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

End of the Century by Chris Roberson

Promo copy:

UNCOVER THE SECRETS OF THE HOLY GRAIL

Three people. Three eras. One city. Endless possibilities. <i>End of the Century</i> is a novel of the distant past, the unimaginable future, and the search for the Holy Grail. Set in the city of London, the narrative is interlaced between three ages, in which a disparate group of heroes, criminals, runaways, and lunatics are drawn into the greatest quest of all time.

Twilight – Londinium, Sixth Century, CE

Galaad, a young man driven by strange dreams of a lady in white and a tower of glass, travels to the court of the high king Artor in Londinium, abandoned stronghold of the Roman Empire in Britain. With the dreams of Galaad as their only guide, Artor and his loyal captains journey west to the Summerlands, there to face a threat that could spell the end of the new-forged kingdom of Britain.

Jubilee – London, 1897
Consulting detective Sandford Blank, accompanied by his companion Roxanne Bonaventure, is called upon to solve a string of brutal murders on the eve of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee. The police believe that Jack the Ripper is back on the streets, but Blank believes that this is a new killer, one whose motive is not violence or mayhem, but the discovery of the Holy Grail itself. And what of the corpse-white Huntsman and his unearthly hounds, who stalks the gaslit streets of London?

Millennium – London, 1999
At the eve of the new millennium, American teenager Alice Fell is on the run, and all alone. On the streets of a strange city, friendless and without a pound to her name, Alice is not sure whether she’s losing her mind, or whether she is called by inescapable visions to some special destiny. Along with a strange man named Stillman Waters, who claims to be a retired occultist and spy, she finds herself pursued by strange creatures, and driven to steal the priceless vanishing gem that may contain the answers to the mysteries that plague her.

The three narratives Dark Ages fantasy, gaslit mystery, and modern-day jewel heist alternate until the barriers between the different times begin to break down, and the characters confront the secrets that connect the Grail, the Glass Tower, and the vanishing gem. And lurking behind it all is the entity known only as Omega.

I reviewed this for the San Antonio Current.

The Pretender’s Crown by C. E. Murphy

Promo copy:

Magic, lust, and power collide in this sexy novel set amid the glittering courts of Echon, from the author of The Queen’s Bastard

C. E. Murphy is the author of several successful urban paranormal romance series for Harlequin Luna. Her first novel for Del Rey, The Queen’s Bastard, was eagerly received by her fans. Now the story continues in this second novel.

Belinda Primrose is the queen’s bastard—the illegitimate daughter of Lorraine, first queen to sit on the Aulunian throne. She is also the queen’s deadliest weapon, trained as a spy from the age of twelve.

In The Queen’s Bastard, Belinda discovered that she had powers unshared by her mother. Now, in The Pretender’s Crown, events spiral as one queen is murdered, another is suspected of having plotted to kill her, and armies marshal on both sides. Belinda learns that she is a pawn in a game much greater than she could ever have suspected—and suddenly stumbles upon a shocking secret that changes her life forever. Her powers at their greatest, she turns away from her mother for the first time ever, and must decide how to forge a life of her own.

Ice Song by Kirsten Imani Kasai

Promo copy:

For fans of Jacqueline Carey and Ursula K. LeGuin, a lush, literary debut fantasy of love, ruin, and the ties of blood

Sorykah Minuit is a scholar, an engineer, and the sole woman aboard an ice-drilling submarine in the frozen land of the Sigue.What no one knows is that she is also a rare Trader, who can switch genders without warning. When a wealthy, reclusive madman known as the Collector abducts Sorykah’s infant twins to use in his dreadful experiments, Sorykah and her male alter ego, Soryk, must cross icy wastes and a primeval forest to get them back. Complicating the dangerous journey is the fact that Sorykah and Soryk do not share memories; each transformation is as much of a jolt as if awakening from a deep and dreamless sleep.

The world through which the sundered halves of Sorykah and Soryk travel is both familiar and surreal. Environmental degradation and genetic mutation run amok; humans have become distorted into animals and animal bodies mask a wild humanity. But it is also a world of unexpected beauty and wonder, where kindness and love endure amidst the ruins.

Alluring, intense, and gorgeously rendered, Ice Song is a remarkable debut by a fiercely original new writer.

Kings and Assassins by Lane Robins

Promo copy:

Controlled by an aristocracy whose depraved whims bow to neither law nor god, the kingdom of Antyre is under siege from the only man who can save it. He is Janus Ixion, the new Earl of Last, a man whose matchless fighting abilities and leadership strike terror in Antyre’s powerful noble houses.

For Janus is the illegitimate son who has returned from the brutal slums to reclaim his birthright, and will go to any lengths to become king and reverse his country’s decline. But with a conquering foreign prince sowing chaos throughout the kingdom, Janus must battle the terrifying power of Antyre’s forgotten god, one who has gifted Janus’s vengeful wife with mysterious and dangerous skills. As Antyre nears irrevocable collapse, Janus’s manipulations and all-consuming ambition will force him and his country to choose between the rule of resurgent gods, or a victor’s throne of ashes.

In this excellent article, foobar basically states that there is no 100% secure OS (contrary to what Mac users like to pretend) and goes on to prove the vulnerabilities in the Gnome/KDE Linux desktops.

At the bottom of the piece, foobar offers sound defensive advice for any OS.

(Note for Mac users: Many elements of OS X and Linux derive from similar UNIX kernels.)

I recently discovered this interesting document from 2002.

While this guide needs an updating, the basic principles still apply.

Stacey Whitman delves into the new, most-likely illegal, and most definitely unethical Facebook Terms of Service.

This is making me rethink the whole Facebook thing. Course any management team that includes Bush-apologizer/defender Ted Ullyot should be suspect.

While "researching" a recent Nexus Graphica, I had reason to look through my collection of Comics Of Unusual Size. This set of the big and small and odd of comicdom offers many gems. Deciding that I really should share some of these largely forgotten and sometime rare pieces, I’m taking you through a tour of the more interesting selections.

Continuing my tour through some of the more mainstream selections. In the seventies and eighties, digest-sized comics were all the rage. These 4.75 in. x 6.5 in. perfect bound collections usually contained minuscule, often poorly reproduced reprints.

DC’s first experimented with the smaller format in 1972 with Tarzan Digest #1. Though a Laurel & Hardy digest was announced (and never produced), DC would only return to the format in 1979 following the DC Implosion.

Click on images for full sized versions.

The Best of DC No. 54 (November, 1984) and No. 64 (September, 1985)

Beginning with a collection of Superman reprints, The Best of DC ran for 71 issues. Throughout seven years, the series focused on a wide array of DC properties including Batman, the Legion of Super-Heroes, Binky, Jimmy Olsen, and Plop!

The Best of DC No. 63 (August, 1985) and No. 46 (March 1984)

Starting in 1980, The "Year’s Best Comic Stories" became an annual event as part of The Best of DC. The final issue (No. 71) was the Year’s Best Stories of 1985.

The Best of DC No. 71 (April, 1986) and No. 52 (September, 1984)

Later in the same month that premiered The Best of DC, the digest-sized Jonah Hex and Other Western Tales appeared. After three issues, DC canceled the title and replaced it with DC Special Blue Ribbon Digest. Each volume tended to focus on theme. The variety of characters and subjects included the Legion of Super Heroes, Flash, Green Lantern, Ghosts, Secret Origins, Strange Sports, and Sgt. Rock.

DC Special Blue Ribbon Digest No. 16 (December, 1981) and No. 19 (March, 1982)

After 24 issues, DC Special Blue Ribbon Digest ended in 1982 and was soon replaced by the digest-sized last gasp of the legendary Adventure Comics. Beginning with no. 491, the now-completely reprint series limped its way to an ignoble conclusion with no. 503.

Adventure No. 501 (July, 1983)

The DC digests introduced me to some of my favorite characters and series. My first exposure to the Doom Patrol, the O’Neil/Adams Green Lantern/Green Arrow, Plop!, Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing, and countless others first occurred within those tiny pages.

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

Click on image for uncensored cover
and a book preview.

The Tijuana Bibles: America’s Forgotten Comic Strips Edited by Michael Dowers

Promo copy:

In all its many guises, sex has been around for a long time. Back in the 1930s it was these little eight-page sex comics that became the talk of men’s clubs, bars and some of the rougher workplaces. Famous Sunday-funnies cartoon characters were the earliest, and most popular, targets of these XXX-rated parodies; a parade of Hollywood actors and actresses madly copulating in a wide variety of positions soon followed. These "Tijuana Bibles" were so popular in their day that fans anxiously awaited new releases; men and boys got a genuine education when they realized there was more than one position that could be used to have sex. As the years went on, pornography evolved into men’s girlie magazines, and then today’s adult film industry; one look at these sexy, silly little comics will have you hankering for the good ol’ days.

This fat hardcover volume collects all of Vols. 1-3 and most of Vol. 4 of the original Tijuana Bibles softcover series. Like those volumes, this book features a new original cover illustration by Pat Moriarity. This volume also includes comics historian R.C. Harvey’s introductory essay "Getting Our Pornograph Fixed."

The Wolverton Bible by Basil Wolverton

Promo copy:

Cartoonist Basil Wolverton was known for his grotesque drawings, fantastically odd creatures, spaghetti-like hair, smoothly sculpted caricatures and insanely detailed crosshatching. His career in the golden age of comic books lasted from 1938 until 1952, after which his illustrations and caricatures extended into such publications as Life, Pageant and MAD magazines. Stylistically, he has been regarded as one of the spiritual grandfathers of underground and alternative comix.

Less well known and understood is his work for the Worldwide Church of God, headed until 1986 by radio evangelist Herbert Armstrong. From 1953 through 1974, Wolverton, a deeply religious man, was commissioned and later employed by the church to write and illustrate a narrative of the Old Testament (including over 550 illustrations), some 20 apocalyptic illustrations inspired by the Book of Revelations, and dozens of cartoons and humorous illustrations for various Worldwide Church publications.

Compiled and edited by Wolverton’s son, Monte, the 304-page Wolverton Bible includes all of Wolverton’s artwork for the Worldwide Church of God corporation. Recording artist and noted EC authority Grant Geissman (Tales of Terror: The E.C. Companion and Foul Play!: The Art and Artists of the Notorious 1950s E.C. Comics!) provides an insightful foreword, while Monte Wolverton delivers commentary and background in the introduction and in each section. This volume is authorized and commissioned by the Worldwide Church of God and endorsed by the Wolverton family.

Many of the illustrations in this book are regarded as Basil Wolverton’s finest work. Still others have never been published, and some of the humorous drawings printed here rival Wolverton’s work in MAD magazine.

All Star Superman, Vol. 2 Written by Grant Morrison Art by Frank Quitely and Jamie Grant

Promo copy:

A new ALL STAR SUPERMAN volume from writer Grant Morrison!

In this follow-up to the award-winning ALL STAR SUPERMAN VOL. 1, the Man of Steel goes toe-to-toe with Bizarro, his oddball twin, and the new character Zibarro, also from the Bizarro planet. Plus, more exciting adventures that take Superman across the universe and back!

The concluding volume of what is arguably the finest Superman story ever written.

More in Part II

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

Dead Like Me: Life After Death

Promo copy:

When George and her colleagues get a new boss whose focus is on moving souls quickly and enjoying life without consequences, the team begins to break the strict reaper rules. While her friends fall victim to their desires for money, success, and fame, George breaks another rule by revealing her true identity to her living family. As the reapers struggle with their roles on Earth, they each find that death can be just as complicated as life. Through its strong storyline, Dead Like Me delves into the intricate mythology and dark comedy created by the TV series and appeals to the show’s legions of fans as well as those new to the world of the reapers.

I first heard about this movie nearly three years ago. Glad it’s finally available!

Blood of Ambrose by James Enge

Promo copy:

Behind the King’s life stands the menacing Protector, and beyond him lies the Protector’s Shadow…

Centuries after the death of Uthar the Great, the throne of the Ontilian Empire lies vacant. The late Emperor’s brother-in-law and murderer, Lord Urdhven, appoints himself Protector to his nephew, young King Lathmar VII and sets out to kill anyone who stands between himself and mastery of the Empire, including (if he can manage it) the King himself and his ancient but still formidable ancestress, Ambrosia Viviana.

When Ambrosia is accused of witchcraft and put to trial by combat, she is forced to play her trump card and call on her brother, Morlock Ambrosius–stateless person, master of all magical makers, deadly swordsman, and hopeless drunk.

As ministers of the king, they carry on the battle, magical and mundane, against the Protector and his shadowy patron. But all their struggles will be wasted unless the young king finds the strength to rule in his own right and his own name.

Private Midnight by Kris Saknussemm

Promo copy:

By the author of Zanesville, a seductive story of grit, gunplay, vampirism, and a bit of bondage.

Detective Birch Ritter is a man on the edge-of himself. His past is filled with secrets, shadows, guilt, and ghosts. Then a dubious police buddy he hasn’t seen in a year introduces him to a mysterious woman who says her business is shadows. What she knows about what lies between the darkness and the light inside men is more than Ritter may want to find out, and much more than he can resist learning. It’s said that to try to forget is to try to conceal, and concealing evidence is a crime. But maybe revelation is another kind of crime-against nature.

Kris Saknussemm, the widely acclaimed author of the sci-fi smash Zanesville, now delves into another genre, and another world-a world where even the sunlight is shadowy and where deviancy is the norm. Private Midnight is a journey into the seedy, sexy, underbelly of life-crime noir for a new generation.

Two of the six Private Midnight back jacket quotes, appearing under the heading of CRITICAL PRAISE FOR Zanesville, are from me, though the quotes credit their original publications.

"Kris Saknussemm has created the most original novel of the year." — Austin Chronicle

"The most original and daring novel of the year… a wildly imaginative near-future satire." — RevolutionSF

Part I

According to Bell Labs: "At 11:31:30pm UTC on Feb 13, 2009, Unix time will reach 1,234,567,890."

That’s right at approximately 5:31 PM CST, the UNIX epoch (which began on January 1, 1970) measured in seconds will reach the sequential number 1234567890. Beyond being a very nerdy and very cool fact, this number doesn’t really signify anything but it didn’t stop Jon "maddog" Hall from writing a humorous piece about the momentous occasion occurring on Friday the 13th.

And for those who can’t/won’t do the math or programming to figure out the exact epoch time, Chris Rowe has supplied this handy countdown site.

While "researching" a recent Nexus Graphica, I had reason to look through my collection of Comics Of Unusual Size. This set of the big and small and odd of comicdom offers many gems. Deciding that I really should share some of these largely forgotten and sometime rare pieces, I’m taking you through a tour of the more interesting selections.

Now for a more mainstream selection. In the seventies and eighties, digest-sized comics were all the rage. These 4.75 in. x 6.5 in. perfect bound collections usually contained minuscule, often poorly reproduced reprints. Gold Key with its extensive library of licensed properties was an early adopter of the format.

Click on images for full sized versions.

Golden Comics Digest No. 9 (1970) and No. 48 (1976)

Beginning in 1970, Golden Comics Digest ran for 48 issues concluding with a volume of Lone Ranger, Tonto, and Silver stories. Golden Comics Digest No. 9 featured tales of Tarzan, Korak, and Brothers of the Spear. This particular collection included the complete Russ Manning adaptation of Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar. Manning also contributed to the volume’s other offerings.

From Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar by Russ Manning
(Golden Comics Digest No. 9, 1970)

Other issues of the Golden Comics Digest focused on Gold Key’s various cartoon licenses, Little Lulu, Turok, and others.

Mystery Comics Digest No. 6 (1972) and No. 23 (1975)

Running for only 26 issues between 1972-1975, Gold Key’s Mystery Comics Digest reprinted many excellent stories from their mystery/suspense/fantasy/science fiction anthologies Ripley’s Believe or Not, The Twilight Zone, and Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery in a three issue rotating schedule.

From "The Shield of Medusa" (Mystery Comics Digest No. 6, 1972)

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

Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone: The Official 50th Anniversary Tribute by Douglas Brode and Carol Serling

Promo copy:

2009 marks the fiftieth anniversary of The Twilight Zone, arguably one of the most popular television shows ever. Drawing on photographs and personal remembrances, Rod Serling’s widow, Carol, gives commentary on some of the series’ most memorable episodes. Veteran film historian Douglas Brode gives in-depth descriptions of these episodes and why they were so resonant with viewers.

I recently interviewed Brode for the San Antonio Current.

The Better to Hold You by Alisa Sheckley

Promo copy:
SHE KNOWS WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE.

Manhattan veterinarian Abra Barrow has more sense about animals than she has about men. So when her adored journalist husband returns from a research trip to Romania and starts pacing their apartment like a caged wolf, Abra agrees to move with him to a rural mansion upstate in order to save her marriage.

But while there are perks to her new life, particularly in the bedroom, Abra soon discovers that nothing in the bucolic town of Northside is what it seems. The local tavern serves a dangerous, predatory underworld. Her husband has developed feral new appetites and a roving eye, and his lack of humanity isn’t entirely emotional. As the moon waxes full, Abra must choose between trusting the man she married, taking a chance on a seductive stranger, or following her own animal instincts.

Daughter of the late, great absurdist sf author Robert Sheckley, Sheckley, as Alisa Kwitney, served a long time Vertigo editor.

God of Clocks by Alan Campbell

Promo copy:

Alan Campbell has set the new standard for epic fantasy. Now the highly acclaimed author of Scar Night and Iron Angel returns with a new novel of a mythic struggle between man and angel, demon and god—an Armageddon of survival and annihilation that will play out on the fields of time itself.

War, rebellion, betrayal—but the worst is still to come. For in the cataclysm of the battle of the gods, a portal to Hell has been opened, releasing unnatural creatures that were never meant to be and threatening to turn the world into a killing field. And in the middle, caught between warring gods and fallen angels, humanity finds itself pushed to the brink of extinction. Its only hope is the most unlikely of heroes.

Former assassin Rachel Hael has rejoined the blood-magician Mina Greene and her devious little dog, Basilis, on one last desperate mission to save the world from the grip of Hell. Carried in the jaws of a debased angel, they rush to the final defensive stronghold of the god of time—pursued all the while by the twelve arconites, the great iron-and-bone automatons controlled by King Menoa, the Lord of the Maze. Meanwhile, in the other direction, the giant John Anchor, still harnessed to his master’s skyship, descends into Hell itself to meet Menoa on his own ground.

But neither Heaven nor Hell is anything they could ever expect. Now old enemies and new allies join a battle whose outcome could be the end of them all. Rachel’s ally, the god Hasp, finds himself in the grip of a parasite and struggles against conflicting orders to destroy his own friends; and a dangerous infant deity comprised of countless broken souls threatens to overcome them all. As Rachel travels to the final confrontation she has both sought and feared, she begins to realize that time itself is unraveling. And so she must prepare herself for a sacrifice that may claim her heart, her life, her soul—and even then it may not be enough.

More in Part II