Christopher’s Comments (group member since Jan 21, 2019)

Christopher’s comments from the Beyond Reality group.

For fantasy, I would like to nominate The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie. For sci-fi, I would like to nominate The Stars Undying by Emery Robin.

Kathi wrote: "Christopher wrote: "I would like to nominate the Legendborn Cycle by Tracy Deonn for our next fantasy series."

I took a look at the author’s website and saw nothing to indicate t..."

Sorry about that. I though it was a finished series. I would like to substitute it with the Deathless trilogy by Namina Forna. It includes the following titles:
-The Gilded Ones
-The Merciless Ones
-The Eternal Ones

I would like to nominate the Legendborn Cycle by Tracy Deonn for our next fantasy series. It includes the following titles:

-Legendborn
-Bloodmarked
-Oathbound

I would like to nominate How Long 'til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin for the sci-fi category and Legendborn by Tracy Deonn for the fantasy category.

I just finished reading this book about half an hour ago, so my thoughts might be a little unrefined. Overall, I enjoyed this just as much as the last two books, if not more. In book 2, I thought that the Jiyi program being able to find out everything was a convenient deus ex machina, but the reveal in this book that it was Rachela I, and not some facsimile program as described in the previous books, was a real surprise and added some context to book 2’s plot twist.

Pushing back on what was posted previously, Cardenia/Grayland II’s assassination didn’t feel like a surprise or rushed to me. It was heavily foreshadowed at the beginning of the book in that security council meeting and the weight of it pressed upon a lot of the story throughout.

What was a surprise was Kiva’s “assassination” in the middle of the book. Kiva Lagos is probably one of my favorite sci-fi characters since Mark Watney in “The Martian” by Andy Weir. I was truly shocked and devastated when she was “killed” and supremely relived when it turned out to be a ruse by Nadashe. And though I am pleased that not only did Kiva survive, but became the titular Last Emperox at the end of the book, I kind of wish Scalzi had stuck with killing her. Her actually dying would’ve truly raised the stakes, dramatically changed the end of the story, and been a significant departure from the previous books where the good guys always come out on top in the end.

As for the ending, while I can understand why some folks would consider it rushed, I felt that it was altogether appropriate. After Cardenia/Grayland II’s death, unless Scalzi had intended for the book to end on a bleaker note (which doesn’t seem to be his style from the works of his I’ve read so far), it made sense to me that he would wrap everything up relatively quickly. Though I wasn’t totally expecting it to end the way it did, it was heavily hinted at throughout the book with Cardenia/Grayland II’s foreshadowed assassination, Jiyi’s reveal to be Rachela I all along, and Marce’s knowledge about how to pridict evanescence flows and even manipulate them. Also, giving jerkwad antagonist’s like the Nohameptan’s their much deserved comeuppance was icing on the cake and, judging from some of his other books, a Scalzi specialty.

Overall, I give this book a 4.5 out of 5 stars. Thanks to everyone who voted for this series and read the books.

I just started reading this tonight. I am about 70 pages into it and excited where things are going already. I hope everyone else is enjoying this series too.

I finished reading book 2 at the beginning of February, but I forgot to post. Once again, I really enjoyed Scalzi characters and wit. I guess I have a soft spot for sarcastic authors and/or characters because there is plenty of that in Scalzi's works. I especially liked the bit of self-referential humor that Scalzi included towards the end too. A nice bit of fourth-wall breaking right there.

I would like to nominate the Shadow Histories duology by H.G. Parry, which includes A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians and A Radical Act of Free Magic.

Hello everyone! I just started reading this tonight. Still loving Scalzi’s sense of humor and I can’t wait to share my thoughts about part 2 with you when I’m done. I also look forward to seeing your thoughts too.

I waited until the new year to start off 2024 with a good book and was not disappointed. On top of building a unique sci-if world packed with interesting characters, Scalzi’s prose is downright hilarious! I kept turning the page just to find out what snarky, shady thing a character would say, think, or do next and was never disappointed. I especially loved Kiva and her liberal use of the F-word. Basically, after her introduction and first interactions with others, I found myself looking at this character and saying “I adore this woman! Can I be her when I grow up?”

I will say that while the plot moved fast, it felt at times like it was running in place. After all, it took almost 300 pages, or nearly the entire length of the book, for Kiva and Marce to get away from End and though Cardenia/Grayland II is nearly assassinated twice, she spends most of the book adjusting to being Emperox (how do you pronounce that word? Is the X silent?), and fending off a political marriage she doesn’t want. Also, while I get that the collapse of the Flow is an allegory for Climate Change, it feels a little too obvious. It will be interesting to see how knowledge of the collapse will play out in the next part, though I guess it won’t be much better than our own slow response to Climate Change.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to tackling part 2 next month. 4.5 stars for me!

Hello! I’m Chris and I have been looking forward to starting this series ever since it won the final vote. I actually just finished the book, so I will save my thoughts about it for the other thread, but I will say that before I read this I read his other book, The Kaiju Preservation Society, and absolutely adored it. I have high hopes that this series will be just as good as that one of nove.

Fro sci-fi, I would like to nominate The Stars Undying by Emery Robin. For fantasy I wouls like to nominateA Declaration of the Rights of Magicians by H.G. Parry.

I finished the third book last week, but I think this brought the series to a satisfying conclusion. I agree that the ending was heartbreaking, but I couldn't see how else it could've ended. I also really liked how Kuang showed that conquering a country and ruling a country are two very different things and what makes one good at one does not necessarily make them good at the other. Quite possibly the other in fact. I do wish that Rin's former teacher, Jun, had not been killed off page. They were such antagonists in the first and second book that I really wish they had met again on the battlefield and Rin (and us) could've had a cathartic moment. Overall, a fine series that I really enjoyed reading with you all.

I would like to nominate the Interdependency series by John Scalzi, which includes the following books in order: The Collapsing Empire, The Consuming Fire, and The Last Emperox.

I finished reading this book a couple of days ago and I think it was a great improvement on the already great material in the first book. The magic system was fleshed out even more and made more sense to me. I also liked how a sub-theme for this book was Rin finding a greater purpose for herself beyond just being a soldier and getting her revenge. I think the introduction of the Ketreyids also felt like a too convenient deus ex machina, especially since I kind of lost track of who exactly Qara and Chaghan were, especially Qara, until the Ketreyids's introduction. And more of a publishing note, but I liked that they put a dramatis personae section in the book, but why put it in the back? It would be better if it were at the front, even if it leads to a few spoilers. Overall, I would give this book a 4.5 out of 5 and I look forward to seeing how it all ends in the next book.

I finished reading book #1 a couple of days ago. I absolutely love how Kuang can build up a character's internal emotional struggle and then let it explode in the climatic moments. I will say that I was not as impressed with this book as I was with Babel: An Arcane History because it I had trouble understanding the mechanics of the books shamanism and how the use of drugs played into it. It did make sense for me by the end, but it wasn't very intuitive to me. Overall, I gave this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

Hello everyone! My name is Chris and I am very excited to read this series not only because I have had it on my TBR for awhile, but because I read R.F. Kuang's most recent books, Babel: An Arcane History and Yellowface, and was completely blown away by both of them. I look forward to reading and discussing this series with you!

For science fiction I would like to nominate The Stars Undying by Emery Robin. For fantasy I would like to nominate The Witch and the Tsar by Olesya Salnikova Gilmore.

I would like to nominate The Poppy War series (3 books) by R.F. Kuang. It includes The Poppy War, The Dragon Republic, and The Burning God.

I would like to nominate the Rama series by Arthur C. Clarke.

1. Rama by Arthur C. Clarke
2. Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke & Gentry Lee
3. The Gardens of Rama by Arthur C. Clarke & Gentry Lee
4. Rama Revealed by Arthur C. Clarke & Gentry Lee