Manga Review: Die Wergelder by Hiroaki Samura There’s something weird going on with the isolated island of Ishikunagajima. A decade ago, it was a poverty-stricken backwater inhabited mostly by fishermen and their families. Now it’s a thriving red-light district, despite being a five hour boat trip from Japan. It seems that someone has plowed a… Continue reading Manga Review: Die Wergelder 1
Book Review: Fright
Book Review: Fright edited by Charles M. Collins The cover makes this book look like a generic product, but that’s a little deceiving. It’s actually an anthology skewed towards the Gothic end of horror rather than the gory, emphasizing vocabulary-rich authors. Most of the stories were rarely reprinted before this collection in 1963. We open… Continue reading Book Review: Fright
Magazine Review: The American Scholar Spring 1977
Magazine Review: The American Scholar Spring 1977 Edited by Joseph Epstein The American Scholar is a quarterly production of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, published since 1932. Its primary focus is non-fiction essays, but it also features poetry, book reviews and since 2006 fiction. I happened across an old issue, was intrigued by one of… Continue reading Magazine Review: The American Scholar Spring 1977
Comic Book Review: The Best of Judge Dredd
Comic Book Review: The Best of Judge Dredd edited by Tharg It is the dark future of the 22nd Century. Nuclear war and environmental devastation have made large portions of Earth’s surface barely inhabitable, and the majority of the remaining population is crowded into sprawling urban areas called Mega-Cities. Overpopulation, high unemployment, and a general… Continue reading Comic Book Review: The Best of Judge Dredd
Book Review: Book of Yes
Book Review: Book of Yes by Tessie Jayme Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway for the purpose of writing this review. No other compensation was offered or requested. The subtitle of this book is “A Reinterpretation of the Ten Commandments for the New Millennium.” While a close look at… Continue reading Book Review: Book of Yes
Book Review: The Casebook of Carnacki the Ghost Finder
Book Review: The Casebook of Carnacki the Ghost Finder by William Hope Hodgson Four men come to the house on Cheyne Walk in Chelsea when the man who owns the house, Thomas Carnacki, summons them for dinner. They ask no questions, as they know Carnacki will wait until his own good time to tell them… Continue reading Book Review: The Casebook of Carnacki the Ghost Finder
Book Review: Nick Carter Volume 2
Book Review: Nick Carter Volume 2 edited by Anthony Tollin As noted in my review of the first volume, Nick Carter, Master Detective, was a long-running character who had three distinct phases. These reprint volumes primarily cover his pulp magazine career. The stories were written under the house name “Nick Carter,” even though they weren’t… Continue reading Book Review: Nick Carter Volume 2
Manga Review: Ooku 10 & 11
Manga Review: Ooku 10 & 11 by Fumi Yoshinaga Quick recap: In an alternate Shogunate Japan, a plague wipes out 80% of the men, requiring women to take over most of the jobs previously held by males. This includes being shogun (military leader, the day to day ruler of Japan, as opposed to the Emperor, who… Continue reading Manga Review: Ooku 10 & 11
Book Review: Father of Lies | Mirror Image
Book Review: Father of Lies | Mirror Image by John Brunner and Bruce Duncan, respectively. Belmont Books was a minor publisher of paperback books with a specialty in speculative fiction, which lasted from 1960 to 1971. Apparently in an effort to mimic the success of Ace Doubles, they produced a series of “Belmont Doubles” that… Continue reading Book Review: Father of Lies | Mirror Image
Book Review: Wintersmith
Book Review: Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett Tiffany Aching is a witch in training. She in some ways is already a very powerful witch, and has endured some hard lessons that required growing up fast. But she’s also very much a girl who’s almost thirteen. Miss Treason, on the other hand, is over a century old… Continue reading Book Review: Wintersmith