The interaction between Mort and Death is very engaging. I really like Pratchett's description of Death's voice.l and the usage of a different font for his voice
Reviews and Comments
I mainly read sci-fi, fantasy, some mystery, some suspense/horror and the occasional non-fiction.
Mastodon: mstdn.social/@roytoo
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Roy Adams reviewed Mort: a novel of Discworld by Terry Pratchett (Discworld (4))
Death takes on an apprentice who's an individual thinker.
Death is likable anthropomorphic personification
5 stars
Roy Adams reviewed Galactic Empires by Neil Clarke
A good collection of stories and galactic empire
4 stars
Good blend of stories around the theme is galactic empire.
Roy Adams reviewed Madame Restell by Jennifer Wright
A life fairly well lived and inspirational
5 stars
An informative, engaging read about 19th century abortionist Madam Restell (Ann Trow) and the historical context of abortion. I learned a -lot- reading this book but the most surprising thing to me was that abortion via various means was very common in the past. Mainly because birth control wasn't available so pregnancies were more frequent.
There is much to both hearten (a smart but poor immigrant woman from England works hard to overcome adversity and do well financially while helping lots of women) and discourage (just because she is a woman she has horrible obstacles to overcome and she appears to give into despair at the end).
I also see that the puritanical, regressive impulses of the past are still with us today.
As the saying goes: History doesn't repeat itself but it often rhymes.
Hopefully with hard work this rhyme with the puritanical times will be short and we …
An informative, engaging read about 19th century abortionist Madam Restell (Ann Trow) and the historical context of abortion. I learned a -lot- reading this book but the most surprising thing to me was that abortion via various means was very common in the past. Mainly because birth control wasn't available so pregnancies were more frequent.
There is much to both hearten (a smart but poor immigrant woman from England works hard to overcome adversity and do well financially while helping lots of women) and discourage (just because she is a woman she has horrible obstacles to overcome and she appears to give into despair at the end).
I also see that the puritanical, regressive impulses of the past are still with us today.
As the saying goes: History doesn't repeat itself but it often rhymes.
Hopefully with hard work this rhyme with the puritanical times will be short and we will be back to more open and liberal minded times.
Roy Adams reviewed Spill zone by Scott Westerfeld
"Three years ago an event destroyed the small city of Poughkeepsie, forever changing reality within …
Dark, interesting tale of post incident Poughkeepsie
5 stars
A young woman living near post incident Poughkeepsie sneaks into the mysterious Spill Zone to take photographs and maybe answer some questions: What caused the spill? What did it do to her younger sister?
I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
Roy Adams reviewed Spill Zone: The Broken Vow by Scott Westerfeld (Spill Zone)
"Three years ago an event destroyed the small city of Poughkeepsie, forever changing reality within …
Good continuation of the series
5 stars
We learn more about post incident Poughkeepsie and the mysterious Spill Zone. Has the Spill been contained?
Roy Adams reviewed Good Guys by Steven Brust
Highly recommended urban fantasy
5 stars
Steven Brust writes an excellent urban fantasy that asks: Are we the good guys?
Excellent, well developed characters in an engaging "huh, this kind of magic could be real" plot.
Good introduction to Brust if you've never read his writing. (Note that lots of his other writing is high fantasy with some scifi.) If, like me, you already like/love everything you've read by Brust then this should be something you enjoy.
Roy Adams reviewed How to Be Perfect by Michael Schur
Engaging book on moral philosophy
5 stars
A very engaging book on moral philosophy which makes a potentially difficulty topic interesting and fun to learn about. As noted in the introduction, the focus is on "western" moral philosophy just to limit the scope to a reasonable size.
Primer by Thomas Krajewski, Gretel Lusky, Jennifer Muro
“Thirteen-year-old Ashley Rayburn is an upbeat girl with a decidedly downbeat past. With a criminal father in prison, Ashley has …
Roy Adams reviewed The witch boy by Molly Knox Ostertag
From the illustrator of the web comic Strong Female Protagonist comes a debut middle-grade graphic …
Great middle grade story about finding your way when you're different
5 stars
Another really great juvenile/middle grade graphic novel that my daughter suggested I read. A nice story of how Aster works to be himself, makes a great friend along the way and shows his family that sometimes rules are wrong and need to change.
Roy Adams reviewed Primer by Thomas Krajewski
“Thirteen-year-old Ashley Rayburn is an upbeat girl with a decidedly downbeat past. With a criminal …
Great story and artwork
My daughter recommended this great story with excellent artwork. I'm looking forward to reading more in the series.
Interesting fiction on Marie Curie's teenage years
5 stars
Interesting, speculative shot fiction about Marie Curie's teenage years. Based upon known historical records of her youth in Poland under Russian occupation but with liberties taken for story telling.
Roy Adams reviewed Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett (Discworld, Book 3)
Terry Pratchett's profoundly irreverent novels, consistent number one bestsellers in England, have garnered him a …
A wonderful, feminist Discworld story
5 stars
A wonderful story interwoven with some very appropriate, not-so-gentle points about gender preconceptions.
A dying wizard unintentionally passes on his wizardness to 8th daughter of an 8th son (he thought it was an 8th son). As she grows lots of preconceptions about gender roles are examined, challenged and discarded.
Lore (and even law) can and should change as we all grow and learn together.
A great line: I can see you've been getting ideas below your station. - Granny Weatherwax to Eskarina when she forgot herself and blindly accepted there were ~any~ places she didn't belong because she wasn't a man.
After eighty years of fragile peace, the Architects are back, wreaking havoc as they consume …
Good continuation of the series
4 stars
This was a good continuation of The Final Architecture series. But as others have mentioned nothing really stuck or stood out as excellent like the first book. I still look forward to the third book to see where the story leads.
A Deepness in the Sky is a science fiction novel by American writer Vernor Vinge. …
Excellent 2nd book in the Zones of Thought series
5 stars
Start with a single planet orbiting a white dwarf star nicknamed the OnOff star because it is consistently dormant 215 out of every 250 years. Add in a sentient species that survives on the planet. Finally toss in two competing, space faring groups of humans come to investigate. Mix well and enjoy the result!