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hawkwing_lbBooks, the catch-up version.
Books 2008: 25-31.
25. Suzy McKee Charnas, The Slave and the Free.
Omnibus version of Walk to the End of the World and Motherlines. Read as part of my ongoing, if usually unsuccessful, attempt, to get some idea of the history of the genre.
What can I say about it? Dystopia, certainly. Disturbing, also, and thought-provoking in a slightly dated fashion. I'm tempted to downplay the fact that a great deal of this squicked me severely, but I won't, because I think the author's intention was to squick people. Not gratuitous squick, I don't think. (Well, maybe a little.) But... interesting. And my reaction to these books is somewhat complicated.
Not comfortable books. But I think I can call them worthwhile.
26. C.S. Harris, Why Mermaids Sing.
Pleasant enough murder mystery set in early 19th century London. I continue reading this series in the hopes that it will once again match the juiciness of the first book. But, alas, this is so far not the case.
27. S.M. Stirling, The Sunrise Lands.
Stirling does post-'the end of civilisation as we know it' pretty well. This is a continuation of the series that started with Dies the Fire, set a generation after the initial trilogy. There is something of a quest, and some battles, and some nice characterisation... it's fairly juicy.
Good book.
28. Lilith Saintcrow, To Hell and Back.
Eh. I liked the first two books of this series, disliked the third, thought the fourth was moving back into really interesting territory...
This book fails the dismount, to borrow a phrase. All the interesting stuff I thought the fourth book was moving towards examining - to whit, the romance elements - were returned to sender largely unexamined. So I'm somewhat disappointed.
29. Sharon Shinn, Reader and Raelynx.
Fourth in the Twelve Houses series. Politics! Magic! Battle! Romance!
Pretty good read.
30. Mark Del Franco, Unshapely Things.
Urban fantasy murder mystery. Without anything resembling Romance. A fast-paced, atmospheric, entertaining read, even if the pseudo-Celticisms were a little annoying.
31. Merry Shannon, Branded Ann.
A story of the Golden Age of sail that bears very little resemblance to reality, and yet proves extremely entertaining in a popcorn, PotC fashion.
#
The ongoing non-fiction reading project is John J. Collins' massive tome, Seers, Sibyls and Sages in Hellenistic-Roman Judaism. And when I say massive, I mean, this thing weighs a couple of kilos.
When I'm done with that, there will be moving on to one of the books on gender in ancient Greece. (If I'm done with that. I foresee it taking at least another month.)
#
Duellist has a shape in my head. It is annoying that I have no time to write for at least the next month.
Ah, well. Perhaps it'll be a better book for the wait.
Books 2008: 25-31.
25. Suzy McKee Charnas, The Slave and the Free.
Omnibus version of Walk to the End of the World and Motherlines. Read as part of my ongoing, if usually unsuccessful, attempt, to get some idea of the history of the genre.
What can I say about it? Dystopia, certainly. Disturbing, also, and thought-provoking in a slightly dated fashion. I'm tempted to downplay the fact that a great deal of this squicked me severely, but I won't, because I think the author's intention was to squick people. Not gratuitous squick, I don't think. (Well, maybe a little.) But... interesting. And my reaction to these books is somewhat complicated.
Not comfortable books. But I think I can call them worthwhile.
26. C.S. Harris, Why Mermaids Sing.
Pleasant enough murder mystery set in early 19th century London. I continue reading this series in the hopes that it will once again match the juiciness of the first book. But, alas, this is so far not the case.
27. S.M. Stirling, The Sunrise Lands.
Stirling does post-'the end of civilisation as we know it' pretty well. This is a continuation of the series that started with Dies the Fire, set a generation after the initial trilogy. There is something of a quest, and some battles, and some nice characterisation... it's fairly juicy.
Good book.
28. Lilith Saintcrow, To Hell and Back.
Eh. I liked the first two books of this series, disliked the third, thought the fourth was moving back into really interesting territory...
This book fails the dismount, to borrow a phrase. All the interesting stuff I thought the fourth book was moving towards examining - to whit, the romance elements - were returned to sender largely unexamined. So I'm somewhat disappointed.
29. Sharon Shinn, Reader and Raelynx.
Fourth in the Twelve Houses series. Politics! Magic! Battle! Romance!
Pretty good read.
30. Mark Del Franco, Unshapely Things.
Urban fantasy murder mystery. Without anything resembling Romance. A fast-paced, atmospheric, entertaining read, even if the pseudo-Celticisms were a little annoying.
31. Merry Shannon, Branded Ann.
A story of the Golden Age of sail that bears very little resemblance to reality, and yet proves extremely entertaining in a popcorn, PotC fashion.
#
The ongoing non-fiction reading project is John J. Collins' massive tome, Seers, Sibyls and Sages in Hellenistic-Roman Judaism. And when I say massive, I mean, this thing weighs a couple of kilos.
When I'm done with that, there will be moving on to one of the books on gender in ancient Greece. (If I'm done with that. I foresee it taking at least another month.)
#
Duellist has a shape in my head. It is annoying that I have no time to write for at least the next month.
Ah, well. Perhaps it'll be a better book for the wait.
