Bypass Gemini — Joseph R. Lallo

Bypass Gemini -- Joseph R. LalloNow this is a writer who is obviously having fun.

Admittedly there’s a thin line between a writer having a lot of fun with a story and the story becoming a little ridiculous and this book does seem to skim a little close to that line on occasion, and then it’s just up to the reader whether they might feel that line has been crossed.   For me, at least, i just enjoyed this as a totally fun read.   And right about now in my life i really needed a good fun read.

While my normal taste in sci-fi is rather highbrow — Le Guin, etc.. — this book came like a refreshing breath of fresh air in it’s nothing but a full on romp around the galaxy with broad array of characters and shenangians.   Yes, there’s a serious side to it, millions are going to die unless our protagonist can sort his shit out, but that doesn’t hold Joseph back from having fun with it along the way.

As in all of Joseph’s books, the characters are wonderful, widely varied and really brought to life, leaving you wanting further appearances in future books.

You can find this book for free on Amazon and then if you like it you can buy the rest of the series: a genuine try before you buy.   And i think that’s another great thing about Joseph, in that he gives away the first books in his 3 series as tasters and then let’s the reader make their own minds up freely as to whether they want more or not.   I got hooked in this way on Book of Deacon, then Free Wrench and now this.   And that for me is the mark of a good book, do you buy the rest of the series or walk away and never come back?   The answer to all 3 of Joseph’s series is yes, yes and yes again for me.   I bought the rest of the books to this series straight away and can’t wait to read more.

So onwards to Big Sigma Collection: Volume 1.

Joseph’s Page

#scifi #josephrlallo

Dark Matter — Blake Crouch

Dark Matter -- Blake CrouchWow!   That was a total head trip and a half.

Admittedly, i’m not a subscriber to the multiverse theory, but that didn’t detract from the story at all.   I was just totally swept along at an amazing pace, i just didn’t want to stop reading.   Every spare moment i had for 2 days had my face glued to my Kindle screen reading this — and that’s quite rare for me as i normally only read at bedtime for an hour or so.   Very unputdownable!

Definitely a must read for anyone who likes good sci-fi: even if just a little bit.   You won’t be disappointed.

Well worth the 99p i got this for as a “Kindle Deal”. 

Blake’s Page

#scifi #blakecrouch

Lotus Blue — Cat Sparks

Lotus Blue -- Cat SparksI really enjoyed the book right up until the end, which just didn’t seem to come up to the standard of the rest of the book.   After a really enthralling adventure it really felt like the ending was rushed to its conclusion.

It’s not too far fetched to imagine a future like the one depicted within this book, or the causes for it.   The more we begin to rely on drones and augmented soldiers to fight wars, slowly but surely handing over more and more control to computer intelligence, the closer we get to the characters in the book and ultimately entities like Lotus Blue.

I’m hoping the ending in this book isn’t the end and that there’ll be more books in this dystopian future.

Cat’s Page

#dystopian #catsparks

Sourdough — Robin Sloan

Sourdough -- Robin SloanIf you liked Robin’s Penumbra books then throw this on your reading list and have at it: more of that Robin Sloan style for you to enjoy.

If, however, you’ve come across this book because you’re into sourdough baking and was looking for a story to read that reflects the real challenges, difficulties etc., of baking your own sourdough breads, then you’ll probably want to read something else.

Conversely, if you’ve come across this book because you’re into sourdough baking but are able to put aside — for a while at least — your overly strict, sourdough-baker expectations to read a fun story about a magical and strange starter from a mysterious foreign land — including it’s musical tastes — then you just might really enjoy a good, fun read and become another Robin Sloan fan just like the rest of us.

Robin wrote an article all about sourdough: “Sourdough: A Confession, a Recipe, and a Playlist”.

And check out my review of the album that the Sourdough music was inspired by clicking here.

Robin’s Page

#scifi #robinsloan