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Luke reviews The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley, the Goodreads Winner for Readers’ Favorite Science Fiction of 2024, which means it isn’t actually good science fiction but is pretty competent at the other things it’s trying to be. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support […]

Luke rereads Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card to see if it should be on the SFBRP Must-Read List, and with Juliane discusses how Some Desperate Glory fails to live up to its predecessors. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane […]

Luke tells Juliane about Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh, a novel that started strong with lots of promise but left him disappointed, annoyed, underwhelmed and generally feeling other negative emotions. Also this won the best novel Hugo award, so there’s a bit of that to talk about too. See every book/episode of the SFBRP […]

Part 3 of our discussion of The Lord of the Rings, focusing on The Return of the King, what it means to be a good man or a good king, lessons learned by the hobbits and us during their adventures, and a final review of the reading experience 30 years on from Luke’s first time […]

Part 2 of Luke and Juliane’s discussion of The Lord of the Rings, focusing on The Two Towers, the power of wizards, action vs fights vs battles vs sieges, a diversion on Ents, and who is tempted by the One Ring. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: […]

Part 1 of Luke and Juliane’s discussion of The Lord of the Rings, focusing on the audiobook performance by Andy Serkis, appreciation for the first movie in the trilogy, how Tom Bombadil can be so annoying, and Luke takes a stab at the question “what even are elves?” See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: […]

Luke delves into The Silmarillion for the first time, and talks to Juliane about myth creation, map confusion, and the genealogy of a silver tree. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Bluesky: @lukeburrage.bsky.social Discuss this book at […]

Juliane finished Alien Clay by Adrian Tchaikovsky and so Luke joins her to discuss academic politics, totalitarian politics, aliens, and clay. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Bluesky: @lukeburrage.bsky.social Discuss this book at Goodreads.com Luke writes his […]

Luke revisits Terminal World by Alastair Reynolds, and tells Juliane about the four different levels of understanding available to discover and enjoyment to be had. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Bluesky: @lukeburrage.bsky.social Discuss this book at […]

Luke talks to Juliane about Neverness by David Zindell, an epic space opera from 1988 which for years he considered one of his favourite science fiction novels, and debates adding it to the SFBRP Must Read List. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and […]

Luke and Juliane share their thoughts on Earth Abides by George R Stewart, an influential post-apocalyptic novel from 1949. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Bluesky: @lukeburrage.bsky.social Discuss this book at Goodreads.com Luke writes his own novels, […]

Luke tells Juliane why Those Beyond the Wall by Micaiah Johnson ended up on his did-not-finish list, and why it was such a disappointment after The Space Between Worlds. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Mastodon: @lukeburrage@masto.nu […]

Luke and Juliane discuss the second instalment in what they now realise is a Dune movie trilogy, Dune: Part 2 (2024). To keep the full story fresh in their minds, Luke re-read the novel and they both rewatched Dune: Part 1. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: […]

Luke re-read the multi-award-winning Gateway by Frederik Pohl. Juliane joins him to discuss why 1970’s science fiction can be very clever but still misses the mark for current readers. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Mastodon: @lukeburrage@masto.nu […]

After diversions on buying and reading the hardcover version of the book, Luke and Juliane talk about Heavy Time by C J Cherryh, the first Company Wars novel by internal chronology. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on […]

Luke reviews a new (to him) translation of Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky and discusses with Juliane if it should make it onto the SFBRP Must-Read List. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Mastodon: @lukeburrage@masto.nu […]

Luke revisits Starship Troopers by Robert A Heinlein and shares his thoughts on the political ideas it contains with Juliane. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Mastodon: @lukeburrage@masto.nu Juliane on Mastodon: @JuKuBerlin@mastodon.social Discuss this book at Goodreads.com […]

Juliane read The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell for the first time, and Luke for the second time, and they talk through how the book impacted their emotions. See every book/episode of the SFBRP here: https://www.sfbrp.com/episode-lists-3 See the SFBRP Must-Read List here: https://www.sfbrp.com/must-read Support Luke and Juliane financially via Patreon.com/lukeburrage Luke on Mastodon: @lukeburrage@masto.nu Juliane […]

Luke re-reads The Forever War by Joe Haldeman to see if it could make it onto the SFBRP Must-Read List, but discovers there are more versions of the novel than he knew, and he read a version that didn’t win the Hugo or Nebula awards. Luke on Mastodon: @lukeburrage@masto.nu Juliane on Mastodon: @JuKuBerlin@mastodon.social Support Luke […]

Where is the best place to start for new readers of science fiction? Which books are the best examples of science fiction available to read today? Which old books stand the test of time, and which new books will we still be thinking about in decades to come? For episode #550 of the SFBRP, Luke […]