Tag Archive: YA Report


YA Report: “Reaper” by K. D. McEntire

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May 24, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

 

Reaper (Lightbringer #2) by K. D. McEntire follows Wendy as she attempts to save Eddie’s life while navigating the politics of both her powerful Reaper family and the ghosts in the Never. Piotr continues his investigation into his past, knowing that he is one of the oldest ghosts in the Never, but ends up finding answers in an unexpected way when a strange wound threatens to end his existence. Wendy accepts her family’s offer to train her, and while she does learn more about her familial history in the process, she also comes by her own life-threatening injury. Forget trying to save Eddie, and forget trying to save Piotr – in the end, Wendy must save herself!

K. D. McEntire doles out tidbits of information in this by-the-edge-of-your-seat paranormal fantasy, leading the reader galloping along after that carrot of intrigue until the rewarding resolution. Thanks in part due to Wendy’s and Piotr’s less naive perspectives, the reader is treated to a more colorful, complicated afterlife where Walkers aren’t always mindless monsters and Reapers can be down right bad guys. And, Piotr! Get ready for the fan girl squeal! Piotr was such a good guy in book one, and it was mostly his strange not-alive status that sundered his relationship with Wendy at the end. In book two, Piotr learns more about his very distant origins as a Rider, and in his sickened state, we see a darker side of him that can’t be completely written off as physical (metaphysical?) illness. He and Wendy are also privy to glimpses of disturbing, evil creatures who are drawn to Wendy as the Lightbringer. I greatly enjoyed book one, but these developments in Reaper have converted me into a true fan. One who squeals.

The dialogue especially struck a cord with me. Many of the characters suffer from altered mental and physical states throughout the book, and the way it affects their speech gives me shivers. I’d hate to be in a room with a delusional Piotr or on the phone with a dying Wendy. Eddie, too, gets a chance to show his true character when he helps Piotr despite his own weakened state. Others before him have chosen to become Walkers rather than risk fading to nothing, yet Eddie gives freely of himself. Wendy’s family chip in their fair share of awesome dialogue, too, letting you see why Wendy has a hard time deciding who is for her and who is against her. For all she knows, her entire extended family is against her.

I was also happy to see Wendy learn from her mistakes in the first book. Wendy evaluates her situation in a more critical manner as she teachers herself not to take every thing at face value, and there’s plenty of mystery in Reaper for her to drown in. First, she desperately needs information from her newly discovered family, yet she knows that some of them are two-faced. In fact, she learns that her mother had a good reason for teaching her so little about Reaping and her extended family (A+++ for having her hands tied before, you know, she went crazy). Second, even the ancient knowledge of her Reaper family, and the beliefs of the equally ancient Riders, aren’t 100% accurate. What Wendy has learned from both groups simply does not explain every thing in the Never, and there are some pretty big and scary questions left over, including Piotr’s past. Many of these problems remain mysteries at the end of the book, yet Wendy manages to learn enough to help save her own life and set her on a quest for knowledge in Reaper‘s sequel.

reaperReaper is exactly what a second book should be. Where Lightbringer introduces us to the world of the Never and Wendy’s powers as the Lightbringer, Reaper hugs us like an old friend and then shoves us into the pool with a demented laugh, also like my friends. The demented laugh? Reaper has a cliff-hanger ending that will have you counting down the days until the sequel is released!

Speaking of which, to buy K. D. McEntire’s Lightbringer books, visit her website at kdmcentire.com

You can also follow her on twitter @kdmcentire
See our review of Lightbringer here!
See our review of Never and the Lightbringer trilogy here!

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Michelle Ristuccia enjoys slowing down time in the middle of the night to read and review speculative fiction, because sleeping offspring are the best motivation. You can find out more about her rabid love of SFF, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, http://wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com , or twitter stalk her at http://twitter.com/ mrsmica

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YA Report: “Never” by K. D. McEntire

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May 16, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

The Lightbringer trilogy, by K. D. McEntire, follows Wendy, a young woman who discovers that she has the power to send the dead into the Light, and Piotr, a dead man with a long history obscured by suspicious memory loss. Together they are drawn into the life-and-death politics of the Lightbringers, Walkers, and lost souls that inhabit the Never, and these adventures lead them to the larger mystery of the nature of the Light itself and the origins of ancient souls such as Piotr. As the de facto head of the household, Wendy must juggle the needs of her younger siblings while also combating her own blind naivety and ignorance.

McEntire’s invisible realm of the Never provides the reader with unique mysteries that Wendy can only solve by learning to “ask the right questions.” The answer at the end of the series – where every thing came from, how, and why – ties into real life mythology in such a mind-bending fashion that it is as if someone has said that Middle Earth is located in Narnia.

never Never, the last in the Lightbringer trilogy by K. D. McEntire, came out May 14, 2013 from Pyr. But, first, if you haven’t already read the first book, pick up a copy of Lightbringer, because you don’t want to try to read these books out of order.

Boy, was I happy to see Never on my desk! The end of Reaper was a total tease and I couldn’t imagine that this series could wrap up in only three books. Never proves me wrong with glorious flair.

Although I’m sad to see the last of McEntire’s compelling characters, the suspense of a fourth book might have killed me. Now I finally understand who Piotr is and how the Never was created. K. D. McEntire draws from mythology that I’m barely familiar with, and yet it makes a foreign kind of sense, and I enjoyed the break from my usual fair. No complaints here, and no spoilers! I was not expecting this ending in the least.

lightbringer   The Lightbringer trilogy ends with the kind of reveal that makes you want to start the series over just to see the minor mysteries in a new light. Rereading this three book series is entirely possible, if you own them, so hop on over to K. D. McEntire’s website to purchase the trilogy and learn more about her other works:   http://www.kdmcentire.com/index.php       ________________________________________________________

Michelle Ristuccia enjoys slowing down time in the middle of the night to read and review speculative fiction, because sleeping offspring are the best motivation. You can find out more about her rabid love of SFF, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, http://wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com , or twitter stalk her at http://twitter.com/ mrsmica

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YA Report: “Emilie & The Hollow Word” by Martha Wells

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April 12, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

 

Emilie & the Hollow World by Martha Wells is a YA gas light fantasy adventure that follows Emilie on her accidental journey to the center of the Earth. Martha Well’s strong female character will pull you into the action with her sense of curiosity and strength faster than you can blow out a lamp.

Feeling unappreciated and ill-used, Emilie decides to run away from home to make her own way in the world, but a clash with port security – and pirates – and Lord Engal’s crew – soon convinces her that she’s not very good at this adventuring thing. Before Emilie can decide to turn back, Lord Engal’s ship heads straight for the Hollow World at the Center of the Earth on an emergency rescue mission with her on board. As the ship travels through a world more mysterious than the stars, Emilie puts her wits and intuition to the test in an effort to be of some use to the crew. Oh, and to survive. Death is definitely a possibility when facing off against violent mermaids.

There is a lot I could say about the fun world building, the trip-over-yourself action, or the wonderful genre elements, but most of all, I love Emilie. Emilie has a strong personality and she doesn’t just find her place in Lord Engal’s adventures. She makes it. When other characters want to discount her because she is young or because she is female, she either talks louder or does her own thing without their approval. This is what makes her a strong female character, the kind that so many authors strive for but fall short of. For once, we have a text that manages to mention sexism without sounding all preachy and taking us out of the story. Instead, societal flaws are mentioned as bare facts of life, as an acknowledgment that no society is perfect and that we can always strive for improvement. Martha Wells also makes sure to keep her protagonist’s contributions reasonable. She is simply a brave teen who recognizes when the patriarchal restrictions of her society get ridiculous and can be utterly ignored. Martha Wells also includes contextual balance, making sure that the matriarchal mermaid culture that her characters encounter is rife with its own problems, including the woes of war. This is a book that feminists can be proud of precisely because it does not hold its females to an unreasonable set of standards driven by an agenda.

Emilie & the Hollow World is a solid, well-rounded fantasy adventure novel that is worth picking up. Crack it open and run away with Emilie, because it’s fun to run away to a dangerous, uncharted realm with a bunch of people you’ve only just met.

You can find Emilie & the Hollow World at the publisher’s website:

http://strangechemistrybooks.com/books/emilie-and-the-hollow-world-by-martha-wells/

And the author’s website:

http://www.marthawells.com/emilie.htm

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Michelle Ristuccia writes short fiction of all speculative fiction genres in between chasing her toddler from tree to tree. The shorter the work, the better, because 200 words looks very long on her cellphone and that keypad is very, very small. You can find out more about her rabid love of spec fic, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com

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The SFFWRTCHT Interview: Author Janet Edwards

Filed under: Interview, YA Report by MrsMica — Leave a comment
April 8, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

Janet Edwards lives in England. As a child, she read everything she could get her hands on, including a huge amount of science fiction and fantasy. She studied Maths at Oxford, and went on to suffer years of writing unbearably complicated technical documents before deciding to write something that was fun for a change. She has a husband, a son, a lot of books, and an aversion to housework.

Website: www.janetedwards.com

Twitter: @JanetEdwardsSF

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JanetEdwardsSF
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SFFWRTCHT: When did you decide to start writing? How did you begin?
Janet Edwards: I don’t think I ever did decide to start writing. I loved books and daydreamed stories as a child, and dabbled in writing, but never believed I could become an author myself. As an adult, real life took over, and time was in short supply.

SFFWRTCHT: Did you study writing in school? How did you learn your craft?
Janet Edwards: In the autumn of 2007, I had some free time and decided to have a serious attempt at writing. I signed up for a two hour a week creative writing class. You mostly learn about writing by reading a lot and writing yourself, but the class taught me things about laying out a manuscript, different types of writing, and styles. My initial goal was to write something and suffer the ordeal of letting someone else read it. My long term ambition was to get a short story published.

SFFWRTCHT: How long did you write until your first sale? What was that?
Janet Edwards: It depends what you count as a sale. The first short story I wrote came second in a competition, won me some money, and was broadcast on BBC local radio. My first actual sale was the Earth Girl trilogy, so just over three years.

SFFWRTCHT: What aspect of Earth Girl came first? Characters? Plot? Setting?
Janet Edwards: What came first was the concept of a future where only the handicapped, those with a fatal allergy to other worlds, lived on Earth. Originally, I tried to build a short story around it, but the idea was far too big. I spent a year dreaming up a whole future society, and then Jarra walked into my head and started telling me her story.DIGITAL CAMERA

SFFWRTCHT: What sort of pre-writing did you do for Earth Girl? Did you outline?
Janet Edwards: I didn’t outline Earth Girl. I had my whole future setting worked out, like an empty stage, and Jarra walked on to it. A hurt and angry girl, who claimed she didn’t care when really she cared to breaking point, told me her story. When I reached the end, I threw away some sections that weren’t really part of the story, and shuffled the order of some others, to impose some structure on it.

SFFWRTCHT: What’s your writing time look like? Planned time? Grab it when you can?
Janet Edwards: I wake in the morning and write until I have to do something else, or the inspiration for that day runs out.

SFFWRTCHT: Do you use any special software or music playlist?
Janet Edwards: I mostly just write using Word, and I don’t play music when writing. My head is totally in another world, or at least another time, so I wouldn’t hear background music. I do have a trigger piece of music that puts me straight into Jarra’s head.

SFFWRTCHT: How do you deal with writer’s block?
Janet Edwards: I’ve found if I have writer’s block, then it usually means there’s something wrong with the previous chapter or two. I have to go back and look for the problem.

SFFWRTCHT: What role do beta readers play, if any, in your process as a professional author?
Janet Edwards: I’ve never really worked with beta readers, partly because things happened unexpectedly quickly with Earth Girl. When I was going to the writing class, I read a few short stories to them, and my husband helps by reading my books for me.

SFFWRTCHT: What advice would you give an up and coming writer?
Janet Edwards: Write a lot. It’s the best way to get better.

SFFWRTCHT: Are you involved with cons and fandom? Cosplay?
Janet Edwards: I go to several of the UK cons, and enjoy seeing the costumes, but I don’t do cosplay myself because I’m not creative in that way.

SFFWRTCHT: Where did your love of specfic and science fiction in particular begin?
Janet Edwards: As a child I was an avid reader, and my father had a lot of science fiction and fantasy books, so from about eight years old I was reading about fantastic and future worlds.

EarthGirlcoverSFFWRTCHT: Who were some of your favorite authors/books growing up?
Janet Edwards: I was reading books by all the classic science fiction and fantasy authors. I can’t give you the whole huge list, but three were Anne McCaffrey, Andre Norton, and Roger Zelazny.

SFFWRTCHT: What future projects are you working on that we can look forward to?
Janet Edwards: Earth Girl is the first part in a trilogy. The sequel, Earth Star, is complete, so I’m currently working on the final book in the trilogy. 
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Michelle Ristuccia writes short fiction of all speculative fiction genres in between chasing her toddler from tree to tree. The shorter the work, the better, because 200 words looks very long on her cellphone and that keypad is very, very small. You can find out more about her rabid love of writing, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com

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YA Report: “Earth Girl” by Janet Edwards

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April 2, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

 

Earth Girl by Janet Edwards brings us to Jarra’s Earth, in the year 2788, when travel between the stars is as easy as stepping through a portal. Except that, for “throwbacks” like Jara, the other side of that portal means death by anaphylactic shock due to an inherited fault in their immune system. Jara knows this first hand, because as soon as she turned of legal age, she exercised her legal right to leave Earth. She only survived because a medical team was on alert, waiting to transport her back and save her life. But there can’t always be someone waiting on the other side of her mistakes. Now she decides to join an archaelogical dig team of “norms” and pretend to be from off-world so that she can spit in the face of their prejudice against “apes.” When her lies put her life in danger, what she learns has more to do with herself than her foreign peers.

Janet Edwards gives us a book to lose ourselves in, from a well-crafted backstory of Earth’s depopulation to the coming-of-age romance of an off-kilter archaeology nerd. Before we even get to the first life-and-death-scene, we’re wowed by NYC in ruins and the future tech the team uses to excavate it, complete with environmental suits and specialized vehicles. The sparse future terminology and lingo, such as “tag points” and “amaz,” feel natural and are easy to understand. The archaeology, history, and tech are all welded together in a way that makes the exposition feel like action, because each piece of data is so closely tied to plot. There’s also a bit of kissing, offscreen sex, and many emotional moments driven by the comradery of team work and near-death experiences.

Interesting scifi setting? Check. People dying? Check. There’s also a strong underpinning of EarthGirlcoverthe softer sciences – psychology and sociology, to be precise. Jara’s self-discoveries build us a multidimensional look at social prejudice in her universe, one that eventually crushes her immature us v. them paradigm. Many of the assumptions that Jara has at the beginning of the novel, mostly regarding people that she knows nothing about, like her parents, eventually shatter under the weight of opposing fact. Through this process, we get to meet many fascinating characters and, through them, their diverse birth worlds and cultures.

Earth Girl sports a robust first-person voice that fills out Edwards’ smart female protagonist. Smart, as long as you don’t count common sense. Many of Jara’s beliefs and life decisions are unrealistic, like her determination to check that she will die if she visits another world. Some of this determination stems from her core strength, her ability to commit fully to a decision if there is even the slightest chance that something will be gained. This is part of what makes her a good tag leader and what leads to many of her heroic actions. Yet, Edwards also shows us, before Jarra even mets her intended “norm” victims, that Jarra can at times become disconnected from reality and fall prey to magical thinking. It’s great to have a risk-taker who’s willing to save your life. It’s scary to have a risk-taker basing their risk assessments on pure fantasy.

Told through Jara’s unreliable perspective, Earth Girl is a fascinating blend of delusion and reality. But most of all, Edwards captures the wonderful feeling of discovery, both of the physical world and of the self. Find out more about the amaz Earth Girl and upcoming sequels at:

 http://janetedwards.com/

Visit the publisher’s page at: http://www.pyrsf.com/earthgirl.html

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Michelle Ristuccia writes short fiction of all speculative fiction genres in between chasing her toddler from tree to tree. The shorter the work, the better, because 200 words looks very long on her cellphone and that keypad is very, very small. You can find out more about her rabid love of spec fic, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com

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The SFFWRTCHT Interview: Tim Lebbon

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January 29, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

TIM LEBBON is a New York Times-bestselling writer from South Wales. He’s had almost thirty novels published to date, as well as dozens of novellas and hundreds of short stories. His most recent releases include Coldbrook from Arrow/Hammer, London Eye (book one of the Toxic City trilogy) from Pyr in the USA, Nothing as it Seems from PS Publishing, and The Heretic Land from Orbit. Future novels include Into the Void: Dawn of the Jedi (Star Wars) from Del Rey/Star Wars Books, and The Silence. He has won four British Fantasy Awards, a Bram Stoker Award, and a Scribe Award, and has been a finalist for International Horror Guild, Shirley Jackson, and World Fantasy Awards. 20th Century Fox acquired film rights to The Secret Journeys of Jack London series, and a TV series of his Toxic City trilogy is in development with ABC Network in the USA. Find out more about Tim at his website www.timlebbon.net

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SFFWRTCHT: When did you decide to start writing? How did you begin?
Tim Lebbon: I’ve always written, ever since I can remember. Always loved telling stories. Stories make the world go around. As for when I started writing with a view to getting my work published … I think that was with a short story in my early twenties. Writing is a business now as well as a hobby, but I still get that thrill of creation, and a tingle of excitement whenever I get a new deal or see a new book published.

SFFWRTCHT: Did you study writing in school? How did you learn your craft?
Tim Lebbon: I’m self-taught. I’m not sure writing can be taught –– good writing, at least –– although it can be nurtured. I never attended a writing class, but learnt through trial and error, writing lots, paying attention to responses (whether acceptances or rejections), and spending a long time finding my own voice.tim lebbon

SFFWRTCHT: How long did you write until your first sale? What was that?
Tim Lebbon: My first short story sale was to Peeping Tom magazine when I was about 25 (I was paid £2.50). My first novel was Mesmer, published by Tanjen when I was 27. I earned a little more for that, but not much more.

SFFWRTCHT: What aspect of London Eye came first? Characters? Plot? Setting?
Tim Lebbon: My ideas come from everywhere, their growth never quite the same. This one … title first. Toxicity is an album by a band called System of a Down. I always loved that title. Turned it into Toxic City, wondered where and what that toxic city could be, realised it might be London, wondered why it would be toxic. Then the story and characters grew out from there. Of course, the whole trilogy is is informed by my love of apocalyptic fiction (both reading and writing it).

SFFWRTCHT: What sort of pre-writing did you do for London Eye? Did you outline?
Tim Lebbon: Only very vaguely, to show my agent and just to provide a platform where I could brainstorm ideas. This project was unusual in that I wrote the first novel on spec (without any publishing deal or publisher interest) and then we sold it afterwards. More usually nowadays I’ll write a proposal, sell it, then write the novel. I rarely outline in any great detail, and when I do the story inevitably changes as I’m writing it. It’s the telling of a story that gives it life, not its planning.

SFFWRTCHT: What’s your writing time look like? Planned time? Grab it when you can?
Tim Lebbon: I write full-time so spend the time when the family are away from home to work. So the kids go to school, my wife goes to work, I write. Sometimes I do some work in the evenings or at weekends, but that’s inevitably non-writing work (could be copyediting one of my books, doing interviews, emails, business, developing ideas…)

SFFWRTCHT: Do you use any special software or music playlist?
Tim Lebbon: I usually listen to music when I’m working, but I’m still a bit retro and use cds.

SFFWRTCHT: How do you deal with writer’s block?
Tim Lebbon: I don’t believe in it. Some days I might not feel like writing, but that’s not writer’s block, it’s part of the process. Writing a story isn’t like building a wall … you can’t do it all the time. Sometimes you need to step back and see where each brick goes, and those days when maybe you don’t write 2,000 words, or even a thousand, are as much a part of the process as actually hitting the keys.

SFFWRTCHT: What role do beta readers play, if any, in your process as a professional author?
Tim Lebbon: I’ve got one first reader who sometimes gets a new book or story to read before it’s submitted, sometimes not. It all depends on deadlines! He’s really helpful with looking at proposals, seeing if they make sense, if they’re written in a punchy fashion. He’s become a good friend. And his name’s also Tim!

SFFWRTCHT: What advice would you give an up and coming writer?
Tim Lebbon: Read lots, write lots, never give up.

SFFWRTCHT: Are you involved with cons and fandom? Cosplay?
Tim Lebbon:(What’s Cosplay?) Yes, I go to conventions. I never miss the British Fantasy Convention, and I’ve been to World Fantasy and World Horror several times, Horrorfind, Necon… I don’t get to the ‘States quite as much as I used to.

SFFWRTCHT: Where did your love of specfic and urban fantasy in particular begin?
Tim Lebbon:From my early teens I loved Stephen King, James Herbert, Clive Barker, and that love of fantastic fiction has stayed with me. Not everything I read is ‘fantastic’, but maybe 50% still is. Sometimes I think we all need to escape from our world and enter another. It’s healthy.

SFFWRTCHT: Who were some of your favorite authors/books growing up?
Tim Lebbon:See above. Also, Willard Price and Arthur Machen, two very different writers but great influences on my love of story and language.

SFFWRTCHT: How do you define urban fantasy? Science fiction?
Tim Lebbon: I think definitions and pigeonholing are quite subjective. I never read a book and consider what genre it is … I just go for stuff that piques my interest.

SFFWRTCHT: What future projects are you working on that we can look forward to?
Tim Lebbon: The exciting news with Toxic City is that the trilogy is in development with ABC Network as a TV series! Alex Proyas is attached to direct, and Jaime Paglia is writing. That doesn’t mean it’ll definitely be a series, but it’s moving that way. Should know more soon.

As for me, my first Star Wars novel Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void will be out in May, the next two Toxic City books (Reaper’s Legacy and Contagion) are out over the next 12 months, and a new apocalyptic novel, The Silence, will be published in the UK and US early next year.

 

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Michelle Ristuccia writes short fiction of all speculative fiction genres in between chasing her toddler from tree to tree. The shorter the work, the better, because 200 words looks very long on her cellphone and that keypad is very, very small. You can find out more about her rabid love of writing, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com

 

 

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YA Report: “London Eye” by Tim Lebbon

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January 22, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

London Eye is the first book in the Toxic City series by Tim Lebbon, set in near-future England after London has been cordoned off to contain Evolve, a virus that kills most of its victims and permanently changes its survivors. The government sets up a special forces group called the Choppers to reinforce London’s isolation, but now one of the survivors, Rosemary, has escaped and wants to bring Jack and his friends into the city. Rosemary’s motives are a mystery to Jack, but she has brought a recent photo of Jack’s mother, and the draw of lost family makes up his mind for him – even though Jack must take his younger sister, Emily, along on this insane adventure, because leaving her alone in heavily policed England might be even more dangerous.

Tim Lebbon does a great job balancing action and psychology in London Eye. Through most of the book, the characters are literally running for their lives from one place to the next in a city where it seems like there is no safe place and no one is their friend. This Schwarzenegger-level action is well supported by heavy characterization in the beginning and heart-thudding psychology throughout. In the short chapters before the protagonists enter the Toxic City, the characters’ histories, personalities, and motivations are laid out like powerful epitaphs. Tim Lebbon makes sure his readers understand how each character has dealt with the tragedy of Doomsday and how this affects their current coping mechanisms. Our main character is the most normal and balanced of the group because of the responsibility of taking care of his younger sister without his parents, and this builds the reader’s trust in his ability to correctly interpret events and make reasonable decisions. His friends are portrayed more like short fuses who might let themselves get caught up in the wildness of the Toxic City. Later, when the action is hurtling along, we believe it when one character goes insane and two other characters consummate their relationship.

The Toxic City itself is practically a character, and Tim Lebbon describes it just as poignantly. Once the children decide to enter London, there is no such thing as a safe place and no such thing as a good plan, because all of their decisions must bring them through one danger or another. We can see why the remaining survivors have not yet broken out of London or succeeded in rising up against the government, what with the constant harrassment by government troops on the one hand and the inherent dangers of the city and the virus on the other. The unpredictable aspect of these difficulties serves to invalidate all plans, big and small, because survivors find it nearly impossible to gather into groups and force their will upon the land. Even the plan that brings our heroes into the city is essentially the plan of a single individual, and still it suffers from attacks by wild animals and government troops. Only the most powerful survivors can provide any kind of stability, and it is these hot shots with whom Jack must ultimately contend if he hopes to change the fate of London and the fate of his family.

 

With this well constructed setting and superbly differentiated characters, we can see why the Toxic City is a place where people lose their minds and die every day. London Eye makes us feel like we all have friends who might snap and run off alone through hell, given the right stressors. I suspect that this heart-thudding psychology will remain prominent throughout the series, in a world where even the disease itself directly affects the brain. Like our protagonist, we are made to wonder, how are we supposed to know when our Self is irrevocably lost, or when it is lost in others? I’m interested to see what the sequels do with this question of self. ABC studios is producing Evolve, a television drama series based on the Toxic City trilogy, which should prove entertaining as well!

Find out more about London Eye and Tim Lebbon at his writing blog: http://www.timlebbon.net

Visit the publisher’s page at: http://pyrsf.com/londoneye.html

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Michelle Ristuccia writes short fiction of all speculative fiction genres in between chasing her toddler from tree to tree. The shorter the work, the better, because 200 words looks very long on her cellphone and that keypad is very, very small. You can find out more about her rabid love of spec fic, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com

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The SFFWRTCHT Interview: Author Allen M. Steele

Filed under: Interview, YA Report by MrsMica — Leave a comment
January 17, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

 Allen M. Steele was a journalist before turning to his first love, science fiction. Since then he has published eighteen novels and nearly a hundred short stories. His work has received numerous awards, including three Hugos, and has been translated worldwide. A lifelong space enthusiast, he has testified before Congress in hearings regarding space exploration, flown the NASA space shuttle simulator, and serves as an advisor for the Space Frontier Foundation. Steele lives in Massachusetts with his wife Linda and their dogs Iko and Jack.

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SFFWRTCHT: When did you decide to start writing? How did you begin?
Allen Steele: My 4th grade teacher gave my class a homework assignment of writing a story based on pictures she’d given each of us. In my case, she gave me a magazine illustration of a family in a flying car. I was already reading science fiction by then, so this wasn’t a stretch for me, but unlike most homework assignments, this was one I really enjoyed. When I wrote that story, I discovered that this was something I liked doing, and so I kept writing short stories as kind of a hobby until I was 15, when I came to the realization that I wanted to be a writer.And that was it. From that moment on, my life had a purpose.

SFFWRTCHT: Did you study writing in school? How did you learn your craft?
Allen Steele: Well, considering that I was always the worst student in school – hyperactive, not much respect for authority, a low tolerance for dogma – not very many teachers took me seriously when they learned that I wanted to be a writer. And when they did, most of them tried to steer me away from science fiction. So I was largely self-taught, but trial and error can be a great learning process, even though it takes a long time and a lot of patience. I’d write a story, send it to a SF magazine, have it rejected, send it to another magazine, have it rejected again, and so on, and kept doing it this way all through high school and college, gradually improving my skills as I went along.

SFFWRTCHT: How long did you write until your first sale? What was that?
Allen Steele: I studied journalism in college and worked as a reporter for several years, and therefore my first work in print was for various newspapers and magazines. That experience did a lot to help me in learning how to write fiction, which I kept doing as a sideline when I wasn’t banging out newspaper stories. So when I finally produced a publishable work of science fiction, it was a novel, Orbital Decay, which was published in 1989 when I was 31. By then, I’d been a professional writer for several years, just in a different field.

SFFWRTCHT: What aspect of Apollo’s Outcasts came first? Characters? Plot? Setting?
Allen Steele: It’s hard to isolate a single aspect of any of my stories as the starting point. For me, writing is an organic process in which everything evolves at the same time. In this instance, it came from a long-standing desire to write a young-adult SF novel. I wanted to write a novel for my nieces and nephews, and also produce the kind of YA novel which I wouldn’t mind reading myself. There’s not a lot of YA novels published these days that aren’t dystopian or take a realistic approach to space exploration, so that was my starting point. After that, the rest was relatively easy.

SFFWRTCHT: What sort of pre-writing did you do for Apollo’s Outcasts? Did you outline?
Allen Steele: First, I tell the story to myself, just as if I was telling it aloud to someone who may be listening to me. Nothing gets written down at this point except for a few notes to help me remember names and places. When that’s done, I begin doing research. These two things are usually the longest part of the development process and can take months or even years, but once I’ve completed this, I’m ready to go. The outline is almost entirely in my head, with a loose-leaf binder full of notes and research material to help me along the way.

SFFWRTCHT: What’s your writing time look like? Planned time? Grab it when you can?
Allen Steele: Since I’m a full-time writer, I’m able to keep a regular schedule. I write Mondays through Fridays, sitting down at my desk shortly after 8 am and not leaving it until I’ve written at least three pages, sometimes as many as five. That usually takes about three or four hours, at which time I knock off for lunch. In the afternoon I do research, which usually involves a lot of reading and note-taking. Very often, though, I’m coming up with the story while I’m doing the household chores. It doesn’t look like I’m writing, because I’m doing stuff like mowing the lawn or feeding the dogs, but my mind is somewhere else at the same time. Which, of course, means that I occasionally mow the dogs or feed the grass. Absent-mindedness is a problem for me, I’m afraid.

SFFWRTCHT: Do you use any special software or music playlist?
Allen Steele: I use the same writing software nearly every professional writer does: Microsoft Word, which has pretty much become the industry standard. And while I don’t listen to music while I’m actually writing – it’s too distracting – there’s almost always a certain body of music to which I’mlistening the rest of the time. While I was writing Apollo’s Outcasts, I was listening to a lot of the Who – Who’s Next and Quadrophenia in particular, both of which are about teenagers. View full article »

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YA Report: “The Crossing” by Mandy Hager

Filed under: Book Review, YA Report by MrsMica — Leave a comment
January 15, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

The Crossing is the first of the Blood of the Lamb trilogy by Mandy Hager and takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where a group calling themselves the Apostles of the Lamb uses a twisted version of Christianity to bully the populace into providing for them. When Maryam, one of the Blessed Sisters, enters womanhood and completes “the crossing,” a short ride over the water to the boat where the Apostles and their servants are sequestered, she discovers that the so-called Holy City is held together by fear and lies. Maryam decides that she must escape and tell her long lost family about the abuses suffered under the Apostles, but the question is not only a matter of how, but of how fast she can flee, because her ever loving leaders have sentenced her to the death of a “bleeder”.

The cover and description made me think that this might be a vampire novel. It’s not, and I love the eventual explanation for all the obsession over blood. The Crossing is a scifi that reads more like historical fiction. This makes sense as Maryam is raised as a servant and would have no access to knowledge about blood types and that sort of thing. So, the science is there for those who are interested in putting it together, but it is very much in the background.

At first I was not sure how I felt about the heavy religious aspect of the book, but there is certainly historical precedence for cults that take advantage of their followers. I’m sure its hard to walk that line and not offend readers. In the end, I was very pleased with the depth of the protagonist’s thoughts on the matter and mollified that, at least for now, Maryam’s friend Ruth has become a counterpoint for her doubt. Even if the protagonist ends up being an atheist in the series, I feel that Mandy Hager has given her sufficient reasons to question her beliefs and that this is not necessarily a criticism of the main tenants of Christianity. In fact, this theme of faith, knowledge, and trust is what gives The Crossing its depth and beauty.

Lazarus also helps make the book worth the read. Lazarus and Joseph are both young men who live on the ship as part of the upper class, yet the two characters are opposites. The main love interest, Joseph, is a little flat and underdeveloped, but I’m hoping this will improve with sequels. He is also supposed to be very ill, so this limits the heroics available to him. Lazarus  on the other hand, serves as a controversial example of a bad guy who may still be able to turn to the light. He nearly commits rape, not once, but twice throughout the book, and yet we are also shown that he is still human. Perhaps Lazarus will become a love interest if he reforms, but for now, it is a relief that our heroine does not go gaga over the bad guy.

My only reservation regarding “The Crossing” is purely a matter of preference. “The Crossing” starts out with a naive protagonist, which is something for which I have very little tolerance. Yet, in “The Crossing,” the reason for her naivety is spelled out clearly and Mandy Hager puts forth great effort to legitimize Maryam’s growing maturity. Maryam’s transformation is a bit slow for my tastes, but then, we must be made to believe that other characters before her have had reason to succumb to the oppression of the Apostles. Once Maryam choses to stand her ground, Mandy Hager shows us just how tough a woman can be, and I love that. Maryam’s going to need her budding self-confidence to tackle the wide, open world in the next book.

 

Learn more about “The Crossing” and Mandy Hager at her writing blog: http://www.mandyhager.com

Visit the publisher’s page at: http://pyrsf.com/TheCrossing.html

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Michelle Ristuccia writes short fiction of all speculative fiction genres in between chasing her toddler from tree to tree. The shorter the work, the better, because 200 words looks very long on her cellphone and that keypad is very, very small. You can find out more about her rabid love of spec fic, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com

 

 

 

 

 

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YA Report: “Four Winds, One Storm: The Bone Brick City” by Aaron Hollingsworth

Filed under: Book Review, YA Report by MrsMica — Leave a comment
January 8, 2013

by Michelle Ristuccia

“Four Winds, One Storm: The Bone Brick City” by Aaron Hollingsworth is the first in an epic Science Fantasy series following an unlikely band of crime fighters. In this first installment, our heroes come up against the Mystic Mafia, a mysterious organization that has blinded and robbed several citizens in a seemingly random pattern. I’m here to convince you that you’ll love the humorous tone, the action-packed plot, and the fascinating setting.

First, the prologue shows us the Mystic Mafia in action, establishing the fact that this will be a mystery with plenty of dangerous magic. Next we meet Will and Hindin, two outsiders entering the Bone Brick City to make a name for themselves by solving the case of the Mystic Mafia. Hindin is a malruka, a golem-esque creature made of steel. Will is also a non-human, a Tendikeye, and from this combination we learn much about the different races and their Huncells throughout the story. Polly is the next main character to arrive on the scene, a theurge (magic wielder  on the run from the law. When the three of them end up at the scene of a Mystic Mafia crime, the serious spoilers begin, along with plenty of action. They end up in jail together, where they meet Röger, a human who has been arrested for hooking up with a minor. We witness the formation of the team to the tune of a battle to the death, after which the city grants them the right to assist in the case of the Mystic Mafia. All of this and more occurs in only the first tenth of the book, leading into a brawling good read.

Four Winds, One Storm should be the yardstick by which we measure Science Fantasy. In the first chapter we see a reference to telephone poles, and this is our first hint that Draybair is not your standard fantasy world. As we delve deeper into the text, we see glimmers of a past where technology is as good as or better than the real world. For those who are science fiction shy, rest assured that Four Winds, One Storm is Science Fantasy with a lowercase s and a capital F. The magic system alone proves as much, and the most technologically advanced thing we see in operation is a steam-powered car (drool!). The novel has much of the structure of an epic fantasy story, namely the longer page count and thorough introduction of its four main characters, yet it also shows many of the hallmarks of science fiction; well justified references to the real world, the historic use of technology dependent on electricity, and plastic. The fantasy elements dominate the story, giving the setting a sense of stability, while these cross-genre gems lend Hollingsworth’s world a sense of depth that definitively separates it from crackerjack adventure fantasy.

The magic system also deserves to be trotted out. I’ve always had a soft place in my heart for belief-based magic, and “Four Winds” finally justifies this form by (gasp) thinking it through to its logical conclusions. In Draybair, theurges teach themselves maxims and other rules of magic that help them believe in magic absolutely. They may start with certain talents based at least partially on their genetic inheritance, but these philocreed paths (elementals or creeds) can only be harnessed when the theurge can make sense of it within themselves. The result is that magic favors those with strong desires, will power, and creativity. It also means that magic has a socially constructed aspect, where many theurges of the same philocreed path will share common beliefs in certain maxims and the spells that they produce. So, most fire wielders can produce small fireballs and block those same fireballs using the same maxims. In short, magic in Draybair is so unlike that of standard fantasy that it takes more than a single paragraph to explain it. It may help if you think of the philocreeds as being influenced by Asian belief systems. In fact, many of the maxims are slightly altered versions of real life Koans and other truisms, but without being anachronistic.

The only difficulty I had with Four Winds, One Storm was in learning the different species names and, by extension, some of the social nuances that flavor the character interaction. This is one of the problems I’ve always had with epic fantasy, but as with any riveting novel, I’d rather take the time to learn than deal with cookie-cutter species and flimsy magic systems. Hollingsworth makes allowances for readers like me by working in interesting bits of history and worldbuilding that is relevant not only to the characters as individuals, but to their species or their home Huncells. The text does not severely punish those who can’t remember all the little details. Many of them are there for flavor and character development, or else they are emphasized again when they become relevant to the plot.

In fact, it is exactly this wide river of detail that drives the who-done-it aspect over the white waters to the bay. Once the team starts interviewing victims you’ll be absolutely hooked, if you weren’t already. A few of the clues are clearly spelled out in order to guide the reader to correct guesses at the appropriate places in the story. I love that because I hate to feel like an idiot when I’m reading a mystery. At the same time, many of the clues appear as innocuous background information when they are first introduced, and this helps the story feel realistic and builds trust in the text. In other words, you’ll enjoy the fact that Hollingsworth has more than two neurons to rub together, and he believes that you do, too.

Lastly, I’m happy to say that Four Winds, One Storm: The Bone Brick City has a sense of humor, as a 130k whopper that fits into three genres should. Sure, people get murdered, but Will and Hindin are buddies and Röger knows how to chase some skirt. Polly has the balls to put up with them, which is good, because I like to roll my eyes along with her and pretend that I can throw magic at my guy friends when they’re just too much. Hollingsworth provides us with subtle humor even in the background of the not-so-subtle, which is exactly what we need to suspend our disbelief to cover certain philocreed/magic expressions.

If you enjoy epic-length spec fic, blended genres, a unique and developed setting, a humorous tone, and watching the bad guys get their butts handed to them in martial-arts style magic battles, then you will love Four Winds, One Storm: The Bone Brick City by Aaron Hollingsworth.

Find FWOS on facebook here and on amazon here.

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Michelle Ristuccia writes short fiction of all speculative fiction genres in between chasing her toddler from tree to tree. The shorter the work, the better, because 200 words looks very long on her cellphone and that keypad is very, very small. You can find out more about her rabid love of spec fic, podcasting, and raising future geeklings at her blog, wakingdreamsblog.blogspot.com

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