The Sword and Laser discussion

The book finally came in at LA Public Library late last week. I read it pretty fast - it's a fairly small book and goes quickly.

My first reaction is that it's cute. Not particularly deep, and the idea of a world-nexus library is amusing. The book adamantly doesn't take itself too seriously, bringing in fiction tropes as explanations for the plot, and going for the "wink and a nod" to the reader regularly.

Not great, not bad, decent disposable fiction. I'm already reading the second one. I'm sure they will get to some Deep Dark Secret eventually that puts the Library, and the Librarians, in a Fight For All Existence (tm). In the meantime, it is a fun, light read.

I agree. I categorized it (among other things) on my "beach books" shelf, as in ones that are light and perfect for vacation.

I agree with these assessments, as well. I also started the second book, which is off to a snappy start.

Oddly, I agree and it's why I've not started the 2nd book. Last I looked, it was $12 on Amazon which is pricey for a 'good but lightweight' book that I'd give ~3.5 stars too.

I started and finished the second book this weekend. Hey, I have a bad knee, it's not like I'm getting out much...anyway, decent, but then, I got it free from the Library. Whoever clued me into County of LA, thanks! I actually got Invisible Library faster from the City of LA Library, but County had the second book faster and is likely to deliver the third quickly.

I get so much reading from the library I honestly don't know how I would feel paying retail. I'll gladly pay Indies but they rarely go over $5. I'm glad to wait, although if I can game the system a bit since I have two large libraries available to me, why not.

Another thought: Am I the only person who thinks that "Genevieve Cogman" is a composite author? The books come out fairly fast, and the "bio" seemed fake. It reminded me of "Erin Hunter" who is actually three people (at least) who write the "Warriors" series about cat tribes living in a forest.

John (Taloni) wrote: "Another thought: Am I the only person who thinks that "Genevieve Cogman" is a composite author? The books come out fairly fast, and the "bio" seemed fake. It reminded me of "Erin Hunter" who is act..."

I didn't read the bio because I don't care. It doesn't matter to me who the author is or what name they choose.

There are obvious scammers like John Patterson who claim to write their own books and those liars I stay away from on principle, but I kind of doubt anyone really believes that the new V.C. Andrews books coming out this year were written by a woman who died 31 years ago.

In the case of Cogman I don't see the point of faking it other than if it's intended to be an in-house series like the Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew were. Even then, no biggie, as long as the stories are entertaining.

John (Taloni) wrote: "Another thought: Am I the only person who thinks that "Genevieve Cogman" is a composite author? The books come out fairly fast, and the "bio" seemed fake. It reminded me of "Erin Hunter" who is act..."

I think you might be looking at the wrong publication dates for her books. All three books have been published, apparently in the United Kingdom first, in December 2014/2015/2016 and the fourth will be coming December 2017. So a year per book isn't any faster than normal. The US publication does seem a bit bunched up, but that's just because the first book didn't come to the US till like June 2016.

John (Taloni) wrote: "Whoever clued me into County of LA, thanks!"

You're welcome.
For those who don't know, both the City of L.A. and County of L.A. library systems will give a card to California residents. Even if you are not close enough to make regular use of the branches, they have large Overdrive accounts (most books I look for exist in one or both) and many other excellent digital collections.

Also late to the party on this month's pick. A family holiday totally disrupted all my usual reading opportunities and I've just caught up.

I had some issues with the book. Primarily that Irene, as the main protagonist isn't all that likeable a character. The lack of friendly or supportive relationships was also a little disconcerting?

Plot-wise, it dipped a little in the middle when nothing much was going on except for people talking, but I thought it picked up and finished strongly, leaving me with an overall positive opinion.

Like others, I wished we had seen more of The Library and I presumed that we would in the next book - right up until the end when Irene is sent back to the same alternate on a semi permanent basis, so maybe not!

I'll definitely shelve the sequel on my 'to be read' list and see if it manages to get near enough the top to actually ever get read.

Lois McMaster Bujold mentioned that Genevieve Cogman wrote the GURPS Vorkosigan Saga book. It sounded like she was a real, individual person.

Aaron wrote: "John (Taloni) wrote: "Whoever clued me into County of LA, thanks!"

You're welcome.
For those who don't know, both the City of L.A. and County of L.A. library systems will give a card to California..."

Don't forget the other smaller regional libraries. Most of them will give you a library card if you live in CA. Long Beach, Yorba Linda, Cypress and Huntington Beach are particularly good. Note for that some of these you have to check out a book at least once a year to keep your card active and for some reason they don't count digital loans as actual loans:(
I have a good collection of Library cards, even one using my parents address in England :)

Hah! Love the "England" one.

Regrettably, physical books are on the outs for me. My vision won't accommodate small print any more (see my lament on my tiny print edition of Wizard of the Pigeons) and I can just about read a hardcover without reading glasses. Maybe. But with my insomnia I do a lot of reading at night in the dark, so it's gotta be ebook.

FWIW the Fullerton library is great, has a lot of comics trades, and all (ALL!) of Discworld. They even take good passport pix.

John (Taloni) wrote: "FWIW the Fullerton library is great, has a lot of comics trades, and all (ALL!) of Discworld. They even take good passport pix. "

Thanks, didn't know Fullerton had an independent library. Just so happens I will be driving through there tomorrow :)

Colin wrote: "Like others, I wished we had seen more of The Library and I presumed that we would in the next book - right up until the end when Irene is sent back to the same alternate on a semi permanent basis, so maybe not!

I'll definitely shelve the sequel on my 'to be read' list and see if it manages to get near enough the top to actually ever get read. "

I'm reading the sequel now and it's better than the first.

I'm a little more than halfway and so far Irene has barely spent any time in her assigned world - she's gone back to the Library twice, to a high tech world and a mostly-magic world.

Trike wrote: "I'm a little more than halfway and so far Irene has barely spent any time in her assigned world - she's gone back to the Library twice, to a high tech world and a mostly-magic world."

Oh good, it'd be a shame to have a multi-world setup and not use it!

Thanks for the info on the sequel, Trike--that was my biggest disappointment with the first book!

I felt the same way about the ending of TIL, so I'm relieved Cogman is using the cool idea to its advantage.

I'm well into the third book now. This feels more like a serial than a series. I'm enjoying the heck out of it, but if this is a "trilogy" then I really doubt things will be wrapped up in the remaining 40% of the book.

AndrewP wrote: "I have a good collection of Library cards, even one using my parents address in England :) "

I can't match England, but I went on a library card collection quest a while back. Many of the southern California libraries. Keeping some of them active is a challenge.