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Not content to rest on his laurels between the second and third volumes of his Revelation Space series, Alastair Reynolds felt compelled to provide us with a couple of novellas set in the same universe, but outside that story arc. If he’s happy to keep churning this stuff out, we’re more than happy to read it! Read the rest of this entry »
By those in the know, Tim Powers is often cited as one of the most original and influential fantasy writers of all time. A close friend of Philip K. Dick (who went on to dedicate his most celebrated book, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, to Powers), he has gone on to influence such modern fantasy luminaries as Neil Gaiman and China Mieville. So it’s a fascinating experience indeed to delve into his very first novel and get a glimpse of his first (faltering) steps towards greatness. Read the rest of this entry »
Ian Cormac is an elite agent for the Polity - an AI governed civilisation in the distant future somewhat akin to the “Culture” of Iain M. Banks’ books. For thirty years, Cormac has been “gridlinked”: his brain has been directly connected to the all-pervading information network pervading the entire Polity realm. The almost-omniscience this has brought him has made him a fantastic secret agent, but it’s also robbed him of much of his humanity. Read the rest of this entry »
Philip K Dick was a man with many personal demons, and he wasn’t averse to exploring them in his work. The Game-Players of Titan is a study in paranoia, and it reads somewhat like a nightmare put to page. Read the rest of this entry »
The theories and concepts Neal Stephenson expounds in his extraordinary novel, Snow Crash, are so intricate, broad-ranging and profound, that reading the book is something like riding an intellectual rollercoaster. Encompassing technology, sociology, economics, religion, linguistics, archaeology, physiology, history, politics and ethics, somehow Snow Crash still manages to work spectacularly well as an action adventure story. Two months after reading it, I’m still coming to grips with it.
It’s not surprising that the film rights for Altered Carbon were snapped up by Warner Brothers so soon after Richard Morgan’s debut novel was published. This story packs such a solid punch, you can’t help but imagine all the action up on screen in a big-budget Hollywood blockbuster. Read the rest of this entry »
I read sci fi so that every now and then I will read something as awesome as this. Reynolds’ first novel is amazing - on his first shot he wrote one of the greatest sci fi novels of all time. Read the rest of this entry »
