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book review
"Bar None" Cracks Open A Beer At The End Of The World
Bar None by Tim Lebbon (Night Shade Press, 2009) is a dark post-apocalyptic fantasy with a creepy numinous beauty and really good beer. End of the world, everybody, last orders if you please.
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By Grey_AreaComment by bluehinter: Pub? Pub. I bet there's an entire Triviagasm article waiting to be written about individuals who ride out the apocalypse in... 7 Responses | Other threads
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book review
The Nobody's Invisible Charms Become Slowly Evident
The Nobody, Jeff Lemire's reimagining of HG Wells' classic The Invisible Man, can seem aimless, slow and frustrating at times... but is also haunting, moving and a book that'll stay with you for a long time after reading.
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Comment by gorehound: Jeff Lemire's reimagining of HG Wells' classic The Invisible Man goes to show you that YARM is not just about... 5 Responses | Other threads
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book review
io9's Hivemind Reviews The Terminator 4 Novelization
Terminator Salvation felt more like a weak music video than a movie, with a story that was hard to piece together. So it's a good thing the novelization is written by super-prolific author Alan Dean Foster, right? Spoilers ahead...
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Comment by braak: I'm sorry. I couldn't read this post, on the grounds that I was too god-damn depressed that nobody sent... 23 Responses | Other threads
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book review
World's Most Annoying Poet Foils Evil Genetic Engineering Project
Britain's Martin Millar has carved out a niche with a slew of fanciful urban fantasy books , like the recent Lonely Werewolf Girl. And now his maniacal early work, Lux The Poet, is out in the U.S. at last. Spoilers ahead.
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Comment by Pope John Peeps II: The World's Most Annoying Poet So... he's a spoken word performer then? 7 Responses | Other threads
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read this instead
"Tooth And Claw" Proves That Dragons Trump Zombies
Everybody thinks that Pride And Prejudice And Zombies is a nifty new mash-up invention. But the the original monster mash-up book was Jo Walton's Tooth and Claw, a 19th century novel of manners, with dragon protagonists. More »
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Comment by bitsytimelord: But what about Zombie Dragons? I think we all know there's no contingency for that. Zombie Dragons = we're all... 6 Responses | Other threads
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book review
A Druid Saves The World In Jacqueline Carey's Latest
Jacqueline Carey returns to the world of Kushiel's Dart in new novel Naamah's Kiss, and she has managed to rekindle the excitement of the series too. Set over a century after the last book, it's an auspicious new beginning.
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Comment by braak: Well, any book the review of which contains at least three uses of the word "awesome" is probably...pretty awesome. 6 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Sleeper Offers Classic Noir Pessimism
Now that it's being turned into a movie for Tom Cruise, DC Comics have issued a new edition of forgotten superhero classic Sleeper. But how does it hold up, seven years later? Plus, an exclusive Q&A with writer Ed Brubaker. More »
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Comment by Iamtehawesome: Tom Cruise?! Why? Looks like Clooney. Clooney could probably pull it off too. F*ck Tom Cruise. 6 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Ed Brubaker On Sleeper
How did Sleeper come about? Did [DC imprint] Wildstorm come to you asking for a pitch, or was this something you'd been trying to do for years? More » -
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book review
"Palimpsest" Explores A Sexually-Transmitted City
If you want a hot, brooding novel for the sticky summer months, then you need Catherynne M. Valente's Palimpsest. It's the story of a lovely, haunting city you only visit by having sex with people who have visited it.
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Comment by crashedpc : ゴキブリ and 蟑螂 division: In my valiant effort to find the city of Palimpset, I will now go and have sex with as many... 7 Responses | Other threads
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book review
A Working-Class Monster Hunter Saves The World
A working stiff who collects cryptobiological specimens and keeps them from menacing the hapless citizenry encounters a mundane woman who weird stuff constantly happens to. A. Lee Martinez's Monster feels like a sillier version of Joss Whedon's Angel.
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Comment by braak: Huh. That over-arching plot reminds of the other Martinez book I read. Uhm. Ogre Company? Orc...troll...shit... In... 4 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Final Crisis Is Frustrating, Flawed And Arguably Worth It All
It's a bold book about the end of the world, full of big ideas, epic events and beautiful art, and starring some of pop culture's biggest icons. So why does the hardcover collection of DC's Final Crisis disappoint? More »
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Comment by StratfordX: The pacing of Final Crisis reminded me a lot of The Wire, and since I'm one of those people when... 3 Responses | Other threads
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book review
A Courtesan-Turned-Warrior's Head-Kicking Journey
Jay Lake's sixth novel, Green , is an inventive fantasy of exotic cities, weird gods, conspiracies, stabbings, and kicks to the head. And here come the spoilers...
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By Grey_AreaComment by txtracer: Ender's Game meets La Femme Nikita in a steampunk setting. Next. Maybe I'm too jaded. 7 Responses | Other threads
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book review
"Fragment" Is An Eco Thriller With Teeth
Some ecosystems are just plain evil. That's the premise of a new novel, Fragment, hitting shelves this month. It's a fun, hard science beach read, if you like monsters.
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Comment by crashedpc : ゴキブリ and 蟑螂 division: Ever since I transcended human desires I've been only able to stomach characters with at least four dimensions. I'll prolly... 13 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Guillermo Del Toro's The Strain Is An Antidote To Fey Vampires
Pan's Labyrinth director Guillermo Del Toro and novelist Chuck Hogan have written The Strain, the first book in a vampire trilogy. And the good news is, their spin on vampires comes with a noticeable creep factor, despite silliness. Spoilers below.
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By Grey_AreaComment by David Rodriguez: Is it impossible to review a book/movie/whatever without spoliers? 15 Responses | Other threads
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book review
22nd Century Darwinians Challenge the Church in "Julian Comstock"
Peak oil has left the world a churchy, early-industrial shambles in Robert Charles Wilson's new novel Julian Comstock. An engaging cross between post-apocalyptic series Jericho and Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, it may be the best science fiction novel of the year so far.
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Comment by jabrwok: I read "peak oil" and my suspension of disbelief went out the window. 6 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Get Lost In China Miéville's Weirdest Cityscape Yet
Nine years ago, China Miéville dazzled readers with his ferociously inventive second novel, Perdido Street Station. Now he's turning the ideas of fantasy literature and the New Weird on their ear again, with the very original tale of The City & The City. Spoilers below!
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By Grey_Area
Comment by crashedpc : ゴキブリ and 蟑螂 division: Wait, I ordered this via Amazon last week due to someone on io9... are you guys trying to make me... 8 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Through These Mean Megastructures, A Woman Must Walk
The Third Claw Of God, the second novel in Adam-Troy Castro's Andrea Cort novels, confirms this series really is something special: the story of a hard-assed former child war criminal who flies around the galaxy solving crimes committed in exotic megastructures. But it's even better than that sounds. Spoilers ahead!
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Comment by transbastard: Sounds interesting. How well are the environments worked out? There is not enough Scifi out there that really cares about... 3 Responses | Other threads
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book review
From The Terrifying Wastes Of The Cosmos Come Scary Old People
Writer Laird Barron plunges his razor-sharp rostrum deep into a Lovecraftian vein, with nine stories of brain-melting cosmic horror in The Imago Sequence.
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By Grey_AreaComment by Mathmos: The name Belphegor makes me think of De Camp & Pratt's classic Incomplete Enchanter stories, where the main character Harold... 10 Responses | Other threads
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book review
A Lethal Cash Injection, In A Prison-Industry-Dominated World
Alexander Irvine's recently-published Buyout takes a chilling look at the justice system and high finance, in a future right around the corner. It turns out crime does pay... but who cashes in?
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By Grey_AreaComment by corpore-metal: Argh! More books to read! Never going to make it to the bottom of the list, never! 7 Responses | Other threads
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book review
A Scanner Darkly Meets Brazil, Creating A Fascinating Mess
I'm surprised Martin Martin's On The Other Side got shortlisted for a Clarke Award. To be sure, it brings a unique narrative voice to the dystopian future canon. But it's also derivative and muddled. Spoilers!
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Comment by PlaidNinja: Import only? 3rd party seller only? Nooooooooooooo! 1 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Mutant Justice Comes To A Border Town in "Santa Olivia"
Jacqueline Carey's new novel is set in a near-future DMZ between America and Mexico - and her new heroine kicks ass. Superstrong and unable to feel fear, Loup is a genetic experiment gone right.
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Comment by Counterglow: "In the Kushiel series, hero Phedre has the odd power of converting her own physical pain to pleasure, enabling her... 8 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Terminator Art You'll Want To Paint On Your Van
Terminator Salvation will burn itself onto your retinas, if it's anything like the concept art in a new book, The Art Of Terminator Salvation. Another new book shows how Salvation's crazy set pieces came together. More »
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Comment by crashedpc : ゴキブリ and 蟑螂 division: I hear your command, and I shall obey. *takes out spray paint gun* 3 Responses | Other threads
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book review
The Brits Win the Space Race in "Empress of Mars"
In the closing years of the 23rd Century, the British Arean Company, a private corporation, establishes first human colony on Mars. How do the Brits get there first? Find out in Kage Baker's new novel.
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By Grey_AreaComment by crashedpc : ゴキブリ and 蟑螂 division: The Larch. The. Larch. The. Larch. 2 Responses | Other threads
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book review
"Brave New Words" Reveals The True Origin of Parallel Universes
Oxford has published the paperback for its science fiction dictionary Brave New Words, giving us the ultimate triviagasm. Want the origin of terms like "moon base" and "parallel universe"? How about "expository lump"? More »
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Comment by Chip Overclock: Well, another book to add to the Amazon.com wish list. I thought "waldo" originally meant those mechanical teleoperated arms like you... 5 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Geoengineers vs. The Mafia State in "The Quiet War"
Eco-political, frantic, and undeniably epic, Paul McAuley's latest novel The Quiet War was nominated for a Clarke this year. It's time to check out this hard science tale of gene wizards and posthuman separatists.
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book review
Talkin' Bout My Generation Ship
In Toby Litt's Journey Into Space, a generation ship gives rise to two generations of idiots. It's not really about space travel, so much as people who forget history and are doomed to distort it.
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Comment by icelight: Since everyone seems to be comparing it to previous works, it also seems very similar to the Book of the... 3 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Space Opera Has Come Of Age — But Has It Left Humans Behind?
Space opera has come a long, galaxy-spanning way since 1941. With a second book in the New Space Opera series out this summer, we examine the genre's origins, and see how the new book compares.
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By Grey_AreaComment by corpore-metal: Grey, I don't agree that short stories inappropriate for space opera. Let's remember that Niven, before he wrote novels like Ringworld,... 7 Responses | Other threads
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book review
A History of Uranium, the Rock That Nuked the World
Uranium was considered a useless material until very recently in human history, when it quite literally exploded into the public consciousness. Tom Zoellner's engaging new book Uranium reveals how this once-humble element transformed human civilization.
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Comment by Grey_Area: Yeah, this book has the heady scent of Agenda wafting from it. Zoellner seems irresponsible to avoid the very real... 9 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Get Indoctrinated Into Terminator Salvation's Resistance
Suffering from Terminator withdrawal, now that the TV show's on break and the movie's weeks away? Skynet has published a novel and some comics that lead up to Terminator Salvation. We've reviewed them for you.
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Comment by corpore-metal: "Connor says the Resistance leaders are being too cautious to win against Skynet, trying to outsmart an enemy a thousand... 4 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Doctorow's Little Brother Shows The Genesis Of Dystopia
Young-adult authors have conquered science fiction with a mixture of angst, romance, and the discovery that adults are wrong. But Cory Doctorow's Hugo/Nebula-nominated Little Brother puts a geeky, subversive spin on that formula. Spoilers! More »
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Comment by alphanumeric1971: "and gradually grows into far-reaching civil disobedience, and a massive network of young people communicating via hacked xBoxes..." Just quietly shakes... 5 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Terry Pratchett vs. the Global Economic Crisis
Making Money, Terry Pratchett's Nebula-nominated, thirty-somethingth novel in Discworld series, could be a subtitled, "a comic fantasy on contemporary themes," ie the large-scale consensual fraud that is a banking system.
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Comment by LittleDragon: Beware the Pratchett. He is worse then cocaine. Once you start you can't stop. My mother forgot to eat for... 13 Responses | Other threads
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book review
House Of Suns Is A Flawed Far-Future Thrill Ride
Alastair Reynolds' House Of Suns, shortlisted for the Clarke Award, is a novel of ideas, with all that implies. The space-opera epic throws a dizzying blizzard of concepts at the reader, sacrificing character-development. Spoilers below.
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Comment by quetzilla: I can't stand this guy's books anymore. Chasm City was the worst sci fi book I've read since I... 5 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Pope's 100% Lives Up To Its Name
A new hardcover edition of Paul Pope's 100% reaches stores today to accompany last year's Heavy Liquid reissue. But how do Pope's future shocks read, years later? We look at both again.
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Comment by PVIII: Well I went in to the store pumped to buy this today and came out with a sad face, seeing... 5 Responses | Other threads
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book review
The Woman Who Saves Humanity From Itself in "The Margarets"
In Sheri S. Tepper's The Margarets, nominated for the Clarke, a woman's identity is shattered into seven parts, each going on interplanetary missions to save humanity. This is magical space opera mixed with hardcore eco-politics.
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Comment by alphanumeric1971: the moment I read "earthians" and "sisterhood" my brain turned off. 9 Responses | Other threads
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book review
German SF Through Two World Wars And The Berlin Wall
How did Germany's dreams (and nightmares) of the future shift over a century or so, including two world wars and the Berlin Wall? A new anthology takes us inside the history of German science fiction.
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By Grey_AreaComment by Grey_Area: While preparing this review I was struck by how much great Science Fiction never gets translated into English. Being a... 7 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Surrogates' Crime Drama Is More Real Than Its Protagonists
We got an advance look at The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone, the sequel to the original comic now being made into a Bruce Willis-starring movie, and can happily say that it's Dollhouse done right. More »
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Comment by Nate Brown: the first book blew my mind. besides the great story this book has the the most unique comic art style... 4 Responses | Other threads
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book review
If Nothing's A Game, Then Everything Is
This Is Not A Game, Walter Jon Williams' new novel, shows how "reality" and Alternate Reality Games blend and become more and more indistinguishable - just as our culture, money and society melt down. Spoilers...
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Comment by Lassus: I consider Williams "Aristoi" to be one of my favorite sci-fi novels. I've liked of a lot of his... 3 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Superpowers Is A CW Show On Paper
With his first novel, David J. Schwartz attempts to imagine ordinary people, in a realistic setting, who gain Superpowers. It's one of the finalists for the Nebula Award.
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By Grey_AreaComment by twDarkflame: I would dearly love some superheroes to actualy test and expirement with their powers, yet it seems so rare. Heroe's at... 3 Responses | Other threads
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book review
In "Zoë's Tale," It's Hard to Be a Teenage Messiah
Zoë's Tale, the last book in the Old Man's War sequence by John Scalzi, has just been nominated a Hugo for best novel. It deals with the harrowing complications of interstellar politics and teenage girls.
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By Grey_AreaComment by crashedpc : ゴキブリ and 蟑螂 division: *puts on wish list* I've learned to pace myself, now that these darn book reviews pop up like every other... 9 Responses | Other threads
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book review
Anti-Corporate Libertarian Futurism in "The Unincorporated Man"
Imagine the late, philosophical Heinlein crossed with cheesetastic 1980s Buck Rogers TV series, and you've got a good feel for political economy adventure novel The Unincorporated Man.
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Comment by corpore-metal: I guess this novel suggests that propertarian libertarianism's love of the free market is being re-examined by the right wing... 28 Responses | Other threads
book review
San Francisco, 5:41 PM
Fri Jul 3
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Transformers blows up this weekend. Need to know more? io9 gets down and dirty with the superbots.
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Gizmodo's just reviewed two great smartphones, the Palm Pre and the iPhone 3GS. Here's a guide to help you decide which is better for you.
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The Life of Steve Jobs - So far.
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