Second Foundation Group Read

Time flies when you are having fun, and I’ve been having a wonderful time re-reading the Foundation Trilogy with this group of folks, some whom are re-reading it as well and others who are reading it for the first time. It has been great seeing this through the eyes of others and has caused my appreciation of Asimov’s works to grow beyond the high estimation I already had for them.

We are going to bring this Asimov group experience to a close with a group reading of the final novel of the original trilogy, Second Foundation. Second Foundation has one of my favorite Michael Whelan covers ever. I remember being so thrilled to finally get over my hesitation in reading this series so that I could get to this book to discover just who this girl was. I wasn’t disappointed and I hope you will enjoy her as well.

We would love to have you join us. The reading will begin this coming Saturday, February 11th with postings on Sundays beginning on the 19th and will end with the final discussion on Sunday the 26th, ending just on the verge of the close of the 2012 Science Fiction Experience. If you would like to join in, the sign up linky is just after the jump.

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Foundation and Empire, Group Read Conclusion

Our foray into Isaac Asimov’s Hugo Award winning Foundation trilogy rolls on with the final discussion of book two, Foundation and Empire. This is my second read through of the trilogy and this novel was every bit as good as I remember it being the first time, particularly the story line that we will discuss now, that of Toran, Bayta, and the Mule.

So come along and join us in the discussion, but be forewarned, major story spoilers are revealed hereafter.

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After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall ~Nancy Kress




After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall

written by Nancy Kress

To be released in April 2012

Tachyon Publications

192 pages



8/10 stars

Thought-provoking, relevant, engaging story. Once I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down.




The year is 2013 and Julie Kahn is working with the FBI, creating and tracking a complex algorithm to help explain and hopefully stop a series of odd burglaries and unexplainable child abductions.

The year is 2014 and just below the surface of the earth various microbes are combining and dividing to form something new, and something not quite right.

The year is 2035 and the last surviving members of the human race are living inside a protective shell, captives of a group of aliens the humans have named the “Tesslies”, the long-ago destroyers of the surface of Earth.

Author Nancy Kress has created a generation-spanning tale of near-future calamity and rebirth that starts out strong and builds steadily to a satisfying climax. In less than 200 pages Kress proves that a science fiction novel need not be dense to contain fascinating and relevant scientific concepts, intriguing mystery, and characters that compel you to keep the pages turning.

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Foundation and Empire, Group Read Part 1

My how time flies!

It is nearly the halfway point of The 2012 Science Fiction Experience and it is time for the first of our two-part discussion of the second book in Isaac Asimov’s Foundation trilogy, Foundation and Empire. The questions below are merely to act as discussion points and the various participants may or may not choose to answer them all. Please understand that there are potential spoilers in my answers as well as those of the other participating members. And as always, please feel free to join in on the discussion regardless of whether you are reading along with us or not. If you do, please restrict your comments to the part of the story we’ve already read and do not spoil anything for those who are reading this book for the first time.

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Underworld: Awakening

From an Academy Award nominated film to won’t-ever-be-Oscar-worthy fare, I have spent the previous two evenings engrossed in big screen thrills at the theater. This time it was not to play amateur critic but to indulge in guilty pleasure that kept me out late on a work night. For Kate Beckinsale in leather, kicking the butt of all comers, is certainly a guilty pleasure. I have enjoyed all of the films in the Underworld franchise thus far, including the sans-Kate prequel, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans. With bullet-ridden, blue-black filtered grace the Underworld films have provided a stylish continuation of the Matrix-style of film making and have turned Kate Beckinsale into an action femme fatale.

The risk of continuing any franchise is that the idea will grow thin and that the attraction will grow cold. How does Underworld: Awakening stand up to its predecessors?

The truth is, this one is brutal.

Literally.

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Eclectic Musings of a Renaissance Geek