I just finished Mirrored Heavens, the last book in Rebecca Roanhorse's Between Earth & Sky trilogy, and it was very good--she totally stuck the landing.
Has anyone tried the Mercy of Gods yet? I adored the Expanse so am tempted to go for the hardback price but I very rarely pay that much for a book when there is just so much out there I havent read.
Borrowed it from a library yesterday and will report back. This particular library has a 3 week loan period on all items. Others have 1 week on new releases. Not that I need 3 weeks (one day is probably enough) but it's nice not to feel rushed.
OK finished Mercy of the Gods. It's not a long read (around 400 pages).
So as a general premise, humans are on a planet that is not Earth and have established a thriving society (albeit one that seems as politically messed up as the current one) thousands of years after getting there. I won't spoil the underlying plot lines but yeah aliens descend and abduct our little research crew and thousands of others. They are then told they have to be useful to their captors or the characters infer their survival (and that of their homeworld) is at stake.
It's the first book in the series so it has to do most of the world building, so yeah I get that it's a bit slower paced. I'm not quite sure what to make of it. Part of it felt like an "Among Us" session and part of it felt like The Hunger Games.
I felt the character writing was a bit weak? Some of their motivations didn't make sense in a way the characters in the Expanse did (at least pre proto molecule weird stuff in the second half of the series).
There's some cool stuff with alien multiculturalism and what they might be like. Y'know, playing Mass Effect and you wonder how the Elcor would be, or the more obscure ones.
Overall, hmmm I'd rate this around a 7.5 out of 10. It's definitely not as gripping as Leviathan Wakes. But it's quite interesting in the breadth of the ideas and I'd like to see where it goes from here on.
Thanks for the Mercy reports. To those that did itI’ll get to it but might leave it till I can borrow/ buy at paperback prices. In the meantime I am on a Confederacy of Dunces which is rolling along in a very amusing fashion.
Reflecting on the book some more, I want to say that although I'd be hesitant to add it to a collection in hardcover (or trade paperback) at this stage, it's still worth reading.
I think it might be due to the fact it doesn't focus on hard sci fi (at least like the Expanse did in its first half) re human colonisation of the solar system.
I enjoyed "Agent to the Stars," John Scalzi's first novel, and also my first John Scalzi novel. It's definitely in my wheelhouse of "IT guy writes a story that keeps you turning the page because it's fun and easy." A little silly, but good.
Now halfway through Star Splitter, by Matthew Kirby, which is a Young Adult sci-fi novel that is a mix of Event Horizon and Scavengers Reign. I am really enjoying it. It's told from multiple perspectives in an interesting way, and the tension builds at a good pace. Good page-turner.
I enjoyed Chasing Sunlight by Inadvisably Compelled.
Finished the first two books of Naomi Novik's Temeraire series and just cannot continue. The novelty of the story (Napoleonic wars but with dragons) has already worn thin by the second book and I just can't stop asking myself "Why, if there are dragons, is Europe exactly the same as it was historically?" I've read other books by Novik and enjoyed them, but I do believe this was her first series and it shows.
Finished the first two books of Naomi Novik's Temeraire series and just cannot continue. The novelty of the story (Napoleonic wars but with dragons) has already worn thin by the second book and I just can't stop asking myself "Why, if there are dragons, is Europe exactly the same as it was historically?" I've read other books by Novik and enjoyed them, but I do believe this was her first series and it shows.
It's a "fun" series. It plays with different empires around the world that didn't exist as large or as long, and extrapolates why they continue to exist because of dragons. Remains a very "british-centric" series. The dragons evolve quite a bit as the series progresses, and that was my primary point of joy, it ended appropriately.
Ms Novik does address the stalemate as the series moves on, as I recall.
Great deal if you have a Kobo reader.
Humble Book Bundle: Terry Pratchett's Discworld (redeemed through Kobo) - $18
Great deal if you have a Kobo reader.
Humble Book Bundle: Terry Pratchett's Discworld (redeemed through Kobo) - $18
If you have never read any Pratchett I can’t recommend it enough. Genuinely at Wodehouse or Swift levels of wit with a truly lovely heart to the books. I just don’t push it because I assume everyone has read every word he wrote.
I'm in the middle of Temeraire book 2, Throne of Jade. It's no Scholomance, but I am enjoying it.
Pratchett should be required reading for every teenager. They should teach him in classes to get across a multitude of virtues. (Along with "The Annotated Alice" from Martin Gardner, for logic and all sorts of other guides to how to think in a useful and creative way.)
Right now, I'm immersed into Lev Grossman's "The Bright Sword", a journey into an Arthurian mythos in the same way that "The Magicians" was a journey into the gritty reality of what Magical Academies might actually be like. Grossman's mastery of all aspects of writing only grows with each book he commits to paper. Great stuff.
(As always, I recommend Naomi Novik's masterpiece, the Scholomance series, to anyone who enjoys Magical Academy tropes. Amazing books.)
Now halfway through Star Splitter, by Matthew Kirby, which is a Young Adult sci-fi novel that is a mix of Event Horizon and Scavengers Reign. I am really enjoying it. It's told from multiple perspectives in an interesting way, and the tension builds at a good pace. Good page-turner.
I finished Star Splitter, and I think he nailed the ending. It's YA in that the protagonist is a teenager, but there are some interesting sci-fi questions explored about whether people are their software, their hardware or both.
Started Titanium Noir next.
I really enjoyed Titanium Noir. It's not doing anything ground-breaking, but it's putting together a bunch of familiar things in a new way and it's really well written.
I love Nick Harkaway's stuff. He's John LeCarre's son, too. Excellent writing genes lol.
I didn't know that! I'm in the middle of Goneaway World, which is a much less focused book than Titanium Noir. It's still worth reading, but I'm halfway through it, and we've abandoned the initial premise of the book for a strange biopic for ~300 pages now.
I saw that people were comparing him to Heller and Vonnegut and i didn't see it with Titanium Noir, but there's hints of them in The Gone-Away World
I very much enjoyed The Gone-Away world, but it is not a normal novel. Still, I enjoyed how he resolves everything. He's definitely got a lot of talent.
You might also enjoy Paul Murray, who is a comedic literature writer from Ireland. "An Evening of Long Goodbyes" is a good example of his work.
And, of course, Caimh McDonnell's "A Man With One Of Those Faces", which is the first part of a trilogy of what is about to 8 books. 
Hilarious Noir police procedurals.
Just finished China Mieville's The City and the City and it continues his flawless victory: every single one of his books that I've read have been really great.
I'm also closing in on the end of The Road, which had taken me a long time because i constantly have to put it down due to all the misty-eyedness that results from staring directly into the abyss.
UPDATE- Just finished it and wept for like 15 solid minutes.
Like I'm glad i didn't find this book until I was a parent. Can't help but feel it hits so much harder then. And that timing.... my kid is the same age currently as the kid in the book.
Question: which McCarthy book should be next; Blood Meridian or No Country For Old Men?
Oh damn, No Country For Old Men. His best ever. That's an easy call.
Then watch the movie.
Oh damn, No Country For Old Men. His best ever. That's an easy call.
Then watch the movie.
This is the answer. It is such a beautifully-written book. Very sad (though not soul crushing like The Road).
As for the movie — I wish I’d read the book before watching the movie. The movie is great, but it felt hollow until I’d read the book.
Hey gang, I've read a criminally small amount of Ursula Le Guin. How is Earthsea? Is it classic fantasy nonsense or thought-provoking cleverness?
I read NCFOM before seeing the movie, and the story and performances in the movie seared the story into my mind. In particular Javier Bardem gave the performance of a lifetime. But everything about the movie is exceptionally well-done. It drips tension and emotion.
Hey gang, I've read a criminally small amount of Ursula Le Guin. How is Earthsea? Is it classic fantasy nonsense or thought-provoking cleverness?
The latter, dressed up as the former
Jonman wrote:Hey gang, I've read a criminally small amount of Ursula Le Guin. How is Earthsea? Is it classic fantasy nonsense or thought-provoking cleverness?
The latter, dressed up as the former
Agreed.
My two cents, I actually like her sci fi more than earthsea. Left Hand of Darkness is a perennial favorite of mine.
Yeah, I re-read Left Hand of Darkness again recently and that's what drove me to explore more of her work. It's only that and The Lathe of Heaven that I've read.
Hey gang, I've read a criminally small amount of Ursula Le Guin. How is Earthsea? Is it classic fantasy nonsense or thought-provoking cleverness?
I'd say it's more like high brow YA, in a good way.
Jonman wrote:Hey gang, I've read a criminally small amount of Ursula Le Guin. How is Earthsea? Is it classic fantasy nonsense or thought-provoking cleverness?
I'd say it's more like high brow YA, in a good way.
How good?
Good enough for a thoroughly middle-aged man who like his fantasy and sci-fi grown up and gnarly? Cos "YA" makes me run in the opposite direction, normally.
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