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A Patroller for a Vanished Federation: In the Hands of Glory by Phyllis...
In the Hands of Glory (Timescape/Pocket Books, November 1981). Cover by Rowena Morrill Here’s my new look at an SF paperback from the ’70s/’80s. Phyllis Eisenstein’s In the Hands of Glory is a book I...
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Goth Chick News: Let’s Leave the Alien Franchise Alone Now… Please
Alien: Romulus (20th Century Studios, August 16, 2024) To begin, I’d like to review two important facts. First, with the 2019 acquisition of Fox, Disney became the owners of the long-running Alien...
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A to Z Reviews: “Fiat Silva” by Jack Oakley
Jack Oakley published two science fiction short stories in the mid 90s. His debut, “The Tragedy of KL,” appeared in Weird Tales from Shakespeare, edited by Katharine Kerr and Martin H. Greenberg. His...
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The Space Unicorn Was Caitlin
This blog post wasn’t supposed to be about our late daughter, Caitlin. This was supposed to be a lovely list of awesome things we’ve published in the 10 years of Uncanny Magazine. But right now, and...
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Vintage Treasures: The Doom That Came to Sarnath by H.P. Lovecraft
The Doom That Came to Sarnath (Ballantine Books, November 1976). Cover by Murray Tinkelman H.P. Lovecraft, creator of the Cthulhu Mythos, was one of the greatest horror writers of the 20th Century....
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Caroline Munro in Space?
Speaking of Caroline Munro (as I was in my last post Lovely Ladies And Pleistocene Behemoths: A Visit To The Hollow Earth With Edgar Rice Burroughs)… here’s an amusing bit of trivia regarding Space...
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A (Black) Gat in the Hand: Paul Cain’s ‘Fast One’ (My intro)
“You’re the second guy I’ve met within hours who seems to think a gat in the hand means a world by the tail.” – Phillip Marlowe in Raymond Chandler’s The Big Sleep (Gat — Prohibition Era term for a...
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Rules for Me and Thee, It Turns Out
Good afterevenmorn! My social timelines have been abuzz… alright, they were abuzz a couple of weeks ago, I’m slow… with the news that a certain writer is a wee bit miffed that their attempts to be...
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A Book Worth Reading Every Year: Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
In a few days I’ll begin my twenty-first year of teaching fourth grade; as I tell my new families every intro night, I’m going to keep doing it until I get it right. As always, the year ahead is...
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Goth Chick News Reviews: We Can All Relate to Murder Your Employer
Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide (Avid Reader Press, February 21, 2023) First and foremost, this review is in no way a reference to our Black Gate big cheese John O. Speaking for...
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A to Z Review: “The Pagan Rabbi,” By Cynthia Ozick
Over the past several years, I’ve embarked on a series of year-long review cycles at Black Gate. In 2018, I reviewed a story-a-day to coincide with an author whose birthday it was. In 2022, I selected...
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Robot Avatars, Criminal Combines, and a Sisterhood of Space Pilots:...
July-August 2024 issues of Asimov’s Science Fiction and Analog Science Fiction & Fact. Cover art by John Sumrow (for “Sisters of the Flare”) and Shutterstock Might as well get the bad news out of...
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Quatro-Decadal Review: Weird Tales, November 1989, edited by John Betancourt,...
Weird Tales, Fall 1989 (Terminus Publishing). Cover by J.K. Potter There has been quite the gap in my reviews. I’ve been high-centered on Weird Tales. Many factors played a role in this — mostly that...
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A (Black) Gat in the Hand: Hammett &‘The Girl with the Silver Eyes’ (My intro)
“You’re the second guy I’ve met within hours who seems to think a gat in the hand means a world by the tail.” – Phillip Marlowe in Raymond Chandler’s The Big Sleep (Gat — Prohibition Era term for a...
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Conan Well Captured: Conan: City of the Dead by John C. Hocking
Conan: City of the Dead (Titan Books, June 18, 2024). Illustrations by Richard Pace John C. Hocking’s (1960 -) Conan and the Emerald Lotus came along in 1995, near the end of the Tor Conan pastiche...
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Cinema of Swords: Swords in the Arthouse
Historical adventure and fantasy films tend to be straightforward genre pictures long on plot and action and short on deep themes and introspection, which is okay, you can’t have everything. Or can...
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Goth Chick News: Buckle Up – We’re Going to the Fan Expo
Way back in 2010, Black Gate photog Chris Z suggested we check out the Wizard World Chicago Comic Con. This was by no means a new event in our fair city. In fact, the Chicago Comic Con was first held...
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A to Z Review: “Basic Agreement,” by Avis Pabel
“Basic Agreement,” by Avis Pabel appeared in the September 1958 issue of Astounding and was reprinted in the December UK issue of the magazine. It is the only story by Pabel that appears in the...
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I Like Big Bugs and I Cannot Lie, Part III
Bug Buster (DMG Entertainment, 1998), Mesa of Lost Women (Howco Productions, 1953), and Earth vs. the Spider (American International Pictures, 1958) Bug Buster – 1998 – Prime Giant bugs? Not until the...
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It’s Only a Matter of Time
The human mind daydreams its way around certain specific topics with exceptional regularity. We fret about personal security, we hope for love (in its innumerable forms), and to round out the likely...
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