The Carpetmaker’s Son by Andreas Eschbach

The Carpet Makers is one of my favorite sf books of the last twenty years, and I do not say Continue reading →

Mrs. Todd’s Shortcut by Stephen King

I wouldn’t call this a horror story. Granted, there’s something quite unsettling about the titular shortcut, a sense of the Continue reading →

Blessed by Helen Marshall

Sometimes I finish a collection of stories and I’m at a loss to choose which to talk about, because there Continue reading →

Lean Times in Lankhmar by Fritz Leiber

Time to admit a heresy. This year I began reading for the first time the sword and sorcery adventures of Continue reading →

Catskin by Kelly Link

The previous fantasy I discussed may have gone to odd and surreal places, but it did so one after another Continue reading →

The Music from Behind the Moon by James Branch Cabell

Lately I’ve been enjoying Philip Pullman’s new translation/distillation of Grimms’ Fairy Tales, one tale before bed for fifty nights running. Continue reading →

The Man who Carved Skulls by Richard Parks

My first thought on seeing this was, ‘Aha, I’ve been meaning to read more by the author of The Tourist.‘ Continue reading →

The Fortress Unvanquishable, Save for Sacnoth by Lord Dunsany

When looking for the origins of the sword and sorcery subgenre of fantasy, today’s story is not a bad possibility. Continue reading →