Andre

Excavations has some deliciously dry humor that's the great gem within this book. Myers' characters are well-developed, even if sometimes too stuck in their own idiosyncrasies, which can make them feel one-sided. The story itself is interesting, a workplace comedy that centers around archaeology and feminism. However, the first half of the book is somewhat slow, and even when the narrative picks up steam, it can still feel sluggish, surprisingly ending as abruptly as an earthquake.

This book is as enlightening as it is infuriating. To be clear, I loved this book. It's a clear and precise account of what the tech monopolies have been doing to destroy their products in the search for constant growth. What's infuriating is seeing laid out so clearly the playbook basically every company uses to screw all of their consumers.

On a better note, I'm very happy to have discovered Libro.fm through this book, and I'm a subscriber now!

Similar to the first book, Carl's Doomsday Scenario is a pleasure to read. Unlike the first book, this one incorporates quests that serve to advance the storyline while also expanding the overall narrative.

Carl and Donut's relationship keeps growing, and it's impossible not to love them (especially on THAT moment towards the end).

I always enjoy Ward's writing, and her horror is as soft as it is disturbing. This story smartly uses the classic Peter Pan tale (a scary story itself) to set the foundation for this book. Even though the parallels are easy to draw, this is definitely not a retelling but its own intentional story. As is usual for Ward, she delivers an interesting twist that is not forceful or overly obvious. However, I did have some trouble connecting with the protagonist, not necessarily because I didn't care for her motivations, but mostly because I found some of her actions frustrating (even though I would have likely done the same).

By all accounts, this book should not work. It spans several centuries in just 300 pages, frequently shifting away from its central characters and only referencing them later to tie the narrative together. Yet, this structure highlights Asimov’s brilliance in world-building, resulting in a true masterpiece. In this story, the protagonist is not an individual, but the Foundation itself. Its inception and growth provide all the narrative anchor needed. Even as the characters become mere specks in the passage of time, they perfectly exemplify the core tenet of psychohistory: it can predict the future of a civilization, but never that of an individual.

If I have one critique, it is that the characters navigating the recurring Seldon crises often seem too certain of their path, rarely displaying doubt in their actions. However, perhaps this is the inevitable result of Hari Seldon’s psychohistory—a design where the course set in motion by the Foundation leads to singular outcomes, effectively limiting the agency of those caught within its wake.