DM
Here we go again???
Bannon is with GrieveNikki is lostNathan is with the PrelateDoes anyone else get the feeling that TG used this book to go back to a familiar plot device. Divide the team so you are so relieved when everyone gets back together you forget the story :)
And I liked this book more than the other two.
TINAG (This is not a Game) takes you through 2 and a half story lines. The first Act could be read alone and provide a mildly entertaining short story. The second and third act use glimpses from the first act to set you up for the main story line. Williams uses social media and e-mail intros to keep reminding you of important parts of the story, and even though you know how the book is going to end you are set to wonder which direction Williams will take you.
Final Thought: Joe Clever is my favorite part of the story.
My complaint is... I'm team David. Great pacing. Great way of explaining just enough to keep the pages turning.
Great classic sci-fi references. (She said, “Smeghead!!!) Pretty entertaining story too.
If you like a little bit of military humor, plans to save the world gone awry, a main character who messes everything up in the most SPECTACULARLY lucky way possible, and a droid who can't swear... This is the book for you! OK, the droid swears once!
This is not a Young Adult Novel. The cover sets this up to be attractive for Junior High readers to be attracted to it, but it is an adult novel. Swearing and Mature Themes abound.
That being said. It's a fun story, and you become attached to the characters as they figure out how to break their own molds. And it's not everyday the most annoying character in the book saves the day. You are allowed to decide whom I speak of.
This book reminded me of the final seasons of the TV show Supernatural. What would happen if an all-knowing god actually lost a battle or two. I also got some higher intelligence treats us like pond scum vibes. By the time things all shake out you get some empathy, deeper layers of understanding, a sacrifice, and a hankering for some BBQ. Or not...
“Do you know why they set the elections ten years apart? So that there would be time for governing in between bouts of politics.”
“It doesn't work.”
“I know.”
An interesting read in the middle of this political bonanza we currently have. I kept waiting for some great insight into what is happening while reading, but was content with the fact that government will never work. Problems are solved with people on the local level. OK, so that last part was my political bias, but it works. Wish it were a stand-alone, but I'll pull the next one off the shelf in 2017.
I feel like I need to write this review to help it out a bit. If you liked the format of the first book, you will like the format for this book. The characters pretty much stay the same, and Cline has to do a few things to reset it enough to start another quest. It's actually a decent reset in my opinion. And then here we go again. If you liked the first one, and want to go for the same ride again, the get Ready Player Two.
Here's a new thought? Magic is real, and you can use it for as long as you can hold a buzz :) Mix a drink, take a swig, and now you are super strong. The bartenders of the world are our last line of defense against horrible monsters. And you thought you bartender was just slinging drinks. Bailey is our hero of the night when she accidentally falls into this world of bartending. Battling old boyfriends, graduating, finding a job, moving back in with her parents, and the ever popular monster. This book makes for a fun time as Bailey decides whether or not it is time to grow up. I'm looking forward to the next book. There will be a next book, right?
Important Point: There are some shenanigans in how this book was published. Borrow it from a friend or get it from your library. If you purchased it, try to let your friends borrow it. The book has been published, read it. Not reading the book won't help.
State Powers/Federal Powers
Small Town Values/Striking out on your own
Parental Esteem/Parental Awareness
Forced Government Change/Local Environment Change
A writer's first draft/A writer's final publication
These are just a few of the conversations you will want to have after reading Watchman. These are also conversations that we are having in 2015. We are all bigots in our own ways, but the thing that has changed is that we can acknowledge we are all obstinate. We need to listen to each other, care for one another, and make changes in our communities so the government doesn't have to overreach. The best and worst change we can make is our family. How do your children see you? How will your children follow the watchman that has been set?
Dear Felicia,
If I ever meet you in person I promise to give you constructive criticism and not tell you how great your work is. Cuz it is. I will also not take you to a hoagie restaurant.
The chapters on The Guild were my favorite.
That is all.
Your great grandparents signed up for a trip across the stars. Now, enough time has passed that you are the generation flying in a ship that has traveled for a hundred plus years. Space Travel always seems like the next frontier, but this book asks the question is it possible, is it fair?
Sidenote, there is an interesting section in the middle that models what happens when the majority has a mob mentality. It's not meant to be a political potshot, but it is interesting considering our times.
I wish the ship ending would have been a little different.
“A dense formation is an unforgivable error. Everything else was to be expected.”
Liu Cixin is talented at giving the reader a question and than answering it. You wait for the answer, and it comes right when it is needed.
Anyone watch the Joss Whedon tv show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer? You ever wonder what happened to the students that went to school with Buffy? This book takes a shot at answering that question. Exploding gymnasiums at graduation and all. The unique draw of this story is that we find out what the main characters are up to at the beginning of each chapter, and then the chapter goes on to narrate through the role of the side characters.
Martin and Philip are at it again. This time they travel to Atlantis for the Inaugural Wizards, Gypsy, and Time Traveller Symposium. As the conference begins someone attempts to assassinate one of the delegates. Martin and Philip must work together to decide if the program really gives free will, or if it is all an illusion. A good follow up to Book 1, but leaves questions that sets up for book 3. You have been warned.
Disappointing, because I usually enjoy this author. This ends up being a simplified version of the politics in his novel For the Win. Doctorow has his agenda, but doesn't take the time to set it up which is a real disservice, because it had so much possibility. If you want a strong female heroin gamer, Check out Felicia Day's The Guild comics. You get to see a female gamer grow into the strong woman she is without the proselytizing and lack of depth in this book. Sorry Doc, you've done better.
Station Eleven takes you through a worldwide pandemic through the eyes of the acquaintances of an actor in his later years. We meet these characters as we learn about Arthur's hometown, college escape, trials and errors, rise to fame, and eventually his death on stage which we see in the opening chapters.
We learn the fates of many of these characters that somehow influenced or were a part of Arthur's life. We see how the world is reborn as the characters adapt to the new life after the pandemic. This is a book about characters and their growth.
My favorite parts of the book is when we follow the traveling symphony. This group of people that have decided to make music and art in the new world. While most of the world hunkers down and shuts people out, the symphony wants to share and bring joy. Survival is Insufficient.
What if God created the heavens and the earth in 6 days using Linux, C++, or chomski? Well, there would be a program that could be found to make a few alterations. What if you found that program, and made a few not quite illegal mistakes? Where would you hide? Medieval Arthurian England, of course. This is the story of a bunch of decent guys that have the power to make their geek and nerd dreams come true. Nothing could go wrong, could it?
It is interesting, because the reason why I wanted to read this book, was because someone told me that it was a great stand-alone fantasy novel. Now I want to know what happens to “our Serenity.” in a sequel. A little difficult to start with because of the use of elvish names and locations, but I think that is more my lack of practice in the fantasy genre, recently. The other thing your brain has to figure out is that names that end in “a” are male not female. It took me a multiple chapters to convince my English language brain that the main character was indeed male. By the time you finish you find yourself a “friend” to the emperor.
Possible SPOILER:
I wish they would have done more with Setheris.
I don't think this is a spoiler, but just in case...
Was I the only one who was really bummed that Francis got made just when you started to like the guy?
It always amazes me how certain books seem to continue to be relevant in the moment. I finished reading this book as the Pope is traveling through the US, the Congress is split over the Iran deal, and we may be electing a crazy man or woman to lead our country. It is amazing how you can see past events forming to produce the events we are living in today. Oh, and I'm talking about the book too.
Once I figured out that this was basically three short stories put together through the buzzards, I settled in and enjoyed it a lot more. Take a chance to read or reread this. I audiobooked it, and I think that helped. Oh, and everybody dies, again!
Ernest Cline, if you read this, write another book. It must have been an off day.
You know that something is up, and that something is exactly what you expect. I kept waiting for the main character to have a revelation, or do something unexpected, or something unpredictable. But everything happened exactly how you thought it would. Cline even throws in a double writer's cliche to wrap everything in a nice little bow. Disappointing, BUT I do want him to keep writing. And not just because of RP1. I want him to keep writing, because I enjoy the universe he creates for his characters. I just don't want his characters to do what has already been written in other books. Sorry.
PARENTAL WARNING COMING. I know I'm probably being a curmudgeon, but I wish parents would let their children read more, and then talk about what they are reading. I fell for the Hunger Games/Real Life RPG genre, and it is an entertaining read. BUT, there is some material that parents would want to know about. Don't ban a book, read it and talk about it.