Spider-Man the Icon by Steve Saffel
reviewed by Steven H Silver
Even if you've never read a comic book or seen any of the Sam Raimi films, you know who Spider-Man is, the iconic super hero Stan Lee and Steve Ditko created in 1962. The author, however, has not only read Spider-Man comics and seen the films, he has dedicated a significant amount of time to the webslinger and the various products that have been tied in to the character over the last 45 years.

Tooth and Nail by Jennifer Safrey
reviewed by Katherine Petersen
Amateur boxer Gemma Cross has quit her job as a pollster to prevent any potential controversies from affecting her boyfriend, Avery McCormack's race for the House of Representatives. On the heels of this decision, Gemma learns a long-kept secret about herself: she is part fae and part human. As a half-human, the fae have called upon her to become a warrior for their cause to return to the Olde Way.

Edenborn by Nick Sagan
reviewed by Victoria Strauss
Eighteen years have passed since the events of Idlewild and the Black Epplague is endlessly mutating into ever more deadly forms. A new generation of humans created by Isaac, Champagne, and Vashti is at risk, an outside force observes with possibly hostile intent, and betrayal threatens from within. To survive, the original group must unite -- even angry Halloween. But can they overcome the scars and terrors of the past? And if they do, will it be in time?

Idlewild by Nick Sagan
reviewed by Charlene Brusso
Our narrator awakens with amnesia in a mysterious realm he doesn't recognize or understand. Meanwhile, readers will easily identify the Dungeons & Dragons-style fantasy world as a computer-generated virtual reality, fraught with all manner of meaningful metaphors and symbols. Our narrator learns that his name is Halloween, and then that he may have murdered someone named Lazarus. Eventually he realizes he is one of a handful of gifted high school students attending "Immersive Virtual Reality" classes at the Idlewild IVR Academy, a highly selective school sponsored by multinational biotech company, the Gedaechtnis Corporation.

Shrapnel: Hubris, Part 2 by Nick Sagan and Clinnette Minnis
reviewed by Sandra Scholes
On her way to Luna, Dr. Rita Shankar goes to Tranquillity City and there she meets up with Colonel Ross, Johnny Yuen and Captain Narayan. She is the guest in an important meeting disguised as an innocent dinner at a Chinese restaurant. Shankar is on a mission, and they want her to acquire Helium 3, destroying the leftover supply for them to be able to sell the other at a premium, but getting it will be at high risk.

Rocket Science: Fiction and Non-Fiction edited by Ian Sales
reviewed by Sandra Scholes
It started out as an open call for submissions and turned into a book of short stories and non-fiction essays that show how good a compilation of stories can be. For a long time now, science fiction has become science fact; the quirky gadget from the original Star Trek series developed into today's cell phone, while the PADD from Star Trek TNG became the e-reader device many of us read novels and stories on around the world.

Zanesville by Kris Saknussemm
reviewed by Victoria Strauss
A naked man awakens in Central Park with no memory of who he is or where he came from. He's blond, handsome, and hugely endowed; on his back is carved the truncated phrase FATHER FORGIVE THEM F. He's discovered by the Satyagrahi, the denizens of Fort Thoreau, a secret hi-tech sanctuary for society's dropouts run by an ex-lawyer drag queen and an embittered dwarf, under the aegis of shadowy master hacker Parousia Head.

Four Novels of The Sandokan Series by Emilio Salgari
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
The first book in the series, serialized in the Italian newspaper La Nuova Arena in 1883-4, first published in book form in 1900, and here translated for the first time into English, is so chock full of action that the best cultural equivalent in North America might have been the better dime-novel adventures of the late 19th-early 20th century. Or, perhaps think Douglas Fairbanks Sr.'s swashbuckling movies, or, if in a different genre, the Indiana Jones films.

R.A. Salvatore

Snail's Pace by Susan McDonough Sanchez
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
Picture Chow-Yun Fat or Yul Brynner as a really big snail. Susannah Maureen Chambers McKay is seeing the rather rough side of the Victorian era. The search for employment is meeting some ego-bruising dead ends until she is approached by a stranger on the street who reluctantly offers her the position of a lifetime.

Rootabaga Stories and More Rootabaga Stories by Carl Sandburg
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
Take the whimsy of L. Frank Baum's Oz books, crank it up a notch, maybe two, throw in a pinch of nonsense, add the diction of a poet, mix well. Ah, there we have it... Now you ask, pray tell, what are these stories about? Well they're about the finding of the Zig-Zag railroad, the Pigs with Bibs On, the Circus Clown Ovens, the Village of Liver-and-Onions, and the Village of Cream Puffs, and that only covers the first 30 pages of the first book.

William Sanders

The Complete Alcatraz by Brandon Sanderson
reviewed by Nathan Brazil
Alcatraz Smedry is a 13 year-old foster child sent a bag of sand as his sole inheritance, only to find himself playing a pivotal role in a world that is so much more than he'd ever imagined. The sand, which is also more than it seems, is almost immediately stolen, thus beginning a chain of events leading to the young Smedry discovering he is part of a family with unique individual talents. A family at the forefront of a secret war being fought between the Free Kingdoms, and a totalitarian conspiracy known as the Librarians.

The Alloy of Law: A Mistborn Novel by Brandon Sanderson
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
The book takes place in the same world as the Mistborn Trilogy, but this time the story is about 300 years into the future. Guns, railroads and skyscrapers exist and electricity is just becoming commonplace. Kelsier, Vin and the rest of the gang have long since faded into the mists. As far as the plot goes, it has echoes of an old Sherlock Holmes novel and the author has created his own allomantic version of Holmes and Watson with Waxillium and Wayne, our two protagonists.

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
an audiobook review by Amy Timco
The powerful Alethi princedoms are held together by an uneasy alliance, but lack the unification of a strong ruler after the infamous assassination of their first king a decade ago. Military power is determined by Shardblades and Plate, magically enhanced weapons and armor that kingdoms battle to possess. Society is divided in a rigid caste system based on eye color.

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
The Way of Kings, the first of ten in The Stormlight Archive, is a multi-layered tale told predominately from the perspective of three characters. Dalinar is the assassinated king's brother and uncle to the current king. He is a legendary war leader whose advancing years and strange visions causes him to rethink all he knows. Kaladin grew up an educated son of a surgeon and is now a healer who tries to always protect those around him, but this path of honor leads to his betrayal. Shallan is a young noble and a scholar who is her family's last hope for survival.

Warbreaker, Part 3 by Brandon Sanderson
an audiobook review by Ivy Reisner
This is the finest, as well as the final, installment of the trilogy of audiobooks.  Brandon Sanderson proves to be a master at hiding things in plain sight. He managed to hide an entire mythical army right out in the open.  He also hid the true enemy, the force behind all of this, and when that enemy is revealed, it is both logical and surprising.

Warbreaker, Part 2 by Brandon Sanderson
an audiobook review by Ivy Reisner
Warbreaker is divided into three parts, which is only unfortunate in that, when you get to the end of one part, you won't want to stop listening.  Part two deepens the characters. Some change and grow. Some show us aspects of themselves we didn't see before. Some discover the truth of themselves and their pasts.

Warbreaker, Part 1 by Brandon Sanderson
an audiobook review by Ivy Reisner
What happens when the not-as-useless-as-she-thought princess Siri is sent to the not-as-horrible-as-people-say country of Halladren to be wed to the not-as-evil-as-advertised god king? She must learn to find her own angle in a world where everything is a lie wrapped in a veil of propaganda if she is going to survive.

Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
The kingdoms of Hallandren and Idris have been estranged from one another for 300 years over political and religious differences. The kingdom of Hallandren is ostentatious, colorful and worships its "returned" as living gods. They make use of a biochromatic system of magic that utilizes colors along with their life force, which they refer to as Breath, to produce magical effects. In stark contrast, is the humble kingdom of Idris. They lead simple drab lives of devotion and do not believe in the using their breath to produce biochromatic magic and feel the Hallandren's use of breath to be blasphemy.

The Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson
reviewed by Dominic Cilli
We are introduced to the Final Empire, a dark, seemingly post-apocalyptic world that features raining ash and a mysterious mist that comes at night. The final empire is governed by the oppressive and god-like Lord Ruler and has been around for a thousand years. Society is divided into the nobility and the skaa or slaves. Vin is a seventeen-year-old half-skaa girl who is a member of a small-time gang of street thieves. She is their lucky charm. Vin has no idea that the ability to create that luck is something much more.

Elantris: Part 1 by Brandon Sanderson
an audiobook review by Susan Dunman
Elantris was once the city where all men dreamed of living. Full of magic and marvels, its citizens were god-like in their appearance and had superhuman abilities. But now, Elantris is a place for the damned, offering only misery and despair for those unfortunate enough to be locked inside the walled city. For something is terribly wrong with the Dor, a mysterious force that randomly and instantaneously changes individuals from mortals to immortals.

A Memory of Light by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
reviewed by Christopher DeFilippis
Robert Jordan's epic fantasy series The Wheel of Time, which has spun out over 23 years, 14 books (not counting a prequel) and two authors, finally winds to a climax in its final volume, A Memory of Light. And if you've been with the series from the beginning, all that reading time and emotional investment begs the question: was it worth it? Do fans get the payoff they deserve?

Towers of Midnight by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
reviewed by Christopher DeFilippis
The gathering storm has broken. Black clouds roil the skies and the Dark One's taint mars the land. Skirmishes rage along the borderlands as Trolloc hordes surge out of the Blight in horrifying numbers. The Black Ajah is still at large and death stalks the halls of the White Tower, with Aes Sedai found mysteriously murdered. And armies are marshalling too late under the banners of Andor, Malkier and The Dragon Reborn, as the Forsaken scheme in the shadows to thwart destiny and crush the Dragon before his final confrontation with Shai'tan at Tarmon Gai'don. And thus the stage is set for Towers of Midnight.

The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
reviewed by Christopher DeFilippis
Brandon Sanderson, has reinvigorated the Wheel of Time with a renewed sense of momentum. The last battle between main character Rand al'Thor and the Dark One is finally imminent. Darkness covers the land and the final seals are breaking on the Dark One's prison. Evil is becoming more manifest as spring blooms fail and food inexplicably spoils, throwing kingdoms into famine and chaos.

The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia, Volume 1: A-G by Stephen J. Sansweet, Pablo Hidalgo, Bob Vitas, Daniel Wallace, with Josh Kushins, Chris Cassidy & Mary Franklin
reviewed by David Maddox
The Star Wars Universe has spawned not only characters, but races, planets, ships, customs, religious beliefs and, well let's face it, an entire working universe. What better way to catalog it all than with this three-book hardcover boxed set designed to encompass all of George Lucas' incredible vision.

Thumbprints by Pamela Sargent
reviewed by Chris Przybyszewski
In her Afterword, the author talks about the importance of science fiction to rebuild a new world, a post-9/11 world. "There were, after all, a number of anecdotes about science fiction readers who had become physicists working on nuclear weapons, or to cite a more hopeful example, science fiction fans who ended up as engineers, research scientists, even as astronauts. The world could be remade, and your writing might even, in some small way, help to remake it."

Child of Venus by Pamela Sargent
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
With this novel, the author has returned to complete the task she began in Venus of Dreams and Venus of Shadows. The novels are a multi-generational family epic chronicling the history of the Venus Project, the terraforming of the second planet from the Sun. As such, these books deserve a place among all the grandly conceived histories of SF.

Climb the Wind by Pamela Sargent
reviewed by Greg L. Johnson
Here is an alternate history novel in which an American Indian named Touch-the-Clouds, inspired by hearing of Genghis Khan's achievements, seeks to unite the plains tribes and stop the expansion of the post-Civil War United States.

The Vault, Issue 1 of 3 by Sam Sarker
reviewed by Sandra Scholes
Gabrielle and Michael, two scientists, are investigating the Oak Island Treasure Pit, a haven for treasure-hunters, scientists and plunderers around. There is a lot spoken of what treasures may lay at the bottom of its vault, but so far no one has dared to plunge so far down due to the oxygen problems divers have found. Somewhere far from the original site, the two of them have found something else, another site that boasts of great treasures no one has ever seen before, but is it all hearsay, or the truth?

Redshift edited by Al Sarrantonio
reviewed by Rich Horton
Rich says this book is easily worth the price. It's above average for a typical anthology; good enough to call this one of the fine anthologies of the past few years. The strangest story in the book is Neal Barrett, Jr.'s "Rhido Wars." James Patrick Kelly's brief "Unique Visitors" is also notable and Paul Di Filippo is at his most all out viciously satirical in "Weeping Walls." Also fine are "The Building," another of Ursula K. Le Guin's excellent essays in "anthropological" SF, with a subtle moral point, and Thomas M. Disch's "In Xanadu," an extended riff on death and cyberspace, built on references to Coleridge's poem.

999 edited by Al Sarrantonio
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
With excellent stories ranging from the straightforward and graphic to the complex and cerebral, from suspense to supernatural horror, from strict rationalism to irrealism, from the grimly horrifying to the humorous, with settings ranging from current New York society to depression-era Southern farm-folk, anyone unable to find something to raise the hair on the nape of their neck in 999, is likely in need of resuscitation paddles. With authors ranging from horror icons like Stephen King and William Peter Blatty, to lesser known or more recent entrants to the field, like Bentley Little and Michael Marshall Smith, the book presents an excellent cross-section of horror as it is and as it stands to be in the next millennium.

The Chronicles of Scar by Ron Sarti
reviewed by Regina Lynn Preciado
This trilogy traces the evolution of young Prince Arn, also called Scar, from a frightened beggar to a cowardly prince to an unwilling hero and finally to a mature leader and man. Set on a ravaged world where electricity and other technologies are forbidden, and "dinosaurs" roam the swamps.

Perfect Nightmare by John Saul
an audio review by Lisa DuMond
John Saul is an author listeners can count on for a chill, but the creep factor here hits a new high. He has tapped into the current out-of-control increase in abductions and ratcheted up the tension to an almost unbearable degree. He has taken the things most of us fear the most and created a villain so sick that his audience may get the uncomfortable feeling that their skin is trying to crawl right off the top of its head.

Wages of Justice by Kate Saundby
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
Call it Peyton Space or The Young And The Weightless, and it still boils down to the same thing: space opera on the soapy side. The characters you love to hate, the melodrama, the instant love -- it's all here.

Steve Savile

The Distance Travelled by Brett A. Savory
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
You're sitting around one day in Hell, minding your own business, when some low-life creeps throw a live pig through your kitchen window. Now, that kind of thing doesn't go down well up here among the living and it certainly isn't any more tolerated in Hell. One can't just spend one's time running willy-nilly about the house, dodging airborne livestock.

Robert J. Sawyer

Say...
reviewed by Rich Horton
This generously sized 'zine has an impressive list of contributors. There are 11 short stories, from the likes of Jeffrey Ford, Scott Westerfeld, Justine Larbalestier, Jay Lake, etc.; 5 poems, including one from Rhysling winner Laurel Winter; and an essay by Terri Windling. The fiction is quite solid work. The poetry was OK, though not wholly to Rich's taste -- he did like Sophie Levy's "What the Pink Book Said" quite a bit, however.

Intervals of Horrible Sanity by Michelle Scalise
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
It isn't often that a collection reveals its brilliance so quickly, but this collection trumpets the author's unique talent from the intense, harrowing first story and maintains its unbreakable hold until the last page. Even after closing the book, the resonances of the tales never quite let go. Whether violent, chilling, unsettling, or shocking, each selection earns its right to be included; there is no filler here, only the "good stuff."

John Scalzi

Metatropolis edited by John Scalzi
reviewed by Steven H Silver
Originally conceived as an audio anthology, the book is a shared world anthology set in a future in which cities have begun to be transformed from their traditional form. John Scalzi and the four other authors, Elizabeth Bear, Tobias Buckell, Jay Lake, and Karl Schroeder, have worked together the create new types of cities which co-exist in their world of the future.

Channeling Cleopatra by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
reviewed by Victoria Strauss
Leda Hubbard's greatest ambition was to be an Egyptologist, but lack of opportunity and lack of finances conspired to keep her from that goal. Instead, she settled for forensic anthropology, working mostly for law enforcement agencies. One day an anonymous gift arrives in her mailbox: an all-expenses-paid trip to the International Conference of Egyptologists. A little suspicious about her mysterious benefactor, Leda still can't resist going. The benefactor, it turns out, is Tsering, husband of Leda's old college buddy, Chime -- but Tsering isn't what he used to be.

The Lady of the Loch by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
This novel melds fantasy and horror with the history of 18th century Scotland. Midge Margret, a member of itinerant tinkers, is befriended by the young Walter Scott (author of Ivanhoe and other novels). He, as the sheriff of Edinborough, and she investigate the death of a young woman, abducted from the town.

Warrior Princesses edited by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough and Martin H. Greenberg
reviewed by Lela Olszewski
This anthology celebrates women who refuse to be constrained by society's rules, even though they know the result is as likely to be their doom as it is their freedom. The majority of the stories are sword & sorcery, with the emphasis on "sword." Most are fresh and some are surprising, providing a variety of pleasures for the reader.

The Godmother's Web by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
reviewed by Regina Lynn Preciado
From wicked stepsisters to Coyote, from the sun-haired maiden to Prince Charming, this fantasy novel invokes the stories that touch and teach us all. The mythic resonances remained with Regina weeks after reading the last page.

Subterranean Tales of Dark Fantasy 2 edited by William Schafer
reviewed by Sandra Scholes
Subterranean Tales of Dark Fantasy was the beginning of a monster, and that monster spawned a second helping of stories under the guise of dark fantasy, in Subterranean Tales of Dark Fantasy 2. With some of the best known names in dark fantasy and horror, we get stories by Caitlin R. Kiernan, Bruce Sterling, Joe Hill, Kelley Armstrong, Glen Cook and William Browning Spencer.

Subterranean: Tales of Dark Fantasy edited by William Schafer
reviewed by John Berlyne
This short but very tidy anthology initially seems something of a hodgepodge. Used as we are to themed anthologies, the title here is loose and generic enough to capture virtually any kind of genre story that has something strange in it. As such, it is indeed an eclectic mix of works, but it is the consistent excellence of the material that gives this collection its cohesion as much as the fantasy content of the stories.

The Swarm by Frank Schatzing
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
The sea, which we have been abusing for years, strikes back under the direction of an unknown living entity previously content to inhabit the trench depths -- the Yrr. Whales begin attacking ships, hordes of jellyfish shut down the beaches of South America, and a strange new marine worm is destabilizing frozen methane in the sea bottom. The scientists are fascinated, the powerful want it stopped at any cost, and the little guy is being overwhelmed by tsunamis and poisoned sea-food. A global ecosystem shift is in the offing.

Calimport by Steven E. Schend
a gaming module review by Don Bassingthwaite
Thumbs up to Calimport. Pull up your carpet and stay a while. Mind your purse, keep your hand on your dagger, and stay out of the shadows unless you're sure that's where you really want to be.

A Small Dark Place by Martin Schenk
reviewed by Lisa DuMond
Remember the first time you read Stephen King or Robert McCammon? That kind of guilty feeling you got from enjoying something so twisted, reading voraciously through while witnessing cruelty and suffering? If so, you're probably ready for this novel.

Fairy Tales for Writers by Lawrence Schimel
reviewed by Amal El-Mohtar
This is a clever book, and a cute book, and one can chuckle a lot while reading it. It's nothing less or more than what it purports to be: fairy tales for writers, mixed up into verse. The author takes fairy tales like Cinderella and Snow White and uses them as templates for various experiences modern-day writers live: the workshops, the rejections, the rewrites, the sales (and, ahem, the reviews).

Star Wars: Death Troopers by Joe Schreiber
an audiobook review by John Ottinger III
Set just a few years before the events in Star Wars: A New Hope, this stand-alone novel follows the events surrounding the prison ship Purge. Purge is carrying a load of prisoners to an Imperial prison planet. When it becomes stranded, it seems a boon that the crew happens upon a seemingly derelict Star Destoryer. But the Empire had its reasons for leaving the massive ship floating in space.

The Flash: Stop Motion by Mark Schultz
an audiobook review by Ivy Reisner
A series of grisly murders takes place in Keystone City and all evidence points to a metahuman (that is, someone with super-human powers) being responsible, most likely a speedster. All the murders took place at the same time. All involve the victim's head being blown open at the top, and the wound instantly cauterized. None of the victims realized they were in danger before they died. At the same time, strange objects appear in our solar system.

Sexy Chix Anthology of Women Cartoonists edited by Diana Schutz
reviewed by Hank Luttrell
There definitely should be more anthologies of comic book stories, especially if the high standards of this new book can be equaled.

The Meadowlark Sings by Helen Ruth Schwartz
reviewed by Donna McMahon
In 2020 an American government dominated by the religious right bans homosexual acts. Thanks to mandatory testing for the "Scarpetti gene," the government identifies all gays and evacuates them to an island off the coast of California. For 35 years the two societies are isolated from each other. Heterosexuals born on the island of "Cali" are sent to the US, and homosexual babies from the US are sent to the island; otherwise the two populations never meet.

The Witches of Karres by James Schmitz
reviewed by Peter D. Tillman
It's an old-fashioned science-fantasy space opera, written with a light, sure touch and the author's distinctive panache. This is fizzy, sparkly entertainment -- the plot goes tripping and skipping across the Galaxy. Our spaceship crew faces pirate attacks, sneering Sirians, sneaky spies, trumped-up legal charges, a corrupt, beautifully slinky shipyard owner with a taste for torture and a mighty Sheem Assassin robot.

Telzey Amberdon by James H. Schmitz
reviewed by Peter D. Tillman
Telzey Amberdon, age 15, is a genius, a law student, and a psi supergirl who can save the Federation in a fortnight, and still make it home in time for her 16th birthday party. This is silly but engaging fluff, sort of a Nancy Drew in space -- but much better-written. It's a pleasure to see the Telzey stories back in print.

Return of the Over-Used Muse by Rob Schrab
reviewed by David Maddox
In 1994 a small, independent comic from an even smaller independent label, Fireman Press, debuted. Set in the future, the story featured a world where robot assassins could be purchased through vending machines, assigned a target and would self-destruct upon completion of their mission. It was all the brainchild of creator Rob Schrab and he called it Scud: the Disposable Assassin. Weird, right?

Karl Schroeder

Man of Two Worlds by Julius Schwartz with Brian M. Thomsen
reviewed by A.L. Sirois
To anyone with even a passing knowledge of the comic book industry, and most with a smattering of knowledge of the history of science fiction publishing, the name of Julius "Julie" Schwartz will be familiar. He was around for the beginnings of SF fandom in the 30s. He became the first literary agent specializing in SF while not yet out of his teens, and went on to become one of the most influential editors in comic books.

The Fantastic Horizon by Darrell Schweitzer
reviewed by Richard A. Lupoff
The most striking aspect of this volume is the author's ability to write serious criticism that is accessible, personal in nature, and that speaks directly to its audience. At the same time, Darrell Schweitzer shows respect for his subject matter and for the reader without condescending to either.

Le roi au masque d'or by Marcel Schwob
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
If in English, dark fantasy is frequently marginalized by those who discuss "serious literature," the case is even worse in French, where the snobbery of the literary elite isn't about to allow them to admit that works of imaginary fiction are more than just cheap popular fiction. These 21 short tales are perhaps most akin, in terms of mood and their extensive vocabulary, to the best of Clark Ashton Smith's prose poem tales, with a smidgen of A. Merritt, and of course with a tinge of the conte cruel so popular in France in the late 19th century.