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What I’m ReadingN O N – F I C T I O N : N O V E L S : Maurice Druon’s THE IRON KINGMarch 30, 2013
I never met Druon, alas (he died only a few years ago, and I regret that I never had the chance to shake his hand), but from all reports he was an extraordinary man. He was French, highly distinguished, a … Read More Bill Willingham’s FABLESJuly 12, 2012
Comic book fans have been enjoying Bill Willingham’s FABLES for years, so it’s only fit and proper that at long last readers who take their stories straight up without pictures (well, only a comparatively few pictures, at any rate) were … Read More THE PREFECTJuly 20, 2009
It’s hardly a secret that I have loved science fiction ever since I first discovered Robert A. Heinlein’s HAVE SPACE SUIT, WILL TRAVEL when I was a kid. It’s less well known that I am also a fan of mystery … Read More THE GIVEN DAYMarch 12, 2009
I’m always excited when a well-established writer leaves his comfort zone to try something new and different. It doesn’t always work out, mind you, but the best writers are those willing to take risks, rather than the guys (and gals) … Read More THE EDGE OF REASONJune 16, 2008
Here’s a few titles that I’ve read and enjoyed over the past year. If you’re looking for a good new fantasy to get into, try A MAGIC OF TWILIGHT by S.L. Farrell and THE EDGE OF REASON by Melinda Snodgrass, … Read More BANEWREAKERAugust 28, 2007
BANEWREAKER (Tor, 2004) and GODSLAYER (Tor, 2005) by Jacqueline Carey. Someone once said that the villain is the hero of the other side, a maxim that l long ago took to heart in my own fiction. Lately it seems as … Read More A BETRAYAL IN WINTER
A BETRAYAL IN WINTER, the second volume of Daniel Abraham’s terrific new fantasy sequence, “The Long Price,” is just out in hardcovers. Daniel is a good friend and a sometime collaborator of mine, as I mentioned when I reviewed the … Read More JAMES TIPTREE, JR: THE DOUBLE LIFE OF ALICE B. SHELDONSeptember 3, 2006
JAMES TIPTREE, JR: THE DOUBLE LIFE OF ALICE B. SHELDON by Julie Phillips (St. Martin’s Press, 2006). James Tiptree, Jr. was one of the rising stars of SF when I first broke into the field in 1971. A mystery man … Read More CINDERELLA MANJune 2, 2006
Jeremy Schaap’s CINDERELLA MAN (Houghton Mifflin, 2005) is subtitled “James J. Braddock, Max Baer, and the Greatest Upset in Sports History.” One could quibble over that last part — myself, I’d have to say that the Jets’ win over the … Read More SPINMay 21, 2006Robert Charles Wilson’s SPIN (Tor, 2005). is one of the finalists for this year’s Hugo Award in the Best Novel category (sometimes called the Big One, even though all Hugos are of course equal). It would hard to conceive of … Read More DARK STARMay 16, 2006DARK STAR by Alan Furst (Random House, 2002). I have never been much a fan of spy stories. Oh, sure, I read all of the James Bond novels back when I was in high school, but that was more for … Read More AN OPEN BOOKMarch 21, 2006AN OPEN BOOK by Michael Dirda (Norton, 2003) Some kids love to play baseball, some love basketball, some track or tennis. I loved books. Reading was my favorite sport in childhood, maybe because it was the only one that I … Read More CONVENTIONS OF WARCONVENTIONS OF WAR, by Walter Jon Williams (Eos, 2005) is the third volume in Walter Jon Williams’ epic series DREAD EMPIRE’S FALL, and if there was any justice it ought to be a Hugo finalist this year. I had the … Read More A SHADOW IN SUMMERMarch 20, 2006A SHADOW IN SUMMER by Daniel Abraham (Tor, 2006) I cannot pretend to be objective on this one. Daniel Abraham is a good friend and sometime collaborator of mine, a member of my local writer’s workshop, and a former student … Read More THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITYMarch 7, 2006THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY by Eric Larson (Vintage, 2004) Twenty years ago I was writing a Jack the Ripper novel (never finished, though a chunk of it can be found in my collection QUARTET) called BLACK AND WHITE … Read More The Pale Horseman (Alfred the Great 2)October 29, 2005The Pale Horseman (Alfred the Great 2) by Bernard Cornwell (HarperCollins, 2006) I am growing more and more convinced that Bernard Cornwell is actually triplets. There’s no way one man could write so many books so fast and still have … Read More Flashman on the MarchSeptember 30, 2005FLASHMAN ON THE MARCH by George MacDonald Fraser (HarperCollins, 2005) The release of a new Flashman book is always an occasion as far as I’m concerned, so when I spied George MacDonald Fraser’s FLASHMAN ON THE MARCH on a bookshelf … Read More MEN OF TOMORROWJuly 30, 2005MEN OF TOMORROW by Gerard Jones (Basic Books, 2004) bears the subtitle “Geeks, Gangsters, and the Birth of the Comic Book.” With a hook like that, how could an old funny book fan like me resist? I’m glad I didn’t. … Read More WILDWOOD ROADJune 30, 2005WILDWOOD ROAD by Christopher Golden (Bantam, 2005). Some of my editor friends tell me that horror fiction is finally starting to make a comeback after the catastrophic boom and bust in the 1980s. If that’s true, writers like Christopher Golden … Read More THE LAST KINGDOMApril 13, 2005THE LAST KINGDOM by Bernard Cornwell (HarperCollins, 2004). THE LAST KINGDOM is the first book in another series by the prolific Bernard Cornwell, best known for creating Richard Sharpe. This one is set much earlier in English history, during the … Read More THE MYSTERIESJanuary 31, 2005THE MYSTERIES by Lisa Tuttle (Spectra, March 2005). Lisa Tuttle never disappoints. Her latest novel, THE MYSTERIES, is a deft and daring blend of mystery and dark fantasy, about a private eye whose latest case leads him down the meanest … Read More DRAGON LADY: THE LIFE AND LEGEND OF THE LAST EMPRESS OF CHINAJanuary 17, 2005DRAGON LADY: THE LIFE AND LEGEND OF THE LAST EMPRESS OF CHINA by Sterling Seagrave (Vintage, 1993). History is written by the winners, and sometimes the losers can get a very bad press indeed. In western history, the most conspicuous … Read More IRONFIRENovember 17, 2004IRONFIRE, by David Ball (Delacorte Press, 2004). I love good historical fiction, for many of the same reasons that I love good fantasy. I am a huge fan of Thomas B. Costain, Maurice Druon, Nigel Tranter, Cecilia Holland, and a … Read More A HISTORY OF VENICEJuly 27, 2004A HISTORY OF VENICE, by John Julius Norwich (Vintage, 1989). There’s not much that I like better than reading a good popular history of a place or time that I am not overly familiar with beforehand. John Julius Norwich’s A … Read More SHUTTER ISLANDJune 18, 2004SHUTTER ISLAND, by Dennis Lehane (William Morrow, 2003). Dennis Lehane became a household name with MYSTIC RIVER, a powerful but flawed novel that became a powerful but flawed (and overlong) film by Clint Eastwood, but as far as I’m concerned … Read More The Grail Quest (3) – HereticMay 30, 2004The Grail Quest (3) – Heretic , by Bernard Cornwell (HarperCollins, 2004). Thanks to the BBC televison series starring Sean Bean, the world knows Bernard Cornwell best as the author of the Sharpe books, the series of smashing historical adventures … Read More THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER & CLAYMarch 28, 2004THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER & CLAY, by Michael Chabon (Picador, 2001). Michael Chabon won the Pulitzer Prize for THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER & CLAY, but don’t let that discourage you. This is a wonderful book. A “literary” novel … Read More POMPEIIFebruary 1, 2004POMPEII, by Robert Harris (Random House, 2003). The last big book about Pompeii was by the Victorian novelist Edward Bulwer-Lytton, best known for penning Snoopy’s immortal line, “it was a dark and stormy night.” It’s about time that someone returned … Read More THE HOOKOctober 29, 2003THE HOOK, by Donald E. Westlake (Mysterious Press, 2000). Donald Westlake is a wonder. He’s an astonishingly profilic writer, and seems to have out three or four new books every time I turn around. He also has an incredible range. … Read More A SENSE OF WONDER: A LIFE IN COMIC FANDOMMarch 28, 2003A SENSE OF WONDER: A LIFE IN COMIC FANDOM, by Bill Schelly (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2001). SF fandom goes back to the 1930s, but comics fandom, its bastard stepchild, largely began in the 1960s. JFK was in the White House and … Read More ALL OUR YESTERDAYSFebruary 3, 2003ALL OUR YESTERDAYS by Robert B. Parker. Mystery novelist Robert B. Parker is best known for his “Spenser” series. Parker’s prose is always crisp and clean, and his dialogue is first rate. The early Spenser books were just terrific. The … Read More LOSING NELSONJuly 19, 2002LOSING NELSON by Barry Unsworth (available from Penguin in the UK) is a study in obsession which manages to be thoroughly engrossing despite the fact that the lead character spends most of time writing a book and hardly leaves his … Read More TIME AND CHANCEJune 15, 2002TIME AND CHANCE by Sharon Kay Penman. Sharon Kay Penman is the strongest historical novelist working the medieval period at present, a worthy heir to two of my all-time favorites, Thomas B. Costain and Nigel Tranter. Her TIME AND CHANCE … Read More Alexander Vol 1.: Child of a Dream v. 1 (Alexander Trilogy)May 1, 2002Alexander Vol 1.: Child of a Dream v. 1 (Alexander Trilogy) by Valerio Massimo Manfredi. It takes a certain amount of hubris for any novelist to tackle the life of Alexander the Great, knowing that his efforts will inevitably be … Read More WRITING FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTIONJanuary 1, 2002WRITING FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION. Okay, I’m prejudiced on this one. Lisa Tuttle lives in England, which is far too far away, but she remains one of my oldest and dearest friends. She and I wrote WINDHAVEN together, back in … Read More And Before ThatDecember 31, 2001I get emails all the time from readers who want to know if I can recommend a good fantasy for them to read while they are (sigh) waiting for the next Ice and Fire book. There are lot of excellent … Read More |
