EUROPE AFTER THE RAIN
Here’s something I know will scare off quite a few of my readers: an overtly experimental novel about a post-apocalyptic England.
DOG BLOOD
David Moody’s HATER was one of the 2009’s most vital and arresting genre novels. DOG BLOOD is the long-awaited follow-up, and the middle book of a projected trilogy. As such it bears the problems of most middle books/films, namely that it functions as a bridge between the first and last parts, and so isn’t entirely satisfying as a stand-alone story. Nevertheless, it definitely has its moments.
THE DEVIL’S POPESS
This wild and strange novella was initially published in French back in 1931. According to the 1999 introduction by Alastair Brotchie, the accredited authors “Jehan Sylvius” and “Pierre de Ruysnes” are pseudonymous; its actual authors may or may not be the surrealist scribes Robert Desnos and Ernest de Gengenbach. As Brotchie smartly concludes, “Whoever the authors were, they evidently enjoyed themselves.”
DEATH AND DESIRE IN THE AGE OF WOMEN
In this, his second publication of 2011, Calvillo has created a bold and idiosyncratic fictional riff on the concept of female empowerment. DEATH AND DESIRE very nearly equals its forerunners, and just about any other recent novel, in provocation and manic invention.
THE CITY
A rare foray into graphic novel scripting by novelist James Herbert, and the fourth part of Herbert’s Rats saga (which commenced with the novels THE RATS, LAIR and DOMAIN). In truth this book is pretty slight, coming off as a so-so short story presented as a 64-page comic. Yet I do recommend it. Why? Because the illustrator is the immensely talented Ian Miller, who was quite inspired here.
BLACK GLASS
For those of us who thought cyberpunk was dead, here’s proof to the contrary
THE BLACK CORRIDOR
As dark a sci fi tale as any I’ve ever read
AUTUMN
About this zombie thriller, an early effort by HATER’S supremely talented David Moody, I’ve got good news and bad news.
APOCALYPSE
An early novel by the popular fantasist Nancy Springer that reads like a more fanciful WITCHES OF EASTWICK. It’s pretty good, too, with many pleasingly imaginative touches and an enjoyable feminist-minded narrative packed with a goodly amount of death, destruction and scary monsters.
Eighties Nuke Movies
Nuclear war, as we all well know, has been the subject of many a movie