What Were You Thinking Wednesday
Mar. 14th, 2018 12:38 pmWhat I've Finished Reading
Stardoc was exactly the book I wanted it to be, except when it really, really wasn't. Dr. Cherijo Grey Veil proves herself as a space doctor, does her best to ignore her creepy mad scientist dad, finds love, and learns to believe in herself. There's a pretty cool medical mystery for Cherijo to solve (unfortunately it's a deadly epidemic, but that's how medical mysteries are sometimes) and it ends with exciting plot twists and a flight into the unknown. The exobiology is inventive, the narrative voice is brisk and bright, the characters are on the flat side but not in a bad way. It's like watching a fun, light TV show set in space.
Except for the rape plot, which was like watching an incredibly stupid TV show set in space.
I'm putting this under a cut AND breaking out the whitetext because it's spoiling time!
( One thing leads to another )
Other than that, it's fun. On balance, I liked it a lot; if it weren't for Captain Convolution and his sorry telepath excuses I would have loved it. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to actively seek out the next book, or just wait and see if it falls into my path.
What I'm Reading Now
I wasted all my time complaining about Stardoc and now it's after noon and I have to get back to work. What I'm reading now is Love and the Loveless (subtitled A Soldier's Tale and the third Book of the War), which is knees-deep in mud, and A for Alibi, which is just as good as C for Corpse. Also Spectacles of Death in Ancient Rome by Donald G. Kyle, which has a beautiful origin story: this guy was whipping up murderous tales of arena gore for his Gen Ed students, when one of them suddenly said, "What did they do with all the bodies?" He realized he had no idea what they did with all the bodies, and a book was born.
What I Plan to Read Next
Words, words, words.
Stardoc was exactly the book I wanted it to be, except when it really, really wasn't. Dr. Cherijo Grey Veil proves herself as a space doctor, does her best to ignore her creepy mad scientist dad, finds love, and learns to believe in herself. There's a pretty cool medical mystery for Cherijo to solve (unfortunately it's a deadly epidemic, but that's how medical mysteries are sometimes) and it ends with exciting plot twists and a flight into the unknown. The exobiology is inventive, the narrative voice is brisk and bright, the characters are on the flat side but not in a bad way. It's like watching a fun, light TV show set in space.
Except for the rape plot, which was like watching an incredibly stupid TV show set in space.
I'm putting this under a cut AND breaking out the whitetext because it's spoiling time!
( One thing leads to another )
Other than that, it's fun. On balance, I liked it a lot; if it weren't for Captain Convolution and his sorry telepath excuses I would have loved it. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to actively seek out the next book, or just wait and see if it falls into my path.
What I'm Reading Now
I wasted all my time complaining about Stardoc and now it's after noon and I have to get back to work. What I'm reading now is Love and the Loveless (subtitled A Soldier's Tale and the third Book of the War), which is knees-deep in mud, and A for Alibi, which is just as good as C for Corpse. Also Spectacles of Death in Ancient Rome by Donald G. Kyle, which has a beautiful origin story: this guy was whipping up murderous tales of arena gore for his Gen Ed students, when one of them suddenly said, "What did they do with all the bodies?" He realized he had no idea what they did with all the bodies, and a book was born.
What I Plan to Read Next
Words, words, words.