Book Review: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
(Quick note. I have decided to drop the whole ‘current reading list’ deal. I’m not even following it at this point. I’m jumping around as it is and I’ve just come into some review copies and the like that are going to take precedent over my reading list anyway. The only list that will remain constant is my awards list…)Philip K. Dick and his lovely work of art. This book is quite a treat. I’ve never read it before, but heard about it a dozen times. The story is about a bounty hunter named Rick Deckard. What does he hunt? Androids of course. The Earth, as it stands, has become a backwater world after a massive nuclear war that leaves cities in ruins and constant radioactive dust falling everywhere. The people who still live on Earth are lucky to stay alive without going insane, and those are aren’t so lucky to keep their normal brains aren’t even allowed to leave for other colonized worlds (Mars included). To add, humanoid androids are illegal on Earth. They come from Mars, usually going to extreme methods to escape servitude there to find a new life on the fallen Earth. Deckard hunts these androids to ‘retire’ them (which is a fancy way of saying ‘kill’). The story itself takes place when six androids come to Earth and Deckard is brought on to take care of them.This is a fantastic novel. It might come off as a little difficult for some to come by. Some things such as Mercerism (which is the new world religion of Earth) and the Empathy Box might be beyond a lot of you to really comprehend, as they were for me. I wasn’t sure what the whole deal with Mercerism was. Was it intended to be so bizarre that you couldn’t believe it? Or are you led to believe that perhaps the people of Earth have just gone so nuts from the radiation that this is the next step? It’s strange indeed.Still, I found the world Philip created to be quite enthralling. It is dystopic–something I am hoping to perhaps place some heavy study in come the next couple years at UCSC. The world is dark. People are not normal. Animals are so far and few between that to have one is a sign of prestige, of wealth, and to have a rare animal is even more prestigious. People are so driven to own an animal that some buy android animals just so they can mimic others.I recommend everyone read this. It is a staple in the scifi world, hands down.
Book Review: The Elder Gods by David & Leigh Eddings
David Eddings has earned himself a very strong reputation as a great fantasy writer. I am familiar with his earlier work simply because I have heard of it, but have not had the opportunity to read it. I imagine, though, that for those that are a fan of his work, this particular novel will read as less than amazing.The four god siblings–Zelana, Veltan, Dahlaine, and Aracia–are on their way to going back to ‘sleep’ so that their counterparts can return to run the world for a while. But things have gone haywire when a long told event begins to take place. That-Called-the-Vlagh has begun assembling its armies and now wishes to control the world. But That-Called-the-Vlagh has begun in Zelana’s domain first, where her people are nothing more than Native American-esque people who possess no technology whatsoever. Zelena finds she must convince her siblings and the people of their domains to help aid in the oncoming war.(That is a severely diluted synopsis…quite frankly there is way too much going on for me to post an accurate synopsis without giving everything away).The Elder Gods is not necessarily a terrible novel, but it is a severely lacking novel. The story begins much like a mythological tale would, which essentially is information the reader doesn’t necessarily need at first. We generally can grasp the concept of multiple gods without need of explanation, and again we don’t need an explanation of who the bad guys are from the start. Such information should be learned by the main characters.The characters in this novel are varied. Some of the best characters should have remained the main human characters, but unfortunately Eddings goes off on some characters that really aren’t all that important at all. Characters of note are: Captain Sorgan Hook-beak, Longbow, and Rabbit. There are secondary characters I liked too–Eleria especially. Now, Eddings runs into a problem I’ve mentioned before in reference to other books: he has way too many character viewpoints going on. Three would have sufficed, but Eddings switching POV not only in the beginning half, but in the second half as well. There is no clearly defined main character. Zelena, who starts as the main character, suddenly falls off into no-man’s land and doesn’t even get the benefit of being important towards the end of the book. Hook-beak, who should have had a greater presence, has the same issue towards the end as well. Rabbit, who we know about for a while and suddenly are thrown into his head, gains a presence half way through the book rather than having one earlier. I liked Rabbit, but the problem was that he wasn’t really introduced until Longbow speaks to him. This POV jumping and what not really hurts the pace of the novel.Another issue was that Eddings constantly has characters retell the same information to other characters. Rather than just saying “He told Hook-beak what Eleria had mentioned to him” or something of that nature, he goes on for huge paragraphs having the characters tell the information. This happens over and over until the last 30 pages when characters stop doing that and he simply does what I mentioned in the quotes. Why all of a sudden? I don’t get it. But it wastes valuable time and space to have the characters do this over and over.One thing I did notice about this book is that it is written almost as if it were intended for a younger audience. The language indicates this very much. That isn’t a bad thing, but it does play out in how the individual characters speak, which comes off as somewhat unbelievable. Characters with huge reputations likely would not speak like 10 year olds.Last of my issues was with the battles. I’m going to spoil this for everyone because I want to. Towards the end all these people from other continents have been paid to come out and fight the battle. Nothing bad happens to the army as it travels across a wide ocean. Then again, when they begin to fight the enemy, which is supposed to be somewhat of a hive mind, first a massive flood takes place that kills the first wave. Then a volcano explodes and kills the rest of the Vlagh army. Very few good guys actually die, which is disturbing because Eddings tries to make it seem like the Vlagh is actually rather sneaky, which would make for a rather prolonged and arduous battle. Needless to say, EVERYTHING GOES RIGHT FOR THE GOOD GUYS. Where’s the conflict? Shouldn’t something go wrong? Shouldn’t something be hard? Now, I’ve rambled on and on about this book. I personally would not recommend this to anyone unless you are a die hard Eddings fan. It is probably not even close to his best work. So, read at your own risk.
Book Review: Neuromancer by William Gibson
Note: This is not on my review list because it is from my scifi/fantasy lit class. But since Elder Gods is a long book–and not one of the best books I’ve read thus far–I don’t know if I’ll be ready to review it until sunday. Now, Neuromancer is one of those books that has created itself a whole league of copycats and followers–much like Lord of the Rings did. There’s a good reason why: it is possibly the first book to ever suggest that computer technology would advance so far that things similar to ‘The Matrix’ could actually be possible. Gibson coined so many phrases, words, etc. in this one book alone.That being said, such books are also the type that tend to be a little less accessible to a wider range of audiences, and for good reason. If you aren’t prepared for the most complex, convoluted, and indepth of fantasy worlds, then you’ll likely never like LOTR. This isn’t to say that LOTR was a bad story, but for a wide audience it is not really the type of book that can be simply grasped. Most readers look for books they can just read and not have to think too much about. Neuromancer is one of those less accessible books. Gibson has created a fascinating world that seems on the surface to be a post apocalyptic, or dystopic technologically advanced place where violence, crime, and drugs are as much the norm as corruption and nifty gadgets…The story is about Case, a ‘cowboy’ as he likes to refer to himself, or at least a ‘former cowboy’. What is a cowboy? Well, think back to what exactly a cowboy is to begin with. Way back in the day, a cowboy wasn’t your run of the mill westerner, rather they were in some ways the outcasts, the rugged people. Well, take that and add technology. Cowboys in Gibson’s novel are essentially your outcasts–illegal hackers if you will. Case is crippled from stealing from his previous employer, who took revenge by damaging Case’s body so much that he can no longer ‘jack in’ to the ‘matrix’–not the same as the movie, but similar in that he has nodes on the back of his head, he visually sees a world of programs and code and even things that seem real, etc.Now comes Armitage, a rather mysterious figure, who claims to be able to cure Case’s problem provided that Case works for him–and Molly, a cyber-samurai with implants over her eyes to protect them, and a load of other interesting cyber-implants. Case jumps on it. You would too if you were offered your life back. Case soon finds himself in a twisted battle of AI’s and other bizarre things that even now come to me in a haze of confusion.The book is bold to say the least. Gibson did his research–or I think he did as I am not a computer junky, and neither is Gibson by the way. The world he’s constructed is rather believable–a massive city complex called the Sprawl that is nothing more than a city growth stretching from Boston to Atlanta, illegal hackers, druggies, gangsters, implant ridden henchmen, and the like. There’s so much more to the world he has created that I would likely have to write a rather long paper just to describe it to you in its entirety.The biggest problem with this book is in Gibson’s style of writing. He is not the most intriguing of prose writers and he has tried hard to tackle a subject that would suggest that there is little need for such prose to begin with. When you’re talking technojargon it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain the literary style many of us are accustomed to in speculative fiction. Because of this onset of massive new slang and the like, I found it very hard to keep track of everything that was going on. This is one of those novels that you should probably read a couple times to get a better idea of what exactly is going on.Needless to say, this book is mind boggling. I did enjoy it quite a bit, and the discussion in class was rather riveting.
Book Review: Ninja by Racy Li
I originally won this in the Debut A Debut Contest at Writing Aspirations for my review of Tower of Shadows by Drew Bowling–basically I was randomly picked out of a hat. I had originally thought to possible read this book for the contest, but decided to pick a ‘safer’ book due to its critical acclaim and what not. Now I know why I don’t listen to critics and should be listening to the little guy inside my head.Now, Ninja is not your typical science fiction style novel. Actually, it’s so far from what I normally read that I can’t necessarily recommend it to anyone unless they are the type who enjoys this style of literature. What style is that? Erotica. And not just normal erotica, but some strange mixture of urban fantasy, scifi, and naughty erotic fiction. Having said that it has to be mentioned that because Ninja is erotica, there is heavy emphasis on sex and its related topics–graphic sex scenes, etc. I had to initially come into this book with a very open mind. Would I have normally picked this up (or downloaded it as it is an e-book)? I can’t say. If it were just an erotic novel without any of the nifty scifi stuff in it, I probably wouldn’t have given it a second glance. However, because Ninja has so much scifi and fantasy woven into the steamy love story I managed to plow right through it with my interest peaked.Synopsis (Racy Li’s version): In a parallel world of alchemy, demons and superheroes, even the most ordinary may harbor the most extraordinary of secrets. Liz Blackwell leads a double life, as an attorney by day, and a freelance spy on the side. Unknown to her, her geeky secretary Kent Alistair is the mysterious superhero known simply as “Ninja.” In the middle of an international game of crime wars, demons and mystical objects, can these two people learn to trust each other before it is too late? Now, this world is a rather interesting one when it comes to genres. On one hand you have a world set after an alien invasion by a species known as the Joran, which in turn releases all the magic energy that creates all these superheroes, etc. On the other you have superheroes such as “Ninja”, most of which are supposed to be registered by the government–well a certain entity of it. Then you also have magic and such. All this is woven into the world Li has created. Personally I thought she did a fine job pulling all these very opposite genre related ideas together.Writing wise, Li is a decent writer. I found some grammatical errors and spelling errors, but otherwise I was not at any point confused by what she was saying or attempting to portray. The sex scenes were…well….steamy to say the least. For my tastes certain scenes were a little more risqué than I am comfortable with. Again, this is personal taste. Perhaps you like such scenes and would enjoy them a lot more than I did.I think some of my favorite parts of the the book were in the descriptions of Ninja and his abilities. She has taken what we commonly know as a ninja and added on very powerful and magical based abilities. Ninja’s can pass through shadow unseen for example, and not just “hiding” but actually practically invisible. So you learn really quick that in order to stop a ninja you have to have LOTS OF LIGHTS. There’s other things too, such as how alchemists access their abilities, what they can control, how dangerous they are, etc.The book ends pretty much giving you the hint that there will be a sequel, or should be. I am curious to see how all pans out in the end if such a book is written.So if you are into erotica, this book is for you. If you can’t handle erotica, avoid it. If you’ve always wanted a very futuristic or fantastic setting mixed with hot, steamy, and wildly passionate sex scenes and a strong–and very human–love story, then you should definitely check it out. You can find her website here.
Book Review: Shadowfall by James Clemens
This is by far one of the best fantasy novels I have read in a long time. Clemens’ writing style is exceptionally strong and he proves that having multiple viewpoints can be worked successfully. One of the things that makes it work is the length. There is plenty of time to establish who the characters are, where they are from, their histories, etc. I found myself, especially towards the end, on the edge of my seat. Unlike other fantasy novels–Tower of Shadows being a prime example–Clemens doesn’t show you the viewpoint from the villians. You don’t know at any point who really is the bad guy. And because you aren’t given that viewpoint the twists and turns come as an even greater surprise.Synopsis (my version): Tyler is a fallen knight in the world of Myrillia where knights serve the many gods who live among man on the earth. He has had everything stripped from him: his future wife, his health, his pride and prestige. Then one night he witnesses the slaying of a god, something that is supposed to be impossible. When he goes to the dying god she blesses him with her own grace (magic basically) and he is immediately accused of being a godslayer. He finds that he has to uncover a vast conspiracy to clear his name and prove that despite a great daemon–left by the dying god–now held within his flesh, he is not a godslayer.Dart is a girl studying to be Handmaiden for whichever god will take her. There is something about her that nobody really knows about. She has an ‘imaginary’ beast friend who not really imaginary at all, but a constant companion to her. She too gets sucked up into the conspiracy working to destroy the foundations of Myrillia.Kathryn is a Shadowknight (one of the knights that serves the gods). She also was formerly betrothed to Tylar. But news that he still lives and that he may be coming to kill he brings her into a struggle with discovering who is really trying to tear down Myrillia from the ground up. Is it a group of dissenters known as the Fiery Cross? Or someone else? Could it be Tylar? You can’t go wrong with this book. The characters are exceptional and drawn so well that you truly get an idea of who they are. The action is described perfectly, drawing you in. I didn’t even notice that the book had many common cliches until the end, which immediately tells me that Clemen’s writes in such a way that even common fantasy themes seem new. The world he has created–Myrillia–is fantastic. His system of gods and magic (called Grade, like God’s Grace) is elaborate and powerful. You can easily grasp the limitations of it.My favorite character in the book is Dart, and I’m not entirely sure why–at least I can’t really say why because it gives way too much away about what happens in the book and I am not fan of spoilers. I think perhaps I like her because what she suffers is something some might call far worse than anything Tylar suffers. Read and you’ll understand what I mean. I gather a lot of women would agree on that matter, then again, many might disagree. But I’m a man, so I can’t say for certain.The only problems I had with the book were based on my personal tastes. There are several scenes that he writes with great detail that just made my skin crawl. One in particular is a rape scene. I personally found myself disgusted. This is not to say that Clemens did a bad job, not at all. He wrote them well and got the desired effect from me I imagine. I just personally have problems reading scenes that describe such events in any detail whatsoever. I personally could never write such scenes–well that might be true, but I would certainly have a hard time doing it.Nonetheless, this is a definite must read. Note this is not a children’s book, so please don’t read it to your children. It is very violent in some areas in such a way that is necessary. It is not excessive and not unneeded. Give it a read. I personally loved this book and hope many of you will too!
Book Review: Childhood’s End by Arthur C. Clarke
First things first, I need to make a note about my reviews. A lot of discussion has been made over my review of Tower of Shadows by Drew Bowling, much of which is disagreement. I have nothing against a disagreement, but I do find it interesting that many automatically think I must be wrong in my assertion that TOS is not really that good of a book simply because they liked it. This isn’t to say that I don’t want comments and disagreement in the future, but I want everyone to realize one thing: these are based on my opinions. If I don’t like a book, then I don’t like it. There’s no going around that for me. I will explain the reasons why I don’t like it, and leave it to everyone else to decide. I’m not the end all / be all on this subject. This is simply my opinion. Take my thoughts however you like, just take notice that just because you like a book doesn’t mean that I should like it. We all have different tastes.Now to the review. Most of us who read SF have read works by Clarke or have at least heard about him. He is, after all, one of the most popular ‘golden age’ SF authors. So, by saying this I want it to be clear that Childhood’s End is a classic. It was written in a time when SF had practically no foothold whatsoever in the mainstream market. Like Foundation by Isaac Asimov, Childhood’s End was written in installments and published in magazines. I didn’t know this when I first started reading it, but now that I do know this it makes some of my dislikes for the book less pronounced. I have to now take into account that rather than a full fledged novel, this book is more like a set of connected short stories all set in the same universe on the same plotline.The synopsis is this:Set in a not so distant future (at least when it was written) an alien race known as the Overlords comes to Earth in giant ships (think Independence Day, only not violent). They establish themselves as overseers of Mankind, ridding the world of war, famine, prejudice, racism, etc. All this is done without violence. The Overlords could easily wipe out Mankind, but that is not their goal. They are there to establish a long lasting peace, a veritable utopia where none go hungry and everyone can live a life of leisure.But something else is going on, something that Mankind is not prepared for and could very well make them extinct… That synopsis is somewhat vague simply because I cannot give anything at all away or it would ruin the ending of the book. I can tell you this, you will have one of two reactions to the end: you’ll either feel sad and sympathetic, or you will be angry.Now, stylistically speaking Clarke is a very good writer–one of the best really when you think about it. He is able to draw you into the characters deep enough to care about them even though you know them for such a short time (remember, written in short story installments).The only thing I didn’t like about the book was the ending. To me it seemed far too sudden and I can’t imagine reacting in the way the characters did to the final twist. This isn’t to say that the ending is unbelievable, although scientifically speaking from a more modern view it does seem tremendously unlikely, but it is saying that the ending seemed somewhat out of place. Many in my lit class discussed this same subject. Some liked the ending, others didn’t. I personally didn’t much care for the ending.Regardless, this is a classic. A must read. If you are into the foundations of SF, as I am, then you should probably pick this one up, along with Foundation by Isaac Asimov and early works by Poul Anderson and the like. For a classic it is good; but from a modern prospective it lacks due to various circumstances. Still, I’m glad I read it.