Way back when I was a teenager, I read Over Sea, Under Stone and found it generally engaging but not good enough to make me grab the next one. But over the years, I’ve heard the almost univocal opinion that the next book, The Dark Is Rising, is far-and-away the best of the series and… Continue reading Fantasy Novel Review: The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper
This review is based on an eARC (Advance Reading Copy) provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Sublimation will be released on June 2, 2026. Isabel J. Kim burst onto the scene with the tremendous debut short story “Homecoming Is Just Another Word for the Sublimation of the Self.” Over the… Continue reading Fantasy Novel Review: Sublimation by Isabel J. Kim
Antonia Hodgson was not at all on my radar going into 2025, but The Raven Scholar quickly became one of those books that is lauded seemingly wherever fantasy is discussed. I don’t always read the year’s big trend books, but I had the opportunity to give it a try in December to see for myself… Continue reading Fantasy Novel Review: The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson
Joanna Russ is one of those figures from before I started reading sci-fi who is sufficiently renowned that I’ve been meaning to read her for a while but not so ubiquitous that I’d already done so. But I had a bit of a gap between library holds, and the trim length and glowing reviews of… Continue reading Sci-fi Novel Review: We Who Are About To. . . by Joanna Russ
It’s the words. Well, perhaps the unplowed depths. But to start, it’s the words. Fourth Mansions is my favorite novel by my favorite author, and yet it’s been over ten years since my last reread. I finally pulled it off the shelf, and if I recall correctly, it will make my second reread review (of… Continue reading Fantasy Novel Review: Fourth Mansions by R.A. Lafferty
I’d already been hearing about Emily St. John Mandel for years when Sea of Tranquility came out to much acclaim. I gave it a try and found that it was well-written and entertaining but never really more than the sum of its parts. I was ready to chalk her up as too litficky for me,… Continue reading Sci-fi Novel Review: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
I’ve never been a big poetry reader, and I know almost nothing about speculative poetry. So I was initially a little skeptical about Mary Soon Lee’s epic The Sign of the Dragon. But with a handful of friends providing plenty of peer pressure, an intriguing opening poem, and an online book club to read with,… Continue reading Fantasy Novel Review: The Sign of the Dragon by Mary Soon Lee
This review is based on an ARC (Advance Reading Copy) provided by the editor in exchange for an honest review. Think Weirder was released on October 30, 2025. I have to admit, I was won over by the cover of Think Weirder: The Year’s Best Science Fiction Ideas, edited by Joe Stech. Not because of… Continue reading Sci-fi Anthology Review: Think Weirder by Joe Stech
I read a lot of short fiction, but I tend to be a bit wary of climate fiction. Not because it’s bad—on the contrary, there’s a climate-focused story on my favorites list almost every year—but because I see stories praised as brilliant and visionary when the main selling point is the way the world could… Continue reading Sci-fi/Fantasy Anthology Review: ECO24 by Marissa Van Uden
This review is based on an eARC (Advance Reading Copy) provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The Village at the Edge of Noon will be released on December 2, 2025. December and January are often pretty light on new releases, and I’m always on the lookout for more stories… Continue reading Fantasy Novel Review: The Village at the Edge of Noon by Darya Bobyleva
