Kij Johnson - The Dream-Quest of Vellit Boe (2016)

My review of 'The Dream-Quest of Vellit Boe' by Kij Johnson is up next in the Tor novellas. It is an imaginative feminist reinterpretation of Lovecraft's Dreamworlds stories that works as a great piece of Weird fiction in its own right. Read more at Fantasy Faction through at the link.

Nnedi Okorafor - Binti (2015)

Bringing us up to date, my review of 'Binti' by Nnedi Okorafor is up now on Fantasy Faction. The most decorated of the Tor novellas, 'Binti' is a space opera coming of age tale about the importance of empathy and communication between peoples. Read more at the link.

Cassandra Khaw - Hammers On Bone (2016)

In December I reviewed Cassandra Khaw's 'Hammers On Bone'. This excellent addition to the Tor novella series explores the common ground between noir detective fiction and Lovecraftian horror, whilst dissecting the very real horrors of domestic abuse. It's an incredibly imaginative piece of Weird fiction in its own right, wonderfully written and full of unsettling touches. Read more through at the link.

Guy Haley - The Emperor's Railroad (2016)

Once again I have been remiss in updating the blog, I can only plead the rest of life getting in the way and apologise. So here are some posts that I have missed. First up in the Tor novella series was Guy Haley's 'The Emperor's Rairoad', an inventive mix of Dying Earth Fantasy, zombie post-apocalypse fiction and Western. Read more through at the link.

Emily Foster - The Drowning Eyes (2016)

Well, my ambitions to keep up with the blog have fallen by the wayside. September saw the next installment of my Tor novellas reviews up on Fantasy Faction. This time it's 'The Drowning Eyes', a compelling maritime adventure story with a diverse cast of pirates, mercenaries, and witches and wizards who control the weather. Read more through at the link.

Tor Novellas: Mary Robinette Kowal - Forest Of Memory (2016)

Today my review of Mary Robinette Kowal's 'Forest Of Memory', another Tor novella, is up at Fantasy Faction. The novella looks at how our relationship with technology is supplanting our relationship with nature, and has many pertinent things to say about the fetishisation of nostalgia and our dependence on digital technology. Read more through at the link.

Tor Novellas: Victor LaValle - The Ballad Of Black Tom (2016)

So, late with the updates again. Apologies all round. My review of Victor LaValle's excellent subversion of H. P. Lovecraft, 'The Ballad Of Black Tom', went up on Fantasy Faction in July. Set behind the scenes of' The Horror At Red Hook', Lovecraft's most offensively racist story, 'The Ballad Of Black Tom' brilliantly dissects Lovecraft's racism whilst paying tribute to the imagination displayed in his stories. It is a timely and powerful critique of Lovecraft, whilst being a work of imaginative Weird fiction in its own right .Read more through at the link.

Tor Novellas: Kai Ashante Wilson - The Sorcerer Of The Wildeeps (2015)

I am thrilled to announce a new series of articles I shall be running at Fantasy Faction, in which I review the Tor novellas line. Tor have launched a line of novellas, aiming to promote this shorter medium, and focusing on bringing new authors from diverse backgrounds to attention as much as more established names. I really like this series because the shorter novella form frequently allows writers to experiment and take risks that they might not be so comfortable taking with longer works, resulting in a number of really interesting and exciting reads. First up is 'The Sorcerer Of The Wildeeps' by Kai Ashante Wilson, a writer whose short fiction I have admired for some time. Here he experiments with the forms and assumptions of the Sword and Sorcery genre to create a beautifully written tale of bisexual and gay love with a diverse cast. Read more at the link.