Exodus Lost: An Inquiry Into the Genesis of Civilization, S.C. Compton, BookSurge Publishing, 2011
This book looks at history and archaeology in a very different way. It also attempts to put dates to several Biblical events.
In the early 1500s, the Aztec leader Montezuma told hernan Cortes and his men that the Aztec civilization was not native to Mexico, but had arrived there from somewhere else across the ocean. According to the author of this book, that "somewhere else" was ancient Egypt.
In Mesoamerica (ancient Mexico), the Olmec civilization showed evidence of, for instance, aqueducts, burial pyramids, paper production and the world's oldest magnetic compass. There were not the usual incremental improvements over centuries; these appeared abruptly and fully formed. Meantime, their neighbors still lived in huts.
The Phoenicians were known to be master sailors, circumnavigating Africa more than two thousand years before the Europeans. There are accounts of Phoenicians reaching a large land mass many days sailing across the Atlantic Ocean (America).
Recent drug tests on Egyptian mummies showed that they tested positive for tobacco and cocaine. Both are indigenous to America and were supposed to be unknown in the Old World before Columbus. There are many other connections between Olmec and Egyptian cultures.
The Biblical Flood has been dated at approximately 3180 BC. On the floor of the Indian Ocean, a giant crater, consistent with a meteor strike, has been found. Independent scientific evidence has been found of a huge, and very quick, drop in global temperatures at that time. Also, the amount of water vapor kicked into the atmosphere by such a meteor strike could easily have caused forty days and nights of rain.
Here is a fascinating book, very well-researched, that will get the reader thinking in a whole new way. It may not be for everyone, but, for any sort of ancient history reader, it is highly recommended.
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Sunday, July 8, 2012
The Sum of Random Chance
The Sum of Random Chance, Lee Chambers, 2012, Kindle e-book
This novel is about a relationship between a newspaper reporter and a woman with a "different" outlook on life.
Cole is a reporter whose failure to cover an assigned story gets him fired. He didn't cover the story because he was watching Sara face down an armed robber during a supermarket robbery, armed with nothing but a smile. Because of his sudden unemployment, Erin, his shallow, high-maintenance girlfriend, throws him out of their apartment. Several other incidents with Sara, who always seems to be smiling, convince Cole that something is very weird.
Sara considers it her "calling" to help people, in whatever way is needed at that moment. Cole writes a newspaper story about Sara, hoping to get his old job back, despite Sara's request that her explanation stay private. The story makes the front page, and Sara is very upset, along with being the latest media sensation. Seeing Cole's name on the front page, Erin suddenly wants him back. Sara refuses to talk to Cole, who knows that he has screwed up with her, big time.
A "sequel" to Sara's story is printed, full of half-truths and outright lies. The national media is very interested. Is there any way for Cole to get Sara to understand why he did it? Can Cole make things right?
Are there some people in this world for whom "random chance" is not exactly random? Are there some people who consider it more important to, for instance, help someone else to win the lottery, rather than get the jackpot for themselves? This is a very intriguing idea, and Chambers does a really good job. Yes, this is very much worth reading.
This novel is about a relationship between a newspaper reporter and a woman with a "different" outlook on life.
Cole is a reporter whose failure to cover an assigned story gets him fired. He didn't cover the story because he was watching Sara face down an armed robber during a supermarket robbery, armed with nothing but a smile. Because of his sudden unemployment, Erin, his shallow, high-maintenance girlfriend, throws him out of their apartment. Several other incidents with Sara, who always seems to be smiling, convince Cole that something is very weird.
Sara considers it her "calling" to help people, in whatever way is needed at that moment. Cole writes a newspaper story about Sara, hoping to get his old job back, despite Sara's request that her explanation stay private. The story makes the front page, and Sara is very upset, along with being the latest media sensation. Seeing Cole's name on the front page, Erin suddenly wants him back. Sara refuses to talk to Cole, who knows that he has screwed up with her, big time.
A "sequel" to Sara's story is printed, full of half-truths and outright lies. The national media is very interested. Is there any way for Cole to get Sara to understand why he did it? Can Cole make things right?
Are there some people in this world for whom "random chance" is not exactly random? Are there some people who consider it more important to, for instance, help someone else to win the lottery, rather than get the jackpot for themselves? This is a very intriguing idea, and Chambers does a really good job. Yes, this is very much worth reading.
Monday, July 2, 2012
Evolve Two: Vampire Stories of the Future Undead
Evolve Two: Vampire Stories of the Future Undead, Nancy Kilpatrick (ed.), Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, 2011
Whatever is ahead for humanity, how will vampires react? Will they continue to suck our blood, or will we learn to work together? This anthology attempts to give the answer.
In present-day Mexico, a street kid meets a female vampire and gives her some of his blood. She is on the run, because her kind is being hunted by the Mexican government, drug gangs and nearly everyone else. The night before liftoff, a male astronaut has a romantic encounter that ends with him being bitten by a vampire. What do you think will happen to the first manned mission to Mars?
A very high-class mausoleum, which involves preserving the dead and letting them float around inside a hollowed-out asteroid, allowing families to visit, is not what it seems. A jury has to decide if a young woman, who was beaten to death, was, or was not, a vampire at the time. A woman is truned into a vampire, and is forced to leave her husband and daughter; the temptation is just too strong. Decades later, the hunting of vampires has become established and part of society. In a world where the ozone layer has pretty much disappeared, blisters will form on unprotected skin within a few minutes. People are ripping vampire fangs right out of their mouths, because, when ground up and mixed with blood, it supposedly makes the ultimate sun-block.
This is an excellent group of stories. They are original stories that explore all parts of the vampire world. Individually, they are well-written, and, collectively, this is very much worth reading (even for those who are not vampire fans).
Whatever is ahead for humanity, how will vampires react? Will they continue to suck our blood, or will we learn to work together? This anthology attempts to give the answer.
In present-day Mexico, a street kid meets a female vampire and gives her some of his blood. She is on the run, because her kind is being hunted by the Mexican government, drug gangs and nearly everyone else. The night before liftoff, a male astronaut has a romantic encounter that ends with him being bitten by a vampire. What do you think will happen to the first manned mission to Mars?
A very high-class mausoleum, which involves preserving the dead and letting them float around inside a hollowed-out asteroid, allowing families to visit, is not what it seems. A jury has to decide if a young woman, who was beaten to death, was, or was not, a vampire at the time. A woman is truned into a vampire, and is forced to leave her husband and daughter; the temptation is just too strong. Decades later, the hunting of vampires has become established and part of society. In a world where the ozone layer has pretty much disappeared, blisters will form on unprotected skin within a few minutes. People are ripping vampire fangs right out of their mouths, because, when ground up and mixed with blood, it supposedly makes the ultimate sun-block.
This is an excellent group of stories. They are original stories that explore all parts of the vampire world. Individually, they are well-written, and, collectively, this is very much worth reading (even for those who are not vampire fans).
A Medicine for Melancholy
A Medicine for Melancholy, Ray Bradbury, Bantam, 1963
Here is a group of stories by one of the masters of the science fiction field.
A young woman is bedridden with a baffling illness. Her family decides to bring her, and her bed, outside, on the street, to take advantage of the human tendency to give unsolicited medical advice to complete strangers. A group of male friends, of the same physical size, pool their resources to purchase an expensive white suit, which they will share. It is the sort of suit that is guaranteed to attract the ladies. A young boy is sick with what his doctor is certain is nothing more than scarlet fever. The boy fears that his sickness is much more serious.
An after-the-apocalypse story is about an America where everything, and anything, from the past is to be hated and destroyed, including a famous painting that is based on a woman's smile. A group of human colonists are stuck on Mars because of a war on Earth. A colony ship is sent, five years later, after the war, and finds several hundred Martians, with no knowledge of any human colonists. Traveling across America by train, a businessman impulsively decides to get off at the next stop, whatever it is. He learns why there are some small towns where no one ever gets off the train. A couple of men who wander California beaches looking for coins or dropped jewelry find something really interesting. A real mermaid washes up on shore. Their thought is to pack it in ice, and eventually sell it, but the tide is coming in.
This book shows why Bradbury was such a great author. The stories aren't just science fiction, or fantasy, or horror. They feel like the sort of stories that could happen to anyone. If a copy can be found, this is a gem of a book.
Here is a group of stories by one of the masters of the science fiction field.
A young woman is bedridden with a baffling illness. Her family decides to bring her, and her bed, outside, on the street, to take advantage of the human tendency to give unsolicited medical advice to complete strangers. A group of male friends, of the same physical size, pool their resources to purchase an expensive white suit, which they will share. It is the sort of suit that is guaranteed to attract the ladies. A young boy is sick with what his doctor is certain is nothing more than scarlet fever. The boy fears that his sickness is much more serious.
An after-the-apocalypse story is about an America where everything, and anything, from the past is to be hated and destroyed, including a famous painting that is based on a woman's smile. A group of human colonists are stuck on Mars because of a war on Earth. A colony ship is sent, five years later, after the war, and finds several hundred Martians, with no knowledge of any human colonists. Traveling across America by train, a businessman impulsively decides to get off at the next stop, whatever it is. He learns why there are some small towns where no one ever gets off the train. A couple of men who wander California beaches looking for coins or dropped jewelry find something really interesting. A real mermaid washes up on shore. Their thought is to pack it in ice, and eventually sell it, but the tide is coming in.
This book shows why Bradbury was such a great author. The stories aren't just science fiction, or fantasy, or horror. They feel like the sort of stories that could happen to anyone. If a copy can be found, this is a gem of a book.
Voices of Doom: Tales of Terror and the Uncanny
Voices of Doom: Tales of Terror and the Uncanny, Basil Copper, St. Martin's Press, 1980
Here is a group of stories by someone who has been compared to H.P. Lovecraft as a master of horror and the macabre.
A professional occultist travels to an abandoned house, in the middle of nowhere, to see if tales told by the locals have any legitimacy. Many years ago, a family, plus servants, lived there, until they were all driven mad or died under mysterious circumstances. Was it just a string of bad luck, or was the house conspiring against them?
A man named Stovold seems to have acquired a "shadow" in the form of a gaunt man clad in black. Wherever Stovold travels around the world, his shadow is somewhere nearby. Back home, with his health falling apart, Stovold sees the shadow knock on his front door, carrying luggage for an extended visit. Is this some denizen of Hell, planning to do something unspeakable?
Soames, a local accountant, notices a closed and vacant shop in his neighborhood. A few days later, during his lunch break, he finds the shop in a different location, and it is open for business. For various reasons, he is prevented from entering. Eventually, he walks through the door of Charon Ltd. Exporters, and is welcomed like an old friend by the proprietor.
This is the way macabre and horror stories are supposed to be done; the horror part is subtle and in the background instead of in your face. Here is a first-rate collection that is really worth reading.
Here is a group of stories by someone who has been compared to H.P. Lovecraft as a master of horror and the macabre.
A professional occultist travels to an abandoned house, in the middle of nowhere, to see if tales told by the locals have any legitimacy. Many years ago, a family, plus servants, lived there, until they were all driven mad or died under mysterious circumstances. Was it just a string of bad luck, or was the house conspiring against them?
A man named Stovold seems to have acquired a "shadow" in the form of a gaunt man clad in black. Wherever Stovold travels around the world, his shadow is somewhere nearby. Back home, with his health falling apart, Stovold sees the shadow knock on his front door, carrying luggage for an extended visit. Is this some denizen of Hell, planning to do something unspeakable?
Soames, a local accountant, notices a closed and vacant shop in his neighborhood. A few days later, during his lunch break, he finds the shop in a different location, and it is open for business. For various reasons, he is prevented from entering. Eventually, he walks through the door of Charon Ltd. Exporters, and is welcomed like an old friend by the proprietor.
This is the way macabre and horror stories are supposed to be done; the horror part is subtle and in the background instead of in your face. Here is a first-rate collection that is really worth reading.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
My Familiar Stranger: The Order of the Black Swan
My Familiar Stranger: The Order of the Black Swan (Book 1), Victoria Danann, 2012, Kindle e-book
Elora Laikin is pushed into an interdimensional portal just before an assassination attempt. Imaging being run through a blender and flayed alive, at the same time, and somehow surviving. Also imagine being dumped in the middle of a super-secret military base. It's the headquarters of an elite unit, who are part of a 600-year-old Order, and whose purpose is to kill vampires.
When she recovers, Elora meets Storm, Kay and Ram, the members of the team before who she made her "entrance." Interdimensional travel is supposed to be impossible, so the three don't know what to make of her. They also can't help but notice that Elora is gorgeous. She shows them that she knows her way around the world of martial arts and fighting. Ram is something of an overgrown adolescent; he is a 6-foot-tall elf, who mates for life, and seriously messes up the courtship process with Elora.
Going up against vampires in the field, Elora shows more resourcefulness than brains. Many missing person reports seem to center on a Manhattan night club. The four get jobs there and keep their eyes open. An attack occurs, and Ram is seriously injured. In the tunnels under the cities, Elora is betrayed, and left naked and chained in a locked jail cell, with a couple of hungry vampires. Does she survive? Does Ram survive? Who does Elora "choose"? Is it possible to find true love while fighting vampires?
This is a really good paranormal story. It is just strange enough, without overdoing it. The romance part is well done, too. This is very much worth a sequel.
Elora Laikin is pushed into an interdimensional portal just before an assassination attempt. Imaging being run through a blender and flayed alive, at the same time, and somehow surviving. Also imagine being dumped in the middle of a super-secret military base. It's the headquarters of an elite unit, who are part of a 600-year-old Order, and whose purpose is to kill vampires.
When she recovers, Elora meets Storm, Kay and Ram, the members of the team before who she made her "entrance." Interdimensional travel is supposed to be impossible, so the three don't know what to make of her. They also can't help but notice that Elora is gorgeous. She shows them that she knows her way around the world of martial arts and fighting. Ram is something of an overgrown adolescent; he is a 6-foot-tall elf, who mates for life, and seriously messes up the courtship process with Elora.
Going up against vampires in the field, Elora shows more resourcefulness than brains. Many missing person reports seem to center on a Manhattan night club. The four get jobs there and keep their eyes open. An attack occurs, and Ram is seriously injured. In the tunnels under the cities, Elora is betrayed, and left naked and chained in a locked jail cell, with a couple of hungry vampires. Does she survive? Does Ram survive? Who does Elora "choose"? Is it possible to find true love while fighting vampires?
This is a really good paranormal story. It is just strange enough, without overdoing it. The romance part is well done, too. This is very much worth a sequel.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Paradox Resolution
Paradox Resolution, K.A. Bedford, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, 2012
This is the second novel about Aloysius "Spider" Webb, your average individual just trying to get through the day. Of course, it is not that easy.
A former member of the Western Australia Police, Webb was forced out because he became a whistleblower. In a world where time machines are cheap and portable, Webb is eking out a living as a time machine repairman. Most of his business is cause by people who are too impatient, or too stupid, to read the directions.
Things get weird when, one day, in the breakroom refrigerator, Webb finds the severed head of his much-disliked ex-boss, Dickhead McMahon. Iris Street, the local Police Inspector who deals with time travel matters, and who hates time travel as much as Webb, is called in. Footage from the surveillance camera shows no sign of any intruders.
Meantime, Mr. Patel, Webb's new boss, has a huge problem. His young son, Vijay, and Phoebe, a neighbor's child, have taken Mr. Patel's very tricked-out, and very illegal time machine, and disappeared. There is no time machine equivalent of a GPS system, so they could have gone to the distant past or future. Patel asks for Webb's help in finding them.
Webb hears of a concentration camp for time travellers in the far future. Using Patel's other time machine, a working, exact copy of the machine used in the 1960 film, Webb and Street take a trip to the far future. Do they find Vijay and Phoebe? So they stop the destruction of the universe? Do they survive?
This is a fine piece of writing from start to finish. It does a really good job exploring the societal impact of a huge technology like personal time travel. Things might get a little convoluted toward the end, but this is still highly recommended.
This is the second novel about Aloysius "Spider" Webb, your average individual just trying to get through the day. Of course, it is not that easy.
A former member of the Western Australia Police, Webb was forced out because he became a whistleblower. In a world where time machines are cheap and portable, Webb is eking out a living as a time machine repairman. Most of his business is cause by people who are too impatient, or too stupid, to read the directions.
Things get weird when, one day, in the breakroom refrigerator, Webb finds the severed head of his much-disliked ex-boss, Dickhead McMahon. Iris Street, the local Police Inspector who deals with time travel matters, and who hates time travel as much as Webb, is called in. Footage from the surveillance camera shows no sign of any intruders.
Meantime, Mr. Patel, Webb's new boss, has a huge problem. His young son, Vijay, and Phoebe, a neighbor's child, have taken Mr. Patel's very tricked-out, and very illegal time machine, and disappeared. There is no time machine equivalent of a GPS system, so they could have gone to the distant past or future. Patel asks for Webb's help in finding them.
Webb hears of a concentration camp for time travellers in the far future. Using Patel's other time machine, a working, exact copy of the machine used in the 1960 film, Webb and Street take a trip to the far future. Do they find Vijay and Phoebe? So they stop the destruction of the universe? Do they survive?
This is a fine piece of writing from start to finish. It does a really good job exploring the societal impact of a huge technology like personal time travel. Things might get a little convoluted toward the end, but this is still highly recommended.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Gaslight Arcanum: Uncanny Tales of Sherlock Holmes
Gaslight Arcanum: Uncanny Tales of Sherlock Holmes, J.R. Campbell & Charles Prepolec (ed.), Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, 2011
Here is a new collection of fantasy/mystery stories about that most famous of detectives, Sherlock Holmes.
Who was Sherlock Holmes before he became a famous detective? He was a student at Cambridge University, who, while living in Paris, learned the art of detection from another famous person, Edgar Allan Poe. Holmes and Watson travel to the English countryside, where, according to the locals, the Devil himself is causing hoofprints from invisible horses to appear in the turf during frequent storms.
A book, but not just any book, has disappeared from the monastery where it has been under lock and key for several hundred years. It is a compnedium of evil, hideous acts; when anyone reads from the book, they are compelled to enact what they have read. The passage then disappears from the book. Can a book actually be a malevolent, living thing?
Despite Holmes' well-known disbelief in the supernatural, a strange green slime may be legitimately alien. It hypnotizes its victim, before it turns them into a mass of green protoplasm. In another story, Holmes is assisted by a certain Count named Dracula. Another tale takes place in 21st Century Las Vegas.
Five years previously, a disaster on a salvage ship left a man on the ocean bottom in a diving bell. Now, he seems to be alive and communicating from the diving bell. Is it possible, or is the explanation more down-to-earth?
This is a gem of a collection. Fantasy fans will love it, and so will Holmes fans. Those who enjoy good writing, in general, will also love it.
Here is a new collection of fantasy/mystery stories about that most famous of detectives, Sherlock Holmes.
Who was Sherlock Holmes before he became a famous detective? He was a student at Cambridge University, who, while living in Paris, learned the art of detection from another famous person, Edgar Allan Poe. Holmes and Watson travel to the English countryside, where, according to the locals, the Devil himself is causing hoofprints from invisible horses to appear in the turf during frequent storms.
A book, but not just any book, has disappeared from the monastery where it has been under lock and key for several hundred years. It is a compnedium of evil, hideous acts; when anyone reads from the book, they are compelled to enact what they have read. The passage then disappears from the book. Can a book actually be a malevolent, living thing?
Despite Holmes' well-known disbelief in the supernatural, a strange green slime may be legitimately alien. It hypnotizes its victim, before it turns them into a mass of green protoplasm. In another story, Holmes is assisted by a certain Count named Dracula. Another tale takes place in 21st Century Las Vegas.
Five years previously, a disaster on a salvage ship left a man on the ocean bottom in a diving bell. Now, he seems to be alive and communicating from the diving bell. Is it possible, or is the explanation more down-to-earth?
This is a gem of a collection. Fantasy fans will love it, and so will Holmes fans. Those who enjoy good writing, in general, will also love it.
The Return of the Sorcerer
The Return of the Sorcerer, Clark Ashton Smith, Prime Books, 2009
Here are a group of stories by an overlooked master of the science fiction, fantasy and horror fields.
First published in the 1930s, the unearthly beings in these stories are not just denizens of Hell; they come from someplace worse than Hell. Some of these stories take place in the present day. Other stories take place in the distant past, in an era of amazing cities. Still others take place on impossible worlds in some other universe.
Those who are not horror fans need not be concerned; the horror in these tales is not overwhelming. For those who are fantasy or horror fans, and have never read Clark Ashton Smith, you are in for a huge treat. This is a wonderful place to start. Few writers can reach the level of poetry in their fiction; Smith does it.
Crossed Genres: Year One
Crossed Genres: Year One, Bart R. Leib and K.T. Holt (ed.), Crossed Genres, 2010
Crossed Genres is a speculative fiction magazine based in Massachusetts. These stories come from the first year of its existence.
There is a tale about a pitched battle that takes place in a diner, after closing time, among the condiments. A superhero named The Sentinel is getting on in years, with a wife and daughter who don't want him to go out each night, fighting crime.
A story is narrated by the only AI on Mars. It was part of a group of 2 AI's and 300 robots that were to build shelters for human colonists to start terraforming the planet. They hold a burial service for an early human rover found on the surface, rusted into uselessness.
Earth has become a ghetto, with all the rich people living in orbit or on the Moon. A man, and his family, build a rocketship in a junkyard, intending to head for the Moon, where everyone is free. England has a new weapon in its war against germany; witches and warlocks who knock enemy airplanes out of the air.
My favorite story takes place in near-future America. The US Army upgrades it soldiers with things like artificial eyes, and titanium ribs. The soldiers are supposed to re-enlist for two years to help pay for the upgrades. If they don't, the Army no longer provides maintenance for the upgrades, leaving them vulnerable to gangs who kill just to get the upgrades.
There is a good variety of stories, and they are all well-done. The reader will not go wrong with this book.
Crossed Genres is a speculative fiction magazine based in Massachusetts. These stories come from the first year of its existence.
There is a tale about a pitched battle that takes place in a diner, after closing time, among the condiments. A superhero named The Sentinel is getting on in years, with a wife and daughter who don't want him to go out each night, fighting crime.
A story is narrated by the only AI on Mars. It was part of a group of 2 AI's and 300 robots that were to build shelters for human colonists to start terraforming the planet. They hold a burial service for an early human rover found on the surface, rusted into uselessness.
Earth has become a ghetto, with all the rich people living in orbit or on the Moon. A man, and his family, build a rocketship in a junkyard, intending to head for the Moon, where everyone is free. England has a new weapon in its war against germany; witches and warlocks who knock enemy airplanes out of the air.
My favorite story takes place in near-future America. The US Army upgrades it soldiers with things like artificial eyes, and titanium ribs. The soldiers are supposed to re-enlist for two years to help pay for the upgrades. If they don't, the Army no longer provides maintenance for the upgrades, leaving them vulnerable to gangs who kill just to get the upgrades.
There is a good variety of stories, and they are all well-done. The reader will not go wrong with this book.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Od Magic
Od Magic, Patricia A. McKillip, Ace Books, 2006
This fantasy story is about a young man who doesn't know the extent of his magical powers.
Brenden lives in the far north and has an innate connection with plants. He doesn't so much talk to them as instinctively nurture them and understand their healing properties. One day, he is visited by the great wizard Od, who invites him to become a gardener at her wizard school in the city of Kelior, far to the south.
The Kingdom of Numis, with Kelior as its capital, is a place that fears magic. All students at the school can only learn "authorized" magic; even the instructors are not allowed to know any "unauthorized" magic. All graduates are required to serve Numis.
A portion of Kelior is called the Twilight Quarter. It is the sort of place where the shops and taverns open each day at sunset, and continue until dawn the next day, every day. What happens in the Twilight Quarter, stays in the Twilight Quarter. It is visted by a group of magicians led by a man named Tyramin. No one knows what he looks like, or where he comes from, but news of his arrival spreads through the Twilight Quarter like wildfire. There is a fine line between harmless illusions to thrill the average person, and serious, hardcore magic that might be used against the King of Numis, so the authorities are very interested in Tyramin. Several attempts are made to arrest him, but he always manages to keep just out of reach. Brenden is in the Twilight Quarter looking for the name of a strange plant, where he, unintentionally, shows just how powerful he really is.
This is a gem of a story. McKillip ceratinly knows her way around a fantasy novel, and this one is no exception. It is easy to read, and well done from start to finish.
This fantasy story is about a young man who doesn't know the extent of his magical powers.
Brenden lives in the far north and has an innate connection with plants. He doesn't so much talk to them as instinctively nurture them and understand their healing properties. One day, he is visited by the great wizard Od, who invites him to become a gardener at her wizard school in the city of Kelior, far to the south.
The Kingdom of Numis, with Kelior as its capital, is a place that fears magic. All students at the school can only learn "authorized" magic; even the instructors are not allowed to know any "unauthorized" magic. All graduates are required to serve Numis.
A portion of Kelior is called the Twilight Quarter. It is the sort of place where the shops and taverns open each day at sunset, and continue until dawn the next day, every day. What happens in the Twilight Quarter, stays in the Twilight Quarter. It is visted by a group of magicians led by a man named Tyramin. No one knows what he looks like, or where he comes from, but news of his arrival spreads through the Twilight Quarter like wildfire. There is a fine line between harmless illusions to thrill the average person, and serious, hardcore magic that might be used against the King of Numis, so the authorities are very interested in Tyramin. Several attempts are made to arrest him, but he always manages to keep just out of reach. Brenden is in the Twilight Quarter looking for the name of a strange plant, where he, unintentionally, shows just how powerful he really is.
This is a gem of a story. McKillip ceratinly knows her way around a fantasy novel, and this one is no exception. It is easy to read, and well done from start to finish.
Hammered
Hammered, Elizabeth Bear, Bantam Spectra, 2006
First of a trilogy, this near-future tale is about a woman for whom time is running out.
Set in the mid-21st Century, Jenny Casey is a former member of the Canadian Special Forces. She was part of the UN peacekeeping troops sent to New England in reaction to the food riots of the 2030's. She decided to stay in Hartford, Connecticut, mostly hiding from her government. A new, and very deadly, drug, a Canadian military enhancement drug called The Hammer, has become available on the streets of Hartford. Not even Razorface, the local crime lord, can discover the supply route. Much more important to Jenny is that her cybernetic enhancements are failing.
Years earlier, in a different war, Casey was severely injured. She walked out of the hospital with a metallic left arm, an artificial eye and various internal "improvements." If she doesn't have the required surgery now, she will die. Traveling to Toronto on the track of The Hammer, she is roped into having the surgery (she is pushing fifty years old). Casey is given a chance at what might be the ultimate pilot job (she is a former medevac pilot). It has to do with the "space race" moving to Mars, and shifting from Russia vs America (which is now a Christian Fascist state) to Canada vs China.
Bear does an excellent job from start to finish. I live just a few miles from Hartford, so I was most interested in her portrayal of the city (she gets it right). The book has enough high-tech and near future dystopia to keep anyone happy. This is a gem of a book.
First of a trilogy, this near-future tale is about a woman for whom time is running out.
Set in the mid-21st Century, Jenny Casey is a former member of the Canadian Special Forces. She was part of the UN peacekeeping troops sent to New England in reaction to the food riots of the 2030's. She decided to stay in Hartford, Connecticut, mostly hiding from her government. A new, and very deadly, drug, a Canadian military enhancement drug called The Hammer, has become available on the streets of Hartford. Not even Razorface, the local crime lord, can discover the supply route. Much more important to Jenny is that her cybernetic enhancements are failing.
Years earlier, in a different war, Casey was severely injured. She walked out of the hospital with a metallic left arm, an artificial eye and various internal "improvements." If she doesn't have the required surgery now, she will die. Traveling to Toronto on the track of The Hammer, she is roped into having the surgery (she is pushing fifty years old). Casey is given a chance at what might be the ultimate pilot job (she is a former medevac pilot). It has to do with the "space race" moving to Mars, and shifting from Russia vs America (which is now a Christian Fascist state) to Canada vs China.
Bear does an excellent job from start to finish. I live just a few miles from Hartford, so I was most interested in her portrayal of the city (she gets it right). The book has enough high-tech and near future dystopia to keep anyone happy. This is a gem of a book.
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