Recent Reading

Some flash reviews of a few novels I have recently read:

The Gripping Hand

Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle

The sequel to "The Mote in God's Eye", released nearly twenty years after the original. "The Gripping Hand" is a fascinating look into the Moties lives, exploring how, over a quarter century, they prepared for the day when they would look to leave their system and move into the stars. It was an interesting read, but it ended with something of a sputter. It feels like something is missing, though the story's resolution is satisfying enough. A good read, but not quite as good as the original work by the duo.

The Eternity Artifact

L. E. Modesitt, Jr.

An outstanding premise - tantalizing evidence of past intelligent life in the universe that isn't around anymore, and the adventures and challenges of the mission that sets to discover the truth. Lousy execution. Set over a milennia from now, it fails to inspire, suprise, or even make one think. The writing style is so cryptically casual as to make the book unreadable (it took me two years of off and on reading to plow through this sucker...), and the ending doesn't redeem the story at all.

Blah. Yea, that's the best word. Blah!