Book Review: The Black Lizard Big Book of Locked-Room Mysteries edited by Otto Penzler The title of this volume is slightly misleading; “locked room” stands in for the general idea of impossible crimes in mystery stories. A man is found stabbed in the back in a windowless room with the door locked from the inside.… Continue reading Book Review: The Black Lizard Big Book of Locked-Room Mysteries
Tag: anthologies
Book Review: 100 Wicked Little Witch Stories
Book Review: 100 Wicked Little Witch Stories edited by Stefan Dziemianowicz, Robert Weinberg & Martin H. Greenberg This was my Halloween season read this year, an anthology commissioned for the Barnes & Noble stores in 1995. There are indeed one hundred stories in this hefty tome, averaging about six pages. They are not all about… Continue reading Book Review: 100 Wicked Little Witch Stories
Book Review: Trafficking in Magic, Magicking in Traffic
Book Review: Trafficking in Magic, Magicking in Traffic edited by David Sklar & Sarah Avery Disclaimer: I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway on the premise that I would review it. This fantasy anthology has a dual theme, as indicated by its title; magic as transaction, and magic while traveling. The former theme brings… Continue reading Book Review: Trafficking in Magic, Magicking in Traffic
Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents: Superman Family Volume 4
Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents: Superman Family Volume 4 edited by Mort Weisenger Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen are two of the most enduring characters in comic books, thanks to being attached to the one and only Superman. Lois appeared in the first Superman story in Action Comics #1 (1938), a snarky but skilled reporter who… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents: Superman Family Volume 4
Magazine Review: Out of the Gutter #7
Magazine Review: Out of the Gutter #7 (Winter 2010) Back in the day, the low-cost entertainment option of choice was the pulp magazine. It contained fast, exciting stories on cruddy paper–a lowbrow art form that is still fondly remembered by some. “Out of the Gutter” tries to be somewhat in that tradition. This is the… Continue reading Magazine Review: Out of the Gutter #7
Book Review: The Complete Knifepoint Horror
Book Review: The Complete Knifepoint Horror by Soren Narnia Disclosure: I received this book as part of a Firstreads giveaway on the premise that I would read and review it. One of the interesting aspects of writing is the self-imposed challenge. Poems in a rigid format, an exact number of words, not using gendered words–it can… Continue reading Book Review: The Complete Knifepoint Horror
Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents The House of Secrets Volume One
Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents The House of Secrets Volume One edited by Joe Orlando House of Secrets started its publication history in 1956 as a “weird menace” title. You couldn’t really do horror comics as such under the Comics Code, but short tales tinged with the supernatural where evil was punished and good rewarded? Sure.… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents The House of Secrets Volume One
Book Review: Murder for Revenge
Book Review: Murder for Revenge edited by Otto Penzler This is another themed anthology, this time around the concept of revenge. That’s a pretty loose theme as these things go. It’s got a big-name author list going for it though. “Like a Bone in the Throat” by Lawrence Block starts the book off strong with… Continue reading Book Review: Murder for Revenge
Book Review: Who Died in Here?
Book Review: Who Died in Here? edited by Pat Dennis Themed short story anthologies are a perennial favorite for genre fiction. “Best of” collections tend to feature heavy overlap with other best ofs, while single-author collections have to rely on the reader being willing to pick up a particular author’s work. Themes allow the authors to… Continue reading Book Review: Who Died in Here?
Book Review: Masters of the Lamp | A Harvest of Hoodwinks
Book Review: Masters of the Lamp | A Harvest of Hoodwinks by Robert Lory This is another Ace Double, two small books combined into one upside-down from each other so they make a fair-sized paperback. In this case, a short novel and several short stories by former ad executive Robert Lory. Masters of the Lamp… Continue reading Book Review: Masters of the Lamp | A Harvest of Hoodwinks