Microreview [book]: Six Wakes, by Mur Lafferty

The elevator pitch: A clone murder mystery in space.

The heart of Six Wakes is a murder mystery. With that in mind, I don't want to give too much away because part of the fun in a mystery is seeing if you can solve it before someone else gives you the answers.

Here are the basic facts: There is a single ship headed into deep space on a mission to colonize a new planet. Travel time is such that the six-man crew must be cloned throughout the journey to extend their lifetime. Typically when a clone wakes, it is with all of the previous clone's memories. However, all six crew members wake up, at the same time, missing decades from their memories and surrounded by their floating murdered clones. One of them is the murderer.

Do you have goosebumps yet? I am giddy just thinking about what Mur Lafferty accomplishes with this book.

You see, I grew up watching Law & Order, Murder She Wrote, Perry Mason, the A-Team, etc. and Lafferty has managed to seamlessly join genre and mystery elements into this single volume thriller.

Lafferty sprinkles clues for both the crew and the reader. Because the crew is missing decades worth of memories, they know virtually nothing about each other so the reader experiences the same suspicions as the crew as we all learn backstories and new information is discovered. 

I kept thinking I'd figured it out and then BAM! Lafferty would reveal something new, and with new connections made I'd have to rethink my big Scooby-Doo GOTCHA moment.

I stayed up into the wee hours reading because I just had to know. More than just who the murderer was, I needed to know who each of the characters were and how they'd ended up where they did. Lafferty made me care about them and want to follow them. It is a page-turner of the best kind.

You aren't flying through, skimming passages just to get to the end. You are flying through, soaking up every line wanting more. More of the characters and their world. And when the end final does come there is the satisfaction of finally knowing the 'who dunnit' but also a sadness that you're saying good-bye to this crew you've spent all this time getting to know.

Hands down this will probably be one of my favorite books of 2017. It is a suspense-thriller-scifi-mystery adventure. One might ask, "But Shana, how can a single book possibly be all those things and do them well?" And I would firmly answer you, "Listen up, Mur Lafferty knows how to write, so you better sit back and enjoy the ride." (Side note, in person my answer would involve swearing for emphasis but I am keeping this family friendly.)

If you're looking for a fresh take on clones, scifi/mystery blends, or a fantastic stay-up-all-night-reading experience, you want to pick up Six Wakes.





The Math:
Baseline Assessment: 9/10 Bonuses: +1 Deftly combining scifi/mystery/suspense/thriller
Penalties:  -1 No additional books in this world have been announced (Orbit, if you're reading this, I formally request more please.)
Nerd Coefficient: 9/10 "a fantastic stay-up-all-night-reading experience"
  ***

POSTED BY: Shana DuBois--extreme bibliophile and seeker of raindrops.
Reference: Lafferty, Mur. Six Wakes [Orbit, 2017]
Our scoring system explained.

New Books Spotlight

Welcome to another edition of the New Books Spotlight, where each month or so we curate a selection of 6 forthcoming books we find notable, interesting, and intriguing. It gives us the opportunity to shine a brief spotlight on some stuff we're itching to get our hands on.

What are you looking forward to? Anything you want to argue with us about? Is there something we should consider spotlighting in the future? Let us know in the comments!

Beaulieu, Bradley P. With Blood Upon the Sand [DAW, 2017]

Publisher's Description:

With Blood Upon the Sand is the second book in the Song of Shattered Sands epic fantasy trilogy.

Çeda, now a Blade Maiden in service to the kings of Sharakhai, trains as one of their elite warriors, gleaning secrets even as they send her on covert missions to further their rule. She knows the dark history of the asirim—that hundreds of years ago they were enslaved to the kings against their will—but when she bonds with them as a Maiden, chaining them to her, she feels their pain as if her own. They hunger for release, they demand it, but with the power of the gods compelling them, they find their chains unbreakable.

Çeda could become the champion they’ve been waiting for, but the need to tread carefully has never been greater. After their recent defeat at the hands of the rebel Moonless Host, the kings are hungry for blood, scouring the city in their ruthless quest for revenge. Çeda’s friend Emre and his new allies in the Moonless Host hope to take advantage of the unrest in Sharakhai, despite the danger of opposing the kings and their god-given powers, and the Maidens and their deadly ebon blades.

When Çeda and Emre are drawn into a plot of the blood mage Hamzakiir, they learn a devastating secret that may very well shatter the power of the hated kings. But it may all be undone if Çeda cannot learn to navigate the shifting tides of power in Sharakhai and control the growing anger of the asirim that threatens to overwhelm her…

Why We Want It: Twelve Kings of Sharakhai was a very well received epic fantasy and we can't wait to see what Beaulieu does next. It looks fantastic.

Chambers, Becky. A Closed and Common Orbit [Harper Voyager, 2017]

Publisher's Description:

Embark on an exciting, adventurous, and dangerous journey through the galaxy with the motley crew of the spaceship Wayfarer in this fun and heart-warming space opera—the sequel to the acclaimed The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet.

Lovelace was once merely a ship’s artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in a new body, following a total system shut-down and reboot, she has no memory of what came before. As Lovelace learns to negotiate the universe and discover who she is, she makes friends with Pepper, an excitable engineer, who’s determined to help her learn and grow.

Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that no matter how vast space is, two people can fill it together.

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet introduced readers to the incredible world of Rosemary Harper, a young woman with a restless soul and secrets to keep. When she joined the crew of the Wayfarer, an intergalactic ship, she got more than she bargained for—and learned to live with, and love, her rag-tag collection of crewmates.

A Closed and Common Orbit is the stand-alone sequel to that beloved debut novel, and is perfect for fans of Firefly, Joss Whedon, Mass Effect, and Star Wars. 

Why We Want It: A Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet was a delightful novel and we can't wait to see what else Chambers has in store for us. More, please!

Donnelly, Lara Elena. Amberlough [Tor, 2017]

Publisher's Description:

Welcome to Amberlough City, the illustrious but corrupt cosmopolitan beacon of Gedda. The radical One State Party—nicknamed the Ospies—is gaining popular support to unite Gedda’s four municipal governments under an ironclad, socially-conservative vision.

Not everyone agrees with the Ospies’ philosophy, including master spy Cyril DePaul and his lover Aristide Makricosta, smuggler and emcee at the popular Bumble Bee Cabaret. When Cyril’s cover is blown on a mission, however, he must become a turncoat in exchange for his life. Returning to Amberlough under the Ospies’ watchful eye, Cyril enters a complex game of deception. One of his concerns is safeguarding Aristide, who refuses to let anyone—the crooked city police or the homophobic Ospies—dictate his life.

Enter streetwise Cordelia Lehane, top dancer at the Bee and Aristide’s runner, who could be the key to Cyril’s plans—if she can be trusted. As the twinkling lights of nightclub marquees yield to the rising flames of a fascist revolution, these three will struggle to survive using whatever means—and people—necessary. Including each other.

Why We Want It: Any novel with Victo Ngai's cover is something I'd want to read. This is art I'd love to have on my wall and while we don't read books because of the cover art, but this art is selling me. So is the idea of John LeCarre meets Cabaret with fantasy.

Robinson, Kim Stanley. New York 2140 [Orbit, 2017]

Publisher's Description:

A new vision of the future from Kim Stanley Robinson, the New York Times bestselling author of science fiction masterworks such as the Mars trilogy, 2312, and Aurora.

The waters rose, submerging New York City.

But the residents adapted and it remained the bustling, vibrant metropolis it had always been. Though changed forever.

Every street became a canal. Every skyscraper an island.

Through the eyes of the varied inhabitants of one building Kim Stanley Robinson shows us how one of our great cities will change with the rising tides. And how we too will change. 

Why We Want It: One of my favorite science fiction novels of the last ten years is Stephen Baxter's Flood (see review) and New York 2140 appears to scratch some of that same itch of global catasatrophe and global flooding, which is my not at all guilty reading pleasure. If Kim Stanley Robsinson's novel can hit any of what I so loved in Baxter's novel, I expect this could be one of my favorite novels of the year.

Schwab, V.E. A Conjuring of Light [Tor, 2017]

Publisher's Description:

Londons fall and kingdoms rise while darkness sweeps the Maresh Empire—and the fraught balance of magic blossoms into dangerous territory while heroes and foes struggle alike. The direct sequel to A Gathering of Shadows, and the final book in the Shades of Magic epic fantasy series, A Conjuring of Light sees Schwab reach a thrilling culmination concerning the fate of beloved protagonists—and old enemies. 

Why We Want It: We loved A Darker Shade of Magic (see review) and while we don't have a review to link to for A Gathering of Shadows, let's just say that we're super exited for A Conjuring of Light.

Wallace, Matt. Idle Ingredients [Tor.com Publishing, 2017]

Publisher's Description:

Catering for a charismatic motivational speaker, the staff of the Sin du Jour catering agency find themselves incapacitated by a force from within their ranks. A smile and a promise is all it took.

And for some reason, only the men are affected. It’s going to take cunning, guile and a significant amount of violence to resolve.

Another day of cupcakes and evil with your favorite demonic caterers. 

Why We Want It: Faithful readers of this blog know how much I love Matt Wallace's Sin du Jour novella series and readers who paid attention to yesterday's review also know how much I loved Idle Ingredients. It's friggin fantastic, y'all.


POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Writer / Editor at Adventures in Reading since 2004. Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2015, editor since 2016. Minnesotan.  

Microreview [book]: Idle Ingredients, by Matt Wallace

Matt Wallace serves up another outrageously delicious helping of Sin du Jour.

Aficionados of Matt Wallace’s Sin du Jour novellas have come to expect absolutely wild creativity and a balls and ovaries to the wall style of writing. Whether we’re talking about the secret ingredient in Chicken Nuggies to a human / goblin wedding devolving into a weird orgy to the use of the Easter Bunny and Cupid as literal assassins from hell, Matt Wallace continues to raise the bar of the insanity of Sin du Jour.

If the beginning of Idle Ingredients feels like Matt Wallace is taking a moment to breathe, what I mean is that Pride’s Spell ended with such a cataclysmic battle featuring the intercession of an actual angel that the characters (and perhaps the reader) need a moment to recover and reset. Wallace provides that moment, but from the start we know something is off.

Lena left Sin du Jour and has been out of contact for a month, but it isn’t long before she is pulled back because no matter how much more time she needs, the fallout from Pride's Spell means that leaving just isn't an option. Also, she's pretty much the lead player in the ensemble cast so we can't go too far away without her.

The team at Sin du Jour is preparing for another catering event (being a catering company and all), this time for a political rally, and it's all hands on deck - except that all of the men are pretty much out of commission and it's up to the women to figure out why and save the day.

If I said that Matt Wallace takes a moment to breathe, I do not mean to imply that Idle Ingredients is anything less than fully awesome or that Wallace doesn't come back swinging.  There are still gonzo moments, most notably the image of Moon and an off-the-clock Cupid playing Gears of War in Moon’s apartment – which may not sound quite so crazy, but if you remember Cupid's appearance in Pride’s Spell, it’s a fairly remarkable moment that will likely leave you shaking your head.

I'll be upfront that I'm a bit of mark for Matt Wallace's Sin du Jour series, but Idle Ingredients continues to live up to Wallace's implied promise to continue to tell a kick ass story every time out. Matt Wallace and Sin du Jour are the real deal and if you're not reading these novellas for some reason, you're really missing out.  As I mentioned in my Nanoreview of Pride's Spell: It's Matt Wallace, he's brutal and just fucking brilliant.


The Math

Baseline Assessment: 9/10

Bonuses: +1 for the aforementioned scene of Moon and Cupid

Penalties: -1 because more than the first three volumes, Idle Ingredients very much depends on knowing what has previously gone down and having a connection to the characters.

Nerd Coefficient: 9/10 "Very High Quality / Standout in its Category". See more about our scoring system here.


Reference: Wallace, Matt. Idle Ingredients [Tor.com Publishing, 2017]

POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Writer / Editor at Adventures in Reading since 2004. Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2015, editor since 2016. Minnesotan.  

2017 Nerds of a Feather Hugo Award Longlist, Part 4: Institutional Categories

Welcome to the fourth and final installment of the Nerds of a Feather, Flock Together 2017 Hugo Awards Longlist! (Parts 1, 2 and 3.)

This time we are looking at what are, for lack of a better term, the "nonfiction and institutional categories": Best Related Work, Best Semiprozine, Best Fanzine and Best Fancast. Now, those who follow this blog know how cranky The G can get on the subject of certain categories and their bizarre eligibility guidelines--and we've got two of them today (Best Semiprozine and Best Fancast). Nevertheless, I will do my best to stay calm and stick to the rules, frustrating as they can be. I reserve the right, will, however, get a little snarky and passive-aggressive in the process.    
There are, however, some sticky issues that made putting this list together a bit difficult. Knowing what does or does not constitute a "fanzine" in the era of blogs, for example--and given that we may already be on the downward slide of that era, it only promises to get more difficult as time passes. Nevertheless, we have tried to create clear and consistent guidelines for inclusion in this category. Thus, to qualify, a fanzine: (1) must be a fan venture (i.e. must not generate a significant amount of money, or pay professional rates for work); (2) must publish a lot of content in a given year; and (3) must publish "award worthy" content. We did not discount single-author blogs from consideration, but criterion #2 makes it difficult for most single-author blogs to  merit consideration. Consequently, while a couple made it, most did not--including some very good ones.  

I also feel obliged to mention that 'nerds of a feather, flock together' is eligible in this category, but whether we belong on anyone's list (short, long, good or bad) is another story, and part of a conversation we aren't inclined to join. We'd much rather talk about all the other sites we like to read (and which meet the criteria outlined above). 

The category Best Fancast also presented issues, namely, on the question of whether podcasts hosted by profit-making websites were still fancasts. The issue here comes down to whether the podcasts qualify (given token-level payment for the podcasts themselves) or do not (given that the parent companies can employ at least some people full-time). There were internal disagreements on this question, but in the end we decided to include the podcasts in question, but make note that they may not meet the eligibility requirements. I personally encourage you to vote them in that category--both because they belong there and, consequently, because a rule that keeps them out is dumb. But that's just me. It is also worth noting that last year 8-4 Play was a finalist for Fancast, and 8-4 Play is hosted by 8-4, a professional video game localization company. If 8-4 Play is eligible, and passed the vetting process of the Hugo committee, than so should Rocket Talk and Midnight in Karachi. But that's just our opinion.

Before moving on to the recommendations, a gentle reminder that this list is not and does not intend to be a comprehensive survey of genre or fandom. Rather, these are recommendations we suggest you consider alongside whatever other candidates you have in mind.  - G & Joe

Related Work
Carrington, Andre. Speculative Blackness [University of Minnesota Press, 2016]

Dixon, Kyle and Michael Stein. Stranger Things Original Soundtrack [Lakeshore Records, 2016]

Fireside Fiction Special Report (Brian J. White, Tobias Buckell, Justina Ireland, Mikki Kendall, Nisi Shawl, Troy Wiggins, Cecily Kane and N.K. Jemisin) [Medium, 2016]

Hurley, Kameron. The Geek Feminist Revolution [Tor, 2016]


Semiprozine
Beneath Ceaseless Skies
The Book Smugglers
GigaNotoSaurus
Pornokitsch
Strange Horizons
Uncanny


Fanzine
Chaos Horizon (Brandon Kempner, ed.) 
Lady Business  (Clare, Ira, Jodie, KJ, Renay, Susan, eds.)
Rocket Stack Rank (Greg Hullender, Eric Wong, eds.)
SF Mistressworks (Ian Sales, ed.)
SFFWorld (Dag Rambruat, Rob Bedford, Mark Yon, and Nila White, eds.)


Fancast
Cabbages and Kings (Jonah Sutton-Morse)
Fangirl Happy Hour (Ana Grilo and Renay Williams)
Midnight in Karachi (Mahvesh Murad)
Rocket Talk (Justin Landon)
Skiffy and Fanty  (Rachael Acks, David Annandale, Shaun Duke, Julia Rios, Mike Underwood, Paul Weimer, Jennifer Zink

POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Writer / Editor at Adventures in Reading since 2004. Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2015, editor since 2016. Minnesotan.

Thursday Morning Superhero

Image Comics is turning 25 this year and to celebrate Robert Kirkman is making his three primary comics only 25 cents each during the month of February.  New issues of The Walking Dead, Invincible (which I am about 60 issues into and it is amazing!), and Outcast can be yours for only one quarter!  Each issue marks the beginning of a new arc and the sale will hopefully bring some new readers to one of the best publishers in this industry.  When it was founded on the principle of creator owned content it was ground breaking and continues to be one of the most creator friendly publishers, if not the most creator friendly, out there.  The trust Image has in the leading artists and authors in this industry is probably the biggest reason for its success and for the truly ground breaking titles it produces.

Pick of the Week:
Nailbiter #29 - Joshua Williamson finally revealed the secrets of Buckaroo, Oregon and I couldn't be happier.  We are in the second-to-last issue in this series and we finally understand why there is a temple under water in a lake and an underground tunnel system throughout the town.  We learned this as the entire town of Buckaroo burns to the ground in a final attempt to hide its dark history from the world.  As we approached the end of the series I was worried that there would be some supernatural reason for the serial killers that would leave a sour taste in my mouth, but I am pleased to report that the secret (I'm not going to tell you!) is worth the wait and extremely satisfying.  Not only that but the set up for the series finale has me biting my own finger nails!  Congratulations to Joshua Williamson and Mike Henderson for delivering such a horrifying series that truly had me on the edge of my seat from the beginning.  I look forward to reading the epic conclusion to this series and re-reading it on an annual basis.

The Rest:
Darth Maul #1 - You had me at Darth Maul and Cullen Bunn.  I was beyond excited to learn that Bunn was writing a solo Darth Maul series.  Darth Maul is one of those characters that captivated audiences without us ever learning anything about him.  We have learned more through his appearances on Clone Wars and Rebels, but still know little about his time prior to the events in Episode One.  In this first issue we learn about the blood lust that Maul has and how it may be what ultimately leads to his downfall.  Darth Sidious needs Maul to be patient, but it doesn't appear that he will be able to keep him occupied as he waits for things to line up politically.  Really impressed with the first issue and looking forward to where this one is headed.

The Walking Dead #163 - The best 25 cents I have spent in some time, this issue marks a drastic turn in the series and appears to be setting up a chaotic arc that will likely leave a number of dead bodies in its wake.  The herd that the Whisperers led to Rick's city are approaching as rapidly as zombies can manage and have everyone in the town in a total panic.  To let you know how crazy things are, Rick and Negan fight side-by-side and appear to be patching things up.  I am never going to count Negan out from mixing things up, but he has really played the ally card effectively and will likely throw a major wrench into the gears soon.  One of the most zombie packed issues in a long time and it can be yours for only a quarter!

Paper Girls #11 - One of the best series of 2016 continues to shine in 2017 as the girls find themselves trapped in 11,706 BCE.  The girls have a minor incident with some locals before a mysterious time traveler named Dr. Qanta Braunstein makes a landing and will surely mix things up in the next issue.  I have given up trying to predict where this book will take me and am merely happily along for the ride.






Old Man Logan #17 - Wolverine's journey through this time-shifting adventure continues to tread the border of the events in space and the Wastelands.  The two incidents appear to be happening concurrently as he tries to remember what happened to Banner's grandson who he was trying to protect.  Everything seems real, but like a dream at the same time and Logan appears to be walking a fine line between reality and madness.  As he battles these alternative realities, he is confronted with the one who is doing this to him and it should set up another exciting issue from Jeff Lemire.  I really thought this would be a mini-series and am blown away with where Lemire has taken this story.

Batman #16 - In another odd issue that featured a lot of humorous dialogue at a fast food joint, Batman urges his collection of sidekicks to take a vacation while he deals with Bane.  Not wishing any harm to come to them, it is clear that Batman's past and the pain and suffering that have happened to those around him still have a big impact on how he cares for those who surround him.  While the issue seemed a bit odd overall, Tom King delivers a stunning panel to keep readers coming back for the next issue and the arrival of Bane.  While things look grim, I am not buying what Bruce Wayne finds in the Bat Cave and will still hope for this series to improve.



POSTED BY MIKE N. aka Victor Domashev -- comic guy, proudly raising nerdy kids, and Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2012. 

2017 Nerds of a Feather Hugo Award Longlist, Part 3: Individual Categories

Welcome to the third part of our presentation of the Nerds of a Feather 2017 Hugo Award Longlist (see parts 1 & 2). Today we take a look at the categories recognizing individuals for their body of work during 2016:  Editor (Short and Long Form), Professional Artist, Fan Artist, Fan Writer, and the John W Campbell Award for Best New Writer

As before, we here at 'nerds of a feather, flock together' are presenting a collective longlist of potential Hugo nominees that we think are worthy of your consideration. These selections represent the spectrum of tastes, tendencies, and predilections found among our group of 13 writers.

As a reminder, this list should not at all be considered comprehensive. There are some truly outstanding editors, writers, and artists who will not make our longlist because they did not produce enough work for non-paying / non-professional venues, did not write enough genre focused work, or for the very simple reason that we are not just familiar with what work they did produce during 2015. We encourage you to think of this as a list of candidates to consider alongside works which you are already familiar, nothing more and nothing less. 

In an effort at brevity (you may scoff) and perhaps at propriety, for these categories we have decided to simply list the individuals we are collectively recommending as part of the longlist, rather than detailing why each person listed below is awesome.

Finally, in the interests of being transparent, while it may worth noting that we, the writers of Nerds of a Feather are individually eligible for the Fan Writer category; because it is a conflict of interest, it would not appropriate to include any of us on our formal longlist. However, we would like to make a note of the work our own Charles Payseur has done both here as well at Quick Sip Reviews. Because of that conflict of interest, we are not including him on our list, but we do encourage anyone so inclined to take a look at his work and decide for themselves. Charles is also eligible for the Campbell Award. If you are so inclined, a sample of his work is available here.


Editor: Short Form

John Joseph Adams (Lightspeed, Nightmare, What the #@&% Is That?)
Scott H. Andrews (Beneath Ceaseless Skies)
Neil Clarke (Clarkesworld)
Lee Harris (Tor.com / Tor.com Publishing)
Rashida J. Smith (GigaNotoSaurus)
Jonathan Strahan (Bridging Infinity, Drowned Worlds, Tor.com,  etc)
Lynne M. Thomas & Michael Damien Thomas (Uncanny
Ann VanderMeer (The Big Book of Science Fiction)
Wendy Wagner (Lightspeed, Nightmare)


Editor: Long Form
Nobody. But, we recommend that when you put together your final nominating ballot that you also look at who the editors were for your Best Novel selections and consider them for nomination for Editor, Long Form


Professional Artist

Julie Dillon (Imagined Realms)

Likhain (The Towers of the Moon)
Fiona Staples (Saga)
Ashley Witter (Bloodthirsty, Squarriors)

Fan Artist

Likhain (more) (site)

Kristina Tsenova (some)

Fan Writer
Nina Allan
Megan AM
Rob Bedford 
Cora Buhlert 
Rachel Cordasco 
Sarah Gailey
Brandon Kempner
Natalie Luhrs
Bridget McKinney
Maureen Kincaid-Speller
Aidan Moher 
Abigail Nussbaum
Mark Oshiro
Bogi Takács
Adam Whitehead
Renay Williams

[Editor's note: I would have nominated Jonathan McCalmont, as he is--year in, year out--my favorite fan writer. But he has also stated that he does not want to be nominated for any awards. Out of respect, we will not be nominating him, but note that we otherwise would have. -G]

John W Campbell Award for Best New Writer*
*(Not a Hugo, but Totally a Hugo) 

Nin Harris
Jackie Hatton
C.A. Higgins
Cassandra Khaw
S. Qiouyi Lu
Malka Older
Laurie Penny
Kelly Robson
Wole Talabi
K.B. Wagers


POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Writer / Editor at Adventures in Reading since 2004. Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2015, editor since 2016. Minnesotan.

2017 Nerds of a Feather Hugo Award Longlist, Part 2: Visual Work Categories

Welcome to our continuing presentation of the Nerds of a Feather 2017 Hugo Award Longlist (see part 1 here). Today will look at Graphic Story and the two Dramatic Presentation categories. 

As before, we here at 'nerds of a feather, flock together' are presenting a collective longlist of potential Hugo nominees that we think are worthy of your consideration. These selections represent the spectrum of tastes, tendencies, and predilections found among our group of 13 writers.

As a reminder, this list should not at all be considered comprehensive. Some outstanding works will not make our longlist for the simple reason that we have not seen or read it. We encourage you to think of this as a list of candidates to consider alongside works which you are already familiar, nothing more and nothing less.

Graphic Story

Landry Mark, Art by Ashley Witter and Richard Pace. Bloodthirsty: One Nation Under Water [Titan Comics, 2016]

Liu, Marjorie., Art by Sana Takeda. Monstress: Awakening [Image Comics, 2016]

Sanderson, Brandon & Rik Hoshin. White Sand: Volume 1 [Dynamite Comics, 2016]

Vaughan, Brian K., Art by Cliff Chiang. Paper Girls: Volume 1 [Image Comics, 2016]

Vaughan, Brian K., Art by Fiona Staples. Saga: Volume 6 [Image Comics, 2016]

Dramatic Presentation, Long Form

Arrival, directed by Dennis Villeneuve [Paramount Pictures, 2016]

Captain America: Civil War, directed by Joe & Anthony Russo [Marvel Studios, 2016]

Deadpool, directed by Tim Miller [20th Century Fox, 2016]

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, directed by Gareth Edwards [Lucasfilm, 2016]

Sense8: Happy Fucking New Year, directed by Lana Wachowski [Netflix, 2016]

Zootopia, directed by Byron Howard, Rich Moore, Jared Moore [Walt Disney Pictures, 2016]

Dramatic Presentation, Short Form

Ash vs. Evil Dead (Season Two), created by Sam Raimi, Ivan Raimi, Tom Spezialy [Starz, 2016]
Recommended Episodes: "The Morgue" (Ep 2), "Ashy Slashy" (Ep 8)
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (Season One), created by Max Landis (BBC America, 2016)
Recommended Episode: "Two Sane Guys Doing Normal Things" (Ep 8)

Game of Thrones (Season Six), created by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss [HBO, 2016]
Recommended Episodes: "The Door" (Ep 5), "Battle of the Bastards"(Ep 9)

The Expanse (Season One), created by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, [Syfy, 2016]

Recommended Episode: "Leviathan Wakes" (Ep 10)

iZombie (Season Two), created by Rob Thomas [CW, 2016]

Recommended Episodes: "Salivation Army" (Ep 19), "Love & Basketball" (Ep 5)

The Shannara Chronicles (Season One), [MTV, 2016]

Stranger Things (Season One), created by Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer [Netflix, 2016]
Recommended Episodes: "Chapter Four: The Body," "Chapter Six: The Monster"

Westworld (Season One), created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy [HBO, 2016]
Recommended Episodes: "Trompe L'Oeil" (Ep 7) "The Bicameral Mind" (Ep 10)

X-Files (Season Ten), created by Chris Carter [Fox, 2016]
Recommended Episode: "Founders Mutation" (Ep 2)

POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Writer / Editor at Adventures in Reading since 2004. Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2015, editor since 2016. Minnesotan.