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Briarpatch, by Tim Pratt
Reviewed by Michael D. Griffiths
Publisher: Chizine Publications
Year Published: 2011


Briarpatch by Tim Pratt is a dark, very moody tale. When the story starts with a suicide the reader quickly learns what they are in for. Pratt, however, breaks away from the pack and proves that he can weave a unique and extremely engaging story. Like most Chizine books, this one is full of concepts and ideas that takes normal storytelling, throws it out the window, and replaces it with a type of world that even the most experienced reader has yet to explore. ...

You can view the page at http://forums.sfreader.com/content.p...r-Member-Blogs ...

Heathen Oracle is now open to submissions for its upcoming Artifacts and Relics: Extreme Sorcery anthology. Check our website ...

As Dave suggested, I took a look at SFF World, just to compare and contrast, and while there found this which may be of ...

Zero Stone by AndreNorton (1958)

Zero Stone opens with a man fleeing for his life down thedarkened alleys of a primitive alien city. He’s a Terran, younger half of a team of jewel dealers. His partner has been murdered when thepriests of an alien religion, in an unheard of act, select an off-worlder for asacrifice and are answered with lasers. His partner dead, Murdoc Jern flees to an alien sanctuary and uses hisstore of jewels to bribe his way to a Free Trader space freighter and escapeoffworld. ...

This is a PAYING PRINT ANTHOLOGY! These guys are open to any genre with a story that fits the theme! Fantasy, Adventure, ...

Not sure this is the right spot for this, but here it goes. The anthology is scheduled for release in early 2013. Good Luck! ...

Desdaemona, by Ben Macallan
Reviewed by Joshua Palmatier
Publisher: Solaris
Year Published: 2011

Desdaemona is the debut novel (here in the US) for Ben Macallan. It's an urban fantasy, and most of you know that I generally don't read urban fantasy. I just don't get caught up in it. I received this book as an eARC before it was published and read at least half of it then. I bought the book when it came out and finished it up just now. Out of the urban fantasies I've read, I'd say that this one has a few qualities that will make it stick out in the urban fantasy field. ...

In The Shadow of Swords, by Val Gunn
Reviewed by Michael D. Griffiths
Publisher: Errant Press
Year Published: 2011

In the Shadow of Swords is a fantasy novel in the vein of the Arabian Nights or perhaps Sinbad, although much more through the lens darkly. The author, Val Gunn, has crafted a detailed world in Mir’ja, and one must imagine that this is a novel that will inspire a series. ...

Griffin Rising, by Darby Karchut
Reviewed by Michael D. Griffiths
Publisher: Twilight Times Books
Year Published: 2011

Griffin Rising is an Urban Fantasy set in our current times. It is geared toward a younger audience, which is fitting, for this book chronicles the early adventures of the teenaged Griffin as he comes to terms with his supernatural nature. ...

Dead Until Dark, by Charlaine Harris
Reviewed by Joshua Palmatier
Publisher: ACE TRADE
Year Published: 2010

First off, I have not seen "True Blood" so I read this without any possible coloration from having viewed that first.

As everyone probably already knows, this is the first book in the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris. The basic premise is that vampires have been legally recognized and so are now part of the world. Sookie, a waitress in the small town of Bon Temps, has been desperate to see one, so when one shows up in her town, she's instantly drawn to him, mostly out of curiosity. But when young women--all with jobs like Sookie's, and all who associate with vampires--begin turning up strangled to death, suspicions turn on this new vampire, who Sookie has now befriended. The rest of the book revolves around Sookie finding out more about the vampire world while attempting to figure out who is killing these young women, since she is obviously a potential target. ...

The Machinery of Light, by David J. Williams
Reviewed by Joshua Palmatier
Publisher: Spectra
Year Published: 2010


Literally just finished reading the third book in David J. Williams' Autumn Rain trilogy, The Machinery of Light. This is an action-packed sci-fi thriller that you can totally see being made into a movie, with intense battle scenes that are non-stop, along with highly visual settings that the movie industry would love. ...

7 Scorpions Rebellion, by Mike Saxton
Reviewed by Michael D. Griffiths
Publisher: Eloquent Books
Year Published: 2011


Scorpions Rebellion is a dark, very apocalyptic science fiction novel written by Mike Saxton. Set in the not too distant future, the world is brought to its knees in just one day when all of the Earth’s major cities are reduced to rubble. The survivors have only begun to suffer, for the genocidal Zodiac has more horrors in store for them. Bladeless helicopters, giant city destroying bulldozers, and armored soldiers called Seekers, whose mere presence renders most humans helpless by the unexplained waves of fear they create, are just the beginning. ...

Hello sinister scribes,


Do you crave classic horror stories? Do you love the musty smell of a paperback anthology containing vintage horror? Stories about creepy old houses, aristocratic vampires, Lovecraftian creatures, and tales of psychological spooks? ...