E.M. Epps's Blog, page 3

Review: "The Queen's Gambit" by Walter Tevis

Thumbs up for The Queen's Gambit by Walter Tevis. Literature.

Look, look! I do sometimes read modern American literature! (Is 1983 modern? I say yes.) Mostly, I just revile the stuff about witless middle-class white people—always strangely similar to the author—struggling with the inevitable crises of vocation, the tediously dysfunctional marriages, the hideous and yet somehow sadly mundane family secrets, blah blah baaa. Don’t get me started. The Queen’s Gambit, on the other hand, is about a girl who is far from average: she is a natural chess genius. You don’t have to have any more than a basic knowledge of chess to enjoy this book; you just have to be open to mesmerizing writing—dreamy but concrete—and a willingness to be swept away in the transcendence of art: in this case, the art of playing chess. Not flashy, but quietly, perfectly beautiful. Highly recommended.

She was five minutes late for the test, but no one seemed to care and she finished before everyone else anyway. In the twenty minutes until the end of the period she played “P. Keres—A. Tarnkowski: Helsinki 1952.” It was the Ruy Lopez Opening where White brought the bishop out in a way that Beth could see meant an indirect attack on Black’s king pawn. On the thirty-fifth move White brought his rook down to the knight seven square in a shocking way that made Beth almost cry out in her seat.

Review: "Skin Game" by Jim Butcher

Thumbs up for Skin Game by Jim Butcher. Fantasy.

Way back in the day, I read the first two Dresden Files books but then stalled on the third. He's a better writer now. This was #15 in the series and despite having to simply roll with all of the references to events in the intervening twelve books, I enjoyed it enormously. The plot is repetitive – X threatens Y, Z threatens to do A which will kill N whom X needs to continue with evil plan but will also endanger M whom Z cares about: mix as needed – but there's lots of delightful snark, strong characters, and I do love a good heist story. For brain candy, this rates as four-layer cake.

At three thirty a.m., we rolled up to the evil lair in a soccer mom's minivan with a MY KID IS AN HONOR STUDENT AT... bumper sticker on the back. It is worth noting that by the standards of my life, this was not a terribly incongruous entrance.

Review: "Hellspark" by Janet Kagan

Thumbs up for Hellspark by Janet Kagan. Science fiction.

Just to be upfront, Kagan's Star Trek novel Uhura's Song is one of my top five favorite books of all time. (Judge as you like—but only after you've read it.) I have for years possessed a copy of Hellspark, unread partially due to its itty-bitty type, but mainly due to the morbid fear that it might not live up to my hopes. But, upon the acquisition of a copy with sensible type, it finally came to be time: and damned if it didn’t live up to my hopes after all! I wish there was a word for this kind of science fiction: "anthropological science fiction" doesn’t cut it, because that implies to me a monograph-ish Left Hand of Darkness sort of thing, which makes my eyes glaze over; maybe "culture clash sci-fi"? But here the main character Tocohl is, in fact, an expert cross-cultural navigator and linguist, and the other characters, despite their differences, are trying to the best of their abilities to work together to both solve a murder, and settle a scientific question with important ramifications: much the same kind of thing that I loved so much about Uhura's Song, in fact. Would everyone like this? No, of course not. It lacks in epic conspiracies and space battles (though it does have an adorable AI spaceship.) But if you like Le Guin, or Kate Elliott, or Ann Leckie, or my books, or (I’ve been told) C. J. Cherryh's Foreigner series, you should pounce on this wherever you can find a copy.

Judge Darragh slid her spectacles into her hair. Tocohl did not follow suit. On Dusty Sunday, wearing one's spectacles in conversation was a deliberate insult. It said plainly that one would rather be listening to someone else, watching someone else. Nevelen Darragh flushed a vivid scarlet.

Review: "Ancillary Sword" by Ann Leckie

Thumbs up for Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie. Science fiction.

Damn, the Imperial Radch books are good. I grant you, the reasons why I think they're amazing may be why someone would find them unreadable. Ancillary Sword is a very odd book – much more so than Ancillary Justice. Breq is back, with official backing this time, tasked with protecting a solar system. This does not, as one might immediately assume, involve space battles. This is military science fiction in a culture in which the captain of a ship casts omens before a battle; where the choice of china one uses when serving a station administrator is very important; where the best political move at one point is to abruptly go into secluded mourning for two weeks to pay respect to a murdered enemy. The turning point of one of the plotlines is where Breq changes the lyrics to a song when going to arrest an indentured tea-picker. It is as weird as fuck and makes total sense and it's beautiful.

Lieutenant Tisarwat staggered into the room just as Five was clearing away the last supper dish and Translator Dlique was saying, very earnestly, "Eggs are so inadequate, don't you think? I mean, they ought to be able to become anything, but instead you always get a chicken. Or a duck. Or whatever they're programmed to be. You never get anything interesting, like regret, or the middle of the night last week." The entire dinner conversation had been like that.

Review: "Sex Criminals Volume 1" by Matt Fraction et al.

Thumbs up for Sex Criminals, Volume 1: One Weird Trick by Matt Fraction, illustrated by Chip Zdarsky. Fantasy/graphic novel.

Well, that was a weird trick indeed. Sex Criminals is about a woman who can stop time when she has an orgasm. She meets a man who can do the same. Love follows. Then, bank robbery.... Not the sort of thing I would have picked up on my own, except that it was in the Hugo voters' packet. Good art, a clever concept used well, and some very funny parts kept me entertained. That said, the characters were pretty flat. I might read Volume 2 if it crosses my path but I won't seek it out.

Review: "Rat Queens Volume 1" by Kurtis J. Wiebe et al.

Neutral rating for Rat Queens Volume 1: Sass & Sorcery by Kurtis J. Wiebe, illustrated by Roc Upchurch. Fantasy/graphic novel.

Ironic comedy based on sword and sorcery tropes. Unfortunately it's not ironic enough to be funny so it's just a bunch of sword and sorcery tropes.

Review: "The Greek Interpreter" by Max Davidson

Thumbs up for The Greek Interpreter by Max Davidson. Comic thriller.

Oh look! A novel about an interpreter! And he actually interprets stuff! At least, when he’s not trying to get with his never-quite-within-grasp girlfriend, or escape the baddies into whose plot he has inadvertently stumbled while working at the 57th Conference of the World League of Parliaments in Bangkok. A delightfully funny little book that is worth searching out if you think you might like British humor poking fun at international political conferences, linguists, and crime dramas.

Sir Rufus staggered to his feet and made his way to the podium, a slow, statemanlike progress, with pauses to shake hands with the leader of the Zambian delegation and with Mr Achapong, who seemed taken aback by the honour. There was an appreciative round of applause, such as might greet an old theatrical knight who had done a marvelous Hamlet in 1938 and nothing but sherry ads since. A sense of expectation combined with feelings of pity: the medical auxiliaries at the back of the Chamber stubbed out their cigarettes and took up positions by the stretcher. If the clock had started as soon as he’d been called, Sir Rufus would have used up four of his five minutes before he’d opened his mouth—then a further thirty seconds clearing his throat and evacuating the remains of his breakfast on to the microphone. But for Sir Rufus the normal stringencies could be relaxed. He was, as he might have said himself—for Englishmen of his generation had only one second language—sui generis.

Review: "Ms. Marvel Volumes 1 and 2" by G. Willow Wilson

Thumbs up for Ms. Marvel Volume 2: Generation Why and Ms. Marvel Volume 3: Crushed by G. Willow Wilson et al. Fantasy/graphic novel.

Is it a cop-out to just say "still good"? But it's the truth. Still good.

Review: "Fluency" by Jennifer Foehner Wells

Thumbs up for Fluency by Jennifer Foehner Wells. Science fiction.

A charming, quick-reading science fiction book (with a bit of tasteful romance) featuring a linguist who doesn't really do any linguist-ing. Sigh.

He stiffened a bit, but didn't open his eyes. "I know it's okay. I'm just fucking tired of playing Princess Buttercup to your Wesley. Next time, I'm rescuing you, goddamn it."

A little bit of fan art

I do not make a claim of being a particularly good artist. But I was at a kaffeeklatsch at Worldcon (report to follow) with Heather Rose Jones, author of the fabulous Daughter of Mystery and The Mystic Marriage (reviews to follow - I'm behind, okay?) and she mentioned she had never had any fan art. Well, that is a crying shame! So here is Barbara. At least, my mental version of her.