Focuses on the Stamets/Culber relationship, in a creative manner that’s a little confusing for the first few chapters until it suddenly snaps into focus. Some great Tilly and Airiam moments, as well as some nice bits fleshing out the friendships among the _Discovery_ bridge crew that we just got a glimpse of in the Airiam-centric episode of the show.

An earlier look at Kirk’s first mission after talking command of the _Enterprise_. Very different characterizations of the crew—and the Klingons—than what we now know…but then, it was 1986.

A great first book for the year, this one is wonderful. Touching, heartfelt, and hilarious, and a beautiful blend of real and fantasy worlds. An instant favorite.

A fairly straight adaptation, only a few notable differences from the broadcast episode. As a friend noted, quite amused by the descriptions of men (competence, personality) and women (they’re hot!).

This one (mostly) holds up well; still an excellent book, with its mix of SF adventure, ecological messages, political maneuvering, and religious themes. Well worth the re-read after many years.

Only suffers slightly from a definite current of homosexuality as shorthand for evil: Piter’s effeminate looks and manners, Baron Harkonnen’s recreational use of young boys, and a few similar moments here and there. Still, while present, these aren’t primary themes, and for me, at least, don’t majorly detract from the rest of the book.

A clumsy and unimaginative adaptation. Most interesting for the handwritten notes contributed by a former owner of this copy, correcting all the Han/Leia romance to be screen-accurate.

A much better adaptation than _Empire_ was. Most interesting moment: Wicket’s long speech convincing the Ewok leaders to assist the Rebels in their attack on the bunker. Those teddy bears are pretty eloquent!

Neat near-future exploration of interpersonal connections and intimacy, through the lens of research into the sexual habits of bonobo apes.

The titular theory, once elucidated, is an entertaining and interesting one, and that much of the research in this novel (on both bonobos and humans) was real research is fascinating.

Set in a distressingly plausible near-future dystopic Britain, the unrelenting dreariness was difficult for me. As with post-apocalyptic fiction, I’m not a big fan; I prefer more hope in my futurism.

This isn’t to say that the book is without hope; it ends on a hopeful note, and it can easily be argued that the protagonist’s motivation is based on hope. It just wasn’t present enough to offset the rest of the setting.

I was also not a big fan of the non-linear structure of the book. Again, it’s not a technique I’m adamantly opposes to, but I was a little too often confused as to when things shifted, and what the actual order of events was. I think I got it by the end, but spending that much time confused kept pulling me out of the story as I tried to figure out when we were in the timeline.

I’ve mentioned in past years that I’m not a big fan of post-apocalyptic stories; as such, they generally don’t rate very high for me, even when I know that they’re good, well-written stories. This is a rare exception - apparently, the trick is to place the time period a good few decades after civilization falls over, so that the story isn’t overshadowed by the depressing turbulence and chaos of most post-apocalyptic tales. Here, there are distant remnants of the world as it was, but the world has survived, society has rebuilt (to a point, at least), and our characters can have their adventures and solve their mysteries in the world they know. The look at the society that emerges, and how it builds on what fell in the past, attempting to use the lessons of the collapse of the past to keep a stable present, worked very well for me.