Books received 7/29/12 Pyr edition Part II

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived at the Geek Compound.

Night Sessions
by Ken Macleod
Cover by Stephan Martiniere

Promo copy:

A bishop is dead. As Detective Inspector Adam Ferguson picks through the rubble of the tiny church, he discovers that it was deliberately bombed. That it’s a terrorist act is soon beyond doubt. It’s been a long time since anyone saw anything like this. Terrorism is history….After the Middle East wars and the rising sea levels—after Armageddon and the Flood—came the Great Rejection. The first Enlightenment separated church from state. The Second Enlightenment has separated religion from politics. In this enlightened age there’s no persecution, but the millions who still believe and worship are a marginal and mistrusted minority. Now someone is killing them. At first, suspicion falls on atheists more militant than the secular authorities. But when the target list expands to include the godless, it becomes evident that something very old has risen from the ashes. Old and very, very dangerous…

The Kingmakers (Vampire Empire, Book 3)
by Clay Griffith & Susan Griffith
Cover by Chris McGrath

Promo copy:

Concludes the popular, genre-crossing, epic trilogy of a war between vampires and humans
A war to the death.

Empress Adele has launched a grand crusade against the vampire clans of the north. Prince Gareth, the vampire lord of Scotland, serves the Equatorian cause, fighting in the bloody trenches of France in his guise as the dashing Greyfriar. But the human armies are pinned down, battered by harsh weather and merciless attacks from vampire packs.

To even the odds, Adele unleashes the power of her geomancy, a fear- some weapon capable of slaughtering vampires in vast numbers. However, the power she expends threatens her own life even as she questions the morality of such a weapon.

As the war turns ever bloodier and Adele is threatened by betrayal, Gareth faces a terrible choice. Their only hope is a desperate strike against the lord of the vampire clans—Gareth’s brother, Cesare. It is a gamble that could win the war or signal the final days of the Greyfriar.

The Vampire Empire trilogy rushes to a heart-wrenching conclusion of honor and love, hatred and vengeance, sacrifice and loss.

London Eye (Toxic City Book One)
by Tim Lebbon
Cover by Steve Stone

Part I

Books received 7/29/12 Pyr edition Part II was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

Books received 7/29/12 Pyr edition Part II

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived at the Geek Compound.

Night Sessions
by Ken Macleod
Cover by Stephan Martiniere

Promo copy:

A bishop is dead. As Detective Inspector Adam Ferguson picks through the rubble of the tiny church, he discovers that it was deliberately bombed. That it’s a terrorist act is soon beyond doubt. It’s been a long time since anyone saw anything like this. Terrorism is history….After the Middle East wars and the rising sea levels—after Armageddon and the Flood—came the Great Rejection. The first Enlightenment separated church from state. The Second Enlightenment has separated religion from politics. In this enlightened age there’s no persecution, but the millions who still believe and worship are a marginal and mistrusted minority. Now someone is killing them. At first, suspicion falls on atheists more militant than the secular authorities. But when the target list expands to include the godless, it becomes evident that something very old has risen from the ashes. Old and very, very dangerous…

The Kingmakers (Vampire Empire, Book 3)
by Clay Griffith & Susan Griffith
Cover by Chris McGrath

Promo copy:

Concludes the popular, genre-crossing, epic trilogy of a war between vampires and humans
A war to the death.

Empress Adele has launched a grand crusade against the vampire clans of the north. Prince Gareth, the vampire lord of Scotland, serves the Equatorian cause, fighting in the bloody trenches of France in his guise as the dashing Greyfriar. But the human armies are pinned down, battered by harsh weather and merciless attacks from vampire packs.

To even the odds, Adele unleashes the power of her geomancy, a fear- some weapon capable of slaughtering vampires in vast numbers. However, the power she expends threatens her own life even as she questions the morality of such a weapon.

As the war turns ever bloodier and Adele is threatened by betrayal, Gareth faces a terrible choice. Their only hope is a desperate strike against the lord of the vampire clans—Gareth’s brother, Cesare. It is a gamble that could win the war or signal the final days of the Greyfriar.

The Vampire Empire trilogy rushes to a heart-wrenching conclusion of honor and love, hatred and vengeance, sacrifice and loss.

London Eye (Toxic City Book One)
by Tim Lebbon
Cover by Steve Stone

Part I

DVDs received 7/27/12

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived at the Geek Compound.

Star Trek: The Next Generation – Season One [Blu-ray]

Promo copy:

For the first time ever, you can experience all 25 season one episodes in glorious 1080p high definition, with true high definition visual effects and English language digitally remastered 7.1 sound – or with the original audio. You’ll witness new picture detail and depth and enjoy spectacular visual effects that have been painstakingly re-created from the original film elements… not upconverted from videotape! Join Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the entire crew of the Enterprise on a voyage to the next generation… of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Features:

    95 Minutes Of New Documentaries Features All New Cast and Crew Interviews
    Energized: Taking the Next Generation to the Next Level
    Stardate Revisited: The Origin of Star Trek: The Next Generation
    Original Episodic Promos
    Archival Launch Footage
    Featurettes

Seeking Justice

Promo copy:

This action-packed thriller stars Nicolas Cage as Will Gerard, a happily married family man whose quiet life is turned upside-down when his wife, Laura (January Jones), is brutally attacked one night while leaving work.

At the hospital, waiting for news about his wife’s condition, Will is approached by Simon, (Guy Pearce) who proposes an intriguing offer: Simon will arrange to have a complete stranger exact vengeance on Laura’s attacker, in exchange for a favor from Will in the near future. Distraught and grief-stricken, Will consents to the deal, unwittingly pulling himself into a dangerous underground vigilante operation. While continuing to protect his wife from the truth, he quickly discovers that his quest for justice could lead to frightening and deadly consequences.

Directed by Roger Donaldson (The Bank Job, The Recruit), with story by Robert Tannen and Todd Hickey and screenplay by Robert Tannen, Seeking Justice also stars Harold Perrineau (ABC’s “Lost,” upcoming Inferno: A Linda Lovelace Story) and Jennifer Carpenter (Showtime’s “Dexter,” Quarantine).

The Super Hero Squad Show: The Infinity Gauntlet Vol. 4

Promo copy:

The final stand of the Super Hero Squad is upon us! Join your favorite Squaddies (Iron Man, Scarlet Witch, Wolverine, Ms. Marvel, Falcon and the Hulk) as they take on the Dark Surfer once and for all in the battle that determines the fate of the universe! Action! Laughter! Tears! Laughter resulting in tears! These final chapters in the hilarious superpowered saga of The Super Hero Squad Show has it all! Squaddies, hero up!

Featuring the special guest voice talents of Ty Burrell (Modern Family), Jane Lynch (Glee), Michael Dorn (Star Trek: The Next Generation), James Marsters (Buffy The Vampire Slayer), Kevin Sorbo (Hercules: The Legendary Journeys) and Marvel Comics legend Stan Lee!

DVDs received 7/27/12 was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

DVDs received 7/27/12

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived at the Geek Compound.

Star Trek: The Next Generation – Season One [Blu-ray]

Promo copy:

For the first time ever, you can experience all 25 season one episodes in glorious 1080p high definition, with true high definition visual effects and English language digitally remastered 7.1 sound – or with the original audio. You’ll witness new picture detail and depth and enjoy spectacular visual effects that have been painstakingly re-created from the original film elements… not upconverted from videotape! Join Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the entire crew of the Enterprise on a voyage to the next generation… of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Features:

    95 Minutes Of New Documentaries Features All New Cast and Crew Interviews
    Energized: Taking the Next Generation to the Next Level
    Stardate Revisited: The Origin of Star Trek: The Next Generation
    Original Episodic Promos
    Archival Launch Footage
    Featurettes

Seeking Justice

Promo copy:

This action-packed thriller stars Nicolas Cage as Will Gerard, a happily married family man whose quiet life is turned upside-down when his wife, Laura (January Jones), is brutally attacked one night while leaving work.

At the hospital, waiting for news about his wife’s condition, Will is approached by Simon, (Guy Pearce) who proposes an intriguing offer: Simon will arrange to have a complete stranger exact vengeance on Laura’s attacker, in exchange for a favor from Will in the near future. Distraught and grief-stricken, Will consents to the deal, unwittingly pulling himself into a dangerous underground vigilante operation. While continuing to protect his wife from the truth, he quickly discovers that his quest for justice could lead to frightening and deadly consequences.

Directed by Roger Donaldson (The Bank Job, The Recruit), with story by Robert Tannen and Todd Hickey and screenplay by Robert Tannen, Seeking Justice also stars Harold Perrineau (ABC’s “Lost,” upcoming Inferno: A Linda Lovelace Story) and Jennifer Carpenter (Showtime’s “Dexter,” Quarantine).

The Super Hero Squad Show: The Infinity Gauntlet Vol. 4

Promo copy:

The final stand of the Super Hero Squad is upon us! Join your favorite Squaddies (Iron Man, Scarlet Witch, Wolverine, Ms. Marvel, Falcon and the Hulk) as they take on the Dark Surfer once and for all in the battle that determines the fate of the universe! Action! Laughter! Tears! Laughter resulting in tears! These final chapters in the hilarious superpowered saga of The Super Hero Squad Show has it all! Squaddies, hero up!

Featuring the special guest voice talents of Ty Burrell (Modern Family), Jane Lynch (Glee), Michael Dorn (Star Trek: The Next Generation), James Marsters (Buffy The Vampire Slayer), Kevin Sorbo (Hercules: The Legendary Journeys) and Marvel Comics legend Stan Lee!

Movies, Gorillas, Fringe, and Sex: ArmadilloCon 34

It’s time once again for ArmadilloCon.

As per usual, I’ll be speaking on several panels and even having a reading.

Hope to see everyone there!

Best SF/F Movie Series of the all time
Fri 8:00 PM-9:00 PM San Antonio
A. de Orive, R. Klaw*, B. Mahoney, R. Rogers, J. Rountree, H. Waldrop
Hobbits vs. Avengers? Star Wars vs. Star Trek? Aliens vs. Predators vs. Terminators? Our intrepid panelists attempt to ef the ineffable and address the truly deep questions: What constitutes not just a great SF/F movie, but an outstanding series?

Apes and Zeppelins
Fri 9:00 PM-10:00 PM Trinity
C. Brown, B. Crider, S. Cupp, M. Finn*, R. Klaw, J. Lansdale, J. Nevins, D. Webb
Last year Joe Lansdale tossed down the gauntlet at the Apes in SF panel, challenging all comers to produce a story worthy of a classic cover from Zeppelin Tales: “The Gorilla of the Gasbags”. Our valiant panelists discuss their responses.

Fringe: Why We Like It — or do we still?
Sat 11:00 AM-Noon San Antonio
B. Hale, R. Klaw*, G. Oliver, D. Potter, R. Rogers
How did this show become so watchable and interesting? Has it maintained its promise, or jumped the shark?

Reading
Sat 2:00 PM-2:30 PM Pecos
Rick Klaw

(I’ll be reading either my apes in film essay from The Apes of Wrath or if I finish it in time my “Gorilla of the Gasbags” challenge story.)

Signing
Sat 4:00 PM-5:00 PM Dealers’ Room
B. Crider, S. Cupp, M. Finn, R. Klaw, D. Webb

Sequels, Reboots, & Prometheus
Sun Noon-1:00 PM San Marcos
A. Allston, A. de Orive, R. Klaw*, A. Martinez, J. Perez
Summer SF Spectaculars: the good, the bad, the re-done and the over-done

Future Sex: The Shape of Things to Come
Sun 2:00 PM-3:00 PM Trinity
C. Brown, M. Maresca, R. Klaw, J. Nevins, P. Roberts*, F. Stanton
As humans reshape their society, their bodies, their culture, how will the most intimate of activities change?

Movies, Gorillas, Fringe, and Sex: ArmadilloCon 34 was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

Movies, Gorillas, Fringe, and Sex: ArmadilloCon 34

It’s time once again for ArmadilloCon.

As per usual, I’ll be speaking on several panels and even having a reading.

Hope to see everyone there!

Best SF/F Movie Series of the all time
Fri 8:00 PM-9:00 PM San Antonio
A. de Orive, R. Klaw*, B. Mahoney, R. Rogers, J. Rountree, H. Waldrop
Hobbits vs. Avengers? Star Wars vs. Star Trek? Aliens vs. Predators vs. Terminators? Our intrepid panelists attempt to ef the ineffable and address the truly deep questions: What constitutes not just a great SF/F movie, but an outstanding series?

Apes and Zeppelins
Fri 9:00 PM-10:00 PM Trinity
C. Brown, B. Crider, S. Cupp, M. Finn*, R. Klaw, J. Lansdale, J. Nevins, D. Webb
Last year Joe Lansdale tossed down the gauntlet at the Apes in SF panel, challenging all comers to produce a story worthy of a classic cover from Zeppelin Tales: "The Gorilla of the Gasbags". Our valiant panelists discuss their responses.

Fringe: Why We Like It — or do we still?
Sat 11:00 AM-Noon San Antonio
B. Hale, R. Klaw*, G. Oliver, D. Potter, R. Rogers
How did this show become so watchable and interesting? Has it maintained its promise, or jumped the shark?

Reading
Sat 2:00 PM-2:30 PM Pecos
Rick Klaw

(I’ll be reading either my apes in film essay from The Apes of Wrath or if I finish it in time my "Gorilla of the Gasbags" challenge story.)

Signing
Sat 4:00 PM-5:00 PM Dealers’ Room
B. Crider, S. Cupp, M. Finn, R. Klaw, D. Webb

Sequels, Reboots, & Prometheus
Sun Noon-1:00 PM San Marcos
A. Allston, A. de Orive, R. Klaw*, A. Martinez, J. Perez
Summer SF Spectaculars: the good, the bad, the re-done and the over-done

Future Sex: The Shape of Things to Come
Sun 2:00 PM-3:00 PM Trinity
C. Brown, M. Maresca, R. Klaw, J. Nevins, P. Roberts*, F. Stanton
As humans reshape their society, their bodies, their culture, how will the most intimate of activities change?

Books received 6/18/12

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived at the Geek Compound.

Glimmering
by Elizabeth Hand
Introduction by Kim Stanley Robinson
Cover by Heidi Whitcomb

Promo copy:

It’s 1999 and the world is falling apart at the seams. The sky is afire, the oceans are rising—and mankind is to blame. While the spoils of the 20th Century dwindle, Jack Finnegan lives on the fringes in his decaying mansion, struggling to keep his life afloat and his loved ones safe while battling that most modern of diseases—AIDS.

As the New Millennium approaches, Jack’s former lover, a famous photographer reveling in the world’s decay, gifts him with a mysterious elixir called Fusax, a medicine rumored to cure the incurable AIDS. But soon, the “side effects” of Fusax become more apparent, and Jack gets mixed up with a bizarre entourage of rock stars, Japanese scientists, corporate executives, AIDS victims, and religious terrorists. While these larger players compete to control mankind’s fate in the 21st Century, Jack is forced to choose his own role in the World’s End, and how to live with it.

Originally published in 1997, Glimmering is a visionary mix of fantasy and science fiction about a world in which humanity struggles to cope with the ever-approaching “End of the End.”

Year Zero
by Rob Reid

Promo copy:

In the hilarious tradition of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Rob Reid takes you on a headlong journey through the outer reaches of the universe—and the inner workings of our absurdly dysfunctional music industry.

Low-level entertainment lawyer Nick Carter thinks it’s a prank, not an alien encounter, when a redheaded mullah and a curvaceous nun show up at his office. But Frampton and Carly are highly advanced (if bumbling) extraterrestrials. And boy, do they have news.

The entire cosmos, they tell him, has been hopelessly hooked on humanity’s music ever since “Year Zero” (1977 to us), when American pop songs first reached alien ears. This addiction has driven a vast intergalactic society to commit the biggest copyright violation since the Big Bang. The resulting fines and penalties have bankrupted the whole universe. We humans suddenly own everything—and the aliens are not amused.

Nick Carter has just been tapped to clean up this mess before things get ugly, and he’s an unlikely galaxy-hopping hero: He’s scared of heights. He’s also about to be fired. And he happens to have the same name as a Backstreet Boy. But he does know a thing or two about copyright law. And he’s packing a couple of other pencil-pushing superpowers that could come in handy.

Soon he’s on the run from a sinister parrot and a highly combustible vacuum cleaner. With Carly and Frampton as his guides, Nick now has forty-eight hours to save humanity, while hopefully wowing the hot girl who lives down the hall from him.

The McSweeney’s Book of Politics and Musicals
Edited by Christopher Monks
Cover by Brian McMullen and Jason Fulford

Promo copy:

Ever since John Hancock broke into song after signing the Declaration of Independence, American politics and musicals have been inextricably linked. From Alexander Hamilton’s jazz hands, to Chester A. Arthur’s oboe operas, to Newt Gingrich’s off-Broadway sexscapade, You, Me, and My Moon Colony Mistress Makes Three, government and musical theater have joined forces to document our nation’s long history of freedom, partisanship, and dancers on roller skates pretending to be choo choo trains.

To celebrate this grand union of entrenched bureaucracy and song, the patriots at McSweeney’s Internet Tendency (“The Iowa Caucus of humor websites”) offer this riotous collection (peacefully assembled!) of monologues, charts, scripts, lists, diatribes, AND musicals written by the noted fake-musical lyricist, Ben Greenman. On the agenda are …

Fragments from PALIN! THE MUSICAL

Barack Obama’s Undersold 2012 Campaign Slogans

Atlas Shrugged Updated for the Financial Crisis

Your Attempts to Legislate Hunting Man for Sport Reek of Class Warfare

A 1980s Teen Sex Comedy Becomes Politically Uncomfortable

Donald Rumsfeld Memoir Chapter Title Or German Heavy Metal Song?

Noises Political Pundits Would Make If They Were Wild Animals and Not Political Pundits

Ron Paul Gives a Guided Tour of His Navajo Art Collection

Classic Nursery Rhymes, Updated and Revamped for the Recession, As Told to Me By My Father

And much more!

Supergods
by Grant Morrison

Promo copy:

What Masked Vigilantes, Miraculous Mutants, and a Sun God from Smallville Can Teach Us About Being Human

Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Iron Man, and the X-Men—the list of names as familiar as our own. They are on our movie and television screens, in our videogames and in our dreams. But what are they trying to tell us? For Grant Morrison, one of the most acclaimed writers in the world of comics, these heroes are powerful archetypes who reflect and predict the course of human existence: Through them we tell the story of ourselves. In this exhilarating work of a lifetime, Morrison draws on art, archetypes, and his own astonishing journeys through this shadow universe to provide the first true history of our great modern myth: the superhero.

Now with a new Afterword

Books received 6/18/12 was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

Books received 6/18/12

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived at the Geek Compound.

Glimmering
by Elizabeth Hand
Introduction by Kim Stanley Robinson
Cover by Heidi Whitcomb

Promo copy:

It’s 1999 and the world is falling apart at the seams. The sky is afire, the oceans are rising—and mankind is to blame. While the spoils of the 20th Century dwindle, Jack Finnegan lives on the fringes in his decaying mansion, struggling to keep his life afloat and his loved ones safe while battling that most modern of diseases—AIDS.

As the New Millennium approaches, Jack’s former lover, a famous photographer reveling in the world’s decay, gifts him with a mysterious elixir called Fusax, a medicine rumored to cure the incurable AIDS. But soon, the "side effects" of Fusax become more apparent, and Jack gets mixed up with a bizarre entourage of rock stars, Japanese scientists, corporate executives, AIDS victims, and religious terrorists. While these larger players compete to control mankind’s fate in the 21st Century, Jack is forced to choose his own role in the World’s End, and how to live with it.

Originally published in 1997, Glimmering is a visionary mix of fantasy and science fiction about a world in which humanity struggles to cope with the ever-approaching "End of the End."

Year Zero
by Rob Reid

Promo copy:

In the hilarious tradition of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Rob Reid takes you on a headlong journey through the outer reaches of the universe—and the inner workings of our absurdly dysfunctional music industry.

Low-level entertainment lawyer Nick Carter thinks it’s a prank, not an alien encounter, when a redheaded mullah and a curvaceous nun show up at his office. But Frampton and Carly are highly advanced (if bumbling) extraterrestrials. And boy, do they have news.

The entire cosmos, they tell him, has been hopelessly hooked on humanity’s music ever since “Year Zero” (1977 to us), when American pop songs first reached alien ears. This addiction has driven a vast intergalactic society to commit the biggest copyright violation since the Big Bang. The resulting fines and penalties have bankrupted the whole universe. We humans suddenly own everything—and the aliens are not amused.

Nick Carter has just been tapped to clean up this mess before things get ugly, and he’s an unlikely galaxy-hopping hero: He’s scared of heights. He’s also about to be fired. And he happens to have the same name as a Backstreet Boy. But he does know a thing or two about copyright law. And he’s packing a couple of other pencil-pushing superpowers that could come in handy.

Soon he’s on the run from a sinister parrot and a highly combustible vacuum cleaner. With Carly and Frampton as his guides, Nick now has forty-eight hours to save humanity, while hopefully wowing the hot girl who lives down the hall from him.

The McSweeney’s Book of Politics and Musicals
Edited by Christopher Monks
Cover by Brian McMullen and Jason Fulford

Promo copy:

Ever since John Hancock broke into song after signing the Declaration of Independence, American politics and musicals have been inextricably linked. From Alexander Hamilton’s jazz hands, to Chester A. Arthur’s oboe operas, to Newt Gingrich’s off-Broadway sexscapade, You, Me, and My Moon Colony Mistress Makes Three, government and musical theater have joined forces to document our nation’s long history of freedom, partisanship, and dancers on roller skates pretending to be choo choo trains.

To celebrate this grand union of entrenched bureaucracy and song, the patriots at McSweeney’s Internet Tendency (“The Iowa Caucus of humor websites”) offer this riotous collection (peacefully assembled!) of monologues, charts, scripts, lists, diatribes, AND musicals written by the noted fake-musical lyricist, Ben Greenman. On the agenda are . . .

Fragments from PALIN! THE MUSICAL

Barack Obama’s Undersold 2012 Campaign Slogans

Atlas Shrugged Updated for the Financial Crisis

Your Attempts to Legislate Hunting Man for Sport Reek of Class Warfare

A 1980s Teen Sex Comedy Becomes Politically Uncomfortable

Donald Rumsfeld Memoir Chapter Title Or German Heavy Metal Song?

Noises Political Pundits Would Make If They Were Wild Animals and Not Political Pundits

Ron Paul Gives a Guided Tour of His Navajo Art Collection

Classic Nursery Rhymes, Updated and Revamped for the Recession, As Told to Me By My Father

And much more!

Supergods
by Grant Morrison

Promo copy:

What Masked Vigilantes, Miraculous Mutants, and a Sun God from Smallville Can Teach Us About Being Human

Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Iron Man, and the X-Men—the list of names as familiar as our own. They are on our movie and television screens, in our videogames and in our dreams. But what are they trying to tell us? For Grant Morrison, one of the most acclaimed writers in the world of comics, these heroes are powerful archetypes who reflect and predict the course of human existence: Through them we tell the story of ourselves. In this exhilarating work of a lifetime, Morrison draws on art, archetypes, and his own astonishing journeys through this shadow universe to provide the first true history of our great modern myth: the superhero.

Now with a new Afterword