Consequences by Kristine Kathryn Rusch - Book Report #155

07/15/2016

I keep saying Rush is one of my favourite SF authors but I just keep reading other people's work.

I dug this book out of my To Be Read pile and decided to just jump in, even though it is the third installment in the series.  The story stood on it's own but, as I feared, I felt that I was missing quite a bit by not having read the previous two novels.

There are two main characters; Miles Flint, a Retrieval Artist and Noelle DeRicci, a cop.  Both of whom used to be partners back when Flint was also a cop.  So there is the back story there that informs much of their current relationship.  

In this book Flint is contracted to reunite a daughter with her family. Things go badly when the family is then quickly murdered.  Now Flint and DeRicci are working the case but from opposite sides.  The plot is thickened by the introduction of a sub plot about an alien race that is seeking membership in the Earth Alliance.

All of this is, of course, tied to the primary plot.  I found myself getting impatient with the structure because, it was obvious these plot lines were going to converge but it was taking a long time to do so and I wasn't very interested in it in the first place.  I wanted more of Miles and Noelle.

It was a good story and Rusch has proved, once again, that I should be reading more of her work.

Kristine Kathryn Rusch -  http://www.kristinekathrynrusch.com/

Inhuman Garbage by Kristine Kathryn Rush - A Short Story Review.

013/150/2016

Set in the Retrieval Artist universe and available from Asimov's website for free while the readers' choice awards are still in the voting stage.

It is a straight-up murder mystery involving the main characters of her earlier novels plus a crime boss who is the main suspect.

It was well done with a good twist and a surprising conclusion.  It also does the added work of expanding her RA universe.

Not being a reader of the series I can say that it works very well as a stand alone story.

Fiction River #15 Recycled Pulp

As I write this it is January 1, 2016 but I will post it in 2015.  My challenge to read 100 short stories in 2015 was ignored for much of the year but it was in the last two months that I made an effort to accomplish it.

I've been reading a few collections in those months and have been reviewing the stories individually, in draft form, with the plan to publish them once I completed the collections.  So, in the effort to track my reading in 2015, below is a review of the stories read from the collections I have not completed.  As I finish the collections I will count the remaining storeis towards my 2016 goal.

Cool?

Thanks.

* * *

I've been a long-time fan of Kristine Kathryn Rush's work, while on her website I found that she's been busy starting up her own publishing business.  From that I discovered the anthology magazine Fiction River where each issue focuses on on particular genre.  Being a fan of pulp I thought I'd buy this issue and give it a spin.

From the introduction I learned that this may not be exactly what I thought I was getting into.  There were some very special and interesting rules the editors put on the authors.  This I found intriguing and thought it would be a nice way to get some exposure to genres I would not usually buy.

That's the real reason to read anthologies; to be introduced to the new.

The Revolt of the Philosophers of Fomalhaut - by Phaedra Weldon.

91/100 - Angles are sent to Earth to kill.  Yup to kill.  This rubs our angelic narrator the wrong way and we discover with him what is going on and how to deal with it.

You know what?  This was quite a compelling story.  I enjoyed it and could see it on an episode of the Twilight Zone.  Not the old one but a new 21st century version of the show.  Putting this story to a visual medium would be interesting.

 http://www.phaedraweldon.com/

Marvelous Contrivances of the Heart - by Cat Rambo.

92/100 - Another quiet, elegant story about two people who have their own problems. An obsessive husband and a deeply sad, frustrated wife.

An then something strange happens and the entire story takes on a sinister feeling. 

http://www.kittywumpus.net/blog/

The Flower of the Tabernacle  - by Annie Reed 

93/100 - This collection is turning into something unexpected.  I was sure it would be a collection of genre stories but it's looking like something much more compelling and heavy.

This on js a straight up police detective story.  I was reminded of Lawrence Block in the telling of the discovery of a dead woman in a church.  Murder? Suicide? Something else?  This was a story very well told.

https://anniereed.wordpress.com/

Lost in the Tarnished Cube - by Thomas K. Carpenter

94/100 - A wizard buys a tower.  His mortgage is backed by a magical bank.  It comes due unexpectedly.  He must handle the penalty in his own way.

Sadly, this story did not work for me.

http://thomaskcarpenter.com/

Becalmed by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

This is a nice stand-alone short story, set in the Diving universe.

I'll admit right away that I really don't know where it fits in but I have fired off an email to the author asking the question.

Here we follow the story of Mae, a linguist assigned to a diplomatic corps, who is suffering from amnesia caused by PTSD.

It's a chilling story where memories of a massacre keep seeping back into her consciousness. When ever a new memory emerges she wants to retreat and not deal with what she's gone through. But she needs to know ...

Rusch does it again, she's simply flawless in creating believable characters we can care about.

Even though Rusch uses the tired old SF trope of a diplomatic mission to prevent war between two unpronounceable alien cultures, the mission only serves as background for our character's trauma.

The use of flashbacks was intense and I was just as repulsed as Mae by what she remembered.

It was a very good read.

Kristine Kathryn Rusch

The author's site is HERE

Book Report #47 - Diving into the Wreck by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Now THIS is SF! Old-school adventure story in space. Like the folks who dive on ship wrecks in the Earth's oceans Boss (who narrates the story but does not tell us her name) is in the business of finding and exploring derelict spacecraft. Mostly she's in it for the history although she's managed to make a fair living at it.

One day she finds a ship, an enormous and old ship, one that should not be in the region of space she's found it in. And it's dangerous; there is a technology on board that is still powered up and it's claiming lives.

This is what I want in SF; nuts and bolts, ships that need repair, crews that have conflicting personalities and desires. There are no aliens with weird names with apostrophes in strange places, no need to learn a new culture or history. We are dealing with humans and although there is an Empire and an Alliance Rush does not waste time explaining the ins and outs of the universe she's creating. In just a few sentences we learn there was a war between the two groups ( the Empire won) and we are in a region of space that is pretty much left alone as a bit of a frontier. 'Nuff said.

I'm sure she'll go on to expand on the world inhabited by the crew of the "Nobody's Business" but if she makes it part of the story without veering off into back story then I'll know that I'm in the hands of a very skilled story-teller.

There is nothing I hate more than exposition. If it takes more than a paragraph or two to explain the environment of the tale then the author is not as skilled as he could be.

The book was laid out in three parts and although the middle section was not very action packed it was a good place to expand our knowledge of the history of the world Rusch is building.

The third part of the book was very interesting and opened wide the door to future books.

I am so glad I read the original short story and now the novel.

I've already purchased the next two books in the series plus an issue of Asimov's for a short story in the "Diving" universe.

Kristine Kathryn Rusch's website is HERE

The original publication of the Diving into the Wreck short story was in Asimov's magazine, December 2005.

It was also collected in Recovering Apollo 8.  Buy it HERE

The novel can be purchased HERE

Magazine Review #4 - Asimov's February 2012

Murder Born by Robert Reed:  Ooh, I liked this one.  This takes capital punishment in a very interesting direction.  In the story a new method of capital punishment is invented with the unintended consequence of bringing the dead back to life.  This story brings the moral questions of CP to a new level that I just found incredibly interesting.  A real winner.


Hive Mind Man by Rudy Rucker & Eileen Gunn:  This story was a bit out there.  At first it reads like a simple dating story set in the future but then it takes on a life of its own and takes social media and advertising in dizzying directions.  It left me scratching my head.  Entertaining? Yes. Interesting? Sure


The Voodoo Project by Kristine Kathryn Rusch:  An elite covert, military team meet for the first time in a vacant high-rise apartment.  One of the members is a ESPer (I don't know the term, but you get it - ESP) who's job it is to evaluate the team itself.  The evaluation does not go as usual.  Very good story.  It was Rusch's name that drew me to the issue.  I have never been disappointed by her writing.

Observations On A Clock by D. Thomas Minton:  I first found Minton's work on Lightspeed Magazine's website and found his story “Thief of Futures" very, very compelling.  I was very happy to find his name on the cover of the magazine.  This is a story of faith, of trying to save humanity from itself, but in the end the story kind of went over my head.  I'm sure I missed something; the only thing I'm sure about is that there is a monk on an asteroid with a dying atomic clock on it.  He's supposed to report back to Earth what he's observed. Yea, didn't get it.

The People of Pele by Ken Liu:  A nice story about human colonization, the effects of time dilation on a mission that traveled at near light speeds, politics and the definition of life.  I could read a lot more from this author.

Going Home by Bruce McAllister & Barry Malzberg:  A strange a quirky story told in letters between an author and his editor.

Magazine Review #2 - Analog - December 2011

Analog Magazine

December 2011

Still on a short story kick; I received the latest issue of Analog in the mail just when I finished reading Amazing Stories.  And look who has a story in this issue - that's right - Kristine Kathryn Rusch!

1- Ray of Light by Brad R. Torgersen:  This was a fantastic story!  Man is trying to survive at the bottom of the ocean after an alien attack triggers a new ice age!  This was a very believable story told without any literary fluff; just a straight-ahead, nuts-and-bolts, hopeful story.  I loved it.

2- Turning it Off by Susan Forest:  An interesting little tale about teen-age suburban life in a time when computer controlled safety devices are implanted in everything; including humans.  What a fun idea!  If Steve Jobs were still alive I'm sure he'd try to implant the iPod in people.  Wait maybe he already has that on a drawing board somewhere at Apple HQ.  Hmm.

3- Freudian Slipstream by Brad Aiken:  Interstellar travel is possible by using hibernation and an AI interface to keep a person's mind active during flight.  In this story a problem is solved en route to a new planet just about perfect for human habitation.  I loved the pacing of this story; very relaxed and confident.

4- Hidden by Kyle Kirkland:  Set in a time after a drug was developed and used on children to give them heightened intelligence it's discovered that these same children become insane in adult life.  Now one of these people has taken over a secret weapons lab and is threatening to set off the prototype bomb.  We follow Robinson as he negotiates with him.  I'd call this story more of a thriller than a Science Fiction story, sure there's some super weapon and a"brain" drug but that's as far as the SF is pushed.  Was it a good story?  You bet.

5- Art for Splendor's Sake by Dave Creek:  I don't know.  I feel that I was missing something when I read this story.  Earth Unity Ambassador Chanda Kasmira is overseeing a complex evacuation of the planet Splendor an ironically named planet who's description brings to mind the Rocky Mountains in February.  The planet is under threat from a fast-approaching nebula when along comes an artist . . .

By the end the artist reveals his work and Kasmira's reaction left me feeling like I missed the point of the story.  After finding Mr. Creek's website I discovered that this is the seventh or eighth story in a series so now I understand my feeling of disconnection.

The story was crisp and well paced.  It felt like it could have fit well in the Star Wars universe: I got the feeling of a much larger world out there from the story that I read.  I'm looking forward to reading more from him.  I also have over three years worth of back issues to read and I know that he has many stories buried in there.

The Impossibles by Kristine Kathryn Rusch:  Here she is again!  My favorite modern SF author with another fresh take on life in the future.  In this story we follow Kerrie, a new lawyer, two years on the job, working for the Earth Alliance Inter Species Court for the First District.  She's a public defender working off her student loans when the case of a lifetime comes to her.

Set in Rusch's Retrieval Artist universe the story felt like it was part of a larger world to me but it was such a satisfying read on it's own that I didn't get the same feeling of having missed something like I did reading Art for Splendor's Sake earlier in this issue.

Not for Ourselves Alone by Charles E. Gannon:  What a fantastic story!  Part alien invasion, part military SF with a nod to The Cold Equations.  A seemingly unstoppable alien invasion force is on its way to Earth; after attacking a Jupiter orbital space station the survivors find a weakness but can they get the message back to Earth in time.  A fantastic Old-Time space opera tale.

Conclusion - this is issue is well worth a read.

Magazine Review #1 - Amazing Stories, May 1990

Amazing Stories

May 1990

In the field of Science Fiction Amazing Stories looms large.  It's been around since the 1920's.  Although it's no longer in publication today there are still loads of back issues floating around in used book stores and garage sales.  The copy I have is in near perfect condition.  The pages have yellowed but I don't think this copy has ever been read.

I decided to read this as a bit of a break from the last novel, which was ponderous to me.  So some short stories in the SF genre seemed the ticket to refresh my brain.

One of my favorite authors in the field is Kristine Kathryn Rusch and she has a story in this issue, which, I'm sure, is the reason I bought it.

Reading it also gives a glimpse as to where SF was 20 years ago, a bit of a time capsule really.

1- Giant, Giant Steps by Robert Frazier:  Not a bad story.  Set in Chicago during the Second Great Depression.  The story revolves around Marty and his friend Rita.  Marty works as a tele-soldier fighting a distant war via a computer connection to a "Stiff" a robot he controls.  To work the robot his consciousness is transferred directly to it therefore he still runs the risk of dying.

Music has all but vanished from society, when Marty leaves work he goes to his local bar where he and Rita spend time together. On the wall the bartender displays an old relic -  a Saxophone.

While on a mission Marty tries to save a platoon-mate.  A transfer of abilities occurs and Marty can now hear things like never before.  He can hear music in nearly every sound.

Back at the bar he picks up the Sax.

2- Computer Portrait by Jayge Carr:  Again: not a bad story.  This one also delves into differing realities.  An artist living in the loft of an abandoned building is tormented by his computer.  It watches him all the time and critiques his paintings while in progress; estimating and predicting the final product and just how much money he can expect to make from them.

His creativity is in jeopardy because of it.

He turns the computer off and starts to meet interesting and seemingly sinister people who move into the building.

We discover that his life is very much being controlled not by the computer but by the people behind it.

The computer is never really off.

3- The Animist by Bruce Boston:  I didn't read this story.  As soon as I was dealing with another "altered reality" story I gave up.  He lost me when the character was looking for his shoes and found one on top of his stereo.

Stories where reality is doubted I find tiring.

4- Pins by Joe Clifford Faust: This was a fun story!  Take a pinball machine and cross it with Fight Club and you'll have an idea of how this story feels.

Building on the human/machine interface that this issue seems to be about this story takes a fresh approach is very entertaining.  It has a noir, Blade Runner underground setting where a stranger is challenged to take on a pinball machine with an AI built into it.

Strange and fun.

5- Saint Willibald's Dragon by Esther M. Friesner:   I skipped this one too.  Science Fiction and Fantasy are often grouped together but, in my mind, they are very different genres.  My tastes don't run to fantasy and I'm always disappointed to find such a story in an SF magazine.

No offense to Ms. Friesner.

Fatal Disc Error by George Alec Effinger:  This was an interesting story.  What happens to an Artificial Intelligence when it dies?  Again this story goes in and out of all kinds of "realities" as the AI dies due to a fire where it's servers are kept.

A Time for Every Purpose by Kristine Kathryn Rusch:  The best story of this issue.  Rusch is one of my favorite authors.  She does loads of short fiction and she crosses from SF to Fantasy to Romance and Mystery.  I first read her SF short fiction but also found her mystery fiction to be first rate.  Her voice is fresh and her stories are always clear and believable.

This is a "time cop" story.  The main character is traveling through time trying to prevent a serial killer from committing his first murder.

The story weaves back and forth and plays with history as we know it.  It was a first rate read.