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The Ultimate Guide to SF&F Writers: 1990-2009 - More than 10,000 books and stories rated and reviewed! - About

Home A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z Pen names
reviews of books and stories by author's name
SF&F Timeline 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000-Now
retrospective look at sf&f year-by-year
September 19, 2009
"Steampunk" Anthology: Full Review

some truly crazed stories in there...
(plus artwork by John Coulthart)
September 1, 2009
"Dune", Plus Often-Neglected
Other Novels by Frank Herbert


"Dune", plus some overlooked gems:
"The Santaroga Barrier" and "The Green Brain"
Aug 31, 2009
Universe at Play:
Two Must-Read Novels of the Fantastic


"The Yiddish Policemen's Union" by Michael Chabon...
and David Mitchell's "Cloud Atlas"
May 9, 2009
Two of the Most Entertaining SF Novels from the 1980s

"Vacuum Flowers" by Michael Swanwick...
and Tim Power's "The Anubis Gates", of course!
March 16, 2009
"The Body Snatchers" and Other Alien Pods

Fiction by Jack Finney, Vance, Simak and Bloch
mind impostors and emotion imitators
March 3, 2009
Exploring the Noir and the Grotesque

Jack O'Connell "The Resurrectionist"
and other newest examples of the bizarre
March 1, 2009
Overpopulation, Sex and Sensibility

Robert Silverberg's "The World Inside"
and other classic sf blasts
February 24, 2009
H. P. Lovecraft "At the Mountains of Madness"

and other masterpieces of terror
including original illustrations
February 14, 2009
"Constellations", edited by Peter Crowther

original anthology, 2005
full review: mind-bending stories
February 9, 2009
The Ultimate Guide to New Writers of SF&F

more than 2,000 writers, 1990-2009
Ratings, awards, web links
January 5, 2009
The Surreal Office

"The Situation", "The Cookie Monster"
Weird fiction by Jeff VanderMeer and Vernor Vinge
December 23, 2008
Mind-shattering Novels of
Philip K. Dick


"UBIK", "Now Wait for Last Year", etc.
December 16, 2008
Theodore Sturgeon's "More Than Human"

There’s a problem with this new gestalt being:
...it needs a conscience.
December 15, 2008
Jack Williamson's "Legion of Space" Series

Classic Space Opera
The ultimate weapon, controlled by a gorgeous woman
December 14, 2008
Astounding Stories, August 1934

Jack Williamson, Nat Schachner, "Doc" Smith
Epic space opera gems and horror surprises
December 7, 2008
Rare Pulp SF&F, Issue 3

Leigh Brackett, Fritz Leiber, Vic Phillips
Rediscovered gems of wonder & adventure
November 27, 2008
William Gibson's Novels

"Pattern Recognition", "Neuromancer"
A Fractured Delight...
November 15, 2008
Alfred Bester "The Computer Connection"

"Bester was the mountain, all the rest of us..."
Pyrokinetic writing in one neat package
November 14, 2008
Two Novels by Samuel R. Delany

"Nova" and "Babel-17"
New Wave Milestones, and then some.
November 11, 2008
Theodore Sturgeon's "The Cosmic Rape"

(and more reviews of his fiction)
Classic SF at its best and most humane
November 10, 2008
Travel Distant Worlds!

Vintage Space Travel Posters, and more.
Part 3 of Pulp Sf art series...
November 3, 2008
Alastair Reynolds' Epic Novels

"Chasm City" and "Revelation Space"
And it's only the beginning...
October 20, 2008
Rare Fantasy Gems by C. L. Moore and Henry Kuttner

Hidden Gems of Pulp Fiction
When two star writers become husband and wife
October 10, 2008
Grand Old Times... in the Future

Overview of Pulp Art
A Loudly Lurid Universe of Sci-Fi Illustration
June 23, 2008
Exclusive: Interview with Nancy Kress

From High Fantasy to Hard Science Fiction
A Spectrum of Wonder
February 5, 2008
Jack Vance

"To Live Forever"
and other Vance extravaganzas
January 23, 2008
Alastair Reynolds

"Pushing Ice"
Cosmological "noir" chase across space
January 18, 2008
Charles Stross

"Missile Gap"
Mind-bending Cold War world-building
January 16, 2008
Hidden Gems of Pulp SF, Part 2

Rare stories from the "Age of Wonder"
incl. David Keller, Horace Gold etc.
January 12, 2008
Ultra-Rare Serials from "Fantasy Magazine"

"Cosmos" + "Challenge From Beyond"
incredible line-up of writers
December 30, 2007
Hidden Gems of Pulp SF, Part 1

Neat & Rare Stories
incl. the mad rally story "The Racer"
December 25, 2007
Astounding Stories, June 1935

Full Issue Review
incl. Gallun, Schachner, Campbell
December 24, 2007
Astounding Stories, May 1941

Full Issue Review
incl. Heinlein, Asimov, Eric Frank Russell
December 23, 2007
Horace Gold; P. Schuyler Miller

"Apocalyptic Blockbusters"
"Inflexure" and "Spawn", unreal stuff
December 19, 2007
Exclusive:
Interview with John C. Wright


Plus his advice to new writers
Adventures in Space & Magic
November 11, 2007
Frank Belknap Long

"The Horror from the Hills"
Great Lovecraftian Weird Novella
October 13, 2007
Exclusive:
Interview with Jeff VanderMeer


Plus his Recommended Reading List
A Triumph of the Bizarre...and the Rise of Squidpunk
September 13, 2007
Alastair Reynolds, Part 2

More "Galactic North" Stories
A Mixture of Hard Sf, James Bond & Jaws...
September 10, 2007
Alastair Reynolds Review

"Galactic North"
staring down infinity...
September 9, 2007
Most Shocking Article

"Holey Fools" by M. Christian
Warning: Gross Subject Matter
September 7, 2007
Alfred Bester Review

"The Stars My Destination"
"...nail it to the Retro Hugo voting board..."
September 4, 2007
Larry Niven Review

"Neutron Star"
"better get GP alien ship hull"
September 3, 2007
Poul Anderson Review

"Ensign Flandry"
"or how to start a sub-genre..."
September 1, 2007
Thomas M. Disch Review

"The Squirrel Cage"
"...seriously mind-bending stuff..."
August 31, 2007
Henry Kuttner Review

"Mimsy Were the Borogoves" (The Last Mimzy)
"...great storyline for a pretty average movie..."
August 30, 2007
Robert A. Heinlein Review

"The Moon is the Harsh Mistress"
"...it caused a tooth ache, and put my brain on freeze..."
August 29, 2007
Frank Herbert Review

"Destination: Void"
"...a layered cake of ideas and a scientific extrapolation on a genius level..."
August 28, 2007
Harlan Ellison Review

"The Abnormals"
"...editors slapped the most outrageous titles on his stories..."
August 28, 2007
James White Review

"All Judgement Fled"
"...the tension is palpable, soon to grow almost unbearable..."
August 26, 2007
Grand Adventure Strikes Again

Space Opera Article, by Avi Abrams
Based on Arthur Clarke's "Against the Fall of Night"
August 21, 2007
William Gibson Review

"Burning Chrome"
"...sheer pyrotechnics and exuberance of style..."
August 19, 2007
Murray Leinster Review

"Ace Double: The Mutant Weapon"
"...the characters might as well be cats or hamsters..."
August 18, 2007
Astounding Stories, May 1935

Pulp SF Magazine Review
with many original illustrations
August 17, 2007
Clifford Simak Review

"So Bright the Vision"
"...Scrumptious assortment of vintage 50s SF morsels..."
August 16, 2007
Philip K. Dick Review

"Beyond Lies the Wub"
"...a happy chunk of PKD vintage writing..."
August 15, 2007
Wonder Stories, Feb 1935

Pulp SF Magazine Review
with original illustrations
August 14, 2007
Startling Stories, July 1940

Pulp SF Magazine Review
with original illustrations
August 13, 2007
Astounding Stories, June 1936

Pulp SF Magazine Review
with many original illustrations
August 11, 2007
Planet Stories, Summer 1946

Pulp SF Magazine Review
Leigh Brackett joins Ray Bradbury!
August 10, 2007
Asimov's SF Magazine, June 2006

New SF Magazine Review
utterly crazy Rudy Rucker story
August 9, 2007
Universe 16, ed. by Terry Carr

Original Anthology Review
two SUPER stories in this issue!
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PULP (and other) MAGAZINE REVIEWS - Click Here

ORIGINAL ANTHOLOGY REVIEWS - Click Here

SINGLE-WRITER COLLECTION REVIEWS - Click Here

RETROSPECTIVE BOOK REVIEWS - Click Here

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Most stories are rated and reviewed by Avi Abrams, according to the system described here - with listings of awards, pen-names, and original publication data - including foreign-language SF and collectible fantastic pulp magazines. Submit your own review by email or in the comments under any entry.

To find a particular story, check out the writer's entry.
You can also search by the title of individual story, award nominations, pen-names, etc - in the "search" box on the left.
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Disclaimer: rating and reviews may be highly subjective and reflect only personal reading experience. For example, we obviously lean towards colorful "sense-of-wonder" prose.