If you asked me to describe The Mimicking of Known Successes by genre, I’d say it’s a queer science fiction cozy mystery that isn’t quite solarpunk, but I’d almost describe it as solarpunk-adjacent. It’s also a nice, brisk read that doesn’t break 200 pages, so if you’re also looking for a mystery that fits those criteria that you’d like to read when heading out for Thanksgiving (or other upcoming holidays), it’s a good book to pick up.
Read moreThis week I start getting a little caught up with some of the books I’ve read for the Sword & Laser Book Club, with a look at one of the best-selling fantasy novels of 2023 – Fourth Wing.
Quick reminder – I will be attending Kumoricon 2023 next weekend. I’m not paneling this year, but I hope I’ll see you there.
Very few horror films, and I’d consider Silence of the Lambs in that category (in spite of the book it was based on being credited as having killed the horror genre of novels), have won Academy Awards for Best Picture, never mind the level of sweep that Silence of the Lambs took. So, when I was going for a horror film for Halloween, I decided that Silence of the Lambs was the one to go with, as the last time I’d watched it was on a fairly small TV, and on DVD. Since then it’s gotten a 4K release (which is what I watched), and I have a larger TV to watch it on (and also better speakers), so I felt this was a good time to give it a real re-appraisal.
Read moreAs the video title says, I went and bought a car after my old car was totaled at the start of October (more or less) – and I give my thoughts on the process, along with discussing a few things that I think generally removed some of the friction.
The Library at Mount Char was October’s pick for the Sword & Laser book club, as a “Sword” pick (meaning fantasy) and something meant to be mildly horror adjacent (as co-host Veronica Belmont doesn’t handle horror well – which is fine). The book itself is some okay splatter horror with a side of urban fantasy, but it didn’t quite land for me.
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Time to catch up with the book reviews for the Sword & Laser Book Club, with my thoughts on China Mountain Zhang by Maureen F. McHugh.
Read moreI returned to Portland Retro Gaming Expo this year, and gave my thoughts on the con this year.
I finally catch up with the “kidnapper”, just in time for him to reveal the truth as the Dark Presence shows up.
For the first episode of our 2nd year, and for the spooky season, we take a look at the 1985 adaptation of Hideyuki Kikuchi’s first novel in the Vampire Hunter D series.
In 1983, when House of the Long Shadows came out, it was heavily panned by critics of the time as being derivative of the old film “Seven Keys to Broadpate”, that the ending undermined the story, and it didn’t have much for scares. I would argue that the critics of the time were simply not picking up what this movie is putting down.
There will be spoilers below the cut.
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