The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories
{5/5} “There are no heroes, Tian Haoli. Grand Secretary Shi was both courageous and cowardly, capable and foolish. Wang Xiuchu was both an opportunistic survivor and a man of greatness of spirit. I’m mostly selfish and vain, but sometimes even I surprise myself. We’re all just ordinary men — well, I’m an ordinary demon — […]
Elements
{4.5/5} “Alone, she fled Boston, making her way from culverts to abandoned sheds, hiding from the world while building her own place in it. Living off the grid meant no formal education, no military training, no family, no friends. She had constructed a hole in the world and waited for me to join her.” Elements […]
Best fantasy novels by decade
Here’s the fantasy list. As I read more books things might change, especially in the decade that’s not done yet. Winner Runner Ups Decade Author Title Author Title 2010s Claire North The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August Julie E. Czerneda A Turn of Light Will McIntosh Hitchers Carrie Vaughn After the Golden Age Jo […]
Best science fiction novels by decade
Here are the best science fiction books by decade. I limited each author to 1 book per decade, but a few authors show up in multiple decades. Neal StephensonAnathem Winner Runner Ups Decade Author Title Author Title 2010s Kim Stanley Robinson 2312 Stephen Baxter Proxima Will McIntosh Soft Apocalypse […]
Thunderbird
{4.5/5} “When it was over, and he was still trying to catch his breath, the chairman knew that his perceptions had changed again. He’d acquired an appreciation for the power and beauty of the universe that could never be acquired through a mere telephoto lens or a slice of poetry.” Thunderbird by Jack McDevitt, published […]
Defenders
{4.5/5} “His violent nature disturbed her, but hadn’t they made him that way? The human race was alive because Erik and the other defenders killed so efficiently, without fear. All humans bore some of the responsibility for that. In some real sense, the defenders were the blameless ones; they were simply expressing what they’d been […]
Mastodonia
{4/5} “We did little talking, for talking was difficult, but we did sit together, feeling friendly toward one another, and that seemed to satisfy Catface. Strangely, it satisfied me as well. Contact with him somehow made me feel good. I got the funny feeling Catface was trying to talk with me. I don’t know what […]
Star Trek: Legacies — Purgatory’s Key
{4.5/5} “‘I don’t believe this place exists, at least physically. Instead I think we’re all participating in some kind of… collective hallucination or simulation.’ When she said it aloud, Una realized it sounded more than a bit farfetched. Sarek seemed to ponder this, but only for a moment. ‘A shared mental construct.’” Star Trek: Legacies […]
Star Trek: Legacies — Best Defense
{4.5/5} “Most galling of all had been the addendum that directed Kirk to take full personal responsibility for the mission — so that if it backfired, it could be dismissed as a rogue operation, the brainchild of a maverick starship captain acting without authority.” Star Trek: Legacies Book 2 — Best Defense by David Mack, […]
Star Trek: Legacies — Captain to Captain
{4.5/5} “The familiar whine of the transporter, accompanied by a distinctive tingling sensation, sent a thrill of anticipation through Una, who, as always, relished the prospect of exploring a new and alien world. As far as she knew, the landing party would be the first visitors from the Federation to ever set foot on Libros […]