Author Archive: EamonnMurphy
Eamonn Murphy is a science fiction, fantasy, horror and graphic novel reviewer who writes a bit too.
Where The Monsters Are by Mike Morgan (book review).


The Age of Asmodeus started when a magician of that name reset the magical energy state of local reality, just for fun, and transmogrified two percent of the global population into mythical creatures. Like enemy aliens in wartime, they are required to register with the authorities. Sixteen years later, Malcolm Tensor is working for the […]
Terror Tales Of The Scottish Lowlands edited by Paul Finch (book review).


Each book in the ‘Terror Tales’ series focuses on an area of Britain and features short fiction accompanied by articles about ‘real-life’ weird phenomena. The appeal to local readers must guarantee a few sales but there’s plenty to like for any UK horror fan and even Johnny Foreigner might derive some pleasure there from. Here’s […]
Burning Brightly: 50 Years Of Novacon edited by Ian Whates (book review).


From 1979 onwards, every Novacon SF Convention featured a free special with a short story donated by that year’s guest of honour. This anthology features a selection from those specials. Stephen Baxter’s ‘Chiron’ is set in his ‘Xeelee Sequence’ universe but stands alone just fine. Anna Gage is a top pilot who was lucky enough […]
Isolate: A Novel In The Grand Illusion 1 by L.E. Modesitt, Jr. (book review).


Steffan Dekkard is a security aide to Councillor Obreduur of the Craft Party in the state of Guldoran. He lives in the Councillor’s house along with Obreduur’s wife and children and other staff members, including Avraal Ysella, a female empath. Ysella is also a security guard but both she and Dekkard double up as economic […]
Monster Blood Tattoo Book Three: Factotum by D.M. Cornish (book review).


‘Factotum’ is the third part of the ‘Monster Blood Tattoo’ trilogy which began with ‘Foundling’ and continued with ‘Lamplighter’. I think it would be pointless to read ‘Factotum’ without first perusing the other two but that’s no hardship as they are both fabulous novels. As with a foreign language, the best way is to totally […]
Cutting Edge by Francesco Dimitrii and Mario Alberti (graphic novel review).


‘Cutting Edge’ is a graphic novel available in both hardback and eBook formats. What happens when a ruthless rich corporation sets teams of super-smart people in competition against each other to obtain certain items of value? That’s the question posed by ‘Cutting Edge’, a graphic novel written by Francesco Dimitri, translated into English by Marc […]
Monster Blood Tattoo Book Two: Lamplighter by D.M. Cornish (book review).


‘Lamplighter’ is the second book in the ‘Monster Blood Tattoo’ trilogy. In ‘Book One: Foundling’ we followed hero Rossamünd Bookchild as he left the orphanage where he grew up and set off for the lamplighter headquarters at Winstermill but was delayed by various mishaps and adventures. Finally, he has arrived. Apprentice lamplighters receive four months […]
Scrap by Nicholas Mennuti, Howard Chaykin, Don Cameron and Yen Nitro (graphic novel review).


The rather unheroic hero of this Science Fiction novella is Travis Schrader, a security guard with a degree in electronics which means he gets $15 an hour instead of $12 for his night shifts at the Gulch Group Data Centre, Jefferson County, Kansas in the year 2023. We join him on his journey to work […]
Monster Blood Tattoo Book One: Foundling by D.M. Cornish (book review).


In a world where humans and monsters co-exist, who are the good, the bad and the ugly? That’s the problem facing our young hero Rossamünd as he finally leaves the orphanage which raised him and sets out to become an apprentice in his new trade in this first book of the ‘Monster Blood Tattoo’ trilogy. […]
Future Science Fiction Digest #12 (e-mag review).


‘Future Science Fiction Digest’ is a quality magazine serving up international short Science Fiction for anglophone readers to broaden their tastes. This issue features the following stuff. ‘Old People’s Folly’ by Nora Schinneri concerns a meeting of old and young, cynicism and idealism, post-apocalyptic and civilised. In Samsonville, 313 A.F. (after the flood), Setti finds […]