Music Monday: Blessed by a Broken Heart, Feel the Power

When I saw the video for Blessed by a Broken Heart’s (hereafter BBABH) first single off of their latest album Feel the Power I was actually a little disappointed.  The band’s previous album, Pedal to the Metal, as a guilty pleasure of pop-metalcore with copious layers of 80s influenced glam metal keys; that album’s “Move [...]

Review: The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie

The Heroes Joe Abercrombie Orbit, 2011 If you’re a fan of total badassery, of giant battles, of soldiery wisdom, or of solid exciting prose you should do yourself a favor and read The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie. Indeed, if someone were to ask me what badass means I might just hand them a copy of [...]

Review: Heaven’s Shadow by David S. Goyer and Michael Cassutt

Heaven’s Shadow David S. Goyer and Michael Cassutt Random House Audio, 2011 A little over a year ago I read and reviewed the classic science fiction novel Rendezvous with Rama. David S. Goyer and Michael Cassutt’s Heaven’s Shadow is in many ways a modern update to that story and tries to blaze a new path [...]

Review: The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham

The Sacred Band (Book 3 of the Acacia Trilogy) David Anthony Durham Doubleday, 2011 The Sacred Band by David Anthony Durham brings the saga of the Akaran family, begun in Acacia, to a close. The novel picks up where The Other Landsleft off. Corinn controls Acacia with an iron grip her growing mastery over the [...]

Music Monday: Speed of Darkness by Flogging Molly

Speed of Darkness Flogging Molly Borstal Beat Records, 2011 Speed of Darkness may be my favorite Flogging Molly album since Drunken Lullabies. Both Within a Mile of Home and Float are fantastic albums, no doubt, but something about Speed of Darkness really caught my attention. To be fair, and this might turn many Flogging Molly [...]

Review: Unclean Spirits by M. L. N. Hanover

Unclean Spirits M. L. N. Hanover (Daniel Abraham) Pocket Books, 2009 Unclean Spirits by M. L. N. Hanover, a pen name for one of my favorite authors Daniel Abraham, is the first in urban fantasy series the Black Sun’s Daughter. While I didn’t have any major trouble reading Unclean Spirits it is a far cry from other [...]