Michael Sands > Recent Status Updates

Kinda paint by numbers assassin/court training but with a lot of heart underneath. Nothing mind blowing so far but enjoying it.

Gross crime but doesn't dwell on it too much. Thankfully the real focus is the characters and social commentary. Titus seems like a great guy but I get the feeling a lot of the antagonistic characters are more caricatures than fully formed individuals. We shall see. Still works and maybe that's just part of the genre. It's also readable like I imagine crack is smokable.

Easily the darkest of the Narnia books so far. Withholding judgement for now.

Character is already at the forefront. I'm instantly hooked.

Strange going from epic scifi writing to crime thriller simplicity. Seems good so far but still setting up.

Somehow I feel more connected to this story than I did in the previous books. It also helps that I am reading another book about AI extreme future crackpots leading humanity into madness. All of it feels more plausible now. Mericanii first.

These crackpots are steering the ship!? Yeesh

Man this whole section on bias for AI is insanely compelling. This book is a hell of a takedown of the hype train. So far its incredible.

Not quite what I expected. It is good to hear a counter argument against the AI hype train.

Could be a good one. I have a feeling it's going to be tough for the kiddo though. She is already very mad at the false Aslan.

Excellent first few arcs. Interested to see where it goes and am definitely all in on the series now.

So far nothing beyond podcast talks. Altman's bigger than government GPT 'utopia' is terrifying

After being begged by my daughter to finish the series, we are doing so. She is probably too young still for this entry from what I've read so we shall see how this goes...

Trying to put my finger on the reason why I am enjoying the read now, more than book two and one, but I think it comes down to this: I'm not being robbed. I signed up for book one along with Hadrian's dreams for his future. They were robbed from him and myself. Now we are finally somewhat living those dreams and taking the time to experience them. I'm here for it and am fully immersed whenever I dive in.

Slowly chipping at this but happy to be back in this universe.

Kind of a slow burn that might read better in narrative as its a bit dry, but the fact its real life elevates the tension. Enjoyable to all, useful idiot or no.

I realize I needed some historical non-fiction

All of this has been very good but its now getting exciting.

Its ironic that this book becomes better the moment it starts being fiction instead of non-fiction. Basically an updated blueprint for how things COULD happen with modern understanding of AI capabilities within reach.

Kinda fell asleep in the first part of this audiobook. Nothing new yet

Should I DNF for the first time??? I am just not feeling it. I think ill finish this one and if it doesn't sell me, I'll DNF the series...

Still fun, but mostly popcorn fiction outside of some refreshing representation.

Guy can write...

This is heartbreaking but beautiful at the same time. Good grief... literally.

Rather high on fun, and introduces some real world topics that illustrate socioeconomic stressors in a child friendly way. Still waiting to see if there is an overall moral or philosophy shared, or if its just for fun with some good representation thrown in the mix.

I dont know if I've ever heard a more convincing inner monologue of a coward who believes he is brave and unjustly judged.

Fun kids book so far. Reserving judgement until we're done but the kiddo is into it.

Feels like a much more reasonable story than the movie. Good stuff again.

This is pretty dope.

Part Last Airbender, part watchmen, part kungfu Harry Potter, part 1984. But also none of those things.

I'm enjoying this, slowly.