I first met Amie Gibbons at LibertyCon this last summer. She’s a sweetheart and full of energy… and stories. She asked me if I would look at one of her short stories and give her some feedback, which I was happy to do. Her story was as sweet and fun as she was – not… Read More Eat This While You Read That: Amie Gibbons
Written by Sanford Begley I believe I reviewed Rob Howell’s first book A Lake Most Deep earlier. If I didn’t I should have. Howell makes an interesting combination of Noir detectives and Byzantium locations that is funny and straight at the same time. His latest, The Eyes Of A Doll is no exception. I must… Read More Curmudgeon’s Corner: Eyes of a Doll
Two reviews in one post! And from two very different books, at that. Elliott Kay’s Poor Man’s Fight is a space opera, with familiar themes that will resonate with many of my readers as they did with me. Tanner Malone, our hero, starts out as a highschool kid taking the Test which will determine the… Read More Review: Twofer
Anyone who has read my posts and books will probably have picked up that I have an affection for Russian Fairy Tales. This is due in no small part to the very first book I ever owned. It was given to me at birth, and it’s a collection of beautifully illustrated fairy tales. The Frog… Read More Review: Chicken Feet and the Firebird
I’ve done a husband-wife pairing before, with Sarah and Dan Hoyt. But it took me altogether too long to realize that although I’d gotten a recipe from James Young, I hadn’t talked with his lovely wife Anita about her books and food yet. For the meal, I’m making her Pepper Steak, and we’re recommending her… Read More Eat This While You Read That: Anita Young
And I have much to do. Here, have a dragon. She’s small. Have two!
I was talking to a fellow writer the other day about whether or not there is a market for a ‘thinking man’s fantasy.’ We were specifically talking about that sub-genre, Sword and Sorcery, the genre made famous by the likes of Conan the Barbarian, and oft-mocked as being ‘thud and blunder’ rather than ‘blood and… Read More Review: Son of the Black Sword
I woke up with a story in my head. It’s a little bit of a thing, but it was fun to write. Enjoy! Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, a girl-babe was born. And in the manner of these things, when she was born, she was given a fairy gift. Her… Read More The Princess and the Beauty
I think this may be the best book I’ve read all year that was published this year. If I did that sort of thing, I’d nominate it for an award. And not only is it an excellent read, but it’s a debut novel. You don’t see this much awesome in one place very often. I… Read More Eat This While You Read That: Rob Howell
No, no, I haven’t been cooking with chicken feet. Yes, I know it’s a thing. No, I really don’t plan to try it, although at least I know to take the chicken toenails off before serving. I’m talking about When Chicken Feet Cross the Highway by Alma Boykin. I’m always a sucker for Baba Yaga,… Read More Review: Chicken Feet and Comfort Reading
I’ve enjoyed Lars Walker’s books for years, and this latest is no exception. This isn’t, I should say at the beginning, a light-hearted fun read. It is Human Wave, and it will make you think, and perhaps flinch a little. Biting social satire with a Christian bent, or perhaps Norse – although it is not… Read More Review: Death’s Doors
As I started to read this, I commented that it is one of the most readable High Fantasy novels I have come across in quite some time. I revised that opinion very shortly thereafter. I’m talking about Rob Howell’s A Lake Most Deep, which suffers from an odd cover, and the mention by another reviewer… Read More Review: A Lake Most Deep