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Title: Red Noise
Series: ———-
Author: John Murphy
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SF
Pages: 365
Words: 112.5K
| Synopsis: |
From Rosie Writes
‘Jane’ or ‘the Miner’ desperately needs food and fuel, so she puts in to an asteroid-based space station, Station 35. Here she is ripped off by the ore company, finds three rival gangs in control and at each others’ throats, while the ‘decent’ population, lead by ‘Mr Shine’ hunker down in the lower depths of the station, except bar-owner/chef Takata and Station Master Herrera, who both refuse to be forced out of the galleria. Jane decides she’s going to clean up the Station and hand it back to ‘decent folks’.
Plans don’t exactly go as expected.
Basically, have you seen any of those old westerns, the ones based on Japanese films, like Seven Samurai, reworked as westerns, or Clint Eastwood’s work, like Fistful of Dollars? Think that aesthetic, but in space.
| My Thoughts: |
Former Special Space Forces “Jane” is a ronin, a lone cowboy, all by her lonesome and wanting to keep it that way. This is a samurai cowboy in space story with all of the attendent cliches. That’s not a bad thing, mind you, just something to keep in mind.
Unfortunately, this didnt grab me at all. I wasn’t exactly bored or wondering when things would wrap up, but my first reaction upon finishing the book was “that’s it, that’s all I get?” I felt let down. A generally vague dissatisfaction accompanied me throughout my entire read of this book but there is nothing concrete I can point to.
It might be a matter of tastes not aligning. I wouldn’t argue against that interpretation and I won’t say that this is a bad book, but my goodness, it just felt so pedestrian! The tiredness of the main character permeated every aspect of this book and just made it a chore to read.
If you like Samurai Space Cowboys, In Space, this might work for you. Try it. If you’re on the fence, then go read some other reviews and approach cautiously. If you’re an adrenaline junky, then this definitely isn’t for you.
Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road 
Well that’s a disappointment, I’d want a Space Cowboylady to be gung ho, feisty and someone to root for!
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Yeah, I’m melancholic an weary enough on my own without spending time with a character like that 🙂
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Sounds like a classic case of “been there, done that”, and I guess you did not shop for the T-shirt… 😉
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Unfortunately, I’m getting crankier and pickier as I get older and see things repeated in SFF
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What a bummer. It sounded so good too. Better luck on your next. 👍
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It did sound enticing, that’s for sure. I was sure I was going to like it. This month just hasn’t been my month when it comes to picking out good books that I’ll like 🙂
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After the Mike Brooks Keiko series that was a dead on arrival read for you, i can see how this might also not have grabbed you. I have still got my own version of space samurai within Warhammer to get too so will be giving this one a miss. Great review Stooge.
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Hahahaa, I’d forgotten all about Brooks 😀
Good call!
I’m getting pretty tired of WH40K right now. I’ve got 2 more Gaunt’s Ghosts books and then I’m going to take a good long break (probably til next year some time) before diving into Caiaphas Cain.
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That is respectable. Im going through random books quicker than i am my passion that is WH books, maybe the cosmos is trying to tell me something…
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It sounds like an interesting combo but I’ll avoid it. 😉
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If it sounds interesting, it might be worth checking out. But if weary and forlorn aren’t your thing at the moment, then yeah, stay away.
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Are there any Space Cowboys who are NOT in Space?
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I’m glad you asked that question! Because I have the answer for you. In fact, when people come to my blog and have questions, most of the time I have the answer. It might not be the answer they want, but it’s the answer they deserve! Pretty much like Batman.
So, to answer YOUR question.
Yes.
The Space Cowboys on Mars are not in space but ON Mars.
I hope this answer has helped fill that void that movies obviously can’t.
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Is Mars not IN space?
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So is Earth. But you don’t consider yourself to be IN space, do you? Everyone considers themselves, and you hopefully, to be ON the Earth.
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So we are all in space? So why bother going if we’re already there?
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I’m not going to be a Space Cowboy. Why would you be a space cowboy? There’s no money in space sheep these days…
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All sheep are space sheep. I see them every day. Little lambs. Good company. We are floating in space! With sheep? How are we NOT space cowboys?
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No on THIS blog is saying you can’t be a space cowboy. But good luck reviewing movies consistently while riding your space horse through space brambles trying to find that one final space cow.
I doubt there’s enough space beer to make it happen.
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Ok, I shall not go into space, then, even if I am already there.
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That is probably a wise choice. Nothing worse than getting robbed by space bandits. And if they steal all your space wool, you’ll have to go to space market empty handed and that just isn’t a good thing either.
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You seem to know a lot about space for someone who things space is somewhere else. I would not like to go to Mars at this time of year.
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I know a lot of things about things that I know nothing about. It is amazing what technology can do these days.
Yeah, Mars is always best in September…
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Let’s hire a tandem bike and go!
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I’ll have to check my calendar. I’m usually pretty busy that time of year learning things that I don’t know about. Like space soda and space ferraris.
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You have a Ferrari?
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No. I’m more of a space porsche kind of guy.
But I don’t have one of those either. Having a space mortgage on our space condo sees to that 😦
I’d be glad to borrow your space ferrari though, if you need someone to make sure it’s still working right.
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I’ll stick the keys through your letterbox…
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Fantastic.
On another note, I’m sensing that you’re not really “that” into space. You should think about it, because everything is better
iiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnn spaaaaaaace!
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Like pigs?
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….is the correct answer!
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The synopsis sounds quite good, but then again this is the kind of the story that has been told a million times before. Doesn’t even have to be in space.
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And most of the time, I like this kind of story. The One against Many. The Lonewolf facing all comers. The war weary soldier of fortune.
But it just didn’t gel for me here.
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This was a terrible book and you should be ashamed to have read it!
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I am, believe me. Terribly ashamed.
And I’m glad to see that my comments are the way they are supposed to be again. I’m not going to make ANYBODY fill out a bunch of stupid info just so they can comment. Otherwise I might as well go self-hosted and be a useless piece of feth…
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I was not blown away by this either, as I recall, I said the character felt as two dimension as a cardboard cutout. I’m glad you gave it a try though, since the theme is up your alley, but sorry you didn’t love it.
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Cardboard really does describe the characters. Sometimes that doesn’t bother me, but in this case, it really did 😦
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Maybe a riff on Red Harvest/Yojimbo/A Fistful of Dollars like that Conan pastiche I recently read?
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The “Red” in the title might be a tip off. Dashiell Hammett’s novel Red Harvest was the inspiration for those two movies.
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That might be. The titles does refer to the noise of blood that the main character finds soothing, like white noise, only different.
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That would fit with a lot of motifs in the story.
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For some reason… This sounds like a Happy Meal. 😛
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Hahahahahahaaha!
Now that you say that……
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