Books in the Mail (W/E 2015-10-03)

Here goes the books from last wheek which arrived on my doorstep.

An Apprentice to Elves (Iskryne #3) by Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette (Tor, Hardcover 10/13/2015) – Third in the collaborative series from Bear and Monette

Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear return with the third book in their Iskryne trilogy, An Apprentice to Elves. The trilogy began with A Companion to Wolves, and continued in The Tempering of Men. This novel picks up the story of Alfgyfa, a young woman who has been raised in the Wolfhall by her father Isolfr, who is the human leader of the queen-wolf Viridechtis' pack, and was the protagonist of the first book.

The warrior culture of Iskryne forbids many things to women-and most especially it forbids them bonding to one of the giant telepathic trellwolves. But as her father was no ordinary boy, Alfgyfa is no ordinary girl. Her father has long planned to send his daughter to Tin, a matriarch among the elves who live nearby, to be both apprentice and ambassador, and now she is of age to go.

Wake of Vultures (The Shadow #1) by Lila Bowen (Orbit, Hardcover 10/27/2015) – Weird West with praise from Matthew Stover?! Of course I’m reading this one because Lila Bowen is an open pseudonym for Delilah Dawson.

A rich, dark fantasy of destiny, death, and the supernatural world hiding beneath the surface.

Nettie Lonesome lives in a land of hard people and hard ground dusted with sand. She's a half-breed who dresses like a boy, raised by folks who don't call her a slave but use her like one. She knows of nothing else. That is, until the day a stranger attacks her. When nothing, not even a sickle to the eye can stop him, Nettie stabs him through the heart with a chunk of wood, and he turns into black sand.

And just like that, Nettie can see.

But her newfound ability is a blessing and a curse. Even if she doesn't understand what's under her own skin, she can sense what everyone else is hiding -- at least physically. The world is full of evil, and now she knows the source of all the sand in the desert. Haunted by the spirits, Nettie has no choice but to set out on a quest that might lead to her true kin... if the monsters along the way don't kill her first.

The King's Justice: Two Novellas by Stephen R. Donaldson (G.P. Putnam’s Sons Hardcover 10/15/2015) – Donaldson is one of those writers I read when I was first really getting into the fantasy genre, specifically his Thomas Covenant books, but I haven’t read the final 4. Yet. This book looks very interesting. Hardcover of the ARC I received in July.

Two new, original novellas—Donaldson's first publication since finishing the Thomas Covenant series—are a sure cause for celebration among his many fans. 

In The King's Justice, a stranger dressed in black arrives in the village of Settle's Crossways, following the scent of a terrible crime. He even calls himself "Black," though almost certainly that is not his name. The people of the village discover that they have a surprising urge to cooperate with this stranger, though the desire of inhabitants of quiet villages to cooperate with strangers is not common in their land, or most lands. But this gift will not save him as he discovers the nature of the evil concealed in Settle’s Crossways.

The Augur's Gambit is a daring plan created by Mayhew Gordian, Hieronomer to the Queen of Indemnie, a plan to save his Queen and his country. Gordian is a reader of entrails. In the bodies of chickens, lambs, piglets, and one stillborn infant he sees the same message: the island nation of Indemnie is doomed. But even in the face of certain destruction a man may fight, and the Hieronomer is utterly loyal to his beautiful Queen--and to her only daughter. The "Augur's Gambit" is his mad attempt to save a kingdom.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by George R.R. Martin and illustrated by Gary Gianni (Spectra Hardcover 10/06/2015) – A collection of the three Dunk and Egg novellas/short novels.


Taking place nearly a century before the events of A Game of Thrones, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms compiles the first three official prequel novellas to George R. R. Martin’s ongoing masterwork, A Song of Ice and Fire. These never-before-collected adventures recount an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne, and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living consciousness.

Before Tyrion Lannister and Podrick Payne, there was Dunk and Egg. A young, naïve but ultimately courageous hedge knight, Ser Duncan the Tall towers above his rivals—in stature if not experience. Tagging along is his diminutive squire, a boy called Egg—whose true name (hidden from all he and Dunk encounter) is Aegon Targaryen. Though more improbable heroes may not be found in all of Westeros, great destinies lay ahead for these two . . . as do powerful foes, royal intrigue, and outrageous exploits.

Featuring more than 160 all-new illustrations by Gary Gianni, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a must-have collection that proves chivalry isn’t dead—yet.

Ancillary Mercy (Volume 3 of Imperial Radch) by Orbit, Trade Paperback 10/06/2015) – The finale to Leckie’s multi-award-winning trilogy.

The stunning conclusion to the trilogy that began with the Hugo, Nebula, and Arthur C. Clarke award-winning Ancillary Justice.

For a moment, things seemed to be under control for Breq, the soldier who used to be a warship. Then a search of Athoek Station's slums turns up someone who shouldn't exist, and a messenger from the mysterious Presger empire arrives, as does Breq's enemy, the divided and quite possibly insane Anaander Mianaai - ruler of an empire at war with itself.

Breq refuses to flee with her ship and crew, because that would leave the people of Athoek in terrible danger. The odds aren't good, but that's never stopped her before. 

In the Ancillary world: 

1. Ancillary Justice

2. Ancillary Sword

3. Ancillary Mercy

The Bloodforged by Erin Lindsey (Ace Mass Market Paperback 09/29/20145 – Sequel to Lindsey’s VERY enjoyable first book in the series The Bloodbound. I hope to get to this sooner rather than later. Lindsey also writers under the name of E.L. Tettensor. This publishes one day short of exactly a year since the previous installment

The epic saga that started in The Bloodbound continues…

As war between Alden and Oridia intensifies, King Erik must defend his kingdom from treachery and enemies on all sides—but the greatest danger lurks closer to home…

When the war began, Lady Alix Black played a minor role, scouting at the edge of the king’s retinue in relative anonymity. Though she’s once again facing an attacking Oridian force determined to destroy all she holds dear, she is now bodyguard to the king and wife to the prince.

Still, she is unprepared for what the revival of the war will mean. Erik is willing to take drastic measures to defend his domain, even if it means sending Prince Liam into a deadly web of intrigue and traveling into the perilous wild lands of Harram himself.

Only the biggest threat to the kingdom might be one that neither Alix nor Erik could have imagined, or prepared for…


Radiance by Catherynne M. Valente (TorHardcover 10/20/2015) – I’ve been meaning to read Valente’s work for quite some time. This is the second book by her I’ve received this year so perhaps my excuses are wearing thin.

Radiance is a decopunk pulp SF alt-history space opera mystery set in a Hollywood-and solar system-very different from our own, from Catherynne M. Valente, the phenomenal talent behind the New York Times bestselling The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making.

Severin Unck's father is a famous director of Gothic romances in an alternate 1986 in which talking movies are still a daring innovation due to the patent-hoarding Edison family. Rebelling against her father's films of passion, intrigue, and spirits from beyond, Severin starts making documentaries, traveling through space and investigating the levitator cults of Neptune and the lawless saloons of Mars. For this is not our solar system, but one drawn from classic science fiction in which all the planets are inhabited and we travel through space on beautiful rockets. Severin is a realist in a fantastic universe.

But her latest film, which investigates the disappearance of a diving colony on a watery Venus populated by island-sized alien creatures, will be her last. Though her crew limps home to earth and her story is preserved by the colony's last survivor, Severin will never return.

Told using techniques from reality TV, classic film, gossip magazines, and meta-fictional narrative, Radiance is a solar system-spanning story of love, exploration, family, loss, quantum physics, and silent film.


A Borrowed Man edited by Gene Wolfe and (TorHardcover 10/20/2015) – A brand new SF novel from Gene Wolfe. ‘Nuff Said..

A Borrowed Man: a new science fiction novel, from Gene Wolfe, the celebrated author of the Book of the New Sun series.

It is perhaps a hundred years in the future, our civilization is gone, and another is in place in North America, but it retains many familiar things and structures. Although the population is now small, there is advanced technology, there are robots, and there are clones.

E. A. Smithe is a borrowed person. He is a clone who lives on a third-tier shelf in a public library, and his personality is an uploaded recording of a deceased mystery writer. Smithe is a piece of property, not a legal human.

A wealthy patron, Colette Coldbrook, takes him from the library because he is the surviving personality of the author of Murder on Mars. A physical copy of that book was in the possession of her murdered father, and it contains an important secret, the key to immense family wealth. It is lost, and Colette is afraid of the police. She borrows Smithe to help her find the book and to find out what the secret is. And then the plot gets complicated.

Books in the Mail (W/E 2013-08-10)

Just one book this week, this time from the fine folks at Orbit.

A Dance of Cloaks (Volume 1 of Shadowdance) by David Dalglish (Orbit, Trade Paperback 08/06/2013) – Following in the footsteps of Michael J. Sullivan, David Dalglish makes the leap from success in the self-published arena to traditionally published thanks to the fine folks at Orbit Books.

The Underworld rules the city of Veldaren. Thieves, smugglers, assassins... they fear only one man.

Thren Felhorn is the greatest assassin of his time. All the thieves' guilds of the city are under his unflinching control. If he has his way, death will soon spill out from the shadows and into the streets.

Aaron is Thren's son, trained to be heir to his father's criminal empire. He's cold, ruthless - everything an assassin should be. But when Aaron risks his life to protect a priest's daughter from his own guild, he glimpses a world beyond piston, daggers, and the iron rule of his father.

Assassin or protector; every choice has its consequences.
Fantasy author David Dalglish spins a tale of retribution and darkness, and an underworld reaching for ultimate power.



Billy Moon by Douglas Lain (Hardcover 08/27/2013 Tor) – The first novel from Lain after many acclaimed short stories.

In Douglas Lain's debut novel set during the turbulent year of 1968, Christopher Robin Milne, the inspiration for his father’s fictional creation, struggles to emerge from a manufactured life, in a story of hope and transcendence.

Billy Moon was Christopher Robin Milne, the son of A. A. Milne, the world-famous author of Winnie the Pooh and other beloved children's classics. Billy's life was no fairy-tale, though. Being the son of a famous author meant being ignored and even mistreated by famous parents; he had to make his own way in the world, define himself, and reconcile his self-image with the image of him known to millions of children. A veteran of World War II, a husband and father, he is jolted out of midlife ennui when a French college student revolutionary asks him to come to the chaos of Paris in revolt. Against a backdrop of the apocalyptic student protests and general strike that forced France to a standstill that spring, Milne's new French friend is a wild card, able to experience alternate realities of the past and present. Through him, Milne's life is illuminated and transformed, as are the world-altering events of that year. 

In a time when the Occupy movement eerily mirrors the political turbulence of 1968, this magic realist novel is an especially relevant and important book.





Shadows of the New Sun: Stories in Honor of Gene Wolfe edited by J.E. Mooney and Bill Fawcett (Hardcover 08/27/2013 Tor) – Many have called Wolfe not just the greatest living writer of SFF, but the greatest living writer, full stop. Thes stories are in honor of his best known work.

Perhaps no living author of imaginative fiction has earned the awards, accolades, respect, and literary reputation of Gene Wolfe. His prose has been called subtle and brilliant, inspiring not just lovers of fantasy and science fiction, but readers of every stripe, transcending genre and defying preconceptions.

In this volume, a select group of Wolfe’s fellow authors pay tribute to the award-winning creator of The Book of the New Sun, The Fifth Head of Cerberus, Soldier of the Mist, The Wizard Knight and many others, with entirely new stories written specifically to honor the writer hailed by The Washington Post as “one of America's finest.”

Shadows of the New Sun features contributions by David Brin, David Drake, Nancy Kress, and many others, plus two new short stories by Gene Wolfe himself.

Fantasy Writer Quiz/Meme - I'm Gene Wolfe!

Ganked from the ol' Hornswaggler and Grasping for the Wind

Your result for Which fantasy writer are you?...

Gene Wolfe (b. 1931)

15 High-Brow, 25 Violent, 3 Experimental and -1 Cynical!

Congratulations! You are High-Brow, Violent, Experimental and Romantic! These concepts are defined below.

US author Gene Wolfe is a very typical example of the kind of writer who is more appreciated by critics and, above all, other writers, than by the wider public. Science fiction writer Michael Swanwick has, for example, dubbed Gene Wolfe the greatest writer in the English language alive today. However, Wolfe's novel in four parts, The Book of the New Sun (1980-83), is widely known and considered a classic within both fantasy and science fiction (the book is generally considered fantasy although it is actually set in a distant future, where some technology may seem like magic to the novel's characters).

Wolfe, a veteran of the Korean war, is un-afraid of describing the fear and violence caused by warfare and the protagonist of his most well-known piece of fiction is a torturer, who at one time openly defends the importance of his work.

Wolfe is well-known for his stylistic excellence, often using first person narration in a masterful way. His narrators are often unreliable, for different reasons, sometimes leaving it up to the reader to read between the lines and figure out what's really going on.

Being a "literary" author, one of those few writers whose books it's worth the time and effort of reading more than once, does not stop Wolfe from being a great storyteller who is quite able to create all the magic and page-turning suspence of a typical best-selling writer. Much of this might stem from Wolfe's empathy with his characters and his almost religious commitment to his worlds. Several critics have pointed out the influence of Wolfe's strong Roman Catholic faith to his fiction.

No fantasy fan should go through life without having at least tried to read Wolfe. There are few writers who manage to put imagination back into the word fantasy like he does.

You are also a lot like Mary Gentle.

If you want something more gentle, try Tove Jansson.

If you'd like a challenge, try your exact opposite, Robert Jordan.

Your score

This is how to interpret your score: Your attitudes have been measured on four different scales, called 1) High-Brow vs. Low-Brow, 2) Violent vs. Peaceful, 3) Experimental vs. Traditional and 4) Cynical vs. Romantic. Imagine that when you were born, you were in a state of innocence, a tabula rasa who would have scored zero on each scale. Since then, a number of circumstances (including genetical, cultural and environmental factors) have pushed you towards either end of these scales. If you're at 45 or -45 you would be almost entirely cynical, low-brow or whatever. The closer to zero you are, the less extreme your attitude. However, you should always be more of either (eg more romantic than cynical). Please note that even though High-Brow, Violent, Experimental and Cynical have positive numbers (1 through 45) and their opposites negative numbers (-1 through -45), this doesn't mean that either quality is better. All attitudes have their positive and negative sides, as explained below.

High-Brow vs. Low-Brow

You received 15 points, making you more High-Brow than Low-Brow. Being high-browed in this context refers to being more fascinated with the sort of art that critics and scholars tend to favour, rather than the best-selling kind. At their best, high-brows are cultured, able to appreciate the finer nuances of literature and not content with simplifications. At their worst they are, well, snobs.

Violent vs. Peaceful

You received 25 points, making you more Violent than Peaceful. Please note that violent in this context does not mean that you, personally, are prone to violence. This scale is a measurement of a) if you are tolerant to violence in fiction and b) whether you see violence as a means that can be used to achieve a good end. If you are, and you do, then you are violent as defined here. At their best, violent people are the heroes who don't hesitate to stop the villain threatening innocents by means of a good kick. At their worst, they are the villains themselves.

Experimental vs. Traditional

You received 3 points, making you more Experimental than Traditional. Your position on this scale indicates if you're more likely to seek out the new and unexpected or if you are more comfortable with the familiar, especially in regards to culture. Note that traditional as defined here does not equal conservative, in the political sense. At their best, experimental people are the ones who show humanity the way forward. At their worst, they provoke for the sake of provocation only.

Cynical vs. Romantic

You received -1 points, making you more Romantic than Cynical. Your position on this scale indicates if you are more likely to be wary, suspicious and skeptical to people around you and the world at large, or if you are more likely to believe in grand schemes, happy endings and the basic goodness of humankind. It is by far the most vaguely defined scale, which is why you'll find the sentence "you are also a lot like x" above. If you feel that your position on this scale is wrong, then you are probably more like author x. At their best, romantic people are optimistic, willing to work for a good cause and an inspiration to their peers. At their worst, they are easily fooled and too easily lead.

Author picture from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Genewolf1.png Click the link for license info.

Take Which fantasy writer are you? at HelloQuizzy

Friday Review - Other Earths edited by Gevers & Lake

With a backlog of unposted reviews, I figured I’d post one before the weekend starts. Other Earths edited by Nick Gevers and Jay Lake is impressive with good stories by Gene Wolfe (Donovan Sent Us), Robert Charles Wilson (This Peaceable Land, or, The Unbearable Vision of Harriet Beecher Stowe), and Stephen Baxter (The Unblinking Eye) among others.

Books in the Mail (W/E 03/21/2009)

The weekly flow of books continues with some good stuff. I’ve already started one book that arrived.

Blue Diablo: (Corine Solomon #1) by Ann Aguirre (Roc Mass Market Paperback 04/07/2009) – Although Ann Aguirre has published a handful of novels at this point, Blue Diablo is the launch of a new series that is in the ubiquitous “Urban Fantasy” sub genre.

Corine Solomon is a handler—when she touches an object she instantly knows its history and its future. Using her ability, she can find the missing—which is why people never stop trying to find her. Like her ex-boyfriend Chance, who needs Corine's gift to find someone dear to them both. But the search proves dangerous as it leads them into a strange world of demons and sorcerers, ghosts and witchcraft, zombies—and black magic...

The Judging Eye: (The Aspect-Emperor Book One) by R. Scott Bakker (Overlook Press Hardcover February 2009). – Bakker’s Prince of Nothing trilogy is a defining fantasy saga of the early 21st Century and I was lucky enough to read the first one, The Darkness that Comes Before very early on in 2003 and it blew me away like few other debut novels I’d ever read before or since. Not long thereafter, I interviewed Scott and I’ve enjoyed each volume in The Prince of Nothing just as much (The Warrior-Prophet and The Thousandfold Thought). I’m already 130+ pages into it and I have a tough time putting it down.

The Darkness that Comes Before, The Warrior-Prophet and The Thousandfold Thought--collectively the Prince of Nothing Saga--were R. Scott Bakker's magnificent debut into the upper echelon of epic fantasy. In those three books, Bakker created a world that was at once a triumph of the fantastic and an historical epic as real as any that came before.

Widely praised by reviewers and a growing body of fans, Bakker has already established the reputation as one of the smartest writers in the fantasy genre--a writer in the line stretching from Homer to Peake to Tolkein. Now he returns to The Prince of Nothing with the long awaited The Judging Eye, the first book in an all-new series. Set twenty years after the end of The Thousandfold Thought, Bakker reintroduces us to a world that is at once familiar but also very different than the one readers thought they knew. Delving even further into his richly imagined universe of myth, violence, and sorcery, and fully remolding the fantasy genre to broaden the scope of intricacy and meaning, R. Scott Bakker has once again written a fantasy novel that defies all expectations and rewards the reader with an experience unlike any to be had in the canon of today's literature.

Mystery of Grace by Charles De Lint (Tor Hardcover 03/24/2009) – Charles de Lint was writing Urban Fantasy before the label/subgenre was taken over by vampire hunters, werewolves and wizards for hire. One of the best fantasy novels I read was his The Little Country, and I’ve read some of his short stories and a couple of novels, which were all good. This is a rarity for de Lint – a ‘mythic’ novel set outside of his popular Newford universe.

On the Day of the Dead, the Solona Music Hall is jumping. That's where Altagracia Quintero meets John Burns, just two weeks too late.

Altagracia – her friends call her Grace – has a tattoo of Nuestra Señora de Altagracia on her shoulder, she's got a Ford Motor Company tattoo running down her leg, and she has grease worked so deep into her hands that it'll never wash out. Grace works at Sanchez Motorworks, customizing hot rods. Finding the line in a classic car is her calling.

Now Grace has to find the line in her own life. A few blocks around the Alverson Arms is all her world -- from the little grocery store where she buys beans, tamales, and cigarettes (“cigarettes can kill you,” they tell her, but she smokes them anyway) to the record shop, to the library where Henry, a black man confined to a wheelchair, researches the mystery of life in death – but she’s got unfinished business keeping her close to home.

Grace loves John, and John loves her, and that would be wonderful, except that John, like Grace, has unfinished business – he’s haunted by the childhood death of his younger brother. He's never stopped feeling responsible. Like Grace in her way, John is an artist, and before their relationship can find its resolution, the two of them will have to teach each other about life and love, about hot rods and Elvis Presley, and about why it's necessary to let some things go.


Other Earths edited by Nick Gevers and Jay Lake (DAW Mass Market Paperback 04/07/2009) – This is DAW’s monthly themed anthology proving once again that short fiction really isn’t dead. I’ve never really had more than a passing interest in Alternate History, but the writers in this anthology do interest me a great deal: Jeff VanderMeer, Gene Wolfe, Alastair Reynolds, and Robert Charles Wilson.

What if Lincoln never became president, and the Civil War never took place? What if Columbus never discovered America, and the Inca developed a massive, technologically advanced empire? What if magic was real and a half-faerie queen ruled England? What if an author discovered a book written by an alternate version of himself?

These are just some of the possible pathways that readers can take to explore the Other Earths that may be waiting just one page away.


The Burning Skies (Book #2 of Autumn Rain) by David J. Williams (Bantam Spectra Trade Paperback 05/19/2009) – Mark/Hobbit read and enjoyed the first novel (The Mirrored Heavens), which was also the author’s debut novel last year.

Autumn Rain’s plan to nail the president at the secret summit conference he’s holding with the Eurasian leadership.


Ballistic Babes ( Zach Johnson, P.I. Omnibus #2) by John Zakour and Lawrence Ganem – (DAW Mass Market Paperback 04/07/2009) – This book is another great instance of DAW keeping an author’s backlist easily available and affordable. These are the 3rd and 4th novels set in a far future about the last human Private Investigator.
Two beauties. One volume. An omnibus edition of The Radioactive Redhead and The Frost-Haired Vixen

Double your pleasure, double the laughs with this omnibus edition featuring Zachary Nixon Johnson, the last freelance P.I. on Earth. It's 2057, and Zach is partnered with an experimental A.I. named HARV . In what is both an homage to and a parody of the great heyday of pulp fiction, they solve cases involving androids, future tech wizards, and of course, the occasional nuclear-powered, genocidal fembot.

Locus Awards: 30 Years (an experiment)

The Locus Awards : Thirty Years of the Best in Science Fiction and Fantasy edited by Charles N. Brown and Jonathan Strahan

I will try to write mini-reviews for each of these short stories as I read them, and start this whole little experiment with this: I am growing more fond of stories in their short form and I acquired this particular book from my brother-in-law. He is an undergrad and had an SF Lit class last year and passed the book on to me. I'd wanted to get the book anyway, and I've now gotten around to reading it. Under the guiding editorial hands of Charles Brown (Locus Publisher) and Jonathan Strahan (Locus Reviews Editor) this book has gathered, ideally, the best representatives of the Locus Award winning short stories and novellettes over the past thirty years. A daunting task indeed for these two gentlemen, but

The Death of Doctor Island by Gene Wolfe

I consider myself a fan of Gene Wolfe's writing, I've loved* everything I've read by him up until this point, and I look forward to discovering some of his older classics. Unfortunately, this story didn't entirely work for me. Perhaps because I read it in multiple sittings, I don't know. The narrative seemed a bit more disjointed than other work I've read by him. Of course, the majority of Wolfe's work I've read is his novel-lenght work, including the whole Sun oeuvre, the two Latro stories, the WizardKnight & There are Doors.

It wasn't that The Death of Doctor Island was a bad story, obviously it really isn't since it won a Locus award, but I didn't connect with it the way I would have liked. I feel there were enough interesting things going on that I'd be willing to either try this particular story again in the future, or simply acquire the whole sequence of Doctor Island stories in The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories.

One story down and I'll call this an interesting, if unsatisfying entry.

* I didn't care for The Litany of the Long Sun when I initially read it, but upon seeing such wonderful things about Wolfe's Short Sun saga, I tried again and was greatly rewarded. I'm thinking (and really hoping) this is the case for this particular story, too.

Beer, writers, comics

It’s been a while since I did a beer of the week and a writer of the week. Perhaps they will now be on monthly basis. My beer of the week is a new one from Sam Adams, or at least one that’s new to me: Samuel Adams Black Lager. A pretty smooth beer with a pleasant after-taste, not the best one from Samuel Adams, but one I’d definitely partake in again. Though I really wish they would bring back their Honey Porter, loved that beer.


Writer of the month is Gene Wolfe, one of the finest living writers. Period. I finished The Wizard Knight about two weeks ago, and like all of his work that I’ve read, it continues to float in my senses and in my head. One of his greatest strengths is that his writing gets better with multiple readings, and he packs so much into what he writers, that multiple readings are a necessary joy. His Book of the New Sun is one of the acknowledged masterpieces of the SF genre, often mentioned in the same breath as Tolkien’s work, Herbert’s work, Heinlein’s work, and Vance’s work.

Sad sad news as the NHL season is cancelled. Let’s hope, as some are speculating, that when things are settled, their hopes of changing some of the rules, and what not will draw more fans. Probably the best would be the shoot-out to break ties – a no-brainer for SportsCenter highlights.

The Nebula awards have been announced:

· Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell
· Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, Cory Doctorow
· The Knight, Gene Wolfe
· Omega, Jack McDevitt
· Paladin of Souls, Lois McMaster Bujold
· Perfect Circle, Sean Stewart

The only one I’ve read is The Knight, so I’d like to see that win. I have read and enjoyed a good handful of books by McDevitt (Moonfall, The Engines of God, Ancient Shores, and Infinity Beach), Sean Stewart’s wonderful Galveston and right now I’m reading Bujold’s Young Miles and enjoying that quite a bit.

DC Comics recently told us what they are publishing in May, and there are some interesting things. The bad news is that Fallen Angel #20 is the final issue of the series. Aside from my normal haul, I'll give Action Comics shot to see how Byrne & Simone work together, JSA since it’s touting the return of Captain Marvel and Morrison’s Seven Soldiers . I’m a sucker for big crossovers so I’ll at least try The Rann/Thanagar War & Villains United. I’m probably most looking forward to Green Lantern #1 since Pacheco’s art is amazing and I like what Johns is doing in Green Lantern: Rebirth. I may try out Desolation Jones, too. No new collections from Vertigo in May to look forward to.

And lastly, as one who blogs about comics, I’m sort of obliged to post The 100 things I love about comics:

1. 80-page and 100-page Giants
2. Alan Davis
3. Alan Moore
4. Alan Scott
5. All the Marvel comics my friend John lent me
6. back issue bins
7. Batman
8. Bizarro - not just the character, but the idea of Bizarro things in life
9. Bizarro Justice League
10. Booster Gold - not just the character but all 25 issues
11. Calvin & Hobbes
12. Captain America by Waid/Garney
13. Captain Marvel's rogue's gallery - Mr. Mind, Black Adam, etc
14. Comic Book catch-phrases "Great Hera!" "Merciful Rao!" "I SAY THEE NAY" "HOLY MOLEY!" "AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!" "HULK SMASH!"
15. Comic book conventions
16. Comic book "science and logic"
17. Crisis on Infinte Earths
18. Darkseid
19. DC Comics Presents
20. Definitive Runs
21. Discovering new titles and hunting down the back issues
22. Dr. Doom
23. Dressing up like Superman, Spider-man and Captain America for Halloween
24. Earth-2, Earth-S, Earth-X, Pre-Crisis DC
25. Elseworlds - before it was over-used
26. Evil Dopplegangers
27. For the Man Who Has Everything by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons
28. Galactus
29. George Perez
30. Gil Kane - one of the first artists whose style I instantly recognized
31. Gorillas, especially talking telepathic gorillas
32. Grant Morrison
33. Great creative teams with Synchronicity in storytelling - Waid/Wieringo, Morrison/Quietly, Kirby/Lee, Claremont/Byrne, O'Neill/Adams
34. Green Lantern
35. Green Lantern/Green Arrow by O'neill and Adams
36. GrimJack
37. http://fanboyrampage.blogspot.com, http://www.progressiveruin.com and the rest of the comics blogo-verse
38. "Imaginary Stories"
39. In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight, let those who worship EVIL's might...beware my power..GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT
40. Jack Kirby
41. Jack Kirby's DC Super Powers miniseries
42. JLA/Avengers
43. John Byrne's work in the 80s
44. Julius Schwartz
45. Keeping Ma & Pa Kent alive
46. King Kirby
47. Kingdom Come
48. Krypto
49. Kurt Busiek
50. Letter columns
51. Mark Waid's run on The Flash
52. Martha Washington Goes to War by Miller/Gibbons
53. Marvel's 25th anniversary covers
54. Marvel v. DC - not so much the limited series but the years of fans bickering that inspired it
55. Marvels by Busiek & Ross
56. Morrison's JLA
57. Nazis - the ultimate comic book villians
58. Neal Adams' Batman
59. 
    
60. 
    
61. Nightcrawler Limited series from the '80s
62. Parallel Universes
63. Peter David's The Incredible Hulk
64. Preacher
65. Rogues Galleries
66. Secret Wars
67. Spider-man
68. Spider-man and his Amazing Friends
69. Stan the Man
70. Superfriends
71. Superhero Records
72. Superman/Captain Marvel battles
73. Superman/Flash Races
74. Superman: Secret Identity
75. The Adventures of Kavalier and Klay
76. The Amalgam Age of Comics
77. The Big Red Cheese - the original Captain Marvel SHAZAM!
78. The Crime Syndicate of Amerika of Earth-2 and Earth-3
79. The Crow
80. The Dark Knight Returns
81. The Fantastic Four
82. The Far Side
83. The Flash - all incarnations and the handling of the legacy of the character
84. The Tribute to the death of Barry Allen in Quasar
85. The Golden Age by Robinson & Smith
86. The Killing Joke
87. The old comics and electronics shop I visited in my youth to get $.25 & $.50 back issues
88. The Rainbow Bridge to Asgard
89. The Rogues
90. Trade Paperbacks
91. Treasury Editions from the '70s
92. Underoos - lets face they wouldn't be around without comics & superheroes - and who DIDN'T own a pair?
93. Walt Simonson's Thor
94. Watchmen
95. Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?
96. Wonder Woman
97. X-Men annual #11
98. Y: The Last Man
99. You will believe a man can fly - The first Superman movie
100. 12.95 Marvel Masterworks at Barnes & Noble

Shinedown The Wizard

Mrs. Blog O’ Stuff picked up Shinedown’s debut CD for us the other day, Leave a Whisper. I’d been hearing Shinedown on the local rock station WDHA for over a year now and was really impressed with what I heard: the powerful ballad showcasing lead singer Brent Smith’s stunning voice: .45, both the original and the acoustic, the faster Fly from the Inside and their acoustic cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Simple Man. This is an extremely impressive debut album, Smith’s vocals are an amazing compliment to guitarist Jasin Todd, bassist Brent Smith and Barry Kirch’s singular musical sound. I’d probably classify the group as hard rock and call them simply great. Leave a Whisper is a polished, great sounding album, not by just debut standards, but by hard rock standards overall. I am looking forward to more of their albums and hope to see them in concert, though now I am kicking myself for not going to see them at the Starland Ballroom over the holidays in 2004. Methinks they’d be a great opening act for Godsmack if and when Godsmack tours later this year.

Also finished up The Wizard by Gene Wolfe over the weekend. Even though this was really the second part of a novel, it started off a bit more weakly than The Knight. I think that is because Wolfe switched from Able’s first person narrative to Able referring the story of his companions after they separated. Once Able came onto the stage, though, the book returned to the level of excellence Wolfe accomplished with The Knight. This isn’t to say that the early portion of The Wizard was bad, just that by comparison, not as strong as the other portions of the story. And let's face it, those who have read Wolfe will agree that reading Wolfe when he is a notch below his strongest efforts is far superior to 99% of most writers at their absolute best.

The last 100 or so pages of the novel were absolutely wonderful. Packed with emotion, thought, choices and introspection, I think it will be difficult for anything I read for the remainder of this year to move me emotionally and entertain me as much as did Wolfe’s Wizard Knight. I don’t know if Mr. Wolfe plans on penning more stories of Sir Able or any of the characters from this rich novel, but the door is open. While any of Gene Wolfe’s work is worthy of excitement, more tales of these characters would be most welcome.

Mrs. Blog o' Stuff and I went to the Rutgers vs. Georgetown Basketball game on Saturday and both teams didn’t look good. Rutgers was sloppy at the end of the first half arrived, but did make a nice little comeback towards the end of the game, which was too late. Rutgers basketball does look to be getting a better profile now that Gary Waters is doing such a fine job. It would be real nice to see them in the NIT again this year, though I highly doubt they will be invited.

Good Superbowl last night, I was really hoping the Eagles would pull it off, and at the end of the game, they came pretty close, too.

A new Batman Begins trailer was shown during the game and the Web site for the movie has been pretty substantially updated. Interviews, Wallpapers & other downloads, (one of which is now on my computer). Have I geeked-out enough for this film on my blog yet? I think I'm looking forward to this even more than Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith even though super-cool writer Matthew Woodring Stover has written the Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith novelization. Though I think am more looking forward to the novlization than the movie, I think.

Lastly, less than two weeks until Pitchers and Catchers!