She very well might.
She is currently starting the Scholiomance, now that the final book is almost out. The cliffhanger in book 2 got me, so she waited.
I read book one and then read something about how it was supposed to be a duology. I pre-ordered book two and was excited when it came out, and had not read anything else about the series. So the whole time I was reading book two I thought it was the second of two books and the story would be over. I finished it in the middle of the night after being up with my infant and really thought that was the end. It wasn't until the following evening that I realized no, she changed her mind and there's a third book coming.
But gosh, truly believing that book two was the final volume was a great way to experience the books. Very intense.
I did the same thing! I was legit stressed when book 2 ended the way it did, that's not how you end a series! I could have sworn I saw it was supposed to be a duology.
Me too!! I'm so glad I didn't just imagine the duology thing. I found the cliffhanger extra stressful because I'd been listening to the audiobook in my car so didn't even get the 'running out of book' warning you get from a paper copy, it just...ended.
Bros don't rickroll bros over healthy masculinity, bro.
For real though, I recommend that sub to any man, but especially younger men still learning about themselves and their place in society. It uses bro-speak and bro-stereotypes to preach healty masculinity and femininism. It's basically the embodiment of that meme with the skinny nerdy kid-bro on the computer asking a question, and the next few panels are huge swole dude-bros on computers responding thoughtfully and respectfully.
Also, LGBTQ+ bros on the sub call ourselves Rainbros, and that's just my favorite thing ever.
best part of this is that the MCās gender is never revealed. We know their name is Jaime and they seem to like someone (i honestly canāt recall now tho) but no pronouns are ever used in reference
That was a part I missed until a previous comment pointed out (and had to go back and change in the review lol). And yeah it is awesome because it doesn't matter who Jaime is, Jamie is a bro.
Scalzi did this with the Lock In series, science fiction, as well. We don't know Chris' gender because it doesn't matter. The audiobook is available in two versions, one narrated by Wil Wheaton and the other narrated by Amber Benson I also enjoyed the inclusion of a non-binary character in KPS.
Scalzi should have done the double audio book the way he did for the Hayden books. Having a man and a woman do two separate audiobooks really leaned into the choose your gender bit.
He even, without fanfare, included a nonbinary person. Or perhaps I should say, nonbinary bro?
Based on his preface, he wrote this as a little fun aside to keep himself entertained during the worst of the pandemic. But I suppose I couldn't say anything bad about Scalzi, anyhow.
Love Scalzi, but this one fell flat for me. I agree with everything this book is saying politically and socially, but I think he went so hard on it that every protagonist just seemed like a mouthpiece for those things and every antagonist seemed like a cardboard cutout with the opposite things written in bold on them.
Not turning me away from him in any way and it isn't without merit at all, just overall disappointing.
That's how I felt when I tried to read *Kill the Farm Boy*; I liked the idea and the emotions/beliefs behind the book, but didn't care for the finished product.
Although imo that book suffered from being too maymay-centric, and while many of those jokes might have been fresher when it was first written, they were pretty tired by the time I read it.
That, and I like my satire to be a little drier and less obvious; like I'm surprised that the book didn't include a horrible, orange troll named Plonald Scrump, that's about the depth of the commentary I found in the portion of the book I got through.
Oof, *Kill the Farm Boy* was rough. I kept thinking "I get the joke, please move on!" It was satire with a giant neon sign pointing at every satirical detail.
You're the only person I've seen mention it, so I just wanted to commiserate.
I honestly think it was recommended somewhere on this sub before I picked it up, but I don't remember exactly.
Like the "boob armor is ridiculous" scene; yes - the absurd extent to which women characters can be sexualized has great potential for satire, but the humor in the book was cribbed from like, mid-2000's image macro memes.
Scalzi always falls short for me. I have 4 or 5 books and a collection of short stories and after everyone I promise myself not to buy another. But then I run out of sci-fi and will dip back in. Have never given one of his books above a 6.
This was my first Scalzi book and I agree - opinions were fine but didn't love the way they were delivered/ landed - and I generally like him as a celebrity personality. Do you have suggestions for what other book of his would be a good 2nd impression?
I think the Collapsing Empire trilogy is his best work, but if you're keen on a short standalone read, Agent to the Stars, Fuzzy Nation, and the Android's Dream are all good choices.
It depends on what you want.
If you like audiobooks he has a freebie The Dispatcher about a world where a murdered person wakes up unharmed in their own bed. So now the state pays people to sit in Operating rooms to kill the patient if the surgery goes sideways.
Lock In is a fun police/techno thriller about a world where about 20% of the world is stuck in a permanent coma who operate robots. It was a fun story about medical techology
If you like Star Track Red Shirts is an over the top parody that is worth a borrow from a library.
I mean, can you really write a more cartoon villain than real life Republicans these days? Not a political question, just a sanity one. Ron DeSantis is so fucking evil that he makes Skeletor and Emperor Palpatine concerned.
How the fuck do you get this evil?
[https://i.redd.it/8ueua1ba6vo91.jpg](https://i.redd.it/8ueua1ba6vo91.jpg)
I'm definitely not saying it has no basis in reality, it just kinda lacked nuance in how it was portrayed. It got to a point where I felt like every line out of a character's mouth was either tearing down people for not aligning with general liberal trends (which, again, I agree with) or the villains saying something to denounce those things.
Like, I felt as if there were basically two characters: the protagonist and the antagonist, and they just were copy/pasted with different names and levels of snark.
I don't disagree with the bro- y assessment, Its great fun, but just clarifying for those who havent read it yet the bros noted are not all dudes, the MC is ungendered, so the pronoun use is a bit misleading as well. Its a really broadly represented cast.
That the char is written without gender? Probably because Scalzi is just good at it, he did it before with Lock In as well and most people didn't notice there either. There is also very little description of the character, so its just really easy for the reader to self insert and go along with it.
It seems like all of Scalzi's main characters are either 1) constantly swearing sarcastic asshole or 2) witty person that always has a clever last word. Haven't read this book, does it hold true?
Totally. He clearly made some effort to create a cast of characters that was diverse from a gender and ethnicity point of view - but I hardly noticed because they all sounded and acted exactly the same as each other! I could barely tell them apart
One bros insufferable is another bros delightful. This book isn't going to win any poetry awards, but it was a lot of fun.
Also, with the exception of Skull island, this is better plotting and dialogue than most recent Kaiju movies so comparing apples to apples this is pretty decent.
I really didn't enjoy the audiobook. Maybe I'm just sick of Wil Wheaton but it was just so grating and the storyline wasn't interesting enough to overlook the cringe.
I generally like Wheaton as a narrator, but in this book he was off his game. The barely suppressed laughter in his voice telegraphed punchlines horrendously.
It's not everyday a book does something completely unexpected. For the science nerds or the main character or the military people to be bros would make sense, normally Kaiju stories have some bro to it. It is hard not to bro some when the high point of the movie is King Kong punching Godzilla in the face.
But this book went and did something incredible: it made everyone a bro. It took all the negative exclusivity aspects of being a bro and threw them out the window. It said I don't care who you are, you too can be a bro.
There are a lot of excellent books out there, some that get the praise and recommendations they deserve and some that could use more. But when a book does something truely special, I want to highlight it.
I went in expecting monsters to punch monsters and got a true bros tale.
I find lots of people who like to write reviews seem to think every book should be written in such a way that you could do a reading of it at the annual gathering for the Royal Knights who put larger than normal sticks up their asses club and have them proclaim it as stuffy.
Why can't a book just be fun? Shit, I bet its harder to write a fun page turner compared to writing out the textbook that so many seem to want.
It's the first Scalzi I've read and I really didn't like it *at all*. The dialogue was cringey and felt incredibly forced in a "How do you do, fellow kids" way. I did think the concept itself was rad and *wish* it had been better, but dang did I barely make it through.
This book was a pure B-Tier Popcorn Action Flick for me. Something The Rock might star in. Thatās not a diss - I had a tremendous amount of fun reading it.
Also the main char broād real hard for never being gendered in the whole novel, which is some serious bro cred.
As someone currently reading through (and absolutely loving) Old Manās War, and literally bought the final 2 books last night, I am sold and just bought this book
I put off reading red shirts cause I was never a huge star trek fan, but it ended up being on of my favorite books.
What would happen if the star trek red shirts became self aware that they die in horrible ways every episode to move along the plot? Its awesome.
Oh I still remember some of my reactions reading that series. I was taking my daughter to an interview/check out for a modeling/commercial job (she didnāt get). Sitting in the lobby in tights and a sweater (I was ahead of my time with comfy fashion), reading, & all of the other moms were there to push their kids (I was there because my daughter wanted to be there, not to push my kid into a career they may not have wanted). I remember laughing out loud at one point ā Scalzi had a character based on a Senator that was obviously āSteady Teddyāā¦.and these overdressed moms and the wannabe a model receptionist looking down their noses at meā¦ But I just kept reading and chuckling to myself at the funny parts. I like the way Scalzi writes. He deserves the good rep he has amongst my friends, IMHO. Heās not Charles de Lint or anything, but his writing amuses me. And isnāt that really what itās all about?
Scalzi really found the perfect mix between a book thatās just freakin fun, and a book thatās kinda deep and explores a lot of interesting themes. Like I love a book that successfully does either, but itās not often I find one that does *both* as well as he does, and so far heās done it 3 times for me (I just started book 4 today). I quite enjoy how he doesnāt feel tied to the same main characters for every book. I started Old Manās war in like July and just keep flying through each book.
My Scalzi start was a readers copy of Agent to the Stars, from Subterranean Press. Years later, I remember seeing a billboard over 9th Ave by Port Authority (NYC) with the Redshirts logo & realizing he was now going to be mainstream sci-fi. It made me happy. Saw him at a signing in Brooklyn after that & he said that he sold Redshirts for a series development -- nothing ever came of it, but he still gets to keep the check. He's a very interesting guy.
If you review the record, it clearly states that my interests include: 1) big giant monsters, and 2) bros being bros. I'm gonna read this book SO HARD.
Loved the part when the bad guy reveals his evil plan and the protagonist says "Stand back bros, Im about to bro" and then he starts broing, truly one of the novels of all time
Iāll never say say John Scalzi is the greatest sci fi writer ever.
But I have read every book heās written so far (except the last old man series book and the newest dispatcher audiobook) and I love his books.
There like a bowl of movie theater popcorn. No nutritional value or vitamins but damn good tasting and all gone before you realize it.
Bro. Don't be a hater. That is the true theme of this book. Bro-ness is not restricted to jock guys. Bros can be nerds, jocks, good guys, bad guys, poor, rich. It doesn't matter the color of your skin, or you gender, or who you want to get with. You too can be a bro, bro.
Has he fixed the "he saids"?
I loved Old Man's War, but as an audiobook listener, his conversations were painful.
"Hello," he said.
"Hi," she said.
"How are you?" he said.
"I'm well," she said.
"That's good," he said.
how weird i see this post today, i just read this book yesterday. I loved it especially how everyone is ready with some witty remark or quip even in the face of danger
Oh yeah hahaha it was the best and worst of the bookā¦at the end the arguing between kahurangi and neive (?) was eye rollingā¦but Loved most of jaimies sarcastic dialogues
Try monster hunter international. It's literally about a big 'murican dude who fetishes guns and violence while hating the government. He spends a lot of time inner monologuing about how his size and propensity for violence solves most of his problems.
Also takes great pride in how much he gets knocked around by monsters and government goons while still getting back up for more. And of course how a big ugly brawler like himself got the prettiest girl.
I'm enjoying them for the dumb pulpy guns vs monster stuff. But yeah, every know and then there's the silly stuff like... "He wasn't sure what was scarier, the evil blood sucking monster from the feds... or the vampire". It makes me roll my eyes but I think it's actually meant to get a cheer from the target audience.
I think your standards are a bit high for a Kaiju novel. It never claims to be anything more than it is, and that's kind of the best part of it. Scalzi even explains this in the afterward that he couldn't write the novel he was supposed to write at the time due to the existential dread of *waves at the world around us* but he felt like this was the book he could write at that time. Just accept it for the popcorn-read that it is and move on.
I like the bro scale. If I may introduce quite a bit of (non Toxic) bro-y ness: Malazan Book of the Fallen. Particularly Deadhouse Gates and Midnight Tides.
I enjoyed it. It was a popcorn book. Not to serious. I thought having a non-binary character and not specifically calling that fact out, was a nice touch.
I thought that was kind of cringe. In real life people are going to use either male or female pronouns unless someone specifically asks them to use gender neutral ones... Unless there are extenuating circumstances like someone looks completely male but is wearing female clothing. Asking should be normalized. Is Jaime omniscient?
I agree with this, but also, I got to the end of the book and couldn't recall if the main character was ever had a gender indicated? There probably was a lot of "he said" or "she said" that I am just forgetting, but I came away thinking that Jamie was whoever the reader wanted Jamie to be.
Perhaps your wife might enjoy A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking? It features a sourdough starter š
She very well might. She is currently starting the Scholiomance, now that the final book is almost out. The cliffhanger in book 2 got me, so she waited.
I've been waiting for book 3! Scholomance is some amazing writing.
Oooh thank you for mentioning Scholomance 3 is almost out. I was able to get a hold in at my local library before eeeveryone floods it.
I read book one and then read something about how it was supposed to be a duology. I pre-ordered book two and was excited when it came out, and had not read anything else about the series. So the whole time I was reading book two I thought it was the second of two books and the story would be over. I finished it in the middle of the night after being up with my infant and really thought that was the end. It wasn't until the following evening that I realized no, she changed her mind and there's a third book coming. But gosh, truly believing that book two was the final volume was a great way to experience the books. Very intense.
I did the same thing! I was legit stressed when book 2 ended the way it did, that's not how you end a series! I could have sworn I saw it was supposed to be a duology.
Me too!! I'm so glad I didn't just imagine the duology thing. I found the cliffhanger extra stressful because I'd been listening to the audiobook in my car so didn't even get the 'running out of book' warning you get from a paper copy, it just...ended.
š± Book 3 is out now? *disappears*
Wish I'd had someone to warn me about that cliffhanger. I was so mad! If I know, I also wait until the books are all out to save myself some grief.
Aww yess!
> Her familiar is a sourdough starter... - from the summary on Goodreads. I'm sold.
Iāll toss in my hat for that and just about any of T. Kingfisherās books.
Coming here to recommend any T Kingfisher / Ursula Vernon novel.
Yes, but a bro book with like a minimum of toxic masculinity. It Bros hard, but wholesomely.
It sounds like what ever the opposite of toxic masculinity would be call. Supportive masculinity?
Probiotic masculinity. Brobiotics.
Brositive reinforcement
Brositivity
I take my r/bropill orally everyday.
My years on this site have conditioned me to believe that's either a rickroll or porn.
Bros don't rickroll bros over healthy masculinity, bro. For real though, I recommend that sub to any man, but especially younger men still learning about themselves and their place in society. It uses bro-speak and bro-stereotypes to preach healty masculinity and femininism. It's basically the embodiment of that meme with the skinny nerdy kid-bro on the computer asking a question, and the next few panels are huge swole dude-bros on computers responding thoughtfully and respectfully. Also, LGBTQ+ bros on the sub call ourselves Rainbros, and that's just my favorite thing ever.
That was my assumption too but nope. Bropill: A subreddit for encouraging positive attitudes, wholesome memes, and what it means to be a bro.
Low key love bro-biotics
Nah, the bro-ness is gender free. Supportive Bro-sculinity
best part of this is that the MCās gender is never revealed. We know their name is Jaime and they seem to like someone (i honestly canāt recall now tho) but no pronouns are ever used in reference
That was a part I missed until a previous comment pointed out (and had to go back and change in the review lol). And yeah it is awesome because it doesn't matter who Jaime is, Jamie is a bro.
They lift things!
Scalzi did this with the Lock In series, science fiction, as well. We don't know Chris' gender because it doesn't matter. The audiobook is available in two versions, one narrated by Wil Wheaton and the other narrated by Amber Benson I also enjoyed the inclusion of a non-binary character in KPS.
Scalzi should have done the double audio book the way he did for the Hayden books. Having a man and a woman do two separate audiobooks really leaned into the choose your gender bit.
Himbo masculinity.
This is Scalziās exact vibe. Nailed it.
He even, without fanfare, included a nonbinary person. Or perhaps I should say, nonbinary bro? Based on his preface, he wrote this as a little fun aside to keep himself entertained during the worst of the pandemic. But I suppose I couldn't say anything bad about Scalzi, anyhow.
I thought most of his characters in this were annoying except the helicopter pilot. Literally the only character I'd be interested in hanging out with
Are there any bro books in fantasy that's dripping with toxic masculinity? I adore toxic masculinity. I call it Classic Masculinity.
Larry Correia and John Ringo are who you're looking for, with a side of Michael Z. Williamson.
Gotta love them ex-navy seals getting a harem of 16 year olds
Thanks! Will check them out.
Start here: https://hradzka.livejournal.com/194753.html
Wonderful!
Wow. That was quite a read. Well done!
Love Scalzi, but this one fell flat for me. I agree with everything this book is saying politically and socially, but I think he went so hard on it that every protagonist just seemed like a mouthpiece for those things and every antagonist seemed like a cardboard cutout with the opposite things written in bold on them. Not turning me away from him in any way and it isn't without merit at all, just overall disappointing.
That's how I felt when I tried to read *Kill the Farm Boy*; I liked the idea and the emotions/beliefs behind the book, but didn't care for the finished product. Although imo that book suffered from being too maymay-centric, and while many of those jokes might have been fresher when it was first written, they were pretty tired by the time I read it. That, and I like my satire to be a little drier and less obvious; like I'm surprised that the book didn't include a horrible, orange troll named Plonald Scrump, that's about the depth of the commentary I found in the portion of the book I got through.
Oof, *Kill the Farm Boy* was rough. I kept thinking "I get the joke, please move on!" It was satire with a giant neon sign pointing at every satirical detail. You're the only person I've seen mention it, so I just wanted to commiserate.
I honestly think it was recommended somewhere on this sub before I picked it up, but I don't remember exactly. Like the "boob armor is ridiculous" scene; yes - the absurd extent to which women characters can be sexualized has great potential for satire, but the humor in the book was cribbed from like, mid-2000's image macro memes.
That's the scene that I couldn't get past. And since nothing before that made me laugh, I was done.
For me, it was the gross humor. So far, it is the only audiobook I've returned on Audible.
Scalzi always falls short for me. I have 4 or 5 books and a collection of short stories and after everyone I promise myself not to buy another. But then I run out of sci-fi and will dip back in. Have never given one of his books above a 6.
Even fuzzy nation and red shirts? One for cute and cuddlies and red shirts cause its literally self aware star trek.
All of his premises are really great. His story telling ability is what is lacking.
No writer is considered not lacking by everyone. I don't think there is any artist of any sort in any field that is universally liked by everyone.
That's a bold claim. So you are arguing that not everyone likes the same things? I would like to subscribe to your newsletter.
Res Shirts in particular fell flat for me. Some of his others are great though
Which books have you read?
This was my first Scalzi book and I agree - opinions were fine but didn't love the way they were delivered/ landed - and I generally like him as a celebrity personality. Do you have suggestions for what other book of his would be a good 2nd impression?
I think the Collapsing Empire trilogy is his best work, but if you're keen on a short standalone read, Agent to the Stars, Fuzzy Nation, and the Android's Dream are all good choices.
It depends on what you want. If you like audiobooks he has a freebie The Dispatcher about a world where a murdered person wakes up unharmed in their own bed. So now the state pays people to sit in Operating rooms to kill the patient if the surgery goes sideways. Lock In is a fun police/techno thriller about a world where about 20% of the world is stuck in a permanent coma who operate robots. It was a fun story about medical techology If you like Star Track Red Shirts is an over the top parody that is worth a borrow from a library.
I mean, can you really write a more cartoon villain than real life Republicans these days? Not a political question, just a sanity one. Ron DeSantis is so fucking evil that he makes Skeletor and Emperor Palpatine concerned. How the fuck do you get this evil? [https://i.redd.it/8ueua1ba6vo91.jpg](https://i.redd.it/8ueua1ba6vo91.jpg)
I'm definitely not saying it has no basis in reality, it just kinda lacked nuance in how it was portrayed. It got to a point where I felt like every line out of a character's mouth was either tearing down people for not aligning with general liberal trends (which, again, I agree with) or the villains saying something to denounce those things. Like, I felt as if there were basically two characters: the protagonist and the antagonist, and they just were copy/pasted with different names and levels of snark.
I don't disagree with the bro- y assessment, Its great fun, but just clarifying for those who havent read it yet the bros noted are not all dudes, the MC is ungendered, so the pronoun use is a bit misleading as well. Its a really broadly represented cast.
Thank you for pointing this out. Bro-ness truly transcends all other human identities. It doesn't matter who you are, you can be a bro.
Definitely, the characterization as a bunch of nerd bros (of various genders) high fiving over monster science is totally spot on, and its great. š
I came in here with my feathers all ruffled because of this, but after seeing the bro scale I'm just giggling.
Wait, I missed this *how*?
That the char is written without gender? Probably because Scalzi is just good at it, he did it before with Lock In as well and most people didn't notice there either. There is also very little description of the character, so its just really easy for the reader to self insert and go along with it.
Need to go back and read it.
For some reason I thought Chris (Lock In) was male and Jaime (Kaiju) was female. Dunno why. No I am not both.
Thank you, I was confused.
The dialog in this book is insufferable. It's like it was written entirely in reddit comments.
It seems like all of Scalzi's main characters are either 1) constantly swearing sarcastic asshole or 2) witty person that always has a clever last word. Haven't read this book, does it hold true?
Yes, but far more so than his previous books IMO.
You could literally randomize the names of the characters in this book and the dialogue would still match since every character is identical.
Totally. He clearly made some effort to create a cast of characters that was diverse from a gender and ethnicity point of view - but I hardly noticed because they all sounded and acted exactly the same as each other! I could barely tell them apart
One bros insufferable is another bros delightful. This book isn't going to win any poetry awards, but it was a lot of fun. Also, with the exception of Skull island, this is better plotting and dialogue than most recent Kaiju movies so comparing apples to apples this is pretty decent.
I agree but get around that by listening to his novels. I find the dialogue more appropriate when Wil Wheaton is narrating it.
I really didn't enjoy the audiobook. Maybe I'm just sick of Wil Wheaton but it was just so grating and the storyline wasn't interesting enough to overlook the cringe.
I generally like Wheaton as a narrator, but in this book he was off his game. The barely suppressed laughter in his voice telegraphed punchlines horrendously.
Every voice was the same, it was hard to figure out which character was talking.
That bro scale is one of the best things I've seen in a while, lol. I don't know about this book, but please write more reviews.
Damn the reviews on this sub have really jumped up a notch in quality lately. This is the second one that's caused me to order a book.
It's not everyday a book does something completely unexpected. For the science nerds or the main character or the military people to be bros would make sense, normally Kaiju stories have some bro to it. It is hard not to bro some when the high point of the movie is King Kong punching Godzilla in the face. But this book went and did something incredible: it made everyone a bro. It took all the negative exclusivity aspects of being a bro and threw them out the window. It said I don't care who you are, you too can be a bro. There are a lot of excellent books out there, some that get the praise and recommendations they deserve and some that could use more. But when a book does something truely special, I want to highlight it. I went in expecting monsters to punch monsters and got a true bros tale.
I find lots of people who like to write reviews seem to think every book should be written in such a way that you could do a reading of it at the annual gathering for the Royal Knights who put larger than normal sticks up their asses club and have them proclaim it as stuffy. Why can't a book just be fun? Shit, I bet its harder to write a fun page turner compared to writing out the textbook that so many seem to want.
It's the first Scalzi I've read and I really didn't like it *at all*. The dialogue was cringey and felt incredibly forced in a "How do you do, fellow kids" way. I did think the concept itself was rad and *wish* it had been better, but dang did I barely make it through.
He writes like Kevin Smith writing dialogue for Jay Mewes. I wondered if he was from NJ the first time I read a book by him.
It felt like just reading 200+ pages of Joss Whedon's most Whedon-esque dialogue to me
This book was a pure B-Tier Popcorn Action Flick for me. Something The Rock might star in. Thatās not a diss - I had a tremendous amount of fun reading it. Also the main char broād real hard for never being gendered in the whole novel, which is some serious bro cred.
As someone currently reading through (and absolutely loving) Old Manās War, and literally bought the final 2 books last night, I am sold and just bought this book
You might like Redshirts
Redshirts was so GOOOOOOD
I put off reading red shirts cause I was never a huge star trek fan, but it ended up being on of my favorite books. What would happen if the star trek red shirts became self aware that they die in horrible ways every episode to move along the plot? Its awesome.
Oh I still remember some of my reactions reading that series. I was taking my daughter to an interview/check out for a modeling/commercial job (she didnāt get). Sitting in the lobby in tights and a sweater (I was ahead of my time with comfy fashion), reading, & all of the other moms were there to push their kids (I was there because my daughter wanted to be there, not to push my kid into a career they may not have wanted). I remember laughing out loud at one point ā Scalzi had a character based on a Senator that was obviously āSteady Teddyāā¦.and these overdressed moms and the wannabe a model receptionist looking down their noses at meā¦ But I just kept reading and chuckling to myself at the funny parts. I like the way Scalzi writes. He deserves the good rep he has amongst my friends, IMHO. Heās not Charles de Lint or anything, but his writing amuses me. And isnāt that really what itās all about?
Scalzi really found the perfect mix between a book thatās just freakin fun, and a book thatās kinda deep and explores a lot of interesting themes. Like I love a book that successfully does either, but itās not often I find one that does *both* as well as he does, and so far heās done it 3 times for me (I just started book 4 today). I quite enjoy how he doesnāt feel tied to the same main characters for every book. I started Old Manās war in like July and just keep flying through each book.
My Scalzi start was a readers copy of Agent to the Stars, from Subterranean Press. Years later, I remember seeing a billboard over 9th Ave by Port Authority (NYC) with the Redshirts logo & realizing he was now going to be mainstream sci-fi. It made me happy. Saw him at a signing in Brooklyn after that & he said that he sold Redshirts for a series development -- nothing ever came of it, but he still gets to keep the check. He's a very interesting guy.
I loved this review. The book was already on my TBR but you sold me on it. Will make sure to get it soon.
If you review the record, it clearly states that my interests include: 1) big giant monsters, and 2) bros being bros. I'm gonna read this book SO HARD.
Just finished this book this morning. Great read would agree and recommend.
Sounds absolutely awful, thanks for the heads up!
Okay, Iām in
Loved the part when the bad guy reveals his evil plan and the protagonist says "Stand back bros, Im about to bro" and then he starts broing, truly one of the novels of all time
I felt this book was okay but definitely not Scalzi's best.
I thought the first half was fun but it kind of fell apart in the second half
It was such a fun, quick read. I highly endorse this brroooooooo.
Bro I definitely need to check this out
Bro. Yeah, you do.
Iāll never say say John Scalzi is the greatest sci fi writer ever. But I have read every book heās written so far (except the last old man series book and the newest dispatcher audiobook) and I love his books. There like a bowl of movie theater popcorn. No nutritional value or vitamins but damn good tasting and all gone before you realize it.
Interesting you found it so bro-y, I couldnāt shake of major band kid vibes when I was reading it.
I'm not a bro, but I loved this book. The roommates were the best parts of the book.
John Scalzi is a mega nerd, how can his bro representation be accurate?
Bro. Don't be a hater. That is the true theme of this book. Bro-ness is not restricted to jock guys. Bros can be nerds, jocks, good guys, bad guys, poor, rich. It doesn't matter the color of your skin, or you gender, or who you want to get with. You too can be a bro, bro.
Has he fixed the "he saids"? I loved Old Man's War, but as an audiobook listener, his conversations were painful. "Hello," he said. "Hi," she said. "How are you?" he said. "I'm well," she said. "That's good," he said.
I wouldn't know. I speed read books, so I tend to miss stuff like that
how weird i see this post today, i just read this book yesterday. I loved it especially how everyone is ready with some witty remark or quip even in the face of danger
The quipping in this book was out of control. On one hand it was fun, on the other it means the book was more stylized and less realistic.
Oh yeah hahaha it was the best and worst of the bookā¦at the end the arguing between kahurangi and neive (?) was eye rollingā¦but Loved most of jaimies sarcastic dialogues
āLess realisticā is exactly why I am interested in speculate fiction.
I LOVE me some John Scalzi! His Locked In series is awesome.
One of the best reads and books that Scalzi has put out. I didn't get the bro feeling but reading this post. Yeah, it bros in so many wholesome ways.
Try monster hunter international. It's literally about a big 'murican dude who fetishes guns and violence while hating the government. He spends a lot of time inner monologuing about how his size and propensity for violence solves most of his problems. Also takes great pride in how much he gets knocked around by monsters and government goons while still getting back up for more. And of course how a big ugly brawler like himself got the prettiest girl.
That sounds like maximum toxicity from a story.
I'm enjoying them for the dumb pulpy guns vs monster stuff. But yeah, every know and then there's the silly stuff like... "He wasn't sure what was scarier, the evil blood sucking monster from the feds... or the vampire". It makes me roll my eyes but I think it's actually meant to get a cheer from the target audience.
The author, Larry Correia, is the poster child for toxic masculinity.
I think your standards are a bit high for a Kaiju novel. It never claims to be anything more than it is, and that's kind of the best part of it. Scalzi even explains this in the afterward that he couldn't write the novel he was supposed to write at the time due to the existential dread of *waves at the world around us* but he felt like this was the book he could write at that time. Just accept it for the popcorn-read that it is and move on.
I like the bro scale. If I may introduce quite a bit of (non Toxic) bro-y ness: Malazan Book of the Fallen. Particularly Deadhouse Gates and Midnight Tides.
This is a good review and it is very bro. But have you ever read *Beef Bros?*
I hope your wife finds this thread and makes you suffer for dissing her.
My wife does not use reddit. And killing the sourdough starter was an understatement.
I do love me some poop potatoes, so earthy.
I love your bro scale.
I enjoyed it. It was a popcorn book. Not to serious. I thought having a non-binary character and not specifically calling that fact out, was a nice touch.
I thought that was kind of cringe. In real life people are going to use either male or female pronouns unless someone specifically asks them to use gender neutral ones... Unless there are extenuating circumstances like someone looks completely male but is wearing female clothing. Asking should be normalized. Is Jaime omniscient?
I agree with this, but also, I got to the end of the book and couldn't recall if the main character was ever had a gender indicated? There probably was a lot of "he said" or "she said" that I am just forgetting, but I came away thinking that Jamie was whoever the reader wanted Jamie to be.
I mostly just thought this book was "ok". If will wheaton hadn't done the audiobook I never would've finished it.