Just as good as the first one

I must say that I missed John Perry’s voice and wit, but Jared Dirac was just as interesting, just as smart and funny, just as heroic and stupid and interesting and complex a character as Perry.

Frankly, he was even more interesting for the simple reason that as the book talked about consciousness and souls and personalities and motivations, Dirac was not only analyzing the questions but living them, giving the reader so many more avenues to explore and consider as the plot unfurled.

And the unfurling plot was not a side-thought to the higher ideas being bandied about — it’s an integral part of the whole, and is good. Tight, well-paced, and utterly satisfying. Plausible politics, engaging action, logical and inevitable crises and resolutions, and generally an extremely well-written story. Best yet, all those accolades apply equally to the minutia of the characters’ interactions as well as to the grandly arching meta-plot of the novel.

Scalzi may be my new hero. The Last Colony is on my “get from the library” list, or, if it comes out in paperback before that happens, on my “to buy” list. I want to see how this vision of humanity out in the big, bad universe wraps up, oh yes I do.