Category: Reviewing

Book Review (Anthology): The Best of Robert E. Howard: Grim Lands (4 Stars)

The Best of Robert E. Howard
Grim Lands
(Volume 2)

Edited by Rusty Burke
Illustrated by Jim & Ruth Keegan

4 out of 5 stars

Read in December 2008

My personal favorites from this collection would be “By This Axe I Rule!” a Kull kingship tale; “Red Nails” a Conan tale where we meet Valeria and “The Bull Dog Breed” another gritty and humorous boxing exploit of Steve Costigan.

The collection also includes many Westerns, a pirate tale told mostly on land and a few much grimmer horror tales. His poetry is also interspersed among the stories.

I definitely recommend this anthology (both volumes actually) to anyone who enjoys epic tales, high adventure and grim determination.

Book Review (Anthology): The Best of Robert E. Howard: Crimson Shadows (4 Stars)

The Best of Robert E. Howard:
Crimson Shadows
(Volume 1)

Edited by Rusty Burke
Illustrated by Jim and Ruth Keegan

4 out of 5 stars

Read in November/December 2008

I was impressed with Robert E. Howard’s ability to captivate my interest and thrill me with his adventures. I especially liked his heroic battles (large and small-scale); they were some of the best and most riveting reading I’ve experienced in ages. He not only invented the sword and sorcery genre, he was the definitive master of it.

Some of my favorites include “The People of the Black Circle” (one of only two Conan stories included in this first volume of short stories); “The Fighten’st Pair” (the funniest tale I’ve read in years involving a boxer and his kidnapped dog); “The Worms of the Earth” (epic battle and struggle between Rome and the Picts); and, “The Grey God Passes.” “Sharp’s Gun Serenade” was also a hilarious romp through the Old West.

Howard’s poetry is dark and primeval most of the time, but a few poignant gems can be found like “The Song of the Last Briton”; “An Echo from the Iron Harp” and ending with the last poem, printed posthumously, the name of which escapes me.

I recommend this anthology to any fan of action adventure, sword and sorcery or pre-World War II pulp fiction that rises above the stigma that name implies.

Book Review (Anthology): The Best of John W. Campbell (4 Stars)

The Best of John W. Campbell
Edited by Lester del Rey

4 out of 5 stars

Read in November 2008

This collection was well worth perusing. If nothing else, reading “Who Goes There?” was a thrill, especially considering it was written originally in 1938.  Kudos to anyone who knows what movie (and several remakes) have been spawned from this exceptional story.

“Elimination” was one of the best time travel theory stories I’ve ever read. I highly recommend that one as well.

“Twilight” was chosen in 1970 by the Science Fiction Writers of America as one of the great classics of the genre – and it definitely is that. It’s the story of a time traveler from 3059, plopped down in 1930s America after returning from the Earth of seven millions years in the future. The Earth, and the remnants of mankind and their legacy, of that far distant future left me feeling sad, lonely and full of regret. The time traveler did leave a spark of hope behind before he returned but we are left without knowing if he was successful.

“Forgetfulness” was an interesting tale of man reaching out to colonize what appears to be a planet abandoned by a very advanced civilization. The current inhabitants seem to be peaceful and non-technological (reminded me of the Nox in Stargate SG1). They knew of the ancient civilization but nothing of the technology. It asks the question: Do you remember how to make a fire without matches or a light? Do you remember how to make a stone (flint) tool?

The rest of the collection is good as well. See my updates and comments for further thoughts on the best works of John W. Campbell.

Book Review: A Fire Upon the Deep by Vinge (3 Stars)

A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge

3 out of 5 stars

Read in January 2009

I read this for the Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Club at GoodReads. It was the science fiction theme (space opera) selection for January 2009.

I must admit that only about a third or half of this story kept my interest. I was drawn in to the plight of Jefri and Johanna. And, by proximity, the inhabitants of the Tines world where Jefri and Johanna’s parents crash landed them and left them stranded and orphaned.

The rest of the tale, which most likely qualifies as the space opera epic, was confusing, sometimes appeared to be pointless, boring and just plain slow. As I approached the end, I admit I skimmed nearly all the parts that dealt with Ravna, Pham, the Skoderiders, the Blight and the chase to the Tines world.

If it weren’t for the uniqueness of the Tines world and the independent struggles of Jefri and Johanna, I probably would have given this a two star rating. But I love the resilience of Jefri and his ability to assimilate and adapt to Amdi, an eight-member pack of about the same maturity level as Jefri but extraordinarily gifted in mathematics. And Johanna was the rebellious teenager, convinced she was the only survivor of the crash and out to get revenge on the packs who had ambushed her family. Great drama, politics and manipulation, espionage and intrigue – all you could want to keep you riveted to the page.

The ending was a bit tragic and I was left with uncertainty as to the Blight and the Countermeasure’s struggle. I was never really given the chance to determine if the Blight or the Countermeasure were “evil” or “good” so I was ambivalent as to the Titanic struggle between the two. The only thing certain is that both the Blight and the Countermeasure destroyed billions upon billions of lives and whole swaths of civilizations in a large portion of the Galaxy. For that alone, neither of them are classified as “good” to me.

Book Review: The Book of Three by Alexander (4 stars)

The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

4 out of 5 stars

Read in December 2008

This was published the same year I was, born that is.  How did I miss this delightful tale and only stumble upon it in my mid-40s?

Taran is a precocious bored boy with visions of heroes sword-fighting in his head. He dreams of leaving the small farm where he takes care of a prophetic pig named Hen Wen and lives with Coll and Dallben.

Something frightens the bees, the chickens and the pig so much that they all escape the farm and disappear into the surrounding forest.  Taran is sent to find the pig and return her home.  Predictably, he gets lost in the forest following the pig and spies a band of men lead by the terrifying Horned King.  Taran barely escapes and flees into the brush, eventually finding Gwydion, a prince and one of the heroes he daydreams about.

The danger and adventure are non-stop until the end of the book.  Along the way, Taran makes mistakes but learns from them and demonstrates he has the talent to be an inspiring and wise leader.  He meets several companions and legendary folk who aid him on his quest to reach Caer Dathyl to warn the Sons of Don about the Horned King and his army.

A fast fun read.

Book Review: Ender’s Game by Card (4 stars)

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

4 out of 5 stars

Read in Dec 2008

WARNING: Spoilers

I liked everything about this book, except perhaps the ending. And I can’t even say that I particularly disliked the ending; it just made my soul ache with remorse and regret – for Ender, for humanity, for the buggers.

Ender is six years old when we meet him. He is the third son of the Wiggins and a child genius. Not surprising, consider both of his older siblings are both child prodigies, but with vastly different temperaments. The Wiggins were allowed to have a third child as part of an experiment; an effort to create the best of both of the other siblings and something to could be molded into a perfect military savior.

Continue reading “Book Review: Ender’s Game by Card (4 stars)”

Book Review: The Lost Colony by Scalzi (3.5 stars)

The Lost Colony by John Scalzi

3.5 out of 5 stars

Read in December 2009

I thoroughly enjoyed the story, the plot twists, and the conundrum of The Last Colony. I couldn’t keep from reading it, even while attending an all-day technology conference. At least no one looked at me strangely between sessions, since we were all geeks and I was reading a Scalzi novel, for goodness sake.

All the main characters were well established from the first two series installments, with the exception of Zoë. Several years have passed since John, Jane and Zoë became a family and settled on Huckleberry. Character development for Zoë hinges on her teenager-ness. Aside from the usual suspects (political power grabbing colony members, pacifist Mennonites, a meglomaniacal journalist and manipulative military generals), the rest of the cast exist to drive the plot.

One subplot was completely cut off and unresolved about midway through the story. It irked me to no end that the author would string us along, kill off a favorite supporting cast member and leave us dangling just because a more interesting external alien forces were threatening the colony. I’m not even sure that the sacrificed character got a decent burial, even though he of all the colonists deserved one.

Rather than connecting with any one character, like I did in the previous two novels, I really connected to the colony as a whole and the fate of humanity as encapsulated by the colony.

On an interesting side note, I now understand why John Scalzi is listed as a creative consultant to the Stargate: Universe television series. The fate of the stranded, lost people trapped on the Destiny mirrors many of the challenges and situations faced by the members of the colony Roanoke.

Not sure I could recommend this as a stand-alone novel, but it might survive a reading if you hadn’t read Old Man’s War or The Ghost Brigades first. The story occurs in the same universe, but is a vastly different type of story compared to the first two installments.

Short Story Review: Backscatter by Beneford (4 Stars)

Backscatter by Gregory Beneford

4 out of 5 stars

Read in April 2013

Every Wednesday I look forward to the latest short fiction published at Tor’s website.  For the last several weeks I’ve been somewhat disappointed in the offerings.  But this past week, I thoroughly enjoyed my first ever reading experience of Gregory Beneford’s writing.  And I liked it a lot, which spurred me to write a short review and spread the good news about this story in particular, and tangentially Tor’s short story web site.

Science fiction shines in this abbreviated format.  So much impact in such a small space.  And Beneford did not disappoint in character development (both human and non-human).

To read the story for yourself, click on the image above or follow this link:  Backscatter by Beneford

DNF: Touchstone by Rawn

Touchstone by Melanie Rawn

DNF (did not finish)

Attempted to Read in April 2013

I wanted to love this book, like I loved her Dragon Prince series.  I didn’t make it to one hundred pages though.  I couldn’t connect or care about the characters.  I began to wonder if I wasn’t exactly the target audience.  I’m not in the performing arts (although many of my friends and family are).

The magic system also didn’t make sense to me.  Perhaps later in the novel it would become more understandable.  But I kept finding excuses to read just about anything else.  So I gave up.

Perhaps I’ll pick it up again later this year.  Right now, though, I’ve got many other more compelling reads to enjoy.

Book Review: Alphabet of Thorn by McKillip (4 Stars)

Alphabet of Thorn by Patricia McKillip

4 out of 5 stars

Read in March 2009

A coming-of-age tale for nearly all the characters involved in this novel.  An orphan raised by the royal library as a transcriptor.  The young Queen of Raine soon to be crowned after the sudden death of her father the King.  A minor son of the Second Crown sent to the magician’s Floating School.  Another library-raised orphan who is love struck by the first.  Even the legendary figures from ancient history move through their adolescent struggles via the tale being translated.  All these lives weave together to solve the mystery threatening the realm of these Twelve Crowns.

Patricia McKillip does not disappoint with her pace, prose or her poetry.  Many of these characters are also strong female role models, without appearing overly feminist.  The magic is mystical and mysterious, powerful without being pedantic.