Karsa Orlong

Seven eps into the first season of Continuum. Really enjoying it.

Thanks Laura And yeah, it is the series that the film was based on. Parts of the film's story were lifted from different books (there's a few bits from the first book, Master & Commander, and I've just started the 10th book, The Far Side of the World, which I'm assuming will contain a lot more, given that it was the film's title). I'd love them to make more! Crowe's nothing like the Jack Aubrey I know from the books, though, and it's annoying to have his voice and dodgy accent constantly in my head when I'm reading Jack's dialogue. I imagine Jack looking more like Steven Waddington (below), who played the English officer in Last of the Mohicans. He definitely looks right for the part. But I'm guessing the film might never have been made if Crowe hadn't thrown his weight behind it. It's not quite the sin of casting Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher, thankfully Not so much in those quotes, but there are a lot of words I don't know in the books Although I own up to book #10 in paperback I've read the last couple on Kindle and being able to just tap a word to get the meaning - so much easier to do than on the old Kindle Keyboard - has increased my enjoyment of the books even further. When I was reading the paperbacks I'd occasionally look up a word, or Google something or other, but most of the time I just guessed the meanings and carried on. Plus if it's not in the dictionary the Kindle goes off and looks it up in Wikipedia, so I feel like I'm getting so much more out of the stories and the writing, and learning at the same time. I my Kindle Voyage

Currently enjoying Elite Dangerous. Trying hard not to get addicted to it the way I got addicted to Frontier: Elite 2 about 20 years ago. It was touch and go over the Christmas hols but I think I've managed it

And proud of it

Treason's Harbour (Aubrey/Maturin Book #9) by Patrick O'Brian 1983 - Harper ebook - 400 pages While Captain Aubrey worries about repairs to his ship, Stephen Maturin assumes the center stage; for the dockyards and salons of Malta are alive with Napoleon's agents, and the admiralty's intelligence network is compromised. Maturin's cunning is the sole bulwark against sabotage of Aubrey's daring mission. Note: This book begins 2-3 weeks after the events of The Ionian Mission. I liked: The espionage thrills and spills. The story begins as Jack and Stephen are sitting in the town square not knowing that they are being spied upon, by French agents, from the clock tower of a nearby building, and it's just the start of their cat and mouse adventure. The setting of Malta and the atmosphere the writing evokes. It's just bursting with character. One or two lengthy missions away from Malta, including one to the Red Sea that involves a long march across the desert, double-crosses, and attacks by Bedouin tribesmen. The way both Jack and Stephen are rumoured to be involved with Laura Fielding, a young, beautiful Italian woman whose English naval office husband is being held prisoner by the French. And the only reason this applies to Jack is because her dog takes a shine to him The way O'Brien lets us know about a double agent whilst the characters remain in the dark. Trust no-one, Stephen! The humour. It's so funny in places. I disliked: Another cliffhanger ending, meaning I have to go straight onto the next book. Of course I do! After all, there is not a moment to be lost! This is fast becoming my favourite series - ever - and this is another enthralling, thrilling entry. Masterful storytelling, perfect in just about every way. Fabulous. Memorable Quotes:

If only Pixie would be languid! She's too busy at the moment stressing about next door's new kitten, yowling and hissing at her through the front window

Heathen

Yeah, I've no idea how she manages to read all those books and write all those articles/reviews/blogs/books Thanks Sarah

Yeah, Yojimbo is fantastic, and has the benefit of being about half the length of Seven Samurai Toshiro Mifune in top form in both of them Sven rules!

Classic indeed! I've been wanting to re-watch it since reading Shogun, even bought the Kurosawa 'Samurai Collection' on Blu-ray (to replace my old Criterion dvd edition) for the purpose. Might have to watch it in shifts, though, it's so long I watched Frozen last night

A gentle breeze from the north-east after a night of rain, and the washed sky over Malta had a particular quality in its light that sharpened the lines of the noble buildings, bringing out all the virtue of the stone; the air too was a delight to breathe, and the city of Valletta was as cheerful as though it were fortunate in love or as though it had suddenly heard good news. - Treason's Harbour by Patrick O'Brian

I'm hoping the tv series might reinvigorate my interest. I read LW and enjoyed it, bought the sequel, but then have never had the inkling to go read it or the rest, and have now forgotten almost everything about the first book

How about Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury?

I think I've said this before but about another series: is there anything Jo Walton hasn't read (and then written about)?? http://www.tor.com/features/series/re-reading-patrick-obrians-aubrey-maturin-series

Thanks VF! I'm sure it's not that original, though Thanks Janet You do realise they're little grey men, though, don't you? Fox Mulder would back me up on this

Hope you have a great reading year, Kay, and a happy and healthy one, too Oh, it's nice to know you've bought a new bookshelf just for science fiction. Well done!

Probably to try and get a bigger audience in - and because he's executive producer. I would've been surprised if he'd stayed, though, given his commitment to Falling Skies. Mind you, that's finishing soon, so maybe he'll switch over to The Librarians full time if it gets another season Just watched the first two episodes of Agent Carter. Thought it was great! Loved the Carter/Jarvis relationship, the use of music and radio shows, the period feel to it. And it was very funny. Hayley Atwell has a great feel for comic timing. If it keeps the standard up all the way through I'll be really annoyed that it's only eight episodes.

I love it when a plan comes together Yeah, it is There are six books planned, I believe, plus several novellas

The Ionian Mission (Aubrey/Maturin Book #8) by Patrick O'Brian 1981 - Harper ebook - 399 pages Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin return to the seas where they first sailed as shipmates. But Jack is now a senior Captain commanding a line-of-battle ship, and this is a longer, harder war than the dashing frigate actions of his early days. I liked: O'Brian's writing style, as always, is a joy to read. His use of language, the dialogue, the atmosphere he creates - there is nothing to kick the reader out of the experience. You're there, on that ship, on that sea, in the middle of the Napoleonic Wars. Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin - they're quickly becoming my favourite fictional duo. Right up there with Holmes and Watson. Their friendship is the heartbeat of the book. This one has a somewhat episodic nature about it, driven by the overall mission to blockade the French fleet at Toulon, but there are several side plots and missions within that. It worked really well. The espionage and the tangled political web of the eastern Mediterranean all add to the flavour. The secondary characters and the humour that O'Brian works in so naturally. Killick, in particular, is grumpy most of the time and hilarious all of the time. The final sea battle is tense, exciting and phenomenally paced. I disliked: The ending is very, very abrupt. I was shocked. I've since learned it's effectively a two-parter. Memorable Quote: I'd rank this one alongside Desolation Island and The Fortune of War as one of my favourites in the series so far. And that ending means I'm going to have to jump straight into the next book, I think. Fabulous stuff. And remember . . . 'There is not a moment to be lost!'

What's that got to do with it? Have a great reading (and otherwise) year, Laura There's already four books in that trilogy

Thanks all Sorry to disappoint. Oh, wait - no I'm not

Happy reading, Andrea Loving the Leela avatar

The Six Directions of Space by Alastair Reynolds 2008 - Subterranean Press hardback - 85 pages What if Genghis Khan got his wish, and brought the entire planet under the control of the Mongols? Where would he have gone next? A thousand years after Khan's death, Yellow Dog is the codename of a female spy on the most hazardous assignment of her career: investigating anomalous events happening on the edge of civilised space -- phantom ships appearing in the faster-than-light transit system which binds the empire together. Qilian, a thuggish tyrant, already knows more about the anomalies than Yellow Dog does. If she is going to learn more, she will have to earn his confidence -- even if that means working for him, rather than against him. So begins a deadly game of subterfuge and double-cross -- while the anomalies increase... I liked: The alternate history that sets up the main premise. The brevity. I can imagine other authors making a full-blown novel out of this but Reynolds presents it concisely and effectively. Qilian - he's the most interesting character and you're never quite sure what he's going to do next. The Infrastructure - a network of wormholes left behind by an alien race that's allowed humankind to travel the galaxy. Nothing particularly new about that idea, but Reynolds handles it well. I didn't like: It took me a while to work out exactly what the Infrastructure was - I don't think the word 'wormhole' appears at all in the book. The phantoms in the Infrastructure reminded me too much of Deep Space Nine's Prophets. Anything that reminds me of Deep Space Nine is never a good thing A particular scene involving the torture of a pony. Why why why?? Alastair Reynolds was on University Challenge over Christmas. His team were rubbish and he got an answer about the Solar System wrong. Shame on him! I enjoyed this novella, though. It left me wanting to know more but was satisfying enough in its own right. One to seek out after reading his other work, maybe. It can be found here. And if I'd known that beforehand I wouldn't have spent £30 on a second-hand copy of the Subterranean Press edition!

Happy reading, Ian Be interested to see what you think of Mr Mercedes.

It's only 100 pages long, you'll finish it in a couple of hours Heathen The War of the Worlds and The Island of Doctor Moreau are unmissable