REVIEW: Green By Jay Lake

Green By Jay Lake
Publishing Information: Hardback; 368 pages
Publisher: Tor; Doherty Tom Associates, LLC; 09 June 2009
ISBN 10: 0765321858
ISBN 13: 9780765321855
Standalone
Copy Out of pocket
Reviewer: Tyson

Inside Cover: "She was born in poverty, in a dusty village under the equatorial sun. She does not remember her mother, she does not remember her own name—her earliest clear memory is of the day her father sold her to the tall pale man. In the Court of the Pomegranate Tree, where she was taught the ways of a courtesan…and the skills of an assassin…she was named Emerald, the precious jewel of the Undying Duke’s collection of beauties.

She calls herself Green.

The world she inhabits is one of political power and magic, where Gods meddle in the affairs of mortals. At the center of it is the immortal Duke’s city of Copper Downs, which controls all the trade on the Storm Sea. Green has made many enemies, and some secret friends, and she has become a very dangerous woman indeed.

Acclaimed author Jay Lake has created a remarkable character in Green, and evokes a remarkable world in this novel. Green and her struggle to survive and find her own past will live in the reader’s mind for a long time after closing the book."




I know it is said to never judge a book by its cover, but in the case of Jay Lake's Green, that is exactly what I did. The cover is gorgeous. The young girl turned tool and weapon of the gods hanging from a pomegranate tree is such a great image. I knew virtually nothing about Jay Green aside from the cover of this novel and went out on a limb to try him out and I am glad I did.

Green starts off fairly quickly, as a small child the 'girl' who would become to be known as Green is sold and taken to a faraway land. Almost the instant you start reading the book the imagery is rather well written. Since the girl is really young we are not given a lot of clear details as to the world outside as she begins her journey the reader begins to learn about the world around the girl just as she begins to learn as well. As she grows and matures so do we and the world becomes much more open to us even though she herself is secluded from the outside in a fancy well-provided house known as the Pomegranate Court. The way in which Lake evolves the way we read the story and how it changes and becomes sharper is very subtle and I really enjoyed that concept as I read it.

Green is the story of a girl going through massive changes as she is taught various skills and knowledge. It is told through the girl and so we are not told everything in the beginning but as you progress through the novel things become much sharper and clearer. By the very end of the story most things are made fairly clear and with a few pages to go it becomes a little obvious as to how things will end but that does not mean the journey was not worth taking. I really enjoyed reading the girl's prospective as you really have a window into her brain and you see how things unfold with her head.

The world building in Green is very graphic at times and very vague in others. The story is told in only two cities and a few small locations. The two major cities are brought to light fairly well but the overall world is not talked about in much detail. From what I gathered the story takes place in a world similar to the Mediterranean Sea as they must travel by ship to travel in between city-states but it only takes a matter of days. They do mention a few other ports of call and cities, but beyond names we have no real concept of what they look like or where they specifically are. Since the other locales were not important to the story they had no real bearing on the story but it would have been nice to have them fleshed out.

With less than 400 pages the book moves at a break-neck pace. There are a lot of details to the girl's education and yet Lake is able to have her do quite a bit more and then some. In the short span of life that the novel occurs in the girl travels far and wide and gains a reputation as she travels. I was impressed with how much was done in such a short amount of text. The book does have a few moments where the pace slows down but then things get picked back up and your are on another adventure. I thought it was all done very well.

While Green is my first Jay Lake novel, I doubt it will be my last. Green was a enjoyable read from a talented writer. A great way to be introduced to the author.

Plot 8
Characters 9
style 8.5

Overall 9/10

New Artwork Revealed for China Miéville

Pan Macmillan unveiled the full re-jacketed backlist of China’s books, to be published alongside his new novel, Embassytown, on 6th May 2011.

Crush Creative designed the covers and they look truly amazing! I can already see the fans wanting to own the entire catalogue.

They all look sublime but if I have to pick the best one, in my opinion, it would be the cover of Iron Council. What do you think?

Hardcover: 432 pages
Publisher: Macmillan (6 May 2011)
ISBN-10: 0230750761
ISBN-13: 978-0230750760

Embassytown: a city of contradictions on the outskirts of the universe.

Avice is an immerser, a traveller on the immer, the sea of space and time below the everyday, now returned to her birth planet. Here on Arieka, humans are not the only intelligent life, and Avice has a rare bond with the natives, the enigmatic Hosts - who cannot lie.

Only a tiny cadre of unique human Ambassadors can speak Language, and connect the two communities. But an unimaginable new arrival has come to Embassytown. And when this Ambassador speaks, everything changes.

Catastrophe looms. Avice knows the only hope is for her to speak directly to the alien Hosts.

And that is impossible.

REVIEW: Flesh and Bone: Rise of the Necromancers anthology

Flesh and Bone: Rise of the Necromancers edited by Jessy Marie Roberts
Publishing information: Kindle
Publisher: Pine Hill Press; 16 August 2010
ISBN 10: 1617060011
ISBN 13: 978-1617060014
ASIN: B004C05DR4
Anthology
Copy: Provided by publisher
Reviewer: Tyson

Synopsis: "Twenty-one dark short stories about the undead, and the persons who raise them... Featuring: The Blade of Tears by Lydia Sharp, No Man's Land by K.G. McAbee, Wrists by Shennandoah Diaz, All the World a Grave by Michael McClung, Blood on the Beach by Anne Michaud, The Scarlet Cat by Rebecca Lloyd, The Mortician's Secret by Kelley Frank, The King's Accord by Alan Baxter, Necrodance by Darin Kennedy, The Ghost Walk by Marianne Halbert, Blood Brothers by J. Matthew Saunders, Bequest by Greg Mellor, 9 Mystery Rose by Eden Royce, In the Dark Kingdom by Brandon Berntson, Jenna's Awakening by TW Brown, Queen of Bones by Aubrie Dionne, Small Matters of Immortality by Michael R. Colangelo, The Stoner Bride by Matthew Fryer, Sedenberry's Pest by Jon C. Forisha, A History of the Wraith King by Chris Poling & And the Greatest of these is Love by David McDonald."

While reading Flesh and Bone I was struck with the thought that this entire collection has the feel of a Creep Show or Tales From the Darkside feel to them. The collection contained in the anthology varies considerably. There are tales that are in the modern age as well as from times past. There is also a lot of fantasy elements aside from the obvious dealing with necromancy. While I found the nearly all the stories contained in the collection to be great there were a few that stood out.

The Blade of Tears by Lydia Sharp and All the World a Grave by Michael McClung were very impressive in that they should have been full blown novels. There were a lot of great ideas and characters presented in both of the stories. The Blade of Tears dealt with the undead attacking a woman bent on revenge as she attempts to recover a family heirloom. All the World a Grave had a fascinating assassin. The background for the character was impressive and the ending was something that I did not see coming. The Scarlet Cat by Rebecca Lloyd was a cross between classic Stephen King and Raimi's Drag Me to Hell. After reading the story I thought she outdid King in many respects and would love to see more work from the author.

The one stand out story that I enjoyed was Blood on the Beach by Anne Michaud. It was a short story told from the zombie's prospective as the zombie is semi-aware and not as brain dead was we are led to believe. When Michaud has the zombie looking for a hiding spot to avoid the soldiers had me chuckling.

Flesh and Bone: Rise of the Necromancers is not a collection that I would pick up on my own as it is not something that I tend to go after when I look for a new book, but I am glad that the publisher sent me the collection as it was a lot of fun to read and gave me a chance to read several talented authors that I had never encountered before. If you love the undead and those that raise them from their eternal rest then this the perfect collection for you. I wish that I had received this anthology around Halloween because it is a great collection for that time of year.

Plot 8
Characters 7
Style 7

Overall 8/10

New Pics from Transformers 3 - The Wreckers

Admittedly, I am not sure what to make of the new Transformers movie. I want to like it but at the same time the last one was painful to watch as Bay made a mockery of one of my childhood staples.

Recently, the wrecker's photos have appeared online. If you don't know who the Wreckers are, you are not alone. They are basically the special forces for the Autobots. They constantly had they robobutts handed to them by Megatron/Galvatron. They have been upgraded for the movie and appear to be NASCAR vehicles which is kinda cool but hard to be disguised with laser, missiles, and gun turrets hanging off of them.

For more information you can check out the source that broke the information over at igeektrooper.

REVIEW: Shadow Prowler (The Chronicles of Siala #1)by Alexey Pehov

Shadow Prowler by Alexey Pehov
Publishing information: Paperback; 400 pages
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Ltd.; 01 April 2010
ISBN 10: 1847375634
ISBN 13: 978184737563
Series- The Chronicles of Siala Book One
Copy- out of pocket
Reviewer- Tyson

Back of the Book "After centuries of calm, the Nameless One is stirring. An army is gathering: giants, ogres and other creatures joining forces from across the Desolate Lands, united for the first time in history under one black banner. By the spring, or perhaps sooner, the Nameless One and his forces will be at the walls of the great city of Avendoom. Unless Shadow Harold, master thief, can find some way to stop them. Epic fantasy at its best, Shadow Prowler is the first in a trilogy that follows professional thief Shadow Harold on his quest for a magic Horn that will restore peace to the kingdom of Siala. Accompanied by an elfin princess, ten Wild Hearts - the most experienced and dangerous royal fighters - and the King's court jester (who may be more than he seems ...or less), Harold must outwit angry demons, escape the clutches of a band of hired murderers, survive ten bloody skirmishes ...and reach the burial grounds before dark. Can he escape a fate worse than death?"

Shadow Prowler has been prowling me for quite some time, I have had this book since September of last year and finally settled down to read the first book by Pehov. It was translated from his native tongue of Russian and aside from a few clumsy sentences here and there, it is very well written.

The story follows Harold a well-reknown thief who does his best to stay off the radar of law enforcement, royalty, and the thieves guild. All of Harold's hard work comes crashing down when the powers that be require his services. This starts his quest or should I say say quests as the book is divided into two parts. The first mission is to gain information vital to his main mission. In order to do this he must go into a enchanted section of the city that no one has been known to escape once they enter. The second is when he accepts his mission to find a magical item that will maintain the balance and keep "The Nameless One" from attaining power in their world and defeating humankind and the other various races that live in relative harmony. The plot of Shadow Prowler is similar to the Lord of the Rings but in reverse. The handpicked group is not trying to destroy a magical object in a place of evil but rather to obtain a object of great power and use it to vanquish the forces of evil.

The characters are what you would expect from a fantasy novel, we have elves, dwarves, humans, orcs and other creatures. However, Pehov has a very distinct take on all of them. The Elves for instance more resemble vampires and are separated by two schools of magic. Gnomes and Dwarves hate one another. Harold is the story teller of the first book in the series and he is not sure of his abilities or his companions. The characters in this tale all have their own reasons for taking on the journey and it is interesting as each individual's motivation is revealed.

The magic system is divided into wizardry and shamanism, each have their benefits and negative aspects. While magic is found all over the world in this book our main character, Harold possesses no magic ability. Pehov does a decent job of explaining the magic systems and I have a feeling that there is more to them that what he lets on in this first installment of the series.

The world building is rather lacking, but it has the feel of middle Earth or something very similar to Tolkien's world, with a Russian slant on it, of course. The world is a dark and dangerous place full of orc attacks and other beasts that roam the world looking for the weak.

While the book is very short 381 pages of actual story and a small glossary in the back, I found myself wanting more. Especially as the book reaches its conclusion before the real story could truly begin. It made me hunger for more and I have to wait until April 2011 (Shadow Chaser) in order to do just that. While not a huge fan of Tolkien (perish the thought), I did enjoy this novel quite a lot.

Plot 7
Characters 9
Style 8

Overall 8/10

REVIEW: Sea of Ghosts by Alan Campbell

Sea of Ghosts by Alan Campbell
Publishing Information: Hardcover; 500 pages
Publisher: Tor (1 April 2011)
ISBN 10: 0230742947
ISBN 13: 978-0230742949
Series: Book 1 of The Gravedigger Chronicles
Copy: Sent by the publisher
Reviewer: Yagiz

"When the last of the Gravediggers, an elite imperial infiltration unit, are disbanded and hunted down by the emperor they once served, munitions expert Colonel Thomas Granger takes refuge in the unlikeliest of places. He becomes a jailer in Ethugra – a prison city of poison-flooded streets and gaols in which a million enemies of the empire are held captive. But when Granger takes possession of two new prisoners, he realises that he can’t escape his past so readily.

Ianthe is a young girl with an extraordinary psychic talent. A gift that makes her unique in a world held to ransom by the powerful Haurstaf – the sisterhood of telepaths who are all that stand between the Empire and the threat of the Unmer, the powerful civilization of entropic sorcerers and dragon-mounted warriors. In this war-torn land, she promises to make Granger an extremely wealthy man, if he can only keep her safe from harm.

This is what Granger is best at. But when other factions learn about Ianthe's unique ability, even Granger's skills of warfare are tested to their limits. While, Ianthe struggles to control the powers that are growing in ways no-one thought were possible. Another threat is surfacing: out there, beyond the bitter seas, an old and familiar enemy is rising – one who, if not stopped, will drown the world and all of humanity with it..."

Most of us heard Alan Campbell's name with his impressive debut novel, Scar Night, the first book of Deepgate Codex. After his successful dark urban fantasy trilogy called Deepgate Codex, the Scottish author now meets his readers with the first book of The Gravedigger Chronicles, a series that has the potential to shine his name even brighter in the fantasy scene.

To the reader's delight, Sea of Ghosts starts with a very unusual setting, so much so that after a few pages, I clearly remember my expectations rising high while anticipating a very interesting ride. Different races, talks about dragons, some sort of brine transforming people's skin, telepaths and witches are some of the things that the reader is presented with from the very first pages.

In Sea of Ghosts, Alan Campbell has created an amazing setting. A chaotic world greets the reader upon turning the first pages. Lasotan slaves fought against their masters, the Unmer, and with the help of Haurstaf, a group of people with very special talents, they had grabbed their freedom. However Haurstaf had refused to allow the Lasotan to execute their former masters, who, when realizing that defeat was inevitable, had seeded the oceans with millions of their toxic sea bottles, ichusae, using their airbarques... The water is constantly rising... The world is drowning...

Even though the author introduces various characters and many very interesting aspects of the setting, the book starts slowly. If you ever find yourself unsure about where the story is going, please bear with it because the introduction of Hana and Ianthe is the biggest milestone in Sea of Ghosts, at which point the author changes gear and the reader feels herself glued to her seat with the acceleration.

Campbell strikes a good balance between description and dialogue. The plot is captivating. The characters and their development, however, are the only points that I am going to complain about, although slightly. I just wish that Campbell had introduced more unpredictability and depth to his characters. Maskelyne is the character who creates the strongest pull for the reader.

Throughout the book, the reader experiences the mystery surrounding the long-gone Unmer technology. The deadly Void Flies, brine turning people into Underwater Zombies that people call Drowned, the infamous ichusae, the sea bottles, that can only be stoppered with a copper piece and hundreds of wonders that trovers try to hunt by drowning people to scour the seabed for.

"The long term Drowned do not to communicate with us in any meaningful fashion. Brine alters the mind by some slow, subtle process. The sea consumes them, takes them over, until eventually become limbo people, ghosts, repeating human actions that they do not appear to fully understand."

I'm not certain if the ending is going to satisfy everyone but this is the opening book of a series and it definitely encourages the reader to run to a bookshop to grab the next book when it is published.

Sea of Ghosts is a brilliant start to a series that displays great potential. The amazing setting is very stimulating and creates imagery reminiscent of a mixture between Waterworld directed by Kevin Reynolds and Dark City directed by Alex Proyas. Highly recommended.

Plot: 8
Characters: 8
Style: 9

Overall: 9/10

SF Signal compiles 10 Literary Novels for the Genre

Over at SF Signal is at list of 10 literary novels for genre readers. The list has a lot of books I have never heard of but now considering picking up.


10 Literary Novels for Genre Readers

Every so often a debate breaks out across the blogosphere about the comparative merits of literary versus genre literature, usually sparked by some comment advocating one of the two with some supercilious tone. The topic brings out heated rhetoric, often times boiling down to one's personal views on the shape of fiction as a whole. One thing is for sure, the debate is unsettled.

There need not be a chasm between movements, however, as genre and literary fiction can be quite complementary to one another. Certainly no one aspect of literature can lay claim to a higher standard of quality. While literary fiction can be a window into the human condition, it can also be pretentious and overbearing. Genre fiction can be full of inspiring ideas but it can also be wooden and derivative. The opportunity for a book to be crap isn't limited by the bookstore shelf it lands on.

There are plenty of guides to gateway books for literary readers to discover SF/F, but very few to introduce primarily genre readers to literary works they would find enjoyable. And so, in the spirit of reconciliation, I've compiled this short list of books that fill the gap between speculative and so called realistic fiction. It is by no means comprehensive but should serve as a decent introduction for genre readers to see how the other half lives.

Click here for the list and the complete article

Lex Returns to Smallville

It was reported and rumored that Michael Rosenbaum was not joining the homecoming on Smallville, but it looks as if a deal has been reached. Lex Luthor will be making an appearance on the series finale scheduled for 13 May 2011.

Rosenbaum said he was "delighted" to return for the series finale. "I'm simply doing it for all of the fans out there who made Smallville the great success it is," he said. "I appreciate all of their passion, their relentlessness and even their threats. Ha ha. I can't wait to hug the old crew back in Vancouver one last time and see all of my old friends once again..... Oh, and for Lex to become the badass he's destined to be."

Felica Day Moves to Dragon Age

Felicia Day, the actress/singer/writer/producer/hardcore gamer who wowed us in Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and her own web series The Guild, will be starring in Dragon Age: Redemption, a six-episode web series based on Bioware's popular RPG Dragon Age. She's also written and co-produced the series, which means she totally pwns it.

Bioware buffed her with a professional crew to tell the tale of Elven thief Tallis, who gathers a band of allies together to help her find a renegade magician. The crew includes cinematographer John Bartley (Lost), director Peter Winther (The Librarian: Quest for the Spear) and co-producer Dan Kaplow (The United States of Tara).

No release date has been set for the series.

Vote for Smithsonian Video Game Exhibit

The Smithsonian American Art Museum is asking the public to help it choose which titles will appear in its first-ever Art of Video Games exhibit.

The Smithsonian American Art Museum, part of the Smithsonian Institution,announced plans for an exhibition entitled The Art of Video Games, the first-ever attempt to "examine comprehensively the evolution of videogames themselves as an artistic medium." And while the exhibit is still more than a year away from launch, the museum is asking for help from the public to determine which games should be included in the display.

"I want this exhibition to include the collective voice of the videogame world, which is not limited to the developers, designers and artists but also the game players," said curator Chris Melissinos. "It is important to me that when gamers visit the exhibition, they find the experiences that most matter to them." The voting process is simple. Log in to artofvideogames.org (registration is required but it's the simplest sign-up process you'll ever see), then pick an era and have at it. The site just opened today and at the time of writing it was a bit wonky, so if you run into grief at any point, give it awhile and try again later. You don't have to vote on everything and you can make multiple trips to the site to complete your entries, but be aware that once you've cast a ballot it can't be changed, so choose wisely!

Voting on the Art of Video Games exhibition will remain open until April 7. The results will be made public in May, while the exhibit itself opens in Washington D.C. on March 16, 2012.

REVIEW: The Temple of the Dead by Tim Marquitz

The Temple of the Dead by Tim Marquitz
Publishing information: Kindle Edition
Publisher: Damnation Books 1 March 2010
ISBN 10: 1615722718
ISBN 13: 978-1615722716
ASIN: B004E3XTR0
Series: Part II of the Sepulchral Earth
Copy: Provided by Author
Reviewer: Tyson

Synopsis: "Two years after the furious dead rose up to murder the living, the remnants of mankind face a brutal extinction. Wretched and broken, trading humanity for life, the survivors suffer under the inevitable shadow of death.

Aided by friendly spirits, the necromancer Harlan Cole wages war against the merciless forces of the undead. Driven to bring peace to the souls of his wife and daughter, Harlan vows to return the dead to their graves, or join them trying."

Last year I reviewed an very impressive debut, Armageddon Bound, after my review the author contacted me to read a short story that he was working on, Sepulchral Earth. I was blown away and begging for more. A few months ago, Tim Marquitz contacted me again to see if I would be interested in reading the sequel to his first short story. I jumped at the chance.

The Temple of the Dead was a lot of fun to read and provided a lot of insight into just how things on earth got as bad as they have. When we left our hero, Cole, he was saving a family from the undead. In this latest installment he is dealing with his past. The reason part one of the Sepulchral Earth was so mind boggling was the hero and his mysterious ghostly sidekick, is the mystery that surrounds him and his past. Temple of the Dead was kind of a let down as you learn how things came to be and to learn what drives Harlan to be the man he is. While I like to learn more about him and his sidekick. This sequel hits you over the head with how things came to be and I would have liked a slow reveal. With that said I still enjoyed this chapter in the series. There is plenty of zombie goodness and lots of action for Cole.

Marquitz does a great job of showing the despair that human-kind has sunk to with legions of undead "dying" to get a piece of them. There is a fascinating new villain that Cole must come to terms with and he has a new friend along for the journey. While the story is rather short Marquitz does an excellent job of throwing in some stylized action within the pages. The Temple of the Dead is a welcome addition to the Sepulchral Earth series.

As I said before I was a bit disappointed with the unveiling of Cole's past but that aside it was great to get back into the series and I look forward to seeing more of his adventures.

Plot 7
Characters 9
Style 7

Overall 7.5/10

Stormdancer, Jay Kristoff's Debut Novel

Today, in a press release, Tor UK officially announced the acquisition of the rights of Stormdancer and two subsequent books in the series.

Kristoff's debut novel looks very promising, especially for the fans of far eastern fantasy settings. Here's the official press release:

Press Release – Wednesday 16th February 2011
STORMDANCER, a debut novel by Jay Kristoff, acquired by Julie Crisp at Tor UK

Tor UK, an imprint of Pan Macmillan, has acquired World English rights for Stormdancer and two subsequent books in the series in association with Pete Wolverton at Thomas Dunne Books, an imprint of St Martins Press in the US, from agent Matt Bialer at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates.

Stormdancer is a dystopian fantasy set in steampunk feudal Japan and follows Yukiko and her warrior father who are sent on an impossible mission to capture a legendary Thunder Tiger – a griffin. But an accident means Yukiko finds herself stranded: a young woman alone in her country's last wilderness, with only a furious, broken-winged griffin for company. Even though she can hear his thoughts, and even though she saved his life, all she knows for certain is that he’d rather see her dead than help her.

Meanwhile, the country around them is on the brink of collapse. A toxic poppy-based fuel is slowly killing the land; the omnipotent, metal-clad Guild is publicly burning those that they deem Impure; and the Shogun cares about nothing but his own power.

In hopes of saving her country – and herself, Yukiko must earn the griffin’s trust to become a symbol to her people; a myth, a legend – a Stormdancer.

Julie Crisp, editorial director at Tor UK, said ‘This is an incredibly imaginative and well-executed fantasy. Think Across the Nightingale Floor and Eragon mixed with steampunk, strong original characters and fast-paced action. It’s a wonderful read that everyone in-house fell in love with. So we’re thrilled that Jay will be joining the Tor UK team’.

Tor UK will be looking to publish Stormdancer in 2012.

Jay Kristoff lives in Melbourne. Follow him on twitter here: http://twitter.com/misterkristoff

For further information, contact Chloe Healy, Senior Press Officer: c.healy@macmillan.co.uk 020 7014 6186
To sign up to receive the Tor UK newsletter, click here
Follow Tor on twitter: http://twitter.com/uktor

Interesting Article on the State of Fantasy

I am sure other blogs have picked up on this as well, but over at Big Hollywood there is a post regarding the current state of the fantasy genre and how it has drastically moved from its roots of Tolkien and Howard. A same quote:

The mere trappings of the genre do nothing for me when wedded to the now-ubiquitous interminable soap-opera plots (a conservative friend of mine once accurately derided “fat fantasy” cycles such as Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time as “Lord of the Rings 90210”). Nor do they impress me in the least when placed into the hands of writers clearly bored with the classic mythic undertones of the genre, and who try to shake things up with what can best be described as postmodern blasphemies against our mythic heritage.

I personally feel that the author of the article, Leo Grin, is a tad out of touch with society and the current evolution of fantasy. He also seems to have misread his two beloved authors.

Also, an average Joe (Abercrombie) has decided to reply to the above author's claims and criticisms.

So did Adam Whitehead, a great blogger and reply.

Spider-man Reboot Gets a Name and It's Amazing

The Spider-man reboot gets its official name The Amazing Spider-man and as an added bonus we also get the first promo poster.

Even though the costume has some design flaws and looks more like an off-shoot costume the picture is pretty "amazing." He looks like he is jumping right out of the pages of the latest comic. The Amazing Spider-man is set to swing into theaters on 3 July 2012

REVIEW: Mogworld by Yatzhee Croshaw

Mogworld by Yatzhee Croshaw
Publishing information: Paperback; 414 pages
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics; 21 August 2010
ISBN 10: 1595825290
ISBN 13: 9781595825292
Standalone
Copy Out of pocket
Reviewer: Tyson

Back of the Book "A Novel That Will Give A Whole New Meaning To The Term 'Corpse Run'

In a world full to bursting with would-be heroes, Jim couldn't be less interested in saving the day. His fireballs fizzle. He's awfully grumpy. Plus, he's been dead for about sixty years. When a renegade necromancer wrenches him from eternal slumber and into a world gone terribly, bizarrely wrong, all Jim wants is to find a way to die properly, once and for all. On his side, he's got a few shambling corpses, an inept thief, and a powerful death wish. But he's up against tough odds: angry mobs of adventurers, a body falling apart at the seams - and a team of programmers racing a deadline to hammer out the last few bugs in their AI."

As a huge fan of The Escapist's Zero Punctuation, I knew that I had to give Mogworld a shot. I love Croshaw's sense of humor and while Mogworld is a tad bit tamer than his video reviews, it does a fairly great job of converting his brand of comedy into a novel.

Mogworld is very similar to World of Warcraft or other forms of MMORPG's (or online mulitplayer role playing games for the uninitiated) except this novel has a twist. We find ourselves reading about Jim, an undead wizard whose only wish is to die. He was resurrected, in his own words, " by a git." When the "git" messes up the resurrection spell Jim and his fellow undead gain awareness. They are not the mindless zombies their master was expecting. This leads to many adventures and an ultimate quest. These quests border on the absurd. Jim has a few companions that join him and encourage him to take on one disaster after another.

While the world building is a little bit lacking, you can see where it was done on purpose as Mogworld is satire. Each location sounds similar to some famous games and locales. While the book has some interesting names for locations they really have no real impact on the story as it is more about the adventure or quest. Besides, the majority of people that will be reading Mogworld should have a pretty good grasp of what online gaming worlds look like and should be able to relate fairly well. This is also where Mogworld fails, if you are not a gamer, then this book will fall apart on you half-way through and will leave you behind. The book starts out very strong with witty dialogue and great characters but by the end you are not left with much to think about besides, "why did I read this?" Even if you are a gamer, you may find yourself lost along the way as it gets a little muddled.

The plot is rather simple, Jim is undead and unable to die and he is looking for a way to take a permanent dirt nap. What seems simple becomes impossible and leads to some strange and interesting situations. The fact that Croshaw is behind the wheel of this story should tell you that you are in for quite a ride. The book is said to be 350 pages but my book has 414 pages which were plenty. I was hoping for more when I bought the book and Croshaw did not deliver.

If you enjoy Zero Punctuation's humor and want to see how he does in another form of media this may be your book. Mogworld was written for (mainly) gamers that like to play role playing games, but if you are not a hardcore player you may not get all of the jokes. Also, Mogworld is a far cry from his video game review site, Zero Punctuation, very tame and it loses its focus towards the end. A bitter disappointment, can not recommend this novel.

Plot 5
Characters 6
Style 6

Overall 5.5/10

Nominate Your Champion! Nebula and Hugo Award Nominations

I'm sure you read some great science-fiction and/or fantasy books last year. You may remember, in December, we posted a list of our most memorable reads of 2010 under the title of The Years Best 2010. One book that didn't make the list for me, just because I read it at the end of the year, was Paul Kearney's Corvus (Tyson and I reviewed it last week).

Where am I going with this? Last week, I stumbled upon John Scalzi's Science Fiction Award Recommendations 2010: The Reader’s List. And I thought it would be great for Paul Kearney to win such a prestigious award because not only he has become one of my favorite writers but because his Corvus totally deserves it. So I dropped a comment there.

Have you made your opinion known yet? Are you planning to? Time is ticking.

Hobbit First Cast Picture

As the Hobbit gets set to start filming the cast gathered to take a picture. Martin Freeman (Bilbo Baggins) in the foreground

Cast list:

• Richard Armitage (MI-5, Captain America) as Thorin Oakenshield, leader of the Dwarves, whose grandfather ruled the Lonely Mountain settlement destroyed by Smaug.
• Aidan Turner (Being Human) and Rob Kazinsky (EastEnders) as Kili and Fili, nephews of Thorin.
• James Nesbitt (Bloody Sunday, Millions) as Bofur, “a disarmingly forthright, funny and occasionally brave Dwarf.”
• Adam Brown as Ori, “another of the Dwarf Company which sets out to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the infamous dragon, Smaug.”
• Graham McTavish (Secretariat) as Dwalin, blue-bearded, first to arrive at the home of Bilbo Baggins.
• John Callen as Oin, skillful fire-maker. Brother of Gloin.
• Stephen Hunter (All Saints) as Bombur, the fat, sleepy and slow member of Thorin’s company.
• Mark Hadlow (King Kong) as Dori, strongest of the Dwarves, who carries Bilbo on his back at one point.
• Peter Hambleton (The Strip) as Gloin, brother of Oin, initially suspicious of Bilbo’s worth, but eventually convinced. Father of Gimli from The Lord of the Rings.
• Jed Brophy (The Lord of the Rings) is the dwarf Nori
• William Kircher is the dwarf Bifur
• Ken Stott (Charlie Wilson’s War) is the Dwarf Lord Balin

Del Rey has 50 Pages of Elizabeth Bear

Over at Del Ray website they are giving readers a glimpse at Elizabeth Bears Dust. The Jacob's Latter Trilogy starts with Dust and the second book in the series was recently nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award. The third and final book in the Trilogy, Grail is schedule to be released later in the month.

Click here to read the 50 page excerpt of Dust.

Mixing It up with Abercrombie

If you have not heard the news Mr. Abercrombie's latest novel The Heroes is out and while I have done my best to stay away from the reviews and spoilers, word on the street is that it is very good. However, I was doing some web surfing and over at Orbit he has broken down what he considers are some of his favorite movies featuring good old fashion blood-letting. A few on the list were surprises. Click here to browse his favorites and reason behind the choices. I think he has left a few great movies out, but overall the list does a decent job of hitting a few different genres and concepts. Strangely Oliver Stone's Alexander did not make the list.

Colbie Smulders Confirmed for Avengers

The last few days have seen rumours surfacing with regards to an addition to Marvel's upcoming movie, The Avengers. And specifically, it was with regards to the character of S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Maria Hill. Hill is Nick Fury's sidekick, and given that Fury is being played by Samuel L Jackson, and is down to appear in nine films, Maria is clearly an important piece of casting.

And now, the part has been cast.

The job has gone to Cobie Smulders, best known for her work in How I Met Your Mother. She's officially signed on the dotted line to appear firstly in The Avengers, and it's also been reported that she's being tied down to the same nine-movie deal as Jackson.

Joss Whedon is set to start rolling cameras on The Avengers in April, ahead of the film's release in May 2012.

REVIEW: Machine of Death: A collection of stories about people who know how they will die [Kindle Edition]

Machine of Death: A collection of stories about people who know how they will die editors: Ryan North, Bennardo, David Malki
Publishing Information: Kindle Edition
Publisher: Bearstache Books 26 October 2010
ISBN 10: 0982167121
ISBN 13: 978-0982167120
ASIN: B004AHK9ZA
Short Story Collection
Copy: Provided by Publisher
Reviewer: Tyson

Synopsis: "The machine had been invented a few years ago: a machine that could tell, from just a sample of your blood, how you were going to die. No dates, no details. Just a slip of paper with a few words spelling out your ultimate fate -- at once all-too specific and maddeningly vague.

A top ten Amazon Customer Favorite in Science Fiction & Fantasy for 2010, The Machine of Death is an anthology of original stories bound together by a central premise. From the humorous to the adventurous to the mind-bending to the touching, the writers explore what the world would be like if a blood test could predict your death.

But don't think for a moment this is a book entirely composed of stories about people meeting their ironic dooms. There is some of that, of course. But more than that, this is a genre-hopping collection of tales about people who have learned more about themselves then perhaps they should have, and how that knowledge affects their relationships, their perception of the world, and how they feel about themselves.

Features thirty-four stories by Randall Munroe, Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw, Tom Francis, Camille Alexa, Erin McKean, James L. Sutter, David Malki !, Ryan North, and many others

Features illustrations by Kate Beaton, Kazu Kibuishi, Aaron Diaz, Jeffrey Brown, Scott C., Roger Langridge, Karl Kershl, Cameron Stewart, and many others"

I am not a huge short story reader but when the publisher contacted me and asked me if I would be interested in reviewing the book, I jumps at the chance. I was not hooked until I read the premise. Each story contained in the collection is based on the same idea that a machine has been invented that will predict accurately how you will leave this world. While some of the predictions are fairly obvious, others are not so clear.

In all honesty the first few stories that I read in Machine of Death drove me nuts as they are left very open ended. No resolution is to be found in the first few stories. I was getting skeptical and was wondering if there was ever going to be a scene in any of the stories where we see the predictions come true. I did not have to wait long and soon came to realise that they were put in the beginning of the novel to warm you up to the idea and to have you salivating at the prospect of what was to come.

As you dig deeper into the stories the collection provides, you wonder just how far they are willing to go as each story really builds upon one another. As you read one story you wonder, how can they top that one? Only to find that the next story accomplishes exactly that. While I was a little disappointed with the first few stories (mainly due to no resolution) I began to see the bigger picture and thought it was really impressive that they placed them where they did. Because had they been thrown in the middle or in the later portions of the book, it would have ruined the tempo the book had built up to.

Next week, I will review Yathzee Croshaw's Mogworld and I was disappointed with the novel but he really does shine in this collection. His short story was a lot of fun to read. He was redeemed in this collection. Truth be told I can not really think of a poorly written short story found in this book. Each one is original and entertaining. It was also a change of pace as it led to a interesting conversation at home as I asked the qestion "would you want to know how you died?"

Machine of Death is a impressive collection of short stories all with a common bond. I think the common bond actually made the read more enjoyable as it was the first short story collection that I had read that had a common thread. Reading it on the Kindle the format was perfect. It was easy to read and formatted perfectly. Highly recommended.

Plot 9
Characters 8
Style 9

Overall 9.5/10

Detroit Says No to Robocop

News from DenofGeek:

For a legion of movie geeks, 1987’s RoboCop is an action cinema classic, jam-packed with absurd violence, quotable lines (“I’d buy that for a dollar!”) and an iconic central character in the shape of its titular tin law enforcer.

Even the pair of meagre sequels and a poverty-stricken television series hasn’t sullied the memory of Paul Verhoeven’s lip-smackingly satirical film, and while there’s been talk, in recent years, of a reboot with Darren Aronofsky at the helm, the Reagan-era RoboCop remains an enduring favourite.

On Twitter, one user, known simply as @MT, made the not unreasonable suggestion that the city of Detroit (the setting for the movie’s unforgettably brutal antics) should erect a RoboCop statue in the law enforcer’s honour. After all, Philadelphia has a statue of Rocky…

Article continues here.

RIP Brian Jacques

It is with a sad heart to announce that Brian Jacques, the author of the beloved Redwall Series has past away at age 71.

Jacques is best-known as the author of the Redwall series of animal fantasies. The 22nd novel in the series, The Rogue Crew, is complete and due for publication in May 2011. He also wrote an additional number of other books, including companions to the Redwall series and unrelated books. Overall, his novels had sold more than 20 million copies worldwide and been translated into 29 languages.

REVIEW: Out of the Dark by David Weber (Kindle Edition)

Out of the Dark by David Weber
Publishing infomation: Kindle; 1166kb also available in hardcover 384 pages
Publisher: Tor; 28 September 2010
ASIN: B003P8Q5LM
ISBN 10: 0765324121
ISBN 13: 978-0765324122
Book 1 in a planned trilogy
Copy: out of pocket
Reviewer: Tyson

Description "In the stunning launch of a new military-SF series, DAVID WEBER tells the tale of humanity’s near extinction by hostile aliens and of the surprising alliance that fights back.

Earth is conquered. The Shongairi have arrived in force, and humanitys cities lie in radioactive ruins. In mere minutes, over half the human race has died.

Now Master Sergeant Stephen Buchevsky, who thought he was being rotated home from his latest tour in Afghanistan, finds himself instead prowling the back country of the Balkans, dodging alien patrols and trying to organize the scattered survivors without getting killed.

His chances look bleak. The aliens have definitely underestimated human tenacity—but no amount of heroism can endlessly hold off overwhelming force.

Then, emerging from the mountains and forests of Eastern Europe, new allies present themselves to the ragtag human resistance. Predators, creatures of the night, human in form but inhumanly strong. Long Enemies of humanity…until now. Because now is the time to defend Earth."

Out of the Dark grew from a short story that was featured in the George RR Martin and Gardner Dozio's Warriors anthology. While I never got around to reading the anthology, the book itself sounded appealing. I have read a previous Weber novel but for the life of me cannot recall the title or what occurred in it, it was just too long ago. I only remember that it had a fair amount of military action. So, to a certain extent I expected more of the same. If you enjoy a fair amount of military acronyms and terminology you will not be disappointed. Out of the Dark starts out at the battle of Agincourt where the aliens first encounter humanity and take their negative report back to their superiors. After that encounter the rest of the novel takes place a few years into the future. Tensions are still high between the west and Iran. There is a fair amount of world building in the beginning of the novel as we play catch up on world events and we gain a better prospective on how the Shongairi think and how their caste system works. We also learn their true motivations for arriving on earth.

There are quite a few characters to juggle in Out of the Dark. Each chapter jumped from one continent and character to another as action spans the globe. While none of the characters ever became a favorite, they all had a part to play and sometimes their luck was a little too lucky where it bordered on divine intervention. It was not too bothersome but it did seem to make for an easier time than one should have encountered considering every major city and military installation just got blown to smithereens.

In Out of the Dark we have both the various human prospective and the Shongairi's, While the humans seemed normal, or as normal as they could be considering the situation they faced, the Shogairi were a little too human. They did have problems understanding human psychology and human motivations. At times this was humorous but I could not understand why Weber had them seem so much like humans. Aside from the fact that they are described as "puppies," meaning they look like dogs that walk upright, I would have liked to have seen something completely different from us. Aside from their pack like instinct and appearance they were far too similar to humans and that was a disappointment albeit a small one. However, that said, I did enjoy their military staff meetings and they way they analyzed the human's actions. They were humorous and insightful.

When the Shogairi arrive they find three super powers with vast and powerful militaries: The United States of America, Russia, and China. The Shogairi then act swiftly to nullify the three powers. However, throughout Out of the Dark we only get to hear about the US and Russia. After the build up from the first portion of the novel we never hear about China again. As I read the beginning, I was all set to read about those three regions and was disappointed to read about two of them for the duration of the book. The book also takes place in Romania but I felt that that was like a booby prize and I know that Romania was only to set things up for humanity's great undead hope.

I knew that Out of the Dark featured vampires and to be honest it was one of the reasons I picked the book up as I wanted to see how Weber went about blending science fiction with horror. However, that being said it would have been nice if Weber kept the vampires a secret, if he somehow kept it as the twist in the plot. But it is stated on the blurb on the inside of the book. While the vampires slowly reveal themselves and don't outright show up, they were not treated very well in Out of the Dark. They were the Deus ex Machina. They only show up near the end and when they do they are unmatched at killing. They turn the tide of war so far over to the human's advantage that you have to wonder why Weber made them so powerful, while the story was a lot of fun the addition of vampires took the wind out of the sails of the book. They are just too powerful for the aliens to overcome.

I really enjoyed the idea of aliens coming to conquer earth only to find we are a lot stronger then their earlier (600 years ago) estimates. The battles at the beginning of the book were a lot of fun and it was interesting to read how humanity continued to wage war even when the chips were down. The vampires were interesting but the way the book set itself up in the beginning it could have been a bunch of highly trained military special forces or intelligence operatives that survived and began conducted the strikes towards the end of novel in place of the vampires. It would have made it a more interesting book and it would left the strong possibility that humanity could still fail and the Shongairi could still conquer Earth.

Out of the Dark has an interesting ending which was a little too warm and mushy for me, but there are still  a lot of loose ends and issues to be resolved. I am sure that they will all be solved in the remaining two novels in the planned trilogy. While Out of the Dark was not one of my top reads it certainly was a fun book to escape to after a long day of work. It does exactly what I had in mind for it to do, entertain me.

Plot 8
Characters 7
Style 7

Overall 7/10