Mark Dewald

I've never read "Stranger in a strange land" but after this book, I'm almost afraid to. This book was one of the worst SF books I've ever read. The characters are mostly idiot-morons, and the dialogue is elementary school level at best. I kept waiting for something interesting to happen, but it's all blunt violence and interminable, comatose drivel. Bleh!

Not likely

All of them

One thing to note: I'm not a fan of military SF, and while this is not even in that class, I understand that Heinlein wrote in that genre. I like A.C. Clarke, Azimov, Bradbury, Alastair Reynolds, Poul Anderson, Vernor Vinge, Roger Zelany, to name a few.

If you like mentally hopping around as if the menagerie of thoughts being portrayed were brief yelping moments on a bed of hot coals, Brin is your guy. Frenetic is the word. I saw this guy on the science channel, and thought well, he might be able to write a good story. Boy, was I wrong. The synopsis completely suckered me into thinking there was a story. That's the last time I'll trust one of those, I guess. I wish Arthur C. Clarke could have lived longer. I have only lost interest in one of his novels, and I've read about eighteen of them.

Only if someone I trusted told me that another book he wrote was worth it.

It wouldn't help.

frustration.

nope.

Nothing indicated to me that this was a short story. Just when it got a bit interesting, it was over. It was okay for a short story.

The narrator sounded like he was nearly bored to death, or perhaps he was one of those drab old guys who might normally be an appliance repair man.