Science Fiction – Page 7 – Carol's Notebook

The Last Emperox by John Scalzi

April 23, 2020April 21, 2020 by Carol1 Comment

I have problems with series ending. Either I love the series and don't want it to end or I get bored with the series and don't make it to the end (which happens more often). Trilogies simplify the issue a little. There's only three, so chances are if I enjoyed the first one I won't have gotten bored yet by the time the third rolls around. On the other hand, there's only three and I want more time in the world with the characters. The Interdependency falls into the second category. I love it and want more. Maybe a follow-up trilogy. Please. First off, don't read The Last Emperox as a stand alone. Read the first and second, in that order. Meet the characters, discover the world, learn the politics, get an idea of the science. (I'm not really sure how scientific the science is, but that's beside the point. Don't worry that this is too sciencey, it's not.) The Last...

Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne

March 9, 2020March 6, 2020 by Carol4 Comments

I've read three of Verne's books now, the three biggies, Around the World in 80 Days, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, and I just finished Journey to the Center of the Earth. As far as I can tell, here's what they all have in common, aside from the "journey" plot. Each has a lot of really boring parts interspersed with some thrilling, brief adventures. And I'm not sure the exciting parts outweigh the mind-numbing bits. A geologist finds a hidden scrap of paper, deciphers what it says with the help of his nephew, and decides to follow what it says and make the journey to the center of the earth. They don't actually get there by the way. The geologist takes his nephew with him and they find a guide in Iceland. What they do discover is a vast subterranean cavern. This underground world is lit by electrically charged gas at the ceiling and is filled with a very deep subterranean...

Mailbox Monday – 2/17

February 17, 2020June 27, 2022 by Carol9 Comments

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists. Tell us about your new arrivals by adding your Mailbox Monday post to the linky at mailboxmonday.wordpress.com. I used my Barnes and Noble gift card to get two books (and a coffee and cookie)....

Velocity Weapon by Megan E. O’Keefe

August 8, 2019August 8, 2019 by Carol2 Comments

Velocity Weapon is really entertaining - a bit long perhaps, but a lot of fun. So why have I been sitting here looking at this blank review on and off for days now? I don't want to give away any of the plot points and those are what make the book interesting. The blurb above gives you the basic setup. Sanda is awesome, tough, resourceful, vulnerable. She was clearly the strongest of the characters and the parts from her point of view were the most compelling. Her brother Biran is a politician, but he still has some hope in the system, even if his faith is stretching thinner and thinner. I like that he doesn't give up hope, ever. There's a third character whose point of view we see the story from, but she's not mentioned in the blurb. Jules is in a different system. She's a thief whose last job went wrong and she is in major trouble. We don't know...

Mailbox Monday – 7/8

July 8, 2019January 6, 2020 by Carol6 Comments

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists. Tell us about your new arrivals by adding your Mailbox Monday post to the linky at mailboxmonday.wordpress.com. Velocity Weapon was a win from Orbit Books US on Instagram....

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

June 20, 2019June 21, 2021 by Carol4 Comments

The Three-Body Problem is hard science fiction, in that there's a lot of science involved. I don't know where I originally heard about it, probably some "best of sci-fi translations" list, but it's won a fair number of awards and is thoroughly enjoyable. It's also hard to talk about without giving away spoilers. But should I worry about that when the blurb itself, not the one above but the official blurb, gives it away too? Do you like spoilers? Do you hate them? They don't bother me and I honestly sometimes search for them, but I know not everyone feels that way. The story starts off during China's Cultural Revolution. Ye Wenjie's father is killed by the Red Guard and she is eventually shipped off to a remote mountaintop where a government-sponsored group is secretly exploring the possibility of electronic communication with aliens. Flash forward to the present. Wang Miao, a nanotechnology researcher, has begun seeing a countdown clock...