Book Review: Outrage Level 10, Lucy Leitner Necro Publications, 328 pages Horror, in my opinion, takes itself too seriously. In the non-stop, adrenaline-pounding quest to put readers on edge, the genre often fails to move beyond its time-honored tropes around… Read More ›
Reviews
‘Pow!’ soda disrupts consumers’ reality
Interview with Lee Matthew Goldberg, author of Orange City Growing up, I enjoyed orange soda and feared spiders, and both feature prominently in Lee Matthew Goldberg’s first science-fiction novel, Orange City, which offers a second chance for felons and outcasts… Read More ›
Shirking duty leads deputy to rosy hell of disappointment
Book Review: Captain Clive’s Dreamworld Jon Bassoff, Eraserhead Press, 234 pages Early in Deputy Sam Hardy’s adulthood, he marries a woman he loves, they have a daughter they are too poor to support, so they give her up for adoption…. Read More ›
Name your favorite bands!
Book review: Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk Gillian McCain and Legs McNeil, Grove Press, 448 pages It’s time for a music test. Name your top-five rock bands. Here are mine: The Rolling Stones The Velvet Underground… Read More ›
Thread of optimism weaves tales of climate heroes
Book Review: Ten Journeys on a Fragile Planet Rod Taylor, Odyssey Books, 284 pages The assault to the environment currently underway by global warming continues to have noticeable impact on Los Angeles, where I live, in which blazes surrounding the… Read More ›
There’s no business like show business
Book Review: Out of Frame Anthologies Jack Lothian, S.J. Sims, Rhiannon Robertson, Sarah Witt Oneiric Roper, John Morgan Risner, 179 pages Living in Los Angeles, I witness no shortage of artists, filmmakers, musicians, writers, and other creatives whose eccentric tendencies and… Read More ›
Mystical science to transform barren planet to paradise
Book Review: Dune Frank Herbert, ACE, 884 pages For science-fiction fans, Frank Herbert’s Dune was often introduced during a high school or college English class. For anyone with an interest in the fate of humanity, the 900-page tome became required… Read More ›
Interview: Midnight Cities burns brightly with Shake My Heart
Recently, I listened to Midnight Cities’ debut album, Shake My Heart, while heading home from a sun-soaked day at the beach. It had been a perfect summer outing; even traffic was clear as I drove along the Wilshire corridor, top… Read More ›
Prophetic rumors promise hope for a dying world
Book Review: The Psychic’s Memoirs Ryan Hyatt, 271 pages I had the pleasure of reading a draft of Ryan Hyatt’s The Psychic’s Memoirs in early 2019. Remember 2019? That feeling of disconnect with the world, but a hint of familiarity is… Read More ›
To move forward, try looking back: Book review, lessons on Tales of Soldiers and Civilians
Ambrose Bierce, Forgotten Books (2012), 300 pages My stepfather gave me Tales of Soldiers and Civilians as a Christmas gift. Dan read my sci-fi novel, Rise of the Liberators, and I suspect he wanted to encourage me to write more… Read More ›