Monthly Archives: May 2022

Michael Moorcock – Elric of Melniboné: The Elric Saga, Vol. 1 (review)

Comprising: 7.5/10  – A rather exhaustive, rambly review: Michael Moorcock’s Elric stories are recognised as an essential work of the sword-and-sorcery subgenre, alongside Robert E. Howard’s Conan and Frits Leiber’s Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser series. But Elric is actually … Continue reading

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Review: Aldebaran (1994-1998) by Léo

7/10 Aldebaran (1994-1998) is a science fiction epic, a space opera, that stretches out over a series of 5 volumes that isn’t all that long. The omnibus edition reads as a single graphic novel. It’s one of the most successful … Continue reading

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Review: The Rise and Fall of the Trigan Empire (1965-’82) by Mike Butterworth & Don Lawrence

The Trigan Empire series is one of the most cherished, celebrated series in the history of British comics. Written in the 1960s to ‘80s, it achieved fame mainly in Britain and mainland European countries. The Netherlands in particular embraced the … Continue reading

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Thomas Pynchon – The Crying of Lot 49 (1965) Review

DNF at 40%. I made some notes. This is my first Pynchon – but it is not Pynchon’s first Pynchon, that happens to be the novel V. (1963) but The Crying was his second. It is only 140 pages long … Continue reading

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Michael Swanwick – The Iron Dragon’s Mother (2019) Review

9/10 Swanwick produced us another sparkling, prickly novel. Finalist for the 2020 Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel, but nobody read it. Professional acclaim from peer authors isn’t the problem for Swanwick and he has an impressive list of awards … Continue reading

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13 Mini-Reviews of Movies & Series from 2022

The Power of the Dog (2021). Nominated for 12 oscars. Is it really that good? No. But it is a decent western with a slow story that only becomes clear near the end in a very strong ending. Cumberbatch plays … Continue reading

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Philip K. Dick – Dr. Bloodmoney (1965) Review

7.5/10 Dr. Bloodmoney, Or How We Got Along After the Bomb is the full title of this novel. (Although the full title of my edition seems to be Dr Bloodmoney One of the Most Original Practitioners Writing Any Kind Of … Continue reading

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Review: Guy Delisle – Shenzhen: A Travelogue from China (2003)

3/5 If there is one thing that changed for China over the past few decades, then it is their immense and rapid urbanisation. There are whole cities with millions if not tens of millions of people that many Westerners have … Continue reading

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Steven Erikson – Dust of Dreams (2009) Review

7.5/10 I was so blown away by Toll the Hounds (2008) that it is hard to grasp that there is still more storytelling to follow. But Toll the Hounds was only the penultimate chapter of this giant tale. Yes yes, … Continue reading

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Review: The Hair-Carpet Weavers (1995) by Andreas Eschbach

8.5/10 Follow us to a little village on a faraway planet somewhere among the distant stars. In this village, the profession of hair-carpet weavers is part of an honoured tradition and an essential link in the local economy. Carpet weavers, … Continue reading

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