Steampunk Riff SF: "Revenger" by Alastair Reynolds
I've literally just finished the book and put it down, and I'm still reeling. Two sisters go on a space quest; get separated in an atrocious event; and then one of them seeks the other as well as revenge for the said appalling event. Sound familiar? I'm just out of the latest Reynolds after the wonderful short story collection, and this latest installment confirms it once again. Reynolds should only write short fiction...In the middle of the book I couldn't give a dam about the demise of these ridiculous characters. Why would anyone one want to support something that is completely self-absorbed and inane alive just to balance gender in the publishing industry? Please. Some real intelligence here if at all possible. Nowadays we're starting to have lots of female dominated YA SF novels. No problem with that, just to compensate for the misogyny of the 40s and 50s. What I've got a problem with is when the novels are riddled with the same idiotic characters as their male counterpart novels....
If you're into SF, read on.
SF = Speculative Fiction.
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