Tag Archive: cory doctorow

Kindle Spotlight: Novels on the Locus 2008 Recommended Reading List, Part 2

Posted on February 7, 2009 in: Fantasy and SF|Post Comment
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Previously we covered the science fiction and fantasy novels on the Locus 2008 Reading List; next up are the first novels and Young Adult novels (both SF and fantasy).

Note: if a Young Adult novel was also the first published novel for the author, it’s usually placed in the first novel category instead. But sometimes it’s not (such as Tender Morsels).

Yes, it would have been simpler to just have Fantasy/Science Fiction, except for all the ones that are between (like An Evil Guest), but then we wouldn’t have recognition of first novels or Y.A. Or something. I don’t know.

I think it would have been better to tag novels as first, Y.A, and/or SF/F, and then list the lot by author last name.

Anyways! Moving on.

First Novels

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Buy: Kindle Store

A girl marked from birth as a warrior, bestowed with the Grace—of a kind that lets her kill efficiently. A romance and a fantasy, featuring a strong main character who must reach beyond her isolation and come to terms with her power.1

As mentioned before, this book has quite a few positive reviews from top-ranked reviewers of the Amazon Vine program.

Alive in Necropolis by Doug Dorst

Buy: Kindle Store

An interesting mix of humor and supernatural police procedural with undead and teenage angst, Alive in Necropolis also has the honor of being listed as part of Amazon’s Best of the Month in July 2008.

Thunderer by Felix Gilman

Buy: Kindle Store

I think there should be a new fantasy sub-genre: wandering through the fantastical environs of a city. Before it used to be wandering through the fantastical environs of the outside; now you have authors exploring the inner-city life with a bizarreness that’s outside of your normal urban paranormal.

It must be something about a city that, for instance, drives The Engine, The Situation, etc., which I’ve not really seen in books that explore the wild outdoors.

Thunderer is another one of those. David Keck likens it to “Dickens, Miyazaki, and Jules Verne [sitting] down to dream up a metropolis and its wrangling multitudes.”

Black Ships by Jo Graham

Buy: Kindle Store

Set in the times of the Aeneid2 where an oracle sees black ships fleeing the the burning city of Troy, and Aeneus arriving to rescue those that can be saved. She sets out to join them in their adventures.

Pandemonium by Daryl Gregory

Buy: Kindle Store

Pandemonium is about the psychology behind possession. In Del’s world, human possession by entities like Hellion are documented medical cases; in his case, the Hellion came when he was 5 years old and never left. At 20, Del goes in search of an exorcist.

The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway

Buy: Kindle Store

Pardon me while I just say… what an awful horrible cover. The publisher is Knopf, so there really isn’t an excuse.

Again with the bizarre city exploration sub-genre. (I actually do like that sort of thing.) I’ll let the first part of the Publisher’s Weekly summary do the work:

This unclassifiable debut from the son of legendary thriller author John le Carré is simultaneously a cautionary tale about the absurdity of war; a sardonic science fiction romp through Armageddon; a conspiracy-fueled mystery replete with ninjas, mimes and cannibal dogs; and a horrifying glimpse of a Lovecraftian near-future.

And that’s just one sentence.

The Cabinet of Wonders: The Kronos Chronicles: Book I by Marie Rutkoski

Buy: Kindle Store

A daughter goes to magical Prague, full of magicians and sorceresses and dangerous intrigue, to recover her father’s eyes, gouged out by a prince after creating a perfect mechanical clock and used as … well … royal eye-wear.

Young Adult

Little Brother by Cory Doctorow

Buy: Hardcover
Free: Feedbooks

Also part of Amazon’s Top 100 Editors’ Pick, Little Brother has much other acclaim and praise, and deserves it totally. Reviewed at S∂.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, Dave Mckean

Buy: Kindle Store

Recently announced as the 2009 Newbery Medal winner by the Association for Library Services to Children, The Graveyard Book also has much acclaim, and it’s by Neil Gaiman, officially coolest author on the planet.

I think of it as “Kipling in the graveyard with a distinctly Gaiman twist.” Reviewed at S∂.

Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan

Buy: Kindle Store

Liga and her daughters have grown up in safe haven all their lives, until they are forced to survive the world at large, pursued by enemies (which include bears).3

Chalice by Robin McKinley

Buy: Kindle Store

Another fairytale-styled story from McKinley, but this is not a retelling, but an original fantasy. The Willowlands are dying, due to the misrule by George Bush the previous Master and Dick Cheney the previous Chalice. It’s up to Obama Mirasol, the new Chalice, and her bee-based magic to save the land. Naturally, the Republicans not everyone is happy about this.

Nation by Terry Pratchett

Buy: Kindle Store

One of Terry Pratchett’s most serious (and yet, of course, still touched liberally with humor) books yet, in the nature of his Johnny series rather than Discworld.

Even though I love Neil Gaiman and The Graveyard Book to bits, even though Cory Doctorow’s Little Brother left me breathless, and even though John Scalzi’s Zoe’s Tale made me cry and made me laugh—it’s Terry Pratchett’s Nation that wins my heart and soul with its sheer humanity, moving story, well-crafted telling.

I reviewed Nation for Tor.com.

… yeah, okay, so obviously I spend a lot more time with Y.A. novels than other stuff. Y.A. has more blood in it.

Zoe’s Tale by John Scalzi

Buy: Kindle Store

Set in the world of Old Man’s War, we visit the family of John Perry and Jane Sagan once more, picking up on a parallel story to that of The Last Colony4 from the viewpoint of John’s adopted daughter Zoe.

It’s a wonderful story. Do you need the context of The Last Colony to get it? I don’t think so. I reviewed Zoe’s Tale on S∂.

After this point in the reading list, the books available to read on the Kindle—or indeed, electronically anywhere else—becomes thin on the ground. Out of the next 60 books on the list, equivalent to 4 sections worth of books, (up until “Non-Fiction”), only 10 are available for purchase in the Kindle store or Webscriptions.

So next week we’ll bring you those books plus anything we can scrape up in non-fiction and novellas.

  1. From New on Kindle in October-November. [↩]
  2. a la Le Guin’s Lavinia, also honored on the reading list for 2008. [↩]
  3. From New on Kindle in October. [↩]
  4. Which I just realized is also a play on “The Lost Colony,” and Roanoke is a significant word in both the story and history. Ha. [↩]

Part of a series

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In Celebration of My Dead Car, Quick Kindle-licious Reviews for Short Stories

Posted on August 25, 2008 in: Fantasy and SF|Post Comment
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Sandkings by George R.R. Martin

Do you hate bugs, especially if they are ants? I do. Do you hate vicious, cruel bullies? I do. Sandkings, a Hugo-winning and Nebula-winning novelette, will satisfy both hatreds in one pleasingly, creepily wrapped story.

I’m really starting to like novelettes. There’s just enough story for a really satisfying bite.

Sandkings at the Kindle Store for $1.59

After the Coup by John Scalzi

If you’ve ever had the chance to enjoy the Old Man’s War universe, then this bite-sized story is like a wonderful Lindt truffle. If you’ve never read any OMW book, this is a great taste of the humor and down-to-earth character of Scalzi’s series.

A short story; Mobipocket edition available from the link below; just hover over “Download” in the left column of the story page.

After the Coup at Tor.com for FREE

Down on the Farm by Charles Stross

For those of you who only know him from works like Accelerando and Halting State, Stross has a wonderful humorous series about “The Laundry”, where geeks do battle with the forces of evil and bureaucracy. Another Lindt truffle, and if you like this story, you’ll love The Atrocity Archives, available in Kindle edition.

Another short story, Mobipocket edition available at the link down below.

Down on the Farm at Tor.com for FREE

For Solo Cello, op.12 by Mary Robinette Kowal

If you’ve ever been a musician, you know there’s something obsessive about the profession. Nowhere is this more poignantly illustrated, I think, than this story by Mary Robinette Kowal, who won the 2008 John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer.

This and four other stories available in Mobipocket format.

Five stories from Mary Robinette Kowal for FREE

When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth by Cory Doctorow

You may know him from Little Brother, and you may not. This is a fun post-apocalyptic tale for nerds, and I say that with all the joy of a former systems administrator who doesn’t like post-apocalyptic tales, but loved this one.

When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth from Feedbooks for FREE

My Boyfriend’s Name is Jello by Avram Davidson

This is the first Avram Davidson story I ever read, and also apparently the first Avram Davidson story ever published. It’s a delight of a tale, an amalgam of humorous weirdness that seems to be Davidson’s style. A rather short story, but a great one.

You can read all of this short story, plus some nice introductory material from Robert Silverberg and Grania Davis about the man, from the free sample from the Kindle store.

And who knows; maybe you’ll like it enough to buy the whole thing. I think it’s worth it.

My Boyfriend’s Name is Jello in the FREE sample from the Kindle store; get a huge book of Avram Davidson stories for $9.99

Please say a small prayer for my car.

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Kindle-licious: Little Brother

Posted on August 19, 2008 in: Fantasy and SF|Post Comment
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little-brother.jpg

Alright already, I’m late to the party, review-wise. Cory Doctorow’s fantabulous Little Brother has been praised to the skies by the likes of Neil Gaiman, Scott Westerfield, Jo Walton, John Scalzi, I could go on, but I’d run out of breath. And really, Little Brother leaves you breathless.

I’m not sure what else to say. Except that Cory Doctorow hit every note right. It was amazing—as a reader, writer, and geek, just absolutely amazing. Little Brother shows how the awe in science fiction and fantasy is not achieved merely by universe-spanning flights, nation-devouring wars, aliens on tripods, or dragons. It’s achieved by encountering that which is bigger than you.

The big terrorist attack at the beginning of Little Brother is bigger than you or Marcus. But as it turns out, the coerciveness, betrayal, and terrible power wielded by a corrupt government branch of a country you grew up to know as being free—that is even bigger. The odds are bad, the risks are high, and romanticism doesn’t fly—except when it gives you the strength to go on in the face of the dragon.

Combined with the personal, driving need to see the back of the dragon, is the heady state of being a teenager and growing up. It’s a little like mixing adrenaline and speed. But it’s not a careless combination; being a teenager is about being rebellious, and about being seen as rebellious even if you’re not. A lot of being a teenager is also about learning to pick your battles. All that comes to a head in Little Brother.

Marcus does so much growing up. As it all turns out, he’s a Hero with a capital H, for all the right reasons, and none of the wrong ones. The ending is pitch perfect. It’s a difficult ending to get right, but Doctorow nails it.

Little Brother is also a brilliant example in how to make the technological interesting and relevant, even when it’s being dropped in as information dump in the middle of adrenaline and speed. And no wonder, because everything in Little Brother is relevant to us now, to these times post-9/11. We’re some steps away from Marcus’ world, but it’s an easy slide downwards if we’re not careful.

Of the books I’ve read the last few weeks on my Kindle, none have been so driving as Little Brother.

And, you know, I gotta give cred to a book that touched off a new Linux distribution.

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