Tag Archives: Noir SF

Titanshade is a Meaty, Inventive Fantasy Noir

Posted on March 12, 2019 by H.P.

For a book set in a wildly inventive fantasy world, Titanshade feels damn real.  And not just because they have 8-track players.  Most of the characters fit into well-worn roles—jaded veteran cop, earnest rookie cop, angry police captain, dirty ex-cop, … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Fantasy | Tagged , | 4 Comments

DNF Review of Hex-Rated by Jason Ridler

Posted on August 8, 2017 by H.P.

I had to request an ARC of Hex-Rated as soon as I saw the cover.  The snake, the woman tied to a post, the guy in a cheap blue suit, the font of the title…it’s a little lurid, it’s got … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Fantasy | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Review of Moonshine vol. 1 by Brian Azzarello

Posted on May 31, 2017 by H.P.

Moonshine is a new comic about a Prohibition-era gangster sent deep into the dark hills of Virginia to recruit a hillbilly moonshiner to work for the organization. If the copy and the silhouette on the back cover don’t clue you … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Horror | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Throwback SF Thursday: The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester

Posted on February 9, 2017 by H.P.

Tension, apprehension, and dissension have begun . . . Alfred Bester may have had a touch of psionic ability himself.  The Demolished Man reads like equal parts hardboiled noir and cyberpunk.  It’s tense and taut throughout, if it never quite … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Science Fiction, Throwback SF | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Review of The Dark Side by Anthony O’Neill

Posted on July 13, 2016 by H.P.

I had the pleasure of attending LibertyCon this past weekend.  While I was there I attended a panel on noir and hardboiled detective fiction.  (One of the panelists was Larry Correia, who wrote the excellent noir fantasy Grimnoir Chronicles.)  I’ve … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Science Fiction | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Short Review Roundup – 2014 Hugo Awards Edition

Posted on June 14, 2016 by H.P.

In an effort to clear my backlog of books I’ve read but not reviewed, I’m posting short review roundups.  I already wrote a post on the best of the 2015 books I read that didn’t get Hugo nominations.  Today’s post … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Fantasy, Science Fiction | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Review of Something More Than Night by Ian Tregillis

Posted on March 1, 2016 by H.P.

Ian Tregillis made a very big impression on me with his debut trilogy, the Milkweed Triptych.  Something More Than Night is something completely different.  The Milkweed Triptych was a fantasy pseudo-science-ish time-hopping alternative history.  Something More Than Night is a … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Fantasy | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Review of Killing Pretty (Sandman Slim) by Richard Kadrey

Posted on July 28, 2015 by H.P.

Sandman Slim investigates Death’s death in this hip, propulsive urban fantasy through a phantasmagoric LA rife with murder, mayhem, and magic. James Stark has met his share of demons and angels, on earth and beyond. Now, he’s come face to … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Fantasy | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Review of Pale Realms of Shade by John C. Wright

Posted on July 3, 2015 by H.P.

Pale Realms of Shade starts with a killer opening line—“It was not the being dead that I minded, it was the hours.”  Before he was a ghost, Matthias was the sort of detective who has “silver bullets in [his] gun, … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Fantasy | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Review of The Plural of Helen of Troy by John C. Wright

Posted on July 1, 2015 by H.P.

In Metrachronopolis time is cheap. It’s a city existing outside of time and all of its possible timelines, ruled over absolutely by near omnipotent Time Wardens. The Time Wardens have populated it with people that catch their interest, mostly famous … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Science Fiction | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment