Stacking the Shelves

Posted December 3, 2016 by Nicky in General / 6 Comments

It’s been a better week for me, though I still have one more assignment to eke out. But I did manage some reading! Hurrah.

Books to review:

I’m going to assume Fair Chance is related to Fair Game and Fair Play, so, awesome. And Weird Dinosaurs, well, who wouldn’t want this one?

Books received:

Because my wife is awesome.

Books finished this week:

Reviews posted this week:
–Ultimate X-Men: World Tour, by Mark Millar et al. More enjoyable than the first two volumes, but still not doing much for me. 3/5 stars
–The Lost Child of Lychford, by Paul Cornell. If you enjoyed the first Lychford novella, you’ll probably enjoy this too. Judith continues to be completely badass. 3/5 stars
–Everything Belongs to the Future, by Laurie Penny. Enjoyable, but rather predictable, to me. 3/5 stars
–Rare Earth: Why Complex Life is Uncommon in the Universe, by Peter D. Ward and Donald Brownlee. A good survey of, well, pretty much what it says on the tin. 4/5 stars
–The Two Towers, by J.R.R. Tolkien. Do I have anything new to say about this one? Possibly not. 5/5 stars
–Flashback Friday: The Empty Kingdom, by Elizabeth E. Wein. The close of the series, which I’ve been re-posting my reviews of for the last few weeks. Greatly enjoyable. 4/5 stars

Other posts:
–On giving up, but positively. Why I’ve given up on my reading goals for 2016, and why that’s a good thing.
–Top Ten Tuesday: Best Places to Read. A departure from the given theme, forgive me.

How’s everyone else doing?

Tags: books, Stacking the Shelves, weekly roundup

Review – The Empty Kingdom

Posted December 2, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

The Empty Kingdom, Elizabeth E. Wein

Flashback Friday review from 13th February, 2011

The Empty Kingdom is quite a long way away — in time, in distance, and in the kind of story it is — from The Winter Prince. Medraut and the Arthurian characters are much less in evidence now, and Telemakos is definitely our hero, and one I enjoy completely independently from his links to the Arthurian story, which is almost unimportant by this point in the story.

Unlike The Winter Prince and The Lion Hunter, this book is less about healing and focuses more on the political intrigue. One thing I found very interesting about these books was how unpredictable I found them: I’ve read a lot of books and usually am able to predict their twists and turns. While some parts of this were easy to guess, most were not. So it’s a breath of fresh air in general, as well as an interesting and — so far as I know — new addition to the Arthurian tradition.

I can easily imagine that more might be written for this series, and I’d be interested to read it.

Rating: 4/5

Tags: Arthuriana, book reviews, books, Flashback Friday, SF/F

Review – The Two Towers

Posted December 1, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

The Two Towers, J.R.R. Tolkien

As with The Fellowship of the Ring, it’s hard to know how to review this with objectivity. I’ve been trying to think which of the three sections is my favourite, but even that is difficult; I think the whole they make — and were intended to make, by Tolkien, who did not view them as a trilogy but as a single book — is most important. It’s a little odd in this book to go straight from the whole fellowship at the end of the first ‘book’ to such a fragmented company, spending the whole first half with Merry, Pippin, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli, and then the whole second half with Frodo and Sam. It feels a little unwieldy, like that — I could wish for more alternation between the two.

But really, Tolkien knew what he was doing very well. What I find interesting having read it now is that I know the land of Rohan well, from playing LOTRO. Yet as soon as Frodo and Sam reach the Emyn Muil, I can no longer visualise the world, because I haven’t been there in LOTRO. That says a lot more about me than about Tolkien, though: the physical description is still there, and LOTRO is built on that rich resource. But for me… suddenly, there are no pictures in my head for Mordor. And perhaps that’s for the best!

I always find The Two Towers the quickest read, yet perhaps my least favourite; so much of it is about getting the players into position. But at least it features Faramir, who in the books has a nobility to match Aragorn’s.

Rating: 5/5

Tags: book reviews, books, J.R.R. Tolkien, SF/F

Review – Rare Earth

Posted November 30, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Rare Earth: Why Complex Life is Uncommon in the Universe, Peter D. Ward, Donald Brownlee

Having read David Waltham’s Lucky Planet, there isn’t much in this older book which is new to me, even though he recommended it for further reading. It’s less up to date, of course, but that’s because it’s older — and at least it does acknowledge stuff like the Viking lander biological experiments, which Waltham did not. If you’re interested in the evidence that’s out there for the fact that our planet might be rare indeed in producing complex life, I’d recommend Rare Earth over Lucky Planet. The science is solid and thorough, and well explained.

My problem with all books like this is always going to be: we have a sample size of one. How can we extrapolate anything? Sure, we know that intelligent life like ourselves can’t exist in a solar system that doesn’t have the right kind of habitable zone. And yeah, we think carbon is the best possible atom to base biochemistry on. But we only think or know these things because that’s what we need, that’s what we can use, under the conditions in which we find ourselves observing. (In other words, it’s the weak anthropic principle.) None of the data presented convinces me that we can do more than guessing in the dark on this subject.

That’s not a reason not to be curious, of course, but it’s also not a reason to give up looking. Obviously, we won’t find anything if we don’t look. It doesn’t make Rare Earth less worth reading, but it does mean that I think readers should stay aware that Ward and Brownlee have made up their minds, and are presenting only the evidence supporting their case. I honestly don’t find either side convincing, though you, of course, may differ.

Rating: 4/5

Tags: book reviews, books, non-fiction, science

Top Ten Tuesday

Posted November 29, 2016 by Nicky in General / 6 Comments

This week’s theme is a Holiday Gift Guide freebie, and honestly, I’m a little tired of wracking my brains to think of gifts. So instead, have my top ten places to read.

On a train. You wouldn’t think it’d be comfortable, but something about just being stuck on a train for ages means I can settle into the reading mood and carry on interrupted. Especially in the quiet coach, with my phone off, or on the Eurostar.
In bed. Of course. This is mostly with my ereader, because I can never quite get comfortable with a paper book in bed. Toasty warm toes!
With my back against the radiator. I don’t know why, but I really like having a heat source at my back while I read. If the whole room is too warm, I get sleepy. If the room is cooler but I have a radiator or a hot water bottle? Perfect.
With the rain lashing down outside. Doesn’t everybody love this one?
Draped over my chair in my wife’s flat. With a bit of wriggling, you can get into the perfect comfy position with a leg up. Or even with my feet practically in my wife’s lap. She’s resigned to it.
While petting a rabbit. I get a lot of quality time in with our bunny when I’m reading. She’ll come up to my knee and get her ears rubbed.
In a blanket fort. At my parents’ house, I have a bunk bed. So I can hang a sheet down from the side of my bed and underneath there’s a sofa. Very cosy.
While crocheting. Only for audiobooks, obviously!
In the car. Again, only for audiobooks, but a nice long drive can eat up a big chunk of story. Or a big chunk of story can eat up the journey…
With chocolate. The perfect companion.

Anyone else feel rebellious this week? Or have you stuck to the theme?

Tags: books, Top Ten Tuesday

On giving up, but positively

Posted November 28, 2016 by Nicky in General / 16 Comments

I’m giving up on my reading goals for 2016.

They were useful for quite a while — right into November, after all. But right now, they’re actually getting in the way: making me feel pressured, making reading feel like a chore, closing down my options instead of reminding me how many I have. Generally, I don’t like giving up, but I feel like this is a good time. It doesn’t mean that I won’t read 200 books brought prior to this year, or that I won’t read 366 books overall… but it does mean I’ll stop beating myself up about it.

I think the problem for bloggers sometimes is that you feel the need to keep pushing out reviews, gathering new followers, and gaining likes. After all, that’s how you know your blog is useful and worth the time you’ve put into it — and even the money, for people who self-host. But that also makes it feel like a chore. I have to finish X to get my review out in time for Y…

But the thing is, there’s no point in having a blog if you’re not enjoying it. That’s what most of us get out of it, not money — although free books can be a perk that some reviewers see. It’s been stopping me rereading books as much as I normally would, making me postpone enjoyable books because they’d take too long and I need to write a review now, now, now —

(Which I don’t; I’m scheduled up to the 7th of January 2017, as I write, and probably a week beyond that by the time this goes up.)

I know I’m not the only one.

So, bloggers, readers: take the time at the end of this year to make reading, reviewing and blogging fun again, if it has lost its shine. Or even if it hasn’t, but you just want a little break. I dare you to reread a favourite, for no other reason than that you want to. It doesn’t have to be popular, it doesn’t have to be part of a series, it doesn’t have to fit in with your goals or tick your boxes. I dare you to reread a book you only reviewed six months ago, just because you love it. I dare you to pick up your guilty pleasure reading or that book everyone else seems to hate.

And if you won’t, I still will. Let’s love the heck out of books.

Tags: books, discussion

Review – Everything Belongs to the Future

Posted November 28, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 2 Comments

Everything Belongs to the Future, Laurie Penny

Received to review via Netgalley

I found this a pleasant short story on a fairly familiar theme, which never really got past the point of being readable and good enough to while away some time with. I think my problem was that I essentially knew where it all was going, and the social commentary was pretty obvious. Thus, I find that I have correspondingly little to say about it. It’s competently written, and the conflict of the central character between his deceit and his love was perhaps the best thing about it. His mixed feelings and confused decisions made sense and seemed very human, which is always important to root any story into reality, and especially useful with something speculative.

Overall, I wasn’t incredibly impressed, but I wasn’t bored either — I’d read more by Laurie Penny, though probably not more set in this world. I think the story said all that needed to be said about this concept.

Rating: 3/5

Tags: book reviews, books, SF/F, short stories

Review – The Lost Child of Lychford

Posted November 27, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

The Lost Child of Lychford, Paul Cornell

Received to review via Netgalley

I was a little worried I wouldn’t remember enough about the first novella to follow all of this, but I quickly cottoned on again. The characters were fairly memorable, after all, particularly Judith — her cantankerous practicality was as fun and refreshing this time round as last. I felt like that character had a little less screen time, so to speak, while the Reverend Lizzie had more, but it did make sense in the context of the story — Lizzie is really the key figure in the plot, this time. If there are other novellas to come, I’d guess they’d focus on whichever character is more central to the plot.

It does pick up on some interesting threads from the first book, too, like Judith’s husband and what exactly is going on there. It resolves things a little more, as well.

My quibble would be that I saw the problems sooner than the characters — as soon as the couple who wanted to get married on Christmas Eve were mentioned, I wondered — and that it isn’t so fun to read something where characters are out of their own control for much of the story. If that section had been shorter, I might have enjoyed it more.

Rating: 3/5

Tags: book reviews, books, SF/F

Review – Ultimate X-Men: World Tour

Posted November 26, 2016 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Ultimate X-Men: World Tour, Mark Millar, Adam Kubert, Chris Bachalo

This is an improvement on the two previous volumes, where I actually got somewhat more involved in the story. Not so much Colossus’ story, which kind of seemed out of the blue to me — he seemed pretty engaged with the X-Men and Xavier’s plan, and suddenly he… wants to go off and have a normal life, and he’s not sure about the goals of the X-Men?

But the story with Xavier’s son has genuine feeling and character development, mostly for Xavier. It takes him being the wise mentor to being a guy who can really fuck up on his own account, too. I wish he wasn’t quite so all-knowing at times, but I guess that’s the problem with your character being a telepath.

I’m not so sure about the Gambit storyline; I recall enjoying the character in an animated series or something, but how he’s supposed to be getting by in a world that hates mutants while so blatantly displaying his abilities, I don’t know. And I know the whole Cajun background is an important part of Gambit, but man, is his dialogue ever difficult to parse. That whole section isn’t much connected to the rest of the book, either…

Still, more enjoyable than the first two volumes, I think.

Rating: 3/5

Tags: book reviews, books, comics, Marvel

Stacking the Shelves

Posted November 26, 2016 by Nicky in General / 6 Comments

Not many books read this week (understatement…), but I got a nice little haul of new books, so that was nice!

Books acquired:

Books finished this week:

Reviews posted this week:
–Creepy Crawly Crochet, by Megan Kreiner. A book of fun crochet patterns, with some clever tutorials on how to shape things without getting too complicated. 4/5 stars
–Lone Survivors: How We Came To Be The Only Humans On Earth, by Chris Stringer. An interesting book which provides a good survey and doesn’t pretend we know more than we really do. 4/5 stars
–X-Men: Return to Weapon X, by Mark Millar and Adam Kubert. A bit lacking in tension, and the art kind of raised an eyebrow. 2/5 stars.
–A Local Habitation, by Seanan McGuire. This book made me wish I’d continued with the series sooner — and I didn’t wait that long. Very entertaining, and lots of interesting faerie lore. 4/5 stars
–The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien. Do I have anything new to say about this? Apparently, I can ramble about how playing LOTRO changes the reading experience. 5/5 stars
–Hammers on Bone, by Cassandra Khaw. I think I might’ve need more familiarity with the Cthulhu mythos to fully appreciate this, but it was fun. 3/5 stars
–Flashback Friday: The Lion Hunter, by Elizabeth E. Wein. Doesn’t stand alone as well as the rest of the series, but it’s a good read — albeit quite dark and saddening. 4/5 stars

Other posts:
–Top Ten Tuesday: Thankfulness. With the US celebrating Thanksgiving, no surprise this was this week’s theme.

Tags: books, Stacking the Shelves, weekly roundup