The journey of the White Witch to the Beast’s Garden is a fraught and perilous trek through the beginnings of the realm of Faery, starting out at the dawn of humanity, with the first feminist fairy tale, that of the Animal Bride/Groom, in which, according to noted folklorist Terri Windling, “a human man or woman […]

How do librarians choose books for their libraries? If you’ve ever asked that question, pull up a beanbag. You’ve come to the right place. But first, a confession. (This is how all good stories start, right?) I didn’t set out to become a librarian. I was going to be an archaeologist or a writer. Or […]

Welcome back to another week at Speculative Chic! The holidays are officially in gear, with a freshly wrapped Thanksgiving, Black Friday’s recent end, a forthcoming Cyber Monday, and all the major December holidays coming in one right after the other. This time of year can go by so fast, so don’t forget to take some […]

The recent spate of live action remakes of Disney classics has been hit or miss for me, but I genuinely enjoyed 2014’s Maleficent, which reimagined the evil queen from the classic Sleeping Beauty into the true love’s kiss that wakes Aurora from the curse. I fully anticipated loving this second installment in the continuing story, and was […]

They might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but that doesn’t mean that we love them any less. Welcome back to My Favorite Things, the weekly column where we grab someone in speculative circles to gab about the greatest in geek. This week, we sit down with Tim Major, whose had not […]

Mass market paperbacks are interesting creatures, as are some trade paperbacks. 99.99% of all mass markets, if they are slated for return, aren’t actually returned. Not whole, anyway. One of the most horrifying things a bookseller will ever learn to do is strip a book. Stripping a book means that the front cover — and […]

June 20, 2019 Happy summer! This is your Sound Off editor, J.L. Gribble. When I’m not watching movies, I can be found working on my urban fantasy/alternate history series. Join me today in celebrating the cover reveal for Steel Shadows! Read More » August 24, 2018 Happy Friday! J.L. Gribble here. At Speculative Chic, you […]

February 7, 2019 This is, first and foremost, the question that defines my job. As a bookseller, it is my duty to help you find a book (or more than one) that will satisfy you. Whether it’s a specific title or just a general idea of what you need, as long as I can help […]

February 7, 2019 This is, first and foremost, the question that defines my job. As a bookseller, it is my duty to help you find a book (or more than one) that will satisfy you. Whether it’s a specific title or just a general idea of what you need, as long as I can help […]

August 14, 2017 They might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but that doesn’t mean that we love them any less. Welcome back to My Favorite Things, the weekly column where we grab someone in speculative circles to gab about the greatest in geek. This week, we sit down with Maria V. […]

My resolution this year probably made a whole lot of people shake their head in despair.  She’s resolved to do what?  See twelve spec fic movies? I admit it sounds ridiculously easy, but for someone who’s averaged maybe three movies a year for the last oh say, twenty….  You can see that I’ve got some […]

The Book of Etta (2017) Written by: Meg Elison Genre: Post-apocalyptic fiction Pages: 305 (Paperback) Series: The Road to Nowhere Book #2 Publisher: 47North Why I Chose It: The Book of Etta is one of the nominees for the 2018 Philip K. Dick Award, which Speculative Chic is covering. I did not want to read […]

December 26, 2018 The year is nearly finished! You may recall that quite a few of us set ourselves some goals for the year with our 2018 Resolution Project. How did we do? Let’s talk to a few of our contributors and find out! Read More » March 22, 2018 The Book of Etta (2017) […]

Award season is upon us once again! By now, we here at Speculative Chic have come to the conclusion that when major awards are happening within the genre, we want to be informed. We have previously covered the Hugos, the Nebulas, and of course, the Philip K. Dick Award. Not familiar with this one? From […]