Blog Archives
sTHROWBACK SF THURSDAY: Throne of the Bastards by Brian Keene and Steven L. Shrewbury
Thursday , 17, August 2017 Book Review Leave a comment“What is this?” I imagine you saying. “What is Throne of the Bastards doing in the Summer of Conan? I read the blurb and no mention of Conan is to be found.” Throne of the Bastards isn’t openly a Conan pastiche, sure. But it is only about two letters away. If you simply must read […]
Post-apocalyptic literature has a tradition almost as old as literature itself. From the Egyptian drowning of the world in the seas of chaos to the pagan world eating wolf of Ragnarok to alien and kitchen-sink approach of the Biblical Apocalyptica, wondering about the death of the world is as natural as wondering about the death […]
Ready Player One: A Billion Dumptrucks’ Worth of Worthless Crud
Monday , 31, July 2017 Book Review 74 CommentsReady Player One is a festering mound of garbage, with barely any redeeming features. Neal Stephenson did it first, and better, in Snow Crash and Nick Cole did it better, and with more human drama and emotion, in Soda Pop Soldier. Next to them, Ready Player One is a billion dumptrucks’ worth of worthless crud.
Do Good Science Fiction Novels Require Memorable, Powerful Protagonists?
Saturday , 22, July 2017 Authors, Book Review, Fiction 38 CommentsMy own column from two weeks ago got me thinking recently. Has there ever been a good, nevermind great science fiction novel that did not feature a strong, unique hero? We’re not considering short stories or novellas, as some don’t even have significant protagonists, but full-length works. At first, my mind couldn’t come up with an […]
The Stainless Steel Rat’s Revenge: A Very Good, Very Flawed Novel
Saturday , 15, July 2017 Book Review, Fiction 5 CommentsI’m a big fan of Harry Harrison’s Stainless Steel Rat series. Following the adventures of Jim DiGriz, intergalactic thief extraordinaire, the books are action-packed from start to finish, inventive, and exceptionally funny. Recently, I finished The Stainless Steel Rat’s Revenge, chronologically the fifth in the series, but actually the second Harrison completed, in 1970. (Three prequels […]
Science Fiction and Fantasy Reviews – April 2017
Thursday , 13, July 2017 Book Review, Fiction 2 CommentsLet’s look back at the month of April at some of the science fiction and fantasy books released that you might have missed. * * * * * For We Are Many (We Are Bob #2) – Dennis Taylor Bob Johansson didn’t believe in an afterlife, so waking […]
The copyright on this book says 2015, but I have my doubts. My theory is that the author opened up a wormhole, reached through, and pulled this book from the slushpile of a 1950’s publishing house. The tone and tenor of this book would not be out of place sandwiched between the covers of a […]
An Overlooked Gem: “The Green Odyssey” by PJ Farmer
Saturday , 1, July 2017 Before the Big Three, Book Review 3 CommentsLate one night last year, I was looking for a new book to read and discovered that there was another work by PJ Farmer added to Project Gutenberg, The Green Odyssey. A few hours later, I had finished a swashbuckling classic, a full-blooded adventure to rank with the best of Howard, Stevenson, or Sabatini. And […]
In the far-flung grimdark future, the Emperor of Mankind sought to unite the fractured and isolated colonies of humanity under his rule. To help in his plans, he created twenty sons, the Primarchs, genetically-engineered demigods who would serve as enlightened governors and inspired generals. To each, he gave a legion of space marines, medically augmented […]
Son of the Pulps Part 2: Farmer’s Tarzans
Saturday , 10, June 2017 Appendix N, Authors, Book Review, Fiction 6 CommentsTarzan as imagined by Edgar Rice Burroughs is a vivid hero that epitomizes full-blooded adventure and influenced generations of writers. The Tarzan of Jose Philip Farmer is better; the ultimate, indomitable hero and my favorite fictional character. As we noted in last week’s column, Farmer was utterly fascinated with Tarzan and wrote several different pastiches […]
Throwback SF Thursday: Slaves of the Switchboard of Doom: A Novel of Retropolis by Bradley W. Schenck
Thursday , 8, June 2017 Book Review 7 CommentsMy original concept for Throwback SF Thursday was less #PulpRevolution and more a mix of Vintage SF (including Campbellian science fiction) and modern fiction that is self-consciously retro. Maybe it’s Cirsova Magazine or maybe it’s . . . Slaves of the Switchboard of Doom. Slaves of the Switchboard of Doom: A Novel of Retropolis is […]
“Forget the promise of progress and understanding, for in the grim dark future there is only war.” With that tag line, the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop game sets the tone to an eternal conflict where the forces of humanity fight constantly to preserve their empire from the ravages of the alien, the mutant, and the heretic. […]