tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377421722520990399.post1012877484739491983..comments2023-10-28T08:13:19.817-07:00Comments on The Solitary Bee: Cyber CircusPhilip Reevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03018599033534369153noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377421722520990399.post-52175164299161385322011-12-10T01:26:16.328-08:002011-12-10T01:26:16.328-08:00Thanks Cary, I'm glad the recommendations have...Thanks Cary, I'm glad the recommendations have proved useful. You're probably right about 'Dr Who' being a big influence, though of course 'Dr Who' itself is part of an older tradition of British sci-fi/fantasy/adventure writing; Nigel Kneale's 'Quatermass' serials, 'The Avengers', Sherlock Holmes etc. I'm off to have a look at www.JettisonCocoon.com now...philip reevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04502413362881738168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377421722520990399.post-35911213520448663192011-12-07T20:23:32.425-08:002011-12-07T20:23:32.425-08:00I've followed several of your recommendations ...I've followed several of your recommendations in the past with good results so I'll give this a try. I've started reading more sci-fi/fantasy in the last few years in large part thanks to the Mortal Engines quartet, which renewed my taste for imaginative literature. Along the way I've found that Brit writers are the best in this field, and here's my theory why: it's all down to Dr. Who. Generations of kids in the UK have been addicted to a show that goes out of its way to mashup any and all combinations of science, horror, mystery, fantasy, adventure and humour in the most imaginative ways possible. How can that not have been an influence? There's never been any equivalent show here in North America. I recently read books by two UK writers, Ben Aaronovitch and Mike Carey, that show a Dr. Who willingness to try anything imaginative as long as it's adventurous and fun. Both writers have created an alternate reality London in which ghosts and various supernatural nogoodniks make life difficult for the citizenry. Aaronovitch's book, Rivers of London, has a cop as the hero, while Carey's, The Devil You Know, has a private eye. I've got reviews of them at my own blog, www.JettisonCocoon.com.Cary Watsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17696172496012966959noreply@blogger.com