http://www.sfreviews.net/ Hundreds of in-depth science fiction and fantasy book reviews by Thomas M. Wagner, for discriminating readers. en-us http://www.sfreviews.net/sfr-button2.jpg http://www.sfreviews.net/ 111 45 http://sfreviews.net/torro_galaxy_666.html http://sfreviews.net/torro_galaxy_666.html Wed, 09 Nov 2011 15:29:00 CST This hilariously inept exercise in hackwork-for-hire is the perfect thing for readers looking for a 'Mystery Science Theater 3000' kind of reading experience. But its absurdism makes me wonder...did Douglas Adams take some inspiration (after a fashion) from the pseudonymous Torro? (*) http://sfreviews.net/heinlein_666.html http://sfreviews.net/heinlein_666.html Mon, 07 Nov 2011 12:38:00 CST The Grand Master's highly-anticipated 1980 "comeback" is such an incoherent, plotless disaster that its title becomes strangely appropriate, in that it's almost an anti-novel. It may be one of the worst SF novels ever published by a major name in the field. A quartet of scientists explore alternate universes to no particular end, eventually immersing readers in a self-indulgent, self-referential exercise in something that is less storytelling than literary masturbation. (*) http://sfreviews.net/bacigalupi_alchemist.html http://sfreviews.net/bacigalupi_alchemist.html Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:23:00 CST Short novel that's part of a shared-world project with Tobias Buckell; the author's first foray into fantasy. Destitute alchemist devises a machine that successfully exterminates a toxic plant that is overrunning the landscape. But in his eagerness for official patronage, he doesn't suspect the treachery to come. Taut, exciting tale keeps you hooked, but also very hungry for a full-length novel in this world. (***1/2) http://sfreviews.net/bacigalupi_ship_breaker.html http://sfreviews.net/bacigalupi_ship_breaker.html Sat, 15 Oct 2011 13:23:00 CST Second novel by the Hugo-and-Nebula winning wunderkind is a thrilling young adult action adventure set in a post-collapse Gulf Coast, that sacrifices nothing in the way of its authors thematic integrity while making his storytelling more accessible. Fantastic story of friendship and loyalty in times of crisis should be read by everyone. (****) http://sfreviews.net/powell_recollection.html http://sfreviews.net/powell_recollection.html Sat, 15 Oct 2011 11:10:00 CST A menace from deep space threatens all life in the galaxy in this ambitious space opera outing, that marries Hamilton's and Reynolds' scope with ideas reminiscent of McDeviit and R.C. Wilson. Refreshingly old-school in its approach, but some poor, illogical storytelling choices undermine the story's overall plausibility. (**) http://sfreviews.net/joyce_silent_land.html http://sfreviews.net/joyce_silent_land.html Mon, 10 Oct 2011 14:35:00 CST A UK couple on a skiing holiday in the Pyrenees survive an avalanche on the slopes, only to find themselves trapped in an eerie limbo. This tense and atmospheric World Fantasy Award-nominated story offers some overly familiar ideas, but as a story of love and loss, it's both disturbing, tender and touching when it needs to be. (***1/2) http://sfreviews.net/rcw_vortex.html http://sfreviews.net/rcw_vortex.html Mon, 29 Aug 2011 14:22:00 CST Wilson takes his Spin trilogy in a surprising direction in its third and final volume, and though it isn't as consistently great as the first book, its spectacular and bravura climax offers some truly mind-bending SF. (***1/2) http://sfreviews.net/rcw_axis.html http://sfreviews.net/rcw_axis.html Mon, 29 Aug 2011 14:20:00 CST Wilson's sequel to his stunning Hugo winner 'Spin' offers more tantalizing hints about the nature of the alien Hypotheticals in this action-centered story that, while often exciting, still feels like exactly what it is: the middle book of a trilogy. (***) http://sfreviews.net/rcw_julian_comstock.html http://sfreviews.net/rcw_julian_comstock.html Wed, 10 Aug 2011 12:20:00 CST Wilson's triumphant saga of love, war, and the rise and fall of a hero in a post-peak-oil America ruled by a hereditary presidency and Christian dominionism is a lush and magnificent exercise in epic storytelling, avoiding dystopian didacticism and making its admittedly archetypal characters inescapably real. (*****) http://sfreviews.net/goyer_heavens_shadow.html http://sfreviews.net/goyer_heavens_shadow.html Sun, 31 Jul 2011 22:08:00 CST Astronauts from competing space launches touch down upon an object that has entered near-Earth space, only to discover it's an alien vessel, which surprises them if not us. Crisis ensues. Vaguely Clarkean SF saga concocted by two prominent Hollywood screenwriters, with the intent of developing it simultaneously as a blockbuster film, is a by-the-numbers affair, with some good moments of suspense not really compensating for lack of substance in either story or character development. (**1/2) http://sfreviews.net/mlawrence_prince_of_thorns.html http://sfreviews.net/mlawrence_prince_of_thorns.html Wed, 27 Jul 2011 14:54:00 CST Prince Jorg Ancrath, sociopathic teen antihero who witnessed his mother's and brother's murders, seeks vengeance and his rightful throne from his corrupt father. Excellent, unpretentious writing in Lawrence's debut (influenced by 'A Clockwork Orange'). But his handling of character and thematic development lacks the dimension you might expect from, say, Martin or Abercrombie. The revenge plot feels formulaic, too. Not a bad first effort, but it's all darkness without depth. (**1/2) http://sfreviews.net/grrm_dance_with_dragons.html http://sfreviews.net/grrm_dance_with_dragons.html Fri, 15 Jul 2011 10:22:00 CST Martin continues his seminal, bestselling epic after a six-year gap. The story overlaps that of 'A Feast for Crows,' focusing primarily on fan-favorite characters Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister and Dany Targaryen. It takes its time in a manner that may frustrate some (especially over 959 pages), but the writing is never less than superb (open to any random chapter and you have what could stand on its own as a fine short story), and it resets the board, so to speak, for new and harder conflicts yet to come. (****) http://sfreviews.net/treggiari_ashes_ashes.html http://sfreviews.net/treggiari_ashes_ashes.html Fri, 24 Jun 2011 18:03:00 CST Dystopian young-adult debut novel is probably the kind of thing we should expect to see a lot more of in the wake of 'The Hunger Games'. Teens must survive plague and environmental chaos in the ruins of NYC. Some decent action, but oddly, the (very cartoonish) villain here is the one character trying to find a cure, giving the story an unpleasant anti-science thrust. (**) http://www.sfreviews.net/rajaniemi_quantum_thief.html http://www.sfreviews.net/rajaniemi_quantum_thief.html Wed, 22 Jun 2011 17:21:00 CST Highly touted debut from Finnish physicist falls short of its hype. In a posthuman future where AI's are practically gods, a thief is sprung from prison in order to pull off a heist in a Martian city. An impressive creative feat, with enough imagination for five novels. But Rajaniemi's prose favors kinetic style over clarity, and readers are required to spend so much energy simply trying to follow along that there's no room left to develop a personal investment in the characters. (***) http://www.sfreviews.net/tuning_fuzzy_bones.html http://www.sfreviews.net/tuning_fuzzy_bones.html Fri, 13 May 2011 18:22:00 CST Expansion of Piper's first two Fuzzy novels, released before 'Fuzzies and Other People' was discovered, treats the originals with a respect bordering on reverence. Though the story is overlong and uneven, Tuning adds to Piper's story with admirable confidence, combining the originals' Campbellian hard-SF stoicism with some pulpy, noirish subplots. Comes enthusiastically recommended to fans of the originals. (***1/2) http://www.sfreviews.net/piper_fuzzies_other_people.html http://www.sfreviews.net/piper_fuzzies_other_people.html Wed, 11 May 2011 23:37:00 CST Discovered and published 20 years after Piper's death, his third Fuzzy novel is uneven, with stodgy and talky scenes featuring the human characters contrasting with some exciting and tense scenes featuring the Fuzzies alone in the wilderness. Worth reading for devotees. (***) http://www.sfreviews.net/piper_fuzzy_sapiens.html http://www.sfreviews.net/piper_fuzzy_sapiens.html Tue, 10 May 2011 14:50:00 CST Piper's 1964 sequel to 'Little Fuzzy' has the adorable critters' intelligence established, but their long-term existence threatened by inexplicable birth defects, food shortages, and the possibility of exploitation. Typical of its day, this is a very talky, idea-based SF novel, with little of the action and drama today's readers might be used to. But it's witty, charming, and intellectually rewarding as only old-school SF can be. (***1/2) http://www.sfreviews.net/scalzi_fuzzy_nation.html http://www.sfreviews.net/scalzi_fuzzy_nation.html Mon, 09 May 2011 10:27:00 CST John Scalzi "reboots" the story of H. Beam Piper's 1962 original, and creates not only his own best novel since Old Man's War, but a story that honors Piper's literary legacy by enlarging the classic novel's scope, becoming a flowering and fulfillment of its possibilities. The courtroom climax is fantastic. (****1/2) http://www.sfreviews.net/piper_little_fuzzy.html http://www.sfreviews.net/piper_little_fuzzy.html Mon, 09 May 2011 10:25:00 CST Piper's beloved 1962 Hugo-nominated classic is a charming adventure and engaging legal drama in which the possible sapience of a newly-discovered species of furry bipeds threatens the operations of the corporation holding the rights to exploit their homeworld's natural resources. Doesn't overplay the cuteness or pathos, thankfully, but definitely could have used greater suspense. Still, a delightful, influential work. (****) http://www.sfreviews.net/scollins_catching_fire.html http://www.sfreviews.net/scollins_catching_fire.html Fri, 06 May 2011 19:40:00 CST The second volume of the blockbuster Hunger Games trilogy improves in many ways on the first novel, particularly in that the emotional core of the story feels more honest and less manipulative, and heroine Katniss Everdeen becomes even more sympathetic as the unwitting inspiration for a new rebellion against the fascistic and bloodthirsty Capitol. However, to anyone paying close attention to the world-building here, the future Collins has imagined still isn't fully believable. (***) http://www.sfreviews.net/abnett_embedded.html http://www.sfreviews.net/abnett_embedded.html Fri, 15 Apr 2011 17:27:00 CST A journalist has his consciousness implanted into the head of a soldier fighting on a distant colony world, and learns far more than he'd ever hoped about the realities of war and the political theater behind it all. Brilliant and blistering, this is the rare non-partisan military SF saga that's exciting because it makes you care about the people involved. (****) http://www.sfreviews.net/aaronovitch_moon_over_soho.html http://www.sfreviews.net/aaronovitch_moon_over_soho.html Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:32:00 CST Aaronovitch's second PC Grant urban fantasy has the magic-using constable investigating two seemingly unrelated series of deaths, centered on the jazz clubs of London's Soho. Character development is stronger this time, though overall, this one's a case of "second verse, same as the first." (***) http://www.sfreviews.net/scollins_hunger_games.html http://www.sfreviews.net/scollins_hunger_games.html Thu, 31 Mar 2011 14:42:00 CST Bestselling young-adult smash in which a teenage girl must fight to the death against nearly two dozen opponents in a media-obsessed, fascistic, post-apocalyptic future society. Easy to see why this is so popular, as it's got many effective action and suspense setpieces, and its heroine is relatable. But veteran SF readers outside its target audience will likely find its dystopian future unconvincing, its satire shallow, and its emotional scenes cynically manipulative and exploitive. (**1/2) http://www.sfreviews.net/aaronovitch_midnight_riot.html http://www.sfreviews.net/aaronovitch_midnight_riot.html Thu, 31 Mar 2011 14:41:00 CST Young mixed-race London police constable Peter Grant finds himself inducted into a small (as in, one man) special branch of the police dealing with paranormal crimes, where he must solve a series of brutal murders as well as mediate a territorial dispute between the god and goddess of the Thames. Ambitious, witty, wildly imaginative urban fantasy debut, seeped in London's history, is perhaps a bit too frenetic and overplotted for its own good, but it promises great things from its author. (***) http://www.sfreviews.net/rogue_angel_07.html http://www.sfreviews.net/rogue_angel_07.html Thu, 31 Mar 2011 14:40:00 CST The seventh Rogue Angel novel from Gold Eagle has Annja Creed, that mystical-sword-wielding archaeologist hottie, on the trail of Thor's hammer Mjolnir. Better character depth than in any of the previous entries, and some good writing overall from Mel Odom. But there's too much implausible "author's convenience" in its plot devices, and the climax lacks the socko payoff it needs. (**1/2) http://www.sfreviews.net/bhkja_hellhole.html http://www.sfreviews.net/bhkja_hellhole.html Fri, 25 Mar 2011 23:47:00 CST The 'Dune' duo essay an "original" space opera trilogy that pretty much borrows from everything they've ever done and then some. A rebel general exiled to a harsh and inhospitable world plots against the tyrannical empire that defeated him. Despite arch characters and some howlers in the prose, it's not bad when pursuing its multiple plot threads of political backstabbing and intrigue. But when the magic aliens turn up, it gets gloriously silly. (**) http://www.sfreviews.net/shinn_troubled_waters.html http://www.sfreviews.net/shinn_troubled_waters.html Fri, 25 Mar 2011 16:20:00 CST Lush romantic fantasy in which a young woman claiming her birthright following years in which her family has been exiled stumbles into palace intrigue and, of course, love. Takes a while to establish any sense of dramatic conflict, but Shinn's lovely writing and sensitive approach to creating fully-rounded characters will more than please her fans. (***1/2) http://www.sfreviews.net/rothfuss_wise_mans_fear.html http://www.sfreviews.net/rothfuss_wise_mans_fear.html Tue, 15 Mar 2011 12:11:00 CST Long-awaited, gargantuan second volume in a fan-favorite saga that is almost certainly one of today's most overrated epic fantasy series. Rothfuss writes very well, but this story of a young man's quest to fulfill what we're led to understand is quite a significant destiny is more often than not aimless, meandering, and at 1000 pages, punishingly overlong. Less a novel than a series of scenes. (**1/2) http://www.sfreviews.net/ksr_memory_of_whiteness.html http://www.sfreviews.net/ksr_memory_of_whiteness.html Mon, 28 Feb 2011 19:47:00 CST Robinson's second novel is a strange, daring, occasionally pretentious but original philosophical novel of discovery, using the myth of Icarus as a template for the story of an obsessed musical genius and his quest through the solar system to capture the fabric of the universe itself in a grand score. Not for everyone, but full of genuine moments of cosmic awe. (***1/2)