Lexicon by Max Barry
Started 27 December
Finished 3 January
I enjoyed this more than I expected to. I started reading it a year or so ago, but gave up fairly quickly, as it plunged me into a world too unfamiliar and confusing. On the second attempt, however, I stuck with it and found it was worth the effort. It begins as rather a dystopian sci-fi novel, but evolves into more of a thriller/action novel, where the sci-fi elements seem to take second place behind the action. That or I grew accustomed to things.
The main premise is the power of words to persuade, beyond what we currently understand. The novel follows the story of two characters, one who is selected to train in the art of "persuasion" and one who, we learn, appears to be immune to these powers. The two stories come together as the book progresses. This didn't seem to me to be at all contrived and the storytelling was nicely paced, keeping me interested throughout.
The Winter Over by Matthew Iden
Started 4 January
Finished 11 January
Ok, actually I finished this around 3am on 12 January, during one of my less successful slumber periods. When this came up on January's Kindle First list it was an easy decision for me; it is set in Antarctica, somewhere which fascinates me, as I'm sure it does many people.
A group of scientists and staff are about to see colleagues depart, leaving them there during the long months of perpetual darkness - the winter over period of the title. The base is newly-run by a private company. A body is found in the snow and things start to go wrong. It seems that some of the staff are possibly not as mentally stable as they ought to be to endure the dark months. As time passes it becomes clear that this was no accident…
I enjoyed this book, although I felt it rushed to the end slightly; a little more suspense would have been nice. Overall, it's a good read and more than a little thought-provoking.
Containment by Christian Cantrell
Started 12 January
Finished 19 January
I wasn't sure quite what to expect with this book. I've had it for a while and never started it. On the whole, I enjoyed it. It's a good old-fashioned life in space tale, but with a twist. I grew up reading Asimov, Heinlein and the like, so this is my preferred type of science fiction. This novel centres around a group of human settlers on Venus, but all is not what it seems. As I read, I was looking forward to the end of the book, with, presumably, the final reveal. Unfortunately it just stopped. Yes, other characters were going to discover the truth - I assume. I was aware this is supposed to be the first book in a series so I read up about the second book and apparently that doesn't continue the story at all. I found myself with too many outstanding "why" and "what next" questions to be satisfied with this book. I enjoyed reading it very much, but I think the ending let it down, almost like the cliff-hanger end of a tv episode, only to find the next is about completely different characters. I may keep an eye on reviews, to see if the third book ties things together. As it stands, I doubt I'll get book two.