Category Archives: book
Book Review: “Osama” by Lavie Tidhar
It’s been about ten years since Al Qaeda operatives flew jets into three U.S. buildings (and were thwarted before they could hit a fourth). In that time we’ve all suffered the effects, which is to say: a couple of wars, … Continue reading
Posted in alternate history, book, escape pod, nonfiction, review, writing
Tagged lavie tidhar, osama, review
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Book Review: “Pirates” by Nobilis Reed
Nobilis Reed is a good writer — he really gets into his characters’ heads, which is all the more difficult when the story is told via first-person-limited perspective. I just felt that the first 50-60 percent of the book didn’t … Continue reading
Posted in book, erotica, escape pod, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged adult, deep space nine, erotica, nobilis reed, pirates, review, sci-fi, scouts
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Book Review: “Geist” by Philippa Ballantine
Geist combines the best of what I like in 1990s fantasy fiction with the scope of a doorstop novel… and then pares out all the extraneous crap that makes a fantasy novel into a doorstop. What’s left is 300 pages … Continue reading
Posted in book, escape pod, fantasy, nonfiction, review, writing
Tagged fantasy, geist, philippa ballantine, review
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Book Review: “Hit List” by Laurell K. Hamilton
I don’t think Hit List is a really good book, especially when held up to others in the Anita Blake series. While the writing is definitely better and tighter than the past couple of Anita Blake novels, this one doesn’t … Continue reading
Posted in book, escape pod, fantasy, nonfiction, review, supernatural, urban, writing
Tagged anita blake, hit list, laurell k. hamilton, reviews, vampire hunter
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Book Review: “Embassytown” by China Mieville
Unlike Kraken, Embassytown doesn’t force the reader to perform mental gymnastics to keep up with Mieville’s use of language. However, the book did take me quite a while to get through. There’s a lot to absorb, and a lot of … Continue reading
Posted in escape pod, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged china mieville, embassytown, review, sci-fi, science fiction
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Book Review: “The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms” by N.K. Jemisin
To go back to my comment on storytelling style — the best way to explain it is that I felt like I was reading Anita Blake: God Hunter. The same problems I have with Laurell K. Hamilton’s storytelling, I had … Continue reading
Posted in book, escape pod, fantasy, nonfiction, review, writing
Tagged fantasy, N.K. Jemisin, review, the hundred thousand kingdoms
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Book Review: “Scouts” by Nobilis Reed
Warp drive. Hyperspeed. Folding space. Immersion. The Infinite Improbability Drive. Read five different pieces of science fiction and you’re guaranteed to find five different propulsion methods with five different names. But one thing I can guarantee is that you’ve never … Continue reading
Posted in book, erotica, escape pod, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged erotica, nobilis reed, review, sci-fi, scouts, sex
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Book Review: “Blind Man’s Bluff” by Peter David
For fourteen years, David has been sharing with us the adventures of Captain Mackenzie Calhoun of the U.S.S. Excalibur — his unorthodox style, his unorthodox crew, his unorthodox worldview. In fact, if New Frontier had a single word to describe … Continue reading
Posted in book, escape pod, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged mackenzie calhoun, new frontier, peter david, review, star trek
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Book Review: “Ship Breaker” by Paolo Bacigalupi
Ever since the success of Bacigalupi’s Windup Girl, I’ve been meaning to read both it and Ship Breaker. It turns out I finished the latter almost a year to the day since it was released. I’m not sure how it … Continue reading
Posted in book, escape pod, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing, ya
Tagged dystopian, paolo bacigalupi, review, ship breaker, ya, young adult
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Book Review: “Nascence” by Tobias S. Buckell
Book Review: “Nascence” by Tobias S. Buckell
Posted in book, collection/anthology, escape pod, nonfiction, nonfiction, review, writing
Tagged nascence, review, tobias buckell, tobias s buckell
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Book Review: “Seize the Fire” by Michael A. Martin
Book Review: “Seize the Fire” by Michael A. Martin
Posted in book, escape pod, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged gorn, michael a. martin, review, riker, seize the fire, star trek, titan, tuvok, typhon pact
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Book Review: “Soft Apocalypse” by Will McIntosh
Apocalypse fiction has been around for many years, usually in the form of a cataclysmic event — asteroid impact, nuclear bomb, giant space squid — that destroys a good chunk of the entire planet and leaves the survivors to fend … Continue reading
Posted in book, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged georgia, Japan, middle east, night shade books, review, sarlacc, savannah, soft apocalypse, wal-mart, Will McIntosh
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Book Review: “Dancing with Bears” by Michael Swanwick
Book Review: “Dancing with Bears” by Michael Swanwick
Posted in book, fantasy, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, urban, writing
Tagged dancing with bears, darger, fantasy, michael swanwick, moscow, review, russia, surplus
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Book Review: “Agatha H. and the Airship City”, by Phil and Kaja Foglio
Agatha H., in one sentence: it’s a fun book. I immensely enjoyed reading it. It’s a madcap comic adventure combined with steampunk (or “gaslamp”, as the authors say on their site), a little Bas-Lag, and some well-used adventure fantasy tropes. … Continue reading
Posted in book, escape pod, fantasy, nonfiction, review, writing
Tagged agatha h. and the airship city, foglio, gaslamp, girl genius, review, steampunk, webcomic
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Book Review: “Rough Beasts of Empire” by David R. George III
Book Review: “Rough Beasts of Empire” by David R. George III
Posted in book, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged david r. george iii, review, romulan, rough beasts of empire, sisko, spock, star trek, typhon pact, tzenkethi
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Book Review: “Zero Sum Game” by David Mack
Book Review: “Zero Sum Game” by David Mack
Posted in book, escape pod, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged aventine, bashir, breen, david mack, dax, deep space nine, destiny, review, star trek, typhon pact, zero sum game
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Book Review: “Kraken” by China Mieville
There’s a loldog present in my review of China Mieville’s “Kraken”. You can guess which one it is. Book Review: “Kraken” by China Mieville
Posted in book, escape pod, fantasy, nonfiction, review, urban, writing
Tagged china mieville, giant squid, kraken, review
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Book Review: “Super Sad True Love Story” by Gary Shteyngart
Book Review: “Super Sad True Love Story” by Gary Shteyngart
Posted in book, escape pod, nonfiction, review, sci-fi, writing
Tagged explicit language, gary shteyngart, jbf, near-future, super sad true love story
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Escape Pod
A couple of months ago, I became a regular blogger for Escape Pod. (They only put up one post a day, so “regular” is subjective.) Mostly I write reviews, but I also do thought pieces about sci-fi as a genre. … Continue reading
Josh Roseman: Writer, Voice Guy, Dad, Human 