Page 11 of posts by: montsamu

Coming to Town: Lynne Hansen and Jeff Strand for The Nevermore Film Festival, interviewed by Richard Dansky

Posted on 2015-02-18 at 15:26 by montsamu

By Richard Dansky:

Lynne Hansen and Jeff Strand are one of horror fiction’s power couples. A perennial host of the Bram Stoker Awards, Jeff blends humor and horror in acclaimed novels like Pressure and his short story collection, Dead Clown Barbecue. Lynne’s prolific in YA horror (The Return, The Change) as well as working in film (He’s Not Looking So Great, Chomp). And there is absolutely no truth to the rumor that in their last trip to North Carolina, Jeff failed to finish his side of hush puppies at a

Posted in Coming to Town | Tagged carolina theatre of durham, jeff strand, lynne hansen, nevermore film festival, richard dansky

February newsletter: Monica Byrne, Zine Machine, Oak City Comics Show, Wake County Library's "Let's Talk Sci-Fi" series, James Maxey named Piedmont Laureate, Read Across Durham, new books, news, and more

Posted on 2015-02-17 at 06:20 by montsamu

Vol 5 No 2. February 16, 2015: Well, the month is half over and the ice storm is here, so no time like the present to finally get the February newsletter out, right? I've got some news, upcoming events, and the monthly avalanche of new books to tell you about, so let's get started.

NEWS

Posted in newsletter

Upcoming fiction readings: selections from the full event listings for books without spaceships or ghosts

Posted on 2015-02-10 at 17:21 by montsamu

As I mentioned in last week's roundup of upcoming young reader events, in looking over the newsletter event listings, I didn’t see many “grown up” speculative fiction readings in the coming months — other than of course Monica Byrne’s paperback launch of The Girl in the Road on February 17 and the Wake County Library "Let's Talk Sci-Fi" series in March. While the picture changes quickly when you turn your focus on middle grade and young reader books, it's even more crowded if you turn your attention to

Posted in events

Upcoming events for kids: selections from the full event listings for young readers

Posted on 2015-02-05 at 19:08 by montsamu

In looking over the newsletter event listings, I don't see many "grown up" speculative fiction readings in the coming months -- other than of course Monica Byrne's paperback launch of The Girl in the Road on February 17. But the picture changes quickly when you turn your focus on middle grade and young reader books. So! Here's a quick preview of what's coming soon for the young and young at heart.

FEBRUARY 2015

5 (Thursday) 5 pm -- Quail Ridge Books hosts Raul Gonzalez - 'Lowriders in Space' -- "Artist

Posted in events

The Hardest Part: John G. Hartness on Raising Hell

Posted on 2015-02-04 at 16:55 by montsamu

Charlotte author John G. Hartness is a larger-than-life figure in our world, so it's no surprise that his characters are bold, colorful, and (quite often) either from out of this world or dealing with the things that aren't. From his first novel The Chosen in 2010 to his "Bubba the Monster Hunter" and "Black Knight Chronicles" urban fantasy series, Hartness has a knack for giving a distinctive -- and usually southern and profane, and funny -- voice for his characters as well. For his new book, Raising Hell:

Posted in The Hardest Part | Tagged john g hartness

Paul Kincaid's From the Other Side, January 2015: Adam Roberts, sequels, and the James Herbert Award

Posted on 2015-02-03 at 19:55 by montsamu

From the Other Side, January 2015

By Paul Kincaid

[Editor’s Note: From the Other Side is Paul Kincaid’s monthly column on books and news from the other side of the Atlantic.]

It’s a new year, a time of change, of novelty, a time when we throw out all the old familiar stuff from 2014 and welcome in fresh work and different writers. So let’s see what 2015 has in store for us.

And we start with a new book from … Adam Roberts. Hm, sorry about that, for a moment there it felt as if 2014 hadn’t quite ended

Posted in From the Other Side | Tagged adam roberts, den patrick, james herbert award, karen lord, samantha shannon

Read Across Durham Event Seeks Volunteers

Posted on 2015-01-28 at 17:28 by montsamu

UPDATE: This event has been rescheduled for Monday, March 23 from its original March 2 scheduled date.

Karlene Fyffe Phillips, Manager of Family Literacy and Community Services for Durham County Library, writes to ask for help recruiting volunteers for Read Across Durham, a city-wide event taking place in every 3rd grade classroom: "I need your help as we begin recruiting volunteers for our Read Across Durham event scheduled for March 23. Please share the link with as many folks as possible. We need

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged durham county library, read across durham, volunteer

The Hardest Part: Darin Kennedy on The Mussorgsky Riddle

Posted on 2015-01-22 at 19:00 by montsamu

Charlotte "doctor by day, novelist by night" Darin Kennedy's debut novel, The Mussorgsky Riddle, is squarely right up my alley. "The Great Gate of Kiev" (part of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition) is one of my favorite pieces of Russian symphony, and Kennedy turns the mythopoeity up to "11" combining music, paranormal mystery, and classical mythology in a heady, panpsychic mix. All set in Charlotte -- and the infinite mindscapes therein. Here, Kennedy writes about the hard part of discovering the first

Posted in The Hardest Part | Tagged curiosity quills press, darin kennedy, the mussorgsky riddle

"Friday" Quick Updates, Thursday Morning Edition: new Piedmont Laureate James Maxey this afternoon, Stephen Hren tonight, MWWA nominations open, and other news and events

Posted on 2015-01-22 at 16:19 by montsamu

Thursday, January 22, 2015: Two events today of interest and some big news to pass along merit a early edition of Friday Quick Updates this week.

First, at 3:30 pm, Chapel Hill Public Library hosts a Meet the Author Tea with newly announced Piedmont Laureate for Speculative Fiction, James Maxey. I'm looking forward to what Maxey does with this fantastic platform this year, as he'll be tapped for a series of blog posts and appearances throughout the region, throughout the year. (Speaking of Maxey, he has

Posted in Friday Quick Updates | Tagged james maxey, manly wade well, piedmont laureate, stephen hren

Paul Kincaid's From the Other Side, December 2014: new books from Ben Elton, Russell Brand, Neil Gaiman, Jenny Erpenbeck, and Brian Baker

Posted on 2015-01-14 at 21:11 by montsamu

From the Other Side, December 2014

By Paul Kincaid

[Editor’s Note: From the Other Side is Paul Kincaid’s monthly column on books and news from the other side of the Atlantic.]

It’s the time of year when publishers (like the rest of us) tend to concentrate on parties, on closing early for the holidays, and on hoping that books published earlier in the year keep providing an income now. So I have, inevitably, less that’s new to talk about this time around.

Christmas is, of course, the time for celebrity

Posted in From the Other Side | Tagged ben elton, brian baker, chris riddell, jenny erpenbeck, neil gaiman, paul kincaid, russell brand, the end of days, the pied piper of hamelin, the sleeper and the spindle, time and time again