361. Megan E. O’Keefe (a.k.a. Lady Soapminster) — Velocity Weapon (An Interview)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode361MeganOKeefeVelocityWeapon/SandF–Episode361–Megan_OKeefe_VelocityWeapon.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSSurvival, corporations, and stolen tech, oh my! In today’s episode, Paul Weimer and Daniel Haeusser interview Megan O’Keefe about her new Space Opera novel, Velocity Weapon! But is it a Space Opera? Or is it a heist novel? Perhaps a thriller? No, wait! It’s a time-travel story about the unbreakable bond between siblings! Find out what compelled Megan to tackle Space Opera, how the story evolved into it’s present form, the importance of showing a functioning family unit, why she showed the dark side of a highly advanced society, and so much more! There are some spoilers in the latter half, so watch yourself if you haven’t read the book yet! We hope you enjoy the episode!
Book Review: A SECRET GUIDE TO FIGHTING ELDER GODS edited by Jennifer Brozek
The return of the Lovecraft mythos to fiction and popular culture has been a burgeoning tendency in modern day fiction and culture. From Charles Stross’ Laundry Files to plush Cthulhus, the idea of the Mythos is more well known in popular culture than ever. There has also been a surge and rise in the popularity of YA as a subgenre, with teenagers and young adults navigating some rather perilous territory. It makes sense to me that the perilous territory that YA protagonists face might include encounters with Deep Ones, the Dreamlands, Ghouls, and the other terrors inherent in the Mythos. In addition, many of the stories in Lovecraft’s oeuvre are centered around familial concerns — learning one’s heritage, coming to terms with it, rejecting it, or even being possessed by it. Of course, such family dramas can underpin many YA stories, too. Thus, in A Secret Guide to Fighting Elder Gods, editor Jennifer Brozek marries these two concepts with a selection of stories from a wide range of authors. Like any anthology, the quality and interest of an individual story and author varies for me. Some of the stories stood out for me and showed the promise and possibilities of the form. Overall, I found that the authors and the stories embraced and lived up to the challenge of introducing YA protagonists and themes into the Mythos. The Mythos, upon reflection and after reading these stories, seems to me now like a natural sub-subgenre of fantasy for YA writers to consider.
Book Review: RADICALIZED by Cory Doctorow
Radicalized, the new collection of four novellas by Cory Doctorow, features an uncommon structure for a book. Authors tend to release either standalone novels or collections of short stories. Sure, sometimes they’ll release a standalone novella or include a novella or two in a collection, but I’m not sure I’ve ever read another book composed solely of a handful of novellas before. However, I really enjoyed this structure, and I wish more authors would release books like this. Although the novellas are unconnected and each stand on their own, their interweaving themes of technology, activism, politics, and society work together to make Radicalized a cohesive and powerful collection. And it’s timely too. In a recent interview, Doctorow said that he “didn’t intend to write ANY of these — they got blurted out while I was working on another book.” The stories deal with refugees, police brutality, terrorism, preppers, and other elements of our increasingly dystopian modern world. Since there’s so much to talk about here, I’m going to explore each story individually.
Book Review: THE RAVEN TOWER by Ann Leckie
Ann Leckie is best known for her space opera work in The Ancillary series, a series that uses a first person point of view, pronouns, scope, and perspective to give a fresh and literary spin on that subgenre. I’ve highly enjoyed Leckie’s work in this arena and was excited to discover that she has an interest in writing fantasy as well. In her new novel, The Raven Tower, a second person point of view and experimentation with narrative and protagonists support an interesting turn for the author into fantasy novels. In a world very similar to our own — save that there are Gods — conflicts between city states and other polities run very much like they did in our Earth during the bronze age. Rulers strive for temporal supremacy over important resources and locations alike. Having the favor of a God or two is the “killer app” of warfare and conflict on this world, but when both sides have powerful Gods on their sides, conflicts become more subtle, more complex, and longer lasting. A key strait and a pair of cities on either side provide a venue for men and Gods to war against each other. And the Strength and the Patience of the Hill, a humble God from the far north, watches and patiently waits, even as They (for that is the God’s preferred pronoun) are inevitably drawn into the conflict. It is the God’s story, as refracted into the human protagonist Eolo who provides much of that action that is the heart of Ann Leckie’s story in The Raven Tower.
#05. Crosscurrent – Thrawn and On and On (A Star Wars Literary Podcast)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFThrawnandOnandOn5Crosscurrent/SandF–ThrawnandOnandOn5–Crosscurrent.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSJack up your hyperspace engines and get your Sith bath salts ready! Shaun, Alex, and Kate bounce back in time to the OLD Canon (Legends) for an in-depth discussion of Paul S. Kemp’s Crosscurrent. And “time” really is the word of the day. The crew of this absurdly comical starfreighter take a look at how Kemp’s novel deals with Force users in two drastically different time periods, the role of vengeance and doubt in the battle between the Dark and Light, and even the eccentricities of the Unknown Regions. Plus, this is the first book they’ve read that is downright creepy, so you better believe they’ve got a few things to say about getting the willies while reading a Star Wars novel. We hope you enjoy the episode!
Torture Cinema #90: Kull the Conqueror (1997)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFTortureCinema90KullTheConqueror/SandF–Torture_Cinema_90–Kull_the_Conqueror.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSApe men, nicked bits, and shirtless Sorbo, oh my! Shaun, Stephen, and Daniel join forces to fulfill their dudetastic Torture Cinema destiny by discussing 1997’s Kull the Conqueror (starring Hercules). They discuss the history behind the film, why it fails miserably at just about everything (action, romance, adventure, carefully crafted plots), and what it’s like to contemplate Kevin Sorbo’s bedroom abilities. We’re sorry about this one, folks, but our Patreon supports picked it, and we are bound by honor and blood to fulfill our sacred duties. Join us for this special dudetastic discussion of one of the most horrifically awful action movies of all time! We hope you enjoy the episode!
