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The Tain by China Miéville
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
Sholl is a refugee in a war-torn London. This ongoing devastation is not the easily
understood Blitz of World War II, though. The enemy here is like nothing the humans have ever faced, yet is as familiar
as, say, the lines in one's palm. And if there is a way to fight back against the invaders, no one has found it yet. The good
and bad people of Old Blighty are on their way to extinction.
Windowpane by Steve Perry
reviewed by Donna McMahon
When Flint McClelland plays his platinum flute, magic breaks out all over. Flint didn't set out to become a homeless busker. Only a few
years before, he was a high school teacher in Baton Rouge. But a mysterious old man and his flute changed everything, and now Flint is on a
mission to find ten talismans -- objects that represent the magic of the 60s. When he finds all ten, the evil that "short-circuited"
the Age of Aquarius will be defeated, and a new age will dawn.
Online Animation
an article by Trent Walters
There's something immediately gratifying about story animation that novels
and live movies do not have: perhaps because of the animator's vision can
be born out without limitation of image (mostly in movies, but due to its
limitation, the novel relies much on the reader -- just as the eye depends on
the mind -- to fill in what it cannot show at once). In fact, almost any
movie of broad-scope imagination requires animation.
The Poison Master by Liz Williams
reviewed by William Thompson
Alivet Dee is an apothecary, in part because, aside from cooking, tutoring and prostitution, only science and alchemy are available
as an occupation for lower-class women. Somewhat of a prodigy, a promising career has become side-lined by her efforts to earn
the unbonding fee necessary to rescue her twin sister from servitude to the Lords. Fortunately her skills have gained her
patrons like Genever Thant. Though he possesses an unsavory reputation, he pays well for drugs that please his
clients. But when one of her concoctions accidentally kills a wealthy heiress, she is forced to flee and go into hiding.
SF Site News
compiled by Steven H Silver
Every day, items of interest to you arrive in our email. Our bi-monthly format doesn't lend itself to daily updates.
However, this is a small inconvenience to our Contributing Editor Steven H Silver. He's begun a new column which
will fill you in on recent news in science fiction. We'll be updating the page as he sends in new items.
Messiah Node by Lyda Morehouse
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
Deidre, Archangel Michael, Prince of Darkness Morningstar, Mouse the super-hacker, and the whole crew
from Archangel Protocol and Fallen Host are back to do battle for the fate of mankind. There are some new faces
around to complicate an impossibly complex situation. Nothing stirs things up like a visit from the prophet Elijah and the appearance of the
messiah, or messiahs, or maybe messiahs, since everyone has their own idea of just who might be the real thing.
New Arrivals
compiled by Neil Walsh
This page shows you what's new from Greg Bear, Justina Robson, Katharine Kerr, and many others, plus a peek at some books that will be published over the next few months.
The Maquisarde by Louise Marley
reviewed by Alma A. Hromic
We keep getting told that strong female characters are rarer than hens' teeth in today's literature, especially the fantasy/science fiction
genre. And yet they keep popping up, like dandelions. You can't keep a good strong heroine down, it seems -- a character who sits up and
shoulders the burden of a book and carries it to the end. This is another such book, another such heroine.
Dreamcatcher
a movie review by Rick Norwood
Since you'll be buying a ticket to watch the Animatrix short, you'll be glad to know that staying for
the movie is not a total waste of time. The opening scenes are quite good, the horror is about as horrible as it gets. Then, two-thirds
of the way through, the movie changes genres, and the ending is not horror at all...
Stormrider by David Gemmell
reviewed by Ian Nichols
There's nothing quite like a good war to keep you interested, and he creates a terrific one in thsi novel. It is a war
of extinction, the extinction of the Rigante by the Varlish, their deadly opponents. It is a conflict which has endured for years,
and driven the Rigante into the high mountains, where their greatest leader, the outlaw Ravenheart, continues the fight against the
conquerors.
When Dragons Rage by Michael A. Stackpole
reviewed by Cindy Lynn Speer
Tarrant Hawkins, known for betraying the heroes of the last war with Chytrine, is now a prisoner, waiting to be transported to King Scrainwood's domain
and tried for treason. This leaves many of his friends -- Princess Alexia of Okrannel, Will Norrington,
and Kerrigan Reese, a mage of great ability -- wondering if the brave and honorable man they fought beside for so long is
really the evil nightmare they've been taught to despise.
The Core
a movie review by Rick Norwood
If you thought space travel was boring, try burrowing through the earth.
Beginning well, the movie acknowledges how far away the core of the earth is, especially compared with the few miles humans have ever drilled,
and how hot it is, at what terrific pressure.
Report to the Men's Club and Other Stories and The Mount by Carol Emshwiller
reviewed by Rich Horton
Report to the Men's Club and Other Stories includes 19 pieces, seven of them new to this book. The reprints include seven from
her recent in-genre outburst, with the other stories dating as far back as 1977. Throughout the author's lovely wry voice is
evident, as are her quirky imagination, her warm regard for her characters: women, men, and other creatures, and her passionate
interest in the relationship between the sexes.
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Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde
reviewed by Hank Luttrell
Thursday Next is a literary detective. As we join her, she is suffering from the celebrity of her success in the case she
investigated in The Eyre Affair. Thursday "improved" the climax of Jane Eyre by using a literary portal, a
newly invented device which allowed her to enter the world of the novel and interact with the characters. While not dealing with
publicity agents, censors and talk show hosts, Next begins to investigate the discovery of a long lost play by Shakespeare, a
routine job in her profession, where most events of this sort are hoaxes or mistakes.
The First Urban Myth
an article by Robert Manchester
During the First World War the writer Arthur Machen published a short story about divine intervention at the disastrous British retreat
at Mons. He called his tale "The Bowmen," but it was soon taken up as the "Angel of Mons" and became the first Urban Myth.
And this old chestnut is still going strong.
Hidden in Sight by Julie E. Czerneda
reviewed by James Seidman
In the 3rd volume of the Web Shifters series, Esen and her human friend Paul Ragem are
ensconced in a comfortable home and running a successful business. A
rapid series of events destroys both home and business, and leaves them running for their lives. The attacks are clearly being coordinated
by someone who knows that Esen is a shapeshifter. But who? Esen and Paul need to balance hiding and running for their lives with trying to
uncover their nemesis.
Geeks With Books
a column by Rick Klaw
April for Rick Klaw is a special month. It brings together the murder trial of a lesbian lover's husband, baseball movies and the
Bull Durham fiasco at Cooperstown, reporters from People magazine, SF books on baseball and how
Colin Wilson's The Mind Parasites changed his life.
Shadow of the Storm by Kurt R.A. Giambastiani
reviewed by Donna McMahon
It's 1889, and the U.S. is still a small nation crowded along the Atlantic coast. Spain controls California, and the Great Plains are the
dominion of the Cheyenne -- fierce warriors who ride immense dinosaur-descended lizards. But the Americans have technology, industry, and a
huge population of immigrants desperate for land. Under the leadership of Custer, they have pushed the Cheyenne and other tribes back
to the banks of the Missouri River.
Babylon 5.1
TV reviews by Rick Norwood
Rick offers his thoughts on the hows and the whys that some television shows are considered to be a hit while
others tank, without much difference in numbers of viewers. And Firefly is coming to DVD!
Pellucidar by Edgar Rice Burroughs
reviewed by Cindy Lynn Speer
In a previous book, At The Earth's Core, David Innes has been tricked. He ends up back on the surface of our own world, his
beloved wife Dian replaced by a vile, winged-crocodile like Mahar. Determined to once again return to the underground world of Pellucidar
and get his wife back, he turns his digging machine downward, to dig back through the hundred miles of Earth's crust, to land once more
in Pellucidar. He finds himself lost, miles away from any recognizable landmark.
Songmaster by Orson Scott Card
reviewed by Alma A. Hromic
Alma first met Ansset and the Songhouse via the excerpts published in Analog magazine as novella-length
stand-alone stories, and immediately fell in love with both the characters and the milieu. Her first encounter with
Orson Scott Card as a writer and it is on the strength of this book, this story, that she went on to buy many more of his works.
The Last Oblivion: The Best Fantastic Poems of Clark Ashton Smith edited by S.T. Joshi and David E. Schultz
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
Those of you who have read his delectable short tales of fantastic horror such as "The Vaults of Yoh-Vombis" or "The
Black Abbot of Puthuum" know already of the author's vocabulary-rich prose, his dark sense of humour and his ill-fated protagonists. If
you're not amongst those graced with a knowledge of his prose, then pick up the recent reissue of his best stories
in Emperor of Dreams. Certainly, Smith is not for everyone...
The Science of Superman by Mark Wolverton, edited by Roger Stern
reviewed by David Maddox
A strange visitor from another world with powers and abilities far beyond that of mortal men. Our yellow sun makes him faster than a speeding bullet,
more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Superman is the basis for all super heroes and certainly the
longest lasting in our history. His exploits, adventures and phenomenal powers are legendary and his costume is one of the most recognizable icons of
American civilization. But could a Superman exist in the real world?
Why Paint Cats: The Ethics of Feline Aesthetics by Burton Silver and Heather Busch
reviewed by Peter D. Tillman
Your first question here, no doubt, is what a review of a book of cat
photos is doing here. Well, we're glad you asked, because these
are fantasy cat photos -- fantastic, even. Besides, we happen to know
that a lot of SF Site readers like cats.
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