The Double-Edged Sword – Sarah Silverwood (Nowhere Chronicles #1)
Hachette Gollancz, 2010
352 pages
RRP: AU$22.99
ISBN: 9780575095793

Reviewed by Kate Smith

I have never been one to avoid books because of their targeted age range. I have come across both shockers and brilliant stories in all ages ranges, and The Double-Edged Sword lies far closer to the positive end of the spectrum, despite not being primarily targeted to an adult audience.

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Belong – Russell B Farr (ed)
Ticonderoga Publications, 2010
370 pages
RRP: AU$35 (pbk) AU$75 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-9803531-2-9 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-0-9803531-1-2 (hbk)

Review by Liz Grzyb

Belong, an anthology of stories exploring the idea of home, belonging and immigration, covers a lot of ground. There are twenty three stories here, and with subjects ranging from zombies, magic, space travel and alternative looks at Australia, there is something for everyone.

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Blameless – Gail Carriger (Parasol Protectorate #3)
Hachette Grand Central, 2010
400 pages
RRP: AU$15.99
ISBN: 9780316074155

Reviewed by Kate Smith

Too often it seems with series of books that authors are not able to sustain the vivid flash of inspiration that captivates the reader in initial works.  Happily with Blameless Carriger does not fall into that particular hole.  While I did not enjoy Blameless quite so much as her previous two novels, this was due to the path of the storyline rather than any inherent deficits in the writing.  Carriger does a lovely job of unfolding a more intricate world around her heroine, a world far more complex than the lady in question had been aware of, and she does this without unnecessary and lengthy detailed paragraphs that can slow down the reader and the bounce of the story.  In unfolding this larger world Carriger brings new characters to life and develops existing ones further.

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Power and Majesty – Tansy Rayner Roberts (Creature Court #1)
Harper Collins Voyager, 2010
500 pages
RRP: AU$22.99
ISBN: 9780732289430

Reviewed by Liz Grzyb

Power and Majesty hit my to-read pile a while ago, as I’d read some of Roberts’ fantastic short stories and was intrigued to see what her novel-length work was like. Now it has been nominated for both an Aurealis and a Ditmar award, so it shot to the top of my list with a bullet! After reading, I can see why it’s been so popular: Roberts has created a world which is at the same time magical and dangerous, but disturbingly similar to our own.

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