And here's some of the great stuff I've been reading lately:

• Ships From the West: The Monarchies of God, Book 5 by Paul Kearney (Victor Gollancz, hc, December 2002, UK; Ace, mm, January 2003, USA & Canada)
     Well, when you get to the end of this book, there will be no doubt in your mind that the series is indeed ended. And I think it's a fitting end. The action takes place several years after the end of Book 4, and much has happened in the world in the interim. There has been much preparation in Normannia for the invasion from the western continent; but when it finally comes, the Normannian kingdoms discover how ill-prepared they actually are. As Kearney promised, there is much more sorcery involved in the battles of this novel. And that makes quite a difference. Kearney is quite an artist. He seems to have a firm grasp of the strengths and weaknesses of human spirit, the heights and depths of human nature; he's wrapped up this series in a way that is both terribly sad, and ultimately hopeful.

• A Winter Haunting by Dan Simmons (William Morrow, hc, February 2002; Harper Torch, mm, 371 pages, January 2003, USA & Canada)
     Dan Simmons is one of my favourite writers. Occasionally, he leaves me underwhelmed, but more often than not, he's dead on target -- and when he is, man, is he impressive. This novel, written as a sequel to his Summer of Night (1991), is in line with his best work, brilliant and impressive. Check out this opening:

     "Forty-one years after I died, my friend Dale returned to the farm where I was murdered. It was a very bad winter.
     "I know what you're thinking."

  And then the deceased narrator goes on to tell you precisely what you're thinking. This is one of those eerily clever novels, wherein, when everything clicks into place, you feel the chill of it all. Everything you've already read suddenly makes sense in a different light. Makes you want to read it all over again, right away, just to fully appreciate what the author has done. Great stuff.

• Rose by Jeff Smith, illustrated by Charles Vess (Cartoon Books, hc & trade graphic novel, 2002, USA)
     I couldn't wait for the next Bone collection, so I went back to the prequel material collected in Rose. It goes a long way to explaining some of the history of Gran'ma Ben, formerly Princess Rose, and her interaction with Lucius, the Great Red Dragon, the Rat Creatures and the Lord of Locusts. At first I wondered if it was a mistake to show this history in such detail -- much as I still maintain it was a grave error to show the details of John Constantine's Newcastle incident in Hellblazer -- but by the end of Rose I was hooked. There is some information here that is worth knowing, and that puts into perspective much that follows in the Bone series.
     There are some very cool images in Rose, and some spectacular scenes. The colour illustrations of Charles Vess are cleverly done in a style that is all Vess's own while still evoking the manner of Jeff Smith's artwork in the Bone books. All in all, this is a worthwhile adventure, particularly if you're already steeped in the adventures of Bone.

(Books are listed alphabetically by author. Only books received are noted.)

Lord Stink and other stories by Judith Berman
Small Beer Press (chapbook, 76 pages)
Publication date: November 2002, USA

The Book of Athyra by Steven Brust
Ace (trade, 436 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada
   Contains two complete novels, previously published separately as Athyra (1993) and Orca (1996).

Hyperthought by M.M. Buckner
Ace (mm, 182 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada

Demon in the Flames by Mark Cain
Writer's Showcase, iUniverse (trade, 264 pages)
Publication date: 2000, USA

MechWarrior, Dark Age: A Call to Arms by Loren L. Coleman
Roc (mm, 308 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada

Visitations by Jack Dann
Five Star (hc, 255 pages)
Publication date(forthcoming): April 2003, USA
   14 tales from Australian Jack Dann.

Night Lives, Nine Stories of the Dark Fantastic by Phyllis Eisenstein
Five Star (hc, 290 pages)
Publication date(forthcoming): April 2003, USA

The Gathering Storm: Crown of Stars, Book 5 by Kate Elliott
DAW (hc, 903 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada

Enemies by Lee Hogan
Roc (mm, 416 pages)
Publication date(forthcoming): 1 April 2003, USA & Canada

Rossetti Song 4 stories by Alex Irvine
Small Beer Press (chapbook, 72 pages)
Publication date: July 2002, USA

Stranger Inside by Steven Krane
DAW (mm, 443 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada

Son of the Sword by J. Adrian Lee
Ace (mm, 340 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada

Carpe Diem by Sharon Lee & Steve Miller
Ace (mm, 284 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada

Freedom's Ransom by Anne McCaffrey
Ace (mm, 287 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada
SF Site Review

Ombria in Shadow by Patricia A. McKillip
Ace (trade, 298 pages)
Publication date: 4 February 2003, USA & Canada
SF Site Review

The Changeling Plague by Syne Mitchell
Roc (mm, 328 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada
SF Site Review

The Skrayling Tree, The Albino in America by Michael Moorcock
Aspect, Warner Books (hc, 330 pages)
Publication date: 19 February 2003, USA & Canada
   Second book in Moorcock's new Albino series, following The Dreamthief's Daughter.

In the Service of Samurai by Gloria Oliver
Zumaya Publications (trade, 310 pages)
Publication date: December 2002

Sword-Sworn by Jennifer Roberson
DAW (mm, 432 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada

Children of the Shaman by Jessica Rydill
Roc (mm, 370 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada
SF Site Review

Magical Beginnings edited by Steven H. Silver & Martin H. Greenberg
DAW (mm, 352 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada
   A collection of career-launching stories from Andre Norton, Peter S. Beagle, Ursula K. LeGuin, Charles de Lint, Megan Lindholm, Emma Bull, Tanya Huff, Fiona Patton, and others.

Beyond the Last Star, Stories from the Next Beginning edited by Sherwood Smith
SFF Net (trade, 333 pages)
Publication date: September 2002, USA

Conquistador by S.M. Stirling
Roc (hc, 440 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada
SF Site Review

A Telling of Stars by Caitlin Sweet
Penguin Canada (trade, 326 pages)
Publication date: 1 February 2003, Canada
SF Site Review

Angels of Darkness by Gav Thorpe
The Black Library (mm, 252 pages)
Publication date (forthcoming): March 2003, USA

Dragon Moon by Alan F. Troop
Roc (mm, 304 pages)
Publication date (forthcoming): 1 April 2003, USA & Canada

Blood Money by C.L. Werner
The Black Library (mm, 288 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada

The Shoals of Time by P. Orin Zack
1st Books (trade, 545 pages)
Publication date: 2001, USA

Changeling by Roger Zelazny
ibooks (trade, 320 pages)
Publication date: February 2003, USA & Canada
   New edition of Zelazny's 1980 novel.

Magazines

The Magazine of Speculative Poetry, Autumn 2002, USA
Contributors to this issue include: Cheryl Snell, Wendy Rathbone, Marge Simon, Mary Soon Lee, Laurel Winter, Tim Pratt, Robert Frazier, David C. Kopaska-Merkel, Ann K. Schwader, Andy Miller.

Warhammer Monthly, #64 January 2003, UK & USA
Published by the Black Library, Games Workshop, this black & white comic features several ongoing serials in support of the Warhammer game system and the associated fiction line from the Black Library.