I loved the full cast and you could tell that they had a lot of fun creating and performing this.
I would love to see it on stage.
TThis was quite fun!
I loved the full cast and you could tell that they had a lot of fun creating and performing this.
I would love to see it on stage.
These planets and their inhabitants are quite queer in every definition of the words.
I like that it still hold the politics of the sci fi at the time, but that it's a bit more exciting than other novels at the time. Perhaps it was a woman's touch...
Way to end a trilogy, Ann Leckie! This one was the most powerful of the bunch! There was no third book falloff, no disappointing stopping point, and cWay to end a trilogy, Ann Leckie! This one was the most powerful of the bunch! There was no third book falloff, no disappointing stopping point, and closure, with still an opening of the world for more. The subplots wrapped up nicely, and there was a lot of great internal and external action going on.
This was a wonderful example of how to end a trilogy.
All of the events of the Ancillary Breq have come to a head.
Unlikely alliances from the ship to a translator from another planet will give Breq and her crew the only fighting chance she has left when it comes time to face down her nemesis: Anaander Mianaai.
I loved the brilliant and strange personalities of the characters and the implications of each of them within this universe.
Harvesters / L.L. McKinney The children of the corn vibe was on point. The suspense with the phone calls was VERY well done. 4.5 SExcellent collection!
Harvesters / L.L. McKinney The children of the corn vibe was on point. The suspense with the phone calls was VERY well done. 4.5 Stars
Welcome back to the cosmos / Kortney Nash It is the only space-based tale in this collection, and I enjoyed the creepiness that comes with that sort of environment. It is clear that the author was comfortable in this environment, and that came out through the easy flow of the narrative. The ending leaves much to speculate 4 Stars
Ghost light / Erin E. Adams Maybe my favorite of this collection. This one was VERY well developed; it felt like the assignment of a short story was clearly understood. Each moment was used to the fullest extent and the creepiness of giving the reader just enough to picture all the ghost stories dealing with light, adding the theatre ghosts with a little nod to the Phantom of the Opera. Loved it! 5 Stars
The brides of Devil's Bayou / Desiree S. Evans I love the concept of generational curses; this one was beautifully done. I would have, again, liked it to be longer, mostly because I enjoyed it a lot. It would be awesome to read a full-length novel about the 4th daughter that was taken before this book began and her failure to break the curse. My only complaint was that the ending felt a tiny bit rushed. 4 stars
TMI / Zakiya Dalila Harris This one felt a bit too like books I have read before. While the author seems to be SPECTACULAR at scene setting, I was left unfulfilled. 2.5 Stars
Black pride / Justina Ireland This one was a very interesting take on the Lou Garou myth. My main complaint is that the buildup was SO well done, and then, it was just over. This would be a perfect teaser for a full-length novel. I need more. 4.5 Stars
The screamers / Daka Hermon Amaani is new to Tennessee and dealing with family trauma. It had some great points but didn't stand out to me as much in terms of horror outside of personal horror for Amaani. 3 Stars
Queeniums for Greenium! / Brittney Morris Anyone who has ever been involved in, stalked by, hounded by, or heard of MLM/Pyramid schemes will have a bit of appreciation here. Add in the smoothie addicts/diet fads/ food allergens, and we have hit a lot of what's to come. I loved the build-up for this the most, and there was some creepiness, but this one felt like it needed a bit more space for full development. 3 Stars
Inheritance / Camara Aaron Making a deal with a demon. It's been told before but it was still worth reading. 3 Stars
Black girl nature group / Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite I like the concept here more than the delivery. I had a hard time liking any of the characters, but I did love the plot. 3 Stars
Cemetery dance party / Saraciea J. Fennell This one was fun, so much ode to Micheal Jackson's Thriller video. The slasher/horror lover themed party, and how things play out! Very well done; I would read a full-length of this one. 5 Stars
The skittering thing / Monica Brashears Sunny doesn't believe in the apocalypse, but that won't stop it from coming, thus her immense fear of it. The hardest part for me to swallow was this key fact. How can you be afraid of something that you have zero belief in? The rest of the story was VERY well done. That detail kept bugging me though, especially since it was mentioned multiple times. Great teenage girl drama 4 stars.
The black strings / Vincent Tirado One of the best in the book. Mal is able to see the strings of life in people, while there are others with this gift, Mal quickly realizes that strings can be manipulated. I enjoyed this one a lot, and it had a fun final destination feel to it. 5 Stars
Local color / Eden Royce Veronne's parents have been missing, and her grandfather now raises her. She is determined to find out the truth and faces the dark and her fears in search of answers using a treasure map. Good creep vibe, but felt unfinished, this would be better if longer for more time for development of suspense. 3.5 Stars
Foxhunt / Charlotte Nicole Davis This one was well done, but it is a hard concept that could be traumatic. Definitely a link back to slavery games with school initiation. 3.5 Stars
Overall, this is a collection of a lot of powerful authors, stories, and voices. I'm stuck with a 4.5 Rating that deserves to be rounded up. ...more
This is a phenomenal literary win! I first read the physical book in 2016, and the format of telling has never left me. I recommend this book to anyonThis is a phenomenal literary win! I first read the physical book in 2016, and the format of telling has never left me. I recommend this book to anyone who even pretends to like sci-fi or space opera or to young adult. This is an epic series, and the physical reading format is so much fun to experience. Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman make an excellent storytelling team, and I will always read anything they work on together.
Kady is girl-power personified, intelligent, spunky, and growing into her beautiful, strong self amid chaos. Ezra is the more openly sensitive of the two but comes with his strength, intelligence, and steadfastness. He is reliable and thrust into manhood. AIDAN will always have a place in my heart. The physical book somehow made AIDAN seem more personable; I think it was the text formatting. While AIDAN is still superb in the audio form, he appears to be a tad less emotional.
Overall this is a trilogy that will always be dear to my heart.
Audio Narration: Not fitting for the pacing of thGO WITH THE PHYSICAL BOOK ON THIS ONE!
Concept: Excellent
Story Flow: Messy
Character Development: Great
Audio Narration: Not fitting for the pacing of the story.
Emma Mieko Candon has a massive idea with this one but needed better format editing.
It's incredibly hard to follow the way that it is written. I think some of this is intentional chaos, but instead of setting a chaotic scene as possibly intended, it pulls the reader out of the world and the situation repeatedly, which isn't a fun experience to have.
This is an epic world that I want to immerse myself in, and I just wasn't able to do that. Part of that was the chosen narrator. He did not have a lot of difference in voice, and his tonal range was inappropriate for the content and characters. Instead, he read rather slowly and made the pacing even slower than written.
With a book this large, you cannot have a slog feel in your pacing; few have that kind of patience. I try very hard not to DNF any books, especially with this being the beginning of the year, but I came close, and by the end, I was really just happy that I no longer had to listen to the narrator.
The romance didn't feel believable or natural, given the characters; I can't tell if this was meant to be this way or if it could have been done differently.
With a series first book, there is a LOT of info dump, and I am ok with that being boorish, but this could have been configured in a better way that allows the reader to take it all in and process it through smaller views and conversations.
I hate to rate such an epic idea so low, but this experience never crossed higher than a 2 star for me....more
The fact that Ro's b/f leaves her for a mission to Mars with VERY FEW detaiSomehow good but also not good....
Ro's relationship with Dolores was great.
The fact that Ro's b/f leaves her for a mission to Mars with VERY FEW details on his actual mission drove me insane. Why was this even in the book? This added so little value to the book. The only real point I could find was the correlation between the deep sea and deep space missing her father.
To be honest, I can't even tell how much of this was real and how much of this was inside the mind of a mental health patient.
All-in-all a lot of depressing content and relationships that have fallen apart without anything but Dolores to replace them.
To Sleep in a Sea of Stars was such a unique and thrilling experience. When I discovered that a prequel was being written, I could not WAIT to read itTo Sleep in a Sea of Stars was such a unique and thrilling experience. When I discovered that a prequel was being written, I could not WAIT to read it.
This is a novel about the Fractalverse, but it is also a novel about the Soft Blade. This felt more like a prequel to The Soft Blade than anything else, but you don't know that until about halfway through the book.
This is more of a first-contact novel than the already immersed space opera style we got with Fractalverse #1.
The issue was not that it lost my attention, but that somehow an around 300-page novel seemed to move a LOT slower than the 900-page book did. The pacing felt a tiny bit off.
Gregorovich's narration was one of the things I LOVED about the previous book, and that helped me get sucked into the novel more. With this one, I was more interested in getting the background of how the Soft Blade came to be with this crew and getting those deeper details of the bond with the host and other insight that further makes the Soft Blade even more fascinating.
The crew of Fractal Noise is less likable, less developed, and seems to act as plot movers to tell of history as opposed to truly living out the events. This feels weird to say because there is quite a bit of action happening here, but I felt like I was watching through a lens as opposed to experiencing it with them.
The only exception is Alex, the xenobiologist who the Soft Blade connects with. But he comes out of nowhere as a depressed blob on the crew and could have been built up better from the beginning.
Talia and Chen (other crewmembers) seem like action figures placed here and there to have more dialogue and keep things moving.
But then you get Pushkin: this guy actually made me like the book less. He was so annoying, and I was so sick of his dialogue sections. I spent much of the book wanting him to die a painful death. I get the purpose of him, but it wasn't going to make me like reading about him anymore.
In addition to the awesomeness of the Soft Blade, Christopher Paolini spends an immense amount of time giving the reader intimate details about the Black Hole that is discovered. Herein lies Paolini's strength. The Black Hole is a bit of a character; it drives the storyline through the craziest twists and turns and acts as a puppeteer to the characters. It also makes Pushkin's annoying crazy self even worse, haha.
There is also much of the book dedicated to explaining the series' title and its significance, which was also fun to read about.
Overall, I am glad I read it. There are immensely fascinating concepts and sections. I didn't hate Alex, but I did keep wishing to hear Gregorovich's witty banter instead.
Re-Read 3.5 years later. So sad that Ann & Rachel will never be able to write together again because this was pure magic.
Still solid 5 stars for the bRe-Read 3.5 years later. So sad that Ann & Rachel will never be able to write together again because this was pure magic.
Still solid 5 stars for the beautifully woven tale.
I hope Ann Aguirre and Rachel Caine write something together forever because this is so much fun to see the spectacular weaving of both of their abilities to make such a masterful story. I am coming off of the book high and knowing that I have to wait until January of next year when it gave me somewhat of a serious cliffhanger ending eek!. Given how things played out, I think there are high hopes for this series to continue past a trilogy, especially when both authors tend to write longer series than that, so I'm crossing my fingers for more to come.
I loved the Silver, and I especially loved the glee of seeing it through Zara's eyes. I loved getting a tiny bit past the CX exterior to get to know her a bit more, and I love the new characters and the additional greatness that they have brought to the book. I especially loved the alien races and their characterization. I love the emphasis on music and the color scheme of the Abyin Dommas
The excerpts, documents, and transmissions in between chapters give added layers of depth to the overall picture, and I am ALWAYS a fan of that! I really feel like this is a book you just need to read, I don't want to spoil any intricate subplots :)
Star Ocean must win....
SideNote: I am fangirl pushing you to check out the awesome website that needs more but still provides the first look at Book 3.... and some Honors head-shots as well as awesome alien art for a better visual :)
I liked this one more than the second and was about on par with the first. It was a lot more time getting to know the planet deeper and more of the otI liked this one more than the second and was about on par with the first. It was a lot more time getting to know the planet deeper and more of the other races.
This was a bit less political, but that wasn't detrimental.
I enjoyed the fighting passages, and even if John Carter always prevails, you can see echoes of these battles in later fantasy and sci-fi novels.
This is a story of a terraformed planet told in 3 parts. the parts are chronological and go through different histories of the planet, with much focusThis is a story of a terraformed planet told in 3 parts. the parts are chronological and go through different histories of the planet, with much focus on a central city and descendants of the original characters or characters with long life spans that remain as ancillary characters.
My biggest issue with this is that I loved what was happening in the book's first part and wanted to know more about the continuing details and issues there. Other than some of the main political issues, the characters were deceased by part two, and the animal/human issues were background fodder.
Part Two gave a bit of a different perspective from the side of the planetary citizens and the growth of the new transportation that was to be a different class than the mounts and nurtured with love.
Part Three, this character that was nurtured to be transportation is the main narrator. I thoroughly enjoyed Moose the Cat and the echoes back to the First Part.
There are things to love in each part, and they are all connected. Parts One and Three were my favorite, but I wish this could have been more of a trilogy so that the reader could experience more of the details of each one to a fuller extent, as opposed to the three short stories that made up the entire book.
The world's creation, the caste system of the definition of humanity, and the character creation were all fantastic.
This novel is broken up into "Books." Book 1 & 2 are AMAZING; book 3 gets to be toooo long in most of the chapters. There are fascinating things to leThis novel is broken up into "Books." Book 1 & 2 are AMAZING; book 3 gets to be toooo long in most of the chapters. There are fascinating things to learn in it, but it just goes on and on.
The Dream Girl was a beautiful piece of writing, and the imagery concocted about love and life brought tears to my eyes. I connected most with the first and second book sections. Luo Ji is my fav character.
The ending and the struggle towards the end were very fitting for current world events and worries and left the book on a nice precipice to go into the trilogy's final book. I almost don't want to read it because it is hard to see how much positive can come from it.
The geometric perfection would be both extraordinary and unsettling. this was well depicted as well.
One of my favorite passages: "I'm madly in love with a fictional person from a novel of my own creation. I've been with her, I've traveled with her."
"For the majority of people, what they love exists only in the imagination. The object of their love is not the man or woman of reality, but what he or she is like in their imagination. The person in reality is just a template used for the creation of this dream lover. Eventually, they find out the differences between their dream lover and the template. If they can get used to those differences, then they can be together. If not, they split up."
Another great quote “Staying alive is not enough to guarantee survival. Development is the best way to ensure survival.”
Nona was quirky and great... But she wasn't Gideon, and even the Gideon parts felt subpar compared to Gideon in the first novel.
How many personalitieNona was quirky and great... But she wasn't Gideon, and even the Gideon parts felt subpar compared to Gideon in the first novel.
How many personalities can exist in one place? I have to admit that the timeline of this one was the most confusing for me.
Many questions were better described, and the readability on this one is high. Once the series is complete, I will go back to re-read all of them. The intricacies built into the storyline are on an entirely different level of literature.
This was an enjoyable setup book for the final installment in the series. I hope Gideon is back with a witty vengeance.
Some of the many great quotes: "Late in the year of nobody she really thought about that much in particular"
"Nona vaguely made a note to practice scowling more and also to dye her hair."
Tamsyn Muir is a gift. I want to be her friend still.
This book is HEAVY! I am behind the times on this classic novel. I went in the wrong direction due to a hugely long waitlist to check this book out. IThis book is HEAVY! I am behind the times on this classic novel. I went in the wrong direction due to a hugely long waitlist to check this book out. I watched the most recent movie and then read the book. Honestly, I thought the movie did a pretty good job. The main issue with this book is that it is SOOOOOO long. It should have been split in two.
The third book section and beyond felt less developed and edited. There were a lot of newer concepts, and the relationships were extremely rushed. I wonder if Frank Herbert originally intended this to be a single novel and was trying to wrap up the ending.
With that being said. This book is epic as F. You must read it. The beginning is very Sci-Fi heavy, but after they are established on the new planet, it reads more like an epic fantasy. The characters have immense development. And somehow, I still wanted more of the culture.
Worth a read at least once in your life.
4-4.5 Stars. I will definitely continue on with the series....more
A collection of linked short stories related to a deadly Arctic Plague.
30,000 Years Beneath a Eulogy: The book starts here with Cliff Miyashiro tA collection of linked short stories related to a deadly Arctic Plague.
30,000 Years Beneath a Eulogy: The book starts here with Cliff Miyashiro traveling to Siberia after the death of his daughter, Clara, to take her place on a research team at an archeological dig. While at the dig, a humanoid body of a girl is discovered, and she is named Annie. At the close of the story, as Annie thaws, scientists begin to exhibit early symptoms of what will become the start of the sickness. 4 Stars
The City of Laughter: This seems to be the most speculated story in the book about Skip, who works as a comedic relief and friend to children who attend a euthanasia amusement park. The pathogen has now been named the Arctic Plague and this is the last stop for children with no hope. While there are other rides, the final ride of their life is called the Osiris. There is a bit of romance between Dorrie, one of the mothers, and Skip, but it never shows much, other than compassion on page. 4.5 Stars
Through the Garden of Memory: Jun’s story. He is one of the first adults to contract the Arctic plague, and this is kind of a surreal mind bend of a story. He falls into a coma but finds that it is a space with light globule memories. It’s super weird: then a baby is found, a human pyramid is constructed, and there is one last hope for salvation… I don’t think I fully grasped this one. 3.5 Stars
Pig Son: Hands down, my favorite, and the one that most affected me of this collection. MC David is Dorrie's ex-husband, the mother from the City of Laughter, and he works as a scientist for a transplant government agency that uses pigs for human organs. He has an awesome sense of humor (Dorrie obviously liked comedians) and gives the pigs hilarious names. The pig son of this one is dubbed Snortorious P.I.G., but has there ever been a better name for a pig? Snortorious gains sentience and learns to read. He will break your heart. 5 Stars
Elegy Hotel: About a hotel manager named Dennis who allows families a place for a prolonged visitation ceremony. I felt fairly detached from this one. 2.5 Stars
Speak, Fetch, Say I Love You: My second favorite in the series and also heartbreaking. The narrator’s name is never revealed, but he has a son named Aki and a robodog named Hollywood. The narrator is a robodog repairman. They got Hollywood when his wife was slowly dying from the plague, and she spent time recording messages to her husband and son through Hollywood. There is a lot going on with the father-son relationship and loss. 5 Stars
Songs of Your Decay: My Third Favorite in the series. This one felt the most intimate from a humanity standpoint. It featured Aubrey, a forensic specialist in an estranged marriage, and Laird, a terminally ill man who has decided to donate his body to science before his death. Aubrey’s life revolves around studying the bodies that the plague has ravaged to try to track markers and ways to eventually develop a cure. She was married one year before the plague hit, and in the years since has found little passion in her marriage despite her husband being a good guy who tries, but her heart isn’t in it. Laird’s sister visits him frequently and their bond is an extra layer to the story. Aubrey’s time spent with Laird helps her remember who she is and how she can be more herself with laird than she ever could with her husband. 5 Stars
Life Around the Event Horizon: Somewhat lacking in substance, it features a marred scientist couple: Bryan & Theresa. They are working to develop more effective space travel for colonization efforts. Bryan resides in fear, while Theresa is more committed to the mission. 2 Stars
A Gallery A Century, A Cry A Millennium: Featuring the wife and granddaughter of Cliff Miyashiro from the first story: 30,000 Years Beneath a Eulogy, traveling aboard the USS Yamato. This is further in the future and shows that Bryan & Theresa were successful in their research in the previous story, Life Around the Event Horizon. Miki spends much time in cryosleep and painting murals. She works with Dorrie from story 2: The City of Laughter (ex-wife of David from Pig Son.) Miki explores her thoughts through writing while decades on Earth pass by with news of a cure and climate change resolutions. 6,000 years pass, and the crew finally discovers a habitable planet… I think it was the length of time for me here that was the killer of the vibe. I do love the way characters come back around, though. 3 Stars
The Used-To-Be Party: A weird little snippet story about Dan Paul who has awoken from a plague coma and invited people to a BBQ. 2 Stars
Melancholy Nights in a Tokyo Virtual Reality Café: Probably the darkest tale in the book. About Akira a 30-year old deadbeat who prefers to live in VR. He meets and falls for Yoshiko whose daughter suffers from the plague's long-term symptoms. Akira’s obsession leads him to start to turn his life around to get to know Yoshiko, but before he ever gets to meet her in real life, things take a very dark turn. 4 stars
Before You Melt into the Sea: Back to the climate issues with Mabel’s desire for an ice sculpture that will later be made from her remains. This is all the rage at the time. While she survived the plague, she is now faced with cancer. An unnamed sculptor works with her over the years and starts to fall for her, even though it is one-sided. It had a very Little Mermaid feeling ending. 4 Stars
Grave Friends: Communal Urns are a thing with so much death and Rina returns to Japan for her grandmother’s memorial. It’s a story about family and about culture. 3.5 Stars
The Scope of Possibility: Back full circle to the aliens who developed advanced civilizations, and the one that was responsible for Earth narrates. She tells the tale through reincarnations, including once that results in Annie, the initial humanoid from the first chapter that caused the Arctic Plague. She also reincarnates as Clara, the daughter that was dead in the first story, and then again later as Theresa, the wife that helped to advance travel from the story Life Around the Event Horizon. She closes the chapter talking with Bryan about the truth and her wish to reconnect with Annie. 4 Stars
The book closes with the USS Yamato sending a message to Earth with tales of their discoveries and announcing his retirement.
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