Books

There is no snarking about books like Algis Budrys snarking about books

Algis Budrys was a terrific SF author, and a fantastic editor — but he was also a stupendously entertaining critic, whose book reviews ran in Galaxy Magazine and The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. His motto was: “Criticism is not subject to the democratic process,” and he managed to make a book review column…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

A Book About Everything By Eric Schmidt Comes Out April 23

Eric Scmidt is writing a book about the internet and everything called The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of Emerging Technologies. It’s not like he’s busy doing anything as the Chairman of Google. Co-authored with director of Google Ideas, Jared Cohen, the book will be published on April 23 by Alfred Knopf Publishers. Here’s…

Tech News Leslie Horn

New Catching Fire pics show trouble in District 11

We’ve got a batch of exclusive Hunger Games: Catching Fire set photos, showing off the daily struggle for the residents of District 11. Minor spoilers ahead… As you can see, the residents of District 11 spend most of their days in the fields growing food for the Capital (while most of their people starve). A…

Movies Meredith Woerner

New Game of Thrones Production Diary: Your First Proper Glimpse of Season 3

Here’s our first tantalizing peek at all the action in season three of Game of Thrones. Among other things, you can glimpse the Unsullied, some Wildlings… and the new face of Tyrion Lannister. “The game’s been upped,” says Emilia Clarke, who plays Daenerys. This really does look just as epic as the first two seasons,…

Television Charlie Jane Anders

Amazing News: The BBC is adapting Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell for television!

Susanna Clarke’s fantasy novel set during the Napoleonic Wars, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, is being adapted for BBC television — and let’s hope we get it pretty quickly here in the United States. The six-issue miniseries is being directed by Toby Haynes, who directed a bunch of Matt Smith’s Doctor Who stories in a…

Television Charlie Jane Anders

Science Fiction Under Totalitarian Regimes, Part 2: Tsarist and Soviet Russia

This is part two of Jess Nevins’ ongoing series, looking at science fiction under various totalitarian regimes — for part one, dealing with Germany, click here. https://gizmodo.com/pulp-science-fiction-under-german-totalitarianism-5960383 Science fiction has a long tradition in Russian fiction. Fantastic voyages, utopias, and dystopias exist throughout 19th century Russian literature, with interplanetary voyages appearing as early as 1784,…

Books & Comics Jess Nevins

One of Ben Edlund’s Finest Hours: The Secret History of Supernatural‘s Deadly Turducken Slammers

Supernatural has had a few really great ideas since original showrunner Eric Kripke left — but few of them have been more thrilling than the “Turducken Slammers” episode, “How to Win Friends and Influence Monsters,” last season. Writer Ben Edlund pulled out all the stops, and then built new stops so he could pull those…

Television Charlie Jane Anders

Stephen King’s Under The Dome series will be on your TV next summer

CBS is moving forward with lightning speed with its TV adaption of Stephen King’s novel Under The Dome, with a fast-track order of 13 episodes to air next summer. The story is centered around a little town that is suddenly isolated by the government by a giant dome —nd now the townsfolk will have to…

Television Meredith Woerner

The Complete Guide to Science Fiction and Fantasy in December

What does December’s science fiction and fantasy offer you? There’s Terry Pratchett’s complete guide to Ankh-Morpork. And your chance to see Neil Gaiman and Neil DeGrasse Tyson together on stage! Plus tons of DVDs, books, and conventions — plus The Hobbit! Here’s the ultimate io9 guide to everything fantastical the month of December. Top image:…

Movies Charlie Jane Anders

A Man and his Virtual Dragon, Against All the Malicious Code in the World

Being a non-player character in someone else’s virtual world can be a pain — especially when some of the monsters won’t stay dead. Tobias Buckell’s story “A Game of Rats and Dragon,” published in Lightspeed Magazine, takes a lot of the cliches of augmented reality and virtual gaming, and adds a really neat spin —…

Books & Comics Charlie Jane Anders

Proof that the End of the World Doesn’t Have to be Boring

The era of post-apocalyptic and dystopian novels for young adults may be winding down at last — but one of the best thing to come out of the trend has only just arrived. The anthology After, from editors Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, is one of the most dazzling collections of stories we’ve read in…

Books & Comics Charlie Jane Anders

There is something truly odd about Spock on the cover of this classic Star Trek novel

This early 1980s cover of Star Trek: The Final Reflection, by legendary artist Boris Vallejo, makes us wonder if there was some kind of time travel situation happening when the image of Spock was conceived. The resemblance to Zachary Quinto’s Spock is uncanny! Thanks for pointing out this “strange coincidence,” Joshua Glenn!

Books & Comics Annalee Newitz

Vote for the best science fiction and fantasy stories of the 20th and 21st centuries!

Which books and stories are the greatest works of science fiction of the past 112 years? Now is the time for the ultimate decision. Locus Magazine is having a monster poll to decide the best science fiction and fantasy novels, novellas, novelettes and stories of the 20th and 21st centuries! Use this great power wisely,…

Books & Comics Charlie Jane Anders

Harry Houdini’s incredible book about home science experiments — free online!

As any steampunk will gleefully tell you, the Victorian era was a period of incredible discovery, where scientific breakthroughs occurred at an astonishing rate. Which was the perfect environment for a book like Scientific Amusements to be published – a hodgepodge of science, illusion, party tricks, naturalism, and more under a single banner. Part of…

Books & Comics Tim Barribeau

The Rise of the Backdoor Fantasy Story

One of the best books I read this year was a fantasy novel that wasn’t a fantasy novel, called Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. Written by Robin Sloan, it’s about a secret society devoted to translating a mythical book about immortality, and features several long passages devoted to the awesomeness of dragons. But the dragons were…

Books & Comics Annalee Newitz

And now, a reading from the best undead novel of our time: Z is for Zombie

Last night on New Girl, Nick finally finished his long-awaited zombie novel, Z is for Zombie. And here are the first few pages from that undead tome, read by Winston. We’re seeing a spin-off movie deal for this, Mike Senior WHO SUCKS.

Television Meredith Woerner

The first official clip from The Hobbit is here

Ready to watch the first ever officially released clip from Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit, in which Bilbo is given the not-yet-named Sting from Gandalf? I hope so, because it’s above. And if you want more, here are tiny snippets of clips pulled from the trailers – looks like PJ is keeping the infinitely more quirky…

Movies Meredith Woerner

Ultimate Collection of Hobbit Pics, Including a Closer Look at Some Brand New Monsters

Peter Jackson’s Hobbit is slowly approaching — and to celebrate, we’re getting tons of new character reveals. Get nose to nose with (what we’re assuming) is the Goblin King. Get so close to the trolls, a passing breeze would give you a troll upskirt shot. https://gizmodo.com/the-most-sensational-sights-and-best-things-to-buy-on-5925329 This is the biggest collection of high-res Hobbit pictures…

io9 Meredith Woerner

The best part of Breaking Dawn: Part 2 is online right now

If you’ve seen Breaking Dawn: Part 2, you already know what we’re talking about. Yes — the shrill vampire scream laugh from Michael Sheen eclipses any other startling event that could pop out of the conclusion of the Twilight franchise. It’s magical, so enjoy. If you want to find out even more information behind the…

io9 Meredith Woerner

Why Smug Atheists Should Read More Science Fiction

You can’t be on Twitter these days without being bombarded with atheistic smugness. You know what I mean. People who can’t just profess that they don’t believe in God — they have to taunt religious people for believing in “fairy tales.” Or the Tooth Fairy. Most of the time, these are geeks who have immense…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

There is no snarking about books like Algis Budrys snarking about books

A Book About Everything By Eric Schmidt Comes Out April 23

New Catching Fire pics show trouble in District 11

New Game of Thrones Production Diary: Your First Proper Glimpse of Season 3

Amazing News: The BBC is adapting Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell for television!

Science Fiction Under Totalitarian Regimes, Part 2: Tsarist and Soviet Russia

One of Ben Edlund’s Finest Hours: The Secret History of Supernatural‘s Deadly Turducken Slammers

Stephen King’s Under The Dome series will be on your TV next summer

The Complete Guide to Science Fiction and Fantasy in December

A Man and his Virtual Dragon, Against All the Malicious Code in the World

Proof that the End of the World Doesn’t Have to be Boring

There is something truly odd about Spock on the cover of this classic Star Trek novel

Vote for the best science fiction and fantasy stories of the 20th and 21st centuries!

Harry Houdini’s incredible book about home science experiments — free online!

The Rise of the Backdoor Fantasy Story

And now, a reading from the best undead novel of our time: Z is for Zombie

The first official clip from The Hobbit is here

Ultimate Collection of Hobbit Pics, Including a Closer Look at Some Brand New Monsters

The best part of Breaking Dawn: Part 2 is online right now

Why Smug Atheists Should Read More Science Fiction

Trump Posts Concept Art of His Presidential Library, and It’s AI Slop

Forget Tower Desktop, GMKtec Mini PC Drops to a Record Low as Amazon Clears Out Final Spring Sale Stock

‘Fallout’ Season 2 Was a Hit Despite That Unsatisfying Release Strategy Change

JBL Authentics 500 Retro-Style Home Speaker Hits 40% Off, Now at Its Lowest Price as Amazon’s Spring Sale Clearance Begins

ExpressVPN Spring Sale Special: Up to 73% Off + Free eSIM and Password Manager

You Too Will Learn to Fear the XenoFrog

Amazon Echo Dot Sees Its Last Price Drop in the Spring Sale, Final Hours Tick Down Ahead of an Uncertain Prime Day

Artemis 2 by the Numbers: Breaking Down NASA’s Big Return to the Moon

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life

Nothing Headphone A vs. Headphone 1: Which Pair of ANC Wireless Headphones Wins?

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