Earth spent years forcing thousands of people to emigrate to other inhabitable worldsPros: conflicted characters, good world-building
Cons: not hard SF
Earth spent years forcing thousands of people to emigrate to other inhabitable worlds as the population grew out of control. Jamie Allenby was living on Soltaire, at the edge of inhabited space, when the plague came through. The survival rate of zero point zero zero zero one percent haunts her as she makes her way to the space port in hopes of finding other survivors. As others emerge, they head towards Earth, unsure of what they’re looking for or how life will carry on.
I found Jamie an interesting character. In many ways she reminded me of Millicent, the protagonist in Mishell Baker’s Borderline. She’s not particularly likeable, but because you’re seeing her thoughts and feelings (and occasional flashbacks), you understand why she’s making the decisions she is, and why she has trouble letting people get close. Jamie slowly comes to understand what she’s looking for, but I suspect some readers will find her constant questioning herself and where she’s going with her life frustrating. I felt this frustration myself a time or two towards the end of the book, especially when she’s trying to get others to join their group despite making it clear that she thinks people should do what they want and joining the group isn’t what those people want to do.
Most of the supporting characters are conflicted too, not sure what this new world holds, whether it’s better to return to the old way of doing things or hope for something new. Rena annoyed me, but I think she was supposed to. I appreciated the author including an autistic young man in with the main group of survivors.
I liked that different views of how the world should continue were offered by different groups. It didn’t surprise me that societal classes would survive the apocalypse. One of the groups they encountered did surprise me though, with their adherence to an even older age.
Some sections of the book are designed to get you to think deeply about life: what it means, where humanity is headed, etc. This was undercut by Jamie’s constant waffling though, never sure of what she wanted and feeling at one with the universe for a moment and then doubting the emotion the next.
The world-building was pretty good. Callan’s history especially grounded the world for me, in all its cruelty.
This isn’t hard SF. While there are lags for communication transmissions, there’s no time dilation affecting space travel and it only takes a day or two to get between worlds, with no explanation of how the ship is navigating the distances so quickly. Because Jamie was constantly questioning her decisions, it made me wonder how things would have changed for her if moving from one planet to the next meant years or decades would have passed for those she left behind, so that there was no going back, no reconciliation. How would things have changed for her if these decisions were permanent once she left? Would she have been happier? Would she have stayed on Earth? On Alegria? Would she have found the personal space she needed some other way? Or would she still have ended up on Soltaire, conflicted about the decisions she’d made with her life?
It was an interesting debut. It posed some good questions and while it wasn’t perfect, it kept me turning pages....more
Pros: brilliantly plotted, amazing world-building, excellent pacing, thought provoking
Cons: fundamentally disagreed with some of the philosophy, endinPros: brilliantly plotted, amazing world-building, excellent pacing, thought provoking
Cons: fundamentally disagreed with some of the philosophy, ending left me disappointed
Picking up immediately where Too Like the Lightning left off, Seven Surrenders details more of the actions of the heads of the seven hives, reveals the thief behind the seven-ten list, deals with the fall-out of the revelations that ended the first book, and paves the way for potential war.
I loved all of the politics, manipulation, and unclear morality of this book. This book has a LOT of political maneuvering and backroom dealings. It made me think about a lot of issues, even if my conclusions were different from those the book came to.
Mycroft remains an unreliable narrator at times, not always telling the truth and keeping certain things hidden until later. this helps with the pacing of the book, which I thought was great. The revelations come fast and hard, but enough is saved for the end to keep the reader guessing and turning pages quickly.
If the mix of sensual language and politics from the first book disturbed you, there are a few uncomfortable scenes in this book as well, mostly at the beginning.
One character is gendered as ‘it’, which may upset readers. We are told the character chose that pronoun, but in addition to being a gender neutral term, it’s also a term that reduces the person’s humanity. Given the nature of the character, both of those may have been intentional repercussions of that choice.
There’s a speech towards the end of the novel about gender that kind of irritated me. While I agreed with the ultimate point (or, at least understood where the character was going with the discussion), I’d understood this future to have done away with gendered pronouns as well as gendered clothing and expectations. And yet, this speech implied that children were still raised with the ideas that boys were more aggressive and girls more caring, etc, something I didn’t get from the books themselves. But what annoyed me was the assertion that some traits code ‘female’ and others ‘male’ and if you get rid of those terms, it just makes everyone more ‘masculine’ as if men aren’t inherently capable of being kind or considerate despite the book’s clear proof to the contrary (Carlyle, Bridger, etc. are men who obviously care about humanity, notwithstanding their being male).
The ending left me feeling unsatisfied. Yes, there are more books in the series which may overturn this, but with so many revelations I was expecting more resolution....more
Pros: interesting mystery, varied characters, good pacing
Cons: lots of gore & disturbing descriptions
In a future where convicted criminals are lobotomPros: interesting mystery, varied characters, good pacing
Cons: lots of gore & disturbing descriptions
In a future where convicted criminals are lobotomized and have half their jaw removed a convicted serial killer halfhead has regained a sense of herself, over the mutilated body of the man she’s just killed. Assistant Network Director William Hunter has nightmares about the last time he visited Sherman House, the multi-storied residence where he fought during the VR riots. He’s not happy returning to Sherman House now, to investigate the second gruesome murder in the building that week. Something’s not right with Sherman House, and Hunter’s digging threatens to expose something that powerful people want kept quiet. Something involving the work done by a certain halfhead killer.
If you’re squeamish, this is not the book for you. In many ways it reminded me of the original Robocop film, only without the black humour. There’s a lot of blood, guts, and some truly disturbing descriptions of violence. Though, I will say that you don’t get much graphic violence (ie, most of it is descriptions after the events have happened, rather than first person views of the violence itself). The characters all take quite a number of literal beatings. There’s also mention of torture, but no descriptions.
The mystery is interesting. The halfhead’s story is terrifying. William’s a great character, and I enjoyed seeing him break the rules to get to the bottom of what was going on. I really liked Jo as well. She’s spunky with a crazy fashion sense. Emily kept making me think of Emily Blunt, partly because of her name and partly because of her military kickass character in Edge of Tomorrow. Brian’s accent caused me some issues, but I liked seeing him helping William out as a friend.
While I enjoyed aspects of the book, I don’t think I’d reread it, simply because I had to work hard not to let any of the visual imagery give me nightmares. A few scenes were quite disturbing and I wouldn’t want to revisit them. The ending alone was kind of terrifying. While this isn’t technically a military SF book, there’s enough military style action to please lovers of that sub-genre. Similarly if you like mysteries or serial killers, this might be for you....more
Chrysoberyl of Dolomoth is a pyroscape artist with the Seven Stars. In Pros: brilliant world-building, fascinating characters, thought-provoking
Cons:
Chrysoberyl of Dolomoth is a pyroscape artist with the Seven Stars. In order to improve her financial and artistic positions she agrees to become a carrier. Carriers play host to sentient microbial symbionts, visible to the host via their optic neuroports. Chrys’ ‘people’, the Eleutherians, call her the God of Mercy, but they don’t always act in her best interests. And there are other strains of micros going around, ones that take over their hosts, turning them into vampires and drug addicts. These hosts eventually travel to the Slave World, a place no one ever returns from.
You’re dropped into this complex world with no explanation, so it takes a few chapters to become familiar with all the terms, characters, and ideas. You do learn about the micros and how being a carrier works along with Chrys, but there’s a lot outside of that to take in: Chrys’ art, elves, sentients, simians, the Underworld, vampires, anti-simian groups, etc. The world is multi-layered and realistically complex.
The characters, both humanoid and micro, are quite fascinating. Chris must learn how to deal with the little people in her head and their demands on her time (for themselves and for the larger micro community as a whole) while also continuing with her own life (her art, lost friends, religious family, learning how to handle money, personal relationships).
The book does… meander a bit. While there are several linear plot threads, there are also a fair number of asides into complementary issues. The author examines different problems associated with being a host, and how different hosts treat their people. It also goes into how the hosts treat each other - both in the carrier community and outside of it. Then there’s the inter-racial problems: simians and physician sentients face discrimination, elves believe their society is perfect and so ignore the real threat one of their members poses everyone, should micros have the same rights as carriers, etc.
I really enjoyed the book. It’s fascinating seeing the different groups interact, and the micros are so much fun. ...more
Pros: complex issues, great world-building, transgender protagonist
Cons: a few minor complaints
When the superhero Dreadnought dies in front of Danny, Pros: complex issues, great world-building, transgender protagonist
Cons: a few minor complaints
When the superhero Dreadnought dies in front of Danny, he gives the teen his mantel, which changes Danny’s body from male to female. Now in the body she’s always wanted, Danny’s never been happier, though she feels guilty about how she got it. Her new body also causes her new problems, as her parents and schoolmates finally see the real her, and not everyone’s happy with her transition. The superhero community is different from what Danny’s always believed, and she faces several difficult choices - including whether to go after the supervillain who killed Dreadnought.
The book deals with several complex issues, not the least of which is Danny’s gender transition. I appreciated that the author didn’t pull punches, and showed Danny’s conflicted emotions and real consequences for both long term and short term actions.
It was great seeing a transgender protagonist, and the author showed how difficult things are: from coming out to friends and family, dealing with opposition, and learning to feel good in your skin. I especially appreciated the scenes where Danny learns about make-up and gets her first bra. While the book didn’t make me cry, I did feel for Danny on multiple occasions and was frankly shocked by a lot of the things that happened.
While Dreadnought is described as being invincible - his death notwithstanding, Danny quickly realizes she has limitations and can still feel pain and hurt herself. So there was tension and actual concern during fights that things might not go well for her.
I also appreciated that there was no romance in the book. There were times I thought the author was heading in that direction, but Danny had so much to deal with already, I think a love interest would have been too much. Having said that, I wouldn’t mind seeing a romance develop in later books.
The world-building is quite good, with some basic history into where super humans come from and how they’ve impacted recent history. While you don’t learn everyone’s backstories, some of them - specifically Calamity’s - are very realistic. Others are brushed off as comic book style transformations (specifically ones dealing with mythological or mystical origins).
The plot is great. while I saw one or two of the complications that cropped up, I was blindsided by most of the plot twists. The mystery of Utopia’s identity kept me guessing, and I enjoyed seeing Calamity teach Danny the ropes of ‘caping’.
I had a few minor complaints, like Danny’s insistence that her best friend would come around to her new body quickly. Considering the fact that Danny didn’t feel she could share that she was transgender with him, something about her friend must have tipped her off to the fact that she couldn’t trust him with the news.
I also had trouble picturing the action in some of the airplane rescue scenes, though the author did a great job explaining Danny’s powers in other scenes.
This is a fantastic debut and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the series progresses....more
Cons: Chris’s connections start to feel contrived, Chris’s wealth
First off, had I not read when the auPros: great premise, diverse cast, complex plot
Cons: Chris’s connections start to feel contrived, Chris’s wealth
First off, had I not read when the audio book came out that there were two versions, one with a female narrator and one with a male, I might not have noticed that Chris’s gender is never specified. Hence my use of his/her.
The book deals heavily with disabilities - the language used to talk about it, how people with disabilities are perceived by those without disabilities, there’s a very brief conversation about whether cures are the best course of action, etc. It’s great to see a book deal with these issues in a frank way. It also goes into discrimination in some ways, for example, while Haden’s sufferers are able to use threeps, no one else can, including people with other debilitating physical conditions - like quadriplegics.
I loved some of the technology used in the book, particularly the 3D crime scene maps and the agora.
The plot was pretty complicated and had a lot of great twists. I did start to feel that a few of the connections Chris made were contrived - Tony being the exact person they need to help with their case, meeting with the heads of the pertinent Haden corporations the week everything’s happening. They’re realistic given the context, their location, and the number of Haden’s concentrated in DC, but they still felt a bit too lucky.
It started to annoy me how quickly Chris was to throw money at his/her problems. Yes he/she is rich, but he/she can’t afford to do this kind of thing on every job - replacing threeps, paying for services people he/she meets on cases can’t afford, agreeing to pay Tony whatever he wants, regardless of the budgetary concerns of restrictions of the FBI (they don’t even see if the FBI has their own contracted programmers who could do the work for them before hiring him).
I thought it was a great mystery with some thought provoking ideas....more
Pros: great characters, terrifying premise, thought-provoking
Cons:
Lyle Fontanelle is the head chemist at NewYew. His newest experimental product is aPros: great characters, terrifying premise, thought-provoking
Cons:
Lyle Fontanelle is the head chemist at NewYew. His newest experimental product is an anti-aging cream developed from research conducted on burn victims. But the most recent test group starts showing strange side effects, which show alternate potential uses for the cream. Uses that could destroy the world.
Each chapter header of the book mentions a time and a place and the number of days until the end of the world. This is a slow apocalypse. It’s a story of an experiment that goes wrong - much like Dr. Jeckyll’s experiment - which is then exploited by one person after another until there’s no going back.
The book questions aspects of corporate greed, personal identity, having a purpose in life, and more.
There’s a variety of characters, though most of the book is told through Lyle’s point of view. He’s coasting through life, socially awkward, not well liked, doing work he enjoys but isn’t entirely comfortable with how the company plans to use his new product. He goes through some actual growth as the story progresses, examining his previous actions and personality in the face of what his cream has done to the world. I was surprised by who he becomes by the end of the book. Susan, his intern, also goes through a series of changes, becoming someone completely different as well. Outside those two, character motivations predominately circle around greed and power in some form or another. As the stakes increase, so do their tactics.
Things progress in a realistic way given the premise. Each decision compounds the previous ones, making things ten times worse. It’s a train wreck that’s impossible to look away from - and a quick read as a result.
There’s a surprising undercurrent of humour considering it’s detailing the end of the world. It’s black humour, to be sure, but it had me laughing out loud at points.
This is a brilliant book if you like novels detailing soft apocalypses or plagues....more
Pros: fantastic mystery, suspenseful, interesting technology, diverse characters
Cons: a few continuity errors
When the six member crew of the starship Pros: fantastic mystery, suspenseful, interesting technology, diverse characters
Cons: a few continuity errors
When the six member crew of the starship Dormire all wake up in new clones, they’re shocked to find several of them were murdered. Unsure of who to trust, knowing they’re all convicted felons but not what each others’ crimes were, they try to find answers for what happened in the 25 years of memories they’ve lost.
You’re introduced to all six characters, plus their AI, all at once, so it’s impressive how Lafferty keeps their voices unique and their personalities distinct. You jump around to everyone’s POV, so this is important.
The story unfolds mostly linearly, with important historical background flashbacks as needed to forward the plot, learn more about the characters, and keep you guessing about what happened. I was impressed by how intricate the various stories were and how they eventually pulled together. The pacing is great, propelling you towards the ending.
I was also impressed by the treatment of Joanna’s character. She was born with withered legs and uses a wheelchair and 2 prosthetic legs in the book. Her choice to retain this disability comes up in the book, and is handled well.
The technology and world-building were a lot of fun. There’s a series of codicils governing the creation of clones, riots, anti-cloning sentiment, the generation ship, AI, mind hacking, and more.
I did notice two minor continuity errors, one where a character got up twice to program food, and another where two characters suddenly shift from talking in the theatre to talking in one of their rooms. Hiro got a little annoying at times, but even the characters in the book complained about that.
It’s a fast paced book that kept me guessing and glued to the pages. Highly recommended....more
Pros: plausible future, interesting characters, fast paced
Cons: ending
In the near future, Cumulus controls much of the world’s technology. It’s foundPros: plausible future, interesting characters, fast paced
Cons: ending
In the near future, Cumulus controls much of the world’s technology. It’s founder, Huian Li, wants to extend her company’s reach but is frustrated when an important acquisition falls through. Graham Chandler used to work for the Agency until its never ending bureaucracy drove him out. He’s spent the past few years working his way through the ranks of Cumulus and now he’s making himself indispensable to Huian. Soon she’ll be his puppet and he’ll run Cumulus.
Lilly Miyamoto’s first love is film photography but she’s tired of pimping out her life, photographing Greenie weddings, barely able to afford her place in the slums. Two unexpected encounters give her the chance to make her photography mean so much more.
The book isn’t set too far in the future, but the internet has progressed and more things have been automated (cars, for example) and co-ordinated. The rich can afford the better private services of Cumulus, while state operated programs flounder due to reduced budgets. This has created an even larger socio-economic gap between the rich and the poor than currently exists. Graham’s soliloquies about past jobs in foreign countries and how he’s noticed the gap growing at home are quite interesting.
The main players were all fun to read about. They had layers to who they were, with ambitions, faults, habits, etc. I really liked Lilly’s gumption given her unfortunate circumstances.
The book is fast paced with short chapters creating a sense of tension as the story jumps between viewpoints.
I really enjoyed the book right up until the ending, when it all fell apart. Suddenly Graham’s motivation is lacking in a way that makes no sense. And while there’s a sense that the events of the book will have a huge impact on the players, some last minute decisions seemed odd considering what was about to happen. I’ll go into more detail in the spoiler section.
On the whole it was a fun, quick read. I just wish the author had spent more time considering the ending.
***SPOILERS***
Problems I had with the ending: 1) I’m supposed to believe that Graham, who has constant thoughts about socio-political inequality decided to work for the largest tech company in the world - spending years getting to where he needed to be in order to start controlling it from behind the scenes - and had no idea what he wanted to do with the company? I’d assumed he had some plan for fixing the problems he always complained about. He’s simply too meticulous for me to believe he put in so much effort with no end goal in mind.
2) Huian plans to preempt Graham’s leak by leaking the information herself. Does that include the sex tapes he made using Cumulus’s spyware (including his blackmail files)? How about all the private financial, employment, and medical records of her employees? Because that’s all stuff he set up to release. And I doubt anyone will be thrilled to learn about the depth of information Cumulus can access and how lax their security protocols are with regards to the privacy of their customers. I can only imagine how many people would want to cancel their Cumulus service because of this leak.
3) Despite the very obvious legal trouble Huian is about to be in (she even mentions this) and her recent decisions ordering the execution of his lover, Frederick decides Huian should be on the advisory committee overseeing the implementation of bringing Cumulus to the poor. Now, assuming the privacy concerns of #2 don’t make people decide they’re better off without Cumulus recording all their private moments, how is she divorced enough from the company to be part of an independent council? She’d obviously side with the company and what the next CEO thinks is best.
4) Following on #3, how does removing a corrupt mayor help if pretty much everyone in politics and on the police force is equally corrupt? From what the book said, everyone worked with Frederick. And the problem with electing someone who isn’t corrupt is that you’re stuck voting for one of the people running for office, and how do voters know who is and isn’t corrupt?
5) Frederick states at the end of the book that he wants to retire and his organization will survive his leaving. If he had so little control of his operation, how has he not been replaced by someone with more ambition? I’m also a little concerned that the author set up the head of a criminal organization as the sole example of a great leader (following a phrase used just prior to this scene). ...more
Cons: fairly predictable, created swear words are more distracting than useful
For Parents: non-graphic gun andPros: engaging story, feisty protagonist
Cons: fairly predictable, created swear words are more distracting than useful
For Parents: non-graphic gun and knife violence, torture scenes, some kissing, fake swearing
Eden is a closed world created when humanity was on the brink of destruction to save at least a few people until the ruined world was again fit for habitation. Rowan is a second child, illegal in Eden. Hidden by her family, she’s finally going to get a new identity and eye implants that will let her become a part of society. But she’ll also have to leave her family - and never return or see them again. In a fit of anger, she climbs the walls of her family home and escapes to the outside world, for a few hours of freedom. What happens during those hours creates rippling consequences that haunt the days that follow.
If you’ve read a lot of dystopian YA none of this will be particularly new to you. The story runs in fairly predictable ways. The characters are generally what makes these books different and Rowan is a wonderful protagonist. She’s willful and determined, scared when out of her depth but able to push past her fear. She causes a few of her own problems, so it’s a good thing she’s resilient. Making her bi, or at least uncertain about her sexuality (without making a big deal out of it) was wonderfully refreshing. I liked both Lark and Lachlan as supporting characters, though Lark’s got my vote if the story develops more of a romance in later books.
The story is quick and engaging. The world is well constructed. I thought it clever that there’s a fair amount of pre-Eden history but no Eden history. It gives the author options for the following books and I’m curious what he’ll do.
I found the created swear words rather distracting and unnecessary. Instead of coming off as expletives, they confused me and bumped me out of the narrative.
There’s a fair bit of violence including two torture scenes. Nothing is particularly graphic, and most of the violence has either a detached sense to it or is accompanied by the protagonist questioning the need for it and how the world should be better than this. There are a few kisses, but no other sexual content.
While this isn’t highly original, it is a fun, quick read that will have you turning pages. It’s set-up for a series, and leaves you interested in the world and what’s going to happen next to the characters....more
Pros: great characters, interesting mystery, unique
Cons: a little predictable
Tila and Taema are conjoined twins who grew up in Mana’s Hearth, a cult wPros: great characters, interesting mystery, unique
Cons: a little predictable
Tila and Taema are conjoined twins who grew up in Mana’s Hearth, a cult where meditation and lucid dreaming were an important part of their religious service. They escaped at 16, and were surgically separated. Ten years later, Tila arrives at Taema’s apartment, accused of murder. To clear her sister, Taema must go undercover with the San Francisco Police Department and infiltrate the Ratel, the criminal organization that’s creating a new drug that, when perfected, will allow them to watch and influence dreams.
The book starts with an acknowledgments section, which mentions some of the research the author did into conjoined twins and cults, in order to get the details right. The book is fascinating and the research shows in the conflicted feelings the twins have regarding their upbringing, their former beliefs, how they interact with each other and outsiders, etc. The protagonists are wonderfully complex and I loved learning more about them. I really liked Nazarin, Taema’s undercover partner, as well.
The story takes a number of twists and turns as the mystery unfolds. The main story is Taema going undercover, but the narrative switches to Tila writing about how they left Mana’s Hearth. I did find that as time went on a few of the twists became predictable, but I really enjoyed watching the characters reactions to the various revelations.
It did surprise me that no one considered that Taema’s scar would be on the opposite side from Tila’s when they were made to look alike. For the most part this wouldn’t be an issue, but there is one scene where that should have come up and given her identity away. [note: I got a tweet from the author explaining that due to the amount of reconstructive surgery they needed, their scars are on the same side.]
The subject matter’s pretty dark so but it’s an enjoyable book, and I whipped through it in a weekend, wanting to find out what happens next. So if you’re looking for a mystery with some unique elements, give this a try....more
Cons: didn’t emotionally connect with the characters, ending felt anti-climactic
Four groups of humanPros: interesting characters, fascinating cultures
Cons: didn’t emotionally connect with the characters, ending felt anti-climactic
Four groups of humanoids developed on different worlds. Many outcasts of those worlds found a home on Cygnus Beta. When the Sadiri homeworld becomes inhabitable, killing most of the species with it, a group of the survivors head to Cygnus Beta, where they try to find genetically compatible mates from the various settlements.
I really liked all of the characters. Delarua, as predominant narrator, is a lot of fun, and her observations of the nigh emotionless Sidari and their hints of emotional expression are wonderful. This is her story, and so her family shows up a time or two, an along with them, some person and psychological problems she faces. Dllenahkh is also great, quite unique, and I enjoyed the ‘will they, won’t they’ aspect of their relationship. I also liked that the supporting cast included a character who identified as gender-neutral.
Which is good, because while there is a plot, the book is really character driven.
The different cultures they encounter at the settlements were fascinating, especially the Seelie court. The author did an excellent job of making each one sound unique in terms of government, customs, etc.
While I enjoyed the subtle - very subtle - romance, I didn’t feel particularly invested in the characters emotionally. So for me the ending seemed to fizzle out. The two main climactic style events didn’t come with a feeling of satisfaction when they were resolved, both because of that absence of emotional connection and because they were so drawn out that any tension was gone well before the resolutions.
It was a fun, fairly quick read, with some interesting aliens, and cultures, and characters....more
It’s the year 2036 and the world is run by corporations that advertiPros: fascinating world, interesting characters, thought-provoking
Cons: open ended
It’s the year 2036 and the world is run by corporations that advertise non-stop and have polluted the planet. More and more people are leaving Vancouver for the virtual reality city of Frisco, manufactured by Self. But not everyone can afford to go, like Doug, who’s age is putting him out of touch in his coolhunting job. And not everyone wants to go, like Nicky, who lucked out and got a lab full of genetics equipment when her school scrapped their program. While others can’t wait to get there, like Eileen’s twelve year old ‘grandson’, who goes without permission, leaving her frantic to find out what’s happened to his body. Because Self is a very private company, a company Paul - who brings these characters together - wants to crack open.
Published in - and extrapolated from - 2002, the world-building is fascinating. While the author gets some things wrong, others are more true today than they were when the book came out. The idea of corporations bringing down governments that hinder their commercial efforts, even if those efforts are meant to protect the populace, is scarily relevant today.
The characters all have goals and complications in their lives. Through their day to day lives they comment on how things have changed, and how some things, like discrimination based on race and class distinctions, stay the same. There are some short but graphic sexual scenes, and not all the pairings are heterosexual.
Most of the book takes place in the real world, though you do get to see Frisco from time to time and more completely towards the end of the book
While I enjoyed how Doug’s story ended, on the whole I found the ending a bit unsatisfying as it left things more open ended than I would have liked.
It was a quick, interesting read that raised some thought-provoking ideas....more
Pros: interesting new aliens, excellent world-building, utopic Earth
Cons: frustrating, somewhat boring, limited plot
Having gone through the transcendePros: interesting new aliens, excellent world-building, utopic Earth
Cons: frustrating, somewhat boring, limited plot
Having gone through the transcendental machine, Riley and Asha find themselves separated, on far flung worlds. They must use their new skills to get back to Federation space and find each other.
This is very much a middle book, working specifically to get the two protagonists from one place to another. Along the way they each meet an important figure from their past - which was the most interesting part of the book, as those scenes touched on the events of the first book and brought one of the mysteries of that book forward.
The world-building is top notch, with several new alien races introduced. Gunn’s aliens are all unique, and have histories as well as cultures. Similarly, he extrapolates a future for Earth that encompasses AI protection, a future that has a lot of utopic qualities (though, naturally, not everyone is happy with the status quo).
Having said that, I personally found this book fairly boring. While the aliens Riley and Asha encounter are interesting, the first third of the book felt like it had no relevance to the rest of the story. I also found the ending anti-climactic and confusing.
There’s a 2 page afterward that narrates some fascinating events that sound like they would have made for a very interesting novel, which I’m hoping play a big part in the next book.
There’s enough of interest here for me to at least check out the third book, as I am curious to learn what comes next. But I’m hoping it’s got more plot and less wandering than this book....more
Pros: absolutely brilliant, intricate world-building, fascinating interconnected politics, reads on many levels, thought-provoking, challenges ideas oPros: absolutely brilliant, intricate world-building, fascinating interconnected politics, reads on many levels, thought-provoking, challenges ideas of gender and sexuality, later revelations force you to reevaluate earlier scenes
Cons: opening is VERY confusing, some uncomfortable scenes, frustrating at times
Too Like the Lightning is the first book of the Terra Ignota duology. The second half, Seven Surrenders, comes out in December. The two books together are a historical account of 7 days that lead to an event that changes the world, as written by Mycroft Canner, an eye witness to many of the events, as well as instrumental to a lot of vitally important background activities. The year of interest is 2454. Though the current world doesn’t use gendered pronouns and raises all as equals, Mycroft uses antiquated words for this account. Religions shows up too, though the Church Wars have made all proselytising, churches, and cults illegal. Mycroft is a Servicer, available to anyone who needs a servant, though most often seen helping those in high offices, to atone for the crimes he committed 13 years prior. He starts his great work by explaining the meeting between the sensayer Carlysle and Bridger, a 13 year old boy, who for his own safety Mycroft has kept hidden. A boy who can perform miracles.
The book starts with a title page explaining the permissions obtained so that the book could be published, as well as the various content ratings the book received. While these names and institutions don’t mean much to the reader at the beginning, they set the tone for a book with fully immersive world-building. I spent the first half of the book trying to piece together the meanings of positions and terms, placing characters into their political groups, and feeling quite lost by the sheer mass of things that are left unexplained. While Mycroft does give occasional asides for the reader, these are asides for readers of his present, for whom the events being relayed are past, and for whom the terms that I questioned aren’t unfamiliar.
The brilliance of the book starts in the second half when the occasional philosophical asides start to be reflected in the plot through the actions of the characters. It’s here that you start to understand that the book isn’t a straight narrative, that you’re meant to examine the different layers of text and subtext in order to piece together what’s actually going on. For example, Mycroft doesn’t always gender people properly. It’s frustrating as a reader, but there is a reason for this, which comes up later in the book. Similarly, some scenes are disturbing to read, not because they’re graphic, but because they pair eroticism and terror, something most people don’t equate. This again is done for a reason that the book eventually reveals. So many later revelations make you reevaluate what you understood from the first half of the book. Sometimes more than once.
The world-building is exquisite. It’s completely alien to our current political situation, and yet is something one could imagine coming to pass given the circumstances the characters face. The politics are fascinating, with level upon level of competition and alliance.
There are a lot of characters to remember, but I didn’t have any trouble keeping them all straight. I do recommend, however, bookmarking the seven-ten list when it’s revealed, as you’ll be referring to it several times as more people are introduced and the political situations become clearer. In fact, I haven’t bookmarked and highlighted so much text since university. This is the kind of book I would have loved to have a professor explain the intricacies of, and then write an essay on.
I almost put this book down on several occasions. It can be that frustrating and confusing at times. But the pay-off when you start understanding what’s going on, with all its layers and complexity, is definitely worth the effort. I cannot wait for the next book to come out. ...more
Cons: cliched characters, Landry comprehends the alien with remarkable speed
When Landry agrees to hPros: fascinating aliens, Landry’s resourcefulness
Cons: cliched characters, Landry comprehends the alien with remarkable speed
When Landry agrees to help a friend he has no idea that favour will leave him stranded on the surface of Proc-One, oxygen running out, no way to communicate with the base, and no hope of a rescue. Then he realizes that one of the alien enemy Argoni is nearby, cannibalizing the wreck of his scout ship.
Cait’s the optech promoted to supervisor after Landry’s disappearance. Her day’s not going well either. Her boss is unreasonable, work is piling up, there’s an emergency repair that brings its own mystery, and she’s found a picture of Landry with a mystery woman. She wants to enjoy her promotion but keeps thinking of Landry and wondering if he really is dead.
Landry’s a pretty resourceful character, surviving in harsh conditions for a surprising amount of time. Though lots of new problems arise, he faces each one and finds a solution. I really enjoyed his man vs nature chapters. The book spends a lot of time trying to get away from the initial impression of him as an anti-social workaholic. He’s portrayed as mostly friendless, with few redeeming qualities.
For the most part I liked Cait, though she’s somewhat cliched as well, a female mechanic trying to prove her worth to her father and male co-workers. She’s conflicted in that she’s happy to be promoted, but she doesn’t feel that abandoning Landry is fair, regardless of the circumstances for his disappearance. I did find it strange that the picture of Landry and his wife made her reconsider him as a person. I wouldn’t have thought his personal relationships would matter if she believed him a jerk for being so stand offish at work. There’s a chapter towards the end of the book where she makes some baseless assumptions about him that her own investigations don’t support.
There were some plot points that didn’t make much sense to me, starting with how Landry and Gus managed to steal a scout ship out of a military installation that requires passing through some sort of airlock. Surely there would be notification that the outer door has been opened, if there isn’t anything showing that a scout ship has been activated.
While I liked the pacing of most of the book, the ending progresses too quickly to feel realistic. It’s hard to believe Landry could come to comprehend anything at all from something so alien, but to do so as quickly as he does defied belief. I did enjoy learning more about the aliens and found these chapters very interesting, regardless of how contrived parts of it felt.
Having said that, the book’s ending was rather cool, with sequel potential.
This is a flawed book, but one that reads quickly and has some interesting ideas. ...more
Pros: great characters, excellent world-building, interesting plot
Cons:
Thames Tidal Power, a co-operative made up mostly of gillungs, is set to startPros: great characters, excellent world-building, interesting plot
Cons:
Thames Tidal Power, a co-operative made up mostly of gillungs, is set to start operations when a series of minor accidents occurs. The new company’s quantum-battery technology is poised to upend the energy market, and other powerful players aren’t too happy about that. There’s an election coming soon and the possibility of a new gem positive political party entering the race would split the United People’s Party vote, giving the historically anti-gem Traditional Democratic party a better chance of winning. As political and economic turmoil increases, Zavcka Klist is released from maximum security prison to house arrest. And she’s looking for the ‘daughter’ she lost eight years ago.
This book picks up the story of Gabriel, Gaela, Bal, Aryel, Mikal, Callan, Rhys, etc eight years after the events of Binary. The focus this time is on Gabriel and Mikal’s families. Gabriel now works on managing the socialstream commentary around Thames Tidal Power when he isn’t taking university classes. Along with his parents, he’s very concerned with keeping his adopted sister Eve off the streams in order to keep her safe.
Councillor Mikal Varsi, still an independent candidate, is being courted by both political parties as well as the potential third party. While the UPP and the new gem party make sense, he’s unsure why the Trads would consider approaching someone very much the opposite of what they stand for.
Mikal’s wife is now a Detective Superintendent, and keeping a close eye on the investigation into the accidents at the new power station.
It’s cool seeing how everyone’s grown, and also to see how time and change don’t necessarily remove the barriers and hatreds of ignorance, fear, and bigotry.
The story’s quite interesting and flowed nicely. There were a good number of unexpected twists, and while one aspect of the ending was fairly obvious, there were others that were not. I was particularly impressed with the last chapter that really rapped up the trilogy well.
While it’s possible to read this book without the others, the author assumes a familiarity with the characters, so backstory is left unexplained. This makes a few of the relationships harder to grasp if you don’t know them already. The ending is also somewhat dependant on knowing who Zavcka is and what she’s done in the past.
This is a brilliant series, highly recommended....more
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