Page 2 of posts by: angelablackwell

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews Tuesday Releases: Fran Wilde, Wesley Chu, and Jay Posey

Posted on 2016-05-03 at 23:43 by angelablackwell
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Review of The Jewel and her Lapidary by Fran Wilde (Tor.com, May 3, 2016)

This vibrant fantasy novella deals with friendship and family when betrayal occurs. Sima and Lin are trapped in a space far below the floor after being drugged. A fight among the adults goes on above and the actions of Sima’s father cause great destruction and many deaths. The girls try to escape with their lives and some of the jewels to which lapidaries can speak. However, things don’t go well because soldiers arrive and search

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews Black City Saint by Richard A Knaak and Chaos Choreography by Seanan McGuire

Posted on 2016-04-29 at 19:9 by angelablackwell
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Review of Black City Saint by Richard A Knaak (Pyr, March 1, 2016)

This is an urban fantasy set in Prohibition-era Chicago with a very vividly described real-world history which includes bootleggers, mobs, and the turf wars between different factions. The main character is a very old detective of the supernatural who is actually in Chicago to guard the gate between our world and Feirie.

Nick is cursed to always guard the gate because, as Saint George, he slew the dragon guarding the gate. Now that

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The Exploding Spaceship Visits Norwescon 39 in SeaTac, Washington!

Posted on 2016-04-24 at 0:37 by angelablackwell
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Review of Norwescon 39 March 24-27, 2016 (Seatac, Washington)

After enjoying ourselves in the Pacific Northwest last year, we decided to venture out that way for another convention. Norwescon is primarily focused on SFF literature but also covers anime, costuming, art, gaming and other things of genre interest. It is also the host for the Philip K. Dick Awards each year. This award is for distinguished science fiction books published for the first time in the US as paperback originals. In 2016 the

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews The Emperor's Railroad by Guy Haley

Posted on 2016-04-21 at 16:18 by angelablackwell
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Review of The Emperor’s Railroad by Guy Haley (Tor.com, April 19, 2016)

The child’s viewpoint really worked for this story. The boy's admiration for the knight is quite clear, the descriptions really making the knight seem larger than life. His love for his Mom was clear from his description. His descriptions of his world and the attitudes of people in it (like being educated-sounding meant you got teased) were written in a way which made it clear that he knew nothing else, that this was just the way of

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews Shadow and Flame by Gail Z Martin and Grave Visions by Kalayna Price

Posted on 2016-04-16 at 1:47 by angelablackwell
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Review of Shadow and Flame by Gail Z Martin (Orbit, March 2016)

This is the fourth volume of the Ascendant Kingdom Saga. Blaine McFadden has to deal with the aftermath of restoring the magic to the kingdom. Some of the fighting appears to be due to an unknown enemy pushing some factions to fight Blaine and his allies, so they try and uncover who is behind the problem. The vampires are gearing up for a civil war which would leave Donderath a land full of death and destruction so Blaine and his vampire

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire

Posted on 2016-04-05 at 17:57 by angelablackwell
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Review of Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire (Tor.com April 5, 2016)

There are many fantasy stories about young people who travel through portals to other lands, but none quite as interesting and unique as this story set in a school for young people who have returned from such journeys. The descriptions of clothes showed their uniqueness, and by looking at their colors and styles you could get a good idea of the type of world they had visited. It was clear that it helped new student and protagonist

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews Pieces of Hate by Tim Lebbon

Posted on 2016-03-16 at 7:54 by angelablackwell
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Review of Pieces of Hate by Tim Lebbon (Tor.com, March 15, 2016)

This story consists of two parts, Dead Man’s Hand and Pieces of Hate. They are The Assassin Book One and Book Two. The assassin’s name is Temple and he is pursued by Gabriel, whose origin story is told in the second book. The stories are set in the town of Deadwood in the Dakota Territory during the late 1800s, and on a privateer ship and in Port Royal, Jamaica during the 1600s. There are flashbacks to hundreds of years before this to

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews Wonder Woman at Super Hero High by Lisa Yee

Posted on 2016-03-09 at 4:31 by angelablackwell
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Review of Wonder Woman at Super Hero High by Lisa Yee (Random House Kids, March 1, 2016)

This is the first book in the DC Superhero Girls series, which is a new series for middle grades. The entire concept of superhero books with female characters is awesome! This series is being backed with dolls, action figures, and cosplay items at Target, plus an animated special.

For Your Humble Reviewer who has been wanting Wonder Woman books, dolls, and action figures since watching Lynda Carter on television in

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews Forest of Memory by Mary Robinette Kowal

Posted on 2016-03-09 at 4:27 by angelablackwell
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Review of Forest of Memory by Mary Robinette Kowal (Tor.com, March 8, 2016)

Katya is a futuristic antiques dealer from the West Coast. She is riding her bike on a forest trail and pulling a trailer along behind. Her latest acquisition, a typewriter, is in the trailer. Her sales are dependent on clients believing her videos and social media posts about where in this post-disaster United States she acquired her items. This of course requires being constantly connected to the internet and her customers

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The Exploding Spaceship Reviews The Devil You Know by K.J. Parker

Posted on 2016-03-01 at 20:21 by angelablackwell
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Review of The Devil You Know by K.J. Parker (Tor.com, March 1, 2016)

One of the devil’s minions has to deal with a request from the writer and philosopher Saloninus to sell his soul. Saloninus never made much money as a writer, but he invented a new type of blue paint which made him a fortune.

The writer’s request seems to be an ordinary one and the devil’s minion and the writer get along quite well with the minion being very helpful in locating nice clothes and food. This is a good thing since the

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