Rik thomson
Surprising
I initially was expecting some sort of Murderbot-esque cyberpunk tale of a dystopian future. In some ways it was , but with so many pop culture references. This book covers so many modern scifi styles, it's really pretty clever. As Bob himself would tell you. A strangely cosy sci fi political dystopian tale about an engineer and his brush with eternal life.
Ok, not mind blowing. Probably not a good fit for my taste and some character quirks tended to annoy more than entice. Gus the male protagonist was described as having rough calloused hands constantly. His workman hands, crooked smile and dark black eyes were as constant as was his rumpled clothes and unruly hair. In my experience writers hands tend to be pretty smooth but hey he was a gravedigger a decade earlier that would be it. January didn't fair much better as a character, so i guess they were well matched.
What a joy! This was a great, easy to read adventure. The characters were interesting, charismatic and entertaining. New Mexico was an new geography for me, very varied with a diverse population of eccentric characters. Style wise it reminded me of Tama Janowitz “Slaves of New York” and Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum Series. Will definitely be reading more of her work.
A modern Sci-fi thriller spanning several genres. None of which can be explained easily without spoilers. This book explores modern physics, string theory, quantum physics while still being primarily a story about one mans fight to get his family back.
If you enjoyed the documentary “What the #$*! Do We (K)now!? (2004)” or “Sliding Doors” or even Multiverse related ideas then you should also enjoy this. It's very modern and thoughtful while being very familiar and emotional.
This is Becky Chamber's third book in her exploration of the Universe she has created.
Of the three books I found this the hardest to get into. It was very character driven like her previous books, but it just seemed to be very scattered in its approach.
‘The long way to a small angry planet' (her first book) was focused on the crew of a spaceship. It was a team exploring the Universe together, interacting together and sharing their experiences.
‘A closed and common orbit' (her second book) was two storylines of two characters that live together so there was a mixing of experiences and communication between those characters.
This book has a range of the characters that it explores. Some are linked to each other, others have absolutely no relation to others at all. Well apart from living within this spaceship fleet orbiting a sun.
Having finished the book now I can understand what it was communicating, why it was created, and what it was saying about it's characters, but it just was nowhere near as compelling as the first two books. She still has written a fascinating exploration of society and people within it, but it lacked the hook that gripped me in the first 2 books.
I think the most amazing part of Becky Chambers' work is the overwhelming empathy she communicates between the reader and her characters. You care for these characters in a way very rarely experienced in Sci-Fi novels.
I'd love to learn more about her world-building process because it is a Masterclass in itself. I saw a youtube interview with her and gleamed a hint of what could have produced such a talent. Becky is a dedicated D&D DragonLance player, and spoke briefly and with great affection of her groups campaign over many years.
Her books are social, deep, intelligent and brilliant. Highly recommended and will continue to be in your consciousness long after you've finished each tome. BRILLIANT
This is a really fun, interesting book. It is definitely a character driven sci-fi drama but with a very well fleshed out universe full of diverse inhabitants. The basic plot is simple enough, Rosemary joins a drilling ship with a diverse crew of many races and genders. The ship is commissioned to create a intergalactic superhighway of sorts, between known space and a new mysterious alien race. Obviously no spoilers. The level of detail in the interactions with our diverse range of alien lifeforms, genders, and cast make this an exciting read. The fact that some of the characters don't identify in any specific gender, while others identify as non-binary, makes for a master class in dealing with gender pronouns. This is clever, entertaining, and a lot of fun. I will be reading more!
I'll endeavour to include no spoilers, just an overview.
The simplest explanation of this book would be to say it's a gay version of “Eat Pray Love” . So it feels familiar as a device, and a bit tired.
The characters unfold eventually but for me the book really doesn't come alive until its final third. Some early relationships lack any emotional depth, you wonder why the german boy is there at all? Others make such a brief appearance you think should they have been included at all?
The narrator changing voice to various characters doesn't work for me. I found myself confused about who i was hearing from. There seemed to be no signposting to say new persons thoughts or experiences. I thought it was a misprint the first time it happened.
As a 48 yo artistic gay man i understand the story, appreciate the charm of our protagonist and the loving way he is explored by the author. I suspect that compassion is what will stay with me from this book.
What a great book. Full of joy and angst, love and fear. A great coming out/coming of age tale for our modern world. Im looking forward to seeing how the upcoming film “Love, Simon” tackles the characters and drama. The source material is rich and a pleasure for all ages, all persuasions and identities.
Ive read “The Velvet Rage” by Alan Downs and by and large i found this book built on the ideas covered there. I found much of the stories to be impactful and at times quite troubling. Being gay in a heteronormative society is not easy, but add the macho aggression found here in Australia and it changes it to a very bleak place.
I was at times affected and effected by the plight of the people discussed in the book. It brought back many many memories from my past, not all bad but mainly painful.
My criticism of the book is that the honest portrayal of gay life could well terrify young readers. It did paint a pretty bleak picture, it was honest and accurate but ....
My only other observation was that the first 2/3 of the book explore the issues and really brought up some strong feelings for me. The final part outlines places to seek help (in the Uk) and some ideas for solutions. My problem here is that the solutions posted often were in relation to drug or alcohol related issues. If your issues are in relation to just mental health the suggestions were a lot more limited and sadly less helpful.
As i said to my therapist when discussing how upset parts of the book made me, i really hoped the book would give some innovative new insights to help me. It did a great job of highlighting issues and getting you to consider how these issues impact on your life. It just didn't seem to follow through with solutions from a mental health perspective.
What a great adventure. I didn't mind that it has a strong female lead, and ideas of social injustice not unlike hunger games / divergent / twilight. All in all a fun dystopian fantasy novel with a strong cast, morals and romance, magical abilities without mysticism, and a skewed social system just primed for revolution. I took a point off as i saw influences from several other franchises but all in all worth the time. Will i suggest my hunger game obsessed niece try it, yes definitely. Will i read the sequel , yes definitely.
Simply stunning, very emotional and at times draining. Sharp and witty, eloquent and Elogant.
This book and its ideas of love, friendship and reconciling the past is a staggering achievement. You will laugh, definitely cry and without doubt you'll care. I think that's where this book shines the most, you are invested, you care what decisions the characters make. You will at times even find yourself deep in thought pondering the emotional state and the choices of the characters. I feel like I have lived with these characters, they aren't just words on a pages, these people are in my heart and are known to me like the closest of friends.
I know this book will be with me, close to my heart for many years to come.
This book is charming. The characters are real, Christopher is a wonderful character and really captures someone with Asperger syndrome. It's very clear that the author understands his characters thought process, his reasoning and treats it all with respect. The book also casts a light onto societies view of those differently a led amount us.
I must say I was a but stunned to see negative reviews for this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it.