On the fictional island of Patusan—and much to the ire of the Patusan natives—the Korean …
Counterweight
4 stars
Counterweight is a nearish-future scifi thriller set on the island of Patusan, which I have just learned today has a long literary legacy.
The plot follows an unnamed employee of the LK Corporation as he attempts to unravel a series of events revolving around the world's first space elevator, erected by LK on Patusan. I enjoyed the originality of the setting, but I found the whole thing fairly convoluted and somewhat difficult to follow.
The dystopian corporation-state future where having a literal worm implanted in your brain is a condition of employment is becoming all too plausible at this point.
Counterweight is a nearish-future scifi thriller set on the island of Patusan, which I have just learned today has a long literary legacy.
The plot follows an unnamed employee of the LK Corporation as he attempts to unravel a series of events revolving around the world's first space elevator, erected by LK on Patusan. I enjoyed the originality of the setting, but I found the whole thing fairly convoluted and somewhat difficult to follow.
The dystopian corporation-state future where having a literal worm implanted in your brain is a condition of employment is becoming all too plausible at this point.
There are only three real powers in the Spiral: the corporate power of the Trust …
Cascade Failure
4 stars
Cascade Failure is an action-packed scifi novel about a ragtag spaceship crew of misfits that gets involved in Significant Events. It's snappy and engaging, but it's not heavy on horizon-expanding content - it feels a bit like a space-opera version of a Tales of the Ketty Jay novel
Cascade Failure is an action-packed scifi novel about a ragtag spaceship crew of misfits that gets involved in Significant Events. It's snappy and engaging, but it's not heavy on horizon-expanding content - it feels a bit like a space-opera version of a Tales of the Ketty Jay novel
When a mudslide strands a train, Baxter, a queer Black sleeping car porter, must contend …
The Sleeping Car Porter
4 stars
The Sleeping Car Porter is kind of an ensemble farce with subtle paranormal elements, experienced through a porter for a sleeping car on a transcontinental voyage across Canada.
The porter is a gay (or bi?) black man in Canada in the 1920s, and there's a strong focus on the various aggressions and disadvantages he's exposed to in light of that.
Weird and enjoyable.
The Sleeping Car Porter is kind of an ensemble farce with subtle paranormal elements, experienced through a porter for a sleeping car on a transcontinental voyage across Canada.
The porter is a gay (or bi?) black man in Canada in the 1920s, and there's a strong focus on the various aggressions and disadvantages he's exposed to in light of that.
Humanity is a dying breed, utterly reliant on artificial labor and service. When a domesticated …
Service Model
5 stars
This is one of the ones you can tell he had fun writing.
The tone is all across the spectrum, from farcical to bleak to heartwarming, and the writing is characteristically delightful, with lots of flippant throwaway lines.
Fetter was raised to kill, honed as a knife to cut down his sainted father. …
THE SAINT OF BRIGHT DOORS has been out in the world just over a year. As of today, it's collected NINE award nominations (today's news: the Dragon Award shortlist is out) The Ignytes and Dragons are now open for public voting! See the post for how to vote. vajra.me/2024/08/05/ten-toes-in/
THE SAINT OF BRIGHT DOORS has been out in the world just over a year. As of today, it's collected NINE award nominations (today's news: the Dragon Award shortlist is out) The Ignytes and Dragons are now open for public voting! See the post for how to vote. vajra.me/2024/08/05/ten-toes-in/