Review: All Systems Red

All Systems Red by Martha Wells
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Quite well thought-out and characterized. Short. I liked it, but I wanted more.

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Review: The Other Kind of Life

The Other Kind of Life by Shamus Young
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

An enjoyable mix of some light-cyberpunk sf with a light-noir mystery. Good characters, good story, and some light musing on the nature of AI which shows the author has put some thought into it. He takes us deeper than the usual "3 laws" version, and for all that it's clearly speculation - since we don't have AI yet - his speculation rings true, and is consistent with my 20-year-old grasp of the research.

The story is set in a fictional country in the near-future modern world, and occasionally tries just a little too hard to remain Nowhere You Know. The fact that the local language is only ever referred to as "Local". The fact that this is clearly a big enough place that, if it did exist in the modern world, we'd know about it. Not a big deal, but it feels like it might have been a bit less jarring to just set it in a real country; maybe he couldn't find a place with the right mix of history to suit his story.

Also be aware that a lot of the description of how AI works in his world firmly breaks the old adage "show, don't tell" - because honestly, how would you show the internal processes of an AI? But while I don't see how it could have been done otherwise, that still leaves you with some rather prolonged sequences of listening to one character lecture another on how stuff works. Interesting stuff, but still a bit lecturey. Overall though, it serves to support the plot, and doesn't detract from the mystery investigation. Bravo Shamus; a well-spun tale!

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Review: Against a Dark Background

Against a Dark Background by Iain M. Banks
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Magnificent and quirky and dark.

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