Meet New Books

Once upon a time, when dinosaurs still roamed the Earth and TV was mostly black & white, a baby boy was born to Irish immigrant parents living in Birmingham in the UK.

He grew up, physically, if not in other ways.


During his youth, he was exposed to 1970s and 1980s TV, Progressive Rock music, Sci-Fi & Fantasy books and Star Wars movies. He spent entirely too much time playing Warhammer, Dungeons & Dragons and mucking about with Sinclair home computers before finally deciding it was time to earn a living in IT.


The result of this bizarre experiment was a vaguely adult male who has been married twice (and is still holding his current wife captive, but her tunnelling skills are improving) is older than he's happy with and who still plays Warhammer, still works in IT and who watches far too many superhero films.


He has recently realised that his head is too full of stories and that he needs to let some of them escape.


Books Rated/Reviewed by Dean Kelly

Comments by Dean-Kelly
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Neuromancer is a mind-bending read, rich in language and plot. In concept, it lies somewhere between a 'film noir' and 'Tron'. A lone hero, who is not very heroic, is embroiled in the machinations of mega-corporations, artificial intelligences and the odds are not in his favour.

A fantastic read, filled with great characters, rich imagery and beautifully written, it is an absolute treat.

James S.A. Corey's 'Expanse' series, starting with Leviathan Wakes, is a perfect Space Opera. It melds hard Sci-fi concepts (long-distance space travel, gravity, etc.) with strong characterisations and an engaging, malevolent, extra-galactic threat in the form of the insidious 'protomolecule'. I genuinely found myself interested in and rooting for the main characters, sympathetic to their situation and often heart-breaking back-stories.

There is a lot of valid commentary here on the interplay between 'the little guy, governments and mega-corporations. There is both moral 'heft' and also a damn fine yarn in these books.

One of the finest works of Sci-Fi/Horror I have ever read. This book (and the others making up the trilogy) is dazzling in its scope, mind-bogglingly well-conceived and the vast array of plot threads are expertly-handled and interweave beautifully. It is an absolutely epic read, and one which gripped me the whole way through.

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