So Long and a Big Thank You to SF Signal

Since it is public now, I can post my thoughts about John DeNardo and JP Franz closing the doors of the Hugo Award Winning SF Signal.

I’ve been engaged in the online genre community since I joined the SFFWorld forums in 2000, even more so when I began writing for SFFWorld in 2003. Around that time, SF Signal launched and grew into one of the three or four mainstays of the SFF intarwebs, attracting great contributors, fostering relationships with writers and fans, and helping to promote a true sense community within the genre and winning 3 Hugo Awards, 2 for best Fanzine (2012 & 2013) and one for best Fancast in 2014.

Writing for SF Signal helped me to engage in the community, I came to know more people and become friends with many of them, including peers from other genre websites, SF publishing professionals, as well as writers. To name a few I’ve hung out with in “real life,” John Anealio, Fred Kiesche, Shecky, and Ed Lazellari. I’ve made some really good online friendships as a result of SF Signal as well, not the least of which include Paul Weimer, Jeff Patterson, Sarah Chorn, Kristin Centorcelli (aka My Bookish Ways), Patrick Hester, David Annadale, Andrea Johnson,  Michael R. Underwood, Mike Martinez, Shana DuBois, Django Wexler, Andrew Liptak, John H. Stevens among others.

Thanks must to also go Patrick Hester for throwing out the (albeit mass) email invite to be on the SF Signal podcast and allowing me on the podcast not once (Episode 228: Upcoming 2014 Books We Need To Read And Why) but twice (Episode 273: The Best SFF Book, TV Show, Movie, Comic Book, Game or other thing you consumed in 2014). This led to appearances on other Podcasts (Functional Nerds run by John Anealio and Patrick and Rocket Talk with Justin Landon). 

John was a great editor, as was Kristin Centorcelli during her tenure as Associate Editor. allowing me to bounce ideas off of them for my contributions and providing smart suggestions when I was having a tough time with a book review or article I wanted to post to SF Signal. If, rather hopefully when, I meet them in “real life” I can buy them each an adult beverage of their choice, because they more than deserve it.

I completely understand John and JP’s reasons for closing SF Signal. To run a webzine that has new posts nearly every hour nearly every day can be (and is in the case of places like Tor.com) a full time job. Yet these two generous, passionate fans did this not only of their own free time, but their own money for server/hosting costs. Granted, they do run advertisements, but much of that income (HA! Income from websites) went back into making it possible for SF Signal to be the active, robust web site – COMMUNITY – into which it so wonderfully grew over the years.

Bottom line, everybody involved in SF Signal had enthusiasm for SFF, the community, and sharing this enthusiasm with each other. John and JP helped to make the genre and online community a great place, were big contributors to the friendly atmosphere of not only the online genre community, but the current genre community as a whole. As such, the genre community as a whole is a little lesser without SF Signal as an active part of it.

Where does this leave me? Well, like I said, I completely understand their reasons. I’ll still be contributing quite a bit over at SFFWorld and whenever Tor.com will have me, I’ll be there, too. My blog is going through some changes. As regular readers may have noticed, I didn’t post a Books in the Mail this past Sunday, I’ll no longer be posting those. Other than that, the future is still open and I may touch upon that in a later post.

But again, a big thank you to John, JP, Patrick and all the other great folks behind the scenes at SF Signal. It was a great run for them and I couldn’t be more proud and honored to be part of it for the past few years.

For a really great summation of the situation from an outsider of SF Signal, but a great fan (and Hugo winner in his own right), Aidan Moher did a nice little twitter “rant” which he Storified:

Suddenly, a Decade has Passed

Meanwhile, behind the façade of this innocent looking bookstore…

10 years later and I’m still at this whole blogging thing. Having recently turned 40, this blog has been part of my daily/weekly routine for a quarter of my life. I can’t say that about many things. Since starting the blog:

• I’m at my fourth job since starting the blog
• My wife and I moved from one part of NJ (Middlesex County) to another part of NJ (Somerset County, which lends credence to the “Garden State” nickname for NJ)
• I’ve branched out in my reviewing and genre writing, going from reviews only at SFFWorld to writing for SF Signal, Tor.com and for a while, the San Francisco/Sacramento Book Review
• The publishing landscape has changed dramatically with the advent of ebooks, the strengthening of the blogger/publisher relationship, and self-publishing
• As such, I acquired a Kindle about three years ago
• The online community has changed, too. We are still present, just talking differently. Whereas Bulletin Boards/Forums were massively active about ten years ago, twitter, reddit and facebook have taken the conversations out of the forums.
• I've been keeping track of the review books I receive in the mail from publishers for about half the time the blog has been active (since April/May 2008)
• I’ve met a good number of authors at various events; Tor.com meet-ups, NY Comic Con, and author signings
• Since 2006, (as well as 2007, 2008,  2009, 2010, 2011, 2012) I've recapped my "reading year in review," including this past year (2013) 
• I began running, and in doing so, completed 2 half-marathons and many, many 5Ks
• Last and certainly not least, as I've pointed out previously, the wife and I acquired a dog, Sully 

Completiest and Mind Meld at SF Signal

Last week my latest Completist column posted to SF Signal, this time featuring Peeps, the young adult vampire apocalypse duo from Scott Westerfeld:

Vampires, we all know them and at one point they were supposed to be scary creatures that could take over your soul, drink your blood and destroy you. Well, over the years to say the vampire has lost some of its scary edge is an understatement. While Dracula did have some sexiness to him, the modern perception of the vampire is less scary and more sexy. Enter Scott Westerfeld and his two book series which includes Peeps and The Last Days. These books tell the story of a world on the brink of apocalypse, overrun by vampires, but not your average vampires and are rarely referred to as such. Rather, they are “peeps” as the title indicates, peep being a shortening of the term parasite positive. You see, in Westerfeld’s tale, parasites cause the stricken person to shun both the light and that which he or she loved in their previous life. Throughout the first novel Peeps, Westerfeld injects a logical scientific explanation for many of the tropes of the vampire legend. By doing this, Westerfeld allows the novel to be read on many levels: a vampire novel, a young adult novel [which it is marketed as], a horror novel (mashed up with science fiction), or a dark fantasy novel.

Also, my role at SF Signal has grown in the past few weeks. In addition to the occasional book review, I am now one of the Mind Meld curators for the SF Signal overlords John DeNardo and JP Frantz.  As such, my first Mind Meld posted yesterday and asked the question:

Q: How long do you have a book before you read it? We, as biblioholics and voracious readers often accumulate books at a greater pace than we can read them. What is the longest you’ve had a book before you’ve read it and/or how long do you typically let a book sit before you read it?

The participants included:

1. Ellen B. Wright, the Senior Marketing Sorceress for Orbit books 
2. My long time friend and colleague from SFFWorld - Mark Yon (aka Hobbit)
3. Kristen Bell, purveyor of the fine blog/web site Fantasy Café
4. Mark Chitty, another SFFWorld colleague, but he and I have been internet pals before he was writing for SFFWorld back when he was running the great SF blog Walker of Worlds
5. Twitter chum Kathryn A. Ryan (aka @Loerwyn)
6. N.E. White, Writer/Editor and fellow SFFWorld moderator and reviewer (and editor of the forthcoming Wars to End All Wars themed anthology (for which I'm reading some stories and doing some edits)
7. Jennie Ivins, a fellow NJ SFF fan and one of the folks behind Fantasy-Faction
8. SFF blogger and fellow beer aficionado Joe Sherry
   and lastly...
9. The great Sarah Chorn owner and supreme overseer of Bookworm Blues.

So go find out what they had to say! (http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2014/06/mind-meld-how-long-do-you-have-a-book-before-you-read-it/)

New Template, Version 6

About eight months ago, I changed the template on my blog so naturally, I'm changing it again today.  While the previous template looked pretty nice, I realized after reading quite a few books on my kindle, I like reading white/light grey text on a black background. Also, I don't like the way my sidebar was hidden in the previous dynamic view of the blog. 

This current design is very close to what it was prior to the change over in March. Yeah, I know, I'm a little obsessed with the Red and Black color combination, but the colors  happen to be from my alma mater and my favorite NHL team, the (currently terrible) New Jersey Devils.

So, here it is, the 6th iteration of my blog.  I'll also show off one of the signatures I received at NY Comic Con last month, Elizabeth Bear's signature on Range of Ghosts.

Soft Re-Boot for Rob's Blog o' Stuff

So, after a little about three years, I've rejiggered the blog again.  I've kept the red but changed background to white and I've settled on this current look.  For my eyes, this seems a cleaner and more professional look than what I had before.  I believe this is the fifth layout change I've made since I started this blog back in 2004.  In blog years, that makes me something like 83 years old

I've also changed the URL to 

robbedford.blogspot.com

Along with the modified look and feel, I'll be posting more content here - more reviews rather than linking to them at SFFWorld, (though a decent number of reviews will be reposted older reviews from SFFWorld), some more interviews, and maybe some guest posts from authors and/or maybe some blogger/reviewers from the online genre community. Basically, I'm aiming for a more unified and singular location for my my reviews and ramblings

To close out the post, and for the hell of it, here's another picture of my dog Sully. Like me, she's looking forward to what the future will bring.

Greyfriar and Blog-o-versary

Just one review this time ‘round at SFFWorld and it happens to be mine.

But first ... About a week ago, this blog turned 6 years old. Hoooo-leeee crap. I wasn't sure what it would evolve into but I didn't imagine as a result of this and my work at SFFWorld that I would be getting so many books. When I first started, I was reading quite a few comic book blogs and only one or two of those folks are still blogging regularly. Or at least regularly with content that I continue to read.

I guess in blog years, 6 years makes me one of the crotchety old dudes. So stop speeding down my street and keep off my lawn! I moved to a new house, switched jobs about three times and got a dog in the time since I began this blog. A lot of newer blogs have cropped up and far surpassed the consistency and quality of content I post here. Folks like Adam, Aidan, Amanda, Andrew, Graeme, James, Jeff, Kristen, Liviu/Robert/Mihir/Cindy, The Mad Hatter, Mark, and Pat just to name a few.

Back to regularly scheduled programming, my latest review which is Clay and Susan Griffith’s first book in their Vampire Empire series, The Greyfriar:

The Vampire Empire is set in the year 2020, 150 years after Vampires have come out of hiding to wage war on humanity. The vampires have taken over a good portion of Europe and driven humans to the equatorial regions since vampires don’t deal well with warm weather. The novel begins when Princess Adele’s airship is taken down by vampires on the way to meeting her betrothed Senator Grant, a larger than life American who killed quite a few vampires over the course of the war. Although Adele is reluctant to marry this man, she realizes the marriage will unite the two human nations under one banner which would give humans a better chance at fighting the war against the Vampires. Fortunately for Adele and the hopes of humanity, the mysterious Greyfriar comes to save the day and rescues her from the vampires.

The authors smartly show both sides of the vampire-human war. While this doesn’t necessarily paint the vampires in any better a light, it doesn’t make them an unknowable evil. Through character conversations, the Griffiths reveal a backstory for the vampires that doesn’t differ entirely too much from the commonly accepted as the vampire myth with a few exceptions. For example, the aforementioned aversion to warm weather is a logical enhancement to the myth. However, what was interesting was the mention of vampire children, and vampire women birthing vampire babies. Clearly, there is something more to be told here of the origins of the vampires.

In the end, I enjohed the novel, but I couldn’t help but compare it to E.E. Knights Vampire Earth saga, which works for me more so than the Griffith’s efforts. At least one book into the series.

Also, that image above does NO justice to the physical book as foil stamping and 'real life' coloring compared to a jpeg, in this case, is worlds apart.

MEME | Finish the Thought With a Title

Courtesy of The Mad Hatter...

Complete the following sentences with book titles that you have read this year. Put the author of the book in parenthesis.

I am: The Stuff of Legend (Mike Raicht, Brian Smith & Charles Paul Wilson III)
I will never be: By Heresies Distressed (David Weber)
I fear: Neverland(Douglas Clegg)
My best friend is: The Dragon Reborn (Robert Jordan)
What’s the weather like? Cold Magic (Kate Elliott)
Best Advice: No Doors, No Windows (Joe Schreiber)
I’ve never been to: Elegy Beach (Steven R. Boyett)
Favorite form of transport: Jump Gate Twist (Mark L. Van Name)
I’ll never fit in at: The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms (N.K. Jemisin)
How I’d like to die: With the Old Breed (E.B. Sledge)
You and your friends are: Warriors (edited by George R.R. Martin & Gardner Dozios)
Thought for the day: Bitter Seeds (Ian Tregillis)
Your soul’s present condition: Earth Ascendant (Sean Williams)

Gollancz Fantasy Masterworks Meme

We did this with the Science Fiction Masterworks and this Fantasy version was knacked specifically from the Mad Hatter. The standard instructions for memes like this is to bold books one has read, italicize books one owns but hasn't read yet, and strikethrough books one violently disagrees with.

1. The Book of the New Sun, Volume 1: Shadow and Claw - Gene Wolfe
2. Time and the Gods - Lord Dunsany
3. The Worm Ouroboros - E.R. Eddison
4. Tales of the Dying Earth - Jack Vance
5. Little, Big - John Crowley (I hated this book, but understand many, many people adore it)
6. The Chronicles of Amber - Roger Zelazny
7. Viriconium - M. John Harrison (It isn’t so much that I didn’t like the book, I just felt very meh towards it and don’t get why it is held in such reverence)
8. The Conan Chronicles, Volume 1: The People of the Black Circle - Robert E. Howard (Read in the Del Rey reprints of the Wandering Star volumes)
9. The Land of Laughs - Jonathan Carroll
10. The Compleat Enchanter: The Magical Misadventures of Harold Shea - L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt
11. Lud-in-the-Mist - Hope Mirrlees
12. The Book of the New Sun, Volume 2: Sword and Citadel - Gene Wolfe
13. Fevre Dream - George R. R. Martin
14. Beauty - Sheri S. Tepper
15. The King of Elfland's Daughter - Lord Dunsany
16. The Conan Chronicles, Volume 2: The Hour of the Dragon - Robert E. Howard (Read in the Del Rey reprints of the Wandering Star volumes)
17. Elric - Michael Moorcock (Read in both the SFBC omnibus and in the White Wolf Eternal Champion ominbus series)
18. The First Book of Lankhmar - Fritz Leiber (Read in the SFBC omnibus edition The Three of Swords)
19. Riddle-Master - Patricia A. McKillip (Read in the Ace omnibus edition)
20. Time and Again - Jack Finney
21. Mistress of Mistresses - E.R. Eddison
22. Gloriana or the Unfulfill'd Queen - Michael Moorcock
23. The Well of the Unicorn - Fletcher Pratt
24. The Second Book of Lankhmar - Fritz Leiber
25. Voice of Our Shadow - Jonathan Carroll
26. The Emperor of Dreams - Clark Ashton Smith
27. Lyonesse I: Suldrun's Garden - Jack Vance
28. Peace - Gene Wolfe
29. The Dragon Waiting - John M. Ford
30. Corum: The Prince in the Scarlet Robe - Michael Moorcock (Read in the White Wolf Eternal Champion ominbus series)
31. Black Gods and Scarlet Dreams - C.L. Moore I read this in an old copy entitled Jirel of Joiry
32. The Broken Sword - Poul Anderson
33. The House on the Borderland and Other Novels - William Hope Hodgson
34. The Drawing of the Dark - Tim Powers (What’s not to love when a major plot element is beer!?)
35. Lyonesse II and III: The Green Pearl and Madouc - Jack Vance
36. The History of Runestaff - Michael Moorcock (Perhaps one of, if not my favorite incarnations of Moorcock’s Eternal Champions-Read in the Eternal Champion ominbus series)
37. A Voyage to Arcturus - David Lindsay
38. Darker Than You Think - Jack Williamson
39. The Mabinogion - Evangeline Walton
40. Three Hearts & Three Lions - Poul Anderson
41. Grendel - John Gardner
42. The Iron Dragon's Daughter - Michael Swanwick
43. WAS - Geoff Ryman
44. Song of Kali - Dan Simmons
45. Replay - Ken Grimwood
46. Sea Kings of Mars and Other Worldly Stories - Leigh Brackett
47. The Anubis Gates - Tim Powers
48. The Forgotten Beasts of Eld - Patricia A. McKillip
49. Something Wicked This Way Comes - Ray Bradbury
50. The Mark of the Beast and Other Fantastical Tales - Rudyard Kipling

Back from Vacation, but for How Long?

It’s been a while since I posted here, with vacation and another thing or two taking up my time. One of which was catch up at work after vacation and the other can be seen at the bottom of this post.

As for my latest review, it is of a modern classic of the genre. Or, at the very least, part of one of the modern classic Science Fiction series. That series is Iain M. Banks’s The Culture and the book is The Player of Games

As the title would indicate, Gurgeh is a renowned game player in the Culture and he is offered a chance to compete at what is considered a very complex game that defines a society not part of the Culture itself – the Azad. Azad is the name of the game and the society. The background here is that the Culture doesn’t make its presence known to planets or societies that don’t have sufficiently advanced technology, which happens to be the case with Azad. The Culture wishes to use Gurgeh to get a feel for the civilization of Azad and whether or not Azad is a threat or potential ally. Fluffing out that straightforward plot is the complexity of how Gurgeh was ‘recruited’ by the Culture to infiltrate Azad.

Mark/Hobbit asked, after I bounced him the review for a once-over before I posted it to SFFWorld, if I was less enthralled because the book was 20+ years old and was perhaps dated. I don’t think so, because I didn’t find the plot entirely enthralling and even the description didn’t light off all my bells before reading it. That said, what I’ve read of Banks I really enjoyed so I felt it necessary to read the book, and I want to make my way through the entire The Culture saga. Specifically, I do want to jump into Use of Weapons as I’ve heard/seen/read great things about the book.

As for the other reason my blogging and net life has been less active? We’ll the o’ Stuff household has grown a bit in the past week as we adopted a puppy last week. Her name is Sully, after the lead singer of our favorite band Godsmack. Yeah we know Sully of Godsmack is a man our dog is a girl, but she won’t know the difference. Her mother is Great Pyrenees and the rescue organization from whom we adopted her thinks the father was a Labrador Retriever. Of course, most places will default to the Lab since the breed is so loved and the most popular breed. Regardless, Sully is active, curious, very smart, fun, and can be a bit of a handful. Then again, she’s a puppy so that’s to be expected.








I'll still be posting links to SFFWorld reviews. I may continue my Books in the Mail posts, they are more time consuming to post than one would expect, so maybe I'll just add highlights of rather than the entire weekly haul. I hope my millions of readers like dogs, because I'll probably continue to post pictures of the crazy four-legged ball of fur.

Book Review/Stats Meme

Since Adam and Pat are doing it, among others, I figured I might as well do it, too with a couple of disclaimers. The tally is for all the books I’ve read (35), not just those I reviewed (20) and not all are 2010 books. 15 of the books are 2010 books and all the 2010 books (graphic novels excluded) I read were for review.

Here's the Publisher List:

Ace: 3 (3)
BantamSpectra: 1 (1)
Black Library: 1 (1)
DAW: 2 (2)
DC Comics: 2
Del Rey: 3 (2)
Eos: 1 (1)
Marvel: 5
Night Shade Books: 1 (1)
Orbit: 2 (2)
Presidio Press: 1
Pyr: 2 (2)
Roc: 2
Tor: 8 (4)
Vanguard: 1 (1)

Gender:
3 women
32 Men
2 mixed (anthologies)
9 authors were new to me, 3 were debuts.

The reviews are primarily up at SFFWorld, with two (one from EOS and one from Orbit) over at the San Francisco / Sacramento Book Review. The large spike with Tor is due to my Wheel of Time re-read.

Book Habits Meme - Spring 2010 Version

Nacked from James, who nacked it from The World in the Satin Bag…

What is your favorite drink while reading?

Usually a glass of water or beer. The type of beer depends on the season, of course. In cooler months, maybe a pint of Guinness or pumpkin in warmer months, maybe a Hoegaarden or summer ale.

Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you?

No, not never.

How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears? Laying the book flat open?

Either a book mark or the promotional/marketing letter included with the book.

Fiction, nonfiction, or both?

Mostly fiction, but occasionally a sports biography, a war book (like the excellent With the Old Breed by E.B. Sledge, the basis for HBO’s The Pacific.

Are you a person who tends to read to the end of a chapter, or can you stop anywhere?

I try to read through to the end of a chapter, or one of those double-paragraph breaks – the sub chapter.

Are you the type of person to throw a book across the room or on the floor if the author irritates you?

The only book I every threw across the room in disgust, since I’ve been reviewing, is Sara Douglass’s Hades Daughter. I came close with a couple of others, though.

If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop and look it up right away?

If I’m near a computer, I’ll rock a Wiki.

What are you currently reading?

Shadowrise by Tad Williams and Swords and Dark Magic edited by Jonathan Strahan and Lou Anders.

What is the last book you bought?

With all the books I get for review for SFFWorld.com, I don’t buy books for myself very often any more. The most recently purchased book is With the Old Breed by E.B. Sledge

Are you the type of person that reads one book at a time, or can you read more than one?

No more than two at a time. One I will read during my lunch break at work and the other at home.

Do you have a favorite time/place to read?

Any time and everywhere

Do you prefer series books or stand alones?

Not really, although from a distance it would seem series since many of the books I’ve been reading are part of a series. I think that’s more a condition of the genre itself, really.

Is there a specific book or author you find yourself recommending over and over?

Matthew Stover’s Acts of Caine, beginning with Heroes Die, George R.R. Martin’s Ice and Fire, Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn, Joe Abercrombie, Robert Charles Wilson’s Spin

How do you organize your books? (by genre, title, author’s last name, etc.)

Haphazardly, at best. I’ve got bookshelves in different rooms in the house, so there’s no real rhyme or reason other than…hmmm, all of my Tad William’s doorstoppers will fit on this shelf in this room, so here they go or I’ll put my first edition A Game of Thrones in the living room bookshelf so all can see it in its Silvery foil glory.

Speculative Horizons Anthology (American Cancer Society)

From Pat St-Denis… proprietor of the Pat’s Fantasy Hot List:

Hey guys,

You may or may not know this, but my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007. Fortunately enough, though it was extremely hard on the family, my mom went through chemo and surgery, and now she's doing great.

Still, witnessing how tough it was for her to get through this ordeal and feeling woefully inadequate in the support I was giving her through it all, I always promised myself that I'd try to do something if the occasione ever presented itself. And it did in the summer of 2008, when the folks at Subterranean Press invited me to compile and edit a speculative fiction anthology for them.

I accepted the gig, but only if a portion of the proceeds would go breast cancer research. Fast-forward today, and the pre-order page for SPECULATIVE HORIZONS has just gone up. And from now till May 21st, 10% of the cover price for each copy sold will be donated to the American Cancer Society.

So if you feel like supporting this worthy cause, please follow the link and place your order. Here's what the publisher had to say about the anthology:

Speculative Horizons is the newest in our series of short anthologies, helmed this time by Patrick St-Denis, best known for running Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist, the place to go for fantasy news, contests, excerpts, and interviews.

Pat’s gathered an eclectic mix of contributors, including L. E. Modesitt, Jr. (with a new Recluce short story), C. S. Friedman, Tobias S. Buckell, Brian Ruckley, and Hal Duncan, who has written a story so wrenching it’ll rip out your heart and come back for your lungs.

If that’s not incentive enough to preorder a copy, until the end of day, May 21, 2010, we’ll be donating 10% of the price of each copy sold direct through SubPress to the American Cancer Society."

Don't do it for me, as I've been paid a flat fee to edit this book. So I'm not likely to see another dime unless we get multiple printings. Do it to help raise funds for cancer research. It beats buying a lame T-shirt, after all!

And feel free to spread the word via Facebook, Twitter, your blog, website, etc. The more copies pre-ordered, the more money will be donated to the American Cancer Society.

Cheers,

Pat

I’ve got family members who have been affected by Breast Cancer as well, so I can only agree about how worthy a cause this is. For twenty bucks you are getting stories by some very good writers and a percentage of the profits go to the American Cancer Society.

Tad Williams Interview at SFFWorld

I recently had the opportunity, in collaboration with the great Mark/Hobbit of SFFW, to conduct an interview with one of my favorite authors: Tad Williams. As I mentioned in previous posts here at the o’ Stuff, I’ve long been a fan of Tad Williams. Memory, Sorrow and Thorn stands as one of my favorite fantasy trilogies and one of my favorite epic fantasy worlds as well.


In the interview, we touch on Shadowmarch, Tad's experience writing for DC Comics, and the craft of Writing in general.

So, go on and click over to the interview and check out what Tad had to say for himself!

I could probably give a nice overview of Tad's work, but it is easier pointing Adam’s terrific Author Profile of Tad Williams. Adam gives a nice assessment of Tad Williams place in the genre, though I’m much more positive in my reaction to Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. Adam also gives Otherland a great overview and some well-deserved praise.

I’ll just add a bit about War of the Flowers, which shows that Mr. Williams can contain his epic storytelling to one volume. The novel is a “crossover,” wherein a young, somewhat successful musician is pulled into a world where magic runs the world. This world in which the protagonist Theo Vilmos has a great feel – part steampunk, part elfpunk, part epic, part urban fantasy. All told, a very engaging novel and despite its nature as a stand-alone novel, one whose fictional world is rich enough for repeat visits.





His young adult novel, The Dragons of Ordinary Farm, the launch of a new series written with his wife, was a lot of fun, too. It is exactly the type of book I would find myself reading and re-reading in my youth.

Martin's Wild and Weber's Dark

Like many people, I become a fan of George R.R. Martin because of his A Song of Ice and Fire saga. Reading this led me to some of his back list Dying of the Light, Fevre Dream as well as his prodigious short-story output, many of which have been included in several reprint anthologies. Although A Song of Ice and Fire has garnered him his most recent, and perhaps highest profile acclaim, as many genre fans know he had a very good reputation prior to ASOIAF and was nominated many times in the past for his SF and short stories, and rightfully so.


As “Tales from the Spinner Rack,” his intro to Warriors, indicates he was always a comic book fan. This leads me to the past project he oversaw which I’d always wanted to catch-up with was his shared-world series Wild Cards. As a lifetime comic book fan, this series about superheroes seems a natural for me and Tor will be reissuing the series this November with Wild Cards I. Aidan posting the Tor Catalogue led me to the discover of the pending imprint, so kudos to him.


I’ve been listening to the Dragon Page podcasts for the better part of the past year and find the hosts, Michael A. Stackpole and Michael R. Mennenga. Their latest episode features…you guessed it George R.R. Martin. Not a lot of stuff new to people who have been keeping up with the various updates and discussions on the intarwebs, but a nice interview nonetheless.

Also in the catalogue is Out of the Dark , the expansion of David Weber’s short story from the aforementioned Warriors. I thought the story one of the strongest in the anthology and was pleased to learn it will be a novel and series. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been coming ‘round to David Weber in the past couple of years and this story was a lot of fun. His Honor Harrington series; on the other hand, is a bit daunting to jump into at 15+ volumes.

To circle back to Dragon Page, I’d highly recommend listening to their feature on David Weber

I’ve been melded!

John over at SF Signal invited me to join one of their weekly Mind Meld columns. The topic:

Q: Which SF/F/H book do you love that everyone else hates? Which SF/F/H book do you hate that everyone else loves?


Other contributors include Farah Mendlesohn, Jeff Carlson, Shaun Duke, Adam Roberts, Jay Garmon, Paul Graham Raven, Paul Kincaid, Robert Sabella, Jonathan McCalmont, Fred Kiesche, John Klima, Joe Sherry, Derek Molata, and Dominic Green.

People who frequent the SFFWorld Forums might be able to guess one of the books in the response to the second part of the question.

Joe Abercrombie Interview

Pat and his Fantasy Hotlist has a new interview on his blog with Joe Abercrombie. Pat does a lot of interviews with authors, but for this one, I helped as did Graeme (of Graeme's Fantasy Book Review).




So go read it and ponder which questions could have been mine.

Reviewer Time Interviews Me

Harry over at Temple Library Reviews claimed me as his latest victim in his Sunday Reviewer Time feature.

So click on the image or this link (or the word "victim" above) and learn a bit more about the man behind this particular blog. I know my millions and millions of readers have wanted to know.

SF is dying...again

It seems Mark C. Newton's article and response have caused something of a stir - the latest internet kerfuffle as some might say.

It's been a rather hot topic at SFFWorld lately.

I may (or may not) have a more considered response or thoughts to this, but I'm not sure if I'll post here or at SFFWorld or Mark's blog.

Me Interviewed

Apparently, I’m one of the “recognizable personalities of the vast and broad sf&f community” so I've been interviewed. Peter Dowd (aka PeterWilliam in the SFFWorld Forums) asked if I’d like to be part of his Sunday Night Spotlight series wherein he interviews FSF bloggers.

Aside from being a Boston fan, Pete’s seems a good chap with a predilection for omnibuses. So, if you wan to know a little bit about me, head over to the interview on his blog.

SF/F/H Reviewer Linkup Meme, 2nd Edition

John Ottinger posted up the massive SF/F/H Reviewer Linkup Meme, 2nd Edition over the weekend, so make sure you go over there and take a look.