I got into Stephen King a few years back with a memoir of his, On Writing, and a collection of short stories called Bazaar of Bad Dreams. King is one of the most successful authors of all time, and as a still-forming horror writer myself, I figured I really needed to study his works. The … Continue reading A Review of The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger by Stephen King

Kren of the Mitchegai is my favorite book of all time, and I can say that without a sliver of a doubt. It's actually the second book in a series started by Leo Frankowski, with the first being A Boy and His Tank (that one is also great and I recommend it, but it's nowhere near as enjoyable … Continue reading A Review of Kren of the Mithegai by Leo Frankowski and Dave Grossman

James Corey's Leviathan Wakes is a must-read for any fans of complex SciFi-Fantasy stories. It is without question the best space opera I've ever read, and, as my edition brags, Game of Thrones author George R R Martin agrees. Leviathan Wakes takes place in a future version of our solar system. Humanity maintains a strong … Continue reading A Review of Leviathan Wakes by James Corey

Rick Riordan's first series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, is a fantasy story where Riordan takes ancient greek myths and applies them to the modern world. These stories were fun reads when I was younger, but I thought one of the more interesting aspects of  was Percy's relationship with Luke. Riordan does great work building … Continue reading A Review of Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

The Best of Gene Wolfe is an anthology of his most successful short stories, and wow does it live up to its name. Every story hits hard and drags you along no matter how tired you may be. I remember opening this sucker up some night before a physics test and forgetting to sleep the … Continue reading A Review of The Best of Gene Wolfe

A novel written by Steven Brust, The Phoenix Guards is both a great story and incredibly funny. Terrific read; I highly recommend it. The Phoenix Guards takes place is Brust's usual fantasy world, but has a completely different cast of characters from the usual. The entire story is written as a mockery of Alexandre Dumas … Continue reading A Review of The Phoenix Guards by Steven Brust

Mission Earth is a series of ten massive tomes written by L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Church of Scientology (keep that in mind when you read these, it makes things so much funnier). Mission Earth is the story of a goon working for the alien CIA that wants to sabotage the alien Navy's plans … Continue reading A Review of Mission Earth by L. Ron Hubbard

The Blade Itself / Before They Are Hanged / The Last Argument of Kings The First Law is my favorite series of all time, and ever since I read it, Joe Abercrombie has been my role model. His protagonist, Logan Ninefingers, has enough brilliant wisdoms to fill a small collection ("You've got to be realistic" … Continue reading A Review of The First Law Trilogy by Joe Abercrombie

Lev Grossman's The Magicians is a terrific addition to the world of Wizards and Wardrobes. Grossman takes Harry Potter, ages it up about eight years, adds a dash of teen angst along with a generous helping of graphic  PG-13 content, and plops it down in the USA. I loved the Magicians, but I got tired … Continue reading A Review of The Magicians by Lev Grossman