The Neon Amazon (Once Giants, Book 1) by Eugene Kirk and Garan Mad

 Release date: May 8, 2017

Subgenre: Military science fiction, Cyberpunk

About The Neon Amazon:

Eight-foot-tall Tina Thompson has to make the biggest decision of her life.

Once a pretend villain in a league of bio-augmented professional wrestlers, Tina now survives in the slums of São Paulo as a drug lord's enforcer, using her genetically enhanced body to take out anyone her boss deems a “problem”.

All Tina wants is a normal life, but with millions in debt and a body that requires constant nano-treatments to stave off deadly side effects, she doesn't have a lot of options. When a collection run goes bad, things get worse. The cyber-enhanced mercenaries she’s just killed have a boss too, and he wants payback. He offers Tina a choice: die, or work for him in exchange for a permanent fix to her enhancements. No more nano-treatments, and no hope of going back to a normal life.

Now, Tina must decide if her freedom is worth the price. All she has to do is give up on her dream of normalcy, become a villain for real . . . and blow up a starship.

Gritty and exciting, The Neon Amazon is the first installment of a new sci-fi action series, featuring a twist on the idea of heroes and villains, set against a military sci-fi backdrop in a cyberpunk world.

When She-Hulk meets Dark Matter, expect some bodies to fly.

Excerpt:

 

Tina’s thoughts left her as she slammed full force into the side of a grav-van. Or maybe it had slammed into her. Either way, the cheap SEAUX-Korean import crumpled like a beer can as it bounced off her eight-foot frame and spun out in a shower of sparks and exploding glass.

“Caralho!” she cursed. Damn idiot!

She launched a barefooted kick into what was left of the van and sent it careening across the rain drenched highway on its busted repeller coils and into the curb. She resisted the urge to take out the rest of her pain and agitation on the crippled vehicle, more out of self-preservation than self-control. It was probably her fault for running across a highway in the middle of the night without looking, anyway.

Still, the least they could have done was hit the friggin’ brakes!

“Stupid schmucks,” she muttered as rain pelted her from the night sky, soaking her through. “That damn well hurt.”

Tina brushed chips of broken glass from her wet shoulders as she peered through the van’s busted windscreen. She couldn’t tell if the occupants were badly injured or not, and she didn’t really care. They were still moving, and it was clear they were a couple of civilians, not members of some rival jacker gang trying to take out Boss Marcos’s “elite prized champion.” Plus the cops would be on their way now, and she didn’t have time for that crap.

Tina fled the highway and jumped the guard rail, falling thirty feet to the darkened confines of the favela below. She impacted with a spray of wet earth and took off in a sprint through the dimly lit shanty town.

A midnight collection run. Solo. How’d she end up working for a bastard who’d make her pull a job like this? Her last conversation with him was over an hour ago, but Marcos’s parting words still had her seething with rage.

“Don’t forget. I own your ass, you big dumb bitch.”

The mere echo of those words had her punching the backs of plastiply shacks as she barreled through the muddy alleyways. She’d fix him one day. When she could finally get free from him, and out of this hellhole called Brazil.

The rain hissed in a steady snare-drum roll as it pounded the corrugated zinc roofs of the three- and four-story tenement buildings lining either side of the alley. She reached a stairway and bounded up the crudely cast concrete steps three at a time, a sudden pain shooting through her body with each lunge.

What the hell?

She forced her mind to push past it and kept going, her lungs struggling to placate her aching cells with as much oxygen and synthetic endorphins as her body could muster. That van hadn’t hit her that hard.

Had it?

She reached a platform and stopped, her breathing ragged, a coppery taste in her mouth. She sucked in air and hacked loudly into her hand, leaning against one of the tenement buildings for support as a coughing fit took hold. When it finally subsided, flecks of rust-colored mucus covered her palm.

“Shit . . .” Dying again, already—not even three days this time. “Cheap-ass nanites.”

 

 

Amazon

 

Blog | Facebook | Twitter

 

About Eugene Kirk:

 

I've been writing for about twenty years, mostly in the Sci-fi genre. Before then, I used to make up stories all the time for role playing games, along side my co-author, Garan Mad. But now, with a wife, two kids and a full time career as an engineer, I don't have time to game anymore, but my creative juices still flow, so now I pour them into my writing.

After publishing a couple of novels, I've switched to focus on shorter length works; something I like to call "Made for TV novels". They are fast, fun reads that you can digest in an hour or so, much like an episode of your favorite TV show. And with the time pressures we all have these days, maybe a couple of hours is all you can afford to spend on some quick entertainment. So hopefully you'll enjoy the format and if you keep reading it, I'll keep writing it.

About Garan Mad:

Though I trained as an artist, writing has always been a passion of mine, though this was kept mostly to Role Playing games, alongside long-time friend and co-author, Eugene Kirk.

A few years ago I fulfilled my dream of publishing a series of comics called CONTRACT and although comics/graphic novels have always been my first passion the time and monetary constraints of artwork production is quite daunting. So, after a bit of encouragement to return to writing I've jumped (back) into the pool.

So pick up a book, give it a shot and, most important, if you enjoy PLEASE let us know.

 

A Dark Inheritance (The Vampire, Book1) by Erme Lander

Release date: May 23, 2017

 Subgenre: Gothic, paranormal

 About A Dark Inheritance:

 

“I do not require your eternal love or devotion Ms Johnson, merely what is inside your veins.”

When Tina Johnson, single mother, forty, wakes up in an isolated castle in Central Europe she simply wants to return to her daughter as quickly as possible. She doesn’t expect to find that she has been kidnapped and brought into a world where power is the key to survival and sanity is an optional extra.
Tina discovers she has been watched for many years, she has a rare genetic structure that makes her attractive to vampires and has the possibility of living for well over a century, if she allows herself to become infected. Kalmár has stolen her and intends to keep her captive, hiding her from both her family and other vampires. She meets Wolfie, his bonded servant, unable to disobey the orders given by his master whether he wishes to or not. Normality becomes a frightening place as Tina struggles to escape those holding her and to fights to keep her daughter, her lover and her freedom.

 

Excerpt:

 

Later she lay on her bed, staring at the old-fashioned walls, not seeing them. Called herself a coward for not acting decisively and tried not to think about the horrendous intimacy of a man who fed from her, sucking her blood to survive. Brooding over the locked doors and being hundreds of miles away from friends and family. No way to contact them. She sank into a pit of despair.

Tina curled up under her bedclothes having refused all Wolfie’s entreaties to come down during the night and woke with a horror creeping over her. She couldn’t see anything in the dark room, her skin crawled as she tried not to panic.

She lay and feigned sleep. Tried to keep her breathing steady and strained her ears past the blood pounding through them. A soft rustle of clothing and she caught the smell of him. He was in the room with her, she frantically tried to work out where he might be. She had a lamp on the table next to the bed. As though shifting in her sleep, Tina rolled towards it. Her hand reached out and she smothered a shriek as her wrist was grasped by long cool fingers.

“You make this too easy Ms Johnson.” Trying to wriggle free, she slapped in his direction with her other hand. He took that wrist too and pinned her to the bed, pulling her head back by her hair to expose her throat. Tina froze and whimpered, expecting him to bite as his mouth came into contact with her. Kalmár merely held her down and brushed his lips against her neck.

Point made, he reached over and threw her clothes on top of her. “I expect you downstairs, Ms Johnson.” This time she heard his heels click as he walked to the door. She lay, panting and crying through helplessness. The thought of what he might do next drove her to switch the light on. The room was empty. Sniffing, Tina pulled her jeans on and wiped her face on her sleeve. She walked slowly to the library, hating herself for giving in but not daring to rebel any further.

Kalmár greeted her as she entered and gestured to a chair. She curled up, rebellion limited to glaring at him. He picked up his book and glasses and ignored the look. “You are easier to train than a dog Ms Johnson. You understand consequences.”

Past caring, she muttered back at him, “I wouldn’t train a dog like this. They end up hating you.”

He refused to look at her as he found his way to his bookmarked page, “I do not require your eternal love or devotion Ms Johnson, merely what is inside your veins.” 

Amazon.com | Amazon UK

 

About Erme Lander:

 

More frog than princess, Erme Lander lives in Gloucestershire with her husband, two children and a mad cat. A Dark Inheritance is her first book.

The Rending (The Dreamwalkers of Larreta, Book 2) by Carol Holland March

Release date: May 22, 2017

Subgenre:  Portal fantasy

About The Rending: 

 

Deadly time rifts threaten Earth and Larreta. The rifts have swallowed people, buildings and the land itself. They must be stopped before the very fabrics of both worlds are torn apart.

Dreamwalker Leo can look backward in time. Jesse can walk into the future. Both of these abilities are needed to create the dangerous truan passage to locate and defeat the mysterious instigator of the rifts.

But Jesse is a volatile newcomer, unable to completely control his abilities. And Leo is still uncertain of his personal feelings for Jesse.

Working past their issues is key to discovering the location where the rifts originate. But the dark force behind the rifts has other plans—ones that won’t allow the two dreamwalkers to remain together. And only together can the rifts be stopped.

Excerpt:

A movement among the trees caught Leo’s attention. Adil was tall, well over seven feet, and very white, his skin a pearlescent color that took on pastel hues of pink, peach and sometimes aqua. His long white hair frizzed to his shoulders. Only his eyes were dark, deep-set and huge. His arms were longer in proportion than any human arms, and a white robe completed the effect of a ghost gliding through trees.

Adil reached them and inclined his head. “Was this your first glimpse of the morning lights, Jesse?”

“Yes, sir.” Jesse’s shoulders tensed. Leo remembered how nervous Jesse got around Adil.  

“Did you enjoy it?” This morning the Overseer’s dark eyes glowed warm with humor.

“It was wonderful,” Jesse said. “I love this place. I hope to spend time here later when things calm down.”

Adil nodded. “I think you will.” He turned toward Leo. “I have received excellent reports of your advanced training here at the Center. I am optimistic that Jesse’s foresight and your ability to see the past will, in time, combine to form the truan passage that we need to locate the source of the deadly time rifts attacking Larreta. You have made good progress toward that end in the short time. Are you ready to return to the Coast House? If not, we could extend your stay.”

“We’ll be ready,” Leo said.

Adil nodded. “You’ve always preferred action to theory, haven’t you, Leo?”

“I suppose.” He wasn’t sure if that was a good quality from the point of view of a Time Walker who had mastered the advanced physics required to travel through time and space using only the power of his mind. “The Keepers have put in place detailed protocols.”

Adil seemed to approve. “Your safety is our highest priority. If you cannot establish a truan passage that is safe to use, we will abandon this experiment. My Keepers are working on other options should the truan prove too dangerous.”

Leo glanced at Jesse who was staring at Adil’s long white feet. “We’ll make it work.”

Jesse looked up. “I trust Leo. I trust the Keepers, and I want to stop these rifts.” The loss of the Mountain House with its Keeper, Lupita, an old friend of Leo’s, had convinced them both to commit to this course.

“We are fortunate to have you,” Adil said. “Now that your training nears completion, you will both have direct access to me should you need it.”

That was unusual. Generally, a dreamwalker communicated to the Center through a Keeper or through Nara, Mentor of Larreta. “Thank you, sir,” Leo said.

Adil inclined his head. “Call and I will answer.” He turned toward the main entrance to the Temena.

Jesse dropped onto the stone bench. “He scares me.”

Leo laughed. “He’s an imposing guy.”

“Is he a guy?”

 “He gives that impression, but who knows? Maybe at his level, gender isn’t fixed.”

“Oh.” Jesse looked as if he would have to think on that.

Amazon | B&N | Kobo 

 

About Carol Holland March:

Carol Holland March lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico with two demanding dogs who offer their insight into the meaning of life in exchange for long bike rides and occasional treats. She writes stories about the mysteries that peek from behind the veil.

Her short fiction has appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies. The Tyro is the first volume of her fantasy trilogy, The Dreamwalkers of Larreta. 

Carol works as a coach for beginning writers and people in transition. She teaches about creativity, journaling and writing for personal development at the University of New Mexico.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Google Plus | GoodReads

 

Witch Spelling by A. Woodley

Release date: May 24, 2017

Subgenre: Urban fantasy

About Witch Spelling: 

 

A fictional tale of witches, warlocks and wizards trying to fit in with the mundane way of life but always fearful of the consequences of being found out, especially after having already been persecuted and driven out of another town previously.
An accidental skirmish between two differing species, (both of which were once witches and warlocks) banished to adjoining worlds in an alternative dimension.
The chonguns had size and brute strength on their side but the rengans had some magic, even though it was somewhat limited.
There was no telling or even guessing if it did progress into a battle, if it would be a fair fight or which side had a better chance of winning.

Excerpt:

 

Lusia, Sadie and Petra were born as pure witches, their mother Megana was a pure witch and their father Vorn was a pure warlock.

Although in the past, the term ‘warlock’ was used in a derogatory manner and actually meant that the male witch was an ‘oathbreaker’, that use had become out-dated, it had become easier over time to just label male witches simply as warlocks.

There were some differences between a male witch and a warlock but the younger male witches preferred to identify themselves as warlocks simply because it sounded ‘cool’, ‘macho’ or even ‘hard’.

Male witch sounded to them to be far inferior to the term ‘warlock’ even though generally male witches were more adept at performing healing spells and were far more knowledgeable regarding useful herbs and potions for all manner of other spells, it just didn’t sound manly enough.

The three sisters had each started to show signs of being able to use their witchery from a very young age, even before they could talk or walk, which made it very difficult to keep their witchy doings a secret from the local people that they encountered, while out and about with their parents outside of the magical communities.

Trying to teach the young children that it was wrong to use their witch powers outside of the house was incredibly difficult, especially as very often, they would only discover that they even had them when they came across them by accident.

It was as easy to cast a spell as it was to think of it, of course they would have to learn the more complex spells as they got older but the simplest ones, like wanting a toy, switching lights on and off or opening and closing doors was child’s play to a witch baby, they only had to think of it to be able to do it.

As soon as they were old enough to start climbing out of their cots, witch and warlock babies would have to have an invisible, magical safety shield added to the cot to prevent them from escaping.

Although the parents could still reach into the cot with the shield in place, the babies were held securely in there while the parents enjoyed an undisturbed sleep.

The shield also had the advantage of preventing the children from being able to spell any naughty or mischievous escapades.

Young children being allowed to discover their magical capabilities, with the parents nearby to watch over them for the child’s safety, while they learnt to perfect their new skills was fine in the home.

However, taking three young girls out that could cause all kinds of mischief, without them even knowing that it should be kept a secret, was just asking for trouble.

Amazon | Paperback

 

About A. Woodley:

Born in London (South East) many moons ago (1954) & now living in the land of the concrete cows & roundabouts (we're famous for both) in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, UK.
I started writing poetry & children's books so long ago but did nothing with them.
The children's books need illustrations & that is far beyond my capabilities.
The poetry sat in folders, unattended & forgotten for the most part until I recently came across some publishing info online.
I decided to dig out my old writings & sent off a manuscript to a publisher, they liked my manuscript & offered me a contract but wanted to share (refundable) costs, which was too much for my poor finances to cope with and I had no interest in vanity publishing anyway.
I was then told about self publishing with Amazon & checked it out, so here I am.
My 1st two ebooks  'Glimmer of hope' and 'Life and more'  are random collections of 50 poems in each book,
I do understand that there isn't a huge market for poetry but maybe some people will enjoy my efforts.
I think my favourite poem so far that I've written is 'I want to be a tree'.
My Daughter & Granddaughter have given me lots of encouragement to get published over the years & it now felt like the right time to try.
Eventually I plan to get my children's books published with the help of my Grandaughter, who is artistic but doesn't have a lot of free time, so that could take a while.
I have now written several more short stories, a book of 20 murder short stories (Murder Melange) and I'm currently writing a new book.

Facebook

Shadows of Our Fathers (Primal Patterns, Book 3) by Rex Jameson

Release date: May 24, 2017

Subgenre: Post-apocalyptic, space opera

About Shadows of Our Fathers:

 

Imagine a war between angels and demons that extends across our universe. Now, think bigger. Imagine that the fight between Lucifer and Jehovah extends across not only our universe but also involves two more ancient universes filled with demons and the remnants of the proud elven race.

Angels and demons fall as the Great War between Order and Chaos comes to a close. For those who thought Jehovah's days of smiting stopped in the Old Testament, it's time to give the devil his due.

In the face of democratic and social reforms, the Chaos Universe struggles with its past while pursuing the future that King Lucifer promises. While the demons thrive, the creator of the Elven universe looks to his own past for the salvation of his favorite immortals. Jehovah's wife Gaea and son Isaac seek asylum in Chaos as Lucifer and Jehovah have their final, apocalyptic battle.

"Shadows of Our Fathers" is the last book of the Lucifer's Fall trilogy, and book three in the Primal Patterns series.

 

Excerpt:

The demon Usmi Agalal, clothed in a black and silver robe, plopped down on his great grandmother Tiamat’s divan and grinned impishly at her. He unpinned his dyed, dark-black hair, letting it fall down—an invitation for her to get her brush. He knew she felt better when she kept her hands busy—especially when her mind was scheming.

“Hello, my pet,” she purred.

“Grandma,” he said, bowing his head.

Her bedroom gave him the creeps. Not just because it was pitch black, even under lights, but also because of what the furniture meant to her. His own room was furnished in the most opulent of silks, intricately-woven wools, and woods. Hers was made of zinanbar, and not just any zinanbar. Her room was furnished with the souls of her most intimate, vanquished enemies. The whole thing reminded him of mementos kept by a serial killer.

Everywhere outside of this room, she had taught Usmi to hide his evidence. Throughout his life, loose ends were treated as fatal mistakes. There were plots Usmi had been forced to participate in that had literally removed whole families from existence, simply to hide a whispered conversation.

But not here. This was a kind of trophy room, but a most peculiar one—likely the most unique trophy room in the multiverse. She did not gloat here. This was not a place with plaques and dedications. She had never once explained whose wasted souls now occupied her sleeping space. These were her greatest, most silent conquests. No one but Usmi or her past protégés had known about the contents of this room. She gave no personal tours here. She took no lovers here. Whatever lesson was meant to be learned in this room must have been reserved for those foes formidable enough, or secret enough, to earn a place here.

“Judging from that smile on your face,” she said, picking up her ornate pearl and gold brush, “you have news for me.”

Her long salt and pepper hair brushed against Usmi’s face.

“Three major papers are going to run the stories we gave them,” he said.

Tiamat grinned from above him with perfect white teeth shining through her youthful but leathery face. Even an immortal can age after a few billion years. All it takes is prolonged exposure to the harshest of cosmic events, and she had experienced them all.

“Lucifer was a fool to let the people form a free press,” she said, contempt dripping from her mouth like poison.

She attacked the knots in Usmi’s hair with a precision and lack of empathy that was her trademark. Thankfully, his scalp had long ago grown accustomed to these kinds of assaults.

“One is running a story about Ostat’s love children with Gishtil being housed in the palace. Another is claiming that they are actually Lucifer’s children. A third is running a story which essentially says that Gishtil and her children are just the tip of the iceberg. The lesser demon who is running the Alurabum Herald is essentially printing whatever conspiracy theory he can dream up. This latest one has elves and demons and even humans from Order involved in trysts that have produced deformed offspring.”

Tiamat chuckled as she pulled on a knot. “And Lucifer will not return for weeks…”

“When he does, he’ll have an absolute shit storm to clean up. Kishargal has taken our suggestion of a Samu and gone nuts with it! She’s convinced that her mother would want her to start bigger riots than Mina ever did.”

“And you hid the viewers?” Tiamat asked professionally.

“Naturally,” Usmi said. “I’ve even subbed false viewers into the Chaos University Library. My spies inside the university have assured me that Sariel took them and watched them before he left for Arnessa. He believes Kisha’s mother was just as bloodthirsty for lesser demon deaths as Kisha is trying to be.”

“And while Lucifer tries to quench flames at home and with the mining guilds from the riots, we’ll make our own moves against Kishargal.”

Usmi laughed as she continued to brush his knotless hair, just to keep her wrinkled, spotted hands busy.

“Kisha was never meant to rule this clan,” Tiamat said, “and Lucifer was never meant to rule this land. It will be you, my pet.”

He patted one of her hands. “I’m doing my best, Grandma. I’ll let the press stories fester a while.”

“Exploit your advantages,” she said, repeating a mantra he had heard since birth. “Trust your instincts.”

“Always.”

“And when Kisha is dismissed for incompetence and negligence of duty as Grand Commander,” she said, “we’ll make a move for you to usurp it.”

Amazon | Smashwords | Paperback

 

About the Primal Patterns series: 

Book 1: Lucifer's Odyssey

Book 2: The Goblin Rebellion

Book 3: Shadows of Our Fathers

 

About Rex Jameson: 

Rex Jameson is the author of three novels ("Lucifer’s Odyssey", "The Goblin Rebellion", and "Shadows of Our Fathers") in the Primal Patterns series and half a dozen short stories. An avid history buff and an unabashed nerd with an appetite for science fiction and fantasy, he loves to create complex speculative fiction with layered characters. He earned a PhD in Computer Science at Vanderbilt University and researches distributed artificial intelligence in robotics at Carnegie Mellon University. Rex and his wife Jenny live in Pittsburgh where they enjoy hosting family and friends.

Website | Twitter

Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for June 2, 2017

Here is our weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with Star Wars at forty, Wonder Woman, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, the return of Twin Peaks, an incident at Phoenix Comicon as well as the usual mix of awards news, writing advice, interviews, reviews, awards news, a whole lot of con reports, crowdfunding projects, science articles and free online fiction. 

Speculative fiction in general:

• Laura Miller attempts to answer what happens when literary novelists experiment with science fiction.
• Jason Sanford takes exception to Laura Miller's article. 
• Jason Sanford also shares five trends in the science fiction genre.
• The participants of the Mind Meld ask what defines a classic SF book.
• James Davis Nicoll shares twenty core works of speculative fiction about science and scientists that every fan should have read. 
• Adam Roberts discusses the exploration themes of many science fiction works.
• Mark Yon shares a list of SFF novels featuring circusses.
• Sam Reader shares seven SFF short fiction collections to read this summer.
• Rachel Cordasco take a look at speculative fiction from Finland.
• Elaine Yang and Kitten Wang take a look at the success of Chinese science fiction overseas. 
• Mark Kaedrin shares his appreciation for the Rememberance of Earth's Past trilogy by Liu Cixin. 
• Martin Cahill discusses how Brian Staveley has developed as an epic fantasy writer.
• David Barr Kirtley wonders why colleges are so hostile to fantasy writers. 
• Laura M. Hughes talks about non-human protagonists in science fiction and fantasy.
• Jessica Rydill shares her appreciation for M.R. James and discusses how his work influenced her own writing.
• Stephen Graham Jones talks about justice and transgression in horror stories. 
• Joel Cornah talks about asexuality in fantasy. 
• D. Franklin share their appreciation for the Manifold Worlds series by Foz Meadows.
• Lucy Hounsom takes a look at the gender ratios of authors recommended in the newsletters of various SFF publishers.
• Ross Johnson shares his appreciation for Bitch Planet by Kelly Sue De Connick and Valentine De Landro.
• Riki Wilkins complains that the Wachowski sisters' series Sense8 still adhered to traditional gender binaries and has no genderqueer characters. 
• Meanwhile, Charles Pulliam-Moore reports that Sense8 has been cancelled.
• James Whitbrook explains why Newt Scamander from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a rare type of male genre hero.
• Cheryl Eddy declares that the TV show Lucifer shouldn't be as good as it is.
  
• George Hall reports about a performance of the post-apocalyptic opera The Day After by Jonathan Dove
• Alex Shephard visits Amazon's new bookstore in New York City, is not overly impressed and eventually buys a science fiction novel.
  

Star Wars at forty:

• Aaron Crouch interviews various cast and crewmembers about their memories working on Star Wars and discusses the less than enthusiastic early reactions to the movie.
• Nicholas Barber believes that the Star Wars saga should have stopped after the first movie.
  

Comments on Wonder Woman: 

• Chancellor Agard declares that Wonder Woman is everything a superhero movie should be. 
• Kristy Puchko calls Wonder Woman the best DC movie yet.
• Germain Lussier declares that the Wonder Woman movie is even better than we hoped it would be.
• Mick LaSalle calls Wonder Woman a different kind of action movie.
• Nicole Sperling explains why the screenwriter of Wonder Woman opted for an anachronistic World War I setting.
• Devan Coggan explains how real life women athletes were cast to play amazons in Wonder Woman.
• Charles Pulliam-Moore reports that the Wonder Woman movie has been banned in Lebanon because of Gal Gadot's military service in Israel. 
• Charlie Jane Anders shares her appreciation for Wonder Woman, the character.
• Meanwhile, Keith DeCandido looks back on Lynda Carter's turn as Wonder Woman in the eponymous 1970s TV show.
  

Comments on Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales: 

• Germain Lussier declares that Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales will remind us why we love and hate those movies.
• Alasdair Stuart remembers when the Pirates of the Caribbean movies were fun.
• Actor Geoffrey Rush reflects on fourteen years and five Pirates of the Caribbean movies.
• Jessica Derschowitz explains the post-credits scene of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.
  

Comments on the new Twin Peaks:

• Stuart Jeffries declares that the new Twin Peaks became even weirder in its third and fourth episodes. 
• David Cranmer reviews episodes 3 and 4 of the new Twin Peaks.
• Emily Temple shares an incomplete guide to literary references in Twin Peaks.

 
Awards:

• The nominees for the 2017 Aurora Awards have been announced. 
• The longlist for the 2017 Sunburst Award has been announced.
• The winners of the 2017 Premio Italia have been announced.
• The winners of the 2016 Cóyotl Awards have been announced.
• Charles Stross has received the Alberto Lisiero Award.
  

Writing, publishing and promotion: 

• Honorée Corder talks about developing a powerful writing habit.
• Chuck Wendig tells writers that a book needs time to cook.
• Steve Harrison discusses how to beat writer's block.
• David Kazzie shares five things he learned writing a sequel. 
• Joe Vasicek explains what it's like to write again after a major life interruption.
• Jessica Rydill explains how music influenced her writing. 
• Camestros Felapton and Timothy the Talking Cat share some not entirely serious writing advice.
  

Interviews:

• The Qwillery interviews Isabelle Steiger.
• The Qwillery also interviews Weston Ochse.
• Alasdair Stuart interviews Sarah Gailey. 
• Alasdair Stuart also interviews Corey J. White. 
• Carl Slaughter interviews Robert J. Sawyer.
• Christian A. Coleman interviews Steven Barnes. 
• Laura Hudson interviews G. Willow Wilson.
• Laura Hudson also interviews Laura E. Hall.

Reviews:

• Camestros Felapton reviews Seven Surrenders by Ada Palmer. 
• D. Franklin reviews River of Teeth by Sarah Gailey.
• Michael Patrick Hicks reviews River of Teeth by Sarah Gailey. 
• Michael Patrick Hicks also reviews Sacculina by Philip Fracassi.
• Alex Brown reviews Mormama by Kit Reed.
• Kat Hooper reviews A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor. 
• The Fantasy Café reviews The Floating Islands by Rachel Neumeier.
• Bill Capossere reviews Tyrant's Throne by Sebastien de Castell.
• Josephine Hao reviews Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor.
• Thea James reviews Deadly Pink by Vivian Vande Velde.
• Books, Bones and Buffy reviews Mars Girls by Mary Turzillo.
  

Crowdfunding:

• Mother of Invention, an anthology of diverse speculative fiction about gender and artificial intelligence, is looking for funding.
  

Con reports:

• An armed man has been arrested at Phoenix Comicon in Phoenix, Arizona, after a struggle with the police.
• Benjamin Leatherman reports about the incident at Phoenix Comicon.
• 12News has more about the background of the incident at Phoenix Comicon.
• Ryan Leston identifies the target of the gunman who was arrested at Phoenix Comicon.
• Max Jaeger reports how Flash Gordon and the Hulk a.k.a. actors Sam Jones and Lou Ferrigno got into a fight at London Comic Con in London, UK.
• Helen Bushby interviews and photographs some women cosplayers and other female attendants at London Comic Con.
• Charon Dunn shares her experiences at Baycon in San Matteo, California. 
• Jon Del Arroz shares his experiences as well as some photos of Clockwork Alchemy in San José, California.

Science and technology:

• NASA's Juno probe has revealed that much of what we thought we knew about Jupiter is wrong.
• A potentially habitable Super-Earth has been spotted 21 lightyears away.  

Free online fiction:

• "Shape Without Form, Shade Without Color" by Sunny Moraine at Tor.com. 
• "Making the Magic Lightning Strike Me" by John Chu in Uncanny. 
• "Salvage" by Tracy Canfield in GigaNotoSaurus.
• "Paternity" by Greg Hrbek in Lightspeed.
  

Odds and ends: 

• Watch a Chinese Audi commercial featuring Hugo winning writer Hao Jingfang.