The Light Fantastic (Discworld #2) by Terry Pratchett
Book One ended with our non-heroes (Rincewind, a failed wizard, and Twoflower, the world’s first tourist) falling over the edge of the world. This book picks up from there. There’s a lot of strange little adventures featuring the wizards of Unseen University, Cohen the (now elderly) Barbarian, and a few others. It’s very British with very fun writing. It’s better to focus more on the one-liners than the plot as a whole:
The little man’s total obliviousness to all forms of danger somehow made danger so discouraged that it gave up and went away.
The Luggage again said nothing, but louder this time.
The thought had crossed his mind, only very fast and looking nervously from side to side in case it got knocked over.
In the debating chamber of his mind a dozen emotions got to their feet and started shouting. Relief was in full spate when Shock cut in on a point of order and then Bewilderment, Terror and Loss started a fight which was ended only when Shame slunk in from next door to see what all the row was about.
Rincewind had been generally reckoned by his tutors to be a natural wizard in the same way that fish are natural mountaineers.
He may be deaf and a little hard of thinking, but elderly wizards have very well-trained survival instincts, and they know that when a tall figure in a black robe and the latest in agricultural handtools starts looking thoughtfully at you it is time to act fast.
Another thing Bethan had learned was that there was no real point in trying to understand anything Twoflower said, and that all anyone could do was run alongside the conversation and hope to jump on as it turned a corner.
***
Despite the old-style cover, this is a newer book. It’s told by a first-person narrator in 2012 looking back at 1973. This means he gives you spoilers as the book goes along—you know for sure who doesn’t die, and it starts by talking about his girlfriend “before she dumped me.” It’s an interesting style that’s not often pulled off successfully, but it works here.
Devin is a 21-year-old college student who takes up summer employment at Joyland, a small amusement park (that reminds me of Lagoon in Farmington, Utah). Devin looks back on this job with nostalgia at an idyllic time, the kind of summer you don’t realize only comes once in life.
A murder took place on one of the rides a while back, and it’s said to be haunted. The murder mystery doesn’t take precedence until near the end, though. The paranormal elements are so minor, I can’t even call this urban fantasy.
All these other events happen first, everything coming together neatly at the end. It’s a great climax, but the characters are the most important part of the story. The story is sweet, nostalgic, heroic, and suspenseful.
There’s some scattered strong language (more when the situations get tense), some sexual content, and some violence; nothing super graphic. At the end the author complains that Dick Cheney didn’t die on the operating table, which just came off and whiny and petty to me, having nothing to do with the story.
***
This sci fi stars a married couple in a normal, stable relationship. I was totally expecting one of them to die in the first ten pages and was shocked when they didn’t. So kudos.
The couple are Prometheans, an advanced human race created by humans, who now fear them. Some of the story involves fighting with humans or running from them, but most of it is devoted to scientific research. Overall that was pretty interesting, but it started to feel there was a lack of action, like the author didn’t want anything too bad to happen to her characters.
The book really needs editing. There are awkward sentences, run-on sentences, sentence fragments, odd usage choices, and so on. It’s pretty clean; there’s some swearing on a few pages toward the end but nowhere else. There’s some implied fade-to-black sex.
Apparently this is the prequel to a trilogy that does not exist yet.
***
I received a free ARC of this anthology. All the stories are science fiction; most are half-hour reads. I (and many others) seem to have a hard time reading anthologies. I think the best way is to read a story, then read a full-length book, and then come back instead of reading the anthology all the way through.
There are plenty of editing errors. Some have more than others, and I don’t know if this will be fixed for future editions. Here are brief reviews for each story:
– David VanDyke – “As the Sparks Fly Upward” ☆☆☆1/2
This was a near, concise spaceship adventure. It was easy to understand and get into the plot.
– Ann Christy – “Peace Force” ☆☆☆
This was an interesting story about the fate of humanity, a sort of commentary on human nature.
– Felix R. Savage – “Guardians of Earth” ☆☆☆
This was more like a novellette featuring space dragons. It felt like the beginning of a novel. I wouldn’t mind seeing more.
– Lindsay Buroker – “Here Be Dragons” ☆☆☆
This was a long short story written in present tense (ugh). The ending felt disconnected from the rest of the story.
– Chris Dietzel – “The Gordian Asteroid” ☆☆1/2
This was a simple, kind of sad story. There was no resolution to the mystery introduced.
– Craig Martelle – “The Trenches of Centauri Prime” ☆☆☆
This was a light-hearted tale that showed two sides of a stupid trench war.
– Josi Russell – “Broken One” ☆☆1/2
This had so many errors, it was hard to understand the story. The story wasn’t that interesting, anyway.
– Chris Pourteau – “The Erkennen Job” ☆☆☆
This had a very noir feel to it. The sci fi setting could have easily been replaced by a mafia-run big city. The main character was mostly a villain, so it was hard to root for him.
– Daniel Arenson – “The Firebug and the Pharaoh” ☆☆
This was okay; it’s a simple fighter battle.
– Rhett C. Bruno – “Interview for the End of the World” ☆☆☆☆
This was done really well. The story quickly draws you in, and the characters were clearly defined despite the short time we had with them. I think this was a prequel to a series.
– Steve Beaulieu – “Night Shift” ☆☆☆
This was an interesting story about a taxi driver who gets caught up in explosions and stuff. It also could have taken place in a non-sci fi setting.
– Lucas Bale – “A Friend to Man” ☆☆☆
This was pretty well done, if a tad slow. It follows the perspective of an AI gradually gaining sentience.
– Jason Anspach – “…Space Pirates” ☆☆☆☆
This was light and fun. The writing was very enjoyable. It had a sort of space Renaissance feel to it, if that makes sense.
– Will McIntosh – “Drive” ☆☆☆
This is a post-apocalyptic story. It established an innteresting world but then had no real ending.
– Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff – “Water Babies” ☆☆☆
This was about scientists stuying a new breed of dolphins that may actually be telepathic aliens.
– David Bruns – “Take Only Memories” ☆☆☆
Here a space environmentalist runs into a group of evil poachers. There were some interesting animals.
– Patty Jansen – “This Deceitful State of Truth” ☆☆☆☆
This was a great plot that worked perfectly for the length of the story. An auditor comes to a planet and finds thing just a bit off.
***
This urban fantasy has a very light tone. What’s supposed to be serious turns into dark humor. A 2100-year-old Druid using the alias Atticus O’Sullivan is enjoying life in Arizona with his Irish wolfhound, a talking dog with a French poodle obsession.
The plot is very simple: He has a sword this god-enemy wants. The enemy sends minions to get it. When they’re all gone, the enemy finall shows up himself to get the sword. Atticus is so powerful, we’re never worried for his safety. Ever.
It’s light and funny with a sort of Harry Dresden vibe. Atticus often comes across as cocky and immature. I imagined him played by Nathan Fillion, and that worked well. Harrison Ford would probably work, too.
The audio narration is very good. There is some strong language throughout and some sexual innuendo. The violence is more humorous than graphic.
***
I read this a couple times as a little kid a very long time ago. Laura is about 6-7 here. The family leaves Wisconsin and heads off into Kansas. They pick a random spot and build a house. The first half of the book is building the house (a log cabin)—the walls, roof, floor, chimney, etc. (I’m sure an outhouse was built in there somewhere.) People today will look at all this in shock at how unsafe everything is. People back then were like, “danger, shmanger.”
The rest of the book is mostly encounters with the American Indians. This is pretty interesting to observe anthropologically speaking. Pa is trying to be diplomatic while Ma is just terrified of them and wishes they’d all disappear. (“If you don’t like Indians, why’d you move to their country?” ask the kids.) After about a year, they have to leave when they realize they’re on official Indian land that the government is going to take away (yet).
It’s a fascinating, intimate look at a time and place and people that are increasingly distant and foreign to us here and now.
The audiobook features a violinist playing the actual tunes mentioned in the book; the narrator sings the lines.
***
I was picked to be one of the “gamma” readers for this book, meaning I searched it for typos after the beta readers were done. I was so thrilled to get to do this. I read it with my proofreader’s brain rather than my reader’s brain. Sometimes I had to go back and start a part over because I accidentally got lost in the story instead of carefully looking at all the letters.
I also swore on pain of death to not give away any spoilers, so this review will remain vague. (Mr. Sullivan knows Royce Melborn, and I don’t want him to show up and slit my throat in the middle of the night.)
I think this is my favorite of the series so far. Like another reviewer mentioned, the first half is like slowly riding to the top of a roller coaster. You don’t even realize that’s what’s happening until all this action starts happening. Besides battle scenes, there are surprises and mysteries and heartbreak and plenty of character development. The second half is so suspenseful and gripping. I think there are some big things in store for the series. The previous book had a quest that left a lot of characters behind, but here they all get fairly equal “screen” time.
Sullivan has a pretty simple writing style. It serves to give you a good story that’s pure fun to read; escapism at its best.
***
I’ve already read Kluger’s Apollo 13, and I’m a pretty big space nerd. If the space program or the science behind it does not interest you, the book probably won’t, either.
The first half of the book follows the events leading up to the launch of Apollo 8. It particularly follows the biography Frank Borman, the mission leader, and the general progress of the space program. The second half was the mission itself. This was the first time human eye saw the whole earth as a sphere. It was the first time eyes saw the far side of the moon. Crewman Bill Anders took the famous photo “Earthrise” on this mission:
The writing really drew me in for the most part. I really felt like I was there. I got teary reading about Apollo 1 despite knowing everything about it already; I could feel the g forces experienced during reentry; I felt the sense of wonder throughout.
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