The Front Page

A New Birth of Freedom: The Visitor, by Robert Pielke
Reviewed by Paul Weiss

Publisher:Altered Dimensions Press
Year Published: 2010

The eternal paradox of time travel!

Is it possible to change the past without altering or de-constructing the present and its relevant future beyond recognition? ...

The Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle, by Jim Butcher and Adrian Syaf
Reviewed by Paul Weiss

Publisher:Del Rey
Year Published: 2008

A welcome addition to the Dresden Files universe!

Harry Dresden is a hapless, down on his luck wizard. In fact, he's the only licensed wizard in the Chicago phone book. Business isn't exactly brisk so from time to time he acts as a consultant with the Chicago Police Department when the cases drift out of the mundane and into the realm of the paranormal. When Karrin Murphy, one of Chicago's finest, is called upon to investigate a brutal mauling at the Lincoln Park Zoo that left way too many weird questions from left field unanswered, she knew it was time to call on Harry's unique skills. One look at the crime scene was all that Dresden needed to realize that powerful black magic was at work. ...

Touched by an Alien, by Gini Koch
Reviewed by Joshua Palmatier

Publisher:DAW
Year Published: 2010

Touched by an Alien is the debut novel from Gini Koch and is the first book in the Katherine "Kitty" Katt series. I believe there's a second book already scheduled for release this December. ...

The Enchantment Emporium, by Tanya Huff
Reviewed by Joshua Palmatier

Publisher:DAW
Year Published: 2009

The Enchantment Emporium is the first book in a new urban fantasy series by Tanya Huff. And it's pretty damn good. I've only read a few of Tanya Huff's books (mostly the Quarters series), but after reading this I ordered all of her backlist, so expect some more reviews of her past work in the near future. ...

The Blue-Haired Bombshell, by John Zakour
Reviewed by Joshua Palmatier

Publisher:DAW
Year Published: 2009

The Blue-Haired Bombshell is the fifth book in the Zachary Nixon Johnson series from John Zakour. I really like the main character in this series, and I like the humorous and over-the-top riff on detective noir fiction with all of the SF elements mixed in.
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Dragon’s Ring, by Dave Freer
Reviewed by SJ Higbee

Publisher:Baen
Year Published: 2009

This enjoyable fantasy romp doesn’t pretend to break any molds, concentrating as it does on dragonkind and their rule of Tasmarin, a plane cut off from all other worlds, where dragons can be dragons and humans can be dinner. It’s a place of islands, forests, mountains and wild oceans, filled with magical denizens. Fion--the black dragon--calmly tells anyone who will listen that he’s going to destroy the place. Of course he’s a joker, a troublemaker and a dragon of no fixed abode. No one ever believes him--but he’s dead serious. ...

Horizons, by Mary Rosenblum
Reviewed by SJ Higbee

Publisher:TOR Science Fiction
Year Published: 2007

Suffering from a lack of sparkling, solidly good science fiction? Enjoy Lois McMaster Bujold, Elizabeth Moon and C.J. Cherryh at their very best? Fear not, I’ve found you another candidate. ...

1408 (2007), Rated “PG-13”
Starring John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Mary McCormack, Jasmine Jessica Anthony
Directed by Mikael Håfstrom
Review by Nicholas Ozment
Rating (3.5/5):

“It’s an evil f**king room.”

You can guess who speaks that bit of dialogue, since the cast includes Samuel L. Jackson. The room he’s describing is 1408 of the Dolphin Hotel.

Note that a classic, old-style building like the Dolphin does not have a thirteenth floor: floor 14 is, in fact, floor 13. And also note what 1+4+0+8 add up to. That’s all a bit of Stephen King having some fun. ...

30 Days of Night (2007), Rated "R"
Starring Josh Hartnett, Melissa George, Danny Huston, Ben Foster
Directed by David Slade
Review by Nicholas Ozment
Rating: (2.5/5):

In David Slade's adaptation of Steve Niles' 2001 graphic novel, the northernmost town of the United States gets wiped off the map by foreigners. These visitors don't have passports and they don't have pulses. ...

G/6 Chronicles is hosting 2 great end of Summer book giveaways. You have 2 chances to win an autographed copy of The Unwanted book 1 of The Unwanted Trilogy.

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28 Weeks Later (2007), Rated "R"
Starring Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner, Harold Perrineau Jr.
Directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
Review by Nicholas Ozment
Rating (3/5):

So everyone who knows me knows I’m a sucker for zombie movies. When this one came out in 2007, I was looking forward to learning what was happening in the British Isles seven months after the first outbreak of the Rage virus, which had turned virtually every Brit into a bloodthirsty zombie. ...

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Alice in Wonderland (2010), Rated "PG"
Starring Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway, Crispin Glover, Michael Sheen, Stephen Fry
Directed by Tim Burton
Review by S. J. Higbee
Rating (2.5/5):

Hard on the heels of Avatar, I decided to watch this 3D film on the big screen, rather than at home. Directed by Tim Burton, it is a visually luscious affair with a stellar cast. The great and the good of Britain’s acting profession are there; in addition to the stars, there is also the likes of Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall, Christopher Fry and Paul Whitehouse – all of whom are highly accomplished actors, in addition to being household names. ...

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