Bones of the Earth By Michael Swanwick A complex time travel story, with meticulously researched paleontology and animal behavior, human psychology, relationships, plots, survival tactics, far future possibilities, & dinosaurs. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #timetravel #sciencefiction #dinosaurs #michaelswanwick #booksky

F.A.R.M. System By Rich Koslowski A graphic novel with the premise that in a world of superheroes, talent is recruited for superhero teams using the baseball farm system and training camps. But when superheroes mysteriously disappear, who is to blame? ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #graphicnovel #comicbook #booksky

A Connecticut Yankee in the 8th Gurkha Rifles By Scott Gilmore with Patrick Davis A WWII memoir by an American who served first as a volunteer ambulance driver in North Africa, and then enlisted in the British Army, serving in India & Burma. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #WWII #memoir #military #history #booksky

And hey, if you've been collecting those Adam Hughes covers, sign up for his Patreon or buy a print from his online store, below. Adam is battling cancer, and anybody who freelances knows what an unexpected serious illness or injury does to your income. www.adamhughesofficial.com

Secret Avengers, Vol. 2 W: Rick Remender As: Matteo Scalera; Andy Kuhn Collects single issues #33–37. Having not read volume 1, it took me a bit to catch up on what was happening. I usually like Scalera's work, but the art here looked rushed. The colorist did some heavy lifting.... ⭐⭐⭐ #comicbook

Doc Savage #7: The Lost Oasis & The Sargasso Ogre By Kenneth Robeson (Lester Dent) A zeppelin, a hidden oasis, diamonds, slavery, murder, piracy, shipwrecks adrift in the Sargasso Sea, beautiful women, rugged men—just another couple weeks with Clark Savage Jr. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #docsavage #booksky #pulps

Dimensions of Robert Sheckley By R. Sheckley A collection of four novels and a novella by an author who used science fiction and humor to examine the absurdities of contemporary society. Sometimes a bit verbose for my taste, but still classics of the genre. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #sciencefiction #humor #booksky

Everyone's a Critic The Ultimate Cartoon Book Editor: Bob Eckstein Would critiquing this book be hypocritical or hypercritical? Anyway, laughs galore from a wide selection of cartoonists and publications. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #cartoons #cartoonists #singlepanel #collection #booksky

Lie Down With Lions By Ken Follett An espionage romance page turner set mostly in Russian-occupied Afghanistan. Quite an exploration into what motivates people. Well researched. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #kenfollett #espionage #thriller #romance #afghanistan #booksky

Mars Crossing By Geoffrey A. Landis The first 2 manned missions to Mars resulted in no survivors. The third mission suffers a disaster, resulting in them needing to cross thousands of miles to reach the lander of one of the previous missions. Scientifically accurate & completely engrossing. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I could use some traffic in my shop, browsers welcome. Shop Here: ko-fi.com/jaxonsigns/s... #art #painting #birds #wildlife #nature #BirdOfTheDay #WellTimed #WeatherWarriors

Space Relic Hunters W: Sylvain Runberg A: Grun (Ludovic Dubois) A mismatched trio of relic hunters are hired to find a special item, one that might just bring down the current ruling gods of the galaxy. A delightful view that religion is just a scam. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #graphicnovel #sciencefiction #booksky

Hawkmoon, Vol. 2: The Battle of Komarg See photos for complete credits. A French adaptation of Michael Moorcock's classic fantasy series, nicely illustrated. They do need to hire a proofreader who knows the difference between "raise" and "raze" (3x!). ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #graphicnovel #comicbook #booksky

The Witcher, Omnibus Vol. 3 See photos for complete credits. Three complete miniseries and one short story starring our favorite monster hunter. Some fun nods to classic fairy tales. Nice art throughout. A big thick treat for fans of Geralt. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #thewitcher #fantasy #comicbooks #booksky

Uri Tupka and the Gods W/A: Mike Mignola Colors: Dave Stewart Distant past? Far future? Are all the gods dead? If not, where are they? Let's take a long journey with an old man through exotically dangerous lands to find out. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #comicbook #graphicnovel #mikemignola #booksky

Blood Type W: Corrina Bechko A: Andrea Sorrentino An entry in the current rebirth of the classic EC horror line, this tale of a vapid vampiress is nicely illustrated, but the main character has no appeal and is more than a bit unbelievable. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ #comicbook #vampire #booksky

The Witcher: The Bear & the Butterfly W: Simon Spurrier A: Simon Green Collects the complete miniseries. Geralt encounters monsters and people that aren't what they seem, and solves a mystery. As always, Villarrubia's colors greatly enhance the art. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #thewitcher #comicbook #booksky #geralt

Kilroy is Here W: Joe Pruitt A: Dalibor Talajic A one-shot rebirth of a indie series from the 1990s. Angels, history, acts of violence, and questions about the soul. Should have been more popular, so it's enjoyable to encounter Kilroy again. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #comicbook #booksky #supernatural

Quick Stops, Vol. 3 By Kevin Smith See photos for complete credits. A hardcover collection of comix featuring four short slice-of-weird-life stories from our favorite chronicler of grubby suburban existence. Nicely illustrated by all the artists. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #comicbooks #kevinsmith #booksky

My Soul to Keep By Tananarive Due An investigative journalist discovers her husband is a member of a sect of immortals who will kill to protect their secret. A captivating mix of love, family, religious faith, intrigue and personal journeys of self discovery. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #fantasy #magicrealism #booksky

Lone Star Rising By Elmer Kelton The Texas Rangers Trilogy, collecting the first 3 books of a series: The Buckskin Line, Badger Boy, and The Way of the Coyote. "Rusty" Shannon's life in the early days of the Texas Rangers, when life on the frontier was, at best, chaotic. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #western #booksky

Cartoon by @deadder.bsky.social.

Homicide: The Graphic Novel Part 1 & 2 By David Simon Adapted by Philippe Squarzoni A very nicely done sequential art adaptation of the best nonfiction police procedural book I've ever read. The subject matter continues to fascinate even decades after the original was written. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #graphicnovel

Tom the Dancing Bug Awakens: The Complete Tom the Dancing Bug 2012–2015 By Ruben Bolling It's amazing how many of these cartoons are still relevant to our current political situation. Future historians need to study cartoon collections to understand what really happened. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #political #cartoons

The Life of Captain Marvel By Margaret Stohl See photos for complete credits. Collects issues #1–5 of the 2019 series. Carol Danvers goes home and learns some surprising things about her mother. Family & interpersonal relationships plus a scary alien assassin. Fun. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #captainmarvel #comicbook

Analog, June 22, 1981 Found an old issue I hadn't read. The cover article may have been a bit overoptimistic. The fiction, as always, was excellent, as were the illustrations. (See photos for contents.) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #analog #sciencefiction #sciencefact #magazine #booksky #periodical #1980s

The Realist: Cartoons A massive collection of the best cartoons from the legendary "underground" satirical publication, featuring work from many prominent artists, with an introduction by editor Paul Krassner. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #realist #humor #cartoons #undeground #booksky #satire

“You’re not supposed to use your phone while driving.” “Got it. Let’s install large tablet touchscreens in almost every single new car.”

Paid and Loving Eyes By Jonathon Gash One of the Lovejoy series, which I would label as Eccentric British Criminal Antiheroes. Sometimes hard to follow, as I don't speak Lovejoy's particular English dialect, but still very entertaining and far from mundane. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #lovejoy #crimefiction #booksky

Zatanna & the Ripper, Vol.1 W: Sarah Dealy A: Syro (See photos for full credits.) A nifty time travel Zatanna tale. Note that despite John Constantine appearing on the cover, he only has a cameo in this volume. Also, story is not concluded in this volume. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ #comicbook #zatanna #booksky

A Star Called the Sun W/A: Simon Roy A collection of short science fiction stories set on alien planets in a far future where interstellar travel & communication has broken down, leaving colonists with degrading technology. Roy creates very alien aliens. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #sciencefiction #comicbooks #booksky

The War W: Garth Ennis A: Becky Cloonan How Ennis timed the release of this just as a nutcase started threatening to nuke Iran, I do not know. But it couldn't be more timely. Ennis is a master at conveying the emotions of people under stress. This is not a cheery read, but it is masterful. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Leviathan Wakes By James S.A. Corey (Daniel Abraham & Ty Franck) Finally got around to reading the first book in The Expanse series. So excellent. Felt like I was back in the 1970s reading some classic SF. Highest recommendation. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #theexpanse #sciencefiction #booksky

Brink, Books 3, 4, 5, & 6 W: Dan Abnett A: I.N.J. Culbard Finally caught up with the rest of this excellent scifi series about life, murders, plots, cults, mysticism, a detective, a journalist, and politics on giant space habitats after Earth has become uninhabitable. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #sciencefiction #comics

The Serpent in the Garden: Ed Grey and the Last Battle for England W: Mike Mignola A: Ben Stenbeck This ties up the story of Edward Grey, guardian of England, from the Hellboy mythos, as he is called upon to fight one last time in the future new world. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #hellboy #edwardgrey #booksky #mignola

Amazonia, Books 2 & 4 W: Leo & Rodolphe A: Marchal (I already read books 1 & 3; don't ask me how that happened.) A British agent, Germans hunting gold hidden in a lost Nazi submarine, unfriendly natives, and an alien with strange powers, all in this period thriller. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #graphicnovel #booksky

Crime Classics Es: Rex Burns; Mary Rose Sullivan This anthology of classic mystery stories includes a lengthy introduction on the history of the mystery story and has stories by some of the most popular authors in the genre, with short bios. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #mystery #mysteries #shortstories #booksky

Conan the Barbarian, Vol. 6: A Nest of Serpents W: Jim Zub A: Fernando Dagnino Nothing new in terms of plot for a Conan story, but entertainingly told and nicely illustrated. This tale tells of an encounter with the arch villains sect of Set. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ #conan #barbarian #comicbook #booksky

Doc Savage #6: "The Polar Treasure" & "Pirate of the Pacific" By Lester Dent (writing as Kenneth Robeson) Two novels originally published in 1933, reprinted in the original pulp format, with the original interior illustrations by Paul Orban. Highly improbable escapism.* ⭐⭐⭐ #docsavage #booksky

On Stranger Tides By Tim Powers The primary inspiration for the Pirates of the Caribbean movie of the same name. Pirates, voodoo, zombies, magic, the Fountain of Youth, and feats of derring do. It'll shiver yer timbers, matey. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #fantasy #pirates #zombies #voodoo #booksky #magic #timpowers

Ant-man and the Wasp Prelude See photos for credits. A trade paperback collection with a 2-issue prelude to the movie, plus a 2-issue story from the classic series, a nicely illustrated origin story, and the first issue of the current "The Astonishing Ant-man" series. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ #comicbooks #booksky

The Rider By Tim Krabbé A short autobiographical piece about a bicycle race, told from the viewpoint of the racer. A deserved classic, and a book that anyone who has competed in a bike race can identify with. And if you haven't, this will give you an idea what it's like. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #bicycling #racing

I went through a box of comix at an estate liquidation store last week and found these little treasures, all in excellent condition. Fun reads! See the alt text for descriptions/credits.

Dead of Night By Randy Wayne White A Doc Ford novel, the first I've read, and wow has he created a fun, idiosyncratic character in his marine biologist covert assassin. He goes up against an evil millionaire and a sociopathic pair of Russian thugs. Shades of Travis McGee. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #docford #booksky

Cable by Gerry Duggan W: ^ A: Phil Noto I don't follow this character, but I'll buy any book with art by Noto. Duggan's writing in this is clear enough that I had no trouble understanding motives, characters, and plot. Noto's art, as always, is a delight. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #comicbook #cable #booksky #philnoto

Send Help! A Collection of Marooned Cartoons The editors have included a history of cartoons with the marooned theme, humorous bits on actual marooned persons, & a funny activities section, in addition to the cartoons. All kinds of laughs abound. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #cartoons #collection #humor #booksky

Prince of the City By Robert Daly A detective on the take in NYC develops a conscience and goes undercover to catch corrupt cops and lawyers in this true story. Much more complex a story than in the film. Suspenseful and morally complicated. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #nonfiction #corruption #NYPD #booksky

House of Whispers, Vol. 1: The Power Divided (See photos for full credits.) A messy story about the gods of voodoo becoming embroiled in events in the Land of Dream. It felt like unnecessary elements kept getting added to pad out the story. The art was nice, tho'. ⭐⭐⭐ #comicbook #sandman #booksky

Gentlemen of the Road By Michael Chabon Two medieval mercenaries/grifters wander through adventures. The author's description is "News with swords." The book is strongly reminiscent of Fritz Lieber's Fafhrd & the Gray Mouser, minus the sorcery. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ #historicalfiction #michaelchabon #booksky