Whatta Fiasco

Given that one of my all time favorite fairy tales is the Twelve Dancing Princesses, this one was a fun surprise. And now I understand why this book gets so much interest. (No, not because of the fairy tale connection.) Short, well-written, and very “literary” with a message. A little too message-y, but not as much so as Oranges Aren’t the Only Fruit, and I liked this one considerably better.

[powells]

Quantum sliding many-worlds in South America with time-shifting changes and a computational tattoo. Cool stuff that almost, but doesn’t quite, trip my wow trigger. The problem I have with big time and/or space shifts in setting is that I invariably end up liking (or disliking) one of the settings much more than the others. This leads to less attentive reading in some sections as I anticipate getting back to the bits I like more. Which makes me feel bad when I realize what I’m, but it is what it is. I wish I could think of other examples of this, but nothing is coming to mind at the moment. One of the things to ameliorate this big shift problem is a tight coupling between the settings, usually a plot-wise coupling. And while I can see the coupling here intellectually, there wasn’t enough emotionally to make it work in my head. Still a fun read.

[powells]

A dreamlike study of memory and identity concocted through unpeeling an onion.

[powells]

I’ve had this one in the to be read stack for quite awhile now, mostly hoping to put off reading it until after the second half of the book came out. But then I had a nice long plane ride scheduled and decided that it was an excellent choice for a plane ride. What can I say? It’s not bad. More beloved characters die. There’s still another entire volume to go to see how it (maybe) turns out. Still waiting.

[powells]

This is very much a third book in a series. It still has all that Czerneda goodness, but it also feels like an extended farewell to a story. Still, good stuff.

[powells]