Paradise by Craig Alanson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This one was pretty neat if what you want is a bit of payback and resolution set up in the first book. The abandoned world of Paradise is a pretty big thread, especially for all those humans left behind.

Sure, the "oh, btw, look what knowledge I squirreled away for plot reasons" *IS* a bit heavy handed, as is the whole "see what I can do if I have a good AI at my fingertips as long as no one else has him" crutch, but it it *IS* still fun.

It's getting to be old hat in SF now, however. And fantasy, as well. Snarky god-like advisors, alas.

And yet, fun.


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews is be interested in reading my SF (Very hard SF, mind you), I'm open to requests.

Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

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SpecOps by Craig Alanson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If I were to be a bit more critical, or just on par with the snark of Skippy the ever-brilliant AI, I might remark that these two books are nothing more than space adventure with an ever-revolving door of "You stupid monkey, this can't be done."

"But I'm stupid, that's why it'll work."

"Oh, golly, you ARE right!"

But in the end, I'm still having fun. And having fun is not half the battle. It's the WHOLE battle. Because I, too, am a stupid monkey.


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews is be interested in reading my SF (Very hard SF, mind you), I'm open to requests.

Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

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Nova by Samuel R. Delany
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Re-read. I was always pretty much overwhelmed by just how GOOD Delany's SF is. I mean, shockingly so, on so many different levels.

His characters are rich, varied, and memorable. His worldbuilding, more so. And best of all, and especially in this particular novel, it's downright mythical.

It's true SF, straddling the line between adventure, mystery, REVENGE, empire economics, and obsession. The grizzled old pilot hunting his white whale in the form of compressed energy stolen from a nova. The traveling artists, whether sensory-immersion or a pure novelist (two new friends signing on the crew). Interstellar political schemes between two great powerhouses, boiled down to their eldest sons and their everlasting hate.

It's mythical, gorgeous, and so rich.

When I think back over all of the SF I've read over the years, some truly stand out. This is one of them. Bigger than life, as mythical as Moby Dick, but much more present and readable.

I totally recommend this for anyone. Some things ought not to be forgot. And this one ought to stand the test of time just fine.



Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews is be interested in reading my SF (Very hard SF, mind you), I'm open to requests.

Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

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An Adventure Brewing by JollyJupiter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Straight Isekai, this has a single job--to give us dwarves and beer--and it succeeds admirably.

Of course, we're meant to believe it's a cozy fantasy, and for the most part, it is, if all you want is a beer-fetish alchemy-lite build your own brewery adventure.

Fortunately for me, that's all I expected, and it has its funny moments. There's something admirable about a drinking adventure if you've a mind and hearty constitution for it. Real fantasy at its roots. True escapism.

Still, not bad.


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews is be interested in reading my SF (Very hard SF, mind you), I'm open to requests.

Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

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Columbus Day by Craig Alanson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was frankly just hoping for some long-range SF with higher scope and action, and I suppose there's some of that here, seeing a few new planets and Earth a few times, but this is, at its core, a Mil-SF series.

I won't get into it, but it has all the see new places, kill new people feel. And just because the aliens are all asshats, it doesn't make us any less of one, either.

Fast forward, I was getting a little worn out by the frankly slightly dull mil-life of being shuffled about, made a mushroom, and having nothing greater than dumb luck to help you survive. It wasn't until a certain beer can showed up that I really started getting into the book.

Sure, a snarky companion always livens things up, and this whole addition is ALL trope at this point, but I still enjoyed it. The series may never be my go-to, but it IS enjoyable enough to want to see where it leads.

Adventure. I miss a good adventure.


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews is be interested in reading my SF (Very hard SF, mind you), I'm open to requests.

Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

Arctunn.com

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The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four, and Five by Doris Lessing
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Simultaneously a high-fantasy with highly stratified zones of consciousness and social development (different zones = primitive to high culture, sometimes vital to stagnant) and a hard look at sexual-social context, with all the sadness, misunderstanding, violence, and yes, love that's involved, the novel is both ambitious and highly unsettling.

It's mythical and even slightly satirical, but less so because it's painfully honest and clear-eyed.

The higher zones are more rarified, well-off, balanced, while the lower zones are increasingly war-like and even barbaric. The fact that the "providers" (call them orders from angels or whatever) demanded that the queen of Zone 3 marry the king of Zone 4, comes with a lot of shocking baggage and a wake up call to both societies.

None of these marriages are made in heaven. But it did break up the stagnation between them, allowed people to hope for better in zones 4 and 5, while bringing pain and suffering to zone 3, which was ostensibly MUCH better off and happy before.

Seen as an allegory, it's pretty obvious, but as a fantasy, it's a bit more interesting, complicated, and multi-faceted than anything a normal allegory might attempt. Indeed, I finished this book over 2 hours ago and it has had me re-evaluating everything about it, making me appreciate it even more.

It's really about the hierarchy of needs, and more than that, a hierarchy of spiritual development. Sometimes we have to get in the mud to appreciate the finer things, and sometimes the finer things must give way to finer refinement--even if it leads to massive unhappiness.

It's not an easy or happy book. But it sure as hell feels honest.




Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews is be interested in reading my SF (Very hard SF, mind you), I'm open to requests.

Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

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The Wizard's Crown by Michael G. Manning
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

So, I managed to rip through the last book in this series, literally putting down everything and anything else in my life to see how it finished, simply because I was just THAT invested in the tale. I loved it through the first three, started getting angry at certain characters' decisions in book 4, and then got utterly flabbergasted by the full turn to evil.

You know, the whole Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely thing?

Yeah. I ENJOYED the hard choices and the ruthlessness for most of the series. Now, I did love the magic and the OP setups and especially the cat, and even really appreciated the end of grandma, but the rest?

Dark. Very, very dark. Depressing, even.

And yet, it was a good book as long as you have a high tolerance for tragedy. No Hollywood ending here. It is ENDED, and the timing for the end is not in any way conducive for a good night's sleep.

So, in that respect, I want to give this a 1 star for how it pisses me off. But otherwise, it's rich with fantasy and great plot and wonderful action and a lot of character-changes that don't feel forced. If it had been done in such a way as to give us SATISFACTION, then I'm sure I'd have thrown a 5 star on this. I still devoured it without hesitation. I HOPED that it would pull off a hat trick.

Sigh.


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews is be interested in reading my SF (Very hard SF, mind you), I'm open to requests.

Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

Arctunn.com

View all my reviews