Review of The Empress Game by Rhonda Mason
The Empress Game, Rhonda Mason’s first published novel, is the first book in a science fiction trilogy sharing the same title. Although it features some tropes I enjoy and had potential to be a fun story, I found the writing and characters bland and did not find it nearly compelling enough to want to read Cloak of War, the next book, after its release in October. Five years ago, Kayla Reunimon and her younger brother Corinth escaped their home world after the rest of […]
Review of Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord
Karen Lord’s debut novel Redemption in Indigo, a fairly short book partially based on a Senegalese folk tale, was nominated for a World Fantasy Award and won several other awards, including the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature, the Frank Collymore Award, the William L. Crawford Fantasy Award, and the Carl Brandon Parallax Award. It’s a wonderfully written, charming tale, although I really liked it instead of wholeheartedly loving it mainly because I did not think much of the second half […]
Review of The Fox Woman by Kij Johnson
Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy award-winning writer Kij Johnson’s debut solo novel, The Fox Woman, was first published in the year 2000. It’s based on the traditional Japanese fairy tale about Kaya no Yoshifuji and incorporates the author’s research on Heian-era Japan and foxes. Though artfully written, I have mixed feelings about The Fox Woman, which is good story hindered by its slow pace. The tale of The Fox Woman is told by alternating between the journals of three unhappy individuals: Kaya no Yoshifuji, his wife Shikujo, […]
Review of Bone and Jewel Creatures by Elizabeth Bear
Elizabeth Bear’s novella Bone and Jewel Creatures is set in the same world as her Eternal Sky trilogy (Range of Ghosts, Shattered Pillars, Steles of the Sky), though it focuses on a completely different set of characters, mainly the 96-year-old wizard Bijou. It was released before a prequel novella, Book of Iron, about the same protagonist during her adventuring days many years ago. Although it’s not absolutely necessary to do so, I am glad I read Book of Iron first since it provides more […]
Review of The Midnight Queen by Sylvia Izzo Hunter
Sylvia Izzo Hunter’s debut novel The Midnight Queen was published in fall 2014. Since then, a second book in the Noctis Magicae series, Lady of Magick, has been released. A third book, A Season of Spells, is scheduled for publication toward the end of this year—and I am delighted that there are more books in this series to read since I thought The Midnight Queen was quite charming. Gray Marshall, an especially powerful mage studying at Merlin College, finds himself in quite […]
Review of Falling in Love with Hominids by Nalo Hopkinson
Falling in Love with Hominids contains eighteen short stories by acclaimed author Nalo Hopkinson, whose accolades include a World Fantasy Award, a John W. Campbell Award for Best First Novel, a Locus Award for Best First Novel, a Philip K. Dick Award nomination, a New York Times Notable Book, two Sunburst Awards, a Gaylactic Spectrum Award, and a Prix Aurora Award. This collection also contains a foreword explaining the title’s origins and a brief introduction for each story, also written by the […]
