Greg Bear Chills, Thrills And Enthralls This Old Dog

Taking the old premise
Sending humans from a dying (warring) Earth
In hopes of saving some remnant of humankind

The first character we meet
Is awakened some 500 years out
Something has gone wrong, very wrong
I’ll not spoil this book
You read, you discover
You burn the midnight oil
Hey! We’re Human
Not so good, not so bad
Human
Bittersweet, I love Bittersweet


Speaking of Bittersweet
Listen to Bittersweet
Easy Tiger by Ryan Adams

N. K. Jemisin’s Second Book Stands Tall; Jack Campbell Writes Exemplary Space Opera

N. K. Jemisin did not bunt her second book
She Hit Another Home Run!
We learned about Sky
The city in The Tree where Gods are at beck and call
Now we learn about life around the roots
Gritty, Dangerous, Scheming, Conniving
Filled with Socio-Religious Machinations
Our new heroin Oree
A blind girl from a destroyed continent
Gifted with the ability to see Gods and Godlings
Among other things
And a compassionate heart
You can’t help but love the girl

I read and truly enjoy Space Opera
I’m now reading book three
Campbell just does it better
The characters have complexity
There is a distinct lack of
Repetitive drivel, alas, alack, O Woe…
The battles are well written
The prose, do not stumble
Thanks Jack!

Track Three, Downtown Babylon
Yes I’ve mentioned this before
It’s good enough to say it again!

Regards

Rapt Up In The Player Of Games


Not even finished with book two
I am in a transcendental fugue
Iain Banks is viscous wicked
Gollum screaming Sneekum
Comes to mind
Book eight was great
Book one set the stage
Book two, the characters,
Both man and machine
Twisted, smart, sneaky
The plot, absolutely astounding!
The society build, so inventive

The tease
A great and noted scholar of games
Joins Culture’s “Special Circumstances”
Travels to an Empire who's power structure
Is based on one’s ability to play The Game

The result
Messy, convoluted, twisted, slick story
Driving the reader deeper and deeper
Where the hell are the boundaries of the Game
Are there boundaries to the Game
Wait a minute. Does this apply to my life?
YIKES! THIS IS THE GOOD STUFF!

Music at the moment
WHEW! Music with CONTENT!

Sandman Slim Kills The Dead

Richard Kadrey continues to entertain immensely
Kill the Dead has enough laugh out loud
To Kill the Living
Kadrey’s knowledge of B movies
Beyond belief
(Is there a wasted youth skulking the frontal lobe?)
William Gibson's tag on the cover of book one
“Best B movie I’ve read in twenty years”
I would never disagree with Gibson
Book two is even funnier
If you like James Butcher
You will love Richard Kadrey
Did I mention irreverence?
Whew!
Did I mention lots of dead Zombies?
Perhaps I should say dead, dead Zombies
The Sandman’s best pal is a disembodied head

Music to re-enter the "in your face" world of the living
Breathe and Fleeting Days by Dan Bern
You don’t know modern Folk Music
Until you know Dan Bern

Regards

Something New This Way Comes


A double dose of whatever turns your crank
And you don’t feel bad after it’s over
Not quite steampunk. A world too well imagined
Not quite fantasy. It’s not magic its Gods
Not quite science fiction. Still feels post apocalyptic
Gripping Engrossing Captivating, More, Much More
You have never read this story before

I could not put the book down

People of the Gun (Think über-cowboy),
With their personal God in their gun
Controlled by “The Gun”
Go toe to toe with
People of the Line
(Think über-industrialist / bureaucrats)
Their Gods are in their machines
Very controlled by “The Line”
People of the Line now inhabit my nightmares

The rest of the world’s people?
Cannon fodder or Gear fodder
There are two main characters
Creedmore, a man of the Gun
In constant conflict with “the Gun” and himself
Dr. Liv Alverhuysen, psychologists, recently widowed
Liv  is moving West and growing stronger
looking for adventure (or something)
She finds it

Music of the moment
Alt-Country is the real country for me