SF/F Books: Chapter Two - What Are You Reading?
- Thread starter Neroon
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I keep forgetting that I need to get that.
I finished Russell T Davies's book The Writer's Tale a few days ago. Anyone who's interested in the new Doctor Who would find it informative and frequently surprising. The nature of the book -- emails back and forth between RTD and Benjamin Cook, along with bits of script as RTD writes them -- gives the book a chronological flow that really gives a sense of what goes into making a season of the series. And although there are some things I might have liked to learn more about, Davies is often surprisingly candid and open about the whole process.
Something significantly different is Stephen James Walker's unauthorized book, Something in the Darkness: The Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to Torchwood Series Two. Walker is not an insider, so the book draws on press coverage, websites, and other sources to tell the story of the production of the show. It can be a bit dry, as are the similar Doctor Who books published by Telos, but there aren't a lot of Torchwood books out there.
I kept holding off on it because I didn't want to buy the hardcover (I hate hardcover comics). Finally I saw it in a store, this was after the book had been out for quite some time, and I finally broke down and bought it. And lo and behold, not much longer after that, I saw the very same book finally in paperback.
Figures.
I just got my copy yesterday. I really liked Walker's Series One guide, despite not liking Torchwood Series One-- he had a way of making me reevaluate. I still disliked many episodes in the end, but I could finally see why someone might like it. I'm hoping he can work the same magic with Series Two, which I thought had both fewer high points and fewer low points.
Also, he's a heckuva timeliner.
I liked season one of Torchwood. I'm not blind to its flaws, and it had plenty, but I liked it anyway. Like early Babylon 5, there was enough of a spark of something potentially great to keep me going through the less successful episodes.
Tonight I finished Gene Wolfe's recent novel An Evil Guest. It's been described as a Lovecraftian futuristic noir thriller, which is just the sort of blurb to get my attention. The Lovecraftian elements don't come into play until the last quarter of the novel; up to that point it's mostly a taut thriller centering around a brilliant philosophy professor, a stunningly beautiful young actress, and their attempts to aid the government in capturing a shadowy billionaire. Shifting allegiances and shadowy operatives, that sort of thing. It's set 100 years in the future but things haven't changed much, so the sf touches come as pleasant surprises in a contemporary-feeling narrative.
I'm really tempted by that one, though I haven't read any Gene Wolfe in a long time. I loved The Book of the New Sun, didn't much care for Urth of the New Sun, didn't much care for Soldier of the Mist, and just kind of lost interest in keeping up with Wolfe. I've heard good things about the Short Sun and Long Sun books but they sound like a lot of work. This one sounds more manageable. And of course the Lovecraftian connection is the sort of thing that always gets my attention.
^It's a very quick and straightforward read once you get into it: less than 300 pages, and the prose is pared down to the minimum, without ever feeling choppy.
This is only the second Wolfe I've read (after There are Doors). I'd stayed away from his more substantial writings so far because, as you say, they can look like a lot of work and I wasn't sure I'd find it rewarding. Now I'll probably start looking into them.
To return to a book mentioned a couple weeks ago, I'm now working on The Handmaid's Tale.
This is only the second Wolfe I've read (after There are Doors). I'd stayed away from his more substantial writings so far because, as you say, they can look like a lot of work and I wasn't sure I'd find it rewarding. Now I'll probably start looking into them.
To return to a book mentioned a couple weeks ago, I'm now working on The Handmaid's Tale.
I finished The October Country (well, all except two stories). It really is a masterful collection of short stories, with practically no total clunkers in the bunch. Bradbury does a great job of not only coming up with imaginative concepts for twisted suspense and horror, but also of finding the macabre in the ordinary elements of life. Each one left a very strong impression, but the ones I thought were strongest in atmosphere included "The Next In Line", "The Small Assassin", "Jack-In-The-Box", and "The Wonderful Death of Dudley Stone". I also have to mention "Touched With Fire", which tickled me because I recognized it as the basis for an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents.
I also wanted to mention as a side note: While I was at a local used book store that specializes in sci-fi/fantasy I came across a drawer full of old Doc Savage novels. I've always been meaning to check out some of those old pulp fiction heroes, and he seems like an appropriate candidate for a starting point. Does anyone have any recommendations for titles that are the best? I found the complete list, but I certainly won't have time to get to all of them.
And finally, I'm currently re-reading Neil Gaiman's Stardust.
I also wanted to mention as a side note: While I was at a local used book store that specializes in sci-fi/fantasy I came across a drawer full of old Doc Savage novels. I've always been meaning to check out some of those old pulp fiction heroes, and he seems like an appropriate candidate for a starting point. Does anyone have any recommendations for titles that are the best? I found the complete list, but I certainly won't have time to get to all of them.
And finally, I'm currently re-reading Neil Gaiman's Stardust.
I've just finished John Vornholt's TNG novel Masks, and I have to say that it really is a remarkable piece of storytelling, from the planetary culture having evolved from an actors' troupe to the twisted plot of a deranged Ambassador and an early look at what would become the movie-era Picard in season two TNG. I recommend the book to every Trek fan.
Everyone wears masks, with designs from children's crude squiggles to ornate that denote profession, if you are strong enough to win a duel against anyone who would challenge you for it.
One of Vornholt's best works IMHO.
Everyone wears masks, with designs from children's crude squiggles to ornate that denote profession, if you are strong enough to win a duel against anyone who would challenge you for it.
One of Vornholt's best works IMHO.
^ Oh, definitely Vornholt's best, and one of the gems out of the rather humdrum early tNG novels. The planet's culture was incredibly well depicted and thought out.
I was a disappointed child when I finally saw the episode "Masks" and realized it had nothing to do with the book.
I was a disappointed child when I finally saw the episode "Masks" and realized it had nothing to do with the book.
I remember liking Vornholt's work on Masks. I don't know if he changed or I did, but I found his last few Trek novels almost unreadable, especially the first two A Time To... novels.
Meanwhile, carrying on from Doctor Who and Torchwood books, I'm now back to another Doctor Who spinoff series. I've started Where Angels Fear by Rebecca Levene and Simon Winstone. Apparently this is the one that really kicks off the arc that runs through most of the remaining books in this particular series of Benny books. After this, there are only six more books in the Bernice Summerfield New Adventures series, and then the series gets restarted as a line of books published by Big Finish. I understand there are some significant differences between the lines so I hope I like the BF books as much as I've been enjoying the NAs... not least because I've bought almost all of them so far.
Meanwhile, carrying on from Doctor Who and Torchwood books, I'm now back to another Doctor Who spinoff series. I've started Where Angels Fear by Rebecca Levene and Simon Winstone. Apparently this is the one that really kicks off the arc that runs through most of the remaining books in this particular series of Benny books. After this, there are only six more books in the Bernice Summerfield New Adventures series, and then the series gets restarted as a line of books published by Big Finish. I understand there are some significant differences between the lines so I hope I like the BF books as much as I've been enjoying the NAs... not least because I've bought almost all of them so far.
I really liked Where Angels Fear. The only other book I had in the angels arc was Return to the Fractured Planet; my purchasing of Benny books was spotty.
The first couple BF Benny books are pretty subpar, though things start to pick up once Jacqueline Rayner shows up. I haven't read beyond The Glass Prison myself, though.
The first couple BF Benny books are pretty subpar, though things start to pick up once Jacqueline Rayner shows up. I haven't read beyond The Glass Prison myself, though.
What I'm worried about is the point where the Benny continuity moves through both the audios and the books, and you have to keep up with both. I wish BF would publish that Bernice Summerfield: The Inside Story book one of these days....
Siwilliams
Fleet Captain
Still reading Star Wars - Millenium Falcon
That's where I've stalled. I've heard the first two audio seasons (and the Excelis special and the season four finale) and read the first batch of five books. It's not that I dislike it-- I love Benny-- but I just seem to never have the money...
I finished reading Max Brooks The Zombie Survival Guide and had a blast, now am waiting for World War Z at the library. Attempted to get into it during the summer while recovering from surgery but was distracted by more pressing books. Not really reading anything until I wait for World War Z.
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