Issue #897 (September 15, 2006) of Entertainment Weekly offers some brief reviews of science fiction and fantasy books. Here's a snippet...

Variable Star by Robert A. Heinlein and Spider Robinson
For Fans of: The late master's Future History stories.
Lowdown: An enjoyable read. Star incorporates plenty of Heinlein's liberal social theories, but not enough of his sharp moral edge.
Grade: B

Mappa Mundi by Justina Robson
For Fans of: Brave New World or Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash, if they met Thomas Pynchon in a cybercafe.
Lowdown: A lyrical, attentively-written anti-utopia.
Grade: A-

Stamping Butterflies by Jon Courtenay Grimwood
For Fans of: The Matrix.
Lowdown: Grimwood's hard-boiled prose reels you in like a velvet rope (smiles twist "lips without ever reaching your eyes"). Too bad about reality being an illusion, though.
Grade: B+

A Meeting at Corvallis by S.M. Stirling
For Fans of: Forget Tolkien - does the Society for Creative Anachronism ring a bell?
Lowdown: Diehards will find this richly realized story or swordplay and intrigue immensely satisfying.
Grade: B

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Posted by John DeNardo at Tuesday September 12, 2006 at 12:11 AM
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