Recently Read - book reviews from The Incomparable
67 episodes - English - Latest episode: 7 months ago - ★★★★★ - 13 ratingsA podcast in which we tell you about a book we just finished, and what we thought of it.
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Episodes
67: "Witch King" by Martha Wells
August 17, 2023 13:42 - 1 minute - 2.07 MBScott read Wells’ latest and thinks you should too! Now we await the eventual Murderbot/Witch King crossover. Scott McNulty.
66: "Blood, Sweat, and Pixels" by Jason Schreier
August 10, 2023 16:32 - 3 minutes - 2.43 MBAntony recommends a book that (finally) accurately explains how videogames are made, and the struggles involved. Antony Johnston.
65: "The Cruel Stars" by John Birmingham
August 22, 2022 15:50 - 4 minutes - 2.98 MBAntony reads the first in a rip-roaring space opera series in which humanity is faced with an existential threat, and comes away impressed. Antony Johnston.
64: "The Man on the Street" by Trevor Wood
June 19, 2021 21:51 - 2 minutes - 1.36 MBAntony recommends a crime novel that’s already won multiple awards, and which he considers one of the most accomplished debuts he’s read. Antony Johnston.
63: "Blade Reforged" by Kelly McCullough
June 07, 2021 03:02 - 3 minutes - 2.83 MBErika continues enjoying her reread of the Fallen Blade series. And Blade Reforged is a good jumping-on point! Erika Ensign.
62: The Nightshades Series by Melissa F. Olson
June 07, 2021 02:54 - 2 minutes - 2.23 MBSometimes entertaining escapism means three short, bloody books about vampires. Erika Ensign.
61: "Fireheart Tiger" by Aliette de Bodard
June 05, 2021 22:38 - 2 minutes - 1.67 MBA beautifully written, complicated queer romance … plus politics … plus a fire elemental. Erika Ensign.
60: "Tea and Sympathetic Magic" by Tansy Rayner Roberts
June 05, 2021 21:58 - 2 minutes - 1.81 MBWho would want to jockey against a sea of debutantes to win a marriage to a Duke when there’s a library full of books to be read and plenty of good tea to drink? Erika Ensign.
59: "Brightfall" by Jaime Lee Moyer
June 05, 2021 21:09 - 3 minutes - 2.52 MBA post-myth Robin Hood tale that is at turns sad, dark, frightening, and eventually hopeful. With fae and dragons! Erika Ensign.
58: "The Galaxy, and the Ground Within" by Becky Chambers
June 03, 2021 20:41 - 4 minutes - 2.6 MBIt’s a book in which nothing much happens, just a bunch of aliens sitting around waiting for the sky to clear. And yet Becky Chambers works her magic on it, and makes it memorable and moving. What a magic trick. Jason Snell.
57: "Slow Horses" by Mick Herron
June 03, 2021 17:24 - 5 minutes - 3.51 MBIn anticipation of the upcoming Apple TV+ show, Antony recommends a spy series quite unlike any other. Antony Johnston.
56: "Broken Blade" by Kelly McCullough
November 05, 2020 21:05 - 3 minutes - 2.78 MBErika revisits an old favourite and discovers it’s even better the second time! Erika Ensign.
55: "Guns of the Dawn" by Adrian Tchaikovsky
November 05, 2020 20:58 - 2 minutes - 2.07 MBErika enjoyed a regency-style fantasy novel about war! Who woulda thunk it? Erika Ensign.
54: "Beneath the Rising" by Premee Mohamed
September 27, 2020 00:41 - 2 minutes - 2.18 MBThis book is (partially) set in Edmonton, which is exciting for Erika. It’s about monsters and friendship and what monsters can do to friendship. Erika Ensign.
53: "Stasiland" by Anna Funder
August 11, 2020 18:00 - 2 minutes - 1.65 MBA compelling book on a difficult subject, telling the stories of people who lived behind the Berlin Wall and lived in fear of the Stasi. Antony Johnston.
52: "Or What You Will" by Jo Walton
August 09, 2020 21:18 - 2 minutes - 3.43 MBDo you like meta-fictional meditations on the nature of storytelling and Italy? Has Scott got the book for you! Scott McNulty.
51: "Plague Land" by S D Sykes
July 23, 2020 19:19 - 2 minutes - 2.65 MBScott hasn’t left his apartment in 4 months, so he decided to read a book about fictional people who had it even worse. Scott McNulty.
50: "Interior Chinatown" by Charles Yu
July 18, 2020 23:12 - 1 minute - 2.38 MBCharles Yu has been working in television for awhile, and it isn’t hard to see that (obvious) influence on this novel. Scott McNulty.
49: "Working" by Robert Caro
June 30, 2020 13:45 - 2 minutes - 3.4 MBScott finally finished a book by Robert Caro (no, not that one). Scott McNulty.
48: "The City We Became" by N.K. Jemisin
May 18, 2020 18:47 - 2 minutes - 3.42 MBNeed a book to restore your readerly habits? This one worked for Scott! Scott McNulty.
47: "Famous Men Who Never Lived" by K. Chess
December 27, 2019 23:36 - 9 minutes - 7.16 MBPeople from an alternate timeline live as refugees in our New York City. It’s full of grief, sadness, frustration, and coincidences.
46: "Underground Airlines" by Ben H. Winters
September 27, 2019 01:02 - 5 minutes - 3.36 MBNathan reviews Ben H. Winters’s Underground Airlines, a gripping thriller set in an alternate history that feels too close to our own.
45: "Six Stories" by Matt Wesolowski
September 26, 2019 19:30 - 3 minutes - 2.81 MBAntony discusses SIX STORIES by Matt Wesolowski, a book tailor-made for podcast listeners.
44: "How To Do Nothing" by Jenny Odell
September 25, 2019 17:48 - 2 minutes - 1.69 MBHow hard is it to do nothing, anyway?
43: "The Long Lavender Look" by John D. McDonald
September 05, 2019 19:38 - 8 minutes - 4.89 MBRe-reading the Travis McGee adventure novels of the 60’s and 70’s in the twenty-first century.
42: "Children of Ruin" by Adrian Tchaikovsky
July 11, 2019 17:15 - 4 minutes - 2.5 MBThe sequel to “Children of Time” does the original one better by adding new planets, new species, and maybe even aliens?
41: "Fall; or, Dodge in Hell" by Neal Stephenson
July 09, 2019 00:02 - 7 minutes - 3.85 MBOnce again, Neal Stephenson has buried 250 great pages in a 900-page book.
40: "My Book of Genesis" by Richard Macphail
July 01, 2019 17:00 - 4 minutes - 3.69 MBAntony discusses the infamously-not-dead Genesis road manager’s story, finally told in a delightful book.
39: "His Majesty's Dragon" by Naomi Novik
May 24, 2019 23:49 - 4 minutes - 3.65 MBErika needed some dragons. She got them. She also got a war. So, swings and roundabouts.
38: "Ghosts in the Schoolyard" by Eve Ewing
May 16, 2019 20:34 - 4 minutes - 2.07 MBQuinn talks about school closings, civil responsibility, and Eve Ewing’s sociology book “Ghosts in the Schoolyard.”
37: "Educated" by Tara Westover
April 26, 2019 18:08 - 3 minutes - 2.35 MBOne million people have read and recommended Educated, but Quinn is here to be number one million and one.
36: "Places in the Darkness" by Chris Brookmyre
April 25, 2019 17:15 - 3 minutes - 2.07 MBAntony discusses Chris Brookmyre’s sci-fi murder mystery PLACES IN THE DARKNESS.
35: "Terminal Alliance" by Jim C. Hines
April 03, 2019 19:46 - 5 minutes - 3.97 MBDo you love post-apocalyptic fiction, but for your soul’s sake you need to keep it light? Has Erika got a book for you!
34: "Spirits, Spells, and Snark" by Kelly McCullough
April 03, 2019 19:42 - 2 minutes - 2.06 MBThe sequel to Magic, Madness, and Mischief delivers more of what Erika loved about the first book.
33: "Spinning Silver" by Naomi Novik
March 04, 2019 20:49 - 4 minutes - 2.44 MBLike “Uprooted” before it, “Spinning Silver” is a more modern remix of classic fairy tale and fantasy scenarios. Royal weddings! Ice kings! Just don’t mention Rumpelstiltskin.
32: "In The Company of Others" by Julie E. Czerneda
February 11, 2019 01:24 - 3 minutes - 1.51 MBScott doesn’t remember why he had a copy of this book, but finally got around to reading it and enjoyed it!
31: "Trail of Lightning" by Rebecca Roanhorse
February 10, 2019 17:57 - 3 minutes - 2.47 MBQuinn got recommended a book by the Chicago Public Library, and now trusts the library completely.
30: "Magic, Madness, and Mischief" by Kelly McCullough
February 10, 2019 03:54 - 5 minutes - 3.82 MBErika read this middle-grade fantasy both recently and not-so-recently. Turns out re-reading it is just as delightful as the first time through.
29: "Hidden Sun" by Jaine Fenn
February 10, 2019 03:40 - 4 minutesErika went in search of a novel worthy to add to her Hugo nomination list — and she found one!
28: "The Wise Man's Fear" by Patrick Rothfuss
January 12, 2019 03:58 - 5 minutes - 3.6 MBMonty’s a few years late, but he just got to the second book in Patrick Rothfuss’s Kingkiller Chronicles.
27: "Crimson Frost" by Jim C. Hines
December 20, 2018 00:46 - 2 minutes - 1.97 MBMerry Christmas, readers! For your holiday pleasure, Erika brings you a wacky-yet-dark Christmas mashup. It’s a shortie, so you can read it while your wine is mulling or your chestnuts are roasting.
26: "Children of Time" by Adrian Tchaikovsky
December 20, 2018 00:33 - 5 minutesArachnophobes, steer clear. Hard sci-fi fans, pull up a chair!
25: "Salvation" by Peter F. Hamilton
November 13, 2018 03:04 - 3 minutes - 1.63 MBScott is a fan of Hamilton (no, not that one), but does his latest hold up?
24: "Love and Romanpunk" by Tansy Rayner Roberts
November 10, 2018 02:18 - 4 minutes - 3.4 MBIn which Erika loves “twisted history” and Tansy. Not necessarily in that order. But maybe.
23: "Embers of War" by Gareth L. Powell
November 10, 2018 02:14 - 4 minutes - 3.49 MBIn which a good tweet convinces Erika to read a good book.
22: "Record of a Spaceborn Few" by Becky Chambers
October 21, 2018 00:11 - 7 minutes - 5.1 MBThe third book in Becky Chambers’ “Wayfarers” universe — but there’s no need to read either of the other two before diving into this one.
21: "Impostor Syndrome" by Mishell Baker
October 02, 2018 22:21 - 5 minutes - 3.18 MBThe third book in the “Arcadia Project” series is great, but start with “Borderline” if you haven’t read any of them—and if you’ve read the first two, be sure to bone up before diving in to book three.
20: "The Golden Minute" by John Birmingham
September 10, 2018 17:44 - 4 minutes - 3.79 MBA rollicking time-travel adventure featuring an 1870s lawman and a 21st century game developer, lost in time—and on the run from historical danger as well as deadly time police. It’s fun!
19: The Sam Clair Mysteries by Judith Flanders
August 30, 2018 17:08 - 3 minutes - 1.77 MBScott read all 4 books in the series over the course of 4 days. You will too.
18: "Banana: The Fate of the Fruit That Changed the World" by Dan Koeppel
August 29, 2018 20:32 - 6 minutes - 4.97 MBI guess you could say that this is a book that has… appeal.