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David Scrimshaw Locked account

DScrimshaw@bookwyrm.world

Joined 1 year, 4 months ago

An avid sci-fi and fantasy reader who sometimes does historical fiction or even mainstream.

You might notice that most of my reviews are 5 stars. That's because if I start reading a book that doesn't engage me, I stop reading it. Life is too short. I've realized that it's not fair to review a book I haven't read and nobody really needs to hear why I didn't get into a book especially when they might like it.

My goals with reviews are to be brief and give other potential readers an idea of why they might like the book. I leave it to the marketing people and other reviewers to describe the plots.

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David Scrimshaw's books

To Read (View all 328)

Pat Murphy: The Adventures of Mary Darling (Paperback, Tachyon Publications LLC)
Kevin Hearne: Candle and Crow (2024, Little, Brown Book Group Limited)
Austin Grossman: Fight Me (2024, Penguin Books, Limited)

Currently Reading

Lev Grossman: The magician king (2011, Viking)

Read (View all 959)

K. J. Parker: The Two of Swords: Volume One (Orbit)
Kate Heartfield: The Embroidered Book (AudiobookFormat, 2022, HarperCollins UK and Blackstone Publishing)
Steven Brust: Lyorn (EBook, 2024, Doherty Associates, LLC, Tom)

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reviewed Akin by Emma Donoghue

Emma Donoghue: Akin (2019, Little, Brown and Company)

Review of 'Akin' on 'Storygraph'

Emma Donoghue is a guaranteed good read.

What set this one apart for me is
- it had the type of characters you don't see many stories about, and
- the two main characters aren't that nice, but you wind up liking them anyway.

reviewed This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar

No cover

Amal El-Mohtar, Max Gladstone: This is How You Lose the Time War (Paperback, 2019, Jo Fletcher Books)

Two time-traveling agents from warring futures, working their way through the past, begin to exchange …

Review of 'This is How You Lose the Time War' on 'Storygraph'

I don't know if this was fantasy or science fiction. It was maybe weirder than I'm ready for.

reviewed The devil you know by K. J. Parker

K. J. Parker: The devil you know (2016, Tom Doherty Associates Book)

"The greatest philosopher of all time is offering to sell his soul to the Devil. …

Review of 'The devil you know' on 'Storygraph'

A fun, brief read.

I should probably read it again sometime, because I'm not sure what really happened.

reviewed Chasing the Phoenix by Michael Swanwick

Michael Swanwick: Chasing the Phoenix (2015, Tom Doherty Associates, LLC)

In the distant future, Surplus arrives in China dressed as a Mongolian shaman, leading a …

Review of 'Chasing the Phoenix' on 'Storygraph'

I love Darger and Surplus.

If you like a weird post-post-apocalyptic future like out Gene Wolfe's [b:The Shadow of the Torturer|60211|The Shadow of the Torturer (The Book of the New Sun, #1)|Gene Wolfe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1329650008l/60211.SX50.jpg|762497], and you like lovable rogue conmen, you have to read Swanwick's Darger and Surplus stories.

reviewed Nobody Cries at Bingo by Dawn Dumont

Dawn Dumont: Nobody Cries at Bingo (2011, Thistledown Press, Limited)

Review of 'Nobody Cries at Bingo' on 'Storygraph'

This is apparently autobiography. So, we learn that Ms Dumont went to law school. I always feel sad when I learn that someone went to law school but didn't stay with the law.

But if they're going to write engaging books that let us learn about people we don't learn enough about, I'm just glad that their path took them to where they are.

And get this, she does standup comedy. There's an audio clip at:
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/laughoutloud/dawn-dumont-at-the-turtle-island-too-gala-a-celebration-of-aboriginal-comedy-1.1742517

reviewed Glass Beads by Dawn Dumont

Dawn Dumont: Glass Beads (2017, Thistledown Press, Limited)

Stories that interconnect four First Nations people, Everett Kaiswatim, Nellie Gordon, Julie Papequash, and Nathan …

Review of 'Glass Beads' on 'Storygraph'

An outstanding of collection of linked short stories.

These would appeal to anyone who has an interest in people surviving impossible childhoods and how all of it can wind up messing up a whole life.

The stories were often bleak, but still there's hope.