Tak! commented on Kalpa Imperial by Angélica Gorodischer
«Oh, sí, mis buenas gentes, sí, ya lo creo que sí. Se puede vivir en …
The #SFFBookClub pick for October 2024
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Tak! reviewed Counterweight by Anton Hur
Counterweight
4 stars
Counterweight is a nearish-future scifi thriller set on the island of Patusan, which I have just learned today has a long literary legacy.
The plot follows an unnamed employee of the LK Corporation as he attempts to unravel a series of events revolving around the world's first space elevator, erected by LK on Patusan. I enjoyed the originality of the setting, but I found the whole thing fairly convoluted and somewhat difficult to follow.
The dystopian corporation-state future where having a literal worm implanted in your brain is a condition of employment is becoming all too plausible at this point.
Tak! quoted Counterweight by Anton Hur
“Your mother is going to be a star,” said the man in the gray uniform.
— Counterweight by Anton Hur, Djuna
Tak! commented on Counterweight by Anton Hur
The #SFFBookClub selection for September 2024
Tak! commented on The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera
Fetter was raised to kill, honed as a knife to cut down his sainted father. …
The #SFFBookClub pick for August 2024
Tak! reviewed Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
"A daring post-apocalyptic novel from a powerful rising literary voice. With winter looming, a small …
Moon of the Crusted Snow
4 stars
Content warning 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! quoted Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
"A daring post-apocalyptic novel from a powerful rising literary voice. With winter looming, a small …
A crack echoed through the boreal landscape, a momentary chaos in the still afternoon air.
Tak! commented on Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
"A daring post-apocalyptic novel from a powerful rising literary voice. With winter looming, a small …
The July 2024 #SFFBookClub pick
Tak! reviewed David Mogo by Suyi Davies Okungbowa
Nigerian God-Punk - a powerful and atmospheric urban fantasy set in Lagos.
Since the Orisha …
David Mogo: Godhunter
4 stars
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! commented on David Mogo by Suyi Davies Okungbowa
Nigerian God-Punk - a powerful and atmospheric urban fantasy set in Lagos.
Since the Orisha …
Content warning chapter 21 spoiler
My first thought for "the place where iron lives" was a laundromat
Tak! commented on David Mogo by 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! reviewed Siren Queen by Nghi Vo
It was magic. In every world, it was a kind of magic. "No maids, no …
Siren Queen
3 stars
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.
screamsbeneath reviewed Siren Queen by Nghi Vo
It was magic. In every world, it was a kind of magic. "No maids, no …
Razor Sharp Magic Realism
4 stars
I generally enjoyed this, but not as much as I hoped I would gives how much I love Nghi Vo. That’s not to say this was bad compared to their other works, just that the characters didn’t grab me nearly as much. I felt the true strengths here were the setting, an early 20th century Hollywood where the magical realism is so honed in, most of the time it almost feels like poetic analogies of reality. I think this time period is under represented in fiction, at least in my sampling, and I found it refreshing; especially with queer representation, we were always here, just beyond the sight of society.
The main character was well developed, I could sympathize with their motives, and their decisions followed their persona. I just don’t relate to people that are reckless while having it all, which of course is an oversimplification because at what …
I generally enjoyed this, but not as much as I hoped I would gives how much I love Nghi Vo. That’s not to say this was bad compared to their other works, just that the characters didn’t grab me nearly as much. I felt the true strengths here were the setting, an early 20th century Hollywood where the magical realism is so honed in, most of the time it almost feels like poetic analogies of reality. I think this time period is under represented in fiction, at least in my sampling, and I found it refreshing; especially with queer representation, we were always here, just beyond the sight of society.
The main character was well developed, I could sympathize with their motives, and their decisions followed their persona. I just don’t relate to people that are reckless while having it all, which of course is an oversimplification because at what cost does having it all come at? I think it revealed to me how much more I will prefer safety to recklessness (or rather expressing your true self in the face of oppression), so I learned more about myself, albeit in an uncomfortable way. The rest of the cast didn’t do it for me and were there to support the MCs narrative, which I believe was intentional, it was always about the MC.
I think the real draw here is the setting and how it’s in conversation with historical (and modern) social power structures and the cost not only existing as a marginalized person of society, but what success looks like and at what costs does it come?
Tak! reviewed Crossing the Line by Karen Traviss
Shan Frankland forever abandoned the world she knew to come to the rescue of a …
Crossing the Line
4 stars
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! commented on Siren Queen by Nghi Vo
It was magic. In every world, it was a kind of magic. "No maids, no …
#SFFBookClub pick for April 2024