Chris’s Comments (group member since Feb 25, 2011)

Chris’s comments from the Beyond Reality group.

I've read the trilogy before, but I still appreciate the lyrical storytelling style in each re-read. Each time a different part of the story stands out.

This time, the magical system of the land-law struck me as terribly beautiful. Each ruler, in receiving the land-law, became intimately aware of every plant and creature; truly loved and appreciated it in every way. Each land had a unique treasure at its heart, from the vesta to the miners to the wraiths to the farmers of Hed. A High King, then, had to be the repository of every land-law. And each ruler, to protect and steward their land, also had to be ready to sacrifice the very thing at its heart.

Help me clear my TBR list! I'll nominate A Deadly Education for fantasy, and The Madness Season for science fiction.

Shel wrote: "I finished this last night and really loved it! Both a fascinating world, and a fascinating journey for Senlin. The steampunk atmosphere was a lot of fun, and the character of each of the ringdoms ..."

You mentioned the steampunk nature of the book. We chose this as our fantasy selection, but as you get further in it's more steampunk/science fiction. Clearly genre-bending!

I read this for another book group last year, and it's definitely a remarkable and unusual read. I can't think of another story like it.

On one level, Senlin's story is that of a small-town, somewhat naive man off for an adventurous honeymoon to the exotic destination of his dreams. The destination definitely proves to be exotic, but not at all in the way Senlin believed it would be.

On another level, the purpose and working of the tower itself is mysterious. Why is it there? How does it support the huge population? What lives on the unknown upper floors? While we classified this book as a fantasy, it certainly has elements of technology that would suggest it is really science fiction, instead. At least, it lives on the gray dividing line.

No spoilers here, but I think the subsequent two books are even better. And I can't wait for the final book to be released in 2021.

Random wrote: "Chris wrote: "I'll nominate the Alex Benedict novels by Jack McDevitt. I've read some of them; they work as stand alone, but I've always wanted to go back and read the series."

That reminds me, my..."
I like the Academy series, too. But I had to choose ...

I'll nominate the Alex Benedict novels by Jack McDevitt. I've read some of them; they work as stand alones, but I've always wanted to go back and read the series.

Loved this! Tchaikovsky always brings such interesting ideas. Many authors have taken on alternate worlds, but I don't know anyone else who truly started from first principles. The worlds were all so unique, from the downright icky to celestial in scope. Yet all plausible, at least in a sci-fi universe.

I didn't love or hate any of the characters, but they felt individual and interesting. The one exception was Rove, a rather cardboard megalomaniac villian. But I suppose someone has to be a villain.

It's a brand new year! What are you reading in January 2021?

The Heir of Sea and Fire was published in 1977. This story has remarkably strong female characters who are not interested in staying home while the men folk go off and have adventures. Despite a lack of knowledge or skills, armed only with iron determination, Tristan of Hed leaves her pastoral island and braves the wider world in search of her brother. Lyra abandons her duty to support the search And Raederle is more far powerful than we knew, or than she knew. She is truly a fitting match for Morgon.

And I want to know more about the jewel/shard she found in the old city ....

I see this book has won the Goodreads award for Best Science Fiction of 2020!

For science fiction, I nominate The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August because I always like a good time travel story, and this has been on my TBR list for some time.

For fantasy, I nominate The House in the Cerulean Sea because I've seen it on a couple of "best" lists, and want to give it a try.

I read this book a couple of months ago. I had heard an interview with the author, and just couldn't wait. I loved The Inheritance Cycle, and was excited to see his long-awaited addition to adult science fiction.

I'll be honest .... this book is a tome. It's huge and heavy. I'm not afraid of large books, but this one was a bit daunting. Once I started, though, I found it quite readable. Kira finding the alien dust is gripping, and sends the story off into a galactic-scale war.

The story does slow down again in the middle, and I think we could have cut a couple of hundred of pages without much damage. But overall an enjoyable story with an interesting protagonist and a good ending.

I absolutely loved this wonderful fantastical story. It reminded me of The Night Circus, but also Gormenghast. The House was as much a character as Piranesi, with its weather and tides and creatures as well as imposing rooms and statues.

The conversation above raises so many questions, so many things that we can delightedly speculate about but aren't meant to know. Because the story is Piranesi's story (not the story of man who became Piranesi), and it is perfect and complete just the way it is.

The holiday season is upon us! Time for a cozy fire, a mug of your favorite warm drink, and a good book. What are you reading in December 2020?

Random wrote: "I'm actually sad we never find out what happened to Uriah Heep.

I had a lot of fun, though I had ignorance with some of the characters. I've loved what I had read of Dickens, but David Copperfield..."

What a great question! Who would I like to meet from literature? Of course, I read a lot of fantasy and science fiction, so here are a few....
* January The Ten Thousand Doors of January
* Cordelia and Miles (Vorkosigan Saga)
* Sam Gamgee The Lord of the Rings
* Vasilisa (Winternight Trilogy)
* Temeraire
* Lady Trent (Memoirs of Lady Trent)
* Lady Astronaut of Mars
* Murderbot

I just finished The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow, and I really enjoyed it. Many of the same themes as our recent read The Power, but a much more gripping story because of the complex main characters, three sisters. In this book, the struggle to assert women's power is associated with witchcraft and suffrage.

Shel wrote: "I finished this last night - it took me a while to get into it, I'd say I was almost halfway through it when it finally grabbed me and the pace of my reading picked up. I also found that it reminde..."

The recently released movie "David Copperfield" starring Dev Patel is a great introduction to the novel. It includes many of the main characters of the book, including our acquaintance Uriah Heep.

I'm not at all sure how I feel about this. I've been pointedly NOT reading books about pandemics this year; they seem to hit too close to home. But this one was fantastical enough to win me over.

The book has aged well; it was written in the 1980's but feels much more current. The premise of a scientist pursuing his own work at any cost is now a common trope in the genre, but the idea of nanobots or little machines or little cells working to change the body from within must have been far ahead of its time.

There weren't any characters to really identify with or to like; this was a novel of ideas. But it certainly was entertaining, and even prescient.

There was quite a bit to like about TUEOUH. Unfortunately I didn't get to visit Wellington for this year's Worldcon due to COVID, but I almost feel as though I've been there. The sense of place in the novel is excellent.

There are certainly hints of Jasper Fforde in this book-characters-to-life fantasy, but this story is quite a bit darker. I enjoyed running into old literary friends such as Darcy and the Scarlet Pimpernel (haven't thought of him in years!). Uriah Heep is a memorable if disturbingly syncophantic Dickens character, capable of nefarious plotting to further his own ambitions. While not the protagonist of this novel, he influences action throughout the novel, and can only be trusted so far as his interests align with the goal.

I thought the book was clever and well written, and I really enjoyed it.

The holiday season is starting. What are you reading in November 2020?