Most Anticipated 2016

Review: DON’T I KNOW YOU? by Marni Jackson (Flatiron Books)

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don’t i know you? comp18.epsA peculiar, interesting novel about self and celebrity

What if some of the artists we feel as if we know — Meryl Streep, Neil Young, Bill Murray — turned up in the course of our daily lives? 

This is what happens to Rose McEwan, an ordinary woman who keeps having strange encounters with famous people. In this engrossing, original novel-in-stories, we follow her life from age 17, when she takes a summer writing course led by a young John Updike, through her first heartbreak (witnessed by Joni Mitchell) on the island of Crete, through her marriage, divorce, and a canoe trip with Taylor Swift, Leonard Cohen and Karl Ove Knausgaard. (Yes, read on.)

With wit and insight, Marni Jackson takes a world obsessed with celebrity and turns it on its head. In Don’t I Know You?, she shows us how fame is just another form of fiction, and how, in the end, the daily dramas of an ordinary woman’s life can be as captivating and poignant as any luminary tell-all.

This is a peculiar novel. Blending a fictional life story with real-life celebrity cameos, the story has a lot to say about how we see famous people, what we expect of them, and also what we expect of and how we see ourselves. Don’t I Know You? isn’t perfect, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. Continue reading →

Interview with K.B. WAGERS

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wagerskb-authorpicLet’s start with an introduction: Who is K.B. Wagers?

I have no idea. *laughs* “I am a writer stitched together with ink and dreams” would be the fanciful answer. I’m a native Coloradan, a pretty stubborn Taurus, a lover of coffee and cats (though I prefer if my cats stay out of my coffee), a fan of explosions, and a hopeless optimist.

Your debut novel, Behind the Throne, was recently published by Orbit. It looks interesting: How would you introduce it to a potential reader?

I am honestly so awful at this! It’s been awesome to have reviews for the book because my words tend to fail me when I’m asked to talk about my work. Behind the Throne is a story about a woman coming to grips with her past and her family, something that’s challenging enough on its own; but when people are trying to kill you it adds a whole other level of difficulty. When Hail finds out that her sisters have been murdered and she’s the only person left to help her empire, she trades in her gunrunning life for a crown and discovers that life in a palace is even more dangerous than the underside of the galaxy. Continue reading →

Mini-Review: THE BURNING LIGHT by Bradley Beaulieu & Rob Ziegler (Tor.com)

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BeaulieuZiegler-BurningLightAn interesting post-apocalyptic sci-fi story

Disgraced government operative Colonel Chu is exiled to the flooded relic of New York City. Something called the Light has hit the streets like an epidemic, leavings its users strung out and disconnected from the mind-network humanity relies on. Chu has lost everything she cares about to the Light. She’ll end the threat or die trying.

A former corporate pilot who controlled a thousand ships with her mind, Zola looks like just another Light-junkie living hand to mouth on the edge of society. She’s special though. As much as she needs the Light, the Light needs her too. But, Chu is getting close and Zola can’t hide forever.

This was a pretty interesting novella. Set in a dilapidated New York City. There were a few moments when the story’s momentum dipped, but it was for the main a pretty well-paced, engaging story. This is an interesting sci-fi/dystopian story. Continue reading →

Quick Review: DARK MATTER by Blake Crouch (Crown/Macmillan)

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CrouchB-DarkMatterUSA gripping multiverse thriller

“Are you happy with your life?”

Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the masked abductor knocks him unconscious.

Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits.

Before a man Jason’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.”

In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. Hiswife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college physics professor, but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible.

Is it this world or the other that’s the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answers lie in a journey more wondrous and horrifying than anything he could’ve imagined — one that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself even as he battles a terrifying, seemingly unbeatable foe.

There was so much buzz surrounding this book in the lead-up to its publication. So much, in fact, that I started to get nervous. Having now finished the novel, though, it’s very easy to see why so many people have been recommending it: it’s superb. Crouch, author of the Wayward Pines novels, has penned a fantastic sci-fi mystery. Continue reading →

Quick Review: EVERYTHING BELONGS TO THE FUTURE by Laurie Penny (Tor.com)

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PennyL-EverythingBelongsToTheFutureAn interesting novella of future politics and society

Time is a weapon wielded by the rich, who have excess of it, against the rest, who must trade every breath of it against the promise of another day’s food and shelter. What kind of world have we made, where human beings can live centuries if only they can afford the fix? What kind of creatures have we become? The same as we always were, but keener.

In the ancient heart of Oxford University, the ultra-rich celebrate their vastly extended lifespans. But a few surprises are in store for them. From Nina and Alex, Margo and Fidget, scruffy anarchists sharing living space with an ever-shifting cast of crusty punks and lost kids. And also from the scientist who invented the longevity treatment in the first place.

I quite enjoyed this novella. Set some distance in the future, but still recognizable and relatable. Inequality has worsened, the wealthy able to extend their lives considerably. Readers are introduced to a bohemian group of anarchists, who do what they can in their quest to make life even a little bit more fair. Introduced to someone with links to the rejuvenation formula, though, they plan a much larger, more audacious plan to address this future society’s inequality. Unfortunately for the group, there are forces already maneuvering to bring them down… Continue reading →

Interview with LAURIE PENNY

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PennyL-AuthorPicLet’s start with an introduction: Who is Laurie Penny?

Back-of-a-napkin CV? I’m a writer and a political journalist, I live in London, and I come from the internet, just like you. I’m 29 years old, a pinko queer feminist social justice warrior, and a huge nerd.

Your new novella, Everything Belongs to the Future, will be published by Tor.com in October. I enjoyed it quite a bit. How would you introduce it to a potential reader?

It’s a near-future quasi-dystopian anarchist fable about biotechnology, surveillance, state violence, love and time. It’s got a cool weapon in it, and also some dirty bits.

What inspired you to write the novella? 

I’ve been interested in the politics and practical applications of biotechnology for a long time, and a scientist friend challenged me to write a story about anti-ageing treatments. Then it was a question of following the characters where they led.  Continue reading →

Guest Post: “The Ties That Bind” by Brad Beaulieu

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BeaulieuB-AuthorPicCropWhen I first started writing Of Sand and Malice Made, I didn’t have a small novel in mind, or even a set of interconnected novellas. It began only with a single story, “Irindai”, which eventually sold to Ragnarok Publications for their Blackguards anthology. But as I developed that first story I knew it wouldn’t be the last in the series. I started having more and more thoughts about where I could take the story’s primary mover, a djinni-like creature name Rümayesh. I thought more about the sons of the trickster god that were working against her. I thought more about the new character, Brama, a two-bit thief who got pulled into something much larger and more dangerous than he ever expected. And I thought about what it could all mean for the heroine of the series, Çeda. Continue reading →

Interview with JAMES BENNETT

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BennettB-AuthorPicLet’s start with an introduction: Who is James Bennett?

That’s a big question. James Bennett is someone who finds it weird to refer to himself in the third person, but who is, predominantly, a Fantasy writer. Also an international playboy. I made that last bit up.

Your debut novel, Chasing Embers, is published by Orbit. It looks rather intriguing: How would you introduce it to a potential reader? Is it part of a series?

Thank you. Chasing Embers relates the story of Ben Garston, who, to all intents and purposes, seems like your everyday Londoner, albeit a little rough around the edges. But Ben has a secret hiding under his skin. In fact, the world has a secret hiding under its skin. Imagine if all those medieval tales of fabulous beasts were actually real. Imagine if there were only a few of them left and living among us, endangered species, survivors in the modern world. The Ben Garston books take that idea as their central premise. Continue reading →

Interview with CASSANDRA KHAW

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KhawC-AuthorPicLet’s start with an introduction: Who is Cassandra Khaw?

Cassandra Khaw is definitely not used to talking in the third-person, so I’m going to make the switch back to first-person perspective. Most days, I’m the business developer (aka BUSINESS CAT) for Ysbryd Games, a Singaporean micropublisher that specializes in beautiful, narrative-rich video games. What this actually means is that I spent a lot of time sending emails. (So many emails. So many.) I also do other things like handle appointments, talk to reporters, talk to developers, talk to civilians, and bounce between countries like a pingpong ball on a caffeine high.

It’s great. Sometimes.

I also occasionally write for Eurogamer and Ars Technica. In the past, I worked as a tech and video games journalist for a variety of outlets, but that has taken a backseat with the proliferation of games we’re releasing and a focus in fiction.

When I’m not involved in all of that, I write video games and punch things, and occasionally people. Continue reading →

Upcoming: CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber (Hodder)

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GarberS-CaravalCaraval, Stephanie Garber’s debut novel is due to be published by Hodder in the UK. The animated cover was unveiled earlier today, and I thought the synopsis sounded quite interesting. (Also, that cover-GIF is pretty mesmerizing if you spend a little time watching it…) Here’s what it’s about:

Welcome to Caraval, where nothing is quite what it seems.

Scarlett has never left the tiny isle of Trisda, pining from afar for the wonder of Caraval, a once-a-year week-long performance where the audience participates in the show.

Caraval is Magic. Mystery. Adventure. And for Scarlett and her beloved sister Tella it represents freedom and an escape from their ruthless, abusive father.

When the sisters’ long-awaited invitations to Caraval finally arrive, it seems their dreams have come true. But no sooner have they arrived than Tella vanishes, kidnapped by the show’s mastermind organiser, Legend.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. But nonetheless she quickly becomes enmeshed in a dangerous game of love, magic and heartbreak. And real or not, she must find Tella before the game is over, and her sister disappears forever.

Looking forward to this. Caraval is due out January 31st, 2017. For new and updates, be sure to check out Garber’s website, and follow her on Twitter.