Category: Book Review
Old Man’s War by John Scalzi
(Cover picture courtesy of 52 Books 52.)
John Perry did two things on his seventy-fifth birthday. First he visited his wife’s grave. Then he joined the army.
The good news is that humanity finally made it to the stars. The bad news is that, out there, planets fit to live on are scarce—and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So, we fight. Far from Earth, the war has been going on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding.
Earth itself is a backwater. The bulk of our resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Forces, and everybody knows that when you reach retirement age, you can join up. The CDF doesn’t want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. You’ll be taken off Earth, never to return. You’ll serve two years in combat. And if you survive, you’ll be given a homestead of your own, on one of our hard-won planets.
John Perry is taking that deal. He thinks he knows what to expect. But the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine—and what he will become is far stranger.
I enjoyed Old Man’s War. Not in the snobby critic “it was an intelligent read with many messages too complicated for you common folk” way. I mean it was thoroughly entertaining: I laughed so hard I cried for a whole minute, read passages aloud to the people around me and read it in one sitting (that’s 3 hours of reading), not even pausing for dinner. Now that, my friends, is the mark of a good book.
Just as a bit of background information, I knew Old Man’s War would be funny yet have deeper messages. I’d been following John Scalzi’s blog Whatever for about three years until I actually picked up one of his books, so I was familiar with his writing style. But that didn’t prepare me in the slightest for his debut novel. It’s science fiction with actual science in it, but it’s explained so well that even someone like me that does not have a strong background in science can understand things perfectly.
This is what science fiction is really about. John Scalzi takes us on a fantastic journey to other worlds, dazzles us with the technology of a possible future, puts us in the skin of an interesting character and, best of all, gives us important questions to ponder while making us laugh. Unlike in a lot of sci-fi, things are not in black and white. We don’t know who the good guys and bad guys are because both sides commit unspeakable atrocities, which is the reality of war. We never really answer the question of who is good and who is bad; it’s left up to the reader to pass judgment, which suits me just fine.
John Perry really is an intriguing character. Since the book is in first person, we get to know him intimately but we never tire of him. He’s well fleshed-out and has a believable background, but also changes as he fights for the CDF. I don’t want to go into too much detail or I’ll spoil things, but John does end up in some pretty tough ethical dilemmas, especially when it comes to the mysterious Ghost Brigades.
Plot twists, science fiction with real science, fantastic settings, realistic characters…you can’t ask for anything else. And that’s why Old Man’s War got the honour of being the book I chose for my 250th review. I absolutely love it and would recommend it to anyone! Seriously, you need to read this book.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The Ballad of Sir Dinadan by Gerald Morris
(Cover picture courtesy of Booktopia.)
Dinadan rode out of the front gate of his father’s home, promising himself that he would never again enter those walls.
Young Dinadan has no wish to do any of the knightly things expected of him. But he was born to be a knight, and knights, of course, have adventures. So after his father forces his knighthood upon him, he wanders toward King Arthur’s court in the company of a misguided young lad named Culloch. There Dinadan meets Sir Kai and Sir Bedivere, and the three find themselves accompanying Culloch on the worst sort of quest. Along the way, Dinadan learns that though minstrels sing of spectacular heroic deeds, honor is often found in simpler, quieter ways.
The first four books in The Squire’s Tales have had humour in them, but they never reached into the realm of laugh-out-loud humour. The Ballad of Sir Dinadan does because of Sir Dinadan’s attitude toward love and knights and because of the sheer craziness of some situations he gets into. This is the most cynical, irreverent take on the Arthurian legends and I absolutely love it. In some ways, it makes the first four books seem pale in comparison.
This is the first time we’re actually in the point of view of a knight. The problem is, he doesn’t want to be a knight. Dinadan is no good at sword fighting, jousting or wooing ladies. He is cynical to begin with because his father knighted him while drunk, but he is also hopeful that the world outside his childhood home will be better. But after an incident with a beautiful maiden, Dinadan turns full cynic and that attitude is proven correct time and time again throughout the story. The ineptness of Culloch, the horror of discovering what his older brother Sir Tristram is actually like and the folly of Queen Isuelt…wouldn’t you be cynical too?
The plot of The Ballad of Sir Dinadan moves along fairly quickly and is mostly driven by Dinadan, who seems to get himself into all kinds of trouble. He also solves a lot of problems and encounters a lot of people we now consider legendary in the Arthurian canon. To some it will seem like Gerald Morris is going out of his way to be irreverent toward beloved figures, but when you think about it, these people (if they really existed) were probably like that. I guarantee that Gerald Morris’ fifth book in The Squire’s Tales will change your view of at least one character. If you’re looking for a traditional happy ending, you won’t find it, but the ending isn’t tragic either. In the context of the story, it makes sense.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The Mummy, or Ramses the Damned by Anne Rice
(Cover picture courtesy of The Towering Pile.)
Ramses the Great lives…
Reawakened in opulent Edwardian London, he becomes Dr. Ramsey, expert in Egyptology and member of a group of jaded aristocrats with strange appetites to appease. But searing memories of his last reawakening, at the behest of Cleopatra, burn in his immortal soul. For he has drunk the elixir of life and is now Ramses the Damned, doomed forever to wander the earth, desperate to quell hungers that can never be satisfied. And his most intense longing of all, a great love undiminished by the centuries, will force him to commit an act of unspeakable horror….
I’ve read a lot of Anne Rice’s books, but The Mummy is my absolute favourite, no question about it. It has the perfect mix of tragedy, romance, history and emotion that Anne Rice pulls off so well, without any extra flab added to the story. Compared to her other novels, The Mummy is incredibly short, with my version only being 398 pages. Believe me, they read fast!
Maybe I’m a bit biased because I’ve always loved ancient Egypt and have been fascinated by Ramses the Great. I’m not necessarily an admirer of him, but he does play a significant role in history and did have an interesting life. Well, Anne Rice brings him to life in The Mummy and he is as charming, well-spoken and lecherous as one would expect. But he also has a soft side, which is what makes it so easy for Julie and readers to fall in love with him. Julie herself has a few too many modern sensibilities for the era, but she is an interesting character because she is so strong. She’s the perfect match for Ramses.
Anne Rice showcases exactly what it is that makes people want to devote their entire lives to the study of Egyptology. If you haven’t fallen in love with Egypt by the time you finish The Mummy, you likely never will. I didn’t even catch any glaring historical inaccuracies. Sure, some things were changed around if you believe in the traditional Cleopatra story, but Anne Rice presents a compelling alternative that makes sense in the context of the story. Her vivid descriptions reveal the passion she has for ancient Egypt and that enthusiasm continues throughout the entire novel.
Her later Vampire Chronicles works seemed to lack heart, but The Mummy certainly does not. It’s fresh, a fitting retelling of the very old, generally cliché shambling mummy coming back from the grave story. Of course it has fantastical elements, but I don’t think they’ll be overwhelming for people who don’t normally read fantasy. Anne Rice achieved perfect balance in The Mummy and it’s a book I would highly recommend to anyone.
Warning: This is an Anne Rice book. Of course there are explicit sex scenes and gore that could be offensive to young or sensitive readers. I would personally not recommend The Mummy for anyone under 14, but everyone matures at different rates. Use your common sense when buying books.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
Parsifal’s Page by Gerald Morris
(Cover picture courtesy of Better World Books.)
Piers, watching from the door to the shop, gaped with awe at the night.
Piers is desperate to escape the dirty, tedious labor of his father’s blacksmith shop. So when a knight shows up and says he’s on “the quest,” Piers begs to go along. Surprisingly, his father lets him, and soon he is off on a series of adventures he never dreamed possible. However, Piers’s knight quickly runs into difficulties and is slain by an odd character named Parsifal, who is on his own quest. Piers has no other choice but to join him. As their journey continues, Piers begins to realize what being a knight really means.
Apparently the legend of Parsifal is quite famous, although I have only heard of it through the title of Richard Wagner’s opera, fittingly called ‘Parsifal‘. And no, I had not even watched the opera, just heard of it. My only encounter with Parsifal thus far was briefly when Gawain wrestled with him in the Other World. However, I’m glad Gerald Morris saw fit to bring Parsifal to the front of the stage.
This story is not told by Parsifal himself, but rather by Piers, his page. Piers was raised to believe knights should follow a strict code of courtesy and that questions were impertinent. It is this latter belief that gets both of them into trouble and in the end Piers’ views of knighthood are drastically altered. Since this fourth book in The Squire’s Tales is told from the point of view of Piers, we do not get to see Parsifal’s thoughts, which is a real shame. I personally would have liked to learn more about Parsifal’s motivations and his life in the Other World, but Piers is a decent enough narrator.
Once again the story is not so much about Terence and Gawain, although they appear in it and definitely challenge Piers’ views of the relationship between squire and knight. While Parsifal’s Page is not my absolute favourite book in The Squire’s Tales, it’s certainly a good book and a fitting retelling of yet another popular Arthurian legend. Sometimes authors lose their steam by the third or fourth book in a series, but this is certainly not the case for Gerald Morris. He has attacked the legend with all the enthusiasm you would expect and delivers a heartwarming tale of friendship and love.
I give this book 4/5 stars.
Authors: The Following Information Should be Obvious
In my capacity as a book reviewer, I have worked with many authors. Most of them have been absolutely amazing, kind, considerate people. But it’s the other (small) part, the one that moans, nitpicks, gets ‘smart’ and thinks the world owes them something that makes my job quite unpleasant at times. That is why I have compiled this list for future references.
Authors, if this information seems blatantly obvious to you, great! Thank you for realizing book reviewers are human beings. If this information is completely new to you, then don’t waste my time by submitting your book for reviewing.
1. I am not your editor.
If there are mistakes in books, I will make notes of them as I read and include a few examples in my review. In my emails to authors I will often mention them and include some page numbers as examples. If there are only a few mistakes, I will list all of them. But sometimes this information brings up the question if I could go back and re-read a novel to find all of the mistakes, which brings me to the title of this point: I am not your editor.
If you are traditionally published and there are mistakes, it is not my problem that your editor did not do their job. They are obviously lazy or incompetent or both and should be fired. If you are self-published and hired a freelance editor but there are still mistakes, it is also not my problem. You got duped; it’s sad, but still not my problem. And, finally, if you are self-published but did not hire an editor, it is most definitely not my problem that you cannot match the quality of a real editor.
In short, bad editing is not my problem and I am under absolutely no obligation to tell you where all of the mistakes are. If you ask nicely I might, depending on how busy I am at the time and how much effort you are asking me to put in. If you want me to catch every little mistake and do content editing…well that’s a whole different ballgame. Hint: the answer is ‘no’, unless you’re willing to pay the proper hourly fee according to the EFA plus a little more since editing is above and beyond the call of a book reviewer. Basic copy-editing will cost you $50 an hour and my rates only go up from there. Hint: You can find cheaper rates out there. Continue reading