Clever idea, and Scalzi has a lot of fun with it. His witty narrative and lively adventure keep things moving along, and the self-aware meta textual nature of the story is quite effective. Falls a bit short of my hopes in its exploration of the premise, as opposed to the ramifications thereof. The codas are moving, though.
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Bay Area programmer guy. Lifelong comic book reader, also a big fan of comic strips and webcomics. In prose I mostly read science fiction with a smattering of fantasy, horror, mystery and the occasional nonfiction book. My cats help.
This is my Bookwyrm account. For Mastodon, try @mrawdon@sfba.social
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Michael Rawdon reviewed Redshirts by John Scalzi
Ensign Andrew Dahl has just been assigned to the Universal Union Capital Ship Intrepid, flagship …
Review of 'Redshirts' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Michael Rawdon reviewed Hide me among the graves by Tim Powers
Review of 'Hide me among the graves' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
Not one of Powers' best books, it's a story of various people in 19th century London haunted by ghostly figures referred to sometimes as vampires, but largely unrelated to the ones we know. The rules surrounding the creatures and how they're dealt with or worked around are hazy at best, and the eventual climax isn't very satisfying. It's sort of a sequel to The a Stress of Her Regard, and if you enjoyed that one then you'll probably like this one (I don't rank Stress among his best, either). But as a fan of his more tightly-plotted novels, I don't think this one measures up.
Michael Rawdon rated Jack Glass: 3 stars
Jack Glass by Adam Roberts
Golden Age SF meets Golden Age Crime from the author of Swiftly, New Model Army, and Yellow Blue Tibia?an innovative …
Michael Rawdon rated The Meaning of Luff and Other Stories: 3 stars
Michael Rawdon rated 9 Tales of Henghis Hapthorn: 4 stars
Michael Rawdon rated Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, #3): 3 stars
Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, #3) by Suzanne Collins (The Hunger Games ; #3)
Katniss Everdeen's having survived the Hunger Games twice makes her a target of the Capitol and President Snow, as well …
Michael Rawdon rated A Canticle for Leibowitz: 5 stars
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.
Highly unusual After the Holocaust novel. In the far future, 20th century texts are preserved in a monastery, as "sacred …
Michael Rawdon rated The City & the City: 2 stars
The City & the City by China Miéville
When a murdered woman is found in the city of Beszel, somewhere at the edge of Europe, it looks to …
Michael Rawdon rated The Demolished Man: 5 stars
The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester (A Kangaroo book)
In a world in which the police have telepathic powers, how do you get away with murder?
Ben Reichs heads …
Michael Rawdon rated The Anubis Gates: 5 stars
Michael Rawdon rated Cyteen: 4 stars
Cyteen by C.J. Cherryh
From back cover Warner paperback February 1989:
ARIANE EMORY IS DEAD. BUT NOT FOR LONG. WHERE IS ARIANE?
For fifty …
Michael Rawdon rated Glasshouse: 4 stars
Glasshouse by Charles Stross
When Robin wakes up in a clinic with most of his memories missing, it doesn't take him long to discover …
Michael Rawdon rated Fevre dream: 4 stars
Fevre dream by George R. R. Martin
When struggling riverboat captain Abner Marsh receives an offer of partnership from a wealthy aristocrat, he suspects something's amiss. But …
Michael Rawdon rated Singularity Sky: 4 stars
Singularity Sky by Charles Stross (Eschaton, #1)
Singularity Sky is a science fiction novel by author Charles Stross, published in 2003. It was nominated for the Hugo …