The field of science fiction has a sub-genre called “Future History”. A special source of addictive fascination can be found in a series of interconnected stories set in a common background that develops over time.
Isaac Asimov is one of the best known science fiction writers of all time. In part that is probably due to the sheer volume of material which he wrote, but it is also due to the scale of his imaginative vision. Read More
So, how do you write about a groundbreaking novel written more than 20 years ago that also happened to be a Hugo, Nebula and Philip K. Dick award winner? That’s a good question and one that’s been keeping me from writing this for several months now. But, I’m going to throw caution to the wind here and just write about the impression this book made on me. This is not going to be a structured review, and well, I don’t know if I’d call it a review at all.
I came across Neuromancer by William Gibson in a batch order I made on ebay. Actually, I got about 4 copies in this order, which I couldn’t ignore. So, I looked it up online and discovered that in my naivete I had never heard of it and it’s a top 100 scifi book and the book that kick-started the cyberpunk genre! That immediately made it a must read for me. Read More
I’m only into the fifth chapter of “The Mote in God’s Eye” by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle and it’s great. This is my first time reading it. So, this is the first alien encounter and humans have expanded through the universe. Niven and Pournelle make it very believable - the technology is described with just enough detail to convince me. It’s nicely done with not too much dry jargon, like can happen in some scifi novels. Too much technospeak and I feel like I need to go back to school for physics just to finish the book. So far, the technical descriptions haven’t blown my mind. Read More
I’ve just added some used Edgar Rice Burroughs paperbacks to the store. …
Yeah, I know - not the real thing, but it sure was funny!
Ok, so Frankenstein is thought by some to be the 1st, yes 1st science fiction book ever written. Now, I don’t know if that’s true, but I thought, what the hell… I’ll read it. I have to admit, sometimes I have to skip to the end of a book and read the climax just to make it through the rest of the story and the extensive expositio…zzzzz….huh? Yes, Frankenstein… really eloquently written, utterly boring. It’s definitely from another time and not my favorite book.
Here’s a blurb, if you haven’t read it: Read More
I really enjoyed this book. The characters seem to be the results of some strange experiment. Society degenerated to the Dark Ages and the main characters are the result of this. Their fears and strange myths are exactly what you would expect of people living this primitive life. As the story progresses, we see the characters go through various awakenings. I really think Aldiss had a grasp of psychology. His stories always show depth in his characters and a glimpse into the psychological effect the events in his stories have on his characters. Read More
After reading only Earthworks and Starswarm by Brian Aldiss, I have to say that in Earthworks I wasn’t sure I would like it at first, but I think that’s going to be my typical first reaction to his work, as it often starts in a misleading way, with unclear descriptions. He brings things into focus a little ways into the beginning of the story but in those first few chapters, I was not really sure what was going on and didn’t know if I was going to really “get into” the story and characters. I was wrong, of course. It seems that Aldiss is a master at misleading the reader and drawing them along with carefully placed revelations. Earthworks turned out to be a really intriguing story and our “anti-hero” turned out to be a complex character that I could relate to emotionally by the end of the book. It was a good read.
Read my full review here
I’ve put up a few very loosely formatted reviews - these are just a snapshot of my thoughts about a book I’ve read and not a “Professional Critique.” I don’t mind admitting that I’m an amateur review writer. My formatting is loose, nothing like Rusty’s BestScienceFictionStories.com reviews, which are very nicely formatted btw. I’m thinking about adding his feed…
Starswarm is presented as a series of short stories about the lives of future man as he lives or per…
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