Science fiction books - Science Fiction World

Flashback, by Dan Simmons: "scarily possible" future or Right wing propaganda?

: 02 August 2011; Gerard Wood

Dan Simmons’ latest novel, Flashback (July 2011), is “[a] provocative novel set in a future that seems scarily possible,” proving “why Dan Simmons is one of our most exciting and versatile writers." So says the publicist anyway. Dan Simmons ...

Encyclopedia of Science Fiction online and free

: 13 July 2011; John Howell

The Orion Publishing Group has announced that the third edition of the essential science fiction reference work, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, will be released online in 2012 and will be completely free. This is a gigantic work ...

With Apple’s new iPad science fiction meets reality

: 27 January 2010; John Howell

While we usually restrict ourselves to articles on science fiction and fantasy films, books and TV, I can’t pass up this opportunity to reveal details of Apple’s “latest creation” just announced by Steve Jobs. I woke up amazingly early in ...

Ursula Le Guin fights Google to retain copyright control

: 27 January 2010; John Howell

Ursula K. Le Guin, a science fiction and fantasy writer most famous for her Earthsea trilogy, The left hand of darkness and The dispossessed, is taking on Google’s right to scan and sell millions of books online after the search engine giant ...

New John Wyndham novel Plan for Chaos published

: 25 January 2010; John Howell

If you're a fan of the science fiction writer John Wyndham, most famous for his novel The Day of the Triffids, and believe that there’s nothing more to enjoy, you may well be mistaken (or perhaps not?). More than 41 years after his death, Penguin ...

Philip K. Dick: Rebel with a Cause (Part 1)

: 29 November 2009; Gerard Wood

Death has been kind to the everlasting memory of Philip K. Dick (1928-1982), one of the most influential and perhaps also one of the most eccentric authors of the twentieth century. Since his untimely death at the age of 53 there's been nothing ...

Don't Panic: Neil Gaiman celebrates Douglas Adams

: 26 November 2009; John Howell

First published in 1988, the biography Don't Panic: Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has been revised and refreshed to cover the feature film (unfortunately not as successful as fans hoped), Adams' untimely death in 2001, and ...

Why science fiction authors just can't win

: 05 October 2009; John Howell

Science fiction authors have long been outcasts from the literary world, in some cases critics using the worst examples of the genre as ammunition against it. Unfortunately though, at times even science fiction authors themselves can turn on their ...

The Turing Test, by Chris Beckett, wins the Edge Hill Short Story Prize

: 07 July 2009; Gerard Wood

There’s a better than average chance that you’re asking yourself two questions right now: who the hell is Chris Beckett and what is the Edge Hill Short Story Prize? Until we received the press release announcing Chris’ win, I must confess ...

68th World Science Fiction Convention Australia 2010: Kim Stanley Robinson Guest

: 18 May 2009; John Howell

The 68th World Science Fiction Convention (Aussiecon 4) will be held in Melbourne, Australia from 2 to 6 September 2010. The acclaimed US science fiction writer, Kim Stanley Robinson, most famous for his Mars novels, will be the Guest of Honour. ...