The City & The City and This Census-Taker, reviewed and reviewed.
Read moreThe Unbearable Lightness of Undermajordomo Minor
Patrick deWitt uses the tropes of the fairy tale to stumble into the tropes of the postmodern novel.
Read moreHey, Disney, Thanks for the Star Wars Tribute Movie, The Force Awakens!
The Force Awakens is both a loving tribute to the first Star Wars movie and a nod to how the world has progressed since the ‘70’s. The heroine, Rey, is a tough, young woman whose sidekick is Finn, a black ex-stormtrooper. There are also a conflicted villain, Kylo Ren; a cute droid, BB-8; a dusty desert planet; a hero’s call to action…The Unbound Writers have plenty to say about it.
Read moreRules Are For Fools - Evidence: Patrick Rothfuss's THE NAME OF THE WIND
The Name of the Wind (2007), by Patrick Rothfuss
At more than a quarter million words, Patrick Rothfuss's first book of the Kingkiller Chronicle trilogy, THE NAME OF THE WIND, defied the rules for a first novel and not only got published but debuted at #11 on the New York Times Best Seller list. In October 2015 it was optioned by Lionsgate for a movie, TV series and video game. How did he do it? A far-out Jedi mind trick? CH Lips has some ideas.
Read moreCinéma Multivérité: Catherynne M. Valente's RADIANCE, Reviewed
What's truth, in a decopunk alt-history novel about movies about alien whales? Lisa Mahoney and Theodore McCombs review Catherynne M. Valente's stunning Radiance.
Read moreSidekicks: A Speculative Fiction Anthology for MileHiCon
Sidekicks is available on Amazon - perfect gift for the speculative fan on your list.
Sidekicks have always remained in the shadow of the hero...until now. MileHiCon's first speculative fiction anthology knocks it out of the park!
Read moreThe Heart Goes Last
Fiction Unbounders come together for a pile-on review of Margaret Atwood's latest, The Heart Goes Last
Read moreArmada: Ernest Cline, Puzzle Master, Writes Again
Ernest Cline's newest release gives gamers everywhere something to fight for: bragging rights for saving the Earth from total annihalation.
Read moreMarisha Pessl’s NIGHT FILM, Ann Radcliffe’s THE ITALIAN, and the Legacy of the Gothic Romance
How does the modern Gothic novel stack up against 1797's finest? Fiction Unbound uncovers some dark secrets.
Read moreSarah Pinborough in America
Who knows what kind of story Sarah Pinborough is going to share next, but you can bet it will be packed tight with ideas and it will probably have some darkness lurking in the heart of it.
Read moreThe Origamist: César Aira’s Folded Fictions
The Musical Brain, a new collection by Argentine avant-gardist César Aira, reviewed. With monkeys.
Read moreThe Dead Lands: An Apocalyptic Summer Road Trip
A review of Benjamin Percy's The Dead Lands: excellent summer reading.
Read moreInvasion of the Tearling -- on Secret-Keeping and Tearling as Moses
The second book of Erika Johansen's trilogy, published by HarperCollins in June of 2015.
"The Invasion of the Tearling" is the second book in Erika Johansen’s "The Queen of the Tearling" trilogy. We discuss character and story development, biblical allusions...and propose spoiler-ridden speculations about the upcoming final book.
Read moreABOVE US ONLY SKY: An Interview With Author Michele Young-Stone
Prudence Vilkas was born with wings in 1973 Nashville. The doctors said they were a birth defect and her wings were surgically removed leaving small scars on her shoulders. But the ghost of her wings remains and ties her to generations of winged women across the sea. Author Michele Young-Stone and CS Peterson sit down to talk about winged women, historic horror, transcendence and the craft of writing.
Read moreSpeculative Slavery: Two PYMs and an Irritating Hologram
Illustration for The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, A.D. McCormick (1898).
A look at how slavery haunts the speculative imagination, from Mat Johnson's Pym to Star Trek: Voyager's holographic Doctor.
Read moreGraphic Novels and Comics We Heartily Recommend
In anticipation of Denver ComicCon 2015, the Unbound Writers appreciate some of the best comics and graphic speculative fiction around. See you at the Con!
Read moreQueen of the Tearling: Strong Women Rule
What happens when a strong-willed teenaged queen confronts the corrupt rule of a neighboring queen? The Unbound Writers followed and admired Kelsea's heroic journey from obscurity to power and generosity.
Read more"The Buried Giant": A Quest to Remember
Kazuo Ishiguro's latest novel, The Buried Giant, follows an elderly Briton couple, Axl and Beatrice, as they travel through a vaguely Arthurian landscape of ogres, pixies, and a mist that makes everyone forget—which, given the generations of bloodshed between Britons and Saxons, may not be such a bad thing. Unbound Writers Lisa Mahoney, Theodore McCombs, CS Peterson, and Mark Springer debate whether the novel is, you know, good.
Read moreGOLDEN SON Swings Hard – and Then It Swings Hard Again
This solid sequel to Red Rising never slows down, but the turns are pretty hard.
Read moreThirty Birds Make a Man: Porochista Khakpour's THE LAST ILLUSION
Zal, the hero of Porochista Khakpour’s The Last Illusion, must remind himself again and again he is “not a bird not a bird not a bird.” Our protagonist’s conflict is a wonderfully specific one.
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