2026 Recommended Books/Stories/TV/Movies

 

Yes, folks, it's that time again. I must make a list and check it twice, so as to find out who's been naughty and nice.  

Short Story

I've started subscribing to The Deadlands, and the very first issue, Winter 2026, has a banger of a story. "You Build Your House On Your Father's Corpse," by Sadoeuphemist, is a surreal exploration of death and parenting.

Young Adult

To Ride a Rising Storm, Moniquill Blackgoose (This book isn't as good as the first in the series, To Shape a Dragon's Breath; it's very much a middle-trilogy book, including an abrupt and somewhat annoying cliffhanger ending. Nevertheless, the world is made more complex, and if this story is quieter and more slice-of-life [and also clearly setting things up for the finale], it makes up for it with its expanded worldbuilding. Indeed, the magical sigils, called "skiltas," that control a dragon's breath are becoming so convoluted I can hardly follow them. That's on me, however, not the author. Anequs and her dragon are growing up, and she is even more determined to preserve her people and their way of life, protecting them from the culture-destroying Anglish.)

I didn't expect too much from  Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, wondering if they perhaps should have titled it Star Trek 90210. I have been pleasantly surprised, as this season has had a four-episode (so far) run that has made it worth the price of admission. The four episodes are "Vox in Excelso," "The Life of the Stars," "Series Acclimation Mil," and "Come, Let's Away." I think my favorite of the bunch is "The Life of the Stars," an absorbing and emotional examination of coping with trauma, set to the students' performance of the play Our Town. Robert Picardo shines in this episode.