Podkayne of Mars by Robert A. Heinlein
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From the start of this novel, well into when they made it to Venus from Mars, I kept thinking this would make a GREAT young adult mini-tv series, right up there with the best light adventures we've ever had. We've got the plucky Pod, her brilliant and naughty younger brother, and her war-hero ancient Uncle who takes the kids on a little adventure across the solar system.

Sound old-fashioned?

Sure, but classic storylines usually do. The trick is in how WELL the story comes off, the depth of character and worldbuilding, how much twisting of expectations goes on, and how much heart it has.

This has lots of heart. And that's why I think it'd make a great, non-problematic SF adventure that's not horror in disguise. It's discovery, tweaking the noses of racists and rich assholes, a bit of politics that's nine parts freedom and one part intrigue, and all outside-the-box thinking.

It's Heinlein at his prime. And I mean that quite literally. This book came out right after Starship Troopers and Stranger in a Strange Land. And Heinlein is, oddly enough, a chameleon in his writing.

How else would we go from Starship Troopers, a novel that is slightly subversive but easily mistaken for a novel about TRUE DUTY and chain of command and heroism, to Stranger in a Strange Land, a novel that becomes a paragon of 60's counter-culture, free love, empathy, and a satire about all things religious at the same time, to Podkayne: a novel that's about as light and free as a feather, thumbing its nose at all authority and duty for the sake of family?

All three novels came out as fast as a shotgun blast from the author. Two of them won the Hugos for best SF novel of the year.

So why isn't this one more talked about? It's very modern. It has most of our modern sensibilities, with only one or two examples to the contrary. I mean, it's not like we all assume taking care of children is all a woman's work. And I'd like to point out that Pod ropes in her brother to help out where it was needed, too. The reality is: she's still a character that WILL go all out when a thing needs doing. And it's clear.

And if it wasn't for the end of the novel, I'd STILL love to see a high-production mini-series made of this. Kept ENTIRELY as it was depicted. The details are what make this powerful.

Post-Mars rebellion, freedom fighters becoming politicians, can-do attitudes all around, and no patience for rich assholes. And above all, a great, light adventure that makes a point of STAYING mostly light. Accessible.

Highly recommended. Heinlein is a master of his craft.


View all my reviews

Magma Heart by Plum Parrot
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A good continuation of the warlord path, continuing the conquering of the evil empire. The undead empire. And leveling up is always fun... especially when you start breathing magma.

Good stuff. Simple, lots of action, great near-defeats and enough asspulls for any drama. :)



View all my reviews

Battlemaster by Plum Parrot
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Maybe not the best of the series, but if you want to see a change toward leadership skills and large-scale battles with Victor leading them, then this is your book. Rah, rah, war, war.

The beginning was rather interesting to me, though. We got our first clear carry-over to the other LitRPG series I'd just read by the author. A clear invite to mesh this and that together seamlessly. It was rather amusing and I WANT to see it happen.

But war... war never changes.

Or rather, war kinda pushes all other considerations out the door.

View all my reviews

Titan Blood by Plum Parrot
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Stuck in a higher-tier world can do WONDERS for your level. :)

I had a great time reading this one. There's always something satisfying about falling in love with dragons, making enemies of civilization-destroying jerks, and eating still-beating hearts. Satisfying. Very.



View all my reviews

Spirit Hunter by Plum Parrot
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Like many of these long-run LitRPGs, this simply gets better with more experience and story under its belt. You might say its spirit gets quite a bit stronger.

And it's true. A lot of wrapping-up of old storylines happen here, revenges, spirit-balancing, recognition that the dark side is actually rather dark, and that, yes, it IS good to balance everything if you don't want to become an evil motherf**ker.

It's fun. No doubt about it. Adventure, through and through.

View all my reviews

Dungeon Delver by Plum Parrot
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Solid and fun dungeon delving. Not like we needed a title like that to SPELL IT OUT or anything.

Axe, rage, spirit cores leveling up, and pure adventure. We've even got a ton of friendly townsfolk and traveling people to refresh one's spirit between adventures!

Sound a bit usual?

Lol, it is, but that's precisely the charm it needs. There are plenty of reversals, etc, but the core is quite comforting and well-written. I'm enjoying it quite a bit.

View all my reviews

薬屋のひとりごと 16 [Kusuriya no Hitorigoto 16] by Nekokurage
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fun fact from when I was a kid. Snakes taste like chicken. Not at all bad. Just ask Mao Mao. Tho, I did have some salt with mine. I bet she's jealous.

Great volume. Big changes. And the tragedy... shaping up.

Of course, I did watch the anime, so I'm pleasantly surprised both are in line with each other. Except for one thing: did the anime give us a more or less satisfying end to this arc, ASIDE from the manga? Did it push ahead? *grumbles*

View all my reviews