Science fiction-Science fact

A New Birth of Freedom - alternate history and time travel from Robert G. Pielkecy

Review: Eclipse Two - Jonathan Strahan editor

Eclipse Two
Edited by Jonathan Strahan
287 printed pages
Night Shade Books http://www.nightshadebooks.com

Again, I know I am a bit slow at getting out reviews, but I just don't see how you can review what you haven't read. Maybe if it's a complete crapfest, but otherwise, I would rather give my opinion cover to cover.

So the latest in the Eclipse series. First impression is Strahan is a very competent editor. His feel for the genre is every bit as good as Carr or Dozois, and Eclipse Two reflects that easily. There doesn't seem to be any underlying theme, but still manages to set itself off from the "best of" crowd. Don't get me wrong, I love best ofs, Eclipse feels more like an anthology. But it does swing some big stories, The absolutely (no pun intended) Exhalation by Ted Chiang or David Moles Down and out in the Magic Kingdom. And go ahead, and start the cat calls because I loved Skin Deep by Richard Parks when I first read it and it fits so well in this volume. Or The Hero by Karl Schrodeder. What a fantastic image huh?

Sometimes it's the last story that really drives the ideals of the collection home and Strahan really does that in style. I had not read Alastair Reynolds Fury before so it was like finding a hidden gem. Oh believe me, with 15 top notch stories, there were many a pleasant find but Fury was very special. I mean how can you go wrong with ancient empires, robots, evil all spread across 30k years of history? You can't! I loved it! What's more, I am willing to bet that you would too!

Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine's server failed

SFScope reports that Editor Gordon Van Gelder of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction announces that they had server difficulty last week. Specifically, their secure serve failed, meaning that subscription orders, address changes, and "contact us" messages sent between 12N EDT on 9 October and 12N on 12 October have been lost. He asks that people who contacted them during that period who have not received a confirmation please contact them again.



<- F&SF via SFScope ->

AMC to do sci-fi - Watch out Sci-Fi channel!

In an effort to one up the Sci-fi channel, AMC is looking to, as general manager Charlie Collier puts it, actively looking to mine classic genre TV shows and SF movies for miniseries, movies and remakes that would appeal to viewers in their 40s or 50s...

As an example one can look to their upcoming project, the remake of The Prisoner miniseries. The thinking is solid. The shows that those 40+ grew up on are a virtually untapped goldmine resource that can be updated and served to a new and older audience alike. Collier said that the network is looking into the acquisitions of past science fiction, both movies and television.

Sounds good to me and no wraslin! woooooooo hoooooooooooo

Check out the article on Dvice

Review: Fantasy & Science Fiction July 2008

I would like to start by saying that I have been a fan of F&SF for better than 30 years. In that time I would hard pressed to find a story that I didn't like let alone any one particular issue. So when I received the July 2008 review issue, I was truly looking forward to some quality fiction. F&SF, because I suspect of its' wider editorial content or style needs, often has something for everyone. This issue certainly did not disappoint in that department. The book reviews and movie commentary was interesting and the stories again diverse. That being said, my only complaint is more a comment on what I like and don't like to read. I find alternate history tales taxing. To be honest, I don't consider them science fiction or fantasy (though in the loosest sense of the term I guess it is someone's fantasy...) speculative fiction surely, but little in the way of “science”. Next, Nazis and torture, two more plot devices that I can do without. Combine all three and you have a recipe that, for me at least, is going to be hard to get through. So that being said A. Cowdrey Poison Victory was not my cup of tea. On the flip side Michael Blumlein The Roberts is a wonderful answer to the question, “What do you get the person who has everything?”. The images in the novelette are almost cyberpunk in nature and at times wildly original. The other novelette FulBrim's Findings has the makings of a religious quest perhaps or maybe like last year's Hugo nominated story The Last Reef or maybe Tk Tk Tk from a couple of seasons ago. A searching for the underlying answers. And you know the feeling you get after reading one of these stories if they are really well done. You know, “There was an answer, but not the one the hero needed” and you are really drawn in and melancholy all at the same time. The short stories, in which I think F&SF really shine are top notch. Lisa Goldstein puts a fantasy twist on the many worlds idea with her short, Reader's Guide - or even better example of the style: The House Beyond Your Sky by Ben Rosenbaum, that feeling of a world just above or beyond ours and I think she really pulls it off. James L. Cambias is not a writer that I had been familiar with before, but I will look forward to anything new in the future. His The Dinosaur Train is a very normal Circus with one extra twist which could have gone the way you would consider and done well, but James does something very courageous and takes us on a coming of age yarn. Bravo! So, I would say that the July 2008 issue is well worth a look. The further beauty is that is available from eReader.com, Fictionwise and Audible! SWEET!

F&SF Magazine offering discounts to bloggers

I recently received an offer to review the newest copy of Fantasy & Science Fiction Magazine. In the messages I later received were links that would provide readers of Beam Me Up a pretty attractive discount on subscriptions to the mag. I have always enjoyed F&SF. The magazine always has contained consistently high quality fiction so a discounted subscription is always something ov value for me at least. They provided me with subscription links to use both regular credit cards and pay pal - that's pretty damn progressive min my mind! If your interested, check out the links.

Here are links to the offer:

Regular offer: https://www.toybox.ca/fsf/blog-buy-sub.htm

PayPal: http://www.sfsite.com/fsf/blog-subscribe.htm

For more information click here