This book review is about Marrow, the first book in the Great Ship cycle by Robert Reed. The story is set in a universe where humans found an abandoned spaceship and converted it into a train for public transportation. The story spans several thousand years and is about treachery, mischief, evolution, and religious sects. The book is compared to Ringworld by Larry Niven but is not considered better. The review is written by a sci-fi enthusiast who was intrigued by the author's popularity in China.
# Sci-fi
The Gate of Feral Gods is the fourth book in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman. The book continues the story of the protagonist and his cat surviving in a DnD world, which is actually an entertainment show for cruel aliens. While the book retains the general narrative of the previous ones, there is a significant development in the second half that gives it a new twist. The book is well-written with a decent amount of drama, some jokes, and a real love for DnD. The author plans to write 7-8 books in the series, and the sixth book will be published soon.
The book is an experiment with new forms aimed at a younger generation. The novel is set in an alternative future where aliens have established rules for humans after stopping a world-scale nuclear conflict. The book contains references to sex, computer games, mobile phones, and Marvel universe. The protagonist mainly speaks and acts like an old grumpy geezer. The author is a big supporter of Russian aggression to Ukraine, making it unlikely that his books will be translated and officially published in English.
In this book review, the author discusses Blake Crouch's "Recursion", a sci-fi thriller about a scientist trying to cure Alzheimer's disease who discovers something unexpected that will change humanity. While the book is well-written and paced, the plot is more philosophical than scientific and the ending is weak. Overall, the author recommends the book as a good way to pass the time.
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin is a sci-fi novel that won many awards. The book is not heavy on science, but rather focuses on creating an immersive atmosphere. The protagonist is on a journey to prepare a new planet to enter an alliance of worlds. The planet is inhabited by humans who can change their gender, which is a cornerstone of their society. The book explores various gender-related twists and deviations, making it a unique and interesting read.
The Golden Key, or the wonderings of Buratina is a hard Sci-Fi book written by Mikhail Kharitonov. It is a fairy tale, written by a Soviet writer Alexey Tolstoi in 1930th. The book is set in the future, where humanity is extinct, and the only sentient creatures survived are genetic hybrids of the humans and animals or plants. The protagonist is a gene hybrid of a human and (mostly) bamboo. The book is mostly cruel and nasty, with a lot of tortures, bad language, and abuse of any kind.
Exhalation is a collection of short stories by Ted Chiang, a renowned sci-fi writer. The stories are engaging and meticulously built, exploring various aspects of original ideas. The central piece, 'The Lifecycle of Software Objects', is a novella about artificial intelligence, which won both Locus and Nebula awards. While it may not be the most exciting story in the collection, it is still a good piece of literature. Overall, Exhalation is a highly recommended read for those who enjoy good sci-fi stories that are not too complicated or too 'scientific'.