As anyone who knows me (or anyone else in my family) knows, I (we) read a lot. Not as much as some people, but more than many. So, here's a list of books I've read since June of 2001 (most recent at the top):
The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman. I was actually given a used copy of this book by someone who thought I resembled the guy on the cover. On reading it, I found that I'd already read the first section, as part of an anthology of military science fiction. Still a good read, though. Basically it covers the military career of this guy who's in the army for about 5 years subjective time, but about 1000 years Earth time (due to relativity and the distances involved in inter-Galactic war). It deals with how society changes and how he has to react to those changes. Pretty interesting stuff.
The Diamond Age, by Neal Stephenson - I'm about a third of the way through this (as of April 8/04), it's one of his earlier works but still not bad. What is it about "cyberpunk" authors (him and William Gibson anyway) that the more books they write, the closer to the present they get?
And, speaking of William Gibson, I've recently read Pattern Recognition. It's not bad at all. Set in what's basically present-day Europe, it's plausible wihtout being too real, which is what you want in Science Fiction that's set "thirty seconds into the future" to quote the old Max Headroom TV series.
The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies Of The Apocalypse by Robert Rankin. This is a fun little book. It starts with a boy, on his way to The City to make his fortune. On the way he's accosted by a cannibal farmer, but steals the farmer's horse and gold, and gets to the city. He's mugged, and wakes up to a teddy bear telling him to get up. It turns out that the teddy bear is a detective investigating the death of Humpty Dumpty. Then Little Boy Blue is killed, and the bodies start to pile up. From there it gets a little strange... If you like British "not-quite-fantasy, not-quite-humour" like Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, or the Red Dwarf stuff, you'll probably like this. And if you don't, then you won't. I like it - apparently he's got a couple more books, including Nostradamus Ate My Hamster, which I'll be looking for now...
Paying the Piper, the latest Hammer's Slammers book by David Drake. This one seems a bit more disjointed than the others, jumps around a fair bit more, but is still a good read overall. You do start to wonder exactly who the protaganist will sleep with, since he's hit on by at least three different women in the course of the book. Fortunately, Mr. Drake (unlike some other SciFi/Fantasy authors) knows he's not writing porn, and leaves the anatomical descriptions out. If you're a fan of Military Sci-Fi (a very specific sub-genre, admittedly), then check it out. Just try not to think about how 30-ton vehicles could be "hovercraft".
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (by J. K. Rowlings, duh!) is a 700-plus page book. For the most part, it's worth the read. Keep in mind that Harry is now a teenager, and as such is a whiny little jerk at times. This book is sort of pivotal - it sets the stage for major stuff to happen in the next two books. And yes, someone does die, which affects Harry greatly, but I was sort of like, "who's that again? Oh, yeah, him." Anyway, good stuff, but read the other four books in order first!
Major and Lieutenant Colonel, the next two books in the DMC series by Rick Shelley (see below for the others). Still good, solid writing, but unfortunately after five books (and maybe 20 years elapsed time in the books) I'd expect the character to have undergone a little more growth.
Virtual Light and Idoru, both by William Gibson. William Gibson is, like, a minor diety of the Cyberpunk genre, having more or less singlehandedly coined the term "cyberspace" with his earlier Neuromancer trilogy. The Idoru trilogy (these two books, plus All Tomorrow's Parties) moves somewhat closer to now, in a world that's maybe 6 months (or maybe 60 years) from our own. All of his books are strongly recommended if you ever want to have an intelligent conversation with me. BTW, this isn't the first time I've read them, I'm just re-reading them for the pleasure of it.
Captain, the third book in the DMC series by Rick Shelley (see below for the first two) is a decently written, if somewhat pedestrian, tale. I think that this is a "gem" in the military science-fiction genre mainly because there are so few books in the mil-sf genre to begin with. (Hint: Star Trek is not military, and barely qualifies as sci-fi.) Other than David Drake there aren't a lot of standout authors in this field, which is unfortunate.
Sourcery, by Terry Pratchett. Well. Another Terry Pratchett. Another funny book. Need I say more? No.
Lord of Light, by Roger Zelazny (better known, perhaps, for the Chronicles of Amber series) is an interesting Sci-Fi book wherein a planet has been settled and the crew of the ship are worshipped as the Hindu gods by the descendants of the settlers. Reincarnation via some sort of soul/mind transfer figures prominently. I'm halfway through it, it's a bit slow going but it's interesting. The story is that "Sam", also variously referred to as the Buddha and other reverential names, is trying to free the world from their gods. A strange book.
Officer Cadet and Lieutenant are the first two books of the DMC (Dirigent Mercenary Corps) books by Rick Shelley. Pretty good reads, the series follows the rise of a young officer through the ranks of a mercenary company in the far future. I'm looking forwards to the others in this series.
Speaking of series I'm reading, I'm also reading the Starfist series, about a group of space marines. I've read the first two, First to Fight and School of Fire. These are written by David Sherman and Dan Cragg, and these guys have enough military experience between them to know how troops will act and react, whether you're in the far-flung future or marching the Alps with Hannibal. Highly enjoyable. The only problem is, I keep getting confused between this series and the above! (BTW, I just found something out - you'll always want to make sure you spell "whether" with that first "h" - if you spell it "wether" then you're referring to a castrated ram. Which can't make the ram happy.)
Jhereg, by Steven Brust. Kind of an odd book, not sure if it's sci-fi or fantasy - there's a lot of magic in it (three types - witchcraft, sorcery, and psionics). Anyway, this particular book follows the adventures of a professional assassin in a world where death isn't usually permanent. Interesting, and short (239 pages), which is rather welcome in these days when everyone wants to be the next Tolkien.
Wyrd Sisters, another of Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. As usual, some very funny bits in the understated British fashion. Seems to drag in spots, and is definitely not the top of the heap, but still a worth addition to the series.
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. A classic of science fiction, this book should be required reading for anyone who considers themselves a fan of the genre. Overall, quite excellent. The moral implication of the story seems to be that, although sometimes military action is not only justified but a moral imperative, both society and the individual must be prepared to deal with the implications of such an action.
Equal Rites and Mort, by Terry Pratchett. More Discworld. More antics. More zaniness. More fun. Need more adjectives. However, these are distinct from The Colour of Magic/The Light Fantastic - Rincewind the wizard wanna-be hardly appears, and there's no mention of the tourist or his trunk at all. Instead, Equal Rites follows the adventures of the first woman ever to become a sorcerer (on the Discworld, men are sorcerers, women are witches, and it's a different sort of magic entirely), and Mort follows the adventures of the apprentice to, er, Death. Both are pretty good.
Primary Colors, by Anonymous, is the book that rocked the American political establishment a few years back. Supposedly fictitious, many people feel that it is really a thinly-veiled insider's look at the campaigning Bill Clinton (and his wife) did in the run-up to winning the Democratic nomination for president in 1992. Personally, I have enough trouble remembering who's Democratic and who's Republican. But it is an interesting look at the back rooms of American politics. If you like The West Wing (the TV show), then you'll probably like this, too.
The Light Fantastic, by Terry Pratchett, is really part two of The Colour of Magic (see below), in which all the plot lines get resolved, new ones get opened up and left dangling, and our hero Rincewind the Wizard is saved from an untimely death. Funny, too.
Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson (the same guy who wrote Cryptonomicon). Neal's kinda like William Gibson - doesn't know beans about computers, but manages to put together a nicely crafted tale of the near future (AKA "cyberpunk"). A good book, even if his ideas about language and evolution are a little weird.
Chile Death by Susan Wittig Albert is a "China Bayles" mystery - yet another series about a strong but vulnerable woman who is thrust into the middle of solving a crime, putting herself and her family in danger, etc, etc. Bleah. Lynne bought it, I'm just reading it for the bits about chili and chiles. If you don't know the difference between chili and chile, this book will teach you. A couple of interesting recipes, too.
The Colour Of Magic by Terry Pratchett is the first of the Discworld books (at 25 or so and counting, I don't think they can respectably be called a trilogy - perhaps "series"?), and is full of the same biting wit as the other one I reviewed (see below). If you've got some time, you could do worse than spending it with Terry Pratchett and his hapless wizard Rincewind.
Valour's Choice by Tanya Huff. Interesting sci-fi, probably not for everyone. One thing that bugs me about it is something that bugs me about some sci-fi in general - the author uses it as a thinly-veiled excuse to advance their own viewpoint on morality and sexuality. Look, I'll sleep with who I want to, and you sleep with who you want to. Unless you're offering me home movies of it, (hey, I won't normally refuse free porn, okay?) your choice doesn't affect me, so quit parading it in my face, okay?
Uther by Jack Whyte, is an examination of the father of probably the most famous king of all time - Arthur. This book covers from Uther's birth to his death and the subsequent adoption of Arthur by Merlin. Overall, rather well done and seems to dovetail nicely with Bernard Cornwell's Arthurian trilogy (see below). The last hundred pages or so (in which the author basically kills off everyone in the book) is a bit of a downer.
I'm Just Here For The Food by Alton Brown. This is a cookbook, but not in the classic "add two cups flour, bake at 1350 degrees until flames shoot out of your oven" type. This is a book for those who want to really know how to cook - i.e. how does deepfrying work? Highly recommended.
Werehunter by Mercedes Lackey. This is sort of interesting - I've been reading this book off-and-on at the Baen Free Library. It's sort of like giving the first hit of crack for free, because as a result I've gone out and bought a couple of her books (reviews to come later). Anyway, this first one is a collection of her short stories, and although all such anthologies tend to be hit-and-miss, there's enough quality there to keep me coming back. Here's the real irony: I've been reading her online, because originally I discovered some of her filk on KaZaa. Who says filesharing doesn't work? UPDATE (Feb/03): Apparently Ms. Lackey doesn't like filesharing. Apparently she doesn't like new readers. Oh, well.
The Harlequin by Bernard Cornwell. Mr. Cornwell does it again (see below for my review of his Arthurian trilogy), this time using the beginning of the Hundred-years war as the setting for a tale of treachery, revenge, love, and religious artifacts. Looking forwards to the second book (this is supposed to be another trilogy, I believe).
Tough Cookie by Diane Mott Davidson. Another in her series about a caterer who keeps accidentally being wrapped up in various mysteries. I'm waiting for someone (either the bad guys or the police) to just shoot the protaganist and be done with it. Her son is getting whinier, too.
Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett. The first Terry Pratchett book I've read, but I will definitely be on the look-out for more. Reminds me of the Xanth novels by Piers Anthony, except Mr. Pratchett doesn't have to stretch nearly as much for his puns...
The Chosen by David Drake and S. M. Stirling. I wanted to like this book. I love David Drake's military sci-fi (Hammer's Slammers books), and I have a great deal of respect for S. M. Stirling. But I just couldn't. It started out with promise, being a sort of "sequel" to Drake's series The General (including The Hammer and The Forge). But it rapidly gets silly. Between running through a hundred years or so of human technological evolution in about 20, skipping through time without bothering to tell the reader, and making the bad guys such heavy-handed Nazi wanna-bes, it was simply annoying.
Trick or Treat Murder, by Leslie Meier. Another "bored housewife solves murders in her spare time" murder. Very run-of-the-mill. Ending is not really a surprise, and characterizations are weak at best. Boring.
The Winter King, Enemy of God, and Excalibur, all in the Warlord Chronicles series by Bernard Cornwell (better known to many as the author of the Sharpe's books). This is a fascinating re-telling of the Arthurian legend, somewhat more historically accurate than most (i.e. a bunch of squalling celtic chieftains, hardly any platemail, and no huge honking castles). Has some interesting things to say about early Christianity, too...
A Year In Provence and the sequel, Encore Provence, both by Peter Mayle. Nice, refreshing books, with a view of rural France.
The Lord of the Rings trilogy (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King), plus The Hobbit, all by J. R. R. Tolkien. If you don't know these books by now, please crawl back under your rock - or just go see the damn movie already.
Babylon 5: The Passing of the Techno-Mages Book III - Invoking Darkness, by Jeanne Cavelos, wraps up the Techno-mage trilogy, and a few loose ends from the series as well. Nice.
The Quiet Soldier by Adam Ballinger is the true story of how the author joined 21 SAS - the reserve component of the famous British Special Warfare unit. It's a good read, if you're interested in that sort of thing (which I am), and gives you an idea of just how in-shape those folks have to be. I liked it.
Babylon 5: The Passing of the Techno-Mages Book II - Summoning Light, by Jeanne Cavelos, is not only an incredibly long-titled book, it's also a good read if you're a Babylon 5 fan. As I've said before, if you're not, why not go somewhere else? Anyway, this book reveals an awful lot about the background behind the techno-mages, and it runs before, during, and after the B5 episode The Geometry of Shadows (Season II). Highly recommended.
Death by Darjeeling by Laura Childs. Hmm. Yet another in a long line of amateur-detective mysteries brought into the house by Lynne - this one for some online book club she's in. Anyway, it's a well-written, poorly designed book whose narration tends to jump around. She calls her heroine "Theodosia" (UGH!), and sets it in the deep South of the US without managing to capture more than the tiniest slice of the charm of that region. However, you will learn a bit about the art and science of Tea (but only a bit). It also has a recipe in the back for Theodosia's Tea-Marbled Eggs, which would be nice if I liked eggs. I don't. Stick to the Diane Mott Davidson books if you like this genre - at least they have more recipes.
The Main Corpse, by Diane Mott Davidson. Another in a series of books about a caterer who keeps getting involved in murder cases. I'm surprised anyone will still talk to her - people keep dying while she's around. Anyway, the books aren't bad, and usually include a dozen recipes (this one has a recipe for dog biscuits, among others).
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, by J. K. Rowling. If you still haven't read these books, please do me a favour. Shut down your computer, go outside (that's the big blue room), find a library, and find these books. And no, I'm not going to tell you who dies.
Soldiers Live: A Novel of the Black Company by Glen Cook. Normally, I hate picking up a book in a series if I haven't read all the preceding books. With this book, although that would have helped a bit, it wasn't completely necessary. It's a novel about a group of sword-and-sorcery mercenaries (the forementioned Black Company) who are on this strange dimensional plane and trying to get back to their own world. And you know what? It didn't completely suck.
Looking for something to read? Check out Project Gutenberg, named after the Gutenberg press, and a great source for free e-text copies of some of the classics of literature! Also, check the Baen Free Library for free copies of books by some more modern authors!!!