Reviews!
While I was down and out I got the chance to read a whole ton of books and watch an equal amount of DVDs. Here's what I found out.
BOOKS
Homonids, Robert J. Sawyer: Not only is this guy one of the best Sci-Fi writers in the world, he also happens to be very, very Canadian. I've read many of his books and it seems that they always get better and better, one of my favorites being "Calculating God". None the less, Homonids relates the tale of a parallel universe where the Neanderthal, not the Homo Sapien, became the dominant species on Earth. It's filled with cutting edge paleontology and quantum physics, intermixed with interesting characters and plot twists. An easy must read. This is by far the best of all the books that I've read
Eye of the Needle, Ken Follet: Close second in the books that I've read, this story is about a group of spy catchers who are trying to apprehend one of the most notorious German agent during WWII's fragile D-day planning. Ken Follet is known for shitting one amazing book after another, one of his best works being "Pillars of the Earth". He did not let me down again with this great read.
La Quête d'Ewilan, some chick: Meh... It was not "bad" per see, but it was definitly written for young girls and women who like tales written for your girls (read, teenage-ish). This is what J. K. Rowling would have written if she tried to do something in the likes of Lord of the Rings, except it's not as deep or anything. I have to admit that the world does seem to be complex enough to justify a whole series of books spawned from this first one, and thankfully enough you DO get somewhat attached to the characters at some point. Still, I'm sure there's better stuff for you out there before you read this.
Moving Mars, Greg Bear: I guess I got suckered in by the little sticker that said "Hugo Award Nominee". Though the book was not entirely bad, it was still not entirely entertaining either. Let's just say I was glad to have finished the book when I had because I could now finally move on to something else! It's well written, it shows tons on women intuition, etc... It's just not compelling though. It's almost like looking at a very hot chick's body and then notice that she has no soul. Does this make any sense? :)
DVD
Ghost in the Shell, Stand Alone Complexe: This is the SHIT! Screw SCI. Really. Deep. This is the story of Public Security Section 9, a Japanese "Homeland security" you could say that mostly acts on the offensive side of things. When things get way too hot (read armed conflicts or anything near that), this small elite team gets called into action. What's so different here is that they don't mind trying to make you think and ponder, and that's probably going to be the main turnoff to some who like to have their cake served up without much pre-thought. Though there are many episodes that stand alone on themselves where cases are open and shut, there is one main case that will linger throughout the whole season and take more and more importance over time until all the episodes only talk about it up to the end, which brings the whole season to a very climactic closer. I only say that this is the second best anime I've seen because I'm still totally impressed with Samurai 7, but I'll tell you that the race is a very close one.
GAMES
Metal Gear Solid Portal Ops for the PSP: Not bad at all. I'm too tired to keep on written, just go and buy it already :)
BOOKS
Homonids, Robert J. Sawyer: Not only is this guy one of the best Sci-Fi writers in the world, he also happens to be very, very Canadian. I've read many of his books and it seems that they always get better and better, one of my favorites being "Calculating God". None the less, Homonids relates the tale of a parallel universe where the Neanderthal, not the Homo Sapien, became the dominant species on Earth. It's filled with cutting edge paleontology and quantum physics, intermixed with interesting characters and plot twists. An easy must read. This is by far the best of all the books that I've read
Eye of the Needle, Ken Follet: Close second in the books that I've read, this story is about a group of spy catchers who are trying to apprehend one of the most notorious German agent during WWII's fragile D-day planning. Ken Follet is known for shitting one amazing book after another, one of his best works being "Pillars of the Earth". He did not let me down again with this great read.
La Quête d'Ewilan, some chick: Meh... It was not "bad" per see, but it was definitly written for young girls and women who like tales written for your girls (read, teenage-ish). This is what J. K. Rowling would have written if she tried to do something in the likes of Lord of the Rings, except it's not as deep or anything. I have to admit that the world does seem to be complex enough to justify a whole series of books spawned from this first one, and thankfully enough you DO get somewhat attached to the characters at some point. Still, I'm sure there's better stuff for you out there before you read this.
Moving Mars, Greg Bear: I guess I got suckered in by the little sticker that said "Hugo Award Nominee". Though the book was not entirely bad, it was still not entirely entertaining either. Let's just say I was glad to have finished the book when I had because I could now finally move on to something else! It's well written, it shows tons on women intuition, etc... It's just not compelling though. It's almost like looking at a very hot chick's body and then notice that she has no soul. Does this make any sense? :)
DVD
Ghost in the Shell, Stand Alone Complexe: This is the SHIT! Screw SCI. Really. Deep. This is the story of Public Security Section 9, a Japanese "Homeland security" you could say that mostly acts on the offensive side of things. When things get way too hot (read armed conflicts or anything near that), this small elite team gets called into action. What's so different here is that they don't mind trying to make you think and ponder, and that's probably going to be the main turnoff to some who like to have their cake served up without much pre-thought. Though there are many episodes that stand alone on themselves where cases are open and shut, there is one main case that will linger throughout the whole season and take more and more importance over time until all the episodes only talk about it up to the end, which brings the whole season to a very climactic closer. I only say that this is the second best anime I've seen because I'm still totally impressed with Samurai 7, but I'll tell you that the race is a very close one.
GAMES
Metal Gear Solid Portal Ops for the PSP: Not bad at all. I'm too tired to keep on written, just go and buy it already :)