Blog Archive
December 2018
Mon Dec 31
A Horse Between Worlds: The Mystical Side of Sleipnir
by Judith Tarr
What Mister Rogers Taught Us About Storytelling
by Robert Repino
The Emotional Journey of Writing Fantasy
by Rachel Hartman
Wonder Woman Was the Hero I Really Wanted To Be
by Charlie Jane Anders
Sat Dec 29
Black Mirror: Bandersnatch Is Its Own Perfect Example of the Illusion of Free Will
by Natalie Zutter
Fri Dec 28
All the New Genre-Bending Books Coming Out in January!
by Tor.com
Gingerbread Bricks, Cherry-Eating Cats, and Other Culinary Disasters
by Patricia A. McKillip
Movies We’re Looking Forward to in 2019!
by Stubby the Rocket
“I make this look good” — The Men in Black Trilogy
by Keith R.A. DeCandido
All the New Young Adult SFF Books Coming Out in January!
by Tor.com
What It’s Like Watching Star Wars for the First Time
by Ava Jarvis
Thu Dec 27
All the New Science Fiction Books Coming Out in January!
by Tor.com
Why I’m Obsessed with the Outlander Theme Song(s)
by Natalie Zutter
All the Genre Television We’re Looking Forward to in 2019
by Stubby the Rocket
“The enemy of my enemy is my enemy” — Dick Tracy (1990)
by Keith R.A. DeCandido
100 SF/F Books You Should Consider Reading in the New Year
by James Davis Nicoll
Wed Dec 26
All the New Fantasy Books Coming Out in January!
by Tor.com
The Books We’re Looking Forward to in 2019
by Stubby the Rocket
She-Devil with an Accent — Red Sonja
by Keith R.A. DeCandido
Six Means of SF Transportation You Should Probably Avoid
by James Davis Nicoll
Read the First 11 Chapters of Jenn Lyons’ The Ruin of Kings
by Tor.com
Tue Dec 25
Watch the First Trailer for Jordan Peele’s New Horror Film Us
by Stubby the Rocket
A Charlie Brown Christmas Searches for Truth in a Complicated Holiday
by Leah Schnelbach
Mon Dec 24
“I, Cthulhu, or, What’s A Tentacle-Faced Thing Like Me Doing In A Sunken City Like This (Latitude 47° 9′ S, Longitude 126° 43′ W)?”
by Neil Gaiman
Have Yourself a Cosmic Little Christmas with 6 Intergalactic Holiday Specials
by Leah Schnelbach
Culture Wars in Andre Norton’s Eye of the Monster
by Judith Tarr
I Hear Santa’s Sleigh: On The Polar Express and What It Means to Believe
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
Fri Dec 21
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’s Christmas Album is Real, and Heckin’ Jolly
by Leah Schnelbach
5 Fun and Funny Reads to Escape the Hectic Holidays
by Lish McBride
Rankin/Bass’s The Hobbit Showed Us the Future of Pop Culture
by Austin Gilkeson
Apocalypse, Not Now — X-Men: Apocalypse
by Keith R.A. DeCandido
Reading The Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Young Adult Novels
by Alvaro Zinos-Amaro
Let’s Remake the Star Wars Holiday Special
by Jeremy Shipp
Sometimes You Have to Stop and Eat the Flowers — A Spoiler-Filled Review of Aquaman
by Keith R.A. DeCandido
Thu Dec 20
Evil Rites of Passage: Runaways Season 2 Premiere “Gimmie Shelter”
by Natalie Zutter
Snapshots of a Future: Stronger, Faster, And More Beautiful by Arwen Elys Dayton
by Liz Bourke
The Conjury of the Written Word in The Reader and Resurrection of Magic Series
by Thea James
A Meditation on Forests, Life, and Art: Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Fir Tree”
by Mari Ness
Back to the Old Ways: The Yngling by John Dalmas
by Alan Brown
Die Hard is Great, but Shane Black is the King of Christmas Explosions
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth Are Out of This World in the First Trailer for Men in Black: International
by Stubby the Rocket
Oathbringer Reread: Interlude Six—Venli
by Alice Arneson, Lyndsey Luther and Aubree Pham
Wed Dec 19
Stormlight Book Four, and 5 Other Updates from Brandon Sanderson
by Stubby the Rocket
All the Whos Down in Whoville Are (Probably) Aliens
by Ryan Britt
Watch the First Trailer for the Hellboy Reboot
by Stubby the Rocket
I Ain’t Got No Body: Amos Tutuola’s “The Complete Gentleman”
by Ruthanna Emrys and Anne M. Pillsworth
The Cold Is in Her Bones
by Peternelle van Arsdale
A Matter of Life and Death Deserves a Place on Your Holiday Watch-list Alongside It’s A Wonderful Life
by Leah Schnelbach
5 Things Obi-Wan Kenobi Should Have Told Luke Skywalker (Instead of LIES)
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
Our 10 Favorite Episodes of SFF Television This Year
by Stubby the Rocket
Five Classic SF Novels of Anthropogenic Climate Change
by James Davis Nicoll
Tue Dec 18
5 Groundbreaking Urban Fantasies With Unusual Settings
by Mercedes Lackey
Sleeps With Monsters: Swords and Salvage
by Liz Bourke
Announcing Ormeshadow, the Debut Novella from Priya Sharma
by Ruoxi Chen
We Soldier On: Checking In With Outlander, “Down the Rabbit Hole”
by Natalie Zutter
How To Make Beer With Only What You Can Grow On A Generation Ship
by Arkady Martine
7 Books That Helped Me Survive 2018
by Sarah Gailey
Reading The Ruin of Kings: Chapters 10 and 11
by Leigh Butler
The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons: Chapters 10 and 11
by Jenn Lyons
Reading the Wheel of Time: The Truth You Hear in Robert Jordan’s The Great Hunt (Part 21)
by Sylas K Barrett
Mon Dec 17
Riding the White Horse Into the West
by Judith Tarr
Rereading the Vorkosigan Saga: Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance, Chapters 16-19
by Ellen Cheeseman-Meyer
Syfy’s Nightflyers Adaptation Makes Too Many Storytelling Mistakes
by Erin Lindsey
Good Omens, Part 9: It’s the End of the World as We Know It, And I Feel Fine
by Meghan Ball
Star Wars is Really a Cautionary Tale About Devoting All Technological Advancements to Death
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
Five Works of Hard Science Fiction That Bypass the Gatekeepers
by James Davis Nicoll
Announcing the Tor.com Short Fiction Newsletter
by Tor.com
Glen Cook’s The Black Company Is Grimdark, But Never Hopeless
by Drew McCaffrey
Fri Dec 14
The Stan Lee Cameo in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a Perfect Farewell
by Leah Schnelbach
Mortal Engines Is This Close to Being a Good Movie
by Molly Templeton
Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse is the Only Spider Movie This World Ever Needed
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
Past is Prologue — X-Men: Days of Future Past
by Keith R.A. DeCandido
The 7 Best Non-Traditional Christmas Carol Adaptations
by Ryan Britt
Xenozoic Tales is the Epic Dinosaur Movie We Deserve
by Brian Switek
Best Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy of 2018
by Alex Brown
Thu Dec 13
Five Books With Distinct Flavors
by Cassandra Khaw
New Trailer for Season 2 of Star Trek: Discovery Shows Spock’s Smile
by Stubby the Rocket
Destiny and Choices: Julie Dao’s Rise of the Empress Duology
by Feliza Casano
A Thin But Frosty Modern Fairy Tale: “Frosty the Snowman”
by Mari Ness
A Love Letter to Murderbots, Hamster Princesses, and Other Cute Reads
by Ellen Cheeseman-Meyer
The Speculative Worlds of William Shakespeare
by A.J. Hartley
Oathbringer Reread: Interlude Five—Taravangian
by Alice Arneson, Lyndsey Luther and Aubree Pham
Wed Dec 12
We Want to Join Spider-Man’s Book Club!
by Stubby the Rocket
Just Being Nosy: China Miéville’s “Details”
by Anne M. Pillsworth and Ruthanna Emrys
Tom Holland and Chris Pratt to Play Elf Brothers in New Disney•Pixar Fantasy Adventure Onward
by Stubby the Rocket
The Trouble with Terraforming
by James Davis Nicoll
Why You Should Add AD/BC: A Rock Opera to Your Holiday Movie List
by Leah Schnelbach
Pull List: Best Comics of 2018
by Alex Brown
Han Solo is the Galaxy’s Goodest Dog
by Stubby the Rocket
Sam Weller’s The Bradbury Chronicles: A Portrait of the Artist That Every SciFi Fan Should Read
by Ian Martínez Cassmeyer
Revealing The Ascent to Godhood, Book 4 in JY Yang’s Tensorate Series
by Tor.com
Tue Dec 11
Read Brandon Sanderson’s New Magic: The Gathering Novella Free on December 12!
by Stubby the Rocket
Download a Free Ebook of Luna: New Moon by Ian McDonald Before December 15, 2018!
by Tor.com
Sleeps With Monsters: Jumping Into C.J. Cherryh’s Alliance-Union Books
by Liz Bourke
Designing the Future: Deconstructing Five Sci-Fi Book Covers
by Dave Addey
How Animorphs and ReBoot Used Cheesiness to Get Away With Telling Important Stories of Trauma
by Natalie Zutter
The Chosen Children of Portal Fantasies
by Seanan McGuire
Reading The Ruin of Kings: Chapter 9
by Leigh Butler
The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons: Chapter 9
by Jenn Lyons
Reading the Wheel of Time: Many Worlds, One Fate in Robert Jordan’s The Great Hunt (Part 20)
by Sylas K Barrett
Mon Dec 10
Get Into the Holiday Spirit With This Heartwarming The LEGO Movie 2 Short
by Stubby the Rocket
Saving a World with The Sioux Spaceman
by Judith Tarr
Rereading the Vorkosigan Saga: Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance, Chapters 15 and 16
by Ellen Cheeseman-Meyer
Amazon Studios to Produce Deadtown and Launch Superhero Universe from Catherynne M. Valente’s The Refrigerator Monologues
by Stubby the Rocket
Did Short Treks’ “The Brightest Star” Violate the Prime Directive?
by Ryan Britt
See Charlie Jane Anders on Tour for The City in the Middle of the Night!
by Tor.com
Titans Clash in the New Godzilla: King of the Monsters Trailer
by Stubby the Rocket
Good Omens, Part Eight: Another One Bites The Dust
by Meghan Ball
Watch the First Trailer for James Gunn’s Superhero Horror Movie Brightburn
by Stubby the Rocket
Looking Up, Looking Down — Star Trek’s “The Brightest Star”
by Keith R.A. DeCandido
QUILTBAG+ Speculative Classics: Nearly Roadkill by Caitlin Sullivan and Kate Bornstein
by Bogi Takács
Can Gormenghast Become the Next Game of Thrones?
by Ethan Davison
Sun Dec 9
The Universe Will Surprise You: Doctor Who, “The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos”
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
Sat Dec 8
Heeere’s Ghidorah in the Latest Godzilla: King of the Monsters Footage
by Stubby the Rocket
Watch the First Teaser for Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy
by Stubby the Rocket
Fri Dec 7
8 Post-Snap Questions We Have About Avengers: Endgame
by Stubby the Rocket
Five Actors Who Almost Played Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
When Your Day Job Is Your Dream Job
by Richard Baker
Curiouser and Curiouser Retellings of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
by Natalie Zutter
“Peace was never an option” — X-Men: First Class
by Keith R.A. DeCandido
6 Mysteries to Ponder After You’ve Finished George R. R. Martin’s Fire & Blood
by Stubby the Rocket
Tired of Series? Try These 10 Standalone Fantasy Novels
by Sarah Waites
First Trailer and Title of Avengers 4 Released!
by Stubby the Rocket
Thu Dec 6
“90% of Space is Crap” and Other Fun Things That Happen When You Mix SF/F Aphorisms
by Stubby the Rocket
From Urban Fantasy to High Epic Fantasy Hopepunk: Edward Lazellari’s Guardians of Aandor Trilogy
by Paul Weimer
Queering SFF: The Art of Collecting Short Fiction
by Lee Mandelo
Not Quite Up to the Original: The Incredibles 2
by Mari Ness
Updating Pulp Adventures: Two Captain Future Stories by Edmond Hamilton and Allen Steele
by Alan Brown
10 Great Parents from Young Adult SFF
by Alex Brown
Oathbringer Reread: Interlude Four—Kaza
by Alice Arneson, Lyndsey Luther and Aubree Pham
Wed Dec 5
Fungi of New York: Amanda Downum’s “Spore”
by Ruthanna Emrys and Anne M. Pillsworth
American Gods Season 2 Will Premiere on March 10!
by Stubby the Rocket
Reckoning of Fallen Gods: The Shadow in the Deep
by R. A. Salvatore
Unchained Harmonies: The River Where Blood Is Born by Sandra Jackson-Opoku
by Nisi Shawl
Four Places to Start with the Work of Ray Bradbury
by Ian Martínez Cassmeyer
Five Books That Can Inspire Hope in Tough Times
by Laura E. Weymouth
Some of the Best Tor.com Non-Fiction in 2018 (Thus Far)
by Tor.com
SF Novels That Get Special Relativity All Wrong
by James Davis Nicoll
Tue Dec 4
“Home is Waiting for You” — The Space-faring Futures of AfroSFv3
by Jared Shurin
The Goodreads Choice Awards Announce Their Best Books of 2018
by Tor.com
Barnes & Noble Bookseller’s Picks for December
by Tor.com
Sleeps With Monsters: More Stories With Queer Women
by Liz Bourke
All of Tor.com’s Original Short Fiction From 2018
by Tor.com
7 Ways Star Wars Resistance Can Up the Ante Going Forward
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
Mapping All the Known Portal Worlds in Seanan McGuire’s Wayward Children Series
by Alex Brown
Reading The Ruin of Kings: Chapters 7 and 8
by Leigh Butler
The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons: Chapters 7 and 8
by Jenn Lyons
Reading The Wheel of Time: The Game of Gender in Robert Jordan’s The Great Hunt (Part 19)
by Sylas K Barrett
New Captain Marvel Trailer Sets the Stakes for Skrull-vs-Kree War
by Stubby the Rocket
Mon Dec 3
Once Again, With More Feeling: The Black Stallion Returns
by Judith Tarr
Everything You Need to Know About Nightflyers by George R.R. Martin
by Natalie Zutter
Rereading the Vorkosigan Saga: Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance, Chapter 14
by Ellen Cheeseman-Meyer
Read an Excerpt from Dragon Pearl, a New YA Space Opera from Yoon Ha Lee
by Yoon Ha Lee
All of Tor.com Publishing’s Books from 2018
by Tor.com
Good Omens, Part Seven: Gosh, Am I On Television?
by Meghan Ball
The Thirteenth Doctor Has a Lot in Common With a Certain Classic Doctor From the 1980s
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
Revealing Dragonslayer, a New Epic Fantasy From Duncan M. Hamilton
by Tor.com
Read “Hell Rode With Her,” a Novelette Set in David Mack’s Dark Arts Series
by David Mack
Sun Dec 2
Nightflyers Proves George R.R. Martin’s Best Stories Are Weird Sci-Fi
by Erik Henriksen
You and I Will Be Friends Forever: Doctor Who, “It Takes You Away”
by Emmet Asher-Perrin