Story: Engineer Tenth Class Alan Corday has a dream of settling down with the woman he loves, but knows he’ll have to put in at least a trip to Mars to save up for the big day. When he goes looking for a ship that needs an engineer, he is seized by Captain Jocelyn of the Hound Of Heaven, a ship making the Long Passage – near-light-speed journeys to nearby stars to bring back riches and other valuable resources. But the Long Passage exacts a heavy price on its crew: due to the effects of time dilation, the Earth to which they return will never be anything like the Earth they last saw. Corday rails against his captive tour of duty and even becomes briefly involved in a mutiny attempt, but when the Hound Of Heaven returns to Earth, Corday seeks out his lost love – and what he finds drives him back to the stars again.

Review: This has to be one of the more interesting books that has been sent to me out of the blue by a publisher. Originally published in serialized form in 1950, “To The Stars” is an interesting take on the theory of time dilation; essentially, the theory is that travelers leaving Earth and going to the stars at velocities near light speed would age normally, but upon their return would find that many more years had passed on Earth. Still in his pulp SF heyday (and many years prior to the non-fiction and self-help books that earned him a somewhat more controversial reputation), L. Ron Hubbard tried to use “To The Stars” to use that already disquieting theory – actually, Hubbard was among the very first SF authors to address time dilation as a story element – as a backdrop for a more human story without jettisoning the science that drove it. (more…)

Story: A horrible plague, dubbed the “superflu,” has been released from a lab in California. As approximately 90+ percent of the population dies of the disease, something much more sinister is beginning to happen. Survivors are being drawn to Boulder by the vision of “what has to be the oldest woman in America” or to Las Vegas by the vision of “The Walkin’ Dude.” When both communities are re-established, the showdown between good and evil must begin.

Review: The term “epic novel” truly applies in this situation. At over 1100 pages, it is a gargantuan book, especially by paperback standards. I first read what was to become known as the “edited” version of “The Stand” way back in the late 1970s. I was instantly engrossed and immediately became what King aficionados call a “Constant Reader”. I have read this novel at least once every year since then. (more…)

Story: Jessica is an investigative reporter for a Miami newspaper, her husband David is a jazz and languages scholar and university professor. Their lives are filled with happiness and love – for their beautiful home, for her mother and sister, and for their 5-year-old daughter. Then Jessica accidentally uncovers evidence that makes her suspect David is not exactly what he seems. He has a secret that, if revealed, will put his wife and daughter in mortal danger.

Review: In my quest to expand my knowledge of African-American storytelling, I found a revelation – a black female author who writes horror stories! I was reading through the book section of the CNN website one day and came across an article about a young woman who was chosen to finish up Alex Haley’s book about Madame C. J. Walker. Intrigued by the praise Ms. Due was receiving for her work on that novel (“The Black Rose”), I decided tolook at more of what she’d written. I was utterly thrilled to find that she has written several horror novels, so I added this one to my wish list – and Santa came through. (more…)

Story: Listless Adam Pennyman has been drifting through a variety of creative jobs since college, working for independent movie studios and dot coms, and usually getting fired when his bluff is called on his invented qualifications for these gigs. In his spare time, Adam begins toiling on a true labor of love, the Catalogue Of Obsolete Amusements, a comprehensive list of arcade and home video games which usually dwell on his own philosophical interpretations of each game’s meaning. When the time comes to deconstruct his all-time favorite, however, Adam is at a loss – Lucky Wander Boy hasn’t been, and can’t be, played on an emulator, and it’s never been made available for any of the modern machines. A chance encounter with an old high school buddy lands him a new job at a Hollywood development entity precariously balanced between on-again, off-again movie deals and a series of sometimes questionable web ventures, and it just so happens that this studio holds the film rights to Lucky Wander Boy. Now, not only does Adam think he may have a chance to rediscover the object of his youthful fascination, but he may be able to bring it to the big screen in a unique vision and meet the game’s enigmatic creator. And all he has to do is break every rule and endanger every relationship in his life to do it.

Review: An interesting debut novel by D.B. Weiss, “Lucky Wander Boy” made me break out in a cold sweat a few times just from the familiarity factor alone. Why I’d find myself relating to a guy who spends large amounts of his free time compiling an exhaustive compendium of video games he used to play as a kid, I have no idea. Some of the scenes involving a small scale retrogaming get-together, and the descriptions of Pennyman’s moment of epiphany when introduced to emulation and his journey into the dark heart of eBay to reacquire the real hardware, rang of authenticity. But does all of this tell a story? (more…)

Story: The future: capitalism has spread like wildfire throughout the world. Or is it more like a virus? Schools are owned by corporations, and corporations own everyone – to the point where there are no longer family surnames, but surnames identifying one’s allegiance to an employer or school sponsor. Hack Nike is offered a chance to enter the hallowed realm of marketing in his company when a senior executive, John Nike, contracts him to murder anyone buying the company’s new shoes at a store in Melbourne, Australia, U.S.A. Hack is nervous about the job – and with good reason, since he signed the contract before reading it. He most now kill or be killed, and all to increase the buzz around Nike’s new shoes. When the hit goes down horribly wrong – 14 teenagers are killed – Agent Jennifer Government takes the case personally. Because she too has a young daughter. Because she has a strong sense of justice, even in the face of a Government that doesn’t prosecute crimes unless a victim’s family personally funds the investigation. And perhaps because she has a bone to pick with someone working at Nike – someone who she may overstep the bounds of her authority to get.

Review: Max Barry’s second novel is billed on the cover as “‘Catch-22′ by way of The Matrix” (that splashy thumbnail description apparently lifted from the Kirkus Reviews). Actually, that sounds more like the kind of omnipresent marketing hype that “Jennifer Government” is supposedly making fun of. Isn’t that ironic (don’tcha think)? (more…)

Story: Scarlett O’Hara, southern belle and resident of Georgia, has her life turned upside-down by the Civil War. She meets and eventually marries Rhett Butler, a southern gentleman and war-time blockade runner, all the while pining away for her “true love,” Ashley Wilkes. An excellent historical fiction detailing the lives and morals of pre-Civil War southerners and how it all changed afterward. Made into what has been commonly accepted as the Greatest Film of All Time.

Review: I feel kind of silly reviewing one of the greatest works of American literature. After all, millions have gone before me. But I would like to put my mere two cents’ worth in, because it is an achievement worthy of praise. I am grateful that Ms. Mitchell was properly lauded for this novel before her untimely death. By the way, “GWTW” was her first published book. (more…)

(reprinted under the title The Thirteenth Warrior)

Story: A fictionalized account taken from the manuscript of an Arabic ambassador to the court of the Caliph of Baghdad. Ahmad Ibn Fadlan was sent north as the ambassador to the King of the Bulgars but was diverted along the way. His account of his exploits with the Norsemen he encountered was published, lost, and then found again centuries later. Crichton’s retelling was eventually made into the film The Thirteenth Warrior.

Review: Crichton begins by explaining in excruciating detail about how and where he found this story, as well as his reasoning behind retelling it. He seems to have put a great deal of effort into researching the book, which always wins an author extra points with me. I enjoyed the film version, especially Antonio Banderas’ portrayal of Ibn Fadlan, but as usual the book is better. (more…)

Story: Carter the Great is showcasing his latest and greatest illusions, including the most complex of the show, “Carter Beats the Devil”. President Warren G. Harding is on a tour of America and attends Carter’s show – but is dead the next morning. Is Carter responsible for his death? And just who is Charles Carter anyway?

Review: This book is a complex mix of history and fiction, mostly fiction. Charles Carter really did exist, plying his trade from the vaudeville stage to the Orpheum shows to grand exhibitions of magic, rivaling magicians as famous as Harry Houdini. Glen David Gold takes historical fact and seamlessly blends it with fictional fancy that results in an excellent read. (more…)

Story: Boone believes he is responsible for several horrific deaths; at least, that’s what his psychiatrist says. But after he’s killed at a small Canadian cemetery in a confrontation with the police, he learns much more about his own nature and that of the Nightbreed of Midian.

Review: I was lucky enough to find the hardcover version of this book in some discount bin somewhere, and smart enough to purchase it. Barker made a film from this novella called Nightbreed. The film version was quite graphic, but the impact wasn’t nearly as strong as the book’s. Barker can flesh out characters like no other horror author, except perhaps Stephen King. It’s no wonder Steve professes to enjoy Clive Barker’s books over any other horror author’s. I found myself rooting for Boone even though I thought he was a mass murderer, and especially during his encounter with the nightbreed. The woman he loves, Lori, acts somewhat like the reader – always confused by Boone’s activities but sticking with him until the story comes to its amazing conclusion. When the story moves into the supernatural, one finds oneself drawn into a world fully imagined and matured by an author with a truly macabre point of view. (more…)

Season One (Vol. 1 & 2)

Story: Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski republishes the scripts from the episodes he wrote; in addition to the shooting scripts, Straczynski provides a brand new introduction discussing each episode and the series in general. Photos and memos are also included to provide a look at the show’s development.

Review: These two books are part of a planned 14-book series of script collections that Straczynski and his partners are publishing through CafePress. They include only the scripts that Straczynski himself wrote, which he has the rights to republish due to Writers Guild rules. It’s a pretty simple presentation, right down to the bare-bones cover, but the books hold together well, the typesetting’s legible, and the copy-editing is better than on some of the academic books I’ve read recently, so I have nothing against the do-it-yourself approach. The scripts themselves are the heart of the books, and if you don’t already know if you like the episodes in question, this book is not for you. (I did, so I guess it is.) (more…)