Redshirts

Oddly, I think the deepest part of this book wasn't actually in the book at all, but in the codas after the plot concludes. The main storyline was a fun romp, although a bit unbelievable; the codes are apparently where Scalzi decided to pack all the actual speculation in.

It was ok. I wish I hadn't read the acknowledgements, where he talked about the same period of time my SFF writer friend thinks he mishandled so egregiously. 😂

So. Much. Fun! I've owned the audio for who-knows-how long, but only was inspired to read it now because it was picked for a group read in one of my virtual book groups. Thanks—I needed that! If you need a fun, silly, undemanding pick-me-up, too, give it a try!

P.S. Wil Wheaton is a wonderful narrator.

Such a fun and clever story. Even when it was clear where he was going with this, he kept it entertaining and worth reading. The three codas were an unexpected joy, and added greatly to the story's impact. Well done!

More like 3.5 stars for me.

Redshirts starts fairly strong, detailing the story of a bunch of new Ensigns on the starship Intrepid. It doesn't take long for them to notice that something is off on this ship, because Ensigns have an incredibly high fatality rate on Away Missions. They start to investigate and find out how this comes about, which in turn turns this book into probably the most meta book I have ever read. In fact, it turns so meta that everything after the explanation falls a bit flat for me.

However, the book is saved by the three codas at the end of the book, which are less satire and more serious. The last coda in particular was very touching.

The writing was enjoyable, and so I will have to check out more of Mr. Scalzi's work.

чудове розважальне чтиво. правда. щось на кшалт "террі пратчет в гостях у дугласа адамса". читайте.

This was a pretty fun book. I don't usually like meta (I once made the mistake of reading John Barth and the schtick wore thin pretty quickly). Scalzi has a deft touch and wrote a really entertaining book. Like Galaxy Quest is the best Star Trek movie, this is probably the best Star Trek book.

A great book with less than gentle nods to common tropes in older science fiction television series', mainly Star Trek. This book was a wonderful journey into the lives of background characters from shows we all know well. I won't spoil anything except to say I wish I had that box......

I did receive this book free from a Goodreads giveaway.

This is a really clever and funny tale. It's self aware of what it is and makes no qualms about it.

It's a little bit of Galaxy Quest and a little bit of Stranger than Fiction, and acknowledges that.

Fans of science fiction and sci-fi television shows will definitely get a kick out of this book. The characters are all here. From the over-confident captain to the nervous lieutenants and ensigns.

The humor hits at just the right points. Not all of the Codas worked well for me, but they did the job well of tying up all the loose ends (something not all sci-fi shows do).

Great work Scalzi!