Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

Rating: 5

Click on stars to FIND REVIEWS BY RATING:
Recommended:
Not Recommended:

Hrolf Kraki’s Saga: One of Poul Anderson’s best books

Hrolf Kraki’s Saga by Poul Anderson

Poul Anderson took the Viking saga of Hrolf Kraki and crafted this magnificent fantasy novel from the legendary king’s story. Hrolf was a sort of Arthurian equivalent in the northern folk tales and myths, but Anderson brought him to life in this novelized retelling of his exploits.

Like much of northern mythology the story is dark in spots, dealing with such themes as murderous sibling rivalry, incestuous relationships, and the everyday brutality that must have been common in the era that was rightly called “the Dark Ages.”

Vessel: One of the best of the year

Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst

Once every hundred years, the desert clans’ gods come to walk among them. One young man or woman from each clan is chosen to serve as the vessel for that clan’s deity. The human soul dies and returns to the Dreaming, while the god takes over the body. Now incarnate in the vessel’s body, the god works magic to help keep the clan alive in the harsh conditions of the desert.

Liyana has known for years that she is destined to be the vessel for the goddess Bayla.

Daytripper by Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba

Daytripper by Fabio Moon & Gabriel Ba

“Isn’t it strange how we always seem to remember the trivial things from our daily lives… yet so often we forget the most important ones?”

In the opening chapter of Daytripper, Bras de Oliva Domingos, main character of this lushly drawn graphic novel, stops for a beer and a pack of cigarettes on the way to a gala honoring his famous and powerful novelist father. He becomes involved in a shocking event, one that leaves the reader reeling.

September 28th, 2012. Marion Deeds´s rating: 5 | Comics | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |

Slaughterhouse-Five: Seems pointless, but that’s the point

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

[In our Edge of the Universe column, we review mainstream authors that incorporate elements of speculative fiction into their “literary” work. However you want to label them, we hope you’ll enjoy discussing these books with us.]

Kurt Vonnegut was a POW in Dresden during World War II. He only survived the allies’ bombing of Dresden because the Germans housed the American prisoners in a meat-locker in a building they called Slaughterhouse-Five. For years afterward, Vonnegut attempted to write a book about his experiences,

Riddley Walker: On the Edge

Riddley Walker by Russell Hoban

[At The Edge of the Universe, we review mainstream authors that incorporate elements of speculative fiction into their “literary” work. However you want to label them, we hope you’ll enjoy discussing these books with us.]

Language is dependent on the society that uses it. We weave into our idiom words and phrases that explain our history and our present. Similes and metaphors embed themselves so deeply into our sentences that we don’t even notice them. Some are slang: we didn’t get the memo,

A Wizard of Earthsea: An artistic, intimate drama

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. LeGuin

With the recent Sci- Fi Channel miniseries, there is bound to be renewed interest in Ursula Le Guin’s classic first book in her Earthsea series, as there should be. This remains a classic fantasy for good reason. The world within which the characters move is fully developed, having a sense of past, present and future as well as a sense of a larger “there there”, as opposed to some fantasies that feel like a Hollywood stage set, as if nothing exists beyond the narrow social/geographical worlds the characters move through.

Planetary: All Over the World and Other Stories, Volume 1

Planetary: All Over the World and Other Stories, Volume 1 by Warren Ellis & John Cassaday

Planetary: All Over the World and Other Stories, Volume 1 by Warren Ellis and John Cassaday is for the reader who has a nostalgia for the space explorer- and Doc Savage-style pulp fiction along with a love of futuristic and science fiction settings. Three main characters make up the mysterious group called Planetary. Elijah Snow is about 100 years old, looks like a fit 40-50 year-old, can lower the temperature of a room by walking into it (hence his name),

The Broken Lands: Loved it from beginning to end

The Broken Lands by Kate Milford

Kate Milford’s The Boneshaker was one of my favorite books when it came out, and at the end of my review I said it was clear there were more stories to tell in Arcane (the novel’s setting) and “I for one would love to see them.” Now Milford is back with a follow-up novel, The Broken Lands, and though it is set in a different place at a different time (though sharing some characters),

Identity Crisis by Brad Meltzer & Rags Morales

Identity Crisis by Brad Meltzer & Rags Morales

Over the years, the DC universe has undergone a series of crises — Crisis on Infinite Earths, Identity Crisis, Infinite Crisis, and Final Crisis. Out of these four, arguably the best written and most significant, and certainly my personal favorite, is Identity Crisis by Brad Meltzer and Rags Morales. It’s about the death of Sue Dibny,

August 31st, 2012. Brad Hawley´s rating: 5 | Comics | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |

The Incarceration of Captain Nebula and Other Lost Futures: Excellent collection

The Incarceration of Captain Nebula and Other Lost Futures by Mike Resnick

I find many story collections to be mixed affairs and, unless it’s a “Best of” collection, I open the book with the assumption that I’m going to find a few stories I like among more that I won’t get particularly excited about. But I’ve loved the stories I’ve read by Mike Resnick, so I had high hopes when I opened The Incarceration of Captain Nebula and Other Lost Futures, a collection recently published by Subterranean Press who are known for their lovely productions.

Next SFF Author: Ben Aaronovitch

We have reviewed 8470 fantasy, science fiction, and horror books, audiobooks, magazines, comics, and films.

Subscribe to all posts:

Get notified about Giveaways:

Support FanLit

Want to help us defray the cost of domains, hosting, software, and postage for giveaways? Donate here:

You can support FanLit (for free) by using these links when you shop at Amazon:

US UK CANADA

Or, in the US, simply click the book covers we show. We receive referral fees for all purchases (not just books). This has no impact on the price and we can't see what you buy. This is how we pay for hosting and postage for our GIVEAWAYS. Thank you for your support!

SFF Deals

Recent Discussion:

Marion Deeds on Talk To My Back by Muraski Yamada (An Oxford College Student Review!)May 19, 2025
What a perceptive and beautiful review. You make it clear that Yamada not only knows the story she wants to…
Kevin Keller on The Infinity Concerto: Fails to deliverMay 19, 2025
Read together with The Serpent Mage, the series is one of the best works of art out there. The main…
William Capossere on Talk To My Back by Muraski Yamada (An Oxford College Student Review!)May 18, 2025
thanks for this really well-written review. You've definitely piqued my interest in this, particularly in how you highlight the still…
Sandy Ferber on On Her Majesty’s Secret Service: Look, it’s Ursula!May 16, 2025
Thanks for the kind words, Ira! Much appreciated!
Ira Henkin on On Her Majesty’s Secret Service: Look, it’s Ursula!May 16, 2025
Fine review