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A big step forward

Revisado: 04-09-22

I’ve read two of Lindsay Ellis’ novels and I feel like she’s developed a lot as an author from the first novel to this one. If you’re unsure after the first novel, I’d say yes, read the sequel also.

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Read book two

Revisado: 08-09-17

This book was good, but it's best to think is it as a down payment on book two.

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Skip book four

Revisado: 08-09-17

I liked the first three, especially the second book, but the author seems to have lost the gift, this time. It was filled with long, boring passages wandering off into discussions of 20th century philosophy, religious metaphysics, mountain climbing techniques, or just long lists of unnecessary side characters who don't do anything in the scenes they're included in.

The protagonist, Rawl, is annoying and useless from beginning to end; he bumbles from crisis to crisis, with a new Deus ex appearing to rescue him each time. He vacillates between going on about "his beloved" like Gollum talking about the one ring, and going into jealous rages over the idea that his child-bride might have ever liked anyone but him..

The first and second books were notable for their good time travel plots, but we don't get any of that here. The only place the author even tries is at the very end, but even then, it feels more like Retconning a happy ending onto the story than one of the cleverly written time travel plots Mr. Simmons provided in book two.

Three good books in a series is pretty good, though.

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Best time travel plots I've ever read

Revisado: 07-11-17

This book has the best written time travel plots I've ever read. It's definitely soft sci-fi, to the point of being silly at times, but he's a good enough author to make it feel believable-enough throughout the book.

Just be ready to give him a pass for some of the metaphysics and enjoy what's good about it.

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Great commuting audio book

Revisado: 06-08-17

I've heard many of these stories before, but Neil Gaimon's retelling improves on them from what I've heard previously, and he's also a wonderful reader for it. All in all, it feels like a master telling stories over a campfire, which is how I imagine it.

The stories are short and relatively simple, which is perfect for when I'm driving in the car, where my attention is often on other things and I'm not listening for long periods of time.

if you're not familiar with the stories, they are fables from a long gone culture with very different values from my own, and I enjoy the somewhat foreign feeling that creates.

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Every frustrated democrat should read this

Revisado: 05-31-16

Democrats who feels like the democratic party is broken and isn't really representing them anymore should read this book. It's a disturbing summation of what our own party has done to make income inequality worse, and provides a lot of insight into why working class folks haven't really been moved by their arguments.

Dark reading, though.

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Well Written, Well Read

Revisado: 04-29-11

I bought this book on a lark, since I needed something this month and it sounded quirky and interesting. And I was pleasantly surprised by a deeply philosophical inquiry into that space between computer science, philosophy and sociology, Three subjects that I find interesting, but I've never really studied before. It isn't a deep study of any particular subject, but I would highly recommend it, just the same.

Aside from that, the reading seemed to suit the writing perfectly. I think that it was read by the author, in which case he made an excellent choice doing so himself.

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An Important Book with a disappointing reader

Revisado: 12-22-10

I just finished this book and I can say that I was deeply impressed with the scholarship, thoughtfullness and bravery that they had in writing it. I want to get more people I know to read it, just so that I can discuss whether they agree or disagree and how much.

That being said, I didn't like the reader of this audio-book format of it at all. She seemed smarmy and annoying and she made many sections feel cliche male-bashing, which were probably nothing more than than a playful presentation of their research when it's read from a printed copy.

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Thoughtful and Interesting

Revisado: 12-01-10

I read through this book based on hearing the author speak on the radio and I was impressed. I think his central point about how life is considerably more uncertain than we like to think is an important and valuable one. Yes, it's a long book, but I think that the more the subject gets boiled down into smaller and smaller sound-bites, the less effect it is likely to have. And I think the warning here for us is a valuable one.

To the many reviews here who wanted to boil the book down to one sentence: did you even read it? Half of the book is about how when we simplify things we throw out important parts of them, leaving behind dangerously simplified concepts. And after reading the whole book, you THEN want to boil it down to "shit happens?" Frankly, I'm glad that I didn't heed those reviews, then I read them, or I would be lesser for it.

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