Category: Swords and Spaceships

Happy Friday, sky captains and sorcerers! Today we’ve got reviews of Gnomon, Swordspoint, and Tremontaine, plus lots of adaptation news, some genre definitions, secret Harry Potter drinks, and more.

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This newsletter is sponsored by Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner.

Indiana Jones meets Lara Croft in space! An epic sci-fi adventure, the first in a duology, from the New York Times best-selling authors of the Starbound trilogy. When Earth intercepts a message from a long-extinct alien race, it seems like the solution humanity has been waiting for. The Undying’s advanced technology has the potential to undo environmental damage and turn lives around, and their message leads to the planet Gaia, a treasure trove waiting to be explored.

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Let’s get some of the TV news done first, shall we?
– Vulture reviews Electric Dreams, a show based on Philip K. Dick’s short stories. (How did I not know that this was a thing?)
– The Snowpiercer TV show is finally in motion, and includes headliners Jennifer Connelly and Daveed Diggs.
– The Runaways, which just aired its Season One finale, has been renewed for a second season. (Yes, I did a happy dance when I heard.)

What to look for in 2018: The Verge has some suggestions. New Becky Chambers and Cixin Liu!!

What is space opera, exactly? Not just fantasy in space, says Emily over at Tor.com.

What fictional magical object do you wish you’d gotten for the holidays? I picked a magic carpet, and of course a time turner showed up on this round-up.

Go get yourself some butterbeer: Or rather, a butterbeer latte. Starbucks has a whole HP secret menu, apparently.

When the future looks a lot like the past: I deeply appreciate this review of novels that look to history for what the future might hold (including a shout-out to An Unkindness of Ghosts, which I loved).

And now, on to today’s very heft reviews section!

Gnomon by Nick Harkaway

I have read every book Nick Harkaway has written, and this is by far his most complex, mind-boggling, and genre-exploding work yet. Which is saying something for a man whose debut novel, The Gone-Away World, took a philosophical concept and turned it into a bomb.

It’s a hard book to sum up, partly because the plot is so twisty and partly because there are so many potential spoilers. It takes place in an England in which surveillance is ubiquitous and democratized. If you don’t consent to surveillance, then the system can legally bring you in to read your mind anyway. This is what happens to dissenter Diana Hunter, who dies during the procedure — which is supposed to be harmless, if not actually good for your brain. Investigator Mielikki Neith is assigned to review Hunter’s files to find out what went wrong, and the story unfolds from there. It includes: the stock market; sharks; a priestess and scholar from the time of St. Augustine; an Ethiopian artist; video games; alien life-forms; and that’s just the top level.

If you love twisty, turny, wibbly wobbly plots, then this one is for you. I highly recommend reading it when you have some time to really dive in, partly because it’s a book that teaches you to read it as you go and partly because it really hits its stride (and reveals some of its secrets) after the first third. I started out bemused but along for the ride, and ended it shouting at the pages (in the good way).

Self-promotional note: you can see Nick Harkaway in conversation with me about Gnomon next Tuesday, January 10, at Greenlight Bookstore in Brooklyn!

Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner and Tremontaine by Ellen Kushner, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Malinda Lo, Joel Derfner, Racheline Maltese, Patty Bryant, and Paul Witcover

I read Swordspoint for the first time over the December holidays, which is a “finally!” moment for me because it was published in 1987 and people have been recommending it to me for actual years. Which was perfect timing, because I also happened to have the collected Tremontaine Season 1!

Swordspoint takes place in an unnamed city, in which the aristocracy is engaged in both physical and political skulduggery. While they duel verbally with each other on government councils and in drawing rooms, they also occasionally hire swordsmen to duel on their behalf, to settle matters of honor. The story follows several characters including a young, shallow nobleman named Michael, an expert swordsman named Richard St. Vier, and Diane, the ambitious Duchess of Tremontaine. When St. Vier is offered a mysterious job, he is also drawn into a web of betrayals and power struggles. Michael, in the meantime, decides to become a swordsman on a whim and starts to see his life in a new light. Diane, in the meantime, is manipulating events towards her own end: but what is her goal? It’s a queer, violent, page-turner of a book, and huge fun. It also gives just the barest glimpse into the world that St. Vier and Michael inhabit. There are two sequels, The Privilege of the Sword and The Fall of the Kings; and now, there is the prequel: Tremontaine.

Tremontaine comes out of Serial Box, which offers story installments in 10-16 week installments. The contributing author line-up is stellar (Alaya Dawn Johnson! Malinda Lo!!!), and the stories begin 15 years before Swordspoint. Where Swordspoint itself is sorely lacking in characters of color and female characters, Season One more than delivers. The characters include Diane, as one might guess from the title, as well as the young foreign trader/spy Kaab, and Micah, a mathematical genius heavily implied to be on the Autism spectrum. There are many more, but those are just my favorites. The writers stick close to the established style of the original material with occasional flourishes, and the expanded world is delightful and engrossing. A definite must-read for fans of swordplay, pre-Industrial settings, and political shenanigans.

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

May the odds be ever in your favor,
Jenn

Happy Friday, vampire hunters and Vogons! This week I’m reviewing Rebel Seoul and Sunshine, and talking hard sci-fi, new books to watch for, historical sf/f, and more.

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This newsletter is sponsored by Through a Dark Glass by Barb Hendee, the first of the Dark Glass series from Rebel Base Books.

In the first of the Dark Glass novels, New York Times bestseller Barb Hendee, author of the Mist-Torn Witch series, the Dead Seekers, and the Noble Dead Saga, spins a brand new high fantasy adventure. When Megan of Chaumont is sold into a political marriage, her only choice is which son to marry – Rolf, ambitious and loyal, Sebastian, sly and sympathetic, or Kai, brooding and proud? An enchanted mirror gives her the opportunity to see the consequences of her choice as she lives through each of the three options…and ultimately has to choose just one fate.

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Before we get started! You’ve got about a week left to enter our Top 20 of 2017 book giveaway, right here.

What should you watch for in January? Swapna has some suggestions; I cosign Markswoman by Rati Mehrotra, which I’ll be reviewing later this month!

What is hard sci-fi, anyway? I really love this guide, which goes beyond the classics to include diverse options as well. Doesn’t hurt that my beloved authors Yoon Ha Lee and Ann Leckie are on it…

Did we all miss that the Pentagon has real concerns about aliens? No, really!

Want to get historical with your s/f? Yash has a few on her own stack that she’s excited about. City of Brass is on my list as well, and we’ve talked about my love of Everfair before. Get reading!

Cuban speculative fiction is real and it’s here. While there are still lots of untranslated works, Rachel rounds up a few you can get right now.

For your earholes: the BBC has released their full radio adaptation of Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman, and you can listen for free! Not sure how long this’ll be up, so go sooner rather than later.

Treat yo bookshelf! January’s ebook deals include three books worth having, all for $1.99: Sea of Rust by C. Robert Cargill, gushed over by Joe Hill on our Recommended podcast; An Excess Male by Maggie Shen King, which has been making the rounds here at Book Riot; and Fortune’s Pawn by Rachel Bach, the first in a rompy military space adventure that I thoroughly enjoyed.

In today’s reviews, we’ve got future teen super-soldiers and magical bakers. My interests, they range widely.

Rebel Seoul by Axie Oh

I picked this one up because it was the only book NK Jemisin liked in one of her recent columns (ouch). She called it “moody, explodey fun” and I completely concur.

Set in a future in which there are no more nations, but rather a coalition of regions, it follows high-school student Lee Jaewon, who is scrapping and scraping his way through a prestigious academy in hopes of moving out of the Old Seoul slums and into the domed, pristine, wealthy Neo Seoul. When a fellow student named Alex drafts him for a team evaluation that goes sideways, Jaewon finds himself part of a government project breeding super-soldiers — who also happen to be teenage girls.

What makes this book so fun is the way it plays with the tropes of dystopia and YA fiction. No love triangles here, and much less brooding than I’ve come to expect — Jaewon isn’t exactly a ray of sunshine, but his pragmatic skepticism comes from a place of experience. The parallel love stories were sweet and made actual emotional sense, the action sequences were well-written and varied, and the ending definitely has me ready for the next installment (although it’s currently unclear whether or not we’re getting one).

Sunshine by Robin McKinley

Part of my New Year’s Eve celebration includes allowing myself a reread (something I don’t often have time for), and this year’s was Sunshine. Why is this my favorite vampire novel? Let me count the ways.

The world-building: it takes place in a tweaked version of our own present. Magic is real, humanity lives side by side (albeit not peacefully) with demons and vampires and sprites and whatnot, and all our main character Rae wants to do is make cinnamon rolls for her family’s coffeehouse. Having a main character who not only excels at but loves her mundane, non-magical job is such a delight! Plus the bakery scenes always leave me drooling.

The cast of characters: The story is first-person and therefore sticks close to Rae, but the supporting characters get a (wonderful) load of page-time. From her unlikely vampire ally Constantine to her biker boyfriend Mel to her stepdad Charlie to the coffeehouse regulars, you can see how her social world works and exactly how disruptive getting kidnapped by a bunch of vampires is.

I go back and forth on how original the actual plot is — if you’ve read much Robin McKinley, it fits her personal formula pretty closely. Human woman gets kidnapped by vampires, develops a relationship with a Very Special one, they fight the bad guy, The End. It’s certainly not as subversive as my second favorite, Fledgling by Octavia Butler. But McKinley always balances compassion, humor, and high stakes well, and I find this book hugely satisfying. If you’re looking for a non-sparkly, non-YA, slightly kooky take on vampires that will make you so hungry for baked goods, add this one to your TBR.

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

Happy Friday, vampires and Vogons! Today we’ve got some sequel news, food and drink and book pairings, more best-ofs, and some TV options for your holiday break.

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This newsletter is sponsored by Eve of the Pharaoh by R.M. Schultz.

MYSTERY, FORBIDDEN LOVE, AND GRAND ADVENTURE.

The legendary Hall of Records waits, undiscovered since ancient Egypt …

Young Gavin Caywood’s afflicted life has never involved deciphering illusions concealed in shadow and light, unearthing the dead, or exhuming sunken tombs in crocodile-infested waters.

Young Horemheb from ancient Egypt also desires to alter fate. He inspires Gavin through a lost tale that spans eons and cultures, weaving their lives together. Frightening enemies, magic, unexpected friendship, betrayal, love, and death emerge at every turn. But if either of them are to survive, they must choose between life, love, and the revealing of secrets from the ages.

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Another 2017 “best of”: over at SyfyWire, Swapna picked her top 10 SFF of 2017. I am notoriously terrible at assembling these kinds of lists but if you’ve been following along at home, you’ll know that I also loved several of her picks!

A thing I didn’t know I had feelings about: what is the right order to read The Chronicles of Narnia? Ultimately I agree with Mari, but it might just be because that’s the order that I read them in as a child.

For Ernest Cline fans: Ready Player One is getting a sequel! Surprising given how neatly tied up the first book was, but perhaps less surprising when you consider the bump the book has gotten from the forthcoming movie.

Where do heroes come from? This piece breaks down princess and chosen one tropes, and has some excellent food for thought regarding elitism and the fantasy genre.

For all my Nnedi Okorafor fans: While we wait for Night Masquerade, Danielle has some adult beverage pairing suggestions for Binti!

Eat, drink, and be merry with books: I love this list of food-based fantasy books from Unbound Worlds.

Need some escapist feels? Jessica recommends three fantasy romance series. If I wasn’t already elbow-deep in Nora Roberts’ Circle Trilogy, I’d be picking up one of these.

Excited about Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water? Angel’s got some readalike suggestions for while you’re waiting or after viewing. (Mini-review: I saw it and I am still too busy processing bits of it to give a final verdict but: wow, what a visually gorgeous piece of cinema!)

As the year winds down and we contemplate our over-stacked TBR piles, I thought you might enjoy some binge-watching options!

Marvel’s Runaways (available on Hulu)

Trigger warnings for the show: attempted rape; child and spouse abuse.

Y’all, I am having so many feelings about this TV adaptation of Runaways. I’ve got Volumes 1-5 (Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona) on my shelf, as well as Dead End Kids. (Note to self, must check out the Stevenson run sometime soon.) When they put out the first trailer, my excitement ran away with me. And now that the first seven episodes are out, I am hooked.

If you’re not familiar, the show follows a group of affluent teenagers in California who discover that their parents are actually murderous super-villains. MAJOR BUMMER. The casting is solid; while I wish they had gone with a true plus-size actress for Gert, rather than the round-faced but otherwise petite Ariela Barer, they nailed Karolina, Molly, and Alex. They might even have done too good a job with Alex; the actor playing him is so likable that I am not sure I can handle it. No spoilers here, but if you have read the books you know of what I speak.

Even if you’re not familiar with the comics, I encourage you to dive into the show. The writers have clearly considered an audience new to the characters, and are playing with the original material in interesting ways. So far I’m on board with most of the changes; they’ve added some new depth and introduced variables that I am curious to see play out. Some reviewers and comics-fans are impatient with the pacing of the plot, but I’m enjoying the character development and world-building. That said, if you require a quickly paced show, it might not be for you. Unfortunately, the show hasn’t yet corrected for some of the more problematic aspects of the comic — see this piece (SPOILERS AHOY) for details. But with lots of plot left, there’s room for growth. I’ll be over here glued to my screen with my fingers crossed — especially considering the cliffhanger at the end of Episode 7.

3% (available on Netflix)

I just recently started watching 3%, and the first two episodes alone put other sci-fi shows to shame. Inclusive casting, a compelling premise, a talented cast — this show deserves all of your eyeballs.

Set in a dystopian future where the vast majority of humanity live in destitution and poverty, each year 20-year-olds are given a chance to be tested to go to the Offshore, where everything is wealth and comfort. Only 3% of candidates succeed — and it’s not because that’s how many are worthy, regardless of what the Selection Process would have you believe. Following both the current batch of candidates and the creeptastic officials running the tests, the show is full of mind-games, conspiracies, and back-stabbing galore.

It’s eerie, violent, and disturbing in the ways of the best dystopias. The range of characters is a delight and a rarity, and the pacing allows us to see individual backstories as well as the events of the test itself. While there’s currently only one season available, it has been renewed for a second season and hopefully 2018 will be bringing us more episodes. A note: while I don’t personally recommend watching the dubbed version, both subtitles and dubbed versions are available.

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Happy holidays to you and yours,
Jenn

Happy Friday, changelings and chrononauts! Today we’ve got reviews of Cold Wind and Radio Silence, some adaptation news, some sf/f holiday cheer, and more.

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This newsletter is sponsored by The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo.

Inspired by myth, fairy tale, and folklore, #1 New York Times-bestselling author Leigh Bardugo has crafted a deliciously atmospheric collection of short stories filled with betrayals, revenge, sacrifice, and love. Perfect for new readers and dedicated fans, the lavishly illustrated tales in The Language of Thorns will transport you to lands both familiar and strange—to a fully realized world of dangerous magic that millions have visited through the novels of the Grishaverse.

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A present for John Scalzi fans: We’re getting a movie adaptation of Old Man’s War from Netflix. Let the fancasts begin!

Need more YA for your TBR? Alex Tor.com picked some favorite YA SFF of 2017, and they are organized by handy categories like “Court Intrigue” and “I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying.”

Calling all Gryffindors: here’s a reading list just for you.

Not a gift guide but a guide to gifting: Aisha breaks down how to be a good gift-giver, and her advice is A++.

If you’re a long-time reader, you know that Doctor Who is not one of my specialties, so I cannot comment on how correct they are, but! The folks at Syfy decided to rank all the Doctor Who Christmas specials.

Hosting a holiday party and want to add some Star Trek to it? Here’s a recipe for Romulan ale.

Courtesy of Kelly Link: What would your fantasy series be called? Mine was A Bodega of Amethyst and Dusk, which I now feel obliged to write.

Watch this immediately: John Boyega and Gwendoline Christie play “What’s In The Box” and I literally wept with laughter for 5 minutes. ACTUAL TEARS.

Last not but least: we’re giving away a stack of our 20 favorite books of the year! And said stack includes stellar SF/F titles Her Body and Other Parties, The Gauntlet, and A Conjuring of Light. Click here to enter.

Today’s reviews are books that make me want to bundle up. Best read under a blanket and with the hot beverage of your choice.

Cold Wind by Nicola Griffith

This is the first time I’ve ever reviewed a short story for this newsletter, I do believe! But this one is so perfect for the holiday season, I couldn’t pass it up.

Set in a Seattle bar on the Winter Solstice and following a narrator whose motivations twist and turn along with the plot, this is a story that calls on the spirits of the the darkest part of the year. Griffith plays cat and mouse with the reader and her characters as she melds myth and contemporary life and looks at desire in its various forms. To say much more would be to spoil the delicious unfolding of the plot, so I will just say that it is atmospherically perfect. You can purchase the story, or read it online right here.

Radio Silence (Off the Grid #1) by Alyssa Cole

Whether or not you think you like romance novels, I urge you to pick this near-future tale up. It starts off with our heroine, Arden, trudging through the snow. She and her friend John are headed to his family’s cabin near the Canadian border because the world is ending.

No electricity, no running water, no trappings of civilization — they all shut down one day and no one really knows why. Rather than wait around Rochester NY to find out, they decide to head for the hills. But the journey isn’t an easy one, nor does their arrival at the cabin mean that everything is going to work out. When John’s parents go missing, Arden must help John and his siblings figure out what to do and who to trust, all while trying to understand her own feelings for his brother Gabriel.

A zoomed-in near-future apocalypse story, Radio Silence sorts through the emotional heft of love among the ruins. Its steamy scenes balance out with the day-to-day work of living in a world that is changing shape; the family dynamics will be oh-so-familiar to anyone who has ever spent a long weekend with relatives in close quarters, then heightened by the societal upheaval. I laughed, I bit my nails, I occasionally blushed — and then I read the rest of the series as well. This story will make you thankful both for good reading material and for your central heat during the next blizzard!

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

Happy Friday, swashbucklers and space invaders! As is only proper this time of year, we have more gift guides and Best Of lists, along with reviews of Djinn City and Into the Drowning Deep.

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This week’s newsletter is sponsored by Book Riot Insiders.

Get booky with our new release calendar, exclusive newsletter and podcasts, and amazing giveaways. Stay on top of upcoming titles with the curated New Release Index, complete with genre filters, notes from All The Books host Liberty, and a customizable Watchlist. Subscribe to Book Riot Insiders and live your best bookish life!

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Because there is always room for more Harry Potter: Here are further HP gift guide options.

The Guardian picked the best fantasy and sci-fi of 2017, and I am delighted at how inclusive their list is, as well as how many of my own favorites got mentioned!

Need something new to watch? Syfy has you covered with this list of sf/f TV and movies coming to streaming in December.

Speaking of streaming, this gift guide has present suggestions for fans of Stranger Things, Luke Cage, Black Mirror, and more. (Cosign on the Death Wish Coffee, it’s fantastic.)

For holidays NOT Christmas, Tor has this great piece celebrating the values of Kwanzaa through sf/f works by black authors. TBR: exploded.

File under geek fashion: Sharifah and I discussed Rag & Bone’s Star Wars line on a recent SFF Yeah episode. In related news, Columbia Sportswear is releasing a line of jackets inspired by Luke, Han, and Leia. Now taking bets as to how quickly they sell out.

And speaking of Star Wars, if you are also a little confused about the timeline (I can barely keep track of myself, much less a galaxy long ago and far away), io9 has put together a very thorough timeline that incorporates books, movies, video games, AND comics.

A gift for you: have some discounted ebooks! Sabriel, the first book in Garth Nix’s Old Kingdom series and a classic of fantasy, is on sale for $1.99. And if you’ve been waiting on the sequels to Wesley Chu’s The Lives of Tao, Deaths of Tao #2 and Rebirths of Tao #3 are both $2.99 this month.

Today in reviews, we’ve got fresh new takes on djinn and mermaids both.

Djinn City by Saad Z. Hossain

One of these days I will write a post about the latest crop of djinn novels/stories, because it is definitely A Thing. A thing I am enjoying thoroughly! Hossain’s contribution to the stack is a rompy adventure set in Bangladesh, with a whole host of human and supernatural (and combinations thereof) characters.

It starts off with a young boy named Indelbed, whose father has turned to full-time inebriation after the death in childbirth of Indelbed’s mother. It turns out he’s not just a drunk, but an emissary to the world of the djinn — and some of those djinn want Indelbed for their own nefarious purposes. When Indelbed goes missing, his cousin Rais finds himself drawn into this strange world and starts uncovering truths about his family he could never have guessed. How far down the rabbithole will he go, and what will happen to Indelbed?

I have two quibbles with this book. The first is that it’s a Boys’ Club of a cast, with only three named women (as compared to a ton of named supporting characters, all named, all men). My second is that it isn’t listed as the first in a series, but that ending! That can’t possibly be it, can it?! Otherwise, Djinn City is a blast from start to finish. Quirky, action-packed, and packing a solid emotional punch, it’s entertaining and well-executed. Hossain’s contribution to The Djinn Falls in Love and Other Stories was one of my favorite in that collection as well, and with this novel he’s earned his place on my own “must read” list. I look forward to whatever he does next.

Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant

This was my first-ever Mira Grant book, and I was not disappointed. If like me you haven’t started reading her yet, this is a great place to start. If you’re already a fan, well, you don’t need me to tell you! But I will anyway.

Into the Drowning Deep kicks off with a ship lost at sea, no survivors. They had set out to make a mockumentary about mermaids, and the only footage that made it back after all hands were lost seems to prove their existence. It’s either a really awful hoax or a really shocking discovery, and no one can agree. Seven years later, a second expedition of scientists plus a film crew sets out to uncover the truth, and things go horribly (but not unexpectedly) wrong. The expedition includes the sister of an original crew member, a big game-hunting couple, an entertainment reporter, a submarine pilot, and so many other excellent and interesting people that I could write a whole paragraph just gushing about how fascinating they were. While I came for the premise, I stayed for the cast.

“Killer science-mermaids” is a plot I was likely to find entertaining regardless, but Grant does a killer (ahem) job with the cast of characters. It can be hard to juggle multiple POV storylines, but I got just enough of my favorites to keep me going, plus chapters from supporting cast that I wasn’t expecting to lend extra depth (AHEM) to the story. She’s not afraid to kill her darlings, and if you’re leery of bloodshed you might want to steer away from this one, but I was entertained and enraptured from the first page to the last. Also, I will now NEVER go swimming or sailing anywhere near the Mariana Trench.

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

Happy Friday, nerdfriends and geekpals. Today is our now-annual Swords and Spaceships Holiday Gift Guide. Onward to gift-giving glory!

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This newsletter is sponsored by The Speaker by Traci Chee.

In this sequel to the critically-acclaimed New York Times bestselling fantasy The Reader, Sefia and Archer are back on the run, slipping into the safety of the forest to tend to their wounds and plan their next move. Haunted by painful memories, Archer struggles to overcome the trauma of his past with the impressors, whose cruelty plagues him whenever he closes his eyes. But when Sefia and Archer happen upon a crew of impressors in the wilderness, Archer finally finds a way to combat his nightmares: by hunting impressors and freeing the boys they hold captive.

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I’ve got a round-up of non-book things, but as always let’s start with books. I picked five each of the science fiction and fantasy titles that, for my money, are the most giftable of the last year.

Five Science Fiction Books To Give

Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty: A locked-room mystery, except it’s a locked spaceship and it’s mid-space flight crewed by clones! For readers who love space opera and/or murder mysteries.

An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon: A generation-ship story that examines the intersections of racism and class structures. For readers who can’t get enough NK Jemisin, Ursula Le Guin, and Octavia Butler.

Provenance by Ann Leckie: A comedic space opera that centers around an art heist, forgeries, and family power struggles. For readers who love John Scalzi, the art world, plucky heroines, intergalactic politics, pronoun fluidity, and queer/nonbinary characters.

27 Hours by Tristina Wright: The Queer Teen Space Squad adventure of your dreams. For readers who enjoy YA, planetary colonization and alien encounter stories, lots of action and explosions, and multiple-POV narratives.

The Prey of Gods by Nicky Drayden: A mad-cap near-future story set in South Africa, complete with enraged goddesses, awakening Artifical Intelligence, drugs, sex, and rock and roll (literally). For readers who love blends of sci-fi and fantasy, a WTF-inducing plotline, and characters you fall in love with.

Five Fantasy Books To Give

Jade City by Fonda Lee: An Asian The Godfather plus magic! Feuding families, magic gemstones, and lots of betrayal, skulduggery, and street fights. For readers who are sold on that premise, characters with questionable moral standing, and don’t mind investing a bunch of time (it’s a long burn but such a good one).

The Djinn Falls in Love and Other Stories, edited by Mahvesh Murad and Jared Shurin: 20 authors put their own spin on the djinn/genie myth. For readers who love fairytale retellings, updated mythologies, discovering new voices, and revisiting favorite authors.

The Changeling by Victor LaValle: A dark, bloody, and terrifying story of one father who loses his family, and his struggle to get it back. For readers who like some weight in their stories, don’t mind getting seriously creeped out, and appreciate social commentary alongside an A+ plot.

The Chimes by Anna Smaill: An alternate, dystopian London in which music is the organizing metaphor of life and memories are impossible to form. For readers who appreciate complex world-building, stories with many layers, and coming-of-age tales. (Technically a 2016 book but whatever!)

Tender: Stories by Sofia Samatar: A wide-ranging collection by an author who is as at home in a contemporary satire as she is in a beautifully atmospheric fable. For readers who love seeing what a master can do with short fiction.

And Now: Not Books! 

For your Star Wars gift needs, a round-up.

For your Harry Potter gift needs, the best stuffed animal options.

Bookish ornaments (not 100% SF/F but includes some EXCELLENT options).

For your comics-related gift needs, a round-up.

For your crafting plus comics needs.

Still not over this Game of Thrones cutting board.

Will never be over the Death Star waffle maker.

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

Happy Friday, robots and rogues! Today I have for you a bunch of book to screen news, some Robin Hood reading, reviews of Autonomous and The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2017, and more.

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This newsletter is sponsored by Haven by Mary Lindsey.

Rain Ryland has never belonged anywhere. He’s used to people judging him for his rough background, his intimidating size, and now, his orphan status. He’s always been on the outside, looking in, and he’s fine with that. Until he moves to New Wurzburg and meets Friederike Burkhart.

Freddie isn’t like normal teen girls, though. And someone wants her dead for it. Freddie warns he’d better stay far away if he wants to stay alive, but Rain’s never been good at running from trouble. For the first time, Rain has something worth fighting for, worth living for. Worth dying for.

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Last call to enter our bookstore giveaway! You could win a $500 gift card to the bookstore of your choice, and it’s open worldwide. Get clicking, it closes on November 26.

Our resident medievalist is back, this time with Robin Hood retellings! So is that Robins of the Hood or Robin Hoods or….

The latest Wrinkle In Time trailer is here and it is INTENSE. We finally get a look at the Mrs. Ws’ flying form, and it’s not at all what I was expecting or had pictured, but I’ve already decided to give this adaptation lots of detail leeway in exchange for (hopefully) awesome.

Do you need more space operas in your life? Here’s a list of 10 that Unbound Worlds recommends you read before you see Star Wars: The Last Jedi; I feel like you should read Lightless, Empress of a Thousand Skies, and On A Red Station, Drifting whenever and preferably as soon as possible.

Speaking of movie franchises, Danielle has some reading recommendations for the Justice League themselves. Personally I would like to make Batman read The New Jim Crow, but these are good too.

Speaking of even more movie franchises and in case you missed it, the ‘Fantastic Beasts 2’ official cast photo has been released!

Ok one more: the folks over at Tor.com did a recast for the Lord of the Rings TV series, and BOY DO I APPROVE OF THIS. Most particularly of “Tatiana Maslany plays everyone.”

Technically today’s reviews are science fiction and science fiction AND fantasy, but I didn’t think you’d mind.

Autonomous by Annalee Newitz

This is a story about artificial intelligence, submarine pirates, and Big Pharma. It’s also about human trafficking, gender perceptions, and what choice looks like in constrained circumstances. There’s a lot going on here, and Newitz doesn’t shy away from asking provocative questions or creating ambiguous situations. Which wasn’t a surprise to me, knowing her work; Newitz is the co-founder of io9, along with Charlie Jane Anders, and when I interviewed her for our Recommended podcast ambiguity in particular was on her mind.

The story follows two main narrative threads. Jack, our submarine pirate, has made it her life’s work to create open-source drugs for people who can’t afford the patented, Big Pharmacy-controlled ones. She’s also not above selling some for recreational use as well as medicinal, to help fund her operations. When a batch of a new productivity drug she sold starts claiming victims, she has to do her best to put things to right. On her trail are Eliasz, an operative hired by the pharmaceutical company, and his robot colleague Paladin. As they work together, Paladin — whose sentience is never in question — becomes increasingly confused and increasingly engaged by his relationship with Eliasz.

Each character introduced throughout the novel is working through a major trauma or life moment, and I found my sympathies morphing and changing with each new revelation. Characters I thought I despised suddenly became not only relatable but important to me, and some I thought I completely understood became much more complicated. And then there’s the actual (and very action- and gore-packed) plot! There’s nothing straightforward about Autonomous, but there’s a lot to enjoy and a lot to ponder.

Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2017, edited by Charles Yu and John Joseph Adams

I’ve mentioned Charles Yu before in this newsletter; I’m a fan of his work, so I was excited to see that he was curating this year’s Best American SFF! Having finished it this weekend, I’m happy to say that while it’s not my favorite collection of the year — that honor goes to The Djinn Falls In Love And Other Stories — there’s a lot of great work here.

Before I dig into it, it bears mentioning that if you’ve ever uttered the words “Why does everything have to be political? I just want a good story!”, this collection is not for you. (Also, no art is apolitical.) The frustration, anger, and anxiety of the last two years in American politics are strongly present and strongly represented here, and several of the most clearly political were also my favorite stories. The authors herein tackle everything from police brutality to medical insurance, pollution and climate change to gender fluidity, the prison industrial complex to class inequality. There are also wardrobe portals, werewolves, aliens, lake monsters, and much more.

Some favorites: Leigh Bardugo’s “Head, Scales, Tongue, Tail” opens the collection with a sweet and eerie piece about summer friends and first love, plus the aforementioned lake monsters. Genevieve Valentine’s “Everyone From Themis Sends Letters Home” is impossible to describe without giving away the twist, but suffice it to say that I will be thinking about it for a long time to come — it manages to be both wistful and bitingly observant of contemporary society. Nisi Shawl’s “Vulcanization,” which follows a haunted King Leopold, is particularly satisfying if you’ve read her novel Everfair (which you should). Catherynne Valente’s “The Future is Blue” is simultaneously one of the most whimsical and the most violent stories — no small feat. N.K. Jemisin’s “The City Born Great” is, unsurprisingly, fantastic and delivers a whole new spin on urban fantasy. Werewolf fans like myself will be tickled by all the references in “I Was A Teenage Werewolf” by Dale Bailey. And the final story, “The Venus Effect” by Joseph Allen Hill, is here to burn everything down. A pointed meditation on black characters in sci-fi and on the literally life-threatening dangers of being black in America, it’s funny and a punch in the gut all at once.

Many of these authors will be familiar to you; but as with any good collection, there are newcomers like Hill that you’ll want to add to your radar.

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

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Jenn

Happy Friday, friends! Today we’ve got reviews of Future Home of the Living God and Jade City, plus a Slytherin reading list, more LOTR news, cozy fantasy, and more.

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This newsletter is sponsored by Renegades by Marissa Meyer.

The Renegades are a syndicate of prodigies—humans with extraordinary abilities—who emerged from the ruins of a crumbled society and established peace and order where chaos reigned. As champions of justice, they remain a symbol of hope and courage to everyone . . . except the villains they once overthrew.

Nova has a reason to hate the Renegades, and she is on a mission for vengeance. As she gets closer to her target, she meets Adrian, a Renegade boy who believes in justice—and in Nova. But Nova’s allegiance is to the villains who have the power to end them both.

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First! You have until November 26th to enter our giveaway for a $500 gift card to the bookstore of your choice. May the odds be ever in your favor.

Some of my best friends are Slytherins! (Actually true.) For all you green-and-black-identifying folks, here’s a reading list.

That rumored Lord Of The Rings TV adaptation? It’s real, and they’ve established that they’re going to be pulling from previously unadapted stories. I am sure somewhere there is already a betting pool about exactly which material they’ll be drawing from; my money’s on Beren and Lúthien.

G. Willow Wilson’s next book has been announced! I’ve been recommending Alif the Unseen for years, so I’m delighted that we’re getting a new genie-tastic story from her.

Need some magic and some romance in your YA? This post has got you covered.

I am not currently watching Dirk Gently or The Tick, but I deeply appreciated this piece on what they’re doing right with mentally ill heroes.

Need more super in your heroes? Here are some suggestions for those of us who are looking around for more caped adventures while we wait for Thor: Ragnarok to make it to streaming.

Cozy up with some cozy fantasy! These books are exactly what I want to be reading this winter.

Today’s reviews include a terrifying possible future and magic-using, warring gangs!

Future Home of the Living God by Louise Erdrich

This book was the one that convinced me I did, in fact, have to write this post about parenting in sci-fi/fantasy, because boy did we have a lot of it this year! And while Erdrich is not generally considered a genre writer, Future Home can be considered nothing else.

Cedar Songmaker is pregnant and on her way to meet her biological family for the first time, to find out about potential genetic issues. In the meantime, the world is falling apart around her. All around North America, children are born who appear to be genetic throwbacks to pre-Homo sapiens: different brain structures, impaired speech and social abilities, different physiology, you name it. The reasons are unclear, and lots of theories ranging from plausible to completely wack-a-doodle are offered throughout the book. Cedar is fully aware of what could happen with her baby, but also fully invested in her pregnancy. Her adoptive white parents and her Native biological family have very different responses to her state, and then of course there’s the part where the world is going mad. Pseudo-religious ad-hoc governments are rounding up pregnant women, racial tensions are rising to the surface, and oh yeah, there might be a pteranodon in the backyard? Cedar ends up on the run and on a journey that is as horrifying as it is gripping.

I’m a huge fan of Erdrich’s work, and am so excited to see her playing in the speculative fiction sandbox. If you love near-future stories, particularly ones that focus on changes to the environment and how that affects humanity, get this one post-haste. If you’re looking for a super-scientifically plausible story, give this one a pass; same for if you’re trying to get or are currently pregnant, unless you have a very strong stomach and are resistant to disaster scenarios.

Jade City by Fonda Lee

I have been telling everyone that Jade City is an Asian The Godfather plus magic, and I stand by it. Centered around an escalating feud between two gang families in the island nation of Kekon, it’s the first installment in a trilogy that is off to a page-turning, action-packed start.

Kekon is the only source of “bioreactive” jade, a stone that grants the right wearer supernatural abilities. Only some people can harness the powers of jade, and the Green Bone warriors that do are feared, respected, and unofficially run the country. The grown Kaul siblings are each doing their best to make a life — Hilo and Lan as the newest leaders of the family and operation, and Shae as a person an entirely separate from her family’s activities. But when the other major clan starts pushing into the Kaul’s territory, Lan’s negotiating skill and level head might not be enough to keep the peace. In the meantime, other nations around the world are developing drugs to help them create their own jade-sensitive warriors. Can peace be maintained, and at what cost? It’s not just the fate of the clans that rides on the outcome — it’s the fate of the jade trade and the country itself.

Lee has created a rich second world that feels familiar enough to be comprehensible, but different enough to house its magical system — she wrote about the process here. The family interactions are complex and emotionally resonant; the fights are well-paced and gorily entertaining; in short, Jade City delivers on its promises. And the ending! Just enough resolution to keep me from throwing the book across the room, just enough questions unanswered to have me eagerly awaiting the next installment.

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

Happy Monday (and sorry for the delay), astral travelers and astronauts! This week we’ve got reviews of Afar and Gilded Cage, a Harry Potter game announcement, the World Fantasy Awards, Arthuriana, and that’s just for starters.

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This newsletter is sponsored by Rosemarked by Livia Blackburne.

This smart, sweeping fantasy with a political edge and a slow-burning romance will capture fans of An Ember in the Ashes. A thrilling YA fantasy of intrigue and betrayal, it delves into what it means to truly fight for freedom.

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Reminder: you have until November 26 to enter our giveaway for a $500 gift card to your favorite bookstore! Open world-wide, in case you were wondering.

VERY IMPORTANT NEWS: We are getting an AR Harry Potter game called Wizards Unite and my body is ready. I only played Pokémon Go for a hot minute (I ran into a streetlight and also my battery died way too fast) but if I can go around collecting fantastic beasts, for example, I will just wear a helmet and get a battery pack.

From the Department of WHY THOUGH: The Lord of the Rings is potentially getting a TV series, and Sonja nails my bewilderment and frustration in that write-up. Just, no.

In more interesting (to me) adaptation news, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is getting a middle-grade series! We had a whole discussion in the Insiders Forum about what this means from a timeline perspective, since this pushes back Buffy’s call from 15 to 12. Also, no Giles. But I’m curious anyway, plus the art is cute!

The World Fantasy Award Winners have been announced! This list always makes me feel like I am deeply behind on my reading.

Do you need a post-Bladerunner reading fix? We got you covered. Cosign on Warcross, which was so much fun!

How about a reading list of Arthuriana, put together by a medievalist? Also covered!

And last but not least, am I the only one who thinks that this cape blazer could reference Hela just as well as it does Loki? Do want.

Afar by Leila del Duca and Kit Seaton, edited by Taneka Stotts

I’ve had this graphic novel sitting on my TBR stack for months, and I finally picked it up this week. Why did I wait? Beautifully drawn and colored, well-paced and well-imagined, Afar is a sibling story, a space adventure, and a journey well worth taking.

Boetema and Inotu are teenage siblings whose parents can’t seem to get it together. Their mother is often depressed and their father can’t seem to find work, no matter how many times they move to a new village. When the latest move fails to change things, her parents leave them behind to take the work they can find. Then Inotu runs afoul of a political conspiracy, and the two are forced to flee into the desert. In the meantime, every time she sleeps Boetema finds herself in a different body on a different world. As Boetema struggles to figure out the nature of her powers and how to control them, she must also try to provide for herself and her brother in her waking life.

The world the siblings move through is clearly post-collapse — technology is present but faulty and scavenged, and sustenance is hard to find. The worlds that Boetema explores are varied and intriguing, though we only get short glimpses of most of them. The mesh of mythology, astral projection, and technology works well here, giving great textures and layers to this coming of age, coming-into-power story.

There are many things to love about Afar: the incorporation of folklore, the world-building, the diversity of characters, the gorgeous art (seriously, it’s gorgeous), the portrayal of a complicated but still loving family life. My only objection is that there isn’t a sequel announced yet — there’s lots of story left to tell here, and I hope to see more!

Gilded Cage (Dark Gifts #1) by Vic James

Do you love British fantasy? How about class inequities complicated by magic? What about dark and twisted families? If you answered yes to any/all of the above, then Gilded Cage should be on your TBR.

Taking place in an alternate modern Britain, it follows two families: the magical and very wealthy Jardines, and the working-class Headleys. The Headleys are about to embark on their “service” years, 10 years in which they can either be hired on as household help by an upper-crust family or work in industrial encampments known for their high mortality rates. While most of the Headleys are headed to the Jardine estate, Luke is separated and sent to a factory town. As Luke starts to question the “natural order” of his world, the Jardine sons are locked in a power struggle that has more layers than you can shake a stick at.

Playing with the myth of meritocracy and the entrenchment of power structures, James is definitely not light-handed with the politics — but that’s the point of the book. As we learn more about the world both through the upper- and the lower-classes, we also see James playing with her system of magic. Gritty, believable, and glitzy when appropriate, Gilded Cage is a fast-paced page-turner of a novel. Several well-played twists had me slack-jawed and rummaging for clues. It also sets things up nicely for the next two installments; it’s a planned trilogy, with Tarnished City coming to the US in February 2018. (Lucky UK readers already have it.)

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

These aren’t the droids you’re looking for,
Jenn

Happy Friday, sky captains and snow monsters! Today we’ve got reviews for Prosperity and Girls Made of Snow and Glass, some Buffy read-alikes, magical realism, Kingkiller Chronicles news, and more.

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This week’s newsletter is sponsored by PageHabit.

PageHabit offers monthly FANTASY and SCIENCE FICTION book boxes curated and annotated by acclaimed authors for the most diehard bookworms. Each box comes with an exclusive, author-annotated new release, a written letter from the author, a bonus short story, fun bookish goods and instant membership into an active online book community of over 20,000 members.

Get FREE SHIPPING on your first box with code “RIOT”.

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For my fellow Slayer fans: here’s a list of books to read if you liked Buffy, in which Sharanya lays out her reasoning very well. How was The Immortal Rules not on my radar prior to this point?! Must remedy immediately.

We who are about to spend time with our families salute you: Ars Technica put together a list of new sf/f releases to help you escape this holiday season. Cosign on Null States and the JY Yang novellas!

What’s better than space or magic? Space AND magic! I love Alex’s list of 9 books that have both, with extra points for use of “handwavium.”

Ah yes, the perennial question: “What is magical realism?” Not only does Leah break it down here, but she gives you 100 must-reads from everyone’s favorite genre to argue about!

As you might have heard, the TV adaptation of Patrick Rothfuss’s Kingkiller Chronicles is moving forward! It’s got a network, Showtime, and Lin-Manuel Miranda continues to be excited about lutes (he’s doing music for the show). While you’re waiting for this to, you know, exist, here are one Rioter’s favorite quotes from the series so far.

It’s never too early to start planning your holiday nerdy gift-giving (or to get yourself some goodies): here are some excellent options, including a topographic Earthsea map (EXTREME HEART EYES).

How about some ebook deals?  Trickster’s Choice and Trickster’s Queen by Tamora Pierce are both $1.99 right now, if you feel live revisiting Tortall. The Girl from Everywhere by Heidi Heilig is also $1.99, which is a time-traveling adventure story on a boat (hello, wheelhouse).

Today’s review books both tackle known quantities in SF/F and upend them in fantastic ways; get ready to fall head over heels.

Prosperity by Alexis Hall

Prosperity is the bawdy, queer, steampunk/Lovecraft adventure story I didn’t know I was craving. Tentacle monsters, phlogiston, airships, some very steamy interludes, and lots of (Cockney?) slang await you in the Prosperityverse.

Good-hearted guttersnipe Dil (short for Picadilly) cheats the wrong man in a card game that will change his life. After getting shot by the man in question — Milord, whose own morals are seriously questionable — Dil is rescued by the crew of the aethership Shadowless. And what a crew it is: the very sparkly captain, the opium-befuddled navigatrix, the handsome defrocked priest, and the ever-cranky and murderous Milord. As Dil tries to decide his next steps (and falls in love), one adventure after another befall the crew and he must decide where his allegiance lies. From Dil’s own personal apocalypse to the possible end of the world, there is action aplenty, as well as a beautiful portrayal of finding your family.

Readers who dislike dialect might want to steer clear — while Dil does occasionally clarify a word or two, you have to be willing to hang with his verbal stylings. What might actually be historical slang and what Hall made up would require more linguistic knowledge than I have, but it didn’t slow me down one bit. And while this is not a romance, there are several explicit sex scenes; proceed according to your personal blush-o-meter. If, like me, you can’t get enough of these characters and this world, you’re in luck: Liberty and Other Stories continues the story of the Shadowless crew. Happy sailing!

Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust

This book has been pitched as “Frozen meets The Bloody Chamber” and while I couldn’t quite imagine what that meant, I was very curious. Having read it, I can now tell you that it means snow-related powers and women working through constraints imposed by men for their own gains. It’s also an imaginative and inclusive retelling of Snow White featuring both LGBTQ+ and POC characters, and I enjoyed it immensely.

Told in parallel narratives that move back and forth in time, the story follows Mina, who at 16 decides that her best chance at a good life is to marry a widowed king, and Lynet, 15-year-old daughter of that king. Mina’s own father, an emotionally abusive and manipulative magician, gave her a heart of glass when she was a child. What he doesn’t realize is that he gave her powers as well. All Lynet’s father wants is for her to grow up to be just like her long-deceased mother, regardless of who Lynet is on the inside. As each struggles to find a way forward, they are set against each other — but their story doesn’t end there.

As Lynet falls in love for the first time, with the court surgeon Nadia, and Mina starts to understand what love actually is, they rewrite the fairytale we know into something new. Bashardoust takes the dark heart of Snow White and gives it room to shine.

And that’s a wrap! You can find all of the books recommended in this newsletter on a handy Goodreads shelf. If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn