Apocalypse delayed
I was going to suggest that the fact that Lucius Shepard liked Fellowship of the Ring (as shown in his review on the Electric Story site) was one of the signs of the Apocalypse.
But I've concluded that it can't be a sign of the Apocalypse, because there are also comforting signs that the world is going on just as it always has, such as the fact that Piers Anthony has published a new Xanth novel—this one is apparently the 25th in the series.