Mar
30
2007
Author: Sherri S Tepper
ISBN: 0006482694 DDC: 813.54
See also: LibraryThing ; Mia’s Booklist ; Infinity Plus review ; The Speculative Life
Grass!
Millions of square miles of it; numberless wind-whipped tsunamis of grass, a thousand sun-lulled caribbeans of grass, a hundred rippling oceans, every ripple a gleam of scarlet of amber, emerald or turquoise, multicolored as rainbows, the colors shivering over the prairies in stripes and blotches, the grass - some high, some low, some feathered, some straight - making their own geography as they grow.
This was an impulse purchase, I’ve read one or two others by Tepper and although I enjoyed them I do think that she has a tendency to be a little preachy in her books. However if the story is good enough I’m willing to overlook that, and I’d have to say that I really enjoyed this novel. Set at some point far in the future when humankind has colonised many different worlds, the majority of this book takes place on the planet Grass, among the insular bon as the aristocrats are called.
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Tags:
7 Stars,
823.914,
alien planet,
aliens,
doesn't quite work,
Grass,
interesting world-building,
little preachy,
politics,
religion,
sff,
Sherri S. Tepper,
well-written
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Mar
31
2006
ISBN: 1841492531
DDC: 823.92
The First Parrish Plessis Book
Author: Marriane De Pierres
First line:
If Jamon Mondo touched me one more time I’d kill him.
I almost wish I hadn’t finish this book. I was on the verge of tossing it around two thirds in, but figured I’d read this far might as well see how it ends. But the final third is actually quite good. Not sure if it is enough to make up for the first part, But now I am a little curious about the next books in the series.
When we first meet Parrish she is low on the pecking order, a bodyguard-come-unwilling companion to a local gang leader. And in this is a dystopian Australia of the future if you go against the gang leaders without backup you end up dead. And most likely after a spell of torture.
So when Parrish runs into Dark and Sto she thinks that maybe by using them she can get in with the Cabal, and maybe get away from Jamon. But things are not what they seem, and Parrish soon finds herself in deeper than she could ever have believed.
The basic story itself is vaguely interesting. But the writing isn’t. First person narration often results in supporting characters lacking depth and, well character, but in this book Parrish herself isn’t all that interesting or believable. A fairly typical wise-cracking, but scared underneath it all heroine. There is also a fair amount of future slang that seems clunky and forced.
But, over halfway through and the book seems to shift a gear. Almost as though everything in this book is simply setting the scene. Letting the reader get to know the Tert and Viva. Letting us see how things worked, and then suddenly introducing another plot element that really doesn’t seem to fit with everything that has gone before.
From then on it is readable, and even enjoyable. The question is, is this what the other books or like? Or will they return to the dull story-telling-by-numbers of the previous chapters.
Tags:
3 Stars,
823.92,
aff,
Australia,
clunky,
doesn't quite work,
dystopian future,
first person narrator,
forced,
future,
Marriane De Pierres,
Nylon Angel,
Parrish Plessis,
series,
stereotypes
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Nov
17
2005
- Matt Damon …. Wilhelm Grimm
- Heath Ledger …. Jacob Grimm
- Monica Bellucci …. Mirror Queen
- Lena Headey …. Angelika
Well, this’ll teach me not to keep offline copies of my reviews won’t it. The original had been eradicated from web-land, so my poor memory will have to come up with another review of this film.
I really enjoyed this film, possibly because I’d read so many bad reports and people giving out about it. Okay, so it wasn’t perfect, but it was more than entertaining. Ledger and Damon were good in their roles as brothers out to con their way through life. Maybe the Italian torture fella was a little over done, but I was in that sort of a mood and found him funny.
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Tags:
7 Stars,
atmospheric,
creepy,
doesn't quite work,
enjoyable,
faerie,
fun,
Germany - Napoleonic,
Heath Ledger,
humour,
Lena Headey,
magic,
Matt Damon,
memory,
Monica Bellucci,
potential,
The Brothers Grimm
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