- Home
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
"My guiltiest pleasure is Harry Stephen Keeler. He may been the greatest bad writer America has ever produced. Or perhaps the worst great writer. I do not know. There are few faults you can accuse him of that he is not guilty of. But I love him." — Neil GaimanHo hum. Another day; another corpse dredged up from the depths of Lake Michigan. This time it's a body having the bottom half of a negro man and the top half of a Chinese woman joined together at the waist by some kind of greenish glue. But we don't linger long at this unpleasant scene because Angus MacWhorter and his Mammoth Motorized Show are in another pickle. If Angus can't pay back $3000 — in $100 bills whose serial numbers must be evenly divisible by 13! — he'll lose the circus to the dastardly Geispitz Gmohling. But the needed bills are on the other side of Old Twistibus, the windingest road in the world, and Giff O'Dell, who has the bills, is obsessed with solving the Crazy Corpse murder. Now... Views: 306
The Arrival Is Imminent
Joe Haldeman's novel The Comingis a tightly constructed near future thriller which begins by recapitulating a classic science fictional motif: the moment of first contact with an alien intelligence.
The story begins on October 1, 2054. Aurora (Rory) Bell, a professor of astrophysics at the University of Florida, has just made the discovery of the century. A sophisticated sensing device called a gamma ray burst detector has picked up a message from somewhere beyond the solar system. The easily decrypted message contains two unambiguous words: We're coming. Subsequent analysis reveals that the source of the message is heading directly toward Earth and is scheduled to arrive on the first day of January 2055. A media circus inevitably ensues, as the citizens of Earth attempt to prepare for a wholly unprecedented event.
From this point forward, Haldeman focuses not on the alien spaceship but on the social, political, and environmental conditions of a rapidly deteriorating planet. He envisions a 21st century marked by unpredictable weather patterns and geopolitical chaos, a world in which corruption is an endemic element both of private enterprises and governmental institutions. Controversial -- i.e., gay -- sexual practices have been outlawed. The electoral process has become a joke, ushering in a new generation of leaders who are incompetent and uninformed but intensely photogenic. Most significantly, the nations of Europe are flexing their muscles once again, marshaling their forces for an inevitable -- and catastrophic -- global conflict.
Haldeman's portrait of the century to come is at once familiar and strange, enlivened by a steady flow of imaginative details: automated traffic control systems, virtual reality pornography, designer drugs tailored to the individual DNA. Haldeman shows us this world from the constantly shifting perspective of a variety of characters. Included among them are Rory Bell, whose initial discovery jump-starts the narrative; Norman Bell, a middle-aged composer with a history of "illegal" sexual behavior; Willie Joe Capra, a sadistic bagman with delusions of grandeur; and a nameless "historian," whose ruminations illuminate the cyclical patterns of violence present throughout recorded history.
As always, Haldeman writes with clarity, economy, and wit, skillfully moving his extensive cast toward a climactic moment of revelation in which "hope and caution" predominate. The Coming is both a provocative, cleverly conceived entertainment and a compelling meditation on the eternal human propensity for violent solutions. It is speculative fiction of the highest order and reaffirms its author's position as a modern master of the form.
--Bill Sheehan
Bill Sheehan reviews horror, suspense, and science fiction for Cemetery Dance, The New York Review of Science Fiction, and other publications. His book-length critical study of the fiction of Peter Straub, At the Foot of the Story Tree, has just been published by Subterranean Press (www.subterraneanpress.com). Views: 306
One of the Grand Masters of SCi-Fi relates tales of the early days of the genre becoming important. Views: 306
A group of men on a mission in the far reaches of space crash land on a savage planet, Earth. The only way their kind can survive is to drink human blood, which they take no pleasure in. On Earth they are known as "vampires". One member of the group, Shae, encounters a teenage girl named Abigail, who challenges the group's loyalties to each other, endangers their survival, and steals Shae's heart.A group of men on a mission in the far reaches of space crash land on a savage planet, Earth. The only way their kind can survive here is to drink the blood of humans, which they take no pleasure in. On Earth they are known as "vampires". The youngest member of the group, Shae, encounters a teenage girl named Abigail, who challenges the group's loyalties to each other, endangers their survival, and steals Shae's heart. Views: 306
Armchair Fiction presents extra-large editions of classic science fiction double novels with original illustrations. The first novel is "Sinbad: Through Time and Space," written by a very underrated science fiction and fantasy author, Chester S. Geier. American Singleton Bade would have never imagined that gigantic bird-like creatures could exist in the cold, hard reality of the 20th Century. Furthermore, Bade never would have dreamed that one of these creatures would take him on a roller coaster ride back through time, to a place reminiscent of the fanciful worlds of “The Arabian Nights.” Was he hallucinating or was it real? He soon realized that not only was this new world real, but that his winged companion, a mythical creature known simply as a “roc,” had brought him there for a purpose—there was only one man who could thwart the plans of the evil prince, Meznir—and that man was Singleton Bade, known to his comrades simply as “Sinbad.” Before long Bade found himself caught up in a web of deadly intrigue—an intrigue that would pit the forces of good against evil and send him hurtling into the depths of outer space. The second novel is “The Enormous Room” by science fiction icons, H.L. Gold and Robert W. Krepps. “The Enormous Room” was first published in Amazing Stories, the November issue, 1953. Howard Browne was the editor, having taken over the position from Raymond A. Palmer at the beginning of 1950. Browne was given the job of taking Amazing away from the pop gun style of sci-fi that had been Palmer’s stock and trade for many years. “The Enormous Room” was a fine example of the new direction the magazine had taken. Here’s his original blurb: One big name per story is usually considered to be sufficient. So when two of them appear in one by-line, it can certainly be called a scoop; so that’s what we’ll call it. H. L. Gold and science-fiction go together like a blonde and a henna rinse. Robert Krepps is also big time. You may know him also under his other label—Geoff St. Reynard, but a Krepps by any name can write as well. Views: 306
It began with two men. They came from very different worlds—entirely different universes, in fact—one using sorcery and the other using mental powers and steam-age technology. They met in a virgin forest on a duplicate planet Earth. Neither side knows who shot first, but each blames the other, and it doesn't really matter, now, because war has begun.
War between the universes is the last thing responsible leaders on either side want. But the fury of their respective populations, xenophobic fear of the unknown, and cries for "justice" (or vengeance), are all driving both sides towards the brink. And unscrupulous, power-hungry men—and Arcana and Sharona alike—have agendas of their own.
The fuse has been lit, and a war stretching across the universes, fought between dragons, spells, and crossbows and repeating rifles, machine guns, and artillery is erupting in white-hot rage and fury. Where it will end—and how—no one knows. Views: 306
A terrible tragedy forced Alana McCarthy to forget a year of her life. Now she is to be executed for a crime she does not remember committing—the murder of her entire family. Lost and alone, Alana is terrified of unlocking secrets buried so deep inside her mind that she's willing to forget the one person who could set her free.Daniel Costello hasn't forgotten about Alana, and he will do anything and everything to protect the girl he loves. But first, Alana needs to unlock her memories and find out the truth about what happened the night her family was killed.The day of her execution is set. Together, will Alana and Daniel be able to uncover the truth behind her family's deaths before it's too late? Views: 306
A warrior-woman/sorceress from the northern steppes visits the ancient and wicked city of Bel-Athis, "The Jewel of the Sands" while traveling through strange desert lands far to the south and east. There she comes into conflict with the vicious tyrant Ammon-Zul, High Priest of Baal-Zebub, "The Lord of Flies," a devil-god who demands human sacrifice lest he unleash a terrible plague upon the city.A barbarian warrior-woman/sorceress from the northern steppes visits the ancient and wicked city of Bel-Athis, "The Jewel of the Sands" while traveling through strange desert lands far to the south and east. There she comes into conflict with the vicious tyrant Ammon-Zul, High Priest of Baal-Zebub, "The Lord of Flies," a devil-god who demands human sacrifice lest he unleash a terrible plague upon the city.Weird fiction meets sword and sorcery fantasy in this first installment of the Valruna Saga, an ongoing series of tales in the tradition of Robert E. Howard, H. P. Lovecraft, and Fritz Leiber.This short story introduces the character Vana Valruna and her reluctant campaign against the Baals, the four demonic Lords that rule the ancient world.It all starts here in this tale, when a single heroic act earns Vana the enmity of the most bloodthirsty of these devil-gods, the sinister Baal-Zebub, whereupon she is inexorably drawn into a desperate spiritual battle between the noble gods of the north and the terrifyingly alien deities worshipped by the rest of the known world.With the aid of her beloved horse, Thunrasar, her trusted guide, Jerob of the desert folk, and her northern gods, as well as an unlikely ally in one who was cast out by those same gods, villified as a traitor and deemed no better than a demon himself, one by one Vana will see these elder deities dethroned, or die in the attempt. Views: 306
In a frigate stolen from his own navy, Captain Favian Markham races to New Orleans with the dispatches he's captured from a British warship— dispatches making it clear that the city will soon be the target of a British fleet and an invading army.But Favian finds New Orleans a city of intrigue, where Creoles conspire against the Americans, where streetfighters cloak their murders under the Code Duello, the pirate Jean Laffite battles the Navy, and a cabal of elite soldiers conspire to hand the city to the enemy— and where two sensuous Creole women, Eugenie and Campaspe, vie for his favor.In order to resist the coming invasion, Favian must fight his way clear of conspiracy and unite the divided city, and soon discovers that in order to buy time for the defenders, he must sacrifice his own ship, and his own career, in a hopeless fight against an overwhelming power . . . Views: 306
Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan, although he also produced works in many genres. Views: 306
Intergalactic bounty hunter Zyra Zanr pursues a dangerous fugitive in possession of a mysterious, but deadly weapon. Zyra must recapture this weapon before it is unleashed upon the unsuspecting people of the galaxy. The hunt begins! Book 1 of 3. Views: 306
He was my deepest revelation and my darkest secret. Bad boys were never my thing, unless they existed within the pages of a book. Until Alex Moss came to my rescue like some sort of avenging angel. He saved my life, which is why I believed him when he told me the threat against my life was back, and only he could protect me. With his dark hair, golden eyes, and broad shoulders, the warlock was hard to resist. Yet even as his kisses made me crave more, there was something about him that frightened me. It wasn't until I tasted his blood that I knew it wasn't magic that brought us together, but fate.The warlock is MINE. I saved her from a curse, only to get caught in her spell. Kenya Darce was like no other vampire I'd ever met. Adorable, quirky, and sexy as hell, she turned me on with one look over the top of her black-rimmed glasses. But ever since the night I exorcised the spell from her body, we've had a connection between us.... Views: 305
A teenager must rely on deadly magic taught by an elderly neighbor to protect her family in this coming-of-age story. After the death of their abusive patriarch, sixteen-year-old Desiree "Dez" Sarpe and her family moved to the high plains of Wyoming for a fresh start. Life is quieter now, but peace doesn't put food on the table. Unable to get a job, Dez reluctantly stays home—before following a track in the long grass and finding Granny Iyaga. Granny hires Dez for housecleaning, and also begins teaching her peculiar things. School starts, winter approaches, and for the first time, Dez begins to relax. But there are dangers other than lightning and rattlesnakes out on the plains, and one has targeted the Sarpes. Dez has learned a thing or two about protecting her family . . . . . . but it might not be enough.Praise for Rattlesnake Wind "Mixes daring magic with teenage romance . . . Saintcrow's writing is sharp and... Views: 305
