If you’re a Star Trek fan, you’ll remember when they had a hidden outpost on a planet where they were monitoring the primitive life. That was all I coIf you’re a Star Trek fan, you’ll remember when they had a hidden outpost on a planet where they were monitoring the primitive life. That was all I could think of when I started reading this book because that’s essentially what happened here. Humans spread out into the stars and colonized planets and then sent someone to monitor things.
I really liked the characters even though AT only went in-depth on the main two. The story was a quick easy read. I finished in an afternoon. The problem I have with the story is that we devolved. We went from a space-faring people back to medieval people. We forgot where we came from other than to tell the stories like fairy tales. I also was left wondering too much at the end. The major hurdle to overcome, the actual plot point, was never explained properly. I’m ok with some loose ends but I hate finishing with this big of a question mark.
Maybe I was just spoiled by his Children of Time. It was so amazingly good perhaps my expectations were too high....more
I’m going to start with my biggest issue I have with this book…I still don’t know why the clones are being made, and to add to that now I don’t know wI’m going to start with my biggest issue I have with this book…I still don’t know why the clones are being made, and to add to that now I don’t know why hers want to kill her but others don’t.
This is still the coolest and yet weirdest premise I’ve read. Every drop of blood produces a clone. But not for Molly. Not anymore. This last Molly is the final surviving clone. She has a number tattooed on her arm for a group that will help her but she’s also been contacted by a second group that says the first group is the enemy. Who to trust?
I can’t wait to read more. I need to know more....more
The synopsis makes this book sound like excellent sci-fi and the concept of it is, but I was lost on the execution. I had the worst time trying to stiThe synopsis makes this book sound like excellent sci-fi and the concept of it is, but I was lost on the execution. I had the worst time trying to stick with the story. I can’t even tell you what it was that put me off. The characters were all good. The setting is Africa - very interesting place for sci-fi and it reminded me of District Nine. Seriously, I think it was a “me” issue.
Another occurrence of me reading a different book than everyone else? Possibly. I just didn’t see the big deal about the story. It was good but not grAnother occurrence of me reading a different book than everyone else? Possibly. I just didn’t see the big deal about the story. It was good but not great. In fact, had it not been up for an award and on sale at the same time, I don’t think I would have read it.
Here’s the set up, but in case I mistakenly give something away...(view spoiler)[
I’m assuming far in the future we have a planet called Teixcalaan populated by us. They are referred to as humans and there is a structure on it called Palace Earth. There is also a space station called Lsel that guards a couple of jump gates (wormholes?) which again is populated by people referred to as humans but they look different than those on the planet...presumably from many generations of living on a space station.
Lsel uses a technology that can take the memories of someone, put it in a small device, then implant it into another person so they don’t have to learn everything from scratch. Handy tech but the idea felt somewhat stolen from the Dax character on Deep Space Nine. People of Teixcalaan do not know about this tech, or at least most of them don’t. (hide spoiler)]
After the death of Lsel space-station ambassador Yskandr, they send a new one to Teixcalaan named Mahit. This is more of a political murder mystery than a science fiction story as no one knew what Yskandr had been up to for the past 15 years. Mahit needs to find out what is happening politically, what happened to Yskandr, what Teixcalaan plans there are for Lsel, etc.
One thing that I assume a lot of people liked, but I hated, was the unique way the author decided to name the people of Teixcalaan. Their names are all a number followed by a noun. Here are a couple of them: Three Seagrass, Eleven Conifer, Nine Propulsion, Fifteen Engine...the list goes on obviously as there are a whole planet full of them. It took me about a third of the book to get used to this. The second thing was that the entire planet has a thing for poetry. Even their new stories are told in verse. I’m not anti-poetry but this really pushed the story over the line from sci-fi to lit-crap.
I gave it three stars because of the second half of the story. It was a two star beforehand but it started to pick up the pace...plus I think I got used to the ridiculous names. This is another one of those stories I won’t recommend but I also won’t tell you to stay away from. Maybe you’ll like it more than I did.
I don’t know how someone can write something as good as the Daemon trilogy and then put this out there. It wasn’t ‘bad’ but it was so boring for a stoI don’t know how someone can write something as good as the Daemon trilogy and then put this out there. It wasn’t ‘bad’ but it was so boring for a story with such great ideas. I’ve been trying to read it for a month...A MONTH. Dear lord, I would normally read 6 or 7 in that kind of time but I dreaded picking this up for the sheer boredom of it. I’m sure other people will like it, and it may be a good story in the end but life’s too short to not enjoy a book you’re forcing yourself to read. NEXT......more
Is Hurley a great writer? Yes Does Hurley have a fantastic imagination? Yes Did she write time-travel and cover all the bases? Yes Were the characters weIs Hurley a great writer? Yes Does Hurley have a fantastic imagination? Yes Did she write time-travel and cover all the bases? Yes Were the characters well developed and three dimensional? Yes Did I love it? No
Honestly, I think it’s me. I’m the problem. There is just something about her writing style that doesn’t seem to work for me...and it isn’t anything I can even put my finger on. I had the same problem with The Stars Are Legion. I should have loved that one. It fit right in with all my other favourites but it didn’t sit well with me either.
The only thing I know that put me off of TLB was that it was military based. I thought it was going to be more like Old Man's War where the military aspect was there but it felt like it took a backseat to the story. In this case, it was mission after mission, and military stories are just not my thing.
If you like science fiction and time travel, plus the military, then you should give this a try. You will probably love it....more
This was one of those books that I always saw prominently placed on the big front shelf in the bookstores. It was always right in front of me and lotsThis was one of those books that I always saw prominently placed on the big front shelf in the bookstores. It was always right in front of me and lots of people read it, but I didn’t think it would be my type of book. As much as I like to know what the hype is about in a popular new book, I honestly thought it was a romance and therefore I stayed away but it was bought for me so I thought I’d give it a try. This wasn’t a romance....it was a biological science fiction.
In the future, someone discovers that in our DNA there is a gene that directly corresponds to the gene of one other person on the planet - the “one”, aka your soulmate, your other half, the person who completes you. The problem is what happens to existing relationships when one or both get tested only to find their soulmate lives in another country...or down the street? What if the results aren’t what you thought they would be or what if a little computer hacking took place to jumble results?
Told in a handful of characters’ points of view, this was an easy, fun read that ultimately warns us about technology and putting all of your faith in the latest and greatest new thing. This could have easily been a new Black Mirror episode. Very cool, very entertaining, and very weird that I just did a 23 and Me kit. Who knows...maybe my results will come with a soulmate category....more
I said it before and I'll say it again, Blake Crouch is my go-to author if I want to read something I KNOW I'm going to like. He did not disappoint. WI said it before and I'll say it again, Blake Crouch is my go-to author if I want to read something I KNOW I'm going to like. He did not disappoint. While his previous time-travel book Dark Matter seemed to garner more chatter than Recursion, I liked this one more. I think this had a better story (and will make a better movie).
My biggest problem with time-travel stories are almost always the little details that should lead to a paradox but gets missed or skipped by the author. I really like what Crouch did with this one. He did good with his multi-verse theory in Dark Matter but this was a work of genius. It was complicated enough that I almost got lost with how he was going to pull it off. Bravo Crouch.
If you like science fiction, and specifically time-travel, this is a must-read. SO GOOD. Highly recommended. ...more
This would have gotten the full five stars if I hadn't been left with so many questions. Every time Molly loses blood, a new clone of Molly grows out This would have gotten the full five stars if I hadn't been left with so many questions. Every time Molly loses blood, a new clone of Molly grows out of it and soon tries to murder the original. Weirdest concept for a story I ever heard and I loved it. ...more
Murderbot is one of the best characters I’ve ever read...and I’ve read a fair amount of fiction. It’s a cyborg/android...whatever you call it, that keMurderbot is one of the best characters I’ve ever read...and I’ve read a fair amount of fiction. It’s a cyborg/android...whatever you call it, that keeps referring to itself as “a terrifying murderbot” but then sits down to stream it’s favourite TV shows, which it would watch all day if it could.
This instalment is fairly short and is just Murderbot trying to pretend it’s an augmented human getting a job to allow it to go down to a mining planet. It’s trying to find out if it was the cause of wiping out a mining team or if something else happened. Oh, and also Murderbot makes a friend. Heehee. I’m really loving this character....more
I normally like McCammon but this was far from my favourite horror story. I was doing fine for the first third but then things got a tad cheesy. I knoI normally like McCammon but this was far from my favourite horror story. I was doing fine for the first third but then things got a tad cheesy. I know it’s because it’s been decades since this was written, totally not the author’s fault, but when you want to laugh while reading a horror then you know that book isn’t for you.
The first thing I thought was funny was that an evil alien ship landed on Earth and it turned out to be the Luxor hotel in Las Vegas. Not the actual hotel but an immense black pyramid with light beaming up from the top point of the pyramid. Sounds just like the Luxor to me.
The second funny thing was that the alien was a giant bug who would hide in a human, just like in the movie Men in Black. If you saw it then you know why I couldn’t be scared of that freaky visual.
The final funny thing was when the alien stole the famous quote from Cool Hand Luke - “What we have here is a failure to communicate”.
That was it. The final laugh for me. How can this make anyone fearful? I can’t fault him for me reading it years too late but unfortunately I just couldn’t take it seriously....more
Simak has written some of the best science fiction out there. Way Station and City were both fantastic. The Werewolf Principle was not.
It takes placeSimak has written some of the best science fiction out there. Way Station and City were both fantastic. The Werewolf Principle was not.
It takes place in the future. Scientists had created a humanoid being with the ability to morph into something else so we could send it out into space and if it found a planet with life, it could morph to match it. Which is what happened but it ended up coming back to Earth as three beings all living within the same body. Werewolf...get the comparison? Anyhow, a huge amount of the story was introspection and it was duller than watching paint dry. I made it half way before I decided it wasn’t worth the effort.
This was a good story that could have been great if it had been properly edited. It frequently was focussed on one character only to jump to another cThis was a good story that could have been great if it had been properly edited. It frequently was focussed on one character only to jump to another character who was somewhere else in the next sentence. It was a bit jarring and kept me from staying immersed in the story.
I’ll tell you right upfront, this book is not for everyone. Hard sci-fi readers may be disappointed because even though this book is dependant on timeI’ll tell you right upfront, this book is not for everyone. Hard sci-fi readers may be disappointed because even though this book is dependant on time travel, it is more about love and told very poetically.
The story begins at the end of a battle. Our two main characters are the top agents for each side: Red from the technology enhanced future versus Blue from the environmental future (these descriptions are subject to my own interpretation as the truth was slightly vague in the story). A message is left by one for the other. It seems to start as a taunt but the messages continue and as they do, things change between Red and Blue.
From a sci-fi standpoint, I was fascinated by the strange futures Red and Blue were from although both were described very sparingly.
From a romance standpoint, I thought it was very well done. I don’t usually like romance as they are rushed, sloppy and all about the sex. None of those things apply here.
From a time travel standpoint, it reminded me of The End of Eternity with the ability to go to specific points in time to tweak things in a certain direction but the war gave this a duelling banjo feel - one side would tweak to their advantage then the other side would tweak to their advantage. When people were from and how they time travelled was never discussed.
I can’t say that I’m not a little disappointed with learning so little about the very strange futures Red and Blue come from and also how the war started. Truth be told, now that I’m thinking about it, I really wasn’t told all that much about anything. Wow. The author did a great job sucking me into a story while giving me precious little of what I love (SF and time travel details) and lots of what I don’t love (poetic romance). That’s good writing...more
This instalment of the series seemed less concerned with the story and more focussed on sexuality. Not the act of having sex (although that was there This instalment of the series seemed less concerned with the story and more focussed on sexuality. Not the act of having sex (although that was there also) but all the variations on gender. This would have been fine as part of the story but Elison seemed to be really shoving it in your face. You would get a bit of story and then pages of how this character was a girl but not a girl, etc. And it was so anti-heterosexual male. This story seemed to want to say that if you weren’t feminine then your sole purpose in life was to rape and enslave those who are.
I don’t know how such a good story as The Book of the Unnamed Midwife morphed into this. I should have just read it as a stand-alone.
This was written by the same guy who wrote We Are Legion (We Are Bob) and I think I may even like this better. No, I definitely like it better. TaylorThis was written by the same guy who wrote We Are Legion (We Are Bob) and I think I may even like this better. No, I definitely like it better. Taylor has some big sci-fi ideas and he’s really good at building a story and characters around them. For anyone who didn’t care for all the humour in WAL, you’ll probably like this better because, well, no Bob.
Who we do have is Ivan. He’s taken a job as a miner on a spaceship headed out to find an asteroid hopefully loaded with enough ore to sell so they don’t all have to go bankrupt. And there it is...the big find. Yay, but there’s a smaller rock so let’s go check it out. That’s where Ivan finds an alien artefact and he just can’t help himself - he decides to touch it. When it touches him back and won’t let go, things get bad for Ivan.
I want to keep telling you about this great story but you need to read this yourself. I don’t want to give away anything. It’s really good. Highly recommended for science fiction lovers, or likers for that matter....more
I don’t know what Mr. and Mrs. Green did so well as parents to turn their kids into phenomenal story-tellers but whatever it was should be bottled andI don’t know what Mr. and Mrs. Green did so well as parents to turn their kids into phenomenal story-tellers but whatever it was should be bottled and sold. One kid - hey, obviously it happens, but two? Remarkable.
This reminded me so much of Sleeping Giants but yet it was also very different. Both had big alien metal humanoid ‘things’. No one knew where they came from. After those things, which were big plot points, the stories were quite different. This is told from the POV of April May, a twenty-three year old girl really just starting out her life but wanting to do something big. And does she ever go big. She is the first person on the planet to notice a huge metal statue (of the 64 around the globe) and she decides to go online with it. Using YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, April soon becomes the girl to watch for anything to do with the statues.
While the reason for these statues being there is the main story, how April handles everything is also important. She ruins relationships, gets used, uses others, becomes an assassination target...oh, so many things happen.
This is book one of ? No idea really but it ended at a good point. A bit of a cliffhanger really but it’s the exact place I think it should have ended. The next one is due out next year and I hate waiting. If you do too, maybe put this one off for a year but definitely read it sometime!!...more
This was a great story. It’s officially a series but really it’s one giant story. It wound up nicely with an opportunity in the future to revisit thisThis was a great story. It’s officially a series but really it’s one giant story. It wound up nicely with an opportunity in the future to revisit this universe and see what the Bobs are up to.
This was the one that Bob’s humanity really came through on. He lost, and saved, loved ones. He/they realized what they should be doing going forward. Sentient beings were discovered, saved, and also destroyed. There was a lot going on.
This isn’t a series for everyone but if you like science fiction and discovering the (fictional) universe, then you’ll probably like this one....more
I liked this story more than the three stars implies. I took away for two reasons 1 - The story just ended...not at a cliffhanger, not at the end of soI liked this story more than the three stars implies. I took away for two reasons 1 - The story just ended...not at a cliffhanger, not at the end of some achievement, just bam in the midst of the story 2 - Bob, in his various incarnations, is all over the universe doing various things and I found it a bit tiresome. It should be there but maybe pared down a bit. I was getting a little anxious for the story to get somewhere.
I’m not going to bore you with another big review since this book has enough of them but I will say that I’m moving on immediately to the next. It was good but if you don’t like geeky science fiction then this is not the series for you....more
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