Blog Posts by Subject: Science Fiction and Fantasy

My favorite stories are the ones about the ordinary people who, while going about their daily lives, encounter strange and/or inexplicable events. How they behave in the midst of weirdness is more interesting than the phenomenon itself. I've always been a sucker for a well-told vampire tale. (Sorry!) Or an off-center ghost story or strange-baby story... Here, in no particular order, are a few of my favorite, wonderfully odd movies.

If you are a huge fan of The Hunger Games Trilogy like I am, then The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook should be your next read. This book is filled with some of the most amazing dishes described within each novel (including Catching Fire and Mockingjay).

“Things have made you what you are... What you are will make you what you will become.”

—Samuel R. Delany, Dahlgren

¿Entonces porque no tratar otra historia similar que podrás igual disfrutar y la vez enriquecer el literario paladar?

Los juegos del hambre (The Hunger Games) de Susan Collins, que acaba de salir en estreno el pasado fin de semana ya sobrepasa los 150 millones de dólares, se desenlaza en un mundo futurístico que se genera después del Apocalipsis. Allí, los dueños del poder mantienen a sus ocupantes bajo el terror y para controlarlos, cada año, seleccionan al azar a un grupo de jóvenes para competir en una batalla a muerte. En esta terrible competencia ellos deben vencer todos 

Once the shock of last season's ending wore off, the clamor began for new episodes of Game of Thrones. Fans have been whetting their appetites for a year now, and hopefully last year's read-alike list helped take the edge off the anticipation for some of you. But now, war comes to Westeros, and with it a new suggested readings list for those who crave a little blood and grunge in their fantasy. Let the Clash of Kings begin!

Welcome to a new blog series that shows you books that are based from another form of media. This could include the novelization of a movie, movies that were originally books, or in this case, books that are based on video games.

There are more and more books coming out that come from video games. As video games get more intricate plots, players want to know more about the characters. What motivates the villain or hero? What happened before or after the game? Books can answer these questions and are released faster than a game, which usually takes a year or more to develop.

By now we are well into The Servants by M.M. Smith. Our protagonist, Mark, is 11 years old and unhappy. Having just relocated to Brighton from London, he has no friends and spends the rainy, chilly days skateboarding by himself. Full of resentment against his new stepfather, David, and confused by his mother's illness, he meets an old lady who unlocks for him a bygone era in her basement flat in the 200-year-old house David owns.

The steampunk genre has been around for some time now, and while some may disagree, I most strongly associate it with The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, a graphic novel, by Alan Moore.

I've been thinking about this post ever since Lady Gaga and Mayor Bloomberg hosted the New Year's ball drop, which made me think of her Monster's Ball tour, and of monsters, in general. Unfortunately, I have been a wee bit tardy in posting it, so some of these books are not exactly hot off the presses, but I think they are all great horror and science-fiction reads for 2012. As a bonus, some are available as e-book titles. Readers, engage!

Do you like fantasy and science fiction? Are you ready for some armchair exploration? For your reading pleasure, check out these three new books that are set in alternate futures and alternate realities!

June and Day are part of the same nation: The Republic of America. They’re in the same city: Los Angeles, California. Their lives could not be more different.

Thank you for all the readers and followers of the Reader's Den! I hope everyone enjoyed Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon and enjoyed Nick's adventure with Zombies, Dark-Hunters, and his own dark secret. The adventures continue in the next book of the series, Invincible. 

After reading or while reading Infinity — there are lots of questions that come to mind! I know I certainly had a few! What struck you as you were reading? Here are some questions to get the discussion started, but please don’t feel limited to answering only the questions below. Go ahead and add your own questions or comments.

Pearl is like a lot of 16-year-old girls. She likes to steal cars and drive too fast with her handsome, dangerous boyfriend Jadrien. She wears a lot of black. She is extremely flammable in direct sunlight.

Okay. Maybe Pearl isn’t exactly an average teenage girl. But she is an average vampire. Completely ordinary and almost completely evil, Pearl is the perfect predator at the top of the food chain in her Connecticut town. And she is fine with that.

Lately, I’ve noticed some interest in crossover titles for video game players who are looking for good fiction reads. I know I’m not the first person to think of this. Scott Pilgrim vs the World is a good, if somewhat obvious, example. Here’s a list of some other titles that may not immediately spring to mind.

If you missed the big news, The New York Public Library now offers free ebooks for your Kindle! To celebrate, I've put together a somewhat exhaustive list of science fiction ebook titles to make it easy to browse them at a glance.

Click to go directly to any author: Douglas Adams, Isaac Asimov, Philip K. Dick, China Miéville, Kim Stanley Robinson, Neal Stephenson, Vladimir Sorokin, and Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Need help? Check out this useful step-by-step guide to downloading Kindle ebooks. Many of these titles are also available for the Barnes and Noble Nook and Sony E-reader as well.

When The Hunger Games came out a few years ago, author Suzanne Collins had no idea she was popularizing a whole sub-genre of fantasy — the dystopian romance. With all the sub-par Hunger Games copycats out there, it’s hard not to be cynical. However, I am here to tell you that there is HOPE. Blood Red Road by Moira Young has it all! A fast moving, edge-of-your-seat story, a super kick-ass heroine, amazing action, and an epic romance that just might have you saying, “Peeta who?”

Anya Balanchine lives in a world where chocolate is illegal, water is scarce and New York City is a ghost of what it once was. Central Park is no longer a park. The Metropolitan Museum is a night club.

When Brynn was four years old, her life changed forever when a rogue werewolf killed her parents. Rescued by the Stone River Pack and Marked by the pack’s alpha, Callum, Brynn’s safety is a matter of pack law.