Me Read Books. Me Like Books; Words Good!
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Me Read Books. Me Like Books; Words Good! |
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These mini-reviews are my opinion. Please treat with caution as, obviously, I have no taste...
I like my science hard and my fantasy humble. I've only ever put one book down and never picked it up again (Julian May *bored* me!) so expect a large number of books here.
The following links should take you to my review with a further link to the Amazon.co.uk pages for the relevant book.
I've put an "Out of 5" score here. From the looks of my scores I should have just done marks out of ten :-) This is just an indication of my enjoyment of the book and bears no resemblance to anything sueable. :-)
A little plug for "not buying books". I've had a subscription to the Safari on-line book service for a couple of months now. It's great. I read books and grab snippits out of books that I'd prevously have not bothered with. It's not stopped me buying any books, it's just helped me pick the right ones. With more books on programming than their are atoms in the average star it's difficult to know which ones you should (a) read (b) tell other people to read. Having a hefty job title of "Technical Architect" I have to at least *pretend* to know everything. Safari lets me keep my bluff up :-)
It was a seemingly uninteresting branch of mozilla. It became a Phoenix. It turned into a Firebird. Its now Firefox!
Damn stupid name, damn fine browser.
Make the browser you want. Slim sleek, fast and furious. As customised as you want, as special as you want.
Take yourself off to www.mozilla.org and read all about it. Forget bloat. Forget features you don't want nor need. Just browse. Love the new download manager...
You can support nobby.co.uk by buying from Amazon.co.uk from here.
(1) Use the SEARCH facility to search Amazon.co.uk for you required item.
(2) Use the ISBN entry to go from this page directly to the book you want.
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Sara Douglas: BattleAxe (Book 1 of the Axis Trilogy) - ISBN: 0-7322-5865-0
Sara Douglas: Enchanter (Book 2 of the Axis Trilogy) - ISBN: 0-7322-5129-X
Ah, pleasant. Nice, painless fantasy written by a woman. That means there's more introspection than, say, a David Gemmell, but just as much swords and sorcery. I'm only two books through as now, but I'm sure I'll finish the third one before I land in the UK. Predictable, but that doesn't mean bad, although there are times when you really want to shout "*think damn you!" at the characters. This is the sort of book you can read and not be scared at what's coming next. Which is a nice change from the Iain Banks and Clive Barkers of this world. I'd give this a good 3.5 stars.
L.E. Modesitt Jr: Archform:Beauty - ISBN: 1-84149-251-5
I take it all back. This is not the same plot as his other books!
This is, basically, a police-procedural, but couched in some interesting science and interesting ideas and some complex characters. Played out from many more view-points than normal I'd wonder whether he'd actually read my last review and decided to do something to surprise me. I read this in three days - it's not a long read but it made me feel really good for two reasons - well (i) alls-well-that-ends-well and (ii) he pleasantly surprised me with the plot. Nobody left home to make their fortune. Nobody wrestled with magic/psionic powers that nobody else understood. Probably not destined to be on the best seller lists for six years, but a good read nonetheless. Thank you L.E.
Katherne Kerr : Snare - ISBN: 0-00-648039-X
I've read most of her Deverry books. The first three of which are among my favourite books. I've never read sci-fi by here 'though. She spins a simple tale here but spins it well, good characters, an uneasyness about who you're supposed to be rooting for and an good old-fashioned revolution. Ish. A standalone book that anyone could pick up and read. I can't say that about the last Deverry book (those are so intertwined I have trouble working out where one starts and another finishes).
Clive Barket : Abarat - ISBN: 0-00-714904-2
This is a good one Clive. Now, on format: This is a large sized paperpack on highquality paper. It has to be because there a a large number of illustrations, nay photographs. Clive, himself, painted a number of pictures for the book. They really add to the story which is a fantasy with hint of horror as opposed to his often horror with a hint of fantasy. It is not as gruesome as some of his work. He's stretching his talents (like painting) and produced an interesting and very weird book. This is weirder than most, nearly Pratchettesque it's so weird. But definitley a Clive.
Neal Stephenson : Quicksilver- ISBN: 0-434-00817-6
Well, I don't normally gush this much, but woo! What a great book, and I'm sorry to say the ISBN here is for the hardback...
The "sequel" to Cryptonomicron only in the sense that it details more about the Waterhouse and Shaftoe families (not to mention the Qwglmites*) However this epic is set in 17th Century Europe, a rather violent time I think you will all agree? No? Your school skipped over that period of history too? (sometime I wish I'd done history at A level they left so much out at O level) Well, the Sun King is flexing his muscles, the Dutch rule the waves , England can't decide whether it wants kings or not and the God of technology is waking.
A great book - the hero of the Waterhouse family is a conteporary of Newton and you can see that Stephenson has pulled a lot from "The Last Sorcerer" but in a very different way to Greg Keyes' "Age of Unreason". This book makes you feel part of the times, gives you a real footing in the history of the moment. I don't think I've been this engrossed since.. Umm.. Oh the non-fiction Queen Mary and The Death Of Lord Darnley. Were I a high-school history teacher I'd make my students read this as an addition to the syllabus.
A lot of the book has tongue in cheek. A lot tells you real history. A lot is purely from the amazing imagination of Stephenson himself. Lots of snippets tell you things such as how New York was named, where the word Dollar came from and a myriad of others, mixing fact and fiction in a wonderful way, as Banks is wont to do. Sheesh it even changes how I write!
Probably the most astute xmas present Lora has ever bought me.
(*) I couldn't spell it without a vowel but I'm sure its possible.
Peter F Hamilton: Pandora's Star- ISBN: 1-4050-0020-1
Another good read from one of the new Greats of science fiction. Finally able to reach up to the heights hit by the Night's Dawn trilogy this is a really good read. I'm not a fan of some of the science here - I feel that 2000AD did memory downloads best and wormholes always have me reaching for the popcorn and the Stargate DVD - but the characters are where I think he really shines. I'm not sure who you'd call the hero of the book - there are so many point-of-views that each character has a chance of shining, and your personal alligance can change from chapter to chapter (hate her, then love her; respect him, then loath him). Subplots that would make whole books for some people. Yah, I like this so much I'll see if I can get part two in Hardback. If you like sci-fi; (you should already have Night's Dawn, if you don't pick up all three and) grab this and waste some time in the future.
Robert Jordan: New Spring- ISBN: 1-84149-338-4
A good Bobbie-Jay!
The original New Spring was a short story in the Legends compendium. This is that story expanded to (short) novel size. This book is clear, clean, exciting, interesting, and to the point. All the things that the last few books in the main Wheel Of Time line have failed to be. I read this in two evenings - I enjoyed it that much. Um. It's not a good introduction to the world of the Wheel Of Time - you should at least have read the first three or four books of the series, but I would say that you could pick this up anytime after that and it would make a good tonic when bogged down in the various (60-odd I think) POV characters in the main saga. I'd like more like this - he can keep the main series boyant if he tries this again. Just don't go about thinking that we don't want conclusion to the main story.
Christopher Tolkien: The Return Of The Shadow - ISBN: 0-261-10224-9
(The History of Middle Earth 6 : The History of The Lord of the Rings 1)
I sped through this - the analysis of how JRRs writing process actually worked on The Fellowship of the Ring. The slow way the book turned from a simple one-volume sequel to the Hobbit into the darker and far superior work we ended up with. I don't recommend reading these unless you are the sort of person who has read LOTR through at least five times; preferrably you should be word perfect or else the book will lose you. It is comforting to a struggling writer how much trouble even someone like JRR could have writing a book - the myriad of first chapters he wrote is so comforting. Don't read these if all you've done is seen the films - you won't get the benefit.
I though it was great :-)
Christopher Tolkien: The Treason of Isengard- ISBN: 0-261-10220-6
(The History of Middle Earth 7 : The History of The Lord of the Rings 2)
The second book of the analysis of the Lord Of The Rings. This one, surprised me by not having much about The Two Towers in. It also wasn't quite as much fun as the first one - maybe the story was getting too fixed, but the majority of revelations are more low-key. Although Aragorn goes through more name changes (and hasn't hit Strider yet!) then Prince on a bad day. Still, as a person who loves to read about Runes and this sort of thing (like how Galadriel's hair changed colour) I sped through this. Sitting back after reading this the story looks as if its going to be a little short - JRR wasn't really under the impression that he was writing a story that would end up as aTrilogy and defining a genre, he was just bowing to pressure from all to write the Hobbit sequel.
John Meaney : Context - ISBN: 0-553-81357-9
This is the sequel to his book Paradox - so don't expect to understand it if you rush out and buy it without reading that first. The story is actually quite simple - Boy looses girl. Boy goes on quest. Boy regains girl and saves world. But it's wrapped in a pleasant modern-hard-sci-fi world. The back of the book likens him to Iain M Banks and Peter F Hamilton. I wouldn't have done the Bank comparison - I'd have said that he was more of a Larry Niven style. I like it and will buy more by Meaney. No strong emotions, I didn't want to rule the world after reading this, but was happy and contented. That will do me.
Steve Baxter: Origin - ISBN: 0-00-651184-8
The third book of the Manifold sequence ("Time" and "Space" were the previous) and the latest doomed voyage of Reid Malenfant. Okay, so sometimes the doom takes centuries, but then again, in the words of a wise man, We're All Doomed.
Baxter's writing makes me feel the futility of existence. The scope is so, well, huge, that you feel rather insiginificant in the scheme of things. I can't stop buying his books but sometimes wish I hadn't. Titan for instance will *not* cheer you up.
Sort of a Larry Niven/Arthur C Clarke/Asimov crossed with Iain Banks. Maybe that's why I keep buying them. Probably for the same reason I still listen to The Wall.
Another eclectic gem from the Italian. Everytime I read one of his books I want to write - which could be why I managed to get the two episodes written when I arrived here. An amazing translation, if you didn't know you'd never guess that this wasn't written in English - I'd love to be able to read the original but I'm a single-language product of the English school system.
This is a story of a man who tells such tall tale, lies I suppose you could call them, that even *he* believes them. Emperors, Popes, wizards, scientists and priests; what more could you ask for?
Whereas Mr Banks always makes me think that I should try to be more, well, "trendy" is rather an untrendy word for it but, well, I suppose fashionable. He validates a rather edgey lifestyle - his stories of scotsmen in different places, having affairs with different other people's wives always have a twist of some sort, sometimes you can se it coming, sometimes it just pops up and grabs you from behind.
Favourite part: Making a telephone call to a woman when drunk. I really felt for him, it seemed to ring bells. And the chapter afterwards - just a single word. I could but smile.
The best thing about a Modesitt is that he makes me feel that I could get published. Rather more an expert of quantity than the authors listed above and having a pretty reliable style. His take on magic is interesting, his main message (to me) is always of *consequences*. The magic users in his stories feel the consequences as they use their magic. Whereas most people can safely ignore the consequences of their actions his heroes hurt as soon as they execute their powers.
Legacies is the start of a new cycle, if you've read any of his then you know what to expect. If you haven't it's as good a place to start as any. If you like this then I suggest trying the Soprano Sourceress series next as it's shorter than Recluse.
China Miéville: The Scar - ISBN 0-330-39290-5
A new (to me and to most of the world, it seems) author. His third book and second in this "world". A mixture of science and magic that works, not cyberpunk, but not Gemmel, either. We're left guessing what "The Scar" is until quite late in the book when the protagonist works it our herself. She's a strong character, but mostly outwitted by the others.
I liked the book enough to have some late nights reading it. There was a lot of "I'll just see what happens in the next chapter". The city of Armada is interesting enough to keep you thinking about the possibilities for future novels. I'd like to see someone tackle a set of D20 rules for this world.
Robert Rankin: Hollow Chocolate Bunnies Of The Apocalype - ISBN XXXXXXXXX
This is possibly the best Robert Rankin since the Antipope! This has it all. A coherent plot. A Twist. A Fake Twist. It's genuinely funny. Running Jokes. Weirdness. Creepiness. Political Comment. Ever since I saw the line "Is this real life or is this Battersea" attributed to F. Mercury in a story about Elvis and a talking Time Sprout called Barry I just knew that I'd find something fun for the rest of my life. Something to cherish and care for.
However, I've learnt to treat each Rankin with care. He can vary from hilarious to banal. He is, if you don't know, a teller of tall tales. Sometimes *very* tall tales. Sometimes the tales are so tall you get vertigo. I can but hope to reach the heights that this man can write from. My Hero. You will find an awful lot of similarities in our writing styles. If you actually like my writings then you can't fail but like Rob's. I you like Rob's you might like mine (go on try Gorden). The phrase "From the sublime to rediculous" was invented to explain RRs writing. Not forgetting Hugo Rune(*)
(*) But not in this book, unless I missed the reference :-)
Chuck Cavaness: Programming Jakarta Stuts (O'Reilly) - ISBN 0-596-00328-5
I did read a Bad O'Reilly book once. However I've read many, many, many good ones. This is not the exception. Good clear examples. Pieces of programming that you can just pick up and use. The examples work. The author doesn't talk down to you. It deals with proper, industrial strength programming, including the I18N of your web-app. Stick that in your ASP and smoke it. Even a chapter on performance. Yup. As good as your normal O'Reilly.
-- When I dig out the title and ISBN I'll tell you about the one that I didn't like. Hey, any publisher has to have a bad apple somewhere on the books.
You can support nobby.co.uk by buying from Amazon.co.uk from here.
(1) Use the SEARCH facility to search Amazon.co.uk for you required item.
(2) Use the ISBN entry to go from this page directly to the book you want.
or |
Insults and Critique to : gorden@nobby.co.uk
