Booklogorrhea
Jun. 3rd, 2008 11:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
trinityofoneI was going to wait till I had 10, but I had these written up and the Chevy guys are being slow with their copy, so why not. Might as well round-off May, right?
81. Murder Must Advertise, Dorothy L. Sayers — Reread. This remains pretty much my favorite Wimsey novel despite the lack of (or rather, mere one sentence allusion to) Harriet. Peter undercover is a joy to behold, as is the climactic cricket game.
Hell, this is a book with a climactic cricket game. I'm sold.
82. Apex Hides the Hurt, Colson Whitehead — A nameless nomenclature consultant who’s had a bit of a nervous breakdown is hired by a small town to lend his expertise to the renaming of their community. This book didn’t really work for me. I found the prose very flat, and the way the plot progressed—interspersed with flashbacks exploring the reasons behind the protagonist’s meltdown—offered no surprises. I felt like—even though Whitehead clearly had some interesting ideas about community, race, identity, and history—I’d read this book before, or at least many very much like it. It wasn’t a bad book, but it struck me as very run-of-the-mill, and since it lacked any particularly dynamic characters or stylistic choices (the unnamed protagonist worked far less well for me as a device than the second person plural in Then We Came to the End, for example), the reader is ultimately not left with very much.
83. Four and Twenty Blackbirds, Cherie Priest — Another one I found underwhelming. Priest tries to capture a Southern Gothic atmosphere, and while she makes use of a lot of excellent, classic set pieces—swamps and cemeteries; abandoned hospitals and dark cellars—the first person narrative mostly failed to capture a sense of immediate terror or danger. Maybe this is because Eden, the protagonist, is so detached and hipstery—I guess it’s supposed to make her seem tough, but when she hardly seems to care what happens to her, it’s hard for me to. I also found the plot a bit confusing and convoluted—it’s all about Eden’s twisted family tree, and some voodoo-type magic stuff I didn’t really get, and reincarnation, maybe? I really don’t know. In horror, I tend to think simple really is better, which makes a horror/mystery like this hard to pull off.
What sucks is, I accidentally bought the sequel to this thinking it was the first volume, because apparently the publishers want to make the books’ order as confusing as possible. Now I’m trying to figure out if I want to bother reading it or not. At the moment I’m actually leaning toward not.
84. Magic Study, Maria V. Snyder — Like its predecessor, Poison Study, this book is not very well-written, but still quite entertaining and fun. I liked it less than the first book in the series, mostly because the best characters—Yelena’s love interest, Valek, whom Snyder succeeds in making seem genuinely dangerous (in an admittedly “fanon version of Snape” sort of way); and Yelena’s buddies, the “we’re totally doing each other” duo of Ari and Janco—were absent for the first half of the novel. By herself, learning about her special special powers, Yelena’s Mary Sue-ish qualities are even more apparent than usual; however, despite token “weaknesses” like “headstrongness,” I at least don’t find Yelena to be a particularly annoying Mary Sue. These books are quite fun, and sometimes, that’s just what you need.
85. Forty Signs of Rain, Kim Stanley Robinson — I thought I should finally try some Kim Stanley Robinson, as he’s kind of a classic at this point, not to mention one of![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
wychwood’s favorite authors. This was…huh. I’m not really sure what this was. It was the first book in a trilogy, certainly—I’m not sure I’ve ever read such a long book that was almost entirely setup. Seriously, almost nothing happened until the very end—though that end is very dramatic. I wasn’t particularly wowed by the writing—DUDE PUNCTUATE YOUR DIALOGUE DO YOU SEE HOW ANNOYING THIS IS KTHX—or the characters, either; Frank was pretty much the only one who grabbed me, and I found him to be an asshole most of the time. Still…I kind of want to read the next volume and see what happens next. I mean, Robinson’s got to be building to something, right? Also, I just like the idea of there being a series about science and political intrigue and global warming. Therefore, I am kind of determined to like these books despite my reservations. Bring on volume two!
86. The Entropy Effect, Vonda N. McIntyre — Well, there’s another item I can cross off the Great Geek Checklist: Read a Star Trek Tie-In Novel. Check—and my chances of getting laid are once again reduced! ;-)
This wasn’t at all bad. It was pretty well-written; there was a nice subplot with Sulu (though McIntyre gives him a truly dreadful-sounding new hairstyle that I kept hoping would somehow figure into the plot—but it DIDN’T); and there was a SUPREMELY gay Kirk/Spock moment toward the end that made me giggle with glee. However, the time travel plot was a bit convoluted in my opinion, and it resolved itself rather too quickly—I’ve seen the same sort of story done better. Still, if more tie-in novels were this good, I might actually read them.
Or maybe not. In truth, I don’t think I really want to read derivative works unless there are sexy bits in ’em. I AM SHALLOW OKAY.
Total Books: 86
81. Murder Must Advertise, Dorothy L. Sayers — Reread. This remains pretty much my favorite Wimsey novel despite the lack of (or rather, mere one sentence allusion to) Harriet. Peter undercover is a joy to behold, as is the climactic cricket game.
Hell, this is a book with a climactic cricket game. I'm sold.
82. Apex Hides the Hurt, Colson Whitehead — A nameless nomenclature consultant who’s had a bit of a nervous breakdown is hired by a small town to lend his expertise to the renaming of their community. This book didn’t really work for me. I found the prose very flat, and the way the plot progressed—interspersed with flashbacks exploring the reasons behind the protagonist’s meltdown—offered no surprises. I felt like—even though Whitehead clearly had some interesting ideas about community, race, identity, and history—I’d read this book before, or at least many very much like it. It wasn’t a bad book, but it struck me as very run-of-the-mill, and since it lacked any particularly dynamic characters or stylistic choices (the unnamed protagonist worked far less well for me as a device than the second person plural in Then We Came to the End, for example), the reader is ultimately not left with very much.
83. Four and Twenty Blackbirds, Cherie Priest — Another one I found underwhelming. Priest tries to capture a Southern Gothic atmosphere, and while she makes use of a lot of excellent, classic set pieces—swamps and cemeteries; abandoned hospitals and dark cellars—the first person narrative mostly failed to capture a sense of immediate terror or danger. Maybe this is because Eden, the protagonist, is so detached and hipstery—I guess it’s supposed to make her seem tough, but when she hardly seems to care what happens to her, it’s hard for me to. I also found the plot a bit confusing and convoluted—it’s all about Eden’s twisted family tree, and some voodoo-type magic stuff I didn’t really get, and reincarnation, maybe? I really don’t know. In horror, I tend to think simple really is better, which makes a horror/mystery like this hard to pull off.
What sucks is, I accidentally bought the sequel to this thinking it was the first volume, because apparently the publishers want to make the books’ order as confusing as possible. Now I’m trying to figure out if I want to bother reading it or not. At the moment I’m actually leaning toward not.
84. Magic Study, Maria V. Snyder — Like its predecessor, Poison Study, this book is not very well-written, but still quite entertaining and fun. I liked it less than the first book in the series, mostly because the best characters—Yelena’s love interest, Valek, whom Snyder succeeds in making seem genuinely dangerous (in an admittedly “fanon version of Snape” sort of way); and Yelena’s buddies, the “we’re totally doing each other” duo of Ari and Janco—were absent for the first half of the novel. By herself, learning about her special special powers, Yelena’s Mary Sue-ish qualities are even more apparent than usual; however, despite token “weaknesses” like “headstrongness,” I at least don’t find Yelena to be a particularly annoying Mary Sue. These books are quite fun, and sometimes, that’s just what you need.
85. Forty Signs of Rain, Kim Stanley Robinson — I thought I should finally try some Kim Stanley Robinson, as he’s kind of a classic at this point, not to mention one of
wychwood’s favorite authors. This was…huh. I’m not really sure what this was. It was the first book in a trilogy, certainly—I’m not sure I’ve ever read such a long book that was almost entirely setup. Seriously, almost nothing happened until the very end—though that end is very dramatic. I wasn’t particularly wowed by the writing—DUDE PUNCTUATE YOUR DIALOGUE DO YOU SEE HOW ANNOYING THIS IS KTHX—or the characters, either; Frank was pretty much the only one who grabbed me, and I found him to be an asshole most of the time. Still…I kind of want to read the next volume and see what happens next. I mean, Robinson’s got to be building to something, right? Also, I just like the idea of there being a series about science and political intrigue and global warming. Therefore, I am kind of determined to like these books despite my reservations. Bring on volume two!86. The Entropy Effect, Vonda N. McIntyre — Well, there’s another item I can cross off the Great Geek Checklist: Read a Star Trek Tie-In Novel. Check—and my chances of getting laid are once again reduced! ;-)
This wasn’t at all bad. It was pretty well-written; there was a nice subplot with Sulu (though McIntyre gives him a truly dreadful-sounding new hairstyle that I kept hoping would somehow figure into the plot—but it DIDN’T); and there was a SUPREMELY gay Kirk/Spock moment toward the end that made me giggle with glee. However, the time travel plot was a bit convoluted in my opinion, and it resolved itself rather too quickly—I’ve seen the same sort of story done better. Still, if more tie-in novels were this good, I might actually read them.
Or maybe not. In truth, I don’t think I really want to read derivative works unless there are sexy bits in ’em. I AM SHALLOW OKAY.
Total Books: 86
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-03 06:18 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-03 09:50 pm (UTC)except for the X-Men/TNG one
I'm sorry, what? WHAT? *brain breaks*
Re: Yay Wimsey!
Date: 2008-06-03 09:52 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-03 06:30 pm (UTC)Did you ever read any of Diane Duane's ST tie-in novels? I think they're pretty dang wonderful; I especially liked Spock's World. (I've always had a crush on Amanda.)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-03 10:00 pm (UTC)Entropy Effect was the first ST novel I've read; I have read the first book of Duane's Wizards series, though, and found it nigh-impossible to get through, despite warm recommendations from others. Do you think I'd still like her ST books? And/or, am I crazy not to like the Wizards series?
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 02:49 am (UTC)I used to read a lot of ST novels (I'm somewhat embarrassed to say), and think Duane's were the best, esp., as I said, Spock's World. I like Vonda McIntyre's writings, esp. her Starfarers series and her short stories; I think she might be the better writer (though that's so subjective I hesitate to say it). But Spock's World really knocked me back and it's become canon for me.
As far as Wizards . . . I really enjoyed the first couple, but I think she needs to try something else for a while.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-03 07:21 pm (UTC)Oh, I ♥ this book so very much. I adore the cricket game, but the bit that gets me every time is his final conversation with Tallboy. *flails inarticulately*
I also really like the advertising background she gets in there; it's obvious that she worked in the industry herself, but in the good way.
I wasn’t particularly wowed by the writing—DUDE PUNCTUATE YOUR DIALOGUE DO YOU SEE HOW ANNOYING THIS IS KTHX
Yeah, I get a bit annoyed by that sometimes. I don't think he does it nearly as much in his earlier books? At least, it's not something I really remember happening particularly.
Frank was pretty much the only one who grabbed me, and I found him to be an asshole most of the time.
Hah, yeah. I always have that problem with Frank! I really rather like Charlie, though, and I wish there was more of Anna.
Also, I just like the idea of there being a series about science and political intrigue and global warming. Therefore, I am kind of determined to like these books despite my reservations. Bring on volume two!
Huzzah! I'm sorry the book didn't wow you, but I agree; just the basic concept is pretty awesome. I'd second the rec for you to try Red Mars as well (as I've said before) - I think it may annoy you less?
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 01:47 am (UTC)I'm definitely going to try Red Mars too, but I think I want to finish off this series first. Wish me BookMooch luck!
Peter (and/or Sayers) win at everything. I wish there were a bagillion more of those books.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-03 08:43 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 01:42 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 01:46 am (UTC)These crosses were made for us to bear. ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 01:50 am (UTC)I'll admit, I read them out of order and I didn't feel like it ruined things for me, but I admire those who are more diligent about that.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 01:52 am (UTC)I'm one of those people that has to read things like that in order. Which is why I'm stalled on Holmes until I get my Complete Works back from NZ.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-03 09:19 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 01:44 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 09:40 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 03:39 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 03:15 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 03:31 am (UTC)I love that Peter really gets into the advertising stuff. So many facets of his personality are shown off to such great effect in that book!
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 06:39 pm (UTC)*slinks away*
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 06:54 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 06:55 pm (UTC)And, hey, if you're ever over this side of the pond again I'd be more than happy to attend a match with you. Maybe I can make some more sense of the game for you. :D
(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 07:02 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 07:23 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-06-04 02:42 pm (UTC)