Author: Alexandra

I Heart Characters: The SF Version

Published by Alexandra

I’ve been talking a lot about various science fiction books and authors I’ve read and love, so today, I thought I would delve into a few of the characters I’ve met over the years who’ve left a lasting impression on me. Those of you that read my blog regularly might remember me talking about the novel, Serpent’s Reach, by C. J. Cherryh. A book I read back in 1980, which had a huge impact on me. Not just because a number of strong female characters in it, but because I could identify with the main protagonist, who was about my age at the time. Both of us had, inadvertently, been dropped in at the deep end and left to sink or swim. Although it’s true, I wasn’t on a far flung distant world, nor being chased by an unseen enemy, but I was battling my own demons at the time. So when I discovered Raen a Sul hant Meth-maren, the sole survivor of her family—murdered by a rival clan in what was an attempted coup—I …

Hel’s Revenge

Published by Alexandra

AS DAWN BROKE, the first few fingers of light pierced the dark. Clouds ran to cover the moon. A woman dressed in white huddled against the chill of night, a chill that seeped into her very marrow. Pulling the heavy cloak about her did little to ward off the cold. Arms pulled tightly about her she bowed her head and wept. Wept till deep-racking sobs finally over took her and her slender body shook. The quiet stillness of night slowly passing into day, oblivious of such grief. The Carthagian Prefect, Rhé Elissa-Dido, lost in sorrow, was unaware that someone stood behind her concealed in dark shadows by a cluster of shrubs. Someone, who, up until that moment, had been unaware of her presence, someone who, like her, had come to a quiet place to be alone to reflect through a night of solitude. But instead, had inadvertently shared a night of soul-searching. Fleet Captain Hel Jarvik moved out of her concealment, drawn to the emotion of the woman sobbing. The terrible sound of a heart …

SF Gadgets & Gizmos

Published by Alexandra

Or, all the futuristic stuff I’ve always dreamed of owning! And who hasn’t dreamed of owning items we’ve seen in a movie, or on TV. I remember my friend, Linda, and I desperately wanting to join the Enterprise so we could each have a phaser, not realising till much later on, that this meant we might end up being an Infamous Red Shirt — usually the first characters to get shot at or die a grisly death in nearly every episode of Trek! But it didn’t stop us dreaming or pretending our bananas at lunchtime were our communicators. Flipping them open, and then, talking to them. No wonder I was considered a weird kid at school. It didn’t stop with Trek, I lusted after the tech in most SF TV shows I watched over the years. From light sabres to magnetic boots, to the TARDIS and Firefly’s ‘Serenity’. I wanted it all and, when I found out I needed H. G. Wells’ Time Machine to travel into the future, I started creating my own fictitious …

WWW Wednesday #1

Published by Alexandra

WWW Wednesday, which is hosted by Sam, over at Takin on the World of Words, is simplicity itself. All you have to do is answer the following questions: What are you currently reading? What did you recently finish? What do you think you will read next? Currently Reading: Orphan Brigade by Henry V. O’Neil. I started this one Sunday evening, and looked set to speed read to the end, but, somehow, life got in the way, and I’m only part way through. Not because the story is boring, far from it. I’ll review this one just as soon as I’ve finished. Promise! Recently Finished: Well now, I did a couple of re-reads but I don’t think they count as I raced through them when I should have been reading ROAR OF SKY by Beth Cato or any of the books on my TBR for SciFiMonth. So the last NEW book I read must have been THE CITY OF BRASS by S.A. Chakraborty, which wasn’t really all that recent. Doh! Read Next: Uh-huh, every time I …

RIP Stan Lee

Published by Alexandra

I grew up reading comics long before I picked up a book. It was how my parents first introduced us to reading. Not with the more regular Ladybird books. No. My parents found we responded better, and, of course, found that we also stayed quieter longer when reading a stack of comics. So for them, and us, it was a win win situation. And so it was, the prevailing choice of comic book in our household through out the 60s and into the late 70s, was Marvel. From Spiderman to the X-Men (one of my favourites) to the Hulk, Thor, the Avengers, and many others in between. We read them all and, I’m sure, if we had kept all of them, we might all be multi-millionaires by now. But, I digress. For my mother, the secret to ever lasting peace within our household, was Stan Lee. The man behind the Marvel has passed, at 95, Stan has done one last cameo, and left us to wonder what might have been. It’s hard to believe how …