Review of Tech, Lies & Wizardry, by JS Morin

As a science-fiction writer, you would expect me to be constantly reading sci-fi. There are scores of classics out there, and a lot of great stuff from modern writers. Sadly, I've not kept abreast of the genre as much as I ought to. I decided to rectify that with the Black Ocean series, written by a writing bro of mine, JS Morin.

Tech, Lies & Wizardry is a short-story prequel to the Black Ocean series. It takes place on Orion Space Station Echo Nine, and features a large cast, the crew of the Mobius. Attempting to complete a job for their nefarious employer, the crew stumbles when one of their newest members--who also happens to be carrying the most important part of the mission--is jumped by thieves. They scramble to find the men who stole the part, and appease their employer, all while time is quickly ticking down.

Morin has a fun, fluid prose that's both verbose and easy to read. He excels at interweaving words like "synthevore" that although are invented are easy to infer the meaning. He wrote what is possibly my favorite phrase in the history of literature: "incorporeal telekinetic defenestration." Hell yeah.

It's an enjoyable short story, although it may be tough for a reader to immediately jump in. The cast is large and introduced all at once at the beginning, making it difficult to remember who is who. But the pacing is good, and the characters are interesting and unique enough that you slowly get a good feel for them.

I immediately got a "Firefly" vibe from the story, which is no wonder because Morin specifically mentions that as his inspiration. Hell yeah!

The Black Ocean series is currently six books long, with plenty more to come. Check out JS Morin's webpage here.

Review of Elantris, by Brandon Sanderson

I received Elantris as a Christmas gift, but was already in the middle of reading Way of Kings so it has sat on my shelf for the past 6 months. Well I finally finished the other behemoth, which opened up some much-needed space in my reading arsenal. 

This is the second true Brandon Sanderson book I've read (4th or 5th if you count the last few Wheel of Time novels). This was also his first published novel, though he's said in his BYU lectures that he wrote 13 unpublished novels prior to it (holy shit). It has a great hook: Elantris was the city of the Gods, golden and beautiful. Abruptly that ends, and the city becomes inexplicably cursed.

There are some problems with pacing. The book starts off with a bang for each character, but after the first few pages it languishes for a while. The hook and premise of the book are strong enough that I obviously continued, but there were a good ~100 pages after the introductions where not much happened. This seems to be a theme with Sanderson: strong opening, followed by a lot of worldbuilding.

But it's a wonderful book. The three characters are all compelling and likable, even the one who is the "villain". Each have complex motivations, and Sanderson avoids all of the cliches typically associated with the genre. The book is long, but the details are all necessary. He weaves the story so wonderfully that each minor details comes in to play in the climax. 

Structurally, it's a relatively simple book. There are three characters, and the entirety of the book (with the exception of the last 20 pages) take place in Elantris/Kae. This is a refreshing change for the Fantasy genre, which often has so many POV characters that it becomes difficult to keep track of them all. And along the lines of genre-busting, it's a standalone book. I can't remember the last time I read a single Fantasy novel that wasn't part of a series. That was especially refreshing, especially in an age where I infrequently finish books or series because they're so soul-crushingly long. 

Elantris is a great book, and it's no wonder that it's what made Sanderson break out as a writer. 

Review of Way of Kings, by Brandon Sanderson

My first acquaintance with Brandon Sanderson came from the final three books of The Wheel of Time. Robert Jordan passed away before finishing the series, and Sanderson was the one to pick it up and see it to completion. He did a fine job. Although not perfect, he matched Jordan's storytelling style well-enough that the series got a proper finish. 

Beyond that, I've listened to his 2012 and 2013 lectures from  BYU, which are all available on youtube. They're a fantastic resource for any aspiring author. 

So, having become familiar with Sanderson in the above ways, I decided to finally try one of his original books. Way of Kings was the first one I saw on the Barnes & Noble shelf, and I'd heard good things about it, so home with me it came. 

A friend of mine described it to me like this: "Somewhere in that 1,000 page behemoth is a fantastic 800 page book." After the three months I took to finish it, I'd have to agree.

First of all, the book is great. The characters are real, and the world Sanderson has created is incredibly rich.  The book is filled with illustrations of various flora and fauna from Roshar. The story is enjoyable, with several great twists, and a satisfying climax. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone.

My only complaint is that Sanderson does too much. Although the prelude and prologues (yes, it has both!) were exciting, after that I didn't find myself engrossed in the book for 150+ pages. Sanderson spends a lot of time--too much--worldbuilding, describing spren and plants and every manner of creature. It sets the scene nicely, but it's quite a large primer to sift through before getting to the core story. I'm a patient reader, so I continued on, but I can see why many have put the book down and never picked it back up again.

Scattered throughout the book were several "interludes" as well, chapters which (by definition) have nothing to do with the storyline and appear to exist solely for Sanderson to showcase the world. Although the writing is still fine and the short stories entertaining, they were a distraction I could have done without.

The ending to the book is also far longer than it ought to be. The climax is complete by page 920, but there are another 80 pages that are mostly set-up for the next book. That's fine, as I've already purchased Words of Radiance and will be diving into it soon, but it felt out of place and anti-climactic, far beyond what's typically acceptable.

But lest I complain too much, let me reiterate that Way of Kings is a fantastic book. It's obvious this is one of the works Sanderson has spent the most time creating, which he admits himself in the foreword of the book. Most of the world-building pays off, creating a depth that far surpasses anything Tolkien, Jordan, or any other fantasy giant has ever written. 

If you're a fan of the genre you need to read this book.

Review of The Martian, by Andy Weir

Guys. GUYS. This book.

Seriously, this fucking book.

One of my beta readers mentioned that the first half of The Ancillary reminded them of The Martian. So I requested it for my birthday from my wife, and being the fellow book-lover that she is, she obliged. I opened the book while we were sitting in the Richmond airport, getting ready to fly to Las Vegas for vacation.

I didn't put the book down until we landed in Vegas. Then I read more in the cab ride to the hotel. I grudgingly put it down while we went to eat and gamble... but I woke up the next morning at 6:00am and finished it while drinking my morning coffee.

Yeah, that's how good this book was.

The Martian, by Andy Weir, is the story of Mark Watney, a botanist stranded on Mars after his crewmates mistakenly leave him for dead. He's forced to use what little resources are at his command to survive until they return, several years later.

The book is a combination of Kerbal Space Program (the game), Robinson Crusoe, and Apollo 13. Problems, hastily-made solutions, and then new problems. Mark is an extremely likeable character, with a dry, sarcastic humor that thrives in his particular crisis. You love this guy from page one, rooting for him to survive each new hurdle.

The second half of the book probably isn't as good as the first, but that's a minor complaint. This is one of the best books I've read in a long time.

Read this book. Seriously.

Review of Timeline, by Michael Crichton

This one took me a bit longer to finish than Prey or Sphere, but that was mostly because of other things getting in the way. Busy getting Siege of Praetar ready for sale, traveling during the holidays, all that fun stuff. Finally getting on a plane for a four-hour ride was what I needed to really bury myself in the book.

The opening to the book is wonderfully cryptic.

Timeline is one of Crichton's later works; written in 1999, just a few years before his death. It shares similarities with other Crichton works: a secretive mega-corporation, an eccentric billionaire, A HELICOPTER, a team of experts on a mission to fix a problem. In Timeline a team of archaeologists is sent back in time to rescue their professor, who was also sent back to fix a problem.

The archaeologists visit 14th century France, where the 100 years war is raging. Upon arrival they're immediately attacked, and their transportation device destroyed. From that point on the remainder of the book is a ticking clock: they have 30-some hours to return, and each chapter shows this time. It creates a wonderful atmosphere for the reader, who really feels like time is passing with every turned page. It adds a fervency to the characters' actions. 

Crichton's writing style is slightly different in this book compared to his others. He bounces around viewpoints often; most "mini chapters" are only one or two pages. There is no main character: you are in each character's head, simultaneously. This style fits well with the theme of the book, and the idea of jumping through time. It was surely intentional, and works.

Like most of his novels, the ending is both satisfying and leaves the reader with a few more questions. Interestingly enough, this novel differs in one way that most do not. In nearly every Crichton work, he includes a lengthy report at the end of the book explaining how the ideas behind the book are factual: in Jurassic Park he ensures the reader that genetic modification is possible, in Prey he confirms the feasibility of nanotechnology, in Next he explains the dangers of animal hybridization. But at the end of Timeline he reminds the reader that although quantum technology (the underlying core of the book's time travel) is possible, time travel is a fantasy and thus the book is a complete work of fiction. Obviously that's true, but it was jarring to hear (see?) it confirmed by Crichton nonetheless.

Great book, probably my favorite of his not named Jurassic Park. And speaking of that... my wonderful sister-in-law gifted it to me for Christmas. Yes, the Michael Crichton hype train continues.