Extremophile (2024), Ian Green’s novel of cyberpunk dystopia, bioterrorism, wild heist/caper shenanigans, and more! more! is a delight. It was short-listed for the 2025 Arthur C. Clarke Award. A great, gritty read.
The Stars My Destination, by Alfred Bester, was first published in 1956 as “Tiger! Tiger!” Part Gulliver’s Travels, part Count of Monte Cristo, Bester’s hugely entertaining space opera is one of the classics of the Golden Age of SF.
Now to continue my advent calendar of great quotations from great speculative fiction. Here is one from a laugh-out-loud favorite of mine, John Scalzi’s Hugo and Locus Award short-listed novel Starter Villain (2023).
From the invaluable TV Tropes web site: “A Sub-Trope of Arc Villain, the Starter Villain ranks the lowest on the Sorting Algorithm of Evil (the heroes have to start off fighting someone). They are the first true threat to the heroes, not just some common Mook who’s there to let them show how badass they are. . . “
Fantastes 
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