Darwinia by Robert Charles Wilson

Darwinia by Robert Charles Wilson

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Photographer in alt history 1920’s gets recruited into a battle for the memory of the universe taking place at the end of time. Which is a way more interesting summary than this book deserves.



Yeah, I think I need to stop digging through RCW’s back catalog in search of a book as brilliant and wonderful as Spin. There clearly isn’t one back there, and it isn’t worth having to slog through stuff like this.



This is supposed to be a skiffy meditation on immortality and memory and living, all wrapped in cool alt history packaging. Unfortunatley, It’s actually a thoroughly boring and disjointed bit of cardboard wanking of the “but I just want to live a normal life, why must I do great things?” variety. Complete with fridging of the wife for plot convenience and “character development,” of course, this being the most common fictional method of making a dude interesting or driven or whatever.



Blech. RCW,, for serious: you are better than this crap.





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Audience participation

Okay, you guys were so great last time, let’s try this again. Any opinions on where one ought to start with these guys? Cautionary tales?

• Iain M. Banks’s Culture series: I understand they’re mostly standalones and that the first book by pub order is not great, so where do I start?
• Charles de Lint: *gestures helplessly* that is a pile of books.
• Andre Norton: ditto
• Gene Wolfe

Also, if anyone can rec a relatively sane biography of Anne Boleyn, I’d be most grateful. For values of “relatively sane” meaning with at least a pretense at considering evidence before speculating.