08 January 2007

Book Banter -- Cowboy Feng's Space Bar and Grille


Title: Cowboy Feng's Space Bar and Grille
Author: Steven Brust
Length: ~290 pages
Genre: sci-fi
Plot Basics: Billy and the rest of his band mates along with the staff at Feng's keep avoiding nuclear disaster as the restaurant jumps through time to avoid getting hit. When they land, years in the future, on the colony of New Quebec, Billy is nearly killed by a gunman who whispers, "Sugar Bear" right before he dies. Thinking that's an odd last message, Billy and the others start looking for an explanation of the gunman's words and find that they -- and Feng's -- may be the key to humanity's survival.
Banter Points: Word Nerd's only read Brust's Vlad Taltos series, so it was nice to see his writing style with another set of characters and a different kind of locale. As usual, Brust's plot moves fairly quickly, which keeps readers on their toes.
Bummer Points: Billy seems a little bit like Vlad set in space. Dry humor, lots of discussion about a food, a hero that suffers from bouts of melancholy.
Word Nerd recommendation: If you are a fan of Brust, by all means, read Feng's. If not, bypass it until you've read some of the Vlad books and have become a fan.

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