So, full disclaimer, I’ve been a huge fan of Fabian Nicieza since the 1990s, when he wrote multiple X-Men titles for Marvel Comics. When I heard that he had moved into writing novels, I was ecstatic. Mortifyingly, I have not yet had time to pick up the first book in the Suburban Dicks series, but…
At the start of my new novel, The Breaking of Liam Glass, a desperate young journalist named Jason pitches a story to a tabloid about a teenage footballer he came across who was stabbed and is in a coma. Unfortunately, the tabloid wants more of a celebrity hook to the story—a hook he doesn’t know if…
Showdown City by Todd Berger is a fiercely inventive novel of suspense and satire (Available June 7, 2016). A down-on-his-luck helicopter pilot named Huey Palmer finds himself hired by a small cadre of treasure hunters who set out into the Nevada desert to find a gun. It’s not just any gun that eccentric billionaire Ernie…
An attractive young woman smiles at a man through her apartment window. Once he’s in her apartment, she embraces him. “How are you going to kill me this time?” she asks. “I’m going to slash your throat,” he answers. Soon afterwards, we see them in bed, the man out of frame, the woman atop the…
One of the funniest movies of last year—albeit, one that not a lot of people know about—was the vampire mockumentary, What We Do in the Shadows. Written and starring New Zealand’s Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement (the latter of HBO’s Flight of the Concords fame), this film balls up centuries worth of bloodsucking canon and…
We need to show New Zealand more respect. After all, the Kiwis gave us Lord of the Rings. The ruggedly handsome Cliff Curtis (of Fear the Walking Dead and recent Under the Radar film Push). The hilarious comedy duo/show Flight of the Conchords. And now they've delivered What We Do In the Shadows,one of the…
Savage Lane by Jason Star is a thrilling noir that offers up a searing satire of a declining marriage, suburban life, and obsessive love (available October 13, 2015). “Every town has its secrets.” That’s the tagline that appears across the top of the cover to Jason Starr’s new crime novel Savage Lane. But some words…
In “Mr. Big,” the debut episode of Get Smart (1965-1970), there’s an opening shot of the US Capitol as a deep monotone voice-over melodramatically states: This is Washington, DC. Somewhere in this city is the headquarters of a top secret organization known as CONTROL. Its business is counter-espionage. The scene switches to an audience enjoying…
The Blondes by Emily Schultz is a satirical apocalyptic thriller set in modern day NYC where a strange illness turns everyday people into killers; the catch: it only effects blonde women (available April 21, 2015). Hazel Hayes is a grad student living in New York City. As the novel opens, she learns she is pregnant…
Mark Twain (1835–1910) was never one to pull punches on politics, ethics, religion, slavery, or just about any cultural flashpoint, quite often leading public discourse on a number of weighty issues where his views, even today, still function as a moral compass. Twain approached each topic with wry humor, reminding us, “If you cannot have…
