Kelly Setzer read and liked Russell's review of Gideon's Trumpet:

"I read this book before I went to law school. It was supposed to be the inspiring story of how we all came to have the right to an attorney.

I thought it was dull and was actually the story of how a florida redneck who was arrested for bur...more I read this book before I went to law school. It was supposed to be the inspiring story of how we all came to have the right to an attorney.

I thought it was dull and was actually the story of how a florida redneck who was arrested for burglary got in touch with a bunch of high powered attorneys with an agenda.

Appellate law is not interesting even when it is novelized. (less) "

Kelly Setzer read and liked Koshin's review of The Years of Rice and Salt:

"I really enjoyed this book. I wanted to read the book on its premise alone: What if Europe had been wiped out by the plague, how would world history have been shaped without a European influence?

The book is a series of different short sto...more I really enjoyed this book. I wanted to read the book on its premise alone: What if Europe had been wiped out by the plague, how would world history have been shaped without a European influence?

The book is a series of different short stories that catalogue the lives of people at different points in the alternate history, from the time after the plagues in Europe until the modern era. Each story is an alternate history different important points that coincide with history :- The Islamic renaissance, discovery of the Americas, the advent of steam power and the industrial revolution, world war, post world war era with advances in technology and globalization. Each story has a main cast of characters who are in essence the same group of characters reincarnated over different lives.

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Kelly Setzer read and liked joyce's review of The Years of Rice and Salt:

"Hmm. I liked the Mars trilogy and had high hopes for this one but couldn't get more than 3/4 of the way through. Premise - excellent. Execution - awkward. "What if the Black Death had wiped out 99% of Europe's population instead of only 30-4...more Hmm. I liked the Mars trilogy and had high hopes for this one but couldn't get more than 3/4 of the way through. Premise - excellent. Execution - awkward. "What if the Black Death had wiped out 99% of Europe's population instead of only 30-40%?" Whole course of history altered, etc etc. Unfortunately, it was too ambitious and might have worked better at half the scope, with the rest left to the reader's imagination.

Robinson doesn't give you enough time to really get attached to the characters before cranking along to the next episode in history, even though the main players are literal reincarnations of those in the previous one. Maybe I just found the reincarnation thing a little too precious a device.

Admirable project, just a little heavy-handed in parts and too sprawling to really get invested in it.(less) "