Tag Archives: fantasy

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My Recommendations for the Hugos: Best Series

I wanted to share my recommendations for this year’s Hugo nominations, so I am writing a series of posts highlighting my favorites and recommendations in various categories. Where possible, I will link to the works or ways to purchase/peruse them. Let me know if you read any of them and what you think! Also let me know your own recommendations. And yes, I know you can only nominate 5 in each category, but I haven’t whittled all of my categories down to that many nominations yet.

The Sumerians by Emma H. Wilson– Criminally overlooked, this series follows Inanna, goddess daughter; Gilgamesh, mortal warrior son of the gods; and Ninshubar a warrior woman thrust into bigger events as they live in the earliest recorded times in human history. It’s based upon the Epic of Gilgamesh, and Wilson’s prose takes it to another level. There are a lot of retellings of Greek myth making awards lists, but I haven’t seen nearly enough buzz about this fantastic trilogy. The eligible work is Ninshubar (August 2025).

The Chronicles of Osreth by Katherine Addison- Addison wraps up the story begun in The Goblin Emperor with a thoughtful, emotional conclusion that examines many themes, particularly about death. The eligible work is The Tomb of Dragons (March 2025).

The Empire of the Wolf by Richard Swan- A dark fantasy epic that follows one of the people charged with being a Justice of the King, whose role is to enforce the King’s law in the outskirts of his domain. One of the few fantasy series that considers logistics of law in any way, it also tells a spellbinding story filled with dark magic, terrible threats, and heroic action. The eligible work is the novella, The Scour (October 2025). The novella tells a side story within the series that features the same powerful storytelling as Swan brings to the novels.

Old Man’s War by John Scalzi- A military (sometimes) space opera, this series explores humanity’s struggle to expand and interact with a broader universe full of threats. They feature Scalzi’s characteristic witty way of telling stories with humor amidst the seriousness of the themes. The eligible work is The Shattering Peace (September 2025).

The Grand Tour by Ben Bova (and Les Johnson)- Bova died in 2020, but the eligible work (Pluto, November 2026) was in progress to tell another story of humanity’s expansion across the Solar System. I’ll admit that this one is more of a legacy pick for me. It’s on my list because of the many, many hours I’ve spent in Bova’s Solar System and the way it directed my sci-fi reading as a kid (more on my in memoriam here). So this series is here because a new entry–while not the strongest–makes it eligible again. And some of these books are absolutely etched into my memory (such as the Mars trilogy).

The War Arts Saga by Wesley Chu- What happens when a prophesied hero is just not that prophesied hero after all? The War Arts Saga explores this in a Wuxia-inspired world. It has characters who actually grow quite a bit over the course of the trilogy, great actions scenes, and an intriguing story. The trilogy sticks the landing, too. The eligible work is The Art of Legend (August 2025).

The Warden series by Daniel M. Ford- The life of a Warden is not what Aelis de Lenti might have thought it should be. It’s not as glamorous or wrapped in glory as she dreamed. But it turns out that even in the midst of disappointment and in a backwater town, she finds herself embroiled in things that show she might be who and where she needs to be. The eligible work is Advocate (April 2025).

The Eidyn Saga by Justin Lee Anderson- times of peace can be just as difficult as times of war. While the massive upheaval and destruction of the war is ended, there are still issues with demons, crops, and plague threatening the world. But is there an even more sinister threat–one that no one has predicted–looming? Anderson writes quite the yarn, and these novels absolutely deliver on the action and intensity of dark fantasy. The eligible work is The Damned King (August 2025).

Conclusion

I’d love to hear what you think of these and other stories. Let me know in the comments!

SDG.

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The Deep Backlog: “The Briar King” by Greg Keyes “The Ninth Rain” by Jen Williams, and “There Is No Antimemetics Division” by qntm-Should I read it?

I have a somewhat embarrassing set of books that I think of as my “deep backlog.” It’s a set of books I’ve purchased on Kindle and downloaded on my phone so I don’t forget they exist because I’m definitely going to read them someday and I’ve seen a lot of recommendations. So… it’s time to delve into my deep backlog and start picking away at it. This deep backlog is huge, though, so I’m going to ask for help sorting it out. Going 3 books at a time, I’ll write on their blurbs and my thoughts about why I grabbed it. I want you to help by saying what you think of them if you’ve read them, or just drop a comment encouraging me to finally chip away. I’m definitely going to read some of these! I promise.

The Briar King by Greg Keyes

I bought this book because Keyes wrote the Psi Corps trilogy for the Babylon 5 universe and that trilogy absolutely blew me away, so I figured I’d try something else by him. And, apart from a bunch of Star Wars novels I read way back when, I haven’t. Have you read this one? The blurb sounds like a fun fantasy read.

Blurb

Two thousand years ago, the Born Queen defeated the Skasloi lords, freeing humans from the bitter yoke of slavery. But now monstrous creatures roam the land—and destinies become inextricably entangled in a drama of power and seduction. The king’s woodsman, a rebellious girl, a young priest, a roguish adventurer, and a young man made suddenly into a knight—all face malevolent forces that shake the foundations of the kingdom, even as the Briar King, legendary harbinger of death, awakens from his slumber. At the heart of this many-layered tale is Anne Dare, youngest daughter of the royal family . . . upon whom the fate of her world may depend.

The Ninth Rain by Jen Williams

I bought this one a year ago because it won the British Fantasy Award and I hadn’t heard of it and the cover was awesome. What better reasons could there be? Idk, this one is a must- read for me because I love reading lists and award lists. I’ll get to it… eventually?

Blurb

The great city of Ebora once glittered with gold. Now its streets are stalked by wolves. Tormalin the Oathless has no taste for sitting around waiting to die while the realm of his storied ancestors falls to pieces – talk about a guilt trip. Better to be amongst the living, where there are taverns full of women and wine.

When eccentric explorer, Lady Vincenza ‘Vintage’ de Grazon, offers him employment, he sees an easy way out. Even when they are joined by a fugitive witch with a tendency to set things on fire, the prospect of facing down monsters and retrieving ancient artefacts is preferable to the abomination he left behind.

But not everyone is willing to let the Eboran empire collapse, and the adventurers are quickly drawn into a tangled conspiracy of magic and war. For the Jure’lia are coming, and the Ninth Rain must fall…

There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm

Okay, first of all, I just found out that this indie-published book was apparently picked up by Ballantine and is getting released in November of this year. Second, I’ve had this sitting on my backlog since it was originally published, I believe. And it’s clearly picking up steam and I should probably read it. Also look a that blurb!

Blurb

An antimeme is an idea with self-censoring properties; an idea which, by its intrinsic nature, discourages or prevents people from spreading it.

Antimemes are real. Think of any piece of information which you wouldn’t share with anybody, like passwords, taboos and dirty secrets. Or any piece of information which would be difficult to share even if you tried: complex equations, very boring passages of text, large blocks of random numbers, and dreams…

But anomalous antimemes are another matter entirely. How do you contain something you can’t record or remember? How do you fight a war against an enemy with effortless, perfect camouflage, when you can never even know that you’re at war?

Welcome to the Antimemetics Division.

No, this is not your first day.

Conclusion

So here we are, my first of *mumbles a number incoherently* deep backlist books. Please let me know your thoughts on any of them. I can’t read every book out there, but these are books I stashed on purpose with the intent of reading them later. I just need that extra nudge. So nudge me (or anti-nudge me).

SDG.

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Mining the Deep Backlog: “Inda” by Sherwood Smith

I’ve begun an intentional quest to read those books that have been recommended or otherwise discovered to/by me that I’ve meant to read since I acquired them. I’ll be reviewing selections as I go.

Inda by Sherwood Smith

Inda follows its titular character’s coming of age as he, the second son of the Prince and Princess of Choraed Elgaer, seeks his own place in the world. As a child, with the nation churning through young, firstborn warriors more swiftly than they can train them, he is summoned to the military academy. He and others, against the opposition of social mores and other expectations, seek to prove themselves in the world.

The story follows Inda over the course of several years, occasionally making jumps in time that advance the plot in meaningful ways. Sherwood Smith weaves a character portrait that is on par with works of Robin Hobb, and if that sentence means something to you, you know you need to immediately go get this book. The depth of character and feel within Inda’s head and around his actions is nearly unmatched. As a reader, I felt I shared in his triumphs and despaired in his defeats. It’s a truly magnificently told story.

The novel eventually takes us well beyond the confines of the first half or so, opening readers to a broader world and more conflicts than anticipated. In this second half, I felt the story wasn’t quite as tightly woven, and I found myself missing the confines of the military academy. However, Smith knows readers need, like Inda, to grow beyond those confines, and does a great job drawing readers into the bigger world and happenings around Inda, even as he grows into himself.

Inda is a fantastic character study set within a deep, well-constructed world. I am glad I finally got around to reading it, and can now recommend it highly to my fellow readers. I can’t wait to read the next one.

Links

Deep Backlog Posts– read on for my posts about my own deep backlog, with books to explore and reviews in which I finally cross a book off. Let me know what you think! (Scroll down for more)

SDG.

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“Hemlock & Silver” by T. Kingfisher- An uneven, wistful fantasy

Hemlock & Silver by T. Kingfisher

Anja has spent a lifetime fascinated by poisons. When the king shows up and wants her to figure out what and/or who is poisoning his daughter, Snow, she is pressed into using all her knowledge and wit to figure it out.

If it’s not obvious enough by the apple on the cover and the name Snow, this novel falls in the realm of fairytale retellings. This becomes even more clear past the midpoint (more on that below). Anja, however, is the star of the show here. Her fascination with poisons and the intricate details given about them sent me more than once to internet searches on various poisons and their effects and potential cures. For that alone, the book was worth reading. Anja’s efforts to figure out what’s ailing Snow even as she has to deal with some of the court-away-from-court intrigue makes the book quite winsome.

However–and this is a big however–I felt betrayed as a reader about the midway point in. Here, we find (SPOILERS FOLLOW) that Snow isn’t being poisoned so much as encountering things through the enchanted mirror world, eating food from there which both gives her symptoms of poisoning but also allows her to cross over literally into mirrors. Of course, this concept of the evil queen in the mirrors gives the book a heftier sense of the retelling of the Snow White story, but it also made me feel like my expectations had been intentionally built up only to be jerked in a totally different direction. I was all in on figuring out more about poisons–whether real or invented–and seeing where the intricacies of the court drama might take Anja when instead the story takes a complete turn and ends up cutting away the court drama characters to turn into a kind of magical chase scene with a love story tacked on. It was extremely frustrating to me. END SPOILERS

My sense of betrayal does not feel ill-gotten, either. I truly feel like Kingfisher led me as a reader to expect a certain story and then did not deliver the goods on that. What is delivered is still well in the realm of Kingfisher-like storytelling. It’s got a fantastic main character who is body-affirming and witty. It’s got a pretty good romantic sub-plot. It’s got a great balance of humor and seriousness. And there’s a fun cat character. Those are all things to like. But I can’t help feeling like the story I was set up to expect would have been a better story overall.

Hemlock & Silver has enough in it to love that I’m almost willing to forgive its faults, but I find myself still disappointed, wishing it had taken the directions it seemed to hint at before veering off. I do think fans of fairytale retellings will find a lot to enjoy here, as will fans of Kingfisher.

SDG.

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“Making History” by K.J. Parker- A fantastical, historiographical delight

Making History, a novella from K.J. Parker that came out this year (2025), is one of the most intriguing little works of fantasy I have read of late. Its premise is that there is a despotic ruler who wants to manufacture a reason for going to war with a neighbor. He needs the justification for various reasons, but to make this reason, he recruits a bunch of experts in archaeology, history, linguistics, etc. and charges them with inventing an ancient lineage for his nation that includes a forgotten history of oppression from the nation he wishes to invade. In other words, he is charging them with making up a civilization whole cloth so that he can justify war. If they don’t go along with it? Well, he’s a despot–take a guess what’ll happen.

The rest of the novella follows the story of these scholars’ attempts to make history, but features a number of twists and turns that take the core premise in some unexpected directions. The conclusion is well done too, as Parker sticks the landing that sells some of the twists even more. Honestly, its just incredibly well done.

As a student of history and a big fan of historiography (the study of how to study history), this novella was an absolute feast. Some discussions between experts revolve around how to explain the evolution of pottery, or the changing use of words and even syllables in linguistics. This might sound like the most exciting set of events, but for someone deeply interested in history it was an absolute delight. For those not so deep into history that historiography sounds like a fun time, the interwoven narrative makes these scenes quite relevant to the overarching mystery that frames the novella in ways that I didn’t expect.

Making History by K.J. Parker is a fantastic novella that explores deep themes while delivering the goods on the story. Highly, highly recommended.

SDG.

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My Read-Through of the Nebulas: 1971

I’m continuing my read-through of every Nebula-nominated novel, having already completed my reading of all the Hugo nominated novels. I present my reviews, a grade for each, and my own pick for the winner each year.

A Time of Changes by Robert Silverberg (Winner, My Winner)- A+
One sometimes reads a novel that so impresses upon oneself how it will forever impact one’s life, mindset, and mentality. A Time of Changes by Silverberg is one such novel for one. I wrote those sentences on purpose due to the central conceit of the novel–that the main character is from a planet on which it is taboo to speak in the first person or share too much of oneself. The narrative thread and voice is powerful in a way few other books have quite captured. I listened to the audiobook both times I read it, and the narrator, Tom Parker, is a simply fantastic fit for the voice of the story. What’s remarkable is how much depth there is to the later twists and turns of this story. The main idea is that Kinnall Darival is telling his story to posterity, a story about breaking from taboos and norms and perhaps one of not just personal, but societal awakening. But there are many possible interpretations of this story. One way is to see Darival as a reliable narrator, a possible saint or even Messiah for his world, ushering in a new age of awareness and openness of self. But it’s also a story that lends itself to seeing Darival as either unreliable or deluded, perhaps even as an addict, unable to see how his rejection of norms and use of an allegedly mind-awakening drug is really something that shackles, rather than frees him. The complexity of the narration, the tightness of the plotting, and the ambiguity of just a few points in the plot make incredible depth possible. I personally prefer a generally positive view, taking Darival’s side in the plot, but that is perhaps more a factor of how winsomely he is portrayed by Silverberg than the actual point of the story. Whatever the case, this stands among my favorite novels of all time.

The Byworlder by Poul Anderson– Grade: D-
Anderson here writes a story ostensibly about the future but that is so obviously about his present that it makes the whole endeavor a bit ridiculous. Our main character is a “sigaroon”–not to be confused with a Bohemian [okay, he totally is and the word is just different because it makes it sound different]–who is about as useful as a wet paper towel. His general goal seems to be to bed women or at least treat them with a heaping helping of male gaze as often as possible. There are a few interesting themes that lurk in the background but that Anderson does so little to address–despite that of a kind of arms-race allegory attempt–that they feel more disappointing than points of interest. Conceptually lost and driven by bland characters with the occasional joke about a woman’s period at the expense of the woman, I recommend this one as a skip.

Half Past Human by T.J. Bass– Grade: A-
Bass creates a haunting vision of the future in Half Past Human. There are actually trillions of post-humans that have been evolved selectively for having less motivation, shorter life spans, fewer toes, and more qualities that allow them to live in such massive numbers in Hives. Meanwhile, the humans left on Earth struggle to survive and evade hunters sent by those who help run the Hives. Questions of posthumanism abound and the novel at times feels much more modern than it is. The plot would fit pretty well within the current stream of dystopic fiction, though the flavor is much more in the vein of 1970s science fiction. Bass weaves in so many different strands that it is surprising he still takes a cohesive story. From what I understand, it’s a mashup of a couple novellas. At times, you can tell, but the larger narrative is interesting enough to carry the story through occasional disparate parts. Somehow Bass takes one of the classic sci-fi trope-like stories of having people wander around on an alien-seeming planet (which is Earth, in this case), and jams it together with a techno-advanced but weirdly backwards dystopic society narrative, then lumps together a few more ideas and then makes it all work. The more I reflect on it, the better I think it is. A forgotten classic.

The Devil is Dead by R.A. Lafferty- Grade: D+
I don’t know. Past Master by Lafferty is among my favorites, but I have yet to find another novel he wrote that impacts me in even a remotely positive way. This one is, on paper, a story about a weird group of people trying to track down the devil. But that sentence alone gives the novel far more coherence than it deserves credit for. It’s really a series of vignettes that may act as tall tales or perhaps just ludicrous stories with no apparent point. Looking at the views of others, its great if you like Vonnegut. My opinion on Vonnegut is clear to anyone who’s read much of my discussion on this blog–I can’t stand him–so maybe that’s true. I can’t shake a lingering feeling that I “just don’t get it,” but I also don’t particularly care. Lafferty didn’t bother to make anything cohesive here, and I don’t really feel bothered enough to try to piece it back together. One good thing I’ll say is that the occasional in-break of genius can be seen in a quip or a snatch of poetry here and there.

The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin– Grade: B-
I thought the premise–a man whose dreams become reality–was a bit tacky, but Le Guin is a master of prose and makes it work as a compelling piece about humanity. Really, that seems to be what all I’ve read from her is about, at its core: human nature. What does it mean to be human? What kind of fears would guide us if we had such a power? Who might try to harness it and why? These are intriguing questions that are just lightly touched throughout the book. The characters, unfortunately, end up largely being stand-ins for various philosophies or ways to explore different ideas. Unlike some of Le Guin’s other works, I never felt connected in any way to the characters. They read more like caricatures than characters. That said, it’s a thoughtful work that I enjoyed greatly.

Margaret and I by Kate Wilhelm- Grade: C
It’s somewhat frustrating to try to put thoughts about this novel into words. At its core, it really is just a story about a person with a kind of split conscious/subconscious self finding unity of purpose and personhood. It’s quite a strange novel to end up as a Nebula nominee. Wilhelm’s strength of prose carries the novel to make it into much more than the sum of its rather sparse parts. Even so, it was kind of hard to see what the point of the story even was. At first, it wasn’t entirely clear that it was a subconscious observing oneself, but once one realizes that as the novel, it’s hard to see what the payoff is. There doesn’t really seem to be a message about how we should or should not think of ourselves here. It’s vaguely possible to see it as a commentary on negative self-talk at points, but I don’t think that’s what’s happening. It’s just a kind of ho hum slice of life novel with a separated subconscious life as the fantastical side.

1971- The selection this year is definitely all over the map as far as subgenre and feel goes. From seeking the devil to seeking a concept of selfhood, the stories share thematic elements of what it means to be human. And that is one of my favorite things about science fiction. While I didn’t love all of these novels (obviously), I did think they all brought something to the table.

Links

Nebula Awards- check out my other posts on the Nebula nominees and winners here. (Scroll down for more).

Hugos– I have read every single Hugo-nominated novel. Click here to read through all my posts reviewing them (still in progress).

SDG.

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Mining My Deep Backlog: Should I read it? “Inda” by Sherwood Smith, “Dragon Wing” by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman “The Carpet Makers” by Andreas Eschbach

I have a somewhat embarrassing set of books that I think of as my “deep backlog.” It’s a set of books I’ve purchased on Kindle and downloaded on my phone so I don’t forget they exist because I’m definitely going to read them someday and I’ve seen a lot of recommendations. So… it’s time to delve into my deep backlog and start picking away at it. This deep backlog is huge, though, so I’m going to ask for help sorting it out. Going 3 books at a time, I’ll write on their blurbs and my thoughts about why I grabbed it. I want you to help by saying what you think of them if you’ve read them, or just drop a comment encouraging me to finally chip away. I’m definitely going to read some of these! I promise.

Inda by Sherwood Smith

The first book we’re looking at is Inda by Sherwood Smith. I bought it 4 years ago… wow. I got it because I’d checked it from the library, read the first few pages, realized it was going to require more concentration than I wanted to give to a book at that moment and that it would take quite some time to work through, and so I bought it on a cheap deal in ebook, hoping to circle back when I felt like such a read. And, well, I didn’t circle back. Anyway, re-reading the blurb (below) makes me really want to read it. It sounds awesome.

Blurb

Indevan-Dal is the second son of the Prince and Princess of Choraed Elgaer, destined to become his elder brother Tanrid’’ Shield Arm—his military champion. Like all second sons, he is to be privately trained at home by Tanrid, the brother whose lands he will one day protect.

When the King’s Voice comes to summon Inda to the Military Academy, he might well feel foreboding, or even fear—war is imminent—yet youthful Inda feels only excitement.

But there are things that Tanrid hasn’t prepared him for, and Inda will soon learn that the greatest threats to his safety will not come from foreign enemies, but from supposed allies within his own country.

Dragon Wing by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

This one showed up on a bunch of lists. I had it from the library once and, like Inda, realized it was a bit more depth than I wanted at the time. I bought it… 5 years ago and haven’t cracked it open. Oops. The blurb sounds okay, kinda like a campy fantasy romp. And it’s got 7 books in the series? 7? That’s an investment… What do you think?

Blurb

Ages ago, sorcerers of unmatched power sundered a world into four realms—sky, stone, fire, and water—then vanished. Over time, magicians learned to work spells only in their own realms and forgot the others. Now only the few who have survived the Labyrinth and crossed the Death Gate know of the presence of all four realms—and even they have yet to unravel the mysteries of their severed world. . . . 

The Carpet Makers by Andreas Eschbach

I only bought this one 1 year ago! But… I had been meaning to read it for years before that. It’s one of those books I keep seeing mentioned in almost reverential tones for how intriguing its worldbuilding is. And that cover? Wow. The blurb? Incredible.

Blurb

Since the time of pre-history, carpetmakers tie intricate knots to form carpets for the court of the Emperor. These carpets are made from the hairs of wives and daughters; they are so detailed and fragile that each carpetmaker finishes only one single carpet in his entire lifetime.

This art descends from father to son, since the beginning of time itself.

But one day the empire of the God Emperor vanishes, and strangers begin to arrive from the stars to follow the trace of the hair carpets. What these strangers discover is beyond all belief, more than anything they could have ever imagined . . .

Conclusion

So here we are, my first of *mumbles a number incoherently* deep backlist books. Please let me know your thoughts on any of them. I can’t read every book out there, but these are books I stashed on purpose with the intent of reading them later. I just need that extra nudge. So nudge me (or anti-nudge me).

SDG.

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Mini Reading Update: The Wandering Inn, Guernica Night, and more

I just wanted to post a mini reading update and hope to read your thoughts on these books.

The Wandering Inn

First up, I’ve had The Wandering Inn recommended as an epic, massive fantasy by a few people who read lots of fantasy and know I do, too. I finally got it started on audiobook. I was surprised to quickly discover it appears to be a light LitRPG in the Isekai style. If that sentence is incomprehensible to you, let me explain: LitRPG is a subgenre of speculative fiction that integrates tropes of role-playing games into the narrative. This can include leveling up, building skills, and stat blocks, all of which the character(s) are typically aware of. Isekai is a subgenre that could also be called portal fantasy in a way; it involves characters being transported to another world and having to survive there. Based on the way this book was described by people who recommended it, this is not what I was thought it would be, and I’m having to reset my expectations early on. Have you read this book or series, and do you like it? I am contemplating setting it aside for now.

Guernica Night by Barry Malzberg

I’m continuing my reading of every Nebula-nominated novel, and this one by Barry Malzberg is… a real trip. It’s borderline incomprehensible, with characters–including people like JFK–showing up seemingly out of nowhere and being jolted into a plot set in the 23rd century and featuring quite a lot of suicide. It’s dystopic in a way, with a future sapped of hope. But the plot is just… all over the map. I don’t get it so far.

The Helm of Midnight by Marina Lostetter

I’m rereading this excellent fantasy/horror mashup. Various sorcerous objects can imbue their users with the skills and maybe even personalities of those who used them or enchanted them before. When a deeply disturbing item is stolen in a heist, a serial killer with awful skill begins to prowl the city. The story features this central mystery and strong characters. I’m enjoying my re-read before diving into the rest of the series.

What about you, what are you reading? Let me know your thoughts on any of these reads, or your own, in the comments!

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“His Face is the Sun” by Michelle Jabès Corpora

I had an eye on His Face is the Sun since I saw it teased in one of the many book newsletters I subscribe to. First, the cover is absolutely gorgeous, and it’s accompanies by absolutely stellar sprayed edges. Presentation-wise, it’s an A+. I finally managed to get around to reading it, and wanted to share my thoughts on this novel.

The story features a large cast of characters, each of whom with point-of-view chapters dedicated to them: Sita, a princess in the palace; Neff, a priestess-in-training with visions from the gods; Rae, a farmer’s daughter living under oppression of the Pharaoh; Karim, who dabbles in tomb-raiding. Sometimes when books have this many points of view, they become bogged down simply in juggling all the supporting casts. Not so with this novel, in which Corpora easily handles each perspective with an intriguing plot of their own, building them all to satisfying threads (which of course set up for the next book(s) in the series).

The world-building was both a strength and a major weakness of the novel, in my opinion. On the one hand, the aspects that built up the world and its deities, places, and people is cohesive and interesting. On the other hand, there seems to be absolutely nothing that separates this “Egyptian inspired” setting from just being, well, Egypt with (occasional) name and (rarely) pallet swaps. The world is set along a river, upon which all life in the region is reliant. There are two kingdoms united through war by a Pharaoh. There are cities based around monuments or deities. Definitely-not-Tanis-Egypt (named Thonis) is a major city in almost the exact same location on the definitely-not-the-Nile river. The goddess Bast inspires cultic worship of cats, among other things. Just… why is this set in anywhere but Egypt? There is nothing substantive that makes it distinct from ancient Egypt. I love stories inspired by the ancient world. The Will of the Many is a stellar example of taking inspiration from Ancient Rome but making it different enough to be interesting. Here, I kept searching for those points of interest that would diverge from Egypt and make this world into its own thing, and there just… wasn’t really anything there. Am I an expert in ancient Egypt? No! But that should have made it even easier to draw me into a world supposedly inspired by and NOT ancient Egypt! Instead, time and again I found obvious parallels to the point where it just becomes tiring.

Why–why!?–is this not set in ancient Egypt? The only answers I can think of are either: 1) the author didn’t want to accidentally make some historical blunder that would undermine the story for people who knew enough about Egypt and/or 2) because a lot of readers (admittedly including myself) are more interested in fantasy settings that are not the real world. But neither of those reasons is sufficient to simply name swap everything and move on! I wanted to experience a world inspired by ancient Egypt, not a world that imitates ancient Egypt in every substantive way! And this imitation became such a distraction that it got harder and harder to enjoy the novel, which is unfortunate, because I really do think it’s a pretty good read overall. The setting is just a huge blunder in my opinion.

His Face is the Sun is an interesting first novel in a series, but it’s also one that I admit to being somewhat disappointed by. While the characters are well-done, the setting itself didn’t make sense to me. I don’t understand the narrative decision to make it set in a different world at all.

SDG.

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My Read-Through of the Hugos: 2006

I’m a huge science fiction fan, and, having read a list of what are alleged to be the top 200 science fiction novels, I decided to next tackle a read-through of all the Hugo Award winners and nominees for best novel. Let me know your thoughts and favorites. I’ve marked the winner as well as my own choice for which novel would win, had I the choice among the nominees. I’ve also dropped a short reflection on the year’s Hugo list at the end.

Accelerando by Charles Stross- Grade: B+
Stross’s books are weird in the best possible way. This one is among the strangest science fiction novels I’ve read. An attempt to summarize the labyrinthine plot takes a large section on Wikipedia. There is much ado about a singularity, there are people thrust into the great beyond, only to come back to a changed world, and much, much more. This book is cyberpunk at its best, imagining a world that is so similar to our own but taken to extremes on so many different levels. Stross’s imagination runs away with the book at times, which leads to it feeling a bit bogged down despite its frenetic pace. I also wasn’t a huge fan of the intensely explicit sexual scenes. That’s not really my thing in a novel. Nevertheless, Accelerando is a radically wild ride that I enjoyed very much.

Spin by Robert Charles Wilson (Winner, My Winner)- Grade: A+
I think this was the first book I ever read from Robert Charles Wilson, perhaps 5 years ago. I liked it then, but I found myself skimming through, somewhat misunderstanding the premise of the novel. I re-read it for this post and it absolutely blew me away from page one. RCW has become a favorite author of mine as I savor his intensely thoughtful science fiction. His novels aren’t about spaceships blowing each other away (not saying this derogatorily–I love me some military sci-fi)–they’re about people involved in usually horrifying circumstances. With Spin, he imagines what would happen if the world were suddenly cut off from anything outside our planet for unknown purposes, and what people would do in that situation. It’s a compelling thread, and he mostly stays focused on the three protagonists who grow up throughout the novel. Unlike some of his other books, though, he offers more explanation of what’s going on behind the scenes and it becomes an increasingly powerful hard science fiction book as well. This is a simply incredible read that any serious fan of science fiction ought to try out at least once.

Old Man’s War by John Scalzi- Grade: A
A deliciously entertaining military science fiction novel that, in my opinion, transcends its influences. Initially, it seems to be a typical space marine story, but it quickly evolves into a much deeper plot. Scalzi writes great aliens, great characters, and remarkable introspection and development of the same. It’s filled with fun ideas and tongue-in-cheek humor while also delivering the goods when it comes to its core plot and pacing elements. I’ve read this book 3 times now at different stages in my science fiction appreciation. The first time it absolutely blew me away. I approached it with some trepidation several years later, concerned my more refined taste (imagine a snooty voice here) in science fiction would turn me off a beloved favorite. It didn’t. Now I just plan on reading it for pleasure every few years. I even snagged the audio recently so I can listen to it once in a while. It’s fantastic science fiction on just about every level.

A Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin- Grade: B-
Look, you’re going to get exactly what’s on the bumper with this novel. It’s a big, epic fantasy novel that focuses on intrigue and backstabbing and blood and killing people. It’s… fine. I admit I enjoy the more standard epic hero’s journey type fantasy that Martin was pushing back against OR really… other dark fantasy novels. I get the appeal, but I just don’t love it.

Learning the World by Ken MacLeod- Grade: A-
I’ve read a fair share of Ken MacLeod’s works at this point, and I can say with some confidence that this one has his strongest prose of all those I’ve read. The central premise is that there’s a generation ship showing up to take residence on a planet, but they find something dirtside that delays their disembarking, leading to some unrest on the ship. Much of the novel is told through a kind of blog entitled Learning the World written by a younger generation. There’s a winsome way that this approach sells much of the book, to the extent that even though it drags a bit towards the end, it remains fun to read all the way through. And let’s be clear: this is not a very simple read. The setting is our future, but so far that Earth itself is largely forgotten or, at times, mis-remembered. Basic pieces of knowledge are entirely different from our own, and this sometimes even comes into play in the way characters act. MacLeod is a master of combining hard sci-fi with humanity in frothy mixes of headiness, and this is right up there. It’s a great read that I do highly recommend.

2006- We’ve got another great slate of works here, showing that we can have several years in a row of good books. For me, picking a winner became easy. I think that Spin is an utterly fantastic science fiction novel that fans of the genre, especially fans who enjoy hard sci-fi or character pieces, must check out. That said, we’ve got a number of other great works here. Old Man’s War has thrived in multiple re-reads from me. Learning the World is a unique generation ship read. Obviously, there are unlimited fans of Martin’s work, so I don’t need to rehash reasons to like it here. Finally, Stross continues to confuse and impress with Accelerando.

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Links

J.W. Wartick- Always Have a Reason– Check out my “main site” which talks about philosophy of religion, theology, and Christian apologetics (among other random topics). I love science fiction so that comes up integrated with theology fairly frequently as well. I’d love to have you follow there, too!

My Read-Through of the Hugos– Read more posts in this series and follow me on the journey! Let me know your own thoughts on the books.

SDG.