SFR News & Links Extra

File this under happy dance news: September is "SFR Month" at Bookpushers!

This month we will be doing a series of reviews and some posts concentrating on the genre of Sci Fi and Romance which is one of my favourite subgenres. It is also a very diverse genre that encompasses so many different elements, tones and styles which is one of the reasons why I really love the themes that Sci Fi conveys.

I especially love stories that explore the universe and what it means to be human which authors like Anne McCaffery have highlighted. But I also love the campy sexy romps such as Dara Joy’s Matrix series  or Jayne Castle’s Sci Fi paranormals which were my first introduction to the genre. This made me realise at the time that romance was a wonderful genre that could combine so many different aspects which makes things fresh and vibrant.

Yay! Here are links to some of the features that have gone live:

Review of Zoe Archer's SKIES OF GOLD (steampunk; The Ether Chronicles)

Review of Ann Aguirre's PERDITION (space opera penitentiary setting)

I learned about a few more new releases that are happening this month. Check out the covers and blurbs:

My Sci-Fi Romance Wish List

This past August, because of Life Stuff, I had a longer than expected break from blogging. Not only that, but I lacked regular computer and Internet access much of the time. The upside of the break was my ability to catch up on some reading! (And also glom Netflix's original series ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK, but I won't go there because while that series is terrific, it's not science fiction romance.)

I look forward to blogging about the stories I've read recently in one way or another, but in the meantime, it's left me in the rare spot of having mostly caught up with my To Be Read pile. I always have science fiction romances to choose from, of course, but I often prioritize new releases, or at least those titles newly available within the past six months, as well as those whom authors/publishers have been kind enough to send me. So I've been able to catch up with most of it.

There are some titles I want to read but haven't because of price or lack of availability at my local library (mostly Big Five publisher releases). Which, frankly, is not a huge deal because there are plenty of more affordable digital-first titles I want to get under my belt just as much. I also have a handful of older, print titles I need to start as well.

While I never lack for an SFR or feel dissatisfied about my choices, I'm still a reader with favorite tropes and desires for certain types of characters/plots/settings. Therefore, I had a few ideas about types of stories I'd like to read. Here is my current wish list (in random order):

Is D.B. Sieders' RED SHOES FOR LAB BLUES A Mundane Sci-Fi Romance?

[This is a spoiler-free post!]

A little birdie loaned me a copy of D.B. Sieders' RED SHOES FOR LAB BLUES (June 2013, Lyrical Press) and indicated it might be a science fiction romance. Now, even though I have an ebook published with Lyrical Press, I completely ignored this release when it came out. One, the tag describes it as a contemporary romance. Two, the cover screams contemporary romance:

I mean, you can't get any clearer than that. :)

 

However, once I learned about Little Birdie's impressions and read the story blurb, I became intrigued by the possibilities. Perhaps RED SHOES FOR LAB BLUES is an undiscovered science fiction romance. Take a look at the blurb:

Can love and sex overcome logic and sabotage…

Dr. Stacey Jamison thinks she’s close to validating PharmEx’s new anti-cancer drug. Her budding independent career, her boss’s tenure, and a ton of research dollars are at stake. She just has to prove Compound Z kills cancer cells.

So far, it doesn’t.

Then along comes Dr. Henry Chan, the department’s new rising star. Henry is smart, handsome, and confident. He’s also captivated by the enigmatic Dr. Jamison, who seems oblivious to her own charms. But will Henry risk his heart when the research project is at stake?

A rival drug company, an insider with a personal grudge, and militant animal rights protestors force everyone’s plans into disarray. Can their love overcome everything being thrown at them?

CONTENT WARNING: Steamy sex.

The potential science fictional element that jumped out at me was this line: "She just has to prove Compound Z kills cancer cells." Therefore, I began to wonder if the book fell into the category of mundane SF. Let's review that definition:

Spike Jonze's HER Is An "Artificial Intelligence" Sci-Fi Romance Film, But How Will It End?

While perusing the "Fall Movie Preview" issue of Entertainment Weekly (August 16/23), I learned about HER, a forthcoming film written and directed by Spike Jonze (BEING JOHN MALKOVICH). It stars Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlet Johansson. If this is the first time you've heard about this film, check out the premise (via the official movie site):

Set in the Los Angeles of the slight future, “Her” follows Theodore Twombly, a complex, soulful man who makes his living writing touching, personal letters for other people. Heartbroken after the end of a long relationship, he becomes intrigued with a new, advanced operating system, which promises to be an intuitive entity in its own right, individual to each user. Upon initiating it, he is delighted to meet “Samantha,” a bright, female voice, who is insightful, sensitive and surprisingly funny. As her needs and desires grow, in tandem with his own, their friendship deepens into an eventual love for each other.

Like, OMG WOW! Another science fiction romance film! As of this posting, HER will be in U.S. theaters November 20, 2013.

Sci-fi romances featuring A.I. characters fascinate me to no end. So I was thrilled to learn about HER. And the "Genres" tags at IMDB are comedy, drama, romance, and sci-fi!

Check out the scrumptious trailer:

SFR News & Links For September 2013

Have fun opening this month's box of sci-fi romance flavored chocolates!

New releases

HERO'S END (space opera) - JC Cassels

When a former lover with a score to settle nearly brings Blade Devon’s charmed life to an end, he seeks refuge – and some time to lick his wounds – with an old friend…leaving the woman he loves behind.

Bo Barron is no frail flower, despite her masquerade as Blade’s Joy Babe Mistress.  She straps on her sidearm and goes off alone to track her missing father, kicking off a search that stretches across the galaxy – from the lair of the gruesome Rex, a clone with a taste for sentient biomatter, to Rogue’s Cross, the most dangerous space station in the outer Commonwealth.

Someone close to her doesn’t want Bo’s father found. To make matters worse, the First Sector Overlord orders Blade’s holofeature career over and Bo out of his life for good.

Surrounded by betrayal, Bo and Blade turn to each other…but the secrets he protects threaten to tear them apart.

One way or another, returning Bo’s father to his rightful place and following their hearts will mean HERO’S END.

Read an excerpt.