The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O, by Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland

The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. by Neal Stephenson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I have my ups and downs with Neal Stephenson. I couldn't finish the Baroque Cycle, but I seem to have enjoyed Seveneves more than most. Seveneves may have had some stiff dialog but it was full of ideas. This book has one idea. Which is spun into a plot that goes on for 750 pages. If it could somehow have been concentrated down to about half that length (and I think it could have been) it would be an award contender. As is, not sure.

I liked the book and never got tired of reading it as I went along. I think what struck me that perhaps did not stand out to others is the sort of "dated" feel of it. The characters are standard-issue types from maybe 10 years or so ago, with no self-consciousness so it can't be intentional. Tristan is a kind of stiff hero type, and Melisande slips into sexy damsel mode a little too easily. You can almost see the consideration of the movie possibilities of a time travel method that causes travelers to become naked.

(view spoiler)[This turns out to be the first book in a series. Even though I liked it, it's hard to imagine me coming back to this. (hide spoiler)]



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Void Star, by Zachary Mason

Void Star by Zachary Mason

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Void Star is an excellent if imperfect read. Many of the reviews compare it to work by William Gibson or Neal Stephenson, and I agree fully. The descriptions are rich, the world is sprawling, and the storytelling skates on the edge of getting out of hand. That last may be where the comparison starts to break down--in this book the plot always seems to be getting closer to spinning out of control than in Gibson or Stephenson's work, even though the plot itself is pretty simple--big powerful oligarch is trying to steal plucky protagonist Irina's memories, and also live forever. Stop him. Mason describes larger forces (rogue AIs) at play so there's the possibility of more here, but for this book that's it.

The jacket blurb is somewhat misleading. Irina may not be wealthy like the oligarchs, but she certainly plays in their league. I never thought of her as an underdog in the fight, though perhaps not quite an equal to Cromwell. The other protagonists (Kern the favela dweller and Thales the mathematician/political scion) get their due in the narrative but they are support players.

I really enjoyed the book and would recommend it highly. The span of the story is challenging and fun.



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Gods of Risk, by James S. A. Corey

Gods of Risk by James S.A. Corey

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I'm catching up this series and am something of a completist, so I'm reading the novellas, but so far they don't seem to add that much. In this one the protagonist is a pretty unlikeable teenage boy, the nephew of Bobbie Draper, superhero of Caliban's War. Bobbie ends up being central to the story, but not so much so until near the very end. What we get is the view of a pretty self-centered teen as we get indicators over their news feeds that their society is going to hell. It's decently written and I guess I am not going to demand the time back, but you could skip it if you are less obsessive than I am.



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The Butcher of Anderson Station, by James S. A. Corey

The Butcher of Anderson Station by James S.A. Corey

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I'm getting around to catching this series up after several years. So far I've read Leviathan Wakes and Caliban's War, then came back to this piece. So at this point it didn't make a lot of sense to me. Fred Johnson was a supporting character in Leviathan Wakes, and he's barely a presence in Caliban's War. I didn't find myself burning with curiosity about the backstory of The Butcher of Anderson Station. That said, it fits in well with the series and will probably help later. It's a well written "story segment".



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