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Great Science-Fiction & Fantasy Works
Science-fiction & fantasy literature: a critical list with discussions.
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This is a brief discussion of Michael Cisco and, of course, of some speculative-fiction books by Cisco.
This discussion and list does not necessarily include every book by Cisco: it includes only those books that I both know and like. Just as with the author list itself, omission of a particular item may mean I didn’t think highly enough of the omitted item, or it may simply mean that I have not yet sufficient familiarity with it. (In a very few cases, I have listed some books merely on the strength of my opinion of the author: all such books are clearly marked below, as throughout these lists, with a hash mark (#) before the title so you know what’s what.)
I don’t pretend that this discussion is a deep analysis. My intent is no more than to give you a rough idea of what kinds of tales Cisco tells, how those tales are usually told, and what makes them and Cisco worthy; in sum, to help you rank Michael Cisco (and the works by Cisco listed here) on your personal literary “to do” list.
A Few Words About Michael Cisco
Regrettably, I have not yet had an opportunity to write an essay on this author, but the “Other Resources” section below will lead you to some information about the “Notable Books” listed farther down this page.
I will note, though, that as I get farther into his oeuvre, I begin to suspect that he may be a 4-star author.
Cisco has a web site, Michael Cisco; he also has a blog, Dead Pan—though its last entry is from December of 2018.
The estimable Jeff VanderMeer, who is—to put it mildly—an enthusiastic advocate of Cisco’s work, posted a blog entry about one of Cisco’s books (The Traitor) entitled, simply and cogently, BUY THIS BOOK NOW; VanderMeer also has other Cisco-related posts of note, including Michael Cisco’s The Traitor. Nick Mamatas is another with a worthwhile review of The Traitor up. Cisco’s earlier breakthrough novel The Divinity Student is also reviewed online, by Rick Kleffel at The Agony Column (not once but twice: scroll down the page), and at The Green Man Review [archived copy].
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