Next SFF Author: A.M. Stanley

Previous SFF Author: Michael A. Stackpole

Series: Stand-Alone

These are stand alone novels (not part of a series).

Persephone Station: Action, suspense, and tears in this adventure

Persephone Station by Stina Licht

Stina Leicht’s SF novel, Persephone Station (2021), is filled with action, suspense, and great descriptions. From a hold-your-breath opening to the tear-jerking ending, the book leads us through capers-gone-wrong, double-crosses, asymmetrical warfare, decades-old rivalries and witty banter.

Persephone is described as a “hell-planet.” Behind the artificial barrier around the one human city, everything in the environment wants to kill you; the atmosphere, the flora, and the fauna. Within the human city you can make a living if you’re flexible about obeying the law,

The Druid Stone: Ugony and the Ecstasy

The Druid Stone by Simon Majors

“You can’t judge a book by its cover.” We’ve all heard the saying before and know it to be true. Not that I’m demeaning the work of all the wonderful cover artists out there. Indeed, a good book with a beautifully decorative cover illustration makes for a treasure in any home, to be sure, and I’m nerdy enough to have my own favorite artists of such: Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, Richard M. Powers, Virgil Finlay, James Bama … the list goes on and on. All I’m saying is that it can be a risky proposition to purchase a book,

Where the Axe is Buried: Thoughtful SF spy thriller

Where the Axe is Buried by Ray Nayler

Ray Nayler’s 2025 SF geopolitical spy-thriller novel, Where the Axe is Buried, explores totalitarian regimes and the role of AI in a dystopian near-future. The story moves among many characters; Lilia, a scientist; Palmer, her London boyfriend; Zoya, a famed activist in the repressive Federation, now living in exile; Nurlan, a government functionary who is deeply in love; Nikolai, the Federation president’s personal physician, and Krotov, the president’s head of security.

The Federation is ruled by one man,

The Crimson Road: A treat of a magical vampire-hunter-quest book

The Crimson Road by A.G. Slatter

The first A.G. Slatter book I’ve read, 2025’s The Crimson Road was a treat. Violet Zennor is a smart, witty, bitter young protagonist with an unusual upbringing, who reluctantly embarks on a quest she has no desire to undertake. The story is a vampire-themed fairy tale, filled with magic and danger. I wanted to know how Violet would fare against the dreaded vampire Leech Lords, who rule in the north. Violet has been trained to fight and kill, but she’ll need more than the arts of war to prevail against the being who has risen as their new leader.

The River Has Roots: Lush, beautiful fairy tale retelling

The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar

I use up all my superlatives whenever I review anything by Amal El-Mohtar, whose prose is always exquisite and imaginative, flowing like syrup. In the case of 2025’s The River Has Roots, the hardcopy version of El-Mohtar’s lovely, original fairy tale is enhanced by woodcut-style illustrations. The story is short, novella-length, and draws on familiar elements, but the themes of the river and music form the story’s main currents, which drew me in immediately.

Esther and Ysabel Hawthorn are sisters,

Draconda and Others: Resurrecting a forgotten Weird Tales talent

Draconda and Others by John Martin Leahy

For modern-day fans of the classic pulp magazine Weird Tales, few websites will be found that exceed the depth and breadth of the one created by Terence E. Hanley; namely, Tellers of Weird Tales. Encyclopedic in scope, the site is a virtual godsend for all lovers of the so-called “Unique Magazine.” In just the Weird Tales Authors section of the website, Hanley gives full biographies of (by my rough count) 460+ authors who contributed to the magazine during its first legendary incarnation (1923 – ’54),

The Afterlife Project: Recommended with a caveat

The Afterlife Project by Tim Weed

The Afterlife Project by Tim Weed is a cli-lit book that follows two distinct storylines, one set in the not-too-distant future wracked by climate disaster and a “hyper-pandemic” and the other set 10,000 years later in a vibrant recovered world, one that may or may not have us humans around anymore. The two-track structure is appropriate, as I had two differing reactions to the book, finding the far-future section (mostly) quite strong while having a less favorable reaction to the near-future setting,

Luminous: A beautiful debut

Luminous by Silvia Park

Luminous (2025) is the debut novel for Silvia Park, and as such evinces some of the issues that sometimes crop up in first books in areas such as structure and pace. Those issues, however, are more than eclipsed by the book’s shimmering prose, frequently moving moments, and thoughtful exploration of a number of themes, all circling around the question of what it means to be “human.”

Park sets her novel in a unified Korea, roughly twenty years after the war that ended their separation.

Notes from a Regicide: A hell of a book about art and love

Notes From a Regicide by Isaac Fellman

If Notes from a Regicide were just a book about two artists who become involved in a revolution, it would be one hell of a book. If it were just a story about a man who learns to see his parents as people, it would be one hell of a book. If it were just a love story between two artists, dealing with addiction and mental illness, it would be one hell of a book, too. If it were just about a trans gay man navigating his life,

Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame: A luscious little book

Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame by Neon Yang

Neon Yang’s 2025 novella Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame, is a luscious little book, a tasty way to spend an hour or two. Yang’s words shimmer like a silk pennant rippling in the breeze. There is color, there is food, there are scents, and sensations. At the level of sentences and paragraphs, I enjoyed every moment of Yang’s fantasy. The characterizations and plot choices meant this wasn’t a story that stuck with me or made me think.

Next SFF Author: A.M. Stanley

Previous SFF Author: Michael A. Stackpole

We have reviewed 8497 fantasy, science fiction, and horror books, audiobooks, magazines, comics, and films.

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Recent Discussion:

David C Walton on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 5, 2025
Do it! One of the best things I've read in recent years.
Marion Deeds on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 5, 2025
This reminds me. I want to read Addie LaRue.
Bill Capossere on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 3, 2025
We’re in total agreement David!
David C Walton on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 3, 2025
I felt just the same. The prose and character work was excellent. The larger story was unsatisfying, especially compared to…
Marion Deeds on Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil: Ambitious, atmospheric, and ultimately unevenJuly 3, 2025
Hmmm. I think I'll pass.