New author

Dec. 16th, 2024 07:37 pm
izard: (Default)
Maybe I am a bit too late, but I just discovered this guy

Not a great literature, but OK.
1. "Кровь на воздух" - LLMs in space opera setting. Darkness - 5/10
2. "Седьмая мапа" Cyberpunk world - high tech, low life. Interesting setting - a cyberpunk city. Darkness - 7/10
3. "Хранители Мультиверсума ", Darkness - 8/10
2 & 3 are part of universe of великого кристалламультивесума.
The author knows how to use genai to do illustrations..

Какие времена, такой и Крапивин.
izard: (Default)
Интересно сравнить творчество трех самых плодовитых графоманов рунета. Если что, здесь я использую слово "графоман" отнюдь не как ругательное. Просто они очень любят писать, и публикуют в сети мегабайты и мегабайты своих художественных текстов.

Еще ограничу время. Да, в 90-е был "король графоманов" Петухов, а в 2000е - Иар Эльтеррус. Но здесь я напишу о 2010-х и 2020-х.
Read more... )
izard: (Default)
I like Max Dalin's books: Лестница из терновника, Запах разума (I wrote about that one before).

He just started publishing online his new book: Семя скошенных трав. He swears that he wrote this book few years ago. He could not find a better time to publish it.
izard: (Default)
54 years ago Christopher Anvil published a short novel: "Behind the sandrat hoax", about a controversial medicine made of digestive tract of a New Venus sandrat. It reminds me of something more recent. Here is a quote from the novel:

<<
Princeps, New Venus, Janfebmar 6, 2209. By 8-4 vote, the Personnel and Appointments Committee today fired Dr. Quincy Cathcart, Chief of Medical Services. By unanimous vote, the Committee on Professional Conduct formally censured Dr. Cathcart for "unprofessional conduct."

Princeps, New Venus, Janfebmar 8, 2209. By 7-5 vote, the Committee on Accreditation today placed Quincy Cathcart on "indefinite suspension of professional status." A spokesman explained: "This means Cathcart cannot practice, and further that no paper or presentation of his may be considered by any accepted medium for the dissemination of professional information or opinion."

The action was taken "to avert harmful public controversy."

Princeps, New Venus, May 29, 2209. Experiments carried out under the auspices of the Interscience Federation "demonstrate that the effectiveness of sandrat ingestion is a myth. Careful experimentation with measured quantities of crushed digestive tissues of laboratory sandrats shows no statistical increase in resistance to dehydration."

Princeps, New Venus, June 22, 2209. By order of R. Q. Harling, Planetary Food and Drug Administrator, all sales of "sandrats or related rodents, for use in preventing dehydration," were today forbidden as "dangerous to the public health, both directly in light of possible infestation by possible indigenous intestinal parasites and indirectly because of the mistaken belief that sandrat internal organs are a specific against dehydration. This myth has been thoroughly exploded by controlled scientific experimentation."

Bonedry, New Venus, June 26, 2209. Hank J. Percival, proprietor of the Last Chance Supply Mart stated today he is continuing sales of sandrats, "as pets."

Princeps, New Venus, July 6, 2209. Planetary Food and Drug Administrator Harling today warned that he will "proceed to the courts" in all cases wherein sandrats are sold contrary to law. Administrator Harling added that he will prosecute offenders "vigorously, to the full extent of the enforcement resources at my disposal."

Princeps, New Venus, July 8, 2209. The Planetary Food and Drug Administration today released results of chemical analysis of the sandrat digestive tract, by an independent and analytical laboratory "of recognized standing." No cause for protection was found.

Bonedry, New Venus, July 10, 2209. The bodies of two Planetary Food and Drug Administration field agents were found near here this morning. Evidence seems to show that the two PFADA agents shot each other in a gun battle. Cause of the fight is not known.

South Bonescorch Junction, New Venus, July 14, 2209. A PFADA agent was found dead in the wreckage of his sand-buggy this morning. Evidence thus far uncovered appears to indicate that the sand-buggy's engine exploded.

Princeps, New Venus, July 20, 2209. PFADA administrator Harling today announced that enforcement of his sandrat-sales policy is being "temporarily suspended, pending completion of a massive public-education campaign."

Princeps, New Venus, July 22, 2209. Dr. Charles de P. Bancroff, Director-in-Chief of the Interscience Federation, today unveiled results of a new experiment "to determine the possible effects of sandrat ingestion." The intestinal tracts of sixteen sandrats, raised at the PFADA laboratories nearby, were "thoroughly macerated, divided into one hundred portions, and each weighed portion mixed with a weighed sample of a specific local plant. In no instance was the proportion of water significantly increased by admixture with sandrat intestine." Dr. Bancroff stated: "I am amazed that superstition can persist in the face of repeated consistently negative experimental evidence."

Princeps, New Venus, I August 4, 2209. Officials of the Interscience Federation today announced new measures to "eradicate the sandrat superstition." A concerted effort will be made to coordinate teaching materials of all types, to render this superstition psychologically distasteful. Special mention was made of the trideo film, Disaster in the Desert, which, said a spokesman, "illustrates, step by step, the chain of causation leading from acceptance of the myth to the ultimate test, when the family sand-vehicle malfunctions in the desert. Then there is this distressing scene with the sandrats, and afterward we experience the deterioration of the family, physically and mentally, and the horror as they try to eat sunrustle stalks and other things of that type, and realize that they don't turn into water. We got Peter de Vianhof and Celeste Silsine for the principal characters—the stars of our show—and we think they've done a really superb and convincing job for us. It's one thing to just be told an old wives' tale is false. It's something else to actually experience it this way, right before your eyes." Another official stated, "We're going to pull out all the stops. We're going to crush this superstition."
>>
Unfortunately then comes an implausible happy end that won't happen in real life. What happens in real life can be illustrated by fate of Semmelweis.
izard: (Default)
here. Thanks [profile] blau_kraehe for the hint. By the way, the same author also wrote a very good fantasy trilogy ("
Лестница из терновника").
izard: (Default)
CTFP is a great book. I bought a hard cover and now I am reading it for the second time.

I have to, because first time I did not get it. First it reads easily as a gentle intro to monads, promising that monads are easy after you know the right terminology, then (almost in the end) it touches monads quickly, and then.. Please see the pic above. I did not understand anything from the last few chapters.
izard: (Default)
The books I reviewed recently are mostly, I would say, non-orthodox. I am a bit embarrassed that I like reading this stuff, but here is something for a change.

"Цветы корицы, аромат сливы" is a great book by all accounts. There was a comment to one of my recent reviews that the Russian language used in all the books I mention (except Pelevin) is mediocre. This is true, but this book is the exception.

If you look at the author, her most prominent book is "Школа в Кармартене". I did not like that one. "Цветы корицы" share some good properties of "школа" like humor and language, but is a bit easier on a reader as there is actually some story, though still there is no villain.
izard: (Default)
Werewolf ( http://samlib.ru/a/afanasiev_a_w/, see flibusta for the full list ) had written several long series, "Tom Clancy style".

But I think only one of the series is actually interesting: "Наступление". The settings are 1982-1988, but Gorbachev was assassinated in 1986. Unlike his other series, this one is realistic. Unlike Tom Clancy, he shows respect to US forces. Most of the fights described in the series happens in Afghanistan. A lot of "заклепки, командирскаябашенка". Big part of the book are struggles between KGB, GRU and police in Soviet Union. It is great that there is no "попаданец" who wins WW3, that makes most of other books in the genre unreadable.
izard: (Default)
9 дней/Сутин. 301062 @ flibusta.

Moo2/book

Jul. 25th, 2018 09:35 am
izard: (Default)
A pretty old Russian space opera (incomplete 2 books out of 3, and having 3rd is unlikely) is a good one. (Though not great).

The best part of it for me is that the battle system would be a nice add-on for MOO2 :). I'd like to play that one.. Even with two main races, tech trees are different but balanced as if it was a setting for a good 4X game.

book

Jul. 6th, 2018 02:20 pm
izard: (Default)
Here is an interesting russian sci-fi novel. The first half of the plot reminds me recent facebook/lj flames that some people label as gauche caviar rants.

litrpg

Jun. 5th, 2018 10:59 am
izard: (Default)
Here is a very nice librpg
Unlike most of other russian litrpgs I read where a mix of RL vs RPG is usually 80-99%RPG to 20-1% RL, here the mix is 10%FPS, 10%RPG, 80%RL. Adding FPS (a mix of CS with TF2) is a cool move. The world in RL is a very interesting one.
izard: (Default)
samlib.ru is the place to look for graphomania. Most of it I cannot read because often these texts are long, boring and poorly written. But some are just long (like Nazgul's althistory)
Here is a very special one: althistory, 12th century Russia setting.
History: 10/10. Technology: 10/10. Script: 9/10. Makkiavelism: 11/10. Action: 7/10. Naturalism: 11/10. Cruelty: 20/10.. Terseness: 1/10.

In the text, there are plenty of references to historical documents, Russian classical literature and Nazgul :)

If you dare to read it, please read author's disclaimer first and then think again!!!
tags: гет, слэш, андерэйдж, нонконсеншуал, садомазо, оос, командирскаябашенка, дамбигад
izard: (Default)
While flying to a conference, I just finished reading a second part of an althistory novel. Althistory without "popadancy", when written well, could be very entertaining. This one is too, but it is more of a combination of fictional USSR in 1930 and 1970 in 1700's settings in south america.

It is more realistic than 90% of russian althistory, but imminent happy end (probably coming in part 3, yet to be written) is totally unrealistic :)

Thanks a lot lj user blau-kraehe for a tip.

The circle

Jun. 5th, 2017 02:03 pm
izard: (Default)
After [profile] blau_krahe suggestion, I just read it during this long weekend. The narrative style in Russian is very similar to "Холодная зона" by the way.

It is fun to read, but unlike "Холодная зона", everything in this book seems just trivial. First 20% or so is absolutely realistic, then as the plot becomes somewhat darker in the following 10% of the book, the rest 70% becomes obvious. So I guessed all the remaining plot after I read the first 30%, just thinking: "What would an american author write to make absurdity grow until a possible maximum is reached." I think if the author would have been european, it would not be that easy.

So in a hindsight, I would recommend reading the first 30% of this book, skipping all the rest but last 5 pages or so.
izard: (Default)
Russian popadancy/althistory that does not suck. 1933-1937, 0% technical progress, nobody warns "tovarisch Koba et al". Group of "popadancy" just try to make WW2 into a series of smaller scale conflicts by clever espionage plots.
izard: (Default)
After reading a great Russian translation of "Houston 2015", I found out that it is a prequel for "Houston 2030" by the same author. I read it too, but unlike "Houston 2015", I cannot recommend it to everyone. (Russian translation is still great btw, and both books are free in Russian)

In "Houston 2015", I found the most plausible description of Russia (some ~30% of the plot happens in Russia) from an american author. Both novels are hard sci-fi and scientifically accurate, but "Houston 2015" is I think 100% technically correct, and in "Houston 2030" I don't find plausible how author extrapolated a tech tree.

All characters in "Houston 2015" are perfect, and in "Houston 2030" some characters are there just to support the story, and some are to support the world. So if you like post-ap and hard sci-fi, you may still like "Houston 2030".

In "Houston 2015" the author described management and expat types very well, showing ageing generation of managers who understood the field being replaced by MBA-types who manage by metrics and politics. I also liked it that even when the author shows regret about this matter, he still shows those new manager with sympathy they deserve, as most of them are still good men and women (nothing personal).

The verdict: "Houston 2015": almost must read, in Russian or English. "Houston 2030" - almost on par with "The road" and "Postman", read if you liked those.
izard: (Default)
"Бинарная плащаница" is a nice cyberpunk novel. It is a sequel/fanfic for "The enclaves" series by Panov. I think it is almost better than original series because it does not focus on a wrong kind of mysticism. I highly recommend it but only if you liked the originals. Unfortunately, it is impossible to read the book w/o good understanding of "The enclaves" universe and a plot of at least 2 last books of the series.
izard: (Default)
The author claims he writes hard sci-fi superhero comic novel. Much like in "Цветок камнеломки", the book is about singularity. As Bostrom noted, one of possible causes of the singularity could be a strong AI developed by a small dedicated team "in a garage".

This book is about a discovery in physics that triggers singularity, but unlike "Цветок камнеломки" the settings are modern, not USSR. Also protagonists come from social and educational background that I understand quite well.

Unfortunately as action evolves and more ppl gain "supepowers", the script turns much closer to other books from samlib.ru where main characters are super-spetznaz types who fight with "пиндосами" and "масонами". Completely weird - reading something where jokes are familiar and protagonist's figure is even more familiar, but he still fights with illuminati and other enemies of Russian state.
izard: (Default)
It is great and I was proud to support the experiment

And now I understand what had always HPMOR reminded me of: "The last ringbearer". Both are brilliant examples of fan fic that turns a world of fantasy to something tangible and real, with a slight touch of mysticism. Although I don't quite like the trans-humanism becoming a major factor in the story Yudkowsky created.
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