Pluto Award Nominations listed!

Not one but two are the numbers I see
Nominated authors from TWCP!

So go check out my blog post for the entire list! ;)

Sue Dent and Stephen Rice.

Of course last year was our own very special (cootie infested) Frank Creed! ;) Or maybe that was the year before last. Nevertheless, a TWCP author.

League of Superheroes has a home

www.christiansuperheroes.com


Stephen Leon Rice's Christian sci-fi/ superheroes books have a brand new home.

Do check out the website and make sure you click on the "Author" button!

The website creation is by Grace Bridges; I think you'll agree that she did a bang-up job.

Do it! Go now!

Review of League of Superheroes by Stephen Rice

When it comes to Christian superheroes, I'm really more of a Larryboy fangirl, myself. It's very hard to make a Bible-quoting superhero work, in my humble opinion. Bibleman, for example--could anyone take that show seriously? Batman meets a revival of stereotypical proportions. I wouldn't even bother showing that to my kids--they'd laugh and not for good reasons like with Veggie Tales cartoons.

Well, if you'd like your kids to read about Christian superheroes they can identify with, I recommend Steven Rice's League of Superheroes. Here's a fun easy read about a band of teenage kids (plus one little sister) who meet a cyborg supergenius online. Genie gifts them with supersuits based on their favorite comic book heroes, setting them up for trouble with the mega-corporation who created Genie and intend to keep her--and any of her inventions--for their own nefarious purposes.

Oh, did that read like a comic book plot? It should. Steve was very obviously having fun with the comic book stereotypes, as well as the unbelievably intelligent-yet-doomed-to-endure-high-school cast of teens. He nonetheless crafts an enjoyable read and keptt he characters from becoming perfect geniuses, a la Wesley Crusher. I especially liked Rod's misadventures with his suit. The heroes at times strayed into unbelievable goodness, yet still had some of the common foibles of teenage boys--a certain disdain for little sisters, a penchant for getting into trouble, and the like--that kept them from becoming caricatures rather than characters.

If you like plausible technobabble, you'll love this book. Steve is very careful to give scientifically possible methods for each one of the supersuit's capabilities--and does a good job of explaining them. Makes me want to go back and check out a quantum physics book. He also gave each suit a limitation, which I appreciate. Can you imagine how insufferable a teenage boy with the perfect supersuit could be?

Steve also does his best to represent a tapestry of Christian beliefs, as the characters are Catholic, Baptist, Assembly of God and non-denominational, and he does a fair job of representing all the beliefs in a valid and positive light. Since the story is told from Tom's point of view, it has a decidedly Protestant angle. I found some of the religious dialogue and events a little heavy-handed for my taste, especially toward the end, but not enough to call it sermon-in-a-story. (One of my pet peeves.)

Steve has a nice, straightforward writing style that's good for the middle reader--I'd recommend this book for 4th or 5th grade and up. Plus, Steven, on occasion, comes up with a killer line: I felt like a Biblical character who had just received a patriarchal blessing—honored, mature, strong, and above all, so scared that I needed to use the bathroom. He also has a lot of skill with ending a chapter in such a way that you want to turn the next page, so watch out if you read this as a bedtime story to your kids.

Review by Karina Fabian, www.fabianspace.com

Great Reviews for League of Superheroes!

Just look at some of the review excerpts Stephen L. Rice received from the FIRST Wildcard tour!

". . . a super-fun read! This group of geeky teens must save the world with their unique skills…and try not to get caught by their folks!"

". . . a highly entertaining story with some terrific spiritual lessons explained along the way! It sounds like there are more adventures ahead for this unusual group, so if you like superheroes, then Stephen Leon Rice is someone you need to look into further!"

". . . a really great book. when I first started reading it it reminded me a bit of Maximum Ride....but MUCH BETTER! seriously...you guys should get a copy to read of this book!"

"I'm hooked. Very creative and enjoyable. I plan on passing it on to my niece and nephew next. They're picky readers, but I think this is one they'll enjoy."

". . . funny, dynamic, and a real thriller. I can't wait to see the next adventures of the League of Superheroes!"

"Rice writes with humor and heart. I was laughing so loud during the scene when Rod acquires his suit, I was afraid that my family would think I was crazy. Rice taps into the insecurities that come with adolescence and gives each boy a strong individual personality. The plot moves whiplash fast, and the story is compelling."














League of Superheroes
Stephen Leon Rice
Christian Science Fiction
Young Adult
ISBN: 978-1-934284-0-56
TWCP; October 2008; $9.95; 216 pg.

Support Rice's Habit

World need saving?
This looks like a job for . . .
Geeks?
Yeah, geeks. I mean, who else is going to figure out how to use a super suit? Not some jock!

I'm Tom Reilly, a language geek; Rod Davies is the math and physics genius, the smartest guy in high school; Allen is our hacker; and Charlie is our doctor wannabe. Then there's Clarice, Allen's little sister. You know how kids are. And Genie, of course—the self-described "little girl" we know only from chat rooms. She's the smartest person in history—and probably the most endangered.

We've got to save her and the world. I hope we don't get grounded.



For anyone who enjoys superheroes, this is your book! Not only does the author present a compelling story full of action and excitement, the dialogue is so much fun with the League bantering back and forth. LOS reminds me of an adult version of Jon Scieszka's Time Warp Trio books. But, this book isn't all about laughs and guffaws, the LOS tackle some pretty serious subjects along the way, and the action is real.

Support Stephen Rice's habit of telling bad jokes, purchase copies of LOS today!

--at Barnes & Noble, OR
--you can purchase an autographed copy from the publisher TWCP
--or at a bunch of other online stores or ask for your local bookstore to order it in . . .
or if you must, you can buy it from amazon (boo amazon).


League of Superheroes
Stephen Leon Rice
Category: Christian science fiction
ISBN: 978-1-934284-05-6
Pub. Date: October 1, 2008
Retail Price: $9.95
Pages: 168
Pub: TWCP

An "Atta-Boy"

Excerpt from a new review of Light at the Edge of Darkness at Dancing Word Review.


"I like to pick up the occasional collection from time to time, to see if there are any exceptional writers coming up over the literary horizon.

* * *

I mentioned that I was looking for new talent. Three particular authors: Frank Creed, Andrea Graham, and Stephen L. Rice (whose Pratchett-like At the Mountains of Lunacy makes it worthwhile to purchase the entire collection) shine like beacons in this anthology. If you decide to borrow this book from a friend, make sure you read the last six short stories, because it looks like the editor really did save the best for last."

Meet Stephen Rice

Stephen Rice has always enjoyed telling humorous and dramatic stories.

He has a B.A. (double major) in Linguistics and in Foreign Languages, and an M.A. in English (Professional Writing and Editing), both from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. His writing frequently involves someone with an interest in languages, and he has been known to invent languages for stories.

He writes mostly science fiction, with an emphasis on scientific and theological accuracy. (His motto is "Hard science, hard theology, easy reading.") He won't write a story he can't justify theologically.

His first novella was Galatea, a Tale of the Atonement, but the first story he started on was A World Apart, intended to be the first book of a YA sci-fi series. He tends more toward series at the moment, such as "Changelings," "The League of Superheroes," and "The False Dawn."

His current projects include "The League of Superheroes" origin series (he is now working on the fifth and final origin book, Genie Reborn) and several short stories.