#AmReading… A Spark of White Fire

It’s good, a space opera/fantasy mashup with gods and sentient spaceships, but… I’m conflicted. I made the mistake of reading the blurbs of the other books in the trilogy and I’m not getting happily ever after vibes, and that is not fun.

We all know how I ❤️ Happy Endings.

The Fantastic Next Door: John Paul Catton on Writing Other Cultures

BELINDA: Tell us about Voice of the Sword.  JOHN: Voice of the Sword is Book One of the “Sword, Mirror, Jewel” trilogy, starring Japanese-American teenager Reiko Furukawa Bergman, based on updated characters and stories from Japanese mythology, legend and folklore. It’s for an age range for twelve upwards, and I call it Science Fantasy, not … Read more

Floating Cities & Microchips: LJ Higgins on the Science in Sci-Fi

BELINDA: Tell us about the science in the Dreamer Trilogy, Secrets of Aurora, and Skywatchers. LJ: In the Dreamer Trilogy everyone has a microchip implanted in their wrists which holds their personal and banking information. When it’s partnered with a Wristcuff (Device worn around the implant area) the wearer is promised pleasant dreams, better health … Read more

A Commentary on Humanity: Russell Nohelty on Non-Human Characters

Man watching a UFO

Russell Nohelty’s Invasion is a sci-fi coming-of-age story about a boy (Johny) meeting a girl (Debra) in the midst of an alien invasion. And the kicker? Debra’s not human. BELINDA: Tell us about Debra. RUSSELL: Debra is an alien that has spent her entire life on Earth. Her parents came to Earth to start a … Read more

[D&B Vol. 1] Episode 006

Tellamoth’s face darkened. ‘That’s not my name.’ ‘Do I look like I care?’ ‘You should.’ ‘Why?’ He said nothing, but anger worked his face, pulling the dark lines of his brows together and compressing his lips. The spell holding Byrne in place cracked a little more. She sneered. ‘Demon lord got your tongue?’ He snarled, … Read more

[D&B Vol. 01] Episode 005

The demon blood had stiffened on her battle tights. It flaked away in small patches, covering the cell’s wooden bench in spots of darkness every time she shifted. Her thighs hurt from laying on the hard surface, her hips and shoulders too, all those soft points objecting to a night spent in close contact with … Read more

[D&B Vol. 1] Episode 004

‘Sword Uthor!’ She barely heard Della yelling behind her, deliberately shut her ears to the power of her friend’s voice, to the command in the name she’d left behind when she’d stuck a knife in her own heart and launched herself into new life. Not again. Not again. Not again. The chant matched the pound … Read more

[D&B Vol 01.] Episode 003

Another lifetime. Another war they couldn’t win because her sister and Empress fell for the same pretty face. Suun had kept Nova alive long enough for the paramedics to find them. The woman and her partner had both had the calm, stoic expressions of those who had seen it all, but Byrne had recognised the … Read more

Sci-fi books on my TBR pile

Like a lot of bookworms, my to-be-read pile is huge, like monster kanji huge. Genre-wise there’s just about everything in there, from romance to action, crime and (of course) almost every shade of sci-fi and fantasy you can imagine. Here are a few of the sci-fi ones I’m really looking forward to reading. Descriptions from … Read more