[crouton] Nathaniel Trost: The Burger King vs. Cthulhu

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Posted by Nathaniel Trost:
The Burger King vs. Cthulhu
http://crouton.powerblogs.com/archives/archive_2006_11_19-2006_11_25.shtml#1164398159


   Iâm so tempted to order [1]one of these.
   This morning I finally got around to snagging a copy of Sneak King
   from my local Burger King. I donât know what temporary loss of reason
   resulted in the creation of [2]said game, but I love it. The King is
   more terrifying than anything from any horror movie in the past
   decade.
   And now, for a mini-review round up:
   Casino Royale (4.0 out of 5.0 croutons)
   Iâve never been a big fan of Bond films. That I went to go see Casino
   Royale is a testament to the power of a very solid trailer. I do
   indeed approve of Daniel Craigâs portrayal of Bond. The goofier,
   smirking, tongue-in-cheek aspects of the franchise are one of the
   things that leave me cool. As a genre contrast, I loved The Bourne
   Identity. My main quibbles with Casino Royale are that the movie did
   run a bit long, and while the Bond portrayal has improved, the Bond
   plotting structure hasnât, you really donât want to think about the
   plot too much. But, even in the parts where it dragged a bit, it was
   still pleasant to watch. I thoroughly enjoyed the action sequences.
   [3]Glasshouse (4.5 out of 5.0 croutons)
   Stross has rapidly become one of my favorite sci-fi authors. It seems
   appropriate to mention Glasshouse in the same company as a Bond movie.
   Glasshouse could be considered a thriller/espionage tale, only set in
   a future where consciousness can be effectively abstracted from the
   physical body, or even physical reality for that matter. The pleasure
   of Glasshouse was Strossâs effective wielding of his far-flung
   concepts, giving the plot and world solid rules, limitations and an
   air of plausibility. I enjoyed the intellectual playground of the
   universe, and following along with the main character in trying to
   piece together just what was going on, a task made rather difficult
   due to the history of the bookâs universe.
   [4]The Jennifer Morgue (4.5 out of 5.0 croutons)
   This book is a sequel to âThe Atrocity Archivesâ, one of Strossâs
   early books, which despite some flaws, was one of my most enjoyable
   fiction reads ever. To sum up the world of âThe Atrocity Archivesâ and
   âThe Jennifer Morgueâ, as trite as it may seem, the best summary I
   could give would be to take HP Lovecraft, Neal Stephenson, Douglas
   Coupland and Scott Adams (Dilbert), mix them all up and pour them into
   an occult/techno-thriller. In a world where expression of certain
   mathematical equations can facilitate information transfer between
   parallel universes, and such knowledge is guarded and policed by
   secret bureaucracies you have a rich fountain of potential. And it is
   well realized, I think what I enjoyed most about both books is some of
   the little concepts or ideas that are thrown in as side details that
   are just so, well, deliciously tasty. I love this bookâs universe and
   itâs going to be a long wait for the next book.
   And now, I really need to get some Actual Progamming done.

References

   1. http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=9352&itemType=PRODUCT&iProductID=9352
   2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqa8zCwwiKg
   3. http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FGlasshouse-Charles-Stross%2Fdp%2F0441014038%2Fsr%3D1-1%2Fqid%3D1164395694%3Fie%3DUTF8%26s%3Dbooks&tag=anitrouscrout-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325
   4. http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FJennifer-Morgue-Charles-Stross%2Fdp%2F1930846452&tag=anitrouscrout-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325