ixoy's reading log

ixoy

Finished "The Martian" by Andy Weir.

It's the story of a NASA astronaut who is stranded on Mars after an accident and the tale of what he does to survive. It's told in a mixture of his diaries and how people react back at home.
It's a début e-Book novel and, much like "Wool" and "Blood Song", it's been successful enough to get a publisher and, like both, deservedly so.

Weir's done an excellent job in balancing story, hard science and humour. The lead Mark Watney is both smart and funny - lots of humorous moments and it's nice to have this instead of the more dour bleak outlook that can be found in a lot of sci-fi. He's a genuinely likeable protagonist.
There's also more than enough science to keep people happy as Weir's done good work in making the scenario, and his actions, very believable. I'm curious to see what the author gets to do next and once again happy that e-publishing gives the world a chance to see books like these.

ixoy

Finished Brandon Sanderson's "The Way of Kings", the first book in his Stormlight Archive, an insanely ambitious series. This one is a right door stop/murder weapon clocking in at over 1000 pages.

Despite the length (and the fact it really could have done with some editing), I really enjoyed this. Sanderson created his most original world so far - lots of innovations that really added character to it. The characters themselves are good too and primarily split across four main characters with appearances from a few re-occurring side characters. None of these bored me and I wanted to read more of each of their stories (which is as well when each one has hundreds of pages worth).
The magic system, as is the norm with Sanderson, was very well thought out with plenty of scope for more. His ability to keep doing things like this is very impressive.

This is his most polished work so far and I'm definitely going to read the next one (and so on for the next couple of decades that it takes to write). One of the most exciting and enjoyable authors working currently in fantasy.

ixoy

Had been reading this alongside "The Way of Kings" so I've now also finished "Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse". It's short stories set, yep, in post-apocalyptic worlds. This theme means the range of stories is a little restriction. The pieces chosen vary in quality from Hugo/Nebula nominated ones to those that the authors themselves think little of (such as George R R Martin's contribution).

Strong pieces include one by Octavia E. Butler and I suppose it did introduce me a little to some writers who I wouldn't have been bothered with. On the other hand a weak piece also makes me less bothered to try some other genre stalwarts such as Elizabeth Bear's story.

The focus being too narrow means the collection is merely okay, rather than anything special. Still I think I got it for free, or close to, so for that price I can't complain too much.

ixoy

Finished "The Departure" by Neal Asher, the first in his Owner trilogy. I'd read a few short stories based around the Owner so I was fairly hopeful. It's a completely different world than the majority of his Polity books and, while it's understandable that Asher would want to branch out, it wasn't nearly as good as most of his other works.

The setting is pure dystopian - a future where a corrupt world government presides over billions of starving people, squandering its resources. Enter into this a man, Alan Saul, who can't remember who he is but who has a cybernetic implant that lets him take control of computers and their networks. Saul plans to exact revenge on this. Meanwhile, a side story, features a group on a Mars base who are left to die on orders of their government but fight back.

Problem was that a huge chunk of this book, too much, is dedicated to violent action. Sure Asher's never shied away from it but this is gun porn levels and it's excessive. Being very human based it lacks the alien cleverness employed in the likes of "Orbus" and so it gets quite tiresome. Despite Asher having a good eye for action it gets tiresome. The technology as well seems a paler version of the Jain tech in his Polity books and again not as good.

The character of Saul isn't pleasant either, embodying a lot of the end justifies the means angle. It's hard to root for him. Now, to an extent, that's kind of the point and - to be fair - it actually begins to fall into place a lot better near the end of the book which is more promising for the next two. It certainly gave me hope that there's a bit more to what I've seen so far (which also smacks a little bit of Asher's feeling towards organisations like the EU which he blogs about).

A disappointment because I'm a fan but, with the last 10-15% picking it up a little and the general feeling the endless violence would be toned down, I'm optimistic that it will go up from here.

ixoy

Finished "Petroplague" by Amy Rogers. It's in the "science thriller" category. It details a bacteria that breaks down petrol and the resulting chaos in LA as fuel begins to disappear.

It's a pretty neat concept and Rogers, with a science background, has the knowledge for the premise. It's short and snappy but the writing is fairly weak and the characters, perfectly likeable, are a little bit one dimensional. Couple of clichéd moments in it, including a little bit of a neat save for the solution to the crisis. Nothing bad here just nothing really memorable either.

ixoy

Finished "World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War" by Max Brooks. Interesting concept, telling the beginning, middle and end as a series of interviews with people who were there. Spreading these interviews across the globe helps and Brooks seems to have done a lot of research into making the various cultures seem authentic.

There's a good number of ideas here too (so few of which made it into the film) so it's inventive. If there's a flaw it's that there's a little too much military hardware at times even though it's completely in place. I just found that a little tiresome.

Overall a worthy read and original. Well worth a look.

ixoy

Was also reading, and just finished, "Long Eyes and Other Stories" by Jeff Carlson. It's a collection of his short pieices and I paid $0.99 for it and, alas, I paid pretty much what it's worth. I didn't like his style at all - the stories are short but they didn't really do anything for me. The settings weren't interesting, there were no smart twists or premises, characters were forgettable, and the prose was flat. Not a recommended collection.

ixoy

And finally finished "Diaspora" by Greg Egan which I'd been reading alongside the other two books. It's very hard science fiction detailing a future where man kind has evolved into three distinct branches: genetically enhanced, software running within artificial bodies, and those living entirely as software in virtual environments.
It's a very impressive piece of work as it involves really looking far down the line as to how the very concept of what it is to be human changes. Not content with that though Egan looks into his theories on wormholes, multiple-dimension space and more.
I found the physics very hard going at times and my eyes glazed over more than once. On the other hand what he had to say about the various roads people might go down, including its biology, was interesting.
As with some of his novels characterisation was a little weak but, more than nearly any other author, he really has the Big Ideas. Shame that I couldn't grasp some of it but I'll put it down to my lack of knowledge rather than the author's abilities (which assume more than the average lay man's).

ixoy

Finished "God's War" by Kameron Hurley, the first book in her Bel Dame Apocrypha series. It's another title that I picked up free as part of an author promotion and this, as it happens, is probably the best free book I got.

It's refreshingly different - set in a desert world with a strong Islamic vein, two countries are at war. As all the men fight at the front the remainder of society is in the hands of women. One of these, the lead Nyx, leads a band of mercenaries taking up jobs such as hunting deserters. Then she meets Rhys, a refugee from the enemy side, and things begin to unfold.

I found the world Hurley created to be interesting. Notwithstanding basing it on something other than the standard Christian-European model, it also had an interesting use of biotech-as-magic, with magicians employing great skill with a variety of insects from healing, to wardens, to communication. A society supported strongly by women is also quite unusual and it worked here, giving a strong female lead.
The action was well described and quite bloody at times and the ending left more than enough for the sequel (which was also free in the same promotion!).
I'm not surprised to see that it was a Nominee for both the Locus and Nebula awards and I'll certainly read the next and buy the final one in the series.

ixoy

Finished "First Shift" by Hugh Howey, the first book in his Shift trilogy which serves as the prequel series to his "Wool" series.

Do not read this book without having read the Wool series first as it will spoil a lot of its revelations. In fact this is somewhat of the problem, something suffered by prequels, that we know what's going to happen and therefore it's harder to surprise the reader. Now this can be made up for with interesting characters but I didn't feel that the stories of Donald and Troy matched up to the characters from the Wool series. They felt a little flat, lacked some of the emotional depth. It did pick up towards the ending, and there's certainly enough to keep me interested in the second book, but I walked away a little underwhelmed.

ixoy

Just finished "The Republic of Thieves" by Scott Lynch, the long awaited third instalment in his "Gentlemen Bastards" series.

Really enjoyed this one - it's full of witty one-liners alongside a plot involving a series of cons. It splits between two plot lines - one picking up from the events of "Red Seas Under Red Skies" and the second detailing a story of Locke's younger days.

It's also a romance story as it features Sabetha, Locke's long lost love, heavily. This works well and the romance is believable, which is good as up to this point we didn't really have much to go on to understand Locke's longings.

The novel introduces a fairly major twist/revelation which will be interesting to see how it plays out in subsequent books. Just hopefully not as long a wait until the next one.

ixoy

Finished "Dark Eden" by Chris Beckett. It's a sort of Lord of the Flies with a science fiction spin. The descendants of a small group of starship personnel who crashed on a planet where there's no sunlight, it's set in a stagnant society where the stories of earth have become twisted into legends. One young man decides it is time for a change but that brings about a while shift in society.

The world of this book, one in perpetual darkness out only by the light of alien flowers and fauna, was well realised and original with interesting alien creatures. It also played a very key part in the characters stories. These characters were good too, mostly young adults and reflecting their strengths and weaknesses. The plot itself is quite simple but it doesn't need to be more than that. The prose is worth a mention as Beckett uses first person narrative and let's us see how language had evolved and mutated.

It's well worth a read and I'm glad to hear there's a sequel due next year.

ixoy

In honour of the 50th anniversary I read "Nothing O'Clock" by Neil Gaiman, a short story featuring the 11th Doctor. Nice concept for an alien race that fits in perfectly with Moffat's era.

Also quick mention that I recently finished Karl Pilkington's "An Idiot Abroad" which was light but an easy read. Nothing exceptional or particularly memorable. Good to see they made a bit of an attempt with this e-book, unlike other publishers, and included some colour photos.

ixoy

Finished "The Lions of Al-Rassan" by Guy Gavriel Kay. It's a fantasy novel set in an alternative take on Moorish Spain. The fantasy elements are very light and instead he's focused on making an interesting society (presumably close to the historical reality but, as I'm unfamiliar with them, it's very rich to me).

As with "Tigana" I really liked that he had interesting characters who felt like real people even if they were a little bit too perfect - the greatest swordsman in the country is also a brilliant poet. Everyone is a borderline genius. And yet he pulls it off because they're also flawed emotionally and trapped by their backgrounds and ties to countries. The politics of the country, and the threats of war, are very well realised and tie in perfectly with the characters.

I've also got to note that Kay's prose is several steps above the average fantasy author. There's a real beauty to it, a sort of flow of story telling that's almost poetic at times. It puts other authors in a more ill light.

One snag is that the ending seems, in some ways, a little rushed - events, that moved somewhat slowly, suddenly race along to a conclusion. Now there is a sense to it because that final scene is almost perfectly realised, brilliantly done and fits in with everything that's gone before. It just felt that there were some events that were glossed over. It's a niggling thing but a shame I felt it at the very end.

Overall though an excellent novel and I've got a bunch more of his stacked up to read.

ixoy

Finished "The Sea Watch" by Adrian Tchaikovsky, the sixth book in his Shadows of the Apt series.

Unlike previous books, this is heavily focused on one character (Stenwold) and I'd have preferred a little more balance out with some of the others introduced. This time he's involved in political games for the first third of the book which I felt weren't all that enthralling. Nothing bad but nothing memorable.

Then, just as I was being a little unsettled, part two kicks in and does a very good job of introducing a whole new set of players and a different world. Very much enjoyed it and it all got tied up quite nicely in the finale piece but with plenty of scope to follow up in later books (as I assume he will).

Not the strongest in the series but another welcome instalment.

ixoy

Finished "The Machine of Death" - a collection of short stories centred around a simple concept: What would happen in a world where a machine could test you and tell you how you would die. It wouldn't say when, and its answer could be cryptic, but it would always be right.
Initially, I had thought the stories (nearly all by relatively unknown authors) were going to be about their deaths. It's actually about how people react to the machines, to their fates. How some rally against it or make a joke of it and so on. There's a good variety in there and, as such, there's a fair mix of good and weak stories. There's certainly enough there though that the good outweighs the bad and the premise made it an entertaining read.

ixoy

Also finished "Just a Geek" by Wil Wheaton. It was a fun, and very honest, book where Wheaton took highlights of his blogging life, looking back at some posts and giving a newer, more sincere, appraisal. He genuinely comes across as a nice guy, who made a couple of foolish choices when young and then got caught up in Hollywood. Nice to see how he re-claimed himself by establishing an online presence.
I'd be interested in a follow up book as he's had more success since this publication in 2002. I could read his blog but that's an awful lot to wade through.
Recommended if you're interested in seeing how someone deals with the aftermath of fame and begins to carve a new role for themselves.

ixoy

Finished "Ancillary Justice" by Ann Leckie, her debut novel and the first in the Imperial Radch series. This one came on the back of very strong reviews and thankfully it was very enjoyable. It's the tale of a ship AI that sees events through its many slaved bodies (ancillaries) and how one of these events triggers off a series of others.

The first person viewpoint, told from the same (but not the same) character perspective (and over two time lines) works very well and it does throw in some fun musings on the thought of what constitutes an individual - that being a very core theme of the book.
One item of this that was less successful was the fact that the character had trouble distinguishing gender for reasons that were a little too stretched. Everyone is "her" although other cultures can distinguish between male / female. I know Leckie was making a point but it was a little wearying.

Still though, the pace is pretty good and the two plots - separated apart by twenty years - do dove tail (the earlier time line explaining the circumstances of the latter). There's enough action and plot twists to keep me entertained and it's fairly snappy (350 pages). It does end well set up for a sequel and, as a debut novel, it's very impressive.

ixoy

Also finished the short "Second Shift: Order", by Hugh Howey being the second book in his "Shift" trilogy that act as prequel / companion series to "Wool".

Enjoyed this a lot more than "First Shift" as the action returns to the Silos. This time we see the precursor to earlier events from the original "Wool" series with the added advantage of further insider knowledge of what exactly's going on. The characterisation is better and the sense of loss and grief is handled well.

Looking forward now to the final book in the series, to be read in the near future.

ixoy

Finished "The Stormcaller" by Tom Lloyd, the first book in his Twilight Reign series.
In short: Some nice ideas let down by sloppy execution. There's some good reviews elsewhere on its flaws but I found the characterisation inconsistent and not developed as expected. For example, we're told the lead has a wicked sense of humour to offset his rage but we rarely see this wit and we're left too often with a flat character who I found rather unlikeable.

The world in which the characters find themselves has potential but it's a bit of a mash-up: unicorns, vampires, Gods roaming the earth, etc. In a skilled hand like Erikson it can be pulled off but too often in this book I felt that Lloyd was just throwing in new monsters / ideas without any real thought as to how they integrated into the world. I never really got a feel for the Land as a result.

The plot itself is grand - nothing special, with the usual prophecies and more in place. Lloyd's prose made elements of it a bit unclear at times. I don't think he was trying to be mysterious (such as in the Malazan books) more just a failure in how he told the story.

It's not a terrible book but it's fairly weak. It might just be due to it being a debut novel but then I've read other debut novels (Scott Lynch, Joe Abercrombie, Anthony Ryan) which came roaring out of the gates. Given the wealth of other fantasy series out there, I doubt I'd bother with the next instalment.

ixoy

Finished the Doctor Who novel "Harvest of Time" by Alastair Reynolds. This one features the 3rd Doctor and Jo in the UNIT years and it's an excellent recreation of the era. Reynolds is clearly a fan because he gets the Doctor, Jo, and the Master spot on. In particular the Doctor/Master relationship is done very well and I can easily picture Pertwee and Delgado speaking the lines.

The plot fits quite neatly with the alien-invasions of that era - with a little boost to the budget I can see how they'd have used the Sild, a time-travelling menace. Reynolds only throws in a little bit of harder sci-fi here as he knows that's not what the show is about. We do get some nice takes on time travel here, a little more reminiscent of the "timey wimey" we've seen in the Moffat era. It's used to good effect and very central to the story.

It all builds up to a satisfying conclusion and some nice revelations. It'd work for most fans of the show (there's some nods to the newer seasons) but if you've enjoyed the Pertwee years then it's a must from one of Britain's best science fiction writers.

ixoy

Finished "The Dragon's Path" by Daniel Abraham, the first book in his Dagger and Coin series.
Really enjoyed this story. Set against a world of 13 races, created in the time of Dragons, it initially doesn't come across as original as the works in his Long Price quartet. However, the four characters story lines - each taking up roughly the same share in pages - worked very well and interwove in a very satisfying manner. Abraham did a good job showing how their events could impact each other, even without them meeting and the characters themselves had good progressions.
There was good pacing and just the right amount of twists to keep me entertained (even if the final epilogue was something that could easily be seen in advance). Will absolutely be reading the next books and thankfully Abraham is a quick writer so, with two more already published, I won't be kept waiting.

ixoy

Finished "Inflight Science: A Guide to the World From Your Airplane Window" by Brian Clegg. It broadly touches upon a number of different items of science that are (at times very loosely) linked to things you may see/experience when on a flight. So you'll get a piece on quantum physics to tie into GPS satellite corrections (because GPS is used to track the plan's progress) or then a bit on a star's nuclear fission because you could see stars outside the plan if you fly art night. That too me was the issue with this book - it meandered a lot. In fact it actually talks about meanders when touching upon rivers you could observe.

I'd have liked more on the mechanics of flying, planes, etc - a greater focus than just hoping from one topic to the next and getting no real depth in any of it. Yes, it's a popular science book and aimed to get people thinking about science on a plane trip but for me it was a little too shallow.

ixoy

Finished "Infidel" by Kameron Hurley, the second book in her Bel Dame Apocrypha trilogy. It's a "bug punk" (her term!) novel set in a future world infused with Islamic culture. It follows on from the first with the very hard-ass mercenary Nyx taking on a rogue element of the Bel Dames (legal mercenaries for hire).

Like the first it's a world where women are the strong characters, men being sent off to fight endless wars and it's one of the elements that makes it interesting. The Islamic-esque religion that permeates all the cultures adds to it as does the world being fuelled by "bug punk" - tailored insects performing tasks from something as mundane as cleaning dishes to assassinations.

The characters introduced here aren't as strong as "God's War" but thankfully a lot of that cast return, more mature than the last. Nyx is in many ways unlikeable (even to herself) but quite an interesting character and there's enough in here that I'd suspect I'll have some decent closure in the third and final book.

So far a recommended series, especially since I got them for free (legally!). Now off to buy the 3rd.

ixoy

Finished reading "Doctor Who - The Vault". It's a "coffee table" book chronicling the show's 50 year history. There's a brief page detailing the stories of the year followed by a 6-8 page article detailing some aspect of the show (music, costume design, novelizations, etc). It's a gorgeous book as it's lavishly designed - glossy photos of rare merchandise, publicity shots, etc adorn each page and link into each year.
Naturally, being short, the articles can't get into much depth but they're still fairly illuminating and it's all more than compensated for by the quality of the presentation.
From a fan perspective, it's also nice to see that it is fairly balanced and does not pitch itself solely towards the 2005+ seasons.
Overall, a mandatory gift for any fan of the show and its 50 years.

ixoy

Finished "Third Shift: Pact" by Hugh Howey, the final book in his "Shift" trilogy which serves as a companion to his "Wool" series.
Picking up some years on from "Second Shift" it continues on the story of Donald while introducing another strand. Donald's story provides some very interesting background to the Wool series (which should definitely be read before this) and the second storyline as well, while not as relevant, is an interesting story in isolation and fear as well as fleshing out other details (being vague as it's a bit of a spoiler).
It was a very satisfying end to the trilogy and it sets up the final book - "Dust" - nicely.

ixoy

Finished "The Etymologicon" by Mark Forsyth. As the name suggests it's about etymology. Forsyth basically takes a word, or phrase, and describes its origins and uses elements of that description to launch into the description of a new word or phrase. It sounds somewhat rambling - as if the author is going "Oh! That reminds me!" - and it is to an extent but it also acts as a nice hook.

Each section is nice and short but gets the key information across. It's perfect for a quick read and Forsyth's got a nice line in dry humour. Hardly an in-indepth study but it's not designed to be. A good one to flick through.

ixoy

Also finished "City of Dragons" by Robin Hobb, the 3rd book (of 4) in her Rainwild Chronicles series. It's probably the weakest - not much happens and it really feels like a bridge between books or, as suggested elsewhere, almost half a book as there's no real plot climaxes. There's some character progression but it really feels like Hobb suddenly had to meet a deadline and submitted half of a larger novel.
Not a bad book but oddly incomplete. Will of course read the follow up but not one to go into and expect satisfaction.

ixoy

Finished "The Shadow of the Torturer" by Gene Wolfe (a week or so ago), the first book in "The Book of the New Sun" series.
I'm not sure what I thought of this. I really wanted to like it but I felt that, by only dipping in and out of it, I missed a lot of the imagery and themes he was conveying because it's not particularly straight forward. He also uses a lot of obscure terms that are either made up or beyond the scope of the Kindle dictionary making it more challenging. Which is fine, I've dealt with this sort of thing before, but as I wasn't focused on it it made it more difficult to get into.
I've already got the second one and I'll try to give it more attention. Overall seems like he's invoked a dreamy world, sort of like a large Gormenghast, with an odd set of characters that I think deserve more of my time.

ixoy

Also today I finished "Wild Cards - Volume 1", a collection of stories (presided over by George R.R. Martin) featuring an alternative earth where, in 1946, an alien virus over Manhattan caused a number of people to develop mutations. Some of these manifested themselves as powers akin to those of super-heroes (the aces) whereas many just ended up with weak powers or deformities (the jokers).

Each story follows either an ace (primarily) or a joker and the stories span three decades. It's interesting how the stories react against the politics of the time (the McCarthy hearings, Vietnam, etc.). The stories interweave with each other too - so one ace mention as an aside in one story will be the primary focus of the next. This really helps build up the world of the novel and it feels more layered.

Being a collection (hate to call them short as they're generally of a decent length), the quality can fluctuate but generally it's quite high. It's a great concept although I'm daunted by the 21 volumes published so far. Only the next two are yet on the Kindle but I imagine I'll be reading the next series to see how the Wild Card world unfolds.