October Reading Thread

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Elentarri said:
Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction
I enjoyed all the stories. There wasn't a bad egg in the lot!
Ecotones-Anthology.jpg
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I vaguely remember having a story in that.
 
Sort of all over the place with my reading. I'm about 1/2 way through The Children on the Hill by Jennifer McMahon, 75 or so pages into James Tiptree, Jr.: The Double Life of Alice B. Sheldon by Julie Phillips (not making a lot of headway in this one just now), six stories into Her Smoke Rose Up Forever by James Tiptree Jr. and I have four stories left in The Adventures of Ellery Queen.

I plan on forging ahead with the McMahon, which so far is appropriate to the season, and with the Tiptree collection for a GoodReads book club, then finishing the other two over the next month or so.
 
I haven't been doing these lately for no particular reason, so I'll catch up a bit.

I've read the first four books of Glynn Stewart's "Scattered Stars Series." This series is set in the distant future. Humanity has spread to multitudes of stars in the galaxy. Although the Speed of light is not the ultimate barrier it is not traversed by so much so as to make distance a non-factor. I would say it roughly compares to a Clipper ship sailing the Pacific. Information spreads and people spread but the longer a place is settled the more advanced they are. The core worlds are the most advanced. Kira Demirci, the main character, has been a star fighter pilot in the middle ring of human advance, but she and her squad have been sold out (they are not sure by who or for what) and are now being hunted individually. She escapes to a fringe world with a considerable inheritance of money and some advanced (for the fringe) fighters. She sets up a mercenary group and the story runs from there as the mysteries begin to unwind.

There are some Easter Eggs that make me smile. One of the propulsion units are Harringtons. A fighter type is a Manticore. The villains are using Seldonan (Harry Seldon's) mathematics to shape the kind of universe they want. etc. Some might find this book to be interesting because the characters come in all kinds of gender and sexual preferences without it being any kind of big deal at all.

I've read Conviction, Deception, and Equilibrium all of these are very solid Military SF. And I am presently reading Fortitude,

For the series:

Avoid --- Not Recommended --- Flawed --- Okay --- Good --- Recommended --- Shouldn’t be Missed
 
Danny McG said:
This morning I'm starting a brand new SF book, Generation Ship by Michael Mammay
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I'm not sure I'm going to finish this, it's turning into a very tropey tale of a power struggle as the colonists near planetfall.
Will the ship crew prevail over the hidebound admin?
(Who cares really?)
 
I have just started The Studs Terkel Interviews: Film and Theater (2008 reprint and retitling of The Spector: Talk About Movies and Plays With Those Who Made Them, 1999.) The famed oral historian collects a bunch of chats with folks in show business.
 
I'll mention a few others I've read since I've been slacking to post to this site.

I've read The Baron (A modern engineer in the 8th Century) from the Cast in Time series. I suppose I would call this an alternate history book. John Fletcher a man who in the course of his long life has studied all sorts of engineering and was in the military for a time, lies dying and as things go black he wakes up in the Eighth century in Cornwall in the body of a young (25 years old?) Duke who has appeared to die from falling off his horse. So there is a sense of time travel* but at least in the first book and suspect in how ever many follow (1 more presently) there is no travel back and forth. He has a new life with a moderate fortune and a head full of today's engineering insights (the engineer is said to have a photographic memory) as well as a bit of military training.

I found the book entertaining. It's a fun read, especially if you are not too critical about how the society of the 8th century would match up with a whole bunch of innovate ideas. The author is aware of this problem but I don't find his explanations entirely satisfying. It reminds me of a series I read maybe 40 years ago which began with some guy's name (which I've forgotten) with the subtitle "Downtime Engineer." Neither are candidates for an SF prizes, but they are the good positive SF that I love to read.

*The author talks about alternate universe a bit, and there is a hint that this travel might be the result of some vastly superior intelligence.

Avoid --- Not Recommended --- Flawed --- Okay --- Good --- Recommended --- Shouldn’t be Missed
 
Finished the science fiction anthology Worlds Long Lost.
This is an entertaining collection of short stories featuring alien artifacts, first contact, lost civilizations, and interactions with aliens. This collection was a mixed bag for me. Some of the stories were very well written and original, others were ok but just didn't appeal to me. YMMV.​
 
Another “Little Free Library” find, classic YA The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I had seen the movie years ago, but never read this. This is a good read with some interesting social commentary and strong characters. I see why it was popular especially with teens. Definitely don’t think *too* hard about the premise or how this world is supposed to work, though.
 
I just finished The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers. Wow, what a ride! It started off a bit slow, but worked into a crazy adventure involving time travel to an 1800's England with magic and sorcery, a scary clown, inhuman creatures, Egyptian mythology, historical poets, secret societies, and somehow a lot of swimming in the Thames. At times, it got a little confusing as to who is who with all the body-swapping and duplicates. Once the story picks up there is never a dull moment. This is among the most unique adventure stories I have read, with some truly weird happenings among the twists and turns.
 
dask said:
Looks like another must read.
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Probably going on 40 years since I read it (and I should reread it -- that and a few dozen others), but I haven't forgotten how much fun it was. Both Young Sherlock Holmes and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom had moments that made me recall Powers' novel, but neither was as good.
 
OT: Anyone know how much a current 1 year Subscription to 'Fantasy & Science Fiction '
 
Just finished the Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart.

This is a rollercoaster ride of a book, Not sci fi for sure, but described as a 'cult' book so I was drawn to it. The concept revolves around a psychiatrist who decides to put his decisions, in the hands of the dice. I found it be very funny in parts, witty and a little, downright, nuts. Some parts a little like American psycho by Bret Easton Ellis.

On the downside, it did drag on a little. Could have shaved 100 + words off. But enjoyable never the less.

3.5 out of 5 from me.
 
Dave Vicks said:
OT: Anyone know how much a current 1 year Subscription to 'Fantasy & Science Fiction '
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Information here:

Fantasy and Science Fiction: Secure Order Form

The award-winning Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, founded in 1949. The original publisher of Stephen King's Dark Tower, Daniel Keyes's Flowers for Algernon, and Walter M. Miller's A Canticle for Leibowitz.
www.sfsite.com

Your one-year subscription will include 6 big issues for only $39.97. In all other countries, the cost is $55.97 (HST included in Canada).
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