Eschewed Obfuscation

Diamond Star
by Catherine Asaro
495 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/SF/Romance

I didn't realize how starved I was for good fluff; I sped through this newest Asaro in a single night despite its flaws. I'm not a rock fan, so the premise didn't excite me, but I do adore the Skolian Empire world. Diamond Star involves an all-too-predictable addiction arc. I have little sympathy for Del being broke when he can splurge whenever he wants. Del himself treads a thin line between amusing and annoying. I love Asaro for both politics and relationships, but in this particular book, I wanted more space opera and less obstinate romantic misunderstandings. As buymeaclue would say (I hope I get this right): less boyfriend, more roller derby.

Still want more books like The Moon's Shadow, about Aristos politics. Especially Jai/Tarquine. Or even about Kelric, who is more interesting when he's not perceived from the POV of a rebellious teenage rock star. Dehya is really interesting too; I'm not so fond of Roca, but her story seems to have come to an end with Eldrinson's (natural) death.

The Ruby Dice
by Catherine Asaro
392 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/SF/Romance

I started reading this on the way back from the library. When I got home, I really really needed to study for midterms. Guess what I did instead? Finished reading The Ruby Dice, of course.

Asaro's Skolian Empire series is huge by now, but she always thoughtfully includes a glossary reference and in-text catchups for new readers. The catchups read as basically infodumps, but I remember how much they helped me the first time and they weren't too hard to skip over. This novel deals with Kelric and Jaibriol III after they become Imperator and Emperor of Eube respectively, nine years after an initial peace attempt--the Paris Accord--fell through. I love F/SF politics, and Asaro is one of the best at mixing complex SF politics with equally complex characters and families (the Valdoria/Skolia/Ruby Dynasty family tree is quite intimidating). Jai and Tarquine have a lovely, laugh-out-loud relationship; I wish Asaro would do another book on just Eube, and I absolutely can't wait for her next one to continue the overall plot arc. This book ends on essentially the climax, which is rare these days; but it leaves you trying to catch your breath, coming down from immersion high, and that feeling is totally worth the lost studying time.

The two trademarks of Asaro's stories are strong characters and excellent worldbuilding--here, she doesn't disappoint on either account. I enjoyed the examples of realistic, slowly growing love (Jai/Tarquine, Kelric/Jeejon) rather than romance's usual love-at-first-sight trope. Most of the characters weren't new to me, other than a gap of several months, but I connected with all of them (oh, Hidaka, I love you so). And I absolutely adore the dynamic and convoluted web of relations (familial, political, etc.). I think The Ruby Dice is Asaro's most dramatic work to date--the plot rushes along, smooth as a a river's torrents (i.e. not very but in a good way). At the very end especially, I almost couldn't handle the suspense. I knew what I logically could expect to happen, but I also knew that the author was daring enough to flip that expectation.

Now for the negatives: Asaro isn't going to win any awards for poetic prose. At times the style is downright pedestrian, though always useful and concise--much like ISC, the Skolian military. I'm not sure how much a new reader will get out of this, simply because I'm coming with knowledge of so much backstory--I've read all of her Skolia novels except one (The Radiant Seas, unavailable at the library and I've never gotten around to purchasing it). As I said before, though, her early exposition passages help greatly with comprehension. Also, don't be put off by the cover, which is ugly as hell--the huge hand looks like radioactive putty and the Quis dice like plastic toys. I guess the publisher is trying to appeal to the romance side of her audience, though the background is also very techy.

This is a wholehearted rec to all SF and romance fans; Asaro writes hard SF romances, and she mixes the genres with quite a lot of experience. The character arc continued by this novel begins with The Last Hawk, then Ascendant Sun and The Moon's Shadow (the last of which is about Jai's ascension to the Carnelian Throne and his marriage to Tarquine). My reviews of most of Asaro's novels are also accessible through tags; be warned that her fantasy romance series for the Luna line is very, very different.

Irresistible Forces
by Catherine Asaro (ed.)
383 pages (trade paperback)
Genre: Fiction/Romance/Fantasy/Sci-Fi/Historical

An anthology of speculative romance pieces, short story-novelette length (I think). It took me a while to get into it, but I'm a picky romance reader. The stories are all technically excellent, but some appeal more to the romance reader dabbling in speculative than the reverse.


"Winterfair Gifts" by Lois McMaster Bujold
The first piece. I read about five pages before stopping for a long time, but the story is mesmerizing once it really gets going. I love the  truly unconventional romance, the non-stupidity of the characters, and most of all the height differentials. Bujold weaves an amusing subconflict out of natural, uncontrived details. My first introduction to the Vorkosigans, but I'll definitely be seeking out her other sci-fi books in addition to her fantasy.

"The Alchemical Marriage" by Mary Jo Putney
Putney is apparently a NYT-bestselling author, and I can sort of see why--but not in a good way. Her stories are compelling, but also stereotypical and cliche. Soulmates are very, very hard to pull off and I don't think Putney succeeded. For one, the love seems more like lust. Or love at first sight. I can't decide which is worse. I don't much like Putney's prose style either--there are a few annoying breaks from third person limited multiple, and she overuses the dreaded "was." I might read Putney only if I'm in desperate need of a cheesy no-thinking romance.

"Stained Glass Heart" by Catherine Asaro
Lovely romance as I can reliably expect from Asaro's Skolia series, but The Moon's Shadow is still my favorite. This passed the tears test, so all's good.

"Skin Deep" by Deb Stover
Engaging, but it doesn't really stick in my mind. The Nick-Margo relationship is realistic; Jared is flat at first but develops nicely. My issue is mainly with the setting--it's too mainstream for my taste. The frame story about Heaven and Seamus intrigued me more than the main tale, maybe because it's the speculative element. This just isn't fantasy enough for me, I guess.

"The Trouble With Heroes" by Jo Beverley
Powerful, and my favorite story in the anthology. The world is well-developed, realistic and unreal at the same time. I loved the theme of sacrifice--true sacrifice that doesn't end in death. And, Monty Python is "a key work to understanding ancient Earth warfare"! Hee. The brief mention of cod was close to my heart and saddening too, the more so because I know how easily it could actually happen. Has Beverley written any sci-fi novels like this?

"Shadow in the Wood" by Jennifer Roberson
One of the better Arthurian retellings. It was elegant and worthwhile, but not special.


I think I'm just picky about speculative romances.

Schism: Part One of Triad
by Catherine Asaro
398 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/SF/Romance

Plot: Sauscony Valdoria Skolia (Soz) leaves her home world of Lyshriol against her father's wishes and attends the Dieshan Military Academy (DMA, also coincidentally the acronym for the Delaware Military Academy). I'm running out of things to comment on; like I said in an earlier review, Asaro's strengths and weaknesses don't vary much from book to book. I read Part Two of Triad first out of the entire Saga, and I immediately fell in love with Soz. This volume necessarily suffers from lack of tension, but it's partially my fault for reading all over the place. The background exposition is also identical to previous books, making me wonder if Asaro just keeps the relevant explanations in a text file somewhere, ready to be copy-pasted in. But of course that can't be true. Still, Soz's story is fascinating. I only wish her classes were the focus instead of the "world" events; I think this would have succeeded better as more bildungsroman and less space opera.


Spherical Harmonic
by Catherine Asaro
428 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/SF/Romance

An experimental style in the opening, which I think succeeded in truly showing Dehya's experience with coalescing. Which is basically what happens: Dehya (Dyhianna Selei, Ruby Pharaoh) returns to existence after spending some time as thought waves in Kyle space, then proceeds to overthrow the Imperial Assembly and partially reinstate it. I liked the use of grammar to show the Shay language. This volume has the most obvious hard science, perhaps due to Dehya being a genius at math and Asaro being in love with spherical harmonics (I have no idea what they are, except that the pictures of gradiant balls are pretty). For hard-core sciency folks, there's a lengthy author's note/essay at the end explaining lots of stuff. I skimmed over it because I'm trying to finish all my self-assigned reading homework before Alpha on Wednesday.


The Moon's Shadow
by Catherine Asaro
478 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/SF/Romance

This story overlaps with Spherical Harmonic and to a lesser extent Ascendant Sun. Told in tight third from Jaibriol III (Jai)'s POV, it is a long and hard look into the inner machinations of the Eubian Concord aka Trader Empire. Jai, the daughter of Soz and Jaibriol from Primary Inversion and The Radiant Seas, trades himself in exchange for his uncle Eldrin to become, at age 17, the new Emperor Qox. Scheming and assassination attemps ensue; Jai must simultaneously protect himself from overwhelming Aristo minds and use his abilities as a psion to gain advantage in cutthroat, convulted Eubian politics. He ends up marrying Tarquine Iquar, Eube's Finance Minister and one of the few Aristos who have decided to perform surgery on themselves to stop transcending. I've been fascinated by the Trader society since Day One of reading this series; I started and finished this book in the same day. IMHO, Asaro's best yet.


Yay, I'm all caught up! Currently reading Peony In Love; expect (possibly brief) reviews of The Prodigal Troll and Catch the Lightning pre-Alpha, plus maybe Irresistible Forces. I have a new stack of library books! Also, this makes 30 books since I started keeping count on May 9th, my birthday.

The Last Hawk
by Catherine Asaro
463 pages (paperback)
Genre: Fiction/SF/Romance

Another volume of Asaro's Saga of the Skolian Empire. This one is the prequel to Ascendant Sun, concerning Kelric and the 20 years he spends trapped on the planet Coba. The planet is ruled by twelve Estates, each led by a female Manager, who are led in turn by the Minister. Severely injured, Kelric is rescued from his Jag's wreckage by Manager Deha Dahl. He learns of the dice game Quis (which is absolutely fascinating) while recuperating and also meets the young Ixpar, Successor to Minister Karn.

Kelric tries more than once to escape, but the inhabitants of Coba are protecting their culture from the Empire by hiding behnd a false Restricted status, and he cannot be allowed to risk leaving. Against his will, Deha inducts Kelric into her Calanya (a harem of sorts of male Quis players) and makes him her Akasi--husband. Thus begins his journey from Dahl to Haka to Bahvla to Miesa to Varz to, finally, Karn. Kelric has an extraordinary talent for Quis and makes history by becoming a Sixth Level Calani--Ixpar trades the Ministry to Varz in order to save him from Aztac's brutalities. He is ultimately the cause for the first Coban war in centuries.

As a speculative novel, The Last Hawk is an intriguing take on invented matriarchal culture, infused with Asaro's customary science. As a romance, the plot, characters, and setting all kept me up late reading. And for pure innovation, Asaro should certainly win a prize for the creation of Quis.

I don't totally understand the game of Quis; something to ask Ms. Asaro at Alpha, I guess. I don't even know if Quis could exist in the real world, because basically it ascribes all science to three-dimensional geometric patterns. I can't do it justice; just read the book already and see for youself (and keep Ascendant Sun handy, because I wish I'd read them in proper order).

Note to say that this novel is perfect; none are. Kelric's (attractive) appearance is described multiple times, and somehow five of the most powerful women on Coba all fall in love with him--and the feeling is mutual in at least three cases. That strains my suspended disbelief, though Asaro explains it by saying that empaths fall very easily in love.

Still, this book lives up to Asaro's standard. Recommended to the usual people--SF and romance readers, plus matriarchy-oriented fantasy writers.

The Charmed Sphere
by Catherine Asaro
471 pages (trade paperback)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance

Sadly, Asaro's debut fantasy novel doesn't live up to her SF standards. The style is the same, with the same weaknesses--ample description of physical appearances, telling of emotions, almost-but-not-quite perfect characters. But in the Saga of the Skolian Empire, the issues are minimized by overall coherence and excellent science. In this fantasy, the same strengths are present--an intriguing magic system, ultimately imperfect characters, lovely romance--but Asaro never digs herself out of the cliche pit. Fantasy and science fiction are both speculative genres, but it isn't as easy to switch between the two, and in my opinion Asaro severely underestimated the challenge of writing original fantasy. Allow me to list the cliche elements: initial meeting with hidden identity, Chime's beauty, a flat and obviously evil antagonist, special (SPESHUL) and unique mage characters. Virginity makes Chime and Muller's love so much the sweeter--"Knowing they came together new and fresh, by their own choice, sweetened their passion." [p. 265] The couple is also married against all odds, yet readers are told that no one could be forced to marry without giving consent; so why worry about people opposing their union? In fact, many of Asaro's books could do with a final proofreading to detect tiny inconsistencies and typos. Jarid is indeed a fool for not killing Varquelle, and it's obvious setup for the sequel. The geometric magic system is very cool, but the price isn't high enough--a certain miraculous almost-death completely destroyed my respect for the magic. If all that isn't enough, we also have to deal with annoying dramatic irony AKA readers knowing things that the characters don't, which equals no tension. The last sentence of the book: "But whatever labors lay ahead, their intertwined lives and love would make it worthwhile." Okay, I get it, it's a romance and a Happily Ever After; must you scream it in my ear?

My many complaints notwithstanding, this is a bearable if mediocre read. Though I have serious reservations about reading The Misted Cliffs. Character growth is contrived, the narrative suffers from over-telling, and both the prologue and epilogue are unnecessary, but the romance is still compelling. It's a pity, because if I hadn't already tried and loved Asaro's SF, I would surely avoid her work. Recommended only to romance fans not looking for decent fantasy.