Best Blockbuster Movie Candidate
Return to Dark Earth by Anna Hackett
Return to Dark Earth by Anna Hackett
Post-apocalyptic Earth with zombies
and other radioactive monsters. Professor Jones and The Bride from Kill Bill
as protagonists. Gladiatorial arena. Hot and sweet love story. Hilariously
wicked villains. I don’t know why this book hasn’t been optioned yet, because
it ticks all the boxes of a big-budget action film.While our heroine Nera Darc
isn’t out on a mission of revenge like Uma Thurman’s character, she is a
bobbed-hair platinum blonde in a bodysuit who spends several scenes slicing
everything apart with her katana. Sometimes her man backs her up, too. Niklas
Phoenix, our astro-archaeologist, acts as the brains of the operation. He’s
respectful of Nera’s boundaries and an all-around stand-up scholar. Watching
their chemistry as they navigate a way to be together while dealing with killer
giant panthers and treachery.
The action scenes zoom by with
romantic interludes and character vignettes, and it would be sure to please
action movie buffs, science fiction fans, and romance junkies alike.
Most Intriguing Philosophical/Social Science Questions in
Galaxybuilding
Faring Soul by Tracy Cooper-Posey
Faring Soul by Tracy Cooper-Posey
Catherine Shahrazad, possibly the
world’s oldest person, has saved her credits for decades to do an unusual favor
for her navigator. The ramifications of that could upend world religions,
governments, and commerce. Well, Catherine does cause chaos anywhere she goes…
Faring Soul explores issues of consciousness and humanity that kept me
thinking long after I finished the book. What if you could be eternally young?
What if children were raised by a community and romance was usually separate
from parenting? What kind of culture and government would form in a world where
this were possible?
Factional politics and religious
intrigues spur the plot ahead, but it’s the perspective we get from the ship’s
new crewman Kemp that makes it real. His refusal to take part in rejuvenation
gives him a worldview most like the reader’s, and it’s through his eyes that we
learn about the ship crew and their mission. It’s a good bridge to the
sometimes mysterious actions of Catherine and Bedivere, keeping them relatable
despite their long and unusual life experiences.
The questions Faring Soul
piqued that stayed most with me concerned consciousness, identity, and
transhumanism. If you use a teleporter that atomizes you and creates a body
elsewhere with the same memories and behaviors, is that really you, or did you
die and get replaced by a clone? How do we define our “selves”? If we change
our bodies, how does that impact our minds and, if we believe in them, our
souls?
Best Steampunk Doctor
Clockwork Samurai by Jeannie Lin
Clockwork Samurai by Jeannie Lin
Steampunk has come a long way since
its Anglocentric roots, and in this story we see the dark side of British
imperialism: a war fought over the right to distribute and profit from an
addictive drug in another country. Physician Jin Soling has seen many fall prey
to the black poison peddled by the English, and if that’s not enough to make
things dire, she’s watching her country grapple with the Western invasion,
famine, and rebellion. Her story started with the novel Gunpowder Alchemy
and continues with Clockwork Samurai.
Clockwork Samurai is a short novel chronicling the journey of Soling and her
love interest Chen Chang-wei to see if the Japanese government could render
them aid. The mix of steampunk ideas and Meiji Japan lead to some fascinating
creations. Soling and Chang-wei’s political and philosophical mindsets do not
lend themselves to pride in their accomplishments, but they are willing to go
on hopeless errands so that their Emperor need not lose face. Soling is the
more practical-minded and worried of the two. She wants the best for her
country, but has doubts as to what that is.
This story does not have a happily-ever-after
here because their adventures will continue, but there is sweet resolution of
romantic tension.
Biggest Tearjerker Per Page
Luminous by A.E. Ash
Luminous by A.E. Ash
What would you do if you were all
alone on a planet for years? Personally, I’d start talking to my volleyball
like Tom Hanks did in Cast Away for the first one, and then descend into
gibbering madness. Jothi manages to stay sane by going through her job’s routine.
When she finds an injured man on the planet, she reawakens to the pain and joy
of navigating interpersonal relationships.
Luminous made me cry because the
Jothi’s loneliness is so textured. Her bravery and resolve amazed me. The story
made my heart swell with emotion: perhaps I should have the Grinch read this
book. We are all worthy of love and companionship, no matter our age, race, or
particulate matter state. That relief made me reach for the tissues.
Most Welcome Back Oldies-but-goodies
Eight books by Nathalie Gray
Eight books by Nathalie Gray
I’ve wanted to recommend Nathalie
Gray’s SFR books to many people, but lots of them were unavailable for a while.
Happily, she got her rights back to several series and books and republished
them this year!
The War Dogs series (formerly
published as Lycan Warriors) follows genetically engineered lycanthrope
mercenaries who battle baddies and bigots in space and future Earth. The Galaxy
Hunter series (previously published as Femme Metal) features the
adventures of bounty hunters in spaceships and blue men. Finally, the novel Debbie
Diesel features a demo derby in space. All feature high-octane action, hot
love scenes, trash-talking characters, and an excellent sense of the absurd.
Best Video Game with SFR Elements
Xenoblade Chronicles 3D for New Nintendo 3DS
Xenoblade Chronicles 3D for New Nintendo 3DS
Xenoblade Chronicles, originally for the Nintendo Wii, had a British
localization and very limited release in the US. The New 3DS (the standard 3DS
isn’t compatible, alas!) port gives more audiences exposure to the fascinating
universe MonolithSoft has dreamed up.
Humans are under the attack of the
Mechon, a race of machines from the neighboring landmass, whereby landmass I
mean giant robot. Seriously, the world consists of two frozen giant beings: the
Bionis, home of organic life, and the Mechonis, where sentient machines live.
Our protagonist, Shulk, vows revenge against the Mechon after a brutal attack
against his hometown and takes possession of a powerful sword called the Monado
to execute his plan. Matters proceed from there, and Shulk finds the nature of
the world he lives on is not what he bargained for.
