Book – Page 12 – Made by Mikal

Live Free or Die

Post author:mikal
Post published: February 16, 2014
Post category:Book

This book is useful. When the Earth is invaded by evil aliens intent on stripping us of our heavy metals, I now know how to fight back using just Maple Syrup and a Death Star I just happen to have hanging around. That's education right there. This book is delightfully not sexist compared with some of Ringo's other books, which makes me happy. It does lack strong female characters, but at least they're not being used for titillation (refer to Cally's War for an example of how this isn't always true). I enjoyed this book.

A Talent for War

Post author:mikal
Post published: February 8, 2014
Post category:Book

This is my first McDevitt book, and it was a pleasant surprise. A bit of a mystery novel, but set in the far future. Well written, interesting and fun. I enjoyed it.

The Long Earth

Post author:mikal
Post published: January 27, 2014
Post category:Book

Lana put me onto this book while on a trip to Texas, and I have to say I like it. This is very unlike the other Terry Pratchett books I've read, in that whilst it is occasionally amusing, it isn't really an attempt at humor. It is instead a relatively methodical examination of the impact of discovering a series of inhabitable earths a trivial amount of distance away from our own. I also have to say I like the ending, not in the sense of liking what happens, but in the sense that it wasn't a twee or overly convenient way to stop the book. A good read.

Starship Troopers

Post author:mikal
Post published: October 1, 2013
Post category:Book

I saw the movie a few years ago, and so I read this book on a whim. Its very different to the movie. The book is interesting, although it does have a tendency to slide into rants about the moral responsibilities which come with having an electoral franchise. The book is also very pro military in its stance, although that's fair enough (an author without an opinion would be a boring author). Overall, I thought this book was an enjoyable read. Update 2013: I last read this book almost exactly four years ago. Its still a good read, and I didn’t find it as ranty as last time. I do think this is a better story than the movie, as it has more depth. Overall a good read, if not a particularly deep one.

Redshirts

Post author:mikal
Post published: February 15, 2013
Post category:Book

I was super excited to get my hands on the latest John Scalzi book because I've really liked his previous stuff. Unfortunately while this book is fun I feel that the underlying concept is pretty weak... Its more of a toy boy than something which makes you think, which is a disappointment to me. Don't get me wrong, the overall execution is good, but the book feels lazily plotted, much like a badly done Harry Harrison does. So, if that sort of thing annoys you, give this one a miss.

Earthbound

Post author:mikal
Post published: January 19, 2013
Post category:Book

This is the third book in the Marsbound series. The Others have just turned off all electronics on Earth, and now we need to survive. One problem with this book is that it jumps straight into the action -- I had to go back and re-read Marsbound and Starbound in order to understand what was happening in this book. That was ok because those two books are excellent, and I enjoyed re-reading them. In fact, those two are probably a little better than this one. Overall Earthbound is pretty dark, and there isn't a lot of hope presented -- its just a series of scenes where the main characters attempt to deal with an all powerful adversary. Perhaps if the Others weren't so powerful this would be a better book, because you just know that everyone is doomed. I also respect authors who are willing to kill off lead characters, but that happens a lot in this book, which sort of bothered me. Perhaps that's what combat is really like though -- people you have an attachment to just stop being there. There's no warning or explanation. The end of this book isn't very satisfying. There better be a sequel…

The Forever War (again)

Post author:mikal
Post published: December 17, 2012
Post category:Book

Still excellent.

Starquake

Post author:mikal
Post published: December 15, 2012
Post category:Book

The sequel to the very excellent Dragon's Egg, this book covers the continued interaction between the humans and the super cute Cheela. Unfortunately for the Cheela they suffer a major natural disaster which destroys society. I love an author who is willing to kill of characters when it progresses the story, and there is lots of that happening in this book. Really enjoyable.

Fuzzy Nation

Post author:mikal
Post published: November 16, 2012
Post category:Book

Yet another excellent Scalzi novel. This one took me a while to really warm up to, but it was worth the patience. The ending is fast paced and excellent.

Mockingjay

Post author:mikal
Post published: November 16, 2012
Post category:Book

This is the final book in the Hunger Games trilogy. To be honest I don't think it is as the previous two books. This is mostly because while the plot is quiet believable, Katniss simply comes across as whiney for most of the book. The plot is believable so it doesn't feel insincere, its just annoying. Overall an OK book but not her best.