SS-GB by Len Deighton
For nine months Britain has been occupied - a blitzed, depressed and dingy country. However, it's 'business as usual' at …
In the end, everyone just goes along.
Reviews and Comments
XML apologist. Erlang enthusiast. Currently JVMs & Performance stuff at Netflix. Previously JVMs & performative stuff at Twitter. He/him.
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Ian Brown finished reading SS-GB by Len Deighton
For nine months Britain has been occupied - a blitzed, depressed and dingy country. However, …
Ian Brown rated Cheap Land Colorado: 4 stars
Ian Brown finished reading Cheap Land Colorado by Ted Conover
A pretty nuanced and literate take on the off-the-grid culture of Colorado's San Luis valley. Also it has a brief appearance by a Juggalo!
Ian Brown finished reading Programming Heterogeneous Hardware via Managed Runtime Systems by Juan Fumero
Finally found the downtime to complete this fantastic survey of managed runtimes (e.g. the JVM) and heterogeneous hardware (e.g. CPUs and GPUs or FPGAs) by @snatverk@mastodon.online, @thanos_str@mastodon.sdf.org, and @kotselidis@mastodon.online.
Required reading for those who want a look at the future of software development.
Ian Brown finished reading Character Limit by Kate Conger
The billionaire entrepreneur and Tesla CEO Elon Musk has become inextricable from the social media …
A pretty good account, though it focuses on much of the high-level C-suite shenanigans as opposed to Zöe Schaffer’s excellent, employee-focused "Hardcore Engineering". Worth a read for sure.
Ian Brown rated A View from the Stars: 3 stars
A View from the Stars by Cixin Liu
A VIEW FROM THE STARS features a range of short works from the past three decades of New York Times …
Ian Brown finished reading A View from the Stars by Cixin Liu
A VIEW FROM THE STARS features a range of short works from the past three …
A solid "Meh". Overall I found this a weak and haphazard collection. There are a few gems but a lot of rough. Stick with Liu's fiction.
Ian Brown finished reading Fuzzy Nation by John Scalzi
Jack Holloway works alone, for reasons he doesn't care to talk about. Hundreds of miles …
Another great bit of brain floss from @scalzi@mastodon.social! Finished it in a day. Felt good to get another book under the belt. I'd been struggling to complete one for a while now. Hard to find time these days for anything that requires a bit of uninterrupted attention.
Ian Brown started reading Lake of Souls by Ann Leckie
Hugo, Nebula, and Arthur C. Clarke award-winner Ann Leckie is a modern master of the …
Stoked to start on new (to me!) stories from @AnnLeckie@stranger.social!
Ian Brown reviewed Silverview by John le Carré
A Perfect End
5 stars
Magnus Pym and Edward Avon and Rick blend together with a funeral at the end of all of it. Sprinkle a little Nietzsche on top and you have a wonderful wrap up of the John le Carré extended universe. It all ends, of course, with a bureaucratic whimper. Anyway, it is Cornwall at his best.
Ian Brown reviewed Joe Country by Mick Herron
A rebound from the previous book.
4 stars
I was relieved to have this "Slow Horses" installment find steadier footing. The dialogue was much better than the last outing (and funnier lines). The plot was a bit thin, but not too far beyond belief. Quite a body count racking up, however.
Ian Brown reviewed Battle for the Bird by Kurt Wagner
It is all Jack's fault.
4 stars
A decent recap of events. There were a few well sourced things I wasn't aware of. Finally, one of my Tweets was in the book, so I am obviously gonna like it. (Though Zoe Schiffer's book was better.)
Ian Brown reviewed London Rules by Mick Herron
"London Rules might not be written down, but everyone knows rule one: Cover your arse. …
Le Carré would never.
2 stars
A fascinating open, but the writing and subsequent plot felt a bit phoned in. The dialog (and in particular Lamb's banter) was a bit forced and predictable. Anyway, a bit of a disappointment given the strong showing of the first four books. I'm cautiously optimistic that Herron picks up again, but going to say this one should be put out to pasture.
Ian Brown started reading Battle for the Bird by Kurt Wagner
LFG!