Aloha From Hell by Richard Kadrey
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
The premise is enticing; God is apparently missing from the City of Angels, Lucifer resides in Heaven, and a psychopath is at war with both Heaven and Hell. Sandman Slim is required to leave his home in LA, and head "downtown" aka Hell. His mission, to rescue his lost love, scupper the plans of an insane serial killer, and while he's not otherwise occupied, stop the forces of Good and Evil from completely annihilating each other. Hardly the average day out, and filled with bloody promise.

Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
Eleven years before the novel begins, James Stark was a young magician learning to control and use the power and talent so evident within him. Then another magician and his followers ganged up to send James, still alive, to Hell, where he was forced to fight demons and other creatures hand to hand for the amusement of Lucifer and his minions. They also killed his girlfriend Alice, and it's that action that fuels his desire to survive and escape from Hell. Now he's in Los Angeles, determined to track down and have his revenge on those who ruined his life.

Kaleidotrope, Issue 5, October 2008
reviewed by Rich Horton
This issue features a wide selection of stories -- generally quite a few short-shorts but this issue has a larger proportion of longer stories. There was less nonfiction this time but there is the quite amusing horoscope column and the contributors' bios. Add quite a few poems, and lots of artwork, and this remains a varied and interesting publication.

Kaleidotrope, Issue 4, April 2008
reviewed by Rich Horton
This issue features a wide selection of stories, many of them quite short, as well as some non-fiction: an interview with the writers of a Doctor Who book, a discussion of "female android sexuality in film" and a parody horoscope column. Add quite a few poems, and a comic strip, and some more art and photography, and you have a varied and interesting publication.

Kaleidotrope, Issue 3, October 2007
reviewed by Rich Horton
This is another small 'zine, physically resembling for example Electric Velocipede: 8.5" by 14" paper folded and saddle-stitched, with cardboard covers. It features quite a few stories, but most of them quite short, and a large selection of poems. There is also an article about Doctor Who, and a parody horoscope column, and lots of art, including a comic strip.

Thoughts Of God by Michael Kanaly
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
The greatest threat to children in America? Anyone who has investigated the situation will answer, without hesitation, the sexual predator. This is one reason why God deems this planet, according to his divine observations and lab notes, to be a major disappointment.

The Hellraiser Films and Their Legacy by Paul Kane
reviewed by David Maddox
"We have such sights to show you." Chilling words from one of the most haunting, gruesome and enduring horror series ever filmed. Through the decades, there have been horror icons, from Bela Lugosi's Dracula up through Robert Englund's Freddy Krueger. But never have there been such grotesquely visceral yet strangely alluring creations as Clive Barker's Cenobites, their leader Pinhead and the denizens of the Hellraiser universe.

One by David Karp
reviewed by Paul Kincaid
The citizens of this unspecified but presumably not too distant future live a life that is exactly the same as their counterparts in mid-twentieth century America. The differences would appear to be all for the better: there are no wars, there is no crime, there seems to be no poverty; most people, understandably, are happy. The State (always capitalized) seems to have come into being about a generation before and is clearly a work in progress.

Star Wars: Darth Bane - Dynasty of Evil by Drew Karpyshyn
reviewed by David Maddox
Darth Bane, the first and only true Dark Lord of the Sith, has acquired much knowledge, power and strength over the decades. But the Dark Side energy that feeds his thirst for control is slowly destroying his battered frame. As he continues to lose faith in his apprentice, Darth Zannah, Bane finds he must look for either a new apprentice, or a way to prolong his life…

Star Wars: Darth Bane - Rule of Two by Drew Karpyshyn
reviewed by David Maddox
In Darth Bane - Path of Destruction, a young man named Dessel created the modern Sith legacy by wiping out all rivals and taking command of the Dark Side's destiny by invoking the Rule of Two. This tale picks up where the other left off with the rescue of a confused, frightened and angry young girl named Zannah from the war torn battlefield left from the clashing forces of the Jedi Army of Light and the Sith Brotherhood of Darkness. Bane sculpts her as his apprentice and prepares to bring his plan and ideals to pass.

Star Wars: Darth Bane: Path of Destruction by Drew Karpyshyn
reviewed by David Maddox
Amidst the turmoil and ongoing war with the Old Republic and the Jedi, an angry, lone miner on the planet Apatros named Dessel finds his destiny. Son to an abusive father, trapped in never-ending debt to a faceless corporation, Des has become hard, mean and vicious to survive in the Outer Rim. Although he has always had precognitive senses, a violent turn of events with a Republic ensign puts him on the run.

The Arthurian Companion by Phyllis Ann Karr
reviewed by William Thompson
Growing out of and originally researched for a role-playing game, the original edition of this companion was "godfathered... into print" by the game's creator. Even in this second edition, at times the author's extrapolations of certain figures, actions and behaviours read as if taken from a role play manual. While the book is not without merit, true Arthurian scholars will certainly raise their eyes from dusty study, shouting loudly foul.

Aliens Rule edited by Allan Kaster
an audiobook review by Susan Dunman
The idea of aliens among us has always been an intriguing concept but it's not quite so appealing if the aliens have the upper hand. In this collection of three short stories, humans must cope with unusual circumstances created by aliens who are in control of the situation.

The Year's Top Ten Tales of Science Fiction edited by Allan Kaster
an audiobook review by Susan Dunman
Annual "best of" short story anthologies are a long-standing tradition within the science fiction publishing community. Audio fans are encouraged to see this same tradition being embraced by science fiction audio publishers such as Infinivox. This year, Infinivox editor Allan Kaster has made his selections from science fiction prose originally written in 2008 including two Hugo Award winners. No doubt about it, there's something here for any science fiction fan to appreciate and enjoy.

Mini-Masterpieces of Science Fiction edited by Allan Kaster
an audiobook review by Susan Dunman
This collection includes nine selections originally published between 1991 and 2007, offering a variety of topics ranging from an aging superhero grandmother ("Grandma," by Carol Emshwiller) to how a mother and daughter cope with the end of the world ("Last Contact," by Stephen Baxter). Narrators Tom Dheere and Vanessa Hart give fine performances.

The Secret History of Extraterrestrials by Len Kaster
reviewed by Sandra Scholes
The author is a man with much to say about the truth surrounding aliens and whether they exist. He starts the first chapter with the reason for this book, being his own encounter with aliens he describes as an actual close encounter as he felt nauseous at being in the craft itself. The fact there are a great deal of chapters in this novel means he has a lot of newly discovered information on aliens to back up what might be conceived as bizarre claims.

Imaginarium 2012: The Best Canadian Speculative Writing edited by Sandra Kasturi & Halli Villegas
reviewed by Sandra Scholes
If you got stuck on a train, or bus, or in an elevator and you had to have one book to choose from that would have to get you through the boredom, then this would be it. Crammed with short stories, poetry and longer stories that range from fantasy, horror, supernatural and science fiction, this is the sort of book you would have on your keeper shelf.

All I Need To Know About Filmmaking I Learned From The Toxic Avenger by Lloyd Kaufman and James Gunn
reviewed by Chris Donner
This is not a how-to book for independent filmmakers. instead, it is a book that explains how to BE one, from the attitude and lifestyle to the mistakes and lucky breaks that allowed Troma Studios not only to exist for so many years but to thrive.

Chasing the Dragon by Nicholas Kaufmann
reviewed by Seamus Sweeney
Horror fiction has resorted to the familiar monsters of myth and legend many times. Most notoriously, and notably, the vampire, but also the other familiar weird and/or undead creatures of the horror canon. One exception is the dragon. The dragon is the creature of fantasy, from the story of the Hobbit who lived in a hole to the Dragonriders of Pern. Dragons have not featured much in contemporary horror writing.

What If What's Imagined Were All True by Roz Kaveney
reviewed by Sandra Scholes
If you, like me, enjoy thumbing through small books of poetry, you will really appreciate this one. It is labelled as poetry but there is something for everyone with science fiction and fantasy, and other poetry that is much broader than imagined. The mere fact it is small enough to fit in your back pocket, or get tucked in your handbag is enough.

Guy Gavriel Kay

The Fair Folk edited by Marvin Kaye
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
This is a collection six, novella-length stories, by well-known writers including Tanith Lee, Megan Lindholm, Kim Newman, Patricia A. McKillip, Craig Shaw Gardner, Jane Yolen and Midori Snyder. There is no connecting thread between them, other than their genre and the editor's requirement that each story feature at least one elf.

The Dragon Quintet edited by Marvin Kaye
reviewed by Steven H Silver
Here we have an original anthology consisting of "In the Dragon's House" by Orson Scott Card, "Judgment" by Elizabeth Moon, "Joust" by Mercedes Lackey and "King Dragon" by Michael Swanwick.

The Macht Trilogy by Paul Kearney
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
For those of you out there that love nothing more than reading about heroic last ditch battles against overwhelming odds or get choked up with scenes about the brotherhoods formed when men fight and die together in battle, Paul Kearney is your man. His Macht Trilogy is an excellent example of pure military fantasy and if you are familiar with his work, you know there aren't that many authors out there who can navigate a battlefield better than he.

Hawkwood and the Kings and Century of the Soldier by Paul Kearney
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
With Monarchies of the Gods, Paul Kearney has created a complex society where the interplay between church and state creates plenty of lying, scheming and treachery among the upper power echelons, Kings, Queens, Pontiffs and princes all join in the fun and the backstabbing. Socially, the books take place during a time when gunpowder and iron are replacing magic and the practitioners of "dweomer" are ostracized and persecuted as heretics by the church.

The Ten Thousand by Paul Kearney
reviewed by Tammy Moore
The Macht, legendary for their military prowess, have little to do with the Kufr in the Asurian Empire to the South East. Ever since the brutal, long-ago war -- that the Macht narrowly lost -- all contact has been carefully filtered through the ancient Port of Sinon. Both races prefer to maintain the separation. Even without the lingering enmity of once-upon-a-time atrocities the two races find each other repellent in form and culture. Intrinsically alien. So it has been for generations.

Hawkwood's Voyage by Paul Kearney
reviewed by William Thompson
Threatened from the East by the armies of Shahr Baraz and the Merduk sultanates, the kingdoms of the West are faced not only with invasion from without, but possibly an enemy from within, one whose true identity may remain hidden beneath the trappings of piety and faith.  The Inceptine Order has installed a new pontiff, one who seeks to establish the Church's primacy not only over affairs religious, but secular.  To assert his power, he has begun a campaign against heresy directed at all suspected of dweomer and the practice of "dark" magics.

The Iron Wars by Paul Kearney
reviewed by Neil Walsh
Characters walk some very fine lines, risking everything to juggle such issues as power and prestige, high treason and fervent patriotism, heresy and true faith. There's politics, magical manipulation, emotional frailty -- everything you could ask for in a good solid work of fantasy.

In a Time of Treason by David Keck
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
Being the first born son of a Lord is a pretty good deal. You stand to one day inherit a title, land, and loyalty of the people who go along with it. Being the second son is not nearly as good a thing. The latter is the situation faced by a young Durand Col who has found a place as a knight in service to Lord Lamoric. Times are uncertain, and when Lamoric and other Lords are called by the King to journey to his court and renew their oaths of loyalty, they are forced on a harsh voyage which ends in betrayal.

The White Circle and Y. Cheung Business Detective by Harry Stephen Keeler
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
Generally categorized as a mystery writer, the author certainly wrote some of the largest and weirdest mystery novels to grace the English language. He's has been compared to Ed Wood and Weird Al Yankovic, though in the former case, it was pointed out that he, if quirky, was at least talented and successful. A quick scan of links releated to the author will yield one an enumeration of all of his literary quirks, along with why these very quirks work in his "wild and woolly world."

James Patrick Kelly & John Kessel, ed.

Strange But Not A Stranger by James Patrick Kelly
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
Looking for a good gift for the science fiction reader on your holiday shopping list? You could do much worse than this story collection. Adorned with a gorgeous cover painting by Bob Eggleton, the book is further proof that, outside the magazines, Golden Gryphon Press is the pre-eminent publisher of short stories in the science fiction field. There are even two Christmas stories included. The first, "Candy Art," is a fine example of the author's main strength as a writer, the revealing of human emotional responses underneath the surface gloss of a high-tech future. "Fruitcake Theory," besides celebrating the classic holiday confection, explores another common theme in the collection, an encounter with aliens whom the protagonist is never quite able to understand.

Southland Tales: Two Roads Diverge by Richard Kelly & Brett Weldele
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
The story centres around Boxer Santaros, a world famous actor who is found alone in the Nevada desert, without any ID and unable to remember who he is or how he got there. By chance, Santaros is rescued by professional gambler Fortunio Balducci, who recognises the star and sees an opportunity. Balducci knows Krysta Now, a porn starlet with ambitions way above her apparent station, and the contacts to get the trio visas for crossing the border into California.

The Fire Lord's Lover by Kathryne Kennedy
reviewed by Michelle Enzinas
The story takes place in an alternate 1724, where two centuries earlier, elves took over England and magically boarded it off from the rest of the world. Within the magical walls, elves have been dallying with their human "animals" while being ruled over by an immortal evil-overlord. This premise is just as engaging than it sounds.

Dominion by J.Y.T. Kennedy
reviewed by Donna McMahon
Gilna is an apprentice "perfumer" -- an expert in the mixing of medicines, incense and scented oils. After studying in the plains city of Nenaril Jad, she returns to her home village of Rehinau in the foothills to continue her apprenticeship. But her studies are far from complete when the village is devastated -- first by a plague that kills the majority of her people and then by barbarians who slaughter the survivors and take their children captive.

Shadowrun: Crossroads by Stephen Kenson
reviewed by Don Bassingthwaite
Don't let the giant ant on the cover of this book throw you. This not a book about the insect shamans. There is one, but he is quickly, efficiently, and heroically dispatched in the opening pages as we meet the main character. Talon is a shadowrunner in the cybermagical Awakened world of 2060. He's a streetmage, a rough and tumble wizard who came into his power in the damp concrete and rusty steel of the toughest parts of Boston.

Shadowrun: Technobabel by Stephen Kenson
reviewed by Alexander von Thorn
This is a striking novel of intrigue and mysticism -- a must-read for Shadowrun fans, and a very good example of the narrow sub-genre of cyber-fantasy. Babel is a techno-shaman who interacts directly with the Matrix, the global computer network, summoning the sentient spirits of the cyber-world...

The Clone Alliance by Steven L. Kent
reviewed by Michael M Jones
In the far future, war has broken out across the arms of the Milky Way Galaxy, as the Unified Authority fights against the secessionist Confederate Arms Treaty Organization and the fanatically religious Morgan Atkins Believers (or Mogats). Caught in the middle of this galaxy-wide conflict is former UA soldier and occasional war hero, Wayson Harris, the only Liberator-series clone known to still be alive. Wayson, fully aware of his clone status unlike the millions of other clones populating the UA armies, has, over the course of his adventures, become a rebel and a wild card.

A Thousand Perfect Things by Kay Kenyon
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
One world, two continents, one bridge. That, stripped to its essentials, is the setting. It's the details, of course, that make things interesting, and they do not disappoint. On one continent there is a mid-nineteenth British civilization, dedicated to science and technology. On the other continent is an alternative India where mysticism and magic abound. Journeying between is a young woman whose determination holds the seemingly contradictory ambitions of a place in the world of academic sciences, and proving that magic does exist.

Prince of Storms by Kay Kenyon
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
From early on in The Entire and the Rose series, a terrible choice has loomed before Titus Quinn. Our universe, the Rose, is home to family and friends. But his life in the Entire has brought with it new family and friends, and has given him a position of power and influence. What everyone now wonders is how Titus will use that power. If confronted with the choice of saving the Entire or the Rose, which will he choose?

City Without End by Kay Kenyon
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
As the novel opens, the major story-lines left over from A World Too Near are front and center. Titus Quinn still searches for a way to save our universe, the Rose, without destroying the Entire. Meanwhile, his daughter grows in power even as she renounces their relationship, and Helice continues her plan to bring humans to the Entire, no matter the cost to Earth.

A World Too Near by Kay Kenyon
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
Titus Quinn is back in the world of the Entire, the neighboring universe which exists contemporaneous with our own. This time, he has an unwelcome companion, Helice Maki, the ambitious scientist/corporate executive who has gained great influence and power. Quinn's mission is two-fold, prevent the Tariq, the strange, powerful beings who rule the Entire from destroying our universe in order to provide energy for their own, and to find his daughter Sydney, who is living with aliens known as the Inyx. Helice, nominally along to help him, has plans of her own.

Bright of the Sky by Kay Kenyon
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
When a physics experiment with anomalous results drives an AI insane, the door is opened to the possibility that Titus Quinn may not be crazy after all. Quinn had disappeared with his family, in a spaceship, only to found later, his wife and daughter missing, and little memory of what had happened to him. Convinced he had been gone for years, tests showed he was the same age as when he left.

Tropic Of Creation by Kay Kenyon
reviewed by Donna McMahon
On a routine galactic mission, Captain Eli Dammond stumbles across the crew of a human warship that has been marooned on an uncharted planet for 3 years. Although the war is over (humans sued for peace with the ahtra a year ago, and an uneasy armistice is holding) it is Dammond's duty to search for evidence of mutiny or desertion. His investigation, however, turns up something far more interesting. This desert planet is riddled with underground tunnels -- excavated by their enigmatic enemy, the ahtra.

No Mercy by Sherrilyn Kenyon
an audiobbok review by Julie Moncton
First there was Romeo and Juliet, and more recently Edward and Bella -- couples who fall in love, but whose love is forbidden. Now there is Samia Savage and Devereaux Peltier. In a previous life, Samia was Queen of the Amazons, but now has joined the ranks of the Dark Hunters -- immortal warriors who hunt and kill Daemons to protect human kind. Devereaux is a Were Bear Shapeshifter, who is forbidden to have anything to do with Dark Hunters. But rules were made to be broken...

Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon
reviewed by Gil T. Wilson
Nick Gautier is your typical high school freshman -- full of sarcastic wit, worried about bullies, and fully aware of girls. On the other hand, he has some secrets, but there's one he doesn't even know himself -- he's not quite human. It is never fully revealed as to what he is, but it is powerful. It will be up to Kyrian, a supernatural Dark Hunter, to help show Nick what his true potential might be.

Lord Brother by Carolyn Kephart
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
Life is miserable and dangerously chaotic for the noble Ryel. His father lies dead. The city of his apprenticeship faces a grim fate. Now Ryel must go out into the world to face the daimon Dagar, who is determined to destroy Ryel and wreak havoc on the world. Everything Ryel holds dear is at risk and his powers may not be enough to overcome the daimon. His own life may be part of the price he will pay for losing the battle.

Wysard by Carolyn Kephart
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
Magick and mystery and ghosts aside, this is a struggle for a young man to fulfill his destiny and become a true leader. It's as much a coming of-age tale as a fairy tale. Ryel, the wysard of the title, is on a quest to save his homeland, and, just possibly, the world. Something is sapping the very magic from the air at Markul.

Winter On the Plain of Ghosts by Eileen Kernaghan
reviewed by Donna McMahon
This may be the only historical fantasy novel that's ever been written about the ancient city of Mohenjo-daro (in what is now Pakistan).  This strange, atmospheric setting with its unfamiliar culture makes an entirely fascinating backdrop to a strong narrative.

The Alchemist's Daughter by Eileen Kernaghan
reviewed by Donna McMahon
The setting is Elizabethan England under threat of invasion by the Spanish Armada, and our heroine is Sidonie, the bookish daughter of an impractical and largely unsuccessful alchemist. Always convinced that the transformation of base metal into gold is imminently within his reach, Simon Quince has begged financing for his experiments from Queen Elizabeth, in return for a promise of gold to finance her war efforts. And Sidonie is terrified. What will happen to them if he does not succeed?

The Snow Queen by Eileen Kernaghan
reviewed by Donna McMahon
Gerda leads a comfortable, sheltered life in Victorian Denmark, but her world is turned upside-down when her boyfriend, Kai, is ensnared by a powerful sorceress. None of the adults seem to understand the danger or be willing to pursue the Snow Queen and rescue Kai, so she sets out by herself -- naive and utterly unprepared for the rugged trip ahead.

The Snow Queen by Eileen Kernaghan
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
Based on Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen," this is a fast-paced, adventure-laden story of the contrasting lives of two 19th century girls, one raised in the "civilized" portion of Scandinavia, the other the daughter of a shaman and a robber-baron of Lapland. Together they must confront the Ice Queen, sorceress of the icy Northern wastes.

Katharine Kerr

The Wild Swans by Peg Kerr
reviewed by David Soyka
The novel links 2 seemingly disparate narratives, recounted in alternating chapters. Both are love stories, one a retelling of the eponymous Hans Christian Andersen story, the other a depiction of 80s New York City gay culture on the eve of the AIDS epidemic. Both are also fairy tales, featuring banished characters who are redeemed through strenuous trials of their courage and faith.