#CoolArt: 'Destroyer' print by Matt Ryan Tobin for Mondo

'Destroyer' by Matt Ryan Tobin, a new print release from Mondo.

36" x 24" screen print in a numbered limited edition of 150 for $45.

On sale Thursday February 21 at a random time from the Mondo website. Follow them on Twitter @MondoNews for the on sale announcement.

#CoolArt: 'Black Panther' prints by Martin Ansin for Mondo

'Black Panther' by Martin Ansin, a new officially licensed print release from Mondo.

24" x 36" screen print in a numbered Regular edition of 375 for $60, and a numbered Variant edition of 200 for $80.

On sale Thursday February 21 at a random time from the Mondo website. Follow them on Twitter @MondoNews for the on sale announcement.

(only available for shipping to United States, its territories and possessions, Canada, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden & United Kingdom)

Regular Edition

Variant Edition

#CoolArt: 'The Shining' & 'Jaws' AP Edition prints by JC Richard

Officially licensed AP edition prints by JC Richard.

• 'The Shining'. 36" x 24" screen prints in signed and numbered AP editions, including a limited amount of matching numbered sets.

• 'Jaws: The Chase' by JC Richard, 36" x 12" screen print in a Titled Regular AP edition and an Untitled Variant AP edition.

On sale on Friday February 22 at 2pm ET from his website.

#CoolArt: 'Spider-Gwen' AP Edition print by Chris Thornley

'Spider-Gwen' by Chris Thornley (Raid71).

18" x 24" screen print in an officially licensed signed and numbered AP edition for £40.

On sale Thursday February 21 at 1pm ET from his website.

Finalists for the 2019 SFWA Nebula Awards Announced

Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America have announced the finalists for this year’s Nebula Awards for works first published in 2018, along with contenders for the Ray Bradbury and Andre Norton Awards.

Each year, the organization’s members vote on which stories they consider to be the best novel, novella, novelette, short story and Young Adult story in the genre, as well as the best outstanding dramatic presentation.

The Nebula Awards Ceremony will be held from Thursday May 16 through Sunday May 19 at the Marriott Warner Center in Woodland Hills, CA.

Novel

• 'The Calculating Stars', Mary Robinette Kowal (Tor)
• 'The Poppy War', RF Kuang (Harper Voyager US; Harper Voyager UK)
• 'Blackfish City', Sam J Miller (Ecco; Orbit UK)
• 'Spinning Silver', Naomi Novik (Del Rey; Macmillan)
• 'Witchmark', CL Polk (Tor.com Publishing)
• 'Trail of Lightning', Rebecca Roanhorse (Saga)

Novella

• 'Fire Ant', Jonathan P Brazee (Semper Fi)
• 'The Black God’s Drums', P. Djèlí Clark (Tor.com Publishing)
• 'The Tea Master and the Detective', Aliette de Bodard (Subterranean)
• 'Alice Payne Arrives', Kate Heartfield (Tor.com Publishing)
• 'Gods, Monsters, and the Lucky Peach', Kelly Robson (Tor.com Publishing)
• 'Artificial Condition', Martha Wells (Tor.com Publishing)

Novelette

• 'The Only Harmless Great Thing', Brooke Bolander (Tor.com Publishing)
• 'The Last Banquet of Temporal Confections', Tina Connolly (Tor.com July 11 2018)
• 'An Agent of Utopia', Andy Duncan (An Agent of Utopia)
• 'The Substance of My Lives, the Accidents of Our Births', José Pablo Iriarte (Lightspeed Jan. 2018)
• 'The Rule of Three', Lawrence M Schoen (Future Science Fiction Digest Dec. 2018)
• 'Messenger', Yudhanjaya Wijeratne and RR Virdi (Expanding Universe, Volume 4)

Short Story

• 'Interview for the End of the World', Rhett C Bruno (Bridge Across the Stars)
• 'The Secret Lives of the Nine Negro Teeth of George Washington', Phenderson Djèlí Clark (Fireside Feb. 2018)
• 'Going Dark', Richard Fox (Backblast Area Clear)
• 'And Yet', AT Greenblatt (Uncanny Mar-Apr. 2018)
• 'A Witch’s Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies', Alix E Harrow (Apex Feb. 6 2018)
• 'The Court Magician', Sarah Pinsker (Lightspeed Jan. 2018)

Game Writing

• 'Black Mirror: Bandersnatch', Charlie Brooker (House of Tomorrow & Netflix)
• 'The Road to Canterbury', Kate Heartfield (Choice of Games)
• 'God of War', Matt Sophos, Richard Zangrande Gaubert, Cory Barlog, Orion Walker, and Adam Dolin (Santa Monica Studio/Sony/Interactive Entertainment)
• 'Rent-A-Vice', Natalia Theodoridou (Choice of Games)
• 'The Martian Job', M. Darusha Wehm (Choice of Games)

The Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation

• 'The Good Place: Jeremy Bearimy' (Written by Megan Amram)
• 'Black Panther' (Written by Ryan Coogler and Joe Robert Cole)
• 'A Quiet Place' (Screenplay by John Krasinski, Bryan Woods, and Scott Beck)
• 'Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse' (Screenplay by Phil Lord and Rodney Rothman)
• 'Dirty Computer' (Written by Janelle Monáe and Chuck Lightning)
• 'Sorry To Bother You' (Written by Boots Riley)

The Andre Norton Award for Outstanding Young Adult Science Fiction or Fantasy Book

• 'Children of Blood and Bone', Tomi Adeyemi (Henry Holt; Macmillan)
• 'Aru Shah and the End of Time', Roshani Chokshi (Rick Riordan Presents)
• 'A Light in the Dark', AK DuBoff (BDL)
• 'Tess of the Road', Rachel Hartman (Random House)
• 'Dread Nation', Justina Ireland (Balzer + Bray)
• 'Peasprout Chen: Future Legend of Skate and Sword', Henry Lien (Henry Holt)

#ArtOfTheDay: 'Epic Illustrated' #4 by Michael Kaluta

Cover art by Michael Kaluta for 'Epic Illustrated' issue #4', published December 1980 by Marvel Comics

#CoolArt: 'Pinnacles National Park' print by Mike McCain & Mystery Tube Sale from Fifty Nine Parks

'Pinnacles National Park' by Mike McCain, a new print release from Fifty-Nine Parks.

18" x 24" 5 colour screen print on 100# Cougar White paper in an open edition for $40.

5% of the print sale will be donated to the National Park Service.

Fifty Nine Parks are also offering a limited batch of 100 mystery tubes between Wednesday February 20 and Wednesday February 27 2019 at $40 each.

The mystery tubes (made up of scratch and dent posters that weren't quite perfect enough to ship in standard orders) will include either three 18" x 24" open edition prints or one 24" x 32" previously sold out limited edition print, and will be put together at random and may include open edition, numbered editions, and AP prints.

On sale now from the Fifty Nine Parks website.

#CoolArt: 'Flowers' print by João Ruas for Thinkspace Projects

'Flowers' by João Ruas, a print release from Thinkspace Projects.

14" x 16" fine art print on 290gsm paper, in a signed and numbered limited edition of 50 for $75.

On sale now from the Thinkspace Projects website.

#NewComicBookDay: My Comics Pull List This Week

My comics pull list this week

• 'Monstress' #20 (Image Comics)
• 'Seven To Eternity' #13 (Image Comics)
• 'Coda' #9 (Boom! Comics)
• 'Lucifer' #5 (DC / Vertigo Comics)
• 'Barbarella / Dejah Thoris' #2 (Dynamite Comics)
• 'The Witcher: Of Flesh & Flame' #3 (Dark Horse Comics)
• 'Solo: A Star Wars Story' #5 (Marvel Comics)

'Monstress' #20 (Image Comics)
Cover art by Sana Takeda

Finalists for the 'Spectrum 26: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art Awards' Announced

The finalists for the 'Spectrum 26: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art Awards' have been announced.

The Award Winners in each of the categories - Advertising, Book, Comic, Concept Art, Dimensional, Editorial, Institutional and Unpublished - plus the Grand Master Honouree will be announced at the Spectrum 26 Awards Ceremony held at the Folly Theater in Kansas City, MO on Saturday, March 30, 2019.

Go here to see the nominated artwork (scroll through to bottom)

Call For Entries poster by Tyler Jacobson

Advertising

• “Lair of the Firebreather”, Justin Gerard
• “Reach”, Donato Giancola
• “After the Flood”, Valentin Kopetzki
• “Earth Species Project”, Victo Ngai
• “Annihilation variant”, Greg Ruth

Book

• “Winter Road”, Jaime Jones
• “I Am the Light”, Vanessa Lemen
• “Japanese Tales 1: The Invisible Man”, Yuko Shimizu
• “Dragon Lords: Bad Faith”, Chase Stone
• “Charlie Florida”, Francis Vallejo

Comic

• Castle in the Stars: Book 4, page 1, Alex Alice
• Cover for Joe Shuster: The Artist Behind Superman, Thomas Campi
• Blue Vortex 1, Paul Davidson
• Kang Hearts Out 1, Kang Minjung
• The Thousand Demon Tree, Jeffrey Alan Love

Concept Art

• “Golden Temple Through Time We Converge: End”, Te Hu
• “Dwarf”, Carlyn Lim
• “The Banner Saga 3: Juno in the Black Sun”, Danny Moll
• “Submerged Statue of Tyr”, Abe Taraky
• “Big Hunt”, Zhengyi Wang

Dimensional

• “Vivicus”, Matthew Corcoran
• “SwampThing”, Paul Komoda
• “Reflection”, Patrick Masson
• “Gallevarbe”, Mark Newman
• “Justice”, Dug Stanat

Editorial

• “Structure”, Chris Buzelli
• “The Remains”, Qiuxin Mao
• “Human: Opener”, Victo Ngai
• “Stormy”, Tim O’Brien
• “How to Collect Customer Feedback the Right Way”, Leonardo Santamaria

Institutional

• “Mantis”, Ed Binkley
• “Etrata”, Bastien Lecouffe Deharme
• “Slippery Bogle”, Jesper Ejsing
• “Opt”, Tyler Jacobson
• “The Nights Watch”, John Jude Palencar

Unpublished

• “The Stranger”, Julien Delval
• “The Serpent”, Annie Stegg Gerard
• “A Walk in the Woods”, Konstantin Marinov Kostadinov
• “Sent by the Gods”, Ronan Le Fur
• “Racing Season in Empire City”, Eric Pfeiffer

#CoolArt: 'Masters Of The Universe' prints by Earl Norem for Mad Duck Posters

'He-Man, Champion Of Grayskull' and 'Hordak & The Evil Horde' by Earl Norem, new officially licensed 'Masters Of The Universe' prints from Mad Duck Posters.

18" x 24" giclee prints in a Regular edition of 250 for $55, and 22½" x 30" giclee prints in a Power Variant edition of 175 for $105.

On sale Wednesday February 20 at 12pm ET from the Mad Duck Posters website.

'He-Man, Champion Of Grayskull'

'Hordak & The Evil Horde'

#CoolArt: 'Fire Dragon' by Justin Gerard Online Auction for Every Day Original

'Fire Dragon' by Justin Gerard.

8" x 10" oil on panel original artwork, in an online auction at Every Day Original until Thursday February 21 at 11am ET.

Go here to bid in the auction.

#ArtOfTheDay: 'Conan The Barbarian' by Mark Brooks

Variant cover art by Mark Brooks for 'Conan The Barbarian' issue #2, published January 2019 by Marvel Comics

#CoolArt: New AP Edition Prints by James Flames

New AP edition prints by James Flames.

• 'Pigeons Playing Ping Pong 2019 South East US Tour'. 18" x 24" screen print, in a signed and numbered Regular AP edition of 40, a signed and numbered Fireworks HoloFoil AP edition of 30, a signed and numbered Circular Visions HoloFoil AP edition of 30.

• 'Dave Matthews Band & Tim Reynolds at Riviera Maya, Mexico'. 18" x 24", Glow In The Dark screen print, in a signed and numbered AP edition of 75.

On sale Tuesday February 19 at 2pm ET from James' website.

'Pigeons Playing Ping Pong 2019 South East US Tour' Regular Edition

#CoolArt: 'Wolverine' print by Mark Chilcott for Grey Matter Art

'Wolverine by Mark Chilcott, a new officially licensed print release from Grey Matter Art.

18" x 24" giclee print, in a numbered limited edition of 100 for $40.

On sale Thursday February 21 at 1pm ET from the Grey Matter Art website.

#ArtOfTheDay: 'Fantastic Four' by Geof Darrow

'Fantastic Four' by Geof Darrow

'Cujo' Limited Edition Bluray from Zavvi

'Cujo' limited edition bluray for £22.99 from Zavvi.

Special Limited Edition Contains:

• Hardbound Slipcase, featuring newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
• Reversible sleeve featuring artwork by Justin Osbourn and original poster artwork
• Limited edition 60 Page Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Lee Gambin, author Scott Harrison, and Craig Ian Mann; illustrated with archival imagery from the film’s production

DISC ONE:

• 1080p presentation of the film, on Blu-ray for the first time ever in the UK
• Uncompressed LPCM mono soundtrack
• Optional English SDH subtitles
• New and exclusive feature length audio commentary by Lee Gambin, author of Nope, Nothing Wrong Here: The Making of Cujo
• New interview with Dee Wallace [40 mins]
• New interview with composer Charles Bernstein [35 mins]
• New interview with stuntman Gary Morgan [25 mins]
• New interview with stuntwoman Jean Coulter [21 mins]
• New interview with casting director Marcia Ross. [20 mins]
• New interview with visual effects artist Kathie Lawrence [13 mins]
• New interview with special effects designer Robert Clark [12 mins]
• New interview with dog trainer Teresa Miller [28 mins]
• Dog Days: The Making of Cujo – archival documentary on the film’s production [42 mins]

DISC TWO [Limited Edition Only]:

• Q&A with Dee Wallace from “Cinemaniacs & Monster Fest 2015”, moderated by Lee Gambin [96 mins]
• New interview with critic and author Kim Newman [25 mins]

Available for pre-order now from the Zavvi website (Release date April 29 2019)

Slipcase Cover Art by Graham Humphreys

Bluray Cover Art by Justin Osbourn

Shortlist For The 2019 Annual British Science Fiction Association (BSFA) Awards Announced

The British Science Fiction Association (BSFA) have announced the shortlist for its annual BSFA Awards for works first published in 2018.

The BSFA Awards draw on nominations from their membership, and in the case of the Best Novel Award are open to UK publications only.

The Awards will be presented on Saturday April 20 during Ytterbium, the 70th Eastercon, at The Park Inn Heathrow, London, from 19-22 April 2019.

Best Novel

• 'Europe at Dawn' by Dave Hutchinson (Solaris)
• 'Revenant Gun' by Yoon Ha Lee (Solaris)
• 'Before Mars' by Emma Newman (Ace Books)
• 'Embers of War' by Gareth L Powell (Titan Books)
• 'Rosewater' by Tade Thompson (Orbit)

Best Shorter Fiction

• 'The Gift of Angels: an Introduction' by Nina Allan (Clarkesworld)
• 'The Purpose of the Dodo is to be Extinct' by Malcolm Devlin (Interzone #275)
• 'The Land of Somewhere Safe' by Hal Duncan (NewCon Press)
• 'Time Was' by Ian McDonald (Tor.com)
• 'Exit Strategy' by Martha Wells (Tor.com)
• 'Phosphorus' by Liz Williams (NewCon Press)
• 'Kingfisher' by Marian Womack (Lost Objects, Luna Press)

Best Non-Fiction

• Nina Allan’s 'Time Pieces' column 2018 articles (Interzone)
• Ruth EJ Booth’s 'Noise and Sparks' column 2018 articles (Shoreline of Infinity)
• Liz Bourke’s 'Sleeps With Monsters' column 2018 articles (Tor.com)
• Aliette de Bodard – On motherhood and erasure: people-shaped holes, hollow characters and the illusion of impossible adventures (Intellectus Speculativus blog)
• Adam Roberts – Publishing the Science Fiction Canon: The Case of Scientific Romance (Cambridge University Press)

Best Artwork

• Ben Baldwin’s wraparound cover for 'Strange Tales' slipcase set (NewCon Press)
• Joey Hi-Fi’s cover for 'Paris Adrift' by EJ Swift (Solaris)
• Sarah Anne Langton’s cover for 'Unholy Land' by Lavie Tidhar (Tachyon Publications)
• Sing Yun Lee and Morris Wild’s artwork for 'Sublime Cognition' conference (London Science Fiction Research Community)
• Likhain’s In the Vanishers’ Palace: Dragon I and II (Inprnt)
• Bede Rogerson’s cover for 'Concrete Faery' by Elizabeth Priest (Luna Press)
• Del Samatar’s artwork for 'Monster Portraits' by Sofia and Del Samatar (Rose Metal Press)
• Charlotte Stroomer’s cover for 'Rosewater' by Tade Thompson (Orbit)

#CoolArt: 'Umphrey's McGee at Brooklyn, NY' prints by AJ Masthay for Bottleneck Gallery

'Umphrey's McGee at Brooklyn, NY' by AJ Masthay, a new print release from Bottleneck Gallery.

18" x 24" Linoleum block print, in a signed and numbered AP Edition of 50 for $40, a signed and numbered Lava Foil Variant AP edition of 5 for $75, a signed and numbered Swirl-O-Rama Foil Variant AP edition of 10 for $75, a signed and numbered Stained Glass Foil Variant AP edition of 10 for $75, and a signed 1/1 watercolour edition for $150.

On sale Monday February 18 at 12pm ET from the Bottleneck Gallery website.

Regular Edition

#ArtOfTheDay: 'Green Arrow & Wonder Woman' by Esad Ribic

Variant cover art by Esad Ribic for 'Green Arrow' issue #27, published July 2017 by DC Comics

Artist Spotlight: The Art Of Jerry Vanderstelt

I've previously showcased a few of my favourite pop culture and vintage pulp artists, and each weekend I showcase art from more of my favourite artists.

The art of Jerry Vanderstelt.

#ArtOfTheDay: 'Captain Marvel' by David Mack

Variant cover art by David Mack for 'Captain Marvel' issue #3, published March 2019 by Marvel Comics

Artist Spotlight: The Art Of . . . Jerome Podwil

I've previously showcased a few of my favourite pop culture and vintage pulp artists, and each weekend I showcase art from more of my favourite artists.

The art of Jerome Podwil

#ArtOfTheDay: 'Batgirl' by Derrick Chew

Variant cover art by Derrick Chew for 'Batgirl' #32, published February 2019 by DC Comics

#CoolArt: New 'Star Wars' Prints by Brian Miller for Dark Ink Art

New 'Star Wars' inspired prints by Brian Miller, available through Dark Ink Art.

18" x 24" screen prints in a limited editions of 250 for $50 each.

On sale at the Disney Epcot International Festival of the Arts and now from the Dark Ink Art website.

'X-Wings For Victory'

'Destination Dagobah'

'Destination Endor'

#CoolArt: 'Empire Magazine' Cover Art by Dan Mumford

Cover art by Dan Mumford for the April 2019 Subscriber edition of Empire Magazine, available February 21

Book Review: 'Triquetra' by Kirstyn McDermott

Cover art by Audrey Benjaminsen

A what happened next in the Snow White fairy tale from author Kirstyn McDermott.

It's now several years after the happily ever after ending of the classic fairy tale and Fairest (Snow White) is married to the Prince that rescued her and living with him and their 7 year old daughter in his castle.

The 'evil' stepmother still lives and is imprisoned in the castle along with the infamous magic mirror, and once a month, Fairest visits her stepmother and share an apple, grown from an enchanted tree, while trading in coming up with the most imaginative, and grisly, ways to kill each other. But the stepmother seems to have recanted her evil ways and warns Fairest of her husband's disturbing desires towards their daughter, who happens to be the same age as when she was first kissed by the Prince. Unsure of whether to trust this revelation, Fairest decides to seek the truth from the magic mirror.

'Triquetra' is a dark and sometimes unsettling take on the Snow White fairy-tale, that plays on the fears and paranoia of Fairest over her daughter's safety. It's a wonderfully written short story that harkens back to the way fairy tales originally were before the likes of Disney got hold of them. Recommended.

Available to read for free from the Tor Fiction website.

#CoolArt: 'Star Trek Discovery S2 E4 - An Obol For Charon' by Laz Marquez

'Star Trek Discovery S2 E04 - An Obol For Charon' by Laz Marquez

#CoolArt: 'Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi' AP Edition print by Karl Fitzgerald

'Return Of The Jedi: Skywalker Returns' by Karl Fitzgerald.

24" x 36" 8 colour screen print in a signed Regular AP edition

On sale Friday February 15 at 12pm ET from Karl's website.

#CoolArt: 'Alice's Adventures In Wonderland' prints by Jonathan Burton for Mad Duck Posters

'Alice's Adventures In Wonderland' by Jonathan Burton, a new Variant print release from Mad Duck Posters.

24" x 36" screen print with metallic inks, in a Blue Variant edition of 140 for $85 and a Gold Variant edition of 100 for $65.

On sale Friday February 15 at 12pm ET from the Mad Duck Posters website.

Blue Variant Edition

Gold Variant Edition

#ArtOfTheDay: 'Princess Leia' by Francesco Francavilla

Variant cover art by Francesco Francavilla for 'Star Wars: Princess Leia' issue #3, published April 2015 by Marvel Comics

#CoolArt: 'Black Thorn' print by Lara Dann for Modern Eden Gallery

'Black Thorn' by Lara Dann, a new print release from Modern Eden Gallery.

8" x 10" fine art print on MOAB Entrada Rag, 100% cotton, 260 gsm, acid and lignin free paper, in a signed and numbered limited edition of 20 for $30, and a 1/1 AP remarked edition for $50.

On sale now from the Modern Eden Gallery website.

#CoolArt: 'Bilquis' by Kristina Carroll for Every Day Original

'Bilquis' by Kristina Carroll for Every Day Original.

5" x 7" oil and gold leaf on panel, original artwork for $475.

On sale Thursday February 14 at 12.30pm ET from the Every Day Original website.

Book Review: 'Bound: A Book Of The The Ancestor Short Story' by Mark Lawrence

A really enjoyable but brief read that takes place not long after the events in 'Grey Sister', book 2 of Mark Lawrence's excellent 'Book Of The Ancestor' series. I'd definitely recommend that you read the previous books in the series before starting this one so you know who's who and get a sense of the world and what's been going on, as there's next to no preamble before it gets straight into the story.

'Bound' is a murder mystery that has Ara and Regol recruited for a special mission and despatched to the ballrooms of the Sis, along with Sister Kettle, to find out who has been poisoning some of the young high society nobles. Nona is able to tag along as well, albeit long distance, as she and Ara are now bonded with each other - where they can communicate and experience what each other is seeing and feeling through a kind of telepathic thread - after they both share a kiss as a kind of practice for the secret mission that Ara is about to go on.

It's a fun story that also sees the return of some of the popular characters in the series. It's also an engrossing, fast paced and exciting read with a few twists and turns, with a good dose of kick ass action too for good measure that, unfortunately, is over all too soon, but it does make me excited for 'Holy Sister', the concluding book in the series, which, thankfully, is not far away (released in April 2019), so at least I don't have to wait too long to revisit this world again!

I've been loving the 'Book of the Ancestors' series so far and 'Bound' is a shorter, but definitely worthy addition.

Available from Amazon.

#CoolArt: DC Comics 'The Rogue's Gallery' print by Fabian Schlaga for Sideshow Collectibles

'The Rogue's Gallery' by Fabian Schlaga, a new officially licensed print release from Sideshow Collectibles.

42" x 18" giclee print, on 100% archival heavyweight 300gsm rag art paper, in a signed and numbered limited edition of 200.

On sale for Pre-Order in a framed edition for $450 on Friday February 15 between 12pm-3pm PT from the Sideshow Collectibles website.

Any remaining copies will be available for Pre-Order in an unframed edition for $200 from Monday February 18 between 12pm-3pm PT.

#ArtOfTheDay: 'The Amazing Spider-Man' by Frank Cho

Variant cover art by Frank Cho for 'The Amazing Spider-Man' issue #800, published May 2018 by Marvel Comics

#NewComicBookDay: My Comics Pull List This Week

My comics pull list this week.

• 'The Magic Order' #6 (Image Comics / Netflix)
• 'Oblivion Song' #12 (Image Comics / Skybound)
• 'The Sandman Universe: House Of Whispers' #6 (DC / Vertigo Comics)
• 'Rat Queens' #14 (Image Comics / Shadowline)
• 'Carson Of Venus: The Flames Beyond' #2 (American Mythology)
• 'William Gibson's Alien 3' #4 (Dark Horse Comics)
• 'Star Wars: Age Of Republic - Count Dooku' #1 (Marvel Comics)

'The Magic Order #6 (Image Comics / Netflix)
Cover art by Olivier Coipel

#CoolArt: 'How To Train Your Dragon' T Shirt by Alessio Magliano through ShirtPunch

'How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World' by Alessio Magliano.

Timed release limited edition T-shirt for $11.

On sale now until 12 midnight ET on Thursday February 14 from the ShirtPunch website

'My Hero Academia: Two Heroes' Limited Edition Bluray Steelbook from Zavvi

'My Hero Academia: Two Heroes' limited edition bluray steelbook for £22.99 from Zavvi.

Available for pre-order now from the Zavvi website (Release date April 8 2019)

Book Review: 'The Kingkiller Chronicles: Book 1 - The Name Of The Wind' by Patrick Rothfuss

Cover art by Sam Weber

I've been hearing how good 'The Name of the Wind' by Patrick Rothfuss was, the first instalment in an epic fantasy trilogy 'The Kingkiller Chronicles', so it was time to dive in.

The praise is very deserving indeed!

An innkeeper, the legendary magician and assassin Kvothe, tells his life story to the Chronicler, a respected, um, chronicler of stories, over the span of three days, of which 'The Name of the Wind' is day one. Starting with his childhood growing up as part of a travelling troupe, until a devastating life changing incident turns everything upside down, to his days struggling to survive as a child on the streets of Tarbean, to his troubled education at the University, driven by his desire to learn a higher magic and his need to find out as much as he can about the Chandrian, the demon who murdered his family. All the ups and downs of a very storied early life of an orphaned boy who grows up to become a legend!

But if you're expecting an action packed fantasy story with swords, sorcery and fighting political factions like some other fantasy works, then you might be disappointed. There is a bit of sorcery, but it's definitely more of a character driven book, an intimate and, at times, emotional story told from Kvothe's point of view, that's interspersed with interludes told in the third person back in the Inn. These breaks in the main narrative don't slow down the story or take you out of the story at all, as you might expect, but instead add another layer to the whole story. Giving it a believability and very real-world lived in feel to a world we are getting a taste of.

Throughout Kvothe's story we meet some of the compelling and authentic characters that pass through his life like Bast, Simmone, Wilem, Auri and Denna to name a few, that shaped him as he grew up in a complex and immersive fantasy world of magic and legends, all woven together in an engaging prose that is lyrical, and at times, poetic. A joy to read!

The audiobook, narrated by Rupert Degas, is just as wonderful as well. Degas' performance levitates the book to a whole other level, bringing the characters and world to life in such a way, you want to listen and relive Kvothe's journey all over again. No mean feat considering the audiobook runs at just a shade over 28 hours!

It's very rare I give a full 5* to anything, but 'The Name of the Wind' is very deserving and heartily recommended, especially for those that like the works of Brandon Sanderson or George RR Martin.

Available from Waterstones, Forbidden Planet, Kobo ebooks: (UK) / (USA) / (Canada), Audible Audiobooks and all good bookstores.

#ArtOfTheDay: 'Darth Vader' by Greg Smallwood

Cover art by Greg Smallwood for 'Star Wars: Vader - Dark Visions' issue #1, published March 2019 by Marvel Comics