Retro Review: Imposter

Katherine Anderson

Available for PDF download from http://SpeculativeFictionReview.com 

Reviewed by Simon Petrie (this review was first published in January 2008)

Imposter, the first novel by Queensland writer Katherine Anderson, is a SF thriller set partly in New York and partly in the fictional North Queensland coastal community of Howards Hill.

This is the first piece of fiction I’ve encountered by Anderson. Her writing style is economical and clear, and the book has a rapid and reasonably steady pace. It’s a style that doesn’t place too many demands on the reader, nor does it disappoint. In fact, the unobtrusive polish of the text, coupled with the apparent absence of evidence for previously-written fiction by Anderson, such as web mentions of short stories, has me wondering whether ‘Katherine Anderson’ herself is an imposter, in the sense that this may be a pen name chosen by someone who’s already published in other genres under another name. Such a ploy would be in keeping with the tone of the book; but, in thinking this, I’m probably just being paranoid. That too, would be in keeping with the tone of the book… but, in any case, Imposter manages to avoid most, if not all, of the pitfalls suffered by first-time novelists.

Shattered: broken fairy tales

Rabia Gale

Amazon Digital Services (2012)

ASIN: B007WY7O60

Reviewed by Tehani Wessely

What an astonishing collection. If you have ever read Robin McKinley’s fairy tale retellings, or any of the Terri Windling and Ellen Datlow anthologies which reboot traditional stories, you might have some idea of what Shattered does to tales you think you know. In three short pieces, Gale truly breaks the established conventions of well-known stories and turns you upside down in your understanding of how these should work, with excellent results.

The three stories contained in Shattered are all fairly short, so I don’t want to go into too much detail. The three pieces are based on the tales of Snow White (such a clever construct!), Beauty and the Beast (a wonderful exploration of what comes after “happy ever after”), and Cinderella (the most cleverly put together idea of the three, for my mind). I would happily have read another dozen by the author, so am counting this book as just a taster of more to come!

The Girl in the Clockwork Collar

Kady Cross

Steampunk Chronicles, book 2

Harlequin

ISBN: 9780373210534

Reviewed by Tehani Wessely

I discovered this series by chance, attracted by the gorgeous cover of the first book, The Girl in the Steel Corset, on the shelves of my local variety store. I picked it up on a whim, and absolutely loved it, so was delighted to be able to get a review copy of this, the second book, from NetGalley.

Finley Jayne has experienced a lot of life in her sixteen years. She’s not what you would call “normal”, but is working towards living her life as a whole person – rather than a conflicted creature not even she trusts – with the help of her “straynge band of mysfit” friends, including noble Griffin, super smart and sweet Emily, and strong and surly Sam. When the misadventures of their new friend Jasper take them to America, Finley and her troupe take on a new adversary, all the while still learning about their own abilities, figuring out how their friendships work, and discovering who can truly be trusted.