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mary_soon_lee 's review for:
Undercity
by Catherine Asaro
I first read Catherine Asaro in the 1990s and gobbled up her novels soon after they were published until the early 2000s. Then, probably because I hadn't liked "Quantum Rose" as much, I stopped.
It appears that was a mistake.
Prompted by a recommendation (thank you, Nobilis Reed!) I tried "Undercity" and found it thoroughly enjoyable from the first page to the closing sentence. It's far-future science fiction with psi powers. The heroine is Major Bhaajan, an ex-military P.I. who grew up in the eponymous undercity. Down in that undercity, a vibrant underclass live on the edge, while in the above-city powerful women cherish cloistered princes. It's a book cast in bright contrasts. Not subtle, not high art, but I found it as likable as its heroine and plan to binge-read the rest of the series.
I don't hold it against the book, but I note that the copyediting is surprisingly poor for a major publisher (Baen). It looks sadly as if they ran the manuscript through a spellchecker, but didn't look for other forms of typos. Hey ho.
Four out of five summer-fun stars.
About my reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved).
It appears that was a mistake.
Prompted by a recommendation (thank you, Nobilis Reed!) I tried "Undercity" and found it thoroughly enjoyable from the first page to the closing sentence. It's far-future science fiction with psi powers. The heroine is Major Bhaajan, an ex-military P.I. who grew up in the eponymous undercity. Down in that undercity, a vibrant underclass live on the edge, while in the above-city powerful women cherish cloistered princes. It's a book cast in bright contrasts. Not subtle, not high art, but I found it as likable as its heroine and plan to binge-read the rest of the series.
I don't hold it against the book, but I note that the copyediting is surprisingly poor for a major publisher (Baen). It looks sadly as if they ran the manuscript through a spellchecker, but didn't look for other forms of typos. Hey ho.
Four out of five summer-fun stars.
About my reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved).