Monthly Archives: April 2020

Ghost?

Posted on by

Ghost of a story?

Shell of an anime?

Looks a lot like Laura Croft to me…

Normally I’d write up a media post about “what to watch” for the fanzine, but I really don’t know if I can recommend watching Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045.

I am not an anime purist. I suspect most anime lovers would suggest that I’m barely a fan. Yes, I’ve been hanging around the fringes for a very long time (yes, I still call it Starblazers, thank you) but I’m not super invested. When GITS popped up on Netflix I didn’t rush to it. I was interested enough to start, and finish the series so far.

IF you’d like a review filled with fans and spoilers – head over to Gizmodo and check them out.

I’ll stay away from the spoilers (I think). I’m not sure if Patrick Huge is a spoiler or not… but it was a ridiculous character name in this show. I find little things like that distracting.

Anyway, the story itself is set in the future of the GITS characters, beyond a lot of the other material I’m familiar with. It presents some very interesting world building. There’s a lot of room for action and the creators do not shy away from that. There’s a lot of clunky action.

Why clunky? Because this is all done as 3D render, not traditional anime style. It’s downright distracting and tough to watch. It’s twitchy and looks cheap. I know it can’t be cheap, but I’ve been spoiled. IF you haven’t seen the animation from the Netflix series Love Death + Robots you should definitely go watch that. That stuff is amazing work. This variation of GITS was a struggle.

So, getting past the animation style itself – the story could have continued with the starting point, but then it felt like it changed half way through the episodes. We switched focus from this giant, world building economy based story to this other post human thing and it’s just messy. I’ll probably take a look at the next season to see if they tie all this stuff together, but I’m not in a rush.

IF you’re desperate for some new GITS then you can give these a look, otherwise I’d wait and see what so called season 2 will be… and hopefully we’ll avoid naked back flipping things…

Exit?

Posted on by

I just finished the last of the Murderbot Diaries – Exit Strategy. It’s #4 in the series of novellas by author Martha Wells. I very much enjoyed this series. Each one was just the right length and attitude that I was looking for right now. I burned through them terribly quickly…

You should too if you like science fiction / action stories.

I don’t know if I would have found them if not for Tor giving them away. It’s so difficult to weed through all the options out there these days. I give them their due – I am into it and will be looking forward to the release of Network Effect: A Murderbot Novel in the early part of May.

The last novella – Exit Strategy pushed the action harder than any of the others in the series. There were a couple of times when I had to stretch my willing suspension of disbelief about the amount of things MB was processing, but then the author handled that really, really well. I’m not going to spoil it for you – but I was happy with it.

I was also interested to note that MB was referred to as “it” a lot. The gender of MB was something that was only faint background stuff to me, but it was there. I only gave it more than a passing thought because of the organic parts being altered for the sake of appearance. There isn’t a super clear description of what the main character actually looks like anywhere in there. I think it really works well, and I don’t honestly know if I could pull that off as an author. I think that’s something to admire about this author’s writing. Very well done indeed.

I can certainly say that if you like action oriented science fiction (or science fantasy if you prefer) you should go and check this series out!

Cry Fowl!

Posted on by

I have been meaning to post about this for a couple of weeks now and somehow I’ve only just managed to get here. Things are changing in the world. I’m starting to wonder how permanent some of these changes are going to become. In the past, if I told you a movie was going directly to video release, your thought would be, “wow – how bad is it?” or something similar. Well, Disney is taking one of their big summer blockbuster movies directly to a streaming release in June… and it looks like it’s going to be pretty good. We might be seeing the future playing out right now ~ but that’s a different topic.

The movie in question is Artemis Fowl, based on the book by Eoin Colfer. I’d recommend going and checking out the trailer here.

I haven’t read Artemis Fowl since Watch The Skies read it in 2003. I do remember the meeting when we talked about it. At the time there was a member of the group (short lived membership) that complained bitterly about reading something so specifically aimed at a younger readership. He didn’t see the sense in looking at a book like that along with a couple of other complaints about the actual story content. At the time I argued that it was important for a group like ours to look at what future book club members are reading as they’re “coming up”. I still firmly believe this – and now, 17 years later that book he wasn’t interested in is a big, upcoming movie release with a huge fan base. Love it, hate it or live in ambivalence this book has made an impact.

IF you’ve got younger fans that haven’t read it yet, I’d recommend it. I particularly recommend it right now for an extra factor – it can consume MORE than just the time to read the book. One bit of the book that I enjoyed was that it takes a basic level look at secret codes… and BIG HINT – there’s a secret code in the book! Get your young fan / code breaker working on it as a great way to lead into all sorts of interesting brain food (history, math, puzzles – there’s so many topics!). Seriously – just check out the bottom of the very first page:

Break the code!

I remember this book as a lot of fun. For the older folks setting their kids up for this, it’s not like the disappointment of Ralphie in A Christmas Story either. I’d suggest getting to this before the movie comes out, just in case they spoil something!

It grew on me?

Posted on by
Semiosis (Semiosis Duology, #1)

Semiosis by Sue Burke

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This was a ‘freebie’ loan from the library. It was part of a promotion where readers in particular book clubs were given a ticket to visit Longwood Gardens as part of picking this book to read for the club. I was one of the folks that was able to get a ticket as part of this deal.

This was a slow read for me. I was really hesitant when I tried to get into it. Part of me thinks it’s because as a book club book it felt a little like ‘homework’ and I’m particularly good at avoiding that (always have been). Once I got a feel for the writing style then I was OK with it and things really moved along.

As I told folks at our on-line book club meeting, this book feels a lot like an “old school” science fiction book. The big deal part of this book revolves around the idea rather than a single protagonist. That made it difficult for a lot of our book club members, but not so much for me. There was enough tying each generation together that the story carried for me.

As for the idea itself – a sentient plant as our friend or foe on an alien planet is very interesting. There was a lot of bits that felt like science class, but I could move through those pretty easily. I liked the number of different ideas that cropped up through each section of the book as well. The story spans a fair amount of time but that didn’t seem to slow it down.

I found out this is part of a duology, but I don’t know that I’m invested enough to go and dig up (see what I did there – dirt joke) the next one. IF you’re into plants, alien life and survival stories this could be for you.



View all my reviews

Fool Moon

Posted on by

In my continuing re-read of the Dresden Files novels I have just finished reading Fool Moon.

Spoilers if you haven’t read it ~

I had forgotten just how beat up and broken Harry gets. He gets shot. I forgot that Murph breaks an arm. I knew that her partner died in the series, but I didn’t realize that Carmichael bought it so soon. I think this is a bit of the television show creeping into the memory of the book. Carmichael in the books looks nothing like the television show version and it far less annoying… and far more dead.

I’m glad I’m going back through these books. It’s tough to recall all the little details (and not so little details apparently). I’m tempted to make a series of notes about injuries sustained by Dresden, but I’d have to go back through the first book looking for them and I’d rather forge ahead.

I do still like this book. It was tight and quick and showed a lot of expansion to the world building that the series would continue to expand on. I admire the world building.

As for my new view on things, looking for the misogynistic? That’s harder in this book.

Harry continues to state that he’s from a different school of thought. He claims to understand that he’s a bit of a chauvinist, but doesn’t do anything about changing that attitude. I actually went and looked up the definition of chauvinist – and the word itself is actually defined as aggressive or exaggerated patriotism. Only when combined with ‘male’ does it take on a different meaning… and it’s a large collection of ugly words. Not as ugly as misogynistic, but still ugly. I suspect either the author or the character really wanted it to be chivalrous. Chivalrous I think is more fitting. Harry doesn’t think women less capable, doesn’t believe that women owe anything to me and in fact depends on women in his life in many ways. Those are not the characteristics of a misogynist, and not really of a chauvinist either. To be fair – a lot of Harry’s problems go away if he quits with the “I think women are delicate flowers that must be protected” attitude, but then it makes him less of who he is. I look forward to seeing if this goes away or increases in the upcoming books. It has certainly made for an interesting viewpoint for me, and good discussion with others who don’t like the series.

I look forward to more!

The Obvious

Posted on by

I wrote previously that writing is still hard. Among other obvious statements, I’m going to continue that train of thought.

Work is still work.

After a couple of weeks getting our balance with the way things work now people seem to have gotten the hang of remote working. I say this because teleconferencing has spiked for me personally. Others may or may not have been experiencing this before ~ it’s a new thing for me. I had 5 teleconferences yesterday. I’ve got 3 lined up for today. I had 2 on Monday. Three days, 10 meetings. I bailed early on my on-line book club meeting because I was just exhausted by the end of the day. It’s just the same as when I was at the office being interrupted… I got very little actual work done.

I will admit it’s nice to see other faces, but it’s still work.

So, I don’t have all the “extra” time that some people have right now. I’m thankful to still be working. There are a lot of folks out there that aren’t and they’re suffering because of it. Yes, I’ve taken a 20% pay cut, but I should survive that. We’ll go right back up to full levels as soon as work in the construction industry picks up again.

I’ve been trying to give my creative needs outlet. As always, I have six or eight projects that have cropped up in the “OH! I should to THAT” category and got notes or nascent beginnings. I’m really trying to focus on the things that I know I have opportunities for though. There’s a lot going on – and I’m doing my best to stay on track and continue to function. We’ll see how it all shakes out as we go.

I’ll continue to share things here as they come up. Hopefully there will be exciting stuff on the way!

Looking for…

Posted on by
Looking for Trouble

Looking for Trouble by Joan I. Wendland

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I pre-ordered this book so I was on the list when it came out. I am very lucky to have spent some time with the author at science fiction conventions in the past – I was able to get a copy before the official release day.

I agree with the author – I don’t want to tell you how to go about enjoying your books – but you’ll get a lot more out of this second in the series if you read the first one, well, first (you should totally go buy it if you haven’t!).

I enjoyed this book. I like the world and the premise. I like the characters.

I was looking for something light, and there is some heavy stuff in this book. I don’t think it was meant to be in depth and certainly didn’t feel like some other works I’ve read where it felt like as much text book or research paper as it did anything else – but there were parts of this story where I was reading and felt as weighted down as the protagonist.

I think that’s a sign of some very good writing right there. This book also does something that the best science fiction does. It takes on things from the real world in fictional terms. There’s a lot of stuff to discuss from this book too. I’d love to chat about it – you should go get it and read it!



View all my reviews

Written Work

Posted on by

Programming note: Writing is still hard.

I’ve seen a ton of posts about all the time that some people have on their hands these days. I’ve seen posts, some joking, some serious about how much some people accomplished in the past when under quarantine rules. I’ve seen numerous posts about how one should feel about all this time, your personal level of anxiety and how much work you should get done.

A friend of mine posted an update on how much had been written during this time of not leaving the house… and questioned its value.

Writing is still hard.

Extra time at the keyboard doesn’t change that. Some people might not even get extra time at the keyboard. Some people might not be able to take it. I am extremely lucky to still be working. I am on the same hours / schedule I was before the modern plague hit the world. I still can’t sit here in front of the machine for 12 or more hours at a time. I reserve a great deal of time for work here on my computer – the day job kind.

That is not to say that other projects are still lagging. Quite the contrary actually. I’ve been chipping away at things little by little. The biggest boon to me is the reduction in travel times along with the reduction in number of meetings. There are no places I have to go, no drive time involved in going there. Very few people clamoring for my attention. that has made a certain amount of focus easier for me, so I’m getting more writing done than I have in a while.

That is not to say that it’s good writing. There is a lot of anxiety floating out there and as I have stated in other posts, the panic can and will rub off. I’m hoping that as we adjust to the way things are right now that the new schedule will allow for even more work to get done.

In the end – writing is still hard. IF you’re creative and you’re struggling – that’s OK. If you’ve got scads of free time and you can make a go of it – then you go! Get cracking and make something awesome. If you’re not a maker, be a consumer when you can. Authors, freelancers, small businesses are all going to undergo changes in the coming months. IF you’ve got the time, dig up a new author or a small press and see if you can find something you like.

Hopefully I’ll be able to pull my bits and pieces together and keep forging ahead.

Parallel

Posted on by
Parallel Worlds: The Heroes Within

Parallel Worlds: The Heroes Within by L.J. Hachmeister

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I have to say up front – I bought this book because I knew there was a Jim Butcher story in there and I wanted to read that. I don’t know if I would have found this anthology if not for him.

The collection is a total of 19 stories. As with any anthology, this one was up and down for me. I did not read the story from the Dresden verse first. I tried just plowing through stories front to back. Then I got impatient and read Mr. Butcher’s story. I was missing something – and it prompted me to go back and start re-reading the Dresden Files.

That’s a significant part of why it took so very long to finish all the stories in this book. I did in fact read them all. I think that matters for an anthology – you can find new authors you really like that way.

Of the other 18 stories there were a few that stood out. I was surprised and delighted to be reminded of the Myth series with Aahz & Company in “Myth Deeds”. It’s been forever since I’ve read any of those. “Prisoner 141” was interesting, but it seemed to me more the kind of story that needs discussion when done. “Valentine Blues” was a fun take on an old story. “Tragedy of John Metcalf” was the most true to the parallel worlds theme and it was well done. I really liked the world building of “Demons of Arae” and will probably look up more of that.

There were other good stories in there and a couple that didn’t work for me. I know how tough anthologies can be – I would suggest grabbing this one and giving it a shot. You never know what you might find that appeals to you.



View all my reviews