The plot of this book is engaging, but the prose is bad. Mickey Barnes is an "expendable" on a terraforming human colony mission on a cold, icy planetThe plot of this book is engaging, but the prose is bad. Mickey Barnes is an "expendable" on a terraforming human colony mission on a cold, icy planet. Before the mission left, his entire consciousness was scanned and uploaded to a server, and his biology encoded so the mission can print new versions of him as needed. He is the only member of the roughly 200 person colony who has received this treatment, and it's his duty to do jobs that require a human but will likely get them killed, such as fixing the nuclear reactor, testing out medical procedures, or exploring the system of crevasses and caves below the ice- which happen to be full of insect-like alien species of unknown intelligence levels. This book has some very fun world building and clever twists, but the main character himself is an idiot who regularly makes mistakes that could have been easily avoided with even just a modicum of advanced planning. I would describe the writing as workman-like, just competent enough to get the story told, but often undercutting the emotional impact of the events with quips and fairly shallow character work. I haven't seen the movie but I have a feeling it might be better than the book, a rarity. ...more
Time loop fans, rejoice! Mary Shyne has crafted a clever, gorgeous treasure box of a story. Part coming-of-age, part romance, part sci-fi, all heart. Time loop fans, rejoice! Mary Shyne has crafted a clever, gorgeous treasure box of a story. Part coming-of-age, part romance, part sci-fi, all heart. I was drawn in from the very first page, hooked with the stylish art and the intriguing premise. I fell so hard for Chris and Alicia and all of the stupidly teenage and deeply human choices that lead them into a pocket dimension of space-time. Who hasn't wanted a redo option on one of the most important days of their life? What would you do if trapped in a time loop of your high school graduation day? I left the book rooting for these two!
I had the pleasure of reading this book early :) It's available for preorder now, or grab it from a bookstore in May 2025!...more
Set on St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, this debut sci-fi novel wrestles with some big and weighty concepts. We are introduced to two families, neighSet on St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, this debut sci-fi novel wrestles with some big and weighty concepts. We are introduced to two families, neighbors, with their own interwoven concerns: a married couple struggling with relationship, a woman questioning her sexuality, a teen questioning her faith, a man yearning for more ambitious career and travel options in middle age. Then an alien ship arrives above the island and the book jumps forward 5 years in time to show how a powerful controlling presence has impacted the lives of everyone on the island. The Ynaa offered advanced medicines and technology to humans in exchange for staying for a time to do an unspecified type of research. But the co-existence is not peaceful: the Ynaa lash out with extreme violence over minor provocations. This tense situation cannot last. There was much to enjoy in this novel, and the audiobook was very well read by two narrators. I did think the final act suffered from some pacing issues, and a second time jump near the end worked much less well for me than the big time jump near the beginning. It was interesting to read this after having read Turnbull's second novel No Gods, No Masters which contains similar themes but with a much more complex story structure and much larger cast. ...more
Adina is born in 1977 to a human mother on Earth; but she is not totally of this world. Some part of her is also an alien, attuned to a planet with a Adina is born in 1977 to a human mother on Earth; but she is not totally of this world. Some part of her is also an alien, attuned to a planet with a collective consciousness, far away in the stars. Through a lonely childhood in Philadelphia, Adina faxes notes and observations on human life to her far away family. She grows up as the child of a single, working class mother, with few friends, but a fierce commitment to live as her own singular self. I really enjoyed the light-handed prose, the short slice-of-life chapters, and the insightful look at what it feels like to grow up an outsider. Adina reminded me of myself; she reminded me of many of my other oddball, queer, trans, or asexual friends who have always felt out of step with the lives of those around us. It reminded me, yet again, that there is perhaps nothing more human than feeling like an alien among one's peers. ...more
In the near future, Britain appropriates a tool that allows them to create doors through time. For unclear reasons, they decide to bring multiple peopIn the near future, Britain appropriates a tool that allows them to create doors through time. For unclear reasons, they decide to bring multiple people forward from their historical eras to see if it is possible for them to live in and acclimate to a time outside of their own. The project chooses people very shortly before the time in which they would have met their deaths in their original timeline, in hopes that removing those due to die will not mess up the flow of history. The main character of this story is an unnamed ministry worker, a mixed-race linguist, promoted to the role of "bridge" for one of the historical expats; she moves into a small government-owned flat with Graham Gore, a man yanked from 1847 and an early grave as part of the doomed Terror expedition. Her job is to answer all of his questions, fill him on current attitudes and social norms, and to observe him very closely and report everything back to her handler. Gore is an intriguingly self-contained man with a dry sense of humor; after an initial period of extreme shock, he develops a keen sense of curiosity about the world in which he now has his second chance at life. Our main character develops, maybe inevitably, intense feelings for her object of study. I loved the writing style of this book; full of clever metaphors and delightful little turns of phrase ("he looked confused, as if handed and egg and told to hatch it"; "it was a dull toothache of a day"). The humor of the story really worked for me- there is something just inherently ridiculous in having to explain cell phones, modern dating, and germ theory to a man from the Victorian era. There is an undercurrent of danger, suspicion, and tragedy underpinning the slice-of-life bulk of the plot, which kept me hooked. Unfortunately, I did think the thriller/action sequence in the final quarter was the weakest section of the book, but I still really enjoyed it overall and I will definitely be keeping an eye out for what this author publishes next. ...more
Four women arrive on a jungle planet via spaceship with a mission to create a school and educate/ tame the indigenous species of beings there. Like moFour women arrive on a jungle planet via spaceship with a mission to create a school and educate/ tame the indigenous species of beings there. Like most colonizers, they think they are doing something good by bringing the light of civilization into the supposed darkness of the wilderness. Like most colonizers, they completely fail to understand the people they have come in contact with the project ends in devastating violence. The art in this book is extremely elegant, with powerful black and white design and pattern work illustrating a believable alien world. If you've ever read The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell, this is story has some similarities in tone and theme but much shorter and more condensed, as necessitated by the comics format. It's not a hopeful or kind story, but I thought it was executed extremely well. ...more
I chipped away at this short story collection, slowly, over about 4 months. It definitely didn't grab me as strongly as the previous Le Guin story colI chipped away at this short story collection, slowly, over about 4 months. It definitely didn't grab me as strongly as the previous Le Guin story collection I read years ago (Five Ways to Forgiveness). But what I liked about this one is that each story contains a short preface by the author, and they are arranged in chronological publication order, and span about 10 years of Le Guin's writing career (from 1963-1972). So the volume serves somewhat as a retrospective. The stories that stood out to me here include "Semley's Necklace", "April in Paris", "Winter's King" (set in the same world as The Left Hand of Darkness), "Nine Lives", and "The Stars Below". I'm always interested in what shorter ideas novelists play around with, and I also plan to work my way through Le Guin's entire body of work eventually so I'm glad to have read this one. ...more
Set in an alternate timeline in which Al Gore won the 2000 election and declared the War on Climate Change instead of the War on Terror, this novel isSet in an alternate timeline in which Al Gore won the 2000 election and declared the War on Climate Change instead of the War on Terror, this novel is an interesting mix of hopeful and dystopian elements. The main character is Maddie Ryan, a white high school English teacher working in a primarily Black neighborhood in Houston, TX. The novel is Maddie's written account of a tumultuous year in which the grungy music warehouse where her punk band practices and performs is threatened by a proposed high way and oil line which will rip up not only their art space but also a historically Black neighborhood. Maddie starts attending activist meetings which quickly morph into a full blown protest encampment surrounding the warehouse. Dubbed the Free People Village, this protest movement goes viral and is met with the exact same kind of violent police response as the current student encampments protesting for Palestine on college campuses. Woven through this depressingly accurate political forecast are multiple queer love stories, interracial friendships, a 101 crash course in anarchist philosophy and bracing look at what long-term activism takes. Folks with more of an organizing or activist background than I might find some of this book a bit basic; but I was completely drawn in by the relationships and conflicts of Maddie, Red, Gestas, Angel, and Shayna. This book feels almost painfully timely, and I hope a lot of people read it and gain both courage and perspective....more
What a bizarre and delightful novel. It's set in an alternate history in which ice-age level cold spells cause the majority of humans to hibernate eveWhat a bizarre and delightful novel. It's set in an alternate history in which ice-age level cold spells cause the majority of humans to hibernate every winter, which has ripple effects on the development of technology, societal rules, culture, and family structures. Charlie Worthing was born in a "pool" in the independent nation of Wales, or a group home in which nuns dedicated to reproduction birth and raise dozens of children, in returns for credits from those who can't or don't want to have their own kids. Charlie has very few job prospects, especially ones that will give him access to morphanox, a drug which helps most people survive their months-long winter sleeps. The drug also turns about 1 in 3000 into a brain-dead zombie, but this risk is considered better odds than sleeping without it. So Charlie volunteers for the Winter Consuls, the law-keepers and problem-solvers who stay up all winter to safe guard the majority. There he has to face the three well documented dangers of winter- Vacants (zombies), Villains (the British) and Winter Volk (fairies, whose reality is debated), as well as rumors of a viral dream. The humor in this book is a close cousin to Terry Pratchett's work, in which absurdity and invention mask some pretty biting social commentary and anti-capitalist motives. I did think some of the twists at the end didn't quite pay off, however, I had such a good time with the ride this book took me on that I'd still recommend it. ...more
Manel Naher is an anti-social and idiosyncratic young woman living an endless city in which everyone advertises their own names on street signs, sandwManel Naher is an anti-social and idiosyncratic young woman living an endless city in which everyone advertises their own names on street signs, sandwich boards, at social events, on business cards, and by simply shouting them at strangers. This may not sound so different from our own world except that it's driven by an even more intense desperation: if one's name is not known, and one's presence fades fully from people's minds, and the forgotten person will literally die. Manel wants nothing more than to escape the city into the wilds beyond it, but her presence is so low she suffers a near fatal heart attack and is scared into a fearful scramble to gain enough fame to live. Her attempts to claw her way into people's memories is surprisingly successful, and in the process of becoming one of the 1% she leaves behind everything and everyone she loved. Never before have I read a comic that felt so much like literary spec-fic. The concepts are fascinating and the cartooning knocked me off my feet. A visual masterpiece I'll be thinking about for a long time to come. ...more
This book picks up right after the end of the previous volume and I had, unfortunately, completely forgotten most of the previous plot. Once I got mysThis book picks up right after the end of the previous volume and I had, unfortunately, completely forgotten most of the previous plot. Once I got myself oriented I still had a great time with it. Wow, I just love watching Murderbot learn and grow and solve problems in unique and interesting ways! I kind of want to go back and re-listen to the whole series. ...more
Sammie is a recently out nonbinary transfemm but their college friend group has not picked up on that fact yet. When Sammie is invited to be the "bestSammie is a recently out nonbinary transfemm but their college friend group has not picked up on that fact yet. When Sammie is invited to be the "best man" at their friend Adam's wedding and attend a bachelor weekend at a high-tech, no-laws resort built on top of the Pacific Garbage Patch they decide to go in stealth mode. The resort is a pyramid scheme mutated with a strip club, business conference, all you can drink brunch bar, pro-gamer, most-dangerous-game corporate nightmare. Also, the waters around it are infested with terrifying flesh-eating monsters and someone is trying to raise an eldritch god. It takes every bit of queer resistance Sammie possesses to survive this bleak, hilarious, and surprisingly moving tale. In both their fiction and nonfiction comics, Lubchansky continues to hold up the black mirror to our own dystopian times. ...more
Lucian is the son of a minor nobleman and the CEO of the galaxy's biggest AI company, but he's not so rich that he can't get in trouble. After being fLucian is the son of a minor nobleman and the CEO of the galaxy's biggest AI company, but he's not so rich that he can't get in trouble. After being fired as a programmer from Echo Station he joined a startup with a couple friends and is now fishing for funding at an elite tech expo on board an expensive and exclusive space vessel. There he sees someone he thinks he recognizes- Ezra, a grey robot, an fully sentient AI who worked on Echo Station as a researcher and partially cost Lucian his job. So why is Ezra now working on the space vessel as an escort? Unless it's not Ezra, but just a look-alike robot model? These questions drag Lucian into the beginnings of tangled web of intrigue which include kidnapping, AI-hacking, and murder. I've been reading this story online as a webcomic for years; you can still read all of volume one here: https://electricbonescomic.com/index.... But last year I also backed the kickstarter, and just sat down to re-read the whole story in print form, including a sexy little bonus comic. I love these characters, I love the rich colors, the lovely sense of flow and design of the pages. I can't wait for volume two!
Re-read in September: Each time I read this volume I see more in... creepy little hints for the futrue! ...more
No one is doing it like Ann Leckie! This sci-fi novel uses six different pronoun sets (actually kind of seven, except one is the same set just used cuNo one is doing it like Ann Leckie! This sci-fi novel uses six different pronoun sets (actually kind of seven, except one is the same set just used culturally very differently by different groups of people). It’s fantastic. We’ve got they/them, e/em/eir, sie/hir, it/its, he/him, she/her, and she/her again except used as a universal pronoun regardless of gender (which works great inside the Radch Empire and badly outside of it). I'm on the fence about whether this book can be read as a stand alone, or if it would only really make sense after having read at the Imperial Radch trilogy and Providence. I suppose it depends on what level of baffling alien customs and politics you are willing to tolerate. This book opens with Enae attending hir grandmaman's funeral, only to learn that the seemingly wealthy old woman had sold her entire estate to a stranger before her death. For the first time in her life, Enae leaves home with a Foreign Affairs job: to see out a fugitive who left Presger space some 200 years prior. Enae isn't expecting to succeed, but sie gives it hir best shot- and in doing so completely upends the lives of a widening circle of bystanders including Reet, a man of unknown parentage, and Qven, a juvenile Presger. This book finally begins to explain this inhuman and terrifying species, and the reason why the Presger-Radachii Treaty defines the rules of so much of this universe. I deeply enjoyed this installment; it makes me want to go back and re-read the original trilogy. ...more
I really enjoyed this book, even thought I think it's more interesting as a collection of ideas than as a novel. The characters in the first third felI really enjoyed this book, even thought I think it's more interesting as a collection of ideas than as a novel. The characters in the first third felt somewhat flat, and the dialog is often delivered in hefty paragraphs with minimal dialog tags. But the story picks up in the second half and by the end I was reading it daily in big chunks. The concepts this book explores are what really shine, especially the idea of walking away from capitalist society and living in self-sustaining communities without formal governments or laws. This novel contains some future technology which we don't currently have today including 3D printers which can print food, clothing, and building pieces for vehicles and housing and also internet interfaces implanted into people's bodies which allow them global network access from anywhere almost all the time. The nation state of Canada also seems to have fallen before the start of this novel, as most of the characters end up walking away from the US into northern Canada to find these alternate communities. I liked seeing Doctorow play out the clash between on faction wanting to run a group house as a meritocracy versus another group committed to allowing all members to work as much or little as they want to or can, for example. The book does not shy away from showing the violent crack down of the existing governments on these alternate communities. There are major character deaths. But the other big theme of the book is exploring the digital scanning and uploading of human consciousnesses to the web allowed people to walk away from death....more
What a delicious book, in many senses of that word! The unnamed main character is a Chinese-American chef from Los Angeles who is stranded in London bWhat a delicious book, in many senses of that word! The unnamed main character is a Chinese-American chef from Los Angeles who is stranded in London by natural disaster. A toxic gray smog envelopes the majority of the world, killing most crops and animals. Countries close their borders as their populations being to starve. The chef is offered an unbelievable job in a billionaire's small private country, a mountaintop in Italy which still has access to some sunlight and caters to a set of unbelievably wealthy residents who bought their way in. The chef lies on her resume, padding it out a fictional degree from a French culinary school and experience at closed Micheline start restaurant. The chef is granted access to the country for a probation period and re-encounters a lush array of ingredients she thought were extinct from the world: fresh berries and greens, rich cream and butter, unpreserved meats and fish. Under the cold eye of her cruel employer and his charismatic and ambitious daughter the chef tries to prove she can cook dishes that will astonish the 1%. Little does she know she was hired as much for her skill in lying as her ability to cook well. This book had more queerness, more speculative elements, and more hope for a world destroyed by human greed than I was expecting. The descriptions of food, flavors, textures, and the intersection of appetite with pleasure are rich, powerful and evocative. I really enjoyed this and I particularly recommend the audiobook. ...more
What a ride! I went into this book knowing almost nothing, and I think that was the right way to go so I shall not summarize the plot. This is the firWhat a ride! I went into this book knowing almost nothing, and I think that was the right way to go so I shall not summarize the plot. This is the first book of a series; it's ambitious, it's weird, it's got a very large and extremely diverse cast; it is such a fresh and original take on a contemporary sci-fi in which the world realizes that monsters, gods, and magic have existed all along. I worried a little in the first third that the book maybe had too many POV characters, most of whom seemed very unconnected from each other except by geographical proximity to either Cambridge, Mass, or the island of St Thomas. However by the end almost all of the characters had been at least tenuously linked by plot events in a way that really worked for me. The book also has trans, nonbinary, asexual, queer, and poly characters whose identities are only revealed slowly, and usually after you've known the character for a while. I am very impressed by the scope of this story and definitely plan to continue with the series. ...more
This novella takes place in the same LitenVärld store that Ava and Jules worked at in book one in this series, but follows Derek, the store's most loyThis novella takes place in the same LitenVärld store that Ava and Jules worked at in book one in this series, but follows Derek, the store's most loyal and dedicated employee. He lives in a shipping container in the store's parking lot, and has no friends and no life outside his time at the store. In fact, he doesn't even have any memories from before he started working at the store... or any explanation for why the store seems to make sense to him, and even speak to him, in a way it doesn't to any of his co-workers. Then something even more shocking than an wormhole occurs in the store: the furniture starts waking up and coming to life. Derek's entire worldview and sense of self are completely upturned. Unfortunately this story didn't capture me as strongly as book one; despite being a novella it felt oddly slow. I was rooting for Derek and the wayward furniture by the end, but the structure of the story was not as strong or streamlined as Finna. I do still want to keep reading Nino Cipri because I love the way they effortlessly include nonbinary characters in their sci-fi and I want a third installment that returns to Ava and Jules! ...more
This queer, modern retelling of Hamlet is set in a scientific lab and contained mostly within a tense 12 hours. Hayden Lichfield finds his father's coThis queer, modern retelling of Hamlet is set in a scientific lab and contained mostly within a tense 12 hours. Hayden Lichfield finds his father's cooling body in Elsinore labs within the first few pages; he immediately calls on the sentient AI system, Horatio, who controls the security cameras and many other aspects of the building. Horatio reports a 1.5 hour gap in the video logs. Hayden and his father, Dr Lichfield, were working on formula to reverse death. Hayden's immediate assumption is that the killer was after his father's research. The lab goes into lockdown and Hayden is trapped inside with his uncle Charles, lab technician Gabriel Rasmussen, Hayden's ex and research intern Felicia Xia, and her father Paul Xia, head of security. Unless they find an intruder, one of them is the murderer. I enjoyed how deftly this novel kept me guessing even when following a plot I know well. I was genuinely unsure how many, or who, of the people trapped in Elsinore would survive the night. I was also into the unashamed queerness of an AI in love with a human, and the ways in which that love could and could not be reciprocated. ...more
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