For a bit of a change of pace I thought I would write a blog about books rather than film.

I’m a genre addict. I love sci-fi, fantasy, horror and the occasional thriller thrown in for good measure. There are so many excellent authors out there that deserve more recognition than I think they get.

In September I had to opportunity to go to FantasyCon 2009. It’s right on my doorstep (so to speak) and I have to admit I quickly found myself in the dealer hall wandering from table to table trying to decide what to spend my hard earned cash on.

In the end I went for some novels from Abaddon Books. This publisher has a number of series that caught my eye. Specifically I was interested in Pax Britannia and The Afterblight Chronicles.

Pax Britannia is just great. Set in an alternate timeline where the Victorian era never ended. I believe the phrase du jour is ‘steampunk’ ? There are characters with splendidly evocative names like Uriah Wormwood and Devlin Valentine. The main character is dandy adventurer, Ulysses Quicksilver. Forever accompanied by his faithful man servant, Nimrod, Mr Quicksilver is thrown from adventure to adventure as the series unfolds.

The most recent book is Evolution Expects. Like the majority of the series it’s written by Jonathan Green. Top stuff all round. Nods to The Fly, green issues and even a certain ‘caped crusader’.
I strongly recommend picking these book up. There is a new one on the horizon in December and I’ll be added it to my Xmas list. I do hope Mrs Cheesecake takes note.

Till next time
Toddle pip

PS – I should stress just because I didn’t mention anything else about The Afterblight Chronicles doesn’t mean I didn’t like. I did it’s just I’ve still got one to read so will reserve my comments to some later blog.