Books

The Greatest Time-Travel Romances of All Time

The greatest romances face the test of time — but what happens when two lovers are adrift in time and space? About Time is just the latest in a long line of time-travel love stories, and tales of time-crossed lovers. Here are the greatest time-travel romances of all timelines. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time…

10 stories where technology is indistinguishable from magic

Arthur C. Clarke’s third law of prediction holds that “any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” The magical space-age design of Asgard in the new Thor movie seems to have taken its cue from this idea in a major way. Here are ten other stories where machinery seems to have merged with sorcery. Art…

Ender’s Game could live on inside your television

Even though Ender’s Game didn’t perform as well as Lionsgate hoped it would, the franchise could get another chance on TV. During the annual shareholders conference call, Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer speculated that the Ender’s franchise could spin-off into a TV series. Ender, the boy who refused to die. We could get into an Ender’s…

This Book Shows You What It’s Like to Have Dyslexia

For people with dyslexia, relating their struggle with reading to the general population can be a seemingly impossible and frustrating task. Graphic designer (and dyslexic) Sam Barclay, though, hopes to finally bridge the gap between those with reading difficulties and those without using his new book—a visual experience of what dyslexia actually entails. Currently a…

If you want some gory hard science fiction, you need to read Parasite

Mira Grant, author of the social media zombie series Newsflesh, is back with another tale of pandemics that threaten to transform humanity into shuffling, homicidal maniacs. Parasite is a spine-tingling, near-future tale of what happens when a new medical technology starts (literally) eating our brains. The scientific premise of Parasite is simply terrific, and seals…

Which alien civilization would you most like to rule over?

One thing we know about alien civilizations: they sure love having humans (and half humans) in charge. Star Trek’s Romulans followed Tasha Yar’s daughter and Picard’s clone at various times. A few of Doctor Who’s companions wound up ruling alien worlds. But which alien civilization would you like to become the leader of? Please include…

Author Margaret Atwood is here answering your questions today

In October, the io9 book club read Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake. Today from 12:00-1:00 PDT, Atwood is here to answer your questions! Ask her about the apocalypse series that begins with Oryx and Crake, or about her incredible writing career. https://gizmodo.com/the-io9-book-club-is-in-session-lets-talk-about-oryx-1454152684 Photo by George Whiteside Just jump into comments and ask questions, and Atwood…

Which Books Do You Re-Read?

Sometimes a story is too good to just hear once. Which books do you find yourself going back to for a second or third read (or perhaps many, many more)? It could be a new favorite or a book that you encountered years ago, and just keep reading again and again. Tell us in the…

First trailer for Winter’s Tale sprinkles magic on NYC

Based on the wonderful 1983 novel by Mark Helprin, Winter’s Tale is set in an alternative timeline starting at the turn of the 20th century in New York City. But this Gotham has magic, gangs, and a gorgeous white flying horse straddled by Colin Farrell. This long awaited movie is FINALLY releasing some footage, and…

10 Reasons Why Le Guin’s Earthsea Books Can Still Change Your Life

We live in a time of riches, as far as fantasy book series go — tons of sprawling sagas are being told, by authors with a huge diversity of styles. But if you want a life-changing visit to a fantasy world, you can’t do any better than Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea. Here are ten…

The Glamour of Futurism: An Interview with Author Virginia Postrel

Futurism and glamour are inextricably linked in American history. The sleek techno-utopian futures of yesteryear—the ones filled with flying cars, jetpacks, and automatic highways—couldn’t exist without the support of this concept that’s equal parts intrigue and attraction. Virginia Postrel’s new book, The Power of Glamour: Longing and the Art of Visual Persuasion, looks at glamour…

First Catching Fire clip gives us hope for a better Gale in the movies

Check out the very first clip from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, showcasing the fiery love between Gale and Katniss. Suck it, Peeta. Hey, maybe this movie won’t totally throw the character of Gale Hawthorne under the bus. If you’ve read the books (spoiler alert) then you know the author makes it damn near impossible…

Neil Gaiman is writing a Doctor Who ebook—and you can read an excerpt

Neil Gaiman is writing one more adventure for the Eleventh Doctor, this time in ebook form. His ebook story Doctor Who: Nothing O’Clock will follow the Doctor and Amy Pond to the year 1984, when they’ll face a newly created monster. The Guardian has a two-page excerpt of the story, which comes out on November…

Catching Fire trailer introduces the new cast of Hunger Games Victors

A brand-new trailer from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire has been released with loads of new footage. Check out the past Hunger Games victors (and new cast of this sequel) Johanna Mason and Finnick Odair in action. Spot anything else of note? The Hunger Games: Catching Fire will be released on Nov. 22nd. [via Subway…

We’ve seen 20 minutes of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Yesterday ,Peter Jackson and the rest of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug cast held an international “fan experience” where Jackson screened 20 minutes of new footage. Here’s everything we saw, including a video of Gandalf swearing in a production reel. Enjoy! The first thing we saw was Ed Sheeran’s behind-the-scenes music video for “I…

What happens when you ask the Internet to write an entire novel in a single month? It goes a little crazy. The Best of NaNoWriMo collects the funniest posts from the National Novel Writing Month forums, including oddball story pitches, pleas for esoteric advice, and little cheats to boost your word count.

All the Most Essential Science Fiction and Fantasy Books in November!

November’s books are full of fantastical greatness. There’s a sinister alternate history by Robert Charles Wilson, a new Gene Wolfe novel, and a historical epic by Nicola Griffith. Plus the definitive collection of 21st century science fiction. Here are all the science fiction and fantasy books you can’t miss in November! Top image: Limit by…

These Rolling Bookmobiles Are Cooler Than Your Local Libraries

Okay, so there are few things that can match the pleasure of walking into a building filled with books. But these bookmobiles, book boats, and beasts of book burden have brought the joys of reading to people who couldn’t easily access brick and mortar libraries. Top image: The Book Caravan, one of the first traveling…

If only every fantasy novel was as smart as Coldest Girl in Coldtown

I am not a vampire person. It’s not that I don’t get the allure of the vampire story — I’ve just always found the metaphors for sexuality, power and old money’s exploitation of youth too obvious and overblown. So I was pleasantly shocked that I pretty much loved Holly Black’s newest YA novel, The Coldest…

Death Star Owner’s Manual will help you get it Fully Operational

No Bothans had to die, in order for you to get your hands on the plans to the Death Star from Star Wars. Instead, you can just buy the Imperial Death Star: Owner’s Workshop Manual — published by Haynes, the same folks who did the Millennium Falcon owner’s manual. We’ve got an exclusive sneak peek…