Tony Nance
2024-03-01 22:06:12 UTC
Highlights and Lowlights - February 2024
Books are listed in reverse chronological order from how I read them,
using a very primitive rating system:
“+” are good, and more “+” are better
“-“ are not good, and more “-“ are worse
I’m happy to answer questions about anything on the list.
Highlight - Neogenesis - Lee & Miller [Liaden #21]
Lowlight - Hm. I don’t think anything earned being a lowlight this time.
Lucky me!
Here’s a quick summary of what’s more in-depth below:
( ++++ ) Neogenesis - Lee & Miller [Liaden #21]
( ++ ) Reap the East Wind - Cook [Dread Empire]
( +++ ) Still River - Hal Clement
( ++ 1/2 ) Servant of the Dragon - Drake [Lord of the Isles #3]
( ++ 1/2 ) Chateau d’If and Other Stories - Vance (collection)
( ++ - ) World of Ptavvs - Niven
( ++ ) The Cyborg and the Sorcerors - Watt-Evans [War Surplus #1 of 2]
( ++ 1/2 ) His Father’s Eyes - Coe [Justis Fearsson #2]
( ++ 1/2 ) The October Man - Aaronovitch (novella) [Rivers of London
universe]
( +++ ) Slow Bullets - Reynolds (novella)
Now Reading:
Long work - I don’t know - nothing is currently jumping out at me
Collection - Memory’s Legion - Corey [Expanse collection]
===========================================
( ++++ ) Neogenesis - Lee & Miller [Liaden #21] NOTE: Steve Miller
passed away less than a week before I read this. It truly was the next
thing on the short stack, but I would have picked it next anyway given
the circumstances.
Holy cow, this was great - one of my very favorite entries in the entire
series (a high bar indeed). The last several chapters are superb, as
many different plot threads that have been brewing over several books
come to a head, and Val Con and Miri have quite a day dealing with them
in their co-position as delm of Clan Korval. Subtract the very last
chapter, and this could function as a serviceable series-ender, though
there are many many directions the series could go forward. The last
chapter is clearly a stepping off point to one specific direction, but
I’m sure they’ll fold some of the other ones in along the way.
( ++ ) Reap the East Wind - Cook [Dread Empire]
Glen Cook is one of my very favorite authors, but for me the Dread
Empire series is only almost-as-good as his Black Company and Garrett
P.I. series. The series has a lot of the Cook hallmarks - big sprawly
world, lots of well-drawn characters, tons of intrigue, but it’s
so…pessimistic, I guess? Anyhow, there are only two volumes left in the
series after this one. This one started slowly for me, partly because it
had been so very long since I read the previous one. There are huge
world-wide implications playing out with the Shinsan fighting wars on
two fronts *and* trying to destroy Bragi; Mist has designs on taking
over the Shinsan, using an uneasy alliance with Bragi. Varthlokkur and
Nepanthe are having a baby, but there are signs that Nepanthe’s son
Ethrian may not be as dead as everyone thinks. Feels like things are
winding up - two more to go.
( +++ ) Still River - Hal Clement
Until I read Neogenesis, this was the clear highlight of the month. This
is an excellent Clement story from 1987 - 5 “student” scientists of 5
different galactic civilizations/species are teamed together to complete
a prestigious degree-type program (or certification-type, perhaps) by
exploring the tiny planet Enigma. Enigma is a very odd planet, and has
been a study site for projects for 100s (1000s?) of years. Neat science,
neat scientific puzzles, neat teamwork … I mean, it’s Clement, right?
Humans are portrayed as being rather new to the galactic community, and
team member Molly is one of the very first humans to embark on this
program. (I say “student” above because Molly is 27, and has a husband &
child, and we are — purposely, I believe — not given the stage of
maturity/development for the team members from the other species.)
( ++ 1/2 ) Servant of the Dragon - Drake [Lord of the Isles #3]
Good! Started slowly, but became really good in the last 1/2 - 1/3 of
the book. Similar to the structure of #2, this one sees the 6 main
characters get separated into 4 places. Ilna gains two…companions, I
guess; all 4 groups solve/survive their issues and converge back
together near the end to sort-of-solve their largest collective problem
- a rogue, ancient wizard who wishes to rule the world (of course!).
There’s some pretty decent character development in this one too -
especially seeing Garric grow into his leadership (with help from
Carus). I will surely read #4.
( ++ 1/2 ) Chateau d’If and Other Stories - Vance (collection)
A pretty good assortment of stories Vance wrote from 1946 - 1967,
including “Nopalgarth” (which is often listed as the 3rd in the
Nopalgarth universe, including at isfdb). Very interesting stories, a
few of which are excellent. The earliest stories read like
“almost-Vance”, as you can see his style developing but it's not quite
there yet, including the very good title story “Chateau d’If”.
( ++ - ) World of Ptavvs - Niven
This was fine/okay. Some places say this is Niven’s first novel. The
first half dragged, but the second half was considerably better. The
style was a bit annoying - tons of characters and numerous unlabeled
swaps of scene & viewpoint from page to page, sometimes even from
paragraph to paragraph; there are also characters named Larry, Lit, Lew,
Luke, and Lloyd, who I simply couldn’t keep straight. An ancient alien
buried/dormant in a stasis field gets inadvertently wakened & freed; he
takes telepathic control of humans, intending to enslave the entire
solar system (and eventually the galaxy). Some key people on Earth and
in the Belt — erstwhile enemies — hesitantly team up to try to thwart
the alien.
( ++ ) The Cyborg and the Sorcerors - Watt-Evans [War Surplus #1 of 2]
Interesting, early Watt-Evans - All the hallmarks of a typical LWE
protagonist - inner dialogue, lots of reasoning, basically decent person
thrust into unusual circumstances. Here, the protagonist is a cyborg
designed/trained to be a solitary war scout, and he is monitored by his
ship computer, who has instructions to kill the cyborg if he doesn’t
diligently carry out his mission - where the computer decides what
“diligently” means. The war ended 300+ years ago (but “only” 24 years
ship-time), and nobody is left who can change the computer’s orders. So
the cyborg has been forced to scout several planetary systems with no
end in sight. Very early in this story, the cyborg lands on a populated
planet, where a few inhabitants are "wizards". There is a sequel, which
I picked up when I found this one, and I will read it.
( ++ 1/2 ) His Father’s Eyes - Coe [Justis Fearsson #2]
Phoenix ex-cop-now-a-PI Justis Fearsson is a weremyste - a magic user
who becomes significantly fuzzy & disrupted for 3 days around the full
moon “phasings”. One of his cases eventually drags him into a big war
between dark & light magical forces. He’s not a magical heavyweight, but
he’s smart and resourceful. I think Coe only wrote one more in this
series, which I will surely read.
( ++ 1/2 )The October Man - Aaronovitch (novella) [Rivers of London
universe]
Good! Germany-based spin-off featuring magic apprentice Tobias Winter
and regular police officer Vanessa Sommer. Very well done, and similar
to Peter Grant stories, only in Germany. Tobias is noticeably different
from Peter; good dialogue, with some good humor in spots.
( +++ ) Slow Bullets - Reynolds (novella)
Very good. Short, swift, neat ideas, dark, even vicious in spots. A vast
interstellar war is ending, complete with an official cease fire; a
female soldier gets captured by a sadistic male opponent, who tortures
her and leaves her to die when peacekeepers show up to enforce the cease
fire. She passes out and wakes up in a hibernation chamber on a ship
that is clearly malfunctioning. The ship’s dying computer is waking some
of its passengers, many of whom are soldiers from both sides of the
war…including her nemesis (of course!).
Now Reading:
Long work - I don’t know - nothing is currently jumping out at me
Collection - Memory’s Legion - Corey [Expanse collection]
Tony
Books are listed in reverse chronological order from how I read them,
using a very primitive rating system:
“+” are good, and more “+” are better
“-“ are not good, and more “-“ are worse
I’m happy to answer questions about anything on the list.
Highlight - Neogenesis - Lee & Miller [Liaden #21]
Lowlight - Hm. I don’t think anything earned being a lowlight this time.
Lucky me!
Here’s a quick summary of what’s more in-depth below:
( ++++ ) Neogenesis - Lee & Miller [Liaden #21]
( ++ ) Reap the East Wind - Cook [Dread Empire]
( +++ ) Still River - Hal Clement
( ++ 1/2 ) Servant of the Dragon - Drake [Lord of the Isles #3]
( ++ 1/2 ) Chateau d’If and Other Stories - Vance (collection)
( ++ - ) World of Ptavvs - Niven
( ++ ) The Cyborg and the Sorcerors - Watt-Evans [War Surplus #1 of 2]
( ++ 1/2 ) His Father’s Eyes - Coe [Justis Fearsson #2]
( ++ 1/2 ) The October Man - Aaronovitch (novella) [Rivers of London
universe]
( +++ ) Slow Bullets - Reynolds (novella)
Now Reading:
Long work - I don’t know - nothing is currently jumping out at me
Collection - Memory’s Legion - Corey [Expanse collection]
===========================================
( ++++ ) Neogenesis - Lee & Miller [Liaden #21] NOTE: Steve Miller
passed away less than a week before I read this. It truly was the next
thing on the short stack, but I would have picked it next anyway given
the circumstances.
Holy cow, this was great - one of my very favorite entries in the entire
series (a high bar indeed). The last several chapters are superb, as
many different plot threads that have been brewing over several books
come to a head, and Val Con and Miri have quite a day dealing with them
in their co-position as delm of Clan Korval. Subtract the very last
chapter, and this could function as a serviceable series-ender, though
there are many many directions the series could go forward. The last
chapter is clearly a stepping off point to one specific direction, but
I’m sure they’ll fold some of the other ones in along the way.
( ++ ) Reap the East Wind - Cook [Dread Empire]
Glen Cook is one of my very favorite authors, but for me the Dread
Empire series is only almost-as-good as his Black Company and Garrett
P.I. series. The series has a lot of the Cook hallmarks - big sprawly
world, lots of well-drawn characters, tons of intrigue, but it’s
so…pessimistic, I guess? Anyhow, there are only two volumes left in the
series after this one. This one started slowly for me, partly because it
had been so very long since I read the previous one. There are huge
world-wide implications playing out with the Shinsan fighting wars on
two fronts *and* trying to destroy Bragi; Mist has designs on taking
over the Shinsan, using an uneasy alliance with Bragi. Varthlokkur and
Nepanthe are having a baby, but there are signs that Nepanthe’s son
Ethrian may not be as dead as everyone thinks. Feels like things are
winding up - two more to go.
( +++ ) Still River - Hal Clement
Until I read Neogenesis, this was the clear highlight of the month. This
is an excellent Clement story from 1987 - 5 “student” scientists of 5
different galactic civilizations/species are teamed together to complete
a prestigious degree-type program (or certification-type, perhaps) by
exploring the tiny planet Enigma. Enigma is a very odd planet, and has
been a study site for projects for 100s (1000s?) of years. Neat science,
neat scientific puzzles, neat teamwork … I mean, it’s Clement, right?
Humans are portrayed as being rather new to the galactic community, and
team member Molly is one of the very first humans to embark on this
program. (I say “student” above because Molly is 27, and has a husband &
child, and we are — purposely, I believe — not given the stage of
maturity/development for the team members from the other species.)
( ++ 1/2 ) Servant of the Dragon - Drake [Lord of the Isles #3]
Good! Started slowly, but became really good in the last 1/2 - 1/3 of
the book. Similar to the structure of #2, this one sees the 6 main
characters get separated into 4 places. Ilna gains two…companions, I
guess; all 4 groups solve/survive their issues and converge back
together near the end to sort-of-solve their largest collective problem
- a rogue, ancient wizard who wishes to rule the world (of course!).
There’s some pretty decent character development in this one too -
especially seeing Garric grow into his leadership (with help from
Carus). I will surely read #4.
( ++ 1/2 ) Chateau d’If and Other Stories - Vance (collection)
A pretty good assortment of stories Vance wrote from 1946 - 1967,
including “Nopalgarth” (which is often listed as the 3rd in the
Nopalgarth universe, including at isfdb). Very interesting stories, a
few of which are excellent. The earliest stories read like
“almost-Vance”, as you can see his style developing but it's not quite
there yet, including the very good title story “Chateau d’If”.
( ++ - ) World of Ptavvs - Niven
This was fine/okay. Some places say this is Niven’s first novel. The
first half dragged, but the second half was considerably better. The
style was a bit annoying - tons of characters and numerous unlabeled
swaps of scene & viewpoint from page to page, sometimes even from
paragraph to paragraph; there are also characters named Larry, Lit, Lew,
Luke, and Lloyd, who I simply couldn’t keep straight. An ancient alien
buried/dormant in a stasis field gets inadvertently wakened & freed; he
takes telepathic control of humans, intending to enslave the entire
solar system (and eventually the galaxy). Some key people on Earth and
in the Belt — erstwhile enemies — hesitantly team up to try to thwart
the alien.
( ++ ) The Cyborg and the Sorcerors - Watt-Evans [War Surplus #1 of 2]
Interesting, early Watt-Evans - All the hallmarks of a typical LWE
protagonist - inner dialogue, lots of reasoning, basically decent person
thrust into unusual circumstances. Here, the protagonist is a cyborg
designed/trained to be a solitary war scout, and he is monitored by his
ship computer, who has instructions to kill the cyborg if he doesn’t
diligently carry out his mission - where the computer decides what
“diligently” means. The war ended 300+ years ago (but “only” 24 years
ship-time), and nobody is left who can change the computer’s orders. So
the cyborg has been forced to scout several planetary systems with no
end in sight. Very early in this story, the cyborg lands on a populated
planet, where a few inhabitants are "wizards". There is a sequel, which
I picked up when I found this one, and I will read it.
( ++ 1/2 ) His Father’s Eyes - Coe [Justis Fearsson #2]
Phoenix ex-cop-now-a-PI Justis Fearsson is a weremyste - a magic user
who becomes significantly fuzzy & disrupted for 3 days around the full
moon “phasings”. One of his cases eventually drags him into a big war
between dark & light magical forces. He’s not a magical heavyweight, but
he’s smart and resourceful. I think Coe only wrote one more in this
series, which I will surely read.
( ++ 1/2 )The October Man - Aaronovitch (novella) [Rivers of London
universe]
Good! Germany-based spin-off featuring magic apprentice Tobias Winter
and regular police officer Vanessa Sommer. Very well done, and similar
to Peter Grant stories, only in Germany. Tobias is noticeably different
from Peter; good dialogue, with some good humor in spots.
( +++ ) Slow Bullets - Reynolds (novella)
Very good. Short, swift, neat ideas, dark, even vicious in spots. A vast
interstellar war is ending, complete with an official cease fire; a
female soldier gets captured by a sadistic male opponent, who tortures
her and leaves her to die when peacekeepers show up to enforce the cease
fire. She passes out and wakes up in a hibernation chamber on a ship
that is clearly malfunctioning. The ship’s dying computer is waking some
of its passengers, many of whom are soldiers from both sides of the
war…including her nemesis (of course!).
Now Reading:
Long work - I don’t know - nothing is currently jumping out at me
Collection - Memory’s Legion - Corey [Expanse collection]
Tony