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Books Writing

New book: Winter Station (Dropzone #7)

Winter Station is the seventh instalment of the Dropzone series of military sci-fi books. It continues from directly where Infiltrator (Dropzone #6), Notorious (Dropzone #5), Derelict (Dropzone #4), Shadow Puppets (Dropzone #3), Parasite (Dropzone #2) and Fleet Rats (Dropzone #1) left off, with the same characters. The Dropzone series is set in the same universe as my previous sci-fi books – Conversations With Droids, The Kassini Division and Rise Of The Exiles – but it takes place in 2841, […]

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Films TV

Great SF to stream

A thought-provoking dystopian SF film and a couple of contrasting documentaries in my latest science-fiction-themed viewing recommendations… 1] I Am Mother A child grows up in a secluded high-tech bunker, tended to by a fussy, slightly sinister mechanical matriarch – a scenario familiar to many who grew up in the UK in the 70s. The premise […]

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AI Books Films TV

New book: Dead Formats

My latest novel is a sci-fi mystery story set in 2064, in a world based loosely on our own where immortality has been achieved via workable, but imperfect, hologram simulation technology. Check out the amazing cover, which was designed by Kat Bastow and incorporates elements by Bruno Thethe and Irina Bg. I think it manages […]

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Films TV

Character building

Sci-fi’s impact on the mainstream is surely stronger than it has been for a long, long time – but let’s hope that the in-depth characterisation that elevated the SF of yesteryear isn’t sacrificed on the altar of beautiful surfaces.  Take the mega-success of Squid Game, the survival-game dystopia with a strong anti-capitalist theme that has, ironically, […]

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AI Books Films

Pod people

Invasion Of The Bodysnatchers is my favourite SF story. Day by day, its main thesis – that we’ve all been replaced by emotionless simulacra who look, sound and think alike – becomes less of a sci-fi idea and more of a prediction. An example: a number of podcasts I’ve heard recently featured authors arguing about […]

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Films

Alien resurrected

The Hollywood auction house Julien’s Auctions is set to auction off a Holy Grail artifact from sci-fi cinema lore on 28 and 29 March. In amongst 800 lots from Batman, Die Hard, Edward Scissorhands, Independence Day, Predator, Scarface, the James Bond films and more, is the ‘Big Chap’ – a full-size prototype xenomorph costume from […]

Categories
Films

10 time loops to get stuck in

Time travel is almost by definition off limits for the space-opera universe my books are set in… a shame, because it’s a narrative gift that keeps on giving. The rom-com Palm Springs is the latest example of why filmmakers keep coming back to the time loop, and here are a few more you won’t mind being […]

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