King of the Vagabonds

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I thought I was reading this book slowly, until I remembered that I am reading the large page three books all in one volume version. If I had bought this book as a single paperback in a standard paper size it would have been 400 pages. This book is better than Quicksilver, with a more engaging story line and less time spent on verbose descriptions of life 300 years ago. I'm sure those descriptions will be vital later in the series, but when you're reading them they are still a chore. This book is a page turner, even if the plot is a little hard to believe in places. I enjoyed it a lot. [isbn: 0060593083;0060833173]

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Cyteen: The Rebirth

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This book is a follow up to Cyteen: The Betrayal, and was originally published in the same volume as it. The book would make little sense without having read Cyteen: The Betrayal first. Apart from that its a good book, and much more readable than the first. I think that's mostly because all the important scene setting is done and we can finally get on with things. That was my impression with the first book too -- the second half was better than the first. [award: nominee hugo 1989] [isbn: 0445204540]

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Quicksilver

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This book is well written, and a delight to read. I love meeting the forefathers of characters from Cryptonomicon, and this book is an excellent piece of historical fiction. It does however drag on a little in the middle when Daniel is tied up in London intrigue. I think this section would have worked a bit better with some action, but that is obviously just my personal preference. Overall, a good book. [isbn: 0060593083;0060833165]

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All The Weyrs of Pern

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This is the science fiction that I thought the Pern stories should have been all along. Its fair enough that there is a build up to this point, although it took a long time and involved a lot more light weight fiction than I would have liked. This was a good book, and I enjoyed it. [award: nominee hugo 1992] [isbn: 0345368932]

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Neuromancer

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This book is a classic, and I first read it a long time ago. Its pretty clear in retrospect why it kicked off the cyberpunk movement, and I'm glad that the future it proposed hasn't come to pass (yet). Despite being written in the 1980s the book isn't dated, although it does make more sense if you've spent some time in Japan. [isbn: 0586066454] [award: winner nebula_novel 1984; winner hugo 1985]

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Cyteen: The Betrayal

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I read this book at the recommendation of my father. Its an interesting concept -- artificially produced humans have been created to fill gaps in a society far out on the edges of occupied space. However, how are these artificial humans different from "real" humans? How are they different from slaves given they are programmed to perform certain duties with joy and without question? However, despite the interesting concept, the first two thirds of the book are very slow, and took me ages to read. The last third was much better and I think I'll read the sequels because of that. If the book had stopped after the boring bit, there would be no way I'd read the next book. I think part of the problem is that this book was originally in one volume, instead of the three volume set I own. [isbn: 0445204524] [award: winner hugo 1989]

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The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress

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This isn't Heinlein's best work. The faux Russian grammar of the narrator is pretty annoying, and the story shallow. Its an ok read as entertainment, but I think it could do with more plot and fewer long rants about the dangers of big government. I'd like to know more about the cyborgs which seem to pilot everything important as well. [isbn: 0425016013]

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