Location: Australia
Member Since:
Oct. 03, 2010
seandblogonaut
Biography
Reader and reviewer of speculative fiction.
Where to find seandblogonaut online
seandblogonaut's favorite authors on Smashwords
Smashwords book reviews by seandblogonaut
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Angel Rising, a New Ceres Novella
on Dec. 26, 2010
Angel Rising is a novella by Tasmanian writer Dirk Flinthart. The story is set in the shared world of New Ceres a now defunct (or it just in haitus) Australian Speculative Fiction project. The Story The tale is set on the World of New Ceres, a planet isolated from the rest of space faring humanity by virtue of laws that preserve it as a replica of eighteenth century earth. You will find examples of Enlightenment era Europe as well as, in this case Feudal Japan. Certain modern technologies are banned, there is only one spaceport on the planet, entry and departure from New Ceres is strictly controlled. Our protagonist George Gordon is a Proctor, a genetically enhanced human who forms part of the Lady Governors network of secret protectors. He and others are sent to weed out illegal off worlders and investigate those who threaten society and culture on New Ceres. Gordon is sent to to the Sunrise Isles (New Ceres' Japan) to investigate a potential off world incursion. What follows is action and subterfuge aplenty involving samurai, ninja and nuns. And it's not as corny as that last sentence sounds. What I liked Angel Rising, and the New Ceres setting reminds me of the feel of Firefly - though with more swashbuckling. Always a bonus in my opinion. Dirk Flinthart's writing is punchy, the action smoothly written and his characterization of George Gorden has left me wanting more stories with this protagonist. What I didn't like Not enough George Gordon. Please write more. I have had to hunt down all the other New Ceres works just to get my fill.
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Horn
on Dec. 30, 2010
Horn by Peter M Ball is another brilliant Australian novella from Twelfth Planet Press. It's a paranormal detective story. But be prepared, this ain't your little sisters ( unless you have a rather odd family) book about faeries and unicorns. This is a hard boiled detective novel, dark and probably a little confronting for some. Miriam Aster ain't no Nancy Drew, either, she's an undead freelance investigator on the trail of a murderous, horny unicorn- Oh did I mention she's a Lesbian. To give away more, would I think ruin the novella. Horn needs to be experienced on a personal level. Now for those not reading closely, I said undead, lesbian, and horny unicorn all in the same sentence. No this isn't some paranormal erotica gone wrong. It's possibly the best paranormal fiction I have read all year, possibly ever. It will be confronting, it will take some of you close to edge. But I think Ball crafts a delightfully dark little tale, revealing a more honest portrayal of the Fae, the sex, lust and double edged devious nature. If you grew up playing Faeries and Unicorns with 'My Little Pony' you might want to skip this one. If you are looking for great noir fiction and a good angle on paranormal fiction, read it, possibly with stiff drink in hand.
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The Smoke Dragon
on Jan. 27, 2011
The Tale The Smoke Dragon tells the story of Yamabushi(a wild mountain fighting monk) Kaidan and his sidekicks Aiko and Yumi as they battle against bandits and their Smoke Dragon and an opportunistic Samurai clan. It's classic mystical Japan with Kaidan casting spells that augment his martial prowess and dispensing wisdom left, right and centre. The tone is somewhat reserved, perfect for the genre. What I liked This piece of fiction took me back to days spent wasted playing in the pseudo-historical world of Tenchu - Stealth Assassin. I'd like to read more of these Characters and from the extra chapter included at the end of this download its seems Cummings will be doing that in the not too distant future. What I didn't like Not too much to dislike really. It does feel like the opening to a longer tale and while perfectly self contained as a story in its own right I would have liked more so that the characters and their motivation could be filled out. Final Thoughts If your a fan of pseudo-historical oriental tales, anime or games, download it. Hell even if you're not into any of the above enjoy a good free read.
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Aurealis #47
on March 10, 2012
Excellent duo of stories good coverage of the Australian Science fiction scene.
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Shifting Reality
on Aug. 03, 2013
Shifting Reality is a science fiction novel set in ISF-Allion Universe that Patty Jansen has been developing over the last couple of years. Other works in the series are Luminescence (novelette), His Name in Lights (novelette) and Charlotte’s Army (novella). I mentioned in my review of Luminescence above that I wanted longer works set in the ISF- Allion Universe and while I don’t think Patty was specifically listening to me, she has steadily delivered, writing Charlotte’s Army and then Shifting Reality. Shifting Reality is the tale of Melati Rudiyanto the granddaughter of expat Indonesians who form the labour force on the aging space station of New Jakarta. The space station comes under ISF(International Space Force) jurisdiction and Melati joined the an ISF training program to repay a debt to the Doctor who saved her and to give herself a chance at a better life. Her family sees her as betraying them and her people. She sees them as stuck in the same cycle of poverty, unwilling to take advantage of the opportunities on offer. He job is to train/teach human constructs (clones) through their accelerated growth period. The action begins when one of the clone children displays an understanding of adult concepts and language that he should not have yet developed. Melati’s concern and care for the children in her charge leads to an unravelling of a larger station threatening plot. What I particularly like about Jansen’s science fiction (she writes hard–sf as well) is that it’s rare that the tech or the science is the reason for the story but when it does surface, it’s well thought out, realistic and logical. It makes for a quick immersive read with no oddities to drop you out of the immersion. What I particularly like about Shifting Reality is the choice to have a person of colour and a woman as the central character and that she is a teacher. It’s refreshing to have a protagonist who is not military special forces in high tech spandex. I don’t know enough about Indonesian culture(s) to know how well Patty has transported it to the life on board a space station but she does a convincing enough job of playing off tensions between family, work and the wider community for me. While Shifting Reality sits somewhere within the sphere of military science fiction I like the focus on the other aspects life at New Jakarta Station : tourism, refugees, organised crime and human trafficking. I also like the way in which Jansen slowly builds her “world” with each outing, enabling the attentive reader to pick up on actions and outcomes that occurred in earlier works. If you are looking for something less over the top than space opera, but still with a broad scope. If you are looking for something with a solid scientific under pinning that’s different to all the “square-jawed Marines save space” narratives, then I think you should check Jansen’s Shifting Reality out. But I'd also recommend reading the entire ISF-Allion series of works to appreciate the scope of the “world” Jansen has devised. This book was provided by the publisher.