…s human relatives. But war has come to the Dai Viet Empire. Prosper’s brightest minds have been called away to defend the Emperor; and a flood of disorientated refugees strain the station’s resources. As deprivations cause the station’s ordinary life to unravel, uncovering old grudges and tearing apart the decimated family, Station Mistress Quyen and the Honoured Ancestress struggle to keep their relatives united and safe. What Quyen does not know…
…e I love to put garlic in everything. Also, if the vampire apocalypse ever comes to pass, I’ll be well prepared. I also had to google most of these, because I didn’t know they existed (cookie presses? sandwich makers? Wow), and wasn’t altogether sure of some things: for instance, our pressure cooker doubles as a steam cooker thanks to a handy basket, and we have a raclette set but no fondue set (I’m assuming a lot of these are typically British eq…
…tem colonized by mankind. What would it take to make this happen? Could we really adapt to live on the Moon or Mars? Will space exploration ever be economic? With Guy Haley (mod), Michael Dollin, Aliette de Bodard, Ben Jeapes, Dev Agarwal 10:50-10:55: Reading. Not entirely sure what I’ll be reading with: either the forthcoming Immersion Press novella On a Red Station, Drifting, or the urban fantasy novel. Either way, something no one but very few…
–Sightseeing, Rattawut Lapcharoensap. A collection of short stories set in contemporary Thailand, by turns cynical and sharp, sad and uplifting. The opening one, “Farangs”, set on a tourist island and from the point of view of a mixed-race Thai/American local boy, is a very biting look at the industry of tourism and how it distorts local life (and you gotta love the pet pig named Clint Eastwood). There’s a wide range of narrators and experiences,…
…Michael Fassbender). Minus points: the plot, which is voyeuristic and not really convoluted enough for me to forgive the “let’s kidnap and torture young women” vibe. As the H said, it was a great shame the movie lacked suspects altogether and made its conclusion pretty foregone. I’m off to Bristolcon for the weekend, where I’ll be hanging out with Gareth L Powell, Tricia Sullivan, Patrick Samphire and Stephanie Burgis. Internet connection will ho…
So, the H comes home tonight and shows me the picture above. “Wanna take a guess on what this is?” he asks with a (suspiciously) broad smile. I take a look. “Ratatouille?” I hazard, knowing it can’t be that. Apparently, this is what a La Défence restaurant sold as bò bún. It has, let’s see… carrots, rice (badly cooked, according to the H), shrimps and some other unidentified vegetables that the H assured me were all Western in origin. No bò (beef…
Just a quick post to say that I am back, having had a great WFC–more later, but major congratulations to friends Lavie Tidhar and Ken Liu for their World Fantasy Award wins (thrilled for Ken, who has done the hat trick of winning the Hugo, Nebula and World Fantasy Award in the same year with his “Paper Menagerie”, though for my money I still think “The Man Who Ended History: a Documentary” was a stronger and more thought-provoking tale). That’s i…
…some people asked me if they could find it elsewhere, and I apologise for completely blanking on the fact that Lightspeed was going to reprint it…) In the Tenth Court of Hell stands the Wheel of Rebirth. Its spokes are of red lacquered wood; it creaks as demons pull it, dragging its load of souls back into the world. And before the Wheel stands the Lady. Every soul who goes to the Wheel must endure her gaze. Every soul must stop by her, and take…
…arning all about gyms, squats, planks and weight-lifting. I can’t say I’ve come back determined to join my nearest gym as soon as possible, but I no longer feel as daunted by the prospect of going to the gym, and it’s certainly made me want to try some exercise -Gatecrashed Jeff Vandermeer’s “Lost in Translation” panel with a decided lack of preparation (Agnes Cadieux, the missing panelist, had an emergency and couldn’t make it), but managed to ma…
Or, you know, not. Apparently I would seem to have a thing called a birthday today; and my surprise birthday present is a trip to London courtesy of my sis and the H (!!). Am currently near Bayswater in a surprisingly large room–no idea what’s in store for today, but it sounds like fun. I’m not the only one to have a November birthday: fellow authors Lavie Tidhar, David Tallerman and Lee Battersby are also November babies, and to mark the occasio…
