Richard Jones' Log: What I've been reading

Just finished The Algebraist by Iain M. Banks. Great sci-fi novel. Not set in the Culture universe like a lot of his others (this is the second of his sci-fi that's not). It's great to see that he can switch universes like this, and use a whole new set of rules to define the universe and the story that is set inside it. Mind-bendingly huge scope. Interesting characters. Good twists. A little tough to get through the first chapter or two (as is unfortunately the case with some of his books) but very rewarding.

Also read the second volume of Alias (graphic novel, nothing to do with the TV series). Another good read, very dark story and I felt the need to switch back to a more super-hero-ey story afterwards, so I then read Ara�a, which was a fun teen-oriented comic about a high-school girl who is recruited to be a super-hero. Some really funny moments, lots of pretty pictures, much biffo.

Aside: it's interesting how things change. I'm going to be attending a Q&A screening of Serenity tomorrow night, and one question I want to ask Joss Whedon is about how he's coping with all these fragile female characters now kicking arse. The whole point of Buffy The Vampire Slayer was that he was sick of the fragile female being the victim, and he wanted to turn the genre on its head by having her being the hero. Now, down the track, and everyone's doing it. Don't get me wrong, I think it's brilliant to see some balance in the hero stakes, but where do you go from here?

Currently reading a collection of short stories, got a couple of novels lined up and also slowly making my way through "How To Raise Girls" :)