Category Archives: science fiction

My readers here may be surprised with this dip into military science fiction. John Scalzi’s Old Man’s War is neither a walk in the park nor a mindless kowtow to the gods of war. It’s a well-regarded book, especially by fans, nearly … Continue reading →

A few years ago I read Paul McAuley’s The Quiet War and enjoyed it. I didn’t realize that a sequel had come out. A few of them, actually. The immediate follow-up is Gardens of the Sun, which I read earlier … Continue reading →

The first two-thirds of this novel plods along. I didn’t mind because the series started out great and moved along so well. Then, suddenly, pow! A couple of betrayals, and things start really moving fast. Literary whiplash it was, and … Continue reading →

Hannu Rajaniemi’s second novel, The Fractal Prince, was an enjoyable a read as his first novel, which I finished up last month. Like that first book, the author disdains giving you those helpings of information that assist you in knowing … Continue reading →

The last two sf novels I read were from Scottish authors. This seems to be a pattern. This one was too. Well, Leeds in origin, but Scotland now in residency. There’s a sub-genre of military science fiction that draws and … Continue reading →

The latest Culture novel from Iain Banks, The Hydrogen Sonata will also be his last. The author died of cancer last Sunday. So I tried to be a trooper with his last sf novel. But it was difficult. Mr Banks wrote … Continue reading →

I’ve been a fan of Robert Reed’s Great Ship stories for many years. Granted, the novels are not the absolute best. Though they are very good, I thought they could have been better. More successful are Mr Reed’s short fiction pieces. … Continue reading →

I never completed The Hunger Games. But from my daughter’s description, I think I came close when I recently finished Ariel Djanikian’s first novel, The Office of Mercy. I think I could recommend this book to the young miss. It has … Continue reading →

My second Solar System science fiction book in the past four months: Blue Remembered Earth by Alastair Reynolds. I first read two or three of his early novels about a decade ago. Last appearance on my bookshelf was about five … Continue reading →