Posts in category 'books'
- Finished Rhythm of War (The Stormlight Archive #4.0) by Brandon Sanderson (9780765326386)(https://b-ark.ca/8C4qAY)
Review: Project Hail Mary
Review of Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (9780593395561)★★★★
(https://b-ark.ca/wIkCWK)As a fan of The Martian, Project Hail Mary is right up my alley: a hero in a desperate situation relying on science and ingenuity to survive. But it’s in the characters and relationships where this book excels.
Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission—and if he fails, humanity and the earth itself will perish.
Except that right now, he doesn’t know that. He can’t even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it.
All he knows is that he’s been asleep for a very, very long time. And he’s just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company.
His crewmates dead, his memories fuzzily returning, Ryland realizes that an impossible task now confronts him. Hurtling through space on this tiny ship, it’s up to him to puzzle out an impossible scientific mystery—and conquer an extinction-level threat to our species.
And with the clock ticking down and the nearest human being light-years away, he’s got to do it all alone.
Or does he?
I’m a huge fan of the science fiction genre, but I’ll be the first to admit that it isn’t without its flaws. I’ve been known to say that a lot of authors in the genre get a little too caught up in their big ideas and forget that characters, you know, matter! The result is there are no shortage of sci-fi books in my DNF graveyard; books with shallow, unchanging characters who exist to just move the plot along.
I’ve not read a lot of books by Andy Weir–The Martian is the only other novel of his that I’ve tackled–but somehow Mr. Weir somehow manages to consistently escape this trap. While, in “Project Hail Mary”, science and the scientific method absolutely sit front-and-center, ultimately it’s the characters that truly shine through in this book. The result is a gripping, edge-of-your-seat story that has us cheering, hoping, and despairing as we’re shown what it truly means to be a hero.
As an aside, I want to note that the main reason this review exists is because my wife went and publicly called me out in her review of the book! Though now I feel like I’m encouraging her to publicly shame me, given it clearly produced results…
Continue reading...- Currently reading Rhythm of War (The Stormlight Archive #4.0) by Brandon Sanderson (9780765326386)(https://b-ark.ca/cyg8SM)
Review: Dawnshard
Review of Dawnshard (The Stormlight Archive #3.5) by Brandon Sanderson (9781938570261)★★★★
(https://b-ark.ca/8YwEy6)A novella in the Stormlight archives, we’re taken on a wonderful journey starring Rysn and Lopen, uncovering more mysteries of the Cosmere.
When a ghost ship is discovered, its crew presumed dead after trying to reach the storm-shrouded island Akinah, Navani Kholin must send an expedition to make sure the island hasn't fallen into enemy hands. Knights Radiant who fly too near find their Stormlight suddenly drained, so the voyage must be by sea.
Shipowner Rysn Ftori lost the use of her legs but gained the companionship of Chiri-Chiri, a Stormlight-ingesting winged larkin, a species once thought extinct. Now Rysn's pet is ill, and any hope for Chiri-Chiri’s recovery can be found only at the ancestral home of the larkin: Akinah. With the help of Lopen, the formerly one-armed Windrunner, Rysn must accept Navani's quest and sail into the perilous storm from which no one has returned alive. If the crew cannot uncover the secrets of the hidden island city before the wrath of its ancient guardians falls upon them, the fate of Roshar and the entire Cosmere hangs in the balance.
Shipowner Rysn Ftori lost the use of her legs but gained the companionship of Chiri-Chiri, a Stormlight-ingesting winged larkin, a species once thought extinct. Now Rysn's pet is ill, and any hope for Chiri-Chiri’s recovery can be found only at the ancestral home of the larkin: Akinah. With the help of Lopen, the formerly one-armed Windrunner, Rysn must accept Navani's quest and sail into the perilous storm from which no one has returned alive. If the crew cannot uncover the secrets of the hidden island city before the wrath of its ancient guardians falls upon them, the fate of Roshar and the entire Cosmere hangs in the balance.
When Mr. Sanderson’s Rhythm of War came out, I made the decision to go back and re-read the Stormlight Archives from the start in order to really immerse myself in the narrative before starting the new book. After months of re-reading (and once again loving every minute of it!) I finally did it! I was finally ready to start the new book!
I didn’t get very far before Navani made mention of a certain voyage upon which they discovered some new fabrial technology, and I realized, damnit, there was a novella and I should probably read this one (I have to admit I didn’t get around to fitting Edgedancer into my re-read… next time!) I guess I was gonna have to take a detour.
Well, I’m glad I did! Dawnshard really was a delightful little story in its own right, centering on a couple of side characters that really deserved some time in the spotlight. In the process, the book also introduced some important lore that I have no doubt will play an important part in the overall Stormlight narrative and the Cosmere more broadly.
Continue reading...- Currently reading Dawnshard (The Stormlight Archive #3.5) by Brandon Sanderson (9781938570261)(https://b-ark.ca/q2qem6)
Review: The Alloy of Law
Review of The Alloy of Law (Mistborn #4.0) by Brandon Sanderson (9780765330420)★★★★
(https://b-ark.ca/qOmcUu)Set 300 years after the events of the first Mistborn trilogy, we are introduced to a whole new cast of characters in a world that has evolved since we last visited. A quick, compelling read and a great start to a new series!
Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is now on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds.
Kelsier, Vin, Elend, Sazed, Spook, and the rest are now part of history―or religion. Yet even as science and technology are reaching new heights, the old magics of Allomancy and Feruchemy continue to play a role in this reborn world. Out in the frontier lands known as the Roughs, they are crucial tools for the brave men and women attempting to establish order and justice.
One such is Waxillium Ladrian, a rare Twinborn, who can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After twenty years in the Roughs, Wax has been forced by family tragedy to return to the metropolis of Elendel. Now he must reluctantly put away his guns and assume the duties and dignity incumbent upon the head of a noble house. Or so he thinks, until he learns the hard way that the mansions and elegant tree-lined streets of the city can be even more dangerous than the dusty plains of the Roughs.
The Alloy of Law, set a few of hundred years after first Mistborn trilogy, introduces us to Wax and Wayne, two Twinborn lawmen who find themselves faced with a mystery, two Twinborn lawmen who find themselves faced with a mystery.
Set in the city of Elendel, this book kicks off a whole new story arc while showing us what happened to the world after our previous cast of heroes helped remake it.
Continue reading...Review: The Hero of Ages
Review of The Hero of Ages (Mistborn #3.0) by Brandon Sanderson (9780765316899)★★★★
(https://b-ark.ca/qIQKSS)This book convinced me that Mr. Sanderson is basically the opposite of Stephen King or Neal Stephenson: the middle bits of his books can be a bit slow, but when the man writes an ending, holy heck he writes an ending!
Who is the Hero of Ages?
To end the Final Empire and restore freedom, Vin killed the Lord Ruler. But as a result, the Deepness--the lethal form of the ubiquitous mists--is back, along with increasingly heavy ashfalls and ever more powerful earthquakes. Humanity appears to be doomed.
Having escaped death at the climax of The Well of Ascension only by becoming a Mistborn himself, Emperor Elend Venture hopes to find clues left behind by the Lord Ruler that will allow him to save the world. Vin is consumed with guilt at having been tricked into releasing the mystic force known as Ruin from the Well. Ruin wants to end the world, and its near omniscience and ability to warp reality make stopping it seem impossible. She can't even discuss it with Elend lest Ruin learn their plans!
The third book in the first Mistborn trilogy is such a dilemma for me. On the one hand by god it was slow. While Mr. Sanderson tried to create a narrative drive via Spook’s journey and so forth, the siege of Fadrex felt like it went on far far too long.
On the flipside, the reveals in this book–the nature of hemalurgy, the backdrop of Ruin and Preservation, the history of the Kandra–were absolutely riveting! And man, that ending.
But does it all make up for the plodding middle? I’m not sure. As far as individual volumes go, I think this one is the most flawed. But as a series, I remember why I loved it so much!
Continue reading...