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Altered Carbon audiobook cover

Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan

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I love this series and this book. It’s a hard-boiled detective thriller with an awesome anti-hero protagonist. The tech of the future in this series is what I want from Sci-Fi: really advanced shit that shapes the entire story and the characters within it. The tech makes you think about the path from here to there, how humanity has changed and yet hasn’t changed, as we’ve evolved ourselves and our world. There’s also a massive “haves vs. have not’s” undercurrent in this book that few other Sci-Fi novels address in what I consider a realistic way. That is, it’s neither utopian nor dystopian.

It’s worth noting that the book/series is straight-up NC-17 with both sex and violence, so be forewarned. 

Finally, I thought the Netflix series was good, though not great. The main actor was absolutely brilliant, but other ranged from OK to hard-to-watch bad. The plot held mostly true to the book. Some of the plot changes were welcomed and well thought out, but naturally a few I disliked. I still prefer the book to the TV show.


Genre: Cyberpunk, Sci-Fi
Series: Takeshi Kovacs Trilogy | Subjects: Rich’s Reco’s
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Ender's Game audiobook cover

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

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I consider Ender’s Game to be the single greatest leadership book ever written. Yet it’s sci-fi. And about children. WTF?

Once upon a time I aspired to be a leader like Ender. After experimenting with different leadership styles, I realized that style works best in a hierarchical structure and even then is a bit dated as far as management theory goes. Regardless, I love the book and still think the both the character of Ender and the whole novel are top-notch. It’s on my must-read list.


Genre: Sci-Fi
Series: Ender’s Game, Enderverse | Subjects: Rich’s Reco’s
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Harry Potter - all book covers

Series: Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

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All of these reviews are for the Stephen Fry recording, not the Jim Dale version on Audible. That version on Audible is complete shit.

I downloaded the Fry version years ago—around 2007—and recently purchased the Dale version of book 1 in 2018. Jim Dale’s reading was so awful I couldn’t tell the difference between Dumbledore and Hermione. Yes, it was so bad, a 10-year-old girl and a 109-year-old man sounded nearly identical. And yes Albus Dumbledore is 109 in book one.

With that out of the way, let’s talk Potter. 

I believe the reason this series is such a part of the modern culture is because it does two things that very few other authors ever do: 1) the plot lines and the main characters grow up and become more serious in each book and 2) no plot lines are recycled from book to book. All the rest of the elements have been done before, yet even these are done well (or at least not overdone). 

If you have never read Harry Potter—or haven’t read it in a while—I highly recommend jumping into the series with the Stephen Fry version, and opening the door to the wizarding world. 


Genre: Fantasy
Series: Harry Potter, Wizarding World | Subjects: Rich’s Reco’s
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The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson book cover

Diamond Age, The by Neal Stephenson

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One of my favorite stand-alone sci-fi books. I don’t love everything Stephenson writes, but I loved this one. It’s a great look into the future. This book explores the possibilities of how technology in the hands of the right person can affect the lives of millions (or billions) of people, while also being a story of hope and serendipity in a semi-distopian future.


Genre: Sci-Fi
Subjects: Rich’s Reco’s
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