Cat Pictures Please and Other Stories

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of books

{5/5} “The element of change, as everyone knows, is Air. They say that every now and then when the wind blows in a certain direction, it can bring an excess of Air into people who’ve never been known for foolishness. So close your doors on those days; shutter your windows. Don’t go out onto the […]

To Trade the Stars

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of books

{4.5/5} “The Hoveny… had spread itself that far and possibly farther before its interstellar empire collapsed — around the same time Humans were four-footed shrews. Study of the Hoveny Complex was one of the most highly funded fields of research among Trade Pact cultures, given that newer species were determined not to repeat whatever mistakes […]

Dollhouse (season 2)

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of TV shows

{5/5} “I remember everything.” Dollhouse season 2, aired in 2009-10 Ballard tries to take down an arms dealer, with Echo’s help. He becomes her handler, and promises to help her rescue the actives. When Senator Daniel Perrin tries to expose the Dollhouse with Madeline as his witness, they are surprised to find that Perrin himself […]

Ties of Power

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of books

{4.5/5} “There was, I granted grudgingly, reason for the Clan to be so desperate, to act with such disregard for individuals. It was at the root of every being’s existence: to have a living future. That, as Morgan would say, did not make it right. There had to be other choices, better methods. Some costs […]

Dollhouse (season 1)

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of TV shows

{5/5} “I try to be my best.” Dollhouse season 1, aired in 2009 Echo lives at the Dollhouse, and goes on various missions each with a new personality, after which her memory is wiped. She also doesn’t remember who she was before — when she got in some trouble and made a deal with the […]

A Thousand Words for Stranger

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of books

{4.5/5} “You have touched the M’hir. Part of our unconscious selves is always there, mingling on some level with all other living Clan, as the air on your ship moves in and out of all our bodies. The M’hir is inseparable from the Clan; it gives us abilities and strengths your species needs machines to […]

The Expert System’s Champion

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of books

{5/5} “Suddenly the Bandage-Men were fighting their beasts and taking their outcasts. And passing word from one village to another, and though that seemed the least of what we do, ten years has shown me it’s actually the biggest change of all. As the Order grows and prospers, villages will become more and more used […]

The Expert System’s Brother

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of books

{5/5} “We are cast out, all of us… See what that means? No lawgiver will come save you. No community will step in to provide for you or protect you, save that which we make together. Leave me and starve, if you will… Or stay with me and obey me, for to me is given […]

The Terraformers

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of books

{5/5} “The ancient order of environmental engineers and first responders traced their lineage all the way back to the Farm Revolutions that ended the Anthropocene on Earth, and started the calendar system people still used today. According to old Handbook lore, the Trickster Squad — Sky, Beaver, Muskrat, and Wasakeejack — founded the Environmental Rescue […]

Chaos Terminal

Posted by Dave Switzer under Reviews of books

{4.5/5} “She had been served a plate of green leafy vegetables and was glad to finally have a salad, only to realize the greens were a shield so that the real, caterpillar-like creatures, would feel safe and not try to run off the plate immediately. When Mallory had tried to eat the greens, the waitstaff […]