All posts by Carl V. Anderson

book news

Locus Magazine, July 2013 and Coode Street Episode 148

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I don’t often review magazines, but the newest issue of Locus Magazine was too good to pass up, especially read on the heels of listening to Jonathan Strahan and Gary K. Wolfe in Episode 148 of the Coode Street podcast in which they cover some of the same material with more detail. I highly recommend picking up a copy and giving a listen to the podcast, the link to which can be found here.

The July issue of Locus features really nice remembrances of recently deceased authors Jack Vance and Iain M. Banks. Neil Gaiman is featured in an interview entitled Magic of Fiction. In the interview he discusses some of the autobiographical influences that made their way into his newest novel, The Ocean at the End of the Lane. The article does contain a slight spoiler for an event that happens early in the novel. It won’t in any way ruin the novel, but I am personally glad that I had already read it before reading this interview. It is worth reading and left me excited about other Gaiman-related works that have come out recently or are slated to come out this year.

Author/editor Maria Dahvana Headley is interviewed at the end of the magazine. Her short story “Give Her Honey When You Hear Her Scream” was nominated for the 2012 Nebula Award. She, along with Neil Gaiman, have an anthology of monster stories out called Unnatural Creatures.
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At noon today be sure to check out my review of the July issue of Lightspeed magazine on SF Signal. All featured short stories are now up on their site, so if any of the stories I review sound interesting you can check them out right away. In addition to the stories there is a longer interview with Wool author Hugh Howey that is worth checking out.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Book Reviews, Gothic/Horror, Short Stories

Mrs. Henderson’s Cemetery Dance ~Carrie Cuinn

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(Image Credit)

On a nice Spring day a stray dog sets in motion a series of unexpected events when he digs up and runs off with the forearm of Mr. Liu, a resident of the village’s old cemetery. In his pursuit of the purloined appendage, something he is too attached to (or was until recently) to easily part with, he brings the dead in contact with the living in a manner that is far too familiar and discomforting for those still imbued with their mortal coil. As the villagers and the deceased meet to come to terms that will return the dead to their proper place, events unfold that demonstrate that a lot can be learned from those who have gone before.

That was my synopsis of this delightful story, the first in author Carrie Cuinn’s new short story collection Women and Other Constructs, when I reviewed the collection for SF Signal a few weeks ago. This story has taken up residence in my mind over the past two weeks, chasing away (to some degree) awareness of the summer heat and stirring up feelings of autumn days and the kind of reading inspired by that season. I had originally planned to wait until September/October during the autumn-themed R.I.P. Challenge, but I simply cannot do so. I had to share this story now. The story in its delightful entirety can be found here for your reading pleasure.

The format of these longer, single-story posts is always a rambling discussion of what I see in the story and how I experienced it. I am by no means an expert and do not intend this to be taken as if I am assuming the stance of one. I am a fan of short stories, and those that capture my imagination and won’t let go need to be discussed in further detail than to simply say, “I like this.” I hope you’ll take a moment to read this story and come share your experiences with it. They will be uniquely your own and I look forward to reading about them.

Here is your usual “last chance” warning: There Be Spoilers Ahead.

Continue reading Mrs. Henderson’s Cemetery Dance ~Carrie Cuinn →

book news, Book Reviews, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Short Stories

Short Fiction Friday: Happy Birthday, Tor.com

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It is Friday!!! I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t excited for every day that celebrates the end of the work week, but something about this one feels extra special, for no apparent reason other than it is time to relax with family and friends. There will be a great deal of reading and gaming taking place as well, no doubt. So pretty much the usual weekend.

This week one of my favorite book companies, Tor Books, is celebrating the 5th birthday of their Tor.com website. If you are a fan of genre fiction, Tor.com is a place that should be on your regular rounds. Not only do they generate engaging geek content, but they also release new original short fiction every week by authors who are well-known as well as newcomers that are starting to make a name for themselves. Tor.com also goes the extra mile to commission artwork from some of today’s best illustrators to accompany each story.

To celebrate their 5th birthday they are giving you a gift. If you register on their site, you can follow the link to download an Ebook with all five years of original fiction, plus illustrations, in whatever format works for your particular reader. This book is priceless in more ways than one. Tor.com is not a site that will bombard you with emails. Once a week you can get a nice email update, and I personally always find something in that email worth wandering over to the site to check out.

To honor their birthday, my Short Fiction Friday post on SF Signal features more recent Tor.com story offerings, and there are a couple of really good ones in the mix this week. I hope you’ll check it out.
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In the interest of full disclosure I wanted to announce the winners of copies of Carrie Cuinn’s collection, Women and Other Constructs. Brigitte won the signed print copy and Deanna and Logan won ebook copies. Congrats to each of you, look forward to hearing your thoughts on the stories when you get a chance to read them.

I’m not sure if it is hot where you are, but it is hot here. The heat makes me want to psychologically escape to a cooler season which of course makes me think of R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril (R.I.P.), the gothic/mystery/horror fiction event I host in the fall. In order to get us in the spirit of the thing, and maybe dispel for a brief time the sweltering heat (and those of you in non-summer climes will feel right at home with this), I will be hosting a spoiler-laden discussion of Carrie Cuinn’s wonderful short story “Mrs. Henderson’s Cemetery Dance” on Sunday here at Stainless Steel Droppings. The story is wonderful and for me it shares a kinship with stories like Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book and Tim Burton’s The Corpse Bride. I do hope you’ll give it a read and join me on Sunday for a gushing discussion.

Gaming

Tomb Raider

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After a brutal storm destroys the boat she was traveling on, a frightened young woman is left washed ashore on an unknown beach. On her own but not alone she has only one goal, to survive. Here begins the first adventure for a young and inexperienced Lara Croft in a story which charts the journey of an ordinary woman who finds out just how far she must go in order to stay alive.

I bought my first PC in early 1998, a custom rig I had built for the sole purpose of becoming a PC gamer. The first game I played was Tomb Raider II. Ever since I’ve had a soft spot for the buxom adventurer who solved puzzles and amassed rare treasures while executing a variety of interesting, if not always physically possible, moves to explore her environment and stay alive. When the announcement came of a Tomb Raider reboot I was excited at the prospect, especially as the release date got closer and various game play trailers started surfacing. I particularly like this one because of its nod to gamers inhabiting the character they are directing through the game.

I am an avid gamer. But I’ve also become more frugal over the years, rarely buying a game when it is at its new $60 price. So when Xbox ran one of its promotions last week, with various one-day sales, Tomb Raider was offered for download at $19.99. I’ve been on the island with Lara Croft ever since.

Continue reading Tomb Raider →

Book Reviews, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Short Stories

Women and Other Constructs ~Carrie Cuinn (with giveaway!)

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Readers know a book is special when it grabs them and won’t let go; when that final page is turned and they are awash with emotions. An exceptional short story collection is extra special in that it can give you several of those experiences back to back, leaving you with feelings of joy, anger, sadness, delight all rolled into one.

If the name Carrie Cuinn is not one you are familiar with, that would not surprise me. Although she has been writing for some time, she is not one of the big names…yet. This collection is the match that could set things on fire. I promise you it will spark your imagination as it demonstrates in a variety of ways just how effective the short story format can be at eliciting emotion and at making you look at real, important issues in a new light.

I know Carrie Cuinn as a fellow SF Signal Irregular. She writes excellent columns about independent and lesser known comic books in her Outside the Frame column. She also blogs regularly about life, writing and important social issues in the SFF community at her personal website.

I have enjoyed her nonfiction writing and when she announced that she had put together a collection I rushed out to buy it. Then the opportunity arose to review the book for SF Signal and I quickly volunteered, not thinking about the aftermath of worrying about how difficult it would be to write a review if I was less than impressed with the stories. I sat down last Sunday afternoon to sample the collection, and ended up reading one story after another until I sat in my chair awash with emotions when the final (digital) page was turned.

Carrie Cuinn is obviously a big fan of the short story and her quest to become proficient in the format is on display in these nine stories. You won’t love every one, that is a tall order for any selection of short fiction, but you will find stories that demonstrate just how effective the short story can be at engaging you as a reader. There are interesting characters, imaginative scenarios, adventures, laughs and potentially tears awaiting you in Women and Other Constructs. Carrie Cuinn entertains, to be certain, but she also tackles some tough subjects with the skill of an author who can use the tropes and trappings of SF/F/H to examine hard truth in a non-preachy yet highly effective manner.

My proper review for the book is up at SF Signal. It would give me great pleasure if you checked it out. I enjoyed this book so much that I am giving away one signed print version and two ebook versions. All you need to do to qualify is to leave a comment here. I will draw names randomly late Sunday night/early Monday morning to determine the winners. If you would like to double your chances of winning, comment over on the SF Signal site as well and your name will go in the hopper twice! Had I only liked the excellent Introduction and the first story, “Mrs. Henderson’s Cemetery Dance”, this collection would be a must-have. Thankfully I enjoyed aspects of each story and I want you to experience her work.

You need not wait for Fate to be kind to you, however, as the books are available in print form, ebook and as a bundle, all for very reasonable prices, here.

Have a lovely weekend filled with great stories!