Kim Ryser

Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars

Forged in Blood I (The Emperor's Edge, #6)
by Lindsay Buroker (Goodreads Author)

read in May, 2013

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Well that's certainly a cliffhanger ending. This is essentially half a book so it's mostly set-up but it's very entertaining and action-packed set-up. With LOTS of delicious and somewhat cruel promise for the next one.

Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars

Memory (Vorkosigan Saga, #10)
by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author)

read in May, 2013

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This was a really excellent read. Definitely one of my favorites of the series.

Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars

Mirror Dance (Vorkosigan Saga, #8)
by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author)

read in May, 2013

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This was a long book for this series, and really exciting, surprising, and page-turning. My only problem with it is that there is some very disturbing content towards the end that I felt wasn't entirely necessary and spoiled some of my enjoyment of i...more

Kim Ryser rated a book 5 of 5 stars

Borders of Infinity by Lois McMaster Bujold

Borders of Infinity (Vorkosigan Saga, #8)
by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author)

read in May, 2013

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I love all three of the stories in this collection of novellas. They are really important episodes in Miles' life, not just interesting events, but meaningful ones. So, so good. "Borders of Infinity" in particular is a really well crafted story.

Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars

Cetaganda (Vorkosigan Saga, #9)
by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author)

read in May, 2013

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This was a really interesting look at a very alien culture with very strange gender dynamics. In that respect it was very enjoyable.

Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars

The Invention of Everything Else
by Samantha Hunt

read in May, 2013

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This review originally published on steamingenious.blogspot.com

I love Nikola Tesla. I really do. I love all the legends surrounding him, I love the folklore, and I love the way he's been adopted as a hero by the steampunk community. But I always try...more This review originally published on steamingenious.blogspot.com

I love Nikola Tesla. I really do. I love all the legends surrounding him, I love the folklore, and I love the way he's been adopted as a hero by the steampunk community. But I always try to remind people that the historical Tesla's story had arguably more tragedy and failure than success. He claimed to have built things that never actually materialized and he ended his life in poverty, alone in a hotel room with only pigeons for company. This novel focuses on this end time of Tesla's life. It starts off inside his head which is quite disconcerting at first, since he is, after all, talking to pigeons. But ultimately the book celebrates this completely unique individual for the reach of his vision. It's a novel that recreates the feeling that technology could make anything possible.

First of all, I should make clear that this is not a "steampunk" novel. It's not written to be a genre piece, and this isn't an alternate history. But it is quite fictional, though the historical Tesla is at the center of the book. Portions of the novel take place from Tesla's point of view at the end of his life, and portions are his autobiographical account of his life. So it does cover most of the important moments in Tesla's life, from his POV. But there's a secondary POV character: Louisa, a housemaid at the New Yorker who becomes interested in the hotel's strangest resident. The novel is quite a bit about her life and her family and much of it is only thematically linked to Tesla's story. Partway through the novel the reader is introduced to her father's best friend, a man who says he has invented a time machine. Much of the suspense of the book involves trying to decide if this is, in fact, a book where time travel exists or if this man is just delusional.

That question of what is possible is central to the book. It's interesting viewing the world from the point of view of 1943. Louisa expresses the thought at one point that if airplanes can transport people all over the world within a day and television can beam pictures into a person's home, then why shouldn't science eventually make time travel possible? I think from our modern point of view this kind of thinking can be seen as quaint, but if you truly imagine the huge leaps that took place within a generation it's understandable how anything must have seemed possible.

Ultimately I didn't get exactly what I wanted from this novel. It left several things unresolved to an extent that bothers me. But certainly the Tesla portions are superb, and highly recommended to fellow Tesla fans. I guess I find that part of the story so satisfying because I've always been so fascinated by the image of Tesla as an old man locked in his hotel room talking to his pigeons over the triumphant mad scientist version of him. And this book does succeed in both conveying the tragedy of Tesla's story and overcoming that tragedy to celebrate the man and his extraordinary accomplishments.(less)

Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars

Tipping the Velvet
by Sarah Waters

read in April, 2013

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This is the second Sarah Waters novel I've read. The first was Fingersmith. Overall, I think Fingersmith is a much better novel with way more general appeal. It's got more going for it than just Victorian era lesbians.

This book is pretty much just Vi...more

Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars

Brothers in Arms by Lois McMaster Bujold

Brothers in Arms (Vorkosigan Saga, #5)
by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author)

read in April, 2013

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Every time I get a new Vorkosigan book I get SO excited. I breezed through this one in two days, and that was trying to take it slowly. Miles Vorkosigan continues to be a flawless character and I love him to pieces. He's a genius character who actual...more

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Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars Forged in Blood I (The Emperor's Edge, #6) by Lindsay Buroker (Goodreads Author) read in May, 2013	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Well that's certainly a cliffhanger ending. This is essentially half a book so it's mostly set-up but it's very entertaining and action-packed set-up. With LOTS of delicious and somewhat cruel promise for the next one.
May 20, 2013 09:36pm · see review
Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars Memory (Vorkosigan Saga, #10) by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author) read in May, 2013	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This was a really excellent read. Definitely one of my favorites of the series.
May 20, 2013 09:16pm · see review
Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars Mirror Dance (Vorkosigan Saga, #8) by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author) read in May, 2013	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This was a long book for this series, and really exciting, surprising, and page-turning. My only problem with it is that there is some very disturbing content towards the end that I felt wasn't entirely necessary and spoiled some of my enjoyment of i...more
May 16, 2013 01:10pm · see review
Kim Ryser rated a book 5 of 5 stars Borders of Infinity (Vorkosigan Saga, #8) by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author) read in May, 2013	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I love all three of the stories in this collection of novellas. They are really important episodes in Miles' life, not just interesting events, but meaningful ones. So, so good. "Borders of Infinity" in particular is a really well crafted story.
May 16, 2013 01:07pm · see review
Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars Cetaganda (Vorkosigan Saga, #9) by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author) read in May, 2013	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This was a really interesting look at a very alien culture with very strange gender dynamics. In that respect it was very enjoyable.
May 16, 2013 01:04pm · see review
Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars The Invention of Everything Else by Samantha Hunt read in May, 2013	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This review originally published on steamingenious.blogspot.com I love Nikola Tesla. I really do. I love all the legends surrounding him, I love the folklore, and I love the way he's been adopted as a hero by the steampunk community. But I always try...more
May 16, 2013 12:50pm · see review
Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters read in April, 2013	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This is the second Sarah Waters novel I've read. The first was Fingersmith. Overall, I think Fingersmith is a much better novel with way more general appeal. It's got more going for it than just Victorian era lesbians. This book is pretty much just Vi...more
Apr 29, 2013 07:41pm · see review
Kim Ryser rated a book 4 of 5 stars Brothers in Arms (Vorkosigan Saga, #5) by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author) read in April, 2013	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Every time I get a new Vorkosigan book I get SO excited. I breezed through this one in two days, and that was trying to take it slowly. Miles Vorkosigan continues to be a flawless character and I love him to pieces. He's a genius character who actual...more
Apr 21, 2013 10:24pm · see review

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