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Entry tags:
Fiction
Charles Stross, The Jennifer Morgue: From the world of The Atrocity Archives, Lovecraft meets spycraft, with a billionaire running a James Bond geas that sucks tech Bob Howard into a very different role than he planned on when he signed on to work at the top-secret Laundry, turning math into magic. I like Stross's gift for turning a cute phrase (when Howard is strapped down for a procedure, tech 1 says "clear," tech 2 says "clear," and Howard, who has no idea what’s going on, says "very unclear!"), and though the plot ultimately involves a twist that's surprising only if you've never heard a particular tired joke I still enjoyed the ride, though I think the spy-v-unspeakable horror from the deep thing works better in the short story/novella range.
Jaclyn Dolamore, Magic Under Glass: Nimira, a “trouser girl” who dances in a foreign country in which she’s generally despised as well as desired for her exoticism, is recruited to help a strange gentleman with his automaton. She sings while it plays—but it’s not an it; there’s the spirit of a fairy prince trapped inside. And the gentleman has other secrets that threaten Nimira’s precarious position. Jane Eyre meets palace intrigue; a nicely done story that sets up well for the next installment.
Ted Naifeh, Courtney Crumrin and the Coven of Mystics and Courtney Crumrin in the Twilight Kingdom: Courtney is my favorite kind of hero: the reluctant, misanthropic kind; she doesn’t get nicer in the course of helping people, and that often interferes with her ability to help them. She’s a little girl just learning witchcraft, but a prodigious talent, a nose for trouble, and a powerful family behind her give her the ability to do a lot more than other kids might accomplish. It’s kind of funny that she’s the only one without a nose in the art, but I even like that as a symbol of her alienation.
Stephen King, 11/22/63: Ordinary schoolteacher (and half-frustrated writer) is introduced to a hole in the fabric of spacetime, one that takes him back to 1958: always exactly the same place and time in 1958, a complete reset each time. Once he believes, his mentor—a dying man who can’t complete his goal—urges him to do what his mentor couldn’t: save President Kennedy from assassination. Along the way, Jake tries to fix some more minor disasters. It would be possible to be irritated by the heavy-handed “I didn’t know then”s that populate the novel, but it’s a Stephen King time travel novel featuring multiple loops, so that’s not unexpected. And King does know how to create a sense of tension and urgency; time tries to fight back against attempts to change past events. A big chunk of the novel is set in Derry, and intersects a bit with It, before Jake heads down to Florida and then to Texas. I enjoyed the ride well enough, but this will not make my top ten King list.
Terry Pratchett, Snuff: It’s a Vimes novel. You know if you’ll like this one, which has an autumnal feel (perhaps, though, that’s because I know of Pratchett’s situation), and includes much of Vimes considering his own darkness and the extent to which a copper may legitimately break, stretch, or invent the law in the interests of justice. In the end, Discworld seems to come down on the side of “pretty far, as long as he’s a good man or working for a good man.” (If you’re looking for matters resolved not quite as neatly as they are here, with favored characters generally not let conveniently off the hook for dilemmas they face, then it’s the Tiffany Aching novels these days that will satisfy.)
Diane Duane, Uptown Local and Other Stories: Short stories mainly in the uplifting fantasy vein, often set in or around Zurich. I love Duane’s Star Trek books and have fond memories of her Door series, but didn’t have a strong reaction to these stories.
Jaclyn Dolamore, Magic Under Glass: Nimira, a “trouser girl” who dances in a foreign country in which she’s generally despised as well as desired for her exoticism, is recruited to help a strange gentleman with his automaton. She sings while it plays—but it’s not an it; there’s the spirit of a fairy prince trapped inside. And the gentleman has other secrets that threaten Nimira’s precarious position. Jane Eyre meets palace intrigue; a nicely done story that sets up well for the next installment.
Ted Naifeh, Courtney Crumrin and the Coven of Mystics and Courtney Crumrin in the Twilight Kingdom: Courtney is my favorite kind of hero: the reluctant, misanthropic kind; she doesn’t get nicer in the course of helping people, and that often interferes with her ability to help them. She’s a little girl just learning witchcraft, but a prodigious talent, a nose for trouble, and a powerful family behind her give her the ability to do a lot more than other kids might accomplish. It’s kind of funny that she’s the only one without a nose in the art, but I even like that as a symbol of her alienation.
Stephen King, 11/22/63: Ordinary schoolteacher (and half-frustrated writer) is introduced to a hole in the fabric of spacetime, one that takes him back to 1958: always exactly the same place and time in 1958, a complete reset each time. Once he believes, his mentor—a dying man who can’t complete his goal—urges him to do what his mentor couldn’t: save President Kennedy from assassination. Along the way, Jake tries to fix some more minor disasters. It would be possible to be irritated by the heavy-handed “I didn’t know then”s that populate the novel, but it’s a Stephen King time travel novel featuring multiple loops, so that’s not unexpected. And King does know how to create a sense of tension and urgency; time tries to fight back against attempts to change past events. A big chunk of the novel is set in Derry, and intersects a bit with It, before Jake heads down to Florida and then to Texas. I enjoyed the ride well enough, but this will not make my top ten King list.
Terry Pratchett, Snuff: It’s a Vimes novel. You know if you’ll like this one, which has an autumnal feel (perhaps, though, that’s because I know of Pratchett’s situation), and includes much of Vimes considering his own darkness and the extent to which a copper may legitimately break, stretch, or invent the law in the interests of justice. In the end, Discworld seems to come down on the side of “pretty far, as long as he’s a good man or working for a good man.” (If you’re looking for matters resolved not quite as neatly as they are here, with favored characters generally not let conveniently off the hook for dilemmas they face, then it’s the Tiffany Aching novels these days that will satisfy.)
Diane Duane, Uptown Local and Other Stories: Short stories mainly in the uplifting fantasy vein, often set in or around Zurich. I love Duane’s Star Trek books and have fond memories of her Door series, but didn’t have a strong reaction to these stories.
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I’ve been wondering if the new Stephen King was worth reading or not; I haven’t enjoyed his newer stuff as much as his ‘classic’ stories. This was helpful commentary.
I love the Vimes stories! I’d been wondering about “Snuff” -- it seemed like it might be a bit different from his usual Vimes tales.
Wonderful commentary, sweetie; helpful, as always. *s*
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I'm glad you find the reviews of interest!
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