book cover launch

Virtual Book Launch

Please join me in celebrating my soon-to-be-released book by Palgrave titled Women’s Agency in the Dune Universe: Tracing Women’s Liberation through Science Fiction at a virtual book launch on Monday, December 20 at 1pm PST / 4pm EST / 6pm BRT / 9pm GMT / 10pm CET. I will be joined in conversation with co-host Dr. Russ Sloan from Doc Sloan’s Science Fiction Station. Register on the event page or click below! This book is the first major study of female characters in Frank Herbert’s original Dune series and takes a historical approach to exploring the representation of the women of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood. More information will

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Dune cinnamon spice cookies in front of orange lettered book

Dune Spice Cookies

Imagine you’ve somehow entered the science fiction universe of Frank Herbert’s Dune and you’re on the planet Arrakis… What does it smell like? What does the precious spice or ‘melange’ on which so many things depend taste like? Cinnamon. At least ten references to the odor or taste of cinnamon appear in the book. When Duke Leto and Paul are checking out the spice mining operations and open the door of their ornithopter, “Immediately, their nostrils were assailed by the odor of cinnamon—heavy and pungent.” When a sandworm pursues Jessica and Paul in the desert, “Cinnamon yelled in their nostrils.” Infused with melange, coffee

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Dune: Imperium board game

Dune: Imperium Board Game Review

Dune: Imperium (2020) retains the essence of factions fighting for control of resources, but brings them out into the main gameplay more than its predecessor Dune (2019) board game. It feels more like you are playing politics rather than physically maneuvering around the planet Dune, as was the case in the previous game with its constantly moving storm and spice caches. The left-hand side of the board features the four factions of the Emperor, Spacing Guild, Bene Gesserit, and Fremen. On the top are the Landsraad Council and CHOAM, and the planet Dune takes up the main board area. Each player takes

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Dune board game

Dune (2019) Board Game Review

If you’re looking for another way to immerse yourself in the Dune universe beyond the books, playing the Dune (2019) board game (also called DUNE: A Game of Conquest, Diplomacy & Betrayal) is a good option, especially if you already enjoy playing strategic board games. It took a while for me to actually sit down and dedicate the time to play because reviews talk about how difficult and complex the game is. Plus, it is supposed to play best with several players, and despite years of trying to convince some of my friends who play board games to read Dune, they

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planet with light glare on top

My First WorldCon in Aotearoa New Zealand

Indigenous voices were the first ones I heard at CoNZealand – the 78th World Science Fiction Convention (WorldCon) that was based in Aotearoa New Zealand but went virtual due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This happened to be due to the fact that I had work until mid-afternoon on opening day so had missed the previous sessions, but the “Infinite Entangled Futures: Indigenous Voices in Conversation” panel was a wonderful introduction to my first WorldCon. Admittedly, I wouldn’t consider myself a typical science fiction and fantasy (SFF) fan, even though I have enjoyed these genres since youth and devoted a considerable

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