Ian Rankin has had me drinking sweet milky tea at every reasonable opportunity since reading The Hanging Garden. That's very powerful work.

In fact, I'm going to brew a cuppa right now.

I think a couple of my McDermid's have come into the library this week. Way too much reading to do.

Just finished reading Neal Stephenson's The Diamond Age for the third or fourth time. I find it less fun than Snow Crash and less impressive than Cryptonomicon/Quicksilver but I think I might like it better than any of them.

I know I like The Diamond Age as Stephenson's best. At least, it's the only one I re-read on a regular basis. I think its characters feel the most human.

(wonders how NC and Plei knew he wanted to mention that he'd just finished Quicksilver)

I have trouble rating books comparatively, as those I haven't read recently are hard for me to remember concretely. I liked The Diamond Age, but it was verging on the edge of ridiculousness for me near the end.

I was shocked to find that I wasn't nearly as impatient with the historical world-building in Quicksilver as I was with that in Cryptonomicon. I guess the Enlightenment is more fun that World War II for me. Need to go put in an order for The Confusion.

I'm currently reading Pattern Recognition, my first Gibson.

As I recently expressed elsewhere, books cost too much.

Yeah... I just finished reading O Jerusalem the other day for the third time or so... It's one of my faves in the Russell/Holmes series, my least favourite being A Letter of Mary, my most being Monstrous Regiment of Women. If anyone likes cosy mysteries the Aunt Dimity series by (I think) Nancy Atherton is good... entertaining and fun for an afternoon on the patio or in front of a fire (depending on the season). I also just finished reading The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver and was totally blown away by it... so different from her earlier stuff (which was also good), but one of those books whose characters have stayed with me.

I liked The Diamond Age, but it was verging on the edge of ridiculousness for me near the end.

It does do that, no doubt. But then, Snow Crash gets pretty ridiculous near the end, too. I think Neal Stephenson, like Greg Egan, is one of those science fiction authors that has issues bringing straight science fiction to a close without getting weird. Luckily, such doesn't bother me.

It does do that, no doubt. But then, Snow Crash gets pretty ridiculous near the end, too.

From what I can vaguely remember of my reading of Snow Crash, it was weird enough from the very beginning that it didn't bother me. But, see, I could not begin to tell you how it ended. So.

(I should reread it, but my copy is kinda . . . grossified. Book loaners beware. Yuck.)

I think his last solid ending was in Zodiac, but that's a completely different style of book.

Diamond Age's ending grew on me. Snow Crash's made me roll my eyes the second or third time I read it.

Snow Crash's made me roll my eyes the second or third time I read it.

With a character named Hiro Protagonist it doesn't seem fair to expect depth of characterization. (Not that that's the only thing worth an eyeroll.)

So I'll pimp Pat Cadigan's Synners one more time. One of the best written cyberpunk novels with (by far) the best and most complex characterization in a cyberpunk novel. Also her hard science is well researched.

With a character named Hiro Protagonist it doesn't seem fair to expect depth of characterization. (Not that that's the only thing worth an eyeroll.)

That's not what made me roll my eyes, though. It's sort of like all his loose threads unspun whilst attempting to tie together, as did the writing.

That's not what made me roll my eyes, though. It's sort of like all his loose threads unspun whilst attempting to tie together, as did the writing.

It was problematic.

Btw, I'm sending you my Kubrick figure Robin..