Book Review: SHE’S A KILLER by Kirsten McDougall
“In She’s a Killer, Kirsten McDougall writes a near-future dystopia that does explore these layers of colonization and control, but the core of the novel rests on the personality/psychology of her protagonist and an overall satirical tone that balances the comedic and the disturbing.”
778. R.O.T.O.R. (1987) — Torture Cinema #142
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/sand-f-778-rotor/SandF_778_ROTOR.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSBad boy robots, cop mustaches, and lassos, oh my! Shaun Duke and Daniel Haeusser join forces to discuss 1987’s R.O.T.O.R! Together, they try to unravel its dystopian vision of Dallas, Texas, why it chose to use a strange dub for the main character, what the police do in this hellscape, and the terrors of very bad robots chasing people who don’t know how to run. Plus, more! Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the episode!
Mining the Genre Asteroid: Another ambiguous Utopia: Stanislaw Lem’s Return from the Stars
So you see, Return from the Stars is a most ambiguous Utopia, indeed, and anyone who reads The Dispossessed (and if you haven’t yet, you should go fix that, too) should also read Return from the Stars and ponder its questions.
BOOK REVIEW: SORDIDEZ BY E.G. CONDÉ
Within these two apocalyptic settings where all four of the Horsemen of Revelation ride, the stories of three protagonists intertwine via multiple points of views and narrative voices (first- and third-person). In both Puerto Rico and in the Yucatán, these characters face their dystopic present to envision positive Indigenous-led futures enacted by purposeful decolonization and embrace of their ancestral ways.
Book Review: Dehiscent by Ashley Deng
Dehiscent has a form of New Weird that combines eco-horror with what might be considered cozy horror, despite unsettling themes of the prison that can form from the recognition of privilege while feeling powerless to change it. With rich, quiet atmosphere and an exceptionally compelling and realistic, empathetic protagonist, Deng lifts a mirror to our current lives to reflect a fantastic image of how divisions of humanity would continue.
736. Iori Kusano (a.k.a. No “L”s Iori) — Hybrid Heart
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/sand-f-736-iori-kusano/SandF_736_Iori_Kusano.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSMass surveillance, dystopian industries, and music, oh my! Shaun Duke and Brandon O’Brien are joined by our friend and wicked good author, Iori Kusano, to discuss their new novella, Hybrid Heart! Together, they tackle Japan’s Idol industry, our very real fears (and very current future) of mass surveillance by corporations, and much more! Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoy the episode!
