ACHILLES HEEL
#13: A4, 44pp, £2 (4/£7; overseas surface 4/£10, overseas air 4/£21) from Achilles Heel, 48 Grove Avenue, London N10 2AN. A radical men's magazine that seeks to challenge traditional forms of male power, and provide a forum to discuss issues related to men and masculinity. This issue focusses on the link between masculinity and crime, and specifically examines the actions of serial killers and joy riders in this context. It is ultimately reassuring and encouraging to find men seeking to promote greater self-awareness within the male community in such an intelligent and enlightened way.

ANDROMEDA
#129: A5, 144pp p/b, no obvious name/address so suggest enquire to Thomas Recktenwald, SFCD, Lindenstr. 11, Saarlouis-Roden, DW-6630, Germany. Flagship magazine of the Science Fiction Club Deutschland, compiled in rotation by a number of different editors. This issue, also issue #6 of Taurus, is packed with text (I assume it's fiction but my German doesn't stretch that far), and copious illustrations. The artwork, though often derivative fantasy or sword & sorcery in style, is of a consistently high standard; the b/w contributions from Michael Marrak and Stefan Atzenhofer easily match the best of British artists.

ANSIBLE
#55 (Feb 92) and #57.5 (Easter 92): A4, 2pp, available at random fan gatherings, by whim or for SAEs (no paid subscriptions) from Dave Langford, 94 London Road, Reading, Berkshire RG1 5AU. Much-loved news-sheet from the amiable Mr Langford now back up and running. The latest news hot off the presses and, of course, scurrilous gossip about famous people in copious abandon!

APORIA
#0: A4, 36pp, enquire to Aporia Communications Ltd, The Basement, 27 Cleveden Crescent Lane, Kelvindale, Glasgow G12 0AZ.
   The first thing that struck me when I saw this prospectus for Aporia was "do we really need another intelligent lifestyle magazine?" I must confess, I'm not a great fan of The Face, Blitz, i-D and the rest, though once in a while they are useful for keeping abreast of new trends.
   However, Aporia is set apart from the rest on two counts. There's the usual spread of rock and pop, cinema, art and fashion, but distinct from the high street glossies bobbing on the waves of the latest hype, Aporia demonstrates a far greater level of individualism.
   A fair explanation is that the contributors seem to be writing about things they are genuinely interested in. Stuart Cosgrove analyses the rise of the TV telethon, and warns of the dangers of applying the values of light entertainment to the representation of social needs; Dan Macrae's perspective on the contrasting cinema of Peter Greenaway and Derek Jarman – and the films Prospero's Books and Edward II in particular – is both informed and informative.
   Aporia's second distinction (though it is impossible to say whether this is achieved by accident or design) is the slant to Scottish matters. In his article reprinted from the Accountants Magazine, Francis Shennan examines the extraordinary success of Scottish Television in the recent ITV franchise bidding session. Interviewed later in the magazine, the provocative and outrageous painter Steven Campbell reveals a certain ambivalence towards the 'tradition' of Scottish painting, and any Scottishness to be found in his own work.
   Prospectus issues can be fickle beasts at the best of times, but with a mixture of reprints and their own work, the Aporia team have achieved the difficult task of producing something out of nothing. A great deal of thought and imagination has gone into the design of the magazine, particularly in the subtle but effective use of the second colour inside, and the running theme of Aporia's distinctive logo.
   All the more surprising then, is the complete lack of editorial presence, when in this of all issues one would at least expect some introduction of the magazine, and a statement of policy and intentions to attract potential advertisers, contributors, and subscribers. Nonetheless, Aporia is a magazine that would merit further investigation.

AUGURIES
#16: A5, 76pp plus 16pp reviews booklet, £1:75 (4/£7; Europe 4/£7:75; r.o.w. 4/£10) from R. Nicholson-Morton, 48 Anglesey Road, Alverstoke, Gosport, Hants PO12 2EQ. A non-theme issue this time, and the stories accordingly range from humorous fantasy through to the speculative and the macabre. The fiction somehow seems too lightweight compared to previous editions, but Mike O'Driscoll, John Peters and Gerry Connelly nonetheless drive the magazine forward, with extra impetus from Roger and Russell Morgan, Kerry Earl and Dallas Goffin in the artwork department.

AUREALIS
#7: A5, 100pp, Aus$6:95 (4/Aus$24; overseas surface 4/Aus$31, overseas air 4/Aus$33) from Chimaera Publications, P.O. Box 538, Mt Waverley, Victoria 3149, Australia. With national distribution, a print run of over 6,000, and a grant from the Victorian Ministry for the Arts, Aurealis is courting much the same readership as Interzone in the UK. There the comparison ends, for even though the Aurealis editors restrict themselves to home-grown writers, they consistently produce a magazine of far greater scope, depth and imagination. Witness in this issue David Tansey's "Farrant Formations" and Simon Brown's "Shadows" in particular.

BINARIO
#1: A5, 16pp, free for A5 SAE from Binario, 18 Dyne Road, London NW6 7XE. Bizarre "direct publishing" project that bills itself as a cross between The Economist and Viz. Lighthearted, unscientific, some might ask why bother; but it's free so find out for yourself!

BLACK HOLE
#31: A5, 36pp, 60p from LUU Andromeda SF & Fantasy Society, c/o Leeds University Union, P.O. Box 157, Leeds LS1 1UH. This issue is primarily a host of honest reviews, with some readers letters and amusing parodies. But lurking in the middle is a special 8-page Insider pull-out – an 'introduction' to fandom that viciously lampoons fanzines, conventions and the fans themselves. It won't mean much to readers who've never been to conventions, but those who have experienced "beard-envy" for themselves will appreciate how spot on Sean Wilcock and Ian Creasey really are.

BLADERUNNER
#11 (Nov 91): 170mm x 245mm, 52pp, 4000 lira (4/16000 lira) from Mirko Tavosanis, Via Silvio Pellico 54, 55049 Viareggio, Italy. Comics are what sells in Italy right now it seems, so the Brian Talbot cover and articles on Alan Moore, Appleseed and Marshal Law will definitely pull the home crowd in. Once hooked, however, translations of fiction by Kurt Vonnegut, Giuseppe De Rosa, Chris Claremont and Giampaolo Simi come in with the body blows, and Antonio Caronia's appraisal of The Atrocity Exhibition sets them up for JGB's "Storia segreta della Terza Guerra Mondiale" to deliver the knockout. The illustrations are mainly reprints, but the overall presentation is very professional.

THE CONTACT
1991/1(2): A5, 16pp, enquire to SF club "Dorado", Planetarium, Ukmerges 12a, 232005, Vilnius, Lithuania. English language newsletter from Lithuania's longest-running SF organisation. Short fiction and convention reports are among the items of interest. They're desperate for books, magazines and posters from the west if you're thinking of getting in touch.

CRITICAL WAVE
#25 (Mar 92): A4, 32pp, £1:95 (6/£7:50; Europe 6/£10) from Critical Wave Publications, 845 Alum Rock Road, Ward End, Birmingham, B8 2AG (USA: 6/$25 air, 6/$15 surface from Mary Burns, 23 Kensington Court, Hempstead, NY 11550; Australia: 6/Aus$33 air, 6/Aus$17 surface from Justin Ackroyd, P.O. Box 2708X, Victoria 3001, Australia). Extensive and well-informed coverage of news from publishers both big and small, convention reports, magazine, book and film reviews, backed up by longer features such as a report from the set of Split Second, profiles of Jonathan Aycliffe, Robert Holdstock and Nicholas Royle, and the background to the Christian Crusade to Stamp Out Science Fiction. Covering all aspects of SF and fantasy Critical Wave is highly recommended, whether your preference is the hard business of commercial publishing or simply the more lighthearted of fan activities.

CZERWONY KARZEL
#2: A5, 108pp, enquire to Gdanski Klub Fantastyki, P.O. Box 76, 80-325 Gdansk 37, Poland. More artwork, convention reports, and fiction from Polish authors, plus Kerry Earl's "Santa Claus" comic strip and translations of stories by Gene Wolfe and James White, all wrapped up in a gorgeous full colour cover.

DARK REGIONS
#4: GLIMRING NIGHT AND OTHER TALES OF FANTASY: A5, 132pp p/b, $4:50 from Joe Morey, Dark Regions Press, P.O. Box 6301, Concord, CA 94524, USA. A leading light of the Small Press Writers and Artists Organisation in the States, Dark Regions has set aside its usual horror brief for a fantasy issue in which writers from the small press and pro-field run the gamut from traditional fantasy to creepy S&S and even humour. Colleen Drippé, Albert J. Manachino, Kevin J. Anderson and Janet Fox all feature, and Ardath Mayhar contributes three stories. All the stories entertain, but sadly seem to lack any great substance – only Mike Stackpole's "Shepherd" made a lasting impression.

DARK TERRORS
#3: A4, 40pp, £2 from Mike Murphy, c/o "Avalon", Ventnor Terrace, St Ives, Cornwall TR26 1DY. This issue celebrates the 35th anniversary of The Curse of Frankenstein with a look at the background and lead-up to its production, and its pivotal role in making Hammer a household name. Also featured are an interview with camera operator Len Harris, a definitive listing of Hammer videos released in the UK, plus a look unfilmed projects, marketing gimmicks, and other Hammer news. Loads of stills and behind the scenes photos really bring this fanzine to life.

THE DATAMASS EXPERIMENT (aka DATA DUMP #4)
A5, 4pp, 30p/$1 from Steve Sneyd, 4 Nowell Place, Almondbury, Huddersfield HD5 8PB. Further facts on genre poetry compiled by Steve Sneyd. Lists published collections by well- and lesser-known writers, where to find articles on SF/fantasy verse dating back to the 1930s, and provides a valuable starting point for research in this field.

DATAKILL
#1: A5, 24pp, and #3: A4, 20pp, enquire to Aux, 64 Beechgrove, Brecon, Powys, Wales LD3 9ET. Indie music fanzine with a Welsh slant, though issue #1 is almost too cluttered to decipher. The much cleaner #3 features Plant Back Ofnus, Fflaps, and the Welsh indie label Anrhefn, plus reviews, adverts and addresses.

DEMENTIA 13
#8: A4, 52pp, £2:30 (4/£7:50; USA 4/$32) from Pam Creais, 17 Pinewood Avenue, Sidcup, Kent DA15 8BB. The latest edition of this illustrated journal of the arcane and macabre delivers the goods in the form of fiction by Paul Worts, Philip Holmes and D.F. Lewis. Conrad Williams, Roderick MacDonald and David Logan are among those who also contribute, with Rik Rawling, Steve Lines and Dallas Goffin adding their particular brands of visual expertise.

DIVINITY
#2: A4, 52pp, £3 (4/£12; Europe 4/£14; r.o.w. 4/£16) plus age statement from Divine Press, P.O. Box 108, Stockport, Cheshire SK1 4DD. A sub-culture journal that explores the uncharted realms of psycho-eros, produced by one-time Headpress co-editor David Flint. There's a similar pitch to the contents – interviews with performance musician Cosey Fanni Tutti, Raism author James Havoc and Japanese bondage film-maker Masami Akita, a career overview of the late Mary Millington, and a visit to the Torture Garden SM club in London – but Flint's attitude seems more flippant now he's gone solo again, and Divinity's objectives seem more questionable as a result.

DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES
#37: A5, 24pp, $1:25 (4/$5) from David C. Kopaska-Merkel, 1300 Kicker Road, Tuscaloosa, AL 35404, USA. Poetry magazine that specialises in experimental forms and content, and fantastic horror in particular. Steve Sneyd and D.F. Lewis fly the flag for this side of the pond alongside the likes of Robert Frazier, Edward Mycue, Thomas Wiloch and Geof Huth.

EXIT 33
#1 (Apr/May 92): A4, 44pp, £1 (12/£12) from Exit 33 Ltd, 303 Granville Road, Sheffield S2 2RP. "The bible of what's happening in the Sheffield area for the young and young hearted", so all the listings and gig guides you'd expect, but the articles and interviews are relevant wherever you live. The quality printing and excellent design make this one you'll keep going back to long after the bands have stopped playing.

EXUBERANCE
#4: A4, 68pp, £1:75 (4/£6:50; USA 4/$15) from Exuberance, 34 Croft Close, Chipperfield, Herts WD4 9PA. This illustrated magazine of horror, fantasy and science fiction gets better all the time, and the smart Rik Rawling cover sets this issue off to a fine start. Joel lane is showcased this time with interview, bibliography and two stories; fiction also comes from Rick Cadger and Paul Beardsley among others, and Peter Relton contributes a useful appreciation of Nico's musical output.

FAR POINT
#4 (May/June 1992): A4, 64pp, £1:95 (6/£11; overseas 6/£17) from Victoria Publications, P.O. Box 47, Grantham, Lincs N31 8RJ. With six months' output under its belt, Far Point is settling in for a long stay. Unashamedly aimed at the SF/F mass-market, what it lacks in polish it more than makes up in enthusiasm. Value for money is guaranteed with ten stories per issue, though Jack Wainer's "Miss Ain't Behaving" is worth it alone.

FLICKERS'n'FRAMES
#16: A5, 52pp, £1:50 (4/£5:50; USA 4/$16) from John Peters, 299 Southway Drive, Southway, Plymouth, Devon PL6 6QN. As well as the usual coverage of film and media news, Tony Lee appraises gangster movies and Stephen Woodward assesses Cape Fear. Fiction this time comes from Uncle River and David John Hopkins, and it's all rounded off by lively book and video reviews, and Mike Ashley's informative electronic music column.

FRANKLY
#3: A4, 32pp, £1:50 from Frankly, Calton House, 2 Claythorne Street, Glasgow G40 2TX. Although he's not the only person behind this comic, it's interesting to see Gary Gibson applying the same criteria to graphic narrative as he does to written fiction in Territories. From the editorial that imbues Frankly with the mission to kickstart the adult comics phenomenon, to his appreciation of Pete Milligan's Shade, there's the same passion for the material that transcends most crass commercial requirements and for which the term 'slipstream' seems equally appropriate. In the meantime, there are some neat strips by Will Pickering and Simon Mackie, no-nonsense reviews, and a look at biker cult hero Ogri, giving Frankly a lasting and well-rounded finish.

FREAK BEAT
#7: A4, 56pp plus 7" EP and 20pp review supplement, £2:50 (USA £3:50 surface, £5:50 air) from Freak Beat, P.O. Box 1288, Gerrards Cross, Bucks SL9 0AN. The Treatment, Bevis Frond, Ozric Tentacles, Magic Mushroom Band and Noel Redding are just a few of the groups featured in this issue. Freak Beat is a real garden of delights, packed with articles, interviews and discographies, and practicing what it preaches with psychedelic layout and a hard vinyl EP with exclusive tracks by the bands concerned. Stacks of reviews and adverts make this magazine a must for all fans of psychedelic music.

FREELANCE WRITING & PHOTOGRAPHY
#54 (Summer 92): A4, 32pp, £2:50 (6/£16:50) from Weavers Press Publishing, Tregeraint House, Zennor, St Ives, Cornwall TR26 3DB. Tips and anecdotes to help writers and would-be freelancers make the most of their chosen profession – writing for newspapers, working with rhyme, running your own seminar, and the importance of the covering letter, are just some of the topics covered in this issue. And of course, all the market news, adverts and contacts you'd expect.

GAIA NEWS
#2 (Oct 91): A5, 12pp from Anthony North Enterprises, BCM Keyhole, London WC1N 3XX. News, articles and short fiction from the New Age/ecology platform (see also Rattler's Tale below).

GRUE
#14 (Summer 92): A5, 100pp p/b, $4:50 (3/$13; overseas 3/$20) from Hell's Kitchen Productions, P.O. Box 370, Times Square Station, New York, NY 10108-0370, USA. This seminal US horror magazine is impossible to describe in a handful of words, save to echo the back cover blurb "Tales from the Raw Edge of Horror". Melanie Tem sets the pace with the uncompromisingly chilling "Repentance", the first of 12 stories that include the powerful "Choosing A Weapon" by Kristine Kathryn Rusch and closes with a further excerpt from t. Winter-Damon and Randy Chandler's novel Duet for the Devil.

THE HARDCORE
#6: A4, 32pp, £1:50 (4/£5; overseas surface 4/£7, air 4/£9) from The Hardcore, P.O. Box 1893, London N9 8JT. Another burst of articles, fiction and comics from the edge, courtesy of Jael Nuit and Scott Dorward. The comics seem the least durable of the contents but it's otherwise an even spread – fiction this issue is by Tim Merethshell and Pauline McNeil, and the articles include a look the Chaos Magic of Peter J. Carroll, and recent developments in virtual reality.

HEADPRESS
#4: A4, 68pp, £3:50 (4/£12) from Headpress, P.O. Box 160, Stockport, Cheshire SK1 4ET. The "Jesus Trip" issue, with the facts behind the Children of God cult and their "Hookers for Jesus" campaign, and how the original pagan fertility festivals have been desexualised by the church to create the modern religious occasions we know today. A lot of space is also devoted to a chilling account of the apparent persecution of Lord Horror publishers Savoy Books by the Greater Manchester Police. Headpress covers all manner of bizarre and deviant extremes, but where some magazines put "Adults Only" on the cover just to pull the punters, this one's for real.

HOAX!
#1: A4, 20pp, and #2: A4, 32pp, enquire to [out-of-date address removed 24 July 2007]. A general overview of pranking is covered in the inaugural issue of Hoax!, including some devilish ways to really trash your computer terminal, and how to deal with junk mail. Pranks range from the childish, such as the perennial cling film on toilet seats, to the inspired – sending Church of the SubGenius literature to all the Dobbs in the phone book. It's guaranteed to offend your sensibilities somewhere along the way, though if you've read the RE/Search tome you'll probably have seen a lot of this already. Hoax! #2 takes a closer look at particular hoaxes, such as Clifford Irving's fake Howard Hughes autobiography, billboard subversion and supermarket sabotage. Both issues carry plenty of reviews and contact addresses for like-minded publishers and outlets making the magazine excellent for networking too.

HORIZON
#76 (Feb 92) and #78 (June 92): A4, 36pp, 100BF (6/450BF; outside Belgium 6/600BF) from Johnny Haelterman, Stationsstraat 232A, 1770 Liedekerke, Belgium. Flemish language cultural magazine with articles, news and reviews covering film, theatre and literature. Also features a short section in English.

IKARIE
1/1992 and 2/1992: A4, 68pp each, enquire to Eva Hauser, Na Cihadle 55, 16000 Praha 6, Czechoslovakia. Leading Czech language SF magazine, with full colour cover and fiction by Garry Kilworth, Colin Greenland, Eric Brown, Ondrej Neff (1/1992); Brian Stableford, Robert Holdstock, Martin Gilar, Vlado Risa (2/1992).

IMAGINATION
#11 (Jan/Feb 92): A4, 80pp, £1:25 (6/£7:50) from Imagination, 63 Beeches Crescent, Crawley, West Sussex RH10 6BU. Interviews with Mike Jefferies, Terry Brooks and Stephen Donaldson will be the main attraction in this issue, though the fiction by Phil Masters and Maxim Jakubowski among others is worth a look too. There's a strong emphasis on gaming in the magazine, with articles on live role-playing and Dark Sun, though editor Ian Murphy's conscious concern for the early teen readership seems a little at odds with some of Kerry Earl's bodice-ripping illustrations.

INFORMATIONAL SVODKA
#4-#5 (Oct 91-Mar 92): A5, 8pp, enquire to Yuri Savchenko, Do vostrebovania, MGU, 117234 Moscow, Russia. Double issue of Moscow State University SF Club's English language newsletter. An obituary and bibliography for the Soviet writer Arcady Natanovich Strugatsky form the main section, but there are also convention reports and reviews of award-winning novels and short fiction.

INTERFERENCE ON THE BRAIN SCREEN
#34: 175mm x 215mm, 28pp, $2 from Patrick Clark, P.O. Box 2761, St Paul, MN 55102, USA. Occasional magazine of personal comment and interesting snippets. A fascinating interview with Paul Di Filippo takes centre stage and is the highlight of this issue.

INVASION OF THE SAD MAN EATING MUSHROOMS
#4: A5, 48pp, £1:50 from J. Overall, P.O. Box 7, Upminster, Essex RM14 2RH. The magazine with the coolest title seems to be the horror fanzine everyone's talking about at the moment. This time pasta zombies, anime and 1960s gore movies are all under the spotlight, plus fiction by Shaun Jeffrey and the obligatory Lloyd Kaufman interview. At times it seems as if the editors are having trouble maintaining the attitude levels, but it's an entertaining read nonetheless.

JABBERWOCKY
#2: A5, 60pp, $3:50 from Jeff VanderMeer, 3504 SW 30th Terrace 27C, Gainesville, FL 32608, USA. Excellent collection of speculative fiction by Steve Rasnic Tem, Mark Rich, Carol Noble, Denise Dumars, Kathleen Jurgens and others. Jeff VanderMeer is sure and confident at the helm, and the production is classy and imaginative without being overbearing.

LIGHT'S LIST 1992
A5, 12pp, 70p from John Light, 29 Longfield Road, Tring, Herts HP23 4DG. New edition of John's annual listing of more than 200 literary magazines, giving titles, addresses and brief descriptions of contents.

THE MAGAZINE OF SPECULATIVE POETRY
Vol.3 #3 (Spring 92): A5, 28pp, $3:50 (4/$11; overseas 4/$15) from The Magazine of Speculative Poetry, P.O. Box 564, Beloit, Wisconsin 54481, USA. A new burst of life (and very welcome too) for the magazine that is right at the forefront of promoting good genre verse. As well as contributions by Brian Aldiss, Margaret Palmer Gordon-Espe, Jane Yolen and Andrew Joron, co-editor Mark Rich argues convincingly for "verse" in lieu of "poetry" in his editorial, and Steve Eng explores the historical roots of speculative poetry; Rich also provides a comprehensive round-up of recent worthwhile verse publications.

MEMES
#6: A5, 48pp, £2 (3/£5; USA 3/$10) from Memes, 38 Molesworth Road, Plympton, Plymouth, Devon PL7 4NT. The sheer information overload that characterises our culture makes it virtually impossible to find what you want, when you want it. It is no longer enough to cast memes randomly into the beyond, so Norman Jope selects only the most potent and economical writing for his magazine. The likes of Misha and Steve Sneyd thrive in this environment; Graham Coleman also impresses with raw urgency.

THE MODERN DANCE
#8: A5, 24pp, and #9: A5, 32pp, free for SAE (no paid subscriptions) from Dave Hughes, 12 Blakestones Road, Slaithwaite, Huddersfield HD7 5UQ. Don't be distracted by the title, as the album reviews cover the whole range of recent releases: David Byrne and Patti Smith rub shoulders with Tinsley Ellis and Nat King Cole, and for good measure there's classical input from Arnold Bax, Werner Henze and Dvorak. There are no frills attached to this music magazine, just honest and straightforward reviews from people who appreciate music.

NEW MOON
#2 (Jan 1992): A4, 64pp, £2:50 (4/£9) from Trevor Jones, 1 Ravenshoe, Godmanchester, Huntingdon, Cambs PE18 8DE.
   Whereas New Moon #1 simply looked like Dream at A4, the second issue reveals greater confidence in the new format, and the development of its own personality. There hasn't been a radical break from its forebear, however, as most of the contributors are well-known from the previous incarnation.
   Old favourite Peter F. Hamilton this time offers "De De and the Beanstalk", where the smuggling of goods to Earth from orbiting factories has been made nigh impossible by the construction of an atmosphere-piercing tower. It's one of those stories where having been introduced to the Hero and the Problem That Faces Him, you can sit back confident in the knowledge that it will all work out just fine in the end.
   Which pretty much sums up Keith Brooke's "Two Over Seventy-Four" and Eric Brown's "Crystals" as well. The latter treads the familiar paths of guilt, coming to terms with the past, and memory crystals, which either means this is an early story or Eric's getting stuck in a rut.
   In stark contrast to these stories, "The Carnivorous Land" by Andy Darlington merits – perhaps even demands – more than one reading to experience its maximum effect. Andy's heavily-laden prose can sometimes be too demanding for the casual reader, but it also compounds the fact that nothing can be taken for granted in this story of rebellion and power-play.
   E.R. James' story "The Tree", in which a woman searching for her husband in the tropical rainforest finds him fighting to save a unique species of tree, brings New Moon #2 to a well-rounded and satisfying conclusion. Overall, Messrs Darlington and James seem to show, on the basis of this issue at least, that the young turks still have a thing or two to learn from the more seasoned campaigners.
   Even so, for this reader there's still nothing very new on offer here, nothing that seems to justify the billing "Britain's alternative SF magazine". A look at the presentation of New Moon provokes an uncanny sense of déjà vû: a full colour cover and cheap glossy paper; two columns of text for the stories and half page artwork, with the page number and magazine title in the bottom corner; the same regular group of writers; the readers' poll that influences and reinforces the choice of fiction; and the whole pitch and direction of the magazine generally.
   What this all means, of course, is that any Interzone readers who pick up New Moon will know exactly what they're getting, and it's in this overwhelming sense of familiarity that New Moon's strength really lies. Perhaps this is what they mean by "Britain's alternative SF magazine"; there can certainly be no doubt that Interzone has much more to fear from New Moon than it ever did from the likes of BBR.

NIGHTFALL
#4: A4, 40pp, £1:75 (3/£5; USA 3/$11) from Noel Hannan, 18 Lansdowne Road, Sydney, Crewe CW1 1JY. Prominent graphic and sequential art magazine looking even better with every issue. The portfolio by US artist Tom Simonton takes centre stage, though curiously it's the artists not normally known for strip work who steal the show – Rik Rawling with "Fade to Grey" and Kevin Cullen's "Xenophobe".

NØCTULPA
#6: SOULS IN PAWN: A5, 160pp p/b, $9 from Horror's Head Press, 140 Dickie Avenue, Staten Island, New York 10314, USA. After the hard-edged fiction of previous issues (Lucy Taylor's "Blessed Be The Bound" from Nøctulpa #5: Guignoir and other Furies was easily one of the most harrowing and powerful horror stories I've read all year), editor George Hatch has concentrated on quieter, more psychological work for Souls in Pawn. As the title suggests, the 13 stories run the whole gamut of human anguish, of souls teetering on the brink of damnation. Only Adam Meyer's "Swimmer" is disappointing; Jeffrey Osier, Miroslaw Lipinski and H. Andrew Lynch particularly impress.

NUIT-ISIS
#10: A4, 36pp, £2:50 (2/£5; USA/Canada 2/£6; r.o.w. 2/£10) from Mandrake, P.O. Box 250, Oxford OX1 1AP. More on the subjects of Tantra, Crowley, Illuminati and Chaos from the magazine that claims to be the leading journal of the left-hand path. Considerable space in this issue is devoted to the articles on the Ordo Templi Orientis, Nikola Tesla, and Austin Spare. Prior knowledge is definitely an advantage when reading this magazine, as casual browsers might find it rather heavy going.

ORANGE
#2 (Apr 92), #4 (Jun 92) and #5 (Jul 92): A4, 24pp, 25p each from local newsagents (12/£8 subs). Comprehensive gig guide for the Sheffield area, with interviews, articles, reviews and listings. Daisy Chainsaw, Various Vegetables and Sultans of Ping FC are interviewed in #2, Pulp, Lilac Confusion and Adorable in #4, and The Telescopes and Jools Holland in #5. A redesign and new cover logo from Design Definition characterise the latest issues – more pages and a free flexi disc are promised with each issue from #6. Worth your attention even if you live outside the area.

ORION
#1: A5, 44pp, £1:75 (3/£4:50; Europe 3/£5:60; r.o.w 3/£7:85) from 3 Bower Street, Reddish, Stockport SK5 6NW. Impressive first issue of a new speculative fiction magazine. Despite what Interzone says, there are particularly good stories from Mark Haw and Todd Mecklem & Jonathan Falk.

PAPERBACK PARADE
#29: A5, 112pp, $6 (6/$30, overseas surface 6/$36) from Gryphon Publications, P.O. Box 209, Brooklyn, NY 11228-0209, USA. One of a handful of American magazines specialising in vintage and collectable paperbacks, and well-respected within the trade. Articles, extensive bibliographies and checklists accompany the interviews with horror/SF author William F. Nolan and hardboiled crime writer Jonathan Latimer; there are also notes on byline changes between various issues of western novels, letters from readers with new information, and reports on paperback book fairs in New York and London. To judge from the latter, interest in vintage British mass market paperbacks is extremely healthy among US collectors, and so there's plenty of space devoted to these editions here.

PEEPING TOM
#6 and #7: A5, 48pp, £1:80 each (4/£6:75; USA 4/$19) from David Bell, Yew Tree House, 15 Nottingham Road, Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire LE6 5DJ. Further helpings of bizarre and macabre fiction from the magazine that's rapidly becoming a stalwart of the small press. Chris Fowler, Jack Pavey, D.F. Lewis and Jack Wainer (#6) and Stephen Gallagher, Lindsay Quicke and Conrad Williams (#7) are among those who make sure you aren't sitting comfortably!

PSYKLOPS
#3 (May/Jun 92): A5, 32pp, £1 (payable to Ms J.E. Ingram) from Psyklops, 57 Tyndale Street, West End, Leicester LE3 0QQ. Mike Perridge's showcase of small press comics talent is high on presentation, with average to excellent graphics throughout. Some of the episodes are a little too short to read in isolation, but "Night of the Living Ted" by Joseph Lindley looks like fun, and Jan Yeats' one-pager "The Art Student" brings this issue to an ironic close.

RATTLER'S TALE
#14: A5, 80pp, £2 (4/£8) from Anthony North Enterprises, BCM Keyhole, London WC1N 3XX. Ill-health, the recession, and his own writing workload has led Anthony North to combine his numerous journals into a single bumper quarterly. The new RT now incorporates the longer fiction of Read With Mummy, the essays and speculation of Fireside Philosopher, and the tips and market news of Scribbler's News, to make a hefty magazine with something for everyone.

ROCK'n'REEL
#12: A5, 76pp, £1 from Sean McGhee, 8 Dent Place, Cleator Moor, Cumbria CA25 5EE. Essential magazine for anyone interested in folk, roots, rock, blues and beyond. Al Stewart, Taj Mahal, Martin Stephenson, Paul Brady, Altan, You Slosh and The Buttermountain Boys are just some of the bands featured or interviewed. With more than 100 assorted reviews there's a lot packed into Rock'n'Reel, and the type can be a bit too small for prolonged reading as a result, but there's no doubting the quality of coverage. Amongst the reviewers, the name Andy Darlington will be familiar to SF readers, here wearing his rock journalist hat.

SAMHAIN
#32 (May/June 92) and #33 (July/Aug 92): A4, 40pp, £2 each (5/£9; Europe 5/£10; USA 5/$20) from Samhain, 77 Exeter Road, Topsham, Exeter, Devon EX3 0LX. Britain's longest-running horror film magazine, with production easily on a par with Fear, but less sensational in content than its now defunct rival. Highlights of #32 include the interviews with Peter (Naked Lunch) Weller and John (Splatter Movie Guide) McCarty, and the article on industrial music and horror films; #33 talks to Frank Henenlotter, Sam Raimi and Lawnmower Man's Brett Leonard, and reports on Itlay's Dylan Dog Horror Fest. All these, together with the regular features, competitions and free small ads, make Samhain extremely good value for money.

SCAVENGER'S NEWSLETTER
#101 (Jul 92) and #102 (Aug 92): A5, 32pp, $2 each (6/$6:25, 12/$12:50; overseas 6/$11, 12/$$22) from Janet Fox, 519 Ellinwood, Osage City, KS 66523-1329, USA. Leading American market news magazine, with the latest information on individual magazines' requirements, feedback from writers on service received from editors, plus articles, letters and reviews. An indispensable aid for established and novice writers alike.

SCHEHERAZADE
#5: A5, 36pp, £1:99 (4/£7:50) from Scheherazade, St Ives, Maypole Road, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 1HL. The magazine of fantasy, SF and gothic romance with a more human feel is settling into its stride with fiction this issue from Remy de Gourmont, Tina Anghelatos, John Frizell and Devenick Clark. A shame then that Mary O'Keefe's interview with Gene Wolfe seems to reveal more about the interviewer than her chosen subject.

SCIENCE FICTION EYE
#10: A4, 116pp, $3:50 (3/$10; 3/$15 overseas) from Science Fiction Eye, P.O. Box 18539, Asheville, NC 28814, USA. The highly acclaimed critical magazine that grew out of cyberpunk and now covers the whole field of SF and speculative fiction with insight and panache. This issue's interview features David Wingrove; meanwhile, Terry Bisson describes the trip to Russia for VolgaCon in '91, and Dennis Kealey witnesses schizophrenia at first hand. Add to this comment by Charles Platt, Ernest Hogan and John Shirley, plus the regular columns by Bruce Sterling, Paul Di Filippo, Richard Kadrey and Misha, the letters, and the reviews, and you find yourself eminently catered for.

SCRATCH
#7: A5, 68pp, £2:25 from Mark Robinson, 24 Nelson Street, The Groves, York YO3 7NJ. Special 'Born in the 60s' issue, meaning that very few of the poets will have lived their adult life in a country free of Tory rule. However, party politics is kept to a back seat: what's important here is to oppose spiritual degradation and affirm the good and beautiful – the poetry in Scratch goes a long way to achieving that aim.

SHARDS OF BABEL
#35 (Mar 92): A4, 20pp, #36 (June 92): A4, 12pp, and #37 (July 92): A4, 16pp, 10/NLG25 (UK 10/£10 cash; USA 8/$15 cash) from Roelof Goudriaan, Caan van Necklaan 63, 2281 Rijswijk, The Netherlands. Shards of Babel #35 is a bumper issue of the English-language European SF newsletter, with a full 7 pages devoted to the state of publishing in former East Germany following the capitalist anschluss. Issue #36 – a reviews special – looks at recent books from Spain, France, Germany, Norway, Belgium, Italy and the UK, and gives an indication of the broad range of SF published throughout Europe. Back to a more normal news and comment issue with #37, and in particular an article by Piotr W. Cholewa about how the church has replaced communism as the target for criticism in contemporary Polish SF. Reports on awards and magazines, letters and a global listing of forthcoming conventions complete the picture.

SIVULLINEN
#12: A5, 36pp, $2; and #13: A5, 52pp, $3 (cash only in US$ or equivalent UK£, prices cover surface mail worldwide) from Jouni WŠŠrŠkangas, Kaarelantie 86.B.28, 00420 Helsinki, Finland. The latest results of Jouni's attempts to "demolish serious art!" are two new issues of his fanzine of art and poetry. Subversive, surreal and impassioned, the international line-up of contributors really deliver the goods, and the artwork is excellent in all its styles.

SPACE & TIME
#79 and #80: A5, 120pp, $5 each from Gordon Linzner, 138 W. 70th St. (4B), New York, NY 10023-4432, USA. Even though both these issues announce that Space & Time is calling it a day after 25 years and 80 issues, one of the small press's longest running publications has decided to carry on after all. Issues #79 and #80 maintain the magazine's broad taste of the genre, ranging from traditional fantasy, futuristic detective stories and classic SF, to horror and the macabre. The closing story of #80, "The Little Sisters of Hell" by Jane Mailander, is the epitome of continued hope in the face of insurmountable despair.

THE STAKE
#1: A4, 36pp, $3:95 (4/$12) from III Publishing, P.O. Box 170363, San Francisco, CA 94117-0363, USA (UK enquire to A Distribution, 84B Whitechapel High Street, London E1 7QX).
   This new satirical magazine takes the line that "our planet is indeed dying, and the people who are killing it have names and addresses, but why not sit on our hands and laugh until the bitter end?" A curious and somewhat extreme stance to take, but Bill Meyers draws on his stable of novellists to put the concept of humour/horror for a dying planet into interesting effect.
   For example, readers who were intrigued by J.G. Eccarius' novel The Last Days of Christ the Vampire, published by III in 1988, will be pleased to discover that the concept gets a further outing in the first episode of "The Skull". This time some schoolkids exhume the corpse of a 19th century preacher for a dare, to find the body still fresh ... later on one of the kids starts getting those dreams that tell him he can live forever if he accepts Jesus. It'll be fun to see how things will work out.
   Mark Ivanhoe contributes the grotesque story of "Slim Jim and His Growth", where the hero self-operates to remove his stomach cancer, only to be assimilated in turn by the tumour and become an urban nemesis figure. A more understated vision of hell on earth is offered by Cliff Burns in "The Invisible Boy" as the disintegration of the family unit wreaks a frightening effect on the poor kid caught in the middle.
   More overt satire comes from Ann Marie in "How to be the Ideal East Village Girlfriend", and part one of Stephanie du Plessis' "The Snopeses Go Camping". Illustrations throughout come from John Borkowski, and there's also comment from Bill Meyers and reviews by J.G. Eccarius to round off this issue.

STAR*LINE
Vol.15 #4 (July/Aug 92): A5, 20pp. Quite often the internal newsletters of clubs and organisations can be so stiff and starchy, or else prohibitively cliquey and chatty. Thankfully Star*Line, the bimonthly newsletter of the Science Fiction Poetry Association (edited by Marge Simon) not only hits the balance right, but presents its information in a clean and professional fashion. Even with the ongoing discussion about the future format of the Rhysling poetry awards, letters, reviews and market news, there's still room to showcase the work of 20 poets. (SFPA membership $10/year from Science Fiction Poetry Association, 2012 Pyle Road, Schnectady, NY 12303, USA.)

STRANGE ADVENTURES
#40: A4, 24pp, £1:70 (12/£18; Europe 12/£20; USA/Canada 12/$48; r.o.w. 12/$60) from Tony Lee, 13 Hazely Combe, Arreton, Isle of Wight PO30 3AJ. There seems to be no shaking this media fanzine of SF, fantasy and horror, and this month's features deal with circus horror movies, and sexploitation on video, together with a Lloyd Kaufman interview and survey of Troma output. Recent releases under the spotlight include Revenge of Billy the Kid, Jacob's Ladder and V.I. Warshawski, whilst regular columns cover art house activity, media news, and book and magazine reviews.

STRANGE ATTRACTOR
#1: A5, 40pp, £2 (4/£7:75) from Rick Cadger, 111 Sundon Road, Houghton Regis, Beds LU5 5NL. Wide-ranging new fiction magazine with an eye on both genre fiction and more oddball and slipstream material. A full colour cover on a first issue sets an ambitious standard for anyone else to follow, even though this piece isn't up to Rob Kirbyson's usual standard. Strange Attractor is not an easy read, but rewarding nonetheless; the stories by Allen Ashley and Marcus Alexander are highly recommended.

THE STRANGER
Vol.1 #2 (Nov 91): A4, 12pp, $1 (3/$3) from The Stranger, P.O. Box 31848, Seattle, WA 98103-1848, USA. Critical broadsheet published anonymously to ensure that what is said is more important than who says it. Although it aims for the free dissemination and subsequent discussion of ideas, The Stranger has yet to move on from the anti-establishment/anti-apathy lobby, but that should not pose too great a problem if it manages to attract and motivate its readership in the right way.

TERRITORIES
#2: A4, 28pp, £1:80 (3/£4:50) from Territories, c/o McNair, 65 Niddrie Road, Strathbungo, Glasgow G42 8PT. A big step forward for "The Slipstream Journal" as the second issue brings better design and more definite presence. Ian McDonald and Eric Brown are interviewed, Kim Stanley Robinson's Orange County trilogy is analysed, and David Wingrove puts Karen Joy Fowler's new novel Sarah Canary into context. On the reviews front, Jim Steel tackles the new New Worlds with typical verve, whilst in his Shark Tactics column Mike Cobley urges British writers to demonstrate some social awareness once in a while. Territories is the critical magazine that British SF has needed for a long time, and is wholeheartedly recommended.

TRAJECTORIES
#6 (Winter 1991/92): A3, 52pp, $3 (4/$9, 8/$16) from Trajectories Publishing, P.O. Box 49249, Austin, TX 78765, USA. After a considerable lay-off, the SF journal of the south-west returns in its familiar tabloid newspaper format with the backing of a local arts cooperative. Interviews with writer Chad Oliver, poet John Grey, and physicist Ilya Prigogine, dominate the first half of this issue, along with reviews, letters and comment. The back half is devoted to fiction, with the brief set clearly on man's attempts to integrate and evolve into an advanced symbiosis with technology and ecology: Russ Williams, Timothy J. Rucinski, Betty McKinney, T.K. Murray and Uncle River all present differing aspects of this struggle, with interesting, ironic, and for the most part optimistic results.

WILD SHAARKAH
#8: A4, 12pp, enquire to Eva Hauser, Na Cihadle 55, 16000 Praha 6, Czechoslovakia. Following her successful nomination as this year's Get Under Fan Fund winner, Eva describes her experiences in Australia, and at Syncon '92, the Sydney convention GUFF enabled her to attend. As with her earlier trip to America, Eva's viewpoint brings a unique perspective to her writing, which is at times naive, but always enthusiastic. Once again, the reader is pleasantly provoked into questioning what has previously be taken for granted – and it's not always the obvious things like democracy and high technology.

WORKS
#8: A5, 52pp, £1:60 (4/£5:50) from Dave Hughes, 12 Blakestones Road, Slaithwaite, Huddersfield HD7 5UQ. Good to have the man Hughes back in action again, even though the editorial sounds like it was hard work to get things moving. Over 20 pieces of short fiction, poems and vignettes in this issue, and there's still room for longer stories from David Memmott and Don Webb; both of these are highly recommended.

XIZQUIL
#6: A5, 60pp, $3:50 (3/$10) from Uncle River, P.O. Box 285, Reserve, New Mexico 87830, USA. Under the subtitle "A Place Where Social Consciousness and Creative Speculation Meet", Xizquil presents work which comments on present society, or which projects possible cultural alternatives. Fiction this issue comes from Cathy Hicks, Fr. George Reynolds, Patricia Shaw Mathews and Sara Ryan, plus verse by Edward Mycue, Elizabeth Ann Cramer and others.

CYBERTEXTS
by Bruce Boston
ISBN 0-9626708-4-5, A5, 44pp, $5 from Talisman, P.O. Box 321, Beech Grove, IN 46107, USA. New collection from one of the finest speculative poets alive, showcasing verse first seen in The Magazine of Speculative Poetry, Asimov's, Aboriginal SF, Star*Line and many more.

THE FANTASTIC MUSE
by Arthur C. Clarke
ISBN 0-905262-05-0, A5, 12pp, £1 (USA $2:50) from Steve Sneyd, 4 Nowell Place, Almondbury, Huddersfield HD5 8PB. The prophet of science and SF is shown to be prophetic also in his views on the need for a poetry of SF. To mark Clarke's 75th birthday, this seminal article – the earliest known essay on the topic of SF poetry – is reprinted for the first time since its original fanzine appearance in 1938, together with a haunting poem of his own from the following year, "The Twilight of a Sun". Do not dismiss this as idle memorabilia, for both items are of significant importance in the history of SF poetry, and as an insight into the early thoughts of such a major writer.

VIRGINTOOTH
by Mark Ivanhoe
ISBN 0-9622937-3-3, 192pp p/b, $7 from III Publishing, P.O. Box 170363, San Francisco, CA 94117-0363, USA (UK enquire to A Distribution, 84B Whitechapel High Street, London E1 7QX). Charts the experiences and expectations of a novice vampire as she searches for her own individuality. Fascinating exploration of the psychology of vampires, and a welcome break from the usual fare of fangs and gore.

THE LIQUID RETREATS
by Todd Mecklem & Jonathan Falk
ISBN 1-877655-03-1, A5, 44pp p/b, $6:95 (overseas $8:95) from Wordcraft of Oregon, P.O. Box 3235, La Grande, OR 97850, USA. These writers need no introduction to readers of New Pathways, BBR and Orion. In this new collection of mainly new work (only five of the 14 pieces are reprints), the two longest stories, "Wagner's Rite" and "Albania" will satisfy fans of the more traditional form; the remainder progressively pare down the elements of narration to their most economical and precise: in the 125-word "Die Frau Nach Der Man Sich Sehnt", for example, what isn't stated becomes so much more important than the words on the page.

HOUSE ON FIRE
by David Memmott
ISBN 1-877655-06-6, A5, 68pp p/b, $9 (overseas $11) from Jazz Police Books, Wordcraft of Oregon, P.O. Box 3235, La Grande, OR 97850, USA. Launching this new imprint of Wordcraft devoted to speculative poetry is David Memmott's new collection of poetry and collage. He won the 1990 Rhysling Award in the long poem category for "The Aging Cryonicist", and "Sounding the Praises of Shadow to the Merchants of Light" was selected by Datlow and Windling for Year's Best Fantasy and Horror the same year. Ranging from nostalgia for innocence lost, to dark fantasy and surrealism, House on Fire once again reveals Memmott's rich texture and outstanding language sensibility.

ECO-FRENZY
by Mark Pawson
150mm x 105mm, 32pp, £1:30 from Mark Pawson, P.O. Box 664, London E3 4QR. Ever wondered why there were so many different recycling and ecology logos, or where the hexagonal three-arrows-folding-back-on-themselves icon came from? Fascinated by the variety of symbols in circulation, Mark Pawson has spent 3 years collecting and collating the recycling logos from food and drink packaging and paper products, aided by mailartists around the world. The result is this handy booklet, which shows how the lack of any standard set of symbols has produced an endless series of variations and alterations. Has the overproduction of these symbols itself now reached pollution levels, we ask ourselves?

MARK'S LITTLE BOOK ABOUT KINDER EGGS
by Mark Pawson
105mm x 75mm, 32pp, 75p from Mark Pawson, P.O. Box 664, London E3 4QR. Further evidence of Mark Pawson's obsession with the minutiae of everyday life is revealed in this offbeat discussion of the toys found in Kinder Surprise chocolate eggs. How the new range of toys matches up to previous editions, the best way to minimise duplicates in your collection, assembly diagrams, newspaper cuttings and, of course, Mark's wants list for swaps.

LIFTING
by Mark Rich
ISBN 1-877655-02-3, A5, 58pp p/b, $7:95 (overseas $9:95) from Wordcraft of Oregon, P.O. Box 3235, La Grande, OR 97850, USA. Mark Rich's debut collection of short fiction comes highly praised by Brians Aldiss and Stableford, and lives up to its advance publicity from the refreshingly lighthearted opener "The Typewriter" through to the more sombre "Festival of the River". All the stories have appeared previously elsewhere, albeit in American or short-lived British magazines, making this collection especially worthwhile for UK readers.

THE COSMIC CYCLE
by Uncle River
MOTHER EARTH BLEEDS
by Uncle River
A5, 52pp and 44pp, $3 each from Mother Bird Books, 1213 Durango, Silver City, NM 88061, USA. These two new chapbooks of verse reveal a more spiritual and mythological aspect of the man behind Xizquil magazine and BBR's "Mogollón News". The Cosmic Cycle is a single piece of epic proportions using the river motif from which the author's name is derived. Mother Earth Bleeds is a collection of several dozen shorter poems, which range from simple observation of the pleasures of life in the New Mexico wilderness, to passionate expressions of the bonds between Man and Mother Earth that are almost religious in their quality.

A PLAGUE OF HEARTS
by Patrick Whittaker
Cyberbook format on 3.5" disk for DOS-based PCs, £3 from Ghuti Publications, 18 Goodhall Street, London NW10 6TU. Although the cyberbook format makes distribution via bulletin boards and floppy disks relatively cheap and efficient, staring at a computer screen will never compare to curling up in that favourite armchair to read a novel. However, A Plague of Hearts does merit the effort of printing out a hard copy – Patrick Whittaker paints an entertaining picture of civil unrest and political intrigue in the land that lies through Lewis Carroll's looking-glass.

THIS'LL KILL YA and other dangerous stories
by Harry Willson
ISBN 0-9622937-2-5, 191pp p/b, $6 from III Publishing, P.O. Box 170363, San Francisco, CA 94117-0363, USA (UK enquire to A Distribution, 84B Whitechapel High Street, London E1 7QX). Humorous and incisive murder mystery in which the chief suspect is a book, and the victims are a censorship committee.

L'HEURE D'HALLUCINATIONS
by t. Winter-Damon
ISBN 0-9626708-3-9, A5, 52pp, $5:95 from Talisman, P.O. Box 321, Beech Grove, IN 46107, USA. Major new collection of visionary text by the leading contemporary poet of surreal mysticism and horror. Illustrated with the author's own collages – including one from BBR #6 – this chapbook brings together work first published in Alpha Gallery, Global Tapestry, Grue, Ice River, Semiotext(e) SF, Year's Best Horror and elsewhere.

PSYCHOS An Anthology of Psychological Horror in Verse
edited by Michael A. Arnzen
A5, 80pp, $6 from Mastication Publications, c/o Michael A. Arnzen, P.O. Box 3712, Moscow, ID 83843-1916, USA. Brand new verse and short shorts to blur the thin line between fantastic imagination and terrifying insanity, from Sallee, Sneyd, Winter-Damon, Darlington, Mecklem, Rasnic Tem, Jurgens, Dumars and many more. A definitive collection.

THE MOUND AND OTHER SF STORIES FROM THE LOW LANDS
A5, 84pp p/b, enquire to Roelof Goudriaan, Caan van Necklan 63, 2281 BB Rijswijk, The Netherlands.
   This collection contains the five 1990 winners of the major Dutch SF story prize, the King Kong Award, and was published in both Dutch and English editions to coincide with the 1990 WorldCon in the Hague.
   Paul Harland's "The Winter Garden" at first reminded me of Lord of the Flies: a community of boys inhabit a verdant oasis in the midst of an apparently boundless snowscape. Surrounded by a magical rosebush hedge that protects it from the harsh environment outside, the garden provides an Eden-like setting for the boys' community. As in Golding's novel, however, their society must learn how to cope with a malevolent and destructive force in its midst. The result is a tragic, poignant yet supremely hopeful work of fiction that is utterly deserving of its place among the award-winners.
   In comparison, the story that gives its name to the collection is something of a disappointment. "The Mound" hinges on a rather simplistic fatal flaw in its central character, leaving the impression that Jan Bee Landman was too preoccupied with the story's conflict of lifestyles to give believable depth to its protagonists.
   "The Desirable Lot of the Slender Ones" is perhaps the most ambitious of these stories in terms of its scope. A baroque fantasy that is at turns lovestruck, humorous, sad and satirical, it shows that Thomas Wintner has mastered the rare skill of communicating breadth of vision with economy and precision. One thing's for sure, fighting the flab was never like this!
   Finally, two stories of a more conventional nature. Gerben Hellinga Jr's "Knowfather" presents an off-world hunter who swuddenly discovers that he is held in great esteem by the indigenous population, while in "Their Descriptive God, Softly Weeping", Jan J.B. Kuipers describes the fall of Babylon, whilst the instigator of its ruin looks on helplessly.
   All five stories are extremely well translated, a task performed by three of the actual contributors which no doubt makes sympathetic treatments that much easier to achieve. Both style and content cover a lot of ground, which goes to prove – as this volume was produced to demonstrate – that Dutch science fiction has a firm and lasting place in the world.
   The Dutch edition has long since sold out – but strangely, that's not the case for the English version. There's some very impressive fiction on offer here, and this collection well deserves your attention.

IMMEDIATE ARTS WRITERS' DIRECTORY 1992

A5, 52pp p/b, £2:50 from Immediate Arts, 26 Lyndhurst Gardens, Glasgow G20 6QY. A directory of over 300 independent and small press publishers in the poetry and literary/SF/F/H fiction fields. Even allowing for the standard disclaimer, however, several of the genre entries are well out of date, and sample copy and subscription price details somewhat inconsistent. And don't be fooled by the price of this directory – the information given about publishers' requirements is on a par with Light's List.

BARDDONI
C60 cassette, £2 from Pete Presford, Rose Cottage, Buckley, Clwyd, Wales CH7 3JB. Pete adopts the Jules Holland Walking to New Orleans approach of just 'stumbling' on his contributors during the fictitious odyssey that forms the basis of this tape. As well as poetry from J.F. Haines, Simon Clark, Steve Sneyd, Andy Darlington and more, there's music courtesy of Storm Clouds and the Sonic Energy Commission. The overall concept works well, and though the sound quality of the original pieces is a bit ropey in places, the finished result is a lot more relaxed and natural than a formal studio reading.

SOUND SF: THE TAPE MAGAZINE
#0: C60 cassette, £2 from Paul Beardsley, 100 Southleigh Road, Havant, Hants PO9 2PR. Imaginative backing and sound effects bring to life stories from Auguries by Matthew Dickens, Paul Beardsley, D.F. Lewis and Nik Daws – plus new material by Neville Barnes. Depending on the success of this prospectus, future issues will publish more original fiction on a longer tape. Despite some wooden reading in places it's a worthwhile production, great for playing in the car, and a particularly effective means of bringing small press SF to the visually impaired.

WAX OR THE DISCOVERY OF TELEVISION AMONG THE BEES
by David Blair
VHS, 85 min, $36 from David Blair, P.O. Box 174, Cooper Station, New York, NY 10276, USA. Pioneering "independent electronic science fiction cinema" which combines archive footage, new video and stunning computer animation. Enigmatic bees, state of the art weapons, wandering souls and strange planets all feature in this fascinating and technically impressive work.

COLD TONNAGE
Apr 92: A5, 36pp, free for A5 SAE from Cold Tonnage Books, Andy Richards, 136 New Road, Bedfont, Feltham, Middlesex TW14 8HT. Perhaps the finest selections of SF, fantasy and horror in the country. It's a collectors' paradise, with signed, hardback and limited editions a speciality.

COMMON GROUND
1992 complete catalogue: A4, 260pp p/b, enquire for price and overseas availability to Common Ground Distributors, 370 Airport Road, Arden, North Carolina 28704, USA. Specialist distributor for a vast range of books, audio and video related to nature and the environment. A flick through this hefty catalogue reveals lavish picture books and activity packs to make natural history fascinating and exciting for kids (and their parents!); elsewhere, gardeners can choose from a host of books on organic cultivation, and lesser-known techniques such as xeriscape (low water) landscaping. For those with a serious concern for the environment, titles such as 50 Simple Things You Can Do to Save the Earth and The Recycler's Handbook provide the means to put ideas into action.

DARK CARNIVAL
#2 (Mar/Apr 92): A5, 16pp; #3 (Jul-Sept 92): A5, 22pp, free for A5 SAE from Dark Carnival Distribution, c/o Steve, 21 Avon Road, Scunthorpe DN16 1EP. Small press mail order distributor specialising in the horror end of the spectrum. Loads of obscure magazines, comics, videos and T-shirts.

GRYPHON PUBLICATIONS
1991-92: A5, 16pp, free (overseas surface $1) from Gryphon Publications, P.O. Box 209, Brooklyn, NY 11228-0209, USA. The publisher of Paperback Parade magazine (see above) also offers other titles connected with the vintage and collectable paperback field. Critical titles such as Science Fiction Detective Tales and Amazing Pulp Heroes rub shoulders with volumes of new fiction in the various pulp genres, including the Gryphon Doubles series and Hardboiled Detective magazine.

MANDRAKE
#4 (1991/92): A5, 16pp, free for A5 SAE from Mandrake Distribution, P.O. Box 250, Oxford, OX1 1AP. Specialist distributors in magick, the leading edge of the occult and new writing which is radical and subversive, Mandrake offer such titles as Surrealism and the Occult, Prophesy and Heresy, Sickert and the Ripper Crimes and Tantra Magick: A Handbook.

RICHARD WILLIAMS (BOOKDEALER)
#40 (Summer 1992): A5, 40pp from Richard Williams (Bookdealer), 15 High Street, Dragonby, Scunthorpe, South Humberside DN15 0BE. Quarterly catalogue of paperbacks, hardbacks and periodicals dealing with all aspects of popular fiction – crime, SF, westerns, book club, Penguin, Edgar Wallace and so on.