LonPrater.com

More stuff read.  Forgot to add this list from the plane rides last week.

Captain Alatriste by Arturo Perez-Reverte. A rousing adventure “memoir” told at a leisurely pace that makes excellent use of the strongest tools of the novelist’s craft.  Love the wry voice, florid characters, and many sardonic jabs at “modern day Spain” (ie a few decades after the story’s 17th early century).  A deviation from my usual prohibition on reading the first book in a series first, mainly because I’d been warned already that the later volumes drag on unexcusably for such short books, but the first is a can’t miss.  Definitely glad I read this one though.

“Nor Idolatry Blind the Eye” (novellette) by Charles Ardai.  Classic, pulpy feel. Came as an ad for the Gabriel Hunt books, which are appealing as all get out, but unbuyable till the present TBR load clears up some.

“Chain of Fools” and “Chain of Stars” (short fiction) by Jay Lake.  A neat premise and fun cast of characters, set in the world of Mainspring.  (And, just barely, off it.)

Weird Tales #353. Favorites were reconnecting with Paul Tremblay’s “Headstones in my Pocket” and Caleb Wilson’s “Court Scranto”.  Also, Jason Heller made me want to go dig up some Ballard and become acquainted.

Talebones #38. Bittersweet, that this issue is nearly the last. The interview of Zelazny by Ken Rand, given the perspective of time and history on each of those men also gave me much to chew on; Zelazny had big plans and was moving forward with them when he moved on from this vale of tears.  I remember loving the Amber books as a teen, though to be honest, I couldn’t even guess what they were about this far down the line.  On the fiction side of the house, Mary Robinette Kowal impressed as always, plus Marshall Payne’s “Sausages” and Tim McDaniel’s “Discards” went down particularly well.

National Geographic (Nov 2009). Once or twice a year I delve into NG. The writing style is always crisp and clear, and it’s a heckuva way to brush up on describing settings, not to mention that it’s a treasure trove of worldbuilding considerations and details.  Lucky for me this one was on-hand when I ran out of everything else I had brought to read.