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Flamecaster
by Cinda Williams Chima
Adrian sul’Han, known by the nickname Ash, is a powerful healer who wants revenge. After being forced into hiding after a series of murders throws the queendom into chaos, Ash went into training for healing. During his summer’s off, he would exact revenge on the important political figures of Arden, but he’s come to realize that small moves aren’t enough. So he makes the move to Arden, determined to get his revenge on the king of Arden himself. However, the assassination is a little bit harde...
Down Station
by Simon Morden
Down Station is actually a real station on the London Underground. You can't however visit this place though, the Trains don't stop there and if you're lucky you can but catch a glimpse of it between Green Park and Hyde Park Corner on the Piccadilly Line. You can see the outside of this abandoned station on Down Street. Anyway This station is where the story begins following some destructive force that rips through the London Underground.
After stepping through the station door the ...
The Ship
by Antonia Honeywell
In a future where fossil fuels have dried up, global warming has decimated ecosystems, and governments are culling populations, Antonia Honeywell’s debut sees teenager Lalla escape the ruins of London to live on her father's utopian Ship with 500 others keen to enjoy a 'happy death'. Their destination is a mystery, and Lalla’s life on board soon becomes one of paranoia, grief and distrust.
The premise is uncompromising and promises a lot, but those looking for Hunger Games-style act...
The Immortals
by Jordanna Max Brodsky
As someone who likes their fantasy fictions quite traditional, i.e. heroes riding on horses, rather than riding subways, I was a little apprehensive of The Immortals (Olympus Bound) by Jordanna Max Brodsky. However I was pleasantly surprised.
The story is set in modern day Manhattan, where our 'kick ass' 6ft heroine Selene is introduced as a vigilante who protects woman from being abused or attacked. However it soon becomes clear that Selene is actually Artemis, a Greek Goddess and ...
Dead Ringers
by Christopher Golden
Christopher Golden is an acclaimed American Author. He has worked in Horror, Fantasy, Teen and Young Adult fiction. He's known for his tie in novels for Buffy the Vampire Slayer and his collaboration work with Mike Magnolia, Nancy Holder and Amber Benson.
His latest book ‘Dead Ringers’ is a standalone supernatural horror that plays on the fears of identity. Upon devouring this book, I’ve discovered Golden is not an amateur when it comes to horror and character development.
...
The Vanishing Throne
by Elizabeth May
The Vanishing Throne by Elizabeth May is the second in a series of books following the adventures of Lady Aileana Kameron (or Kam) and the action follow on directly from the first book. If you haven’t read The Falconer I suggest you do, as this review definitely contains spoilers for the ending of that one. This book is not a standalone novel and relies on the reader having read the first book.
So, Kam’s attempts at balancing her life as daughter of the Marquess of Douglas and Falco...
The Falconer
by Elizabeth May
The Falconer by Elizabeth May is the first in what appears to be a series of books following the adventures of Lady Aileana Kameron (or Kam) as she lives the double life of daughter of the Marquess of Douglas on one hand and the life of a fairy hunter (or aforementioned Falconer) on the other.
The story is set in the 1800s in Scotland, with ornithopters, locomotives, blunderbusses and clockwork devices as well as magic and fairies.
The quote at the back of the book says “...
Azanian Bridges
by Nick Wood
Science fiction set in the near future, Azanian Bridges is a rough diamond, drawing on a variety of influences to deliver a real and wrenching story.
Our setting is an alternative South Africa, where Mandela was never released and Apartheid didn’t end. We follow two characters, Martin and Sibusiso as they narrate their perspective of the events in their lives leading up to and after the moment they meet.
The read can be a bumpy one at times, with a little repetition and rh...
The United States of Japan
by Peter Tieryas
Philip K Dick's novel The Man in the High Castle is one of my favourite all time reads. An alternative history novel that sees the Axis winning the second World War and splitting the USA between Germany on the East coast,Japan on the West and a small neutral zone in the middle. There is an author who believes differently though, the author of a secret, underground novel that is spoken in whispers by those looking for something better. A book known as The Grasshopper Lies Heavy. This book it t...
Foreign Devils
by John Hornor Jacobs
A steampunk fantasy set in a world that draws some uncomfortable inspiration from our own, Foreign Devils is the sequel to John Hornor Jacobs’ The Incorruptibles and follows the adventures of Fisk and Shoe – two would be mercenaries making their way through a world of demons, feral elves and worse. The story is told in a suitably gritty first person narration from the recollections of Shoe – the dwarf.
The second book picks up from where the first book left off, with Fisk and his ne...
Behold the Man
by Michael Moorcock
Behold the Man was originally written as a novella in 1966 and won the Nebula award for best novella. It was later expanded into a very slim novel in 1969 — although at 128 pages it could still be considered novella length. Gollancz has quite rightly chosen to include it in their SF Masterworks Collection.
It tells the story of the troubled Karl Glogauer, a 20th century missfit who manages to become guinea pig for a time travel experiment, choosing to go back to AD28 — to seek out T...
All the Birds in the Sky
by Charlie Jane Anders
Just a month into the New Year and already I've found a must read book. All the Birds in the Sky is the debut novel of Charlie Jane Anders who has been editor-in-chief of the popular SF site IO9.com for quite some time.
All the Birds in the Sky follows the paths of two very different people who find each other as children. Patricia seems to have some unusual gifts, a knack with nature and powers others don't have. Laurence is an inventor, mad scientist and one of the talented few wh...
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