Science Fiction Fantasy Books

People tend to come down hard on this book....meandering plot (to be generous), shifting narrative, style, and its drunken trot through conspiracy theories. All of this is true but I fear the readers who argue this are missing the essential truth....it's one helluva read/trip through the intellectual underground of paranoia.

If the reader could let themself go and allow the narrative carry them along this is a great experience. This isn't what I would call 'serious literature' in the classical sense of the phrase but it is a 'literature' concerned with the dark heart of the human condition in the late 20th century and because of this worthy of our time and consideration.

Don't fight the plot and the book will surrender many delights: tilted perspectives, manificent throw-away lines, almost poetic flights of paranoid fancy, to name just a few moments to be had along its 'yellow brick road'.

I enjoyed the book in the mid'80s and now, twenty years on, am enjoying it again. That's rare. Many books I've returned to after years of absence just haven't stood up. But this one has. Does it have problems? Of course it does, other readers have listed them ad nauseam, but that doesn't take away from this book's central gift...a ripping good story that is occasionally lost in its sheer weight of verbiage and ideological warfare.

Recommended with only a slight negative brought on my its lack of narrative and ideological focus.

Have fun.

No, this doesn't work - far from it, I'm surprised it has even been released. Foremost the plot doesn't make sense, it seems like a cross between "X-files", "Das Boat" and "The Da Vinci Code" on speed and then it doesn't seem to have been beta-red (or even delta- or gamma red) at all.

It might have been a good story if someone had sat down and made an efford in editing it, chunking off dead meat, killing darlings, tying together plots and sorting out unnessesary spin offs and characters.

Now it resembles more a fan fiction party in a High School computer hall than a finished novella...

especially for anyone who is into modern occultism or self programming, etc. RAW bring humor and insight to this work of amazing scope.

If I had only read this in the '80s I might have been considerably more enlightened nowadays. Or maybe gone to a handful more Grateful Dead shows anyway. This novel, which is sort of an LSD-fueled homage to Timothy Leary and Thomas Pynchon IMO, even now inspires, but to think of how I wouid have been affected back when it was new, well, if wishes were fishes ... I give this novel 4 stars rather than 3 because of its historic value, considering how much it affected some of my favorite artists nowadays.

Written in the real heyday of Playboy magazine by one of its editors, this novel shouldn't surprise you that it contains quite graphic and irreverent depictions of sex, drugs, and rock and roll, from the typical juvenile perspective that Playboy readers (or should I say "viewers") know and love -- or those that are left of them, now that Playboy is a cultural icon and the torch of serious, quality pr0n has been passed to a faceless mass of internet purveyors instead.

I was constantly impressed by how well-versed in history and occult knowledge these two writers must have been. It's at times difficult to sort out exactly where the accurate reporting ends and the fanciful interpretation begins, but that's typical for occultists anyway. These guys knew their stuff, and I wish I had access to their libraries.

Unlike Pynchon's dark, heavy worlds, the Illuminatus! universe is made of (to quote a Vonnegut reviewer) Silly Putty. It titillates, challenges, and over all I think charges you to examine your world and beliefs rationally and skeptically, and for this I praise Shea and RAW, may he rest in peace, or rather, may I get some of whatever he was smoking.

BTW, If you take this novel seriously, you should definitely read the author that clearly was chief inspiration, both stylistically and thematically, but who could compose a more coherent plot outline and stay on topic better. Thomas Pynchon's "V," or "The Crying of Lot 49" (which is, strangely enough, a comical thriller about historical international conspiracies going on to this very day by God :) ) are where a great bulk of inspiration for this novel came from, IMO. And there's the added benefit that since they are more coherent and developed as stories, they can actually be discussed with more "literary" people as well. You will find the same ever-shifting perspectives, maze-like story lines, and immensely well-researched historical fiction. However, you will also find a more coherent plot overall. Pynchon still rules.

There isn't much to say about this book that hasn't already been said. I will say, with regard to my own experience, that prior to this, I went through life in a fog. It took about the first 150 pages or so, and then something clicked and I couldn't put it down. Normally I'm a fast reader, but this took me a week and a half of evenings. As for the after effects, there was something about this book...consider it a mental laxative. I think RAW would see the truth and humor of that.

I've been back into comics in a big way as I fight kicking and screaming my way into middle agedom. I picked this one up in a binge of comics including Alias, Supreme Power, Marvels, Kingdom Come, Batman Arkham Asalyum, and the Ultimates.

Next to Batman Arkham, this is my least favorite. It was too short and too small for the cost. It can be read in under half an hour which is a poor dollar per hour piece of entertainment.

The story is very good, very much a story of Serenity and does well bridging the gap between the shows and the movies. However it is simply too small and limited to be remembered. I liked the story but I am not happy with the purchase. I plan to give my copy to SF friends of mine just to try to squeeze more use out of the $10.

I got hold of this 3-issue TPB after reading the recent mini-series "Better Days" (also from Dark Horse). I was surprised reading the reviews of this collection that fans were disappointed.


"Those Left Behind" is far superior to "Better Days." As other reviewers commented, reading this one is like watching the show. You also see things that they may not have been able to pull off on the show (Zero-G, space graveyard). I also liked elements here that I've wondered about: what about rival merc teams? How close was Kaylee getting Simon where she wanted him? How do Book and Inara end up off the ship?

Ultimately, this was a satisfying read. Unbelievably better than "Better Days" (which should be avoided). Also, the covers and variant covers by various top-of-the-field artists as well as the interior art all of is just purty.

The letter from Nathan Fillion in the beginning of the graphic novel is my favorite part. Wouldn't we all want to be superheroes (even the jaded kind) for awhile? The artwork and story line were a nice bridge between the television show and the film. Nice job!

This chronicles the time between the series "Firefly" and the film "Serenity." The art, story, dialogue, and feel is all the same as the big and small screen renditions. It doesn't shatter any prior ideas or anything, but it was definitely worth the read.

firefly is one of the best shows of this decade. fox sucks for cancelling it. bring on more movies and bring back the show!!!!!!!!!!!

I've read the Gischler crime novels and much prefer his sticking with those. He has an odd talent for violent thought and gesture and seems a master at hyperbole. This fictional outing has commentary on just about anything that has to do with everything (and with enough of a familiar stylistic veneer to catch you head scratching, while at the same time laughing aloud).

Go-Go-Girls concerns an odd environement existing in an even odder world than we have today. We're talking 'near' future here (but how 'near' he doesn't say) filled by sex, violence, betrayal and oh yes... cannibalism. But he fits the whole of it together and does it quite well.

Only reason for not doing the full four stars is, as I've already said.

I bought this book because of the title. I really didn't read the description since there was a small blurb on the front comparing it to Christopher Moore. I was sold. I was even more impressed when I picked up the book and couldn't put it down. I think I finished it in 4 hours...now I want more!

This novel probably won't make it into a list of "Great Books of the Twenty-first Century"..but who cares? _Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse_ is a title that conjures up all kinds of post-apocalyptic fun, and it delivers in spades! On top of that, if you're willing to look beyond the gonzo, the book has some insights into the modern, consumption-driven society. I don't want to spoil it, but there's even a nice ironic twist to the plot given that the "bright hope of the future" turns out to be just more of the same old self-destructive nonsense that led to the apocalypse in the first place. So, to me this book works on a couple of levels. The book leaves plenty of room for thoughtful reflection, but the author never beats you over the head with it. So, if you just want to get lost in the pure escapist fiction of a gonzo, post-apocalyptic quest, you can. Oh, and I love the sly use of a supporting character that can only be the "Mad Max" version of CNN's erstwhile founder and one-time CEO.

Mortimer Tate knew both his marriage and the world was coming to an end, so he found a cave, stocked it, and holed up in it for nine years. Now he's ready to hit the town, and has decided he wants to find his wife. He's first accosted and robbed by a bear-man, then saved by a cowboy named Buffalo Bill. Wandering into Spring City, Bill takes Mortimer to Joey Armageddon's Sassy A-Go-Go. Apparently, Joey Armageddon's is the only chain left in the bombed out, busted up new world. The only place where there's still a bar, food service, hotel service, and scantily clad dancing women. They even make their own Armageddon dollars.

Mortimer's stash of goodies earns him a Joey Armageddon's Platinum Card, so he's treated like royalty by the establishment. He's relaxed and treated well at Joey Armageddon's, but still feels the need to find his wife. So he's off on the "muscle express" to Chattanooga.

Mortimer's adventures never stop, encountering The Red Stripes, Mother Lola (a transvestite that runs the mental asylum for women), cannibals, The Stone Mountain Goats, and more. He travels from one peril to another with cohorts Buffalo Bill and Sheila, the girl they saved from the bear-man. After their many amazing feats making it to Chattanooga, Mortimer meets Joey Armageddon face to face. Joey has a proposal, he wants Mortimer to kill his archrival, the Red Czar of The Red Stripes faction.

'Go-Go Girls Of The Apocalypse' is a fantastic, entertaining read. There's fast-paced action and nonstop fun all along the way. From Mortimer's emergence until the ultimate stand-off between the two factions where the winner will take all, you won't be able to put it down. If you want a lighter-side read of the apocalypse that's both tense and side-splittingly funny, then this is the book for you. I could see this novel spinning off into an excellent B horror film. Gischler has written a winner. Highly recommended. Enjoy!

Sitting down with the book, I was ready for an edgy and fun post-apocolyptic story, but by halfway through I had given up on finding it. Each scene is a quick setup for a joke, a hollywood-style action sequence, or a tragic setback. The protagonist tumbles through this storyline with a number of narrow escapes and an equal number of black-outs, which transports him to the next scene.

The author is so focused on keeping a quick pace and dishing out the next half-baked course, that the plot and the characters become wilted two-dimensional garnishes for this fast-food meal.

There was potential here. The initial ingredients were fresh and interesting, but the cook needs to take off the paper hat and step away from the fryer.

a great story about how jenna escapes from simon and how septemus and nicko find jenna

Septimus Heap #2.

Septimus Heap, Apprentice to the ExtraOrdinary Wizard faces yet more challenges as he settles into his apprenticeship.

Evil DomDaniel continues to attempt to take over the Castle as ExtraOrdinary Wizard by having Jenna, the rightful heir to the throne, killed. Simon Heap is the necromancer's new Apprentice. Fueled by anger at his family and determined to make a name for himself, Simon chases Jenna, determined to capture and kill her.

DomDaniel's plot doesn't end there. He and the Darke Shadow that follows the current ExtraOrdinary Wizard, Marcia Overstrand, are in league to get rid of her.

Goes with the flow, follows up great where the first left off so you don't miss a thing!

was purchased as a gift and she loved it. she's wanted the book for awhile now and was very happy to receive it along wuth the other books of this series. would recommend these books to everyone. thank-you.

I bought this book after being persuaded by the dozens of excellent reviews, even though I'd never seen it recommended anywhere else. Flyte, Angie Sage's second novel is even more poorly written than the first. If bad writing bothers you, even a little, stay very far away from this book. Even your average fantasy novel is miles ahead of this stuff.

My children are sophisticated readers and they all had strong negative reactions to this awful book.

Sage is an appallingly poor tour guide. Her prose fails to flow, connections between characters are lacking, the plotting is full of holes, and character development is almost nonexistent.

There are so many great fantasy novels available for young readers, this book does not deserve your time.

Cadence City matchmaker and para-resonator Celinda Ingram meets her match in security specialist Davis Oakes. On the hunt for the powerful relic that Celinda supposedly bought as a toy for her pet dust bunny, Davis must use all of his unique psychic abilities to try and wrest the ruby red object from the suspicious duo, keep his desire for Celinda in check-and keep them all safe from those who will do anything to possess the relic.

Another wonderful addition to the Psy series. Jayne Castle is a wonderful word artist with delightful, fun and interesting stories. This excellent tale reminded me much of Zinnia and Orchid earlier entries to this series. Celinda was a wonderful heroine who saved the day with her dust bunny friend and her bravery. She knew her own mind and was a strong lead character to Davis the hero. I would have liked to see the dust bunny babies at the end. I hope Jayne Castle continues with this series.

Ok, so I love this series so much that I had to stop reading for awhile, because I was dreaming in green, but thats how it goes. The only problem was that I felt the book was incomplete, like there should be a sequel or something...I felt that there are many more problems ahead for these two and that it should be continued with another book....One thing that I loved, was that I got to catch up with the other characters from the other books, that was my fav part, but I really, really wish that Ms. Castle is working on Ghost Hunter #5...I could use some more

I love everything she writes and this is no exception! She is my favorite author no matter which name she writes under.

As always, I really enjoyed this book. I love the way she works the dust bunnies into the story. Being a pet owner myself, it makes her characters much more relatable. I've always loved SciFi/Fantasy and since I got married, I've come to appreciate romance novels as well. This author blends all my favorites into very entertaining books. I highly recommend them.Silver Master (Ghost Hunters, Book 4)

It sounded creative: humans and pets with psychic abilities and living on another planet, but it felt like a "made-for-tv movie." The book seemed formulaic. The hero and heroine (Davis and Celinda) met, fought and chased the bad guys and ended up in love. I was hoping for creative or witty dialogue which was not there. Nothing surprised or delighted me. The characters seemed like copies of characters from other books. In one scene, Celinda was too whiny for me. Davis was her bodyguard. She had to go to her sister's wedding, and she didn't want him to come. She was complaining about the social awkwardness and everyone asking her questions about him.

CAUTION SPOILER: The violence level was mild. A bad guy died when he accidentally shot himself. Thugs were chasing and trying to kill Davis, but he knocked them unconscious instead of killing them. Other bad guy deaths were told rather than shown.

Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: three. Setting: a time similar to early 21st century on the planet Harmony. Humans had colonized the planet. Copyright: 2007. Genre: paranormal romantic suspense.
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For a list of my reviews of other books by this author, see my 4 star review of "Sizzle and Burn" posted 2-09-08.

Great, complex tale told amazingly well. One of the most challenging books I've tackled in quite some time.

BUT - when the story veers into sex, my god, it's like walking along a beautiful beach and stepping on a turd. The descriptions of sex are completely gratuitous and just plain - ick!

Don't get me wrong, I'm no prude, but the immersion in the author's carefully wrought world is completely spoiled by these ham-handed attempts at introducing a little sex into the story. It's like his 13 year old got hold of the Word file. "Wanking her"? Doing what with a scarf? Jeez, did the editor fall asleep??

Completely lacking any reason for inclusion, failing to advance any element of the stories themselves, it's like they were lifted from a bad porn script. One only hopes the author was told to include something racy and he was so po-ed that he added these totally tasteless bits to prove a point.

Loved the story and the world, though. My recommendation - read with care and whenever any word starting with a C appears skip to the next section!

Given the excellent reviews, I had great hopes for this book. I was, however, disappointed.

I can appreciate a book with multiple plot lines, but in this book there were simply too many. And since the plot lines was (at least up to where I gave up) unrelated, and since there were so many people to keep apart, it was difficult to follow.

Some of the plot lines were very dull and did not engage me at all. I only found two of the plot lines interesting.

I believe that if this book is read over a couple of days, the plot lines would be easier to follow.

Writer-wallah Ian McDonald's omnibus, omnibusy, overlong (it checks in at 588 pages before subsiding into a glossary) multiple pov epic is set in a civil-war torn India nearing the 100th anniversary of its independence from Britain. It weaves together the lives of--among others--thief, cop, wife, AI, journalist, two scientists, a set designer for soap operas, a waif, and a business executive (and former standup comic). As is customary with the multiple pov novel, each character gets a few turns at bat, with their sequences often ending in cliffhangers. The sequence of events is jagged. One character may witness an event, and we may see the next hitter in the lineup at bat at some time before that event or some time after. Sometimes an innocent-seeming event turns frightening. And the reverse.

The book is sprinkled with concepts like pocket universes, human-AI interfaces, AIs clever enough to make certrain they don't pass the Turing Test, and the usual cyberpunk stuff--diving into virtual reality, looking for "the code"; scenes in "that" nightclub (the one that always appears in such novels and probably never in real life now, or in the future).

Some of this stuff works. The author is very good at synthesizing various concepts (and that's about all he does--there aren't any new concepts here despite the book's length) and keeping things moving right along, although his prose can become overwrought more than somewhat. And I was fascinated by the idea of remote-control wars fought by robots guided by distant soldiers.

Unfortunately, a lot here does not work. For example, the set designer character turns out to be a "nute." In this future, people can rid themselves of all their sexual characteristics and become genderless; the author describes the process well, but is totally unconvincing in his attempt to explain why anyone would subject themselves to this. But for plot purposes it hardly matters--the character behaves like a stereotypical male homosexual. We are forced to suffer through yet another description of people in zero-G (but fortunately not for long). There's a Heinlein "grand old man," a worldwide computer simulation that seems like "The Sims" on steroids, and--good grief--that wife of the cop runs away with her gardener (but not before much ado about cricket "tests").

On the plus side, nobody goes to "the Holos," but there are computer-generated virtual tv soap opera characters. I can't wait for those--they'll be a major improvement on David Caruso.

I have to say that I enjoyed the author's grasp of India in all its permutations, particularly India in the year 2040. The plot takes a tad long to unfold but the payoff in the end is worth it. This is a very different look at what the future might hold for the US and India when it comes to AI development. Worth the read.

Essentially this novel is about one major mystery that the reader almost forgets about among the other mysteries that revolve around it. The resolution is rather spectacular and breathtaking in the 'bigness' of the idea behind it. I know this probably makes little sense, but I don't want to give away anything that might remove the impact of the novel.

So, the idea behind the novel is pretty darned good. It's exactly the kind of idea that would lead me to give a book a five star rating if the author executed both the idea and the writing well. Ian McDonald executes the idea pretty nicely. But his writing style is maddening. One item which no longer bothers me is the use of the 'present tense' in his writing, instead of 'past tense'. I got used to it, and I believe it has something to do with the underlying premise of the novel. He changes his writing style somewhat at various times, I assume in an attempt to bring out a certain change in the reader's feelings, but it felt distracting.

However, the part that dragged my rating down to 3 stars was his use of Indian terms throughout the book. Obligatory disclaimer here... if what I describe below doesn't bother you, upgrade my rating of the book to a '5' and have at it!

Having to go to the glossary every paragraph in some of his chapters just is inexcusable. Yeah, the reader could skim over words that aren't understood, but some passages are more or less unintelligible without the translations. Even more maddening, some terms aren't even IN the glossary. I finished the book and still have no idea what a 'ghat' is. My best guess is a dock or a sidewalk. It was used a fair bit in the beginning, and then seemingly every paragraph in the last chapter. Now, if the word describes something uniquely Indian that can't be described in one or two English words, then I have no problem with using the Indian term. But there are many cases of him using simple Indian words for simple English words. Unless an Indian alley has unique characteristics that make it different from other alleys, why was it necessary to use the word 'gali'? The glossary just says it's an alley, so if there is a subtle difference, the reader isn't let in on it. There are a few other cases like this. And when an Indian word IS used which has a more subtle meaning, McDonald often makes using the word redundant. I didn't write down the sentences where this occurred, but as an example he did things like "they went to the Basti settlement". Well, the glossary says a Basti is a settlement or slum. So translated, it would read "they went to the settlement settlement". In other words, he often used many of the English description of the word around the word itself, making the word redundant. He either should have just used the word, or just described the scene in English, instead he used the most confusing mix of the two methods possible.

I had discovered that there was going to be a follow up to this novel before I finished and I was torn on whether I would get it if this novel didn't end more or less cleanly. Fortunately it doesn't feel like an obvious set up for a sequel so I can get away with enjoying the wonderfully done wrap up, and not have to feel like I need to get another book in the 'series' that might have the same language issues. I do however intend to try some of his other novels as the idea in this one was one I liked. A lot. I do recommend this book, but you may need a lot of patience to get through it.

David Farland is so good at writing scenes of embarasement and frustration for his characters coupled with tragedy and terrifying loss, not to mention torture and mayhem, that I found myself beginning to wonder if he will be able to convey the same emotions when it applies to the victories and triumphs of his protagonists.

I remember growing up and watching the anime Escaflowne with some friends, and in that anime one of the protagonists is put through such pain of loss that during one scene where he finally learns how to defeat his enemies and goes crazy with his lust for vengeance the emotion that fed through to me and my friends was almost palpable. It felt good to feel the release of the hero after his long ordeal and having been frustrated by his enemies with his impotency in battle for so long. I hope that David Farland can muster the same emotion from his readers when the time comes for his protagonists to get their revenge.

The four stars is to show my confidence in David Farland, and to say that although this book is full of wonderfully written scenes of desperation and failures I am willing to give it four stars in hopes that the end product will make good use of this well written but dyer setup.

While I expected something similar to happen, I did not expect David Farland to have things happen the way that they did. I have read and bought his books and I think that David Farland has come up with a very unique story. If anyone enjoys reading Science-fiction/Fantasy books, i highly recommend this book as it is part of one of my favorite book series. It's the idea of Runelords taking endowments from other people and becoming super powerful that has made this series a joy to read.

I'm surprised people are gushing over these last two books. Granted, this one seemed much better than the 5th. That said, he's still throwing out things haphazardly. For instance, Shadaoth comes back for an appearance right at the start of this book and is not mentioned a single instance thereafter...?...?... Keep em coming I suppose.

The Runelords story is complex and fascinating! Worldbinder is another great addition to this saga. The end seems sudden and sort of frustrating, but this is still a really fun and quick read. I'm definately looking forward to the next book and will purchase it as soon as it comes out. Well-developed characters, a few new twists, a few answered questions and of course the introduction of some new ones that makes the story continue to be interesting.

"Worldbinder" is a far cry from the maiden novel "The Sum of All Men" but maintains "The Runelords" tradition of infrequently clever creations in a forest of hasty plot ideas and poor editing. The existing main characters are mediocre and the environmental descriptions could use more detail.

[minor spoiler]

When the shattered remains of the One True World or shadow worlds merge, a person's shadow selves unite. The knowledge and abilities join but for the most part everyone accepts the sudden changes without anxiety or shock. Having entire lifetimes of experiences combine would seem a daunting given it might be of different genders or moral stances.

[end minor spoiler]

In addition to areas of poor spelling and mismanagement of words, Chapter 44 happens after preceding chapters when it could have been either placed before or merged into the related chapters. At one point before a battle, archers with great bows form ranks in front of any infantry or mounted troops. The troop placement does not seem well analyzed. I thought limiting blood metal availability was a great way to balance out the characters and story development, but it has been negated after only one novel and gives stronger and larger characters more power or even more demented uses for the forcibles by the forces of evil.

As the title suggests, there are multiple worlds and new characters will emerge to challenge the direction of the overall plot. Though the Knights Eternal, particularly Vulgnash, are ruthless antagonists and the reader finally discovers the elusive immortal Daylan Hammer, Alun is quite boring other than reminding me of how Waggit was rewarded endowments of wisdom to improve himself after acts of selfless bravery. And while on the topic, readers learn about Hearthmaster Waggit.

A detailed map of the significant terrains and comprehensive appendix would have been useful.

Thank you.