{Put This One on Your TBR List} Book Review The Book of Swords Edited by Gardner Dozois by Karen S. Wiesner

 

{Put This One on Your TBR List} Book Review

The Book of Swords Edited by Gardner Dozois

by Karen S. Wiesner 

  Be aware of unintended spoilers! 

The Book of Swords was published in October 2017. Edited by Gardner Dozois, this particular collection includes stories that fall into the fantasy subgenre of "sword and sorcery". Below is a chronological listing of the stories that are featured in it:

1)          "The Best Man Wins" by K.J. Parker

2)          "Her Father's Sword" by Robin Hobb

3)          "The Hidden Girl" by Ken Liu

4)          "The Sword of Destiny" by Matthew Hughes

5)          "'I Am a Handsome Man,' said the Crow" by Kate Elliott

6)          "The Triumph of Virtue" by Walter Jon Williams

7)          "The Mocking Tower" by Daniel Abraham

8)          "Hrunting" by C. J. Cherryh

9)          "A Long, Cold Trail" by Garth Nix

10)        "When I was a Highway Man" by Ellen Kushner

11)        "The Smoke of Gold is Glory" by Scott Lynch

12)        "The Colgrid Conundrum" by Rich Larson

13)        "The King's Evil" by Elizabeth Bear

14)        "Waterfalling" by Lavie Tidhar

15)        "The Sword Tyraste" by Cecelia Holland

16)        "The Sons of the Dragon" by George R.R. Martin

Before I get into this anthology, I'll quickly summarize how I handle these types of mixed-bag story caches in my reviews: I don't usually review all the books include--only the ones that I actually enjoyed enough to cover here, though I do make exceptions about reviewing stories I don't like. I'll explain any anomalies within the individual reviews. The logic for why I haven't included a particular story isn't usually because it wasn't well-written. Most of these anthologies include some of the biggest names in the industry. For whatever reason, I don't always connect with certain selections or they simply don't resonate with me. I freely admit sometimes I'm just not in the mood for what one author has to offer. Rather than bad-mouth what's probably a perfectly good story, I find it easier to not include it in my line-up of reviews. Readers will have to look elsewhere for a summary or review for any story that's missing. Also, at the end of my reviews, I like to include the order I believe the stories I'm reviewing should have been placed within the collection, as I believe the placement of stories within an anthology is absolutely crucial to its overall success. There has to be a good balance and interspersion of strong stories at the front, back, and middle in order to "couch" weaker ones. Too many bad stories in a row may cause readers to abandon the collection altogether. Search "anthology" or "collection" on this blog to read my previous reviews of mixed-bag story caches like this one. 

"The Best Man Wins" by K.J. Parker: This story is told from the point of view of the blacksmith who has a young man come to him asking him to make the best sword in the world, for which he'll pay handsomely--literally, every last bit of money he owns, he's willing to part with for this task to be completed. After the blacksmith makes it, the kid asks him to teach him how to use it, as he knows nothing of sword-fighting. The blacksmith is much more than he seems on the surface. I was sucked into this tale from the first sentence. The blacksmith was compelling, and his view of life and his personal history were doled out in the process of him grumbling while he worked. As he says, he doesn't enjoy the doing (which is grueling), only the "having-done", obsessive aspects of smithing. If I had to summarize this story in a few short sentences, I'd say this: "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." (The Princess Bride) For all intents and purposes, this sentence that’s actually featured in the story: "I'm going to use it [i.e., the best sword in the world that you create for me] to kill the man who murdered my father…" told the whole story. It was uttered on page 13 of the 27-page story. From that point on, I knew what was going to happen. And that is exactly what did happen. However, that didn't make the tale any less enjoyable. In fact, it was my favorite of the whole lot. I was utterly fascinated by the blacksmithing aspects of the tale, and the POV of the blacksmith was the perfect choice for delivering the story. 

"Her Father's Sword", A Realms of the Elderlings Story by Robin Hobb: This short story takes place during the early years of the Red Ship Wars and forging, with Fitz visiting the setting within the story as a secondary character (in all the novels he's in, his perspective is first person); set "somewhere in the middle" of Farseer and recommended to be read either before or after Book 2. Sadly, I was disappointed by this story, though initially excited as I've read every other Realm of the Elderlings offering currently available (and reviewed them on this blog). This last one set in a familiar world for me wasn't one I've read previously. In this tale, a village has been destroyed, their people kidnapped and "forged" (mentally destroyed and become something like ravenousness zombies) by the pirates on the Red Ships. When their demands go unmet, the Forged are returned. These lifeless though walking beings take whatever they need. Fitz comes to warn the survivors not to trust their own people when they come back to the village, as they're not what they once were and will harm and kill them without conscience. Young Taura, like everyone else in her small, ravished town, doesn't want to believe this could have happened. Her father is too strong to not have resisted, she believes. My problem with this tale was that I can't stand stories where the resolution is left unclear. What is the purpose of telling something that has a wishy-washy ending? I have no desire to finish writing someone else's story on my own, for one thing. For another, leaving your own story unfinished is a cop-out, cheating, and just plain shoddy writing. Very frustrating, especially considering the biggest reason I purchased the (albeit used) hardcover of this book was for this story specifically. However, in its favor, I'll add that seeing the story of the Forged from this opposite perspective than has ever been presented before in the series does elevate it considerably. In the past, we saw these poor, unfortunate victims of the pirates as little more than zombies that had to be put down in order all those "unforged" to survive. The Forged retain nothing of who or what they were before, and family members must beware of forgetting that truth in favor of compassion and abiding love. Here, a young daughter can't let go of the stalwart father, nor the life she once had--even though (no question about it) she'll soon regret it. 

"The Sword of Destiny" by Matthew Hughes: I don't want to spoil this rollicking bit of good fun by telling you too much. The basic premise is that a wizard hires Baldemar to steal a magical sword for him, the operation is bungled, and this reluctant henchman finds himself fleeing--only he ends up running into one trouble after the other in his attempt to escape the first. The world created here in this 29-page story is so big and well-drawn, I think you'll find, as I did, that you'll want many more stories to follow this one. A bit of research on my part revealed that, after writing "The Sword of Destiny" for The Book of Swords, Hughes went on to expand into a novel and ten shorter works focused on Baldemar's origins and his time spent as a wizard's henchman. The setting Baldemar comes from is called Dying Earth (credited to author Jack Vance). Hughes has standalone works and those associated with Baldemar and another popular character of Hughes', Raffalon, who also has his own set of stories. In the future, I look forward to reading much more about this amazing character and the world he comes from, though it might be a chore to find copies of the books, as they don't seem to be in wide circulation anymore. 

"The Mocking Tower" by Daniel Abraham: In this creatively told tale, a man learns that war is not an arrow but both a circle and a sundial while revenge is a double-edged sword that never makes a clean cut on either party. Those who follow after will also feel its influence. I'm a general fan of Abraham's, as he's half of the S. A. Corey pen name that wrote The Expanse series (my favorite sci-fi space opera), though I haven't reliably loved his solo work. This is an exception. Very elegantly done. 

"Hrunting" by C. J. Cherryh: I love the Beowulf legend, and I own many translations of it. So as soon as I heard that this story continued where Beowulf left off, revealing the aftermath of those who survived, I wanted to read it. I enjoyed the conjecture in this tale a lot. However, it was told in an awkward, choppy and stilted way that made it very hard at times to understand what was being conveyed. Despite that, I recommend it to all fans of this enduring, Old English poem. 

"The Sons of the Dragon", A Song of Ice and Fire World by George R.R. Martin: This is another excerpt from Martin's "fake history" of House Targaryen, the dynasty that ruled the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros in the backstory of his A Song of Ice and Fire series. As such, it's not a story, per se, but it's absolutely not the dry old history textbook you'd read in school either. This selection was also published in Fire & Blood. The lives of Aegon I's sons--Aenys I and Maegor I--are detailed here, ending with Maegor's death and the ascension of Aenys's son Jaehaerys I Targaryen to the throne. All these histories are the basis for the HBO House of the Dragon TV series, and, honestly, if you want to have an easier time of keeping track of the gazillion characters, you might want to watch that. At least then you can put faces to the endless strings of names. Note that the novella included in this anthology is abridged. 

In terms of the order I believe this stories should have been presented in, I would have spaced my favorites out much more, so "The Best Man Wins" would stay at #1 and "The Sons of the Dragon" at #16; but "Her Father's Sword" would have been #3 instead; "The Sword of Destiny"#6, "The Sword of Destiny" #9, "The Mocking Tower #11; and "Hrunting" #14, with the rest of the books interspersed between them.

There's a lot for fans of fantasy and of the excellent writers to love with the 16 stories included in The Book of Swords. You may even find a new author to follow, as I have, to further broaden your fantasy reading horizons. 

Karen Wiesner is an award-winning, multi-genre author of 156 titles and 16 series. 

Visit Karen here: https://www.writers-exchange.com/Karen-Wiesner/

 

{Put This One on Your TBR List} Book Review: Hunter's Run by Gardner Dozois, George R. R. Martin, and Daniel Abraham by Karen S. Wiesner

 

{Put This One on Your TBR List} Book Review: Hunter's Run

by Gardner Dozois, George R. R. Martin, and Daniel Abraham

by Karen S. Wiesner

 

 

Be aware that there are spoilers in this review. 

Hunter's Run is a science fiction novel published in 2007 and written over the span of 30 years by "three young authors over time": Gardner Dozois (who's credited with the original concept), George R. R. Martin, and Daniel Abraham. I reviewed one of Martin and Dozois' co-edited anthology collections (Rogues) back on June 28, 2024. Martin is, of course, the famed author of A Song of Ice and Fire (HBO's Game of Thrones). Dozois was a science fiction author before he passed in 2018 as well as the founding editor of The Year's Best Science Fiction anthologies (from 1984 through 2018) and Asimov's Science Fiction magazine (1986–2004). Abraham is a novelist best known for his The Long Price Quartet and The Dagger and the Coin fantasy series, and (with Ty Franck) as the co-author of The Expanse science fiction series under the joint pseudonym James S. A. Corey.  

In 1976 Dozois conceived of the story of a man floating in darkness. A year later, he was invited to teach at a summer science fiction writing workshop by Martin, who found Dozois's story interesting. Dozois felt stalled in continuing it so, after three years in a drawer, he asked Martin to collaborate. Martin wanted to explore the alien world of São Paulo. In 1982, Martin couldn't get any further in completing the story either, so he passed it back to Dozois. Neither was able to find a way to progress, and the book went back into a drawer until 2002. Martin brought it to the attention of a young "Turk", author Abraham, who completed it as a novella. Martin called it "Shadow Twin". It was published in 2004. Later, Dozois reworked it into a 300-page-plus novel and renamed it Hunter's Run. Despite how disjointed the writing of this story undeniably was (the full account of the process is included in the back matter of the published novel), it surprisingly does come together in a seamless and cohesive way. At no point in time did I feel like someone (or some two or three) else had written certain aspects of the story. If for no other reason, that does make this "experiment" quite an achievement.

Before I proceed any further, I'll again warn that there's no way to review this book the way I want to without giving away key aspects of the plot. If you want to read the story without being told those pivotal points, go read the book and come back to this review later. 

In this futuristic science fiction, humans have reached the stars but unfortunately alien species including the Silver Enye, Turu, Cian, and others have already claimed the choice worlds. However, these races allow human colonists (mostly the downtrodden, poor, and/or potential lawbreakers) to join in the world-building by crash-testing them on empty planets too dangerous to be colonized by the "worthy". 

The main character Ramón is a thoroughly despicable creep who came to the planet to escape the poverty and hopelessness he faced on Earth. Unfortunately, the capital city on São Paulo is no better. The only law in this place is survival. A prospector, Ramón drinks away whatever money he makes or spends it on the woman he's with, though certainly doesn't love or particularly even like. He's an abusive jerk (though Elena can be described exactly the same way) who ends up killing someone important. On the run in the wilderness "wastelands", he tells himself if he can find a rich mineral strike somewhere, he can start his life all over. He stumbles upon an alien installation. Before he can do anything about it, he's kidnapped by the aliens. 

When he comes to, he's told by the aliens that another man has discovered their location and they have to capture him before he reveals their existence to the human colonists back in São Paulo. Ramón is compelling to join that hunt. In the process, Ramón begins to bond with his captor Maneck. Eventually Ramón learns that the other human intruder was actually the original Ramón that the aliens have cloned to create him--he's the clone of the original Ramón. Despite this, Ramón begins to understand that these advanced aliens also landed on this hostile planet where they're just trying to survive. Cloning humans and trying to learn their behavior is simply a way for them to blend in and co-exist. 

The clone-Ramón manages to escape this captor and meets up with the older, jaded and, frankly, out of shape version of himself, who doesn't recognize him. It doesn't take long for clone-Ramón to realize he really, really does not like the original Ramón. He begins to question his own existence, intentions, and purpose as a result. When the original Ramón discovers who he is, survival is again the only option. The clone kills the original (whoa!) and tries to take up his old life in the capital--which means consequences of the original's crimes and imprisonment. Soon the clone decides he has more in common with the aliens and more chance at a life of peace and purpose with them. 

While all the authors who had hands in this project played with radically different ideas (told in the interviews in the back of the book) for Hunter's Run, at its heart, the theme is in the exploration of what it means to be human. Everything you've read thus far in this review are all the reasons I wanted to love this book. It sounds amazing, doesn't it? The subject matter, the setting, and the concept is utterly compelling to me as a person and a writer. I truly enjoyed the Enemy Mine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enemy_Mine_(film) overtones that pervaded the interactions of clone-Ramón and the alien. 

To me, the fatal flaw in Hunter's Run (and probably it's earlier version "Shadow Twin" as well) was that the authors jointly made the protagonist--and, by default, his clone--so unlikable and thoroughly despicable that I never got to the point of feeling like his/their story was captivating, nor were they worth rooting for. In his interview in the back of Hunter's Run, Dozois said, "There was an essay by Damon Knight complaining that almost all heroes in science fiction are middle-class white Americans whereas almost no one on Earth is… 'Where is the space hero who is Mexican?'…I made Ramón in the 1970s very stereotypical… We needed to move away from that." Given that glimpse of story creation, I found it highly ironic that the three authors, even working together, ultimately chose to make Ramón stereotypically violent and reprehensible, so much so that it was hard to feel sympathy for him on the basis of the fact that, wherever this man went, he constantly felt he had to fight from every side just to survive. Ramón as a person was portrayed as ruthless, selfish, and vicious. He made bad choices he couldn't blame anyone else for. Regardless of his merciless setting or the environment he was in, he was a man who would always be who and what he was…a creep. There's no sugar-coating that fact with philosophical, psychological, or cultural discourses. 

As the majority of this story was told from the point of view of his clone, who does--to his credit--seem to be at least aware his original self was a jackass, I experienced disappointment that the clone didn't seem significantly changed even after he realized who he was in relation to the original Ramón and admitted to himself he didn't care for his "predecessor". As Jerry Seinfeld said, "adjacent to refuse is refuse". I guess ultimately I strongly need to feel a protagonist is a hero, or more accurately, has the potential to become one through the course of a story, not simply a degree above a villain, as this clone character was. I could in no way conceive that clone-Ramón might break free of any association with his original counterpart. His motives only felt slightly less egotistical and "survival of the fittest" than the original Ramón's. I kind of wish the authors had chosen to tell the story from Maneck's perspective, or at least partially so. 

The end also bothered me because, again, it displayed so pointedly that clone-Ramón wasn't much better than the original. There was no clear resolution. Clone-Ramón escapes prison and heads back to the alien hideout, hoping to find a way to live with the aliens in peace--and the reason he does this is to escape the imprisonment he's facing and to better himself. We never learn whether the aliens are amicable to this. I hate endings that don't provide adequate resolutions. To me, this still feels like a story untold, as it certainly must have at the many stages the authors shelved the unfinished versions. 

While there was a lot to be impressed by here in terms of the thematic explorations which make this tale well worth reading and the masterly world building of these three amazing writers, sadly I didn't actually enjoy it at any point. Still, it's certainly something any lover of science fiction action/adventure tales and fans of these three authors should consider picking up. 

Karen Wiesner is an award-winning, multi-genre author of over 150 titles and 16 series.

Visit her website here: https://karenwiesner.weebly.com/

and https://karenwiesner.weebly.com/karens-quill-blog

Find out more about her books and see her art here: http://www.facebook.com/KarenWiesnerAuthor

Visit her publisher here: https://www.writers-exchange.com/Karen-Wiesner/

 

{Put This One on Your TBR List} Book Review: The Mercy of Gods (The Captive's War, Book 1) by James S. A. Corey by Karen S. Wiesner

 

{Put This One on Your TBR List}

Book Review: The Mercy of Gods (The Captive's War, Book 1)

by James S. A. Corey

by Karen S. Wiesner

 

The authors James S. A. Corey (which are Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck) of The Expanse series (read my in-depth review here: https://aliendjinnromances.blogspot.com/2023/07/book-review-expanse-series-by-james-s.html) have started a new trilogy called The Captive's War. The first installment is The Mercy of Gods published in August 2024. In this science fiction space opera, the Carryx are a hival empire that's been conquering worlds for centuries. Borg-like, they destroy or enslave, ever in search of those they can use to continue their totalitarian dominion in the universe. After finishing this tale, I learned that The Mercy of Gods was inspired by the book of Daniel in the Bible. In retrospect that makes a lot of sense. "Alien enemies" conquer a fertile land and drag slaves back to their homeland, forcing them to learn how to survive the best they can in a hostile environment. They have no choice about starting over from scratch with absolutely nothing to call their own, beyond the essence of their being, if even that can survive such heartless treatment. 

In this first book in a trilogy, the story opens with the reader becoming steeped in what can only be described as the petty machinations of mere humans. Dafyd is caught up in the academic intrigue and politics of the university. He's a mere assistant on a celebrated research team. Then, abruptly, the Carryx descend and wreck every last aspect of life and culture as these scientists know it. All life on the planet is doomed in one way or another. I was initially intrigued by what was happening, as the book states it: "…important scientific questions have finally been answered. Alien life exists, and they are a@#holes." It was more than a little disturbing to see the humans kowtowed so completely--"They were all living the same life in different bodies." I wondered how I might react to such a hopeless situation. A humiliating debasement period ensues for the survivors as they're transported to another planet that the enemy occupies. 

Once there, they're forced to rebuild some semblance of a life after being set the task of proving they were worth saving. Quickly, Dafyd and his fellow captives learn that the game their enemies play with slaves from multiple planets isn't merely a competition in which the species need to fight to survive. They must also prove they have value to their new "gods". This longest section of the book, as Dafyd and the research team very slowly come to understand what they're up against was, well, long and not a little tedious. There were a lot of characters, none of them all that compelling or different from you and me…which may well have been the point for the authors, as I expect that the ordinary beings become extraordinary as the trilogy progresses. However, it would have been nice to have at least the main character Dafyd be someone really worth rooting for. In this initially entry, I can't say he actually was. But he could be later on. The seeds have been laid for that. 

Taking the time to understand the Carryx may be the only way to find a weakness that can be exploited. This could be a long, drawn-out war, starting with Dafyd and the team's own ruthless compliance to the enemy--which can and will easily be construed as betrayal to some, if not to the majority. Dafyd has no choice but to become as hated as he may someday be revered as a champion in the universe. To save the future of not only mankind, the present must be sacrificed with the same lack of mercy shown by the Carryx. 

Another thing that bothered me a little was that I found events a bit predictable. Luckily, that didn't continue the whole way through. From the start of the alien invasion, I had a strong idea where this tale was heading. It went exactly where I expected it to from start to almost the absolute end, where a little twist perked me up. 

None of this is to say that the material held only boredom for me. I did read from start to finish without doing the "rush reading" I tend to when a story has started to lose my attention. But this particular installment only just kept me reading. I don't deny that the reason for that is because I loved The Expanse so much, I was more than willing to give these authors a larger than average chance to impress me. 

This finale was truly the beginning of the saga, slow and slightly plodding in its establishment, but the denouement set up anxiety and tantalization for what might come next. It was strange to be on the edge of boredom through the whole story and then suddenly, in the closing chapters, my ideas where the overall theme was going got shaken up so completely. I find I'm really looking forward to where Book 2 might venture in this scenario. No word has been released about when that might be as of this writing in December 2024. However, the trilogy is already scheduled to be made into a television series by Expanding Universe, a multi-platform content company headed by the authors themselves (among others). The adaptation of The Captive's War is their first project. 

 

As is the Corey custom (fans of The Expanse can testify), in addition to the initial offering in the trilogy, a 90-page novella was released October 2024. "Livesuit" details humanity fighting back against the Carryx on other worlds not yet fallen to enemy claim. In order to do that, they're using "livesuit" technology. I actually read this ebook while waiting for my trade paperback copy of The Mercy of Gods to arrive. It was a very personal story of several humans' self-sacrifice in a war that seems all but hopeless. 

Ultimately, this is a solid beginning to what seems to be the start of a new, engaging trilogy, one with a welcome surprise ending. I'm looking forward to the TV adaptation as well as new literary offerings. 

Karen Wiesner is an award-winning, multi-genre author of over 150 titles and 16 series.

Visit her website here: https://karenwiesner.weebly.com/

and https://karenwiesner.weebly.com/karens-quill-blog

Find out more about her books and see her art here: http://www.facebook.com/KarenWiesnerAuthor 

Visit her publisher here: https://www.writers-exchange.com/Karen-Wiesner/

Karen S. Wiesner {Put This One on Your TBR List} Book Review: The Expanse Series by James S. A. Corey

{Put This One on Your TBR List}

Book Review: The Expanse Series by James S. A. Corey

by Karen S. Wiesner

I started reading The Expanse Series when I found the boxed set with the first three novels in Orbit Books newsletter. I love science fiction, especially when it's combined with horror, similar to the Ridley Scott Alien franchise, which, not surprisingly, was a major influence for this particular series. The short story, "Drive", is the prequel to the entire series, and James S. A. Corey (authors Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, using the joint pen name) offered a free download of it from their website, which I printed and read after I'd finished the first three novels. From that point on, I purchased each novel and short story/novella as it was released. In the years the authors actively worked on this series, I followed it, purchasing each book in hardcover, since that was the fastest way to get it ASAP after release.

The premise of The Expanse Series is that future humanity has colonized most of "The Solar System", but they don't yet have interstellar travel. Mankind has settled in the asteroid belt (Ceres and Eros), Mars and the moon with domed settlements; and some outer planets (several Jupiter moons including Ganymede and Europa; Saturn's Phoebe; and Uranus's Titania). In the time the series is set, tensions are rising. Earth's United Nations and Mars' Congressional Republic are the superpowers that exert their combined hegemony over Belters--those who populate the asteroid belt. Because of the low-gravity environments they live, their bodies tend to be longer and thinner than other humans. Belters (who use a form of modified Creole speech) are the blue collar workers of the galaxy, working to provide the system with the natural resources needed by all, and, as such, they're disrespected by other humans in the galaxy. In order to fight exploitation at the "Inners" hands, Belters have formed loose military groupings within the Outer Planets Alliance (OPA). The OPA is considered a terrorist organization by other humans.

In Leviathan Wakes, Book 1, readers are introduced to several of the core characters in this series. James "Jim" Holden, a former UN Navy officer from Earth, is XO of an ice hauling ship called Canterbury along with chief engineer Naomi Nagata, a Belter; pilot Alex Kamal, who's a Martian navy (MCRN) veteran; and engineer Amos Burton with a background that, let's just say, grows more interesting with each installment. These four become the original members of the Rocinate or Roci, a state of the art Martian frigate they claim as their own. A distress signal leads them to a derelict transport vessel, the Scopuli, and from there to Julie Mao, the rebellious daughter of a wealthy magnate.

At the same time, a washed-up detective named Josephus "Joe" Miller, a Belter from Ceres Station's Star Helix Security, is also searching for Julie Mao.

The investigation of Jim and his crew and Miller converges on Eros, where Julie is found…afflicted with an alien organic biohazard growth that quickly spreads across the entire station. Life as anyone knows it will change from this moment forward when humanity gains access to thousands of new worlds via the use of an artificially constructed ring network created by a long-dead race of aliens. The number of directions that this series goes as it explores all of this potential boggled my mind as the saga became bigger and bigger with each book.

While the characters mentioned above comprise the major players, there were so many fascinating, richly embellished, unique cast members. While Jim Holden always came across as a good, incorruptible man and, as such, was my favorite, so many of the characters were so complex, it was hard to pin short-sighted labels like "good" or "evil" on any of them. They were each completely human with all the moments of cringe-worthy regret and heroic larger-than-life altruism. Amos was another favorite who compelled me to think deeply as he evolved into the person he became at the end.

Some other intriguing players that make frequent appearances throughout the books are Bobbi Draper, a Martian gunnery sergeant in the MCRN; the foul-mouthed Chrisjen Avasarala, UN Assistant Undersecretary of Executive Administration on Earth; Fred Johnson, the leader of the OPA, who's a former UN marine (and the subject of the short story "The Butcher of Anderson Station"); Marco and Filip Inaros, father and son with Marco commanding a radical OPA branch called the Free Navy; Camina Drummer, chief security of Tycho Station; and Clarissa Moa, another daughter of the magnate that Amos calls Peaches.

The first installment in the series is the one that I binged-read in a matter of days because the biohazard aspect utterly fascinated me, as did pretty much anything Jim Holden did from start to finish in every story he was in. But several other stand-out offerings were "The Churn" novella and the eighth novel in the series, Tiamat's Wrath.

At the announcement of the last one, Leviathan Falls, I know I wasn't the only obsessed reader who felt we'd only touched the tip of the iceberg in exploring all the saga had to offer. The series left me wanting more while at the same time satisfying all my main requirements. I simply wasn't ready for it to end, though I suspect the main crew of the Roci might have, given what they went through in the countless years that encompass the whole of this exciting sequence.

As most probably already know because many sci-fi readers prefer a more visual medium over book format, The Expanse became a TV series that went through countless upheavals and ended far too soon, not covering as much ground as the book series did. The perfectly chosen cast gave it their all, and I applaud the show for how well they portrayed something so big, it was hard to contain it the way they had to. Both the novel and TV series are well-worth your time, and they've got a permanent place on my keeper shelves. Comic versions, board and roleplaying games are also available for the series.

One of the most defining factors about The Expanse was just how realistic it all seemed. I was sold completely on the premise, and I can easily imagine so many aspects of the "science" and politics to this series happening in the near future just as they're portrayed in this saga.

I do have to comment that the titles of the novels are annoying obscure and really have nothing whatsoever to do with the stories within them. Whenever I try to remember which story belonged in which novel, I'm completely lost--and that's a direct result of the fact that the titles that were saddled on the novels in the series seem arbitrary and not clearly defined. If there was a trick to understanding why they were named as they were, the authors should have given readers a clue what it was to prevent us from becoming lost and confused. That is the sum total of my complaint with this series. Incidentally, the shorts all had titles that made sense and described the stories contained within.

A quick word about the book order, which is a bit of an issue since short stories and novellas were published between the main novels that don't necessarily follow the main storyline chronologically. Frequently, the shorts covered past events as well as pivotal character backgrounds. The publisher suggests reading them in the order they were published since that way characters first introduced in the novels gain further background characterization through the shorts. With prior knowledge and familiarity, the novellas can be enjoyed and understood in context. Also, the shorts may contain spoilers to the novels, which could be a deal-breaker to some. That said, the suggested reading order is this:

1.     Leviathan Wakes, Book 1

2.     "The Butcher of Anderson Station" (set before Leviathan Wakes)

3.     Caliban's War, Book 2

4.     "Gods of Risk"

5.     "Drive" (set before Leviathan Wakes)

6.     Abaddon's Gate, Book 3

7.     "The Churn" (set before Leviathan Wakes)

8.     Cibola Burn, Book 4

9.     Nemesis Games, Book 5

10.  "The Vital Abyss" (set between Abaddon's Gate and Cibola Burn)

11.  Babylon's Ashes, Book 6

12.  "Strange Dogs"

13.  Persepolis Rising, Book 7

14.  Tiamat's Wrath, Book 8

15.  "The Last Flight of the Cassandra" (set during Leviathan Wakes)

16.  "Auberon" (set between Persepolis Rising and Tiamat's Wrath)

17.   Leviathan Falls, Book 9

Note that all of the shorts are all published in a compilation called Memory's Legion that's well worth investing in for collectors.

 

Karen Wiesner is an award-winning, multi-genre author of over 150 titles and 16 series.

Visit her website here: https://karenwiesner.weebly.com/

and https://karenwiesner.weebly.com/karens-quill-blog

Find out more about her books and see her art here: http://www.facebook.com/KarenWiesnerAuthor

Visit her publisher here: https://www.writers-exchange.com/Karen-Wiesner/

VICARIOUS VERISIMIILITUDE: Morality and Immorality via Ramon Espejo

Talking about some of the extremes of human behavior and how we deal with these things, culturally, socially, segues in nicely with a book I just finished: HUNTERS RUN by George R.R. Martin, Gardner Dozois and Daniel Abraham. It fits nicely because the book’s main character (I’m not sure I can bring myself to call him protagonist or hero) is a man who has been characterized in reviews on Goodreads as an unrepentant asshole.

And I think the reviewers are being kind.

Many readers hated the book because of Ramon Espejo. Others felt that his very asshole-ness made the book what it was. In the Q&A in the book’s last pages, Gardner states that early readers hated Ramon. It’s easy to hate Ramon.

It’s also hard to stop reading his story.

Ramon is a drunk, a woman-beater, a liar, a cheat. He’s a down-on-his-luck prospector on an alien planet. He’s a murderer. He has a hugely overblown view of himself.

He’s also tough, persistent, dogged and resourceful. He makes many bad decisions. He makes a few very good ones.

Ramon would be a difficult main character in a romance. Although he does a few heroic things, he’s not hero material. Not even with the recent trend in romance toward bad-boy protagonists. Not even with the trend toward blood-sucking dead guys as heroes.

Yet I found him a fascinating character and I actually cared enough about him to worry if he would live or die, fail or succeed. And so did a lot of other readers. And I wonder, with this talk about morality and society, how much vicarious nastiness we get out of our systems because of characters like Ramon. Or how much of our own nastiness we recognize in characters like Ramon and hence don’t feel quite that unusual.

We all have a dark side, good old Darth notwithstanding.

One of the criticisms often leveled at romance novels are that the main characters are too perfect. Too handsome. Too strong. Too caring. There have even been comments with the rise of the kick-ass heroine that we’re again creating characters with characteristics that are unattainable. Super Mom has spawned Super Fem Protagonist.

Ramon Espejo represents some of the worst of in all of us.

So does Thomas Harris’ Hannibal Lecter but Hannibal the Cannibal was very outré. Larger than life, suave, manipulative. Intelligent. He was a number of good and worthy qualities gone bad.

Ramon’s just an asshole. And an uneducated one at that.

Then he stumbles on a secret that, if revealed, could cause the deaths of thousands. And he becomes, quite literally, his own worst enemy.

I don’t want to get into spoilers—I do encourage you to read this book if the issues of morality interest you at all—but it’s the “literally” where the book shines. And continues to take unexpected turns.

All I can say is the redemption I thought I saw coming for Ramon…doesn’t. But there is a redemption and it comes from another source. But uplifting…?

You need to see for yourself.

At only two hundred seventy six pages the book is a quick read. But I found it to be a very powerful one.

~Linnea

SHADES OF DARK, the sequel to Gabriel’s Ghost, July 2008 from RITA award-winning author, Linnea Sinclair, and Bantam Books: http://www.linneasinclair.com/

“You’ve told me many times I still need training. That a rogue Kyi like me is capable of utter destruction if I’m not careful. Then heed your own warning. Don’t force me to find out just what I’m capable of. Because when the dust settles, I will be the one left standing. And you know that.”