Category: Books

claviger?

Posted on by Greig

Soulless

Gail Carriger

Soulless is a steampunk alternate history urban fantasy romance with both comedic and horror elements.
In a world where vampires, werewolves and ghosts are part of Victorian society we are introduced to the Soulless of the title, someone who can nullify the gifts of the supernatural, a high society spinster by the name of Alexia.
Highly intelligent and forthright with a great line in witty banter she’s a great character to spend time with.
The book overall is an entertaining confection. The plot is pretty obvious but it whips along at an enjoyable pace and kept me entertained.
It’s not a top class example of any of the genres it plays with but I’d still recommend it to anyone looking for a diverting piece of escapism.

Rating: B

turnaround?

Posted on by Greig

Gateway

Frederik Pohl

Pohl is one of the last remaining giants from the golden age of science fiction.
Gateway is, in my opinion, one of his three best books. (The other two being the disturbing Mars exploration tale Man Plus and magnificent satire on advertising and consumer society The Space Merchants, which he co-wrote with Cyril Kornbluth).
In this future Earth is heavily overpopulated and resource starved and one Robinette Broadhead uses a lottery win to escape the brutal life of a shale miner to try his luck prospecting in an alien spacecraft from the alien adapted asteroid known as Gateway.
We see the present day in the form of sessions Broadhead has with a machine psychologist and in alternating chapters we’re told the story of what happened at Gateway.
It’s an interesting premise, well delivered. You really want to spend more time in the world Pohl created when you finish it.
I’d definitely recommend this for fans of science fiction. I would also say that you should probably avoid the sequels if you don’t want to be disappointed.

Rating: A

inskipp?

Posted on by Greig

The Stainless Steel Rat

Harry Harrison

Harrison – who passed away recently at the age of 87 – was a master of smart, funny satirical science fiction.
The Stainless Steel Rat books were always my favourites and I’d been thinking about re-reading them before news of his death prompted me to finally buy a copy.
While the book is dated in many respects (it was originally published in 1961) it’s still a fast read, full of expertly constructed capers and a whole lot of fun.
We’re only just getting to know Slippery Jim DiGriz in this book and he evolves into an irrestistable character over the next few books in the series.
You should be able to pick this up cheap from a second hand bookshop but it’s also available from Gollancz’s SF Gateway site.
It’s well worth a read and I recommend it to those who like classic science fiction or want to revisit the rat.

Rating: A-

patisserie?

Posted on by Greig

Moon Over Soho

Ben Aaronovitch

The second PC Grant book finds the characters still dealing with the repercussions of the events in the first book.
Physical and mental injuries to his colleagues mean that Grant is left on his own in the field for the first time as he investigates the deaths of jazz musicians that show telltale signs of magical influence and continues to try and find who’s been killing men by biting their penises off.
The book feels a bit less focussed than the first of the series and it annoyed me by having the lead character being stupid in a really obvious way for a good chunk of the tale.
I’d still recommend the book as it’s a really satisfying mix of humour, horror and police procedural.

Rating: A-

toby?

Posted on by Greig

Rivers of London

Ben Aaronovitch

This mix of supernatural horror, fantasy and police procedural is very entertaining. It’s so good, in fact, that I’ve already started reading the follow up.
Peter Grant is a probationary constable in the Metropolitan Police, staring down a career behind a desk. An interview with a witness at the scene of a homicide sends his life on a new course when the eyewitness turns out to be a ghost.
This tale is a perfectly judged fluid mix of horror and comedy that serves a well wrought detective story.
I can’t wait to see where the author goes with this series.
I would recommend this book without hesitation (especially since it’s on sale for £1.99 on the UK kindle store at the time of writing).

Rating: A

rectangles?

Posted on by Greig

The Long Earth

Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter

the long earth by terry pratchett and stephen baxterThis first collaboration between Pratchett and Baxter is the initial offering of a proposed trilogy.
The books events are spun into motion when a scientist mysteriously disappears leaving behind him instructions on how to build a device that allows people to ‘step’ to parallel versions of the Earth.
A vital point to make is that this is a pretty straight ahead science fiction novel mostly free from Pratchett’s trademark humour. Set your expectations accordingly.
This is a promising book but it does spend a hell of a lot of time setting things up and provides not much in the way of payoff. I do like the central character of Joshua Valiente a lot and I will be keen to pick up the sequel when it comes out.
I can only recommend the book if you’re prepared to commit yourself to the full series. If you’re a fan of Pratchett or Baxter (I’m a fan of both) then I think you really should make the necessary commitment.

Rating: A-

attic?

Posted on by Greig

Dave Gorman Vs the Rest of the World

Dave Gorman

What do you do when you get bored and have time to kill? Dave Gorman asked his followers on twitter if they fancied playing a game.
This book chronicles his travels all over the UK to play strangers, acquaintances and friends at various games from Monopoly to Darts with odd pub and board games thrown in.
Gorman has previous when it comes to taking on insane challenges – see Are You Dave Gorman? and Dave Gorman’s Googlewhack Adventure which are both very funny books (I’ve read them but they escaped being reviewed on the blog).
Gorman has a pleasing style and the book is genuinely funny but there’s just something tired and bored underlying the adventures.
Something screams “I want to stop doing crazy stuff and to settle down!”
Recommended if you liked his earlier books.

Rating: B+

smallpark?

Posted on by Greig

Where the Hell Am I? Trips I have survived.

Ken Levine

Levine is a hugely successful sitcom writer (his resume includes MASH, Cheers and a couple of Simpsons episodes) and this is a collection of short travelogues he initially wrote as emails to friends and family that ended up becoming a staple of his blog (which I recommend reading by the way).
It’s pretty lighthearted jokey stuff but it never really lights the heather on fire.
I got it for nothing, but certainly worth it’s normal low price if you particularly like his blog.

Rating: B-

nancy?

Posted on by Greig

Lemonade Mouth

Mark Peter Hughes

Lemonade MouthI came across the Lemonade Mouth film while looking for episodes of Phineas and Ferb (awesome kid’s cartoon) on the Disney channel. I gave it five minutes expecting to hate it and instead found it sweetly funny and filled with pleasant songs (well constructed teen pop, nothing revelatory).
So when I saw the book the film was based on for sale in the Kindle store on Amazon for a couple of quid I decided it was worth trying.
It differs from the film in that the characters less obviously photogenic and the music they play in the book sounds insanely off the wall, but most of the character’s themes and motivations are there.
In the book the story is told from the perspectives of the individual band members and some other people involved in the events related.
It’s a sweetly funny, very readable young adult book and I’m not surprised it translated so well into a tv film.
Recommended if you enjoyed the film or like charming young adult tales where misfits band together to become something greater. Personally I’m a sucker for that kind of thing.

Rating: B+