The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature in which I highlight books I got over the last week that sound like they may be interesting—old or new, bought or received in the mail for review consideration. Since I hope you will find new books you’re interested in reading in these posts, I try to be as informative as possible. If I can find them, links to excerpts, author’s websites, and places where you can find more information on the […]

Today I’m thrilled to have a guest post by storyteller, poet, and essayist Jane Yolen with a giveaway of her latest book, The Scarlet Circus! She’s the author of over 400 books, including Briar Rose, the Pit Dragon Chronicles, the Great Alta series, the Young Merlin Trilogy, Sister Emily’s Lightship and Other Stories, and The Emerald Circus. Her work has won Nebula, World Fantasy, and Mythopoeic Awards, among others, and she is a recipient of the World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement […]

The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature in which I highlight books I got over the last week that sound like they may be interesting—old or new, bought or received in the mail for review consideration. Since I hope you will find new books you’re interested in reading in these posts, I try to be as informative as possible. If I can find them, links to excerpts, author’s websites, and places where you can find more information on the […]

For the past few years, there have been so many speculative fiction books that sound wonderful that it has been difficult to narrow down a list of anticipated releases to a somewhat reasonable number. Like the last couple of years, I scoured the web for book descriptions and interviews with their authors, early reviews, and excerpts to learn more about some of the books coming out this year. (And of course, there were some books that were already on my […]

Happy New Year! Last year was another not-so-great year in a lot of ways, and the last couple of weeks included a storm that knocked out our power for two days and was overall an unpleasant experience. But I also got to visit a cat cafe and spend time with some adorable kitties as an early Christmas gift, and as usual, I read some wonderful books. One of the biggest highlights of 2022 was the eleventh annual Women in SF&F […]

I’m thrilled to have a guest post by debut author Sophie Kim to share with you! Last of the Talons, her YA fantasy novel featuring an assassin and a Dokkaebi emperor, is out today. See below for more information on the book and author, and to read her essay “On the Duality of the Protagonist.”   More Information Read an Excerpt About LAST OF THE TALONS (Talons #1): After the destruction of her entire Talon gang, eighteen-year-old Shin Lina—the Reaper […]