Writers and authors tend to read a lot, I’ve been slowing down lately. But here are some of the books that I’ve read or re-read recently and would recommend.
A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE
A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
This book caught me at just the right time, and I loved it. But had I been in a different mood, I might not have finished it. The story, an ambassador sent to a powerful empire to both replace and solve the murder of her predecessor, is as much a story about culture defining character as it is a murder mystery. It’s a rich world, very thoroughly envisioned, and enjoyable, but it’s a slow read, so be ready for that. The sequel, A Desolation Called Peace, didn’t grab me as much.
A CITY ON MARS
A City on Mars by Kelly & Zach Weinersmith
First, this is non-fiction. It challenges all of our assumptions about colonizing Mars, the Moon, and near-Earth orbit. And I can’t stop thinking about it. The full title is: A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? And the authors have really thought it through and their thoroughly researched answers are Maybe, Not Yet, and No.. Carl Sagan once said, “Earth is our birthplace, it need not be our home forever” and I’ve always subscribed to that idea, but this book has me re-thinking how ready we are to leave. Read it, especially if you write hard sci-fi or space opera (like I do).
FOUNDATION
Foundation by Isaac Asimov
Given the ongoing TV series, I thought I’d re-read this classic series. Now I don’t think I’ll continue beyond this book. It is an interesting work, but has not aged well. I got tired of the “you read the scene but you didn’t get all the important information in that scene until later.” It may work for murder-mysteries, but it grows tiring in a book about political machinations. The book’s episodic nature fits the time it was written in, and I believe the component parts may be have been first published in magazines. Another sign of its age: There is but one named female character and she’s in only two scenes. I much preferred some of his other works such as Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun.
THE KAIJU PRESERVATION SOCIETY
The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi
It’s light, not his most immersive work. I found it a bit too shallow and cliched. There were too many meme references and not enough character development. Scalzi says in his essay at the end that writing it was cathartic and just part of getting past the pandemic, and I can appreciate that. If you’re not a diehard Scalzi fan, you can skip this one.
THIEF OF TIME
Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett
My God, this man could write. I love the way he takes an aphorism and twists new meaning out of this. I feel like Thief of Time was written when he was at his perfect balance of wit, whimsy and social awareness. It captures the growth in his writing and the new direction he was approaching (It may be the last book that has footnotes, for example.) Susan touches on a lot of ideas that he’d explore further with Tiffany Aching. Not everything lands, Lu-Tze’s role is unfulfilling, for one. And I feel like Myria/Unity had a greater story arc waiting to be told.
EXIT STRATEGY (Murderbot Diaries #4)
Exit Strategy by Martha Wells
These novellas are light reading, and as such good for lying in bed at night. But the technique of not telling you something or glossing over something until after it is apparent is getting tiring. Especially when other in-story facts are repeated ad nauseam. I bought the first four stories. I’ll read all four, but won’t be going further. This one has some closure to it, and that’s a good place to stop.
THE GOBLIN EMPEROR
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
A satisfying and rich read, with incredible world-building. The story is more character-driven than plot-driven, which is to say not a lot happens, and much that does, happens off-page. While I enjoyed it, there were a few spots where I considered not finishing. Character names are confusing and overly burdensome to one who reads late at night in bed. I often could not recall who a character was until they were a bit into their scenes. Some plot points came out of left field without enough build up. That the young characters were wise at avoiding the pitfalls of power while the older characters were not may have been an intentional theme, but it also made the characters less relatable, making me less emotionally invested in the story.
You can comment below and tell us what you’re reading.
If you enjoyed this post, you might enjoy my short story collection The Maiden Voyage of Novyy Mir and Other Short Stories.
Terry Pratchett, make that Sir Terry Pratchett, was visited by one of his creations, Death, this past March. The world of fantasy and humour are worse off for that visitation.