It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with the best SFF novels of 2019 and the decade, The Mandalorian, The Rise of Skywalker and Star Wars in general, His Dark Materials, Watchmen, tributes to D.C. Fontana, the Christine Feehan trademark scandal and much more.
Speculative fiction in general:
- Ann Leckie shares some recentish SFF book recommendations.
- Camestros Felapton shares a tube map of SFF genres and subgenres.
- Deana Whitney lists five likeable AI characters who should hang out together.
- Doris V. Sutherland talks about the portrayal of the vampire in urban fantasy novels.
- Sylvia Spruck-Wrigley wonders why we see so few older women in science fiction.
- Lena Felton points out that science fiction has allowed women to explore issues of gender and sexuality for centuries.
- Abaki Beck takes a look at indigenous science fiction.
- James Wallace Harris wonders whether the crews of generation ships would ever forget their mission as is so common in generation ship stories.
- James Davis Nicoll discuses how authors explain the sudden appearance of anthropomorphic characters in a story.
- Lady Business shares some ideas for building better and more inclusive bookstore endcaps.
- Alexandra Alter profiles Ken Liu.
- Hannah Nussbaum traces the history of the British small press SFF magazines Concentration and Corridor.
- James Davis Nicoll shares some tips for recovering from reader's block.
- James Davis Nicoll shares five 1970s science fiction covers that accurately depict the story told therein.
- James Wallace Harris wonders which works by Isaac Asimov to recommend to new readers.
- Daniel Lobato ranks the ten best works by Osamu Tezuka that aren't Astro Boy.
- Rebecca Davis reports that DC Comics has pulled a promotional image for a new Batman comic after criticism from the Chinese government who claimed that the image was inspired by the Hong Kong protests and subsequently came under fire for bowing to Chinese government pressure.
Best of 2019 and the decade:
- Adam Roberts shares his favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2019.
- NPR share their favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2019.
- The New York Public Library shares its favourite science fiction, fantasy and horror books of 2019.
- AudioFile lists its favourite science fiction, fantasy and horror audiobooks of 2019.
- Eric Smith shares his nineteen favourite young adult novels of 2019.
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw shares her favourite horror movies of 2019.
- Leah Schnelbach lists her ten favourite SFF books of the decade.
- Emily O'Donnell lists her ten favourite science fiction series of the decade.
Tributes to D.C. Fontana:
- Star Trek writer D.C. Fontana has died aged 80.
- Tor.com remembers D.C. Fontana.
- Mike Glyer remembers D.C. Fontana.
Film and TV:
- Molly Templeton shares her initial impressions of season 4 of The Expanse.
- Steve J. Wright shares his thoughts on the latest BBC adaptation of H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds.
- Leslie Felperin calls Invasion Planet Earth ludicrously ambitious and delightfully clunky.
- Katherine Connell shares her thoughts on the feminist dystopia Paradise.
- Lucy Mangan declares that the biggest twist of Servant is that it is an M. Night Shyamalan show that is actually decent.
- Katie Rife calls In Fabric a bizarre horror comedy.
- Lawrence Garcia calls Daniel Isn't Real a horror movie cousin to Fight Club.
- Peter Bradshaw calls Lucy in the Sky an intriguing film based on true events.
- Ellen Cheeseman-Meyer shares her thoughts on the holiday time travel movie The Knight Before Christmas.
- Cath Clarke calls StarDog and TurboCat a sentimental and laboured animated time travel adventure.
- Leah Schnebach declares that Looper and Unbreakable do a better job of telling supervillain origin stories than Joker.
- Phil Hoad discusses how zombie movies are tackling racial issues.
- Mark Cole takes a look at the intersection of arthouse film and science fiction.
- Anne Billson explains why alternate reality movies are making a comeback.
- Finn Cole lists eight movie accused of plagiarism, including several genre movies.
- Tom Breihan declares that Avengers: Endgame is cinema, a thrill ride and the fitting culmination to Marvel's great experiment.
- Daniel Dern reports about the 2019 Crisis on Infinite Earths DC TV crossover event and discusses crossovers in general.
- Dani de Placido reports that DC Films still doesn't know what to do with Superman.
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw explains why Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy are not a couple in the animated Harley Quinn.
- Eric Thurm declares that the final season of Runaways hints at what the series could have been.
- Ben Child wonders whether Black Widow will truly be Scarlett Johansson's final outing as the character.
- Joseph Knoop reports about some behind the scenes issues at Disney and Marvel.
- Alison Herman declares that 2019 marked the end of one television era and the beginning of the next.
- S.A. Hunt revisits the 1999 horror movie Blair Witch Project.
- Ryan Gilbey expresses his disappointment that E.T. is being used in a commercial for internet services.
- Joy Press interviews Alex Kurtzman, showrunner of the Star Trek streaming shows.
- Eva Wiseman interviews Emilia Clarke who played Daenerys Targaryen in Game of Thrones.
- Alex Godfrey interviews Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who appeared in the Black Mirror episode "San Junipero", Doctor Who, Jupiter Ascending and many others.
- Camestros Felapton shares his favourite SFF theme tunes.
- Actress Joan Staley, who appeared in Batman, 77 Sunset Strip and The Ghost and Mr. Chicken among others, has died aged 79.
Comments on The Mandalorian, The Rise of Skywalker and Star Wars in general (warning: spoilers):
- Liz Shannon Miller shares her thoughts on "Sanctuary", the latest episode of The Mandalorian.
- Emily Asher Perrin shares her thoughts on "Sanctuary".
- Dean E.S. Richards shares his thoughts on "Sanctuary".
- Mike Fugere declares that The Mandalorian proves that there are still a lot of stories to tell in the Star Wars universe.
- Anthony Breznican discusses how everybody's favourite character in The Mandalorian conquered the world.
- Zach Vasquez also discusses the overwhelming response to everybody's favourite character.
- Anthony Gramuglia explains Mandalorian culture.
- Mary Ann Russon reports about the difficulty of finding toys featuring everybody's favourite character.
- Will Thorne interviews Bryce Dallas Howard, director of "Sanctuary".
- Joanna Robinson interviews Gina Carrano, who plays Cara Dune in The Mandalorian.
- Matt Miller interviews Billy Dee Williams who plays Lando Calrissian in the Star Wars movies.
- Dom Nero interviews Anthony Daniels who plays C-3PO in the Star Wars movies.
- Matt Miller interviews J.J. Abrams, director of The Rise of Skywalker.
- Charles Bramesco interviews Rian Johnson, director of Knives Out and The Last Jedi.
- Adam B. Vary reports that according to director J.J. Abrams, Finn and Poe are not a couple in The Rise of Skywalker, but there will be LGBTQ representation.
- The BBC reports that a dying man has been granted his last wish to be allowed to see The Rise of Skywalker early.
- Ross Johnson offers a guide to the new Star Wars books and comics.
Comments on His Dark Materials:
- Tyler Dean shares his thoughts on the latest episode of His Dark Materials.
- Myles McNutt shares his thoughts on the latest episode of His Dark Materials.
- Lisa Weidenfeld shares her thoughts on the latest episode of His Dark Materials.
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest episode of His Dark Materials.
- Beth Elderkin explains the most confusing plot points of His Dark Materials.
Comments on the latest version of Watchmen:
- Leah Schnelbach shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Watchmen.
- Joelle Monique shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Watchmen.
- Phoebe Wagner shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Watchmen.
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw shares her thoughts about the latest episode of Watchmen.
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest two episodes of Watchmen.
- Chris M. Barkley shares his thoughts on the latest few episodes of Watchmen.
- Charles Pulliam-Moore interviews Nicole Kassell, executive producer of Watchmen.
- Charles Pulliam-Moore offers some background information about the character of Captain Metropolis in Watchmen.
- GEN interviews Damon Lindelof, showrunner of Watchman.
- The Superhero Cinephiles revisits Zack Snyder's take on Watchmen.
Awards:
- The finalists for the 2019 Self-Published Fantasy Blog-off have been announced.
- The winners of the 2019 Prix ActuSF de l'Uchronie have been announced.
Writing, publishing and promotion:
- Tyler Hayes shares some tips for writing speculative detective fiction.
- Summer H. Paulus shares her experiences doing NaNoWriMo.
- Helen Betya Rubinstein explains what your draft and its problems says about you.
- Lissa Harris who was the swordfighting consultant for Gideon the Ninth talks about swordfighting and her collaboration with Tamsyn Muir.
- Mike Glyer reports that the Writing the Other scholarship program has been renamed the Vonda N. McIntyre Sentient Squid Scholarship.
- Cory Doctorow reports that paranormal romance author Christine Feehan is trying to trademark the word "Dark" for exclusive use for her series.
- Claire Ryan also weighs in on the Christine Feehan trademark issue.
- Kristine Kathryn Rusch explains that old stories can still be licensed for new merchandise and also tackles the "Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?" debate.
Interviews:
- Lulu Garcia-Navarro interviews Tomi Adeyemi.
- Arley Sorg interviews Juliette Wade.
- Arley Sorg interviews Peter Watts.
- Scott Edelman interviews Larry Lieber.
- Paper Phoenix Ink interviews A.C. Wise.
- Juliette Wade interviews S. Qiouyi Lu.
Reviews:
- Liz Bourke reviews To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers.
- Sylas K. Barrett reviews The Name of All Things by Jenn Lyons.
- Liz Bourke reviews The Impossible Contract by K.A. Doore.
- Alex Brown reviews Reverie by Ryan La Sala.
- Lee Mandelo reviews Dead Astronauts by Jeff VanderMeer.
- Bill Capossere reviews Dead Astronauts by Jeff VanderMeer.
- Paul Fraser reviews Frozen Hell by John W. Campbell Jr.
- Mark Yon reviews World Engines: Destroyer by Stephen Baxter.
- Adrienne Martini reviews Vultures by Chuck Wendig.
- Katharine Coldiron reviews The Last Supper Before Ragnarok by Cassandra Khaw.
- Rob Bedford reviews Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse.
- Blue Book Balloon reviews Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse.
- Runalong the Shelves reviews Realm of Ash by Tasha Suri.
- Gary K. Wolfe reviews Ivory Apples by Lisa Goldstein.
- Fantasy Faction reviews Guns of Liberty by Jamie Mauchline.
- Geoff Matthews reviews Blood of Heirs by Alicia Wanstall-Burke.
- The Qwillery reviews Kitty Peck and the Parliament of Shadows by Kate Griffin.
- Amy Goldschlager reviews Spellswept and Snowspelled by Stephanie Burgis.
- James Davis Nicoll reviews The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo.
- Kat Hooper reviews The Rosewater Redemption by Tade Thompson.
- Tadiana Jones reviews Starsight by Brandon Sanderson.
- Rebecca Fisher reviews Moonlight and Ashes by Sophie Masson.
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Everything Is Beautiful and Nothing Bad Can Ever Happen Here by Michael Wehunt.
- Runalong the Shelves reviews Tangle's Game by Stewart Hotston.
- For Winter Nights reviews Ctrl+S by Andy Briggs.
- Camestros Felapton reviews One Word Kill by Mark Lawrence.
- Doris V. Sutherland reviews Little Darlings by Melanie Golding
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews The Dead Girls Club by Damien Angelica Walters
- Margaret Agnew reviews The Dead Girls Club and Damien Angelica Walters.
- Suzy Michael reviews The Apocalyptic Mannequin by Stephanie Wytovich.
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews A Voice So Soft by Patrick Lacey.
- John Langan reviews Wounds by Nathan Ballingrud.
- Rich Horton and Gary K. Wolfe review Mission Critical and The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Volume 13, edited by Jonathan Strahan.
Classics reviews:
- Doris V. Sutherland revisits the Summer 1928 issue of Amazing Stories Quarterly.
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1950 science fiction novel Pebble in the Sky by Isaac Asimov.
- Joe Sherry revisits They'd Rather Be Right by Mark Clifton and Frank Riley, the infamous winner of the 1955 Hugo Award for Best Novel.
- Judith Tarr revisits the 1960 historical fantasy Shadow Hawk by Andre Norton.
- Gideon Marcus revisits the December 1964 issue of Analog.
- Joe Kenney revisits the 1964 science fiction novel Alpha Centauri Or Die by Leigh Brackett.
- Gideon Marcus revisits the January 1965 issue of If: Worlds of Science Fiction.
- Alan Brown revisits the 1970 fantasy novel Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny.
- Joachim Boaz revisits the 1973 postapocalyptic novel The Texts of Festival by Mick Farren.
- Julie E. Czerneda revisits the 1976 fantasy novel The Riddlemaster of Hed by Patricia McKillip and its sequels.
- Anne M. Pillworth and Ruthanna Emrys revisit the 1979 science fiction novelette "Sandkings" by George R.R. Martin.
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1982 science fiction novel Nor Crystal Tears by Alan Dean Foster.
- Kat Hooper revisits Burning Water, a 1989 Diana Tregarde urban fantasy mystery by Mercedes Lackey.
- Kat Hooper revisits Children of the Night, a 1990 Diana Tregarde urban fantasy mystery by Mercedes Lackey.
- Kat Hooper revisits the 1993 historical fantasy Strange Devices of the Sun and the Moon by Lisa Goldstein.
Con and event reports:
- Ehud Maimon reports about ICon 2019 in Tel Aviv, Israel, and shares several photos.
- Marion Deeds shares her experiences at AtomaCon in Charleston, South Carolina, as well as several photos.
- Dale S. Arnold reports about the Thanksgiving potluck at the Baltimore Science Fiction Society in Baltimore, Maryland.
- Mark L. Blackmn reports about the launch party for Across the Universe: Tales of Alternative Beatles, edited by Michael A. Ventrella and Randee Dawn, in Brooklyn, New York.
- Krystyna Poray Goddu reports about the first Madeleine L'Engle conference held in New York City and shares several photos.
- Gary Lovisi shares a video of a tour around the Bold Venture Pulp Fan Fest in Bordertown, New Jersey.
- Martin Morse Wooster reports about a performance of Peter Pan and Wendy by J.M. Barrie, adapted by Lauren Gunderson, in Washington DC.
- Jason Farkas reports about the Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance ride at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
Crowdfunding:
Science and technology:
- The BBC reports that NASA has located the debris of the crashed Indian Chandrayaan-2 lunar probe with the help of an Indian engineer.
- The BBC reports about XinaBox, a South African company that helps children build satellites in school.
- Gideon Marcus reports about the Mariner-4 and Zond-2 missions to Mars and sums up what was known about our neighbour planet - in 1964.
- Elizabeth Segran reports IKEA has sent designers to the Mars Desert Research Station to redesign the station's interior.
- The BBC reports that China is about to introduce face scans for users of mobile phones.
- Freya Cole interviews wind power engineer Henrik Stiesdal.
- Helen Briggs reports that humans played a big role in the extinction of the cave bear 40000 years ago.
Free online fiction:
- "Black Flowers Blossom" by Vina Jie-Min Prasad in Uncanny Magazine.
- "The Petals of the Godflower" by Kyle Kirrin in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
- "Nameless in the Winged Court" by Rowenna Miller in Beneath Ceaseless Skies
- "Peridot and Rain" by Laura Anne Gilman in Uncanny Magazine.
- "Methods of Ascension" by Dan Stintzi in Nightmare Magazine.
- "The Path of Pins, the Path of Needles" by K.T. Bryski in Lightspeed.
- "The Time Invariance of Snow" by E. Lily Yu at Tor.com.
- "Today Is Today" by Rick Wilber in Lightspeed.
- "A Priest, a Rabbi and a Robot Walk into a Bar" by Andrew Dana Hudson in Slate: Future Tense.
- "You Were Once Wild Here" by Carlie St. George in The Dark.
- "Such Thoughts Are Unproductive" by Rebecca Campbell in Clarkesworld.
- "Doubting Thomas" by Kristine Kathryn Rusch.
- "The Bakery on Gloomland Street" by Cora Buhlert.
- "Recycling" by Philip Gregg Chamberlain in Daily Science Fiction.
Odds and ends:
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