Throwback Thursday: Bridge of Birds Unbalances You in the Best Way
The first time I read Barry Hughart’s Bridge of Birds, I cried. I cried because the ending was that beautiful, because…
Throwback Thursday
Throwback Thursday: The Probability Trilogy Ranks with the Best of Hard Sci-Fi
When it comes to hard science fiction, few authors come to my mind more readily than Nancy Kress. Within her extensive body…
Throwback Thursday: Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials Turns 20
This year, The Golden Compass, the first book of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, celebrates its 20th year in print. First published…
The Snow Queen Is an Elemental Space Opera
I am going to describe a scene to you, and I want you to then tell me which famous science-fiction…
Throwback Thursday: Wild Nights at the Budayeen in When Gravity Fails
In an unnamed Middle Eastern city lies a red light district known as the Budayeen. A place where someone can…
Throwback Thursday: A Fire Upon the Deep Is a Brain-Burstingly Big SF Adventure
Space is really, really, really big. You think you know this, but you don’t. You have probably heard before that…
Throwback Thursday: The Fascinating Origins of James P. Blaylock’s The Elfin Ship
There was a time in my adolescence when I hit Barnes & Noble every Sunday. I’d gather my allowance, hop on…
Throwback Thursday: Tea with the Black Dragon Is and Is Not a Fantasy Novel
I like to think of R.A. MacAvoy’s marvelous Tea with the Black Dragon as a quantum state fantasy, because it both is…
Throwback Thursday: Guardians of the Flame Takes You Inside the Fantasy
When I was a kid, my friends and I loved playing role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, but we never played the…
Throwback Thursday: Summers at Castle Auburn Reveals the Dark Side of a Princess Story
I first read Summers of Castle Auburn because it was the only Sharon Shinn I could get my hands on. I…
Throwback Thursday: The Quantum Rose Is a Fascinating Hard SF Romance
If you’re seeking a shining example of the ephemeral nature of pop culture, look to the phenomenon of art that wins accolades…
Throwback Thursday: Way Station Is a Message of Hope from the Depths of the Cold War
Some books call you back again and again. You resist, because there are always new books clamoring for your time.…
Throwback Thursday: Cordelia’s Honor is Thrilling, Intelligent SF from a Genre Grandmaster
Every reader has a bucket list—oft-recommended writers you keep hearing about, whose books sound absolutely perfect, who, for some reason, you never…
Throwback Thursday: Lord of Light Is a Dazzling, Confounding SF Exploration of Religion
Today, the Western world views India as the maligned home of tech support call centers, a nuclear power, and the…
Throwback Thursday: Find an Otherworldly Escape in the Darwath Trilogy
When I was a kid and in my lunatic reading phase (that precious time of life when you read a book every…
Throwback Thursday: Irresistible Theives and Refreshing Sexuality in the Nightrunner Series
In the late ’90s, I attended a school that was within walking distance of a bookstore. This is the book nerd version…
Throwback Thursday: The Black Jewels Trilogy Is a Fantasy Epic About Overcoming Trauma
About a dozen years ago, I was in the midst of a fantasy reading binge. From Terry Goodkind to Terry…
Throwback Thursday: Discover a Scoundrel’s Origin in A.C. Crispin’s Han Solo Trilogy
This week, LucasFilm revealed plans for a Star Wars spinoff film that will delve into the origin of charming Rebel rogue…
Throwback Thursday: Karen Traviss’ Wess’Har Wars Is an Essential Environmental SF Saga
I first came across Karen Traviss’s work not in a book, but in the February 2003 issue of Aismov’s Science…
Throwback Thursday: Rediscovering Emma Donoghue’s Kissing the Witch
Chris Riddell is the U.K.’s new Children’s Laureate, and the internet is full of The Sleeper and the Spindle illustrations once more. You…