What I Read in 2018

At the start of 2018 I decided to reduce my reading from the 100+ it’s been in recent years to a goal of 72 books. I was finding that I wasn’t using my free time the way I wanted to, and with adding in exercise time and some additional working hours, I had less spare time during my week than I have had in past years. I also wanted to spend a little more time gaming and catching movies, all of which would take away from reading. In the end I read 80 books in 2018, a little more than I aimed for, but nowhere near enough to read all the books I actually wanted to.

Looking forward to 2019 my plan is to be much more selective with my reading. I have series that I desperately want to revisit and finish, and new books I want to read as they’re released rather than trying to play catch-up. Inevitably I’ll be filling in my reading with some of the books I missed in 2018, but I’m hoping my tighter choices will mean I only get to those that I’m very unhappy I missed.

Of course, this is all likely to fall by the wayside and I’ll end up reading what takes my fancy as and when I’m ready to start on a new book. But it’s nice to have some sort of plan in mind!

Anyway, and without further ado, here’s my reading stats from 2018… Continue reading “What I Read in 2018”

My Top 10 Books of 2018

I read 80 books in 2018, 37 of which were new releases. Below are the best books I read that were released in 2018, and while some are fairly obvious if you know my reading preferences, a few of them surprised even me when I came to compile this list. It goes without saying that I whole heartedly recommend each of them, and sincerely hope that some of these books get the wider readership they deserve. Continue reading “My Top 10 Books of 2018”

What I Read In 2017

2017 was a funny year for my reading. I had big plans for reading more, and for trying to fit specific books into my schedule, but for a variety of reasons things didn’t quite work out that way. I read a total of 110 books over the year, which is down from what I’ve read over the past few years, but I’m fine with that, and may even continue the trend in the coming year too. But anyway, read on for the stats… Continue reading “What I Read In 2017”

Friendly Fire by Gavin Smith

Friendly Fire is the second book in Smith’s Bastard Legion series, started earlier this year with The Bastard Legion (formerly The Hangman’s Daughter). I loved that first book and thought that there was much potential going forward with both the characters and world-building. Suffice to say my expectations were met as I read through Friendly Fire rather quickly… Continue reading “Friendly Fire by Gavin Smith”

The Ghost Line by Andrew Neil Gray & J. S. Herbison

The Ghost Line by Andrew Neil Gray and J. S. Herbison came to my attention a while back when the cover popped up on one of the genre sites I visit, though my memory fails as to which one. Given the spectacular John Harris cover art I was instantly interested, though it has taken me longer than planned to get to this SF salvage story with a hint of horror. And it is just what you’d expect from a story with this title and cover! Continue reading “The Ghost Line by Andrew Neil Gray & J. S. Herbison”

Acadie by Dave Hutchinson

Best known for his Fractured Europe trilogy (though I’m more familiar with his other SF novella, The Push), Dave Hutchinson brings a short Space Opera tale to life in this excellent novella from Tor.com Publishing. Acadie is the story of Duke Farady and his job to evacuate the Writers from their home system following its discovery by the Bureau… Continue reading “Acadie by Dave Hutchinson”

Run Program by Scott Meyer

It’s a tough thing to admit when you pick up a book you’ve been really looking forward to and it doesn’t hit the spot. Yet that’s what happened with Scott Meyer’s Run Program, his latest book in a new setting, and one that looks at what a child-like A.I. will do when given access to the internet and the chance to escape its confines. Continue reading “Run Program by Scott Meyer”

The Line of Polity by Neal Asher

the-line-of-polityAnother review I neglected to put up when it went up on SFFWorld in May. But still, Neal Asher’s The Line of Polity was much more enjoyable for me on the re-read. Reviews for the other three in the series are being finalised and should be going live this month too – remember to check back for them 🙂

The Line of Polity is the second novel in Neal Asher’s Cormac series, preceded by Gridlinked(review) and picking up events a short while after its conclusion. As I approached the Cormac re-read this was the one book I didn’t know how I’d like this time around. When I initially tried to read it I was put off by my view of the setting and somewhat strong religion-bashing theme that is rather heavy handed during the early chapters. However, for my second attempt I managed to put these to one side and I powered through it, enjoying the story that Asher told. This third time, some 6 years after reading it, I was aware of my first impression all that time back, yet I knew that what awaits me after this book pushed me through without any qualms. And I found that there was much more to enjoy than my faulty memory allowed…

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Overall I enjoyed The Line of Polity enough not to let that one issue affect my feelings about the book too much. It’s got more of Asher’s hallmarks present that we didn’t entirely see in Gridlinked, in the weird and lethal wildlife of Masada. It’s also, in hindsight, one of the more important books in Asher’s Polity milieu (for reasons/spoilers that I won’t go into here). With a good focus on both the big picture and events on the ground it’s hard to fault much, though the distinct lack of answers from the end of Gridlinked still lingers. Regardless, a solid entry in the series and a damn good SF novel. Recommended.

Improbable Botany Kickstarter

A new kickstarter campaign is up and running that readers of this site may find interesting: Improbable Botany, an anthology about alien plant invasions and botanical futures from ten leading science fiction authors. Have a read on for more information.

improbable-botanyImprobable Botany is a brand-new science fiction anthology about alien plant conquests, fantastical ecosystems, benevolent dictatorships and techno-utopias.

This is the book plants don’t want you to read…

Improbable Botany features newly commissioned short stories by ten multi-award winning science fiction authors:

Ken MacLeod, Cherith Baldry, Eric Brown, Simon Morden, Adam Roberts, James Kennedy, Stephen Palmer, Justina Robson, Tricia Sullivan and Lisa Tuttle.

In support of the authors’ contributions, the book has been edited by Gary Dalkin, a former judge of the Arthur C. Clarke Award and former editor of Vector: The Critical Journal of the British Science Fiction Association.

We are delighted to say that Improbable Botany features incredibly rich and evocative jacket artwork, along with six full-colour illustrations, by Jonathan Burton – whose outstanding body of work has been featured by The Folio Society, Penguin Books, BAFTA, HarperCollins, Random House and The New York Times.

The book is being produced by Wayward, a London-based landscape, art and architecture practice – an award-winning collective of designers, artists and urban growers. Since 2006, we have transformed derelict sites into large-scale, design-driven spaces for local communities.