Review: THE IMAGO SEQUENCE (Night Shade Books)

In a word, WOW.

I have read Mr Barron's work on many occasions in various anthologies and enjoyed each piece so much, I decided it was time to explore the man's writing more thoroughly.  The Imago Sequence, published in 2007, is Barron's first collection.

WOW.

As I've said before, I am no expert in the field of "weird" fiction, but I do know when I've read a book that is special, and one that I am going to keep with me long after the spine is cracked and the pages are yellow.  The Imago Sequence is such a book.

What Barron does with this collection is slowly envelop his readers with an increasing sense of dread and horror, each tale like taking step after creeping step into the dark woods of the Pacific Northwest that feature in so many of his stories.  Barron is an expert wordsmith; his writing is unearthly and he dips his pen in noir, psychological and cosmic horror, and the weird.  The stories here are chilling and disturbing, and the horror here goes far beyond mere slasher and gore.  These stories stay with you, embedded in your memory for a good, long while.  My favorites:

"Old Virginia" opens the collection and also sets the tone for the entire set.  A government experiment has gone horribly awry and humankind are pawns in a game way beyond its ken...

"Procession Of The Black Sloth" is an atmospheric stand out in the collection.  It is a creepy, Chinese phantasia complete with ghosts and witchcraft...

"Bulldozer" is a type of Weird West story, with a Pinkerton detective hot on the trail of a mysterious serial killer...

"Hallucigenia"  is another story with Barron's signature brand of cosmic horror; the imagery here is surreal and unsettling.  Probably my favorite piece in the collection.

"The Imago Sequence" brings the collection to a close, and involves a series of photographs that are surrounded by mystery and the occult...

As a dark fantasy/horror collection, The Imago Sequence is amazing, truly one of the best such collections I've read in a long time.  With each story I finished, I was reminded of how excited I was reading Clive Barker's Book Of Blood for the first time.  Barron is showing here the same flashes of brilliance and is firmly establishing his own mythos with these tales.  As a collection of weird fiction, it is for me a great introduction of what heights the genre can reach, going beyond pastiche and into modern day classics.  If it isn't already, this volume needs to be on your bookshelves.

Happy reading!

Review: THIS IS HOW YOU DIE edited by Ryan North, Matthew Bennardo and David Malki ! (Grand Central Publishing)

In 2010, there was quite a lot of buzz around a new anthology entitled Machine of Death which collected stories exploring a single premise; a machine that could predict, without fail, the manner in which you would die.  All it needed was a sample of your blood and a tiny slip of paper would have your ultimate fate written on it.  I myself never read it but definitely had it on the ever growing TBR pile.  Then this year, the editors unleashed upon the world a sequel, This Is How You Die: Stories of the Inscrutable, Infallible, Inescapable Machine of Death.  Word of mouth was that this volume was even bigger, better and not to be missed.  So I gave in to the siren song, threw caution to the wind and picked up This Is How You Die.

The collection opens with the heartbreakingly brilliant Old Age, Surrounded by Loved Ones by 'Nathan Burgoine.  Burgoine is now on my list of go-to writers that I know will deliver a great story; I have yet to be disappointed.  Also, the story wasn't what I expected at all; Burgoine has written an emotional story about sisters that will require tissues after reading it.  If you're not teary eyed after this, then you have no heart to break.  

Other favorites:

Execution by Beheading by Chandler Kaiden is a thriller that features three children who, upon hearing a rumor about someone who is different, go to extremes to collect a rare "Cause Of Death" card from their machine...

Apitoxin is a very clever spin on the book's premise by John Takis, who places his tale right in the hands of none other than Sherlock Holmes.  Apitoxin is both a wonderful tribute to the famous detective and a well written mystery that was great fun to read.

Monsters from the Deep, editor David Malki !'s contribution to the anthology, is a weird, creepy tale complete with aliens and a delightful Lovecraftian atmosphere.

Lake Titicaca by editor Matthew Bennardo instantly reminded me of The Body and Goonies, with kids a little afraid of what they're doing but too excited not to go off and have an adventure.

Be warned: This Is How You Die is indeed a long book but the stories are so varied and encompass so many genres that you will continually be pulled along to keep reading, unwilling to put the book down. And with a collection like this, that is exactly what you want; great story after great story that keeps you glued to the page til the last sentence is read.

Then you start over again.

Happy reading!

Review: YOU WILL MEET A STRANGER FAR FROM HOME by Alex Jeffers (Lethe Press)

I came across Alex Jeffers quite by accident earlier this year, and having just completed his short story collection You Will Meet A Stranger Far From Home, I'm glad to say the accident was a happy one!  As I've said before, I thoroughly enjoy singe author short story collections because they are such a great way to introduce myself to an author I am unfamiliar with, sort of like a meeting for coffee to get to know someone you've just met.  And You Will Meet A Stranger... is definitely a great first date. 


Wheat, Barely, Lettuce, Fennel, Blood for Sorrow, Salt for Joy, besides being quite the mouthful of a title, is a beautifully written story that blends ancient myth with familial relationships and youthful romance.  Young Luke goes on a sailing trip with his father and stepmother and meets the beautiful Levent, a young Adonis that works on the boat.  A lovely opener to the collection.


The Arab's Prayer  is a story of two lovers caught between culture and politics and their devotion to one another.  I liked this piece very much and felt for the character of Mus'ad and sympathized with his conflict...


Then We Went There starts off as a tale of bullying and the young man who acts to stop it, then transforms itself into a story of magic and the mysterious Court of the Air.  While I did enjoy the story, I wish it would have been a longer piece, further exploring the world of the Court.  Perhaps Jeffers will return to that world someday...


The next two entries were my favorites in the collection and I'm combining them here since they share a main character, the merchant Haider.  Firooz and his Brother introduces us to the infant Haider, when the young man Firooz comes upon him abandoned in a wood, save for a mysterious black dog.  Haider becomes the brother and sometime lover of Firooz and it is through that love that Haider gives Firooz the ultimate gift.  In  Haider and his Dog we follow Haider and his constant companion Iman the black dog to another world where they are strangers in a strange land and looked upon with superstition.  Here, they come upon a seemingly deserted city,only to find something deadly waiting for them.  These two tales reminded me instantly of the early work of Tanith Lee.  I could breath and taste the worlds that Jeffers created in these two short pieces and again, I hope he explores further the adventures of Haider and Iman, for I felt the two stories here bookended which has to be a wealth of tales.  


Turning tells the story of the prostitute Serkan, bitter and with no family...until the day the cousin who wronged him comes back into his life.  I was entertained but felt the denouement came too abruptly.


Jannicke's Cat is straight science fiction.  In it, in a world where female children are no longer born, one of the last women in the world comes across an old childhood toy and her memories drive her to show her family the world that came before them.  The story started slowly for me but as it progressed, the pace picked up and I wound up enjoying it.


Liam and the Wild Fairy is another tale of a boy that doesn't fit in at school but not only does Liam have two dads, he also is a special boy with a special secret.  It is a gem of a story and the love between Liam and his father really brought a lump to my throat!


Ban's Dream of the Sea tells the story of Banto and the strange, amorous dreams that are affecting the citizens of the his city.  People are having dreams of beautiful, otherworldly lovers and then disappearing.  And now his sister is missing...Jeffers intertwines the story of Banto with the journal entries of a long ago admiral experiencing he same mystery and it makes for a very atmospheric tale.


Tattooed Love Boys close the collection with a bang, y'all!  It is a tale of beautiful boys, fluid sexuality and getting inked.  Emma and her insecure brother Theo are on vacation with their parents when they come upon a local boy named Raf and his tattoo shop; what follows is a tale of transformation and strange desires, gender swapping and magic and it is a mind bending tale indeed!

You Will Meet A Stranger Far From Home is a pleasure to read from start to finish and Alex Jeffers is a talented writer.  Fans of weird and speculative fiction will find something to delight in on every page and it is also a great find for readers of short, well written story collections.  Highly recommended!

Happy reading!


 

Short Fiction Month: GREEN THUMB by Tom Cardamone (BrazenHead)

About the book:

Mutability blooms in the Florida Keys after the Red War. The genie boxes created King Pelicans with single human hands to rule the ruins of half-drowned Miami…and other, stranger persons. Slavers roam the deep waters offshore, taking captives to feed the voracious Kudzu Army and the human aqueduct bearing fresh water from Lake Okeechobee. On the last stretch of the Overseas Highway still standing, an albino seeress prophesies: “You will reach for the sun while staying rooted to the ground. But I fear your shadow will be much too long.”

Misunderstanding time, Leaf has lived for decades alone in a collapsing Victorian house on a desolate sandy key, feeding on sunlight and dew. When at last he meets a boy like—but so unlike!—himself, Leaf’s startling journey begins.

And what an journey it is!  What Tom Cardamone has achieved with Green Thumb is create a unique, post-apocalyptic world unlike anything that I've ever read before and populated it with a cast of characters that I was immediately taken with; by the end of the book, I was reading at hyper speed so I could find out what happened to Leaf and his companions!

I could not help but become totally immersed in Green Thumb; Cardamone writes beautifully and his world building here is amazing.   With every step that Leaf and his companion Scallop take, Cardamone exposes more of the drowned world they journey through, letting it unfold like a poisonous flower.  And danger lurks around every corner!  Slavers, pirates, dive boys; they all want a piece of the innocent Leaf and when his friends are unable to protect him, he has to grow up and in the process learns more about himself than even he knew lay within him.

And let's talk about the boys!  Leaf, Scallop and Hardy are characters I became quite engaged with.  I thrilled to their adventures, despaired when they were in trouble and even became disappointed in them at times.  These are young men that have had to grow up too soon in this harsh world, especially in the case of Leaf, but even in making the wrong decisions,  they can own their fate and keep going.  For better or worse, each one is changed and there is renewal and hope.

I absolutely loved Tom Cardamone's Green Thumb.  In it he creates a world that leaps off the page and that I long for him to explore further, as I believe there are many, many more tales to be told.  The lush language and escalating pace kept me hooked til the end and again, I was so engaged with the characters that I needed to know what happened to them and was both satisfied and surprised by the ending.

I heartily recommend Green Thumb to anyone who enjoys a well written story, alive with vivid imagery and told in a strong, clear voice.  I applaud Tom Cardamone on what he's achieved with Green Thumb and also BrazenHead for giving this wonderful work of speculative fiction a home, so the rest of us might also be cast under its spell!  Happy reading!

Review: EMPIRE STATE by Adam Christopher (Angry Robot)

About the book

The stunning superhero-noir fantasy thriller set in the other New York.

It was the last great science hero fight, but the energy blast ripped a hole in reality, and birthed the Empire State – a young, twisted parallel prohibition-era New York.

When the rift starts to close, both worlds are threatened, and both must fight for the right to exist.

.........

I have long been a fan of "alternate histories" and "multiverses" in comics and fiction.  Harry Turtledove's Worldwar, Piers Anthony's Apprentice Adept and, of course, Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion books all helped to kick off my affection for parallel realities, people with doppelgangers in other dimensions and the like.  The DC "Elseworlds" comics and Amalgam crossover line with Marvel Comics were incredible, as well.

                                                      
I enjoyed the way they put familiar characters in other worlds, or other histories, sometimes changing that character significantly but still being faithful to the original.  There has always been a soft spot in my heart for something that takes the familiar and reinterprets it to make something new and unique.

More recently, I've become a fan of Adam Christopher, comic book fanatic and tea drinker.  I came across his entertaining and informative timeline on Twitter and have been hooked ever since.  Not only is he a font of knowledge on comics and superheroes but he is a great writer as well.  I was able to read some of his shorter pieces on his website and thoroughly enjoyed them, always hoping he would put out longer work.

Well, Angry Robot must've caught wind of his genius, too, because they signed him to a two book deal that includes the superhero adventure Seven Wonders, to be published in August of this year, and his debut novel, Empire State.

When both Adam and Angry Robot both broke the news of the deal, plus the details of the first novel, I was immediately intrigued.  The blurb sounded amazing and brought to mind some of the adventures I remembered from the old "Elsewhere" comics.  I just knew this was going to be something new and fresh and exciting to read.  And I was not disappointed!

As I opened the first page of Empire State I was caught up in a speeding car chase, careening through the fog shrouded streets of New York along with small time bootleggers Rex and Jerome, trying to get away from racketeer McCabe and his henchmen.  And then all hell broke loose, an epic battle between New York's two superheroes, the Science Pirate and the Skyguard, high above the Empire State Building!  And this all in the first few pages!

What Adam Christopher has done from here is to take a pinch of gritty noir, a bit of retro sci fi and blended it all together to churn out a science fiction novel so original and so daring as to leave you breathless.  And I mean that literally.  There are plot twists after plot twists and mysteries and murders and a cast of characters that grab you by your collar and won't let you off this rocket powered ride of a book until you're left panting from exhilaration at the end of it!

And he makes it all seem so effortless.  Expertly weaving together all the many plot threads into a complex yet compelling read, Adam Christopher keep the pace moving right along, never letting the reader's experience get too bogged down.

The Empire State itself is a rich, fully realized world that I fervently hope Christopher visits again and again.  There are so many ideas packed into this first trip there, I just know any subsequent adventures will be equally awesome.

Empire State is so engrossing and so action packed a read, it is hard to believe this is Adam Christopher's debut. This is a novel that will surely be talked about for years to come as a science fiction classic.  Yet I would recommend this to fans of mystery and pulp fiction as well.  PICK THIS BOOK UP...NOW!  You will be captivated, entertained, and before you know it,  left for wanting more of Adam Christopher's Empire State.

Steampunk Sunday: Dead Iron by Devon Monk (Roc)

Devon Monk's Dead Iron is a beautifully written, Wild West-slash-Steampunk adventure. I was eager to read this book because steampunk is a genre that I've been trying to read more of and Dead Iron seemed like a new, interesting spin on it.  Monk sets her story in an alternate America in the 1800s where magic and steam technology combine in a way where one never outshines the other but rather they marry, and help create a harsh, gritty world; a world where a man can be cursed by gods, love reaches even beyond death and a man who is more than what he seems brings the promise of a bright,civilized future...but at what cost?

Dead Iron is told from different characters' perspectives; for me, this added to the storytelling, allowing the tale to unfold and weave in and out of itself while drawing me into each character's narrative.  I grew to care about each of them, and every time one of my favorites came into conflict I'd cross my fingers, hoping they'd get out of their predicament unscathed.

Because we spend so much time learning about the characters and the world they inhabit, the pace is a little slow but it does pick up as the story goes along; this is the first book in the series, so some exposition is required.  And again, Monk writes so well that Dead Iron is a very satisfying read with enough fey magic and gritty adventure that fans of steampunk and urban fantasy will want to visit the Age of Steam again and again. 

Dead Iron is a great start to a brand new series and I believe Devon Monk has another winner on her hands here!  Do yourself a favor and check out it out!

Steampunk Sunday: The Bookman by Lavie Tidhar (Angry Robot)

It was a happy coincidence that I started this blog at about the same time Angry Robot was making its bid for world domination; via Twitter, I kept hearing about this new imprint that was publishing all these brilliant works of speculative fiction and after checking them out, I was determined to become a minion of the Robot Overlords!

One of the first books from Angry Robot that caught my eye was The Bookman by Lavie Tidhar.  I thought the cover was awesome and it was a "steampunk" book, a genre that I had just become interested in exploring...

One of the things that I find so fascinating about the Steampunk genre is how it twists the reality that we know and turns it into something new and exciting, yet still familiar; with The Bookman, Tidhar has created something wonderful.  In Tidhar's world, a race of alien lizards known as "Les Lezards" have taken over Britain, both historical personages and ficticious characters from the Victorian era inhabit London, and a mysterious terrorist has cast his shadow over everything.  In the midst of all this is Orphan, a young poet in love with the beautiful Lucy.  But before the young lovers can marry, the Bookman strikes and Orphan's world is rocked to its core.  He then sets out to find the Bookman and avenge his beloved.

This book is a gift and it will appeal to any reader, long time Steampunk aficionado or not.  The writing is beautiful and flows so well you'll be farther along the journey than you realize when you finally come up for air.  Tidhar had me engaged throughout the book; from the set up during the first part, where he introduces us to his alternate Britain and its inhabitants, to the rollicking excitement of Orphan as he seeks out the Bookman and finally, to the climax where answers to mysteries are revealed and the whole grand design is wrapped up in a big, bodacious bow.

The Bookman is an action packed, yet literary, Steampunk adventure.  I loved it not only as a great read, which it was, but also as one more amazing stepping stone for me into the Steampunk genre.

Review: Vegas Knights by Matt Forbeck (Angry Robot)

Let me say right from the top that I feel as if I had sat at a happy hour with Matt Forbeck one night and we talked about some of my favorite things; great books, magic, Las Vegas, caper movies, zombies and then he turned up the next day with THIS!  VEGAS KNIGHTS is one of the best Urban Fantasy books I've read in a long time; it's cleverly written, fast paced and wonderfully fresh.

Jackson and Bill are two college students who come to Las Vegas on spring break to try to win big at the casinos; the difference here is that they want to do it using magic.  

Of course, they get caught.  And from here Matt Forbeck lets us in on the biggest secret of Las Vegas, that it's not the Mob that runs the city but is in fact several factions of magicians.  Forbeck reveals this secret history of Vegas bit by tasty bit while keeping the action coming fast and furious.

For me, VEGAS KNIGHTS succeeded on so many levels; the writing is breezy and natural, the chareacters are likable, the pace of the novel moves at a fast clip and I can see why several reviewers have mentioned the cinematic quality of Forbeck's writing; the neon and glamour of Las Vegas jump off the page and you can hear every bell and whistle from the casinos.  Yes, VEGAS KNIGHTS is begging to be a big, splashy Hollywood blockbuster.

I think the only quibble I have is that the story wrapped up too soon for me; but again, that's a minor complaint since I found the book to be so damn good!  It is my sincere hope that Matt Forbeck will continue Jackson and Bill's excellent adventures in Vegas, since I think he's come across a goldmine here with plenty of stories left to plumb from it.  And if he does, I will be all in! 

Review: Slights by Kaaron Warren (Angry Robot)

Slights is the first novel from Kaaron Warren and what a debut it is!

It is being labeled as a horror novel but there isn't a vampire or a zombie in sight here; in Slights Kaaron Warren explores a different kind of horror, one that is chilling, brutal and all too human.

Slights chronicles the slow descent into madness of Stevie, a young woman with a damaged soul.  When we meet her, Stevie and her mother have gotten into a car accident.  Her mother dies but Stevie finds herself in "a dark room" filled with every person that she has ever slighted in her life, who are waiting to exact their revenge on her.  She survives the accident but is curious about the dark room, what it means and if others experience the same thing and from here her curiousity becomes a terrible obsession.

Warren has won the Ditmar Award for Best Novel of 2010 and the Shadows Award for Best Fiction of 2009 for Slights and it is a no brainer as to why.  The novel is beyond brilliant, a depraved masterpiece of psychological horror.  I don't believe I've ever read anything quite like it and it has definitely quenched my thirst for a truly disturbing read that I couldn't put down.  There were passages that were brutal to read yet I soldiered on and believe me when I say that this book will live with me for a long time. Yes, I thought it lengthy, with a slow buld up but the pay off in the end is completely worth the journey that Warren takes us on. What Warren has done with Slights is to have written a book that will be talked about for years to come, a book that is a shining example of how literate and beautiful horror can be while keeping all those zombies and vamps in its formidable shadow.

Review: Asylum by Mark Allan Gunnells (The Zombie Feed)

ASYLUM is a new novella by Mark Allan Gunnells from the micro press The Zombie Feed. I am a HUGE fan of apocalyptic zombie fiction and with Gunnells setting his story in a gay bar, I immediately tore into it, curious to see how his twist on this claasic horror staple would play out.

Gunnells had me from the first sentence. ASYLUM starts off with a hook up in the parking lot of a gay night club and just skyrockets from there.  Curtis and Jimmy are the two friends who first realize that the impossible has happened, that they are being surrounded by a growing hoard of shuffling, fleah eating zombies.  They flee into the club and have to convince the other club patrons that all their lives are in danger and that they have to barricade themselves in.

What Gunnells does from here is tell the story from multiple viewpoints, allowing each character to take center stage while giving us a glimpse at their backstory.  This helps us to care about these people and what happens to them.  Knowing that they probably won't survive to see the morning makes each of them react in different ways and Gunnells handles it all with great skill, keeping the story fast paced while adding depth to his characters.

The tension builds nicely as the story unfolds and the ending is perfect.  For me ASYLUM is more tragic than horrific, so fans of the more blood splattered, hard core zombie fiction may think this too tame for them.  However, I found it an original, worthy addition to both the wide ranging zombie genre and to the gay horror field.  Kudos to Mr Gunnells for this fresh new zombie tale and to The Zombie Feed for unleashing it upon us!

Review: Kell's Legend by Andy Remic (Angry Robot)

Book One of The Clockwork Vampire Chronicles

"They came from the North,and the city fell.

It is a time for warriors, a time for heroes.

Kell's axe howls out for blood..."

KELL'S LEGEND is an action packed, fast paced read that takes hold of you from the very first page and then doesn't let go until the cliffhanger ending.  It is a brutal, dark fantasy and I LOVED IT!

Kell is an old soldier, trying to live a quiet life and forget his bloody past.  But an invader from the North, the Army of Iron, brings all that to an end and Kell is forced to take up his bloodbond battle axe Ilanna again when the city of Jalder is beseiged.  The Army of Iron, albino soldiers led by the sadistic General Graal and aided in their invasion by the alien Harvesters, take the city and Kell is forced to flee, taking with him a small group of survivors to warn the King...

Anukis is a vachine,  part of a race of clockwork vampires that live in the Silva Valley.  Anukis is a prisioner of the Engineer Priests, taken by them after her father, a Watchmaker, was killed.  But Anukis has a secret she's been hiding all her a life, a secret that could see her suffer the same fate as her father...

It is these two storylines that propel KELL'S LEGEND forward.  Remic knows how to keep his readers on the edge of their seats and all his tricks kept me turning page after page to find out what happened next.  In one chapter, I was on the run with Kell and his companions, fleeing the bloodthirsty Harvesters while in the next chilled at Anu's suffering at the hands of her captor.

The battle scenes come at you fast and brutal and bloody, and it's through these scenes that Remic drops little tidbits of Kell's past, his "Days of Blood", which he looks at with bitterness and regret but what the rest of the world calls legend.  It's just enough to fill out the character and makes me eager for more of Kell's history, including the secret behind his blood bond with his weapon, the battle axe Ilanna.

However, it is through Anukis's story that Remic does his world building.  We learn more of the vachine and their albino soldiers and the reason their invading the south.  There are glimpses into the vachine religion, the Oak Testament, that I'm sure will continue to be explored as the series progresses.  And there's the matter of the true nature of Anukis and the path it sets her on as the story closes...

In a genre that is saturated with vampire stories right now, I think Mr Remic has done something incredibly original with the creation of the vachine, bringing the vampire back in a more bloody light while placing them center stage in a Heroic Epic.  And Kell is truly a Hero in the grand tradition, a kill first-ask questions later warrior, stalking the world with his not so trusty weapon, leaving a trail of blood that the bards will glorify in song.

This is my introduction to Andy Remic and as I understand it, his first foray into fantasy.  I think he succeeded here; I thoroughly enjoyed KELL'S LEGEND and the way Remic has left each of the characters, I can't wait to dive into the next volume of the series, SOUL STEALERS.  Highly recommended to lovers of Heroic Fantasy and anyone who is looking for an action packed, satisfying read.

The Robot Army Is Coming!

Angry Robot is FINALLY launching its line in the US and Canada next month in September and if you've been counting the days as I have, it's been a long wait!

The first titles to be released will be: SLIGHTS by Kaaron Warren, KELL'S LEGEND by Andy Remic, MOXYLAND by Lauren Beukes and SIXTY-ONE NAILS by Mike Shevdon.  Amazing reviews for all these books (indeed, for the whole imprint) have been all over the 'net for quite some time now,so if you're a fan of great speculative fiction, Angry Robot has it all!  Start checking into yout local bookstores now and visit the Angry Robot website here.

Prepare to meet your Robot Overlords!

Review: Wilde Stories 2010 edited by Steve Berman (Lethe Press)

I love anthologies!

I've loved reading them for as long as I can remember.  They're almost always a quick, enjoyable read and I often find an author I've never heard of, whose writing so impressed me that I immediately set out to read their other work.  Even better, if I'm lucky enough to come across a themed anthology, I'm able to lose myself in the different variations that the writers come up with, which when read together, make for a many faceted, beautiful picture.

WILDE STORIES is just such an anthology.  The "theme" here is stories featuring gay protagonists and Steve Berman has done an admirable job of collecting the best in gay specualtive fiction from the last year, "..tales of men haunted sometimes by ghosts and sometimes by handsome wolves on two legs-by outsider artists or strange neighbors."  This third edition of WILDE STORIES has several excellent stories that most readers may not have ever found if it wasn't for Mr. Berman gathering them here in one volume.  Here are my best of the best:

Laird Barron's "Strappado" opens the collection, a chilling piece about a pair of lovers and their participation in a deadly "guerilla" art exhibit.  Ben Francisco gives us the magic realism of "Tio Gilberto And The Twenty Seven Ghosts", one of my favorites in this volume.  It's the story of a young gay man who goes to live with his uncle who himself is haunted by ghosts of his past; simply beautiful!  Another favorite of mine is "Ne Que V'on Desir" by Tanith Lee (writing as Judas Garbah), a sensual wolf tale that takes place on a train in the winter..."Some Of Them Fell" by Joel Lane is a coming of age story about a pair of young boys and what happens to them in the woods and their reunion years later.  Jameson Currier's "Death In Amsterdam" is a thriller/horror story that does a great job of ratcheting up the suspence as it builds to its climax and is an excellent story but seems to me more mainstream than speculative.  And bringing the collection to a dramatic close is "The Far Shore" by Elizabeth Hand.   As always, Hand takes myth and fairy tale and twists them into something new, here a story of a man who becomes part of a fairy tale himself...

WILDE STORIES 2010 is a pleasure to read and I definitely recommend it to any reader, be they gay or straight, who is looking for good, memorable speculative fiction and would enjoy walking down the paths these amazing writers will lead them.

You can get your copy of WILDE STORIES  2010 here http://www.lethepressbooks.com/

Steve Berman, editor

Review: So Fey, Queer Fairy Fiction edited by Steve Berman (Lethe Press)

I was so excited when this book came in the mail!  I've been a long time fan of the Fairy Tale anthologies put out by Ellen Datlow and Terry Windling, including their similar offerings in the Young Adult market.  The way those authors took the old fairy tales and reinvented them in each volume was always so satisfying to me, every story was a jewel.

Steve Berman's SO FEY reminds me very much of those anthologies and is now high on my list of fairy tale retellings.  For me, as a gay man, it was truly wonderful to see fairy stories and queer fiction woven together to create shining, new takes on the old familiar themes.  I thought this was an outstanding collection and want to congratulate Berman and all the authors on their beautiful work.

Here are some of my favorite stories from the collection:

"A Faun's Tale" by Tom Cardamone is a short but sensual story about a faun's romp in New York's Central Park...

"A Bird Of Ice" by Craig Laurance Gidney, where a spirit falls in love with a mortal...

"Three Letters From The Queen Of Elfland" by Sarah Monette, where a woman is torn between her duty to her husband and her attraction to Nyx, the Queen...

"Detox" by Elspeth Potter is a hilarious story where a brownie turns the tables on his mistress...

"The Coat Of Stars" by Holly Black has a gay, Latino man returning home to find his long lost love...

"Year Of The Fox" by Eugie Foster is a beautiful story of a princess in exile who turns hate into love...

and "Ever So Much More Than Twenty" by Joshua Lewis features a gay man who travels with his daughter back to the cabin of his youth, and the memories of his fairy lover...

Again, I thought this was a great collection of stories and I hope Mr. Berman will bring us another volume some day.  It is a must read for lovers of fairy stories and for fans of gay fiction.  You can pick up SO FEY here: http://www.lethepressbooks.com/gay

Lethe Press

Review: Contraband by Charlie Vazquez (Rebel Satori Press)

 

CONTRABAND is only the second novel by Charlie Vazquez and I look forward to many more from him.  He and I crossed paths on Twitter and after learning we shared interests, he was gracious enough to send me an ARC of his novel and allow me to review it.

Told in the first person, it is the story of Volfango Sanzo, a Latino man who is a government employee in a near-future America.  The country has turned in on itself because of civil war and revolution; government designed operating systems have rendered all other computers useless, communication satellites have been seized and media outlets restructured, all for the Revolution.  Curfews are mandated and public executions of dissidents have become popular entertainment.  It is in this America that Volfango works, as an employee for the Ministry of Technology.  But it wasn't always so.

Volfango remembers places and people seen with his father who was a sea-loving man, so much so that he left his children and wife behind to sail again on the sea, never to return.  Volfango remembers places full of color and music and people full of passion and life.  Now his life is working in the Ministry,always under the eye of the Republican Guard.  And Volfango also has secrets of his own, secrets that make him paranoid and fearful for his life.  Then he hears rumors of people "sinking down", defecting undeground to escape.  When his government mandated "gene test" is scheduled, he is so afraid of renegade genes in his DNA being discovered that he sinks down and tries to make a life underside, where everone he comes into contact with is a rebel and where he is also looked on with suspicion by them.

I read this book in one sitting.  Vazquez's colorful language is absolutely poetic and he also kept Volfango's adventures underside coming at me at a fast pace.  I found myself eagerly turning the pages to see what happened to Volfango next. And the other undersiders that Volfango meets on his journey are a gritty cast of characters indeed.  There are ex soldiers, thieves, prostitutes, high born citizens and even circus folk and for Volfango, they are all not to be trusted.

Vazquez was inspired by Latin American revolutionary struggles and this informs his near future, Big Brother setting.  There is no escaping the effects of the Revolution for Volfango.  He is never at peace and lives his life by doubting everything.  He becomes too bruised by the conflict raging topside and even within himself to express his emotions to those most close to him.

CONTRABAND is a fast paced, riveting tale that I enjoyed very much.  I am now going to seek out Vazquez's first novel as well.  Do yourself a favor get a copy of CONTRABAND today.  It is available on Amazon and at Rebel Satori Press as well.  You won't be disappointed.

Review: Sea, Swallow Me by Craig Laurance Gidney (Lethe Press)

I loved this book!  It is the first short story collection from Craig Laurance Gidney and reading it, and then re-reading it, made me wish it was a longer collection or a part of a series.  Gidney's voice is very assured and he expertly switches back and forth between first and third person narratives and different times and locals with ease.

Gidney's use of language is hauntingly beautiful and at once put me in mind of Tanith Lee or Storm Constantine.  I also loved the way that he would play with myth and folklore, putting his own unique signature on them; from an African seagod to Desire personified, I found them all hard to shake as I proceeded to the next story.

It's hard to pick a favorite out of all these perfect gems but both "Etiolate" and "Strange Alphabets" spring immeadiately to mind.  I loved the spin on the life of Arthur Rimbaud who is

"cursed by poetry."  And the story of Oliver, who must comes to terms with what he desires and his own need to be wanted was darkly erotic.  "Catch Him by the Toe" is straight up horror where a small town becomes a hunting ground for a creature bent on revenge, while "Circus-Boy Without a Safety Net" is a coming out story of a boy who follows his patron saint Lena Horne to New York.

 Each and every tale in this collection is a joy to read and I was very happy I sought this book out.  I hope you do the same!  And thanks to Mr. Gidney; I can't wait for what's coming next!

Review: Servant of the Underworld by Aliette De Bodard (Angry Robot)

The following is my first review for Angry Robot books.  It's a little late; I blame the holiday hustle and bustle for that.  And to be honest, I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this book.  I tend to not like those multisyllable names that permeate works derived from Latin or Aztec histories but I'm happy to say I wasn't disappointed and really enjoyed it!  Yes, the author has thoroughly researched the language, customs, and such but uses it just enough to flavor her narrative, not over power it.  The book reads more like a mystery rather than dark fantasy; either way, it's very hard to put down.  It opens when Acatl-tzin, high priest for the Dead, is called upon to help solve the presumed murder of Eleuia, offering priestess of Xochiquetal and candidate to become consort to Xochipilli.  As much as he is reluctant at first, he is forced to help because his estranged brother Neutemoc is the prime suspect for the murder.  From here Acatl's journey goes through many twists, showcasing his world, it's Gods and their customs and politics.  As I said, alot of research has been done by the author and it is in the descriptions of the Empire and its citizens and dieities that we get the payoff.  This book is beautifully written and a pleasure to lose oneself in.  I wasn't familiar with de Bodard before but reading this book has me looking forward to her next one AND I was also happy to find a story of hers in the February issue of Realms of Fantasy!  Please see for yourself and pick up a copy!!