I had hoped it'd be better than Anathem. I could NOT get into that one at all.
It was. Much better. I am a fan of Stephenson's earlier work ...moreI had hoped it'd be better than Anathem. I could NOT get into that one at all.
It was. Much better. I am a fan of Stephenson's earlier work such as Snowcrash, Zodiac, and The Diamond Age. Reamde is different than all of those. For one thing, it takes place in the present day. For another thing, it's a political terror-thriller. Finally, Reamde has a a good, clear ending -- something I would could be said for Snowcrash, The Diamond Age, and even Cryptonomicon.
It's huge; 1056 pages in hardback. Stephenson knows how to fill all that paper. No character was left unturned. Minor supporting characters were fleshed out nicely. The "bad guy" in this book is no shallow one-dimensional antagonist. His "evility" works because it's believable.(less)
I ran across The Handmaid's Tale on a list of must-read sci-fi last week. I vaguely remembered hearing of the book before... or maybe it was the movie...moreI ran across The Handmaid's Tale on a list of must-read sci-fi last week. I vaguely remembered hearing of the book before... or maybe it was the movie I remember, but nonetheless, there was something about the title that seemed familiar.
Before starting the book, I did a little research on its author Margaret Atwood. Big mistake. Atwood seems like a pompous, arrogant twit. She claims to be a Writer (with a capital "W") and that people like her are in a distinguished class reserved for a select few. Her politics couldn't be much more different than mine as well.
So, with all this in mind, I had some reservations going into the book.
The book starts really, really slow. In fact, I'd say it spent a good 60 to 70% of the book just character building and exposing backstory. The main premise of the book is... complicated. There's a civil war of sorts in the United States sometime in the future. Part of the reason is because of infertility throughout the population. Why? Because of environmental damage. All these would-be mothers have been rendered barren by toxic chemicals, radiation, plastic bags, you name it. If they're not infertile, they can't seem to carry a child to term or give birth to a healthy child free from defects.
Offred is the main character in the book. She is a "handmaid," a woman who is deemed fertile and assigned to a powerful military commander to bear his children in partnership with his wife. Offred had a normal life before the war. She had a daughter and a partner. Now, because of a botched attempt to escape the country, she fears her partner Luke is dead and her daughter is being raised without her biological mother.
The society in which Offred lives in extremely totalitarian. Armed guards are posted throughout the city checking papers. Handmaids are allowed out of the house once a day to go on shopping trips for the wives they're assigned to. The culture is steeped heavily in a heavy-handed interpretation of the Bible.
Atwood's writing was difficult to follow for the first half of the book. Told in first-person, Offred's tale would abruptly switch to flashbacks from from multiple periods in her past.
Offred's character was difficult to fathom. Despite Atwood persistently drilling into the reader's mind what Offred was thinking about at each moment in time, her actions were... anticlimactic. If she's the hero of the book, it's only luck because she rarely made any decisions on her own. Instead, she blames men for most of her problems and yet admires the men that give her tastes of freedoms she's lost.
Looks like the movie doesn't have too bad of reviews. Maybe I'll see if it's available on Netflix. I should have done that before I bothered reading the book.(less)
Surprisingly good science fiction! Aside from some quibbles about some of the science (spaceships don't slow down if there's something wrong with the ...moreSurprisingly good science fiction! Aside from some quibbles about some of the science (spaceships don't slow down if there's something wrong with the engines), I thought this was a great story. (less)
Back when Richard Paul Evans' book The Christmas Box was a hot item, I read a copy of it my mom had. It was well-written, but not really my style. I c...moreBack when Richard Paul Evans' book The Christmas Box was a hot item, I read a copy of it my mom had. It was well-written, but not really my style. I could understand why my mom liked it and I could understand why lots of sentimental women loved his work.
Evans went on to write a few more books like The Christmas Box, but this latest book is quite different in almost every way possible. Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 is targeted at young adult readers and features characters in high school. There's a bit of science-fiction involved as well, but not much. For the most part, it's a story about a forgettable teenage boy who suffers from Tourette Syndrome and harbors a secret that only his mother and his best friend knows about.
Michael Vey was published by Glenn Beck's Mercury Ink, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. A long-time fan and friend of the Glenn Beck empire, I knew I'd probably like the book if Glenn raved about it, but I didn't know how much I'd like the book.
This book is pretty awesome. It's unrealistic in many ways, but mostly in ways that you want for a book young readers will read. You don't want the violence to be too real, the language to be too profane, the scary parts to be too scary, right? This book holds back in all those areas and for some readers it might come across as being too whitewashed to stomach, but I thought it was okay.
The characters in the book were solid, believable characters. The dialogue between the teens in the story was fun, sarcastic, and what you'd expect from your average teen, albeit plenty sanitized.
My biggest gripe about the book? It's a short, quick read. This book, the story, etc. could have been two or three times longer. As the first of seven books in a series that hopes to compete with top young adult books like the Twilight saga and the Harry Potter series, Evans really should have upped the density. (less)
It's rare that a subsequent book in a series eclipse the first book, but I've decided The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest is the best of the three b...moreIt's rare that a subsequent book in a series eclipse the first book, but I've decided The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest is the best of the three books in the Milennium series by Stieg Larsson. Maybe it's because none of Larsson's books were published before his death; He wrote for his own enjoyment.
TGWKTHN is still full of annoyances like Larsson's other novels, like his propensity to spend an inordinate amount of time explaining each character's sexual orientation, proclivities, partner history, and political leanings. In the end, I found myself irritated at how NOT shallow the characters were. It's a reminder that even your best friends have things that bug you about them. Similarly, the protagonists in Larsson's books are not always easy to like, but they are a lot more genuine than most fictional characters.
Before I was halfway through TGWKTHN, I thought the story was winding down for a close and could not believe how that could be considering how much of the book was left. The climax of the story was so artfully, painstakingly, perhaps lovingly, put together. I haven't read many books I could say that about. (less)
Did Suzanne Collins give up after finishing Catching Fire and write Mockingjay only because it had to be written? The magic from the first two books i...moreDid Suzanne Collins give up after finishing Catching Fire and write Mockingjay only because it had to be written? The magic from the first two books is completely gone in this one. I no longer cared who Katniss ended up with romantically or even if she lived or died. In the end, neither did she. The last few pages of the book provided the final rusty nail in the coffin. To say the way the story ended and was "tidied up" was a disappointment is a gross understatement. Perhaps Collins realized there was no hope for her story and gave up.
My wife summarized the book by saying it was like air was slowly released from a balloon.
What I did like about the book was the strategy aspects. Much of this story involves war planning, strategy, and explaining various forces at work as rebels fought to take control of the Panem districts and then, finally, the Capitol. Collins also describes several scenes so spectacularly and vividly in this book. Some were horrifying. I'm anxious to see how they're realized on film in the upcoming motion picture adaptations of the series.(less)
I hesitated to read Larsson's second installment in the "Millennium" series because despite the fact the first book was well-written, it dea...moreI hesitated to read Larsson's second installment in the "Millennium" series because despite the fact the first book was well-written, it dealt with some very disturbing issues. The first book included the first chapter from the second book and hinted that the story would center around sexual exploitation of young children. After reading "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo," I wasn't sure I was ready for the experience of reading another Larsson novel.
Several months passed until I gave it a shot and found it wasn't as bad as I had feared. In fact, I think I ended up liking book #2 more than book #1. (less)
I was a little taken back by the first-person narrative style of this book, but once I got used to it, I found it to make the storytelling more intima...moreI was a little taken back by the first-person narrative style of this book, but once I got used to it, I found it to make the storytelling more intimate. Considering these books are for "young adult" readers, it's no surprise the romance in the books is fairly watered down nearly to the point of absurdity. It's noticeable that Collins has the central character, Katniss, caught between two love interests, Gale and Peeta, somewhat reminiscent of another very popular young-adult fantasy/romance/thriller series.
All in all, an easy read that kept me very interested. The cliffhanger, of course, made me start the second book in the series ASAP.(less)
"Foreign Influence" was an improvement over Brad Thor's previous novel "The Apostle."
What if an American enemy like Chi...more"Foreign Influence" was an improvement over Brad Thor's previous novel "The Apostle."
What if an American enemy like China, North Korea, or other country secretly became the head of the Islamic Jihad snake? Suicide bombers and Islamic terrorists killing infidels without knowing they're really doing the work of a party that doesn't have the interests of Islam or Allah in mind.(less)
Sometimes the author of a thriller does a good job building a good story and holding you in suspense as you read it. Other times, it's obvious the aut...moreSometimes the author of a thriller does a good job building a good story and holding you in suspense as you read it. Other times, it's obvious the author has spent timeless hours researching the story, visiting the places described within the story, and interviewing people who have done exactly the kinds of things the characters in the story have done.
Brad Thor's "The Apostle" was obviously very well researched and investigated before it was compiled into a novel. Thor's craft only gets better and better.
This Scot Harvath novel puts Harvath in Afghanistan where an American doctor, the daughter of a powerful media figure, has been kidnapped by a Taliban group. They are demanding the release of an Al-Qaeda prisoner in exchange for the doctor. Their strategy is part of a plan designed in part by a Russian intelligence officer working secretly with the Taliban.
Harvath has been hired by the doctor's mother to break the Al-Qaeda prisoner out of Afghan custody so that the Taliban will release her daughter. This, of course, goes completely against the moral code of a counter-terrorism special operator. So, things get interesting.
There was an interesting subplot in this novel that occurred concurrent to Harvath's activity in Afghanistan. A young Secret Service agent discovers something potentially damning about the new president she's supposed to protect. Was he involved in an "accident" that claimed the life of a former campaign worker and a small family?
This second plotline seemed just a little hoaky to me. (less)
Another Brad Thor thriller. This one involves a major terror incident in New York City, bigger than 9/11, but the purpose of those who perpetrated the...moreAnother Brad Thor thriller. This one involves a major terror incident in New York City, bigger than 9/11, but the purpose of those who perpetrated the incident was to deter authorities so they could accomplish their prime objective.
Fascinating premise. Thor does what many terror-thriller writers, even he himself, NEVER does: He makes the bad guy a genius. The Big Bad in this story has seemingly more depth than our hero Scot Harvath himself. The antagonist's ruse was impressive.
To top it off, there's another Bad Guy lurking behind the scenes waiting to become a major playing in the next book. :)(less)
Brad Thor's third "Scot Harvath" novel is a slight departure from his roots as a terror-thriller writer. This book is a homage to the Cold W...moreBrad Thor's third "Scot Harvath" novel is a slight departure from his roots as a terror-thriller writer. This book is a homage to the Cold War thrillers made popular by authors like Tom Clancy. Crazy, bitter Russian communists hell-bent on kicking the United States' knees out from under it so Russia can (re)claim her rightful place as a world superpower have secretly placed suitcase nukes across the U.S. Our hero has to fix everything.
This was a little less hoaky than "Path Of The Assassin" and included lots of very cool technological aspects to the story, both old (1980s) and modern tech included. (less)
For the most part, I enjoyed this book as much as Brad Thor's first novel -- The Lions Of Lucerne. There were a couple spots where the story almost ca...moreFor the most part, I enjoyed this book as much as Brad Thor's first novel -- The Lions Of Lucerne. There were a couple spots where the story almost came apart like a cheesy action movie, but other than that, the believability was top-notch and scary. This book was published NINE years ago and it feels like it was taken right out of today's news headlines.(less)
The Athena Project, a recent novel by Brad Thor, is a good contemporary political thriller. The main characters are a group of female special operatio...moreThe Athena Project, a recent novel by Brad Thor, is a good contemporary political thriller. The main characters are a group of female special operations team members (hence "The Athena Project.") I enjoyed the sci-fi element in this story as well. (less)
If this book was submitted to a publisher today, it would be rejected for being too wordy, too slow, etc. But Austen's talent shines. She captures the...moreIf this book was submitted to a publisher today, it would be rejected for being too wordy, too slow, etc. But Austen's talent shines. She captures the human psyche so well.(less)
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