Previous SFF Author: C.M. Eddy_Jr
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.
Agincourt by Bernard Cornwell
[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.]
Often there is a fine line between historical fiction and fantasy. In the case of Agincourt by Bernard Cornwell, the line is especially blurry. Of course, there is no magic or elves or dragons.
April 29th, 2011. John Hulet´s rating: 4 | Bernard Cornwell | Edge | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
The Gates of Rome by Conn Iggulden
I was surprised to discover that Conn Iggulden’s The Gates of Rome isn’t a fantasy novel.
Sure, The Gates of Rome is about Julius Caesar. And there is an author’s note discussing historical authenticity at the end of the story. Clearly, this is supposed to be a work of historical fiction. Nevertheless, that doesn’t stop Conn Iggulden from borrowing liberally from fantasy’s most enduring tropes, ranging from the defiance of bullies to the ascension of a child of fate.
April 22nd, 2011. Ryan Skardal´s rating: 3 | Conn Iggulden | Edge | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Expiration Date by Duane Swierczynski
[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.]
Mash up a mystery, a graphic novel sensibility and a fantasy time travel novel, and what have you got? The Edgar-nominated Expiration Date by Duane Swierczynski, a novel so compelling that you’ll want to read it in a single sitting.
April 15th, 2011. Terry Weyna´s rating: 4 | Duane Swierczynski | Edge, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton
[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.]
When Michael Crichton wrote The Andromeda Strain, he was not just writing a mediocre novel about extra-terrestrial bacteria. He was founding a (sub) genre of SFF that found a massive mainstream audience.
The techno-thriller has all of the pacing and suspense that we might expect of a John Grisham novel,
April 8th, 2011. Ryan Skardal´s rating: 2 | Michael Crichton | Edge | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
The Illumination by Kevin Brockmeier
[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.]
Two themes drive Kevin Brockmeier’s The Illumination. The first is a fantasy motif, placing this novel right on the line that separates the best fantasy from the genre-that-won’t-admit-it’s-a-genre, i.e., the literary novel.
April 1st, 2011. Terry Weyna and Bill Capossere´s rating: 4 | Kevin Brockmeier | Edge | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
American Morons by Glen Hirshberg
[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.]
Glen Hirshberg is one of our modern short story masters. His first collection, The Two Sams, won the International Horror Guild Award for best collection, and was nominated for the World Fantasy Award as well. American Morons was nominated for the World Fantasy Award for best collection in 2007.
February 25th, 2011. Terry Weyna´s rating: 4.5 | Glen Hirshberg | Edge, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
[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.]
Slake-moth, Uruk-hai, or vampire, the mark of great SFF authors is often their ability to describe monsters and horrors. They say that children are desensitized to violence, but I submit that many SFF readers have become desensitized to monsters. I have read about many SFF monsters before bed,
February 18th, 2011. Ryan Skardal, João Eira and Kat Hooper | Cormac McCarthy | Audio, Edge, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 17 comments |
The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood
[In our “The Edge of the Universe” column we review 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.]
It is well documented that SFF readers love trilogies, prequel trilogies, tetralogies, and “cycles.” Some authors describe settings, but SFF authors “build” worlds and universes. For many SFF readers, the standard of a well-built world is whether or not it warrants a series.
February 11th, 2011. Ryan Skardal´s rating: 4 | Margaret Atwood | Edge | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Ryan Skardal introduces Edge of the Universe, a new column that will run on occasional Fridays.
Justin Cronin’s The Passage was one of the most popular novels of 2010. In fact, The Passage may well be a tour de force of genre fiction, if for no other reason than it seems to bring so many genres together with its cowboys, vampires, post-apocalyptic society, and even a mystical nun. Yet, The Passage was often marketed,
January 7th, 2011. Ryan Skardal | Edge | SFF Reviews | 9 comments |
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell
Let’s just admit it at the outset. As someone who tries to write, I hate David Mitchell. Hate him with the white-hot intensity of a thousand blazing suns. It’d be bad enough if he were just a great, you know, writer. Plain old everyday writer of some kind of novel: literary fiction, sci-fi, adventure, pastiche, historical. But no. He can’t just pick one. He has to be brilliant at them all. In one novel, no less (Cloud Atlas,
June 17th, 2010. Bill Capossere and Ray McKenzie´s rating: 5 | David Mitchell | Edge, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
Previous SFF Author: C.M. Eddy_Jr
I believe you are missing the point of this book here. I don't believe the purpose is to tell a…
I love it!
Almost as good as my friend: up-and-coming author Amber Merlini!
I don't know what kind of a writer he is, but Simon Raven got the best speculative-fiction-writing name ever!
[…] Its gotten great reviews from Publishers Weekly (starred review!), Kirkus, Locus, Booklist, Lithub, FantasyLiterature, and more. Some of whom…