I always loved the Dungeons and Dragons alignment tables. The world has always felt too big to just slip everything into a good versus evil fight. It lacks nuance. But the addition of neutral adds a third option and instant complexity. Neutrality incites questions. If the character doesn't choose evil, why wouldn't the character choose … Continue reading Review: Fallen (Alex Verus #10)
SFF
Review: The Hound of Justice
Novels offer us options. One could view novels as paths not taken, and dystopian, political, and near-future fiction can be viewed as the path not yet taken. In recent years, the United States has become a divided nation in ways not thought possible just a few decades ago. Hate crimes are on the rise, as … Continue reading Review: The Hound of Justice
Rewatching Babylon 5
An article at Tor.com from a few weeks ago, Babylon 5 Is the Greatest, Most Terrible SF Series, came along at just the right moment. Game of Thrones finished. I had just finished season one of Star Trek: Discovery, waiting on the second. The author, Jennifer Giesbrecht, reminded me exactly how much I liked Babylon … Continue reading Rewatching Babylon 5
Review The Delirium Brief
In modern organizations – be they corporate or governmental – the people at the top of the org charts, the ones who earn the most and enjoy time in the spotlight, rarely know what most people's day-to-day jobs are. Often, they don't care. As long as the work gets done and the organization is making … Continue reading Review The Delirium Brief
Review: A Memory Called Empire
Someone once said that all fiction is either a person coming to or leaving town. Arkady Martine uses this setup in her debut novel, A Memory Called Empire from Tor. Only this person is an ambassador, and the town’s a capital city that is, at once, an entire planet and the heart of the empire … Continue reading Review: A Memory Called Empire
Review: Amberlough by Lara Elena Donelly
Amberlough kicks off a spy series set in a Jazz Age equivalent world. The setting and language make this series opener fresh and exciting while the characters pull the reader into the story. Highly recommended!
Review: The Fall
When reading The Nine by Tracy Townsend, I found myself ruminating on religion in fantasy. Her take – a religion dedicated to god as an experimental scientist taking notes on his creation – piqued this engineer's interest. It ended well with ominous overtones for the future of the god's experiment. In The Fall, the ominous … Continue reading Review: The Fall
Review: Noumenon Infinity
Noumenon Infinity by Marina J. Lostetter is an excellent space opera focused on beautiful character details and grand idea on the biggest stage possible. Highly recommended.
Review: Temper
Each time I sit down to write about Temper by Nicky Drayden, I can't find a place to start because all I can think about is how much I enjoyed this novel. Where to begin? The themes of balance? Artificial class division? Mythology? World-building? Intriguing characters? Temper hits its mark on every count. TL;DR Temper … Continue reading Review: Temper
Review: Free Space
As with Admiral, Free Space is a survival story but in a completely different way. The Admiral and Salmagard are kidnapped with two other Imperials for the purposes of human trafficking.