Monday, December 1st, 2025 11:43 pm
Tremble at the majesty of an AI designed house.

Read more... )
Monday, December 1st, 2025 07:44 pm
This is the third offer for Shadowrun 5th Edition, containing 15 adventures and sourcebooks. This was previously offered last year, I think they're repeating it so soon so that it's available to anyone who buys this release of the game in last week's offer.

https://bundleofholding.com/presents/2025SR5Missions

  

Last time I said "Shadowrun has never been one of my favourite games, I'm not convinced the genres mesh wonderfully, but it's an OK system with a big user base.... ...The source material in the Missions Megabundle looks useful, but like a lot of this stuff it's only useful if you actually use it - I own a ton of stuff for this system in dead tree format and I've barely used it, so I won't be downloading more." I should probably add that the stuff I have in dead tree format is for earlier editions, but I think the principle is the same - I'm just not a big fan of the concept or setting, and updating the rules doesn't really change that. But if you're a fan and don't already own this stuff it's definitely worth a look.
Monday, December 1st, 2025 10:59 am
2024: Scutigera coleoptrata become established in the UK, a Trident missile suffers performance anxiety during a test and refuses to leave its sub, and Labour sweeps to victory in the General Election, with surprising little effect on the subsequent frequency of cruel and vindictive legislation.


Poll #33896 Clarke Award Finalists 2024
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 17


Which 2024 Clarke Award Finalists Have You Read?

View Answers

In Ascension by Martin MacInnes
0 (0.0%)

Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
0 (0.0%)

Corey Fah Does Social Mobility by Isabel Waidner
1 (5.9%)

Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh
16 (94.1%)

The Mountain in the Sea by Ray Nayler
6 (35.3%)

The Ten Percent Thief by Lavanya Lakshminarayan
1 (5.9%)



Bold for have read, italic for intend to read, underline for never heard of it.

Which 2024 Clarke Award Finalists Have You Read?
In Ascension by Martin MacInnes
Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
Corey Fah Does Social Mobility by Isabel Waidner
Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh
The Mountain in the Sea by Ray Nayler
The Ten Percent Thief by Lavanya Lakshminarayan
Monday, December 1st, 2025 08:59 am


Impress your friends and potential significant others! Join the legions of James Nicoll Reviews supporters! James Nicoll Reviews is the only SF review that promises to be pyroclastic flow-free!

December 2025 Patreon Boost
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Sunday, November 30th, 2025 04:35 pm
I signed up for a 2026 Medicare Advantage (part C) plan today. I had it narrowed it down to two plans, and decided yesterday which one I like better. There are minor differences--in particular, the one I chose has a lower copay for physical therapy--but there don't seem to be significant differences. It also has a slightly better rating, according to the Medicare.gov site, by half a star, but that might not be significant (an average 3.7 rounds to 3.5, and 3.8 rounds to 4).

Now, it should just be a matter of telling various doctors and pharmacies that my insurance has changed as of Jan. 1st, and maybe dealing with a new mail-order pharmacy for the Kesimpta.

They gave me a confirmation number, and if I don't hear from the company in the next few days I will call. (Normal open enrollment ends Dec. 7, but I have a "special election period" that runs through February.)
Sunday, November 30th, 2025 10:29 am


21 works reviewed. 11 by women (52%), 10 by men (48%), 0 by non-binary authors (0%), 0 by authors whose gender is unknown (0%), and 8 by POC (38%).

Book by book, closer to aleph null.

November 2025 in Review
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Sunday, November 30th, 2025 02:42 am
Hello, friends! It's about to be December again, and you know what that means: the fact I am posting this actually before December 1 means [staff profile] karzilla reminded me about the existence of linear time again. Wait, no -- well, yes, but also -- okay, look, let me back up and start again: it's almost December, and that means it's time for our annual December holiday points bonus.

The standard explanation: For the entire month of December, all orders made in the Shop of points and paid time, either for you or as a gift for a friend, will have 10% of your completed cart total sent to you in points when you finish the transaction. For instance, if you buy an order of 12 months of paid time for $35 (350 points), you'll get 35 points when the order is complete, to use on a future purchase.

The fine print and much more behind this cut! )

Thank you, in short, for being the best possible users any social media site could possibly ever hope for. I'm probably in danger of crossing the Sappiness Line if I haven't already, but you all make everything worth it.

On behalf of Mark, Jen, Robby, and our team of awesome volunteers, and to each and every one of you, whether you've been with us on this wild ride since the beginning or just signed up last week, I'm wishing you all a very happy set of end-of-year holidays, whichever ones you celebrate, and hoping for all of you that your 2026 is full of kindness, determination, empathy, and a hell of a lot more luck than we've all had lately. Let's go.
Saturday, November 29th, 2025 08:58 am


Eight books new to me. Five fantasy, one horror, two science fiction, of which two are series and six may not be.

Books Received, November 22 — November 28



Poll #33890 Books Received, November 22 — November 28
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 60


Which of these look interesting?

View Answers

Kill All Wizards by Jedediah Berry (June 2026)
20 (33.3%)

The Franchise by Thomas Elrod (May 2026)
10 (16.7%)

Carry Me to My Grave by Christopher Golden (July 2026)
3 (5.0%)

Obstetrix by Naomi Kritzer (June 2026)
28 (46.7%)

Inkpot Gods by Seanan McGuire (June 2026)
20 (33.3%)

Cursed Ever After by Andy C. Naranjo (June 2026)
7 (11.7%)

For Human Use by Sarah G. Pierce (February 2026)
3 (5.0%)

The War Beyond by Andrea Stewart (November 2025)
10 (16.7%)

Some other option (see comments)
1 (1.7%)

Cats!
43 (71.7%)

Friday, November 28th, 2025 11:38 pm
But this time, I managed to wake her up without help. Go me.
Friday, November 28th, 2025 09:19 am
Well, that was more close brushes with performing CPR than I consider ideal for a commute...

Read more... )
Thursday, November 27th, 2025 09:40 am



A pious monk is dispatched on a mission about which he has serious reservations: steal the bones of St. Nicolas.

Nicked by M. T. Anderson
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Wednesday, November 26th, 2025 09:11 pm
Pringle's book was referenced on Bluesky and since I couldn't read the images, I looked it up on Wikipedia.

The List

Read more... )
Wednesday, November 26th, 2025 10:32 pm
These are two bundles for the Shadowrun RPG, which mixes cyberpunk and magic. One is a repeat of the core material for the game, the other is all new:

SHADOWRUN 5E ESSENTIALS (from Feb 2019)

https://bundleofholding.com/presents/2025SR5Essentials

  


SR5 UNIVERSE MEGA (new)

https://bundleofholding.com/presents/SR5EUniverseMega

  


When the essentials bundle was first on offer I said "Shadowrun has never been one of my favourite games, I'm not convinced the genres mesh wonderfully, but it's an OK system with a big user base. I think that there have been previous offers for earlier releases, but this is the first for 5th edition, which updates things a lot. I think it's a pretty good deal if you want to give the system a try, or are only familiar with the earlier releases." If I'm reading things correctly this re-release adds more material - but if you bought the bundle previously you will get them added to your account without having to buy the bundle again.

The new bundle looks interesting, but I'm frantically trying to get ready for a lot of things happening at the weekend, most notably Dragonmeet on Saturday, and don't have time to look at them right now.

There's going to be another repeat bundle for this system soon, but I'm not allowed to give details.
Wednesday, November 26th, 2025 02:08 pm


The core rules plus essentials for the 2013 Fifth Edition of Shadowrun, the cyberpunk-fantasy tabletop roleplaying game from Catalyst Game Labs.

Bundle of Holding: SR5 Essentials (from 2019)



Eighteen setting sourcebooks for Shadowrun 5th Edition.

Bundle of Holding: SR5 Universe Mega
Wednesday, November 26th, 2025 11:11 am
It was just pointed out to me that SF artist Stephen Fabian died age 95 back in May.
Wednesday, November 26th, 2025 08:53 am


If you can't trust a scantily-clad demon to aid you in your war with heaven, who can you trust?

7thgarden, volume 1 by Mitsu Izumi