When a gigantic stone behemoth appears in the middle of Millennium Square in Coventry, UK, it’s a photo op. When the stone man starts to move and walk relentlessly on its own, leaving a path of destruction in its wake, you’ve got an exciting sci-fi mystery. We follow reporter Andy Pointer, himself a witness at…
Tag: book-reviews
Grave Peril (Dresden Files, Book 3) by Jim Butcher – Book Review
The third volume in the Dresden Files series continues to expand the story universe set up in the first two. The adventures of Harry Dresden, a professional wizard, hiring himself out to investigate and handle all kinds of magical and malevolent cases in contemporary Chicago have so far involved evil sorcerers, demons, faerie and werewolves….
The Failures by Benjamin Liar – Book Review
I went into this book not knowing what to expect. Set in a fantasy world known as the Wanderlands, this story has the grand overtones of a legendary epic, the thrills and pacing of a jaunty adventure, and the riddles and curiosity of a complex puzzle. We follow various groups of characters: immortals planning to…
Carl’s Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl, Book 2) by Matt Dinniman – Book Review
The events in this second book in the super-popular Dungeon Crawler Carl series continue immediately after the first one, where hapless and resourceful Carl survived the decimation of Earth to end up running and fighting for his own life in the dungeon (like the kind one finds in RPG video games) that the world has…
Midnight Riot (Rivers of London, Book 1) by Ben Aaronovitch – Book review
cover photo by shadesofword.com An urban fantasy story set in contemporary London UK seems right up my alley (Sorry, I couldn’t find a river-based expression). I love London, having visited the city a few times on vacation, and I’ve watched many British TV shows set there. I have also enjoyed urban fantasy: stories set against…
Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher – Book Review
I had read another T. Kingfisher story late last year called Thornhedge that was, like Nettle & Bone, revisiting of a classic fairytale. While I really enjoyed Thornhedge, I came to Nettle & Bone prepared for more of the same. Nevertheless, in this story, T. Kingfisher was not only able to tell a story with…
Things from the Flood by Simon Stålenhag – Book Review
I recently read The Electric State by Simon Stålenhag and was very interested in more of his work, so when I found out about Things From the Flood, I was very excited to read it. I first discovered Stålenhag as the author of the book that was the basis for the Prime Video TV series…
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang – Book Review
The Poppy War is a fantastical tale inspired by Chinese historical events (of which I am woefully under-educated) involving conflicts with Japan. The novel follows a young orphan named Rin, a foster child of opium dealers in a village in Nikan (a fictionalized China). In her efforts to leave an unhappy life of mistreatment, she…
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia – Book Review
I had high expectations for Mexican-Canadian author Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s acclaimed novel, but was pretty let down. Given the book’s title, yes, there was everything classically gothic, but very little Mexican, aside from the geographic setting (and the occasional Spanish word). This tale of a rich city girl going out to a country mansion to rescue…
Alvin's Adventures in Pop Culture 