Books 2011: I have tried in my way to be free

[hawkwing_lb]

Books 2011: 98-102


98. Jon Courtenay Grimwood, The Fallen Blade.

1407. An alternate Venice filled with tense, brooding darkness; a boy with strange abilities and stranger hungers; secrets, politics, and blood. A very good book, and a longer review of it (by me) should be forthcoming from Tor.com by the end of September.


99. Karen Healey, Guardian of the Dead.

Contemporary YA fantasy debut from a New Zealand author, using a lot of interesting Maori mythology. Excellent book.


100. David Liss, A Conspiracy of Paper.

Historical mystery set in 18th-century London, featuring former boxer Benjamin Weaver, the so-called Lion of Judah, the Bank of England, and the East India Trading Company. Interesting and enjoyable reading.


101. Charles Stross, Rule 34.

You enjoyed Halting State and you think the second person narration is a cool trick. You think pulling it off for several distinct personalities is taking the stunt a bit far, but you find Rule 34 to be fast and interesting and diverse, and since second person is by no means the only cool trick in store, you don't really mind. You really quite enjoy it, actually.

And you resolve in future not to let second person narration creep into your reviews.


102. Ellen Kushner, Thomas the Rhymer.

Lush, patient, measured, stunning: these are some words which apply. They are by no means the only words which apply, but Kushner takes the medieval Thomas the Rhymer ballad tradition and does something exquisite with it.

---

More books will be reported upon soon. I have to catch up with my neglect in short spurts. :P

Comments

[etumukutenyak.livejournal.com]

101a. You find yourself chuckling aloud at the review, because you thought the same thing while you were enjoying the book.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

It is a good book, though. I just find myself amused at the whole You-ness of it.

[clarentine]

Oh, good - I'm glad you liked the Grimwood book. I really enjoyed his earlier alt history Ottoman Empire series, and had hopes this one would be as good.

Kushner is something else, isn't she?

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

The Arabesk trilogy, set in Iskandriya? I would have called that alt.future myself... :P

That she is. Something passing brilliant.

[clarentine]

Arabesk, yes - picked up the first after hearing him speak at a Worldcon. It's alt something, anyway. Reminded me in some ways of Michael Swanwick (Iron Dragon's Daughter, yes?). And man, did it end weird....

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

But appropriately, I think. Have you read his earlier stuff? It's even weirder.

[clarentine]

That series was the only thing of his I've caught. I don't know if even weirder would work for me - here, I know a way to gauge it: when you read Kushner's Return of the King, did you understand it?

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Mmph. Mostly? It's been a while since I read it, and I don't remember it too clearly. Both Swordspoint and Privilege made deeper impressions.

I'd recommend Lucifer's Dragon and redRobe. They're fun.

[clarentine]

(Drat - Return of the King is Tolkien; Fall of the Kings is Kushner. umph.)

I must have missed something really essential in FotK, because I never have been able to comprehend just what happened in there. I was going to get Mris to explain it to me at the Fourth Street I attended, but I was not dealing well with the pressure to be social, and she was not feeling all that well still, and I never did connect. One of these days, when I have fewer obligations (ha), I should re-read that book and see if that helps.

Recommendations happily accepted. And yeah, I really enjoyed the other two Riverside novels. Her characters are just so damned real.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Indeed. Painfully real, at times.