Tag Archives: Science Fiction

Astronaut Nick by Brad R. Torgersen

Book Review, , ,
Overview
A Fantastic Holiday Season

Title: Astronaut Nick
Author: Brad R. Torgersen
In: A Fantastic Holiday Season (Kevin J. Anderson & Keith J. Olexa)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Science fiction
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: World Fire Press
Year: 2014
5th sentence, 74th page: “Meters deep,” Tessa said.

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Synopsis

Jimmy lives on Mars and he misses his old home on Ceres. But, his new friend Tessa has been telling him about Astronaut Nick. An Astronaut who travels around at night in a giant rocketship sleigh and delivers toys to the children.

Thoughts

I loved the science fiction spin of this short story. I’ve read / seen / heard a lot of short stories that feature a child not believing in Santa, finding out he’s real and learning a strong life lesson. This,however, managed to give a great science fiction spin to a fairly traditional tale. It also worked as a way to remind us of the old adage that “home is where the heart is”.

I found the flow of this story a little slow, until I reached the point at which Astronaut Nick actually arrived. The description of his suit was brilliant – and highlighted how a space Saint Nick would work. I loved how every small, traditional thing that I recognise from traditional tales is reflected in Torgersen’s version. Yet, it is completely new and unique – certainly not the kind of story that I was expecting.

 <- Close Knit ReviewThe Longest Night Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan

Book Review, , , ,

Overview

Altered CarbonTitle: Altered Carbon
Author: Richard Morgan
Series: Takeshi Kovacs #1
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Crime, Cyberpunk, Science fiction
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Gollancz
Year: 2002
5th sentence, 74th page: Yeah, and look where that stupid bitch ended up.

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Synopsis

It’s the twenty-fifth century, and advances in technology have redefined life itself. A person’s consciousness can now be stored in the brain and downloaded into a new body (or ‘sleeve’), reducing death to a minor blip on a screen. Onetime U.N. Envoy Takeshi Kovacs has been killed before, but his last death was particularly painful. Resleeved into a body in Bay City (formerly San Francisco), Kovacs is thrown into the dark heart of a shady, far-reaching conspiracy that is vicious even by the standards of a society that treats existence as something that can be bought and sold. For Kovacs, the shell that blew a hole in his chest was only the beginning.

Thoughts

I really liked this. And I think that if I re-read it while I was more in the mood for this type of book, I would think that it was phenomenal. The premise is amazing, the message is intense and the action is continuous. But, after over a month of slowly reading through this, it’s just not quite intensely intrigued me. Again, just because I wasn’t in the mood for it.

This is an incredibly intense, fast-paced story that is a conspiracy wrapped in a conspiracy. Alongside trying to figure out who’s the “bad guy” whose behind everything, there’s also a lot of playing catch up in this world. The world building in this cyberpunk story is amazing, and the complexity of it means that half the time I was trying to follow the story, and the other half of the time I was trying to figure out more about the world that Morgan has built.

I could spend all day tweezing apart the themes and messages throughout Altered Carbon. But what I like most is that life is precious, and not to be wasted. It might not be exactly what the author was originally intended, but I found that the idea of shells and murder and mayhem simply highlighted the fact that life is something to be revered and treasured, not something that can be traded away lightly. Even if there is just another shell around the corner…

 <- Woken Furies Review Broken Angels Review ->
Image source: Amazon

A Mere Formality by Ilona Andrews

Book Review, ,
Overview
A Mere Formality

Title: A Mere Formality
Author: Ilona Andrews
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Science fiction
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Ilona Andrews
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: He pushed past the Duke and drew her outside.

Synopsis

Warning: this story is one big dirty joke. There is no actual sex, but there is a lot discussion about it. It was written on a dare. Someone told us that we couldn’t write a short story around one particular phrase, and we did. So I recommend this for people 18+. Because you know, we wouldn’t want to corrupt your minors.

Thoughts

You know that a short story is going to be good when there is a smut warning at the very beginning. And when it’s going to be science fiction. And just generally when it is written by Ilona Andrews. Which this was amazing. And fun, and not at all what I would have expected from the title and cover of this short story.

A Mere Formality reminded me a little of the world building in Clean Sweep – the idea of universal and planetary politics playing against one another. And the idea that there are a multitude of groups who all have their own agendas, well, it’s familiar to us, but far more fun when the different parties have fur and weird, alien rituals.

Although there is a smut warning at the beginning of this, the smut is not what I was expecting. At all. And at first I was like, huh. But then I loved it. And laughed, and just had a great time enjoying this tale. Definitely worth going and reading it from Andrews’ website. Something I’m a little disappointed that it took me so long to get into such a tale.

 <- Small MagicsOf Swine and Roses ->

Image source: Ilona Andrews

Unstolen by Jessica Brody

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Kisses and Curses

Title: Unstolen
Author: Jessica Brody
Series: Unremembered #1.1
In: Kisses & Curses (Lauren Burniae)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Romance, Science fiction
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Square Fish
Year: 2013
5th sentence, 74th page: How could they think it wouldn’t scar her permanently?

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Synopsis

An extra scene from the Unremembered series, showing how the stolen memories were obtained.

Thoughts

This is kind of a deleted scene from a series that I haven’t had a chance to read yet. Or really, hadn’t heard of before I read this. Having said that, I did really enjoy it – so it means that it has become quite likely that I will buy Unremembered and actually begin this series.

Unstolen showed a young boy trying to help his love, and fighting for it. But in a very unique way. After all, this story has a very SciFi feel to it, and nothing can be straight forward in a SciFi. I liked the idea of memories stored on a computer and the young boy being completely immersed in another’s feelings and emotions. Also the way in which he constantly felt like he was intruding, even though he was doing this to help somebody that he deeply cared about. I can’t wait to see how this overlaps with the first novel in this series!

<- UnrememberedUndiscovered ->

Image source: Goodreads

Bayou Brawl by L.A. Banks

Book Review, , ,

Overview

Blood Lite IIITitle: Bayou Brawl
Author: L.A. Banks
In: Blood Lite III: Aftertaste (Kevin J. Anderson)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Science fiction
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Gallery Books
Year: 2012
5th sentence, 74th page: The size of it could only be made out because the edges of it sparked in the water.

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Synopsis

What happens when the aliens invade supernatural territory? Be thrown in the bayou and a love triangle to find out.

Thoughts

I really liked the idea behind this story – extraterrestrials have visited New Orleans and the Bayou. There is one lady that has the contacts to find out what is happening. It turns out that said contacts are supernatural and totally onto it. Biff at the bayou.

Like I said, I liked the idea. Mostly I liked the execution, but I felt like the main character was kind of just sleeping with everyone. She has two lovers, they are almost two sides of a coin. Awesome. But then towards the end she seems to be adding another few to her repertoire… I just want to know how one has that much libido and energy!

But seriously… aliens vs. supernaturals… this idea needs to be run with a little bit further!

 <- Distressed Travelers Review The Steeple People Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

The Red Queen by Isobelle Carmody

Book Review, , , , ,

Overview

The Red QueenTitle: The Red Queen
Author: Isobelle Carmody
Series: The Obernewtyn Chronicles #7
Rating Out of 5: 3 (On the fence about this one)
My Bookshelves: Australian author, Dystopia, High fantasy, Science fiction
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Penguin Books
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: When the govamen signals God that the world is clean, the Tumen will open the wall.

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Synopsis

I saw the moon crack and open like an egg, and a seethe of transparent beasts emerged…
I heard a sound like thunder inside the earth and the ground shook and broke open like a vast stony maw. It spat out fire and I saw wolves falling into a molten gold stream…
I made my way along the ancient tunnel, following Maruman, who ran lightly ahead of me. I did not ask how he had come to be here. He was the Moonwatcher as I was the Seeker.

This was where we had been destined to come together. Before Elspeth Gordie can continue her journey to find Sentinel and prevent it unleashing the horrors of the Great White, she must fight free of a strange prison, where people are laid to sleep forever or cling to a suffocating existence, believing the world beyond their walls is already utterly anihilated.

But at the end of her journey, nothing is as she imageind. She is drawn into the struggle for a kingdom, only to find the Destrooyer is at the heart of the turmoil, waiting for her.

Somehow she must do what she has sworn to do, for the sake of the world and all of its creatures. She must complete her quest, no matter what it costs…

Thoughts

I finally finished the series! Not only was this one of those series that was a long time in the making (and completion), but it was also one of those series that I bought the last book, and then left it on my shelf for 2 years. Partly because I wanted to reread the entire thing before I put my hands on the final book, but it’s a fairly complex and convoluted series all up. And, quite honestly the last two books kind of drag for me. To the point that I actually skim read The Red Queen. It was okay, but it wasn’t enough to fully draw me into the story and make me just completely digest and absorb every single word.

I liked that this was the complete conclusion to this series. It was the end of Elspeth’s long journey, and the end of an era of my literary life. (I can remember reading Obernewtyn when I was much younger, and it was part of growing up for me). However, I found a lot of the storyline quite distracting and not as concise as the first half of the series. Mostly I got lost in the storyline. Still amazingly written, but not as captivating as some of the past stories.

All in all, I’m glad that I read this. It made me feel satisfied that I finally finished a series I started long ago. But, it’s probably not one that I would read again in a hurry. There are many other books that I would much rather drown myself in.

<- The Sending Review The Dark Road Review ->
Image source: Penguin Books Australia

The Sending by Isobelle Carmody

Book Review, , , , ,

Overview

The SendingTitle: The Sending
Author: Isobelle Carmody
Series: The Obernewtyn Chronicles #6
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Australian author, Dystopia, High fantasy, Science fiction
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Penguin Books
Year: 2011
5th sentence, 74th page: The futureteller nodded composedly and said there were other gifts.

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Synopsis

It came to me then, like a chilly draught from an unseen gap, that I had always known in my deepest heart that it would be like this, a slipping away froma life full of people I had come to love, in a place I had helped to shape, in a land I had helped to free.

The time has come at Elspeth Gordie to leave the Land on her quest to find and stop the computermachine Sentinel from unleashing the deadly Balance of Terror arsenal. But before she can embark on her journey, she must find a lost key. And although she has long prepared for this day, nothing is as she anticipated.

Elspeth’s search will take her where she never thought to go, and bestow upon her stranger companions than any she ever imagined. It will lead her far from her destination to those she believed lost forever.

And it will test her, as she has never been tested before…

Thoughts

Finishing this book has been a long time coming. I started rereading the series when The Red Queen came out, and I hadn’t ever quite gotten to The Sending. Over two years later, I finally managed to find the time to actually sit down and read this story. It is intense and quite a long haul, but it is most certainly worth the time and brain power that I put into it. It is going to take me quite a while to finish The Red Queen as well, over a month (much like The Sending), but it is an epic journey, and sometimes spending the time to take an epic journey is definitely worthwhile.

Up until this moment in the series, Elspeth’s journey has been about finding the clues, but also helping her fellow Misfits. She’s created a home, a life, and a reality in which she is proud to live and love. Yet, there is a constant looming cloud of her upcoming quest. Finally, the moment has arrived, and as with every moment in this series, there are some fantastic conflicting emotions throughout. Yet, that is only the start of the story, really. Although Elspeth slinks away in the  night, she still manages to find herself some unlikely companions. Ones that will make the rest of the battle throughout The Red Queen all the more interesting.

As much as I loved this story, I did find it quite long winded. I think that’s because it is almost a midway point between Elspeth’s life in the Land and the end of her epic quest. There is a lot of setting up throughout this story, and a lot of moving from one point to another. Yet, the actual action is quite light. Especially in comparison to the first five stories. Yet, although it means that I took a lot longer to read this (it was easier to put down), it was still a great tale. One that I truly can’t wait to read the conclusion to.

<- The Stone Key Review The Red Queen Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

A Sidekick of Mars by Garth Nix

Book Review, , ,

Overview

To Hold the BridgeTitle: A Sidekick of Mars
Author: Garth Nix
In: To Hold the Bridge (Garth Nix)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Science fiction
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: It was Indians that done this, leastways one particular Indian.

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Synopsis

Mars might get all of the credit, but his sidekick helped him conquer worlds again and again.

Thoughts

This short story kind of reminds me of Firefly – cowboys and spaceships.

Lam’s unique way of initially travelling between planets was kind of confusing. Although, that may be more due to his incredibly different voice. Normally, I love stories written in the first person. After all, what better way to immerse yourself in a character? But, there was something about the jumpy, pithy way in which this story was narrated that was both really enjoyable and incredibly frustrating. The tone was fantastic and satirical. But the actual tale in itself was kind of…meh. For lack of a better word.

One thing that this story did leave me feeling was the fact that there are so many worlds beyond our own. And it is such a weird, wonderful and just different place to explore. No wonder places like Mars have inspired so many writers (of both stories and film).

<- Master Haddad’s Holiday Review Peace in Our Time Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

Peace in Our Time by Garth Nix

Book Review, , ,

Overview

To Hold the BridgeTitle: Peace in Our Time
Author: Garth Nix
In: To Hold the Bridge (Garth Nix)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Science fiction
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: The threat was enough.

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Synopsis

Sometimes there’s only one way to find peace on earth… and I definitely wouldn’t suggest it!

Thoughts

I started this story loving the old man. I felt sympathy for this seemingly innocent creature standing alone in his garden, pruning the roses. Genuine concern when he was being interrogated by the unknown woman. But, as the story unfolded, I quickly switched my alliances.

It makes sense that this story was originally published in a steampunk collection – after all, the tick, tick, tick of the clockwork constantly takes centre place in the storyline. Even unwittingly, it bought to mind the beautiful clothing and array of styles dedicated to the steampunk outlook on life. Yet, it is not only about looking back on the beauties of an old way of life, but the joys of a new way (the future). Or in this case, the dangers that that could entail for future generations. After all, we’ve all been warned about killer robots before…

<- A Sidekick of Mars Review To Hold the Bridge Collection Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

Master Haddad’s Holiday by Garth Nix

Book Review, , ,

Overview

To Hold the BridgeTitle: Master Haddad’s Holiday
Author: Garth Nix
In: To Hold the Bridge (Garth Nix)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Australian authors, Science fiction
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: We sort things out ourselves here.

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Synopsis

What does a master assassin do on holiday? What about when he is part of another universe and reality? Sells goods and kills others I suppose…

Thoughts

This is certainly not like any holiday that I would want to take. Skulking around in a slightly off-kilter, unusual world (which, after all, is the cornerstone of SciFi), selling goods and killing others. Yeah, definitely not the kind of holiday that I would like.

As with all science fiction stories, it took me a little while to figure out the rules and regulations of this futuristic world. They always seem to be almost the same as our reality, but only almost. So those little intricacies that are different to our day to day lives… well, they take a little time to get your head around. Yet, it wasn’t until the end of the story that I think I got my head around what Haddad was doing on this out of the way realm. I might have to read it again to be sure though….

<- The Highest Justice Review A Sidekick of Mars Review ->
Image source: Goodreads