As with the previous tab, these reviews are in order of appearance on the blog.
The columns will be explained at the top: abbreviation below.
Review Link is as much of the real name as I thought I could fit with the link to the review. Most reviews have a link to at least one place you can buy it online.
The author is obvious, although with either multiple authors, or authors with long names, they may be truncated.
Type is the time setting relative to the “event”, and also the general tone of the book.
Disasters are the main cause of the crises.
+/- is whether I recommend the book. It is the quick glimpse, because people seem to like the thumbs up and down routine. I try not to make it completely based on personal preferences, but obviously they play a part. Y or Y+ are yes. N or N- are no. C means it is a classic of its type. Maybe not the best of the class, but archetypical. ~ = Ambivalence: usually there is something to like, about a novel a might not otherwise recommend.
Our numerical ratings are intended to be descriptive, not generally qualitative. A low number is not necessarily bad, nor a high one good: 1 is low, 4 is in the middle, and 7 is high.
Real is short for Realism. Realism early on was called grittiness. It is a general calibration as to how close the events of the book could be viewed from our current reality. The actual plausibility of the disaster is not factored in unless it causes ongoing problems with the novel. This avoids endless discussions about whether a Solar Flare, or a viral Pandemic are more “realistic” without letting the Vampire and highly speculative Science Fiction novels off the hook.
Read is for readability. It is literally how painless the book is to read. Some people want very straightforward plot driven tales, other like lots of character development, and arcane symbolism and analogy. A comic book, or an action driven page turner will tend toward the higher end of the scale. A long introspective novel about somewhat unclear events with a confused timeline would be relatively low on the scale.
|
Review Link
|
Author
|
Type
|
Disaster
|
+/-
|
Real
|
Read
|
|
John S. Wilson
|
PA
|
EC
|
Y+
|
7
|
6
| |
|
Matthew Mathers
|
AP
|
NP, EC
|
Y
|
7
|
5
| |
|
Henry Baum
|
AP
|
NP, N
|
N
|
1
|
2
| |
|
Nathaniel Rich
|
AP
|
GW
|
Y
|
3
|
5
| |
|
Albert Brooks
|
AP
|
Sc
|
N
|
5
|
5
| |
|
Simon Morden
|
AP
|
Dy, NP, N
|
Y
|
6
|
5
| |
|
Ryan Henry
|
AP
|
P
|
Y
|
5
|
6
| |
|
John Varley
|
AP
|
TR, PO
|
Y
|
7
|
5
| |
|
Thomas Kolniar
|
AP
|
M
|
Y+
|
7
|
7
| |
|
Stephen Graff
|
PA
|
GW
|
N
|
2
|
1
| |
|
Paylee Roberts
|
AP
|
Ec
|
N
|
5
|
2
| |
|
Cormac McCarthy
|
Dy
|
Sc
|
Y+
|
7
|
L6
| |
|
Paul Auster
|
AP
|
EC, Sc
|
Y
|
5
|
L5
| |
|
K.H. Koehler
|
AP, YA
|
Mn
|
Y
|
3
|
6
| |
|
D. Robert Grixti
|
PA
|
N
|
N-
|
3
|
4
| |
|
Lexi Revellian
|
PA
|
I
|
Y
|
5
|
5
| |
|
David Longo
|
AP
|
EC
|
Y+
|
7
|
L6
| |
|
George Turner
|
AP,C
|
GW
|
Y
|
5
|
L4
| |
|
Dino Buzzati
|
Dy
|
Sc, W
|
Y
|
4
|
L5
| |
|
Julian Cracq
|
Dy
|
Sc
|
Y
|
1
|
1
| |
|
Bernard Beckett
|
PA,YA, SF
|
P
|
Y+
|
4
|
L6
| |
|
Gillian Flynn
|
DY
|
EC
|
Y+
|
6
|
L7
| |
|
Archer Garrett
|
EC, NP
|
EC, TR
|
~
|
4
|
6
| |
|
K.W. Jeter
|
DY,SF
|
EC, NP
|
~
|
3
|
3
| |
|
David Crawford
|
AP
|
EC
|
N
|
6
|
5
| |
|
Rob Krabbe
|
PA
|
F
|
N
|
2
|
4
|
Abbreviations:
Type:
AP: Apocalypse-in-progress
PA: Post-Apocalyptic – the disaster occurs before most or all the action
C: Collapsed. Society collapsed some time ago, and adjustments have already been made
Dy: Dystopian- things are crummy, but in this particular definition, there has been no “collapse”.
YA: Considered Young Adult
CH: Considered suitable for youngsters
SF: Science Fiction. I am looking more for tone, or voice, rather than literal definition here.
NoA: Not Apocalyptic, nor particularly dystopian either. These are usually novels out of genre.
NF: Non-fiction- I only have one, because it is essays about a fiction writer.
Disaster
B= Biotechnology
E= EMP Electro Magnetic Pulse
EC= Economic Collapse (other than peak oil)
EQ= Earth Quake
F= Solar Flare
FL= Flooding
G= God or supernatural forces (anywhere from good to ambiguous in nature)
GW= Global Warming
I= Ice Age (popular in the pre-global warming days)
M= Meteor or Comet strike
Mn = Monsters
N= Nuclear (usually war, but accidents do happen)
NN= Nanotechnology
NP= Nefarious plotters trying to bring the world down
P= Pandemic Disease, was originally “D”
PO= Peak Oil
PD= Plant Disease
S= Demonic Forces (supernatural clearly evil). The “S” is for Satan of course
Sc= Sociological collapse – collapse from within
T= Technology fail
T= Technology fail
TR= Terrorists
V= Volcano (usually with secondary weather effects)
Vm- Vampires. Volcanos got there first so they got the “V”
W= War
Wd= Weird Science
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