Tag Archives: Book Review

4 Star Book Reviews: Perhelion Summer

Posted on June 24, 2019 by dan

Perhelion Summer by Greg Egan This is probably the only climate change fiction I can manage. Egan side-steps the politics of the issue by talking about a cosmic accident that screws up Earth’s orbit and stresses the hell out of … Continue reading →

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5 Star Book Reviews: The Other Kind of Life

Posted on April 25, 2019 by dan

The Other Kind of Life by Shamus Young I could say “gritty Issac Asimov” and you’d be most of the way there. Maybe I’ll say “Rivers of London” to get you some of the rest of way. But honestly what … Continue reading →

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Five Star Book Reviews: Underlord

Posted on April 18, 2019 by dan

Underlord by Will Wight Imagine that self improvement, pursued assiduously enough, gave you the ability to throw fireballs. Maybe if you throw big enough fireballs, you’ll be put in a position to understand *why* you want to throw them in … Continue reading →

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Five Star Reviews: Unsong

Posted on April 1, 2019 by dan

WOW. Uh… one-sentence summary… “Apollo 8 crashed into the heavenly crystal sphere surrounding the Earth and cracked it.” Or “A disgraced kabalist working for an international theonomics corporation runs afoul of the UN agency in charge of policing the use … Continue reading →

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Five Star Book Reviews: A Coffinful of Nightmares

Posted on February 20, 2019 by dan

Full Disclosure: I edited this book for my good friend Emil. This book is a sweaty, crawly, hairy, bloody, and surprisingly tender collection of stories. There are a lot of horror stories here, but also science fiction, mystery, and a … Continue reading →

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Five Star Book Reviews: The City of Brass

Posted on January 7, 2019 by dan

A street rat in Ottoman Cairo feels like she’s someone special. She can heal supernaturally quickly and speak every language, including one she’s never heard anyone else use. During one ambitious scam, she uses this personal language to spice up … Continue reading →

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Five Star Book Review: Ra

Posted on December 31, 2018 by dan

After reading Fine Structure I went on a feverish search for other books by Sam Hughes. And I found out he wrote another book after Fine Structure, and it was even better. If Fine Structure was about “what if technology were a … Continue reading →

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Five Star book reviews: Fine Structure

Posted on December 24, 2018 by dan

The first thing you need to know about Sam Hughes’s Fine Structure  is that it was originally serialized on the author’s webpage. That’s why (especially towards the beginning) the “chapters” are so all over the place. In a way, this … Continue reading →

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Five Star Reviews: Redemption’s Blade

Posted on September 19, 2018 by dan

Redepmtion’s Blade by Adrien Tchaikovski Wow. Finally, the thoughtful, exciting, trope-subverting collision of fantasy and speculative biology I’ve been waiting for. So you’ve got your standard Tolkienian fantasy world with humans, elves, and demigods versus a Dark Lord and his … Continue reading →

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Five Star Book Reviews: The Nearest

Posted on September 13, 2018 by dan

The Nearest by Greg Egan Oh, my holy hendra virus! How does Greg Egan so reliably reach into my psyche and squeeze? Why is everything he writes such a masterpiece? I can’t say much about “The Nearest” without giving away … Continue reading →

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