Tak! a commenté Counterweight par Anton Hur
The #SFFBookClub selection for September 2024
#sffbookclub
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Tak! a commenté The Saint of Bright Doors par Vajra Chandrasekera
Fetter was raised to kill, honed as a knife to cut down his sainted father. …
The #SFFBookClub pick for August 2024
Tak! a publié une critique de Moon of the Crusted Snow par Waubgeshig Rice
"A daring post-apocalyptic novel from a powerful rising literary voice. With winter looming, a small …
Moon of the Crusted Snow
4 étoiles
Avertissement sur le contenu plot discussion
This reads like a parable of the european takeover of the americas, except that the natives realized their mistake (just) in time this time around.
There wasn't much scifi or fantasy, except for the implied apocalypse that happened out of frame.
I was constantly frustrated with the characters for not being more proactive about stuff like: checking what happened with the power, being suspicious of Scott, following up on Scott after multiple red flags, etc. - but maybe I'm having unrealistic expectations about characters who don't know they're in a story.
I liked the strong themes of community and mutual support, even in the face of (imo realistic) uneven participation.
Overall a good read, I enjoyed it.
Tak! a commenté Moon of the Crusted Snow par Waubgeshig Rice
"A daring post-apocalyptic novel from a powerful rising literary voice. With winter looming, a small …
The July 2024 #SFFBookClub pick
Avertissement sur le contenu now with spoilers!
I did feel like some of the plot mechanisms did get repetitive, though. For example, one of his enemies defeating him in battle, then holding him prisoner until he could be rescued. Or thinking somebody he cared about had been killed only to find out they were ok, actually.
Tak! a publié une critique de David Mogo par Suyi Davies Okungbowa
Nigerian God-Punk - a powerful and atmospheric urban fantasy set in Lagos.
Since the Orisha …
David Mogo: Godhunter
4 étoiles
In a lot of ways, this reminds me of the Akata series, but for adults - Nigerian setting, making friends and enemies with supernatural entities, Nsibidi script as magic writing, etc. (This is not a criticism of the Akata series, I love them.)
The setting was the best part of this for me - I enjoyed postapocalyptic, god-ravaged Lagos.
I appreciate that David is imperfect and fallible - he makes mistakes, fails, etc., and it has real consequences for him.
The first section (book? sub-book?) was my favorite, followed by the second - as the story progressed, I felt like it kept getting progressively more frantic and less coherent.
Overall, I enjoyed it, though, and I'm looking forward to more.
Tak! a commenté David Mogo par Suyi Davies Okungbowa
Nigerian God-Punk - a powerful and atmospheric urban fantasy set in Lagos.
Since the Orisha …
The #SFFBookClub pick for May 2024
Tak! a publié une critique de Siren Queen par Nghi Vo
It was magic. In every world, it was a kind of magic. "No maids, no …
Siren Queen
3 étoiles
This one just wasn't for me. I feel like it was one of those books that's all setting and no plot - and the setting was great, but I just couldn't engage with it.
Tak! a publié une critique de Crossing the Line par Karen Traviss (The Wess'har Wars, #2)
Shan Frankland forever abandoned the world she knew to come to the rescue of a …
Crossing the Line
4 étoiles
It kept very much to the themes of the original: genocide, greed, betrayal, and the sheer amount of damage a few bad-faith actors can do in a system not designed to account for them
Finished just in time for #SFFBookClub sequels month 😅
Tak! a commenté Siren Queen par Nghi Vo
It was magic. In every world, it was a kind of magic. "No maids, no …
#SFFBookClub pick for April 2024
Tak! a publié une critique de Babel : Or the Necessity of Violence par R. F. Kuang
From award-winning author R. F. Kuang comes Babel, a thematic response to The Secret …
Babel
5 étoiles
Avertissement sur le contenu I don't think I can review this without some vague spoilers
Babel is a story of colonialism, racism, sexism, whiteness, Englishness, loss, betrayal, and despair. It's basically a modern parable grittily illustrating the causes and consequences of colonialism.
I love the translation magic mechanism, and I found the embedded etymology tidbits super interesting.
I also appreciate that the author had the courage to allow Bad Things to happen to major characters - not in a GRRM torture porn kind of way, but just as a kind of natural consequence of the world and the characters' interactions.
Tak! a publié une critique de How High We Go in the Dark par Sequoia Nagamatsu
Beginning in 2030, a grieving archeologist arrives in the Arctic Circle to continue the work …
How High We Go in the Dark
4 étoiles
A series of bleak, gritty glimpses of what's in store for us over the next few decades.
The tone is lightened a bit here and there with injections of optimism, but I think it works against itself a little when the optimism feels unwarranted.
The way that the characters from the different stories are linked reminds me a bit of Cloud Atlas (although I only saw the movie (sorry)).
Tak! a commenté How High We Go in the Dark par Sequoia Nagamatsu
Beginning in 2030, a grieving archeologist arrives in the Arctic Circle to continue the work …
Wow, the second story is bleak. Do not recommend for people with children in their lives.
Tak! a commenté How High We Go in the Dark par Sequoia Nagamatsu
Beginning in 2030, a grieving archeologist arrives in the Arctic Circle to continue the work …
The #SFFBookClub January pick is How High We Go In The Dark, by Sequoia Nagamatsu. Thank you to all who voted and/or suggested books.
Tak! a publié une critique de Wondrous Journeys In Strange Lands par Sonia Nimr
Sonia Nimr, Marcia Lynx Qualey: Wondrous Journeys In Strange Lands (Paperback, 2020, Interlink)
Award-winning historical fantasy and literary folktale. Winner of the presigious Etisalat award.
In a tent …
Wondrous Journeys in Strange Lands
3 étoiles
I enjoyed the setting, and some of the substories were compelling, but as a whole it was too rambling and incohesive for me.
I feel like it would have worked better as a series of stories about different people from the same village or whatever instead of repeatedly being like "despite being in the middle of this incredibly urgent life crisis, the main character decides to spend six months teaching an older woman to fold laundry" or "despite having a very bad outcome two chapters ago, the main character decides to engage in exactly the same dangerous behavior with no additional precautions"