Category Archives: Speculative Fiction

Pamela Dean’s retelling of the Scottish ballad Tam Lin is set at a Minnesota college in the 1970s. Janet, whose father teachers at the college, is beginning her studies there when she and her roommates, Tina and Molly, become involved … Continue reading →

In the near-future of Leni Zumas’s novel, abortion is again illegal in the United States, in vitro fertilization is banned, and soon only married people will be able to adopt children. That is the world that the four women of Red … Continue reading →

There’s a good chance you already know the premise of this novel by Naomi Alderman. It has, after all, garnered lots of attention and was the winner of the 2017 Women’s Prize. The moment was clearly right for a book … Continue reading →

This is the fourth book that I’ve read by Joe Hill, and with this NOS4A2 and The Fireman, I feel comfortable saying that he is well on his way to becoming a favorite author. (The Heart-Shaped Box was also excellent but a … Continue reading →

This odd little book by Shane Jones is set in a small town where it is always February and flight is forbidden. It wasn’t always this way. The town once had a lively tradition of ballooning, and many of the … Continue reading →

Connie Willis’s Crosstalk falls into the category of her comic novels, like To Say Nothing of the Dog and Bellwether and Inside Job. These are basically screwball romantic comedies, with a lot of slapstick and rushing around and last-minute rescues … Continue reading →

Almost exactly two years ago, I finished N.K. Jemisin’s Inheritance trilogy, which is all about gods and race and class and religion. Her plotting is Byzantine, but her characterization is terrific, and I heard nothing but praise for her Broken … Continue reading →