General Fiction Books
This Body's Not Big Enough for Both of Us by Edgar Cantero
The crime genre is very well established and has many shortcuts and tropes that you can use. This allows genre authors to drape their own unique ideas over familiar territory. Want to write a book about a Dinosaur PI – go ahead. Sherlock Holmes actually a Warlock – sorted. You can throw in crazy ideas and twists in the knowledge that the crime foundations they are built on are firm. The issue is that although the fantastical elements often work, the crime elements do not; writing ...
Brothers Keeper by Donald E Westlake
The world of crime is riddled with the worst vices known to man; murder, kidnapping, estate acquisition. It is also full of the most ruthless people; bank robbers, killers, monks. You may have noticed that a couple of elements snuck in there that are not always synonymous with crime fiction, but you may just find that a book all about a religious brotherhood trying to save their monastery is one of the warmest crime books you have read in a long while.
Even in the world of religious o...
Books to look out for in 2019
No matter what else happens, 2019 sounds like it's going to be a good year for books. While we haven't heard whether George RR Martin or Patrick Rothfuss will actually release their eagerly, long awaited novels, there are plenty of other books to get our teeth into. Some from established legends of the genre such as Alastair Reynolds, Tim Powers, Gregory Benford, Tad Williams, Guy Gavriel Kay, Pat Cadigan, Margaret Atwood (with her long awaited sequel to a Handmaids Tale) Ian McDonald and eve...
Police at the Station and They Don't Look Friendly by Adrian McKinty
There are times in history that don’t seem very funny and if you lived through them you would find it hard to laugh. The 1970/80s in Northern Ireland may just be one such era as sectarian violence means that you are always wary of your surroundings. This is exemplified for Detective Inspector Sean Duffy, a Catholic Police Officer who has a permanent bounty on his head by the IRA. He should be a sombre chap, but instead he tackles his problems with a sardonic grace. That is until he find...
Happy New Year 2019
SFBook would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year.
2019 looks to be an important year for science fiction. There are some promising stories on the horizon while we are hoping that the science fiction genre should continue to be accepted more broadly. We may even see some work from George R.R. Martin or Patrick Rothfuss, although I wouldn't count on it. There are a few big films coming out - not least with Star Wars Episode 9, Avengers End Game and Alita Battle Angel.
Blade R...
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
Illustration ©2018 Chris Samnee from The Folio Society edition of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
It is 1939. Forced to live together in a small New York apartment, two young men, Samuel Clay and Joseph Kavalier bond over their shared interest in comic books and cartoon art. Together, they create ‘The Escapist’, a Nazi fighting Superhero who journeys across the world to fight for the oppressed.
Right from the title, Michael Chabon’s episodic story of these...
New Publisher Launches - Flame Tree Press
A new imprint has recently launched with a an impressive line-up of authors and books. Flame Tree Press is a brand new publisher dedicated to finding the best award-winning and original voices. While it might be new, Flame Tree Press consists of experienced industry professionals, led by Nick Wells, the Founder of Flame Tree Publishing and a former MD of HarperCollins Enterprises.
Nick Wells commented:
After 24 years at Flame Tree Publishing, this imprint’s story ...
Gun Machine by Warren Ellis
I've been trying to expand my range of reading for a while now, crime fiction especially. I hadn't realised that the talented Warren Ellis had written a crime novel.
For those who haven't heard of Ellis he's a renown British writer best known for his comic book writing. He's won seven Eagle awards and has had his work adapted into films on a number of occasions - perhaps his most famous being the film Red featuring Bruce Willis, Karl Urban, Morgan Freeman and Hel...
Rhyming Rings by David Gemmell
David Gemmell died eleven years ago, he was one of the most popular fantasy authors in the UK, a regular Sunday Times bestseller. His legacy lives on not just in the annual David Gemmel Legend Award but more importantly in the influence his writing had on the fantasy genre.
I first encountered his books in the early 90's and was hooked from the start. He was one of the few authors who I'd eagerly await the next story and one who's work I would read and re-read many times...
Dust and Desire by Conrad Williams
I don't often get the chancce to read a crime novel and so when Titan Books let slip that the third novel in the Joel Sorrell series was about to be released I couldn't resist giving the series a try. Dust and Desire is the first book featuring the PI and sets the scene prefectly.
The prologue describes a killer freshly arrived on the streets of London, finding a victim almost straight away. Meanwhile Joel reluctantly agrees to help Kara Geenan find her lost brother who she ...
The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen
Every so often I like to lift my head above the science fiction and fantasy world and read something unconnected. The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen was the choice this time, a classic novel of discovery.
Matthiessen was a literary giant, the only writer to win the National Book Award for both fiction and non-fiction. Winning the 1979 Contemporary Thought Award and 1980 General Non-Fiction award for this very book. He also won the 2008 Fiction Award and the 2010 William Dean Howe...
Books to look out for in 2016
2016 looks set to be a big year for science fiction and fantasy, with some highly promising TV series - from Man in the High Castle to new episodes of Black Mirror, films from another Star Wars to JG Ballard's High Rise (with many in between) and of course lots of lovely books.
Some of the most talented authors writing today are publishing books this year including Stephen King, Joe Hill, Tad Williams, Ben Aaronovich, China Miéville,&...
