28 May, 2012

(short story) Review - The Hundredth Kill by John Marco

I took a bit of a break from my Kindle the last couple months after trying to catch up on some ARCs (with which I'm still not remotely caught up). I'd forgotten how much I enjoy reading on it. Don't get me wrong, I still prefer paper, but the Kindle's not really so bad as I was falsely remembering when I had the paper in my hands.

One of the great things about the Kindle and other eReaders is that horizons are suddenly expanded. There's so much more you can find and read not only because prices are very often cheaper, but also because you can obtain hard-to-find copies (first thing I bought on Kindle was Blade of Tyshalle) and even just read short stories.

Before eReaders, you had to buy a collection of short stories or somehow find them in a magazine or possibly they were published separately. Now, it's easy peasy and everyone seems to be doing it. 

John Marco, the bestselling author of one of my favorite series (as the cover shows), makes his independent publishing debut with this short story, The Hundredth Kill [US - $0.99] [UK-£0.77]. Set against a Japanese and Chinese backdrop. A young boy is on his first voyage, but the excitement has long since worn off. But then he runs into the mysterious lady of the ship and they begin to share stories about Japan, especially about the Samurai and the Nin-sha.

I won't go any further, let's just say it's a short story that's well worth a read. The atmosphere is great and I really thought Marco did a wonderful job with the ten-year-old boy, showing his youth and naïveté about the world and even capturing the questions a ten-year-old would ask.

4.5 out of 5 Stars (More than loved it)

Ps. It's only $0.99, but the author has said he wants it to be free. So if you're patient and constantly check Amazon, you can get it for Free.99. Then again, it's only a buck and a worthy author.

Pps. Also check out John's website, The Happy Nerd. It's one of my favorite author websites, he discusses his own work, but also all the other geeky hobbies he has.

25 May, 2012

Some Guest-Posting of Mine

You're probably already well aware (you know, cause you're cool like that) of Bookworm Blues' month dedicated to disabilities in science fiction and fantasy, titled Special Needs in Strange Worlds. I happened to put together a little piece on the power of overcoming and it's up today.


I've been a big fan of Sarah for a while and her blog just keeps getting better and better. If you haven't already checked out her blog, not to mention the special posts this month, you will not regret a visit (or two or three...).

24 May, 2012

(short story) Review - Sword of Kings by Matthew Iden

“My sword is dying.”

King Andreas was confident, bold, courageous…until his sword–the living symbol of his power–began to crumble in his hands.With his brother Jon by his side, Andreas has little time to find out why the sword, passed down through a hundred generations, is failing now.The answer he finds may save his kingdom, but at a terrible price.

Sword of Kings is a 4,100 word short story of high fantasy. Included in this volume is a Story Notes essay detailing the thought process and background behind the writing of the work.

This short story was recommended to me by an avowed "dislike[r]" of fantasy. I am always extremely wary when this happens.

And that's for one BIG reason.

I'm a HUGE fan (and I mean HUGE, the all CAPS doesn't even do it justice) of fantasy. Therefore, if someone doesn't like fantasy and says they like a certain fantasy... I should HATE it, right?

Well, I'm happy to say this logic, while usually spot-on (of course), did not win the day in this instance. Sword of Kings [US] [UK] was a great story with a great ending. One of those endings where you go, I really should have seen that coming, the author was pretty much beating me over the head with it and yet I DIDN'T SEE IT COMING.

Well worth the thirty minutes it would take to read and the $.99 for the eBook.

4 out of 5 Stars (Loved it)

22 May, 2012

K. J. Parker's True Identity Discovered!

Okay, this might not be fully true,  but you can't argue with this kind of logic:

http://sffmania.com/general/213-mazarkis-williams-is-k-j-parker