Joel R. Gerring

It just keeps going…

Revisado: 03-30-24

This series is just so much fun! 10 books and I still immediately want the next one. A ton of depth and heart, more than you might expect from something that calls itself a “litRPG.” Don’t let that label fool you, this is up there with Spellmonger and Columbus Day.

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Marvelous.

Revisado: 09-22-23

The stories, the songs, the humor, the skits, the poignancy… it’s all great. This is just a fun listen and perfect for that 20-25 minute commute. Jeff Daniel’s career has been so unconventional and yet *perfect* …it’s fascinating to hear about the opportunities that were presented and the choices that he made. He’s definitely done it his way, and that’s what let’s his multitude of talents come out I think. Those of you from Michigan will find it particularly satisfying, as will New Yorkers… and maybe even LA folks! Oh, and Santa Fe… bottom line is he’s loves to talk about places and details. And he just knows how to weave it all together.

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The best deep sci-fi going

Revisado: 06-06-23

I’m really enjoying all ongoing serial stuff audible has to offer from Dennis Taylor, Terry Mancour, Craig Alanson, et al., but sometimes you just really need to get back to the serious, heavy, DEEP stuff, and Tchiakovsky’s got that in spades. This particular trilogy has a bit more humor than his Children of Time novels do, but both are just outstanding, outstanding works. I’ve enjoyed these every bit as much as The Expanse series. His ability to weave very heady science themes into a compelling narrative, with character depth and complexity, dialogue, and diversity is truly unique. He is a master at sidestepping the tropes and really playing with your concepts that will keep you up at night thinking about. So, SO good! (Unless you really need to get to sleep.)

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Another great entry. Don’t blame Fiona…

Revisado: 02-20-23

The world being created is so rich and full now that we can have offerings like this that fill in the gaps and provide us with character background without feeling like it didn’t move the overarching story along. I love that the author(s) can take their time on this series and weave such an immersive world.
That being said: I really wish the producer would help Fiona out on getting consistent with the pronunciations that John has already established. Falace, mageocracy, Thinradel… her performance is WONDERFUL!! But help her our out Emily. People are knocking Fiona’s work here, and I get it, you all want her to have listened to some of John’s prior performances, but the reality is that Emily Durr should have said something by now, especially after this was a consistent criticism of the first book.

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Simply Awesome

Revisado: 11-01-21

One of the best book series, regardless of genre, that I’ve ever read. Sometimes it’s almost poetry.

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An interesting read, but Bryson is getting pissy

Revisado: 02-09-16

Would you consider the audio edition of The Road to Little Dribbling to be better than the print version?

I only have the audio version, and I prefer to have Bryson read his own novels. His voice, while not a pro, is soothing and takes the edge off of some of his more pointed criticisms. Nathan Osgood, while an excellent narrator, gave a "bite" to some of Bryson's words that Bryson himself would have softened. This made the book feel "bitchier" than it may have otherwise.

What did you like best about this story?

I'm a HUGE Bill Bryson fan. A Short History of Nearly Everything, At Home, One Summer and the Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid are among my very favorite. He manages to make so many things genuine, humorous, and interesting all at once. Here, his critique of Britain and modern British life, is informative and, generally good natured, if not always intellectually honest.

What does Nathan Osgood bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Nathan Osgood's reading was well done... but I always prefer Bryson to read his material himself. When an author has the talent to be their own narrator, there is nothing better. The jokes hit just right and, with Bryson's easy going voice, its always a joy to sit back and take in the scene. There simply is no way for a professional narrator to recreate the pleasantness that Bryson's own voice brings; his voice also serves to soften some of the perceived harshness.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

The more things change, the more they stay the same... and either way they get it wrong.

Any additional comments?

As this is a 20 year follow up to Notes from a Small Island, I listened to that first. I found that book to be much more harsh and "get off my lawn" than any other Bryson tale (which is to be expected given that England really is Bryson's home). This follow up, of course, is even more curmudgeonly as Bill is now in his 60's.

The Road to Little Dribbling is interesting, and funny, with just enough detail... everything you expect a Bryson book to be, but I found myself thinking "Christ you're getting old Bill" often. Many of his rants just feel like the classic "back in my day..." speech that Dana Carvey made famous on SNL. Occasionally he admits that something has actually improved over the past 20 years, or has improved since his first arrival in the country in the 70's, but the overall theme has a very "I'm surrounded by idiots" vibe going on.

I have no doubt that in 1973, when Bill first arrived in England, there was a 65 year old man running around complaining about how 1930's Britain was the best of times and observing that the damn hippies were letting everything go to hell in a hand basket. Fast forward 40 years and that man is Bill Bryson. None-the-less, he makes some keen observations, has some entertaining rants, and manages to keep things fun.

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A war-hawk morality tale

Revisado: 02-09-16

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Depends. This wouldn't be a bad sci-fi introductory book, it's easy to grasp and moves along briskly, but for those who are deep into the genre, this will feel a bit "paint-by-numbers" (and yet oddly off-kilter at the same time) and won't hold your attention so well.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The concept of an undermanned military coming across a massive battle cruiser, built by a forgotten earth colony, is intriguing and has some awesome possibilities... none of which are are really explored here.
The dialogue is stilted and only occasionally moves into something that feels natural. The author is trying to set a tone that feels different from modern speech in order to give it a formal, futuristic feel, but the result is that I simply didn't "connect" with any of the characters.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

The narration was melodramatic, vacillating between wistful and forlorn. Not quite the right tone for a sci-fi, shoot 'em up, space ship fantasy. Every line is read in this reflective, sometimes mournful voice; even when all the main character is doing is describing how his coffee tastes.

Could you see Battle Cruiser being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

On my list of "books that should be made into movies" this wouldn't be found... but given what Hollywood seems to be looking for these days (i.e. EASY) I wouldn't doubt that this book would have a shot at becoming a movie before something like Seven Eves or The Darwin Elevator.

Any additional comments?

This book reads like Pentagon propaganda disguised as a space adventure. A war-hawk morality tale of what would happen if the hippies took over. It even seems to take veiled shots at socialized medicine.

If Bill O'Reilly ever decides to write sci-fi (instead of the fiction he currently peddles) THIS is what it would look like.

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A Rothfus ripoff

Revisado: 07-13-15

Would you try another book from Mitchell Hogan and/or Oliver Wyman?

I would try another book by Mitchell Hogan, but this one was too ponderous and derivative. I kept checking the cover to see if I'd picked up some kind of teen fiction book by mistake.

What three words best describe Oliver Wyman’s performance?

The voice performance was fine. The story... not so much.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointed with the constant spoon feeding of plot via drawn out, ponderous dialogue.

Any additional comments?

This was a poor imitation of Patrick Rothfus's Kingkiller Chronicles. All it did was make me want to go back and listen to those again. The main character is... BORING. I quit with about 4 hours left. Couldn't take the meandering dialogue anymore. It takes 20 minutes just to get the main character to go find a jail key and unlock someone. The whole time you're thinking, "he's really building to something here, otherwise this rather mundane task wouldn't be such a focus." Then, another 10 minutes later... NOPE. It just took that much writing to get him to find a key and turn it. Nothing else happening. Just a run of the mill jail break that he turned into a half hour back and forth:

"Where are you going?"
"to get the key to get you out."
"please don't go."
"but I must"
"but you can't"
"I have to get you out!"
"Promise me you'll come back"
"I promise, it'll only be a moment"

in the end he unlocks her cell without incident. WTF?!?! a taste of that is fine, establishes her apprehension and all of that, but it goes ON AND ON AND ON well past the point of meaningfulness.

Parts of it were too delicate, too tame, other parts felt forced. The author is trying to bring several separate stories together, ala GRRM, but I found myself simply not caring about any of them, least of all the main protagonist, Caldan, who just doesn't have a whole lot of personality to care much about. Maybe the guy will become interesting at some point down the road, but it wasn't soon enough for my tastes.

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Thought provoking and mesmerizing

Revisado: 04-07-15

Whether or not the author's theories regarding our past and future ultimately prove true, his insights are exceptionally deep and he manages to weave together several seemingly disparate disciplines into a fascinating hypothesis.

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Interesting and fascinating.

Revisado: 02-22-15

Exceeded expectations. The author reading it himself is wonderful. The story is heartbreaking at certain points but with some redemption that Winchester highlights very well.

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