I’m currently rebuilding the website as the old one got totally messed up when i was playing around with things (no idea what happened).
So i thought that while it was a total clusterfuck mess of SQL, i would take the opportunity to give it a whole new life and everything.
So if you go clicking on things you might find that very strange things happen. Don’t moan, i know a lot of things are broken, i’m working on it, it takes time.
I’ve got tons of old posts and pages from three websites that i’m working through and will be gradually posting all the stuff i want to keep on here while fixing all the broken things as i go through, one post, one page, at a time.
On top of doing all that, i will, of course, be continuing to add more new content and my latest posts will always appear directly below.
Or, if you prefer, you can also follow me on Twitter and Pinterest where i put a link to all new posts.
Enjoy
The Old Man and the Martian Sea — Alastair Reynolds
Available in the collection, Beyond the Aquila Rift.
Another of Alastair’s Mars stories. This one is set in Mars’ future after a few goes at terraforming have happened before getting things right.
But what happened to all that old terraforming equipment?
I really thought this was a wonderful story, a lost stowaway girl meets an old man who takes her to see a Martian sea.
Next up in Alastair’s timeline is Ascension Day.
Bye for now.
Alastair’s Page
#scifi #alastairreynolds
At Budokan — Alastair Reynolds
Available in the anthology, Shine.
A wonderful twist on the “should we resurrect dinosaurs” theme. Especially for the heavy rock types out there.
Next up in Alastair’s time line is The Old Man and the Martian Sea.
Bye for now.
Alastair’s Page
#scifi #alastairreynolds
Fortune: Behind the Curtains — Kathleen McClure
A good little bit of background about the language and naming system of all things Fortune.
Best read before any of the books as it’ll help make sense of some of the words used.
Kathleen’s Page
#steampunk #kathleenmcclure
In the Stacks — Robin Sloan
You can read this by clicking here and play with the big red synth as well.
A super good little story, really enjoyable.
And best of all, it’s free. So have at it and try some Robin Sloan if you haven’t already.
Bye for now.
Robin’s Page
#robinsloan
Fortune’s Fool — Kathleen McClure
A super good story continuing Gideon Quinn’s adventures after all the shenanigans we all totally enjoyed in Soldier of Fortune.
I found the pacing of this quite different to Kathleen and her co-writer’s other books, which was not a bad thing at all, i rather liked it. While the story mostly drives along in Kathleen’s usual fast paced style we are also left with the crew back at Doyle Street who have no idea what is going on with Gideon — and all the others who have gone missing — while getting the cafe ready to open and having a baby. So it’s quite nice to get these little breathers between the fast paced scenes involving Gideon and co. to catch our reading breaths.
And not only do we have all our favourite characters back and in the thick of it, but we have a few new ones to meet and enjoy reading about, yes, even those nasty ne’er-do-wells.
All in all, once again, brilliant writing, great characters, and great story telling. I just can’t wait for Kathleen to add the finishing touches to the next Fortune book, The Crew Who Came in From the Cold, which i will be diving into with absolute joy.
And i’ll say it again, like i say on all of books coming out of Outrageous Fiction, if you’re looking for some great action packed character driven story telling then look no further than their website for all your reading needs. You shall be satisfied.
Kathleen’s Page
#steampunk #kathleenmcclure
The Longest Shard — Kathleen McClure
If you like really good steampunk with really good characters navigating a really good world then The Fortune Chronicles by Kathleen McClure will be right up your alley.
Every one of the Fortune books i’ve read so far has left me really glad i bought it and always leaves me eagerly awaiting more. Kathleen is one of those writers who, once she’s got you started in a book, just ain’t gonna let you off the hook until the very last word. It’s just non-stop, gritty, character driven stuff with great world building that will keep you up late reading when you should be getting some sleep.
The Longest Shard is a really well written, fast paced novella giving us the full tale of Gideon Quinn’s time in Morton Barrens up to the time he leaves at the start of Soldier of Fortune. I don’t think it’s absolutely necessary to have read it before Soldier of Fortune, so if you missed it and want some more Fortune and Gideon Quinn then jump straight into this as soon as finished Soldier of Fortune.
Seriously folks, if you like steampunk give Kathleen, Fortune and Gideon Quinn a chance: you won’t regret it.
Kathleen’s Page
#steampunk #kathleenmcclure
Orphan, Dodger, Soldier, Spy — Kathleen McClure
This is a back story to the main Gideon Quinn adventures, giving us a bit more of Gideon’s past than is revealed to us in the main books.
In this book we’re taken back to Gideon’s time in the war when Gideon takes a couple of his soldiers to go behind enemy lines to steal some secret documents. We also get to know how Gideon ends up with all the scars.
Only a short novella kind of thing, but still a good little episode that gives us a bit more history to Gideon’s character.
I would suggest reading this after Soldier of Fortune, and then follow it up with The Longest Shard, which i have jumped straight into after finishing this book.
Kathleen’s Page
#steampunk #kathleenmcclure
Outrageous Fortune — Kathleen McClure and Kelley McKinnon
Click on picture to get your copy.
In this story we get to hear all about the crew of the airship Errant, whom we briefly met when Gideon and Mia delivered Jinna for safe-keeping in Soldier of Fortune. Not only do we get to hear all about them and their pasts, but we also get to go on another great adventure on the planet Fortune with shenanigans galore.
To write this book Kathleen teams up with Kelley McKinnon and while i found there’s a slightly different feel to the writing, it’s certainly just as good as, and flows perfectly on from, Soldier of Fortune. Once again, we are feasted to our heart’s content with great characters who just keep the story rip-roaring along for the reader’s complete entertainment.
This book is mostly set at the same time of the events in Soldier of Fortune, and if you haven’t read that first then i would suggest doing so before embarking on this book.
Another winner from the brilliant writers at Outrageous Fiction.
Kathleen’s Page Kelley’s Page
#steampunk #kathleenmcclure #kelleymckinnon
Pastel Painting Atelier — Ellen Eagle
A super good book with Ellen taking us through everything she knows about art and her own approach to working on a artwork, from conception to completetion.
I would consider this book a must read for pastelists, but also i would think that a lot of artists of other mediums would also really enjoy it and get a few take-aways.
It’s also full of some wonderful art works, both by Ellen and others that she has something to point out about. I would rate it very highly as just a book to look at the pictures if that’s also your thing, as there are a lot of wonderful pictures to browse.
#art #painting #pastels #elleneagles
Soldier of Fortune — Kathleen McClure
Having been a long time fan of Kathleen’s books, i recently had the pleasure to read and review the first two books of Kathleen’s new sci-fi series that she co-wrote with L. Gene Brown, The Gemini Hustle and The Libra Gambit. Well worth reading if you like really good action packed sci-fi.
While reading those i found out that Kathleen and Kelley McKinnon are busy putting the finishing touches on the latest Fortune novel, The Crew Who Came in From the Cold. And it had me wondering how long it had been since i’d read the earlier Fortune books, and yeah, it had been quite a while. So long, in fact, that i could only remember totally enjoying them but not much else — there’s been a huge amount of books read in those in-between years that just dulls one’s memory.
So once i’d finished The Libra Gambit i quickly finished off another book i’d been itching to read, then i loaded up my newest Kindle with all the Fortune books i have and set out to re-read them all again, ready for The Crew Who Came in From the Cold.
Which leads me to this review. One thing i can say for sure is that my memory didn’t fail me in remembering that i had totally enjoyed this book, and once again, i totally enjoyed it. It was so good that my memory of the story had faded because i started reading people and places and dracos all came flooding back and it was like bumping into an old friend after years apart.
Gideon Quinn is our main protagonists, and he is so well written and such a great character, as are all the others. One of my biggest draws to Kathleen’s books, whether written on her own or those she writes with Kelley McKinnon or L.Gene Brown are the characters: they’re just brilliant.
As i’ve said in other reviews, Kathleen and Co make the goodies that perfect level of good and the baddies that perfect level of bad and the interactions between all the characters just roll along perfectly because of this.
And as usual with Kathleen and Co, the action is just non-stop. It’s like a super good action film in a book form.
And did i mention that this first book in the series is free to download? So why not give it a try, i can’t imagine you’ll be disappointed and will soon be reading the whole series.
So having finished this first book i’ve dived straight into Outrageous Fortune and i’m having a whole new blast re-meeting the crew of the Errant once again after all these years since i last read this.
Kathleen’s Page
#steampunk #kathleenmcclure
Fiction
. . .me thinks it’s a good time to re-read Asimov.
Fiction
Nonfiction
Nonfiction
