Polostan by Neal Stephenson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Polostan is definitely one for Stepensonstans. While I'll never call this one a top 4 for his copious awesome-making bibliography, Neal definitely delivers on a wickedly wild alt-history ride taking us through great spycraft-grooming from the Lenin's revolution to the United States, from Bonnie and Clyde to Montana gunslingers to DC revolutionary activity to the Chicago Fair to the first glimmers of the science that will lead to the Atomic Bomb. Let's not forget the gangsters, the Gilded age, and Comrades, galore!

Seriously, this is a tour-de-force of funky fun, written like a cyberpunk (hello Stephensonstans) meets historical greatness. Of course, this just reminds me of Neal's other historical trilogy, but this hits closer to home, with all the great walk-ons of the age.

It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's smart and wild and insanely political.

Not OUR political, mind you, but let's just say the 1920's and 1930's have a LOT in common with today.

Well worth the read!



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If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.

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Farmer in the Sky by Robert A. Heinlein
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Re-Read

This is an early SF by Heinlein, way back in 1950. He tackles colonialism, as if Ganymede could handle farms, and handles the homesteading question from a YA kind of novel.

It may be slightly dated, and this damn cocky kid has RAH's trademark DIY attitude, which is fine, but the novel IS a part of its time. It's basically reflection of Boy Scouts and coming to grips with population pressures, but for as simple as this sounds, it's still a solid SF. Small town, frontier cowboy ethics IS rather a sign of the cultural zeitgeist of the 1950's.

If it's focused more on boys growing up to be men, so be it. It's not one of my favorites of RAH, but it has a pretty solid story.



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All the Skills 4 by Honour Rae
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So far, I'm loving every new direction this series takes. The complicated nature of the card system, the whole idea of creating creative three-of-a-kind sets, getting bonuses through self-knowledge, leveling up your skillsets, etc, gives me a blast right to my own heart-deck and I not only shuffle my cards, I'm loving every hand I'm dealt.

Of course, the whole leveling nature goes hand-in-hand with the dragons, and truly, I simply can't get enough of either.

Some LitRPGs are better than others, and some, like this one, is some of the very, very best.



Fun facts: this one is in a crazy, truly nuts society full of Dark Heart scourgeling-harvesting magical Texans. They're very into magical capitalism, for good or greater ill.

What a wild ride. A truly crazy dungeon delve.



Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.

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Demon's Bluff by Kim Harrison
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What can I say? I love the Hollows. More, I can't believe how much I enjoyed our current Rachel's current obsession of *POSSIBLY* correcting a massive emotional blow from earlier in the series, through some great timey-wimey hijinks.

Yes, Kisten. No, this isn't a cheating-thing, but a life-regret thing, and as readers, WE get to re-live one of the best books in the series from a completely different viewpoint. Rachel, older, more powerful, is back in time, messing with demons who don't know her, and she's completely pissed-off because the Coven can't just LEAVE HER ALONE.

Frankly, that was the best part of this. Her little tag-along is SUCH a PAIN.

I chuckled throughout this novel. Total fan-service AND an interesting jaunt/plot.

I feel GREAT.



Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.

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All the Skills 3 by Honour Rae
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I would say this is rapidly becoming one of my favorite LitRPG series, but I've already said that about the previous ones. So let me say: This is one of my favorite LitRPG series.

Indeed, if ANY of ya'll love dragons AT ALL, you probably should be reading these, because we have TONS of dragons now. Everywhere. Fighting the good fight, with or without riders. It's a fun, fast, glorious glut of dragons.


Mind you, I've read a ton of dragon-rich books in the past, not limited to Pern, but this one is seriously overflowing.

The LitRPG aspects, card-based skills, quests, fights, are all very creative and hopping wonderfully. I just want to drop everything else I had planned to read to get on with the next in this series. I'm quite gleeful about it.

Dragons, yes, but wonderful dragons. :)


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.

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Infinite by Jeremy Robinson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was an honestly fun ride. A modern take on an old series of ideas, featuring cold sleep, long space travel, murder, AI, and virtual natures--(multiple kinds).

But here's the fun part: Robinson writes well. He just sticks to having a wild time and dragging us along with some great characters, decent reveals, a bit of horror, anguish, acceptance, and then even wonder. As a SF, I can't really ask for much more. As a novel, it's just FUN and easy.

There's a lot of good that can be said about having just that. Of course, having a great novel that throws us head-first into (view spoiler)[universe simulation (hide spoiler)] is a major hook.


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.

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Arrival by Matthew Peed
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I think I held off on reading more of this series, before, because of the way the power creep was handled. At this point, I'm not sure there's much tension left. I mean, sure, we have godlings and gods, and the next tier up, etc, but it feels awfully formula. Sure, we can say that about most LitRPG, but this kind of thing still needs to grab and be interesting.

Fan service must go hand-in-hand with caring for the characters. These particular characters are all just so in love with the MC god that it's ... boring.



Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.

Arctunn.com

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