Just Finished
"Every time I read a book in the Thursday Next fantasy / mystery series I leave it feeling happy and totally entertained. The Well of Lost Plots is the 3rd book in this series by British writer, Jasper Fforde. In this story, ex-SO5 agent has had to leave the Out World (Swindon to be exact) to escape from Goliath corporation and to protect herself and her unborn child. She is hiding in the Well of Lost Plots, the place where all fiction is created, in her case in an unpublished novel, Caversham Heights, a book that might be taken apart if it doesn't improve.
While there Thursday will fill in for one of the characters, Molly, partner to Detective Jack Spratt, and will continue her training with mentor Miss Havisham as an agent for Jurisfiction, the group that keeps books safe (well, it's probably more complex than that). Hmm, what else is going on. In the last book, Goliath went into the past and erased her husband, Landon, from existence and Aornis Hades has put an ear worm into her head to erase every memory of Landon from her mind. Let's see, a new version of the book system, Ultra World, is being tried, the Minotaur has escaped, other Jurisfiction agents are being killed off by someone and Book World is preparing for the 923rd Annual Fiction Awards with Heathcliff of Wuthering Heights hoping to snag his 73rdish straight win as Most Troubled Romantic Lead (Male).
It's such a fascinating world that Fforde has created and there is a richness to the story-telling, the whole concept and the settings. Thursday Next is a strong, interesting character and ably supported by the other characters. Mrs. Havisham of Great Expectations as her mentor and speed car enthusiast, Thursday's Gran who shows up to help her battle Aornis and to keep her memories, the two Generics, Idd and Obb who share Thursday's accommodations and are trying to develop personalities, etc. I keep thinking it's all just a bit of fun, but the more you get into the story, it's more than that, it's fascinating and wonderful. Fforde even teases his hew series, Nursery Crimes (at least I think he does). Start with The Eyre Affair and you'll be addicted too. (5 stars)"
Currently Reading
"Judge Crowdy Lobbett has found evidence pointing to the identity of the criminal mastermind behind the deadly Simister gang. After four attempts on his life, he ends up seeking the help of Albert Campion."
The Science Fiction Novel - Anne McCaffery
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| Anne McCaffery |
Back in the day when I was getting back into Sci-Fi via the Science Fiction Book Club I tried this series; I think it was The Dolphins of Pern. I have yet to try another but I do have one on my books shelf.
"For generations, the dragonriders had dedicated their lives to fighting Thread, the dreaded spores that periodically rained from the sky to ravage the land. On the backs of their magnificent telepathic dragons they flew to flame the deadly stuff out of the air before it could reach the planet's surface. But the greatest dream of the dragon riders was to find a way to eradicate Thread completely, so that never again would their beloved Pern be threatened with destruction.
Now, for the first time, it looked as if that dream could come true. For when the people of Pern, led by Masterharper Robinton and F'Lar and Lessa, Weyrleader and Weyrwoman of Benden Weyr, excavated the ancient remains of the planet's original settlement, they uncovered the colonist's voice-activated artificial intelligence system - which still functioned!
And the computer had incredible news for them: There was a chance - a good chance - that they could, at long last, annihilate Thread once and for all!"
The complete listing of Anne McCaffery's works can be found at this link.
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