The Sword and Laser discussion

August? Already? What will you be reading this month?

Started Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett

Still reading some manga and The Grief of Stones. I need to get my reading mojo back since I haven't moved on from the first chapter of the later for a week.

Next, I plan to read The Dawn of Yangchen (yay new avatar novel!) and Gunpowder Moon.

After ROL, I've got Gods of Jade and Shadow and Matchlock and the Embassy: A Thirty Years' War Story on top of my to be read list.

I'm planning on heading to the bookstore tomorrow to buy Dragons of Deceit by Weis/Hickman. They haven't written a new Dragonlance book in many years. I've read all the Dragonlance books and I'm very curious to try this one.

I’m looking forward to Nona the Ninth next month, but this month I’m going to re-listen to Harrow the Ninth, because I confess that I found it a bit confusing and think it might benefit from a second-pass through the text!

(And I had already finished my listen to Rivers of London before the month even started …)

I'm halfway through The Good House
I'll be reading Those Across the River
Come Closer
Until the Last of Me
Kagen the Damned
The Midwives
The Past Is Red
An Unkindness of Magicians
at least I'm going to try to listen to all of them.

Rivers of London month came at a good time for me because I'm just finishing off Written in Dead Wax by Andrew Cartmel. He writes the Peter Grant graphic novels. It's not a sword or a laser but is a good reccommendation to anyone who likes Rivers of London.
Then, because I don't really want to re-read RoL, I'll read The October Man and False Value to coincide with the August pick.

I'm on my first read-thru of the Vorkosigan Saga. I finished Young Miles a few days ago and am now working my through Miles, Mystery, and Mayhem.

The Vorkosigan Saga has become what I read between other books. If there's a new book that comes out (like A Prayer for the Crown-Shy), I'll set aside the Vors in favor of the new book, then go back to it once I finish. There's plenty to last me awhile!

I just started She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan to complete all the novels for the Hugo of 2022. It starts out with desperate poverty, fortuitous prophecies with deceptive meaning, and dangerous bandits, all in the first chapter. I'm expecting this to become quite epic.

Richard wrote: "I just started She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan to complete all the novels for the Hugo of 2022. It starts out with desperate poverty, fortuitous prop..."

I loved She Who Became the Sun! It’s properly epic. I nominated it for March Madness and was disappointed when it didn’t make the cut, hoping it might be a pick soon.

Finished Sourcery, which was a slightly disappointing entry in my Discworld read - Pratchett’s writing seems to go backwards a bit, to more of The Colour of Magic style of madcap magical adventures and lots of puns, after the more thoughtful Equal Rites and Mort.

Outside the sword and laser wheelhouse, I have just started Husband Material, a laugh out loud romantic comedy and sequel to last year’s Boyfriend Material.

And I’ve also started the non-fiction Islands of Abandonment

Ruth wrote: "Finished Sourcery, which was a slightly disappointing entry in my Discworld read"

Well, the good news is that, assuming you are continuing, the next in the series - Wyrd Sisters - is, in my opinion, one of the best...

Steve wrote: "Ruth wrote: "Finished Sourcery, which was a slightly disappointing entry in my Discworld read"

Well, the good news is that, assuming you are continuing, the next in the series - Wyrd ..."

I will be continuing my Discworld read (although not immediately) and I don't think I've read Wyrd Sisters before (although I can't honestly remember which ones I've read before and which I haven't because I've been reading them in an extremely haphazard fashion since the early 90s) so I'm looking forward to it!

I finished 3 novellas. The Law by Jim Butcher, A Change of Plans by Dennis E. Taylorand A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers. I hope to fit in Illborn a self published novel that has gotten some nice reviews some some people I follow on the net. And a re-read of the BOM. Hope I can stop at one.

Ruth wrote: "Steve wrote: "Ruth wrote: "Finished Sourcery, which was a slightly disappointing entry in my Discworld read"

Well, the good news is that, assuming you are continuing, the next in the ..."

The early Rincewind books are by far the weakest books in the series. It too Pratchett a long time too find the right voice there.

After Sorcery it is mostly upwards and onwards though.

Since I already had a copy of this month's pick on my Kindle, I'm using my Audible pick for Baptism of Fire.

Stephen wrote: "I finished 3 novellas. The Law by Jim Butcher, A Change of Plans by Dennis E. Taylorand A Prayer for the Crown-Shy b..."

What did you think of A Change of Plans?

Change of Plans was very good

Started on Trust by Hernan Diaz but not loving it. Not sure if the overall arc is a spoiler so won’t go there. The way it is told is odd, the first story arc is entirely in exposition: this happened and then the person did this and followed it up with this because of that. The second arc is similar except it’s an incomplete autobiography so now it’s first person exposition. It’s a tiresome and not particularly compelling style.

In no particular order, several books recently. First up, Dennis E. Taylor.

The Singularity Trap: I really should love this book as it's about an Upload situation so in that sense similar to the Bobiverse. It's also chock full of SFnal references. There's an obvious riff to 2001 but it isn't all serious: I would swear part of the ending came from a Xanth book, just as they were drifting off from good to silly.

Anyhoo, I don't love it because the book is unrelentingly bleak. It has ridiculous takes on climate apocalypse not supported by data. Then there's the death-filled takes on the Fermi Paradox and the Great Filter. Sorry Dennis, this one just didn't do it for me.

Conversely, his short A Change of Plans is a really excellent take on colonizing other planets and the unexpected issues that can arise. This one could be a primer on how to write such a story in the modern era.

Two books by Robert Kroese. First up Mammon: Nemesis. The asteroid has hit and Earth is left to pick up the (literal) pieces. Ore-filled asteroid fragments are all over North Africa, and represent the wealth of the world and stability for its economy. Once again, the local inhabitants will be exploited as their resources are taken by foreign powers. Or will they? A small group of the remaining hackers and soldiers come up with a plan that will stabilize the world and provide a payoff to the people who actually find the resources. A refreshing Libertarian take on colonialization and its aftermath.

Then, City of Sand. It's a standard murder mystery, until it isn't. The weird starts creeping in until you are in a mindfuck of full Philip K. Dick proportions. Just fabulous.

And around that time, another nutrition book, Why We Get Fat by
Gary Taubes. This one contains an explanation for weight gain. Repeated insulin overexposure from too many carbs / processed carbs causes your fat cells to demand nutrients first. You'll gain weight before having anything left over to function. So you wind up tired and hungry. Doctors lecture you to "lose weight" while telling you to eat more carbs, the exact opposite of helpful advice.

What's the solution? Cutting down on carbs, especially processed ones. I have to say I'm open to this line of reasoning as it pretty much exactly fits my experience. Another piece of the puzzle for why our world has gotten so massively overweight, so sick and diabetic, over the span of a few decades.

Uprooted by Naomi Novik. I’m really enjoying this one. A unique fantasy that’s refreshing to read.

I also have some novellas on my list:
This is how you lose the time war
Ring shout or, hunting klu klux in the end times
Binti

Do you see a theme for this month? Working on some Nebula winners (and Hugo).

Finished up the followup to last month's pick, Eclipse the Moon. A pretty good espionage / space opera romp, wrapped in a romance so ridiculously overdone that I found it a routine detraction. "Oh, I totally want you! But you reject me!" "And I totally want you, but honor and stuff! I fell short of some standard no one ever heard of and now must avoid what we both want!" *back of palm to forehead, head tilted back*

It was interesting enough once it got going. Eventually I got used to the nauseating interjection of romance elements every paragraph and treated it as the water this particular story swam in.

This is apparently the second of a trilogy, so to get the rest of the plot you'll need to show up for the next book. Which is in 2023. Sigh, this is one reason people don't like to start series' until they are completed.

Oh, and almost forgot: Earth Abides by George R Stewart. Apparently this is some kind of classic post-apocalypse book. I say "apparently" because I'd never heard of it before and picked it up due to some online discussion. Here, or Twitter, or maybe FB? Can't recall now.

The book starts off with a frothing foreword by Kim Stanley Robinson. He talks about how the prose style is excellent, and the author brought life experience etc etc. I'm hard pressed to see it. The MC is a blatant self-insert by the author, and his decisions are questionable at best. The post-apocalyptic world seems thoroughly unrealistic to me. And not in a fun way, like say a Mad Max movie, but intended as realistic and not achieving near that standard.

The MC also congratulates himself on being oh so much better than everyone else. He's educated, but the next generation isn't interested in book learning. Er, K. And so what, other people will be, and the libraries remain intact. He also winds up in a romance with a woman who is some smidgen black, and congratulates himself repeatedly on not being racist. The smug was so overwhelming it hurt the story for me.

Since the book is a "classic" apparently among some of the writer set, I wonder if Octavia Butler had it partly in mind for Parable of the Sower. Certainly her book seems to address the post-apocalyptic world better.

Finished the non-fiction Islands of Abandonment which was super interesting. Now starting The Ivory Key by Akshaya Raman, a book I received in my illumicrate box a few months ago and know almost nothing about.

John (Taloni) wrote: "Finished up the followup to last month's pick, Eclipse the Moon. A pretty good espionage / space opera romp, wrapped in a romance so ridiculously overdone that I found it a routine detraction. "Oh,..."

This sounds so much like you are describing Shards of Honour.

John (Taloni) wrote: "Oh, and almost forgot: Earth Abides by George R Stewart. Apparently this is some kind of classic post-apocalypse book. I say "apparently" because I'd never heard of it before and picked it up due t..."

I really want to read this one. But I always want to call it "The Earth Abides, Man."

Started a new kindle book too: The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart

I finished reading It by Stephen King and Black Sun Rising by C.S. Friedman. Black Sun Rising is the first novel of a trilogy. The novel has an interesting mixture of science fiction and fantasy. I’m looking forward to reading the other two novels in the series. I am reading Under the Dome by Stephen King. I’m also watching the TV series it was based on. It’s interesting comparing the changes the TV series made to the novel. I plan to read Green Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson next. The novel is the second book in the Mars trilogy, and it won the Hugo award in 1994. I’m looking forward to reading it.

I just finished Recursion by Blake Crouch. For me this was one of those books where you make time to read it, even just five to 10 minutes. The story was well told, the twists and turns were often surprising.

I'm going to try and read The Last Beekeeper before the next month pick comes out.

I finally finished my Jenny read, The Witness for the Dead, and it was so great that I immediately bought The Grief of Stones, which I am thoroughly enjoying. I'm sad Jenny missed out on these, I think she would have liked them.

I just finished Video Night which was a lot of fun! I gave it 5 stars! I want to read more by Adam Cesare!

I finished an influential collection of Gothic horror stories that contains all of the stories from In a Glass Darkly and MORE:


Green Tea and Other Weird Stories by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
Rating: 4 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

and I started reading this doorstopper:


The Collected Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe by Edgar Allan Poe

Many of these stories were of great inspiration to modern fantasy and horror authors.

Several books recently. First up, just finished Shards of Earth
by Adrian Tchaikovsky. What a great book. Big scale space opera with loads of interesting characters. Tchaikovsky has outdone himself. Can't wait to read the next one, should come in off library hold in about a week.

Before that, Gail Carriger's The Heroine's Journey. It's a take on the opposite of the better-known Hero's Journey. Some good info for writers here. Puzzlingly, Gail seems rather angry that the Heroine's Journey is not better respected. She points out that Romance makes up half the market - yes, I knew that. Disrespect, all genre writers experience that in one way or another. I have trouble reconciling the witty, charming person I know from her novels with this expression.

And then, the concept that the Hero's Journey of the loner hero is the most expressed. Is it? Luke got nowhere without Han to get him out of a Jam in Star Wars, and he does a literal Christ turn in ROTJ. Lord of the Rings is straight up cooperation and coalition building (Heroine's Journey). Well, she says she wants to make people think and this book certainly did that.

And lastly, The Far Arena by Richard Ben Sapir. You know, I'm not sure I read the right book. Long time back a girlfriend described a book with a gladiator brought forth to modern times (long before the movie with Russell Crowe came out.) This book seemed like that one, so when I saw a reference on social media including the title, I tagged it. But her description of the gladiator was "every opponent defeated, every woman satisfied." This book has great descriptions of ancient Rome, flawed and interesting characters, but little of that. There's insight into life then versus now, and how much honor should mean to a person, and overall the book works well. I'm glad I read it. Not sure I picked the right one tho.

Until the Last of Me(Take Them to the Stars #2).
I really enjoyed A History of What Comes Next(TTttS #1).

John (Taloni) wrote: "Several books recently. First up, just finished Shards of Earth
by Adrian Tchaikovsky. What a great book. Big scale space opera with loads of interesting characters. Tchaikovsky has outdone himself..."

I saw Tchaikovsky is checking the proofs of book 3: Lords of Uncreation (Architects 3)

^ Excellent! When Tchaikovsky went to writing full time he got even better. I am currently plowing through Ogres and will need a new book soon, even tho I started it yesterday. It's a "novella" at what used to be sold as a short novel length. He excels at both shorter books and longer series'. I also see him maturing as a writer and making contentious points in a better fashion. TBH I expect him to be a juggernaut. I am thinking of him as "The new Heinlein" which from me is quite a compliment.

^ Tchaikovsky is writing at a rate that makes Pratchett look slow at his peak. Just ridiculously productive.

I finished The Grief of Stones and am now reading How To: Absurd Scientific Advice for Common Real-World Problems. I apparently managed to own the book for awhile and never read it so it felt like a good time to do it now. Also listening to Dawnshard, having more or less given up on RoL.

I'm listening to The Midwives. It's super creepy.

I'm reading Star Wars: The Princess and the Scoundrel on Kindle. I've decided to skip this month's pick after reading the announcement thread. I'm continuing last month's series instead and using my audible credit for Moon Over Soho.

Misti wrote: "I'm reading Star Wars: The Princess and the Scoundrel on Kindle. I've decided to skip this month's pick after reading the announcement thread. I'm continuing last month's series ins..."

I had tPatS on my Audible wishlist already. I look forward to hearing your opinion. I'll probably read/listen to it no matter what because Star Wars.

Ian (RebelGeek) wrote: "I had tPatS on my Audible wishlist already. I look forward to hearing your opinion. I'll probably read/listen to it no matter what because Star Wars."

I'm about a third of the way through and I'm enjoying it so far.

Putting the pause on Moon Over Soho for the moment to listen to Across the Green Grass Fields from the library. At least, it's pretty short so I should be able to whip right thru it.

Today I started The Deep by Nick Cutter. I'm into it.

Yesterday was a 3-DNF day so I’m starting 2 new books today!
Sinopticon: A Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction in dead tree edition
Plus a classic in audiobook: Wuthering Heights

Loved The Deep 4.5 stars!
Now I'm listening to Upgrade by Blake Crouch!

Have been reading Greg Bears's Eon as a fill in while waiting for Adrian Tchaikovsky's next Shards of Earth book to come in. Almost done with Eon and have been mulling stretching it out. Buuut there's the notification from LA Public Library.

🎶 Hi ho, hi ho, to Adrian we go, when he's got a book and you have to look, hi ho, hi ho hi ho hi hooooo!

Upgrade was excellent 5 stars! It reminded me of Limitless (movie & TV show)! Now I'm listening to Hyperion with a gen x Discord server I'm in. It's their 1st group read & I suggested it because I own it on Audible!