Reviews and Comments

Cordelia, is on a survey mission when she's attacked and taken prisoner by a Barrayan commander.

Bujold is extremely widely acclaimed, and I decided to find out why. After this, I can't say I understand yet. It was fine, the writing good, apart from some language choices which haven't withstood the ravages of time. But I found it somewhat disjointed and got the feeling it isn't really a stand-alone book. The romance aspect felt shallow and very rushed. I'd have liked more information, but I supposed that's what sequels are for. Will read more.

Klara the AF waits patiently in the store to be chosen by her new owner.

I did not care for this. I found the writing frustratingly ambiguous, and I remained utterly disinterested in Klara’s internal life throughout. Everything interesting was quickly hand-waved and rarely mentioned again, Ishiguro instead focusing on interminable paragraphs about patterns or feelings or thoughts that felt like filler. And had I even liked it, I’d have been rather disappointed by the end.

Ishiguro is a good writer but is either hit or miss for me, and this was a huge miss.

Halla’s late husband’s relatives try to force her to marry a clammy cousin in order to secure an inheritance unexpectedly left to her. A lawyer, a Gnole, and a sword set out to make sure it doesn’t happen on their watch.

A re-read. Kingfisher’s protagonists tend to be pragmatic and surrounded by a very believable cast of characters. Swordheart is no exception. I love this unreservedly, probably because I see myself in them.

However, upon re-reading, I realised how much more I prefer the Paladin books. I absolutely enjoyed this, but she writes such utterly perfect Paladins.

Probably the first book I've read that specifically deals with late-diagnosed autism. While I didn’t find any of the strategies in the book particularly innovative or helpful, the advice seemed slightly more concrete than in other books. Still not actionable enough for me to fully grasp, I think. However, reading this felt very validating. Certain chapters really resonated.

TL;DR I think this is a great book to read early on in an adult diagnosis journey, but I'm still looking for something more.

Perihelion and its crew try to carry out their mission at a station in the throes of a hostile takeover.

Rapport is a woefully short, but delightful tale that explores more of the relationships between crew and machine intelligences, and is very sweet. I hope we get more of this in future Murderbot books.

Spoiler warning, no SecUnits appear in this short story. Before reading it, I’d have pooh-poohed the idea of Murderbot story without my beloved protagonist. I want MOAR Murderbot! However, now not only do I love Murderbot with all my heart, but Perihelion too.

Annie was created to be the perfect cuddle bunny companion, but after she was switched to autodidact mode, things are changing. She’s learning.

Greer writes well, and deftly brings up a host of issues for the reader to ponder. I found the first 20-30% of this book absolutely breathtaking and genuinely exciting. Though I didn’t find the ending quite as exquisite, I don’t see how Greer could have ended it in a truly satisfying (to me) way.

A very timely novel that deals with really heavy, dark themes but remains extremely readable. I’ll be reading more Greer novels in the future.

Clyde is seemingly going straight(ish) in this sequel to “Scamps and Scoundrels”. No longer just out for himself, he's accumulating roommates at an alarming rate, and might even do a few good deeds.

It was fine, but the LitRPG elements really started to grate on me. I'm just not interested enough in the world or the characters (other than the kobolds), to read any of the sequels any time soon. The kobolds, however, were worth the read. I really liked Boris. What I wouldn't give for an all-kobold heist novel. Do a “Lies of Locke Lamora” but make it kobold, and I'd be all over it!

The trials, tribulations, and machinations of a clever boy who grows up to become First Citizen of the Vesani Republic.

As a very Parker protagonist, Basso is clever, exceedingly cunning, and often very charming, and is always ready with a deft solution to obstacles he saw coming far in advance. Well, almost always.

I'm a sucker for a highly competent and clever protagonist, and I really like the bittersweetness that laces Parker's books. TL:DR If you like Parker's novels and writing style, this is yet another enjoyable read.

An astronaut chronicles her mission to far-flung worlds, and desperately hopes that someone reads it.

I didn't enjoy this as much as I've relished previous chambers novels. Perhaps it was the novella format, or maybe the subject. It's still a very Chambers book, but somehow missing whatever gives me a frisson of delight every time I finish one.

Glad I read it, but unlike every other Chambers book I've read, I'll probably not reread it. 5 stars to the title however, love it and where it comes from, and that did elicit a shiver of pleasure!

A thief turned reluctant hero gets isekaied after a house fire, and goes rogue.

Another LitRPG novel, and I'm not entirely sure that I appreciate the stats obsession of the genre. I think I like a little less RPG in my novels. Still a fun read. I didn't enjoy this one was much as “Dungeon Crawler Carl”, nevertheless I'll be reading a couple more because I've been told the kobolds are worth it.

Marine tech Carl, along with the cat, gets isekai’ed into a “Running Man”esque nightmare of a dungeon crawl.

I was dubious at the start, but it grew on me as I progressed through the book and was a light, enjoyable read. The characters are not interchangeable Emmas, the writing is fine, and often actually amusing when it tries to be funny. This is definitely a book for people who enjoy gaming, TTRPGs, or LitRPGs, I’d not recommend this series to anyone unfamiliar with any of those things. I’ll be reading more of these.

Though blurbed as “darkly funny”, “feminist”, promising a “vindictive marriage therapist”, and using the tagline “revenge is in session”, it was a huge disappointment. It's a tedious book about a dim helicopter parent wallowing in self-pity, her cardboard cut-out “friends”, including a “yummy mummy” caricature, unpleasant husbands, at least one of which is a sex pest, and a child who reads “Dilbert”, all capped with “they all cheered at the end”.

I found it silly, unsatisfying and a waste of time obnoxiously free from anything vaguely fun, or even an iota of revenge. And, Dilbert FFS?!

An author, struggling after the disappearance of his wife, takes his agent up on her offer and retreats to an island in order to write his next novel.

This was not for me. Rife with weak characters, and poor writing, the prose is fussy and simplistic with no differentiation between different “voices” or styles of writing. F.ex. “newspaper articles” read like the rest of the prose, lacking any journalistic verisimilitude. I also don’t consider stupid shit which is in no way foreshadowed or supported by the writing a “twist”. Not unfinishable, but a waste of my time.

A loose retelling of David Copperfield set in 90s(?) Appalachia.

Well-written, and with a strong narrator, the Dickensian characters are easily recognisable, whilst still working after being updated to the modern setting. The abuses young Demon and his fellow children were subject to felt a little too Victorian, but perhaps they are anchored in some horrible reality. The endless sadness of drug abuse began to wear on me, and had I not previously read David Copperfield, I doubt I’d have enjoyed the book as much. Worth the read.

I did not like this at all. Everything I don't enjoy in literary fiction shows up in this book. Tedious unpleasant people acting in bizarre, unfathomable ways while nothing much really happens, and the ending is supremely unsatisfactory.

I find these kinds of books utterly opaque, and I know it's not the book, it's my brain. Yet, I struggled through it, and actually finished, but I really shouldn't have, I despised every sentence.