the brains of rats Archives - Tachyon Publications

June 28, 2023

The incredible Michael Blumlein was born 75 years ago

Rick Klaw birthday, blog all i ever dreamed, birthday, longer, michael blumlein, the brains of rats, the roberts

Photo by Francesca Myman (*Locus Magazine*)

Formerly a practicing M.D and faculty member at the University of California in San Francisco, the insightful and witty Michael Blumlein’s modest, yet impactful output included The Movement Of Mountains (1987), The Healer (2005), THE ROBERTS (2011), and Longer (2019). His novel X,Y (1993) was the basis for the 2004 movie of the same name.

Many of his short stories and essays have been collected in the Readercon Award winner and World Fantasy Award nominated The Brains of Rats (1990), What the Doctor Ordered (2013), All I Ever Dreamed (2018), and Thoreau’s Microscope (2018). Blumlein also wrote the screenplay for the acclaimed short film Decodings (1988).

June 28, 2022

The incredible Michael Blumlein was born 74 years ago

Rick Klaw birthday all i ever dreamed, birthday, longer, michael blumlein, the brains of rats, the roberts

October 24, 2017

Tachyon tidbits featuring Ann & Jeff VanderMeer, Michael Moorcock, Claude Lalumière, Joe R. Lansdale, and Richard Lupoff

Alec Checkerfield Uncategorized Ann Monn, ann vandermeer, book riot, claremont tales, Claude Lalumière, corey redekop, elric: stealer of souls, high cotton, jeff vandermeer, Joe R. Lansdale, michael blumlein, michael moorcock, mya nunnally, Richard Lupoff, the brains of rats, the new weird, vernieda vergara

The latest reviews and mentions of Tachyon titles and authors from around the web.

Ann & Jeff VanderMeer, Michael Moorcock, Claude Lalumière (photo: Alexandra Renwick), Joe R. Lansdale (Karen Lansdale), and Richard Lupoff

Mya Nunnally at BOOK RIOT offers A Beginner’s Guide
to the New Weird Genre.

After growing tired of the same archetypes, overdone plots, and types of characters, I found the antidote. New Weird exists to overturn cliches and twist the traditional. Robin Anne Reid once described it as fictions that “subvert cliches of the fantastic in order to put them to discomfiting, rather than consoling ends.”

THE NEW WEIRD ANTHOLOGY BY JEFF AND ANN VANDERMEER

This one is pretty self-explanatory. The Vandermeers offers many short stories that embody what they believe “The New Weird” to be. With amazing entries from M. John Harrison, K. K. Bishop, and Jay Lake, this is definitely a solid, encompassing introduction to the genre.

Also at BOOK RIOT, Vernieda Vergara recommends 14 Dark Fantasy Books to Read and Explore On Long, Cold Nights including Micheal Moorcock’s ELRIC: THE STEALER OF SOULS.

Quibbling aside, there are a few traits common to dark fantasy stories. They may have a gloomy and moody tone. They may portray humans grappling with supernatural forces. And, they may feature an anti-hero as the main character; in other words, the villains of traditional fantasies may be protagonists in dark fantasy books. Like moral ambiguity in your characters? Dark fantasy is the subgenre for you.

Given the loose definition of dark fantasy, I included a variety of novels on this list. There should be something for everyone. And while there are a few well-known classics of the subgenre listed here, I tried to veer away from the well-beaten path.

art: John Picacio

Moorcock’s drug-dependent albino sorcerer Elric of Melnibone has become one of the most recognizable anti-heroes in fantasy. The last emperor of a declining empire, Elric grapples with external threats, family members who want his throne, and a kind of existential malaise. And that’s not even touching the fact that his soul-stealing sword Stormbringer will inevitably bring doom to all he holds dear.

On Corey Redekop’s eponymous site, guest lister Claude Lalumière offers his Top 10 13 Creepy
Story Collections.

1. The Brains of Rats, by Michael Blumlein

2. Tales of Terror and Mystery, by Arthur Conan Doyle
3. Little Tales of Misogyny, by Patricia Highsmith
4. The Melancholy of Anatomy, by Shelley Jackson
5. The Songbirds of Pain, by Garry Kilworth
6. High Cotton: Selected Stories, by Joe Lansdale

7. Tamastara, or the Indian Nights, by Tanith Lee
8. The Collection, by Bentley Little
9. Claremont Tales, by Richard Lupoff

10. This Strange Way of Dying: Stories of Magic, Desire & the Fantastic, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
11. Famous Monsters, by Kim Newman
12. The Ends of the Earth, by Lucius Shepard
13. The Cleft and Other Odd Tales, by Gahan Wilson

For more info about THE NEW WEIRD, visit the Tachyon page.

Cover by Ann Monn