James Nicoll Reviews

Five hundred years ago, magi created a weapon they couldn’t control. An infestation that ate magic — and anything else it came into contact with. Enemies and allies were equally filling. 

Only an elite team of non-magical humans, known as sweepers, can defuse and dispose of infestations before they spread. Most die before they finish training. 

Laura, a new team member, has stayed alive longer than most. Now, she’s the last — and only — sweeper standing between the city and a massive infestation. 

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The author of The Last Unicorn presents thirteen fantastical and mystical stories celebrating the most beloved mythical creature by some of today’s top fantasy authors, including an original tale by Janet Berliner written especially for this edition.

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November

21 books read. 12 by women (57%), 8 by men (38%). 1 by NB (5%).

Works by POC: 5 (24%)

Year to Date

238 books read. 132 by women (55%), 97 by men (41%), 3 by NB (1%). 6 by persons whose gender is unknown (3%). Works by POC: 77.5 (33%) And now, the meaningless table. Numbers drawn from the most recent Strange Horizons Count, which isn’t all that recent anymore. 

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Ambassador Mahit Dzmare arrives in the center of the multi-system Teixcalaanli Empire only to discover that her predecessor, the previous ambassador from their small but fiercely independent mining Station, has died. But no one will admit that his death wasn’t an accident — or that Mahit might be next to die, during a time of political instability in the highest echelons of the imperial court. 

Now, Mahit must discover who is behind the murder, rescue herself, and save her Station from Teixcalaan’s unceasing expansion — all while navigating an alien culture that is all too seductive, engaging in intrigues of her own, and hiding a deadly technological secret — one that might spell the end of her Station and her way of life — or rescue it from annihilation. 

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The United States. 2030. John McDean executive produces ​“Vigilance,” a reality game show designed to make sure American citizens stay alert to foreign and domestic threats. Shooters are introduced into a ​“game environment,” and the survivors get a cash prize. 

The TV audience is not the only one that’s watching though, and McDean soon finds out what it’s like to be on the other side of the camera. 

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In a small religious community rocked by a spree of shocking murders, Detectives Salvi Brentt and Mitch Grenville find themselves surrounded by suspects. The Children of Christ have a tight grip on their people, and the Solme Complex neurally edit violent criminals – Subjugates – into placid servants called Serenes. In a town where purity and sin, temptation and repression live side by side, everyone has a motive. But as the bodies mount up, the frustrated detectives begin to crack under the pressure: their demons are coming to light, and who knows where that blurred line between man and monster truly lies.

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October

22 books read. by women 13.5 (61%), 7.5 by men (34%).1 unknown (5%).

Works by POC: 6 (27%)

Year to Date

217 books read. 120 by women (55%), 89 by men (41%), 2 by NB (1%). 6 by persons whose gender is unknown (3%).

Works by POC: 72.5 (33%) And now, the meaningless table. Numbers drawn from the most recent Strange Horizons Count, which isn’t all that recent anymore. 

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Since she was promoted to the head of the Lords Select Committee on Sanguinary Affairs, every workday for Mhari Murphy has been a nightmare. It doesn’t help that her boss, the new Prime Minister of Britain, is a manipulative and deceptive pain in the butt. But what else can she expect when working under the thumb of none other than the elder god N’yar Lat-Hotep a.k.a the Creeping Chaos? 

Mhari’s most recent assignment takes her and a ragtag team of former Laundry agents across the pond into the depths of North America. The United States president has gone missing. Not that Americans are alarmed. For some mysterious reason, most of the country has forgotten the executive branch even exists. Perhaps it has to do with the Nazgûl currently occupying the government and attempting to summon Cthulhu. 

It’s now up to Mhari and her team to race against the Nazgûl’s vampire-manned dragnet to find and, for his own protection, kidnap the president. 

Who knew an egomaniacal, malevolent deity would have a soft spot for international relations? 

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How to Destroy Civilization and Not Be Boring/

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