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Ahoy there mateys. For some sci-fi fun! An author whose blog I read, named John Scalzi (if you don’t know him you should) has a segment called “The Big Idea” wherein as Scalzi puts it “What’s the Big Idea? Authors explaining the big ideas behind their latest works, in their own words.”
I heard about this book when David Walton wrote his Big Idea for Superposition in April 2015. Now normally a book which describes one of the factors of the book to be quantum physics politely gets ignored through no fault of the author. I barely passed high school physics, physics makes no sense, and I hate it. I mean if it is background to the plot then that’s one thing. But for some reason unremembered by me at this point, I decided to put it on my “to be read” list and then promptly forgot all about everything but the title. I now feel that the title should have re-clued my silly physics hating self about the physics involved (duh!). Having finished the book, I am glad I did.
The book was a fun romp into quantum physics that for a non-supporter was broken down well and overall easy to understand. It mentions Schrodinger’s cat which was one physics concept I loved and understood back in the day. I am not sure what hard-core physicists would think of it but I happen to know one as a friend and if he reads it ever, I will let you know. It also dealt with legal issues which having been a paralegal at points in my past entertained me heartily.
The main character Jacob Kelley is enjoyable and amusing in more ways than one. The other characters in the book are not as fully written but with no harm to the plot or book. The book also deals with the Pinelands in NJ which is currently home sweet home so that too tickled my fancy. I will definitely read the sequel which is out already.
If you want to read other reviews visit https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
I heard about this book when David Walton wrote his Big Idea for Superposition in April 2015. Now normally a book which describes one of the factors of the book to be quantum physics politely gets ignored through no fault of the author. I barely passed high school physics, physics makes no sense, and I hate it. I mean if it is background to the plot then that’s one thing. But for some reason unremembered by me at this point, I decided to put it on my “to be read” list and then promptly forgot all about everything but the title. I now feel that the title should have re-clued my silly physics hating self about the physics involved (duh!). Having finished the book, I am glad I did.
The book was a fun romp into quantum physics that for a non-supporter was broken down well and overall easy to understand. It mentions Schrodinger’s cat which was one physics concept I loved and understood back in the day. I am not sure what hard-core physicists would think of it but I happen to know one as a friend and if he reads it ever, I will let you know. It also dealt with legal issues which having been a paralegal at points in my past entertained me heartily.
The main character Jacob Kelley is enjoyable and amusing in more ways than one. The other characters in the book are not as fully written but with no harm to the plot or book. The book also deals with the Pinelands in NJ which is currently home sweet home so that too tickled my fancy. I will definitely read the sequel which is out already.
If you want to read other reviews visit https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
It is time to abandon ship me mateys! I am so very sad to have to abandon another ship. This trend of abandoning novels is starting to alarm me. This book had a cool concept including a murder mystery, firm noir, inhabited plants in our solar system, and even a prologue told from the point of view of a prologue. But I stopped and started reading this novel over 5 times and only made it to page 75 of 429. Okay . . . I will also admit that I did something even more out of character for me then not finishing the whole book. I also read the last chapter ::gasp:: from page 422 to 429 after getting stuck on 75.
You see, I thought that if perhaps the murder mystery ending part was interesting enough then I could make myself go back and finish it to see how the story wound to that conclusion. Yet again. Failure. I just did not find the story appealing. I mean the structure of the story was interesting. The story was told out of order with some chapters being film scripts, some being newspaper gossip articles, some being straight narrative, etc. The novel seemed more interested in playing with form than anything else and the plot was too disjointed. I could not even care about the characters. Shame too since so many people seem to love this author. This Captain could have done without.
If you want to see other reviews visit https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
You see, I thought that if perhaps the murder mystery ending part was interesting enough then I could make myself go back and finish it to see how the story wound to that conclusion. Yet again. Failure. I just did not find the story appealing. I mean the structure of the story was interesting. The story was told out of order with some chapters being film scripts, some being newspaper gossip articles, some being straight narrative, etc. The novel seemed more interested in playing with form than anything else and the plot was too disjointed. I could not even care about the characters. Shame too since so many people seem to love this author. This Captain could have done without.
If you want to see other reviews visit https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy there mateys. A story of space, mystical objects, and flying . . .
I picked up this novel because it involves human flying and racing with artificial wings on the Moon – otherwise known as piloting. I had recently re-read a favorite, Windhaven by George R. R. Martin and Lisa Tuttle which involves piloting. The idea of humans flying has always appealed to me and here we have a book that involves humans flying in space. Super cool, so I gave it a shot.
This novel was hard to get into at first. In addition to the piloting, the main storyline involves the concept of “energy, and the things people will do to have it and to keep it for themselves.” The beginning dealt with not only the history of how humans got to the current political situation but also some philosophical discussions of the differences between the peoples living on the Earth, the Terra Ring, and the Moon. The story also somewhat disjointedly switches from the past to the present. While it did add flavor and set the stage for the novel’s current events, I couldn’t help but want to get back to the story of the main character, Clinton Rittener.
Clinton Rittener is a space pirate, rogue, killer, hardened man, hero, and above all an intelligent opportunist. He is the heart of the novel and much of its appeal. Frankly, I wish there had been more of Clinton in it. The novel quickly became fascinating once the “real action” with him commences.
Some of the fascination for me was the author’s use of historical facts and phrases. I love when new words and ideas lead me to researching items on the interwebs. Here are two of my favorites from this novel:
amanuensis [uh-man-yoo-en-sis] – a person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another; secretary. Word Origin – “one who takes dictation,” 1610s, from Latin amanuensis “adjective used as a noun,” from servus a manu “secretary,” literally “servant from the hand,” from a “from” + manu, ablative of manus “hand.”
auto-de-fé – An auto-da-fé or auto-de-fé (from Portuguese auto da fé, meaning “act of faith”) was the ritual of public penance of condemned heretics and apostates that took place when the Spanish Inquisition, Portuguese Inquisition or the Mexican Inquisition had decided their punishment, followed by the execution by the civil authorities of the sentences imposed.
Regular readers may remember my dislike of physics. Chemistry on the other hand is another story. I loved it and voluntarily took Chem II back in high school as an elective. Chemistry makes sense. However, since those long ago days, I have not been up to date in chemistry news. Several days ago I happened upon a picture of the first period table while doing art research and the picture made me delightfully happy. Then yesterday this novel lead me to two more chemistry facts of delight that either Chem II didn’t cover or I blatantly forgot. So I will share:
Transuranium elements (also known as transuranic elements) are the chemical elements with atomic numbers greater than 92 (the atomic number of uranium). All of these elements are unstable and decay radioactively into other elements.
Mysterious Periodic Element 137 – Feynmanium is the fabricated name of a theoretical element with the symbol Fy and atomic number 137. This element is known in the scientific literature as untriseptium (Uts), or simply element 137. There is some question about this element spelling the end of the periodic table. For discussion of this concept visit Column: The crucible.
Not only did I get new facts and a great protagonist, this novel ended with a bang. Let’s just say the ending was so unexpected I had to stop, blink, and reread passages at the end in a kind of disbelief. This novel is definitely worth reading but may make you angry by its ending.
If you liked this review and want more of them visit https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
I picked up this novel because it involves human flying and racing with artificial wings on the Moon – otherwise known as piloting. I had recently re-read a favorite, Windhaven by George R. R. Martin and Lisa Tuttle which involves piloting. The idea of humans flying has always appealed to me and here we have a book that involves humans flying in space. Super cool, so I gave it a shot.
This novel was hard to get into at first. In addition to the piloting, the main storyline involves the concept of “energy, and the things people will do to have it and to keep it for themselves.” The beginning dealt with not only the history of how humans got to the current political situation but also some philosophical discussions of the differences between the peoples living on the Earth, the Terra Ring, and the Moon. The story also somewhat disjointedly switches from the past to the present. While it did add flavor and set the stage for the novel’s current events, I couldn’t help but want to get back to the story of the main character, Clinton Rittener.
Clinton Rittener is a space pirate, rogue, killer, hardened man, hero, and above all an intelligent opportunist. He is the heart of the novel and much of its appeal. Frankly, I wish there had been more of Clinton in it. The novel quickly became fascinating once the “real action” with him commences.
Some of the fascination for me was the author’s use of historical facts and phrases. I love when new words and ideas lead me to researching items on the interwebs. Here are two of my favorites from this novel:
amanuensis [uh-man-yoo-en-sis] – a person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another; secretary. Word Origin – “one who takes dictation,” 1610s, from Latin amanuensis “adjective used as a noun,” from servus a manu “secretary,” literally “servant from the hand,” from a “from” + manu, ablative of manus “hand.”
auto-de-fé – An auto-da-fé or auto-de-fé (from Portuguese auto da fé, meaning “act of faith”) was the ritual of public penance of condemned heretics and apostates that took place when the Spanish Inquisition, Portuguese Inquisition or the Mexican Inquisition had decided their punishment, followed by the execution by the civil authorities of the sentences imposed.
Regular readers may remember my dislike of physics. Chemistry on the other hand is another story. I loved it and voluntarily took Chem II back in high school as an elective. Chemistry makes sense. However, since those long ago days, I have not been up to date in chemistry news. Several days ago I happened upon a picture of the first period table while doing art research and the picture made me delightfully happy. Then yesterday this novel lead me to two more chemistry facts of delight that either Chem II didn’t cover or I blatantly forgot. So I will share:
Transuranium elements (also known as transuranic elements) are the chemical elements with atomic numbers greater than 92 (the atomic number of uranium). All of these elements are unstable and decay radioactively into other elements.
Mysterious Periodic Element 137 – Feynmanium is the fabricated name of a theoretical element with the symbol Fy and atomic number 137. This element is known in the scientific literature as untriseptium (Uts), or simply element 137. There is some question about this element spelling the end of the periodic table. For discussion of this concept visit Column: The crucible.
Not only did I get new facts and a great protagonist, this novel ended with a bang. Let’s just say the ending was so unexpected I had to stop, blink, and reread passages at the end in a kind of disbelief. This novel is definitely worth reading but may make you angry by its ending.
If you liked this review and want more of them visit https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
Ahoy me mateys! A young adult fantasy yarn . . . Adventures on the high seas, deception, surprises, a missing princess and a boy who can speak Cat. What is not to love? This young(er) adult fantasy book has a plucky young boy, Duncan, at the center of the action with his trusty kitten friend, Fia at his side. Duncan starts out on his journey as a young person just wanting to be allowed to succeed and to be allowed to be noticed despite his mother’s wishes. He soon gets what he desires and learns that not everything is as it seems.
I enjoyed Duncan’s transition in this novel from dissatisfied but principled youth to mature young adult. The secondary characters of Duncan’s mother, his friend Betsy, and Brig in particular were lovely. Not to mention all of the cats and their quirky personalities and tricks. Trick # 8 ½ being one of my more favorites.
Also a super nice touch when reading were the author’s own illustrations at the beginning of each chapter. They are charming and fun. The picture of Mr. Flu . . . I mean Spike! in particular made me laugh.
I know this book is aimed towards younger readers (8 to 14 bah!) but if you are looking for a light easy read that revolves around the sea and cats and an epic adventure then this book is for you. I read it in a couple of hours and enjoyed every moment.
If you liked this review and want to see others like it go to https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/
I enjoyed Duncan’s transition in this novel from dissatisfied but principled youth to mature young adult. The secondary characters of Duncan’s mother, his friend Betsy, and Brig in particular were lovely. Not to mention all of the cats and their quirky personalities and tricks. Trick # 8 ½ being one of my more favorites.
Also a super nice touch when reading were the author’s own illustrations at the beginning of each chapter. They are charming and fun. The picture of Mr. Flu . . . I mean Spike! in particular made me laugh.
I know this book is aimed towards younger readers (8 to 14 bah!) but if you are looking for a light easy read that revolves around the sea and cats and an epic adventure then this book is for you. I read it in a couple of hours and enjoyed every moment.
If you liked this review and want to see others like it go to https://thecaptainsquartersblog.wordpress.com/