Renaissance Writer: Gordon A. Long

REVIEW

“Li-Ming the Sand Witch” by Steven Allen

by renaissanceadmin • 2026-01-11 • 0 Comments

A word to the author. Fiction should never need an introduction. It is a sign that the author is intruding into the story, trying to affect our reaction to it because he doesn’t believe the story can stand on its own. In the case of this introduction, it seems meant to draw us in, attract…

Jagged Worlds: Avoid Your Senseless Death” by Cliff Galbraith

by renaissanceadmin • 2026-01-04 • 0 Comments

Science Fiction isn’t a genre. It’s a setting. Of necessity, the story line must deal with a specific conflict of some type. So we have Sci-Fi Romance, Sci-Fi Military, Sci-Fi Action, Sci-Fi Detective and the list goes on. This novel should probably be labeled a Sci-Fi Business Procedural. The story provides an in-depth look at…

“Beyond the Crystal Sky” by Glen C. Strathy

by renaissanceadmin • 2025-12-28 • 0 Comments

This novel is a version of the “Generation Ship Gone Haywire” variety, but with an interesting format. Most of the narrative involves the main character, Perdit, describing the events of the story to the AI that runs the Ship. In most novels this would devolve into a mind-numbing info dump, but this author is above…

“Secrets of the Sky Gods” by Ryan McBride

by renaissanceadmin • 2025-12-20 • 0 Comments

This novel is Epic Fantasy in the most sweeping scope and style, but the book’s true appeal comes from the portrayal of the main character, Runa. Much of the conflict is internal. There are four ways to show personality: what the author tells us directly, what the character says, what the character does, and what…

“AI Risen” by Endoc Evans

by renaissanceadmin • 2025-12-13 • 0 Comments

This book has all the elements of a good Sci-Fi story. It discusses the rise of Artificial Intelligence, which is topical these days. It has a detailed future setting with a realistic social order. It has a reasonable amount of hi-tech gadgetry. It has sympathetic and admirable characters we can empathize with. It has a…

“Armstrong’s War” by Colleen Murphy

by renaissanceadmin • 2025-12-06 • 0 Comments

Victoria Theatre I took an afternoon off today for a bit of entertainment in Victoria’s local theatre scene: “Armstrong’s War,” by Colleen Murphy, presented to a sold-out crowd of 60 at the Theatre Inconnu, directed by Morgan Gadd. I can see why my friend wanted to direct this play. It is simple in composition, straightforward…

“Dappled Leaves and Dust” by Isabella Wu

by renaissanceadmin • 2025-12-02 • 0 Comments

Poetry is hard to review, because different types of poets have different objectives in their writing. With my theatre background, I come to poetry from a performance point of view. I gather Ms. Wu comes from a more academic background. There are bound to be disagreements. For example, there is a cute bit of visual…

“Shamaness – The Silent Seer” by C. C. Jirón

by renaissanceadmin • 2025-11-30 • 0 Comments

This novel is a Fantasy love story, a coming-of-age tale that becomes a character’s life story, concentrating on her youth and old age but reflecting multiple images of different generations of her family and friends. The fractured plotline could be confusing, jumping back and forth between the girl she was and the grandmother she is,…

“Little Amani” Chaili Trilogy 1 by Warwick Gibson

by renaissanceadmin • 2025-11-23 • 0 Comments

First: why you might want to pick up this novel. It’s a good Sci-Fi, “rebels against the empire” tale. It has likeable, believable characters, and the creative dodge is having the rebel leaders mostly women, which brings a refreshing change to the tone of their revolution and the story. The Sci-Fi and historical background is…

“Unfortunately, I Was Available” by Jon Hart

by renaissanceadmin • 2025-11-16 • 0 Comments

I’m not too sure how to label this book. Perhaps “Autobiographical Vignettes.” It is a series of short tales taken from the author’s work as a film extra. Part of the draw for this sort of work is the possibility of learning something about an area of our society that is closed to us. Hart…

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