Recent Reviews

House of Suns by Alastair Reynolds

reviewed by Dan Hartland

12 May 2008

Reynolds manages space opera that does not read like farce.

The Shadow Year by Jeffrey Ford

reviewed by Michael Levy

09 May 2008

We're not dealing with some damn metaphor or allegory. The things that happened, really happened. But what they mean, well, that's anyone's guess, and therein, I think, lies the novel's wonder.

Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie

reviewed by Larry Nolen

07 May 2008

Concluding volumes of epic fantasy trilogies are expected to contain an action-filled payoff and, for the most part, Last Argument of Kings fulfills this expectation.

What It Is We Do When We Read Science Fiction by Paul Kincaid

reviewed by Martin Lewis

05 May 2008

Kincaid displays a flexible, proportionate style and—like David Langford, who provides the introduction to this volume—he is erudite, demotic, and not afraid to put the boot in when necessary.

The Domino Men by Jonathan Barnes

reviewed by Lisa Goldstein

02 May 2008

At this point the story starts to read like a collaboration between Terry Pratchett and Vlad the Impaler, with additional dialog by H. P. Lovecraft, as the two men head out into the streets of London and proceed to kill everyone in sight.

The Arthur C. Clarke Award Shortlist -- Part Two

reviewed by Abigail Nussbaum

30 April 2008

What should win?

The 2008 Arthur C. Clarke Award Shortlist -- Part One

reviewed by Abigail Nussbaum

28 April 2008

No matter what your definition of science fiction, there is almost certainly at least one book on the 2008 Clarke shortlist that won't meet it.

Dark Space by Marianne de Pierres

reviewed by R. J. Burgess

25 April 2008

Occasionally, the net is cast slightly too narrow, by which I mean that the gap between the galaxy-spanning presence of God and this tiny desert world seems simply too vast to match the two together; but in the novel's second half it's very easy not to care about such things as you sit back and simply allow yourself to be carried along for the ride.

Wildwood Dancing and Cybele's Secret by Juliet Marillier

reviewed by Hannah Strom-Martin

23 April 2008

Delightful is the word for Juliet Marillier's Wildwood Dancing and Cybele's Secret, the first two books in what promises to be a compelling historical fantasy series for young adults.

The Starry Rift edited by Jonathan Strahan

reviewed by Karen Burnham

21 April 2008

Any imaginative child (between the ages of say, 10 and 14, depending on the kid) should find stories here to enjoy. There is a wide variety of styles and sub-genres on display, and also plenty of recommendations for what to read next.

Bangkok Haunts by John Burdett

reviewed by Jason Erik Lundberg

18 April 2008

Bangkok Haunts is a fast read, but one that stays in the mind long afterward, plaguing the senses with the smell of curries, or the flashing lights of Soi Cowboy, or the startling sadness of silent Khmer guards.

The Sacred Book of the Werewolf by Victor Pelevin

reviewed by Michael Froggatt

16 April 2008

More obviously than his earlier works, The Sacred Book of the Werewolf demonstrates Pelevin's unease with Russia's increasingly authoritarian political system.

Matter by Iain M. Banks

reviewed by Gwyneth Jones

14 April 2008

It’s been a long time in real-world politics since the last Culture novel. As I followed the adventures of the princess, and her brothers, I wondered what new corrective the story would deliver, so as not to give comfort to the war-mongers of the twenty-first century.

Archived Reviews

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