Saga is a series that has never shied away from the controversial, and this volume focuses on that bete-noir of the conservative right, abortion. The Saga is a series that has never shied away from the controversial, and this volume focuses on that bete-noir of the conservative right, abortion. The issue is handled in a sensitive way, allowing for multiple points of view to be expressed without judgement or condemnation. There is a surprising amount of humor attached to such a somber story-line, such as Alana's sudden development of magical abilities, or Hazel's funny interactions with never to be born baby brother. The story is all the better for it because it reminds us (as if we needed much reminding) of why we fell in love with this series in the first place.
Petrichor as a character has been the best recent addition to the series, and as a trans woman makes the diversity of our weird little band even wider. The fact that Prince Robot is now even more firmly on the team just emphasizes that fact, especially given the new relationship of these two characters. All the characters here get their moment to shine though, especially as we finally return to Freddo and Squire Robot, and the reunion of pretty much everyone.
Still off in the wilderness is The Will, currently being made to pay for his former misdeeds by the lover of someone he killed. This particular story looks like it will come crashing into the main plot pretty soon though.
Gwendoline and Sophie are totally absent in this volume with the exception of a flashback courtesy of The Will's memories, but I feel that a rendezvous is not too far off with them either.
Mention should be made of the continuing excellence of the artwork, which as ever continues to both complement and elevate the story. Volume 9 is already out I believe, and I look forward to continuing this great series.
Merged review:
Saga is a series that has never shied away from the controversial, and this volume focuses on that bete-noir of the conservative right, abortion. The issue is handled in a sensitive way, allowing for multiple points of view to be expressed without judgement or condemnation. There is a surprising amount of humor attached to such a somber story-line, such as Alana's sudden development of magical abilities, or Hazel's funny interactions with never to be born baby brother. The story is all the better for it because it reminds us (as if we needed much reminding) of why we fell in love with this series in the first place.
Petrichor as a character has been the best recent addition to the series, and as a trans woman makes the diversity of our weird little band even wider. The fact that Prince Robot is now even more firmly on the team just emphasizes that fact, especially given the new relationship of these two characters. All the characters here get their moment to shine though, especially as we finally return to Freddo and Squire Robot, and the reunion of pretty much everyone.
Still off in the wilderness is The Will, currently being made to pay for his former misdeeds by the lover of someone he killed. This particular story looks like it will come crashing into the main plot pretty soon though.
Gwendoline and Sophie are totally absent in this volume with the exception of a flashback courtesy of The Will's memories, but I feel that a rendezvous is not too far off with them either.
Mention should be made of the continuing excellence of the artwork, which as ever continues to both complement and elevate the story. Volume 9 is already out I believe, and I look forward to continuing this great series....more
I've been meaning to read this book for years, ever since Mike Oldfield wrote an album based on it. I can't believe it's taken me so long, because thiI've been meaning to read this book for years, ever since Mike Oldfield wrote an album based on it. I can't believe it's taken me so long, because this is one of the best books I have read in a long time.
The story itself is simple - a spaceship from Earth arrives at a long-lost colony on its way to colonise a new planet. It stops at the water world of Thalassa simply to replenish its protective shield made of ice, only to be surprised to find that the colonists have not only survived, but have thrived. The story then goes on to tell the story of how the two groups get along whilst ice shield is being created and put into place, then the ship sets off for it's new home, which it won't reach for another 300 years (no FTL drives here, the colonists are in suspended animation and only small groups of the crew are awake at any one time). It is also a love story between one of the crew and one of the colonists, one that is doomed to be fleeting once the ship gets back underway.
The reason I loved this book much is how adult it is, and I don't mean in a xxx sense. Everybody behaves like sensible, mature people even when dealing with potential conflict (view spoiler)[such as a mutiny (hide spoiler)] - people talk to each other, make a decision, then abide by it. Now this might sound a bit boring to some, but as a lover of action and plot-based stories, I found it refreshing to read. The author has stated that this was his favourite book and I can understand why, the writing is beautifully subtle throughout the book.
There is a melancholic air throughout the book, not least of which because the Earth was destroyed by the Sun going nova not long after the ship left (everyone was aware of this and had a thousand years to send humanity out to the stars, which is why there are colonies on distant planets). For the colonists, the new art, literature and music brought by the ship will be the last things they ever receive from Earth, and it seems that communication between distant colonies is unlikely to be possible for generations.
Perhaps more controversially, everybody behaves like adults (the author posits) because they have had much of their past deliberately erased - religion, war, nationalism and races have all been pruned from the history books. So they have not only lost the bible but also Shakespeare, as one example given. Freed from the shackles of the past, the human race has finally grown up. Now this might be a naïve assumption by the author, but if I thought that we would become a better species by losing a lot of our past, I might actually advocate for it. This is a culture where men and women are totally equal, there is no racial animosity, the environment is protected and humanity lives in harmony with the alien species on their adopted home. Even when a ocean species is shown to be gaining some degree of intelligence, there is wonder and appreciation rather than fear and ignorance.
One final word about the story - it was based on a short story first written in 1957. The original is easy to find online (there's a link to the story on the books Wikipedia page), but that story is firmly a product of it's time, and not really like the sublime book that came 30 years later. This is a masterpiece by the author at the height of his writing process, and it's a real shame that it isn't better known.
I enjoyed this one about as much as I always seem to enjoy this authors works, which so far for me combine the best of worldbuilding with the worst ofI enjoyed this one about as much as I always seem to enjoy this authors works, which so far for me combine the best of worldbuilding with the worst of humanity. It's certainly a great background here, set in a nebula within a pocket universe where gravity is millions of times that of our own universe, and because of that is aging much more rapidly. This of course creates problems for the descendents of the survivors of a lost starship trapped in this universe.
It takes one rather improbable hero and a rather spectacular heroes journey to save at least some remnant of humanity, along with the native lifeforms (rather, they mostly save themselves - they know how to migrate to a new nebula when the time comes).
As the authors first published work, it sets a high target and mostly hits it. I just wish I liked his characters more....more
A fast-paced romp through Missy/The Master's history from their most recent stories Nu Who to some very deep cuts that go right back to their first apA fast-paced romp through Missy/The Master's history from their most recent stories Nu Who to some very deep cuts that go right back to their first appearances. In fact some of it was so deep, you would have to be a seriously hard core fan of Doctor Who to get all of them. Needless to say, I might be a fan but I'm not that hardcore.
The art was excellent, the story was typical Doctor Who in that it doesn't make much sense if you think about it for more than 10 seconds and while I enjoyed it, I didn't love it. Still, as this is volume 2, I might need to reserve judgement until I can read the earlier volume. ...more
I've been meaning to get back to reading this authors books for a while, since I had enjoyed the Newsflesh trilogy so much, but unfortunately the firsI've been meaning to get back to reading this authors books for a while, since I had enjoyed the Newsflesh trilogy so much, but unfortunately the first part of this trilogy isn't nearly so captivating.
It might partly be the subject matter, I think I would rather read about zombies than genetically engineered tapeworms living in peoples gut, to be honest. I didn't find the characters as annoying as some reviewers, but they weren't particularly engaging either.
I don't generally spot twist endings, but this one was so unsubtle that even I figured it out well before the ending.
I'm going to read the rest of the series, but I hope they are a bit more engaging than this one. ...more
I don't usually do detailed reviews of the books in this series, as I would be pretty much saying the same thing each time. I did think that the plot I don't usually do detailed reviews of the books in this series, as I would be pretty much saying the same thing each time. I did think that the plot was not as good as usual given that the story was split between two bodies, one recent and one from decades ago. Being a crime series means that there's no such thing as coincidence so of course the two murders are connected, it's just that the link between them was a bit weak.
Of course, most people don't read these books for the plot but for the characters, which are their usual excellent selves. ...more
A final, highly satisfying end to the series as all the threads come together. There have been requests for the author to write more in the series, buA final, highly satisfying end to the series as all the threads come together. There have been requests for the author to write more in the series, but to my mind this rounds things off nicely. Of course, this is a richly developed universe and who's to say if there might be other stories to be told.
Perhaps the only disappointment was that (view spoiler)[John Perry and Jane Sagan did not appear in the book (hide spoiler)] but it was only a minor thing and would probably just have felt like fan service.
Heading towards the end of the series, the author has focused here on the diplomats and bureaucrats fighting their own war behind the scenes. The struHeading towards the end of the series, the author has focused here on the diplomats and bureaucrats fighting their own war behind the scenes. The structure of the book is that of a series of interconnecting stories with a rotating cast of characters that dip in and out of each others tales. Apparently this was because the different parts of the book were originally released separately and later fixed-up to make this book. As will all short stories, some are better than others but on the whole the tale hangs together well. ...more
How much you enjoy this story will depends on how much you would enjoy reliving the events of the previous volume in the series but from a different pHow much you enjoy this story will depends on how much you would enjoy reliving the events of the previous volume in the series but from a different perspective. It might also depend on how successful you think the author was in depicting that different viewpoint, namely that of a teenage girl. I actually think he did a pretty good job, though to be honest todays teenaged girls might as well be aliens to me (I may be female but I certainly don't understand the youff of today).
While I did generally enjoy the book, the fact that you already know the ending takes the tension out of it. The author admits that this might affect how people would perceive the book, but I would have been happier with having both stories told at once and just splitting it in two at some point in the chronology.
It's still a good book by any other standard, it is just not quite in the same league as the rest of the series. ...more
This book does things a little bit differently from the first two military based volumes, as it heads into more civilian based territory with the founThis book does things a little bit differently from the first two military based volumes, as it heads into more civilian based territory with the founding of the titular colony. Tying it together are the two protagonists from the pervious volumes who have been set up as the new colony's leaders. Set up is the word here, as politics somewhat takes over from warfare as the main driver of the series. Not to say that there aren't battles to be found here, there's still plenty of those as well.
As with all the books in the series, the story is fast paced, even frantic at times, but it still has time for character development and a certain amount of introspection. It's a worthy addition to the series. ...more
This second volume in the series didn't have quite the same impact as the first, so it would be a low 4 stars rather than 4 1/2 stars for volume 1. FoThis second volume in the series didn't have quite the same impact as the first, so it would be a low 4 stars rather than 4 1/2 stars for volume 1. For all that, it's still a really entertaining read with a lot of quality set piece combat scenes and believable well rounded characters. ...more
The book might wear it's influences on its sleeve, but who cares when it is this entertaining. Read it in 2 days and am going straight on to the next The book might wear it's influences on its sleeve, but who cares when it is this entertaining. Read it in 2 days and am going straight on to the next volume....more
The fifth journey of the Daedalus takes the crew to the planet of Atticus. Here, one of the major continents has an intelligent alien life form, so thThe fifth journey of the Daedalus takes the crew to the planet of Atticus. Here, one of the major continents has an intelligent alien life form, so the colonists take over the other continent. As one of the crew missions involves contact with extra-terrestrials, and the ship can only land and take off in one place, this involves a long sea journey on a wooden sailing ship for Alex and Mariel.
Even though Alex muses that this is like the voyage of Christopher Columbus, it turns out to be more like some of the Spanish conquistador expeditions, as the aliens turn out to be far more advanced than had been previously realised. Complicating this scenario are the children of a previous human voyager who live with and try to control the aliens, something that the alien leadership resents and would like to see change.
For once, Alex doesn't come into much harms way, apart from an attempted stabbing and being involved with a mutiny and a naval battle. His expertise in biology also doesn't play much part until a pandemic flares up later in the book. A lot of the work is down to empath Mariel, who has to forge a link with the aliens but is disappointed in not having first contact. In fact, many of the aliens speak English and it could be said that they have been contaminated by the intrusion of the humans. Having said that, the aliens were well on their way to creating an empire without any outside help, the human influence just pushed their development along a bit longer. The price of that empire building though might be a future conflict with the colonists, one which they would be hard pressed to win.
While this was still an entertaining story, it perhaps covered a few too many elements that had appeared in previous stories, such as the whole ruling family political aspects. Perhaps this is something that only really becomes apparent if you binge read these books though. ...more
The second book in the series takes us to Dendra, a world completely covered in forest. Ecologist Alex, 1st person POV character (and stand in for theThe second book in the series takes us to Dendra, a world completely covered in forest. Ecologist Alex, 1st person POV character (and stand in for the author) is convinced that the colony that arrived at this world would be a failure. It turns out to be horrifying true - the few survivors have sealed themselves away from the forest and are starving to death in amongst the bountiful riches of the world they have failed to make inroads in after 7 generations.
The how is easy enough to discover, but the why takes a bit longer and involves a trip into the forest to work out why the original survey team recommended against colonisation. He is accompanied by ships pilot Karen, who tends to shoot first and ask questions never, and teenaged empath Mariel, who has been brought on the mission to try and speak to the intelligent aliens known to be on some of the colony worlds. So far these have been the only characters that have had any development, the rest of the crew remain cyphers.
If the character development remains wanting, at least the author can give full rein to describing the forest and its ecology. Coming from a planet where civilisation equates to managed fields and tidy houses, the untamed wildness of the forest can be a bit of a culture shock. The idea of the forest as alien territory has a long pedigree in literature, from the European fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel, to Heart of Darkness via Mirkwood in The Lord of the Rings to actual alien forest in The Word for World is Forest. Here the author takes on a fairly leisurely field trip and stops frequently to admire the butterflies.
It can't last of course, as the team run into other survivors of the colony, but ones who have degenerated into savages (the authors word, not mine, and it lost a star for using this imagery) without language or culture. This encounter does not go well, to say the least, but it also leads to the answer the team seeks (view spoiler)[ the butterflies pheromones have psychedelic components that have literally and permanently blown the minds of the colonists (hide spoiler)]
While its an interesting story it doesn't quite live up to the first book in the series, but it is a good enough tale of man vs nature, where nature won. ...more
I really struggled to read this book which is why it has taken so long to finish it. Partly this was down to illness, but mostly because I had watchedI really struggled to read this book which is why it has taken so long to finish it. Partly this was down to illness, but mostly because I had watched the TV series first which really influenced how I looked at the book. One of the changes made in the series is that a couple of major POV characters in this book was effectively deleted and their roles were merged and given to another character. It made it very hard to reconcile what I was reading and what I had seen on screen. In some respects I think that the series actually handled this story better because it tightened the focus of what was happening into fewer main characters. The series also solved the problem of Naomi not having enough to do.
I suspect that this is a book I might have to reread in a few years time to get a better handle on the story. ...more
It's been a while since I read either the first novel in the series or watched the equivalent on TV, but this is a story that tend to stick with you sIt's been a while since I read either the first novel in the series or watched the equivalent on TV, but this is a story that tend to stick with you so it wasn't hard to pick up. In the 1st book we had the alternating viewpoint of Miller, the world weary Ceres cop pursuing a missing persons case that turns into something much larger; and James Holden, accidental captain of the salvaged Martian warship Rocinante and it's ragtag crew who always seem to find themselves in the middle of the action whether they like it or not.
In this book we have lost Miller but gain a couple of really important new POV characters. Firstly there is Bobbie Draper, a tough as nails Martian marine who witnesses the impossible on Ganymede and finds herself caught up in the ongoing danger of the protomolecule. Secondly there is Chrisjen Avasarala, an Earth politician who is not above using the existing crisis for her own ends but who is also a woman with a moral compass. Both of these new characters are strong and compelling women who will become a major part of this series. They are both excellently written, well rounded women with many facets to their characters, often a too rare trait for female characters written by men. One drawback of their addition is that they tend to push some of the other characters into the background - Naomi, for example, is little more than Holden's girlfriend in this book which does the character a real disservice. To be honest the rest of the Rocinante's crew suffers to a certain degree as well - Alex becomes "the pilot", though Amos has a few good pieces of storyline.
One of those stories is set on Ganymede, where a disastrous space battle overhead by Martian and Earth fleets destroys the fragile ecosystem of this moon. Caught up in this is our 3rd new character, Praxidike Meng or Prax, a botanist who tends the under glass crops that feed the burgeoning population of Earth and whose whole world is destroyed by the space battle. A lot of reviewers seem to hate Prax for being a bit of an idiot, but I felt he was a good example of an ordinary person who is thrown into an extraordinary set of circumstances, and makes a total mess of it. It's easy for Holden and his crew to sweep in and save the day because they are the heroes and as such play a larger than life role in the story, even if they actually don't know what they are doing most of the time. Prax is different, an everyman character who represents ourselves and how we would probably react to such an extreme situation. We all like to think that we would be the hero in any disaster, but studies on survival rates all show that most people tend to wait for someone else to step in and save them. One such paper quotes John Leach, a military survival instructor who researches behaviour in extreme environment.
He has found that in life-threatening situations, around 75% of people are so bewildered by the situation that they are unable to think clearly or plot their escape. They become mentally paralysed. Just 15% of people on average manage to remain calm and rational enough to make decisions that could save their lives. (The remaining 10% are plain dangerous: they freak out and hinder the survival chances of everyone else.)
So that's the characters, what about the plot? Well, a lot happens with the protomolecule, for example. All of the major forces - Earth, Mars, the Belt - wants a piece of it, and not for positive reasons. The crash of Eros into Venus is causing major changes to that planet, but much of the action focuses on Ganymede and the aftermath of the battle there. Prax is desperately looking for his sick daughter in the ruins of the station, and has the good fortune to run into Holden and his crew. Bobbie, having seen something kill all of her marines and the opposing Earth forces on the surface of Ganymede, is summoned to Earth to testify but finds herself at odds with her own people. She takes refuge with Avasarala and end up on the Rocinante where they combine forces to try and stop the weaponisation of the protomolecule. Back on Venus, what is happening under the clouds finally makes it's move. And on the Rocinante, Holden has a surprise encounter...
I could say so much more about this story, but just read it (and watch the TV series, it's a fine example of how to transfer from book to TV)
Just a beautiful collection of short stories that really make you think. Apart from the title story, which became the film Arrival, my favourite was "Just a beautiful collection of short stories that really make you think. Apart from the title story, which became the film Arrival, my favourite was "Hell is the absence of God", but all of the stories here were excellent....more
Otherwyrld
>
Books:
science-fiction
(555)
