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

Chris’s comments from the Beyond Reality group.

Good point about the Crippled God!

Wow. When Erikson named the series the Malazan Book of the Fallen, he wasn't kidding. So many rich characters, but so many dead at the end of these first three books. So many heartbreaking moments.

When I first started this series a couple of years ago, this is where I stopped. It was too much, so overwhelmingly emotional; I decided to set it aside for a time, and somehow the time was never right to pick it back up. I'm glad that we're doing the series as a group read. This time I was better prepared, and could better appreciate the complex characters and intricate plot. I have no idea where the series is going next, but I'll be along for the ride.

OMG! I first read this in high school (oh so many years ago). I remember liking it then, but this re-read has had far more impact. The suppression of ideas is a much scarier prospect to me now, I suppose. And too much an echo of the evening news, such as ISIS or the Taliban destroying centuries-old cultural artifacts not in alignment with their point of view. Even scarier than the actual suppression is the complacency with which the general populace, including Montag's wife, accept the lack of content in their lives. This book reminds me that we are indeed blessed to have so much information and knowledge (and opinion and speculation) available to us -- we can't take it for granted!

Carrie wrote: "I'm curious how people feel about the character development. I'm halfway through the book (and no worries, I'm fine with spoilers) and I have yet to feel connected to anyone except Kirsten, and ev..."

I play in a number of bands and orchestras so, to me, identifying someone first by their instrument actually feels normal. This happens in other professions as well -- think of the doctor, the professor, the captain. I think it charming that the guitars choose not to re-use numbers, ensuring that each guitar is unique. Of course, travelling with each other for years, I'm sure they knew each other's names ... but there's a kind of pride in being known for what you're good at.

I think you've hit the nail on the head -- no true good guys/bad guys, all the characters do things that are unlikeable. There were many parts of the book that were a grim read -- so much horror, so much cruelty. And so many questions remain! I just had to let it wash over me and hope that I noticed enough of the right things to recognize references in later books.

This was quite a romp! It seems like we covered every European mythological figure from Finn McCool to Arthur and Merlin to Sigfried ... and then added beer. What could be better? I enjoyed the writing style, I liked our protagonist Duffy, and I thought this was a lot of fun. My only real criticism is that it seemed to end a bit abruptly. Anyone else think the ending was a bit rushed?

I enjoyed this much more than I expected. Post apocalyptic stories often leave me depressed. But the interweaving of the pre and post plaque timelines and characters hooked me. In the Station Eleven comic, the people of Undersea who would "spend all their lives waiting for their lives to begin" left me vowing not to follow their example. The idea of a travelling symphony brought an element of hope because, indeed, "survival is insufficient". As a musician myself (and involved with the local community theatre), it's appealing to think that music and theatre can survive a catastrophe. Glad I read it.

I read this for the first time a year ago; just decided it was time to tackle BotF. At the time, this book almost did me in -- so many different characters, races, ideas that I started getting frustrated with the author (really? another race? can't we just get on with the ones we already have?!). I've really enjoyed this re-read, though. The characters, particularly the Bridgeburners and Kruppe, are engaging. The idea of a creepy puppet wizard is unique, but I have to say that I'm glad he's gone. The comment about Grallin's gardens on the moon also struck me this time, I hadn't caught it the first time around. I find myself looking forward to the rest of the series -- I hope to make it past book 3 this time.

And so it begins ....

I thought this was a remarkable book, with a lot of big ideas. The opening scene of the public shaming of the scientist/intellectual was brutal to read and, I think, took courage for a Chinese writer to include. Using an online game to explore a three-body world was a clever way to convey the science of the problem. I loved the "computer" made out of people, what a concept! And I would never have thought of the different factions in the way that they respond to extraterrestrial civilization (Adventists, Redemptionists, Survivors), or that the message we send into space would have such political overtones. I'm glad I read this one.

I read the first four books last year, but then kind of fizzled. I welcome the series read, going to give it a try again.

I believe that China Mieville is one of the most creative authors in the SF/F field. He manages to build amazingly detailed and complete worlds for each new book. I don't think this is my favorite of his books, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. The sheer "London-ness" of it! ("IN A CITY LIKE LONDON ... Stop: that was an unhelpful way to think about it, because there was no city like London. That was the point.") I did start trying to explain the plot to my husband, but in the end I had to settle for "it's very complicated but, in the end, a giant squid does NOT destroy London".

I thought there were some interesting ideas here, but the story itself was meh. The characters felt flat to me, too one-dimensional. Maybe they had to be that way, since some of them were sims... but that might have been an opportunity to really explore whether we can really tell whether someone is a human only from their words and actions (a la Turing). Not a bad read, but not a great one, either.

Mary wrote: "You have a great many treats waiting for you, then."

If I want to read more McKillip, do you have a particular favorite to recommend?

How have I missed Patricia McKillip? This was a great read. Judd has endearing sense of priorities that would appeal to readers everywhere ("Judd had no particular ambition beyond reading every book in the world and taking care of his father"; "How could you leave your books out in this weather? Judd demanded"). And an evil magician who sentences Ysabo's world to a Gormenghast regime of meaningless ritual. Well imagined and creative, I really enjoyed this one.

These were my 2014 favorites:
Parasol Protectorate – Gail Carriger
Dreamsnake – Vonda McIntyre
Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword – Ann Leckie
Neverwhere – Neil Gaiman
The Giver – Lois Lowry
The Goblin Emperor – Katherine Addison
The Map of Time, Map of the Sky – Felix J Palma
The Martian – Andy Weir
Fionavar Trilogy – Guy Gavriel Kay
William Shakespeare’s Star Wars – Ian Doescher
Stormlight Archive – Brandon Sanderson (1&2)
Nora Gavin mysteries by Erin Hart
The Three Body Problem – Liu Cixin
The Bell at Sealey Head – Patricia McKillip

I enjoyed this novelette, The Long Spoon, free online on the Tor site: http://www.tor.com/stories/2014/12/a-...

This book was NOT for me. I managed to slog through it, but I can't say that I enjoyed it very much. It's full of ideas ... mirror universes, magical system somehow related to moons/satellites, people riding dogs and bears, male sex slaves ... the list goes on. I believe that a "struggle" story needs a good villain and a good hero. But I didn't like any of the characters very much; most were one-dimensional, and Lilia was psychopathic, harming anyone in her way. Pages of constant fighting for no discernable purpose, no believable motive. Maybe one of the characters expressed it best: "Why are they killing you? Us? All of us, I guess." Kadaan shrugged. "I'm not sure it matters."

I thought the first book, Ancillary Justice, was slow in starting. By the time it finished I liked it, but didn't love it. But this book grabbed me from the beginning. It may just have been that I was more familiar with the world, but I found it much easier to get into the story. Breq is a fully developed character, managing to be believable as both human and non-human, and it was interesting to see the colonial world through her eyes. I enjoyed the politics and the mystery (where ARE those suspended transportees?), but I agree that there are many unanswered questions. I'm ready for the next book!

I read this last year. I remember that it took quite a while to grow on me, but I liked it in the end. The pack minds were unique, what a creative concept. The whole Zones of Thought took a while to figure out; I agree, the map was almost impossible to read. I also read Children of the Sky, thought it was a good follow up to the story.

I read this last year when I was on a China Mieville kick, and this may be my favorite. New Crobuzon was so well realized that I felt I'd been there. And the slake-moths are off-the-hook terrifying!