Rating: 3 out of 5 I’m a huge fan of the SF/horror combo (the Alien franchise, etc.), so I was really looking forward to Mike Duke’s AMALGAM: BOOK ONE: CONTACT. Unfortunately it only somewhat lived up to that anticipation. Our…
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Review: “Tiamat’s Wrath,” James S.A. Corey
Rating: 5 out of 5 In James S.A. Corey’s Tiamat’s Wrath (The Expanse, 8), once again the crew of the Rocinante is scattered to the four winds. Holden is captive on Laconia (he likens himself to a “dancing bear,” left…
Review: “The Black Farm,” Elias Witherow
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Elias Witherow’s horror novel The Black Farm, about what happens after you commit suicide, is a wildly mixed bag. He says in his author’s note that he wants to bring “fresh concepts” to and “breathe…
Review: “Malignant Summer,” Tim Meyer
Rating: 5 out of 5 In Tim Meyer’s horror novel Malignant Summer, it’s 1998. High school students Randall and Alphie are hiding clues for the annual Great Hunt, in which a bunch of students try to solve a clue hunt.…
Review: “Persepolis Rising,” James S.A. Corey
Rating: 5 out of 5 30 years later… No, really. James S.A. Corey’s military science fiction novel Persepolis Rising (The Expanse, 7) takes place roughly three decades after Babylon’s Ashes. Laconia, the colony formed by the rogue Martian contingent led…
Short Take: “The Sea Below,” William Meikle
Rating: 4 out of 5 William Meikle’s horror adventure The Sea Below is the sequel to his The Land Below. In that book, two men wanted to search for a treasure supposed to be underground. They hired a “bodyguard,” who…
Review: “Operation Grendel,” Daniel Schwabauer
Rating: 4 out of 5 Daniel Schwabauer’s military science fiction novel Operation Grendel is really intriguing, and it has a fascinating ending, but I can’t make the timeline of events that are critical to the ending make sense. If I…