Outlawed

Anna North

A reimagining of the mid 1800's wild west where the highest value for both men and women is to have families and bear children. In this context, the barren and/or genderfluid (women only of course) are cursed as witches and driven away if they are lucky and killed if not. Our narrator is Ada, a young woman who grew up with a mid-wife mother and was learning the trade. When she doesn't get pregnant upon marriage, she is "endangering the fertility of the entire town", and is shunned. She ends up in a convent, and then ultimately as a member of the Hole in the Wall gang, and she pursues a dream of doing reproductive research to find out the truth about why some women are barren. The gang is larger than life, and Ada fills the role of Doc with her mid-wife training and experience with herbs and medicines. And while this sounds like a heavy story, North (and Ada) tells the story as a lighthearted western, mixing traditional gender roles in ways that are surprising, and completely logical and super fun. And lighthearted does not bury the seriousness of bias and oppression that the women are living with daily. A wonderful look at gender stereotypes and equity through a new lens.

4 stars (out of 4)

Death by His Grace

Kwei Quartey

Another Darko Dawson mystery. Dawson's wife's cousin is murdered. This installment is written a bit differently in that three suspects are introduced in a bit of detail before the murder even happens. All of the cultural insight into Ghana is still here, with particular emphasis this time on the pentecostal christian church and how that affects individuals and families and how it integrates and clashes with traditional Ghanian spirituality. But the actual telling of the murder investigation feels a bit flat for some reason. Maybe it is that this is the 3rd Dawson mystery I have read in as many weeks (too much too fast?) but reveal of the investigation was strained here. Still a great series, just not the best installment.

3 stars (out of 4)

Children of the Street

Kwei Quartey

A Darko Dawson mystery. Dawson is a police inspector in Ghana (stationed in Accra for this episode). He is lead investigator in the murder of a street kid whose body was found dumped in the fetid canal waters near a slum. Over the course of the book, the murder turns out to be the first of a serial killing spree of street children and Dawson must use all of his intellect, instinct and empathy to solve the case. Just as important, the enjoyment in reading Quartey comes from the culture and family and lifestyle snippets that we learn about Ghana. So while it is a straight up mystery novel, it is also a character study into Ghana. 

4 stars (out of 4)

Playing with Fire

Gena Showalter

Belle is a struggling 20 something who can't keep a job, can't be anywhere on time, and can't really figure out why everything isn't handed to her great self on a platter. Her current job in a coffee shop ends up with her drinking some secret formula, giving her the ability to control wind, fire, water, earth. Of course now she is pursued by a couple of paranormal agencies, and has a protector as well, as she navigates her new life and tries to "figure things out". It's a fluffy, fun sci-fi fantasy romance novel. It has similar character to the I am Number Four series, with a couple of soft-core "romance" scenes thrown needlessly in the middle. 

2 stars (out of 4)

Sea of Rust

C. Robert Cargill

Cargill has created a post-human world that is populated by machines. In following the narrator (Brittle) as a freebot who scavenges for parts in the central plains (the Sea of Rust), we get a picture of what life is like for these beings. And with the occasional flashback or memory retrieval, we see how this world came to be. The primary conflict in the world is between the giant mainframes who are competing to become the One World Intelligence by assimilating all the memories and experiences of all other AI machines. Definitely a Borg origin story vibe going on here. Brittle, on the other hand, is a free and independent AI, and is striving to stay that way. She has some serious similarities to Martha Wells' Murderbot. It should not be surprising, that since this is a story of the early independence of sentient AI's, we get to explore the existential questions of life, and meaning, and identity. By integrating these themes with great action and characters, Cargill really hit this one out of the park. 

4 stars (out of 4)

Take Back the Sky

Greg Bear

War Dogs Book 3

The final chapter, Venn and company are on their way to the Antag homeworld (the Sun-Planet), in a Guru built (grown?) ship. The new allies have a goal of saving both the Sun-Planet and Earth from Guru/Keeper meddling once and for all. But even at this point in the story, no one really understands what is going on with this alien life form. So as a reader, we are are also given hints about some crazy alien-ness that puts us in Venn's shoes of perpetual confusion. The first half of this final installment is really good, carrying the story forward. But after that, I began to get the sense that there wasn't really a way to end this well. That is, with clever resolution. So while there is ultimately resolution, I was left flat at the end. I will still recommend the trilogy overall since the vision of the aliens in our solar system is astounding. 

3 stars (out of 4)