Book Review: The Yochni’s Eye by Abigail Morrison
Six hundred years is a long time. Longer if you’re not the winners of the most recent blink of the Yochni’s Eye. Imagine a world where, once every six hundred years, a super-being blinks, and in doing so, grants the wish of the champion who made it there in time for the blink. What could…Read More
Abuser of Semicolons
Let’s face it, semicolons are confusing. They are easy enough to use in separating email addresses, or tags, but otherwise not so much. At least for me. Semicolons are tough; I struggle to this day. In the final draft of Fire, I had sixteen semicolons. For a 100,000-word book, that’s not a lot. Certainly not…Read More
Book Review: The Yiddish Policeman’s Union by Michael Chabon
Chabon is a master. His descriptions give you a sense of setting and characters so well that I feel I would recognize the book’s primary cast if I met them on the street. He makes you care deeply about them even when you disagree with their actions and life choices. The first Chabon I read…Read More
Beyond the HAL 9000
In the iconic movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey, an Artificial Intelligence, the HAL 9000, went nuts and killed all but one of his human crew. Since then, BSC (Bat Sh*t Crazy) AIs have been de rigeur in SciFi. Colossus – Colossus: The Forbin Project – followed shortly thereafter. More recently, it’s been all about SkyNet…Read More
Ready, Aim, Fire!
When it became apparent that Fire wasn’t going to make it out in time for Thanksgiving, I set my sights on December 17th as a nod to the Wright Brothers and their first flight. Yesterday, I got my first copy and decided not to wait. After all, I would just be depriving you of six additional…Read More
Cover Reveal: “Fire” by yours truly
There was a surprising amount of drama associated with this cover. The firm that did my last cover seemed eager to do this one, but took their time with an initial design and then went silent on revisions. Several promises later, I gave them a deadline. A week after that passed, they said they’d get…Read More
Down 20
Book update: After vacillating on names, I’m back to Fire for the second book. Revisions have made it more realistic, and the plans I have for Book 3 make it realistic that I will finish the series at 3…plus the novella that I’m creating from all of the things I’ve pulled out of Fire. Fire…Read More
Book Review: A Door into Evermore by Kent Wayne
I don’t remember how A Door into Evermore found its way into my reading stack. It sat there, electronically neglected, for quite some time. That’s one of the issues I have with eBooks – they are far too patient and easy to forget. An actual print book sits on your nightstand, silently condemning you every…Read More
Confirmation Bias
A while back I read the tragic story of First Air Flight 6560, a Boeing 737 that was flying into Resolute Bay, in the Canadian Arctic. This airport is at a point where the magnetic variation (the difference between true north (the northern rotational axis of the planet) and magnetic north (the northern rotational axis…Read More
Book Review: The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson
Kim Stanley Robinson can write. No doubt about it. So, when I picked up the Hugo Award Winning, The Years of Rice and Salt, I knew I was in for a treat. Robinson’s tale is of history reimagined. The characters are interesting, and the perspectives are fun at times. It’s just that the book gets,…Read More