He/Him. In the USA... for now. Mastodon
I only track books that I read for pleasure, mostly SF/Fantasy. I've fallen out of the habit of actually writing reviews beyond giving a star rating. It would be nice to get back into that habit.
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The Republic of Thieves is a fantasy novel by American writer Scott Lynch, the third …
This world seems, sadly, headed for an Overplot. It's a great setting. Why does there need to be a world-changing cataclysm?
This world seems, sadly, headed for an Overplot. It's a great setting. Why does there need to be a world-changing cataclysm?
On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing …
Interesting premise. Unusual worlds. It's in character for the narrator, but I felt the language was too abstracted to really engage me.
Interesting premise. Unusual worlds. It's in character for the narrator, but I felt the language was too abstracted to really engage me.
Red Seas Under Red Skies is a fantasy novel by American writer Scott Lynch, the …
A solid adventure, but I like these characters less the more I learn about them.
The Age of Kings is dead . . . and I have killed it.
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Gave up after a few chapters. Leaden writing, overly RPG world-building.
"At the end of her Coldfire trilogy, C.S. Friedman challenged readers to imagine what a …
I couldn't get through this. Seemed tediously predictable.
I couldn't get through this. Seemed tediously predictable.
A different take on the French Revolutionary era nautical adventure. Lots of introspection from the lead character. Less instantly likeable than the Aubrey/Maturin books.
Yeine Darr is an outcast from the barbarian north. But when her mother dies under mysterious circumstances, she is summoned …
Yeine Darr is an outcast from the barbarian north. But when her mother dies under mysterious circumstances, she is summoned …
Part travelogue, part memoir, part meditation on whiskey, all delightful.
Jack London's novel The Sea Wolf became an instant bestseller on its release in 1904. …
This was not the nautical adventure I was expecting. Much more philosophy than sailing. It pits a tyrannical sea captain with materialist views against an idealist scholar, convinced of man's finer nature.
This was not the nautical adventure I was expecting. Much more philosophy than sailing. It pits a tyrannical sea captain with materialist views against an idealist scholar, convinced of man's finer nature.
The Night Circus is a 2011 fantasy novel by Erin Morgenstern. It was originally written …
Atmospheric, but not very satisfying.
For those who think that travel guidebooks are the gospel truth.The waitress suggests that I …
Entertaining tell-all book about the sausage-making of guidebook writing.
The best SF takes a supposition about the world ("What would happen if...?") and follows it to interesting conclusions. McDonell's setting holds together well, with a lot of details that seem like "obvious" extrapolations of present trends into the future, but she throws in some "aha!" moments as well. Just when you think you know who a character is, you discover they're not what you think... but when you consider it, who they really are follows perfectly from the setup. The pleasure of seeing interesting ideas fit together well combines with well-paced drama and relatable characters to make this a fun read.
The best SF takes a supposition about the world ("What would happen if...?") and follows it to interesting conclusions. McDonell's setting holds together well, with a lot of details that seem like "obvious" extrapolations of present trends into the future, but she throws in some "aha!" moments as well. Just when you think you know who a character is, you discover they're not what you think... but when you consider it, who they really are follows perfectly from the setup. The pleasure of seeing interesting ideas fit together well combines with well-paced drama and relatable characters to make this a fun read.
![[The Bone Clocks] By David Mitchell The Bone Clocks](https://st2.ap-south-1.linodeobjects.com/images/thumbnails/covers/7ccee489-c097-4921-8637-79e954258665/c234811e923b8215f5f0b7e08cb64dae.webp)
