SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion
SciFi and Fantasy Book Challenge
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2021 TBR Cleanup Challenge
Hey Mods----I must be doing something off, as the front page says I have read zero books in this challenges.....it's alie! dangit!
Maggie wrote: "Hey Mods----I must be doing something off, as the front page says I have read zero books in this challenges.....it's alie! dangit!"did you click on the sign up link in the first post in this thread?
did you mark your books as read on this website?
are your shelves public and not private?
i was replying yes yes and yes, but went to have another look first and this time they showed up...maybe I wasnt properly signed in! Thank you!
1. Take a gamble 2. Red or black the red cover for
3. Behind the eight ball
4. Charade
5. Agreeable alliterationLords and Ladies Lords and Ladies
6. Jackpot
7. Pawns
8. An 8 or 21
9. Dealer's choice
10. X marks the spot
11. Murrderrrrr
12. Back from the dead The Grass Dancer
13. Features a game or puzzle
14. I have no gift for strategy Rule 34
15. Features best friends The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter
16. Queen of hearts
17. Role-play --Raven Stratagem
18. Amazing race Raven Stratagem
19. Taboo The Zenith
20. Critical hit--Houston, Houston, Do You Read?
reply | edit | delete | flag *
Maggie wrote: "i was replying yes yes and yes, but went to have another look first and this time they showed up...maybe I wasnt properly signed in! Thank you!"glad you're seeing them :)
Mod
Finished
this morning, bringing my total for this challenge to... 1.I do have 2 more on deck for April, though, maybe I can get back ahead a bit.
Whoa! Amanda, congratulations! 🎊🍾🎈🎉
Amanda wrote: "Finished this morning, bringing my total for this challenge to... 1....Yay! And what an iconic profile. Even postage stamp sized, partially obscured by the title, and decades since I last watched it was immediately clear who was pictured. Seriously missed.
Haha! The app suckage strikes again! I only saw Amanda’s “Finished” and thought cool! She’s finished the challenge (that was fast!)! I didn’t see the book cover at all. Usually I see one but not more. Sigh. Well, congratulations anyway, Amanda. I enjoyed the Princess Diarist. I listened to it shortly after she died. It was poignant.
Haha, yeah, definitely not close to being finished, but glad I've finally started at least
Finished 11.
Supernatural serial killer involving Voodoo fits the bill
to make it to 8 out of 20. I wasn't too enthralled with this book at all an then it ended on a cliffhanger of sorts. I will not be continuing with this series.
I have finished 5 so far: ✅5. Agreeable alliteration - Rendezvous with RamaIn progress
✅10. X marks the spot - The Poet X
✅12. Back from the dead - Katrina Hates The Dead (I didn't realize that this was only the first chapter of this graphic novel. I'm still counting it, because it's now off my TBR and I have little interest in reading the rest anyway.
✅13. Features a game or puzzle - A Memory Called Empire
✅18. Amazing race - Children of Time
Next up:
3. Behind the eight ball - Parable of the Sower
14. I have no gift for strategy - Winter's Orbit
Finished X marks the spot: Nemesis Games by James S A Corey.My original reasoning for selecting this book for X marks the spot was: as it's about people trying to get back to the place they call home OR get out to a place they want to call home, X marks many the spots in this story
(view spoiler)
Helena wrote: "Finished X marks the spot: Nemesis Games by James S A Corey.My original reasoning for selecting this book for X marks the spot was: as it's about people trying to get back to the ..."
Glad you liked it. The Expanse is rapidly moving up the list of favorite series.
Finished #19, but didn't realize the book was a two book set. Only book one Daybreak 2250 A.D. (Star Man's Son) has the taboo for mutants theme, so I'll count just it. The second book No Night Without Stars doesn't fit any of the various contests, I'm signed up for, but I'll finish it as well.19. Taboo =
About a young man forced from his clan because he is taboo (a mutant)
I really liked Daybreak 2250.
I am halfway through. It helps including a few graphic novels to get through it quickly.Completed are;
3. Behind the eight ball – Persian Fire: The First World Empire and the Battle for the West – Anyone who came up against the armies of the Persian Empire certainly would have been at a disadvantage.
4. Charade – Hounded – Kevin Hearne. A centuries old druid living a charade as a regular bookshop owner in Arizona.
5. Agreeable alliteration – Sin City The Hard Goodbye – Frank Miller. Is it technically still alliteration if the letters are different?
7. Pawns – Saga, Vol. 8 – Brian K. Vaughan. The main characters in this series were pawns in a war between their worlds, but they’ve come to represent so much more.
10. X marks the spot – The Persian Expedition – Xenophon.
11. Murrderrrrr – The Fifth Season – N.K. Jemisin. The Goodreads synopsis mentions multiple Murrderrrrs so I guess this fits the bill.
12. Back from the dead – The Crow – James O’Barr – Eric Draven. RIP.
15. Features best friends – Post Captain – Patrick O’Brian. Aubrey and Maturin. An odd couple, but best friends nonetheless.
16. Queen of hearts – Sin City, Vol. 2: A Dame to Kill For – Frank Miller. Surely the Queen of Hearts is A Dame to Kill For?
18. Amazing race – Grandpa's Great Escape – David Walliams. Go Grandpa!
The best so far have been the two Sin City books, Saga and The Fifth Season.
Still to go;
1. Take a gamble – Sporting Chance – Elizabeth Moon. You want a sporting chance if you're taking a gamble, don't you?
2. Red or black – Iron Man: My Journey Through Heaven & Hell with Black Sabbath – Tony Iommi. Guitarist for the legendary Black Sabbath.
6. Jackpot –Flashman – George Macdonald Fraser – A scoundrel who is always trying to hit the jackpot?
8. An 8 or 21 –Neuromancer – William Gibson. 21st winner of the Nebula award for best novel (including co-winners).
9. Dealer's choice – The Adventures of Tom Sawyer – Mark Twain. I played a game of high card/ low card, dividing my TBR list until I got down to one title.
13. Features a game or puzzle – Hunting Party – Elizabeth Moon. Hunting for game?
14. I have no head for strategy – The Rules of the Game: Jutland and British Naval Command – Andrew Gordon. A classic of naval strategy.
17. Role-play – Broken Angels – Richard Morgan. Occupying a new body is the ultimate role play.
19. Taboo – Jurassic Park – Michael Crichton. Bringing dinosaurs back to life sounds like a scientific taboo to me.
20. Critical hit – Persepolis Rising – S.A. Corey. A critically acclaimed series.
Mod
Allison wrote: "awesome! and haha no, alliteration needs the same letters =P Just tell us it's the same in some other language other than English and we'll all nod along ;-)"Haha. In that case, it's alliteration in Gibberish.
Allison wrote: "awesome! and haha no, alliteration needs the same letters =P Just tell us it's the same in some other language other than English and we'll all nod along ;-)"my alliteration wasn't for the first letters but for the last letters: Rats, Bats & Vats
Petar wrote: "Allison wrote: "awesome! and haha no, alliteration needs the same letters =P Just tell us it's the same in some other language other than English and we'll all nod along ;-)"Haha. In that case, i..."
In Spanish, the G is pronounced like an H in English.
One more, which gets me to 8/20:12. Back from the dead
Creatures of Light and Darkness
A very 1960s book. Characters are based on ancient mythology, mainly but not exclusively Egyptian. Chapters vary in length, tone, and style. There is no very clear storyline, but lots of supernatural conflict, set on a variety of planets and other places. Vivid and colourful. I enjoyed it.
I've finished a few more books on my TBR since my last post:✔︎ 5. Agreeable alliteration: The Case of the Graceful Goldens (of course they are)
✔︎ 6. Jackpot: Swordheart (about that inheritance...)
✔︎ 17. Role-play: The Wizard's Butler (with tips for the position)
Swordheart was my clear favorite of these three. It's a fine tale of romance and adventure with interesting characters and the weird sometimes creepy twists that I've come to expect from T. Kingfisher. The influence of the various decadent southern gods on their followers was a fascinating aspect of this world.
The Case of the Graceful Goldens was a mostly enjoyable read. It did, after all, have golden retrievers in it. I'd have liked it better if it hadn't hewed so closely to common cozy canine conundrum genre tropes. The careless amateur detective one was the most jarring. How did she survive the 23 books in this series?
The Wizard's Butler surprised me. I grumbled early on about it being a detailed "how to" manual for butlers. There was a fair amount of that and I can't claim that the plot to length ratio was very high, but the "daily life" approach was oddly relaxing. I appreciated that aspect of the book and was sorry to see it end.
Overall progress: 9/20
Petar wrote: "... Amazing race – Grandpa's Great Escape – David Walliams. Go Grandpa ..."I LOVE David Walliams, he's a favourite in the family. What a great choice for any TBR!
Petar wrote: "... Back from the dead – The Crow – James O’Barr – Eric Draven. RIP ..."
One of my favourite movies, although I've never read the book. How well does the movie compare to the book?
I've managed to finish a couple too:17. Role-play - The Ice Dragon by George RR Martin. My original reasoning for placing the book here: A book about a child with a destiny, which will give the child a role to play in saving the world.
13. Features a game or puzzle - Skyfire by Michael Adams. My original reasoning: My son is desperate for me to read this Seven Signs series, his favourite books at the moment. He tells me it is all about seven people having to solve deadly puzzles, the characters are "really super awesome" and the book is a must read.
A bit of a cheat perhaps, as both came off my kid's bookshelves, therefore they were quick and easy reads. That said, I really enjoyed both books. Skyfire met the criteria as exactly as I originally thought it would. My guess for the topic of the Ice Dragon was close, but not quite!
Mod
16. Queen of hearts - Everfair lots of lovers in this one
20. Critical hit: Stop Walking on Eggshells: Taking Your Life Back When Someone You Care about Has Borderline Personality Disorder - lots of criticism in this break out book on borderline personality disorder
15. Features best friends: The Way of Thorn and Thunder: Really great friendships
12. Back from the dead: The Wee Free Men: The Feegles!!
7. Pawns: Wool- A very elaborate game played on the laymen
4. Charade: The Gilda Stories - Actually a vampire
14. I have no gift for strategy - Starsight: Just lucky, I guess!
17. Role-play: As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride - The cast in my favorite roles they played!
So that's 8 down! Not too shabs. Minimum star rating is 3 for the above.
Still to go:
1. Take a gamble
2. Red or black
3. Behind the eight ball
5. Agreeable alliteration
6. Jackpot
8. An 8 or 21
9. Dealer's choice
10. X marks the spot
11. Murrderrrrr
13. Features a game or puzzle
18. Amazing race
19. Taboo
Helena wrote: "Petar wrote: "... Amazing race – Grandpa's Great Escape – David Walliams. Go Grandpa ..."I LOVE David Walliams, he's a favourite in the family. What a great choice for any TBR!
Petar wrote: "......"
This was my first David Walliams book and I really enjoyed it. He's been compared to Roald Dahl and I can see why. I haven't started any of my kids on him yet but that will be coming soon.
The Crow is one my favourite films as well and I've been meaning to read the book for the past 30 odd years since the movie came out. I was a little let down by the book. The movie is pretty faithful to the book, and some of the imagery and dialogue are lifted straight from the book. I still enjoyed it but I think I'd built my expectations up too high, maybe impossibly so. I think I'd like to re-visit it down the track.
9/208. An 8 or 21
Pump Six and Other Stories - published 2008✔️
Generally bleak stories that mainly focus on environmental degradation, cruelty and exploitation. Bacigalupi has a vision and he writes well, but I don’t know. I’ve read most of his novels but nothing recently. I may stop reading his work. Ultimately, though I think much of the vision is valid, I’m not getting much pleasure here. And the work has a few other problematic aspects.
On the other hand these are well paced, readable stories that engaged me as a reader, in some cases almost in spite of myself. I seem to be conflicted.
Some of the stories are excellent. One of the early ones, “The Fluted Girl”, struck me as quite unpleasant and without much in the way of redeeming qualities. I think I liked “The People of Sand and Slag” best. It’s relatively compact and controlled.
Finished:6.
A space crew wins the trad rights to a planet which might or might not be a jackpot
this makes 10 out of 20 - half done!
going with City of Bones by Martha Wells for #15. Features best friends and for the Around the World Challenge next
So my 6th book of the challenge is number 17: Role PlayMinimum Wage Magic
Here are my thoughts:
This book is either Cyberpunk with magic or Shadowrun without the D and D races. Well, they did keep the Dragons. No matter what it is it was fun to read. The Main Character is very different from what you expect to find in a book like this. Basically an after eviction maid service. Things just never seem to go quite the way she expects them to and it leads to a fun romp through the lower levels of a living city. As if Detroit really needed anything to make it more of a mess. For a fun break from what you may be reading this is it.
Almost there. So far I've completed 17/20.1. take a gamble - Caliban's War
gambling that a single, small ship can save the galaxy
3. behind the 8 ball - The Warded Man
the characters are in a massively disadvantaged position
4. charade - The Windup Girl
character pretends to be something he is not
5. agreeable alliteration - Misfit Mage
6. jackpot - Fuzzy Nation
the character (Jack haha) finds a treasure
7. pawns - Orconomics
the characters are forced into a possibly suicidal job
9. dealer's choice - Promise of Blood
11. murrderrrr - Six Wakes
clones investigating their own murders
12. back from the dead - The Book of Phoenix
main character has the ability to resurrect herself
13. features a game or puzzle - The Torch that Ignites the Stars
lit rpg where the characters have to solve puzzles in a tower/dungeon
14. I have no head for strategy - The Poppy War
character learns military strategy in a school for warriors
15. features best friends - Birthplace
16. queen of hearts - Queen of the Conquered
17. role-play - The Mere Wife
the wives are forced to play the roles expected of them by their society
18. amazing race - Leviathan
main character is on the run
19. taboo - The Bear and the Nightingale
religious step-mother forbids the pagan rituals that appease the spirits
20. critical hit - Ancillary Justice
it was a hit with the critics
It would be hard to choose a favorite out of that list because there are so many excellent books that I've finally gotten around to reading. Seriously, I tried even ranking them and half the list would be tied for 1st and 2nd. Leviathan was my least enjoyed book mostly because it felt like it was more towards the middle grade end of the YA gradient. Not a bad just not to my taste.
Only 3 left:
2. Red or black
8. An 8 or 21
10. X marks the spot
wow - you're doing fantastic (I'm still at 10 finished)
Caillen wrote: "Almost there. So far I've completed 17/20.1. take a gamble - Caliban's War
gambling that a single, small ship can save the galaxy
3. behind the 8 ball - [book:The Warded Man|3428..."
Okay from your description I think I may want to read Six Awakes a tad more now than before. LOL
Dj wrote: "Caillen wrote: "Okay from your description I think I may want to read Six Awakes a tad more now than before. LOLIt was on my list for years and it was not at all what I was expecting. Although in retrospect, I'm not entirely sure what I was actually expecting.
Without too many spoilers, it's a locked room mystery in space. A group of clones wake up in the immediate aftermath of violence, basically a crime scene. The entire crew has died, the cloning apparatus is destroyed, and years of memory files have been erased. They're decades from any destination, gravity is off, the ship is going the wrong direction, the ship's A.I. is damaged, and they all have dark secrets in their past. One of them is the murderer but even that person has no memory of what happened or why. And several other, significant, complications and bits of sabotage have occurred.
The set up of Sic Wakes reminded me quite a bit of the set up for a SyFY tv show..... Dark matter I think it was?
Rachel wrote: "The set up of Sic Wakes reminded me quite a bit of the set up for a SyFY tv show..... Dark matter I think it was?"I hadn't thought of that but you're right, there are some similarities with beginning of Dark Matter. Such a good a show. I miss it.
Caillen wrote: "Dj wrote: "Caillen wrote: "Okay from your description I think I may want to read Six Awakes a tad more now than before. LOLIt was on my list for years and it was not at all what I was expecting. ..."
Nice set up, the more you talk about it the more it moves up on my list. Thanks
I finished another one:Behind the eight ball: Parable of the Sower, by Octavia E. Butler. Someone else had it as their Eight Ball choice and since I’ve had this on my Want to Read lust forever and on my Audible queue fir several years I stole the idea. I’m glad I did! Also it is on the group’s bookshelf AND was a Bookshelf reread pick this month! Killed 3 birds with one stone!
Oh and I’m now up to 6/20 completed, which is way better than I was doing last year at this time. Next up from this TBR challenge list? Probably Winter’s Orbit. Or maybe one of the shorter ones I chose, like The Queen of Sassi. Or Tram car No. 015.
Babylon's Ashes
In general, I don't write reviews on books that are in the middle of a series. I usually find it best to write one for the first book and then the last book I read. Since this was a Challenge book I will make something of an exception. In that, I will put my views of the book here at any rate.
This was my Best Friends read and the sixth one of the TBR challenges that I have finished. One of the things about the series that I really like is that while it is hard core space opera Sci-Fi it doesn't get lost in the science. There are no long dissertations about the mathematics of a situation or how this or that fictional element works in the overall scheme of things. In one place it even addresses that directly. When one character asks another what his degree is in, after the answer they respond with, you can assume mine isn't. What this series of books does is keep its focus on the human element. For that, I have to give the authors full kudos and I will keep reading this series to the end.
Mod
FinishedBest friends from two different species
but the best friends bit was not very prominent. I liked this book a lot though. Much better than the Books of The Raksura Series.
I've finished three more books on my TBR list (and why did I not include Rendezvous with Rama as my alliteration book?):✔︎ 9. Dealer's choice: The Galaxy, and the Ground Within (Aeluons & Akaraks & Laru & Quelin! Oh my!)
✔︎ 11. Murrderrrrr: Network Effect (Murrderrrrrbottttt!)
✔︎ 15. Features best friends: Good Dog: Celebrating Dogs Who Change, and Sometimes Even Save, Our Lives
The Galaxy, and the Ground Within was my favorite of the three. The earlier books in this series felt like reading a warm hug. This was much the same. I did find myself wishing for a bit more drama and action at times but still very much enjoyed returning to this universe.
Network Effect was classic Murderbot (speaking of drama and action). These seem to work better for me at shorter lengths where there is more cleaning up after stupid humans and a bit less tortured introspection but this was still a fine addition to the Murderbot canon.
Good Dog: Celebrating Dogs Who Change, and Sometimes Even Save, Our Lives was an interesting set of assistance/service dog case studies that will appeal to dog lovers. I would have liked more on the science behind why these partnerships work and the narration was on the gushy side for me even given my clear bias. Still, they are all very good dogs and this shows what that can mean for people in some challenging settings.
Progress: 12/20
Raucous wrote: "Well you had told me that it was rude to have unread T. Kingfisher."Anna wrote: "Truth."
It's HERE!
I've had this book on my wish list and TBR list since I saw discussions about it in SFFBC a couple of years ago. This year I made the decision to purchase and read it.
Now that it's here, I am going to start reading it TODAY! I could not possibly have it thought by my esteemed fellow SFFBC members that I am rude!
Amazing! It was a BOTM too so make sure to check the discussions! 😊(I guess you knew that since that’s what you said 🙄 Sorry just waking up.)
Helena wrote: "Raucous wrote: "Well you had told me that it was rude to have unread T. Kingfisher."Anna wrote: "Truth."
It's HERE!
I've had this book on my wis..."
Hope it is all you are expecting and more.
Helena wrote: "... Now that it's here, I am going to start reading it TODAY! I could not possibly have it thought by my esteemed fellow SFFBC members that I am rude!"Yay! Wise decision. Enjoy.
I'm now somewhat embarrassed to rudely admit that I still have a couple of T. Kingfisher books left. I'm working on it. But Anna being up means that it's close to bedtime for me. Tomorrow...
SciFi and Fantasy Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
Jade City (other topics)Riot Baby (other topics)
Rendezvous with Rama (other topics)
Parable of the Sower (other topics)
Every Heart a Doorway (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Margaret Atwood (other topics)Margaret Atwood (other topics)
Steven Savile (other topics)
Mark Lawrence (other topics)
Mark Lawrence (other topics)
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1. Take a gamble - How to Astronaut: Everything You Need to Know Before Leaving Earth by Terry Virts
2. Red or black - The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
3. Behind the eight ball - Any Ordinary Day: Blindsides, Resilience and What Happens After the Worst Day of Your Life by Leigh Sales
4. Charade - The Unexpected Truth About Animals: A Menagerie of the Misunderstood by Lucy Cooke
5. Agreeable alliteration - Red Rising by Pierce Brown
6. Jackpot - A Promised Land by Barak Obama
7. Pawns - They Called Us Enemy by George Takei
8. An 8 or 21 - Tiamat's Wrath by James Corey
9. Dealer's choice -American Gods by Neil Gaiman
10. X marks the spot -Nemesis Games by James Corey
11. Murrderrrrr - Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit by John E Douglas
12. Back from the dead - I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai
13. Features a game or puzzle - Skyfire by Michael Adams
14. I have no gift for strategy - This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor by Adam Kay
15. Features best friends - John Dies at the End by David Wong
16. Queen of hearts - The Raven and the Reindeer by T Kingfisher
17. Role-play - The Ice Dragon by George RR Martin
18. Amazing race - A Life on Our Planet: My Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future by Sir David Attenborough
19. Taboo - The Trauma Banquet: Eating Pain - Feasting on Life by Kenneth Pakenham
20. Critical hit - Zero Day Code by John Birmingham
(view spoiler)[
Being a long list, I thought I'd put my reasons in a spoiler.
Take a gamble Not something I would normally pick up, but something about the title piqued my interest. So I'm taking a gamble on this one.
Red or black Red outfits, black story
Behind the eight ball A well-known Australian journalist's memories of encountering people in midst of the worst days of their lives, when they are as far behind the eight ball as you can get.
Charade People are not the only characters who become stereotyped. Animals do too, making it easy to do and guess the animal in a charade! This book gives some fascinating and unexpected un-charade-able trivia about our favourite animals
Agreeable alliteration It's alliteration. I'm sure it will be agreeable too!
Jackpot Getting to be the President of the United States - Jackpot! Right?
Pawns People moved into camps like Pawns being taken off a chessboard. It happens too many times for too many reasons. This is one man's story of what it's like to be one of those pawns.
An 8 or 21 Number 8 in the Expanse Series. I worry that I might not get to it in 2021, as I'm still reading number five!
Dealer's Choice I've heard people raving about the books, and about the TV series, making this seem like a good fit as a dealer's choice. Also, I love Neil Gaiman's sense of humour, so I expect to love this book.
X marks the spot The next book for me to read in the Expanse series. As it's about people trying to get back to the place they call home OR get out to a place they want to call home, X marks many spots in this story.
Murrderrrr Literally, murder. A book written by an ex FBI agent who dealt with serial killers.
Back from the dead Malala was shot, in the head, at close range. By a miracle she survived. The shot was meant to silence her, but not only did she survive, she returned stronger than ever, with more reach for her voice. It's not literally back from the dead, but I think it counts as figuratively back from the dead. And I've been wanting to read this book since I didn't manage to get to it in the 2019 TBR challenge.
Features a game or a puzzle My son is desperate for me to read this Seven Signs series, his favourite books at the moment. He tells me it is all about seven people having to solve deadly puzzles, the characters are "really super awesome" and the book is a must-read.
I have no gift for strategy I reworded this in my head to "I have no TIME for strategy", which is true of junior doctors in any hospital in any country. Hence - this is going to hurt!
Features best friends "My name is David Wong. My best friend is John." For me, this is all in the title. I know how it ends. You would think that spoils it for me, but no. I am desperate to find out how and why John Dies at the End.
Queen of Hearts The story description says Gerta is following her heart. And it's by T Kingfisher. From earlier posts in this thread, I see it is very rude for me to have this book unread on my bookshelf. I do not wish to be rude. Consider it read. (Big smile)
Role-play A book about a child with a destiny, which will give the child a role to play in saving the world.
Amazing Race It's a race to save the planet we know, before the balance tips and the planet inherited by our children will never be the same.
Taboo I will admit, this one is a cheat. I've already read it, earlier this year. Kenneth is open and honest about some very taboo subjects. This book is both hopeful and confronting.
Critical Hit John Birmingham comes from my home town and writes wonderful stories about places I know well. For many years, I have been meaning to try out his sci fi. This one, being a story about taking out the food supply for cities around the world, seems like a critical hit to me.
This list is a mix of sci-fi and memoirs. Often have I heard it said that truth is stranger than fiction. At the end of the challenge, I hope to see whether truth can be stranger than science fiction.
(hide spoiler)]