Riddley Walker - Russell Hoban

The attention required to deciphering the action will be the point at which you commit and become invested, or bail out and hate it. By forcing the reader to concentrate so intently, the book provides a reading experience I'm yet to come across so far; full immersion is required to fully follow the plot. I appreciated this aspect of the novel more than any other, by forcing me to slow down, and zone out of everything else going on around me, I could lose myself in this grim future reality, coming alive through the remains of a language familiar enough to understand, but alien enough to puzzle me.

Read from January 04 to 07, 2014

The Left Hand Of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin

An engaging, deep and immersive read, which at times can be as hard to navigate as the planet Winter itself.

The Left Hand of Darkness is a book about balance, gender roles and what it is to be human. The book follows the adventures of Genly Ai, sent down as an Envoy to the planet Winter to recruit the natives into the Ekumen(an 83 World Collective). 

The natives of Winter are of of neither sex until a short part of each cycle, where they enter into Kemmer and become male/female for the purposes of reproduction. This creates an interesting point of study for Genly, and Le guin looks at the role gender plays in the actions of humankind. One example is the natives of Winter have no word for War, for the citizens appear to not have the desires and passions of single gender humans. Taking this book in context I can see the issue of gender being an interesting comment on male and female roles, however looking at this book 40 years on these gender issues are less prominent in modern society.

The book is deep with political intrigue, the focus being on two main factions, the rough and ready Karhide, and the structured and controlling Orgoryn, two factions on the brink of war over contested land. The world itself is well imagined, and the book is deep with lore, myth and language which increases the readers immersion into her world. 

The story itself is fast paced, and touches on what it is to be human, with many thought provoking points throughout the book. I found it difficult to navigate at times, with re-reading required once the density of alien terminology began to confuse the plot. On the whole I'd give the book 3.5/5, well worth a read for any Sci-Fi fan.

Read from April 20 to 26, 2012

Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny

Lord of Light is a wonderful concept, let down by a lack of depth, and a confusing veil of Indian myth concealing very one dimensional characters. Zelazny seems to have been intent on writing based on the setting, and yet does not seem to know how to make it not come out as a convoluted mess of names, with many of the cast indistinguishable from each other. 

Ultimately, Lord of Light is a story of revenge and liberation. Unfortunately we are trapped in a man made heaven, with a bunch of egotistical self made gods, with little or no focus on the oppressed or their interpretation of the "gods".As to why these rulers decided to play out Indian myth is unclear, much like the plot for the rest of the book. 

The writing style is difficult to follow, conversations flow with no indication of the speaker, and action plays out in scenes I found difficult to visualise. There is some interesting debate, and philosophical musing, but it is severely let down by a indecipherable mess of a story, which never engaged me to any significant degree. The main meat of the story is contained in the final few chapters and the events appear rushed, resulting in a distinctly unsatisfying conclusion. I was really wanting to like this novel, the setting appealed greatly to me, but ultimately all I'm left feeling is very let down!

Ringworld - Lary Niven

Ringworld is a mighty concept, and one which is an impressive creation. A (man?) made circular matter of ribbon six hundred miles long and 90 million miles in radius. As for a setting for a novel it takes some beating, and leaves many questions for the reader. Who put it there? Why? What will our heroes find on it? How will they escape? 

The novel shines in the SF elements; the setting is fantastic, imaginative with much scope for a promising novel. His implementation of scientific theory into the novel works well to re-enforce his created concepts and gives credibility to his creations. The aliens themselves are suitably non-human in appearance and behaviour, which can be a concern in a novel set in a futuristic space environment.

Sadly a novel has to be more than an idea, and Ringworld suffers from dated attitudes and distinctly unlikable characters. Niven’s portrayal of women is uncomfortable reading, and makes several aspects of the novel hard to like. Teela’s presence is wasted on some exceptionally awkward sex scenes and a disappointing story arc. I found the pacing of the novel to be an issue also with things slowing considerably once our cast land on the ring. 

Despite all this it is probably still worth a read, though it is the first SF Masterwork I've been disappointed with. The worldbuilding and setting alone is something to respect, but its age is showing through in its sexist overtones and disappointing characters. 

Read from March 16 to April 02, 2013

Rogue Moon - Algis Budrys

Rouge Moon by Algis Budrys is a dark psychological horror novel written before man had set foot on the moon. A book very much of its time, but with thought provoking dialogue which still has relevance today. It follows the story of a scientist and his pursuit of discovery, with seeming little regard for those he uses as sacrifices to achieve his goal. The SF element itself often takes a back seat to a character driven voyage into the deepest darkest corners of Mr. Hawks mind. Dialogue is intense, precise and physiological, with Hawks frequently analysing all around him with scientific scrutiny.

This book does not deliver the images the title projects. There are no epic space battles, terraforming or spaceships. Instead we are delivered a wonderfully well written study on what it is to exist, to  think and to feel, concepts when taken in context of its publication make it all the more impressive. Its a novel of being human and our strive to explore and explain the world around us. Death is never far away, and Budrys does a brilliant job of providing moments of pure horror that linger long after the last page has been read.