Book Review Teaser :: Foop! by Chris Genoa

Chris Genoa's first novel Foop! is, according to our reviewer Aaron, an impressive first novel. If you like bizarre SF humor, you might want to look for this book from a small publisher.

From Aaron Hughes' review of Foop!:
"Foop! is Chris Genoa's first novel and it comes from a small publisher, Eraserhead Press. Nevertheless, Genoa is going to be a major success, and I'll tell you how I know: People like to laugh, and Chris Genoa is fucking hilarious.

Foop! is a bizarre romp through time, chock-full of laugh-out-loud moments, effectively blending black comedy with slapstick. Like all the best humorists, Genoa delivers comedy in ways that resonate on a deeper level than mere punch lines.

The book begins with our first-person protagonist Joe (no last name) leading a time traveling tour group to watch the assassination of Abraham Lincoln...."

To read the entire review:
Foop!

Book Review Teaser :: Blue Wizard Is About to Die by Seth "Fingers" Flynn Barkan

And here's something completely different, a review of a book of poems about electronic games titled Blue Wizard Is About to Die. As this book is not science fiction, fantasy, or horror, we categorize this as a "related interest review".

From Aaron Hughes' review of Blue Wizard Is About to Die:
"Blue Wizard Is About to Die is a book of poetry about electronic games, from the classic arcade video games like Pac Man to home systems such as the Play Station 2. We thought this might be of interest to Fantastic Reviews readers, since many science fiction and fantasy readers are also electronic gamers. Then again, we don't wish to neglect those readers who are not. Accordingly, we are providing two slightly different versions of the review of Blue Wizard Is About to Die, one for readers who play (or used to play) video games and one for readers who do not."

To read the review(s):
Blue Wizard Is About to Die

Book Review Teaser :: Specimen Days by Michael Cunningham

Specimen Days is a science fiction book shelved in fiction because it's written by a well-known author. Perhaps it will get some literary types, who don't read genre fiction, to unknowingly read some science fiction.

From Aaron Hughes' review of Specimen Days:
"Michael Cunningham's Specimen Days continues the recent trend of respected mainstream writers dabbling in science fiction, even if their works are never published as science fiction."

"Specimen Days is comprised of three novellas, each set in a different time period, each involving characters enthralled by the poetry of Walt Whitman. (The title Specimen Days is taken from Whitman's autobiography.) This structure very closely parallels Cunningham's Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Hours...it combines narratives in different time periods, extending from the past, through the present, into the future. The last of the three novellas in Specimen Days is set well in the future...By my definition, this makes Specimen Days as a whole science fiction, since the science fiction elements are crucial to the story..."

To read the entire review:
Specimen Days

Book Review Teaser :: Chainfire by Terry Goodkind

Chainfire is the latest novel from fantasy author Terry Goodkind. Our reviewer, Gary Romero, enjoyed it and is looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

From Gary Romero's review of Chainfire:
Chainfire is the latest entry in Terry Goodkind's best selling fantasy series, "The Sword of Truth." With this amazing entry, he begins a trilogy meant to complete the undeniably popular series...."

"Terry Goodkind has an incredible talent for creating characters that feel real and are easy to connect with, and places them in an enjoyable, page turning story. His character, Richard, has common sense and his views on life and leadership make him a person we all hope to parallel. Those who are already familiar with the "Sword of Truth" series will be ecstatic to find that all (with one important exception: more on that later) of the characters from past books - Zed, Nicci, Carla and even some of the other Mord-Sith - are all back in this more than worthy sequel."

To read the entire review:
Chainfire

Book Review Teaser :: Shelby and the Shifting Rings by A.M. Veillon

Shelby and the Shifting Rings is a young adult fantasy/mystery/adventure book with a spunky female protagonist. Fantastic Reviews book reviewer Jackie Sachen Turner found it entertaining and wholesome, try it you might like it.

From Jackie Sachen Turner's review of Shelby and the Shifting Rings:
"Shelby and the Shifting Rings: Book One -- Defender of Time Series is A. M. Veillon's first novel, which won third place in the SouthWest Writers 2004 Contest under the "Middle Grade and Young Adult Novels" category. This entertaining, time-travel fantasy follows 12-year-old orphaned Shelby Shodworth, heroine extraordinaire, as she discovers more about her family, friends, and reality, while solving a family mystery."

To read the entire review:
Shelby and the Shifting Rings

Book Review Teaser :: Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Never Let Me Go is a book by a name author, which is can be found in book stores shelved in mainstream fiction, that's actually science fiction. Fantastic Reviews book reviewer Aaron Hughes recommends it. He think's it's worth a look.

From Aaron Hughes' review of Never Let Me Go:
"Never Let Me Go by Japanese-born Englishman Kazuo Ishiguro, award-winning author of The Remains of the Day, is a very good science fiction novel....Never Let Me Go is entirely premised upon the existence of a technology that does not yet exist in reality. That makes it science fiction, in the same way The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells is science fiction. What's more, Never Let Me Go is set in an alternate universe in which history has taken a different course, which also makes it science fiction, just as The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick (in which the Allies lost World War II) is science fiction."

To read the entire review:
Never Let Me Go

Book Review Teaser :: Eragon by Christopher Paolini

On Fantastic Reviews, the review for Eragon is the most visited review. This fantasy book by Christopher Paolini, first of a trilogy, is very popular with young-adults. In 2006 Eragon will be major movie release.

From Aaron Hughes' review of Eragon:
"A recent Paul Collins article in The Believer called "Read the Book That You Are Reading" urged reviewers to judge books only by their texts, disregarding any prior knowledge they have of the authors. I generally agree with this sentiment, but I would be doing Christopher Paolini no favors by following Collins' advice here. Now nineteen, Christopher Paolini wrote most of Eragon when he was only fifteen and sixteen, and the highest praise I can give the novel is to say that it is a remarkable effort for a sixteen-year-old."

To read the entire review:
Eragon