Biggs' Zone

A Geek's Cogitations, Conjectures and other Cortical Experiences

Book Review: Scarlet

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On February 10, 2015

In Book Review, Science Fiction

Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2)Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

My Rating: [rating=4]
(Click here to read this review on Goodreads)

I really like the modern, dystopian twist to classic fairy tales that Meyer has created in these novels. I’ll admit that when I was just starting Cinder that I didn’t think I would enjoy it despite the fact that I was slightly intrigued by a cyborg Cinderella. I initially thought that each book was an independent retelling/re-imagining of each classic tale, however when I discovered that all the books are connected and continue Cinder’s story, then I became much more interested.

Scarlet is the second book of the series and, as you may be able to ascertain from the cover, is a re-imagined Red Riding Hood. While it was fairly obvious to me which part of the Red Riding Hood story would become entwined with Cinder’s story, there was still sufficient mystery and intrigue to keep me reading.

So far this has been a fun series to read and I’m looking forward to Cress and Winter. I would recommend it to anyone that might enjoy a fun twist on some beloved fairy tales.

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MMO Times: AOL Is Still Evil: DIAF

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On February 8, 2015

In Gaming, MMO Times, MMORPG

aol-im-goodbyeIssue 113: I am going to rant a bit in the intro; if you don’t want to see the horrible things I think about AOL, you can probably skip this paragraph. If you haven’t heard by now, AOL has shut down three of my favorite gaming blog sites: Joystiq, Massively and WoW Insider. Some troglodyte in the upper ranks of AOL has made the ignorant decision to further ostracize AOL and shutdown these sites and fire 150 people; and ultimately left millions of faithful readers reeling in disbelief. There was nerd rage the likes of which the world had never seen. The beautiful irony is that the brilliant writers that were unfairly dismissed have a plan to persevere and we will soon see new weblogs pop up; AOL on the other hand will die a miserable and deserved death (finally). Make sure you take a moment to thank all the extraordinary writers for Joystiq, Massively and WoW Insider!

**Phew** I’m glad that’s out of my system. So let’s get back to talking about the games we all love. The former Massively and WoW Insider folks are already working on making a comeback. The first bit of new content for the current WoW expansion has been unlocked, unexpected news from Sony and more news from all of the great and valuable MMO news sources out there that deserve better than they often get from the corporate ass-hats that leer over them.

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Favorited By A Wookie

By

On February 4, 2015

In Geek Canon, Star Wars

I have to share my moment of nerdy personal triumph. Lately I’ve been using Twitter more but mostly to try to elicit responses from celebrities that are often quite vocal on twitter. I’ve been successful a couple of times but the most recent acknowledgement really had my geek ovaries tingling:

wookie-fav

If you haven’t figured it out, Peter Mayhew is the actor that donned the Chewbacca costume in all the Star Wars movies in which he was present. A few weeks ago he was admitted into the hospital with pneumonia and the flu. He was absent from twitter while he was recovering and I was glad to see he had recovered. I did not expect him to actually see my tweet, let alone favorite it.

minion_keboard_smI could get so much more accomplished if I only had minions!

Save Joystiq and Massively!!!

By

On January 30, 2015

In Fulmination, Gaming, General Cogitation

overworked-290x290I am beyond upset with the folks at AOL (who, ironically, haven’t been relevant since the 90s). I just read devastating news on Massively.com that AOL (or some VP at AOL that performed a “Ghostcrawler nerf” to Joystiq’s budget) will be shutting down Joystiq and all its affiliate sites. This includes Massively and potentially WoW Insider (though I have not heard anything officially posted by the WoW Insider staff).

Massively and Joystiq have been my primary go-to sites for gaming news and they are my primary sources for my MMO Times posts. The gaming industry is booming and will only grow bigger as gamers have children gamers (like me). This is a mistake that will have rippling affects, but I guess AOL is use to making ignorant mistakes.

A petition has been started and you should head over there and sign it immediately. There is also hashtags for twitter that you should start using immedately: #SaveJoystiq, #SaveMassively.

Hopefully there is some organization out there that still supports gamers and the gaming industry that might be willing to pick up these sites and not only give us our community back but give the great writers at Joystiq/Massively/etc their jobs back!

Update: Unfortunately WoW Insider is also going away. It is a solemn and lonely moment; however Adam Holisky (writer for WoW Insider) just tweeted this (there is hope):

/endsoapbox

minion_keboard_smI could get so much more accomplished if I only had minions!

MMO Times: Stood in the Fire

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On January 29, 2015

In Gaming, MMO Times, MMORPG

Stood In The FireIssue 112: Greetings and welcome to 2015 … oh wait, I’m nearly a month late! It looks like I stood in the fire too long and thus had an epic fail with posting some MMO news! This is what I get for not having good raid awareness. I have learned my lesson. In all actuality, between various family engagements, holidays and fending off every flu and cold virus known to man, I didn’t have the time or the energy to write up my usual posts. I apologize for the lapse in MMO tidings. Hopefully the following list of headlines will make up for it.

PAX South took place recently so there are a few surprises that came out of San Antonio, including some expansion announcements and subscription changes. Blizzard is already working on some new content for the current expansion (I say already but I’ve been so far behind lately I guess it is about time for more content). There is also a limited time, free music download you want to check out as soon as you read this!

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Book Review: City of Heavenly Fire

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On January 26, 2015

In Book Review, Fantasy

City of Heavenly Fire (The Mortal Instruments, #6)City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

My Rating: [rating=4]
(See this review on Goodreads)

This is probably more of my review of the series than it is this book specifically. The end of a series is always a little bittersweet. You’re exhilarated to see the conflict end for the characters you have grown to love, but you are saddened all the same because the story is over. It’s how I felt at the end of Harry Potter, Eragon and this series.

The good news is, Clare has set the groundwork for an additional series (rumored to take place a few years later but following the adventures of other characters). She has also managed to create intrigue for the prequel series (The Infernal Devices: Clockwork Angel; Clockwork Prince; Clockwork Princess) which I intend to begin reading soon.

Another technique I noticed Clare seemed to use pretty well was splitting the gender appeal quite well. Since that sounds a little esoteric, let me elaborate. I think she does a great job appealing to both male and female readers. Generally speaking, there is a great balance of the star-crossed romance that often appeal to the ladies and the classic battle of good vs evil for the men. Clare wraps up the story quite nicely and I especially ***SPOILER*** liked Jonathan/Sebastian’s final moments – what a great way to bring an end to his conflict. Simon’s fate was an unexpected twist but it was best for his character, Isabelle and their relationship.

I do have to admit, Clary had this Luke Skywalker destiny laid out for her but I felt like we never really got to see her real potential. We knew she could create new runes and she has the genes of some powerful Shadowhunters, but we never really got to see her fully utilize that potential. I would have liked to have seen more of Clary kicking some demon ass.

Be that as it may, if you are a fan of the supernatural set in the modern world I think you will really enjoy these books.

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