Unveiling the Sorceress has a pretty simple plot with an uncommon setting in regards to fantasy. The plot: among the gods, one has decided to directly influence the course of human events by creating unrest in the exotic lands. This leads to the possibility of war, and the peaceful and wealthy Aleem, a city coveted due to its riches and location in the trading routes, must find a way to make peace with its enemy, Karseedia. To do so, the young Empress Elishiba, decides to offer herself to Karseedia’s Emperor in marriage. While she doesn’t want to do this, she’ll do whatever it takes to defend and protect her people, and she hopes that by agreeing to such a marriage (which was her idea), she can negotiate with the Emperor and find another way to create peace between the two countries. The conflict comes in the form of the Emperor’s mother, who wants power for herself and wants Aleem squashed, and the fact that Elishiba finds herself dangerously attracted to one of Hanrah’s (the Emperor’s) advisors, Amshazar, who clearly has an agenda of his own.

The book is just a very enjoyable read. I loved the emotional depth to the characters, particularly Elishiba, who is a very solid heroine. The is pretty tight and rolls right along, and despite the book’s short length, there’s no shortage on the romance, sex, and personal sacrifice the characters have to make. There’s tragedy in this book, and that’s an impressive punch for 219 pages. The story wraps up well, though I couldn’t help but wonder if Walker might write a sequel, because the epilogue implies possible future adventures, and I’d enjoy seeing these characters again.

The full review, which does include spoilers, is at my journal, if anyone’s interested. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome.

REVIEW: Saskia Walker’s UNVEILING THE SORCERESS

Happy Reading!

Shara Saunsaucie

ETA: I have added a few stories that were missed when I first posted the roundup…

Jasmine

Coyote Wild (4 of 10)

• A Feast of Leftovers by Patricia Russo
• City of Angels by Rosamund Hodge
• The Devil You Know by Mary Misenor
• The River-Hag by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Fantasy Magazine (4 for 9)

• When We Were Stardust by Rebecca Epstein
• Alphabet by Becca de la Rosa
• Glass by Nikki Alfar
• Petrella by Charlene Brusso

Helix

• Seraphim by Maya Bohnhoff
• Salvager’s Gold by Selina Rosen
• Drooling Wizards by Laura J. Underwood
• Suicide Drive by Charlie Anders

Ideomancer (2 for 3)

• Seer of Cities by Nicole Kornher-Stace
• Crowntree by LaShawn Wanak

Jim Baen’s Universe (3 for 12)

• Hourglass by Alma Alexander
• Waking Ophelia by E. Catherine Tobler
• End of the Line by Holly Messinger

Lone Star (2 for 3)

• The Disembowler by Ekaterina Sedia
• The Oracle Opens One Eye by Patricia Russo

Serendipidy (5 for 5)

• Where the Stream comes from by Joanna Gardner
• Geoffrey Says by Aliya Whiteley
• Stepping Stones by Waiata Dawn Davies
• The Fiery Dragon by Edith Nesbit
• Ticket to Nowhere by Katy Wimhurst

Strange Horizons (5 of 8 )

• Tokyo Rising by Lynne Hawkinson
• We Love Deena by Alice Sola Kim
• Dead by Haddayr Copley-Woods
• Kip, Running by Genevieve Williams
• Ki Do (The Way of the Trees) by Sarah Thomas

When I heard Pelland was releasing a short story collection, I was very excited. Granted, I’ve only read two of her short stories, but the one really stuck with me. Pelland has a smooth, clean writing style and her story ideas can really knock a person on their ass.

Unwelcome Bodies is a collection that focuses on a variety of issues: the environment, religion, and terrorism, and the one thing that unites these stories is the character’s body image and how they fit into the world/society around them. Each of the stories are different and unique, and most all of the stories balance a wonderful blend of science fiction and horror. This collection is an easy one to recommend.

The full story-by-story review, which does include spoilers in some cases, is in my journal. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome.

REVIEW: Jennifer Pelland’s UNWELCOME BODIES

Happy Reading!

Shara Saunsaucie

I was really looking forward to this book. Intriguing title, beautiful cover, and a lesbian protagonist, the latter of which is super-cool, since JUNO has so far published romantic fantasy, so if the protag was a lesbian, I was guaranteed something different. And speaking of different, this modern fantasy takes place in a small town somewhere in the west, using Mayan mythology to boot.

It should’ve been awesome. It wasn’t. To say I was disappointed is an understatement.

The full review where I rant and rave and spoil the heck out of the book is in my journal. As always, comments and discussion are most appreciated.

REVIEW: Lynn Cesar’s APRICOT BRANDY

Happy Reading!

Shara Saunsaucie

Anyone can edit a page and I encourage anyone who is interested in SF/H/F to take a look at the wiki and consider contributing. As with many FSF projects, it depends on the community to work.

January

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

• “It’s a Wonderful Life” by Michaela Roessner
• “Mars: A Traveler’s Guide” by Ruth Nestvold
• Nestvold gives us a poignant glimpse into the desperate requests for information from a computerized travel guide, made by a stranded traveller doomed by a series of freak accidents. Those who have studied transport disasters will recognize the horrific inevitability of supposed fail-safes not working in a cascade. It’s a better, stronger story than the Powell, and an object lesson in how to write very short stories.

Asimov’s

• “The Whale’s Lover” by Deborah Coates
• “The Beautiful and the Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald” by Tanith Lee
• Lee has come up with a clever twist on viruses and on the need they have to propagate themselves. Her quiet, subtle description of a population that has lost hope and who only attempts to live life, one day at a time, is masterful. Recommended and the issue’s standout for me.

Weird Tales

• “Landscape, With Fish” by Karen Heuler
• “Events at Fort Plentitude” by Cat Rambo

Polluto

• “Werewolf of Sappho” by Deb Hoag
• “A Deck of Cards” by Jess Freeborn

OnSpec

• “Daystar” by Sarah Carless
• “Pressina’s Daughters” by Angela Slatter
• “Re-Annunciation” by Nancy Chenier
• “Pest Control” by Kate Riedel

February

Asimov’s

• “The Egg Man” by Mary Rosenblum
• “Sex and Violence” by Nancy Kress

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

• “Retrospect” Ann Miller
• “Philologos; or, A Murder in Bistrita” by Deborah Doyle and James Macdonald
• This compact, fleetly paced and beautifully crafted mystery demonstrates what Sherlock Holmes would be like if he investigated monstrous affairs.

Realms of Fantasy

• “The People’s Republic of the Edelweiss Village Putt-Putt Golf Course” by M.K. Hobson
• “Hobnoblin Blues” by Elizabeth Bear
• “The Singers in the Tower” by Peni R. Griffin
• “And Spare Not the Flock” by Margaret Ronald
• In my humble opinion, Cormac embodies the essence of Christianity, far more so than those who presumed to judge his actions or condemn his new companions. Kudos to Ronald for showing us a real man of faith, who perseveres in doing what he believes is right, despite personal danger and his own doubts.

Interzone

• “Pseudo Tokyo” by Jennifer Linnaea
• “The Faces of My Friends” by Jennifer Harwood-Smith

GUD

• “Painlessness” by Kirstyn McDermott
• “The Salivary Reflex” by Tina Connolly
• “Jamie Hawkins’ Muse” by Vanessa Gebbie
• [The author] crafts a subtle and affecting tale. It is full of emotion but never sentimental. … There is nothing overtly supernatural in this story, but it is extraordinary.

Andromeda Spaceways

• “Motor Skills” by Eugenie Edquist
• “The Last Deflowerer” by Karen Maric
• “The Children’s Crusade” by Susan Wardle
• …one of this issue’s strongest stories.

Escape Velocity

• “The Appliance of Science” by Sheila Crosby

March

Asimov’s

• “Kallakak’s Cousins” by Cat Rambo
• “Spiders” by Sue Burke
• “Shoggoths in Bloom” by Elizabeth Bear
• Bear depicts her setting with authenticity, tackling issues of race and social class in addition to Harding’s quest to understand the shoggoth lifecycle.
• “Master of the Road to Nowhere” by Carol Emshwiller
• I loved the description of the group’s customs; how they manage to survive on the edge of the society we know is completely believable. Emshwiller succeeds admirably in depicting an alien way of thinking but one we can still empathize with.

Analog

• “The Spacetime Pool” by Catherine Asaro
• This is a very good adventure story… [it] entertains, surprises, and moves at a good pace.

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

• “Rumple What?” by Nancy Springer
• “Exit Strategy” by K.D. Wentworth
• Wentworth’s lighthearted tone, which appears dismissive at first, dances elegantly across questions of teenage autonomy, parental concern, cults vs. religion, even transgender identity, coming to rest in an unexpected (for me, at least) and very fitting place.

Black Static

• “The Morning After” by Carole Johnstone

Leading Edge

• “Last Heir” by Laura Ware
• “The Book Of Thuti” by Karen L. Kobylarz
• “At The Gates Of White Marble” by Aliette de Bodard

April

Asimov’s

• “An Almanac for the Alien Invaders” by Merrie Haskell
• “Ghost Town” by Catherine Wells
• “Strangers When We Meet” by Kate Wilhelm
• “Memory Dog” by Kathleen Ann Goonan
• Goonan paints a complex picture of the future; her idea of smackers and of the way information would be transmitted in a world gone mad is brilliant. She handles the relationships between her main characters very well, especially the point of view of the memory dog—a hard act to pull off.
• “The Room of Lost Souls” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
• If the universe is nothing special—colonies, spaceships, and ruins from an elder race—the Room itself is a brilliant idea, and Rusch successfully creates a creepy myth around it, building up the intensity of the narration until the final, shattering reveal.

Realms of Fantasy

• “Gift from a Spring” by Delia Sherman

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

• “The Fountain of Neptune” by Kate Wilhelm

When I first started the bookswap, my idea was a lofty one. To create a community of people who were interested in women’s F&SF and wanted to participate in the genre’s awards process. I figured that everyone would be excited about getting new books, reading them, passing them along, and reviewing them. I was partially right. There were many people who were interested. However, the thing I failed to understand at first (which I completely do now) is that most readers, even voracious readers, are not interested in reading every available book in order to decide which books are worthy of nomination and awards.

As I said, this is not a notion I am laboring under, anymore.

I also really failed to take into account that, on most award ballots, there is one, maybe two slots for novel-length work and 3 – 5 slots for short fiction. And though novels get most of the attention, it’s much easier to read widely in short fiction.

This led me to ponder what changes we can make in the SFBookswap.

First, we’re going to put a lot more emphasis on reviewing books and calling attention to stories here. Jasmine will continue highlighting all of the online stories written by women. I will start collecting information about print stories and pointing to reviews of them. We now have several new book reviewers associated with the site, and in the next few months you’ll start seeing their reviews on a regular basis (more on that later).

Second, in terms of swapping, I would like to bring those interested to the blog itself instead of trying to maintain a community elsewhere. This way, you won’t have to sign up for yet another bulletin board/social networking site/whathaveyou. We’ll also focus on swapping magazines more than books, since they’re cheaper to ship/pass around and, again, contain short stories. Plus, people are more willing to let go of magazines than they are of books, especially books they love.

I would also love if we could set up the swap so that most of the transactions happen at cons — the major ones throughout the year: Worldcon, World Fantasy, Readercon, WisCon, Boskone, etc. — with some happening through the mail. I feel that this will only happen if the community is interested, so I’m willing to sit back and see if it develops, rather than attempting to coordinate it right away.

Each time we post a review, we’ll indicate whether that book or magazine is available for swap. If you’re interested in it, just comment (and leave your real email — no one can see it but the admins). You just have to be willing to post your thoughts on the book once you’re done with it. And if you pass it on after that, all the better.
The idea is to make the bookswap blog a nexus of information on SF literature written by women and a guide to those that are worth reading and perhaps even worth nominating. It will also be a place that readers can come to if they don’t have access to recent fiction. The basic ideal is still there — to provide readers who need it with recent fiction so that they can take part in genre award nominations.

If you’re interested in becoming part of the swap, all you have to do is keep an eye on the blog. You can bookmark us, subscribe to our feed, or friend the feed on LJ. If you definitely want to get books to swap, the best way to do that is to become a reviewer. For details, send us a note through the Contact page.

And if you’d like an introduction to the reviewers who’ve already agreed to be part of the project, check the comments. A few of them will come by to introduce themselves.

–Tempest

P.S. We have some other changes coming up this summer, including adding fiction written by People of Color to the swap. Keep watching!

What is interstitial fiction? This short story anthology does its best to find out. From the intro, which defines interstitial being between borders, but something that’s not a hybrid, to each of the 19 stories crafted by some damn talented voices in fiction, I have to say, I learned a lot. Interstitial writing isn’t just about genre, or only about genre. In some stories, interstitality had to do with place, or with character, or with a particular moment in life. This book is shelved in the SF/F section of the store, and indeed, some of the stories certainly have a magical realist flair, but if I had to classify this book as anything, it’s literary fiction. It’s not an anthology that’s for everyone, but for anyone with a love of language and fine writing with an open and inquisitive imagination, I think you’ll find this anthology worth your while. I know I sure did.

The full review, which contains a story-by-story reaction (and some reactions contain spoilers, others do not), may be found in my journal. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome.

REVIEW: Interfictions: An Anthology of Interstitial Writing

Contributers:

Christopher Barzak
Leslie What
Anna Tambour
Joy Marchand
Jon Singer
K. Tempest Bradford
Csilla Kleinheincz
Michael J. DeLuca
Karen Jordan Allen
Rachel Pollack
Veronica Schanoes
Mikal Trimm
Colin Greenland
Vandana Singh
Matthew Cheney
Lea Sihol
Adrian Ferrero
Holly Phillips
Catherynne M. Valente

Jasmine

Coyote Wild

• The Anadem by Sharon Mock
• Around the Bend by Maria E. Schneider
• Bad Blood by Debra Doyle and J.D. McDonald
• Killing a Goddess by Tracie McBride

Allegory Magazine

• Junk Drawer by Ami Chopine
• As Books Do by Jessica Kaiser
• Big, Brave Rita by Corie Ralston

Diet Soap (it looks like you can still get a free PDF from them)

• Diary of a Nonsworn by Holly K. Hein

Abyss & Apex

• If Tears Were Wishes by Ruth Nestvold

InterGalactic Medicine Show

• Lost Soul by Marie Brennan
• The Unrhymed Couplets of the Universe by Sharon Shinn
• After this Life by Janna Silverstein
• The Smell of the Earth by Joan L. Savage
• The Braiding by Pat Esden

Just finished reading Sandra McDonald’s debut novel, The Outback Stars. Part military SF, part space opera, and part science fiction romance, it’s a very enjoyable read, with a plot that I thought would be simple but became rather complex. Definitely looking forward to reading the next book in the series, and lucky for me, it’ll be released this March.

The review, which does contain spoilers, is in my LJ. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome.

REVIEW: Sandra McDonald’s THE OUTBACK STARS

This book is also on the preliminary Nebula ballot, and I think it deserves a nom. But that’s me.

Happy Reading!