Monthly Archives: June 2016

Book Haul Post: Used-Bookstore Edition

Posted on June 29, 2016 by H.P.

Houston is a great town.  It’s a helluva place for a man to make a living.  It’s a helluva place for a man to make a living doing what I do, and it’s a city the guy you hire to … Continue reading →

Posted in Sundry | Tagged | 2 Comments

Review of Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Posted on June 28, 2016 by H.P.

A frequent complaint regarding today’s short speculative fiction is that it is too frequently only nominally speculative or not really speculative at all.  I’m leery of going that far, if only because I like non-speculative fiction just fine and I … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Science Fiction | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Review of The Stand by Stephen King

Posted on June 23, 2016 by H.P.

The Stand is Stephen King’s classic post-apocalyptic (but perhaps not deserving of the label ‘dystopian’) tale with strong supernatural elements.  Humanity is decimated by the accidental release of a United States government-created superflu when a military police officer (Charles Campion) … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Dystopian/Apocalyptic, Fantasy | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

Review of The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

Posted on June 22, 2016 by H.P.

Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall; Death is the fifth, and master of all. The Fifth Season is a beautifully written apocalyptic fantasy featuring an intricate and inventive magic system and world.  It’s also very ambitious from a literary standpoint, but those … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Fantasy | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Review of The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

Posted on June 21, 2016 by H.P.

The Way of Kings is remarkable even for this halcyon age for the doorstopper epic fantasy in which we live.  Sanderson openly pitched it as a 10 volume series.  The hardcover dwarfs the collected first eight volumes of The Walking … Continue reading →

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Review of Slow Bullets by Alastair Reynolds

Posted on June 20, 2016 by H.P.

Slow Bullets, like Perfect State, has a premise that didn’t grab me and would have kept me from reading it but for being a Hugo finalist.  In this case it wasn’t the copy but the plot descriptions from some of … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Science Fiction | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Review of Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff

Posted on June 16, 2016 by H.P.

Stormdancer benefits, first and foremost, from having pretty much the greatest concept ever—feudal Japan-inspired, eco-dystopian steampunk.  What’s not to love?  And it is that the development of that concept, and the attendant world-building, that carry the book. The curiously-like-Japan-but-created islands … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Fantasy | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Short Review Roundup – 2014 Hugo Awards Edition

Posted on June 14, 2016 by H.P.

In an effort to clear my backlog of books I’ve read but not reviewed, I’m posting short review roundups.  I already wrote a post on the best of the 2015 books I read that didn’t get Hugo nominations.  Today’s post … Continue reading →

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Review of Black Powder War by Naomi Novik

Posted on June 9, 2016 by H.P.

The ninth and final book in Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series—League of Dragons—is out on June 14.  Alas, I have only read the first three books.  While I catch up, my review of the book 3, Black Powder War, is below. … Continue reading →

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Review of Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik

Posted on June 8, 2016 by H.P.

The ninth and final book in Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series—League of Dragons—is out on June 14.  Alas, I have only read the first three books.  While I catch up, my review of the book 2, Throne of Jade, is below. … Continue reading →

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