Book Report
So, in between non-renewable inter-library loans, I've finally gotten around to reading Palimpsest. Now that I've read the whole thing, and not just excerpts, I still recommend it, but with caveats.
First, and you know, I should have figured this out from the premise, but there's a lot of sex. And not all of it happy. So, if that's not your cup of tea, this is not the book for you.
Second, it's not really a book about plot. There is a plot, but as much of the text is dedicated to atmosphere and environment as to action. You can probably best judge if this will appeal to you or not.
Finally, the prose has a strong voice, and it's either going to work for you or it isn't. Read the excerpts. There are lots of clauses, asides, meanderings in the middle of sentences that half-belong, half-not, Janus-like, to the main point of the sentence, with images and metaphors interlaced.
None of the above bothered me, and I liked the book, the execution of the premise, and the way the story was told. But I recognize that the above issues may have people not put it in their queue.
I think I liked the Orphan's Tales books better, and recommend them without any of the above caveats.
Now I need to wrap up my other non-renewable books (Fiasco by Thomas Ricks, Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell) and read a bunch of Daiblo novels so I can have something ready by April 12th for Blizzard's fan fiction contest.
First, and you know, I should have figured this out from the premise, but there's a lot of sex. And not all of it happy. So, if that's not your cup of tea, this is not the book for you.
Second, it's not really a book about plot. There is a plot, but as much of the text is dedicated to atmosphere and environment as to action. You can probably best judge if this will appeal to you or not.
Finally, the prose has a strong voice, and it's either going to work for you or it isn't. Read the excerpts. There are lots of clauses, asides, meanderings in the middle of sentences that half-belong, half-not, Janus-like, to the main point of the sentence, with images and metaphors interlaced.
None of the above bothered me, and I liked the book, the execution of the premise, and the way the story was told. But I recognize that the above issues may have people not put it in their queue.
I think I liked the Orphan's Tales books better, and recommend them without any of the above caveats.
Now I need to wrap up my other non-renewable books (Fiasco by Thomas Ricks, Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell) and read a bunch of Daiblo novels so I can have something ready by April 12th for Blizzard's fan fiction contest.