Bimbos of the Death Sun by Sharyn McCrumb

Author: Sharyn McCrumb
ISBN # 0140118489
Publisher: Penguin
First Published: 1987
219 pages
Rating: 7/10

The Blurb:
For one fateful weekend, the annual science fiction and fantasy convention, Rubicon, has all but taken over a usually ordinary hotel. Now the halls are alive with Trekkers, tech nerds, and fantasy gamers in their Viking finery --- all of them eager to hail their hero, bestselling fantasy author Appin Dungannon: a diminutive despot whose towering ego more than compensates for his 5'1" height... and whose gleeful disdain for fawning fans is legendary.

Hurling insults and furniture with equal abandon, the terrible, tiny author proceeds to alienate ersatz aliens and make-believe warriors at warp speed. But somewhere between the costume contest and the exhibition Dungeons and Dragons game, Dungannon gets done in. While die-hard fans of Dungannon's seemingly endless sword-and-sorcery series wonder how they'll go on and hucksters wonder how much they can get for the dead man's autograph, a hapless cop wonders, "Who would want to kill Appin Dungannon?" But the real question, as the harried convention organizers know, is "Who wouldn't?"

The Review:
Occasionally I get pleasantly surprised by a book – this was one of those moments. From the title, you’d expect this to be a trashy sci-fi packed with vixens seducing gallant space explorers, but you’d be wrong – this is murder! Anyone who’s ever been to, or knows anyone who’s been to, a sci-fi convention will recognise all the characters here: The Trekkers (they don’t like being called Trekkies, you know!); the gamers; the nerds and geeks; the authors and organisers; and the Big Name Fans – those who have become famous simply for being avid fans of whichever sci-fi series or author they adore and religiously showing up to every convention.

The plot is both simple and complicated – simple in that this is a straightforward who-dunnit where the answer is pretty obvious, but complicated in that it goes into great depth over the various aspects of fandom and conventions. It’s a lot of fun and a light read that will enjoyably fill a few hours on a long commute or a rainy Saturday afternoon.