I am never one to shy away from retellings, and I can’t deny Alix E. Harrow presented an intriguing remix of Sleeping Beauty in A Spindle Splintered. I certainly loved what this story tried to be, but unfortunately, there were other forces at play. Zinnia Gray is obsessed with Sleeping Beauty because she’s been cursed…
Continue reading ➞ A Spindle Splintered – Fractured Fairy Tale
Another year, another slamming sword and sorcery novella from Anthony Ryan. Welcome back to the newest installment of “novellas that are killing it that you have never heard of,” starring City of Songs. This is the third installment of The Seven Swords, a novella series published by the independent company Subterranean Press who are famous…
Despite a rough experience with the Night’s Dawn trilogy, I once again find myself enjoying Peter F. Hamilton’s ability to create worlds. I found myself lured by two of Light Chaser’s promises. One, Light Chaser is a novella instead of a 2000 page epic; and two, he has a co-author, Gareth Powell. I figured why…
In The Watchful City, by S. Qiouyi Lu, calls itself a ‘mosaic novella,’ which is a fitting description. The book is organized into two parts. One follows Anima, an augmented human - one of several who oversees the city of Ora. She acts like a foundation for the second part of the story; a series…
Continue reading ➞ In The Watchful City – Seeing Is Believing
“As if Deadpool had slipped into the body of the Witcher Geralt,” reads the NYT book review of K.J. Parker’s Propser’s Demon. And the NYT is mostly correct in that description. We reviewed (and unilaterally enjoyed) Prosper’s Demon last year, going so far as to give the novella a perfect 10. Prosper’s Demon earned the…
A Psalm for the Wild-Built is a novella about what it means to be human, and how it's up to you to define what that means for yourself. It is the first installment of Becky Chambers’ novella series about a monk that decided to quit their job and go live in the wilds and search…
Continue reading ➞ A Psalm For The Wild-Built – Quit Your Job, Get A Tea Cart, Teach Robots
P. Djèlí Clark’s Ring Shout taps into fantasy and horror to tell a story of racism in America. It reads like an ominous tale told around the campfire, a short story to warn listeners against festering hatred that thrives on those who are quick to use it. I am usually a glutton for content, but…
This review will be short and sweet and primarily for those of you who are already reading The Murderbot Diaries, by Martha Wells. If you aren’t already reading Murderbot, you have made a mistake; please go read my review for book one - All Systems Red. To the rest of you who are still here,…
Having spent the last two years digging into the world of novellas, I feel I am starting to get the hang of consistently identifying stories I am going to enjoy. Unfortunately, there are always going to be wild cards that slip through the cracks and ruin your day, much like Fireheart Tiger, by Aliette de…
They say it’s never a good idea to judge a book by it’s cover. After a while, when it comes to actual books, that advice gets harder and harder to follow. It’s not easy with all these amazing artists out there, providing color and form to black and white text. Some of my favorite covers…
Continue reading ➞ Tower of Mud and Straw — Colossal in its Brevity
