M.A. Kropp: Writer, Blogger, GeekGirl. My Life. My Words. My Way.
My rating: 3 of 5 starsWarning: There may be some minor spoilers in this review.Darrow is a Red, the lowest caste in a color-coded Martian system. He is a miner, a laborer who has been told his entire life that he and his fellow Reds toil to make the surface of Mars a livable place … Continue reading Friday Review: Red Rising (Red Rising Saga #1) by Pierce Brown
Finally! My collection of very short stories will be available on May 17 of this year. This was a long time in coming, and crossed through the first, second, and current waves of the pandemic. More information, including how and where to pre-order will be coming as we get closer. Here's what it's all about: … Continue reading Coming In May: Crossed Wires and Other Very Short Stories
My rating: 4 of 5 starsHome takes place about a year after the first novella in this series. Binti is still at Oomza University after the events of the first novella but she is suffering from PTSD in the aftereffects of the events that had her hailed as a hero. She decides to go home … Continue reading Friday Review: Binti: Home (Binti #2) by Nnedi Okorafor
My rating: 4 of 5 starsJohn Perry just turned 75, so he did what any self-respecting 75-year-old would: he visited his wife's grave, and joined the army. Technically, he joined the Colonial Defense Force (CDF). In this Earth future universe, the CDF doesn't want young, inexperienced recruits. They want those with the knowledge, experience, and … Continue reading Friday Review: Old Man’s War (Old Man’s War #1) by John Scalzi
My rating: 4 of 5 starsFive independent hackers are given a choice by the government: serve as white hat hackers completing assignments given them or face prison for their past cyber crimes. Faced with that choice, they decide to take the offer. They are sent to an isolated compound where they and the other teams … Continue reading Friday Review: Zer0es by Chuck Wendig
One of the trending discussions that cropped up among the genre social media feeds during the past month revolved around the idea of canon. Specifically, the perceived loss of reverence for what the complaining folks considered the classics of science fiction literature. They complain that "these kids today" have no idea what great scifi is … Continue reading Canon? Or Cannon?
My rating: 3 of 5 starsShe was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.Those three sentences have become a sort of battle cry for women who are standing up in the face of outdated and demeaning attitudes from some segments of society. In this collection of flash fiction, a number of the most … Continue reading Nevertheless, She Persisted: Flash Fiction Project by Various Authors
My rating: 3 of 5 starsIn this first of four novellas, we are introduced to Murderbot (its own name for itself) a part-organic, part-android Security Unit. The unit managed to hack its own governor unit and become autonomous, although no one knows about that. It has a shady past involving the killing of 57 people … Continue reading Friday Review: All Systems Red (Murderbot Diaries 1) by Martha Wells
My rating: 3 of 5 stars This alternate history story starts when a meteorite strikes the ocean off the southern coast of the United States and immediately causes wide-scale destruction of much of the eastern part of the country, including Washington, DC. The aftereffects of the meteor will cause global climate change on a disastrous … Continue reading Friday Review: The Calculating Stars (Lady Astronaut #1) by Mary Robinette Kowal
My rating: 4 of 5 starsThe Vorkosigan books are another of the iconic series in science fiction that I somehow never got around to reading. I have been trying to discover some of those books and to catch up with them a little. When I looked at the Vorkosigan series, it was a bit daunting … Continue reading Friday Review: The Warrior’s Apprentice (Vorkosigan Saga #2) by Lois McMaster Bujold (Audiobook)
And So On... 