Tag: Science Fiction

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) by Becky Chambers

Posted on July 15, 2024 by - Book Review

Typically I kick off my book reviews with a quick synopsis of the plot, the major characters, and a teaser into what to expect. This book, much like the others that Ms. Chambers has written, is different.

As someone who reads a whole hell of a lot of hard sci-fi as well as (probably) too much grimdark, there arises the need, sometimes, for palette cleansers: books that have impact, but don’t really provide a lot of stress on the reader while also remaining incredibly engaging. Kudos to Ms. Chambers for being a master of the genre.

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet starts out the story of Rosemary Harper. She’s a tad wrapped in intrigue, and, seemingly, attempting to escape a life into a new one of semi-anonymity. She joins the crew of the Wayfarer and gets thrown into a wildly unique, but calm group of crew members who also seem to operate as a defacto family while crazily boring wormholes through space to link distant planets to the galactic core.

Yes, all of the characters in this book are incredibly important, but I feel like it would be a disservice to the readers of this review to take away the small joy of being introduced to each one.

The thing I found most interesting about this book was the way each crew member deals with stressful situations and/or conflict. There are definitely some interesting quandaries in this book, and some very unique philosophies, politics, and moralities in play.

This is wildly simplistic, but I saw each little roadblock as a guided meditation. Every snapshot was going to have a nice little wrap-up, and a lesson learned. It’s just refreshing.

Now I’m on to book two in the series, and wondering if I maybe should space these out a bit to maximize the soothing effect.

Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

Posted on May 15, 2024 by - Book Review

A warning before I get going: this book is profound but incredibly brutal.

In a world where all meat (and all animals) have become poisonous to humans thanks to a virus, humans are now bred to be the primary source of meat. “Special meat” if you will.

Marcos, the primary character, has not had the best go of things lately. His child died, his wife left him, and his father is in a care home suffering from dementia.

Then, out of the blue, Marcos is gifted a female “head” of the highest quality. Disenfranchised by what the world has become, and how his life has spiraled, Marcos begins treating this “head” more and more like a person.

I’m not going to lie. While this book is insanely short, it has probably been one of the hardest things I’ve read in years. The accepted brutality is just so nonchalant, and that really makes it a very hard pill to swallow. The writing is just beautiful — especially considering this is a book translated from Spanish — but the subject matter, along with the day-to-day descriptions of humans as livestock really sinks in.

That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy the book. I love the hell out of this, and I think it’s something that everyone should read. If anything, I think it leans towards sympathetic while the society went very brutal.

The ending alone is worth the ride.

Lot Lizards by Ryan Hyatt

Posted on April 29, 2024 by - Book Review

One of my favorite creators has a new piece of short fiction in the “comic horror” genre (his words), and it definitely delivers. Lot Lizards starts out with a couple of cops checking out a used car lot where a call has come in from an outside party that some shenanigans have taken place.

Per usual, Mr. Hyatt excels at setting a concise scene without letting it take up valuable real estate for a short work. I’ve found that some authors want to set aside everything to set the stage, but the ones who engage me best, roll that right into the narration like a vignette from Outer Limits.

Lot Lizards delivers and it delivers fast. Things go from a calm oddity to pure mayhem starting on page ten with a very ironic “We are one thirty-eight.” (the pun was definitely not lost on me)

What I love about this kind of fiction — especially the gems that Mr. Hyatt has shared with me over the last couple of years — is that it is exactly the snapshot needed at the time of reading. Sure, Mr. Hyatt plays within the realm of his Terrafide universe, and this story will really pull in more readers curious to know more about the kiaskis that keep getting mentioned.

Regardless, Lot Lizards is a fun story with some serious visceral action. It has the baddies, the big bad, the authorities, and tragic foils, and vigilante heroes all in the span of about fifty-four pages. It was exactly what I needed while scarfing down my sandwich at lunch.

Like I’ve said before, life is too short to not read short fiction. It’s plentiful, and there a lot of really good stuff out there. At the very least, if you didn’t like it, you didn’t waste too much time.

We Are the Crisis (Convergence Saga #2) by Cadwell Turnbull

Posted on February 28, 2024 by - Book Review

** This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review **

I’ve been waiting for this book for a long while. No Gods, No Monsters took up a lot of my headspace, and I really needed Mr. Turnbull to move some of these characters along for the sake of my sanity.

I was not disappointed in the slightest.

The thing about Mr. Turnbull’s writing, especially in this Convergence Saga is that you can’t help but get very very invested while also being completely lost as to where you are, and who you are dealing with.

Continuing on a couple of years after No Gods, No Monsters, We Are the Crisis continues with how the world is reacting to the revelations of the “Boston incident.” Monsters are now known to the general public, but there is a massive political debate over what rights monsters should have (if any), and a human-supremacist group, Black Hand, is committing more and more atrocities against monsters and monster supporters.

On the flip side, there is a pro-monster activist group, New Era, who is working to build a cooperative network between monsters and humans, but there is also an even more esoteric bit of subversion going in within New Era perpetuated by the cosmic elements we were introduced to in No Gods, No Monsters.

All of the tensions from all sides — and there are a lot of sides — seem to be pressing together into a Gordian knot situation that seems both hopeful and hopeless at the same time.

Much like the previous book, We Are the Crisis is one that is going to require re-reading and analysis to fully follow what is going on. While it is very complex, it is amazingly entertaining. I read almost three quarters of it in one sitting: it’s that captivating.

This series is very important in regards to how it approaches civil rights, and the concepts of autonomy and free will. Mr. Turnbull deftly glides between story lines and locations while building up a slow pressure that comes to a head in a way that, while everyone saw coming, nobody expected.

Light Bringer (Red Rising Saga #6) by Pierce Brown

Posted on September 8, 2023 by - Book Review

Howler #1 (Mr. Brown) is a sadistic psychopath, an emotional puppet master, and a genius storyteller. Once again we have been thrown into the tumultuous world of the Society and, boy oh boy, this is one hell of a ride.

If you haven’t read the previous five books, don’t even think about starting with this one. Go back and suffer like all the rest of us.

Light Bringer brings a slightly different approach to the series. By now, things have gotten beyond serious, and Dark Age left us all in quite an interesting place. Volsung Fá and the Ascomanni are a serious threat along with all of the regular cast of power-thirsty warlords, and a large chunk of the Republic aren’t even sure if their savior, Darrow (and Sevro, by extension), is even alive.

I do have to say that a swath of the first part of Light Bringer was rather slow compared to what we are used to, but quite necessary. This book, more than the others, sets more of the political intrigue and process up as we are rounding the corner to the end of the series. Lysander is back and has machinations on where he fits into the political sphere: especially considering his fiancee, Atalantia au Grimmus, seems to be trying to kill him at every step.

I’m not going to spoil this one, but there is a little bit of something for all the typical Red Rising fans, and a whole lot of material that will be debated until Red God comes out. And, boy howdy, there is a ton of controversy scattered throughout.

Enhanced: A Hollywood Murder Mystery by Ryan Hyatt

Posted on June 21, 2023 by - Book Review

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again right here: folks don’t read enough short fiction. There is something so fulfilling about being able to knock out a great little tidbit in less than a half an hour that has me coming back for more and more. Enhanced: A Hollywood Murder Mystery is just such a gem.

Portrayed from the viewpoint of an AI-powered virtual companion/tour guide in a smartphone, Enhanced is the story of Dave: a guy coming to Hollywood to check out some death.

Honestly, that’s all I’m going to say about the story since every little tidbit counts in this one.

What I will address is the interesting approach to a very realistic future that Mr. Hyatt presents. Set in the not too near future of 2034, Enhanced gives us a very good view of the potential uses that AI might have in our normal life. One of the things I’ve enjoyed about Mr. Hyatt’s previous works is the “maybe that could happen” approach to Futurism, and this is probably the most plausible.

The long and the very short of it is: read this novelette and enjoy it. Hell, read it twice.

This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar, Max Gladstone

Posted on May 26, 2023 by - Book Review

Here’s the setup: in the far future of Earth, two factions battle each other for supreme control of the world, the timeline, and, well, everything. Two factions — Commandment and Garden — have their elite agents working clandestine operations throughout the various time threads. Our two characters, Blue and Red are fighting against each other throughout time, while, through a series of secret correspondences, also falling in love with each other. This book has a very heavy Killing Eve meets The Lake House vibe to it.

It does take a bit of time to pull back from how the novel opens — right into the chaos of the aforementioned clandestine operations — and get some bearings on what is actually going on. While this can be off-putting in some situations, it works absolutely perfectly for this tale. The chaos really helps solidify the fantastical uncertainty that forms the foundation of the world we find our two characters dropped into.

I cannot give enough kudos to the creative stylings that Ms. El-Mohtar and Mr. Gladstone throw into this short but masterful piece. Imagine hard science fiction with flowery writings akin to a Victorian romance. But it all works incredibly well!

I will admit, there were sections that I had to read multiple times because I was distracted by my surroundings, and This is How You Lose the Time War is a novel that demands full attention. If your brain wanders, you will get lost.

This book is getting a lot of buzz right now, and I’ll admit I picked it up because it seemed to take over my Twitter feed almost overnight. I was not disappointed in the slightest.

Minimum Wage Magic (DFZ #1) by Rachel Aaron

Posted on February 8, 2023 by - Book Review

Ahhh carefree and fun books just for the sake of having something original to read. Minimum Wage Magic has some heavy themes, but, at the end of the day, it’s just a very fun romp through an awesome world of magic and vice.

The basic gist is the that the Detroit Free Zone is a lawless city where the god of the city (the aforementioned DFZ) ensures that everyone is free to do as they will. Opal Yong-ae is a local cleaner — someone who bids on abandoned properties, and then sells the stuff she finds to get the property ready for the next tennant — and a girl on a mission. She’s racing frantically to pay off her father in order to get out of debt with him and break free from her family.

Here’s the thing. Opal’s father is the Dragon of Korea. Either way, Opal owes him a sizable chunk of money, and she’s just stumbled on what could be her biggest score. What happens next is a roller coaster of and adventure with so many little gems of creativity and masterful story-crafting.

One of the most fun things about this book — and I can tell it’s going to be a theme of the series — is the nigh anarchistic chaos surrounding life in the DFZ. Ms. Aaron masterfully throws in some lithe details about life in the DFZ that downright make you think about how it would be in a world with no rules. That coupled with some very memorable characters and an incessantly chatty AI make Minimum Wage Dragons just a joy to read.

I’m sure I’ll devour the next two as quickly as I did this one.

Nona the Ninth (The Locked Tomb #3) by Tamsyn Muir

Posted on October 26, 2022 by - Book Review

After three books and much experimentation, I believe I have figured out the secret to full comprehension of The Locked Tomb series: just let it flow over you. Enjoy the ride and do be sure to keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times.

OK, here we go with the story of Nona.

First we had Gideon, and then we got to ride the roller-coaster with Harrowhark. Now we have a much harsher world with a much softer protagonist: Nona.

Nona’s life is relatively simple. She loves her family, longs for an elaborate birthday party full of dogs, and loves her job as teacher’s assistant at the local school. Did I mention her love of dogs?

The thing is, Nona is about six months old, and doesn’t belong in the body she is inhabiting. In addition, Nona doesn’t really like to eat (unless you consider the mild case of pica she constantly conceals), and doesn’t really know much about dealing with things on her own. I’d say Nona was simple, but she is oh so far from that.

If you are familiar with the works of Ms. Muir (and you bloody well should be if you are reading Nona the Ninth), you are familiar with the cool ride through chaos that seems to be her specialty. While focusing on a passel of semi-shifted main characters throughout the series (maybe), Ms. Muir takes every opportunity to absolutely explode each world she elaborately builds up. I find it masterful.

Like I said in the beginning, the best way to enjoy these books is to just lean back and embrace the chaos.

What struck me as most amazing in my jaunt through Nona the Ninth is how normal Nona’s life tries to be. Zombies are coming back, there is a giant blue sphere hanging on the horizon, the city is in shambles, and Nona wants to go swimming.

Running along side the primary story is the story of John: the reason everything is the way it is now. I’d go into that, but it’s much more fun to watch it reveal itself without explanation.

The single thing that I did not like was something that was totally on me and not Ms. Muir. I did not realize that this series had been stretched to four books, so I was getting very very confused as I approached what I perceived as the end of the series, with so much left unresolved. My brain spent a good amount of time spinning possible conclusions as the page count dwindled, only to learn, elsewhere, that a fourth book was incoming. You can imagine my relief.

Now the waiting begins (again).

Tomorrow’s End (The Path of a Savior #1) by G.M. Morris

Posted on September 13, 2022 by - Book Review

** This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review **

Oh how I wanted to DNF this thing. The start was riveting: all action, mystery, and a smattering of arcane magic, but then that ended. What came next was an attempt at a science fiction-oriented treatise on philosophy, religion, and free will. Sure it was coupled with demons, aliens, mysterious super powers and global threats, but, for me, it was just a slog.

Tomorrow’s End is not particularly hard to follow. There are two seemingly main stories once you get past the intro. Kevin Knight is an abused teenager who is afraid of the dark, and, surprisingly, being groomed to be the savior of Earth. On the other side there is the super-mysterious orphan Daren who has amazing powers, aged up incredibly quickly, and is squashed by more demonic masterminds (or maybe the same… you decide).

Their stories almost run in parallel, but are disjointed enough to have a “where is this going?” vibe.

The main focus is on Kevin, and his reluctance to take on the role he is destined for. Cue all the free will, moral philosophy and good versus evil lectures and diatribes. I get that the author was trying to hammer the idea home in several of the presented aspects and power dynamics, but, for me, it was much more of a distraction than anything else.

I’ll give Mr. Morris credit for the invasion and action scenes. They were fantastically choreographed, and rolled out a ton of alien tech and demonic gore. Again, they leaned heavily on the forced morality of the novel’s theme, but they were still stupid fun.

All-in-all, this one is a hard pass for me. Sure, the second book may clear up the bulk of the “WTF” moments I had towards the end of this one, but there weren’t any real firm hooks to get me to make the attempt. For me, the cover and blurb had me completely pulled in, but the text just didn’t deliver.