Category: B-

14k?

Posted on by Greig

Things My Girlfriend And I Have Argued About

Mil Millington

Things My Girlfriend And I Have Argued AboutMillington’s debut novel is inspired by some of the crazy and hilarious stories about his relationship with his long-term German girlfriend (and mother of his children) as detailed here.
The novel takes these anecdotes and fits them into a loosely plotted story of dodgy dealings and shifty politics within the university that employs his lead character, Pel.
Loosely plotted is generous. It basically amounts to a serious of very funny sketches that kind of hang together but not really.
Then again any book that features Laser tag, Triads, burial grounds and Library and IT in-jokes is hard to dislike entirely.
It really is frequently laugh out loud funny but then again if you’ve been following Millington since he used to write letters into Amiga Power, like I have, this will come as no surprise.
Hopefully one day he’ll get a hang of the telling a complete story thing and he’ll have something that I can praise to the hilt.

Rating: B-

other half?

Posted on by Greig

Earth, Air, Fire and Custard

tom holt

earth, air, fire and custard The last book of the Paul Carpenter trilogy further illustrates the law of diminishing returns, so much so that the last third of the book struck me as utterly incoherent.
I can only say that it was a reasonably enjoyable ride for all it’s incoherence, but that I’m very glad that he’s stopped writing about Carpenter now and I don’t have to buy any more books in the series. (Being a completist is a bitch).
If you like Tom Holt, have read the first two, and don’t mind the random pointless, incoherent plot twists too much then you’ll probably feel like you haven’t wasted your time reading this.

Rating: B-

his girl friday?

Posted on by Greig

Steel Beach

John Varley

Steel BeachThis book is very much a tribute to the style and themes of Robert A Heinlein.
Hildy Johnson is a star reporter for a top Luna City dirt sheet. Life is good except for the bit where he keeps on attempting suicide. And just why is the Central Computer taking such a close interest in his case?
This book seems to occupy a strange place among Varley’s work, almost entirely taken over by the aping of Heinlein. It also seems to both be part of and simultaneously outside Varley’s previously created timeline.
I’d recommend this to people who are huge fans of Heinlein and can stomach the politics, violence, suicides and cold blooded murder of innocents.

Rating: B-

vine street?

Posted on by Greig

Do Not Pass Go

Tim Moore

Monopoly (the board game) has got a lot to answer for and this is the latest thing.
Moore visits the London streets featured in the game and looks at how they have changed since they were picked for the board game in the 1930’s.
This is a mildly amusing, occasionally frustrating and digression filled read.
The main pity is that Moore is capable of being funnier than this and that he sometimes comes across as terribly half-hearted in his approach to the project.
I liked it OK. I wouldn’t class it as a must read, well unless you have a burning desire to read a mildly funny travel/historical guide to London’s monopoly streets.
If that description fits you, then great, otherwise I’d recommend it only as something to borrow from a library.

Rating: B-