The Book Plank

The Market Arcanum by Margaret Dunlap, Bookburners #5  When a mysterious invite arrives in the mail and Father Menchu responds by whisking Sal off to Lichtenstein, the former cop is left on very new ground as she gets more than a glimpse at the broader world of magic users. Unfortunately, they are immediately confronted by a wealthy business man who is less upset about them blowing up his boat two episodes ago, as he is about them stealing his (sludge-demon releasing) book. When the three remaining Team members back in Rome suddenly find themselves under attack, Sal and Menchu are left scrambling for how to help and have to turn to the peculiar techno-cultists whose computers run on seahorses and have a pointed interest in the cop sister of their acquaintance Perry. Welcome to the Market Arcanum.  A lot of things have happened over the last four episodes of Bookburners. Sal the latest addition to Team Three of the Bookburners got a lot of moneys worth. Sal went from being ...

Cursed Relics and Urban Fantasy by Gail Z. Martin What is it about cursed objects that sparks our imagination? And why do they show up so much in urban fantasy? Cursed and magically malicious objects play a central role in my Deadly Curiosities urban fantasy series. My main character, Cassidy Kincaide, is a psychometric who can read the history or magic of an object by touching it—and she can also pick up on strong emotional resonance as well. Trifles and Folly, the antique store that has been in her family for over three hundred years, exists to get dangerous magical items off the market and out of the wrong hands. Set in a city like Charleston, SC that takes huge pride in his history (and is one of the most haunted cities in America), there’s no danger that my fictional crew will run out of supernatural threats to counter. But the idea of cursed relics or haunted objects runs deep, and it shows up in plenty of books, TV shows and movies, from Needful Things to Dr. ...

Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson, Mistborn #5  The trilogy’s heroes are now figures of myth and legend, even objects of religious veneration. They are succeeded by wonderful new characters, chief among them Waxillium Ladrian, known as Wax, hereditary Lord of House Ladrian but also, until recently, a lawman in the ungoverned frontier region known as the Roughs. There he worked with his eccentric but effective buddy, Wayne. They are “twinborn,” meaning they are able to use both Allomantic and Feruchemical magic. This bustling, optimistic, but still shaky society now faces its first instance of terrorism, crimes intended to stir up labor strife and religious conflict. Wax and Wayne, assisted by the lovely, brilliant Marasi, must unravel the conspiracy before civil strife stops Scadrial’s progress in its tracks. Brandon Sanderson. Bam. Everyone knows that name. With every book that he writes he becomes more and more famous. But one series that will get everyone fired up mu...

Hold-Time Violations by John Chu Ellie is on her way to visit her comatose mother when her sister sends her to repair physics. Each universe has skunkworks that generate the universe within it, making this multiverse a set of matryoshka dolls. The skunkworks that generate this universe have become faulty, and the physical constants suddenly...aren't. In order to fix the skunkworks, to make physics self-consistent again, and to make the world work as it's supposed to, Ellie will have to remember everything her mother has taught her. I  missed a lot of good short fiction during my vacation. Hold-Time Violations  is definitely one of them. John Chu is well known for his short fiction stories. One of his stories even won him the Hugo Award for Short Stories back in 2014. What drew me to Hold-Time Violations was the challenging and promising synopsis. I like my science fiction with a challenge and definite thought behind it and this is precisely what John Chu delivers.  ...

Horrorgami by Marc Hagan-Guirey Paper Dandy's Horrorgami features 20 kirigami (cut-and-fold) designs based around haunted houses and scenes from horror films by the creator of the successful Horrorgami blog and exhibition. Each project features step-by-step instructions and a template that you remove from the book. You then follow the lines on the template, cutting and folding to make your own kirigami model.  The art of paper folding is very popular in the Asian countries but this doesn't mean that us Europeans never heard of it. I have done some basic origami before which I enjoyed a lot. you can make beautiful things with it. Just earlier this month I was asked by Midas PR if I wanted to review the upcoming book Horrorgami . Just by the cover alone I wanted to do some folding, doesn't that werewolf look sweet! Ok so this review doesn't begin with the story picks up with.. because this isn't a fictional story. To be honest this is also the first book of it...

Foreign Devils by John Hornor Jacobs, The Incorruptibles #2 The world is on the brink of war. Fisk and Shoe - mercenaries, very much not wanting to get caught in the middle of a political whirlwind - must deliver a very important message, and find a very dangerous man. They have caught the eye of the powerful men of the world, and now the stakes are higher than they like. And the Emperor has decreed that Livia Cornelius, pregnant with Fisk's child, must travel to the far lands of the Autumn Lords on a diplomatic mission. It will mean crossing half the world, and facing new dangers. And in the end, she will uncover the shocking truth at the heart of the Autumn Lords' Empire. A truth which will make the petty politics of war and peace unimportant, and will change the world. One of the books that blew me of my seat last year was definitely The Incorruptibles. It was one of my favorite debuts of 2014.    I had never read or even heard of John Hornor Jacobs before...

Inheritance by Charlaine Harris and Christopher Golden, Cemetery Girl #2   She calls herself Calexa Rose Dunhill. She has been living - hiding out - in Dunhill Cemetery ever since someone left her there to die. She has no idea who wants her dead or why, but she isn't about to hand around for her would-be-killer to finish the job. Despite her self-imposed isolation among the deceased, Calexa's ability to see spirits and the memories she receives from them guarantees she'll never be alone. The only living people she interacts with are Kelner, the cemetery's cantankerous caretaker, and Lucinda Cameron, an elderly woman who lives in an old Victorian house across the street. With their friendship, Calexa has regained a link to the world beyond tombstones and mausoleums. Until the night she witnesses a murder that shatters her life: a life now under a police microscope, as their investigation threatens to uncover Calexa's true identity . .  Last year Jo Fletcher B...

Aftermath by Chuck Wendig, Star Wars: Aftermath #1 Journey to  The Force Awakens . The second Death Star is destroyed. The Emperor and his powerful enforcer, Darth Vader, are rumored to be dead. The Galactic Empire is in chaos. Across the galaxy, some systems celebrate, while in others Imperial factions tighten their grip. Optimism and fear reign side by side. And while the Rebel Alliance engages the fractured forces of the Empire, a lone Rebel scout uncovers a secret Imperial meeting. . . . Many a fantasy fan has been marking of the days ever since the seventh Star Wars movie was announced. I can proudly say that I am one of them. The same thing probably also counts for Chuck Wendig but I think the burden on his shoulders with having been given the task of writing the book that connects Episode VI and VII. This must have been both a sweet and sour experience, there must have been a lot of weight on his shoulder. But probably looking at Chuck Wendig's writing, he must hav...

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter #3 Harry Potter is lucky to reach the age of thirteen, since he has already survived the murderous attacks of the feared Dark Lord on more than one occasion. But his hopes for a quiet term concentrating on Quidditch are dashed when a maniacal mass-murderer escapes from Azkaban, pursued by the soul-sucking Dementors who guard the prison. It's assumed that Hogwarts is the safest place for Harry to be. But is it a coincidence that he can feel eyes watching him in the dark, and should he be taking Professor Trelawney's ghoulish predictions seriously? Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is the third book in the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. Having defeated the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets and meeting the famed Dark Lord as well. Everything has been solved once again at Hogwarts and as I said the things with school remains the same, Harry has to return to Privett Drive for the summer....

Gemini Cell by Myke Cole, Shadow Ops #4 US Navy SEAL Jim Schweitzer is a consummate professional, a fierce warrior, and a hard man to kill. But when he sees something he was never meant to see on a covert mission gone bad, he finds himself—and his family—in the crosshairs. Nothing means more to Jim than protecting his loved ones, but when the enemy brings the battle to his front door, he is overwhelmed and taken down. It should be the end of the story. But Jim is raised from the dead by a sorcerer and recruited by a top secret unit dabbling in the occult, known only as the Gemini Cell. With powers he doesn’t understand, Jim is called back to duty—as the ultimate warrior. As he wrestles with a literal inner demon, Jim realizes his new superiors are determined to use him for their own ends and keep him in the dark—especially about the fates of his wife and son…   A few years back Myke Cole kicked off his Shadow Ops series with Control Point. If  you read my review of it, you...

A Sorcerer's Apprentice by Mur Lafferty, Bookburners #4 Sal and Asanti leave the rest of the Team in the lurch when they jet off to Scotland to attend the funeral of the archivist’s mentor. Something is amiss in the Dear Green Place, however, as the pair land to discover the entire city has become obsessed with a restaurant (which just happens to be owned by the deceased mentor’s only living relative). They beat the crowds to get a table, only to find the fight has just begun and they left their muscle at home.  After Max Gladstone, Margaret Dunlap and Brian Francis Slattery it is up to Mur Lafftery to show her first addition to the Bookburners series with A Sorcerer's Apprentice .  Having survived already three deadly encounters Sal finally has the time to do some exploring, which she preferably does in Ashanti's library. Then Sal stumbles upon a crying Ashanti who has just received news that her old mentor, Father Seamus Hunter, has passed and that the funeral is to...

Media Alert: Tremontaine. A New Serial Fiction Series by Serial box.  Welcome to Tremontaine , the long awaited return to Ellen Kushner’s beloved Riverside series and the prequel to the cult-classic Swordspoint . “A Vanity Fair of aristocrats, rogues, orphans, and heroes…” - Neil Gaiman on Swordspoint This “ Fantasy of Manners ” follows the lives and intrigues of four very different characters as they maneuver the cobblestone streets and glittering ballrooms of a city that never was. Nameless, but inspired by Elizabethan London, 18th century Paris, New York in the 1980s, the setting of Tremontaine comes alive behind the colorful figures of Micah the genius; Rafe Fenton, a man of many passions; the mysterious foreign swordswoman, Ixkaab Balam; and of course: Diane, Duchess Tremontaine, a character well-met in the original series, but whose history has remained a mystery until now. When Ellen Kushner’s Swordspoint was originally released in 1987, it quickly ...