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October 2022 MBR The Fantasy/SciFi Shelf
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Midwest Book Review
Nov 2, 2022, 11:06:15 PM11/2/22
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The Fantasy/SciFi Shelf
The Blanchard Witches: Prodigal Daughters
Micah House
Kendrell Publishing
www.blanchardwitches.com
9798985607536, $26.95
https://www.amazon.com/Blanchard-Witches-Prodigal-Daughters/dp/B09ZCSPS9N
Readers familiar with the first book in Micah House's series, The Blanchard Witches of Daihmler County, will welcome the return to new events provided in its sequel, The Blanchard Witches: Prodigal Daughters. Here, the outcome of Olympia Blanchard and her family's battle with werewolves continues to resonate. It was an epic battle during which two participants fell in love. It was a battle replete with secrets, because Fable Blanchard became pregnant at that same time. And it was a situation which holds resounding impact today, even after the wolf is defeated, because new trials await the family and their followers. A missing daughter, a new beau, and another daughter who continues to keep secrets around her pregnancy and the father of her child makes for an engrossing story flavored with Southern atmosphere and supernatural elements. House crafts an excellent story that juxtaposes magic, mystery, and new dangers with evolving family relationships that continue to transform all involved.
Allusions to fables such as Sleeping Beauty arrive with deadly new interpretations as events unfold, creating a picture-in-picture series of events that reach out and grab readers with blends of vampires, crimes, and matters of the heart. It's a delicate dance to move between these elements in such a way as to keep the action fast-paced and unpredictable rather than mired in formula genre approaches, but it's a creative impulse that House cultivates to give the story a fresh, original feel.
Characters are believable and engaging; situations pull on not just the heart but moral and ethical developments against supernatural backdrops; and the saga moves between family members and outsiders with a strong attention to detail, description, and twists that address issues of prejudice and family connections alike.
The result is another highly recommended story that blends occult fiction and fantasy with a special Southern flavor. Like a mint julep, it lingers on the tongue and in the mind, inviting readers with an engaging tone that only needs a porch rocking chair for, the reader of Southern fiction and occult suspense stories, to complete the atmosphere.
Ninety Days in the 90s: A Rock N Roll Time Travel Story
Andy Frye
https://90daysinthe90s.com
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9781639883875, $18.99 Paper/$9.99 Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/Ninety-Days-90s-Andy-Frye/dp/1639883878
Avid followers of time travel fiction well know the typical plot progression: an adventurer falls into another time, solves problems there, and spends the rest of the time trying to return home. Andy Frye's Ninety Days in the 90s: A Rock N Roll Time Travel Story offers a different flavor more intent on capturing the place and tone of the 1990s. It follows Darby Derrex, a modern-day financial and social failure whose latest undertaking is to run her uncle's Chicago record store.
When she discovers that a time machine offers her the opportunity to journey back in time to 1996, the height of some of Chicago's major music experiments and when she was a music critic who cultivated a love relationship with Lina (ultimately failing at both), she decides to fix things.
She didn't expect to fall in love with the past. Didn't anticipate that the edict to repair what was broken in 90 days, or remain in that past forever, would prove such a challenge. And Darby didn't expect to have so much fun while facing the music.
Andy Frye creates a compelling story that depicts the counter-culture of the 1990s with an astute eye to examining its major influences, allure, and punk-based attractions. From stormy relationships and opportunities to travel within the musical world to social strife and revelations about the forces that drew her away from the love of her life, readers follow Darby into a world influenced by love and 1990s political and social evolution.
The reflections are crisp and thought-provoking as Darby navigates what should be a familiar world, but turns out to hold different psychological revelations than she'd held, back in modern times. Has she escaped, or gotten herself trapped? This question plagues her revised decisions and perceptions as a girl from the future revisits her past with the unprecedented opportunity to make different choices.
While readers of time travel fiction will find many recognizable dilemmas in Ninety Days in the 90s: A Rock N Roll Time Travel Story, its real strength lies in its portrait of how a woman faced with the opportunity to make changes decides, instead, to go with a flow that leads in different directions.
Does she control her destiny, or does it control her? And, can she help the world discover new music? Frye's ability to permeate his story with the music-saturated atmosphere of the 1990s scene will draw readers who usually don't choose time travel stories. Its recreation of this era and its key artists adds to a story replete in historical musical background and experiences. These elements make Ninety Days in the 90s: A Rock N Roll Time Travel Story a top recommendation not just for the usual time travel story reader, but for rock music fans who would relive the music, social influences, and world of 1990s Chicago.
Mindshards
Brian Burt
Independently Published
B0B8KW2Z3P, $2.99 Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/Mindshards-Collection-Brian-Burt-ebook/dp/B0B8KW2Z3P
Contemporary readers seeking to tap the roots of speculative fiction should look no further than the short pieces in Mindshards: A Collection. It serves as a strong example of hard-hitting speculative works representing the best of the genre and the best use of the short story format.
Speculative fiction focuses on changing the nature or perception of reality itself, placing characters in positions where they have to absorb, reflect, and act within these altered states. The stories in Mindshards each place characters in extraordinary circumstances, weaving in equally astonishing responses to the bizarre that keep characters and readers guessing about outcomes.
Take the opening story, "Phantom Pain." Here, the first-person protagonist finds himself in Louisiana on a sports scholarship. Fresh from Chicago, the narrator initially doesn't understand either the culture or the legends of the bayou. He's about to find out (and so is the reader) as events immerse him in Creole culture via his wife and evolving community connections.
Brian Burt doesn't just describe this milieu. His words resonate and amplify with supercharged imagery designed to engross: "New Orleans doesn't just sing, friend; it jitters and jives and wails like a wild animal that can't be caged." His knee blown in a sports injury, the narrator becomes a cop. And this is where his reality and perceptions are truly shaken as he is pulled into the underworld and dark culture flowing under Louisiana's appealing surface of artistic endeavors.
His encounter with Voodoo gangs gobbles a piece of him regularly (mind you, he's selling off these pieces willingly, not understanding their true cost). As a "crazy fever" spreads through the streets via these gangs, the narrator (who "doesn't believe in black magic...just black hearts") finds his world shaken. Only when it's too late does he realize the price he really pays for selling his soul piece by piece.
Each story is steeped in emotional draws, from the hatred and despair in "Phantom Pain" and its powerful concluding thought ("Nobody sells his soul all at once. No, the Devil buys on the layaway plan.") to the ranging "Brilliant Blood of Souls" which tackles a ghoulish killer in Los Angeles and the bioplasma signatures that help a savvy cop identify perps ... until one apparently alters the impossible.
Speculative fiction readers who also enjoy crime scenarios will find the collection's prize-earning strengths lies not so much in 'whodunit' scenarios (or, 'why do it'), but in undercurrents of supernatural and impossible forces in such works as "Equinox," about a tiny Michigan town which harbors a magical milieu where "place and time fused together."
Place and time fuses in these short works, which are truly mindshards of the unexpected. Each story steeps revelations and thought-provoking moments in action that challenges each character (and their readers) to walk out of their ordinary worlds and the typical progression of life events.
Libraries strong in short stories, speculative works, and powerful writing will find Mindshards a work of literary and psychological prowess, while book clubs looking for strong examples of contemporary speculative works will find its stories compelling, offering much food for thought and lively discussions.
H2LiftShips - Beyond Luna
Bob Freeman
Indies United Publishing House, LLC
www.h2liftship.com
9781644562376, $5.76 Paper & Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08WHN4PN6
Space opera used to be a very popular genre, but in recent decades, it seems to have fallen by the wayside somewhat. Sci-fi readers of all ages who mourn this loss and look for contemporary space opera stories rich in action, humor, and description will find this first book in the H2LiftShips series, Beyond Luna, captures a milieu set in a parallel futuristic universe of solar ships, military engagements, and post-apocalyptic wonder.
Here, Solar Sail cargo ships operate in the asteroid belt. One such vessel is the LunaCola, whose crew makes a business of scavenging supplies from Earth and gambling at the casino to fund their existence and lifestyle. This pursuit often brings them into conflict with pirates, authorities, and the law. It also introduces them to unusual scenarios that test their abilities and loyalties.
As an author, Bob Freeman provides a fitting disclosure of the type of reader who may (and may not) be attracted to this world. Merriam-Webster defines space opera as "...a futuristic melodramatic fantasy involving space travelers and extraterrestrial beings."
While this description is too often augmented by the note that space opera can be notoriously simplistic and often represents bad writing, Freeman's series defies this notion by offering a setting, circumstances, and developments that test his characters' ability to survive and grow on different levels. All this is set against the backdrop of action, encounters with a variety of sentients who harbor their own special interests, and a crew that handles high tech and high controversy with equal skill. As for the 'post-apocalyptic' piece, it should be noted that this universe isn't exactly suffering for its origins and influences, but presents a surprisingly positive picture of revised lives and new worlds.
Freeman incorporates many vivid descriptions of this futuristic technology and milieu into a story that is richer for the time taken to explore these foundations. The result both supports the rollicking adventure-forward nature of the space opera genre while expanding its boundaries into the realm of solid writing, vivid descriptions, and unexpected encounters between sentients and humans.
Sci-fi fans of the space opera genre who look for strong action and, especially, attention to a sense of place and high-tech worlds will relish Beyond Luna's ability to bring to the table a different sense of scientific wonder and development, all wrapped into a story that flavors its action with more than a light dose of humor for added value.
H2LiftShips - Backstory
Bob Freeman
Indies United Publishing House, LLC
www.h2liftship.com
9781644563076, $5.99 Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08X4YMHZZ
H2LiftShips - Backstory opens with Graciela's observation of the world: "Everywhere she looked, it was gray. And black. The ruby-red laser flashed once, twice, pushing the flat, nano-spider fabric out, a spinnaker filled with photons, pulling the ship with it. The Lunar sentients; humans, simians, canines, or octopuses, seldom went out or left their cozy caves for a walk-around. If they had to work in the airless dust to service the ammonia generators or solar cells it was not for pleasure. Just get out, do the work and scurry back to the safety of home." This roots the action to follow with a sense of place that predates the other series books, before Graciela captains her own solar ship. On the cusp of a career-changing decision, Graciela is about to move from her world at the Lunar Academy to something bigger, embracing family, new encounters, and unfamiliar situations.
Bob Freeman doesn't just remain content with packing in action and building a high-tech scenario. He also adds human elements which realistically portray a dysfunctional family and a young woman who tries to move away from her past and into a future where family assumes a different role. Freeman depicts interactions between characters which are humorous and thought-provoking, all in one: "On behalf of your crew, the boost team, and the owner, we are pleased to honor your first flight, the official Didn't Crash patch. Wear it with honor."
That was unexpected, and Captain Grace struggled to come up with the right response, because, of course, captains don't cry."My Air is Your Air," she said simply. It was the first thing out of her mouth. "I will work to make the travels safe. And profitable. So, let's get to Luna and the cosmos." It wasn't a rousing speech, she thought, but also not a long one, and that counts more."
As her first command's wild ride progresses, Captain Grace and her zany collection of shipmates encounter worlds that test their abilities to survive and stay the course of their purpose -- to make a profit. H2LiftShips - Backstory provides an excellent prequel to the series, and is a strong starting point for readers to absorb the language, humor, and atmosphere that bring this world to life. Sci-fi libraries seeking examples of modern space opera which is fun to read and action-packed, powered by strong characters who face unique dilemmas and challenges as they navigate new worlds and their own psyches, will find H2LiftShips - Backstory an outstanding choice.
H2LiftShips - Bosons Wave
Bob Freeman
Indies United Publishing House, LLC
www.h2liftship.com
9781644564837, $3.99 ebook
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B4R9W8G7
H2LiftShips - Bosons Wave recounts the ongoing story of Captain Graciela and the crew of the H2LiftShip LunaCola, whose secret mission involves a journey that embraces family and political drama in this third volume of an intriguing space opera adventure.
It's set in a world that simultaneously feels both familiar and alien. This is a world of space pirates and high-tech oddities, from algae rocket ships to an odd marriage between advanced technology and old-world devices -- bioGel laser rifles and HAM radios, for example. It's a scenario in which Captain Graciela and her crew battle the brainless algae which have joined with angry bioGel computers to challenge both sides with impossible situations.
From Jovian clouds integrated with DNA computers to gamblers who operate in a space casino against the backdrop of intrigue and conflict, Bob Freeman crafts an environment that will especially please prior series readers with more than just a fast pace. Freeman takes the time to incorporate vivid descriptions into his world-building space opera, marking them with a wry sense of humor that overlays the action. The descriptions of both heady clashes and everyday activities build a strong sense of place to contrast extraordinary events with ordinary life pursuits, but with a twist.
Readers of the prior two books in this series will find Bosons Wave a powerful survey of risky experiments, HiveSister concerns and sentient developments, and the crew's struggle to avoid disaster. Ironic, delightful phrasing fosters a stream of ironic observation through the story: "The green monster's visit was not as friendly as it seemed."
The result is a fitting compliment to the other books in the series, expanding the escapades of this Navy crew's space-faring struggles as they tackle interstellar emergencies, family issues, and military operations with equal ability. Readers seeking a rollicking good read from a modern space opera will find H2LiftShips - Bosons Wave a fine adventure that employs many futuristic descriptions to power its characters and their dilemmas.
Conquergood & the Center of the Intelligible Mystery of Being
C.G. Fewston
Independently Published
B09JMSZM8Y, $5.99 Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09JMSZM8Y
Conquergood & the Center of the Intelligible Mystery of Being is a novel set in 2183, where homeless outcast Jerome Conquergood wanders the post-apocalyptic world of New York City. His earliest memory is of awakening in the City of Old York with no family or connections. As long as he can recall, he's harbored a hatred of the Korporation (a blend of business and political mega-entity) that controls his world.
Forced to join this much-hated entity to find his missing twin brother, Jerome finds himself stripped of his name, identity, and life as the Korporation takes over and regulates him to the status of a lowly employee -- and a possible future savior.
As Jerome struggles with his new life and tries to maintain perspective and purpose, he enters a strange new world of elite living and unprecedented luxury, both of which serve as lures from his life connections and mission. His initial determination to stay his course ("We are not what the Korporation makes us do," Conquergood tells himself. "Never will be, never have been.") is shaken by these experiences. Readers will find many social and ethical conundrums arise as Conquergood becomes an initially unwilling part of the structure he so abhors.
As an author, C.G. Fewston creates a story replete in social, political, philosophical and psychological depth and inspections that require slower reading in order to thoroughly absorb. No pat dystopian adventure, Conquergood & the Center of the Intelligible Mystery of Being is intellectually challenging and absorbing. It ideally will attract the thinking sci-fi reader who appreciates not just a futuristic setting, but the moral and ethical quandaries faced by a protagonist forced to move out of his initial perceptions of his place in life in order step into the shoes of the enemy.
This absorbing, engrossing story of genetic manipulation and a search for the ultimate human psyche will also ideally lend to classroom assignment and discussion for courses interested in philosophical and social dilemmas in sci-fi. Not your usual dystopian saga, Conquergood & the Center of the Intelligible Mystery of Being is highly recommended for its bigger-picture presentation of redemption and relationships that grow from adversity and self-inspection. Its inspection of the foundations of reality and the future of humans is thought-provoking and thoroughly engaging as Conquergood moves towards not only his brother, but a different vision of a new human influenced by genetic and social manipulation.
The Face of the Waters
Robert Silverberg
Spectra
c/o Three Rooms Press
561 Hudson Street, Suite 33, New York, NY 10014
www.threeroomspress.com
9781953103277, $16.99, PB, 396pp
https://www.amazon.com/Face-Waters-Robert-Silverberg/dp/1953103278
Synopsis: After a human offense against the natives of Hydros, the human population of the island of Sorve are ordered to leave. Forbidden on all other islands, in a flotilla of ships they seek the semi-mythical island of the Face of the Waters. During their journey they are forced to learn more about themselves, leading to questions about both religion and the purpose of Man. At the end of this novel, science fiction author Robert Silverberg deftly addresses what it means to be human, and explores what unites and divides humanity.
Critique: Originally published in October 1991, this new paperback edition of "The Face of the Waters" is published with the author's full support, and brings Silverberg's brilliant novel back into the must-read science-fiction canon. Highly recommended for personal and community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections after decades of being out of print, this classic Silverberg novel is now once again available to a whole new generation of dedicated science fiction buffs -- and is a 'must' for the legions of Robert Silverberg fans.
Editorial Note: Robert Silverberg (www.robert-silverberg.com) is a now near legendary author in the science-fiction genre, with four Hugo Awards and six Nebula Awards to his name. He was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1999 and named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Guild in 2005. His short story "Needle in a Timestack" was adapted for the screen by Oscar-winning writer John Ridley (12 Years a Slave) in 2021, and additional projects are slated to finally bring more Silverberg writing to the screen. He has a Wikipedia page at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Silverberg
Daughter of Redwinter
Ed McDonald
Tor Books
c/o Tor/Forge Books
120 Broadway, 22nd Floor, New York, NY 10271
www.tor-forge.com
9781250811714, $27.99, HC, 352pp
https://www.amazon.com/Daughter-Redwinter-Chronicles-1/dp/1250811716
Synopsis: Raine can see and speak to the dead, a gift that comes with a death sentence. All her life she has hidden, lied, and run to save her skin, and she's made some spectacularly bad choices along the way. But it is a rare act of kindness (rescuing an injured woman in the snow) that becomes the most dangerous decision Raine has ever made.
Because the woman is fleeing from Redwinter, the fortress-monastery of the Draoihn, warrior magicians who answer to no king, and who will stop at nothing to reclaim what she's stolen. A battle, a betrayal, and a horrific revelation force Raine to enter the citadel and live among the Draoihn. She soon finds that her secret ability could be the key to saving an entire nation. Though she might have to die to make it happen!
Critique: Launching 'The Redwinter Chronicles', a new action/adventure fantasy series from veteran author Ed McDonald, "Daughter of Redwinter" is an impressively crafted novel that is a compulsive page turner of a read from cover to cover. With a special appeal to fans of Epic Fantasy, "Daughter of Redwinter" will leave its readers looking forward to the next installment of a truly fun read. While unreservedly recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Daughter of Redwinter" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note: Ed McDonald (https://edmcdonaldwriting.com) is the author of the Raven's Mark series of novels. He studied Ancient History and Archaeology at the University of Birmingham, and Medieval History at Birkbeck College, University of London. Ed is passionate about fantasy tabletop roleplay games and has studied medieval swordsmanship since 2013
The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One
Paula Guran, editor
https://paulaguran.com
Pyr
https://www.pyrsf.com
9781645060482, $21.95, PB, 456pp
https://www.amazon.com/Years-Best-Fantasy-One/dp/1645060489
Synopsis: With the publication of "The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One", dedicated fantasy fans can escape on a journey from the ordinary to the extraordinary with award-winning fantasy editor Paula Guran.
This is a superbly curated collection of fantasy themed short stories by contributors that collectively explores myth and fable, dark and light -- an heroic creature facing a dangerous demon; an earthly love facing the mossy decay of death. With additional tales of living ball gowns and timid monsters, of modern witches and multidimensional magic, the twenty-four original stories comprising "The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One" will transport the reader to fantastical realms that push the limits of imagination to alternative realities mirroring much of our own.
Critique: An inherently fascinating, entertaining, and just plain fun read from cover to cover, "The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, community, and college Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for the reading lists of all dedicated fantasy fans that "The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $15.99).
Editorial Note: Paula Guran (https://paulaguran.com) was senior editor for Prime Books for seven years. Previously, she edited the Juno fantasy imprint from its small press inception through its incarnation as an imprint of Pocket Books. In addition to the annual Year's Best Dark Fantasy and Horror series, she's edited many other anthologies. In an earlier life she produced weekly email newsletter DarkEcho (winning two Stokers, an IHG award, and a World Fantasy Award nomination), edited Horror Garage (earning another IHG and a second World Fantasy nomination), and has contributed reviews, interviews, and articles to numerous professional publications.
Sisters of Sorcery
Marsheila Rockwell
https://marsheilarockwell.com
Aconyte Books
https://aconytebooks.com
9781839081651, $16.95, PB, 368pp
https://www.amazon.com/Sisters-Sorcery-Marvel-Untold-Novel/dp/1839081651
Synopsis: Deep in the Dark Dimension, the tyrant Umar the Unrelenting craves the Power Cosmic to expand her realm into new dimensions. When she kidnaps the cosmic being Ardina to make a grim battery of her powers, she draws the attention of Clea, her estranged daughter and mighty user of the mystic arts. Clea knows her mother will stop at nothing to conquer the whole of the Splinter Realms, imperiling all of reality. To defeat her, Clea must ally herself with three powerful sorceresses, each with their own unique powers, traverse dimensions, and free Ardina and the entire Archipelago of Anguish and Redemption before Umar consumes it all.
Critique: A superbly crafted, impressively original, and thoroughly fun read from cover to cover, "Sisters of Sorcery" by Macy Rockwell is a mystical adventure novel and part of the 'Marvel Untold' series from Aconyte Books. Unreservedly recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of the legions of dedicated Marvel fans that "Sisters of Sorcery" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.95).
Editorial Note: Marsheil (Marcy) Rockwell (https://marsheilarockwell.com) is an award nominated tie-in writer and poet. Her novels include SF/H thriller 7 Sykos, as well as The Shard Axe series, set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons Online. She has published two collections, and has written dozens of short stories, poems, and comic book scripts.
Assassin's Creed: The Magus Conspiracy
Kate Heartfield
https://kateheartfield.com
Aconyte Books
https://aconytebooks.com
9781839081675, $16.95, PB, 336pp
https://www.amazon.com/Assassins-Creed-Magus-Conspiracy-Novel/dp/1839081678
Synopsis: London, 1851 - When Pierrette, a daring acrobat performing at the Great Exhibition, rescues the mathematician Ada Lovelace from a gang of thugs, she becomes immersed in an ancient feud between Assassins and Templars. But Lovelace is gravely ill, and shares her secrets with Pierrette, sending the acrobat in search of a terrible weapon which she'd been developing for a shadowy figure known as "the Magus". Pierrette's only ally is Simeon Price, Lovelace's childhood friend, who belongs to a Brotherhood devoted to free will. With Simeon's aid, they uncover a startling web of political assassinations destabilizing Europe. As they race to foil the Templars' deadly plot, murders and bombs are everywhere they look, but hope is nowhere in sight.
Critique: Set in the Victorian era, "Assassin's Creed: The Magus Conspiracy" by Kate Heartfield is the latest entry to the ongoing series about the seemingly endless war between Assassins and Templars in a new science fiction action/adventure thriller of a read that expandes the Assassin's Creed universe. An absolute 'must read' for the legions of Assassin's Creed fans, "Assassin's Creed: The Magus Conspiracy" is unreservedly recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections and is available for personal reading lists in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.95).
Editorial Note: Kate Heartfield (https://kateheartfield.com) is the Aurora Award-winning author of "Armed in her Fashion", and the historical fantasy novel "The Embroidered Book. Her novellas, stories, and games have been finalists for the Nebula, Locus, Crawford, Sunburst and Aurora awards.
Dragon Sky
Matt Smith, author
Cliff Wise, author
Dorrance Publishing Company
585 Alpha Drive, Suite 103, Pittsburgh, PA 15238
www.dorrancepublishing.com
9781649570321, $25.00, PB, 428pp
https://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Sky-Matt-Smith/dp/1649570325
Synopsis: While the novel "Dragon Sky", stands alone, it is only one half of a much larger story. The core of the book focuses on the struggles of three strangers: Crystal, Alicia, and Assan. All three undergo growth in their own way.
Crystal begins as a point of calm in a world of chaos. Is she the only one who has answers to unanswerable questions? But over time her companions learn the truth that they must come to trust their own insights. And Crystal sees that she can't stand alone. Separately, Crystal, Alicia, and Assan, create three elemental beings.
While the setting could be referred to as post-apocalyptic, there are many aspects of it that make it unique. What had caused the Apocalypse is still present, lurking in the background: a constant threat more felt than consciously aware of. The "Shades," as they are known, are incarnations of pure terror and only become more terrifying the more the characters learn.
Critique: An original, seminal and unique work by co-authors Matt Smith and Cliff Wise, "Dragon Sky", while a fun and entertaining read from cover to cover, also has the underlying message that perseverance can see you through anything and everything -- especially if you surround yourself with people who will support and inspire you. A veritable saga of a novel, "Dragon Sky" is especially and unreservedly recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Dragon Sky" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $20.00).
Trouble Walked In
Mike Kupari
Baen Books
P.O. Box 1403, Riverdale, NY 10471
www.baen.com
9781982192037, $16.00
https://www.amazon.com/Trouble-Walked-Mike-Kupari/dp/1982192038
Trouble Walked In combines a crime story with interplanetary sci-fi elements in a mystery that crosses genres to involve readers from different interests. Cassandra Blake has gone missing. Her sister wants answers. Detective Ezekiel Novak is the one who usually solves crimes and provides them, but in this case he faces unprecedented danger because Cassandra apparently was involved in something over her head involving an alien artifact and dangerous forces. As he struggles to find Cassandra, he is drawn into a deadly conspiracy that threatens the cosmic order and the Terran Confederation. The lively writing and mystery will keep sci-fi and mystery readers thoroughly involved.
Baen Books
P.O. Box 1403, Riverdale, NY 10471
www.baen.com
Two new arrivals from Baen are highly recommended picks for sci-fi readers looking for something different.
https://www.amazon.com/Ballistic-Travis-S-Taylor/dp/198219202X
Travis S. Taylor's Ballistic (9781982192020, $25.00) mingles politics with futuristic dilemmas. A Russian ICBM site is attacked, the nuclear warheads are missing, and the International Space Station is threatened not with destruction, but by a hijacking attempt. A cat-and-mouse game evolves where the would-be terrorists find themselves both trapped and protected by their orbital perch, but it's up to one American astronaut to keep disaster at bay until rescue forces arrive. A gripping story evolves, filled with political, social, and futuristic action.
https://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Kevin-Ikenberry/dp/1982192011
Kevin Ikenberry's The Crossing (9781982192013, $25.00) brings alternate history to life as it tells of eight cadets from the future who join a revolutionary battle to change the world. Will a troupe of ROTC young people training in 2008 know enough of 1776 history to help George Washington do what he needs to preserve the timeline without changing the past? The dilemmas and choices make for an evocative tale.
Chase Across Time: Search for the Ice Castle of Fire
Z. Altug, author
Tracy Gensler, author
Independently Published
9798847586603, $9.99, PB, 376pp
https://www.amazon.com/Chase-Across-Time-Search-Castle/dp/B0BBCZ2PV4
Synopsis: Danny is a 10-year-old boy with no special powers. He travels on an airship between Earth and a distant civilization and is frustrated with being dismissed as an outcast in both worlds. While on an exploratory mission, a wicked emperor attacks the airship and kidnaps Danny's parents. Danny must join forces with his friends across seven continents in a desperate chase across space and time to save his family. They try to fend off the angry robots, ghastly warriors, and bent-nose mobsters as they unravel clues to find the portal to the sorcerer's ice castle of fire.
Critique: A great and fun read from cover to cover, "Chase Across Time: Search for the Ice Castle of Fire" by the team of science fiction authors Ziya Altig and Tracy Gensler is a delightful throwback to that classic era of Golden Age science fiction. Pure entertainment throughout and having special interest for dedicated science fiction fans of quest-based action adventure novels, "Chase Across Time: Search for the Ice Castle of Fire" is highly recommended for both personal reading lists and community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections.
Editorial Note #1: Z. Altug is a licensed physical therapist and wellness consultant in Los Angeles, California. He is the author of Integrative Healing and coauthor of the 2012 Healthy Lifestyle Wall Calendar, The Anti-Aging Fitness Prescription,and the Manual of Clinical Exercise Testing, Prescription and Rehabilitation. Z enjoys writing, playing sports and learning about astronomy.
Editorial Note #2: Tracy Gensler is a registered dietitian in Chevy Chase, Maryland. She is the author of Probiotic and Prebiotic Recipes for Health and coauthor of The Anti-Aging Fitness Prescription. She has collaborated on over a dozen books and has written for the Good Housekeeping website and magazines.
Alliance
E. B. Bridenstine
Bridenstine Books
www.bridenstinebooks.com
9798772108451, $23.99, HC, 266pp
https://www.amazon.com/Alliance-B-Bridenstine/dp/B09YMKBSPH
Synopsis: The Evil Emperor Charr is capturing magical creatures, forcing them to perform in a circus to entertain humans. Ranamayve, a beauty even amongst elves, is taken from the only land she's ever known to a world filled with humiliation and savagery. As she strives to conceal her identity, Ranamayve must make alliances with Races that she would have preferred never to meet.
She is forced to take a closer look into her prejudices when Bozek, a half-ogre, befriends her. His beastly form frightens her, yet she's intrigued by his soft heart. Bozek has struggled his whole life with his half-ogre heritage. Nevertheless, he has a mission, and his resolve is unwavering until the beautiful Ranamayve distracts him from his task of discovering the Emperor's source of power.
Bozek loses his heart, but can Ranamayve see past the beast? Can their alliance grow into Devotion?
Critique: The first of a two-volume fantasy saga, "Alliance" by E. B. Bridenstine will have a special appeal to readers with an interest in romance, adventure, and fantasy. With a memorable cast of deftly crafted characters embedded in a compulsive page turner of a read, "Alliance" will prove to be a welcome addition to community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of dedicated romance and fantasy fans that "Alliance" is also available in a paperback edition (9781710304909, $14.99), in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99), and as a complete and unabridged audio book ably narrated by Kirby Heyborne (MP3-CD).
Devotion
E. B. Bridenstine
Bridenstine Books
www.bridenstinebooks.com
9798772119280, $23.99, HC, 308pp
https://www.amazon.com/Devotion-B-Bridenstine/dp/B09Y3LWQK9
Synopsis: Grief and heartache plague the world of Leusandia in "Devotion", the second of a two-volume fantasy saga by E. B. Bridenstine .
As Bozek and Ranamayve go their separate ways, they each must hold onto the glimmer of hope that their Devotion will hold true. As they journey to join his ogre tribe, Bozek and his elf friend Garik, encounter hardships, unlike anything they have endured before. While Ranamayve attempts to convince the complacent elves to join forces with other Races against Emperor Charr's tyranny, she struggles with her grief, and loneliness -- hoping Bozek will soon return victorious.
But at a growing sense of unease, Ranamayve leaves her homeland of Elavae to find Bozek and Garik, and defeat Emperor Charr once and for all. As the battle at Medgar looms closer, Bozek has to accept each part of himself for who he is and Ranamayve must fight for the Devotion they share.
Critique: The sequel to "Alliance", the first volume author E. B. Bridenstine's fantasy 'duology', "Devotion" once again demonstrate's the author's genuine flair for originality and narrative storytelling skills. Of special and particular interest to dedicated fantasy and folklore fans, "Devotion" is very highly recommended, especially for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Devotion" is also readily available in a paperback edition (9781735086422, $14.99), in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99), and as a complete and unabridged audio book deftly performed by Kirby Heyborne (MP3-CD).
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James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
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James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
The Blanchard Witches: Prodigal Daughters
Micah House
Kendrell Publishing
www.blanchardwitches.com
9798985607536, $26.95
https://www.amazon.com/Blanchard-Witches-Prodigal-Daughters/dp/B09ZCSPS9N
Readers familiar with the first book in Micah House's series, The Blanchard Witches of Daihmler County, will welcome the return to new events provided in its sequel, The Blanchard Witches: Prodigal Daughters. Here, the outcome of Olympia Blanchard and her family's battle with werewolves continues to resonate. It was an epic battle during which two participants fell in love. It was a battle replete with secrets, because Fable Blanchard became pregnant at that same time. And it was a situation which holds resounding impact today, even after the wolf is defeated, because new trials await the family and their followers. A missing daughter, a new beau, and another daughter who continues to keep secrets around her pregnancy and the father of her child makes for an engrossing story flavored with Southern atmosphere and supernatural elements. House crafts an excellent story that juxtaposes magic, mystery, and new dangers with evolving family relationships that continue to transform all involved.
Allusions to fables such as Sleeping Beauty arrive with deadly new interpretations as events unfold, creating a picture-in-picture series of events that reach out and grab readers with blends of vampires, crimes, and matters of the heart. It's a delicate dance to move between these elements in such a way as to keep the action fast-paced and unpredictable rather than mired in formula genre approaches, but it's a creative impulse that House cultivates to give the story a fresh, original feel.
Characters are believable and engaging; situations pull on not just the heart but moral and ethical developments against supernatural backdrops; and the saga moves between family members and outsiders with a strong attention to detail, description, and twists that address issues of prejudice and family connections alike.
The result is another highly recommended story that blends occult fiction and fantasy with a special Southern flavor. Like a mint julep, it lingers on the tongue and in the mind, inviting readers with an engaging tone that only needs a porch rocking chair for, the reader of Southern fiction and occult suspense stories, to complete the atmosphere.
Ninety Days in the 90s: A Rock N Roll Time Travel Story
Andy Frye
https://90daysinthe90s.com
Atmosphere Press
www.atmospherepress.com
9781639883875, $18.99 Paper/$9.99 Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/Ninety-Days-90s-Andy-Frye/dp/1639883878
Avid followers of time travel fiction well know the typical plot progression: an adventurer falls into another time, solves problems there, and spends the rest of the time trying to return home. Andy Frye's Ninety Days in the 90s: A Rock N Roll Time Travel Story offers a different flavor more intent on capturing the place and tone of the 1990s. It follows Darby Derrex, a modern-day financial and social failure whose latest undertaking is to run her uncle's Chicago record store.
When she discovers that a time machine offers her the opportunity to journey back in time to 1996, the height of some of Chicago's major music experiments and when she was a music critic who cultivated a love relationship with Lina (ultimately failing at both), she decides to fix things.
She didn't expect to fall in love with the past. Didn't anticipate that the edict to repair what was broken in 90 days, or remain in that past forever, would prove such a challenge. And Darby didn't expect to have so much fun while facing the music.
Andy Frye creates a compelling story that depicts the counter-culture of the 1990s with an astute eye to examining its major influences, allure, and punk-based attractions. From stormy relationships and opportunities to travel within the musical world to social strife and revelations about the forces that drew her away from the love of her life, readers follow Darby into a world influenced by love and 1990s political and social evolution.
The reflections are crisp and thought-provoking as Darby navigates what should be a familiar world, but turns out to hold different psychological revelations than she'd held, back in modern times. Has she escaped, or gotten herself trapped? This question plagues her revised decisions and perceptions as a girl from the future revisits her past with the unprecedented opportunity to make different choices.
While readers of time travel fiction will find many recognizable dilemmas in Ninety Days in the 90s: A Rock N Roll Time Travel Story, its real strength lies in its portrait of how a woman faced with the opportunity to make changes decides, instead, to go with a flow that leads in different directions.
Does she control her destiny, or does it control her? And, can she help the world discover new music? Frye's ability to permeate his story with the music-saturated atmosphere of the 1990s scene will draw readers who usually don't choose time travel stories. Its recreation of this era and its key artists adds to a story replete in historical musical background and experiences. These elements make Ninety Days in the 90s: A Rock N Roll Time Travel Story a top recommendation not just for the usual time travel story reader, but for rock music fans who would relive the music, social influences, and world of 1990s Chicago.
Mindshards
Brian Burt
Independently Published
B0B8KW2Z3P, $2.99 Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/Mindshards-Collection-Brian-Burt-ebook/dp/B0B8KW2Z3P
Contemporary readers seeking to tap the roots of speculative fiction should look no further than the short pieces in Mindshards: A Collection. It serves as a strong example of hard-hitting speculative works representing the best of the genre and the best use of the short story format.
Speculative fiction focuses on changing the nature or perception of reality itself, placing characters in positions where they have to absorb, reflect, and act within these altered states. The stories in Mindshards each place characters in extraordinary circumstances, weaving in equally astonishing responses to the bizarre that keep characters and readers guessing about outcomes.
Take the opening story, "Phantom Pain." Here, the first-person protagonist finds himself in Louisiana on a sports scholarship. Fresh from Chicago, the narrator initially doesn't understand either the culture or the legends of the bayou. He's about to find out (and so is the reader) as events immerse him in Creole culture via his wife and evolving community connections.
Brian Burt doesn't just describe this milieu. His words resonate and amplify with supercharged imagery designed to engross: "New Orleans doesn't just sing, friend; it jitters and jives and wails like a wild animal that can't be caged." His knee blown in a sports injury, the narrator becomes a cop. And this is where his reality and perceptions are truly shaken as he is pulled into the underworld and dark culture flowing under Louisiana's appealing surface of artistic endeavors.
His encounter with Voodoo gangs gobbles a piece of him regularly (mind you, he's selling off these pieces willingly, not understanding their true cost). As a "crazy fever" spreads through the streets via these gangs, the narrator (who "doesn't believe in black magic...just black hearts") finds his world shaken. Only when it's too late does he realize the price he really pays for selling his soul piece by piece.
Each story is steeped in emotional draws, from the hatred and despair in "Phantom Pain" and its powerful concluding thought ("Nobody sells his soul all at once. No, the Devil buys on the layaway plan.") to the ranging "Brilliant Blood of Souls" which tackles a ghoulish killer in Los Angeles and the bioplasma signatures that help a savvy cop identify perps ... until one apparently alters the impossible.
Speculative fiction readers who also enjoy crime scenarios will find the collection's prize-earning strengths lies not so much in 'whodunit' scenarios (or, 'why do it'), but in undercurrents of supernatural and impossible forces in such works as "Equinox," about a tiny Michigan town which harbors a magical milieu where "place and time fused together."
Place and time fuses in these short works, which are truly mindshards of the unexpected. Each story steeps revelations and thought-provoking moments in action that challenges each character (and their readers) to walk out of their ordinary worlds and the typical progression of life events.
Libraries strong in short stories, speculative works, and powerful writing will find Mindshards a work of literary and psychological prowess, while book clubs looking for strong examples of contemporary speculative works will find its stories compelling, offering much food for thought and lively discussions.
H2LiftShips - Beyond Luna
Bob Freeman
Indies United Publishing House, LLC
www.h2liftship.com
9781644562376, $5.76 Paper & Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08WHN4PN6
Space opera used to be a very popular genre, but in recent decades, it seems to have fallen by the wayside somewhat. Sci-fi readers of all ages who mourn this loss and look for contemporary space opera stories rich in action, humor, and description will find this first book in the H2LiftShips series, Beyond Luna, captures a milieu set in a parallel futuristic universe of solar ships, military engagements, and post-apocalyptic wonder.
Here, Solar Sail cargo ships operate in the asteroid belt. One such vessel is the LunaCola, whose crew makes a business of scavenging supplies from Earth and gambling at the casino to fund their existence and lifestyle. This pursuit often brings them into conflict with pirates, authorities, and the law. It also introduces them to unusual scenarios that test their abilities and loyalties.
As an author, Bob Freeman provides a fitting disclosure of the type of reader who may (and may not) be attracted to this world. Merriam-Webster defines space opera as "...a futuristic melodramatic fantasy involving space travelers and extraterrestrial beings."
While this description is too often augmented by the note that space opera can be notoriously simplistic and often represents bad writing, Freeman's series defies this notion by offering a setting, circumstances, and developments that test his characters' ability to survive and grow on different levels. All this is set against the backdrop of action, encounters with a variety of sentients who harbor their own special interests, and a crew that handles high tech and high controversy with equal skill. As for the 'post-apocalyptic' piece, it should be noted that this universe isn't exactly suffering for its origins and influences, but presents a surprisingly positive picture of revised lives and new worlds.
Freeman incorporates many vivid descriptions of this futuristic technology and milieu into a story that is richer for the time taken to explore these foundations. The result both supports the rollicking adventure-forward nature of the space opera genre while expanding its boundaries into the realm of solid writing, vivid descriptions, and unexpected encounters between sentients and humans.
Sci-fi fans of the space opera genre who look for strong action and, especially, attention to a sense of place and high-tech worlds will relish Beyond Luna's ability to bring to the table a different sense of scientific wonder and development, all wrapped into a story that flavors its action with more than a light dose of humor for added value.
H2LiftShips - Backstory
Bob Freeman
Indies United Publishing House, LLC
www.h2liftship.com
9781644563076, $5.99 Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08X4YMHZZ
H2LiftShips - Backstory opens with Graciela's observation of the world: "Everywhere she looked, it was gray. And black. The ruby-red laser flashed once, twice, pushing the flat, nano-spider fabric out, a spinnaker filled with photons, pulling the ship with it. The Lunar sentients; humans, simians, canines, or octopuses, seldom went out or left their cozy caves for a walk-around. If they had to work in the airless dust to service the ammonia generators or solar cells it was not for pleasure. Just get out, do the work and scurry back to the safety of home." This roots the action to follow with a sense of place that predates the other series books, before Graciela captains her own solar ship. On the cusp of a career-changing decision, Graciela is about to move from her world at the Lunar Academy to something bigger, embracing family, new encounters, and unfamiliar situations.
Bob Freeman doesn't just remain content with packing in action and building a high-tech scenario. He also adds human elements which realistically portray a dysfunctional family and a young woman who tries to move away from her past and into a future where family assumes a different role. Freeman depicts interactions between characters which are humorous and thought-provoking, all in one: "On behalf of your crew, the boost team, and the owner, we are pleased to honor your first flight, the official Didn't Crash patch. Wear it with honor."
That was unexpected, and Captain Grace struggled to come up with the right response, because, of course, captains don't cry."My Air is Your Air," she said simply. It was the first thing out of her mouth. "I will work to make the travels safe. And profitable. So, let's get to Luna and the cosmos." It wasn't a rousing speech, she thought, but also not a long one, and that counts more."
As her first command's wild ride progresses, Captain Grace and her zany collection of shipmates encounter worlds that test their abilities to survive and stay the course of their purpose -- to make a profit. H2LiftShips - Backstory provides an excellent prequel to the series, and is a strong starting point for readers to absorb the language, humor, and atmosphere that bring this world to life. Sci-fi libraries seeking examples of modern space opera which is fun to read and action-packed, powered by strong characters who face unique dilemmas and challenges as they navigate new worlds and their own psyches, will find H2LiftShips - Backstory an outstanding choice.
H2LiftShips - Bosons Wave
Bob Freeman
Indies United Publishing House, LLC
www.h2liftship.com
9781644564837, $3.99 ebook
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B4R9W8G7
H2LiftShips - Bosons Wave recounts the ongoing story of Captain Graciela and the crew of the H2LiftShip LunaCola, whose secret mission involves a journey that embraces family and political drama in this third volume of an intriguing space opera adventure.
It's set in a world that simultaneously feels both familiar and alien. This is a world of space pirates and high-tech oddities, from algae rocket ships to an odd marriage between advanced technology and old-world devices -- bioGel laser rifles and HAM radios, for example. It's a scenario in which Captain Graciela and her crew battle the brainless algae which have joined with angry bioGel computers to challenge both sides with impossible situations.
From Jovian clouds integrated with DNA computers to gamblers who operate in a space casino against the backdrop of intrigue and conflict, Bob Freeman crafts an environment that will especially please prior series readers with more than just a fast pace. Freeman takes the time to incorporate vivid descriptions into his world-building space opera, marking them with a wry sense of humor that overlays the action. The descriptions of both heady clashes and everyday activities build a strong sense of place to contrast extraordinary events with ordinary life pursuits, but with a twist.
Readers of the prior two books in this series will find Bosons Wave a powerful survey of risky experiments, HiveSister concerns and sentient developments, and the crew's struggle to avoid disaster. Ironic, delightful phrasing fosters a stream of ironic observation through the story: "The green monster's visit was not as friendly as it seemed."
The result is a fitting compliment to the other books in the series, expanding the escapades of this Navy crew's space-faring struggles as they tackle interstellar emergencies, family issues, and military operations with equal ability. Readers seeking a rollicking good read from a modern space opera will find H2LiftShips - Bosons Wave a fine adventure that employs many futuristic descriptions to power its characters and their dilemmas.
Conquergood & the Center of the Intelligible Mystery of Being
C.G. Fewston
Independently Published
B09JMSZM8Y, $5.99 Kindle
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09JMSZM8Y
Conquergood & the Center of the Intelligible Mystery of Being is a novel set in 2183, where homeless outcast Jerome Conquergood wanders the post-apocalyptic world of New York City. His earliest memory is of awakening in the City of Old York with no family or connections. As long as he can recall, he's harbored a hatred of the Korporation (a blend of business and political mega-entity) that controls his world.
Forced to join this much-hated entity to find his missing twin brother, Jerome finds himself stripped of his name, identity, and life as the Korporation takes over and regulates him to the status of a lowly employee -- and a possible future savior.
As Jerome struggles with his new life and tries to maintain perspective and purpose, he enters a strange new world of elite living and unprecedented luxury, both of which serve as lures from his life connections and mission. His initial determination to stay his course ("We are not what the Korporation makes us do," Conquergood tells himself. "Never will be, never have been.") is shaken by these experiences. Readers will find many social and ethical conundrums arise as Conquergood becomes an initially unwilling part of the structure he so abhors.
As an author, C.G. Fewston creates a story replete in social, political, philosophical and psychological depth and inspections that require slower reading in order to thoroughly absorb. No pat dystopian adventure, Conquergood & the Center of the Intelligible Mystery of Being is intellectually challenging and absorbing. It ideally will attract the thinking sci-fi reader who appreciates not just a futuristic setting, but the moral and ethical quandaries faced by a protagonist forced to move out of his initial perceptions of his place in life in order step into the shoes of the enemy.
This absorbing, engrossing story of genetic manipulation and a search for the ultimate human psyche will also ideally lend to classroom assignment and discussion for courses interested in philosophical and social dilemmas in sci-fi. Not your usual dystopian saga, Conquergood & the Center of the Intelligible Mystery of Being is highly recommended for its bigger-picture presentation of redemption and relationships that grow from adversity and self-inspection. Its inspection of the foundations of reality and the future of humans is thought-provoking and thoroughly engaging as Conquergood moves towards not only his brother, but a different vision of a new human influenced by genetic and social manipulation.
The Face of the Waters
Robert Silverberg
Spectra
c/o Three Rooms Press
561 Hudson Street, Suite 33, New York, NY 10014
www.threeroomspress.com
9781953103277, $16.99, PB, 396pp
https://www.amazon.com/Face-Waters-Robert-Silverberg/dp/1953103278
Synopsis: After a human offense against the natives of Hydros, the human population of the island of Sorve are ordered to leave. Forbidden on all other islands, in a flotilla of ships they seek the semi-mythical island of the Face of the Waters. During their journey they are forced to learn more about themselves, leading to questions about both religion and the purpose of Man. At the end of this novel, science fiction author Robert Silverberg deftly addresses what it means to be human, and explores what unites and divides humanity.
Critique: Originally published in October 1991, this new paperback edition of "The Face of the Waters" is published with the author's full support, and brings Silverberg's brilliant novel back into the must-read science-fiction canon. Highly recommended for personal and community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections after decades of being out of print, this classic Silverberg novel is now once again available to a whole new generation of dedicated science fiction buffs -- and is a 'must' for the legions of Robert Silverberg fans.
Editorial Note: Robert Silverberg (www.robert-silverberg.com) is a now near legendary author in the science-fiction genre, with four Hugo Awards and six Nebula Awards to his name. He was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1999 and named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Guild in 2005. His short story "Needle in a Timestack" was adapted for the screen by Oscar-winning writer John Ridley (12 Years a Slave) in 2021, and additional projects are slated to finally bring more Silverberg writing to the screen. He has a Wikipedia page at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Silverberg
Daughter of Redwinter
Ed McDonald
Tor Books
c/o Tor/Forge Books
120 Broadway, 22nd Floor, New York, NY 10271
www.tor-forge.com
9781250811714, $27.99, HC, 352pp
https://www.amazon.com/Daughter-Redwinter-Chronicles-1/dp/1250811716
Synopsis: Raine can see and speak to the dead, a gift that comes with a death sentence. All her life she has hidden, lied, and run to save her skin, and she's made some spectacularly bad choices along the way. But it is a rare act of kindness (rescuing an injured woman in the snow) that becomes the most dangerous decision Raine has ever made.
Because the woman is fleeing from Redwinter, the fortress-monastery of the Draoihn, warrior magicians who answer to no king, and who will stop at nothing to reclaim what she's stolen. A battle, a betrayal, and a horrific revelation force Raine to enter the citadel and live among the Draoihn. She soon finds that her secret ability could be the key to saving an entire nation. Though she might have to die to make it happen!
Critique: Launching 'The Redwinter Chronicles', a new action/adventure fantasy series from veteran author Ed McDonald, "Daughter of Redwinter" is an impressively crafted novel that is a compulsive page turner of a read from cover to cover. With a special appeal to fans of Epic Fantasy, "Daughter of Redwinter" will leave its readers looking forward to the next installment of a truly fun read. While unreservedly recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Daughter of Redwinter" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
Editorial Note: Ed McDonald (https://edmcdonaldwriting.com) is the author of the Raven's Mark series of novels. He studied Ancient History and Archaeology at the University of Birmingham, and Medieval History at Birkbeck College, University of London. Ed is passionate about fantasy tabletop roleplay games and has studied medieval swordsmanship since 2013
The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One
Paula Guran, editor
https://paulaguran.com
Pyr
https://www.pyrsf.com
9781645060482, $21.95, PB, 456pp
https://www.amazon.com/Years-Best-Fantasy-One/dp/1645060489
Synopsis: With the publication of "The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One", dedicated fantasy fans can escape on a journey from the ordinary to the extraordinary with award-winning fantasy editor Paula Guran.
This is a superbly curated collection of fantasy themed short stories by contributors that collectively explores myth and fable, dark and light -- an heroic creature facing a dangerous demon; an earthly love facing the mossy decay of death. With additional tales of living ball gowns and timid monsters, of modern witches and multidimensional magic, the twenty-four original stories comprising "The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One" will transport the reader to fantastical realms that push the limits of imagination to alternative realities mirroring much of our own.
Critique: An inherently fascinating, entertaining, and just plain fun read from cover to cover, "The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, community, and college Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for the reading lists of all dedicated fantasy fans that "The Year's Best Fantasy: Volume One" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $15.99).
Editorial Note: Paula Guran (https://paulaguran.com) was senior editor for Prime Books for seven years. Previously, she edited the Juno fantasy imprint from its small press inception through its incarnation as an imprint of Pocket Books. In addition to the annual Year's Best Dark Fantasy and Horror series, she's edited many other anthologies. In an earlier life she produced weekly email newsletter DarkEcho (winning two Stokers, an IHG award, and a World Fantasy Award nomination), edited Horror Garage (earning another IHG and a second World Fantasy nomination), and has contributed reviews, interviews, and articles to numerous professional publications.
Sisters of Sorcery
Marsheila Rockwell
https://marsheilarockwell.com
Aconyte Books
https://aconytebooks.com
9781839081651, $16.95, PB, 368pp
https://www.amazon.com/Sisters-Sorcery-Marvel-Untold-Novel/dp/1839081651
Synopsis: Deep in the Dark Dimension, the tyrant Umar the Unrelenting craves the Power Cosmic to expand her realm into new dimensions. When she kidnaps the cosmic being Ardina to make a grim battery of her powers, she draws the attention of Clea, her estranged daughter and mighty user of the mystic arts. Clea knows her mother will stop at nothing to conquer the whole of the Splinter Realms, imperiling all of reality. To defeat her, Clea must ally herself with three powerful sorceresses, each with their own unique powers, traverse dimensions, and free Ardina and the entire Archipelago of Anguish and Redemption before Umar consumes it all.
Critique: A superbly crafted, impressively original, and thoroughly fun read from cover to cover, "Sisters of Sorcery" by Macy Rockwell is a mystical adventure novel and part of the 'Marvel Untold' series from Aconyte Books. Unreservedly recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of the legions of dedicated Marvel fans that "Sisters of Sorcery" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.95).
Editorial Note: Marsheil (Marcy) Rockwell (https://marsheilarockwell.com) is an award nominated tie-in writer and poet. Her novels include SF/H thriller 7 Sykos, as well as The Shard Axe series, set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons Online. She has published two collections, and has written dozens of short stories, poems, and comic book scripts.
Assassin's Creed: The Magus Conspiracy
Kate Heartfield
https://kateheartfield.com
Aconyte Books
https://aconytebooks.com
9781839081675, $16.95, PB, 336pp
https://www.amazon.com/Assassins-Creed-Magus-Conspiracy-Novel/dp/1839081678
Synopsis: London, 1851 - When Pierrette, a daring acrobat performing at the Great Exhibition, rescues the mathematician Ada Lovelace from a gang of thugs, she becomes immersed in an ancient feud between Assassins and Templars. But Lovelace is gravely ill, and shares her secrets with Pierrette, sending the acrobat in search of a terrible weapon which she'd been developing for a shadowy figure known as "the Magus". Pierrette's only ally is Simeon Price, Lovelace's childhood friend, who belongs to a Brotherhood devoted to free will. With Simeon's aid, they uncover a startling web of political assassinations destabilizing Europe. As they race to foil the Templars' deadly plot, murders and bombs are everywhere they look, but hope is nowhere in sight.
Critique: Set in the Victorian era, "Assassin's Creed: The Magus Conspiracy" by Kate Heartfield is the latest entry to the ongoing series about the seemingly endless war between Assassins and Templars in a new science fiction action/adventure thriller of a read that expandes the Assassin's Creed universe. An absolute 'must read' for the legions of Assassin's Creed fans, "Assassin's Creed: The Magus Conspiracy" is unreservedly recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections and is available for personal reading lists in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.95).
Editorial Note: Kate Heartfield (https://kateheartfield.com) is the Aurora Award-winning author of "Armed in her Fashion", and the historical fantasy novel "The Embroidered Book. Her novellas, stories, and games have been finalists for the Nebula, Locus, Crawford, Sunburst and Aurora awards.
Dragon Sky
Matt Smith, author
Cliff Wise, author
Dorrance Publishing Company
585 Alpha Drive, Suite 103, Pittsburgh, PA 15238
www.dorrancepublishing.com
9781649570321, $25.00, PB, 428pp
https://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Sky-Matt-Smith/dp/1649570325
Synopsis: While the novel "Dragon Sky", stands alone, it is only one half of a much larger story. The core of the book focuses on the struggles of three strangers: Crystal, Alicia, and Assan. All three undergo growth in their own way.
Crystal begins as a point of calm in a world of chaos. Is she the only one who has answers to unanswerable questions? But over time her companions learn the truth that they must come to trust their own insights. And Crystal sees that she can't stand alone. Separately, Crystal, Alicia, and Assan, create three elemental beings.
While the setting could be referred to as post-apocalyptic, there are many aspects of it that make it unique. What had caused the Apocalypse is still present, lurking in the background: a constant threat more felt than consciously aware of. The "Shades," as they are known, are incarnations of pure terror and only become more terrifying the more the characters learn.
Critique: An original, seminal and unique work by co-authors Matt Smith and Cliff Wise, "Dragon Sky", while a fun and entertaining read from cover to cover, also has the underlying message that perseverance can see you through anything and everything -- especially if you surround yourself with people who will support and inspire you. A veritable saga of a novel, "Dragon Sky" is especially and unreservedly recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Dragon Sky" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $20.00).
Trouble Walked In
Mike Kupari
Baen Books
P.O. Box 1403, Riverdale, NY 10471
www.baen.com
9781982192037, $16.00
https://www.amazon.com/Trouble-Walked-Mike-Kupari/dp/1982192038
Trouble Walked In combines a crime story with interplanetary sci-fi elements in a mystery that crosses genres to involve readers from different interests. Cassandra Blake has gone missing. Her sister wants answers. Detective Ezekiel Novak is the one who usually solves crimes and provides them, but in this case he faces unprecedented danger because Cassandra apparently was involved in something over her head involving an alien artifact and dangerous forces. As he struggles to find Cassandra, he is drawn into a deadly conspiracy that threatens the cosmic order and the Terran Confederation. The lively writing and mystery will keep sci-fi and mystery readers thoroughly involved.
Baen Books
P.O. Box 1403, Riverdale, NY 10471
www.baen.com
Two new arrivals from Baen are highly recommended picks for sci-fi readers looking for something different.
https://www.amazon.com/Ballistic-Travis-S-Taylor/dp/198219202X
Travis S. Taylor's Ballistic (9781982192020, $25.00) mingles politics with futuristic dilemmas. A Russian ICBM site is attacked, the nuclear warheads are missing, and the International Space Station is threatened not with destruction, but by a hijacking attempt. A cat-and-mouse game evolves where the would-be terrorists find themselves both trapped and protected by their orbital perch, but it's up to one American astronaut to keep disaster at bay until rescue forces arrive. A gripping story evolves, filled with political, social, and futuristic action.
https://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Kevin-Ikenberry/dp/1982192011
Kevin Ikenberry's The Crossing (9781982192013, $25.00) brings alternate history to life as it tells of eight cadets from the future who join a revolutionary battle to change the world. Will a troupe of ROTC young people training in 2008 know enough of 1776 history to help George Washington do what he needs to preserve the timeline without changing the past? The dilemmas and choices make for an evocative tale.
Chase Across Time: Search for the Ice Castle of Fire
Z. Altug, author
Tracy Gensler, author
Independently Published
9798847586603, $9.99, PB, 376pp
https://www.amazon.com/Chase-Across-Time-Search-Castle/dp/B0BBCZ2PV4
Synopsis: Danny is a 10-year-old boy with no special powers. He travels on an airship between Earth and a distant civilization and is frustrated with being dismissed as an outcast in both worlds. While on an exploratory mission, a wicked emperor attacks the airship and kidnaps Danny's parents. Danny must join forces with his friends across seven continents in a desperate chase across space and time to save his family. They try to fend off the angry robots, ghastly warriors, and bent-nose mobsters as they unravel clues to find the portal to the sorcerer's ice castle of fire.
Critique: A great and fun read from cover to cover, "Chase Across Time: Search for the Ice Castle of Fire" by the team of science fiction authors Ziya Altig and Tracy Gensler is a delightful throwback to that classic era of Golden Age science fiction. Pure entertainment throughout and having special interest for dedicated science fiction fans of quest-based action adventure novels, "Chase Across Time: Search for the Ice Castle of Fire" is highly recommended for both personal reading lists and community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections.
Editorial Note #1: Z. Altug is a licensed physical therapist and wellness consultant in Los Angeles, California. He is the author of Integrative Healing and coauthor of the 2012 Healthy Lifestyle Wall Calendar, The Anti-Aging Fitness Prescription,and the Manual of Clinical Exercise Testing, Prescription and Rehabilitation. Z enjoys writing, playing sports and learning about astronomy.
Editorial Note #2: Tracy Gensler is a registered dietitian in Chevy Chase, Maryland. She is the author of Probiotic and Prebiotic Recipes for Health and coauthor of The Anti-Aging Fitness Prescription. She has collaborated on over a dozen books and has written for the Good Housekeeping website and magazines.
Alliance
E. B. Bridenstine
Bridenstine Books
www.bridenstinebooks.com
9798772108451, $23.99, HC, 266pp
https://www.amazon.com/Alliance-B-Bridenstine/dp/B09YMKBSPH
Synopsis: The Evil Emperor Charr is capturing magical creatures, forcing them to perform in a circus to entertain humans. Ranamayve, a beauty even amongst elves, is taken from the only land she's ever known to a world filled with humiliation and savagery. As she strives to conceal her identity, Ranamayve must make alliances with Races that she would have preferred never to meet.
She is forced to take a closer look into her prejudices when Bozek, a half-ogre, befriends her. His beastly form frightens her, yet she's intrigued by his soft heart. Bozek has struggled his whole life with his half-ogre heritage. Nevertheless, he has a mission, and his resolve is unwavering until the beautiful Ranamayve distracts him from his task of discovering the Emperor's source of power.
Bozek loses his heart, but can Ranamayve see past the beast? Can their alliance grow into Devotion?
Critique: The first of a two-volume fantasy saga, "Alliance" by E. B. Bridenstine will have a special appeal to readers with an interest in romance, adventure, and fantasy. With a memorable cast of deftly crafted characters embedded in a compulsive page turner of a read, "Alliance" will prove to be a welcome addition to community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of dedicated romance and fantasy fans that "Alliance" is also available in a paperback edition (9781710304909, $14.99), in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99), and as a complete and unabridged audio book ably narrated by Kirby Heyborne (MP3-CD).
Devotion
E. B. Bridenstine
Bridenstine Books
www.bridenstinebooks.com
9798772119280, $23.99, HC, 308pp
https://www.amazon.com/Devotion-B-Bridenstine/dp/B09Y3LWQK9
Synopsis: Grief and heartache plague the world of Leusandia in "Devotion", the second of a two-volume fantasy saga by E. B. Bridenstine .
As Bozek and Ranamayve go their separate ways, they each must hold onto the glimmer of hope that their Devotion will hold true. As they journey to join his ogre tribe, Bozek and his elf friend Garik, encounter hardships, unlike anything they have endured before. While Ranamayve attempts to convince the complacent elves to join forces with other Races against Emperor Charr's tyranny, she struggles with her grief, and loneliness -- hoping Bozek will soon return victorious.
But at a growing sense of unease, Ranamayve leaves her homeland of Elavae to find Bozek and Garik, and defeat Emperor Charr once and for all. As the battle at Medgar looms closer, Bozek has to accept each part of himself for who he is and Ranamayve must fight for the Devotion they share.
Critique: The sequel to "Alliance", the first volume author E. B. Bridenstine's fantasy 'duology', "Devotion" once again demonstrate's the author's genuine flair for originality and narrative storytelling skills. Of special and particular interest to dedicated fantasy and folklore fans, "Devotion" is very highly recommended, especially for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Devotion" is also readily available in a paperback edition (9781735086422, $14.99), in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99), and as a complete and unabridged audio book deftly performed by Kirby Heyborne (MP3-CD).
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Midwest Book Review
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