
Dead Witch on a Bridge
Dead Witch on a Bridge by Gretchen Galway Kobo Writing Life Sci Fi & Fantasy Pub Date 15 Jan 2019 Review I wasn’t sure what to expect from Gretchen Galway’s debut paranormal mystery. I was decidedly impressed. Not only did the mystery keep me guessing, but it applied magic in a creative way. I absolutely loved Random, Alma’s dog, and found Alma’s empathy for others believable. The only weakness was that some characters were less developed than others. Some characters were

Excellent start to Olson's new urban fantasy series
Midnight Curse Disrupted Magic, Book 1 by Melissa F. Olson 47 North General Fiction (Adult), Sci Fi & Fantasy Pub Date 07 Feb 2017 Review In the first book of the Disrupted Magic series, Melissa F. Olson goes back to focusing on her original heroine, Scarlett Bernard, nullifier of magic and supernatural clean up expert. The paranormal population of LA rely on her to keep humans from discovering the hidden supernatural world. In Midnight Curse, Scarlett discovers her friend M

Watch out Flash Gordon here comes Andi Turbot
Escape From B-Movie Hell
by M T McGuire Hamgee Press
Humor, Sci Fi & Fantasy
Pub Date: December 17, 2015
Review
Escape from B-Movie Hell is cheeky fun, but expect more chuckles than laugh-out-loud moments. Written in the vein of old time adventures such as Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon, the novel features Andi Turbot, a British Art restoration student. It comes as a surprise when she discovers her best friend Eric is an alien rather than simply fashion challenged. She

Simply smashing! Dr DOA is an amazing fantasy tribute to Fleming's iconic spy
DR. DOA
A Secret Histories Novel
by Simon R. Green
Berkley Publishing Group
Sci Fi & Fantasy
Pub Date: June 7, 2016 Review
Simply smashing! Eddie Drood, aka Shaman Bond, is Fleming's iconic character cheekily reimagined for a wild world where magic, aliens, and alternate realities are everyday (even if the ordinary person does their best to pretend otherwise). Simon Green simultaneously parodies and praises the tropes we know so well from the Bond films - like the Ma

Missing sheep, cloned starlets and murder
The Big Sheep
By Robert Kroese
St Martins Press
Sci Fi & Fantasy, Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date: June 28, 2016
Review
My initial reaction to the beginning of The Big Sheep could be described simply - "what?" Here we have Keane, a phenomenological investigator (holistic detective) who has been called in by Esper Corp to find a missing sheep. It is a strange place to start that puts the reader a bit off-kilter. Next, a popular starlet who is clearly a bit delusional c

Unusual, disturbing and remarkably pertinent
The Dark Side
by Anthony O'Neill
Simon & Schuster
Scifi & Fantasy, Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date: June 28, 2016
Review
Take an android, add a megalomaniac businessman's sociopathic rules for corporate dictatorship, set loose -- What do you get? Bodies, lots of bodies. (Sounds a bit like someone in the US presidential race)
When you pick up The Dark Side, be prepared for an unusual, disturbing, and remarkably pertinent novel. The narration alternates between the expe

Explore the hidden magick of the city in this wonderful anthology
Street Magicks
Edited by Paula Guran
Diamond Book Distributors
Prime Books
Comics & Graphic, Sci Fi & Fantasy
Pub Date: April 12, 2016
Review
Magic often lies just out of view. Like the animals who adapt to new environments, the formation of cities has changed how we perceive the unknown and unexpected. Within the pages of this amazing anthology, a bevy of fantastic authors remind the reader of the mysterious, beautiful and dangerous magics that lie hidden, camoufl

Many bodies, one young woman
The Many Selves of Katherine North
by Emma Geen
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc (UK & ANZ)
Bloomsbury Circus
General Fiction (Adult), Sci Fi & Fantasy
Pub Date 02 Jun 2016
Review
One part speculative fiction, one part scifi thriller, The Many Selves of Katherine North is an imaginative novel that should not be passed by. It is a story that will linger with readers long after the final chapter is read.
What lies at the core of identity? Is it defined by body and sensati

Starts with promise but doesn't meet expectations
Single Wired Female
By Greg Dragon
Thirsty Bird
Scifi & Fantasy, Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date: Feb 23 2016
Review
Single Wired Female has an intriguing premise, but while the start is promising, the novel falters midway. There is no logical progression that culminates in the story's resolution. Instead the author waves a magic wand which results in the plot being neatly ended with the android lead awakening 50 years later to an almost happily ever after - no explanat

A young boy with a singular gift threatens a utopia that doesn’t believe in miracles
Too Like the Lightning
By Ada Palmer
Macmillan Tor
Sci Fi & Fantasy
Pub Date: May 10, 2016
Review
I have never before encountered a novel quite like Too Like the Lightning. It is a must read for any student of philosophy, particularly those who enjoy speculative fiction. Too Like the Lightning is not your run of the mill scifi novel. Although there is action, much of the novel involves the complexities of politics and conflicts of a philosophical nature. Parts read