(1) These new bookshelf superheroes appear to save your favorite reads on Colossal:
Created by Artori Design, these fun metal bookshelves give the impression a stealthy superhero is saving your books from certain doom. The sideways version uses a magnet to harmlessly attach the end of the books, while the other model is a wall-mounted floating shelf that gives the impression a caped crusader is giving your books a boost from below. The shelves are currently available through Designboom.
(2) Amazing Stories continues its survey of what’s eligible for the 1941 Retro Hugo Awards with Part 3 – The Cover Artists:
The artists represented on the covers of 1940 run the gamut from the iconically familiar to the obscure:
- Earle Bergey
- Jack Binder
- Hannes Bok
- Howard V. Brown
- Margaret Brundage
- Edd Cartier
- A. Drake
- Virgil Finlay
- Robert Fuqua
- Gilmore
- H.R. Hammond
- CL Hartman
- M. Isip
- William Juhre
- Julian S Krupa & Leo Morey
- Gabriel Mayorga
- H.W. McCauley
- Leo Morey
- Stockton Mulford
- Frank R. Paul
- Ray Quigley
- Hubert Rogers
- George Rozen
- Charles Schneeman
- J.W. Scott
- Bob Sherry
- J. Allen St. John
(3) Yesterday’s installment of Pearls Before Swine has been accused of being a Feghoot.
(4) Mark Ciocco reviews The End of All Things by John Sclazi on Kaedrin Weblog.
The End of All Things When John Scalzi started his little serialized publishing experiment a few years ago with The Human Division, it felt a little like a television series. Each story was self contained and episodic in nature, and Scalzi even went as far as to call each installment an “Episode”. The book (unexpectedly and distressingly) even ended on a cliffhanger, and when he announced the sequel, he did so by saying that it had been “renewed for a second season“. Well, the new season has finally arrived, in the form of The End of All Things.
(5) While I’ve only made one attempt ever to get a blurb for something, I wish I had read John Scalzi’s blurb policy first. He wasn’t the one I asked, but based on what I learned here I would have gone about it differently.
All blurb requests must come through editors/publishers, not authors. This is to avoid me having to tell an author I don’t like their work enough to blurb it. That’s awkward. I will pre-emptively turn down requests from authors. So if you’re an author who wants me to blurb your work, ask your editor to take care of it.
(6) Deidre Kitcher would like to raise $55,000 to make a movie of Star of the Guardians.
Do you love Sci Fi movies? Well, we’ve secured the rights to the best selling book series “Star of the Guardians” by author Margaret Weis and have a script ready to go! Our vision for this epic story could be described as “Game of Thrones” meets “Battlestar Galactica”.
Her Indiegogo appeal has 23 days left to run and has raised $4,151 so far.
(7) The R2-D2 themed Boeing 787 Dreamliner rolled out the other day. It will go into service on All Nippon Airways (ANA).
Star Wars theme music played and Storm Troopers held guard as the hangar doors began to open. Within moments, a Boeing 787 “Dreamliner” painted with likeness of R2-D2 emerged to a cheering crowd at Boeing’s wide-body assembly line facility in Everett.
The airplane featuring images of the loyal droid from the Star Wars franchise belongs to Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA) and will begin flying paying passengers Oct. 18. The jet’s first revenue flight is scheduled for a run between Tokyo’s Haneda Airport to Vancouver, Canada.
Saturday’s unveiling had been eagerly anticipated by both aviation and Star Wars enthusiasts since plans for the R2-D2-themed Dreamliner were first announced in April.
(8) The Museum of Pinball actually isn’t that far from me – down the road in Banning, CA. I should pay a visit.
Long before video games found their way into the home, arcades across America were filled with the lights and sounds of mechanical pinball machines and the young people who were enamored by them. These machines are now finding their way back into the spotlight in barcades, private collections, and professional pinball tournaments.
They broke the Guinness World Record on January 17 with 331 people playing pinball simultaneously.
And here are some other impressive numbers associated with the museum.
- 40,000 square feet designated for the first phase of the Museum of Pinball and another 87,000 square feet we’ve already leased to a local business (which we hope to expand to in the future with more pinball and arcade games).
- 800 pinball machines and arcade games (both vintage and modern).
(9) On this day in history:
According to Martin Grams’ book The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic, the final scene of “Kick the Can” was filmed on September 14, 1961.
[Thanks to Dave Doering, and John King Tarpinian for some of these stories. Title credit to File 770 contributing editor the day Nigel.]
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3. Seraphina, Rachel Hartman
4. Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
5. The Drowning Girl, Caitlin R. Kiernan
7. *
* I disliked “A Stranger in Olondria” a lot. A LOT. But no protest vote from me. Just some side-eye.
8. **
** I think I have read all of Elizabeth Bear’s shorter fiction set in the same world as Range of Ghosts. And I have enjoyed it. But I haven’t actually read Range of Ghosts (or the other two) yet. So…. If it goes on, perhaps I will slip it to the top of my TBR pile.
13. The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
1. I AM A BAD, BAD PERSON
pass
2. CANNONS AGAINST THE BATTLE-SHEEP
The March North, Graydon Saunders
Admittedly, I’ve not finished this. But…like a lot of folks, I was acquainted with Graydon way back when, and this is blowing me away with how far it over-fulfills what I’d have guessed his potential to be.
3. INHERITED VISIONS
pass
4. BUREAUCROMANCY
pass
5. MADNESS AND DEATH
The Drowning Girl, Caitlin R. Kiernan
Grueling. But excellent. And excellently grueling.
6. The 1920’S VS. THE 1940’S
The Diviners, Libba Bray
7. TRAVEL TO A TROUBLED LAND
pass
8. QUITE A PAIR
The Golem and the Djinni, Helene Wecker
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
10. STRICTLY FOR THE BIRDS
pass
11. CHILDREN OF PRIVILEGE
City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
12. SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES
The Bone Clocks, David Mitchell
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
14. CONNECTING ACROSS A DIVIDE
Daughter of Mystery, Heather Rose Jones
Rave. Rave rave rave. Rave rave, rave – rave – rave rave.
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
The Bees, Laline Paull
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
Kings of the North, Elizabeth Moon
Another mostly a reading list for me, but I will cast my feeble two votes.
Clearly I stopped reading “fantasy” in the last few years, and so the only vote I am casting in this heat is for:
#10 – Cuckoo Song, Frances Hardinge
even though I am also going to admit that I haven’t read The Raven Boys, sorry.
Cally, I think I voted, like, twice in the pre-2000 brackets. I’ve done fairly well keeping up on things published since I started reading SFF, but the nineties and earlier are an unexplored land.
Jeez, now Buwaya is bugging me and Karney on Twitter. And to think he used to be mildly entertaining.
OK, this is sad.
8. QUITE A PAIR
Range of Ghosts, Elizabeth Bear
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
I am not on twitter. I never have been, and never will be.
If someone called “buwaya” is in there, its not the original buwaya.
1. Pass
2. The March North, Graydon Saunders
3. Seraphina, Rachel Hartman
4. Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
5. Pass
6. Pass
7. A Stranger in Olondria, Sofia Samatar
8. Range of Ghosts, Elizabeth Bear
9. A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan,
10. Pasd
11. City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
12. Pass
13. The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
14. Pass
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
3. INHERITED VISIONS
Seraphina, Rachel Hartman
4. BUREAUCROMANCY
Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
5. MADNESS AND DEATH
Maplecroft, Cherie Priest
8. QUITE A PAIR
The Golem and the Djinni, Helene Wecker
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
10. STRICTLY FOR THE BIRDS
Cuckoo Song, Frances Hardinge
my kids aren’t going to forgive me for this, they are part of the large & active Raven Boys fandom. But I know what *I* like.
11. CHILDREN OF PRIVILEGE
City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
12. SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES
Alif the Unseen, G. Willow Wilson
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
14. CONNECTING ACROSS A DIVIDE
Daughter of Mystery, Heather Rose Jones
Take one anthology of Space Opera by Women.
Add one misogynist SF author who decided to leave a review by saying SF was the domain of men.
Stir in one epic response from John Scalzi in a comment to said review:
http://www.amazon.com/review/R3D4YVTN66JT9N/ref=cm_cr_rev_detmd_pl?ie=UTF8&asin=B0147F216Y&cdForum=Fx2JJ2RZL65G8B9&cdMsgID=Mx2UOS65QN3T3XX&cdMsgNo=40&cdPage=4&cdSort=oldest&cdThread=TxUS059YE5LJX5&store=digital-text#Mx2UOS65QN3T3XX
Paul Weimer, oh, snap!
Well I have not read many of this group either but luckily I get two votes this time.
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
2. CANNONS AGAINST THE BATTLE-SHEEP
The March North, Graydon Saunders
4. BUREAUCROMANCY
Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
Everyone who has not read The March North should take a look at it. It is a very unusual military fantasy novel.
Jim,
In fact I urge you to block this imposter. There is only one original and genuine buwaya. We buwayas resent intruders on our territory.
Paul, that was hilarious. Thank you. 🙂
(The ignorant misogynist he’s responding to, not so much.)
8. QUITE A PAIR
Range of Ghosts, Elizabeth Bear
11. CHILDREN OF PRIVILEGE
City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
12. SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES
Alif the Unseen, G. Willow Wilson
13. TROUBLED RULERS
Kings of the North, Elizabeth Moon
Hm. Given how things are developing, we may actually end up with total more votes in this Heat than the last one, although there are a few matchups which so far seem to be hovering in the obscure-vs.-obscure range.
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
1. I AM A BAD, BAD PERSON
Pass
2. CANNONS AGAINST THE BATTLE-SHEEP
The March North, Graydon Saunders
3. INHERITED VISIONS
Seraphina, Rachel Hartman
4. BUREAUCROMANCY
Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
5. MADNESS AND DEATH
Pass
6. The 1920’S VS. THE 1940’S
Pass
7. TRAVEL TO A TROUBLED LAND
Pass
8. QUITE A PAIR
Range of Ghosts, Elizabeth Bear
The Golem and the Djinni, Helene Wecker
You’re evil. But The Golem and the Djinni wins.
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
10. STRICTLY FOR THE BIRDS
Pass
11. CHILDREN OF PRIVILEGE
City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
No contest
12. SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES
Alif the Unseen, G. Willow Wilson
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
14. CONNECTING ACROSS A DIVIDE
Pass
Gah, I have read 6 of 32 this time (for a grand total of 17/128), but none of them are against each other. Next round… next round.
With regard to The Drowning Girl, I hatehatehated it. It’s fiction about a schizophrenic with serious behavioral and perception problems. But it’s not “paranormal fantasy”. It’s not fantasy of any kind.
This novel, along with Hild and We Are Almost Completely Beside Ourselves is a part of the reason why I don’t consider the Nebula finalists a terribly reliable reading list anymore. None of these books are SFF. It pisses me off when I use my precious reading time on them and don’t get an SFF payoff.
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
2. CANNONS AGAINST THE BATTLE-SHEEP
The March North, Graydon Saunders
This is a vote for nepotism. And sheep. But he got me my lifer Long-Tailed Duck! THAT MEANS MORE THAN BRACKETS, DAMNIT
5. MADNESS AND DEATH
Write-in for The Red Tree, Caitlin R. Kiernan
8. QUITE A PAIR
Bone & Jewel Creatures write-in for Bear
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
FOREVER
14. CONNECTING ACROSS A DIVIDE
Daughter of Mystery, Heather Rose Jones
Really liked this one!
Sigh. At least the two I have read this round are in the same pair, but it hurts.
13. Goblin Emperor
I love it when Scalzi’s bored and decides to skewer the stupid.
If you were a bracket, my love:
4. Three Parts Dead. (Love this whole series)
9. A Natural History of Dragons
12. Alif the Unseen
13. The Goblin Emperor
14. Daughter of Mystery
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
2. CANNONS AGAINST THE BATTLE-SHEEP
The Heroes, Joe Abercrombie
Yay Abercrombie! One of my more recent favourites
3. INHERITED VISIONS
Seraphina, Rachel Hartman
Tentative vote for Seraphina, as I’ve only read most of it and will finish tonight. So far so good though!
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
Bounced super hard off The Bees. Brennan kept me entertained though, and I’m looking forward to reading the next in the series eventually.
11. CHILDREN OF PRIVILEGE
Prince of Thorns, Mark Lawrence
I really like this book. Also it rescued me from a pretty bad reading slump.
12. SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES
The Bone Clocks, David Mitchell
Not the Mitchell I’d have chosen, but it’ll do.
Paul Weimer: Take one anthology of Space Opera by Women. Add one misogynist SF author who decided to leave a review by saying SF was the domain of men. Stir in one epic response from John Scalzi in a comment to said review
Oh my, that reviewer is certainly impressed with himself, isn’t he? His blog posts are certainly… uh, “revealing”. Based on the verbiage in his review, his author description, his blog posts, and the summaries for his self-published books, I’d say the space opera anthology of stories all written by women is a far better bet than his own books.
ETA: Dear gods, that “#1 e-zine” he mentions is a vanity press website.
Ballot-Sheep Potemkin:
5. Maplecroft/Priest.
And, um, well…
Some Amazon reviews are amazing!
What I particularly loved was how the reviewer named Space Opera works that were, apart from Starship Troopers, TV and films first and I would like to bet money on him having not read that.
Bracket 4 ….
I’ve only even heard of 5 or 6 of these titles. Abstain all around.
2. CANNONS AGAINST THE BATTLE-SHEEP
The March North, Graydon Saunders
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
Tintinaus: the reviewer named Space Opera works that were, apart from Starship Troopers, TV and films first and I would like to bet money on him having not read that.
You know that Starship Troopers is a film, right?
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
4. BUREAUCROMANCY
Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
I’ve warmed up to this series and rereads have brought me more enjoyment than 1st read. Max Gladstone is also a really cool guy. At least he seemed so at the con where I met him and Daniel Jose Older introduced us. He also said thoughtful stuff at the panels I he was on.
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
Loved this one. It was my #1 choice for Hugo this year.
Lots of the brackets I didn’t vote on are books on my kindle waiting to be read.
But Starship Troopers wasn’t a film first. It was a book decades before it was a film.
I’ll bet Eason never read the book, though.
@Kyra: Ooh, this time you’re combining my TBR pile, my TBR ebooks, and my to-probably-buy list on my desktop! I’m going to change the locks and my computer password. 😉
I’m passing on the bracket (sorry), but love to read the lists and see the results!
BTW @Devin thanks for the info – I’m not especially a pinball fan, but was just impressed that there are many museums and other collections. It doesn’t really surprise me (based on other comments) that there’s some pinball/SF fan crossover here. I think the File 770 commentariat covers almost everything!
8. QUITE A PAIR
Range of Ghosts, Elizabeth Bear
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
I’d have liked to vote for Gladstone, too, but can’t quite compare that one to an unknown.
Haha, not even one vote in this heat. There were a few books I have read, but none that I really cared for.
Hmmmph. I have read 2 1/2 books in this heat and no paired titles. However, I’m voting for a book I loved so much that as soon as I finished reading it, I turned to page one and started over. So, I’m pretty sure I’d pick it against any competition that wasn’t Lord of the Rings.
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
Ann Somerville on September 15, 2015 at 3:45 pm said:
Thanks for the link! Or maybe I shouldn’t say thanks, as I have now disappeared down the rabbit hole of reading her articles…
Seattle has a pinball museum I’ve heard good things about, but haven’t made it to, and a friend of mine in Bellingham opened a pinball joint that I need to visit when I’m up there next. Pinball played a heavy role in the early courtship rituals between me and paulcarp. We liked most of the more SF&F ones, but our favorite was Funhouse until the first time we played The Addams Family, then that was our favorite. Forever and ever.
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
Otherwise known as
NOPE – SOOOOO MANY BOOKS I DIDN’T READ
1. I AM A BAD, BAD PERSON
A Monster Calls, Patrick Ness
Chime, Franny Billingsley
NOPE
2. CANNONS AGAINST THE BATTLE-SHEEP
The March North, Graydon Saunders
The Heroes, Joe Abercrombie
NOPE
3. INHERITED VISIONS
Seraphina, Rachel Hartman
The Lost Sun, Tessa Gratton
NOPE
(Though Seraphina is in TBR pile)
4. BUREAUCROMANCY
The Archived, Victoria Schwab
Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
NOPE
(This is getting sad)
5. MADNESS AND DEATH
The Drowning Girl, Caitlin R. Kiernan
Maplecroft, Cherie Priest
(Whew)
6. The 1920’S VS. THE 1940’S
The Diviners, Libba Bray
Life After Life, Kate Atkinson
NOPE
(Here we go again)
7. TRAVEL TO A TROUBLED LAND
A Stranger in Olondria, Sofia Samatar
Froi of the Exiles, Melina Marchetta
NOPE
8. QUITE A PAIR
Range of Ghosts, Elizabeth Bear
The Golem and the Djinni, Helene Wecker
(Have I mentioned that I hate this?)
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
The Bees, Laline Paull
DANG
I confess that I’ve only read the Brennan, but, but….
Yes? No?
Tie-breaker vote, if needed?
10. STRICTLY FOR THE BIRDS
The Raven Boys, Maggie Stiefvater
Cuckoo Song, Frances Hardinge
NOPE
(The Hardinge is in my TBR though)
11. CHILDREN OF PRIVILEGE
City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
Prince of Thorns, Mark Lawrence
NOPE
(And the Bennett is in my TBR)
12. SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES
Alif the Unseen, G. Willow Wilson
The Bone Clocks, David Mitchell
NOPE
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
Kings of the North, Elizabeth Moon
WHAT
SERIOUSLY, WHAT
(Okay, I’m going to be contrary here)
14. CONNECTING ACROSS A DIVIDE
A Corner of White, Jaclyn Moriarty
Daughter of Mystery, Heather Rose Jones
NOPE
So I went looking for The March North, Graydon Saunders, just to see what I could see and all.
And Amazon claims not to know it.
I’m pretty sure you don’t mean this:
The McKissicks of South Carolina : the stories of a Piedmont family and related lines.1965
by Graydon, Nell Saunders. Graydon, Augustus Tompkins. ; Davis, Margaret McKissick,
Currently unavailable
What am I doing wrong?
(Must put MOAR THINGS on the Kindle.)
3. INHERITED VISIONS
Seraphina, Rachel Hartman
The Lost Sun, Tessa Gratton
GNAAH! These you pit against each other? These? Ag ag ag TIE.
4. Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
8. The Golem and the Djinni, Helene Wecker
10. The Raven Boys, Maggie Stiefvater
13. The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
Lauowolf, it’s only available on Google Play, here. You can get it in epub; a help link near the bottom explains how to download it that way.
Bruce-
Thanks!
October 1st, when money arrives again.
Lauowolf: So I went looking for The March North, Graydon Saunders, just to see what I could see and all.
Oh, look — here’s a review of it by James Davis Nicoll.
It reads a bit (but not very much) spoilery, so take that into consideration.
I can’t vote on anything. On the upside, I do actually own over half of those titles, but the downside is that I’ve only got round to reading 3 of them, and they’re up against books that I’ve heard good enough things that I can’t vote against them unseen.
The March North by Graydon Saunders can also be obtained on Scribd, which, if you’re not already a member, is free for the first 2 weeks — or on iTunes.
Kyra on September 15, 2015 at 5:14 pm said:
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
1. I AM A BAD, BAD PERSON
Abstain
2. CANNONS AGAINST THE BATTLE-SHEEP
The Heroes, Joe Abercrombie
3. INHERITED VISIONS
Seraphina, Rachel Hartman
4. BUREAUCROMANCY
Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
5. MADNESS AND DEATH
The Drowning Girl, Caitlin R. Kier An
6. The 1920’S VS. THE 1940’S
Life After Life, Kate Atkinson
7. TRAVEL TO A TROUBLED LAND
A Stranger in Olondria, Sofia Samatar
8. QUITE A PAIR
Range of Ghosts, Elizabeth Bear
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
10. STRICTLY FOR THE BIRDS
Cuckoo Song, Frances Hardinge
11. CHILDREN OF PRIVILEGE
City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
12. SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES
The Bone Clocks, David Mitchell
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
14. CONNECTING ACROSS A DIVIDE
Abstain
4. BUREAUCROMANCY
Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
8. QUITE A PAIR
Range of Ghosts, Elizabeth Bear
The Golem and the Djinni, Helene Wecker
Oh damn your dice to hell. I love both these books, but am giving it to the Bear by a whisker
9. CRYPTOZOOLOGY
A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
The Bees, Laline Paull
Love the Brennan, but not so much that I’ll vote for it over the unread Paull. Abstain.
11. CHILDREN OF PRIVILEGE
City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
Prince of Thorns, Mark Lawrence
Haven’t read either as Lawrence is on my Do Not Read list for Authors Behaving Badly, and CoS is still in Mount F770 (I’ve decided to name the TBR mountain)
12. SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES
Alif the Unseen, G. Willow Wilson
This was just fantastic.
13. TROUBLED RULERS
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
No contest
And Scalzi wins the Roger Ebert “As chance would have it, I have won the Pulitzer Prize, and so I am qualified” Award for Best Review Comeback.
4. Three Parts Dead, Max Gladstone
6. Life After Life, Kate Atkinson
11. City of Stairs, Robert Jackson Bennett
13. The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
HEAT FOUR – RECENT REVELATIONS
9. A Natural History of Dragons, Marie Brennan
BECAUSE DRAGONS.
13. The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
Even though it doesn’t have dragons. Hmph.