to the familiar sense of suspense and breakneck speed that made the first novel so gripping.

November 26th, 2012. Tim Scheidler´s rating: 4 | Rowena Cory Daniells | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Robots Have No Tails: Unfailingly inventive and often laugh-out-loud funny

Robots Have No Tails by Henry Kuttner

Originally released in 1952 by the early sci-fi/fantasy publisher Gnome Press, the meaninglessly titled Robots Have No Tails collects the five stories that Henry Kuttner wrote featuring the drunken inventor Galloway Gallegher. (As to that title, in the book’s original introduction by Kuttner’s equally celebrated wife, C.L. Moore, she tells us that her husband was at a loss for an appropriate name for this collection, and so told the publisher, “I can’t think of one. Call it anything you like.

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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Do it! One of the best things I've read in recent years.
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We’re in total agreement David!
David C Walton on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 3, 2025
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