Book Review: Merton of the Movies

Book Review: Merton of the Movies by Harry Leon Wilson Simsbury, Illinois might just be a wide spot in the road, but twice a week, the Bijou Palace shows movies made in far-off Hollywood.  Perhaps the most fanatical attendee of these showings is young Merton Gill, assistant shopkeeper at Gashwiler’s Emporium (general store.)  Merton has studied… Continue reading Book Review: Merton of the Movies

Book Review: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

Book Review: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table by Martin J. Dougherty The Arthurian mythos is a familiar one to just about everyone in some form or another.  But unless you’re a scholar of the subject, you might not know where all the pieces came from and how they got put together.… Continue reading Book Review: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

Audio Review: If We Were Villains

Audio Review: If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio Eleven years ago, seven drama students entered their fourth year at the prestigious Dellecher Classical Conservatory.  Now, a decade after the end of that school year, one of those students, Oliver Marks, is being released from prison.  Former police detective Colborne has never entirely bought the official… Continue reading Audio Review: If We Were Villains

Manga Review: Vagabond Volume 2

Manga Review: Vagabond Volume 2  by Takehiko Inoue Quick recap: In 17th Century Japan, failed soldier Shinmen Takezo has reinvented himself as wandering swordsman Miyamoto Musashi.  Dedicating his life to perfecting his own style of swordsmanship, he travels to Kyoto and starts a feud with the Yoshioka school of kendo.  Unknown to him, his childhood… Continue reading Manga Review: Vagabond Volume 2

Book Review: Life Is Beautiful

Book Review: Life Is Beautiful by Sarah M. Johnson In 2008, an airplane carrying humanitarian workers to a remote village in Guatemala, where they were to build a school, crashed and burned.  The crew and most of the passengers were killed; one young woman survived relatively unharmed, though she had lost half her family, and… Continue reading Book Review: Life Is Beautiful

Book Review: Three In One

Book Review: Three In One edited by Leo Margulies According to the introduction by the editor, this book came about because there were three long science fiction stories in the to-publish pile, too long for short-story collections but too short to be their own paperback.  The cover by Emsh is a good choice with the… Continue reading Book Review: Three In One

Comic Book Review: Oni Press Starter Pack 2016

Comic Book Review: Oni Press Starter Pack 2016 by various While I spend many of my comics-related posts on this  blog talking about the Big Two’s superhero comic books, there are a number of worthy small press comics companies that put out interesting material every year.  Oni Press has put out an affordable collection of… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Oni Press Starter Pack 2016

Manga Review: Platinum End Volume 2

Manga Review: Platinum End Volume 2 story by Tsugumi Ohba, art by Takeshi Obata Quick recap:  Up until now, Mirai has had a miserable life as an orphan with an abusive family.  When he tried to commit suicide, Mirai was rescued by Nasse, an angel who had enlisted the boy in a contest to choose… Continue reading Manga Review: Platinum End Volume 2

Magazine Review: The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction Nov/Dec 2016

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction Nov/Dec 2016 edited by C.C. Finlay The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction started publication in 1949.  According to Wikipedia, it was supposed to be a fantasy story version of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine as it was at the time, classic reprints mixed with new material of a higher literary… Continue reading Magazine Review: The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction Nov/Dec 2016

Book Review: The Play of Death

Book Review: The Play of Death by Oliver Pötzsch Disclaimer:  I received a Kindle download of this book through a Goodreads giveaway to facilitate this review.  No other compensation was offered or requested. The year is 1670, and the people of Oberammergau are preparing their every-ten-years Passion Play…though some of them think it might be… Continue reading Book Review: The Play of Death