Book Reviews
Review: “Whitechapel Gods” by S. M. Peters
Up until now, steampunk has been, for me, an aesthetic. It makes the great heroes of my childhood even cooler. And it makes for computers that are beyond sexy. Something in the synthesis of technology and analog mechanisms strikes just the right chord with me. It’s like the most elegant Rube Goldberg imaginable, with style. And yet, I had never read anything from the genre that inspires these creative works of fabrication fancy.
Until now.
Review: “Dust” by Joan Frances Turner
In Dust we get to experience zombie matters from the eyes of the source, as it were, and what a strange experience it is. The undead are not romanticized in this novel, so you might not want to eat before or during your reading session. Nausea may ensue.
Classic Review: “Minority Report and Other Short Stories” by Philip K. Dick
I drive a lot. So I’m always on the lookout for free or cheap-ass audio books of great SF. A few days ago I stumbled across Philip K. Dick’s Minority Report and Other Stories narrated by actor Keir Dullea, the perfect mind-escape from the four-hour drive back from Vegas over the holiday weekend. And what a ride.
Guest Review: “Prisoners Under Glass” by R. Patrick
Young readers who love big, bold action, boisterous high jinks and bizarre images, all mixed up with a bunch of people prone to snappy dialog learning to rely on each other in life-and-death situations, will get a kick out of Prisoners Under Glass.
Review: “Under the Dome” by Stephen King
If you’re not careful Stephen King’s latest tome may hurt you. Weighing it at close to 1100 pages and almost four pounds, “Under the Dome” is a return to form for one of the best-selling authors of the past thirty years.
Review: “Bone Song” by John Meaney
If I had to name the style of Bone Song, I would call it Cyber-Zombie Noir. But lest I give the impression that it’s a book about Zombies let me say that Meaney has created a world with a death based Economy.
Review: “Empress” by Karen Miller
Hekat, in Empress, is a difficult woman. And while I know that a part of me should cheer for this woman who raises herself up from a nameless no one to a ruler of her country, the other part of me can’t stand how difficult she is. Hekat is touched by the god. She is not inventing this. She really does have her deity on her side, protecting her as she slaughters the people who get in her way. Everything she does is fated. But I cannot get beyond how completely cold and ruthless she is to everyone around her.
Review: “Night Rising” by Chris Marie Green
The story is fast paced and filled with enough gory fight scenes to please the hard core urban fantasy reader but with a surprisingly emotional layer that may appeal to the female reader. It fails to deliver a complete world building construct and this coupled with the tendency to leave more plot threads open than resolved left this reader dissatisfied.
