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Phil Leader (619 KP) rated The Long Mars in Books
Nov 20, 2019
The third book in the Long Earth series by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter very much carries on with 'more of the same' as the previous books. Therefore if you haven't liked the series up until now, you probably won't like this installment.
The usual characters are here. Lobsang is less in evidence than previously, despite driving what is the core of the book. Joshua is also a little sidelined as his story is tied closely to that of Lobsang. The bulk of the actual pages are concerned with Sally Lindsay and Maggie Kaufmann as they set off on their own voyages of discovery on the seemingly infinite copies of Earth and - not too much of a spoiler since it's in the title - Mars.
Whereas the previous books have essentially had one thread of a story around which the characters revolve towards some sort of end. This book seems more as if the authors couldn't really decide what they wanted to write about.
Should they write about more versions of the Long Earth, more fantastic worlds and lifeforms? Or perhaps investigate what has really been happening at Happy Landings, the seemingly too perfect town which existed long before Step Day? Or perhaps you are Stephen Baxter and can't resist going to Mars and showing many stepwise possibilities for that planet?
Rather than focus on one of these, all three are covered.
Maggie Kaufmann takes a brand new Twain far beyond the current limits of exploration into completely uncharted - and very strange - worlds. She must deal with the crew during their long trip, a surprise guest and aims to find out what happened to a previous expedition that vanished. Once again Pratchett and Baxter dig up some potentially different outcomes for both life on Earth and the planet itself, although many of the worlds are skimmed over and this part does get a little repetitive - another world, another odd ecology. This thread did feel a little like filler, there for those who want to see what might happen at the extremes of the Long Earth, although events do tie in with Lobsang's story.
Lobsang (the omnipresent super computer) has become concerned with matters of existence and what might come after. In particular is the human race evolving? He asks Joshua to help out and discover if there is any evidence for a breed of super human evolving as Lobsang theorises there must be. It seemed to me this is the real story of the book, a query on what would happen if a vastly more intelligent form of humanity evolved as a step change rather than a gradual one. What would they do? Would the rest of humanity accept them or feel threatened by them? The thread is short - barely more than an essay - and takes a good while to work through but provides the ultimate ending to the book.
Meanwhile, Sally Lindsay finds herself at The Gap, preparing to visit Mars, part of some mysterious quest for 'something' by her father. Here Baxter's history of writing Mars colonisation stories (they even get a mention) comes to the fore as the possibilities of a Long Mars are explored. In the real world Mars is cold, arid and inhospitable but there may be the odd chance for life to have developed. What would this be like? Again we have many different worlds although these are skipped through a little better than the Maggie Kaufmann Long Earth voyage and seem a little less repetitive - or where there is repetition it is more interesting than mundane.
Overall this is a good read in the series, probably a little better than The Long War but again lacking the coherence and sheer enthusiasm of The Long Earth (perhaps inevitably). As a work of science fiction it works well - the broad brush 'imaginary worlds' of the Long Earth and the Long Mars juxtaposed by the more existential investigation into human evolution.
Would I read a fourth installment? Undoubtedly, there are stories yet to be told. Would I recommend this book? Only if the recommendee had enjoyed the previous two books.
The usual characters are here. Lobsang is less in evidence than previously, despite driving what is the core of the book. Joshua is also a little sidelined as his story is tied closely to that of Lobsang. The bulk of the actual pages are concerned with Sally Lindsay and Maggie Kaufmann as they set off on their own voyages of discovery on the seemingly infinite copies of Earth and - not too much of a spoiler since it's in the title - Mars.
Whereas the previous books have essentially had one thread of a story around which the characters revolve towards some sort of end. This book seems more as if the authors couldn't really decide what they wanted to write about.
Should they write about more versions of the Long Earth, more fantastic worlds and lifeforms? Or perhaps investigate what has really been happening at Happy Landings, the seemingly too perfect town which existed long before Step Day? Or perhaps you are Stephen Baxter and can't resist going to Mars and showing many stepwise possibilities for that planet?
Rather than focus on one of these, all three are covered.
Maggie Kaufmann takes a brand new Twain far beyond the current limits of exploration into completely uncharted - and very strange - worlds. She must deal with the crew during their long trip, a surprise guest and aims to find out what happened to a previous expedition that vanished. Once again Pratchett and Baxter dig up some potentially different outcomes for both life on Earth and the planet itself, although many of the worlds are skimmed over and this part does get a little repetitive - another world, another odd ecology. This thread did feel a little like filler, there for those who want to see what might happen at the extremes of the Long Earth, although events do tie in with Lobsang's story.
Lobsang (the omnipresent super computer) has become concerned with matters of existence and what might come after. In particular is the human race evolving? He asks Joshua to help out and discover if there is any evidence for a breed of super human evolving as Lobsang theorises there must be. It seemed to me this is the real story of the book, a query on what would happen if a vastly more intelligent form of humanity evolved as a step change rather than a gradual one. What would they do? Would the rest of humanity accept them or feel threatened by them? The thread is short - barely more than an essay - and takes a good while to work through but provides the ultimate ending to the book.
Meanwhile, Sally Lindsay finds herself at The Gap, preparing to visit Mars, part of some mysterious quest for 'something' by her father. Here Baxter's history of writing Mars colonisation stories (they even get a mention) comes to the fore as the possibilities of a Long Mars are explored. In the real world Mars is cold, arid and inhospitable but there may be the odd chance for life to have developed. What would this be like? Again we have many different worlds although these are skipped through a little better than the Maggie Kaufmann Long Earth voyage and seem a little less repetitive - or where there is repetition it is more interesting than mundane.
Overall this is a good read in the series, probably a little better than The Long War but again lacking the coherence and sheer enthusiasm of The Long Earth (perhaps inevitably). As a work of science fiction it works well - the broad brush 'imaginary worlds' of the Long Earth and the Long Mars juxtaposed by the more existential investigation into human evolution.
Would I read a fourth installment? Undoubtedly, there are stories yet to be told. Would I recommend this book? Only if the recommendee had enjoyed the previous two books.
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Darren (1599 KP) rated Ringu 2 (Ring 2) (2005) in Movies
Nov 7, 2019
Characters – Rachel has moved her child to a smaller town to start a new life away from the pain of the previous one. she gets a new job, only for the first day on the job, Samara takes her next victim. Wanting to stop the spread of the curse in this new town, Rachel destroys the video tape, only to see herself become the target once again of Samara. Rachel will need to continue the investigation into who Samara was and why she is still haunting the world. Max is one of the co-workers at the newspaper, he isn’t trying to hit on Rachel, but does become the only person that Rachel can turn too. Aidan is the son that has started to take after his father with his love of photography, he does become the target of Samara, we see two different sides to David in this film. Dr Temple is trying to figure out what has been happening to Aidan, first seeing that it could be child abuse, she needs to make sure the child is safe before anything else.
Performances – Naomi Watts is still strong in the leading role, we need her to show extra motherly emotions in the film this time around. Simon Baker doesn’t get a chance to get going in this film, while David Dorfman does make a big improvement because of the extra additions to his character. The supporting cast are not the strongest either with most getting left to limited screen time.
Story – The story here continues to see Rachel haunted by Samara needing to continue to unlock the truth about Samara to save her own son from her curse. Now this is a confusing as for a story because everything felt pretty wrapped up at the end of the film, this did end up just putting a forced sequel out there which tries to build more on the Samara legacy. Where this falls short in the story as by giving us weak supporting characters, having the events literally start the day Rachel arrives in the new town and going against certain things that happen in the first film.
Horror/Mystery – The horror in the film does give us basic moments of scares, though dream sequences a hoping the same jumps can worked in the first film. the mystery continues to look at the mystery about Samara and why she has continued to haunt people.
Settings – The film was moved to a smaller location, while returning to certain other locations with them being an extra clue involved in the film.
Special Effects – The effects in the film have dated already, you can see certain green screens being used, which were meant for uneasy scenes.
Scene of the Movie – The bath surprise.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The dated effects.
Final Thoughts – This is a weaker sequel that tries to build up on the original legacy, only to dive further into something we didn’t need to get more about what is happening.
Overall: Simple and weak sequel.
Performances – Naomi Watts is still strong in the leading role, we need her to show extra motherly emotions in the film this time around. Simon Baker doesn’t get a chance to get going in this film, while David Dorfman does make a big improvement because of the extra additions to his character. The supporting cast are not the strongest either with most getting left to limited screen time.
Story – The story here continues to see Rachel haunted by Samara needing to continue to unlock the truth about Samara to save her own son from her curse. Now this is a confusing as for a story because everything felt pretty wrapped up at the end of the film, this did end up just putting a forced sequel out there which tries to build more on the Samara legacy. Where this falls short in the story as by giving us weak supporting characters, having the events literally start the day Rachel arrives in the new town and going against certain things that happen in the first film.
Horror/Mystery – The horror in the film does give us basic moments of scares, though dream sequences a hoping the same jumps can worked in the first film. the mystery continues to look at the mystery about Samara and why she has continued to haunt people.
Settings – The film was moved to a smaller location, while returning to certain other locations with them being an extra clue involved in the film.
Special Effects – The effects in the film have dated already, you can see certain green screens being used, which were meant for uneasy scenes.
Scene of the Movie – The bath surprise.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The dated effects.
Final Thoughts – This is a weaker sequel that tries to build up on the original legacy, only to dive further into something we didn’t need to get more about what is happening.
Overall: Simple and weak sequel.
Lindsay (1760 KP) rated The Fourth Courier in Books
Mar 5, 2019
Are you a Crime Fan or even a detective Fan? Well you may be missing out on another amazing book. This book is called “The Fourth Courier” by Timothy Jay Smith. I enjoyed this book once I got into it.
The setting is set in Poland. You will learn a bit of the lifestyle. I never been dropped into Poland in a book setting or any historical fiction book. This author does this and I can see myself walking along the sidewalks.
The author does wonderful for his crime and detective of this book. It even got a thriller to it. I just love the way this book grabs you and take you for a ride. I am now wanting to learn more about Poland and it effects on it people and landscape.
Amazing and riving is my way to describe this book in all. Though I suggest children be at least aware that there a murders and a murder and some sex scenes in it. Nothing to bad but I would suggest children be at least the age of 14 and up. It up the parents to decide for there own children though.
We got a adventure with and FBI agent and an agent that in the embassy in Poland. Will they find the missing bomb and it Courier? Will they be able to stop and save Poland from an Atomic bomb or will be the end of their new world?
The setting is set in Poland. You will learn a bit of the lifestyle. I never been dropped into Poland in a book setting or any historical fiction book. This author does this and I can see myself walking along the sidewalks.
The author does wonderful for his crime and detective of this book. It even got a thriller to it. I just love the way this book grabs you and take you for a ride. I am now wanting to learn more about Poland and it effects on it people and landscape.
Amazing and riving is my way to describe this book in all. Though I suggest children be at least aware that there a murders and a murder and some sex scenes in it. Nothing to bad but I would suggest children be at least the age of 14 and up. It up the parents to decide for there own children though.
We got a adventure with and FBI agent and an agent that in the embassy in Poland. Will they find the missing bomb and it Courier? Will they be able to stop and save Poland from an Atomic bomb or will be the end of their new world?
Merissa (12911 KP) rated Matching Bloodlines (The Princeton Allegiant #3) in Books
Jan 27, 2020
MATCHING BLOODLINES is the third book in The Princeton Allegiant series, and trust me when I say this series just keeps on getting better and better! Although I would say you "could" read this as a standalone, the better question would be "why?"
At the end of the last book, Francisco (and us) found out that Sophia was alive and also got a location. The start of this book takes us to that location. Poor Francisco. That's all I'm saying. And what the hell is Loren thinking? He's got his mate so he should have some idea of what it is he's saying!!!
I am sincerely loving this world. It gets more amazing with every book. Francisco really shines in this, showing the reader just how caring (and possessive) a vampire can be about his mate. Charlotte has a hard choice to make. Well, hard for her, at any rate. The attraction between them is off the charts and I loved every moment of it. Sophia is playing a game and I really don't like her. Just saying!
If I could do half stars, this would definitely be a 4 1/2, but I can't so it's not. Do NOT let that put you off though. I sincerely recommend this book and the series, and I really can't wait to continue. But who is next? Is it Reese or Victor? Either way, I'm ready and waiting.
A fantastic story and highly recommended by me.
At the end of the last book, Francisco (and us) found out that Sophia was alive and also got a location. The start of this book takes us to that location. Poor Francisco. That's all I'm saying. And what the hell is Loren thinking? He's got his mate so he should have some idea of what it is he's saying!!!
I am sincerely loving this world. It gets more amazing with every book. Francisco really shines in this, showing the reader just how caring (and possessive) a vampire can be about his mate. Charlotte has a hard choice to make. Well, hard for her, at any rate. The attraction between them is off the charts and I loved every moment of it. Sophia is playing a game and I really don't like her. Just saying!
If I could do half stars, this would definitely be a 4 1/2, but I can't so it's not. Do NOT let that put you off though. I sincerely recommend this book and the series, and I really can't wait to continue. But who is next? Is it Reese or Victor? Either way, I'm ready and waiting.
A fantastic story and highly recommended by me.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Knife Edge in Books
Aug 29, 2020
I was really looking forward to reading this having been a fan of Simon Mayo for many years in his other guise as a radio DJ so was quite disappointed that it didn't really do it for me.
The start was brilliant and had me hooked but it just went a bit "bleh" for me in the middle and although the ending was as good as the start, it just didn't make up for the middle because by that time I had lost a lot of interest and just carried on reading because I hate not finishing books. The characters were interesting but not particularly memorable enough to connect with me so I didn't really care what happened to them either way. The themes and plot of this book are up to date and you can certainly see them playing out in the real world unfortunately but it felt a little over complicated at times.
As usual, I am likely to be in the minority on this one as there have been many 4 and 5 star reviews given; maybe I was having a bad week! so I suggest you give a go for yourself. I have to say that this won't put me off reading Simon's books in the future purely based on the start and end of this particular book.
Thank you to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers via NetGalley for my copy in return for an unbiased review.
The start was brilliant and had me hooked but it just went a bit "bleh" for me in the middle and although the ending was as good as the start, it just didn't make up for the middle because by that time I had lost a lot of interest and just carried on reading because I hate not finishing books. The characters were interesting but not particularly memorable enough to connect with me so I didn't really care what happened to them either way. The themes and plot of this book are up to date and you can certainly see them playing out in the real world unfortunately but it felt a little over complicated at times.
As usual, I am likely to be in the minority on this one as there have been many 4 and 5 star reviews given; maybe I was having a bad week! so I suggest you give a go for yourself. I have to say that this won't put me off reading Simon's books in the future purely based on the start and end of this particular book.
Thank you to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers via NetGalley for my copy in return for an unbiased review.
A Line in the Dark
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"A twisty, dark psychological thriller that will leave you guessing til the very end."--Teen Vogue ...
Thriller young adult