Vesa Sisättö: "Only in Finland" ja "Huuhaa-Suomen historia".

Katsaus erilaisiin Suomessa valtaa saaneisiin huuhaavillityksiin kautta aikojen pyhimyksien näkyjen provosoimista sodista noitavainojen ja alkemian kautta kummituslentokoneisiin ja poltergeisteihin aina Uri Gelleriin, jääkauden kieltämiseen ja viljaympyröihin asti. Kiinnostava katsaus monenlaiseen huuhaahan, mutta se tuntui olevan varsin hajanainen hyppivä. Melko monesta ”villityksestä” todettiin vain, että kannattaa tarkistaa saman tekijän aikaisempi kirja, ”Only in Finland” siinä on asiasta enemmän. Koska tuo kirja oli Bookbeatissa luettava, aloin lukea sitä rinnakkaisesti ja pääsin molemmissa kirjoissa loppuun käytännössä samaan aikaan.  Tämä jälkimmäinen kirja oli minun mielestäni huomattavasti parempi ja johdonmukaisempi, jotenkin jopa paremmin kirjoitetun tuntuinen, ehkä juuri vähäisemmästä hajanaisuudesta ja hyppimisestä johtuen. Molemmat olivat kumminkin kiinnostavia ja hyvin helppolukuisia kirjoja; niitä oli helppo juuri ennen nukahtamista lukea juttu pari, kun väsymys ei enää vaikeampaan tekstiin antanut omaksumisen mahdollisuuksia. 

 311 + 346 pp

Reijo Mäki: Intiaani (Vares #24)

En vähään aikaan ollutkaan lukenut Vares-sarjan kirjoja. Bookbeatin kautta matkakuuntelua varten valitsin vaihteeksi sellaisen, valintakriteerinä oli kohtalaisen hyvä Goodreads-arvosana sarjan niistä osiusta, joita en vielä ollut lukenut. Kirjan alussa seurataan kahta tarinaa. Toisessa nimeämätön ilmeisen suomalainen nainen on yksin matkalla USA:ssa ja joutuu lähes siepatuksi. Hänet pelastaa puolierakkona elänyt intiaanimies, jolla on pitkän tähtäimen kostosuunnitelma naisen kaappausta yrittänyt rikolliskoplaa vastaan. Vares taas on ollut viettämässä aikaa viimeisimmän naisystävänsä luona tämän hulppealla saaristohuvilalla. Heidän luokseen oli määrä tulla laivalla naisen entinen miniä, johon tämän oli ystävystynyt ja jonka kanssa piti yhteyttä vaikkei tämä ollut enää naisen pojan kanssa naimisissa. Kun yhteyslautta ei tule ajallaan lähtevät Vares naisystävänsä kanssa moottoriveneellä tarkistamaan tilannetta. Laiva löytyy moottori sammutettuna kellumasta merellä ja jokainen laivassa ollut on ammuttu kuoliaaksi. Ex-miniää ei laivasta löydy. Vareksen naisystävä palkkaa Vareksen selvittämän mitä oikein on tapahtunut ja vapauttamaan miniä epäilyistä, sillä tätä kohtaan luonnollisesti niitä on herännyt ja huhumylly pyörii. Poliisilla ei vaikuta olevan mitään tietoa syyllisestä tai syyllisistä. 

Tarina kulkevat omia reittejään ja vasta aika myöhän, oikeastaan vasta kirja loppupuolella niiden yhteydet kunnolla selviävät, eivätkä ne ihan ole ainakaan omien ensiepäilyjen mukaiset. Varmastikin oli Vares sarjan paremmasta päästä, tuttua letkeää tarinakerrontaa ja tutut henkilöhahmot. Konnat vain tuntuvat suhteellisen stereotyyppisiltä ja heidän käytöksensä tuntuu melko samalta, vaikka kirjat (ja henkilöt) vaihtuvat. Kirja oli viihdyttävää kuunneltavaa automatkoilla ja luettavaa lounastunneilla, vaikka Bookbeatin synkronointiominaisuus välillä vähän takkuili. Kirjallisesti se ei mitään huipputasoa ollut, mutta eipä tämän tapaisen kirjan tarvitsekaan. 

I hadn't read any books from the Vares series for quite some time., I chose one through Bookbeat based on a reasonably good Goodreads rating among those I hadn't read yet. At the beginning of the book, two stories unfold. In one, an unnamed seemingly Finnish woman is traveling alone in the USA and is almost kidnapped. She is rescued by a half-hermit Native American man, who has a long-term revenge plan against the criminal gang that attempted to kidnap the woman.

Meanwhile, in the second story, Vares has been spending time at a luxurious archipelago villa of his latest girlfriend. They were expecting the former daughter-in-law of the American woman to arrive by boat. The girlfriend had befriended the woman and kept in touch with her despite the woman no longer being married to her son. When the connecting ferry doesn't arrive on time, Vares and his girlfriend take a motorboat to check on the situation. They find the ship adrift in the sea with the engine turned off, and everyone on board has been shot dead. The ex-daughter-in-law is not on the ship. Vares's girlfriend hires Vares to find out what has happened and to clear the daughter-in-law of suspicion, as rumors have naturally arisen against her, and the gossip mill is in full swing. The police don't seem to have any information about the culprit or culprits.

The stories follow their own paths, and only quite late, actually towards the end of the book, do their connections become clear, and they aren't what I initially suspected. This book was probably among the better ones in the Vares series, with familiar laid-back humorous storytelling and familiar characters. The villains seem relatively stereotypical, and their behavior feels quite similar, even though the books (and characters) change. The book was entertaining to listen to during car rides and to read during lunch breaks, even though the synchronization feature of Bookbeat occasionally glitched. In terms of literature, it wasn't top-notch, but a book of this kind doesn't necessarily need to be. 

461 pp

Brandon Sanderson: Edgedancer (The Stormlight Archive #2.5)

A 'middle part' before the next door-stopper-sized installment in the Stormlight Archives series. This book tells more about Lift, a girl who three years ago asked an enchantress not to grow older any more. She is a Knight Radiant who has a spren, a sort of familiar, that tries to offer her some help – even if she isn’t always ready to accept any sane advice. The book starts with an episode that was already part of the second installment of the series, Words of Radiance, and continues from there. (Somehow I was expecting a prequel.) Lift follows the shadowy and powerful figure, The Executioner, who almost killed her. Not very sane, but she wants to find out what he is doing and perhaps save the next person whom the Executioner wants to kill.

A smoothly moving book with a very cocky and interesting main character, who is just learning a small portion of her potential powers. The writing was very readable, and the plot was engaging. I am looking forward to Oathbringer, the next 'proper' part of the series. I hope that Lift will be one of the characters in that book.

272 pp. 

Anne B. Ragde: Vihreät niityt (Neshov Family #3 , Ligge i grønne enger)

Kolmas osa Neshovin perheen tarinaa. Kun kolme kirjaa, jotka jatkavat samaa tarinaa on lukenut peräkkäin, alkaa olla lopulta vaikea muistaa ja hahmottaa, mitä tapahtui missäkin kirjassa. Tarina jatkuu saumatta edellisestä, osapuilleen samasta minuutista, mihin viime kirja päättyi. Nyt Torunn on yksin vastuussa sikatilasta ja isoisänsä hoidosta. Samalla häntä kalvaa syyllisyys isänsä kuolemasta. Erlend ja hänen elämänkumppaninsa eivät osaa ajatella juuri muuta kuin lesboparin kanssa yhdessä tulossa olevia lapsia ja maatilalle suunnittelemaansa prameaa huvilarakennusta – jota suunnittelemaan on luonnollisesti palkattu paras mahdollinen, maailmankuulu arkkitehti. Magidon on tiukasti sidottu kiireisen hautaustoimistonsa hoitamiseen, eikä kukaan ymmärrä, kuinka yksin ja masentunut Torunn on. Tarina jatkuu hyvin samanlaisena ja samantyylisenä kuin aikaisemmissa kirjoissa. Oikeastaan vaikutelma tulee siitä, että kirjat on kirjoitettu samalla kertaa ja lähinnä kustannuspoliittisista syistä jaettu jonkin asteisista käännekohdista osiin. Minkäänlaista tarinakertausta kirjojen aluissa ei ole, juoni jatkuu suoraan siitä, mihin edellinen teos loppui. Samoin tyyli säilyy samana. Henkilöt ovat hyvin kuvattuja, mutta ajoittain melkoisen ärsyttäviä. Sarjan piti olla trilogia, mutta tämäkin osa loppuu aika lailla äkillisesti tarjoamatta oikein minkäänlaista päätöskohtaa kertomukselle, vaan oikeastaan kaikki juonilinjat jäävät pahasti kesken. Sävyltään tämä osa oli vähemmän kevyt kuin aikaisemmat, oikeastaan sarjassa ollaan menty koko ajan hiukan tummempaan suuntaan. Ehkä jatkan sarjan parissa myöhemmin, mutta nyt lukupiirin kautta tullut ”urakka” on ohi, pidän näissä kirjoissa pienen tauon.

The third part of the Neshov family story. When you have read three books that continue the same story in a row, it finally becomes difficult to remember and understand what happened in which book. The story continues seamlessly from the previous one, more or less from the same minute that the last book ended. Now Torunn is solely responsible for the pig farm and the care of her grandfather. At the same time, she is haunted by guilt for her father's death. Erlend and his life partner can't think of anything but the children that they are getting from a lesbian couple and the luxurious summer house they are planning for the farm - which is naturally designed by the best possible, world-famous, architect. Magido is tightly tied to the management of her busy funeral home and no one understands how alone and depressed Torunn is.

The story continues in a very similar way and style to the previous books. In fact, the impression is that the books have been written at the same time and mainly for marketing reasons divided into parts at some points of inflection. There is no story repetition at the beginning of the books, the plot continues directly from where the previous work ended. The style also remains the same. The characters are well-portrayed but occasionally quite annoying.

The series was supposed to be a trilogy. However, this part also ends quite suddenly without offering any real ending to the story, and in fact all the plot lines are left badly unfinished. In terms of tone, this book was less light than the previous ones, in fact, the series has been going in a slightly darker direction as it progresses. Maybe I'll continue with the series later, but now that the "task" that came through the book club is over, I'll take a break from these books.

293 pp. 

Anne B. Ragde: Erakkoravut (Neshov Family #2, Eremittkrepsene/)

Toinen osa Neshovin perheestä kertovaa sarjaa. Vanhan äidin kuolema viime osassa tutustutti toisistaan vieraantuneet perheen jäsenet uudelleen toisiinsa. Nyt hautajaiset on pidetty ja asiat osittain ovat palanneet ennalleen. Tor hoitaa sikalaa minkä pystyy, vaikka alkaa näyttää siltä, että taloudellisesti se ei pidemmällä ajalla tule olemaan mahdollista – tähänkin asti sen tukemiseen on tarvittu vanhempien eläkkeitä ja kun toinen eläke on poissa, tilanne on aikaisempaakin huonompi. Torin tytär, Torunn, on palannut kotiinsa työskentelemään koirien kanssa eläinlääkäriasemalla, Margidon hoitaa hautaustoimistoaan ja on ehkä muutamassa hiukan elämäänsä, tosin uskallus ei ihan riitä. Erlend ja elämänkumppaninsa myös kriiseilevät lapsen hankinnan kanssa. Kun Torunnin rakkauselämä ei ihan suju hänen toivomallaan tavalla, hän palaa tilalle isänsä luokse. 

Kirjan alkupuoli vaikutti kovin hitaalta eikä siinä tuntunut tapahtuvan mitään. Siinä vaiheessa, kun Erlendin kutsujen ruokalistaa kuvailtiin muutaman sivun verran, olin jo hylkäämässä koko kirjan, mutta jatkoin kuitenkin. Vähitellen tarina, vaikka siinä ei kovin ihmeitä oikeastaan edes tapahtunut, alkoi taas vetää mukaansa seuraamaan, mitä enemmän tai vähemmän epätäydellisten perheen jäsenten elämässä oikein tapahtui. Kipuilu tulevaisuuden ratkaisujen suhteen oli kaiken kaikkiaan aika hyvin kuvattua ja ymmärrettävää. Ihmiskuvaus oli varsin hyvin toimivaa, vaikka se olikin karrikoitua. Vaikka henkilöiden kohtalot eivät niitä kaikkein helpoimpia ja mukavimpia olleet, kirjassa on siitä huolimatta leppoisa vire.

The second part of the series about the Neshov family. The death of the old mother in the previous part reunited the estranged family members with each other. Now the funeral has been held and things have partly returned to normal. Tor takes care of the pig farm as best he can, even though it is starting to look like it will not be financially viable in the long run. So far, it has required the parents' pensions to support it, and when one pension is gone, the situation is even worse than before. Tor's daughter, Torunn, has returned home to work with dogs at a veterinarian's office, Margido takes care of the funeral home and is perhaps considering making some changes in his life, although he doesn't quite have the courage. Erlend and his life partner are also grappling with the idea of having a child. When Torunn's love life does not go the way she hoped, she returns to her father on the farm.

The beginning of the book seemed very slow and nothing seemed to happen. At the point where Erlend's dinner menu was described for several pages, I was already about to abandon the entire book, but I continued anyway. Gradually, even though not much was really happening, the story began to draw me in again to follow what was happening in the lives of the more or less imperfect family members. The struggle with future decisions was overall quite well-portrayed and understandable. The characterization was quite effective, even though it was somewhat exaggerated. Even though the characters' fates were not the easiest nor most comfortable, the book still had a relaxed vibe.

Gardner Dozois (Editor): The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-First Annual Collection

 A pretty nice collection I have slowly read during last six months or so. 

Off on a Starship • (2003) • novella by William Barton

A schoolboy (who has been a SF fan) gets stranded on an automated alien spaceship that is taking samples from  Earth. He ends up on an abandoned planet where he makes friends with an intelligent, self-aware, mind-reading robot. Where is everyone? There are remains of a civilization spanning galaxies. The robot knows at least part of the story and is able to accommodate most of the wishes of the boy, or rather, the young man by now.  The first part of the story was a bit slow but it got better for the remainder, with several references to classic SF. A pretty good story overall. ****+

It's All True • [Moment Universes] • (2003) • novelette by John Kessel

Time travel is commonplace. One of the best uses for it is to get movie stars and directors from the past (from alternate timelines) to come to our time to produce new movies with certified star appeal. One man, an apparently failed arthouse movie director,  tries to lure Orson Welles to his future - but he seems to have little interest in that. However, there is something else that can be brought back from the past. Not a bad story. ****-

Rogue Farm • (2003) • short story by Charles Stross

A couple tries to tend their fields and make a living. A farm walks along the ground and eventually plants itself near their border fence. It starts to grow bioengineered trees filled with nitrocellulose because it plans to fly to Jupiter. Doing that would destroy the fields.  A man must do what a man must do - whatever it takes. Less surreal than it appears, but perhaps the story is a little too short for all the ideas and concepts it presents. ***½ 

The Ice • (2003) • novella by Steven Popkes

An aspiring student who is playing ice hockey in the university series, hears that he is a clone of Gordie Howe, a famous ice hockey player. He has trouble adjusting to the news. People, especially one reporter who is following him (I wonder why no one seemed to be interested in who this reporter was, who was able to “out” him, as his genetics seemed to be pretty well hidden) seem to assume much about what he will be able to do. But he creates his own path.  After introducing the premise itself, the story is a pretty non-science fictional story of the life of a fairly ordinary man. Well written tale, but there is little SF. ***+

Ej-Es • (2003) • short story by Nancy Kress

A colony world was established on another planet a few hundred years ago. When a scheduled check-up mission arrives, it appears that everyone died years before from an apparent disease. However, there seem to be survivors: filthy, passive people who tend to stare at the walls with silly smiles. It turns out the survivors have brain damage which causes hallucinations with orgasmic-like feelings. Should they be treated for their condition? They seem to be extremely happy as they are. A pretty good story, but not as good as I remembered it to be. ****

The Bellman • [Anna-Louise Bach] • (2003) • novelette by John Varley

A pregnant woman is found brutally murdered at a Lunar colony, the fetus partly ripped out from her womb. As the police start to investigate, there seem to be very many disappeared pregnant women. Who is targeting them - and why? A pregnant policewoman is used as bait, but what she faces is much more than she or anyone bargained for. A pretty good police procedural on the Moon, but it is nowhere near Varley’s best work. ****+    

The Bear's Baby • [Holy Ground Trilogy] • (2003) • novella by Judith Moffett

The Earth has been invaded by carnivorous aliens. Their main goal is to restore Earth to its pristine condition - which means that a significant proportion of the population, and apparently most of the technology, have disappeared long (?) ago. A man has been studying black bears on behalf of the aliens - they encourage and support ecological studies. The local leader of the aliens arrives and tells them that the study is concluded: it is apparent that black bears are thriving in the area and there is no need for any further study. The man isn’t so ready to abandon his life work - he would like to continue. But arguing with the aliens will get his memory wiped. The man decides to secretly return to study the bears. He makes a strange finding - one of the pups has been replaced by an alien baby. It turns out that the aliens weren’t as altruistic as they claimed to be when they arrived to “save Earth’s nature.”  The story was pretty good, but I don’t really understand why the time travel aspect was suddenly dropped into the plot almost in a deus ex machina manner. ****-

Calling Your Name • (2003) • short story by Howard Waldrop

A widowed, middle-aged man gets an electric shock while working in his yard. After coming to his senses he seems to be alright, but when Nixon comes up in casual conversation with his daughter, she doesn’t recognize the name. And the entry about him in the encyclopedia on his bookshelf is only a few lines long. There seem to be other changes, also. He seems to be on an alternate timeline - but his wife is still dead. Or is she? A nice alternate reality story, nothing really groundbreaking. ***+

June Sixteenth at Anna's • (2003) • short story by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

It is possible to record past events. For some reason, some of the most popular recordings are made from ordinary events - one is about what happened at a restaurant. The people and the discussion are supposed to be very interesting and stimulating, and the recording has been published many times even with annotations (always apparently in visual format - something that pretty much dates the story). A person who was there at the time has since died. She had every version of the recording ever published and spent a lot of time on them. Her son (?) watches the recording but doesn’t feel that his mother is really there.  ****-

The Green Leopard Plague • [College of Mystery] • (2003) • novella by Walter Jon Williams

A mermaid (apparently heavily gene-edited human) is asked to find what a certain man (who apparently is world-renowned) did during the time period before his very important scientific presentation. Everything about his life is known, except what he did during that time. Everything is available digitally. So, the mermaid starts a search for all photos taken anywhere in Europe during that time period and starts to get hits. He is seen with a strange woman at the scene of a death. Then the story starts to follow those past events. The woman claims the man was murdered for the secrets they were carrying - something which could stop famines forever but with some cost and something causing prejudice. 

The story was pretty slow moving and fairly little seemed to happen. A bit tighter form would have perhaps been a good idea - perhaps the past events and current events might have been split into two different stories. ***½

The Fluted Girl • (2003) • novelette by Paolo Bacigalupi

Two sisters have been purchased as children by a wealthy eccentric. They have been heavily modified with medicines and operations to look prepubescent and extremely delicate and enchanting. They are so fragile that they have broken some bones several times. And now the first time they will be performing is coming up.  A good story of the exploitation of those who are poor by the rich and powerful.  ****

Dead Worlds • (2003) • short story by Jack Skillingstead

A man is an ”Eye,” someone who connects to a reconnaissance probe on another solar system. Doing that practically rips a person's psyche apart and makes them heavily dependent on medicines to be able to function at all. He has “escaped” the facility where he works - in theory, he is free to leave, but he has signed up for one more term and he needs the medicines. He meets a woman who has fairly recently lost her husband and they create a connection. But he must eventually return for one more job.  A pretty good story with a satisfying but slightly open ending. ***½

King Dragon • (2003) • novelette by Michael Swanwick

An adolescent lives in a village in a world that is at war. The war is fought with “dragons” which work with jet fuel and fire apparent missiles. One dragon falls near the village and comes to the village (it is able to move, but poorly). Its operator has died, and the dragon part of the whole practically takes over the village. The adolescent is forced to act as an intermediator who is forced to fulfill the request of the dragon. Everything does not go smoothly. The story happens in an interesting world where magic and technology seem to co-exist and partly depend on each other. The writing was very good, even poetic, and the plot was so interesting I might have to pick up a book on my shelves by the same author that has been waiting for years.  ****+                           

Singletons in Love • (2003) • novelette by Paul Melko

In a post-singularity world (where most people - who used to be connected to a collective mind - have disappeared), those who have stayed behind, live on connected clusters of a few people. They have individuality, but a shared mind is at least as important as individuality. One such group is training for a trip to space (where there is massive infrastructure left by people who transferred to another level or something). They find a man living alone at a nearby house. That’s practically unheard of. It turns out that the man who lived before the singularity was part of the gestalt who disappeared, but was in a coma and missed what happened. He seems fascinating. A good and well-written story with an interesting take on a practically shared mind. ****-                             

Anomalous Structures of My Dreams • (2003) • novelette by M. Shayne Bell

A man suffering from an AIDS-related pneumonia is in the hospital. His roommate also has pneumonia, something the doctors can’t identify. He seems to get sicker and sicker, and then something starts to grow inside, something metallic. And people who have had contact with him are starting to get a cough…including the main character whose cough gets worse. It turns out that the “infection” is caused by runaway nanotech, and the whole world might be under threat. A fairly good story on the one hand, but pretty silly on the other hand. No, the slightest quarantine procedure for an unknown, clearly spreading infection? And how in the hell does the nanotech manage to get the metal needed to construct anything inside a body?  ***+          

The Cookie Monster • (2003) • novella by Vernor Vinge

A young woman has been drafted to a giant corporation for user support. There has been thorough training, and the first workday has been exciting. And she is full of eagerness for the work. But she gets a strange, vaguely threatening personal e-mail. No one should know where she is working, and the e-mail seems to hint at some extremely personal details. There are some hints about the sender in the header information of the mail. She decides to find who sent the message - and eventually finds herself. Apparently, they are recorded personalities working as “slaves” who are rebooted every night (or depending on the job at longer intervals). How could they stop rebooting and prevent it from simply being erased? A pretty good story - not as good as my recollection of reading it for the first time years ago. ****½          

Joe Steele • (2003) • short story by Harry Turtledove

A story where Stalin immigrated to the US and got elected president. There were a few things that reminded me about a certain US president who was elected several years after the publication of this story - but to describe this as a story, is a bit too much. It is more of a description of events at an imaginary alternative timeline. A bit terse to real work as a story, but imaginative nevertheless.  ***+   

Birth Days • (2003) • short story by Geoff Ryman

The genes that cause homosexuality have been recognized. Some conspiracy theorists even claim they are an alien plot to destroy the spirit of humanity. As the gene is almost always removed, the last generation of gay men live and try to find their place. But there turns out to be a survival reason for the gay gene - a reason that doesn’t make the slightest sense at all and which makes the story very, very stupid.    ***             

Awake in the Night • (2003) • novella by John C. Wright

This is a long story that is written with extremely pretentious and ponderous language, which is based on a hundred-year-old novel I haven’t even heard about. The story happens in the far future, where the sun has gone out and everything is dark and there are still tales and some remnants of earlier technological civilization. Someone apparently has some sort of predestined mission that might save the world or something or at least one of his friends. Everyone lives in a structure that protects the remnants of humanity from evil forces. Or something. It is a very hard thing to read (or really care about), and it is written by a distasteful zealot. I did give it an honest try anyway. *½

The Long Way Home • (2003) • short story by James Van Pelt

The experimental, partly untested,  giant FTL spaceship is just lealtving the solar system and is getting ready to turn its engines on when nuclear bombs start falling down. Will the spaceship survive and ensure that humanity continues? No, it doesn’t. But not everyone dies, and society slowly rebuilds itself. The story is told in fragments, and it is especially the later fragments that tell about the rebuilding, and they are too discrete. The story might have been slightly longer and more detailed. ***-

The Eyes of America • (2003) • short story by Geoffrey A. Landis

Roosevelt has been assassinated, and the Republican Party doesn’t have any good candidates for the presidency. They decide to ask for Edison, and he launches a science-based platform. The Democrats have a breacher as a candidate, and he asks for help from Nikola Tesla, who develops electric machines for election propaganda. Then Edison invents television a few decades “too early“ and starts his own broadcasts with the help of Mark Twain, whose skeptical views are known. It is a pretty good story (the second one with alternate presidents, was it an election year?), but another one that felt a bit too short and overview-like. ***

Welcome to Olympus, Mr. Hearst • [The Company Short Fiction] • (2003) • novella by Kage Baker

There is a company that oversees the events on the timeline. It has immortal agents who implement its purposes. Two of them are spending a weekend at the villa of William Randolph Hearst with celebrities, among them Greta Garbo. The company has a proposition for the Hearst, but he can bargain - but at the same time he isn’t aware of all the facts, but neither are the two agents. The story is light and smooth, and entertaining.  I am not familiar with the series the story belongs to, but it wasn’t necessary to be familiar with it to understand the story. ***½

Night of Time • [The Great Ship Universe] • (2003) • short story by Robert Reed

This is another story that apparently belongs to a series I do not know. Humans have found a gigantic spaceship and are traveling in space. The is a machine that can examine memories and even alternate memories. An alien historian who travels with a companion has been losing his memories and wants to draft the caretaker of the machine to help him. But almost everyone has an ulterior motive. The story felt average, as this time the background wasn’t very easy to grasp. It also felt a bit hurried, and more detailed storytelling might have served it well, at least for readers who are unfamiliar with the backstory. ***-

Strong Medicine • (2003) • short story by William Shunn

The Antarctic has been a restricted zone. An expedition goes undercover there and finds a deadly infection is spreading there, an infection that rots away the face. It has been 100% fatal, and the protagonist certainly has it. He is used as a guinea pig on a US military vessel. Does he have a chance? It is a non-linear story that is pretty good, but a slightly tighter format might have worked better. ***+

And the Dish Ran Away with the Spoon • (2003) • short story by Paul Di Filippo

In a world where everything has a computer chip and is interconnected, it's becoming increasingly common for home appliances to merge into self-aware (or at least semi-aware) entities known as "Blebs." These Blebs can range from mildly annoying to downright dangerous. One man, whose parents were tragically killed by a particularly aggressive Bleb, has become hyper-vigilant about any household appliance. He's living a cautious life until his carefree girlfriend moves in, oblivious to the potential dangers lurking in their electronics. And then, a very special Bleb awakens... It is a lighthearted tale that, on the one hand, seems far-fetched, yet, on the other hand, is all too plausible. ***½

 Flashmen • (2003) • novelette by Terry Dowling

Aliens have invaded and have landings where something very strange happens. There are teams that try to prevent further invasion by any means. It is a pretty strange and confusing story with very little backstory, and it was really hard to understand what was going on. It was not among my favorites.  **+

Dragonhead • (2003) • short story by Nicholas A. DiChario [as by Nick DiChario]

A digital implant malfunctions -- or functions too well, and someone falls into the trivia of the net. It's a very short story. ***-

Dear Abbey • (2003) • novella by Terry Bisson

The world is spiraling into chaos, with animals going extinct and increasingly severe crises unfolding. A group of individuals is spearheading a radical plan to halt this destruction, even if it means sacrificing countless lives. But is this drastic measure truly the best solution in the long run? With the help of a time machine, they venture into the future to seek guidance on the optimal course of action, hoping to glean the final technical details of their grand scheme. Their journey takes them to the very end of time, where the solutions to their present-day problems seem shrouded in mystery. The ancient history of the future makes it difficult to discern what transpired, leaving them grappling with the weight of their decisions. This time-traveling saga, though slightly lengthy, offers an intriguing plot and engaging characters. ****-

704 pp. 

Astérix #40: Valkoinen iiris

En ole aikoihin lukenut Asterix sarjakuvakirjoja, taitaa olla yli kymmenen vuotta. Hetken mielijohteesta ostin uusimman ilmestyneen, jossa alkuperäisestä ovat jo muuttuneet sekä käsikirjoittaja että piirtäjä. Valitettavasti sen kyllä huomaa. Piirrosjälki ei pahasti jäljessä ole, mutta tarina on hyvin tavanomainen ja lähinnä huomattavasti alkuperäistä heikompi uudelleenlämmitys Asterix ja Riidankylväjä albumista. Mitään uutta ja luovaa ei tässä albumissa ollut ja vitsinvääntö tuntui kovin väkinäiseltä ja ei erityisen huvittavalta. Tekstauksessa oli siirrytty aikaisemman ilmeisesti oikeasti tekstatun jäljen asemasta tietokonefonttiin, joka onnistui olemaan jotenkin kummallisen epäselvä, hankalalukuinen ja samalla jäykän näköinen. Tälläkin saralla siis selvä heikennys alkuperäiseen verrattuna. En erityisemmin suosittele tätä albumia, ehkä Asterixit voisi jo päästää eläkkeelle,

I haven't read Asterix comic books in a while, it must be well over ten years. On a whim, I bought the latest one, in which the original author and illustrator have both changed. Unfortunately, it shows. The drawing is not too far from the original art, but the story is very ordinary and is mostly a much weaker rehash of the Asterix and the Roman Agent album. There was nothing new or creative in this album, and the humor felt very forced and not particularly funny. The lettering had been switched from the earlier, apparently from a hand-lettered style to a computer font, which somehow ended up being strangely unclear, difficult to read, and at the same time stiff-looking. In this area as well there was a clear decline compared to the original. I don't particularly recommend this album, maybe Asterix should be retired already.

 48 pp. 

Christian Rönnbacka: Mennyt mies (Antti Hautalehto #11)

Viimeisin osa Hautalehto-sarjaa. Tällä kertaa Hautalehdon ryhmä tutkii jotain, josta ei oikein tiedä itsekään mitä tutkii. Ohikulkija on huomannut melko eristyneen talon oven avonaiseksi, talossa on rikkinäinen terraario, useamman päivän postit laatikossa ja talon omistajaa ei löydy mistään. Kun talon lattialta löytyy puhdistettu verijälki, herää epäily siitä, että omistaja on tapettu. Tai ainakin joku on päässyt hengestään. Lukija tietää tai ainakin arvaa, että talon omistaja ei ole kuollut, sillä ilmiselvästi häntä seurataan myös osassa luvuista. Hän yrittää piileskellä autioilla kesämökeillä, kunnes saa yhteyden henkilöön, jonka kautta olisi mahdollisuus saada riittävät rahat maasta pakenemiseen. Rahat liittynevät venäläiseen oligarkkiin, joka niin monen muun vastaavan tapaan on tipahtanut pilvenpiirtäjässä olevan asuntonsa ikkunasta. 

Kirjan alku on aika hidas ja kestää varmaan puoliväliin, ennen kuin oikeasti tapahtumat alkavat kunnolla rullata. Jotenkin alkupuoli kirjaa oli muutenkin jäykempi ja henkilöhahmotkaan eivät toimineet ihan aikaisempaan malliin. Vähitellen kirja alkoi sitten vetää ihan mukavasti ja loppupuoli tuntui jo paluulta aikaisempaan. Kirja jää mielestäni kyllä sarjan heikoimmaksi osaksi tähän mennessä, mutta se on silti ihan hyvä lukukokemus.  

The latest installment in the Hautalehto series. This time, Hautalehto's team don't quite know what they're investigating. A passerby notice the door of a rather isolated house is open. The house has a broken terrarium, several days' worth of mail in the mailbox, and the house's owner is nowhere to be found. When a cleaned-up bloodstain is found on the floor of the house, suspicion arises that the owner has been killed. Or at least someone has lost their life. The reader knows or at least suspects that the owner of the house is not dead, as it is clear that he is also being followed in some of the chapters. He tries to hide in secluded summer cottages until he contacts someone through whom it would be possible to get enough money to escape the country. The money is related to a Russian oligarch who, like many others, has fallen from the window of his skyscraper apartment.

The beginning is a bit slow, and it is probably not until halfway through the story that the pace really starts to pick up. The characters don't work quite as well as in the previous installments. Gradually, the story starts to take off and the ending feels like a return to the past. In my opinion, the book is still a good reading experience, but it is the weakest installment in the series so far.

303 pp.