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A review by mastersal
Redshirts by John Scalzi
3.0
A pleasant easy read which is mostly for fans of Star Trek. As a fan of Star Trek (best thing ever!!!!!!!) I smiled through this and enjoyed picking out the references. It was like watching Galaxy Quest in my head with the sound track of Shatner and Nimoy. Being a quick read this is a good way of spending a couple of afternoons. Preferably in the fall sun when the weather is just falling to crisp and the cup of hot coffee steams.
The conceit is cute, not particularly funny. It's reminiscent of Douglas Adams but "thinner" - fans aside there is little development in the world or characters. This would have been perfect as a novella but as a novel I did want the plot to reach it's end faster. The writing is breezy so no complaints there. This is my first John Scalzi novel so I cant compare his work but he has a definite love of the genre and Star Trek. That endears him to me so I now really must read the rest of his books.
While most of the book is light and comic just for a change, Mr Scalzi dials the mood to serious in Coda 3. Still sweet but with a gentle sadness which made me tear up, this is a sign that he can find heart in the Redshirt premise as well as the absurdity. For that coda alone I could rate this book as higher 3 stars. I am tempted to rate it up since it ends the book in this lovely, painful but hopeful note but it's a coda. Despite the beautiful letter in the last 3 pages, I am sticking to my guns of saying that the book is cute and for Star Trek fans, a definite recommendation.
The conceit is cute, not particularly funny. It's reminiscent of Douglas Adams but "thinner" - fans aside there is little development in the world or characters. This would have been perfect as a novella but as a novel I did want the plot to reach it's end faster. The writing is breezy so no complaints there. This is my first John Scalzi novel so I cant compare his work but he has a definite love of the genre and Star Trek. That endears him to me so I now really must read the rest of his books.
While most of the book is light and comic just for a change, Mr Scalzi dials the mood to serious in Coda 3. Still sweet but with a gentle sadness which made me tear up, this is a sign that he can find heart in the Redshirt premise as well as the absurdity. For that coda alone I could rate this book as higher 3 stars. I am tempted to rate it up since it ends the book in this lovely, painful but hopeful note but it's a coda. Despite the beautiful letter in the last 3 pages, I am sticking to my guns of saying that the book is cute and for Star Trek fans, a definite recommendation.