John Scalzi
As part of my quest to reduce my pile of unread books (entering them on Library Thing as been showing me just how many there were...), I've just read two of my John Scalzi novels.
'Ghost Brigade' and 'The Last Colony'. They're both sequels to the excellent 'Old Man's War'. Ghost Brigade is good (4/5) but 'The Last Colony' is excellent. Although all three books would probably work as stand-alones, I really do recommend reading Old Man's War first.
Scalzi's series reminds me of Heinlein in some ways. There's that important ability to tell a good story. We've got the future military and space travel and aliens and lots of good stuff, but none of that counts unless the writer can spin a good yarn that holds the reader's attention and makes them care about the characters and what happens next. Scalzi does that, and I'll happily read more by him, whether it's in the same universe or not.
I think the vertigo is raising my standard required of books - they have to be good enough to hold my interest when I feel wobbly or queasy (but also means that I'm not yet ready to tackle those on my backlog that require serious brain cells). I started 'Janissaries' by Jerry Pournelle, but gave up after the first chapter. The idea (a group of stranded American mercenaries being rescued by aliens to fight in other times and places) is great, but the writing is dull and pedestrian and I had no interest in what happened to the characters. There was a time when I might have read it through, but I know that I have better books waiting in my pile.
'Ghost Brigade' and 'The Last Colony'. They're both sequels to the excellent 'Old Man's War'. Ghost Brigade is good (4/5) but 'The Last Colony' is excellent. Although all three books would probably work as stand-alones, I really do recommend reading Old Man's War first.
Scalzi's series reminds me of Heinlein in some ways. There's that important ability to tell a good story. We've got the future military and space travel and aliens and lots of good stuff, but none of that counts unless the writer can spin a good yarn that holds the reader's attention and makes them care about the characters and what happens next. Scalzi does that, and I'll happily read more by him, whether it's in the same universe or not.
I think the vertigo is raising my standard required of books - they have to be good enough to hold my interest when I feel wobbly or queasy (but also means that I'm not yet ready to tackle those on my backlog that require serious brain cells). I started 'Janissaries' by Jerry Pournelle, but gave up after the first chapter. The idea (a group of stranded American mercenaries being rescued by aliens to fight in other times and places) is great, but the writing is dull and pedestrian and I had no interest in what happened to the characters. There was a time when I might have read it through, but I know that I have better books waiting in my pile.
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Right now I'm reading the second volume in the "Chaos Chronicles" by Jeffrey A. Carver. Interesting ideas and worldbuilding, average characters, and a peril-filled plot.
The idea... is great, but the writing is dull and pedestrian and I had no interest in what happened to the characters
Don't read anything by Alan Dean Foster, then.
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I find ADF frustrating because his writing drags down what would otherwise be good stories. It's like trying to run with a ball-and-chain attached to one's leg: hop-thump-hop-thump.
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Yes, they are like the early Heinlein, but what I love about them is the unreliability of the narration and the way the morality switches from a very Campbellian viewpoint to a very different liberal one.
Another author who throughly subverts Heinlein is Ken MacLeod in Learning the World.
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I'm looking for some new authors, so if anyone knows what it is I'd be grateful.
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It's top suggestions for me are currently:
# The Honor of the Queen by David Weber
# On Basilisk Station by David Weber
# Mating: A Novel by Norman Rush
# The Good Husband of Zebra Drive by Alexander McCall Smith
# Heris Serrano by Elizabeth Moon
# SM 101: A Realistic Introduction by Jay Wiseman
Which is telling, because three of those are books I own and haven't yet got around to entering into the database... And I own another book by Wiseman.
I've never heard of Norman Rush - maybe I should try him...
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New features keep appearing. Over a dozen of my LJ friends are also on Library Thing.