Books Seeds of Story Egalitarian Operas, Stolen Melodies, and Whalesong: Tom Service’s A History of the World in 50 Pieces Exploring the ways in which music both reflects and changes history and culture. By Ruthanna Emrys | Published on January 13, 2026 Comment 0 Share New Share Welcome to Seeds of Story, where I explore the non-fiction that inspires—or should inspire—speculative fiction. Every couple weeks, we’ll dive into a book, article, or other source of ideas that are sparking current stories, or that have untapped potential to do so. Each article will include an overview of the source(s), a review of its readability and plausibility, and highlights of the best two or three “seeds” found there. This week, I cover Tom Service’s A History of the World in 50 Pieces: The Classical Music That Shapes Us, which dives into the intersections between music and the rest of history, from Australian songlines to opera to that ‘70s whalesong album. What It’s About 50 Pieces is sponsored by the BBC, and for both better and worse you can tell. Each piece gets a short explanation of its creation, its initial performance and reception, what makes it unique, and how its influence and play have developed since. The book is very specifically about pieces—that is, guidance (e.g., notation) for performing music that has both continuity and variation across performances. Pieces can be passed down through generations, across communities, and occasionally across species. What is held constant and what changes varies. Songlines are collaboration with and documentation of travel through a changing landscape; Yoko Ono’s “Cut Piece” is a set of directions; Julius Eastman’s “Stay on It” defines causal relationships between what each musician hears from the rest of the ensemble, and what they personally play next. Pieces are shaped by conformity with norms, as in the debates over whether polyphony is okay in Catholic sacred vocals, and by their violation, as in the post-World War II search for alternatives to fascism-tainted tradition. Service is particularly interested in the history of opera, but also makes a serious effort to expand both the definition of “classical” and membership in the canon. We start with Enheduanna, history’s first named author, and her hymns address both political goals (merging cults from recently-connected polities) and personal ones (legacy and recognition). Later we get Jewish cantillation, Hildegard von Bingen, a rare preserved song from a female troubadour, the patterns of change-ringing in church bells, a Haitian-French revolutionary and egalitarian opera, “Happy Birthday,” West Side Story, and of course Yoko Ono and those whales. Buy the Book A History of the World in 50 Pieces: The Classical Music That Shapes Us Tom Service Buy Book A History of the World in 50 Pieces: The Classical Music That Shapes Us Tom Service Buy this book from: AmazoniBooks A few of the pieces are notably connected to science and science fiction. Prince Mangkunegara’s “Kinds of Flowers” is recorded on Voyager’s Golden Record. It’s a cyclical piece typical of gamelan orchestras, and Service uses it to illustrate how different approaches to music represent different approaches to time. Breq in Ancillary Justice sings “L’homme armé,” an anonymous tune of military warning later incorporated into a mass by Josquin Desprez. Did Leckie’s protagonist know that it’s a song about war that later became used in an argument for spiritual peace? (I assume Leckie knew full well.) The recording and publicization of whalesong led to major whaling bans and helped push the growth of the environmental movement—nor was the timing of Star Trek IV a coincidence. 50 Pieces came up on one of my online communities, and I was excited enough about the contents to want to read it immediately. It benefits tremendously from reading it with your favorite music streaming service at hand, so you can sample the pieces and avoid the whole “dancing about architecture” problem. I’m very glad I read it, and feel inspired to include more influential musical pieces in my stories—and frustrated with its flaws. Service is a white Christian British guy, and admits from the start that his choices will be biased toward the Western and European, a bias that he actively and sometimes awkwardly works against. It’s also very opera-heavy, in a way that genre superfans will get a lot out of, but which I found frustrating relative to the larger range of classical forms that might have been included. More Jewish and Islamic music, paralleling and interacting with the development of Christian music! More musicals! Inevitably, if someone asks you to pick 50 pieces, many things will be left out, and you’re going to focus on what you know and love most. For some of Service’s deliberately atypical choices, I felt like he left off just when I was getting really interested, and I would’ve liked a few more pages unpacked from places where he devotes a scant paragraph to a piece’s social and political impacts. If this song fed into a social movement or the shape of a war, or was part of a big push to be as different from Wagner as possible, I want to learn more! I also could have used a bit less self-consciousness about his inclusion of female composers in particular (lots of “first woman to X”—sometimes where I’m pretty sure she was in fact the first X, period). At the same time, I enjoyed learning more about corners new to me: the role of troubadairitz, how Handel’s Messiah got people out of debtor’s prisons, the complicated political history of Shostakovich’s “Leningrad.” I also appreciated the use of Solomon Linda’s “Mbube” and Patty and Mildred Hill’s “Happy Birthday” to illustrate the deeply fraught relationship between composition, performance, and modern intellectual property regimes. Questioning list choices is the easy, beginner-level response to any “X best/most influential/whatever” list, but I do think that he should have included (1) Porgy and Bess, which marks a seminal connection between opera and musicals, and (2) Tallis’ Spem in Alium (the 40-Part Motet), which is an acme of both polyphonic music and the potential of live performance. If nothing else, the book introduced me to several excellent creators and pieces. John Luther Adams’ “Become Ocean” may become a highlight of my writing mixes whenever I’m working on something water-related. The Best Seeds for Speculative Stories The Whales. If there’s one illustration of how dramatically art can change the world, it’s Songs of the Humpback Whale, listed in the table of contents as “Released by Roger Payne, 1970; cetacean creators from c. one million years ago—present day.” I had it on cassette, purchased from the racks at Earth House and listened to incessantly. What I didn’t know in the ’80s, because I was just coming into real political awareness, was that prior to Frank Wadlington’s initial recordings off Bermuda, most of the world thought of whales as silent, and anti-whaling movements as a weird fringe. (It doesn’t come up here, but I know from elsewhere that several Arctic marine mammal-hunting cultures knew full well, and were generally ignored.) The ’80s and ’90s were full of stories mourning the likely extinction of whales—see above, re: Star Trek IV. Yet today there are around 135,000 humpbacks in the ocean, and other species have experienced similarly dramatic recoveries. Much of that change in attitude is due to the shock of unexpected whalesong. Sometimes we don’t listen, even to humans—but catch us at the right angle, and sometimes we do. What kinds of songs, and what kinds of listening, will cause this kind of dramatic transformation in the future? What assumptions about unavoidable loss may we yet prove wrong? What Can Music Be? Every culture has assumptions about what music is for, what sounds belong in it, what patterns make sense, what instruments you can expect players to have available. One of the fascinating things about modern avant-garde classical is the questioning of these assumptions. Some composers change what’s specified in a score, focusing more on cross-musician relationships or environmental constraints than specific timed notes. Others play with “extended musical techniques” and the full range of what the human voice can do. Some pieces are unexpectedly long or short, or continue from the foundation of previous performances like a Pandemic Legacy game. Knowing what humans are doing now, and have done over the last several thousand years, can help writers give aliens, non-human animals, and far-future cultures music that would stand out at your local symphony orchestra. New Growth: What Else to Read Sarah Pinsker’s A Song for a New Day celebrates the value and meaning of live music, and the things you can’t get through a recording. You should also listen to Pinsker’s actual music, and read “Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather.” Ryka Aoki’s Light From Uncommon Stars is about competitive violin playing, selling your soul for musical legacy, and donuts. Neal Stephenson’s Anathem will not be everyone’s jam, but it includes math-based music from a scientific monastery and you can get the album. Tom Breihan’s The Number Ones column has been working though a song-by-song history of Billboard Number Ones, getting into the rock/pop industry and changes in how people encounter songs and changes in fashion, and really it is not entirely unlike 50 Pieces. Ted Gioia’s Music: A Subversive History is on my TBR list, and focuses on the marginalized origins of popular music. I’ve also heard good things about Charles King’s Every Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel’s Messiah. What music has shaped you? What would be on your list of influential pieces? Share in the comments![end-mark] The post Egalitarian Operas, Stolen Melodies, and Whalesong: Tom Service’s <i>A History of the World in 50 Pieces</i> appeared first on Reactor.

Books cover reveals Revealing The Devil Knows Her Name by C. N. Vair A witch sold her soul to save her life — but now she must stop the devil from collecting his due… By Reactor | Published on January 13, 2026 Photo credit: Elizabeth Snyder Photography, LLC Comment 0 Share New Share Photo credit: Elizabeth Snyder Photography, LLC We’re thrilled to share the cover of C. N. Vair’s debut horror novel The Devil Knows Her Name, available August 25, 2026 from Berkley Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House. A hundred years ago, a witch sold her soul to save her life—but now she must stop the devil from collecting his due in this gripping and nuanced debut horror novel.The devil was as my mother and grandmother had always described him: polite enough that you might forget yourself, so beautiful that you’d want to, so dangerous if you did.Attacked by a man she trusted and at the brink of death, Tess Wynn vowed she would do anything to live—and the devil heard her. Their bargain meant she would remain unaging and tethered to the land she nearly died on, near the isolated Appalachian town of Burrsville. Her home is now a wildlife sanctuary, and the spells she’s woven keep the land and the community safe. Every autumn, the devil returns, gentle but perilously offering Tess more power in exchange for a foothold from which to corrupt the human world. And every autumn, the witch refuses. But when a new pastor comes to town and begins chipping away at the trust she’s gained with the people there, threatening the sanctuary and its animals, the careful edges of Tess’s world begin to fray. The devil whispers in her ear that it’s time to pay his price—and Tess must decide if she will fight for everything she holds dear—or succumb to his will. Cover design by Stephen Meditz Buy the Book The Devil Knows Her Name C.N. Vair Buy Book The Devil Knows Her Name C.N. Vair Buy this book from: AmazonBarnes and NobleiBooksIndieBoundTarget C. N. Vair (she/her) is a horror and dark fantasy author living in western New York. A former journalist, she’s interested in the history and haunted corners of small towns, the magic and malice of the natural world, and power in all its forms. When she’s not writing, you can find her wandering in woods and cemeteries, growing poisonous plants in her garden, or spending time with her husband and dogs. The post Revealing <i>The Devil Knows Her Name</i> by C. N. Vair appeared first on Reactor.

Books Necessary Whimsy Necessary Whimsy: Wintry Reads for Hibernating Goblins We could all use a little more light and laughter right now, so let’s get reading… By Lish McBride | Published on January 13, 2026 Hogfather cover art by Josh Kirby Comment 0 Share New Share Hogfather cover art by Josh Kirby If you’ve been on this site for a minute—and by a minute, I mean many years—you might remember a handful of posts on here called Necessary Whimsy, where I talked about funny and whimsical SFF books. At the time it felt like we were all struggling and needed some joy. (Oh, past me. You had no idea what horrors lay in store.) And now… well, now we need it even more. It made sense for me to start up again in these early days of January, in a month where darkness is shifting back into light. I live in the Pacific Northwest, friends, where sunset is at four PM as I write this, but I think we all could use a light in the darkness. For people that don’t know me well, it might surprise some that I love the holidays so much. I mean, I used to work retail. I should hiss every time I hear a holiday song. Maybe it’s because my mother loves the holidays and passed that along to me and my brothers. Maybe it’s because there are several Muppet holiday films, and I am a die-hard Muppet fan. It could also be that I love any excuse to burrow into blankets with a hot drink, my mom’s homemade Chex mix or cookies, and read a book while surrounded by fairy lights. Winter is made for goblin mode, and I, my friends, am all goblin. I don’t love the stress holidays bring. The hectic pace at a time when we should be hibernating and slowing down. And for many people, the inescapable social obligations with people you’d rather not see. The holidays can be rough. So why am I, after we have survived the holiday gauntlet, offering up books featuring winter holidays? Isn’t it a little late? The thing is that some people will want to drag out the feeling of joy or catch up on the fun bits they haven’t had time for yet. For others…well, sometimes reading can help you process the bad stuff, and escaping for a few pages into a world of whimsy can do just that. So, whether you love it or hate it, whether you delight in the early nights, or struggle with seasonal depression, here’s some whimsy from me to you. A gift with no obligations. Hogfather by Terry Pratchett I must, of course, start with a book that’s, “supposed to be jolly, with mistletoe and holly… and other things ending in olly.” If you’ve never read it, the Hogfather is the Discworld’s version of Father Christmas. The Hogfather has gone missing and Death has donned the suit and must deliver all the toys in his place. It’s filled with tooth fairies, wizards, assassins, and humor, of course, but because it’s Pratchett, he’s snuck in a ton of discussion about social issues, class, and poverty. What I also love is that there are great audio and film adaptations of Hogfather. This year I listened to the newer audiobook with Peter Serafinowicz as Death, Sian Clifford as the narrator, and Bill Nighy performing the footnotes, and I think they do an amazing job. If you’ve been reluctant to watch the two-part 2006 miniseries, don’t be—Sir Terry had a hand in it, and it is very faithful to the original. I watch it every year. Sanctuary by Ilona Andrews This is kind of a hear me out, because it doesn’t sound whimsical. Sanctuary is set in the world of Kate Daniels, following Roman, the Black Volhv, who serves Chernobog the god of destruction, darkness and death. There’s a pretty high body count in this novella for a work that’s supposed to be full of whimsy. But that’s why it’s kind of perfect—this is a story of joy in the darkness. Whimsy and gallows humor make great dancing partners as they tango their way into a solid coping mechanism. Roman might work for a dark god, but he’s also a kind person doing his best in a rough world. He’s out of eggnog, his house is full of freeloading mythical creatures who all have a different feeding time and system, and there is glitter everywhere. Even if you haven’t read any books in the series, I think you can still pick this one up as Team Andrews does a good job catching you up on any info you need to know. For audiobook fans, Chris Brinkley is the narrator on this one and I absolutely adored his performance. A Lot Like Christmas by Connie Willis This collection started out life as Miracle and Other Christmas Stories and is like a sampler platter of whimsy: Twelve stories packed with insight, joy, and heart. I personally felt very vindicated by the first story that has a running joke about how everyone thinks It’s a Wonderful Life is the best, except the narrator who is Team Miracle on 34th Street (the original) and same, Willis. Same. I also think the second story about a very human-like robot who wants to be a Rockette is particularly timely. Willis’ writing is very accessible and if you’ve never read her stuff before, this might be a good place to start. Winterfair Gifts by Lois McMaster Bujold I came to Bujold’s work late and have been making up for lost time. Her stories have really kept my sanity together the last few years and I think if you’ve read Pratchett and haven’t read Bujold, you should fix that. They’re both hilarious and kind but also sneak in some really pointed commentary that I love. Winterfair Gifts is a short read set in the world of her Vorkosigan series, but again I think you can read this without reading everything else, though you will run into some spoilers. If you want something wintery, romantic, and holiday-like, but not full of tinsel and ornaments, this is a good one. You can find this novella on its own, but I read it as part of the collection Miles in Love. Ring the Bells by C.K. McDonnell This is part of The Stranger Times series, which is about a motley crew of journalists, except the paper focuses on things like haunted toilets and possessed pets. In book one, the crew quickly realizes that some of their stories are very, very real. Personally, you can put the “ragtag group of heroes that becomes a slightly dysfunctional family” trope directly into my veins, thanks. And while like Sanctuary, there’s a high body count in this one—it starts out with a book club turned horrific triple murder, which I’m honestly surprised isn’t how more book clubs turn out—it’s also packed cheek to jowl with silliness and comedy. Old gods bent on vengeance, possessed Santas, delightful banter, and an ongoing incredibly awkward romance…this book has it all. Caimh McDonnell started out life as TV writer and stand-up comedian and it shows in his writing. I’ve listened to all of these books on audio, and I think Brendan McDonald, the narrator, is very engaging. (And while you will miss out on some of the series’ ongoing storyline, I do think you could read this book before the others if you so choose. Or you could find a cozy spot and just read all of them. You do you, boo.) The Stupidest Angel by Christopher Moore Somehow the Publishing Gods decided that Christopher Moore writes fiction, not SFF, which has baffled me on many occasions as most of his books have things like vampires, demons, giant sea monsters, gods and so forth. What I’m saying is, that if you mostly haunt the SFF section of your bookstore, you might be missing out on his work, which would be a shame. This book takes place in Pine Cove, a fictional California town, where a lot of Moore’s earlier books were set. I grew up in a small, seaside town, and Pine Cove reminds me of that—scenic, at times quaint, full of tourists, with a large percentage of absolutely unhinged locals. But, like, in a fun way. Moore has even tucked a Pine Cove version of “The Gift of the Magi” into this book, which plays out between the town constable, Theo, and his wife, Molly. If you’ve ever wanted to read a book that has a talking fruit bat, an incompetent angel, and a zombie Santa in it, Moore has created this bite-sized morsel just for you. While it likely can be read on its own, the book probably will be funnier if you’ve read the rest of the series.[end-mark] The post Necessary Whimsy: Wintry Reads for Hibernating Goblins appeared first on Reactor.

News One Piece One Piece Season 2 Trailer Features Mr. 13, Nico Robin, and Lot of Colorful Assassins Okay but can we talk about that otter By Molly Templeton | Published on January 12, 2026 Image: Netflix © 2025 Comment 0 Share New Share Image: Netflix © 2025 It’s less than two months until the second season of Netflix’s hit manga adaptation One Piece sets sail. News tidbits about season two have been on a steady drip for months already, from the announcement of new cast members (including Cole Escola and Xolo Maridueña, who are set to join the show in season 3) to a behind-the-scenes featurette. But now there’s a whole teaser—appropriately chaotic, mildly threatening, and introducing Nico Robin (Lera Abova), the vulture-riding otter Mr. 13, and a whole pile of assassins from the Baroque Works organization. Because this is One Piece, said assassins have delightfully outlandish outfits and wigs that hide machine guns. As one does. Here’s the synopsis: Netflix’s epic high-seas pirate adventure, One Piece, returns for Season 2—unleashing fiercer adversaries and the most perilous quests yet. Luffy and the Straw Hats set sail for the extraordinary Grand Line—a legendary stretch of sea where danger and wonder await at every turn. As they journey through this unpredictable realm in search of the world’s greatest treasure, they’ll encounter bizarre islands and a host of formidable new enemies. There are piles of new characters coming this season, including Callum Kerr as Captain Smoker, Julia Rehwald as Tashigi, Charithra Chandran as Miss Wednesday (also known as Nefertari Vivi), Brendan Sean Murray as Brogy, David Dastmalchian as Mr. 3, Joe Manganiello as Crocodile, Sendhil Ramamurthy as Nefertari Cobra, and Mikaela Hoover as the voice of Tony Tony Chopper. One Piece stars Iñaki Godoy as Monkey D. Luffy, Mackenyu as Roronoa Zoro, Emily Rudd as Nami, Jacob Gibson as Usopp, and Taz Skylar as Sanji. The series is based on the manga by Eiichiro Oda, and has Ian Stokes and Joe Tracz as showrunners. It’s already been renewed for a third season—but first, season two premieres March 10th on Netflix.[end-mark] The post <i>One Piece</i> Season 2 Trailer Features Mr. 13, Nico Robin, and Lot of Colorful Assassins appeared first on Reactor.

News Lee Cronin’s The Mummy Lee Cronin’s The Mummy Trailer Teases a Totally Different Mummy Than That Other Mummy Nobody’s going to make any excellent declarations about being a librarian in THIS movie, I bet By Molly Templeton | Published on January 12, 2026 Photo: Warner Bros. Comment 0 Share New Share Photo: Warner Bros. To be fair, writer-director Lee Cronin made Evil Dead Rise, which was generally quite well-received. But he’s not exactly a household name—which makes the choice to call his new film Lee Cronin’s The Mummy an odd one. Presumably it is to differentiate between this Mummy and the various other Mummys, though of course in this house there is only one true Mummy. But you could just, you know, pick another title. At any rate, there’s a teaser for Lee Cronin’s The Mummy, and it is mostly just creepy bandaged vibes—plus a bit of the quickly-growing-ubiquitous slightly-distorted-voice-repeats-some-words thing that everyone is doing in the wake of the trailer for 28 Years Later. Is this the new “haunted-child-sings-slowed-down-pop-song?” I guess it could be worse. At least the opening of the trailer doesn’t go ping. Lee Cronin’s The Mummy is about a family whose little girl goes missing in the desert. “Eight years later,” the synopsis says, “the broken family is shocked when she is returned to them, as what should be a joyful reunion turns into a living nightmare.” Or is it an undead nightmare? Cronin told IGN that his film is “almost one part Poltergeist and one part Seven, but put through my lens and the way that I like to entertain people.” He also said, “This movie is coming from a very different place, and it’s not even a reinvention of mummy lore; it’s looking into darker places and doing something different with what we think we might already know.” Lee Cronin’s The Mummy stars Jack Reynor (The Peripheral), Laia Costa (The Wheel of Time), May Calamawy (Moon Knight), Natalie Grace (Raymar), and Veronica Falcón (Imaginary). It has superstar horror producers James Wan and Jason Blum on board, in case you need some extra reasons to give it a chance. This Mummy stalks into theaters on April 17th.[end-mark] The post <i>Lee Cronin’s The Mummy</i> Trailer Teases a Totally Different Mummy Than That Other Mummy appeared first on Reactor.