Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

Rating: 4

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The Lost Hero: A fresh new adventure from the world of Percy Jackson

The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

Rick Riordan’s The Lost Hero picks up shortly after his Percy Jackson & The Olympians series ended and continues onward in the same universe with both new and familiar characters. Actually, I should say “mostly” the same universe, as Riordan has broadened his Greek mythology premise to include the Roman gods as well (or as is often the case, the familiar Greek gods in their less-familiar Roman aspects).

Percy literally isn’t around for this one (don’t worry — he appears to play a major role in the next);

Ariel: A real prize back in print… with a sequel

Ariel by Steven R. Boyett

It’s unusual for obscure mass market paperback originals from a quarter century ago to get a second life. But when the books in question are lost little gems that richly deserve such a life, it’s most welcome. And it ought to serve as a wake-up call to all of you: just how many hidden gems are on the racks right now that you haven’t noticed? More than you might think. Look deeper.

Ariel was first released in 1983, when mass market originals were a much more common format for first-time publication than they are today.

October 26th, 2010. Thomas M. Wagner (guest)´s rating: 4 | Steven R. Boyett | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Afterlife: Something different in urban fantasy

Afterlife by Merrie DeStefano

Set in the New Orleans of the future, Afterlife gives us a chilling look at what humanity might become if we developed the technology to transcend death. The Fresh Start company uses clones and memory “downloading” to resurrect anyone with the money to pay for the privilege, up to a total of nine lives. But as we quickly learn, there are so many things that simply weren’t thought out before the technology was unveiled.

The hero, Chaz Domingue, is a scion of the family that founded Fresh Start,

October 22nd, 2010. Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 4 | Merrie DeStefano | SFF Reviews | no comments |

Corvus: A tale of war in all of its bloody horror

Corvus by Paul Kearney

I was introduced to Paul Kearney’s writing when I read The Ten Thousand, and I instantly loved the way Kearney does his brand of historical fantasy. His focus is on a Greek-like, Bronze Age civilization peopled by the Macht, a war-like civilization of city-states very much like the Greece of ca. 400 BC. In both The Ten Thousand and Corvus, Kearney uses ancient history as a broad structure for telling a tale of war in all of its bloody horror.

October 21st, 2010. Guest´s rating: 4 | Paul Kearney | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

City of Dreams and Nightmares: As Fun as Snakes and Ladders

City of Dreams and Nightmares by Ian Whates

Thaiburley is a sprawling city carved into a towering mountain. For everyone but the privileged few that live in the upper rows, Thaiburley is a city of nightmares. Those that live in the City Below do their best to survive gangs and poverty, sometimes scavenging the scraps thrown down from the heights. Street-nicks like Tom, on the other hand, take what they need.

When Tom, who has a knack for stealth, leaves the lower levels to spend a night exploring the City Above,

October 20th, 2010. Ryan Skardal´s rating: 4 | Ian Whates | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

Quicksilver: Information overload

Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson

[The audiobook contains Book 1 of the print edition of the Quicksilver omnibus. Book 2 is King of the Vagabonds. Book 3 is Odalisque.]

I’m a scientist by profession and I love history. Thus, I’m fascinated by the history of science, especially the era of Isaac Newton et al. So, Neal Stephenson’s Quicksilver should be just my thing and I was fully expecting to love this book (it’s been on my list for years),

Beyond Exile: Zombies on audio

Beyond Exile by J.L. Bourne

Welcome back to the zombie apocalypse!

Your personal guide in this rotten wasteland is the still unnamed naval officer from Day by Day Armageddon. J.L. Bourne’s Beyond Exile starts immediately following the journal entry at the end of the first book with the narrator and his companions residing in a relatively secure location. Life has begun to feel somewhat normal. However, normalcy quickly deteriorates, and the places that were once safe are now death traps.

The Wizard and the Glass: Tight plot, western setting, fantastic villains

The Wizard and the Glass by Stephen King

The Wizard and the Glass, the fourth of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower novels, returns to the Mid-World of Roland’s youth. Having recently bested his teacher in combat, Roland is now a gunslinger, one of the cowboy-knights of Gilead. However, Roland is young, and his father sends him away from his court — and away from the villainous sorcerer Marten Broadcloak. With his two companions — clever Cuthbert and the steady, cerebral Alain — by his side,

October 15th, 2010. Ryan Skardal´s rating: 4 | Stephen King | SFF Reviews | no comments |

The Sevenfold Spell: A little diversion

The Sevenfold Spell by Tia Nevitt

Most of you who follow the fantasy blogs will recognize Tia Nevitt’s name — she’s been running her own debut blog for years and is a regular contributor here at FanLit. She also happens to be a personal friend; she lives in my city and we like to trade books.

I suppose that’s why she didn’t send me a review copy of her own debut novella, The Sevenfold Spell. She probably figured I’d feel obligated to say something nice.

The Drawing of the Three: A Posse of New Yorkers

The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King

There is a lot to be said in praise of Stephen King, but one of his most admirable talents is his ability to vest his heroes with such unlikely and frustrating vulnerabilities. King certainly wastes no time castrating the recently victorious Roland Deschain in The Drawing of the Three, the second of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower novels.

We barely have time to blink at the mountains and the ocean before we find Roland,

October 9th, 2010. Ryan Skardal´s rating: 4 | Stephen King | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

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