Mark
There is some good info here but it feels a little out of date when reading in 2021. Still a decent introduction to the subject is buried among a lot of speculation and flat out flights of fantasy. Can't say I recommend it overall.
There is much to like about this series, same folks who brought you Lone and Cub. Setting is a historically accurate as possible Japan, artwork fantastic, good guys are good while the bad guys are bad, and there is a lot of violence towards women. It is easy to skip those parts, they are integral and sadly I feel like they go on a bit too much. That is why it gets three not four stars.
Excellent edition to the series well worth reading for fans of the series. Not an entry point for those who are new.
Artwork stellar, story is good. Artwork carries the day here for sure. Enjoyable multipart series.
Fun historical romance. Great setting with rather modern characters to be honest. Escapist, check-out stuff sure but it is well written and this audio book is well performed.
Whoah, fun mystery. Well written and performed. Did I mention the day I read this book was the real crypto currencies had, um issues? So very topical to its moment.
Setting: Modern world, basically now.
Plot: Down on his luck everyman overcomes trope.
Characters: Enjoyable, protagonist is relatable and some of the other characters are as well, but generally a little thin - not a problem in the end. The “villains” of the piece are a little over the top but for this book that makes sense. Cats, lots of cats but not what you might think based on the cover and um some dolphins that are something else.
Language: This is the part I liked the best. Honestly laugh out loud funny if you like Scalzi's snarky sense of humor. Really, the best part of the book are some of the arguments and conversations between characters.
Summary: Light entertainment with some really fun set pieces. Not peak Scalzi but a fun and enjoyable bit of entertainment. Can't always be serious can we?
I like the characters very much - they are all real enough for this sort of book and fun. Not too much magic yet so mostly a good story that is mostly about a young woman having a frankly bonkers adventures in just after WWI in London. Not too deep and enjoyable.
Excellent and fair primer to the Communist Manifesto. That document that has been so ill used and misunderstood. Amazing that it is still used as bogeyman by conservatives.
Um, I enjoyed what was here but the ending. Ugh, a cliffhanger. Nope, wait until the part two of this out.
Life without Batman, Robin, and a host of others? Yeah - indeed. Great artwork and a good story for sure.
This is for an English language audiobook version. Surprised that I liked it, I had tried to read a physical version of some book in the series and it went nowhere very fast - but this worked well. Rich world with interesting characters and narrator was good. Not a mind blowing listen but different enough from other Medieval Fantasy to be an engaging and enjoyable. Solid, I will try others in the series at some point.
Gathers information concerning our society, how it functions, what we value to discuss the impact of technology that is designed to keep us looking at media and make those media providers money while apparently not caring about the impact on users. While this has some tips about how to increase focus or at least take better control of your media, your mileage will vary as this is more a look at societal factors and the related research than a self-help book. Hari's arguments feel more than just hyped up moralizing or a nostalgia for a time gone by.He calls for both personal and societal changes to allow humans to live a life less externally mediated, less algorithmic derived lives and ultimately a higher quality life.
Late to the game. Loving the art work, world building, the plot, and most of the characters.
Another excellent installment. All previously know characters continue to develop in ways that are believable and the police procedural elements keep things moving along. Love this series
A discussion of places that I know nothing about. It is well written and it is a low key exploration of one person's place and their history in that place. Recommended for any one interested in Denmark or just social history.
Overall very enjoyable story and it is a part 1. Story is of a young woman who changes pretty dramatically in the course of the story, that transformation is believable. The plot that surrounds this character and the others is good with action, intrigue, and bonding. Setting is a fairly standard modern science space with a few twists such as LGBTIplus as completely normal and unremarkable. Pronouns matter here. Mechas and AI. Language is pretty straightforward and enjoyable. The main chararcter is very intriguing and really pulled me in. The characters around them are also engaging and support the main very well. This is very much a part and yes I intend to carry on with the series. Recommendation enough, no?
Two quotes from Rebecca Solnit's introduction explain this book so well:
1. The love of place can sustain a life, and we usually talk as though it's an unreciprocated love, a one-way street. These essays show why that is wrong. The places love us back in how they steady and sustain us, teach us, shelter us, guide us, feed us... So, in a sense, in learning to love the Earth and particular places in it, we are learning to love back what loved us all along.
2.‘unhurried... an act of resistance to our hurried, harried, distracted era'.
Yes, yes this is more accessible in terms of how it was written and the nature of the story. That does not mean it was easy to understand what was happening. What is going on this one? I felt like this was a lot background with minimal driving of the overall story until the final third and the ending. Then the story really took off. Very enjoyable edition to the series.
