Matt Hlinak

Matt Hlinak
Matt Hlinak is an administrator at Dominican University, just outside of Chicago. He teaches courses in English and legal studies. His short stories have appeared in 'Sudden Flash Youth' (Persea Books 2011) and several literary magazines. 'DoG' (2012) is his debut novel.

REVIEW: Mythological foundations can’t hold up ‘The Nightjar’

Deborah Hewitt’s debut novel 'The Nightjar' imagines “another London, a magical world hidden behind the bustling modern city we know.” This world draws on the folkloric tradition of the “soul-bird” that carries the souls of the dead to the Underworld. But I struggled throughout to connect the book’s real-world setting and characters with the mythological elements that form the foundation of this otherwise entertaining fantasy novel.

Read More »

REVIEW: Mickey Spillane lives on in ‘Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer’

mickey spillane's mike hammer

Fans of the hard-boiled detective genre and grittier comics will enjoy 'Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer.' The casual sexism and senseless brutality may offend modern sensibilities. But taken as a product of the time in which it was originally created, this is a beautiful adaption, keeping alive one of pulp fiction’s most distinctive characters.

Read More »

REVIEW: Go underground with the preppers for ‘Apocalypse Any Day Now’

Tea Krulos takes another look at eccentric Americans in 'Apocalypse Any Day Now.' As usual, he lets his oddball subjects speak for themselves without rendering overt comment on their beliefs. Krulos’ engagement with this world helps his subjects open up to him and also makes for a more entertaining book than a more conventional, arms-length journalistic exercise. 'Apocalypse Any Day Now' is a fun and funny, but never mocking, dive into the bizarre world of doomsday preppers.

Read More »

REVIEW: N.K. Jemisin is on track for more awards with ‘The Obelisk Gate’

The fight to assert one's humanity drives the narrative in 'The Obelisk Gate.' It is not merely a political aspiration but a deeply personal one, making the 'Broken Earth' series never feel polemical. N.K. Jemisin’s characters aren’t symbols; they are complex and conflicted human beings who want only to live in peace. But in the Stillness, as in the real world, sometimes you have to fight for peace.

Read More »