Mojo_JojoWe are only now beginning to understand the full power and ramifications of sexual intercourseRegistered Userregular
I never got over the buzzword mush in Quantum Thief. I'm not convinced there was actually a story in there at all
Homogeneous distribution of your varieties of amuse-gueule
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knitdanIn ur baseKillin ur guysRegistered Userregular
I never picked up the third book, but I mentally handwaved the jargon as “magic, he’s doing tech magic”
“I was quick when I came in here, I’m twice as quick now”
-Indiana Solo, runner of blades
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The_SpaniardIt's never lupinesIrvine, CaliforniaRegistered Userregular
I hear that the Kindle Paperwhite doesn't do MP3, but does it do FLAC files? I have an audio book bundle from Humble Bundle that I want to listen to, but it only offers downloads in MP3 and FLAC.
Eh, there’s actually some interesting set up in there about souls and how that sort of thing works. The problem is he never really explains too much so you have to piece it together. And the books really depend on having an understanding of how it treats souls and technological metaphysics to know what the fuck is going on half the time.
Pillars of Eternity has a very similar concept of souls/gods/etc but did a better job of getting it across within the limits of the media.
Started reading Quantum Magician. It's okay so far but it feels a bit like an episode of Sherlock, which I don't really care for. I do appreciate the main character's clumsiness offsetting at least some of his ubermensch abilities, and the idea of bio engineered people in the future is always neat.
Wait for it
Yep, things have vastly improved as Bel gets the gang together for a heist. These are fun characters.
I picked up a Kindle Oasis last year, and have been enjoying it. Probably not worth the price for how I use it, never read in the bath for instance, but I like it.
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AbsalonLands of Always WinterRegistered Userregular
I'm reading a "Vignettes from the apocalypse survivors"-style book like World War Z and the premise is maybe the scariest scenario I've ever heard of. People are not going crazy, becoming violent, turning blind or getting some illness.
But every human on the planet has become unable to sleep.
I almost would have preferred if it was one character involved in trying to find a solution to the issue, slowly fraying over time while they hear about everything else that is happening, getting deep into the neurology, biology, dangers of insomnia, possible causes or cures and all that, because the premise is so simple and horrific that you don't need it to be examined from many different POVs. But the vignettes never overstay their welcome and provide different, horrifying facets of humanity just crumbling and rusting.
The title is also amazing and simple. Sleep Over, by H.G. Bells. Check it out if you like a dose of realistic apocalyptic horror.
I could really use a new Alistair Reynolds or Jemisin right now. Or maybe a totally new fantasy series. I'm tempted to pick up the new Laundry, but I think I'm a little over smirky urban noir for a bit.
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knitdanIn ur baseKillin ur guysRegistered Userregular
edited February 2019
Have you read City of Brass? It’s not quite at Jemisin’s level, but deals with some of the same race and class issues she does. Also the sequel Kingsom of Copper came out recently.
There’s also Jemisin’s book of short stories, How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? which I’ve been pushing on anyone who will listen.
knitdan on
“I was quick when I came in here, I’m twice as quick now”
-Indiana Solo, runner of blades
I could really use a new Alistair Reynolds or Jemisin right now. Or maybe a totally new fantasy series. I'm tempted to pick up the new Laundry, but I think I'm a little over smirky urban noir for a bit.
On a similar vibe to Jemisin (especially her Kingdom of Gods trilogy), I really dug Robert Jackson Bennett's Divine Cities trilogy. It's about the agents for a colonial empire that justifies itself because the colonized are their former enslavers, whose brutal empire was aided by literal gods on earth until a member of the enslaved figured out a way to kill a god and led a war that ended with all the gods dead. The books begin a few generations later, with the protagonist growing uneasy with the oppression of her empire while discovering that the gods might not all be dead.
The later books just keep on piling on more weird half explained ideas.
Which I more or less enjoyed.
It's JARGON OVERLOAD but I'm just letting it wash over me like a wave of nanobots or something, eventually I'll absorb it
I thought it was less jargon overload than physics Calvinball. Definitely entertaining, but yeah... the second two books don't reward a close, literal reading.
Have you read City of Brass? It’s not quite at Jemisin’s level, but deals with some of the same race and class issues she does. Also the sequel Kingsom of Copper came out recently.
There’s also Jemisin’s book of short stories, How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? which I’ve been pushing on anyone who will listen.
I am currently reading this and just...damn. damn. Everyone read this book, for real.
I could really use a new Alistair Reynolds or Jemisin right now. Or maybe a totally new fantasy series. I'm tempted to pick up the new Laundry, but I think I'm a little over smirky urban noir for a bit.
The sequel to Revenger came out about a month ago.
Have you read City of Brass? It’s not quite at Jemisin’s level, but deals with some of the same race and class issues she does. Also the sequel Kingsom of Copper came out recently.
There’s also Jemisin’s book of short stories, How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? which I’ve been pushing on anyone who will listen.
I am currently reading this and just...damn. damn. Everyone read this book, for real.
It's only five bucks for the ebook! I linked it here!
Have you read City of Brass? It’s not quite at Jemisin’s level, but deals with some of the same race and class issues she does. Also the sequel Kingsom of Copper came out recently.
There’s also Jemisin’s book of short stories, How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? which I’ve been pushing on anyone who will listen.
I am currently reading this and just...damn. damn. Everyone read this book, for real.
It's only five bucks for the ebook! I linked it here!
Stop tormenting me with your Atlantic eBook pricing.
Oh, the sequel to City of Brass is out soon, if anyone's keeping an eye on that. An ARC just landed on my desk, so I guess it'll be in the next month or so.
It’s the Kingdom of Copper I just mentioned a few posts up
Oh so it is!
Also: I can't remember which of you recommended Myke Cole's "The Armoured Saint", but that really packs some emotional punch in its relatively slim weight. Definitely a series I'll follow up.
Michael Swanwick's Moon Dogs, a grab bag of stories, collaborations, essays and gubbins. I never have any idea where his stories are going, which is wonderful.
Also, Dan Slott and Michael Allred's Silver Surfer omnibus, 30 odd issues of a terrific run.
BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
Skyward came up on my holds list yesterday, a little over halfway done with it. I'm really enjoying it so far, can't wait for the inevitable wait for a sequel is over and I can read it.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
Skyward came up on my holds list yesterday, a little over halfway done with it. I'm really enjoying it so far, can't wait for the inevitable wait for a sequel is over and I can read it.
Well because Sanderson is some kind of writing AI and not a real human, the sequel will be out this November.
I also really liked it, and you could tell he had a lot of fun writing a sci-fi fighter pilot story.
BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
Also, because I'm male, and don't really have the best perspective on this, maybe I'm wrong, but I really like the stories he writes with a female protagonist. Its rarely about them overcoming the fact that they are a women and succeeding anyways. More of a "here are all these other things that I have to overcome, and I'll do it" and gender is never really a concern, while also not just making it a story about a boy with all the gender pronouns swapped. I'm excited to have stuff like this to try and get my daughter to eventually read (if she ends up being into reading (oh god I hope she's into reading, thats, like, half of my pastime time)).
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
Finished "the seven deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle" by Stuart Turton.
Great book. Felt really game-y. Spoiler of the premise (which can be found on the back of the cover, but l really enjoyed reading it totally blind):
so it is a murder mystery in a worn-down 20s mansion with a groundhog Day twist. The protagonist wakes eight times, reliving the same day in a new body, with (mostly) just the memories of previous hosts. He get charged of solving a murder which occurs in the evening of that day. Apart from the murder, there are loads of other secrets and stuff which needs to be solved to gather clues for the main mystery. On top of this, there seems to be other guests who are in a similar position to the protagonist.
I really enjoyed the book and it's timetraveling, puzzle-box like complexity. It did felt slightly too much to keep track of in the end - i almost wished i taken notes of each timeline/host when reading.
I just finished a reread of Shade's Children, by Garth Nix. It's...well...it's a good instantiation of the genre it is, YA action sci-fi. It's not great but it's perfect to read as a teenager when you want to read that sort of book about teenagers in mortal peril who cannot trust adults (in a scary scifi scenario where there are basically no adults and kids are turned into flesh-monsters).
It has the same sense of danger and inability to rest that other Garth Nix books share; I really like the way he makes you feel that the protagonist has no safe haven. But the characters aren't very interesting and the setting is scary but pretty standard, in a way. It lacks the weird specificity of Sabriel or of the Seventh Tower books (which hold up perfectly to reread as an adult).
Basically, I'd give this to a teenager or kid who is working through YA books, but it's not fantastic unless you're specifically in the mood for that sort of adventure.
Steam, LoL: credeiki
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BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
Alright, finished Skyward, and damn if I'm not waiting with baited breath for the sequel. It wasn't over challenging, the main twist was relatively obvious, but I still just really enjoyed the story.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
Edgedancer finished. Not bad, I like a lot of the jokes.
Maybe next I'll read Quantum Magician, since I keep seeing it posted.
The main character is kinda mopey for my liking but the heist crew is excellent. It explores multiple transhumanism scenarios from genetic engineering to cybernetic enhancements to outright body replacement. Set in intergalactic corporate states vying for increased power over each other.
Finished "the seven deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle" by Stuart Turton.
Great book. Felt really game-y. Spoiler of the premise (which can be found on the back of the cover, but l really enjoyed reading it totally blind):
so it is a murder mystery in a worn-down 20s mansion with a groundhog Day twist. The protagonist wakes eight times, reliving the same day in a new body, with (mostly) just the memories of previous hosts. He get charged of solving a murder which occurs in the evening of that day. Apart from the murder, there are loads of other secrets and stuff which needs to be solved to gather clues for the main mystery. On top of this, there seems to be other guests who are in a similar position to the protagonist.
I really enjoyed the book and it's timetraveling, puzzle-box like complexity. It did felt slightly too much to keep track of in the end - i almost wished i taken notes of each timeline/host when reading.
Edgedancer finished. Not bad, I like a lot of the jokes.
Maybe next I'll read Quantum Magician, since I keep seeing it posted.
The main character is kinda mopey for my liking but the heist crew is excellent. It explores multiple transhumanism scenarios from genetic engineering to cybernetic enhancements to outright body replacement. Set in intergalactic corporate states vying for increased power over each other.
The setting is deffo my jam.
This sounds 100% like something I would like to read. Time to check the library.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
I'm now reading Day of the Oprichnik*, a modern Russian scifi-ish book set in the near future in which there's a new Russian monarchy. It is the day in the life of a member of the near future iteration of the secret police (the earliest historical iteration of which was called oprichnina, under Ivan the terrible, but we are more familiar with the terms cheka, nkvd, kgb, fsb...)
It's really vibrantly written and amazingly well-translated by Jamey Gambrell. The immediacy and flow and punchiness of the writing is preserved, including a bunch of rhyming and assonance stuff that really speaks to the translator's competence. It's a short book in first person that just tracks this (awful) young chekist through his day in a near future Moscow where trends of Russian nationalism and conservatism have been taken to the max, so there's this fascinating mixture of traditional Russian food and clothing; state oppression/ultraviolence (...so do not read this if you think you don't want to deal with a fairly explicit rape scene in the first 20 pages); orthodox prudery--there's a governmental ban on cursing, for example; and then some near-future cyberpunkish stuff--both standard and weird future drugs, Chinese political influence, near future communications and news systems, surveillance state methods, of course.
I'm really interested to read more by the author, Vladimir Sorokin, especially if this same translator has a hand in any of his other works. The writing is so good! I've read too much pared down first person stuff recently; I like it when an author doesn't sacrifice imagery and rich style just because he's also creating a voice for the first person narrator.
*I was thinking, 95% chance this is in Russian called Den' Oprichnika, and I am correct, and in that case, why on earth do we go with this really cumbersome and slightly off translation instead of calling it The Oprichnik's Day? I mean, in a way, Day of the Oprichnik suggests, this is a time in which this sort of person thrives, but it loses the meaning of, 'a day in the life of', which is the core setup/concept of the book. That's my only translation quibble here.
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Steam, LoL: credeiki
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jakobaggerLO THY DREAD EMPIRE CHAOS IS RESTOREDRegistered Userregular
Day of the Oprichnik, by Vladimir Sorokin, remained vibrant and at times shockingly funny throughout; highly recommended. I’ve ordered some of the author’s other books because I have to imagine they’re also fantastic.
I’m now rereading The Eye by Vladimir Nabokov; I’m relatively certain I read it for class, but I have essentially no memory of it. It’s heavy in the distorted reflections and mirrors and I think it just blended together in my mind with Despair and Invitation to a Beheading, not that I can remember those either! I need to do quite a bit of rereading, looks like.
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BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
So, I have temporarily run out of books to actively read (I hate how our library has no way to prematurely end a check out on an e-book, once its downloaded, its there for 2-3 weeks, period), so I was looking up what the next First Law book was supposed to be, and noticed that the cover for Half a King in French has ROI as the biggest characters on the cover. Not realizing it was the French cover, I got real excited that someone wrote some sort of fantasy book from the perspective of an insurance agent titled ROI.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
I'm now reading Day of the Oprichnik*, a modern Russian scifi-ish book set in the near future in which there's a new Russian monarchy. It is the day in the life of a member of the near future iteration of the secret police (the earliest historical iteration of which was called oprichnina, under Ivan the terrible, but we are more familiar with the terms cheka, nkvd, kgb, fsb...)
It's really vibrantly written and amazingly well-translated by Jamey Gambrell. The immediacy and flow and punchiness of the writing is preserved, including a bunch of rhyming and assonance stuff that really speaks to the translator's competence. It's a short book in first person that just tracks this (awful) young chekist through his day in a near future Moscow where trends of Russian nationalism and conservatism have been taken to the max, so there's this fascinating mixture of traditional Russian food and clothing; state oppression/ultraviolence (...so do not read this if you think you don't want to deal with a fairly explicit rape scene in the first 20 pages); orthodox prudery--there's a governmental ban on cursing, for example; and then some near-future cyberpunkish stuff--both standard and weird future drugs, Chinese political influence, near future communications and news systems, surveillance state methods, of course.
I'm really interested to read more by the author, Vladimir Sorokin, especially if this same translator has a hand in any of his other works. The writing is so good! I've read too much pared down first person stuff recently; I like it when an author doesn't sacrifice imagery and rich style just because he's also creating a voice for the first person narrator.
*I was thinking, 95% chance this is in Russian called Den' Oprichnika, and I am correct, and in that case, why on earth do we go with this really cumbersome and slightly off translation instead of calling it The Oprichnik's Day? I mean, in a way, Day of the Oprichnik suggests, this is a time in which this sort of person thrives, but it loses the meaning of, 'a day in the life of', which is the core setup/concept of the book. That's my only translation quibble here.
Lol there could never be a government ban on cursing in Russia, swears are the national language.
Posts
-Indiana Solo, runner of blades
Pillars of Eternity has a very similar concept of souls/gods/etc but did a better job of getting it across within the limits of the media.
Yep, things have vastly improved as Bel gets the gang together for a heist. These are fun characters.
But every human on the planet has become unable to sleep.
I almost would have preferred if it was one character involved in trying to find a solution to the issue, slowly fraying over time while they hear about everything else that is happening, getting deep into the neurology, biology, dangers of insomnia, possible causes or cures and all that, because the premise is so simple and horrific that you don't need it to be examined from many different POVs. But the vignettes never overstay their welcome and provide different, horrifying facets of humanity just crumbling and rusting.
The title is also amazing and simple. Sleep Over, by H.G. Bells. Check it out if you like a dose of realistic apocalyptic horror.
There’s also Jemisin’s book of short stories, How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? which I’ve been pushing on anyone who will listen.
-Indiana Solo, runner of blades
On a similar vibe to Jemisin (especially her Kingdom of Gods trilogy), I really dug Robert Jackson Bennett's Divine Cities trilogy. It's about the agents for a colonial empire that justifies itself because the colonized are their former enslavers, whose brutal empire was aided by literal gods on earth until a member of the enslaved figured out a way to kill a god and led a war that ended with all the gods dead. The books begin a few generations later, with the protagonist growing uneasy with the oppression of her empire while discovering that the gods might not all be dead.
I thought it was less jargon overload than physics Calvinball. Definitely entertaining, but yeah... the second two books don't reward a close, literal reading.
I am currently reading this and just...damn. damn. Everyone read this book, for real.
wish list
Steam wishlist
Etsy wishlist
The sequel to Revenger came out about a month ago.
It's only five bucks for the ebook! I linked it here!
Stop tormenting me with your Atlantic eBook pricing.
Oh, the sequel to City of Brass is out soon, if anyone's keeping an eye on that. An ARC just landed on my desk, so I guess it'll be in the next month or so.
Goodreads
SF&F Reviews blog
It’s the Kingdom of Copper I just mentioned a few posts up
-Indiana Solo, runner of blades
Oh so it is!
Also: I can't remember which of you recommended Myke Cole's "The Armoured Saint", but that really packs some emotional punch in its relatively slim weight. Definitely a series I'll follow up.
Goodreads
SF&F Reviews blog
Also, Dan Slott and Michael Allred's Silver Surfer omnibus, 30 odd issues of a terrific run.
Choose Your Own Chat 1 Choose Your Own Chat 2 Choose Your Own Chat 3
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
Well because Sanderson is some kind of writing AI and not a real human, the sequel will be out this November.
I also really liked it, and you could tell he had a lot of fun writing a sci-fi fighter pilot story.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
Great book. Felt really game-y. Spoiler of the premise (which can be found on the back of the cover, but l really enjoyed reading it totally blind):
I really enjoyed the book and it's timetraveling, puzzle-box like complexity. It did felt slightly too much to keep track of in the end - i almost wished i taken notes of each timeline/host when reading.
It has the same sense of danger and inability to rest that other Garth Nix books share; I really like the way he makes you feel that the protagonist has no safe haven. But the characters aren't very interesting and the setting is scary but pretty standard, in a way. It lacks the weird specificity of Sabriel or of the Seventh Tower books (which hold up perfectly to reread as an adult).
Basically, I'd give this to a teenager or kid who is working through YA books, but it's not fantastic unless you're specifically in the mood for that sort of adventure.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
ebook for $1.99 right now! https://www.amazon.com/Sunshine-Robin-McKinley-ebook/dp/B00OGWASCI/
Yessssss
Now everyone please buy it and read it!
Maybe next I'll read Quantum Magician, since I keep seeing it posted.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
The main character is kinda mopey for my liking but the heist crew is excellent. It explores multiple transhumanism scenarios from genetic engineering to cybernetic enhancements to outright body replacement. Set in intergalactic corporate states vying for increased power over each other.
The setting is deffo my jam.
There’s an interesting interview here about that.
With regards to the ending
If you like that book, you should check out The First 15 Lives of Harry August by Claire North.
And now it’s horrifying.
DON’T LITERALLY TRY TO PLAY GOD, PEOPLE.
This sounds 100% like something I would like to read. Time to check the library.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
It's really vibrantly written and amazingly well-translated by Jamey Gambrell. The immediacy and flow and punchiness of the writing is preserved, including a bunch of rhyming and assonance stuff that really speaks to the translator's competence. It's a short book in first person that just tracks this (awful) young chekist through his day in a near future Moscow where trends of Russian nationalism and conservatism have been taken to the max, so there's this fascinating mixture of traditional Russian food and clothing; state oppression/ultraviolence (...so do not read this if you think you don't want to deal with a fairly explicit rape scene in the first 20 pages); orthodox prudery--there's a governmental ban on cursing, for example; and then some near-future cyberpunkish stuff--both standard and weird future drugs, Chinese political influence, near future communications and news systems, surveillance state methods, of course.
I'm really interested to read more by the author, Vladimir Sorokin, especially if this same translator has a hand in any of his other works. The writing is so good! I've read too much pared down first person stuff recently; I like it when an author doesn't sacrifice imagery and rich style just because he's also creating a voice for the first person narrator.
*I was thinking, 95% chance this is in Russian called Den' Oprichnika, and I am correct, and in that case, why on earth do we go with this really cumbersome and slightly off translation instead of calling it The Oprichnik's Day? I mean, in a way, Day of the Oprichnik suggests, this is a time in which this sort of person thrives, but it loses the meaning of, 'a day in the life of', which is the core setup/concept of the book. That's my only translation quibble here.
Coincidentally I discovered the copy that's been sitting on my shelf for years is actually a first edition worth maybe fifty quid. Huzzah.
Choose Your Own Chat 1 Choose Your Own Chat 2 Choose Your Own Chat 3
I’m now rereading The Eye by Vladimir Nabokov; I’m relatively certain I read it for class, but I have essentially no memory of it. It’s heavy in the distorted reflections and mirrors and I think it just blended together in my mind with Despair and Invitation to a Beheading, not that I can remember those either! I need to do quite a bit of rereading, looks like.
The Monster Baru Cormorant - Seth Dickinson
Steam: Korvalain
Lol there could never be a government ban on cursing in Russia, swears are the national language.
Together with The Quantum Thief we only need a Quantum Fighter and a Quantum Cleric.