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Your May 2009 SFcrowsnest is enclosed
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SFcrowsnest
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May 02, 2009 14:15 PDT
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STEPHEN HUNT'S SFCROWSNEST.COM
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com | Issue 186. May 2009.
"Not bad. For a human."
Bishop - Aliens (1986).
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+++ FEATURES FOR MAY 2009
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PHILIP JOSE FARMER (1918-2008) A RETROSPECT BY GF WILLMETTS
Philip Jose Farmer is one of those names you think will go on forever
and who, sadly, in February at the age of ninety is no longer with us.
Farmer brought several things to Science Fiction.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13847.php
INTERVIEWED ON THE OTHER SIDE: MARK WERNHAM
Mark Wernham is the author of Martin Martin's on the Other Side (from
Jonathan Cape), one of the shortlisted works for this year's Arthur C
Clarke awards. When it comes to science fiction, Mark's influences are
writers like JG Ballard and Michael Moorcock, and he talks to the Nest
about these, life as a Melody Maker journalist, and being stuck in a
prison cell with a big red panic button.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13834.php
FIGHTING THE QUIET WAR: PAUL MCAULEY INTERVIEWED
Science fiction novelist Paul McAuley has just been shortlisted for the
2009 Arthur C Clarke Award for his novel The Quiet War. He chats with
fantasy author Stephen Hunt about why the default political debating
position of SF shouldn't be Earth: bad, tyrannical and ossified;
Colonists: smart and sympathetic; and why it's difficult to improve as a
writer if you don't read other writers who are better than you.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13829.php
THE COMING KING OF STEAMPUNK: ALASTAIR REYNOLDS INTERVIEWED
Alastair Reynolds chats with the Nest about his life and works as one of
the UK's reigning princes of space opera, about his cunning plan to
dominate the steampunk genre (not to mention the coming bakepunk genre),
and why he is fascinated by science but lacking the mathematical
aptitude to really swim in it.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13830.php
LET THERE BE LIGHT AGES: IAN MACLEOD INTERVIEWED
Ian MacLeod, author of such SFF classics as Song of Time and Light Ages
speaks to fantasy author Stephen Hunt about the junction between
naturalistic and non-naturalistic fiction, and why his next science
fiction novel is going to be set in alternate version of the Golden Age
of Hollywood. Wake Up and Dream, dear reader.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13831.php
ASTOUNDING'S DAUGHTER: SHERI S. TEPPER INTERVIEWED
With fantasy and science fiction novels of the calibre of The Fresco,
Singer from the Sea, Six Moon Dance, The Family Tree, Gibbon's Decline
and Fall, Shadow's End, A Plague of Angels, and Sideshow & Beauty behind
her, Sheri S. Tepper is one of America's greatest novelists. Her book
The Margarets is in the running for this year's Arthur C Clarke Award,
so what better time for fantasy author Stephen Hunt to sit down with her
and chat about just what an early diet of Astounding and Fantasy &
Science Fiction Magazine can do to a lady of letters.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13828.php
TOP FIVE BAD-ASS FEMALES IN SCIFI MOVIES
With women still fighting for their right for equal pay, there's one
thing they can be sure of: when it comes to being bad-ass, they're equal
all the way. To celebrate the release of Dragonball Evolution on April
8th 2009, a film containing two feisty females who show the boys one or
two things about 'feminism' via the method of kicking some ass, we've
put together a list of the five strongest, scariest, toughest women ever
to fight their way across the screen.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13772.php
LET THE RIGHT HORROR DIRECTOR IN: THOMAS ALFREDSON INTERVIEWED
The Swedish filmmaker Tomas Alfredson takes the book Let The Right One
In by author John Ajvide Lindqvist, and turns it into a hair raising
affair. Here, SFcrowsnest interview him about vampires and all that is
scary and some which is not. Sweden, he points out, may not have vampire
myths but they do have a lot of stories about dangerous wolves.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13783.php
MEET THE MARSTERS
James Marsters chats with SFcrowsnest.com about his new role in the film
Dragonball Evolution, why it's tough being in make-up for four hours
then having to pull a twelve hour working day, and why being a goofy
mellow guy doesn't mean you're weak at all.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13794.php
A CHAT WITH CHATWIN
Actor Justin Chatwin of War of the Worlds fame chats with
SFcrowsnest.com about starring in the upcoming sci-fi film Dragonball
Evolution, a live-action flick based on the manga created by Akira
Toriyama. He tells us what it was like to work alongside Ghostbusters
star Ernie Hudson, how he was thrown in at the deep end on War Of The
Worlds, and what it was like to star in a scifi film with Tom Cruise.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13795.php
WINNING AN EMMY
Actress Emmy Rossum talks to the Nest about acting in Dragonball
Evolution, training with marines, learning how to drive a motorcycle
without killing Justin Chatwin, and why in the manga, her character
Bulma is boy crazy.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13796.php
DRAGONBALL: EVOLUTION (FRANK'S TAKE)
So here we go again sighs our Frank... another woefully generic actioner
borrowing its inspiration from a popular television series (Dragonball
Z) and/or highly regarded video game of the same name. Still, how could
the immensely flashy and kinetic Dragonball: Evolution go so wrong when
it has also been translated into best-selling graphic novels? After all,
it is derived from the desired Japanese manga created by Akira Toriyama?
Well gang, let us count the ways...shall we?
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13804.php
WATCHMEN (FRANK'S TAKE)
We have arrived at the challenging age in cinema where sardonically
bleak and cynical overtones have somehow considerably shaped the way we
appreciate sophisticated action-packed superhero sagas. Previously,
notes Frank, the arrestingly visual The Dark Knight captured the pure
essence of a fierce fantasy that bleeds layers of ferocious forethought
in its captivating confection.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13807.php
ALIEN TRESPASS (FRANK'S TAKE)
The tongue-in-cheek humour is thoroughly realised in the movie Alien
Trespass, finds our Frank. It also has that bloke out of Will and Grace
(Will, not Jack), and all the clichés of 1950's horror cinema are there
- and, that is a good thing!
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13810.php
RACE TO WITCH MOUNTAIN (FRANK'S TAKE)
Race to Witch Mountain is sadly a race to the bottom of Frank's
popularity scale, discovers our ace reviewer, as he delves into a sci-fi
movie which offers little but lacklustre special effects and clichéd
situational dilemma. Will your kids like it? Not if they've got any
taste, he suspects.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13815.php
SUPER CAPERS (FRANK'S TAKE)
Now, our Frank knows that we're all meant to be doing our bit for the
environment, but recycled gags? Come on! As you might be able to gather,
the new superhero spoof movie Super Capers didn't exactly tickle our
movie critic's entertainment-buds. Strap your cape on and get ready to
fly at the speed of sound... into a cinematic brick wall.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13817.php
17 AGAIN (FRANK'S TAKE)
It must have taken the powers-that-be a brief 20-minute lunch session
over a stale roast beef sandwich to conceive this woefully derivative
teen comedy 17 Again, rages our Frank. For the sake of argument one
cannot blame the handlers of this flaccid fable to see dollar signs
dancing in their collective heads. First, why not milk the body swap
gimmick for the ten millionth time?
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13819.php
CRANK 2: HIGH VOLTAGE (FRANK'S TAKE)
Predictably, discovers Frank, Stratham is given permission to crank it
up a few more notches and go totally ballistic in the outrageously
fuel-injected follow-up High Voltage. Brash, outrageously inane and
chaotically crafty, Crank 2: High Voltage is unapologetic in its sheer
penchant for graphic-induced ribaldry as its charismatic calling card.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13820.php
GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST (MARK'S TAKE)
There is one amazing thing that you can say about the flaccid
featherweight fantasy Ghosts of Girlfriends Past in that it managed to
do a handful of cinematic crimes in one sweep. First, says our film
reviewer Frank, it destroyed whatever credibility legendary scriber
Charles Dickens had in his cherished A Christmas Carol gimmickry of
revisiting spirits to keep one's soul grounded. Secondly, it reminds us
how weak-kneed mainstream Hollywood romance comedies continue to be
strained in imagination and conception. Thirdly, it reinforces how much
that bland box office boy-toy Matthew McConaughey has overstayed his
welcome in these aforementioned fluffy fantasies.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13837.php
TENNANT EXTRA: DR WHO INTERVIEWED
Lady Christina (Michelle Ryan) and Doctor Who (David Tennant) chat to
the Nest about their recent picnic on Dune in the Easter special
episode, Planet Of The Dead. Tennant chats about the sad lack of desert
world landscapes in Wales, and his pure loathing for Lee Evans (okay:
just kidding on the last one). Meanwhile, Michelle Ryan goes all bionic
on us.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13806.php
| | | | Got a feature for us? Send your submissions to revi-@sfcrowsnest.com
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+++ REVIEWS FOR MAY 2009
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Back Issue! # 14 February 2006
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13898.php
Back Issue! # 8 February 2005
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13867.php
Buyout by Alexander C. Irvine
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13896.php
Calculating God by Robert J. Sawyer
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13906.php
Danse Macabre (the 13th Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter novel) by Laurell K.
Hamilton
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13894.php
Doctor Who: Beast of Orlok by Barnaby Edwards
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13865.php
Doctor Who Companion Chronicles: Resistance by Steve Lyons
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13864.php
Duainfey by Steve Miller and Sharon Lee
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13875.php
Eclipse Two edited by Jonathan Strahan
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13900.php
Farscape Classics Volume Two by Guy Gross
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13861.php
Fury (Star Wars: Legacy of the Force series book 7) by Aaron Allston
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13859.php
Genesis by Bernard Beckett
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13884.php
Hell Girl Volume 2: Puddle
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13888.php
Heroes by Lisa Coleman and Wendy Melvoin
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13891.php
Inferno (Star Wars: Legacy of the Force series book 6) by Troy Denning
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13860.php
Interzone # 221 - March/April 2009
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13892.php
Invincible (Star Wars Legacy Of The Force book 9) by Troy Denning
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13857.php
Iron Man: Ultimate 2-Disc Edition
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13877.php
Jupiter # 24: SF Magazine April 2009: Jupiter XXIV Locaste
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13883.php
Kubrick's Cinema Odyssey by Michel Chion translated by Claudia Gorbman
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13882.php
L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers Of The Future Volume XXII edited by
Algis Budrys
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13907.php
Let the Right One In aka Låt den rätte komma
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13866.php
Longeye by Steve Miller and Sharon Lee
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13874.php
Midnight Street #12
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13880.php
Monsters Within: The Unofficial And Unauthorised Guide To Doctor Who
2008 by Stephen James Walker
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13876.php
Novels - conversions May 2009
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13852.php
Physics Of The Impossible by Michio Kaku
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13897.php
Primeval: Extinction Event by Dan Abnett
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13869.php
Sacrifice (Star Wars Legacy Of The Force book 8) by Karen Traviss
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13858.php
Saint City Sinners (A Dante Valentine Novel) by Lilith SaintCrow
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13887.php
Sci-Fi Art: A Graphic History by Steve Holland
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13862.php
Sorcery In Shad (Tales Of The Primal Land book 3) by Brian Lumley
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13889.php
Sorrow (A Witch Ember tale) by John Lawson
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13873.php
StereoOpticon: Fairy Tales In Split Vision edited by Cindy Lynn Speer
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13855.php
Tau Zero by Poul Anderson
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13899.php
Terry Pratchett's The Colour Of Magic Illustrated Screenplay by Vadium
Jean and Terry Pratchett
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13879.php
The Centauri Device by M. John Harrison
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13885.php
The Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian: 2-Disc Collector's Edition
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13902.php
The Domino Men by Jonathan Barnes
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13863.php
The Folklore Of Discworld by Terry Pratchett and Jacqueline Simpson
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13878.php
The Last House On The Left by John Murphy
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13895.php
The Lost Ones by Christopher Golden
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13881.php
The Magic Thief by Sarah Prineas
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13905.php
The Reach Of Children by Tim Lebbon
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13893.php
The Relìgion audio book by Tim Willocks
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13886.php
The Twig Trilogy: The Edge Chronicles by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13868.php
The Walls Of The Universe by Paul Melko
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13903.php
Thicker Than Water (A Felix Castor Novel) by Mike Carey
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13870.php
This Is Not A Game by Walter Jon Williams
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13854.php
To Hell And Back (A Dante Valentine Novel) by Lilith SaintCrow
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13853.php
Transhuman by Mark L. Van Name & T. K. F. Weisskopf
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13871.php
Trouble Magnet (A Pip And Flinx Adventure - book # 12) by Alan Dean
Foster
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13856.php
Val / Orson by Marly Youmans
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13872.php
Watchmen: The Art Of The Film by Peter Aperlo
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13901.php
Watchmen: The Film Companion by Peter Aperlo
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13904.php
Wolverine And The X-Men Volume One - Hindsight
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/articles/books/2009/nz13890.php
| | | | Got a review for us? Send your submissions to revi-@sfcrowsnest.com
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+++ EDITORIAL
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GOING DIGITAL
Or Is there no place for hardcopy magazines any more? Discovering that
the magazine 'Starlog' has gone out of business after thirty years in
the business, says Geoff, not to mention several genre mags also getting
the chop in the UK, should give anyone pause for thought.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/features/arc/2009/nz13846.php
DO YOU LIKE CURLING UP AND READING A BOOK?
Do you have a preference for fantasy, SF or horror? Do you find it the
greatest pastime you have next to being on your computer? Are you very
vocal about what you like and don't like in what you read? Would you
like to share your thoughts with others about books? Would you like an
endless supply of books to do this with? Do you live in the UK?
If you've been nodding your head up to this point then link in below and
see if you have what it takes to be a reviewer at SFCrowsnest. If you
have that special knack to read and write or want to develop said skill
then the only way you're going to find out is to take the plunge
yourself rather than wait for others to do it first. It's got to be
better than waiting for the sun to come out. Check out our recruitment
procedures through the following link and let me decide if you have what
it takes.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/contribute.php
<<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>>
<<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>> The Rise of the Iron Moon <<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>>
<<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>><<<<<>>>>>>
Stephen Hunt's third fantasy novel set in the Jackelian world...
THE RISE OF THE IRON MOON
From the author of The Court of the Air and The Kingdom Beyond the Waves
comes a thrilling new adventure set in the same Victorian-style world.
Born into captivity as a product of the Royal Breeding House, friendless
orphan Purity Drake suddenly finds herself on the run with a foreign
vagrant from the North after accidentally killing one of her guards. Her
strange rescuer claims he is on the run himself from terrible forces who
mean to enslave the Kingdom of Jackals as they conquered his own nation.
Purity doubts his story, until reports begin to filter through from
Jackals' neighbours of the terrible Army of Shadows, Maying across the
continent and sweeping all before them. But there's more to Purity than
meets the eye.
As Jackals girds itself for war against an army of near-unkillable
beasts serving an ancient evil with a terrible secret, it soon becomes
clear that their only hope is a strange little royalist girl and the
last, desperate plan of an escaped slave.
Available for pre-order now on Amazon - click here.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0007232225?ie=UTF8&tag=scienficticrowst&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=19450&creativeASIN=0007232225
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+++ SCIFI PLAY
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ONLINE GAME OF THE MONTH - GLORINA OF THE AXE
Come on boys, admit it, you always wanted to be Xena Warrior Princess,
didn't you? Well wax your legs, because now you can, kind of, as long as
you don't mind playing Glorina of the Axe as you take on the worst the
fantasy kingdom can throw at you with only your trad. fur bikini and
double-headed axe for company. Ah, Gloriana. You slay us.
Play online at SFcrowsnest Sci-Fi Play and see if you can beat Stephen
or Geoff's high score (well, Uncle Geoff is easy, he's still on a slow
dial-up account in deepest darkest Somerset).
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/games/2573-Axe-Girl-Gloriana.html
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+++ SCIFI BLOGS
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| | | | A FEW OF THE SCIFI AND FANTASY BLOGS BEING HOSTED ON SFCROWSNEST.COM
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- SCIFI Now
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/blog.php?user=SciFiNow
- Day Dream
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/blog.php?user=DayDream
- Mulluane
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/blog.php?user=Mulluane
- Turner
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/blog.php?user=Turner
- Bob Lock
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/blog.php?user=BobLock
- FantasySci
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/blog.php?user=fantasysci
- Scrybe Press
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/profile.php?user=ScrybePress
Set up your own fantasy/SF blog here.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/user_blog.php
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+++ EVENTS FOR MAY/MAY 2009
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Otafest 2009
15/05/2009 - 17/05/2009
Canada - Calgary Anime con
TimeGate 2009
22/05/2009 - 24/05/2009
United States - Atlanta Doctor Who and Stargate con
WisCon 33
22/05/2009 - 25/05/2009
United States - Madison Science Fiction Con
X-Men Origins Wolverine
01/05/2009 - 01/06/2009
Cinema release
More sci-fi events at...
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/events/arc/lists/hm_events.php
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+++ SFCROWSNEST HIVEMIND
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RANDOM RECENT HIVEMIND MEMBER OF THE MONTH
Favourite SFF books: Martian Tales Trilogy, anything by Douglas Adams,
William Gibson, Neil Gaiman, or Terry Pratchett. Spider Robinsons
Callahan series, steampunk novels, the works of Clive Barker and the
Witch Queen trilogy by Jan Siegel.
About him: I am a general fan of both science fiction and fantasy.
Currently I am reading things like Philip K Dick novels as well as books
by Jonathan Zakour, Mike Resnick, Terry Pratchett, and Neil Gaiman. I
love tin toy ray guns, rocket ships, and robots. I live in Western
Washington state, I am 39 years old, and a heavily tattooed geek.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/home.php
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+++ Stephen Hunt's THE KINGDOM BEYOND THE WAVES - Paperback out now
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Professor Amelia Harsh is obsessed with finding the lost civilisation of
Camlantis, a legendary city from pre-history that is said to have
conquered hunger, war and disease -- tempering the race of man's baser
instincts by the creation of the perfect pacifist society.
It is an obsession that is to cost her dearly. She returns home to the
Kingdom of Jackals from her latest archaeological misadventure to
discover that the university council has finally stripped her of her
position in retaliation for her heretical research. Without official
funding, Amelia has no choice but to accept the offer of patronage from
the man she blames for her father's bankruptcy and suicide, the fiercely
intelligent and incredibly wealthy Abraham Quest.
He has an ancient crystal-book that suggests the Camlantean ruins are
buried under one of the sea-like lakes that dot the murderous jungles of
Liongeli. Amelia undertakes an expedition deep into the dark heart of
the jungle, blackmailing her old friend Commodore Black into ferrying
her along the huge river of the Shedarkshe on his ancient u-boat.
With an untrustworthy crew of freed convicts, Quest's force of female
mercenaries on board and a lunatic steamman safari hunter acting as
their guide, Amelia's luck can hardly get any worse. But she's as yet
unaware that her quest for the perfect society is about to bring her own
world to the brink of destruction!
HARDBACK
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0007232209/ref=nosim/scienficticrowst
PAPERBACK
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kingdom-Beyond-Waves-Stephen-Hunt/dp/0007232217
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+++ DAILY NEWS UPDATES FOR MAY 2009
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How Mercury got broken
A NASA spacecraft gliding over the surface of Mercury has revealed that
the planet's atmosphere, the interaction of its surrounding magnetic
field with the solar wind, and its geological past display greater
levels of activity than scientists first suspected. The probe also
discovered a previously unknown large impact basin about 430 miles in
diameter -- equal to the distance between Washington and Boston.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13838.php
Objects of Worship
Indie scifi publisher ChiZine Publications has released a collection of
twelve short stories by Montreal writer and editor Claude Lalumière
titled Objects of Worship.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13839.php
The 86ers
Rogue Trooper takes to the air (well, to space, actually), in the latest
graphic novel from 2000AD, the pen of Gordon Rennie, and the brush of
Paul J. Holden. War rages across the galaxy in an ever bloody conflict
between the Southers & the Norts. Enlist with fighter pilot Rafaelle -
aka Rafe - Blue and the 86th Air Support Reconnaissance Squadron, better
known as the 86ers, stationed in the Acoma System.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13840.php
Recon 2023
Sci-fi action movie Recon 2023: The Gauda Prime Conspiracy will have its
world premiere at the Sci-Fi London Festival in London on May 2nd, 2009.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13841.php
Knight Rider takes to the road again
KITT - aka the Knight Industries Two Thousand, is back in a sequel to
the iconic '80s original. Knight Rider returns to the UK SciFi Channel
on Tuesday 12th May 2009 at 8pm in a two-hour feature-length movie, and
follows weekly every Tuesday. The Hoff is out and Val Kilmer is in.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13842.php
UK Steampunk Convivial
The first UK Steampunk Convivial (that's a con to you and me), is due to
take place at The Asylum in Lincoln this September 2009.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13843.php
Harker
Some say that 2009 is the year of the Vampire, with Guillermo del Toro
and Justin Cronin releasing trilogies, as well as shows like True Blood
and films like Twilight keeping the Vampire myth alive. And in October,
the first Stoker Family approved sequel novel is released - Dracula: The
Un-Dead, by Bram Stoker's Great-Grand Nephew Dacre Stoker and Dracula
historian Ian Holt.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13844.php
Science fiction author Ian R Macleod wins the 2009 Arthur C Clarke Award
It was a good thing that the Public Astronomer at the Royal Observatory
Greenwich, Marek Kukula, made the main speech at this year's Arthur C
Clarke Award, because when Ian R MacLeod won the award for his scifi
novel Song of Time, you could see his grin from space.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13836.php
Spy-fi autumn: Spooks series eight
Following the climax of series seven of Spooks, spy-fi fans will be
waiting to find out which of the UK's favourite sci-fi spies will return
to their TV screens.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13835.php
David Slade of 30 Days Of Night-fame is given the Twilight Saga's movie
Eclipse to play with
30 Days Of Night's David Slade has been hired to direct the Twilight
Saga's third movie Eclipse, based on Melissa Rosenberg's screenplay.
Eclipse, the third film in the studio's Twilight series based on the
Stephenie Meyer's vampire teen lurv series of novels, will be released
in US Cinemas on June 30th 2010. Vampires, can't live with them, can't
live without 'em.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13832.php
Those ugly green Ninja Turtles are coming back
Comic and sci-fi fans, stop your grinning and drop your linen, for the
green light for development has just been given for a live-action movie
looking at the origins of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The film
will be coming at you 2011.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13833.php
SyFy has Unfinished Business
SyFy is getting together with James Lassiter, Will Smith and Ken Stovitz
for a 2-hour fantasy horror pilot entitled Unfinished Business, which
they're hoping to extend into a full new TV series. I hear dead
people...
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13827.php
Empire of the Particularly British Science Fiction Author
JG Ballard has passed away, notes author Stephen Hunt. The sci-fi world
has lost an author whose prose was so beautifully crafted you could,
like an old-style razor, cut yourself on it quite pleasurably. But his
greatest achievement? That, says Stephen, was conning the literary
establishment into believing he was no longer writing science fiction
and thus worthy of review in their stilted, dead publications. Shed your
tears now, you frakkers, for a giant no longer walks among us.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13821.php
9
There's a new trailer up for the scifi movie 9 - in which good
glove-puppet-like bio-creatures created by humanity survive a World War
III that kills their creators, but leaves behind mankind's killer droids
still at war with everything. Think Terminator meets Coraline.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13822.php
First World Horror Con in the UK
The first World Horror Con in the UK, is taking place March 2010 in
Brighton. I suspect there will also be a number of SF and Fantasy people
there.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13823.php
John Jarrold guests at the Birmingham Science Fiction Group
John Jarrold is currently the literary agent for over forty authors and
has also run three science fiction and fantasy imprints in the UK since
1988. Further to this he has also edited many well known SF and fantasy
authors. As well as being a literary agent he also offers professional
advice and editing to new SF and Fantasy authors.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13824.php
New web site for the Ghost in the Machine
The Ghost in the Machine's sci-fi podcast has rolled out a new homepage
for the podcast and is to interview Jeri Smith-Ready (Wicked Game, Bad
to the Bone) and Jana Oliver (Mad Man's Game).
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13825.php
Daylight win for the Night Sessions
The BSFA has reported the winners of the 2008 British Science Fiction
Awards. At a ceremony at the 60th Eastercon convention, LX, at the Cedar
Court Hotel, Bradford, hosted by John Jarrold, Paul Macauley and Kim
Newman, Ken Macleod scooped the award for best novel for The Night
Sessions.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13826.php
New trailer for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood
There's a new trailer out for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood. Looks
like London takes a pasting from the forces of darkness. Oh dear.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13818.php
Next film instalment of The Twilight Saga is green for go
Erik Feig, the grand fromage over at Summit Entertainment, drops the
Nest a line to tell us that their teen vampire movie The Twilight Saga:
New Moon, has started filming - and he like what he sees.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13808.php
Stargate Universe: the gang is back in town
Stargate fans rejoice, for SGU: Stargate Universe is to have quite a
line up of guest stars, with appearances throughout the season including
Richard Dean Anderson, Christopher McDonald, Janelle Monáe, Amanda
Tapping, Michael Shanks, Gary Jones and Carlo Rota.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13809.php
Drag Me to Hell
The brains behind the Spider-Man trilogy and the Evil Dead series,
director Sam Raimi, is coming back to the horror genre with his new
movie Drag Me to Hell, a sad tale of a young woman's quest to shatter an
evil curse that has been cast on her. We have some early pics from Sam
and the gen. on the film too.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13811.php
The Choir Boats
Fantasy, horror and sci-fi publisher ChiZine Publications has released a
hardcover edition of Daniel Rabuzzi's The Choir Boats, its fourth title
and first dark fantasy novel.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13812.php
Doctor Who hires in some new blood
BBC Wales has told the Nest about three new appointments to its Doctor
Who science fiction series just before the new episodes starring the
eleventh Doctor, the cheeky fresh-faced Matt Smith, move into shooting.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13813.php
Monsters vs. Aliens (Frank's Take)
Monsters versus Aliens may not be DreamWorks' very best work, says our
Frank, but compared with the animated science fiction and fantasy flicks
coming out from everyone else, it's still good enough. There are plenty
of kicks for us adults, and you can expect your tots to be tickled too.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13814.php
Repo: The Genetic Opera (Mark's take)
This is a Grand Guignol science fiction rock opera starring Alexa Vega,
Paul Sorvino, and Anthony Head. Rotti Largo, the man who supplies the
world with synthetic transplant organs, became the most powerful man in
the world during a strange epidemic. As he nears death there is a
struggle for who will inherit his empire after he dies. The plot, says
Mark, is minimal and for a rock opera, there is too little real melody.
Visually the film is a little nauseating but otherwise very inventive.
Darren Lynn Bousman, director of three sequels to SAW, helms this film
with what I would guess is the same sensitivity.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13801.php
Buying Battlestar
The SciFi Channel is to auction items from SyFy's Battlestar Galactica
TV series in a live auction weekend running May 8th-10th 2009. Nearly a
thousand items will be included in this auction including Lee Adama's
bomber jacket, which was worn in the Daybreak flashback scene, the
painting that Kara Starbuck Thrace paints in her apartment on Caprica
before the Cylon attacks, the Galactica Podium, Admiral Adama's (Edward
James Olmos) desk chair, a full size Viper Mark II ship and a full size
Blackbird Stealth ship. The red dress worn by Number Six (aka Tricia
Helfer) and a Starbuck flight suit will also be offered in this auction.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13802.php
Eating with Locus
The Locus Awards Banquet will be held on Saturday June 27th 2009 in
Seattle WA during the Science Fiction Awards Weekend at the Courtyard
Marriott Lake Union. SciFi author Connie Willis will present the awards
and judge the traditional Hawai'ian Shirt Contest.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13803.php
Seven new pictures from the 11th Star Trek movie
Some exclusive pics from J.J. Abrams' new Star Trek film. This is one
movie I'm really looking forward to now, and from early comment from
those who have seen it in the Sydney Opera House, it sounds like a
cracker.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13805.php
David Gemmell Legend Award 2009 shortlist
The shortlist is in for the first David Gemmell Legend Award, and
there's five fine fantasy novels in the frame for all you sci-fi fans to
vote on. Our bookies odds at the Nest make Joe Abercrombie and his book
Last Argument of Kings the odds on favourite.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13797.php
Science Fiction Writers of America web site hacked
Writers beware, the Science Fiction Writers of America site was
seriously hacked and used to deploy a malicious trojan horse against all
the sci-fi fans visiting their web site.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13798.php
StarLog magazine folds: the last days of Rome for print sci-fi magazines
StarLog magazine, the science fiction and fantasy bible for media fans
for thirty-three years, has folded as a print magazine even as it
promises to try to make the jump to web-only production. It's only one
of many titles that has fallen to the hard, cold economic realities of
the new media world, and sadly, it won't be the last. Expect Locus to
die, expect everything you love to die. Fantasy and sci-fi author
Stephen Hunt hates to say he told you so, but: he told you so.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13799.php
Voyager books gets a new web site
Voyager Books, the fantasy and science fiction arm of book publisher
HarperCollins, has a new web site online now, along with some
interesting looking deluxe signed and numbered special editions of Cory
Doctorow's novel Little Brother.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13800.php
Scagliotti's in the Warehouse
Allison Scagliotti of Drake and Josh fame is to star in Warehouse 13,
SyFy's sci-fi adventure series, as a geeky hacker. She joins the
previously announced cast members Eddie McClintock, Joanne Kelly, Saul
Rubinek and CCH Pounder.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13791.php
Amber Benson swaps TV for horror novels
Amber Benson, who played Tara Maclay on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, has
launched a new trilogy of urban fantasy novels. The first book in the
trilogy, Death's Daughter arrives on the heels of Benson's Ghosts of
Albion series, which she co-wrote with Christopher Golden, the author of
the Hellboy novels. Her new novel introduces Calliope Reaper-Jones, a
normal girl, who also happens to be Death's daughter. Err, Terry
Pratchett's Mort, anyone?
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13792.php
3rd mini-trailer for Star Trek XI
The third mini-clip from the new Trek film. Kirk and Spock go head to
head about how young Jim managed to beam aboard the Enterprise when she
was doing warp speed. Ah, that's an old trick. I'll show you some time.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13793.php
Star Trek Disease and Danger
The latest clip from the Star Trek Movie. Dr McCoy gives a young Kirk a
flea in his ear about the dangers of space and what they really mean as
their rickerty old Star Fleet shuttle is about to take off.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13788.php
Doctor Who Planet Of The Dead
A trailer for the next Doctor Who special coming our way. A London bus
and its passengers falls through a wormhole and ends up on a dangerous
alien desert world. Er, Dr Who does Pitch Black - we kept on trying to
work out when Vin Diesel was going to pop up.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13789.php
To Your Scattered Smallville and Battlestar Cast Go
The lead roles in Riverworld and The Phantom - two of SyFy's trio of
upcoming four-hour sci-fi movies - have been cast and production on both
back-door movie pilots have started. It's a babe-fest with Laura
Vandervoort and Isabella Rossellini in the frame.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13790.php
Give me Sanctuary
SCIFI's horror TV series Sanctuary has started production in Vancouver
on series two. Slated to return this fall, the one-hour drama's
13-episode second season will include the addition of Agam Darshi as
Kate Freelander.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13784.php
Greg Bear says Halo, soldier
Science fiction publisher Tor Books have told the Nest about a new
trilogy in the Halo series based on the Halo videogames franchise for
the Xbox. The first novel in this new trilogy will be published in early
2010. An unabridged audiobook edition will publish alongside the novel.
Greg Bear has signed on to write three Halo novels set in the time of
the Forerunners, the creators and builders of the Halos.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13785.php
Dungeons & Dragons piracy attracts Wizards' wrath
Sci-fi games house Wizards of the Coast LLC have filed three lawsuits in
US District Court for the Western District of Washington against eight
individuals, including named defendants located in the United States,
Poland and the Philippines, for alleged copyright infringement of its
recently-released Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook 2.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13786.php
Set your iPhone to kill
The free Star Trek Phaser application has just launched in the iTunes
app store to allow you to turn your iPod or iPhone into a Trek Phaser.
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/news/arc/2009/nz13787.php
Got news for us? Send your press releases to
pressre-@sfcrowsnest.com
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Stephen Hunt's +++ THE COURT OF THE AIR +++
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
When streetwise Molly Templar witnesses a brutal murder at the brothel
she has recently been apprenticed to, her first instinct is to run back
to the poorhouse where she grew up. But there she finds her fellow
orphans butchered, and it slowly dawns on her that she was the real
target of the attack. For Molly carries a secret deep in her blood, a
secret that marks her out for destruction by enemies of the state.
Oliver brooks has led a sheltered existence in the backwater home of his
merchant uncle. But when he is framed for his only relative's murder he
is forced to flee for his life, accompanied by a agent of the mysterious
Court of the Air. Chased across the country, Oliver finds himself in the
company of thieves, outlaws and spies, and gradually learns more about
the secret that has blighted his life.
Soon Molly and Oliver will find themselves battling a grave threat to
civilisation, an ancient power thought to have been quelled millennia
ago.
Their enemies are ruthless and myriad, but indomitable friends in this
endlessly inventive tale full of drama, intrigue and adventure also aid
the two orphans.
"An inventive, ambitious work, full of wonders and marvels."
- THE TIMES newspaper: May 7, 2007 (Review: Hardback edition, The Court
of the Air)
"Hunt can take his place alongside such eminent Magratheans as JRR
Tolkien, Mervyn Peake and China Mieville. Creating a fully realised
other-world which feels new and different, yet cohesive and believable
is half the battle in a fantasy novel, and it is a battle Hunt wins with
honours... Hunt's world is so rich and colourful it keeps you engrossed
... It's a confident audacious novel."
- SFX magazine: MAY 2009 (Review: Hardback edition, The Court of the
Air)
"The characters are convincing and colourful, but the real achievement
is the setting, a hellish take on Victorian London where grim,
steam-driven machines work beside citizens with magical powers. The
Court of the Air is aimed at young adults, but the depth and complexity
of Hunt's vision makes it compulsive reading for all ages."
- THE GUARDIAN newspaper: May 21st 2007 (Review: Hardback edition, The
Court of the Air)
'Wonderfully assured ... Hunt knows what his audience like and gives it
to them with a sardonic wit and carefully developed tension'
TIME OUT magazine: October 2007 (Review: Paperback edition, The Court of
the Air)
Click here for free sample chapters...
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/author/sh_courtoftheair_home.php
@@@ HARDBACK (USA edition coming MAY 2009)
NEW - Tor's U.S. edition hardcover - Amazon USA
http://www.amazon.com/Court-Air-Stephen-Hunt/dp/0765320428/
@@@ PAPERBACK (UK edition out now)
| | | | Order now from Amazon UK <<
|
|
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0007232187/ref=nosim/scienficticrowst
| | | | Order now from Amazon Canada <<
|
|
http://www.amazon.ca/Court-Air-Stephen-Hunt/dp/0007232187/
| | | | Order now from Amazon Japan <<
|
|
http://www.amazon.co.jp/Court-Air-Stephen-Hunt/dp/0007232187/
----------------------------------------------------------------------
+++ ADVERT
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Hello from Voyager Books,
We're delighted to announce the launch of the Voyager Books website, a
brand new online book store selling the best science fiction, fantasy
and horror titles from HarperCollins Publishers.
Choose from hundreds of great titles for adults and children, with
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Martin and Robin Hobb.
Over the months ahead we will be bringing you an exciting range of
unique editions of our books - and there are two exclusive titles,
available only on voyagerbooks.co.uk, on site now.
The highly acclaimed Little Brother by Cory Doctorow, is presented in a
slip case, signed by the author and limited to only 500 copies
worldwide. Features exclusive content by Cory and six original colour
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Arthur C. Clarke's final book The Last Theorem written alongside
Frederik Pohl is available to buy as a numbered, signed and limited
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Visit Voyager Books today, have a look around and enter our amazing
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We hope you enjoy the site!
http://www.voyagerbooks.co.uk/Community/Competition/Pages/CompetitionHome.aspx?DisplayName=Competition/bannerssf
----------------------------------------------------------------------
+++ CALL FOR CONTRIBUTORS
----------------------------------------------------------------------
One of the nice things about being online is that SFcrowsnest can
publish slightly off-the-wall material that would never find a home in a
highly targeted advertising-ruled print magazine world. An article we
always trot out as an example of this, is Uncle Geoff's piece about what
the heck fuel & engine combination the Thunderbirds craft might have
used in the classic 1960s TV series of the same name.
Let's face it, you're never going to read the likes of that in Analog,
Starlog, Starburst, Interzone or the rest of the print world's
publications! If there's an article inside you - could be continuity
errors in Andromeda, your latest work of short fiction, or just why you
think Iain Banks' novels are the greatest SF since a little man called
Verne put pen to paper - do drop Geoff a line below. Articles, fiction,
reviews and pieces you've already completed should ideally be submitted
as Microsoft Word attachments.
Contact Uncle Geoff in the rainy English countryside at
contrib-@sfcrowsnest.com
We still fund this puppy's bandwidth and other miscellaneous expenses
out of our own pocket, so the spirit of volunteerism is about the only
thing that keeps our happy ship in hyperspace. Any time, articles,
stories or reviews you can submit are always appreciated.
Current requirements: MAY 2009
- short fiction
- articles
- comment pieces
- convention reports
- web site reviews
- book reviewers (see below)
- Television reviews ... Stargate, Andromeda, Trek etc
- Movie reviews
- Games reviews ... RPGs, scenarios, wargames etc
- SFF models and figures ... reviews, painting tips, scratchbuilds,
conversions
BTW, if you're interested in becoming a book or DVD reviewer, we'd
really, really (no, really) appreciate it if you were UK-based. Posting
out the hundred of goodies we get every week is an expensive business,
and extra airmail costs could lead to Geoff, Jessica, Mark and Steve
eating dog food in a crazed economy-drive of death. Of course, if you're
based in the US, Canada or Australia and you fancy reviewing your own
drip-feed of goodies resulting from your science fiction and fantasy
addiction, then that okay by us ... but we can't supply you ourselves!
Sorry.
-----------------------------------------
+++ ET AL
-----------------------------------------
Know of any science fiction and fantasy pals who don't yet receive this
fine monthly magazine? Forward it to them and let them quiver in awe of
your highly evolved and very discriminating SFF-loving taste. Then twist
the arms of the little blighters in a cruel-to-be-kind attempt to get
them to subscribe free too!
Add science fiction & fantasy to your Google Toolbar
http://toolbar.google.com/buttons/add?url=http://www.SFcrowsnest.com/googlebutton.xml
Not got Google Toolbar? Click here first...
http://toolbar.google.com/
SFcrowsnest Daily Sci-Fi News via RSS feed
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/rss.xml
| | | | | | OUR ONLINE COMMUNITIES <<<
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SFcrowsnest.com FaceBook Page (the Nest's community on FaceBook )
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=21093694832
Stephen Hunt's Rule Jackelia FaceBook Group (for FaceBook-based fans of
SH's novels)
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=34257537930
Stephen Hunt FaceBook Page (SH's personal page for his FaceBook friends)
http://www.facebook.com/people/Stephen_Hunt/767028254
Stephen Hunt's HiveMind Page (SH's personal page for his HiveMind
friends)
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/profile.php?user=StephenHunt
Stephen Hunt's The Jackelians HiveMind Group (for HiveMind-based fans of
SH's novels)
http://www.sfcrowsnest.com/hivemind/group.php?group_id=1
Stephen Hunt's BookArmy Page (SH's personal page for his BookArmy
friends)
http://www.bookarmy.com/Authors/Stephen_Hunt_Writer_1.aspx
Content is copyright (c) 1991-2009 SFcrowsnest and/or its respective
contributors.
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