Two releases I loved . . .

[sartorias]

As it happens, I was one of many beta readers for two remarkable, and very different, books, (the only thing they have in common is people on Mars) that are both out today:

Arabella of Mars, by David D. Levine

and

Necessity by Jo Walton

They both have breathtaking cover art that I think also manages to convey the right mood of both.

Necessity

Comments

[athenais]

I have two 20% off coupons to use for those books and I have been waiting impatiently for those releases! I would love a book discussion of Jo's trilogy.

[sartorias]

I want to read the first two yet again, after I get to read the new one. I would love a discussion!

[oursin]

Necessity is not out in UK until tomorrow!

[sartorias]

But you are already nine hours ahead of us . . .

[queenoftheskies]

I went to Rainforest Writers Retreat one session when David was there and talking about his novel way before it came out.

I've been wanting to read it ever since. Now that you describe it as a Jules Verne-type story, I want to read it even more.

Thanks for the rec!

[sartorias]

I think you'll love it as much as I did.

[whswhs]

I've been waiting for the city library to add Necessity to their catalog. Usually it's possible to reserve a book before it gets onto the shelves, but unfortunately they run out of budget around the end of May, and start playing catch-up on July 1, and they haven't gotten to it yet. I liked The Just City quite a lot, and in fact it was my top choice for this year's Prometheus Award; it's not ideologically libertarian, but it's about the ideas of equal significance (not a bad translation of the Greek isonomia) and informed consent, which are major themes of libertarian thought, and has interesting things to say about them. And I think it's the best SF novel inspired by Plato since Heinlein's Space Cadet. So I'm hoping the third volume gets onto the shelves while we're still in San Diego!

[sartorias]

I hope so, too!

[mount_oregano]

Are Jo Walton's book a stand-alone, or do you have to read the first two books?

[sartorias]

I think you could probably catch up with what's going on. In fact I know a couple people who began with Book Two. But really, I think to get the full benefit of the story arc, one ought to begin with The Just City.

[rachelmanija]

I haven't read book three, but book two doesn't stand alone, so I would start with book one. All else aside, it'll tell you whether you want to continue.

[elianarus]

I read the second book first (Philosopher Kings) and felt it worked beautifully as a stand-alone.

...but I think loving it as intensely as I did + reading it first made The Just City a tiny bit less amazing for me. I don't regret it, because I think reading PK first, getting these narrative voices and these thematic elements first made this overall story more powerful for me... but I suspect that is an idiosyncratic response and says more about me than it does about the books themselves.

I haven't finished Necessity yet, but I suspect it too will stand well on its own, but be enriched by being read after its predecessors. ...which is what I would say about Jo's other series as well - each is so fully its own story, but together they are more than the sum of their parts.