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The reviews
Recent additions: The
Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories by Susanna Clarke, Sloth
by Gilbert Hernandez, The
Baldwins by Serge Lamothe, The
Man from the Diogenes Club by Kim Newman, The
Line Between by Peter S Beagle, Monster
Island by David Wellington, Tarzan
Alive by Philip José Farmer, The
Strange Adventures of Rangergirl by Tim Pratt, City
of Saints and Madmen by Jeff VanderMeer, Passarola
Rising by Azhar Abidi, The
Healer by Michael Blumlein, Fallen
by David Maine, Magic
for Beginners by Kelly Link, In
the Palace of Repose by Holly Phillips, DC:
The New Frontier by Darwyn Cooke, Gravity
Wells by James Alan Gardner, The
Mysteries by Lisa Tuttle, The
Mammoth Book of New Jules Verne Adventures edited by Mike Ashley
and Eric Brown.
Complete listing of reviews (dates refer to
first publication in The Montreal Gazette):
- Passarola
Rising by Azhar Abidi (18 March 2006)
"Drawing on the fantastic voyage genre popularized by Jules Verne,
Abidi creates a wonderful and poignant adventure story."
- Coyote
Cowgirl by Kim Antieau (26 July 2003)
"...has all the right ingredients for a fun, breezy summer read."
- The Bone House by
Luanne Armstrong (1 February 2003)
"An emotionally rich tale ... peopled with memorable characters whose
actions, reactions, and emotions are startling and striking."
- Prince
of Ayodhya by Ashok K Banker (16 August 2003)
"Likely to become an essential cornerstone of fantasy."
- Jennifer Government
by Max Barry (22 February 2003)
"An entertaining romp that delivers mordant social commentary and
suspenseful thrills, both woven into a cleverly convoluted plot."
- Coalescent
by Stephen Baxter (24 January 2004)
"Combines a vast historical scope a la Olaf Stapledon with an
astronomical scenario reminiscent of Arthur C. Clarke."
- The
Line Between by Peter S Beagle (2 September 2006)
"The stories in this volume yearn for the space and scope of novels
... leaves no doubt that he is, first and foremost, a novelist."
- Damage Land: New Scottish
Gothic Fiction edited by Alan Bissett (13 October 2001)
"...celebrates Scottish fiction's predilection for the bizarre ...
a treasure chest of creepy and quirky treats showcasing the diversity
of gothic fiction and 20 of its newest voices."
- The Healer
by Michael Blumlein (11 March 2006)
"The Healer is filled with intense moments and powerful imagery, but
it's also a mess."
- Sleeper:
Out in the Cold / Sleeper: All False Moves by Ed Brubaker
and Sean Phillips (4 September 2004)
"An unabashedly nihilistic and darkly sardonic crossgenre espionage
series ... a tensely involving saga that never flinches and never
fails to surprise."
- Gotham
Central: In the Line of Duty by Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka
and Michael Lark (26 June 2004)
"A great start to a fascinating comics series: a police procedural
taking place on the edges of the superhero genre."
- Things Unborn by
Eugene Byrne (15 September 2001)
"A fun romp, told in a compelling, off-beat voice ... spiced with
the author's knowledge of history."
- The Ultimate Cyberpunk
edited by Pat Cadigan (19 October 2002)
"A celebration of the genre that addressed both the anxieties and
the excitement generated by the revolutionary potential of home computers,
portable technology, rapidly evolving telecommunications systems,
and an expanding array of possibilities for body modification."
- The Hauntings of Hood
Canal by Jack Cady (12 January 2002)
"...the chunky and delicious soup that is Jack Cady's The Hauntings
of Hood Canal."
- Impakto by Richard
Calder (2 March 2002)
"Explodes with vivid contrasts ... a work of beauty, yet its characters
are revolting in both appearance and behaviour."
- Lord Soho by Richard
Calder (21 September 2002)
"Calder's bizarre imagination and idiosyncratic prose style provide
the momentum, perversely seducing with their fetishistic overindulgences."
- White Apples by
Jonathan Carroll (28 December 2002)
"It's hard to admire Jonathan Carroll's twelfth novel, White Apples."
- The Wooden Sea by
Jonathan Carroll (4 August 2001)
"A feast of challenging ideas, profoundly imagined characters, elegant
prose, and baffling strangeness."
- Stories of Your
Life and Others by Ted Chiang (24 August 2002)
"With a total of eight stories in thirteen years, Chiang may not be
prolific, but he is an uncommonly -- and justifiably -- lauded writer."
- DC:
The New Frontier by Darwyn Cooke (10 September 2005)
"A complex saga of political confusion and strange invasion ... sophisticated
in both content and appearance."
- Futures edited by Peter
Crowther (15 September 2001)
"New novellas by four of the top names in British science fiction."
- Mars Probes edited
by Peter Crowther (10 August 2002)
"A very strong anthology ... two stories stand out as masterpieces."
- The Watch by Dennis
Danvers (1 June 2002)
"So incisive and well-informed that I wanted nothing to stand in the
way ... Alas, The Watch is a dreadful mess."
- Aye,
and Gomorrah and Other Stories by Samuel R Delany (10 May
2003)
"Most of Delany's stories now strike me as interesting, but failed
and excessively affected, experiments."
- Babel-17: Including Empire
Star by Samuel R Delany (2 March 2002)
"Both works are typical 1960s Delany. Linguistics is inextricably
woven into their narratives."
- Neutrino
Drag by Paul Di Filippo (7 August 2004)
"Showcases the lighter side of Paul Di Filippo. The result is generally
fun, with some memorable moments of brilliant wit and storytelling."
- Strange Trades
by Paul Di Filippo (1 December 2001)
"Paul Di Filippo plies a strange trade. He writes science fiction
short stories. Lots of them. Weird ones. Funny ones. Postmodern funky
ones."
- Eastern
Standard Tribe by Cory Doctorow (17 April 2004)
"Fast-paced adventure ... This is a fun read, especially because of
the hilariously drawn characters and the density of intriguing throwaway
ideas, but it's ultimately disappointing."
- In
the Land of Time and Other Fantasy Tales by Lord Dunsany
(24 April 2004)
"A selection of Dunsany's fiction spanning the legendary author's
entire career, from his innovative mythological tales of the early
1900s to his more realistic texts of the 1950s."
- Orbiter
by Warren Ellis and Colleen Doran (2 August 2003)
"Fuelled by a fervent desire to see humanity reach the stars ... suffused
with the sense of wonder that is science fiction's lifeblood."
- Budayeen
Nights by George Alec Effinger (23 August 2003)
"A seductive mosaic, empathically beautiful, painfully tender, excitingly
imaginative, and deeply personal."
- Tarzan
Alive by Philip José Farmer (17 June 2006)
"A fun and endlessly intriguing classic."
- The
Coyote Kings of the Space-Age Bachelor Pad by Minister Faust
(9 October 2004)
"Constructs its own reality -- one in which Alberta is a nexus for
cannibal cultists, secret histories, magic, and superpowered villains
-- with a twisted but loving take on superhero comics logic."
- Bride
of the Fat White Vampire by Andrew Fox (14 August 2004)
"This time around, Fox concocts a convoluted mystery in the hardboiled
tradition of Raymond Chandler, explicitly perverts the Anne Rice brand
of vampire fiction, and spices the plot with elements from James Whale's
film Bride of Frankenstein."
- Fat
White Vampire Blues by Andrew Fox (9 August 2003)
"A relentlessly entertaining romp through New Orleans's supernatural
underworld."
- Gravity
Wells by James Alan Gardner (25 June 2005)
"A versatile writer with a confident command of diverse narrative
voices."
- Sloth
by Gilbert Hernandez (16 December 2006)
"His strongest non-Love & Rockets work to date."
- The Vampire Sextette
edited by Marvin Kaye (23 November 2002)
"Three outstanding novellas, two interesting near-misses, and only
one dud add up to anthology well worth seeking out."
- The
Baldwins by Serge Lamothe (28 October 2006)
"A series of random anecdotes without rhyme or reason."
- Magic
for Beginners by Kelly Link (19 November 2005)
"These stories shimmer like impressionist paintings ... a joyful experience."
- Fallen
by David Maine (7 January 2006)
"David Maine retells the saga of humanity's mythical first family
... backwards."
- ¡Caramba!
by Nina Marie Martínez (5 June 2004)
"Spiritual quests, complex love stories, sibling incest, the secret
agenda of the mysterious volcano cult the Sons and Daughters of San
Narciso, and much, much more ... an entertainingly zany ghost story."
- White
Devils by Paul McAuley (20 March 2004)
"A well-informed and engaged confluence of biology, genetics, racial
politics, globalization economics, and environmental issues."
- Nekropolis by Maureen
McHugh (12 January 2002)
"A haunting meditation on desire, escape, identity, and transformation."
- Perdido Street Station
by China Miéville (2 June 2001)
"An unlikely amalgamation of disparate influences, an alchemical potion
striving to transmogrify ink, paper, and imagination into literary
gold."
- The Scar by China
Miéville (27 July 2002)
"A baroque and picaresque odyssey, peopled by strange species and
ambiguous characters."
- The Dark Knight
Strikes Again by Frank Miller (21 September 2002)
"Sadly, the script lacks the emotional nuances of its predecessor,
and, most noticeably, the artwork is rushed and garish."
- The
Stupidest Angel by Christopher Moore (11 December 2004)
"An unforgivingly savage (if still hilarious) horror tale."
- Limit of Vision
by Linda Nagata (2 June 2001)
"Linda Nagata is possessed of a wild speculative imagination ... Sadly,
this promising tale collapses under the weight of too many unanswered
questions."
- The
Man from the Diogenes Club by Kim Newman (30 September
2006)
"The adventures ooze glam and mod stylishness... erudite pastiches
in which the dangers are always immediate, the thrills always genuine."
- The
Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (3 January 2004)
"Niffenegger's storytelling is bold, confident, and entrancing. Her
prose is warm and inviting ... There's a lot to love in this book."
- Falling
out of Cars by Jeff Noon (22 March 2003)
"Ever since the release of Vurt ... Jeff Noon's work has been
consistently idiosyncratic, strange, and uncompromising. His eighth
book, Falling out of Cars, is no exception."
- The Impossible Bird
by Patrick O'Leary (4 May 2002)
"...creates a truly unusual scenario of alien invasion, conjures extraterrestrials
that are unlike anything on Earth, and spins a tale in which his aliens
and their plot become inseparable from his thematic concerns."
- Diary
by Chuck Palahniuk (20 September 2003)
"Palahniuk's startlingly engaging voice has stayed fairly consistent
so far, and, by now, it's starting to lose its freshness."
- Lullaby by Chuck
Palahniuk (28 September 2002)
"With his fifth novel, Lullaby, Palahniuk steps firmly and boldly
into the realm of the impossible."
- In
the Palace of Repose by Holly Phillips (1 October 2005)
"Every story showcases Phillips's deft understated touch, her evocative
allusions, her depth of vocabulary, her knack for beautifully complex
sentences."
- Graphic
Classics: HP Lovecraft edited by Tom Pomplun (31 May 2003)
"A gorgeously produced book. The bizarre and compelling artwork,
on nearly every page, deliciously spices the mix with humour and terror."
- The
Strange Adventures of Rangergirl by Tim Pratt (20 May 2006)
"A rollicking adventure -- an imaginative and unusual blend of superhero
comics, classic fantasy, western pulp, and romantic comedy."
- The Holy by Daniel Quinn
(25 January 2003)
"A mosaic of interlocking quests, robustly written and filled with
astonishing ideas."
- The Years of
Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson (13 July 2002)
"A subtle fiction within a fiction, a novel about the history of another
world written as if by someone from that same world."
- Ship of Fools by
Richard Paul Russo (7 April 2001)
"A grab bag of science-fiction goodies ... thrilling and exciting."
- Maniac
Killer Strikes Again! by Richard Sala (31 January 2004)
"The literary equivalent of a grab bag of unwholesomely delicious
Halloween treats."
- Conqueror
Fantastic edited by Pamela Sargent (29 May 2004)
"A fairly strong assemblage, with only one out-and-out dud."
- A Handbook
of American Prayer by Lucius Shepard (31 December 2004)
"A testosterone-fuelled yet rawly introspective exploration of the
confluence of masculinity, celebrity, and spirituality in contemporary
US culture."
- Louisiana
Breakdown by Lucius Shepard (26 April 2003)
"Sumptuously written, oozing sweat, sex, and strangeness with heady
insouciance."
- Phases
of the Moon by Robert Silverberg (26 September 2004)
"Documents one of the most significant careers in the history of science
fiction, presenting some of the genre's finest stories."
- Roma
Eterna by Robert Silverberg (12 July 2003)
"An entertaining read, with a generous handful of exceptionally engaging
stories."
- Fantasy:
The Best of 2002 edited by Robert Silverberg and Karen Haber
(28 June 2003)
"A diverse and thrilling read that spans the broad range of fantasy
fiction's subgenres."
- Science Fiction: The
Best of 2001 edited by Robert Silverberg and Karen Haber
(10 August 2002)
"Overlook(s)
most of what is still exciting, vibrant, and cutting edge in science
fiction."
- Coyote by Allen Steele
(15 March 2003)
"A subversive grand adventure, both intelligent and emotionally involving."
- Coyote
Rising by Allen Steele (12 February 2005)
"A rousing read. Steele can really spin a good yarn, and he has a
true feel for adventure."
- Jetcat Clubhouse
by Jay Stephens (30 November 2002)
"Fully enjoyable either as zany kid superhero fun or as ironic postmodern
pop-culture artefact."
- The
Atrocity Archives by Charles Stross (12 June 2004)
"Stross seductively creates an entire secret history of international
intelligence agencies working to keep the other levels of reality
from spilling out."
- A Telling of Stars
by Caitlin Sweet (15 February 2003)
"...swathed in portentous sentences. Sweet trusts neither her story
to convey its own worth nor her readers to get it."
- The
Mysteries by Lisa Tuttle (18 June 2005)
"Tuttle delves into those terrifying primal regions where the mysteries
of the world infect the human imagination."
- City
of Saints and Madmen by Jeff VanderMeer (8 April 2006)
"A fascinating mosaic of interlocking texts whose meanings change
as readers delve deeper."
- Secret
Life by Jeff VanderMeer (10 July 2004)
"The title story ... at times savagely horrific, at others deliriously
funny, it's a roller-coaster ride filled with fascinating characters
caught in strangely resonant conflicts and situations."
- Monster
Island by David Wellington (22 July 2006)
"A delightfully inventive and fast-paced hybrid of several genres."
- The
Risen Empire by Scott Westerfeld (19 July 2003)
"A space opera played on a grand stage against an admirably complex
political backdrop ... a cold and uninvolving read."
- The Chronoliths
by Robert Charles Wilson (13 October 2001)
"Revels in exciting speculative ideas while offering a poignant personal
tale of coping with extraordinary circumstances."
- The
Knight by Gene Wolfe (28 February)
"...recalls filmmaker Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill, Volume
1, also half of an epic story."
- Latro
in the Mist by Gene Wolfe (29 March 2003)
"An evocative labyrinthine puzzle, drenched in melancholy beauty and
peppered with thrilling adventure."
- Swift Thoughts
by George Zebrowski (13 July 2002)
"An interesting writer who obviously puts a lot of thought behind
his stories, most of which are dense, idea-packed thought experiments
... But one thing authors should never do when discussing their own
work is brag."
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