Mauri Sariola: Leivätön pöytä on katettu

An about sixty-year-old police procedural, written by possibly the most prolific Finnish author of detective stories ever. His works are widely known to be very uneven, as he was in debt for all his life and wrote some books in just a few days just to get some quick bucks. This is one of his better works. A rich and very stingy farmer has been killed. He had been at a local town taking care of some urgent business and returned with the farmhand. The farmhand was widely rumored to have slightly too warm relations with the young and beautiful wife of the farmer. Surely he must be guilty? At least the local police are ready to send him straight to prison. But inspector Susikoski believes that things aren’t so simple. A quaint book with an oldish style, which is partly interesting due to the past world that it describes.

Mauri Sariolan Susikoski-kirja. Rikas, mutta saita maatilan isäntä on kolkattu kuoliaaksi kotimatkalla kauppareissulta. Viimeksi hänet näki talon renki, jolla kylän juorujen mukaan on hiukan liian lämpimät suhteet talon emännän kanssa - ja jota renki oli jopa riiannut ennen kuin isäntä peri kisassa voiton. Varmastikin juttu on selvä kuin pläkki ja renki joutaa linnaan, ainakin niin pitäjän nimismies uskoo. Mutta rikostutkija Susikosken mielestä asia ei ihan niin selvä ole. 

Mukava vanhahtava murhamysteeri, jossa oli muutama mutka matkassa ennen kuin syyllinen oli leivättömän pöydän ääressä. Itse asiassa olin kirjan joskus varmaan 30 vuotta sitten lukenut ja ihmeen hyvin osa tapahtumista tuli mieleen matkan varrella. Iso osa kirjan kiinnostavuudesta tulee ajankuvasta sopivan vanhahtavalla kielellä ja tyylillä kirjoitettuna. Kirja oli ihan mukiinmenevä välipala vaativampien välissä. 

225 pp. 

Robin Hobb: Narrin matka (Fool's Errand, The Tawny Man #1)

The next part in a famous and much more read series. I found it better than the earlier trilogy, with a more engaging plot and with even better and smoother writing. Fitz is still a flawed hero, not perhaps one of the wisest and well-adjusted characters in literature, but considering what he has gone through he is holding fairly well. It is a very nice read and the best in the series so far in my opinion.

Seuraavan Näkijän Taru kokonaisuuteen kuuluvan trilogian avausosa. Edellisen kirjan dramaattisen päätöksen jälkeen Fitz on elänyt lyhyen valtelujakson jälkeen vuosia pienessä metsämökissä väärän nimen turvin. Seuranaan hänellä on ollut vain kasvattipoikansa Onni ja sutensa Yönsilmä. Onni on jo kasvanut niin suureksi, että hän miettii kisällin paikkaa puusepän verstaassa ja lähtee ansaitsemaan tähän tarvittavia varoja rengin töissä. Samaan aikaan Narri tule tapaamaan Fitziä. Narri on hylännyt narrin roolinsa ja elää Peuralinnassa arvostettuna, aatelismiehenä, lordi Kultaisena. Peuralinnan prinssi (joka on Fitzin serkku tai oma poika, riippuen vähän miltä kannalta asiaa katsoo) on kadonnut vain vähän ennen kuin hänen oli tarkoitus kihlautua aikaisemman vihollisvaltion prinsessan kanssa maiden välisten suhteiden parantamiseksi. Prinssi pitää löytää nopeasti, tai maiden välinen sopimus on uhattuna, ja kuka tietää, vaikka prinssin henki olisi vaarassa, sillä näyttää siltä, että hän kuten Fitzkin taitaa ei vain näkijöiden suvun Taidon, vaan myös halveksitun, vaarallisena ja jopa lähes perverssinä pidetyn eläimiin yhteyden luomiseen kykenevän Vaiston. Vaiston harjoittajia vainotaan ja jokainen siihen kykeneväksi epäilty tapetaan julmasti. 

Kirja oli mielestäni parempi kuin edelliset osat. Se lähti jonkin verran nopeammin liikkeelle ja yleiseen jahkailuun tuntui kuluvan vähemmän aikaa. Fitz on edelleen sisäisesti epävarma, mutta hän on uskollinen valtakunnalle ja sen laillisella johdolla ja joutuu tekemään asioita, joita ei haluaisi sekä uhraamaan itsensä ja sutensa sen edestä, johon uskoo. Edelleenkään hän ei ole harkitsevin tai viisain henkilö, mutta tämä tekee hänestä inhimillisen ja helposti samaistuttavan. Jonkinasteista kasvamista on hänessä tapahtunut, onhan hän jo vanha mies ainakin omasta mielestään, yli kolmekymppinen. Huomioiden kaikki ne vammat, joita hän tarinan aikana tähän mennessä on saanut, ei tosin ole ihme, että paikat alkavat jo pahasti kolottaa ja liikkeet olla jäykkiä. Kirjan juoni tuntuu vetävämmältä ja jopa sen kieli paremmalta kuin edellisessä trilogiassa. Hieno ja mukaansatempaava kirja.     

718 pp

The Runabout: A Diving Novel (Diving Universe #6) by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

 Another installment in the Diving Universe series. The book (or, rather, a longish novella which is marketed as a book) tells the other half of the story from where the previous book left it. In this book, the Boss and her crew find a strange runabout with a severely damaged Anacapa drive. The drive is so damaged, that it might endanger the whole area. They are working on retrieving old, partly damaged spaceships, and diving into the runabout turns out to be very dangerous. A short book that feels a bit like a filler installment. It was a nice and good read nevertheless, well written, as is everything by Rusch.

188 pp. 

Galaxy Science Fiction, April 1956

 

Issue which is pretty badly past its time. 

Swenson, Dispatcher • novelette by R. DeWitt Miller

A space delivery company is in financial trouble. They employ a new “dispatcher”, who starts to organize things his own way, eventually of course he solves all the problems. An extremely dull story where people endlessly discuss logistics and shipping stuff and how much better it would be if humans would give birth to eggs. Dull, too long, and not very funny. I, at least, think it was meant to be funny, but I can’t be entirely sure. ** 

 Protection • short story by Robert Sheckley

A Sheckley story I haven’t read. A man gets a helper, an invisible alien, who warns him about possible dangers. At first, that seems nice, but slowly the alien gets overzealous and starts to warn about possible dangers even if they are hundreds of miles away. And being warned about dangers in advance apparently makes new dangers more and more likely - and that is not even all. Not one of his best, but not bad. ***

Point of Departure • novelette by Vaughan Shelton

A research foundation is facing a $300,000 bill and one disappeared researcher. Apparently, some stone tablets belonging to an ancient civilization have been found and they contain wonderful (but totally implausible) inventions, like a sun-powered power source that gives almost unlimited power and, apparently, constant drive. At the start the story was almost ok, but then it worsened until it eventually just fizzled out. **

Garrity's Annuities • short story by David Mason

A space man has a bright idea: he marries a woman at every port, so he doesn’t have to spend his money on hookers. Surely keeping several wives is so much cheaper. However, the first one he marries (who belongs to a race with slight mind-influencing techniques) soon learns about his scheme. She flies on faster transportation to the next port and gets married (again) to the same silly man, who never notices it is the same woman. And then the same happens again. Silly, stupid, and kind of offensive in this day and age. **+

Time to Kill • short story by E. C. Tubb

A man is hired to commit murder in the future, where there is no crime, for a great amount of money. He makes a perfect plan and seems to succeed, but the police arrest him instantly after the crime. It turns out that police can travel in time and the punishment for violent crimes is pretty unique. The ending of the story didn't really make sense at all. A mildly amusing tale. **½

Ikiyö (Antti Korpi #1) by Ilkka Remes

A Finnish techno-thriller involving a mix of nuclear weapons, Ebola, and Belgian atrocities in the Congo. A Finnish policeman who works for an EU crime prevention organization is the hero who saves the world. Very standard and average in its class. A fairly tired plot with several hard-to-believe details and very average writing. A decent, average way to spend some time. I most likely won't be reading other parts very soon.

Olen yhden Remeksen kirjoittaman kirjan lukenut aikaisemmin joskus vuosia, yli 10 vuotta, sitten. Tämä oli oman sarjansa ensimmäinen, joskaan sitä kirjasta ei huomannut. Henkilöhahmoja ei juuri esitelty, vaan annettiin oikeastaan kuva, että heidät olisi jo pitänyt tuntea. Ei siinä mitään, aika nopeasti ymmärsi kuka kukakin on. Päähenkilö, suomalainen poliisi Antti Korpi työskentelee EU:n puolisalaisessa korkean tason rikosten selvittely- ja estämisyksikössä. Suomessa tapahtuu turvakuljetuksessa olleen panssariauton häikäilemätön ryöstö. Lukija saa heti tietää, että ryöstön kohteena ei ollut auton sisältö, vaan auto itse. Autoa käytetään kuljettamaan pieni ydinpommi Venäjältä EU:n puolelle. (ihan täysin ei selvinnyt mihin siinä ko. panssariautoa, jonka ryöstö aiheutti useampia isoja ja turhia riskejä, oikein tarvittiin.) Tiedustelun kautta Antti saa pientä vihjettä siitä ketkä asiassa voisivat olla mukana ja matkustaa näiden henkilöiden kanssa samalla laivalla Saksaan, mukanaan nuori poikansa. Ainahan sitä lapset otetaan väijyreissuille mukaan. Tämän jälkeen asiat kiihtyvät parhaaseen klassiseen teknotrillerityyliin, niin että lopulta uhattuna ei ole vain Antti, vaan myös hänen poikansa ja myöhemmin luonnollisesti koko maailma. 

Kirjassa oli kohtuullisen kiinnostava juoni, mutta jotenkin se ihan täysillä temmannut mukaansa. Ehkä kirjoitustyyliin ja juonen tietynasteinen kuluneisuus yhdistyneenä kerronnan ja kieliasun vahvaan keskitasoisuuteen vaikuttivat. Mitään suurta elämystä tästä ei saanut, eikä kovaa kiirettä tullut kirjailijan muita kirjoja lukujonoon laittaa. Kirja oli vakaata Dan Brown tasoa. Yksittäisiä laiskoja virheitä löytyi: Uv valo ei estä viruksien lisääntymistä pinnoilla vaan korkeintaan tappaa ne - virukset kun eivät lisäänny pinnoilla. Hepariini ei estä verenvuotoja, vaan veritulppia.  

479 pp.

Jouni Tikkanen: Lauma : 1880-luvun lastensurmat ja susiviha Suomessa

A story of children who were killed by wolves in Finland in the late 19th century - and the story of those wolves. A very lively and interestingly told story; no wonder the book won an important award for the best nonfiction book. 

Tarina Turun seudun 1800-luvun lopulla lapsia syöneestä susilaumasta. Kirja on erittäin hyvin ja mielenkiintoisesti kirjoitettu, ja on osittain myös susien näkökulmasta. Niillä ei välttämättä hirveästi ollut ravinnonhankinnassa vaihtoehtoja tilanteessa, jossa kaikki hirvieläimet oli tapettu käytännössä kokonaan sukupuuttoon. Kirjassa on runsaasti sekä ajankuvaa 1800-luvun Suomesta, että tietoa susien biologiasta ja ekologiasta, kaikki tämä esitettynä tuoreella, kiinnostavalla ja helposti luettavalla tavalla. Yksittäisen merkityksettömän virheen löysin: tulirokkoon ei Pasteur ole tehnyt rokotetta, vaikka niin kirjassa väitettiin. 

272 pp.

Miika Nousiainen: Metsäjätti

 A man who works in the upper-middle management of a paper company returns to his birth town. The town has one of the paper mills of the company which will be downsized. Who would be better at that task than someone whose childhood friends all work at the mill? A pretty good look at the very close-knit world of a small town and changes a faceless corporate is ready to make in order to get a slight increase to stockholder values.

Metsäyhtymän ylempään keskijohtoon yltänyt mies, Pasi, palaa lapsuutensa paikkakunnalla. Kaupunkia hallitsee paperitehdas, johon lähes kaikki asukkaat ovat sidoksissa jollain tapaa. Pasille on annettu määräys ottaa tehtaasta löysät pois ja irtisanoa niin paljon ihmisiä kuin mahdollista, ainakin sen verran että yrityksen osakekurssi nousee. Hän tuntee suurimman osan kuntalaisista ja tehtaalla työskentelee moni lapsuuden ystävä, myös hänen paras ystävänsä Janne. Lapsuus tehdaspaikkakunnalla ei kellään ollut helppoa, sillä paikalliseen kulttuuriin kuului, että lauantaisin eukko ja lapsen hankeen. Tietysti jotkut isät olivat kilttejä juoppoja ja vain sammuivat sohvalle kaikessa rauhassa. Pasi joutuu pahasti luovimaan tunteidensa, ystävyyden, eettisyyden ja yrityksen johdon paineiden voimakkaassa ristiaallokossa. Siihen tietenkään mitä tehtaalle tapahtuu, ei keskitason pomon eettiset mietteet vaikuta vähäisimmässäkään määrin. 

Yllättävän hyvä, hyvin kirjoitettu ja mieleen jäävä kirja, jossa oli melkoisia ihmiskohtaloita. Oma tausta on maalaisympäristöstä, jossa suurimmat “poliittiset” rajanvedot koskivat sitä, oliko säästöpankin vaiko osuuspankin asiakas, ja jossa lähipiirissä ei ollut akka ja lapset hankeen isiä eikä moisesta lapsena edes kuullut, joten kuvattu miljöö oli aika vierasta, mutta silti todentuntuista pienellä satiirin liioittelulla maustettuna. Kirja oli valtavan paljon parempi kuin edellinen saman kirjailijan teos mitä olen lukenut, Juurihoito.

286 pp.

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Analog Science Fiction & Fact, March-April 2021

 

Flash Mob • novelette by Meg Pontecorvo

A young single mother studies squids. A species that usually lives on the coast of Japan is swarming on the US pacific coast. They use light flashes to communicate. She notices the squid response to light stimulus but doesn’t succeed in recording it. An ok story where science fiction content was very scant. ***½

The Trashpusher of Planet 4 • short story by Brenda Kalt

An alien generation ship is approaching a solar system. The culture and biology of the aliens are based on rigid castes. One individual has been born between castes and is scorned. The ship AI has a task for him, he should repair a partly destroyed shuttle and examine the fourth planet of the system - it might be habitable. A fairly good story from an alien point of view, but I wonder what happens with the inhabitants of the third planet? ****-

It's Cold on Europa • short story by Filip Wiltgren

A woman is living on Europa moon mining ice. As a companion, she has an android version of her wife. The android's memory and personality are updated regularly. After the last update, the android behaves rather coldly towards the main character. It would be easy to hack the personality profile, but would that be ethical. It is a pretty good story, but the ending was worse than the first half of the story and it was too abrupt. ***+

Tail Call Optimization • novelette by Tony Ballantyne

 A mechanical construct has a cloned mind. There are other similar constructs with similar minds, or at least they are supposed to be similar. His mind seems to work worse, there is a computer worm eating his processing space and his body is in very poor condition mechanically. He is digging up the remains of a mystical high-level civilization for valuable parts. One day he finds a processing space that contains a human mind. A pretty good story, might have been in a little longer format, the end felt a bit rushed. Also, it took some time to really get what the word ”ve” meant, it was apparently used to replace he/she. ****-

The Acheulean Gift • short story by Matthew Claxton

Children with genes of cavemen have been created by genetic manipulation. There has been a backlash and, apparently, the company that created the children has gone bust. The children have trouble adjusting and are on a summer camp of sorts, where they split flint for arrowheads among other things. They work together very well. A pretty good story but I don’t believe human genes would allow so highly instinctive behavior – up to being an extremely talented stone worker. ***+

If a Tree Doesn't Fall • short story by Jerry Oltion 

A man finds a floating tree in a faraway forest. Is he hallucinating? A simply implausible story, pretty subpar for Oltion. (There is an antigravity vest tied to the tree - how to get it to civilization?) ***-

John Henry Was a Steel Driving Man • short story by Shane Halbach

Welders who are building a space station are going to go on strike due to poor work conditions. Just when the strike is starting there is an alarm of a solar storm. Surely that is just the management scheming? (As a worker sabotaged the station, it takes a suicide mission to save all lives. Also, the company is guilty of stupid - far too stupid to believe - cost-cutting.) A fairly ordinary analog-style story about solving a dangerous situation. ***

Damocles • novelette by Sean McMullen

In WW2, a member of a fighter plane crew was ordered on a secret and urgent mission. Apparently, his late grandfather had invented a ray gun of sorts. His daughter (who was presumed dead) has been in captivity for years, and she hasn’t revealed the secret of the weapon. Maybe the main character might have some influence on her aunt? A very good cyberpunkish story about an invention that might be too dangerous to exist. ****

 

Recollection • short story by Elise Stephens 

In a post-apocalyptic, rebuilding world, a government inspector comes to a small village. There is relatively little she can do, but at least something. She can’t help the well that is drying out though. There are rare recordings of the past. The inspector has some and according to a rumor, someone who recently died in the village did have one too. The background was scant, but it was a reasonably good story in spite of that. ***

The Burning Lands • short story by Tom Jolly

A detective examines strange fires. In one of them, several campers were killed, in other dead animals were found on site. Traces of methane were also found locally. Where could it have come from? (Genetically modified methane-producing bugs). A pretty basic story, but told well. ***+

Hillman, Charles Dallas, Age: 35, No Partner, Parents: Deceased • short story by Ron Collins

A man who is hiding from police volunteers for a scientific study where he gets to stay at a faraway hotel for a long time. It turns out that his personality is recorded, and it eventually spreads around the internet. He himself isn’t the same anymore. A pretty good, surprisingly optimistic story. ***½

The Pond Who Sang • short story by Charles Hand

After an extremely unlikely accident mixes neural networks and special chemical switches producing something new. It is a pretty good story, but it is just too short and just a beginning for the real story. ***

Second Hand Destinies • short story by Marie Vibbert

A rundown space station has very rundown inhabitants, one is even dead and inhabited by a parasitic being. A visitor arrives - does she have money to pay for her visit. A decent story, once more a bit too glimpse-like to be really good. ***+

The Shadow of His Wings • short story by Ray Nayler

Guerilla-style fights are still going on somewhere in the Middle East. It is possible to upload one’s personality to the mind of an animal, for example, a falcon. A young boy gets involved with the rescue and capture of one such creature. A pretty good story, once again it was a bit too short. ***

 Problem Landing • novelette by Sean Monaghan

 A small Martian colony is waiting for the landing of the first colony ship - which has private funding. The landing fails and the ship falls down. There is no communications working to the ship and the landing site a good distance away. A pretty standard ”rescue” story, nothing which hasn't been seen dozens of times before in analog. As such the writing was ok, but there were no surprises of any kind anywhere. ***-

Invasive Species • novella by Catherine Wells 

A man lives in a small restricted colony on an alien planet and works in security. The planet has natives, who are very peaceful and calm, but have very strict restrictions: humans are not allowed outside a very limited zone, and all flying reconnaissance is strictly forbidden. The aliens (who have some shape-shifting abilities, like most animals and plants on their planet) work at the base in menial jobs, delivering stuff, cleaning surroundings, and taking care of children. They have been very trustworthy and have never caused any kind of trouble. Inside the zone, humans are allowed to mine minerals. The main character’s wife has disappeared. The human zone has been thoroughly searched without any sight of her. He decides to ask permission to seek outside of the human zone, and to his and everyone else’s surprise, he is granted it. A very well-written and fairly good story. There are some problems with logic and there were some huge coincidences. In fact, I figured out how the wife disappeared a few pages into the story, but dismissed it as far too unbelievable and stupid (alien – human spontaneous hybrids?). In spite of the faults in logic, not a bad story at all. ****-

Orders of Battle (Frontlines #7) by Marko Kloos

The next part in a military science fiction series where humanity battles against giant, almost unstoppable monsters. Humanity has created new weapons, now ships, and has driven the invaders away from the solar system (well, mostly: the aliens still have a stronghold on Mars, even after years of killing every other creature that could be found on the planet). 

The main character, Andrew Grayson, goes on a secret mission. They later find out they're going to the same colony the aliens first invaded. When they arrive, everything seems fairly quiet - there are only two alien seed ships orbiting, and they are (fairly) easily destroyed with the new weapons. The planet seems to be covered by strange alien plants. They decide to land on the planet to retrieve old archives. An exobiologist wants to come with them, she wishes to examine the biology of the planet if there is a chance. Grudgingly, she is allowed to tag along. The priorities here are strange, surely more information about the biology of the aliens and the biosphere is vastly more important than any kind of old files. Once again, the scientific research (other than weapon research) is downplayed in the series - apparently, little is understood of the creatures even after years, and apparently, the military has little interest in sending spy drones to the lairs of the creatures, to take samples, to try and figure out their life cycle, to try to find biological agents against them, and so on. My fan theory is that the monsters they have been fighting are just biological drones and the real invader is something else - the ships themselves? Or the strange creature they encountered on the invaded planet?

The book ends on a cliffhanger, so the story is to be continued. This part of the series felt a lot better than the former part, which felt a bit tired. The writing was smooth and easy to read.  

269 pp.