Happy New Years! Welcome 2012!

Hey Icebergians!

Well we are only a few hours off now from the beginning of another year. So from both of us (Chris and Scott) to all of you, we hope you have a safe and happy night!

Doctor Who: The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe (Review)

On Christmas Day there are two things I look forward to:

1. Turkey dinner.

2. A new Doctor Who Christmas Special.

THE DOCTOR, THE WIDOW & THE WARDROBE was showrunner Steven Moffat’s second Christmas episode writerly foray (after last years Michael Gambon-filled A CHRISTMAS CAROL) and it had a few things going for it.

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first. Clearly the title is a nod to C.S. Lewis and the Narnia books, as is the idea of having a snowy alternate world setting be accessed VIA a humdrum object (in Narnia it is a wardrobe, here it is a big blue present box). Add the WWII setting and precocious kids and you have the makings of a nice homage to a literary classic. Oh and talk of the Uncle Digby who owns the house that mom and her two kids retreat to was clearly a super-nerdy nod to Digory Kirke from THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW (who accidentally releases the White Witch who harasses the kids in later books and owns the house with the wardrobe) though, that is where the similarities stop.

Matt Smith plays the Doctor with perfection in this one. Like a pastry that has risen to a golden brown, Smith has given the Doctor life and a vibrant personality and here he simply owns it. From minute one he’s making jokes and comments and spouting gobbledygook that entertains the two children to no end, whilst causing the mother to frown more than a bit.

There is a bit of a prologue wherein the Doctor hits the earth in an impact suit (which he put on backwards, in space) after causing an explosion aboard a starship. Madge (3 years before the events of the special) helps him back to his TARDIS and he promises to help her if she ever needs it.

Sadly things kind of go into status-quo territory fairly quickly, as three years pass. Where last year I could not truly tell you where things would go from minute to minute, this year I pretty much could. Madge’s husband is lost over the Channel during the war as his instruments malfunction, and she receives a telegram about his almost certain demise, which she keeps from her children. The youngest child Cyril Arwell, disappears though the present doorway onto the planet where it seems Christmas trees are forested and they seem to grow ornament appendages. He is then followed/chased by The Doctor, the boys elder sister Lily Arwell and eventually their worried/angry mother Madge Arwell. Supposedly a safe planet. That is until we find out that a group of foresters (excuse me while I have a super geek moment as they are from Androzani Major, which is the planet where the 5th Doctor met his end [THE CAVES OF THE ANDROZANI] and regenerated into the 6th, also consistently voted as the BEST episode of DOCTOR WHO ever) have informed our protagonists that the trees are about to be killed by acid rain. The chase is on to find Cyril and we get kind of a side story about a how the forest is alive and are these kind of tree-people. The whole living forest/tree people/Androzani foresters/acid rain threat plotline goes predictably where you think it will. The only real surprise is the resolution of said thread, which actually saved it from me thinking it was all going to be same-old, same old. The resolution of that ties nicely into Madge’s keeping the death of the kids father from them and the Doctor bounces around suitably unsure of what to do. In the end the story was decent enough, if not stellar. It felt like it could have been an episode during the actual season as opposed to a special. That’s not a bad thing, but I think we’ve come to expect more of a spectacle at Christmas is all. Perhaps we are spoiled.

No, this episode (for me at least) EXISTS for the epilogue. Now if you’ve not watched the ep yet, don’t read any further if you want to be unspoiled even though it’s not really a spoiler. In the epilogue The Doctor goes to the Ponds on Christmas. Amy finding him on the doorstep tells him it’s been two years (since the events in THE WEDDING OF RIVER SONG) and give’s him a deadpan “Oh, so you’re alive then? River told us.” line. Here is a moment in the Doctor’s life that is almost always the same. Whoever the companion is at the time invites him for Christmas dinner. I believe he has only ONCE come in for dinner. It’s just not his thing, and he mostly does his whole Last Of The Time Lords thing, turns down the invite and disappears with the TARDIS. Amy asks him in for dinner, and he initially turns her down, but then Rory says they have set a place for him, which sort of stuns him. Amy reiterates and says they ALWAYS set a place for him, every year. A few moments earlier with Madge and family as they cried happy tears he had remarked that happy crying was so “humany wumany”, and then... right then, standing on the doorstep of his best friends, he sheds his own happy tears and then goes inside for dinner. It’s one of those DW moments that I wait for. It’s also one of the moments when Matt Smith is every bit the actor that Tennant was. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house in the Neil Gaiman episode when he was crying as he said goodbye to Idris, and that was the first time I got to see it. Getting to see it here, especially at the end of the Christmas special was a real treat for me. It also shows me that Matt Smith really has such emotion that he can bring out in his acting, and I sometimes wish that we got to see it more often like we did with Tennant. At any rate, that last few minutes made the entire episode for me.

It is a decent enough entry into the DW holiday special category, and while not quite on par with last years episode, it was nonetheless a fun hour of TV.

Sadly, the wait begins now. Unlike any other years since its been back on TV, we will now wait until fall of 2012 to see any new DOCTOR WHO as Moffat has moved the start from the normal Spring date. Sigh.

Book Review: Ready Player One - Ernest Cline

Do you remember when you were a little kid, and you’d be in your room, totally bored, or outside someone had dug a pit in your backyard, or there was a new fridge in the kitchen providing you with a huge box to play with? What about how during those instances you’d pull out all your toys and set up a battle royale amongst them? Transformers VS G.I. Joe’s VS Thundercats VS Silverhawks VS G-Force VS Star Wars. G.I. Joe’s led by Luke Skywalker would charge into battle against Cobra led by a temporary coalition of Cobra Commander, Mum-Ra and Darth Vader. Then even that would move from epic ground troop battle into a showdown between the biggest and boldest of the various factions. Voltron would form up and take on Unicron in front of Castle Grayskull while Macross Valkyrie’s, Starscream and Thudercracker swept in with aerial attacks.

We all did it. In the 80’s we all used our various toys and staged wars amongst our various childhood fascinations and obsessions. It was a way to make our toys be extraordinary, and I personally recall killing hours and hours of time in such ways. The other way I killed time when I was young was, of course, playing video games. I had a Commodore 64, a PS2, an Intellivision, An Atari 2600, Nintendo, Sega…the list continues to this day. Basically if it came out on a game console, I owned it and I played it.

Ernest Cline has gone and written a book that is aimed (like the proverbial, spring-loaded red toy missile) directly at those of us who remember doing the above, and what he has created is one hell of an excellent ride.

It’s the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets.

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune—and remarkable power—to whoever can unlock them.
 

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday’s riddles are based in the pop culture he loved—that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday’s icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes’s oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig.

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle.

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt—among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life—and love—in the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.

As things get going it is clear that Wade, like everyone else on a planet where humanity is waning, is digging himself deep into a fantasy world where he can exist without feeling the pressures of the real craphole our planet has become. Designed by men who would be OUR (read: the Reader’s) peers, OASIS is a Big Bang Nerdgasm. The late 20th Century explodes in a cornucopia of pop culture that people in 2044 study and are interested in, since their own world has closed in on itself and almost devolved. The 70’s, 80’s and 90’s have become an era in which humanity as a whole can look back on fondly as better times, and James Halliday has given them the ultimate format into which they can retreat. Basically everything any one of us has ever fantasized about has been pumped judiciously into this novel. Beyond the fact that most of the actual plot has to do with various pop culture staples (Star Wars, Blade Runner, Back To The Future, Classic video games and game systems ect.) since OASIS designer James Halliday was a child, and aficionado of the 1980’s pop culture scene, there is also LOADS for us as the reader to grab onto. In certain instances Cline has seen fit to give us nods to these beloved nostalgic memories without preamble. Very much like Easter Eggs for the reader (Clever, that). For me something like when Wade first logs onto OASIS at the novel’s outset his password phrase is “You have been recruited by the Star League to defend the Frontier against Xur and the Ko-Dan armada.” which is a line from one of my fave 80’s movies, THE LAST STARFIGHTER, I can’t tell you how wide my grin was when I read that line. The narrative is absolutely peppered with those little nods from Cline to us, some of which are totally unexpanded upon, but if you are in the “know” then you will fully get them.

The pace is seriously set to “Ludicrous Speed”, like “we’ve gone to plaid” kind of speed. I started reading this book and nearly didn’t put it down. It only took two sessions of reading over two days to finish. The novel sings along and the narrative is continuously interesting at no point slowing even a bit. That’s a tough thing to do, so I have to give Cline much credit for keeping things tight and breathlessly sliding along.

I cared about everyone involved in this story even though we only see it VIA Wade’s (ParZival’s) perspective. Aech, Art3mis, Daito, and Shoto are all really well fleshed out and care is taken by the author to give them all unique voices. It’s also tough to give a villain the proper voice and make him menacing without going overboard into campy or cheesy. With Sorrento (leader of a maniacal corporation bent on getting the prize and monetizing OASIS, thus making it suck) I think that Cline rode that balance well, as when he (Sorrento) first shows up and talks to Wade he is quite matter-of-fact in his menace and that rang really true to me. There is also a love story buried in here and even that is handled deftly. It has a voice that is decidedly wise as to how these young people WOULD interact, adding the aspect of the world they live in and how you might know someone’s avatar for years and never have met the person behind it. So I feel it is safe to say that the characterization is well handled across the board.

The quest within the novel to find the Easter Egg is fascinating itself. This is not simply because once we (the reader) realize as the first key is found that each subsequent success will be a “nerdy nod” to us, but also because of the slow and deliberate way that the enigmatic designer (Halliday’s) life is revealed. I was totally riveted in that quest myself and simply HAD to keep reading to find out what happened next and how it tied into the past.

In a book of this nature there is always a danger of going overboard with the nostalgia (over-egging the nostalgia pudding if you will), but I think aside from a few clunky dialogue sections (normal in a first novel), Cline avoids this and gives us just enough to keep us grinning. Like I mentioned earlier there are bits that are explained (like the first Video Game Easter Egg, a designer’s name buried in the Atari game ADVENTURE!) and then there are bits that are not that we are meant to simply “get” if our memories serve us well enough (like Wade’s Login Password phrases).

The novel also twists and turns at unexpected moments. So while you are aware that Wade is (let’s say) headed towards the second key, you don’t know what pitfalls are going to drop under him because honestly in a world where OASIS literally has EVERYTHING, you never know what is going to appear over the next hill or around the next corner. That kept me guessing, and that’s always a good thing.

If I had one complaint it would be that the novel ties up a little too quickly and that the end dovetails a little too neatly. I’d like to have seen a bit more conflict in the resolution of certain plot elements. There are a few things that could have been nice to have known about or seen a longer resolution to. Basically I feel the novel could have benefited from a nice epilogue or something. That’s kind of wishful thinking on my part though, so I get that, and to be honest I probably wanted more at the end simply because I wanted more at the end so I’d get to keep reading in Cline’s world. I’m not even sure if that makes it qualify as a complaint anymore since I feel that way. I wish there was more to read of it right now!

This book was, for lack of a better word, stellar. It felt like it was written directly for my generation and was aimed squarely at my nostalgia node. It is a ridiculously fast-paced, well-plotted novel with as clever a vehicle to drive it as ever I’ve seen. A compulsive, midnight page-turner for the Generation X and Y set that simply won’t let you sleep until you devour the final page. I can totally see myself re-reading this book down the road just to catch stuff I may have missed on my first run through. This is my first book of the New Year (let’s not argue date’s with 3 days to go) and Ernest Cline has absolutely knocked this one out of the park, hitting the Death Star’s power core with a well-aimed X-Wing shot, blowing it to utter smithereens. This novel is totally spellbinding from cover to cover, and for a first novel to burst out of the gate with such verve is definitely the indication of a great storyteller. Sufficed to say, if Cline continues to write like this I will be sure to check out anything he writes in future.

I kind of want to read it again right now. Is that wrong?

NOTE: The cover art at the top of the post is the forthcoming paperback cover art. While I dig the hardcover art on my copy, I feel that the paperback art is utterly sublime, so I wanted to post it. 

Iceberg Ink Awards 2011

And so Iceberg Ink gets its first year under its belt. The little blog where Chris and I share our wonderful thoughts with you fine folk has grown a bit over that year and picked up some new readers. We also started a Podcast and have been refining what sort of content we want on the site aside from reviews. We hope we've created a place to nerd out a bit. A place to read reviews of the latest books, the not-so-latest books, and even sporadic geekgasm type things.

We'd like to take a moment to thank all our readers for sticking around and making us part of your daily internet travels. It means an awful lot to both of us.

With that said, it is indeed that time where we compile a list of our favourite titles all year. Also, this year Chris will be participating so it won't just be my picks. Each award will be clearly marked as to which of us gave the prize to which person or book. So let's get straight to it shall we?

NOTE: If only one of the two of us has an entry listed for any of the awards, it means that the other person didn't have an award to give in that category.

Example. I (Scott) didn't have a Non-Fiction entry this year, but Chris did.

Best Read of 2011

Scott

THE CRIPPLED GOD - Steven Erikson

This one is easy this year. THE CRIPPLED GOD blew me away. As the first completed ten book fantasy series (take note all you other long fantasy series, this is how it’s done!) this book gave me everything I wanted out of the end of the series, threw a few twists at me, and then proceeded to change the notions I had about the entire series. I recall at different moments laughing, crying (manly tears) and even cheering or pumping my fist in the air. It AFFECTED me, on that level. Absolutely, positively a masterpiece in every sense of the word.

Chris

THE REVISIONISTS - Thomas Mullen

After decades of war and strife humanity has finally achieved the utopia it deserves. But time-terrorists, known as hags, are determined to bring down the walls of this perfect society and erect a new one in its place, one where they control the shots. So it’s up to operatives like Troy Wilson to go back in time and preserve the timeline. It’s a job that would break lesser men, as it means standing aside and letting some of humanity worst atrocities play out. But in this case, the ends surely justify the means.

Reading THE REVISIONISTS is like getting suckered into a game of Three Card Monte. You’re so convinced that you’ve got the whole thing figured out that when the dealer flips up the Jack of Clubs you don’t even notice his hand in your pocket. Author Thomas Mullen does a great job distracting readers with a taut and engrossing surface plot, and when he finally shows the tremendous goings on behind the scenes you’ll be kicking yourself for not picking up the hints. It’s a rare novel that can blindside me like, especially since Mullen doesn’t hold back. He puts all the pieces out there on display and leaves you to draw your own conclusions. Passable thrillers are a dime a dozen, extraordinary ones like this should be read as quickly as possible.

Best New Fantasy Novel 2011

Scott

WISE MAN'S FEAR - Patrick Rothfuss

 A tough category since Fantasy is my bread and butter. When I sat down to think about it though, this one easily goes to WISE MAN’S FEAR. The book almost met every one of my expectations for the 2nd book in the series and only suffers from a slight lag in pace in the mid-to-latter section of the book, but even that was not enough to dampen my spirit about it. Lovingly written and brilliantly executed, I was really impressed with this book pretty much throughout, so it snags the top spot.

Chris

THE COLD COMMANDS - Richard Morgan

 The second book in Richard Morgan’s A Land Fit for Heroes trilogy, COMMANDS is really the author rocking his hard boiled sci-fi work under the guise of the fantasy genre. Picking up a couple months after the end of the first book, COMMANDS deals with the continuing invasion by the alien dwenda to reclaim the earth for themselves and rule over all humanity. But the real selling point for this book is the skill and complexity of Morgan when he gets down to his wordsmithing. In his hands the English language is putty, infinitely malleable, oscillating between equals parts gutter pulp and high poetry. Morgan is not afraid to make tough decisions either. His characters are not righteously pure examples of humanity, rather, they display their all to common frailties at every turn. Our heroes make bad decisions based on ego and clumsy thinking and there are bloodly repercussions for their poorly timed hubris. As an added Easter Egg, readers familiar with Morgan’s previous work will recognize deliberate nods to his seminal work in the Takeshi Kovacs trilogy. A fantastic read that I can’t recommend enough.

Best New Sci-Fi Novel 2011

Scott

LEVIATHAN WAKES - James S.A. Corey

Another easy category. LEVIATHAN WAKES, a joint foray into sci-fi by Daniel Abraham & Ty Franck under the pseudonym James S.A. Corey is a completely engrossing, space opera of the highest quality. It had a few minor issues, but not enough to really get upset over. Overall I was fairly floored both by how readable it was and how much I am salivating to read next year’s sequel CALIBAN’S WAR. You’d be hard-pressed to find a better sci-fi debut this past year.

Chris

POCK'S WORLD - Dave Duncan

POCK’S WORLD is about humanity’s struggle to understand itself in the face of ever increasing change. Spread out across the stars, humanity has developed a very rigid definition about what a human being is. In a future where genetic manipulation is commonplace falling outside those descriptions ensures your own death sentence. When contact is lost with the far flung Pock’s World the worst is feared.

Not every book needs to be a home run. As satisfying as belting one over the far wall can be, sometimes there’s just as much poetry in seeing a ground rule double being perfectly executed. That’s pretty much what I feel like when I think about POCK’S WORLD. Author Dave Duncan isn’t interested in creating this elaborate ongoing soap opera that seems to be the standard in any genre work today. Instead, he strips his story down to the bolts, jettisons any unneeded superfluity and just concentrates on telling a simple story well. And he succeeds brilliantly. POCK’S WORLD is like a writing clinic on the craft that aspiring authors would do well to bone up on. You’ll be thinking about this book for days afterwards.

Best Author 2011

Scott

PATRICK LEE (Author of THE BREACH, GHOST COUNTRY & DEEP SKY)

A tough category. Funnily enough I am going to give this to a thriller writer, and not only that but one who is also fairly new to the scene. Patrick Lee, released a couple of thriller books over the last 3 years, the first THE BREACH and the second GHOST COUNTRY were both totally engrossing, action-packed and absolutely clever as can be. The 3rd book (DEEP SKY) just came out and after standing in a long Boxing Day line-up to buy it, I absolutely cannot wait to read it. To have burst onto the scene with books that are so readable, fascinating and ultimately entertaining as hell, this award goes to Patrick. Well done sir! Keep the books coming. I'm not kidding here. If you haven't read these books you absolutely HAVE to. Do yourself a favour and check them out.

Best Short Fiction Story 2011

Scott

THE BUTCHER OF ANDERSON STATION - James S.A. Corey

 This puts James S.A. Corey on the list twice this year, since THE BUTCHER OF ANDERSON STATION was far and away the best short piece I’ve read this year. A fantastic little piece that gives us insight into one of the enigmatic main characters in the Expanse series. It's shortish, and yet it still feels like a piece of an epic universe. Loved it. Well done to the co-author's Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck for getting on our award list twice!

Chris

MILE 81 - Stephen King

 Winner of this category by sheer virtue of the fact that I’m reasonably sure it was the only short fiction I actually read this year. (How’s that for damning with faint praise?) While King might have mellowed in recent years, forgoing his traditional MO of grabbing your heart and squeezing tightly, that doesn’t mean he’s incapable of putting together a good short story. Built around a mysterious abandoned car found at the side of dilapidated road stop, one with a seemingly insatiable appetite for human flesh, MILE 81 doesn’t try to reinvent the short story. Its not here to fill you up with fancy eatings, but rather to whet your appetite for more gore and viscera with a quick taste from the appetizer menu.

“Come on in,” it beckons. “Give us a try.”

MILE 81 is a great way to lose yourself for 20 minutes on the subway or before you go to bed. And frankly, what more were you looking for?

Best Graphic Novel / Comic Book or Series 2011

Scott

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. AGENTS - Nick Spencer & Carlos Urbano

 DC Comics has slowly, but surely, replaced my go-to comic reads. This past year they re-booted an old title in T.H.U.N.D.E.R AGENTS, and kind of melted my brain. The non-linear storytelling, the twisting turning story itself, Nick Spencer’s phenomenal writing, and even the amazing art by Carlos Urbano all served to impress the hell out of me. I can’t say enough nice things about the series and I’m really glad I took a chance on it.

Chris

BATWOMAN - J.H. Williams III & W. Haden Blackman

 There is no more beautiful looking comic book currently being published than BATWOMAN. Artist and co-writer J.H. Williams III simply blows his competition out of the water.

Frequently choosing to tell the story in elaborate double page spreads, each issue is a gorgeous work of art and sets a new standard when it comes to the craft of sequential storytelling. It’s not enough to read an issue once. The detail and layout demand repeated readings, with each subsequent consumption harvesting a greater appreciation of the finished product in the heart of the reader.

My only complaint is that the double page layout makes for cramped reading on the smaller iPad screen. But if publishers were ever looking for a way to keep enticing readers to purchase physical copies this is the way to do it. This title has become the biggest ‘must read’ in my monthly habit and makes a compelling argument for the power of comic books when you take the time and effort to do it right.

Best Non-Fiction Read 2011

Chris

SUPERGODS - Grant Morrison

I had to negotiate with Scott to add this category. Because SUPERGODS deserves some sort of accolade in any fan’s ‘best of’ list and it feels wrong to simply shoehorn it into another section. Part autobiography, part historical record and part hallucinogenic rambling SUPERGODS may not be the most definitive dissection of the history of comic books, but it may just be the most insightful one. Author Grant Morrison examines his own personal relationship with the four colour funnies through a time of social, political and economic upheaval and compares it to his own growth and development as a writer. The end result is a fascinating analysis that reshapes the reader’s own interactions with comic books and imparts a new depth onto old material.

Best Dialogue 2011

Scott

GHOST STORY - Jim Butcher

When it comes to dialogue, no one does it better than Jim Butcher. Most especially in his Dresden Files series. Harry Dresden can be a smart-ass, he can be sarcastic, he can be loving and emotionally resonant, he can be furiously angry, and he can be poetically heroic. All those things are wrapped up into one in the latest Dresden File GHOST STORY. If you don’t read Butcher or Dresden then I am afraid you are cold and dead inside.

Best Old Book Read of 2011

Scott

BLOOD OATH - Christopher Farnsworth

This is a fairly recent title, but it was published in 2010 and I only read it the first time this year, so here is the category it wins. BLOOD OATH basically took everything I LOVE about thrillers (historical mysteries, action, spies), and added stuff like vampires, werewolves, and effing Cthulu! No honestly, as I stated in my review, adding Lovecraftian minions in ANY way to your narrative triples its value for me. Basically this book fires on every cylinder that I know to exist and then it fires on some space-age futuristic cylinders that are fed by the fires of a thousand dead zombie bodies. This IS entertainment. I got the second one for Christmas and can't wait to get into it!

Chris

DIVING INTO THE WRECK - Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Boss loves wreck diving old abandoned space ships. But one day she discovers an ancient earth warship that shouldn’t exist at all. Putting together a small group Boss explores the wreck, determined to find its hidden secrets. When tragedy strikes and crew members start dying it seems like the cost of getting her answers might be too high by far.

WRECK is a slow, measured book that feels like you’re reading the first half hour of Ridley Scott’s ALIEN, you know, the part before everything goes to shit. Rusch writes space exploration as quiet and languid rather than just jumping in the nearest tin can and cranking everything up to 11. As a result the book is very different from a lot of the other genre offerings out there. Its methodical approach is more interested in looking at the inner workings of the characters that populate its pages than performing dazzling feats of pseudo-science. Like the solitary pursuit of wreck diving itself WRECK has a very contained, almost documentarian feel, a feeling reinforced by the constant monologuing of the book’s lead character. WRECK is what you read when you’re looking to switch it up a bit, a palette cleanser that rewards the reader with a thought out and thoughtful story.

Best Blog of 2011

Scott

CIVILIAN READER

I’m giving the nod this year to CIVILIAN READER. The guy is an absolute machine, pumping out reviews, interviews, contests ect. His content is always current, always interesting, and is a must read on a daily basis.

Runner Up: Amanda’s FLOOR TO CEILING BOOKS has now closed as the blogstress herself has moved on to work for a publisher (ANGRY ROBOT) heading up their YA imprint, STRANGECHEMISTRY. We wish her luck at her new digs, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I will miss her blog, so she gets a mention for Blog of 2011. Go on over and read her VIA the new site as she is always knowledgeable, funny and exciting.

That's it for this year's awards folks. Hope you enjoyed our list here. Perhaps you agree with some choices, and hopefully we might lead you to some new reads as well!

Book Review: THE COLD COMMANDS by Richard Morgan

It’s been a year since the dwenda invasion was first turned back.

Famed war hero Ringil Eskiath continues to wage his personal war against the slave trade that killed his cousin. In the capitol his former comrade in arms, Egar Dragonbane, has grown bored with city living and chafes at the easy life that is dulling his senses. Finally, the half Kiriath noble, Archeth Indamaninarmal, has been sent on mission halfway around the world to retrieve a mysterious Helmsman that claims to have knowledge about how the Empire can defeat the dwenda hordes.

Because make no mistake, the dwenda have not gone away. Barely defeated in armed combat they have decided on a more subtle plan to take back Earth, corrupting the Empire from within. And, as the dwenda’s plans move rapidly towards their final endgame it looks as if the conquest of humanity is nigh.

Keen observers of this blog might have noticed that while Scott and I are quite willing to ramble on at length on just about any book that we get our hands on, we generally tend to stick close to our respective genres of choice. I mostly prefer sci-fi while Scott has staked his claim to the world of fantasy.

My aversion comes from having read too much regurgitated fantasy. I long ago grew tired of the same shop worn character archetypes that were thrown into the same old storylines. Yes. I know there are a lot of great fantasy books out there and I’ve been fortunate enough to read many of them. But on the whole I found that I had to wade through piles of mediocre rehash in order to get there.

And, as a reader, I just don’t enjoy magic all that much. I always want to know how and why things work and oftentimes magic is presented as this unknowable device that you just have to accept on faith. Mind you, when you get down to it’s not like science fiction is any different. A lot of the advanced ideas and constructs are so fanciful and impossible to explain that they might just as well be magic. But at least with sci-fi there is often a pseudo-scientific explanation that I can wrap around myself in order to pretend it all makes sense.

(It’s a bit like someone who enjoys Cheez Whiz turning their nose up at aerosolized cheese spread because they feel like the addition of the gas really screws up the refined taste.)

What makes THE COLD COMMANDS so great as a fantasy novel is the complete absence of the usual clichés. This book is as close as you can get to a hard boiled fantasy novel without transplanting everyone in it to 1940s Los Angeles.

What struck me most is that that book was utterly devoid of any romantic overtones. The lead characters are enveloped in a hard bitten mentality that is fresh and compelling. Moreover the book’s ‘heroes’ are tragically flawed. Ringil, Egar and Archeth aren’t noble and just, they’re functioning drug addicts, bored war heroes and shit disturbing semi-sociopaths who think more about getting laid then about doing good. In fact, when they do manage to accomplish something positive it’s more likely to be an accidental side effect from some self-serving personal undertaking.

And it’s not just for show. These aren’t some crunchy on the surface, creamy in the middle, faux anti-heroes that Hollywood has engrained upon us must be portrayed by perfectly sculpted bodies, lantern jaws and a wry sense of humor. There are no charming Han Solos here, just damaged goods trying to make the best of a world that’s falling to pieces around them.

It’s not just Morgan’s strong character work that makes COMMANDS such a compelling read, the man is a gifted wordsmith as well. Drawing heavily on the expressive gutter pulp stylings of the hard boiled genre, he often manages to transcend these coarse underpinnings to create vibrant snapshots that stay with the reader after the story has moved on.

THE COLD COMMANDS is a great book that should be at the top of any genre reader’s ‘to consume instantly’ list. Morgan is at the top of his game here, creating a taut and riveting tale that manages to hook you in the book’s first pages and refuses to let go until its explosive ending. COMMANDS also achieved that rarest of victories, instilling in me a sense of rage and frustration at having to wait a couple years in order to see how this story pans out. That honour was previously a hallmark of the multi-year gaps between installments in the WHEEL OF TIME series.

And, for expanded universe aficionados, Morgan even manages to tie his incredibly popular Takeshi Kovacs trilogy into the book’s mythology, adding a deep layer of subtext and meaning to the story’s narrative that will have those ‘in the know’ pouring through the pages looking for hidden clues*. Of course, with the implied involvement of Kovacs it means the sci-fi\fantasy elements of the novel are blurred even further (maybe that’s why I enjoyed it so much). If you’re looking for something different out of your fantasy books, this trilogy is the perfect place to start. Read. Consume. Enjoy.

*just me then? Right.

Crackpot Doctor Who Theory: 50th Anniversary Speculation

Interesting Iceberg Ink Fact:

The most consistently visited post in our blog’s yearlong history is my original DOCTOR WHO Crackpot Theories: River Song Is The TARDIS post. Without fail, most months, it tops the list in hits and holds the record for most views ever by a country mile. What’s funny about that is the theory has long ago been blown out of the water by the revelations of who River Song actually is, but the post still gets hit numerous times every month.

Why do I bring this up? Well as you can see by the post title, it’s that time again. Crackpot Theories time!

Up this time, I speculate on the nature and story that will be told in the upcoming 2013 50th Anniversary special(s). Recently Moffat stated the following in an interview about the 50th:

"Why talk in the singular? The plans are at an early stage, but we have some very clear ideas about some of the things we're doing, and I think Doctor Who fans and kids will think it's the best thing ever. We've got a load of very big plans – the mere fact that we're talking about this two years before the event should tell you how seriously we're taking it." ~Steven Moffat

The notion being that perhaps the 50^th anniversary will be spread over more than one episode. This prompted me to my theory. Now stick with me for a bit while I wax on the immediate future of DW (AKA Series 7) first.

Matt Smith’s 11^th Doctor, we now know is headed into the 7^th Series. As quoted by Dorium Maldovar in the final Series 6 episode THE WEDDING OF RIVER SONG:

“On the fields of Trenzalore, at the fall of the 11th, when no living creature can speak falsely or fail to answer, a Question will be asked. A question that must never, ever be answered. Doctor Who?”

So this leads me to the immediate belief, that the “fall of the 11^th” could very well be the 11^th Doctor’s death and regeneration into the 12^th Doctor (implied by the fact that Matt Smith may be leaving the role after Series 7). So to me that means that perhaps, just perhaps the 50^th Anniversary special(s) will be when we actually see the prophetic events at the fields of Trenzalore.

So here we come to my crackpot theory. If there might be multiple episodes for the 50^th, and so far people have speculated that previous Doctor’s (David Tennant chief among them, and hopefully Peter Davison or even Tom Baker) will be returning in some way (like the previous many Doctor’s eps like THE FIVE DOCTORS), why not dedicate an episode to each Doctor. That way you have 4 or 5 disparate stories, each with a different Doctor in the lead that all head in the direction of the 11^th Doctor’s fall at Trenzalore. Then cap it all off with one final episode where all the stories come together and all the Doctor’s star in it at once helping one another to whatever narrative common goal or resolution.

It’s seems to be only a bit of a stretch, since the commonly held notion that multiple Doctor’s would feature in the 50^th. So jumping to the conclusion that there might be multiple-Doctor arcs to the overall story doesn’t seem so much like fanboy crackery as it does common sense to honor the franchise. Created by Steven Moffat, the ultimate DW fanboy himself.

I’d like to see this happen. Sadly, I doubt we will know ANYTHING about it until later next year when they start shooting the special(s).

What do you all think? Fanboy madness or believable prophecy?

Podcast: The Giggle Loop #05 - 2011 In Review, Aliens, and 2012-ery (Christmas Edition)

Well, it's that time again. Time for Chris and I to ramble in your ears for another hour. In this, the Christmas Edition, we talk about the Best Of TV and Movies this past year. We also talk about inanities like the ALIENS franchise and what order we rank them in, which ties forward into discussion about a number of things that we are looking forward to in 2012, one of which is the pesudo-prequel PROMETHEUS. We also ramble about assorted other randomness, and even DOCTOR WHO briefly.

So sit back, relax and let our honeyed, angelic voices fill your earholes.



The Giggle Loop #05 - 2011 In Review, Aliens, and 2012-ery (Christmas Edition)
Running Time: 1:13:32
MP3 HERE

Short Story Review: The Butcher Of Anderson Station (A Story of the Expanse) - James S.A. Corey

A new story set in the world of The Expanse. One day, Colonel Fred Johnson will be hailed as a hero to the system. One day, he will meet a desperate man in possession of a stolen spaceship and a deadly secret and extend a hand of friendship. But long before he became the leader of the Outer Planets Alliance, Fred Johnson had a very different name. The Butcher of Anderson Station.

This is his story.

I read James S.A. Corey’s (pen name of author’s Daniel Abraham & Ty Franck) LEVIATHAN WAKES early this year and it really knocked me out. A great action-packed space opera filled with heroes, villains and grey’s. Political entanglements, war, and even xenophobic mysteries abounded. In short, I loved it.

So I jumped at the chance to read the short piece they released titled THE BUTCHER OF ANDERSON STATION. Now if you have read LEVIATHAN WAKES, then you’ll know whom this story is about. If you haven’t read it, this story concerns one of the main characters named Fred Johnson, and an action that gave him a certain name.

I wondered about this story when I was reading the first novel, and have been rewarded with a short piece that is really well written (as good as anything within the original narrative), completely engrossing (a tall order for a short fiction piece), entirely informative (giving me far more insight into Johnson) and brutally honest.

The universe in the books of the Expanse series was already quite well fleshed out, so here we have an enigmatic character with a past and we get to look into that. Told by switching between the events that happened on Anderson Station, and a more recent conversation between Johnson and some mysterious operatives, THE BUTCHER OF ANDERSON STATION is a really fun, and interesting tale.

I’d be a complete idiot if I neglected to tell you that all this short piece did was get me REALLY excited to read the second book in The Expanse, CALIBAN’S WAR which comes out next year. Seriously, the wait till June is going to be brutal as I simply don’t get excited over much sci-fi, but this series jumped to the top of my list of faves quite easily.

If you enjoyed LEVIATHAN WAKES, then this little nugget of a tale will truly satisfy you, and if you haven’t read the first book yet, what are you waiting for? It was easily one of last years best sci-fi debuts!

 

Doctor Who Re-Watch: Series 1 Episode's 9 & 10 (The Empty Child, The Doctor Dances)

The first time current showrunner Steven Moffat applied his writerly skills to the DOCTOR WHO universe, it was during Series 1 for the two part story of THE EMPTY CHILD and THE DOCTOR DANCES.  It was the first time any of us knew that with the right idea, Moffat’s tales could blow the doors clean off DW crafting not only memorable, but award-winning episodes! This was a trend that would continue as the Series went on, but for now let’s talk about this first one.

The Doctor and Rose follow the distress beacon of an alien craft in the TARDIS. As they land in London in the vicinity of the crash site, the Doctor informs Rose that although they followed the ship closely the TARDIS has dropped them more than a month after the alien ship had crashed. They are also both completely unaware what the date is. It is quickly apparent that it is the past, but more specifically that it is WWII-era during the London Blitz. The Doctor goes off in search of someone to help locate the fallen ship, while Rose sees a young boy in a gas mask calling out for his mother and she goes to investigate. Rose finds herself in short order hanging from a dirigible by rope, and The Doctor finds the TARDIS phone (a device that isn’t connected to anything) ringing. Over the course of the first episode we meet the monster of the episode, which it turns out, is the Gas Mask child (and anyone he touched, who then become Gas Masked as well and are forever looking for their mothers).  We also meet (for the first, but certainly not last time) Captain Jack Harkness. A far cry from his much more altruistic hero future, here he is shown as a con-man/trickster who actually caused the alien ship to crash in the hopes to swindle the Doctor for it.

I can’t help but love these two episodes. We get a villain who is not a villain, we get another villain who is really a victim, we get the rigors of war, we get creepy dialogue (“Are you my mummy?”), we get Rose in a flirtatious relationship with someone other than the Doctor, and lastly we get the Doctor expressing something we had yet to really see from him…happiness. In less than two hours, Moffat has crafted a stunning microcosm of all the things that make the re-launched DOCTOR WHO series so utterly watchable. In fact of all the episodes that my co-watchers (read: first time watchers) have seen, this two-parter has resonated the loudest. I was told “Wow, those were REALLY good!” by said co-watchers. And that’s the point I’m making. Any time I try to get people to watch DW Series 1, I will immediately mention these two episodes (and FATHER’S DAY) to them, because although there are other very good episodes in Series 1, these ones have EVERYTHING and will totally hook the new viewer.

Rose has a nice little romp in this one, a lot of which she is on her own for. This is actually one of the first times in the Series that she is left to her own devices (unwatched over) by the Doctor. There are hints of the strength that she will begin to show as a character. The first peeks of an independent Companion of the Doctor, as opposed to the unknowing tagalong she spends a few episodes being when we began this journey when she is still unsure. I mean, she’s not yet confronting and bewildering Daleks or Cybermen, but at least she starts on the path. That’s a big deal due to where the things go by the end of the Series and the Bad Wolf-Arc.

Harkness is represented well, and you even buy into his transformation over the course of the 2 eps from con-man to upstanding hero. A change wrought almost entirely by having met and pissed off the Doctor. I love that bit actually, since it showcases how even just meeting him and hearing the way he sees things can change a person. That’s a huge weight to bear around, and the Doctor does it like it’s  a feather.

This is one of the Doctor’s finest hours. The ending of THE DOCTOR DANCES is probably one of the most iconic moments of Nu-Who and has dialogue that is repeated by fans. You really can’t help but feel the infectious nature of that when you watch it, and I feel that is something that Moffat usually brings to his episodes. It is certainly one of the reasons that he has won so many Hugo Awards for these stories.

I love these through and through, and even though I have seen them multiple times, I never get bored of them.

NEXT TIME: An old, previously thought defeated (flatulent) enemy returns in BOOM TOWN.

Coming Soon: The Prisoner Of Heaven - Carlos Ruiz Zafon

It is no small thing to not only make the top ten list of a fantasy/sci-fi book nerd, but to top it as favourite book of all time is kind of impressive for a Gothic historical thriller. Zafon did that with the incredible SHADOW OF THE WIND, and then brought out the darker quasi-sequel THE ANGEL'S GAME which was impressive as well. After seeing a couple of his early works (YA titles) translated in the meantime, it looks like Zafon is now ready to drop his latest book. And of course, it concerns The Cemetery Of Forgotten Books and it sounds like this is a direct sequel to THE SHADOW OF THE WIND and I absolutely CANNOT wait!

See below the Spanish Cover art for the blurb directly from Zafon's English website.

"The Prisoner of Heaven, the brand new novel from Carlos Ruiz Zafón, is to be published next summer.

The Prisoner of Heaven returns to the world of The Cemetery of Forgotten Books and the Sempere & Sons bookshop. It begins one year after the close of The Shadow of the Wind when a mysterious stranger enters the shop, looking for a copy of The Count of Monte Cristo.

The Prisoner of Heaven is published in Spain today and the English language version will be out in the UK on 21/06/2012"

~http://www.carlosruizzafon.co.uk/

Book Trailers: Blue Remembered Earth - Alastair Reynolds

I'm a huge Reynolds fan and so I've been considerably pumped for his new book (the first in a new series titled Poseidon's Children), and this one sounds excellent:

Synopsis:

One hundred and fifty years from now, in a world where Africa is the dominant technological and economic power, and where crime, war, disease and poverty have been banished to history, Geoffrey Akinya wants only one thing: to be left in peace, so that he can continue his studies into the elephants of the Amboseli basin. But Geoffrey's family, the vast Akinya business empire, has other plans. After the death of Eunice, Geoffrey's grandmother, erstwhile space explorer and entrepreneur, something awkward has come to light on the Moon, and Geoffrey is tasked - well, blackmailed, really - to go up there and make sure the family's name stays suitably unblemished. But little does Geoffrey realise - or anyone else in the family, for that matter - what he's about to unravel. Eunice's ashes have already have been scattered in sight of Kilimanjaro. But the secrets she died with are about to come back out into the open, and they could change everything. Or shatter this near-utopia into shards ...

Here is the book trailer that Gollancz had made and have now release, and it's a really slick one!

Enjoy.

Short Story Review: The Viscount And The Witch (Ryria) - Michael J. Sullivan

 

Eleven years before they were framed for the murder of a king, before even assuming the title of Riyria, Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater were practically strangers. Unlikely associates, this cynical thief and idealist swordsman, were just learning how to work together as a team. In this standalone first installment of The Riyria Chronicles, Royce is determined to teach his naive partner a lesson about good deeds. Join Royce and Hadrian in this short story (5,400 words) about one of their earliest adventures.

In the short fiction piece titled THE VISCOUNT AND THE WITCH, Ryria Revelations author Michael J. Sullivan, has crafted what I would term as a nice little fictional anecdote.

Laid out as an incident early on in the career of our favrouite thieving team, and long before they even were referred to as Ryria, this little tale is short, but nicely to the point. As to not give anything away I won’t post any story points, but I will say that if you enjoyed the Ryria book, then this will be right up your alley. In fact, even if you haven’t read the Ryria books you can read this as it takes place years before, and the Ebook actually comes with a sample from the first part of the Orbit THEFT OF SWORDS omnibus to read as well. Not bad at all. If I had any complaints, it would be that it felt a tad too short. Like just as things got going, it was over. I get what Michael was doing with it, but I can't help but be a fanboy and wish I'd gotten more Ryria.

That said, for a tale as short as this it is really nice to see the personalities of both Hadrian and Royce front and center, as is their great banter.  I loved this story and it took all of about ten minutes to devour so it was quick and simple and really whet’s my appetite for the final book in the series. Can’t wait! An enjoyable romp with your favourite thieves.

Book Review: Wolf Of The Plains (Conqueror #1) - Conn Iggulden

 

He was born Temujin, the son of a khan, raised in a clan of hunters migrating across the rugged steppe. Temujin’s young life was shaped by a series of brutal acts: the betrayal of his father by a neighboring tribe and the abandonment of his entire family, cruelly left to die on the harsh plain. But Temujin endured—and from that moment on, he was driven by a singular fury: to survive in the face of death, to kill before being killed, and to conquer enemies who could come without warning from beyond the horizon.

Through a series of courageous raids against the Tartars, Temujin’s legend grew. And so did the challenges he faced—from the machinations of a Chinese ambassador to the brutal abduction of his young wife, Borte. Blessed with ferocious courage, it was the young warrior’s ability to learn, to imagine, and to judge the hearts of others that propelled him to greater and greater power. Until Temujin was chasing a vision: to unite many tribes into one, to make the earth tremble under the hoofbeats of a thousand warhorses, to subject unknown nations and even empires to his will. 

I actually read the majority of this, the first book in Conn Iggulden’s Conqueror Series, a few months back. Some other books dropped and I had to put it down for a time, but this past weekend I went on a spree and did a bunch of reading, and foremost on the list was finishing up WOLF OF THE PLAINS.

You all may know him as Ghenghis Khan, but when he began life his name was Temujin and he was second son of the leader of a nomadic tribe of Mongolian’s called The Wolves. Raised as the son of a Khan, he learned the sword and the bow from a young age. He is even taken into another tribe called the Olkuhn’ut, a place he will choose a future bride from. Just when things seem to be going well when his father Yesugei is attacked by Tartar’s and wounded, the injuries of which eventually kill him and then all hell breaks loose. Eeluk, one of his father’s sworn men (bondsmen), usurps the tribal leadership of the “Wolves” and banishes Temujin, his mother and his brothers and sister to the plains where they endure hardship, starvation and betrayal that almost kills them.

A few years later, when Temujin is about eighteen he and his remaining brothers Kachuin, Khasar, and young Temuge, as well as his sister Temulun and mother Hoelun are living decently on the Steppes when Eeluk’s Wolves come to visit, where they capture Temujin and bring him back to the Wolf camp to be kept captive and tortured as Eeluk seeks to solidify his reign by showing his mastery over the son of Yesugei.

I don’t want to spoil too much of the plot, so I will leave it at that, but know that after he is captured the narrative flies off at a rocket pace. It shows us how a captured young man, beaten, bloodied, and left for dead by one tribe amongst many warring tribes on the plains, came back from that and became one of the most famous men in history.

If you have not seen the film MONGOL by Russian director Sergei Bodrov, it is a stunning film about the man and very interesting. What always gets me, however, was a few sentences in the trailer and as I read this book I could not help hearing them in my head: (Note: This is to be read in the Trailer-Guy’s voice)

“When he was a boy, everything he loved was taken from him.”

“When he became a man, he would fulfill his destiny.”

“He would raise an army, and he would take it…all back.”

“One day, he would rule the largest empire the world has ever known.”

It’s funny, but as I have stated in previous review I LOVE books about glory, and I especially loves books about Glory won at odds with the situation by the underdog. Well there is no bigger underdog story than that of a young boy who is made into a slave and not only comes back against his tormentors, but unites many tribes and builds an empire that would stretch from the Black Sea to the Pacific Ocean. I’m sorry, but that is impressive! That’s an empire that would have rivaled Rome.

At any rate, Conn Iggulden is a master among contemporaries like Bernard Cornwell, and Robyn Young. Historical fiction comes to him as easily as walking. Years ago I read his first series that was about Julius Caesar, and enjoyed it wholeheartedly. I hasn’t moved on to this new series until recently, and while I feel remiss for not having gotten into it until now, I am also excited to have so many books ahead of me to read! Iggulden’s prose is easy and flows like water off the page. I never find myself thinking there is too much exposition, or not enough action. The author has a deft hand with action set-pieces and makes them sweeping and epic, while still feeling quite visceral and close-quartered.

The story itself is absolutely fascinating. I knew next to nothing about Ghenghis Khan when I began this series, and now having this little bit of his childhood, his rise to adulthood, and the very beginnings of the empire he would rule I am totally enthralled. Iggulden brings a level of excitement to the tale and the pacing at points borders on ridiculous. While I found the initial 50 or 60 pages or so to be a bit heavy on set-up, once things properly get going and once Temujin begins his story properly I found it incredibly hard to put down.

A really amazing roller-coaster of action and suspense bundled into a story from history that not a lot of people know about, WOLF OF THE PLAINS is the real deal. If his Julius Caesar series was his opening salvo to the historical fiction world, then the Conqueror series is his magnum opus. A brutal, blood-soaked novel, that will ultimately keep you reading and learning about one of the greatest empires the world has ever known, and just how it came to be.

Book Review: Warhammer 40,000 - The Founding (A Gaunt's Ghost Omnibus) - Dan Abnett (Part 2)

 

Chasing immediately on the heels of such a fantastic opener as FIRST And ONLY, the second book in the first Gaunt’s Ghost Omnibus has a tall order ahead of it. In GHOSTMAKER, Dan Abnett has decided to approach this order from a strange, and ultimately successful angle. Instead of another full, straightforward story narrative, we get numerous short fiction pieces instead. There are little chapter/short piece openers that all take place on the same jungle planet where the Ghost’s await word to attack. As Gaunt walks the lines and encounters each of his men, he begins to recount earlier stories of each one. So we get thick, deep back stories about people like Mad Larkin, Rawne, Corbec, McKoll, Caffran, Domor and even Milo. Those stories really delve into the personalities that were only hinted at in the previous volume, and as a second book this idea pays off well. I walked away from GHOSTMAKER with a much clearer understanding of each of the Ghost’s as individuals.

Each of the stories are quite well thought out and cleverly executed. I was never bored and the stories don’t overlap each other, even though they are all war and battle stories. I think my favourite was probably Mad Larkin’s tale THE ANGEL OF BUCEPHALON, part of which because we discover that Mad Larkin suffers from Epilepsy (an illness that a member of my family is afflicted with), and he’s a sniper. Not only that, but he is the BEST sniper in the whole regiment. It’s a well told story that surprises you and informs you at the same time. It’s also hard not to sympathize with the way a soldier like Mad Larkin deals with and reacts to the insanities of war, when you see it through his eyes. I concentrate on his story, but all the soldiers pieces were lucid, interesting studies of the personalities that have to stand out in ensemble fiction like this. Abnett took the time to write this book and give us concentration to delineate between the various people.

The ending brings us back to the main storyline on the jungle planet as the attack is called and the Ghost’s do so in squads. It is in this section that we are introduced to a new faction in the W40K universe, one I won’t spoil here, but again Abnett has the skill involved to present a huge chunk of the universe and not only make it easy to understand but he gives you just enough to be intrigued enough to want more.

I have not yet moved on to the third part of the omnibus, NECROPOLIS, as I had a few other books to get to, but I will be coming back to it soon as I hear it is a lot of people’s favourite of the three stories. To say I am going in with excitement to that third book is kind of a no-brainer. No, what I am really pleased about is that I get to go into the third book with an insight and an understanding of the main forces of the Ghost’s themselves as individuals, and that to me is priceless.

So Abnett has made the second book in the series be an excellent magnifying glass through which to see war as microcosm, and it paid off bigtime.