Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 166 i SciFi Now

WHILE MUCH OF the internet has been going crazy for baby Yoda, which featured in episode one of The Mandalorian, Stars Wars fans outside of the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Puerto Rico have been looking bitterly on as they wait for Disney+ to reach Europe. The streaming service isn’t due to arrive in the continent until March 2020, but in the meantime we chat to some of the show’s big names, including creator Jon Favreau, writer and director Dave Filoni and actor Pedro Pascal, who stars as the Mandalorian himself, about how it all started. All the way back in 2007, Filoni was working on animated series The Clone Wars with George Lucas at the Skywalker Ranch when he heard that Jon Favreau, who at the time was…

THE RETURNEES VINAY PATEL The British-Indian screenwriter and playwright penned one of Series 11’s most acclaimed episodes, ‘Demons Of The Punjab’. Outside of Doctor Who, his work includes the 2016 BAFTAnominated drama Murder By My Father, the story of an honour killing of a British Asian Muslim girl by her father. ED HIME Hime worked on the fourth and fifth series of C4 teen drama Skins, which earned him a BAFTA nomination for Breakthrough Talent. For Doctor Who, he was responsible for Series 11’s ‘It Takes You Away’. PETE MCTIGHE A showrunner himself, on Aussie drama Wentworth, the British-born McTighe is also a writer and producer on Sky’s A Discovery Of Witches. For Doctor Who, he wrote ‘Kerblam’ in Series 11, as well as doubling up as Content Consultant for…

CURSED RELEASED: 2020 SHOWRUNNER: Frank Miller, Tom Wheeler CAST: Katherine Langford, Devon Terrell, Gustaf Skarsgard BROADCASTER: Netflix IN CURSED, VIEWERS will find out just how teen heroine Nimue became the Lady Of The Lake in this reimagining of Arthurian legend, based on the graphic novel. KAOS RELEASED: 2020 SHOWRUNNER: Charlie Covell CAST: TBA BROADCASTER: Netflix THIS ORIGINAL CONTEMPORARY drama from the writer of C4’s The End Of The F***ing World explores Greek mythology, including gender politics, power and life in the afterworld. MONSTERS AT WORK RELEASED: 2020 SHOWRUNNER: Bobs Gannaway CAST: John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Ben Feldman BROADCASTER: Disney+ DISNEY ISN’T DONE with Monsters Inc just yet. With the city of Monstropolis now fuelled by laughter, Mike and Sully are back for more hijinks. THE DARK TOWER RELEASED: 2020 SHOWRUNNER:…

Release Out now Director John McPhail Cast Ella Hunt, Malcolm Cumming, Sarah Swire, Christopher Leveaux Distributor Second Sight Certificate 15 Format We’ll stop banging on about Anna And The Apocalypse when it’s acknowledged as a modern Christmas classic, dammit. With that being said, we’re delighted that Second Sight snapped it up for a two-disc Blu-ray release that includes the theatrical and extended cuts of the film. While the trims made for the cinema cut make sense, it’s great to be able see the cut material. There’s also a lost opening sequence which was cut due to bad weather, another deleted scene, a gag reel, behind the scenes business, a commentary and a new documentary featuring the cast and crew, all of which show how much fun they had making it…

The second instalment of Hulu’s riff on Stephen King’s most cursed small town is nearing the end of its run in the US and while its airdate on STARZPLAY has yet to be announced, from what we’ve heard it’ll be worth the wait. There’ll be organised crime business courtesy of Tim Robbins’ Pop Merrill, but what we’re really excited about is Lizzy Caplan’s take on a younger Annie Wilkes. Kathy Bates herself has given the performance her seal of approval, Tweeting: “She IS Annie Wilkes. Terrifying and human. Sometimes she makes me feel all oogie!”…

IMAGINE GETTING TO make a documentary about your favourite film: interviewing the cast and crew, flicking through treasured photos as you piece together the full story. That’s what sibling filmmakers Anthony and Claire Bueno have done with their new film, Cleanin’ Up The Town: Remembering Ghostbusters. It’s a labour of love which has been 12 years in the making. The documentary received its European premiere at the BFI IMAX in London on 3 December. The Buenos are well aware of what a vote of confidence this is: “It’s weird, we’ve got a company called Premiere Scene that’s an online news magazine and does all the red carpets, and I think in the ten years plus that we’ve done it, it’s the first time that there’s been a documentary premiere at…

The Star Trek franchise has found a new captain in the form of writer/director Noah Hawley. Hawley made his feature film directing debut with this year’s box office bomb Lucy In The Sky, but he’s most well-known as the TV showrunner behind Legion and Fargo. He’s set to take over from JJ Abrams and Justin Lin to continue the adventures of the Kelvin timeline Enterprise crew, with Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana and co expected to return. Originally the film had been in the hands of director SJ Clarkson (Jessica Jones, The Defenders) and was set to have Chris Hemsworth return as Kirk’s father, but that storyline was jettisoned alongside Clarkson as the budget began to skyrocket. This isn’t to be confused with Quentin Tarantino’s Star Trek project, which…

DON’T… GO IN THAT HOUSE (Ju-On: The Grudge) If someone died in the grip of a powerful rage, that house is stained by a curse that will latch onto anyone who steps inside so... you know, don’t. DON’T… WATCH THAT TAPE (Ringu) If someone tells you that a videotape is cursed and will kill you in seven days if you watch it, then don’t watch that tape. Curiosity killed the cat and it kills journalists, photographers… DON’T… USE THE INTERNET (Pulse) We’re not just trying to get you to support print and physical media here. The internet is full of ghosts trying to get back through to our world. It’s already too late. DON’T… LISTEN TO YOUR VOICEMAIL (One Missed Call) Admittedly, we all know that…

Earth THE UN The governing body of humanity as far as Earth’s interests are concerned. Recently exposed as corrupt thanks to the actions of Errinwright and former Secretary General, Sorrento-Gillis. Generally saved from catastrophe and war crimes by Chrisjen Avasarala, who is now in charge. However, they are not immune from looking the other way when it comes to big business… Mars THE MCR Mars is currently in an uneasy peace with Earth following the conclusion of the brief war after the Ganymede incident. Mars has a smaller population than Earth but is a fearsome adversary, with a powerful military that has been preparing for war since the Cold War began. However, they’re not without moral grey areas, as Sergeant Bobbie Draper discovers… The Belt THE OUTER PLANETARY ALLIANCE Seen…

ISLAND OF LOST SOULS (1932) The master of apocalyptic doom, HG Wells, gets an adaptation worthy of his material in Erle C Kenton’s upsetting pre-code horror. A man is shipwrecked on an island where an evil scientist with a god complex has created slaves out of his animal-hybrid experiments. LIFEBOAT (1944) Alfred Hitchcock’s claustrophobic thriller tugs on issues of trust and was released during World War II. Set in one location and written by John Steinbeck, it deals with the horrors of humanity, placing a Nazi officer on board a boat with a group of American survivors. THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON (1954) A scientific expedition decides to head up the Amazon river and in doing so upsets the natural environment. Jack Arnold’s brilliant, classic sci-fi asks the pertinent…

Release 17 January Director Makoto Shinkai Cast Kotaro Daigo, Nana Mori, Shun Oguri, Tsubasa Honda Distributor Anime Ltd/National Amusements Certificate 12A Having created an international sensation with the body-swapping teen romance Your Name, writer-director Makoto Shinkai continues to pursue his interest in ecological fantasy love stories with this big-hearted and visually dazzling anime. The story begins with high schooler Hadako arriving in Tokyo having run away from home. The big city is bustling, unwelcoming and intimidating, and is also experiencing the worst period of summer rainfall in recorded history. Having reached the end of his tether, Hadako finally checks in with Keisuke, the amiably surly journalist who saved him from being washed away on the ferry and makes a life for himself as part of his team. When he forms…

Release 6 January Directors Travis Cluff, Cliff Lofing Cast Ema Horvath, Chris Milligan, Brittany Falardeau, Pfeifer Brown Distributor Lionsgate Home Entertainment Certificate 15 Format It’s not clear whether anyone actually wanted a sequel to 2015’s woeful found-footage horror The Gallows, but Blumhouse rolled one into production immediately after its box-office success and it’s been sitting on the shelf ever since. To returning writer-directors Cluff and Lofing’s credit, there are several sensible changes from the get-go. The found-footage is gone, the fantastically unlikeable characters replaced by sweet-natured theatre nerd Auna Rue (Horvath), and there’s promise to the new viral-video set-up of the ‘Charlie Challenge’. But as Auna unleashes the curse, gaining many new followers and nailing her drama class monologues, the dire script proves too big a stumbling block. The jump…

Release 13 January Director Andy Muschietti Cast Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Bill Hader, Bill Skarsgård Distributor Warner Bros Certificate 15 Format 27 film years have passed since Pennywise last haunted the sewers of Derry in Andy Muschietti’s It. Now, the gang is back together to try and kill the effing clown all over again in a film that’s even darker, more adventurous and more entertaining than the first. Though the film clocks in at almost three hours, It Chapter Two doesn’t feel nearly as long as that. The return to Derry takes a lot of setting up — we need to meet the grown up Losers’ Club in their adult lives — however, Gary Dauberman’s fun and frightening script makes it feel like you’re catching up with a bunch of…

Release Out now Director Adrian Panek Cast Kamil Polnisiak, Nicolas Przygoda, Sonia Mietielica, Danuta Stenka Distributor Eureka Certificate 15 Format The question of what makes a horror film a horror film has been one of the most infuriating of the last couple of years, but writer-director Adrian Panek’s gruelling WW2 fable is tougher to classify than most. Sold as a historical horror, the film steers clear of more obvious fairy tale elements as seen in other gritty genre fusions like Pan’s Labyrinth and Tigers Are Not Afraid, instead going straight for the grimness and also the throat. A group of children liberated from a Nazi concentration camp have found themselves in an abandoned mansion, and soon find themselves without a minder beyond a 20-year-old woman who’s very much in the…

Release Out now Director Leigh Whannell Cast Logan Marshall-Green, Betty Gabriel, Harrison Gilbertson, Benedict Hardie Distributor Second Sight Certificate 15 Format Leigh Whannell’s bone-crunching SF noir Upgrade gets a, well, it gets an upgrade with Second Sight’s Blu-ray release. The inventive and darkly funny throwback was warmly received by critics on its release and found a devoted fanbase very quickly. However, as producer Kylie Du Fresne notes in her interview which is included in the special edition, it’s a film with a long tail that will only get more popular and more well-regarded as time goes on. Logan Marshall-Green’s performance as the quadriplegic technophobe who is given a chance to hunt his wife’s killer by a new AI system implanted into his spine continues to dazzle, a blend of physicality,…

Having established herself as one of the most consistently exciting and impactful voices in genre fiction with the likes of 84K, The End Of The Day and The First Fifteen Lives Of Harry August, Claire North is back with a stunning new novel. We talked to the author about colonialism, nightmares and versions of the truth.. How did The Pursuit Of William Abbey come about? I think the idea of being pursued by an unstoppable force is fairly prevalent as one of the classic nightmares. Certainly, I’ve had it as an actual nightmare since childhood. As a basic premise it’s interesting as you can do so many things with it dependent on your rules. Is this a thing that’s taking a thousand years to crush the earth beneath its darkness?…

Bloodwitch “It’s been months since I read it and I still can’t stop thinking about it. Anyone not reading this series is seriously missing out! #BookClub” @reading_escape The Grip Of It “I don’t know if Nina Allan’s The Dollmaker counts, if not then Jac Jemc’s The Grip Of It - very unsettling and very weird. #BookClub” @DanCarpenter85 Darkwood “Darkwood by@Scriblit. Wickedly funny with many a poignant moment and a brilliant cast of characters. #BookClub” @Rhys180 Lock Every Door “Have to go with @riley_sager’s Lock Every Door. #BookClub” @bloodyflicks The Lies Of Locke Lamora “Lynch’s vivid set pieces are only bettered by the immense dialogue & care for the characters. A true romp. #BookClub” @Pugzly101 Tell us what you’re reading on Twitter or Facebook…

Release 9 January Writer Danny Tobey Publisher Gollancz Price £16.99 Can an AI be programmed to know right from wrong? That’s the question asked in Danny Tobey’s The God Game. G.O.D. claims to be an omniscient, omnipotent arbiter of good and evil, doling out ‘Goldz’ to its players when they do something good, and ‘Blaxx’ when they do something wrong. Charlie and his friends – the self-proclaimed ‘Vindicators’, a group of prank-loving misfits – are soon drawn into the Game, which promises it will make all their dreams come true just as long as they do what it says. Sure enough, by unquestioningly carrying out its missions, the group earn access to all kinds of life-changing technological tricks. By delivering a box to a stranger, they’re able to change their…

Release Out now Writer Andy Briggs Publisher Orion Price £8.99 Life isn’t working out how Theo planned it. He’s having a hard time trying to convince his friends to spend their time back home from uni playing games with him, he’s flipping artificial meat burgers to make money, and his mum has just been fired from the latest in a string of jobs. Gaming and roaming Virtual London provide a welcome escape from reality, but when his mum goes missing and threatening characters show up looking for her, Theo and his mates are plunged into a deadly conspiracy that reveals the dark underbelly of the virtual world. While author/screenwriter Andy Briggs’ latest may open with more than a dash of that Ready Player One feel, anyone who doesn’t fancy another…

Release Out now Writer Kel Kade Publisher Tor Books Price £19.99 When a mysterious rider appears in their village, Matthias and Aaslo learn that Matthias is the subject of a prophecy that predicts he is the only person who can save the world from the death of all life. Aaslo may rarely leave the forest, but he feels duty-bound to his friend to assist him on his quest. On their way, they’ll encounter aristocracy, gods, monsters, thieves and mages. The first instalment in a new trilogy, Kel Kade’s The Fate Of The Fallen delights in setting up tropes and then playing with them as the narrative develops. Choosing to focus on Aaslo the ‘sidekick’ spins what could be a traditional narrative into something that unfolds from a different perspective. Aaslo…

JONATHAN HATFULL THE RECORD KEEPER Agnes Gomillion’s debut is a razor-sharp piece of political YA, set in a post-WWIII world in which humanity has been divided into factions. Young Arika has been recruited into the elite, but when she learns the truth about what’s going on in the world outside, she’s forced to confront her own privilege and assumptions about the people she barely sees. You’re drawn in with familiar genre trappings before Gomillion pulls back the veil, and this is gripping, powerful stuff. “CHARLIE JANE ANDERS RETURNED WITH A DOUBLY AMBITIOUS SOPHOMORE EFFORT” THE CITY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT Having impressed with All The Birds In The Sky, Charlie Jane Anders returned with a doubly ambitious sophomore novel set on the dying planet of January. It’s partly…

DAVE MORRIS CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Morris co-created Fabled Lands (1995-1996) and co-wrote oneFFbook,The Keep Of The Lich Lord (1990). He also co-wrote the Dragon Warriors (1985-1986) series before earning his scratch in the tie-novel market. In 2018, Morris co-wrote the satirical gamebook Can You Brexit? Without Breaking Britain, which presumably has a more complex maze in its final third than The Warlock Of Firetop Mountain. LEWIS PULSIPHER CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Pulsipher earned a PhD in military and diplomatic history in 1981. His best-known creation is the 1986 strategic board game Britannia, which was re-released as recently as 2008, and the beginner-friendly fantasy wargame Dragon Rage(1982). Author ofGame Design: How To Create Video And Tabletop Games, Start To Finish (2012), he currently teaches… well, games design. IAN MARSH EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Marsh became White…

In the winter of 1874, unqualified and unscrupulous guide Alferd Packer led a party of prospectors to their demise in the Rocky Mountains, eventually being found guilty of killing them for their possessions and cannibalising their remains to sustain himself. As expeditions go, it could have fared better. The journey made by Ravenous might not have come with a literal bodycount, but it was almost as arduous. By the time this darkly comic horror-thriller was released it had lost one director, nearly gained another, and was eventually safely guided to its destination by the greatly missed Antonia Bird, who died back in 2013. Aspiring screenwriter Ted Griffin was “dead-broke” when inspiration struck after a chance encounter with a protracted aside about Packer in Dashiell Hammett’s detective novel The Thin Man.…

The BBC’s 1977 Count Dracula is arguably the most faithful screen version of Stoker’s novel, but these two movie adaptations pay surprising attention to detail too. NACHTS, WENN DRACULA ERWACHT (AKA COUNT DRACULA) (1970) Christopher Lee reprises the title role for this low-budgeted non-Hammer entry directed by the incredibly prolific Jesús Franco. It’s the first time the character of Quincey appears onscreen and the first to correctly depict Dracula as an aged and moustached Count who becomes younger as he feeds on fresh blood. Interestingly, Klaus Kinski, who plays Renfield here, would embody the tormented title role nine years later for Werner Herzog’s Nosferatu The Vampyre. BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA (1992) ‘Francis Ford Coppola’s Dracula’ would probably have been a more appropriate title, however the master filmmaker’s visually rich…

Q. Which movie or TV series coming our way in 2020 are you most looking forward to? JONATHAN HATFULL EDITOR A. Candyman The original is a modern horror masterpiece and I can’t wait to see what the new creative team does with it. ABIGAIL CHANDLER DEPUTY EDITOR A. Free Guy Reynolds, Comer, Waititi and Steve from Stranger Things all in a comedy action sci-fi film together? YES PLEASE. POPPY-JAY PALMER NEWS EDITOR A. Mulan Once a Disney trash gremlin, always a Disney trash gremlin. MARCUS FAINT ART EDITOR A. The Mandalorian Pedro Pascal and Jon Favreau teaming up to bring us an original Star Wars story? Take my money Disney! RACHAEL HARPER SUB EDITOR A. Star Trek 2020 is going to be an... engaging... year…

Glasgow is in for a treat this January, as Matchbox Cineclub is putting on its third annual Cage-a-rama at the Centre For Contemporary Arts. From 3-5 January, viewers can settle in for a diverse marathon of the great man’s work, with a couple of UK premieres nestled in among some beloved classics. So while you can watch movies like Coppola’s wistful Peggy Sue Got Married, Scorsese’sberserk Bringing Out The Dead, and the truly odd Zandalee (seriously, that one has to be seen to be believed), you can also get a first look at the upcoming Grand Isle (a twisty thriller that sees Cage pitted against fellow noted scenery chewer Kelsey Grammer) and Primal (in which Cage plays a big game hunter trapped on a boat with deadly creatures set free…

BLACK WIDOW RELEASED: 1 May 2020 DIRECTOR: Cate Shortland CAST: Scarlett Johansson, David Harbour, Florence Pugh, O-T Fagbenle, Rachel Weisz MARVEL FANS HAVE been asking for a Black Widow solo film since Avengers Assemble in 2012, and now we’ve finally got one. In the MCU’s second ever female-led solo adventure Natasha Romanoff confronts her past as we join her on a journey in Russia, where she trained as a KGB assassin. Robert Downey Jr and William Hurt are set to reprise their roles as Tony Stark and Thaddeus Ross, but we’re more excited about the new cast. Stranger Things’ David Harbour will no doubt be adopting an accent to play Alexei Shostakov, or Red Guardian, the Russian super-soldier equivalent of Captain America who has a history with Natasha. A few…

1890s-1920s VAMPIRES AS MONSTERS From Bram Stoker’s original novel to Nosferatu, vampires of this era were terrifying creatures – even the seductive ones are frightening in Stoker’s hands. 1930s-1950s DAPPER DRACULA Bela Lugosi’s elegant tux-wearing Count Dracula might have been a bit camp, but he was stylish and just a little bit sexy. 1950s-1980s THE DEVILISHLY HANDSOME DRACULA Christopher Lee’s tenure as the Count upped the sexiness, and is arguably responsible for the era of sexy vampires. 1980s-2010s BROODING VAMPIRES From The Lost Boys to Buffy, viaInterview With The Vampire, this was the era of vampirism-as-curse, with poor, brooding heroes burdened with handsome immortality. 2010s-present day MONSTROUS VAMPS VS INDIE VAMPS These days vampires are either indie darlings (as in Only Lovers Left Alive or What We Do In The…

It’s an early September morning when we sit down with Bill Skarsgård to talk about Pennywise’s return and the actor’s clearly far removed from the drooling clown he’s helped bring back into pop culture nightmares. He can do the lip thing, as he demonstrates almost by accident, quickly becoming charmingly self-conscious about it, although “the eye thing” is staying holstered. “It’s kind of nice because at least I feel like watching it, it feels so far away from me, it’s almost like you can hide behind the make-up a little bit,” he tells us, musing on the opportunity to fully disappear into a character. “It’s easier when you have all that make-up on to allow yourself to be as gross and disgusting as you possibly can be. But I find…

“I like being in a constant state of curiosity and wonder,” grins Willem Dafoe as we chat about his latest excursion into genre. It’s never seemed like there’s been much of a pattern to the actor’s choices beyond following interesting directors and new experiences. For every Shadow Of A Vampire or Nymphomaniac, there’s aSpider-Man or Aquaman. In this decade alone his genre CV features films as varied as Odd Thomas, Death Note, John Carter and The Great Wall, and that’s just a few. We were dying to know what it was about The Lighthouse that called to him… IS IT TRUE THAT YOU REACHED OUT TO ROBERT EGGERS? Yes. I talked to him. The script may have predated me… we were talking about working with each other. And he sort…

GIVEN THAT HE’D sacrificed his life to convince a Protomolecule-d Julie Mao not to steer Eros to Earth and accidentally wipe out the human race, Josephus Miller’s reappearance was something of a surprise to Holden in Season Three. The ghostly, spectral figure of the weary, wry detective was a treat for the rest of us, however, and showrunner Naren Shankar tells us that he can’t wait for fans to see what’s in store for the character in Season Four. “The Miller stuff in Season Four is actually one of my favourite things in book four; the Miller interludes are beautiful,” he enthuses. “There’s not a lot of them actually, but they’re beautifully written, the concept within them about a consciousness asserting itself within a programme is really gorgeous, but it…

Release 16 December Director Alexandre Aja Cast Kaya Scodelario, Barry Pepper Distributor Paramount Pictures Certificate 15 Format Having previously directed Piranha 3D, French filmmaker Alexandre Aja is well versed in making audiences never want to dip their toes in water again. Swapping schools for scales, Crawl sees swimmer Haley (Kaya Scodelario) get trapped in the space underneath her father’s home when she goes to check on him during a hurricane. But the flooding basement proves the least of their worries when a bunch of alligators rock up. Some moments in Crawl are utterly preposterous, like when Haley’s Pops insists she can best one of the beasts in an underwater race, and the cheesy family drama – (it turns out that the father-daughter duo hasn’t been getting along too well recently)…

Release Out now Director Paul Verhoeven Cast Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Kurtwood Smith, Ronny Cox, Miguel Ferrer Distributor Arrow Video Certificate 18 Format More than 30 years later and Paul Verhoeven’s dazzling Robocop shows absolutely no sign of aging. The film is still vicious and sweet, razor-sharp and deliriously silly all at once, a perfect satirical vision of a future we can’t seem to stop living in. We would also like to take this opportunity to highlight it as an example of peak “scumbag” acting, with Kurtwood Smith, Ronny Cox and Miguel Ferrer all at the top of their slimy villain games. It’s the peak of Verhoeven’s not inconsiderable contribution to SF and Arrow Video has released a new edition loaded with fresh extras. Writers Michael Miner and Ed Neumeier…

Release 27 January Director James Gray Cast Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Negga, Donald Sutherland Distributor 20th Century Fox Certificate 15 Format It was somewhat inevitable that James Gray’s slow-burn SF would struggle to make an impact at the box-office, but Ad Astra’s performance fits into the pattern of his movies which tend to grow in stature as the years pass. It’s certainly made for the big screen and is very impressive on a technical level (the early fall-from-disaster sequence is breath-taking), while the script proves to be where the problems lie. Brad Pitt does some of his best work as introverted astronaut Roy McBride, sent to find his missing father (Tommy Lee Jones) and forced to confront the emotions he’s spent a lifetime suppressing. The pacing is leisurely,…

Release Out now Creator Simon Barnard, Matthew Holness Cast Amanda Abbington, Reece Shearsmith Distributor Bafflegab Productions Certificate N/A Format CD/Download Bafflegab brings us a creepy Christmas cracker with this adaptation of MR James’ short story. When Rachel and her husband Simon purchase Rachel’s ancestral home following the death of her parents, they hire a historian to fill them in on its history. Unfortunately, said history is dark, and the ghosts of the past have a score to settle with her. Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace co-creator and star Matthew Holness has done a lovely job of adapting the tale, moving the action into the present day, and expanding it with lashings of relationship drama, emotionally wrought by Reece Shearsmith and Amanda Abbington. John Sessions rounds out the cast as the historian who…

Release Out now Showrunners Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk Cast Emma Roberts, Billie Lourd, Leslie Grossman, Angelica Ross, John Carroll Lynch Distributor FX Certificate 18 Format VOD Despite being an anthology series, American Horror Story offers up the same show with each new outing nowadays. Gone are the season-long strong storylines (à la Murder House and Asylum) that kept fans glued with its well thought-out character arcs and exciting twists. Now we just get 1984 which, much likeCultandRoanokebefore it, starts off promising before careening off road in a big way. Inspired by iconic movies such as I Know What You Did Last SummerandFriday The 13th, AHS: 1984 sees five 20-somethings sign up as summer camp counsellors in order to get away from the hustle and bustle of Los Angeles. On arrival,…

Release Out now Writer Claire North Publisher Orbit Price £18.99 A globe-trotting narrative is nothing new for Claire North. She brought us Death’s emissary in The End Of The Day and a secretive organisation playing over the world in The Games House, and here she turns her attention to the brutal, uncaring violence that drives colonialism, the arrogance required to enact it and the passivity required to allow it to happen. It’s essentially a confessional, as the titular doctor recounts his sorry tale to a frontline World War 1 nurse as they watch over a wounded soldier. Abbey has been cursed with a shadow who will follow him ceaselessly wherever he goes, who will kill anyone he loves. The closer it gets, the more clearly he sees into the hearts…

Release Out now Writer Amélie Wen Zhao Publisher Harper Voyager Price £14.99 You’d be forgiven for thinking that you had accidentally picked up the second book in a series when reading the first few chapters of Blood Heir. While introducing her heroine Anastacya, author Amélie Wen Zhao makes constant references to the last time she found herself in a similar situation, or the people she remembers from her past, in a way that’s oddly distracting. But no, this is really the first book of a proposed trilogy. Set in a sort of fairy tale Russia (dubbed ‘Cyrilia’), Ana is a princess on the run. In her world, some people have magical Affinities, which allow them to control certain elements. Some people are water Affinites; others fire Affinites; some are even…

“The God Game by@dannytobey. Really enjoying it and no idea how it’s all going to work out. Think this will be one of the big ones for 2020 #BookClub” @andyangel44 “Richard Matheson’s Shadow Of The Sun. A western set horror? How can I say no to that?! #BookClub” @KJCrighton “Going for @JasonArnopp’s Ghoster, fun read so far. #BookClub” @bloodyflicks “Just started reading The Secret Chapter (Library Series Book 6) by @GenevieveCogman Brilliant so far, great storytelling. #BookClub” @philbooty “Starting The Peripheral by William Gibson. I hear he moves back to more creative scifi here after a few contemporary tech thrillers. #BookClub” @ParsonsFiction “Pushing through Orb Sceptre Throne after a long break. Esslemont doesn’t do it for me like Erikson does, so this will probably be my last Malazan book. #BookClub”…

Release Out now Writer Daniel H Wilson Publisher Harper Collins Price £18.99 Picking up from where the late, great Michael Crichton left off, Robopocalypse authorDaniel H Wilson tells us what’s next for those Andromeda strains. Things get off to a promising start as the appearance of an anomaly in the Amazon rainforest prompts the deployment of Wildfire team 2.0, with ISS astronaut Dr Klein acting as the eye in the sky. As the scientists head into the unknown, they realise they’re dealing with the next stage in Andromeda’s evolution. What they don’t realise is that there’s human will behind it and that the greatest danger may come from within… Wilson’s fidelity to the original is charming, utilising the original novel as a historical document to go with the many footnotes…

Release Out now Writer Zen Cho Publisher Pan Macmillan Price £8.99 Zen Cho’s second novel set in the Sorcerer Royal world after 2016’s Sorcerer To The Crown begins in Janda Baik, where Muna and Sakti awaken on a beach with no memory of who they are, except they’re sure that they’re sisters, and have been cursed by an unknown enchanter. Seeking the help of the Sorceress Royal, they travel across the Unseen Lands to shorten the journey to England, but Sakti begins to fade away and then disappears, leaving Muna to fight to get her sister back and discover who cursed them. There are lots of ‘it’s Jane Austen, but with magic!’ statements made with Cho’s two novels so far, but Cho does something that Austen only alludes to; she…

While cinema contented itself with only a handfulof Mad Max-imitators, gaming went absolutely wild for the concept, creating a variety of post-apocalytic road adventures. Steve Jackson Games was first up with Car Wars (1980), aped by Games Workshop with Battlecars (1983), which were both designed to be played with toy cars. You know, like actual children might do… Fighting Fantasythen joined in withFreewayFighter in 1985. Using a similar system to Lone Wolf (but along with the added anxiety of closely monitoring your use of meals, water and ammunition), Joe Dever’s four-book Freeway Warrior series (1988-1989) followed the character of Cal Phoenix as he desperately tries to find a safe route through the irradiated wasteland from Texas to the rumoured safe haven of California (he claimed John Steinbeck’s The Grapes Of…