last reads

Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft Publishing information: Kindle Publisher: Createspace 13 Feb 2013 ISBN: 9781482590951 Series: The books of Babel #1 Copy: Out of pocket Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis:"Senlin, a mild-mannered school teacher, is drawn to the Tower of Babel by the grandiose promises of a guidebook. The ancient and immense Tower seems the perfect destination for a honeymoon. But soon after arriving, Senlin loses his young wife, Marya, in the crowd. Senlin’s search for Marya carries him through slums and theaters, prisons and ballrooms. He must survive betrayal, assassination, and the long guns of a flying fortress. But if he hopes to find Marya, Senlin will have to do more than survive. This quiet man of letters must become a man of action." Upon recommendation from author, Mark Lawrence, I decided to pick up Bancroft's Senlin Ascendsa, the first book in the series. Senlin Ascends is the story of a mild-mannered teacher named Senlin, who takes his new bride...

UK Cover The Wolf Road by Beth Lewis Publishing information: Paperback; 393 pages Publisher: Blue Door Fiction; 20 June 2016 ISBN: 9780008145460 Standalone Copy: Out of pocket Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis: "Trapper was my family even though I didn't know a sure thing about him... Trapper was the kind a' family you choose for yourself, the kind that gets closer'n blood. He was what I chose and I chose wrong Since the Damn Stupid turned the block back on civilization, the world has been a harsher place. But Elka has learned everything she needs to survive from the man she calls Trapper, the solitary hunter who took her in when she was just seven years old. So when Elka sees the Wanted poster in town, her simple existence is shattered. Her Trapper - Kreagar Hallet - is wanted for murder. Even worse, Magistrate Lyon is hot on his trail, and she wants to talk to Elka. Elka flees into the vast wilderness, determined to find her true parents. But Lyon is never far behind -...

Lines in the Ice: Exploring the Roof of the World by Philip Hatfield Montréal and Kingston: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2016 Reviewed by Russell A. Potter Over the years, the staff here at the Arctic Book Review have seen more than our share of large-format pictorial books about the Arctic, its explorers, and inhabitants. Yet until now, no single book has so richly brought together all the historical, cultural, and geographical aspects of the frozen zone in quite the way that Philip Hatfield's Lines in the Ice manages. From Hakluyt's charts in the sixteenth century to the very latest in digital maps, we see here, in  panoramic procession, the full panoply of our predilection with the Earth's vast, yet far from trackless northern regions. Part of this is by design; the book is, in essence, an extended, expanded catalogue of an exhibition of the same name at the British Library, whose resources in this, as in other areas of visual culture, are enormous. The differe...

Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee Publishing information: Paperback; 319 pages Publisher: Solaris; 14 June 2016 ISBN: 9781781084496 Series: The Machineries of Empire #1 Copy: Out of pocket Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis: "To win an impossible war Captain Kel Cheris must awaken an ancient weapon and a despised traitor general. Captain Kel Cheris of the hexarchate is disgraced for using unconventional methods in a battle against heretics. Kel Command gives her the opportunity to redeem herself by retaking the Fortress of Scattered Needles, a star fortress that has recently been captured by heretics. Cheris's career isn't the only thing at stake. If the fortress falls, the hexarchate itself might be next. Cheris's best hope is to ally with the undead tactician Shuos Jedao. The good news is that Jedao has never lost a battle, and he may be the only one who can figure out how to successfully besiege the fortress. The bad news is that Jedao went mad in his first life and mas...

25 Mystery Science Theater 3000 Films that Changed my Life in no way Whatsoever by Frank Conniff Publishing information: Paperback; 104 pages Publisher: Pothouse 90 Press; 15 August 2016 ISBN: 978-0692751978 Standalone Copy: Out of pocket Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis: "In 1990, Frank Conniff joined the staff of Mystery Science Theater 3000. First he was hired as a writer, then he was called upon to play TV’s Frank, the bumbling yet lovable Mad Scientist henchman in Deep 13. And then he was given the sacred duty of finding the films that would be riffed on the show. Thus, because of his actions, the world now knows of Manos: The Hands of Fate, Monster A-Go-Go, The Brain That Wouldn’t Die, Teenagers From Outer Space, and many other cheesy movies that the world would just as soon not know about. In these essays, TV’s Frank focuses on twenty-five of the Mystery Science Theater 3000 films he found and riffed with his fellow MST3K writers and cast mates. It tells the story of how a c...

Autumn Princess, Dragon Child by Lian Hearn Publishing information: paperback; 288pgs Publisher: FSG Original; 7 June 2016 ISBN: 9780374536329 Series: The Tale of Shikanoko #2 Copy: Provided by publisher Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis: "A self-assured warrior stumbles into a game of Go that turns fatal. An ambitious lord leaves his nephew for dead and seizes his lands. A stubborn father forces his son to give up his wife to his older brother. A powerful priest meddles in the succession to the Lotus Throne. A woman of the Old People seeks five fathers for her five children, who will go on to found the Spider Tribe and direct the fate of the country. As destiny weaves its tapestry in Lian Hearn's Tale of Shikanoko series, an emotionally rich and compelling drama plays out against a background of wild forests, elegant castles, hidden temples, and savage battlefields in Autumn Princess, Dragon Child." I enjoyed Lian Hearn's last book in the series, Emperor of the Eight I...