Pandemic Journal, Part 24: Best Wishes for Pandemic Year Three

My pandemic journal continues with Part 24. Best wishes for Pandemic Year Three! May the memes help you get through another pandemic year.

A Conclusion of McDune: Sandworms of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson

 

While Sandworms of Dune is definitely a McDune book, I can say I enjoyed most of it and found some things to like. And you do get the second and final part of a conclusion to the Dune saga. I like to think of it as one possible way the Dune saga could end rather than the definitive end we would have gotten from Frank Herbert. (If you are going to read this, be sure to read Hunters of Dune first; Hunters and Sandworms are a two-part series finale.)

Spicy is the Head that Wears the Crown: Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert

 

The cool old edition I got from a used bookstore sometime in the Before Guild era

Having read Frank Herbert's Dune books several times, I've always said the second volume, Dune Messiah, was my least favorite. But on this latest re-read, I feel like I've been too harsh on the second book. It's still not my favorite, but there's more to appreciate here than I previously thought.

Christmas Horror Movies for Quasi-Scrooges: Silent Night, Deadly Night 3-5

 

Last year I watched a bunch of Christmas horror movies (read about it here and here). I didn't watch nearly as many this year, but I thought I'd concentrate on the continuation of the Silent Night, Deadly Night series, which does continue... for better or for worse. You better watch out.

Initial Non-Spoilery Thoughts about The Matrix Resurrections

I just finished watching The Matrix Resurrections, one my most anticipated movies of the year (after Dune, of course). The best spoiler-free review is the shortest: Whoa.

Me, watching The Matrix Resurrections

Hugo Results 2021

The Hugo awards ceremony took place last night at DisCon III in Washington, DC. You can see a list of the winners and finalists here. Congrats to all the winners and finalists!

(If you really want to dig into the weeds, here are the full stats on nominations and the stats on voting.)

Still the Novella King: If It Bleeds by Stephen King

 

Good job, Uncle Stevie!

I've loved King's previous novella collections, especially Different Seasons, although Full Dark, No Stars is really good, too (Four Past Midnight, which I somehow missed, is next on my list). If It Bleeds is the only one of these to have a title story, but you have to admit it's a pretty good title for a Stephen King book.

Random Thoughts, Part 16: Dune the Random Things

My series of Random Thoughts started randomly one day almost two years ago. I would wait until the exact two year anniversary of that first post, but that wouldn't be random, now would it? Add in a pandemic and some random memes, and here we are: Random Thoughts, Part 16: Dune the Random Things!

Pandemic Journal, Part 23: Yet Another Pandemic Semester, Also: Dune

 

My increasingly exhausting pandemic journal continues with Part 23 (see the most recent entry here). We had a really bad surge in the late summer and early fall with record hospitalizations and I've had yet another exhausting pandemic semester, all while many people seem to be pretending the pandemic is over. And now things are getting better, but we have the omicron variant and the winter holidays... so it's not looking great. 

But on the other hand, Villeneuve's Dune was finally released in October, ushering in a new era of Dune memes for your enjoyment. Thus, this entry will consist, not quite entirely, but mostly of Dune memes. Thanks to the dedicated members of the Dune Sietchposting Facebook group for most of these, and to various friends and other online denizens for the rest.

Lunar Sleuthing: The Relentless Moon by Mary Robinette Kowal

 

I enjoyed Mary Robinette Kowal's third entry in the Lady Astronaut series (The Relentless Moon) more than the second volume (The Fated Sky), but not as much as the first one (The Calculating Stars). The biggest problem is that it's probably a lot longer than it needs to be, although maybe for what Kowal is going for, it's just as long as it needs to be.