April 30, 2019
Last year, Avengers: Infinity War brought almost 10 years of films to culmination. Now, we find out how it all ends. Because of the magnitude of this story (and how difficult it is to get tickets for opening weekend), the Sound Off post for Avengers: Endgame will be published NEXT week. I’m creating this post before I even see the movie,…
April 30, 2019
Magic Bleeds (2010) Written by: Ilona Andrews Series: Kate Daniels #4 Genre: Urban Fantasy Pages: 349 (Paperback) Publisher: Ace Why I Chose This: My 2019 Resolution Project for Speculative Chic is to read the books in the Kate Daniels series and finish up with a first read of the final book. I first read Magic Bleeds in 2010. The Premise: Kate Daniels works…
April 29, 2019
They might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but that doesn’t mean that we love them any less. Welcome back to My Favorite Things, the weekly column where we grab someone in speculative circles to gab about the greatest in geek. This week, we sit down with Chadwick Ginther, whose latest, Graveyard Mind, was released last summer…
April 27, 2019
Hello once again! I’m writing to you from lovely Kumamoto as the Heisei era winds down to its final days, and the new emperor Naruhito will ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne. That sounds so majestic as I write it! And I think it’s exciting to be able to say I’m living through my third Japanese era (Showa to Heisei and now…
April 26, 2019
Welcome to the Speculative Chic Book Club! Each month, we invite you to join us in reading a book that is voted on by YOU, our readers. Following a short review, please feel free to discuss the book in the comments! The Bards of Bone Plain (2010) Written by: Patricia A. McKillip Genre: Fantasy Pages: 336 (Hardcover) Publisher: Ace Premise:…
April 25, 2019
Welcome back to Sound Off!, a semi-regular column where members of Speculative Chic gather together to chat about the latest BIG THING in entertainment. This time, gather your family and discuss Hellboy (2019), which premiered in the United States on Friday, April 12, 2019. Sound Off! is meant to be a reaction, but not necessarily a review. After all, while we are all…
April 25, 2019
The Poppy War (2018) Written by: R.F. Kuang Genre: Fantasy Pages: 549 (Kindle) Series: Book One of The Poppy War Publisher: HarperCollins Why I Chose It: I had heard a lot of positive buzz about The Poppy War, but it was ultimately its Nebula Award nomination that convinced me to give it a chance. The Premise: When Rin aced the Keju…
April 24, 2019
The Princess in Black (2015) Written By: Shannon Hale and Dean Hale Genre: Children’s Chapter Book Pages: 96 pages (Hardcover) Series: Princess in Black (Book 1) Publisher: Candlewick Why I Chose It: My three-year-old was doing a reading challenge through school and I was looking for something a little longer to read to her besides her normal picture books. I’ve…
April 23, 2019
Yes, absolutely that is a terrible pun. But I didn’t want this post to get off to a rocky start. I’ll stop now. Promise. But seriously, readers. From the dawn of time people have been manipulating stone for lots of different reasons. We make weapons, houses, places of worship, watchtowers, memorials, or trailmarkers (see: cairns). Standing stones are probably the…
April 22, 2019
They might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but that doesn’t mean that we love them any less. Welcome back to My Favorite Things, the weekly column where we grab someone in speculative circles to gab about the greatest in geek. This week, we sit down with Troy Harkin, whose twisted poetry collection, Casting Shadows, was released…