Where I Forgo Any Effort at Understatement

The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I think John Scalzi is some kind of genius.

He's got all the tools to write amazing science fiction--creating clever plots with incredible characters, spot-on pacing, rapid-fire dialogue, stimulating ideas, and always, always with sparkling wit. This is science fiction, not humor, but he's funnier than any of the guys writing humor. (You know, IMO.)

This is the story of a future human empire in space, one where ships go only where the flow runs, so only a few dozen systems are inhabited. The premise of the novel, emblazoned on the cover, is that their empire is on the verge of collapse. The flow is going to stop, making travel between systems impossible, which will condemn most communities to a slow death.

So that's fun.

For reals, though. It actually is. That's his genius. He makes science fiction fun and funny and a pleasure to read. Kiva Lagos, with her potty mouth and terrifying personal style, is scary and hilarious. Cardenia Wu is great. Her friend Naffa is a crackup. Marce, his sister, his father--all cool. The plotting and dialog--dead on. Scalzi writes funny, clever science fiction with terrific characters and a fast action that makes me want to keep reading. Just for fun.

That's a gift is what that is.

Five stars. I think it's clear I'm recommending this.

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