Review: Rollback by Robert J. Sawyer

Robert J. Sawyer is a multi-award winning Canadian author who needs little introduction. Rollback, his 17th novel, originally published in 2007, is set mainly in Toronto in 2047. There are also substantial sections set in 2009, when the first extra-terrestrial message is received on earth, and during the years leading-up to the arrival of that message. Key to both periods is Dr Sarah Halifax, radio astronomer and tenured professor…

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Anthology Review: Twin Cities Speculation

Have you ever been to Minnesota? Neither have I but if this anthology is any indication, it isn’t lacking in creative prowess. Twin Cities Speculation is a new collection of stories put out by a group called the Minnesota Speculative Fiction Writers

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Book Review: The Shadow Academy by Adrian Cole

As end of the world stories go, this book has an interesting premise. A worldwide plague is a very popular idea and when Cole flips the premise on its ear at the end with his secret revelation, he provides new ways to look at both science and civilization.

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Book Review: Virtual Vengeance by Thomas JJ Starr

The book starts well, with a scene of the main character, Russian Yuri Petrov, hacking people’s credit card information; he and his friend end up in big trouble with the police when they hack the wrong person’s account. It is a tense, tautly written scene with a real kick at the end.

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Comic Review: Tomie, Volume I – Junji Ito

Tomei, Volume I is a collection of the first six Tomie stories by Junji Ito. Ito is a master of the horror manga genre, author of three aclaimed series, Uzumake, Gyu, and Tomie, which spawned a series of movies, running nine strong

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Review: Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

It doesn’t seem like it should be that hard to make a piece of big budget entertainment which doesn’t skimp on brains or heart while ignoring the siren call of camp or bad humor. It doesn’t seem like it should be that hard, but apparently it is, so let’s cherish it where we find it.

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