Invisible Armies: An Epic History of Guerrilla Warfare from Ancient Times to the Present A compelling survey of irregular warfare from the pre-Christian era to the present, “Invisible Armies” covers both guerrilla fighting, which Boot calls “the oldest form of warfare,” and terrorism, which he considers “strikingly modern.” While exhaustively researched, this is not a […]
Read more "“Invisible Armies” by Max Boot"The Hour of Daydreams A gorgeously surreal story of a woman who may or may not be an angel, and the family she affects. Manolo is a small-town doctor in Manlapaz, the Philippines, who one day encounters an angel bathing in the river. Or is she just an ordinary girl running away from a future […]
Read more "“The Hour of Daydreams” by Renee Macalino Rutledge"Fantasy “Behind The Scenes” Tour – Stop #6 “Behind The Scenes: Lizzie Borden Zombie Hunter” by C.A. Verstraete The word fantasy often conjures up images of fairies, swords, wizards, and tales in different dimensions. But like any genre, there also is a dark side. Mention dark fantasy and the images change to blood, vampires, surreal […]
Read more "“Behind the Scenes: Lizzie Borden Zombie Hunter” by C.A. Verstraete"Eagles in the Storm (Eagles of Rome) The year is AD 15, and Senior Centurion Lucius Cominius Tullus is in the wilderlands of Germany, where he and his men are fighting ragtag but wily German tribes. Six years ago Arminius, one of the wiliest of the Germans, defeated the Romans, including Tullus, and stole the […]
Read more "“Eagles in the Storm” by Ben Kane"The Swordswoman Melcorka thinks she is just a simple island girl with no father. Then the Norse invade Alba, and Melcorka loses everything she thought she had–and gains much more. “The Swordswoman” takes part in the popular genre of semi-historical fantasy novels. Melcorka lives in what is recognizably medieval Scotland, but magic swords exist (Melcorka […]
Read more "“The Swordswoman” by Malcolm Archibald"Misfortunes of T-Funk, Book 1: (Built-in Music Edition) Long-time friends and musical collaborators Theo and Judah, now in their late 20s and getting by on dead-end jobs and part-time gigs, start music school together. What follows is the story, not of sudden success, but of the ups and downs of musicians who haven’t really hit […]
Read more "“Misfortunes of T-Funk, Book 1” by Barnaby Hazen"The Same Old Story A young idealist leaves his hovering mother behind to go change the world, only to find the world less than eager to be changed. Crushed at a couple of minor setbacks, he falls into a deep depression, and recovers only to become obsessed with money and material success.The story of one […]
Read more "“The Same Old Story” by Ivan Goncharov; trans. Stephen Pearl"Grass Shoots: A tender African Love Story “Grass Shoots” covers an interconnected group of people in modern-day Kenya as they negotiate the country’s ups and downs. The title refers to a charitable organization that one of the characters organizes, and suggests the novel’s hopeful message, that of change that begins at the local level and […]
Read more "“Grass Shoots” by Jane Bwye"Starburst (Women of the Grey) (Volume 1) Operating somewhere on the border between horror, suspense, and sci-fi, “Starburst: Women of the Grey” is deceptively simple and yet creepily riveting. The narrative alternates between Lisa, Craig, Maggie, Rafael, and Iggy. We gradually learn that Lisa belongs to a non-human (but humanoid in appearance) all-female group called […]
Read more "“Starburst: Women of the Grey” by Carol James Marshall"Elite Fighter II – Quickie: Qui-Mu’s Tale (Tales of Gentalia Book 8) Oh goodness! It’s hard to pick a favorite amongst the zany Tales of Gentalia, but “Elite Fighter II” is awfully good. It relies in part on in-jokes and cameos from the other Tales and the Annals, so if you haven’t read those, you […]
Read more "“Elite Fighter II–Quickie: Qui-Mu’s Tale” by CB Archer"
E. P. Clark: Author, Book Reviewer, and All-Around Literary Handiwoman 