Her mother was a ship’s navigation system and her father was a military-grade firewall…
The Lampworks Lamplighter SF & Fantasy News & Reviews
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In this issue
Ramblings
The newsletter is now back after a short hiatus. Between the press of work (the day job), some traveling, and trying to get some actual fiction writing done, the newsletter took a back seat. I hope you missed it and are glad to see it back!
This week, I was playing with MidJourney, an AI art generation program. More or less by accident, I came up with an image that captures the ship’s avatar from the story I’m working on. In the story, a passenger comments on the ship’s personality and the Captain replies:
"Your ship has quite an attitude. I like her."
“Her mother was a ship’s navigation system, and her father was a military-grade firewall. The personality is custom designed. We suit each other.”
Her name is Rapier.
Our Books
Sellenria: The Starship and the Citadel
Chuck Boeheim, Daniel Elswit
It came as a shock to archaeologist Stenn Gremm to find that his ancestor had been a warlock.
As a scientist, Stenn didn’t believe in magic. But when a monster from legend ground his equipment into dust, Stenn was forced into roles for which he hadn’t prepared. Apprentice to an assassin for one, advisor to the heir to the throne for another. When archaeological digs were conducted via telepresence, he didn’t expect to get dirt under his nails and blood on his hands. Now his fate hinges on his ability to embrace his greatest role: the new warlock.
Readers have called this a cross between Star Trek and Lord of the Rings, as well as a tale of self-discovery, set in a journey through a fantastic land. All legends have a kernel of truth, but the full story can be surprisingly different.
Find it on amazon
What We‘re Reading
Visit our archive of reviews and recommendations on the Books We Like page of our website. You‘ll find over one hundred recommendations in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Non Fiction.
The House in the Cerulean Sea
T.J. Klune
Linus Baker, a government caseworker, is sent on a special assignment to inspect an orphanage for magical children on a remote island. They’re all “difficult” and they’re all unique. But as he gets to know them, he starts to question the entire purpose of his visit and the goals of his employer, The Department in Charge of Magical Youth.
The novel speaks to the treatment of all those who have been marginalized or discriminated against, but gently, not in a preachy way. Linus himself has things he has been hiding, and not just his love of old vinyl records. Learning to speak up for his children, he starts to learn to speak up for himself as well. I very much enjoyed this book.
Buy on amazon
Escape from Yokai Land
Charles Stross
If you’ve read any of the Laundry Files novels, this is a fun return to the original protagonist of the series, Bob Howard. Bob has been called to consult on an occult manifestation in Tokyo by an agency that doesn’t want him there. They just need to check the boxes in their response plan.
Manifestations are shaped by the beliefs of the people. Japan has moved on from the Tengu and Oni of their past. What’s top of mind now is much cuter … until it starts being animated by Lovecraftian horrors from beyond.
If you haven’t read the Laundry Files yet, start with The Atrocity Archives. Stross weaponizes both IT and humor to tell darkly funny tales of the apocalypse. This is the book that features a literal “death by Powerpoint.”
Buy on amazon
You may also enjoy…
Wedding of the Torn Rose
Brian Mendonca
A merchant who abandoned his birthright… A princess with a dark secret… And an encounter destined to change their lives forever…
Wedding of the Torn Rose is a fast-paced fantasy adventure with mystery, action, and magic.
Free via StoryOrigin
Cliff Hock: Thunderclap
M Rothmus
Nobody gets out alive. If the Communists don’t kill you, the dreams will.
A region of space only 75 light-years from Earth has a reputation for being haunted. But Cliff Hock doesn’t believe in ghosts. Nightmares that come to life and kill people have a logical, scientific explanation. So, he joins forces with a mother-daughter team to find out what’s “really” going on.
Buy via StoryOrigin
Pax Machina
Greg Sorber
The last stop for retired war machines. A new arrival with missing memories. When foes return, can he recall enough to halt a planet-wide catastrophe?
Major Misty Durham hoped to put tragedy and bloodshed behind her. Now the human administrator of Mechhaven, she’s committed to providing sanctuary for decommissioned mechs. But conflict returns with a bang when a legendary machine with crucial secrets crash-lands on her world.
Buy via StoryOrigin
Carrie Piper Captures the Gray Planet
Jay Toney
Freshly graduated and commissioned, Space Marine Lt. Carrie Piper, already contending with inter-service rivalry with the Navy crewmen with whom she serves, is tasked with retrieving an asteroid made of pure thorium from the asteroid belt and bringing it to Earth for use as fissionable material. She is opposed by agents of the Confederation of Peoples Governments, who will do anything, even risk starting an interstellar war, to seize control and take possession of the asteroid.
Buy via StoryOrigin
Seashine
Jessica Turnbull
What secrets are being kept from her?
Oceana thinks she’s doing the right thing by working with Dr West. But, his experiments are getting too much and she’s not sure she wants to be part of it anymore. She just wants to return to her old role of working on the Halo-O Bots.
The SARJ virus is partly her doing and she wants to make things right. But first she has to get through her old boss, the military who fund their experiments and the creatures that they’ve created.
Free via StoryOrigin
