Smorgasbord Fantasia

Another fascinating new addition to this genre bursting with new talent, is Rosewater  by Tade Thompson - This one  I am super excited about combining elements of bio punk, horror and African mythology. (I came to know after I read a tweet about it on Sasha Turi's tweet-feed!) John W. Campbell Award finalist for Best Science Fiction Novel Rosewater  is a town on the edge. A community formed around the edges of a mysterious alien biodome, its residents comprise the hopeful, the hungry and the helpless – people eager for a glimpse inside the dome or a taste of its rumoured healing powers. Kaaro  is a government agent with a criminal past. He has seen inside the biodome, and doesn’t care to again – but when something begins killing off others like himself, Kaaro must defy his masters to search for an answer, facing his dark history and coming to a realisation about a horrifying future. Rosewater comes out in Sept 2018 from Orbit books. 

Bumping this meme up on my blog after a long while now - Wanted to bring back the attention to the acclaimed debut - Blackwing by Ed McDonald   one of the most assured debuts to have aced the scene, breathing in new life and direction to the grim and dark sub-genre. So Ravencry - Book Two in the same series is out in June and we cannot wait to dive in. Back to  the bleeding edge of the world, Misery. Four years have passed since Nall’s Engine drove the Deep Kings back across the Misery, but as they hurl fire from the sky, darker forces plots against the republic. A new power is rising: a ghost in the light known only as the Bright Lady manifests in visions across the city, and the cult that worship her grasp for power even as the city burns around them. When Crowfoot’s arcane vault is breached, an object of terrible power is stolen, and Galharrow and his Blackwings must once find out which of Valengrad’s enemies is responsible before they have a chance to use it. T...

There is something about post-apocalyptic stories that are haunting and draw me in, like no other. But  there are only a handful stories that don't disappoint. I am legend by Richard Matheson or The Road by Cormac McCarthy are few that comes to mind.  But throw in a dog - and a survival story of grit and courage in a world that's gone to rot and rubble, now that's one hell of a juicy bone to resist for someone like me. Who loves me a good survival story and loves dogs more than anything else. And so the premise of The Last Dog on Earth was irresistible. I confess I haven't read The End of the World Running Club by Adrian J Walker before I dove into this one and so my expectations were pretty slim.  As the name suggests( The Last Dog on Earth ) , it is actually the end of the world and Linekar (Named after Gary Lineker, the English Football star of the 90's) is a mongrel who loves, no adores his master Reginald Hardy to bits. Living in isolation ...

Angus Watson 's fantasy spin on historical facts continues to regale us - in his latest series, West of West . I had thoroughly enjoyed the Age of Iron - a historical epic, the first in a political sword and sorcery series that was sheer fun, full of pulse-pounding action and some unforgettable characters, brimming with that gallows humour. The series sought to shed light on the pre-christ era and the roman conquest of the south brit isles - with of course creative liberty in terms of the magic and the gory action which probably defined those times. And now with this one, You die when you die - he turns his attention to the Vikings - setting out to explore their little-known exploits on the American soil, the first intrepid explorers who dared to go beyond set boundaries. His treatment stands out - converting that research into believable and highly entertaining fiction that still rings deep and true in some fashion. I know some of my favourite fellow bloggers have love...