"Welcome to Count Gore De Vol's Tomb of Dark Delights. I'm J. L. Comeau, horror writer and resident Tomb Keeper. I have been charged with the daunting task of sorting and cataloging the Count's vast library of horror, science fiction and fantasy. Take a torch from the wall and follow me down the stone stairway into the darkness deep beneath the Dungeon. It's cold and damp down here--perfect for the kind of reading we're going to do. Never mind the shambling figures in the shadows, they're probably just some friends of ours looking for a good book. If you click on the cover, you'll be taken to a wonderful place where you can buy the book.
Now, let's reach into the musty stacks and see what we can find..."
(Clicking on the covers gives you more information and prices from Amazon.com and other outlets.)
It’s late spring here at Castle De Vol, and when it’s hot outside I like
to chill out and fantasize a bit, so let’s do some fantasy, yo!
WEIGHING
SHADOWS by Lisa Goldstein
National Book Award winner for her fantasy novel, THE RED MAGICIAN, Lisa
Goldstein’s newest book is a compelling science fiction and fantasy mashup.
Ann Decker, a bored computer repair tech who enjoys a little hacking on the
side, is walking to work one day when she notices a woman following her.
When she finally confronts her stalker, Ann is informed that her services
are requested at a new company called Transformations Incorporated. More
than willing to shed her present soul-suck of a job, Ann agrees. When she
settles into her new position at TI, Ann is astounded to find out that her
new company has created a technology that humankind has sought for
centuries: time travel. Soon Ann is traveling backward in time to ancient
Crete, where she meets a woman who is a mathematician at the wondrous lost
Library of Alexandria. But Ann cannot ignore the questions she has about the
safety of time travel despite TI’s insistence that it is harmless. Won’t the
travelers change the future? And what about the company itself, which is a
rather mysterious entity. After the death of a coworker, Ann is warned by
her superiors that a group called Core is engaged in an effort to sabotage
TI. Ann has begun to worry that something about her new employer is awry
when she is sent back in time a thousand years to France as the armies of
the Crusade are about to invade. As she awaits the siege with a royal
family, she uncovers some stunning information about the company she works
for…and about herself. Brilliant in every way, this is an enthralling novel
written by a great author of fantasy.
THE
DINOSAUR LORDS by Victor Milán
Do you like Jurassic Park? Do you like Game of Thrones? Okay, then, imagine
what Game of Thrones would have been like if the warriors were riding—you’ve
got it—dinosaurs! In a setting reminiscent of 14th century Europe with all
the political gamesmanship and intrigue, dynastic wars between rival
families and so forth, Paradise is a beautiful yet brutal land. In Paradise,
dinosaurs still roam the land, and every facet of life revolves around them.
Some have been tamed and used for beasts of burden, some are docile pets,
but the most prized dinosaurs of all are employed as weaponry and war
steeds. Imagine knights of the realm mounted on imperial dinosaurs engaged
in epic battle for the flags of their kings. Dynasties will rise and
dynasties will fall. The world of THE DINOSAUR LORDS is filled with colorful
characters of all races, creeds, and orientation, but the central characters
in this first novel in a projected series are the dinos that roar into
battle with fang and claw. This novel is engaging and lots of fun; reading
it made me long for my very own Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Who’s in the mood for some great science fiction from women authors? Me for sure! Let’s do this!
THE
DEATH HOUSE by Sarah Pinborough
Although this is being marketed toward a young adult audience, I agree with
Stephen King, who says of THE DEATH HOUSE, “…moving and involving, I could
not put it down”. This is a marvelously creepy and engaging novel set in a
dystopian future in which a group of youngsters have been removed from
society and placed into a sort of asylum because a certain marker has been
found in their blood. The asylum is called “The Death House”, where the
inmates are studied and watched closely for any sign of impending illness
associated with their blood tests. When young Toby takes the proscribed
blood test at school, he has no idea that he will soon to taken away from
everyone and everything he knows and placed into an institution from which
he will never emerge. His days are unending tedium because he his someone,
among many others, for whom society has no use. All he knows that when he
begins to exhibit symptoms of the mysterious illness his blood tests have
confirmed, he will be sent upstairs to the Sanitorium to die. Lost and
having given up all hope, a new girl named Clara comes into his life. Clara
does not accept her fate, as Toby and the others have done, and she pledges
to make the most of what life she has, showing Toby that there are choices
in life…and in death. Skillfully wrought and deeply moving, Sarah Pinborough
creates a world of sadness that offers hope.
KOKO
THE MIGHTY by Kieran Shea
If you missed the first installment of Kieran Shea’s kickass Koko series,
KOKO TAKES A HOLIDAY, I urge you to get a copy while awaiting this preorder
due to be published by Titan Books on August 25! It’s the 26th century, and
former corporate mercenary ass-kicker Koko Marstellar and her erstwhile
lover and ex-orbital skycop Jedidiah Flynn are trying their best to make
their lives work by attempting to run a combo saloon/whorehouse located
within the world’s most licentious and violent, um, resort town. But Koko
has a bounty on her head (see KOKO TAKES A HOLIDAY, and when bounty hunter
Jackie Wire tracks her down, Koko and Jedidiah are on the run again, this
time sailing across the Pacific Ocean at breakneck speed toward a
destination they are sure is uninhabitable, but…nope. Trouble is waiting for
them. Fear not. Koko and Jedidiah are ready for anything, and readers of
KOKO THE MIGHTY should be ready for anything, too. Fast-paced, wise-ass,
crackling with action and snark, this is a science fiction adventure with
style and brio.
To
get even more information about these titles, including some of the best prices
on the Internet, just click on each of the book covers and you'll be connected
to
To visit the individual writer's website, just click on any underlined name.
About the Tomb Keeper (Or, who is this person of mystery)
J. L. (Judy) Comeau is an award winning short story writer whose work has appeared internationally in major horror and dark fantasy anthologies such as the Borderlands series, Best New Horror, The Years' Best Horror, the Hot Blood series, and the Dark Voices series in the UK. She is an active member of the Horror Writer's Association, and she lives in the Washington, DC area where she also teaches short story writing. Click on FIREBIRD to read one of her most anthologized stories.
To learn more about the Horror Writer's Association, just click on their logo!
