#kage baker

[fishfingersandscarves]

pov you abandon your work to run away with the reincarnation of your dead boyfriend

[wanderrealms]

I think I recognized a character in The Bird of the River by Cage Baker.

First of the whole lost letter business was off. A lot of words spent on it so the letter being lost is propably important. It propably didn't exist.

The guy speaks similarly to Lord Ermenwyr, who can use glamour to change his appearance. Could be that a lot of lordlings speak loftily like that, but his older brother and father did not.

The suspicous character was stabbed for stealing a lady's honor. I know from Leaving All His Cares Behind that Lord Ermenwyr has to qualms about stealing ladies honor, so to speak.

It would be hilarious to see people react to learning Lord Ermenwyr and who his parents are. I hope it is him.

[agardenandlibrary]

another episode of my podcast Backlog Books out now! (link in pinned post)

In the Garden of Iden by Kage Baker

Let’s set the stage: in the future, the Company has discovered time travel – but only to the past – and immortality – but only by basically turning you into a cyborg. I’m sure this company will use these innovations only for good and not for profit. So they set out to use time travel to go back and rescue long extinct plants and animals and works of art for the future. Which they then use to generate profit for the company. Well, what did you expect? How dare a book make me sad, I say, having picked up a book that starts with the main character being taken by the Spanish Inquisition.

[grison-in-space]

I have found myself rereading the Anvil of the World (Kage Baker) in the wake of this morning's bit about the butterflies, and I'm delighted by Lord Ermenwyr all over again:

“…with complete confidence, my lord. The man is a seasoned veteran of the roads. Er—Smith! I have the great honor of commending to your care the very noble Lord Ermenwyr of the House Kingfisher.” “Honor to your house, lord,” said Smith, rising to his feet though he’d never heard of the House Kingfisher. Lord Ermenwyr was doubled over in a coughing fit. When he straightened up, dabbing at his lips with an embroidered handkerchief, Smith beheld a slender young man. A pomaded and spangled beard was visible below his half mask, which was that of a unicorn’s head. He had extended the unicorn theme to an elaborate codpiece, from which a silver horn spiraled up suggestively. The eyes behind the mask had the glitter of fever. “Hello,” he croaked. “So you’re the fellow taking me to Salesh-by-the-Sea? I hope you’ve had some training as a psychopomp too. I expect to die en route.” “His lordship is pleased to be humorous,” said Smith’s cousin, wringing his hands. “His lord father has paid a great deal for his passage to the health resort at Salesh, and I have written to assure him in the strongest terms that Lord Ermenwyr will arrive there safely.” “Really?” said Lord Ermenwyr. “Watch this, then.” He reached out with the toe of his boot and drew a bull’s-eye in the dust. Stepping back several paces, he hawked and spat in a neat arc, hitting the center of the target with a gob of blood. “You see?” he said brightly, as Smith and his cousin stared. “Utterly moribund. Don’t worry, though; I’ve got embalming spices in my luggage, and Daddy won’t mind my early demise much, whatever he may have written.” Smith’s cousin closed his mouth, then said hastily, “It’s simply the inconvenience of our local weather, my lord. I myself coughed up a little blood not an hour ago. It passes with the first winter rains!”

There really ought to be more chronically ill characters with that kind of a sense of humor rocketing around.

[dean-belongs-with-lisa]

“You’ll understand this story better if I tell you a lie.”

What a great opening line. I can already tell I’ll love this book

[weirdesplinder]

Questo fine 2022 invece dei soliti post dedicati ai libri natalizi o ai riassuntoni di cosa si è letto durante l’anno, siccome per me questo è stato un anno horribilis da dimenticare, ho deciso di regalarvi una serie di post e video dedicati ai LIBRI CON VIAGGI NEL TEMPO.

Cosa c’è di meglio per fuggire alla realtà che viaggiare nel tempo?

Spero queste lista vi saranno utili e vi intratterranno, e come sempre vi invito ad aggiungere i vostri titoli preferiti di questo genere.

Ogni lista è specifica di un genere per agevolarvi e suddividere il LISTONE che altrimenti sarebbe stato lunghissimo.

Il primo video è dedicato a:

LISTA DI LIBRI CON VIAGGI NEL TEMPO, VIDEO 1, SEZIONE FANTASCIENZA-SCIFI:

- Inverso,  William Gibson (serie di 2 libri)

Link: https://amzn.to/3gtEd5j

Trama: America, futuro prossimo. Flynne Fisher vive in una zona rurale  dove il lavoro è scarso per chi sceglie di non dedicarsi alla produzione  di droghe sintetiche, l'unica attività remunerativa. Dopo un periodo in  cui è stata ingaggiata per combattere in un gioco online, Flynne ora  cerca di mantenersi facendo l'assemblatrice in un negozio locale di  stampa 3D. Ma arrivare a fine mese è difficile. Suo fratello Burton, ex  Marine, non è in una condizione migliore, e come unica forma di  sostentamento ha il denaro che gli viene passato dall'esercito in quanto  veterano di guerra con gravi lesioni neurologiche riportate sul campo.  Inghilterra, settant'anni dopo. Wilf Netherton vive a Londra. È un  professionista affermato e un uomo potente all'interno di una società in  cui i ricchi sono la maggior parte e i poveri sono stati eliminati  quasi interamente. Una realtà in cui tornare indietro nel tempo è solo  un hobby come tanti. America, futuro prossimo. Flynne e Burton accettano  un lavoro come parte della sicurezza occulta nel prototipo di un nuovo  gioco online ambientato in una Londra simile a quella che conoscono, ma  con alcune distorsioni. In questa piattaforma non si spara, ma i crimini  a cui Flynne assiste sono molto peggiori. Flynne e Wilf sono destinati a  conoscersi in una terra di mezzo. Un incontro che cambierà per sempre  il modo di vedere il presente e il futuro di ciascuno di loro.

- LA FINE DELL'ETERNITA', di Asimov

https://amzn.to/3XyqquN

 In un futuro ancora molto lontano l'uomo ha imparato a viaggiare  nel tempo, spostandosi con disinvoltura da un secolo all'altro e  organizzando traffici commerciali tra ere diverse. Il viaggio nel tempo  permette anche di tenere l'umanità sotto rigido controllo, modificando  tutto ciò che potrebbe provocare gravi turbamenti nella storia. A  effettuare i cambiamenti sono delegati gli analisti e i tecnici della  chiusa casta degli Eterni, gli unici in grado di manipolare passato e  futuro. Un giorno però Andrew Harlan, un giovane Eterno, si trova di  fronte a una scelta atroce: salvare l'eternità o il suo amore, e non  avrà dubbi.

-Hyperion, di Dan Simmons (serie di 4 libri)

Link: https://amzn.to/3ir9d22

Link al post che ho dedicato alla serie: https://weirdesplinder.tumblr.com/post/654156471593041920/i-canti-di-hyperion

In  un lontano futuro nel quale tutti i pianeti sono ormai riuniti in una  pacifica federazione una nuova e pericolosa minaccia si profila per  l'umanità. Sul pianeta Hyperion, l'unico che non ha aderito alla  federazione, una creatura dotata di poteri divini, fra cui quello di  viaggiare nel tempo, lo Shrike, è pronto per sferrare il suo attacco.  Alla vigilia dell'Armageddon, che costituirà la fine dell'intera  Galassia, sette pellegrini si mettono in viaggio alla ricerca di una  soluzione ad un terribile enigma.

- La Compagnia del Tempo, di  Kage Baker   (serie di 11 libri)

Link: https://amzn.to/2LOeCob

Nel  Ventiquattresimo secolo la Dr. Zeus,  Inc. (altrimenti nota come la  Compagnia) offre l'immortalità fisica e la possibilità  di viaggiare nel  tempo: i suoi agenti continuano a scandagliare i secoli  per recuperare  antichi tesori d'arte e materiale genetico indispensabile  alle  ricerche. Mendoza, una specialista in botanica che la Compagnia ha   prelevato dalla Spagna del XVI secolo, deve raccogliere alcuni esemplari  di  rare specie ormai estinte. Ma sul suo cammino incontrerà  l'Inquisizione, un  amichevole cyborg e soprattutto la sconfinata  ingordigia della Compagnia,  il cui vero scopo è arricchirsi a spese del  passato…

-La luce del passato, di Arthur C. Clarke

Link: https://amzn.to/3hVBNbP

2037.  OurWorld è un centro di tecnologia avanzata ideato da Hiram  Patterson,imprenditore spregiudicato. Non soddisfatto di avere il  monopolio delle telecomunicazioni planetarie, Patterson convince il  figlio David, coadiuvato dal fratellastro Bobby e dalla giornalista  Kate, a realizzare la WormCam, una macchina che può sorvegliare chiunque  in qualsiasi momento. La WormCam può inoltre viaggiare nel tempo e  visualizzare il passato. Se da un lato tale invenzione porterà molti  vantaggi all'umanità, dall'altro si potrà frugare nella vita intima  delle persone, ledendone le libertà fondamentali.Consapevoli di tale  pericolo Bobby e Kate cercheranno di sfuggire allo sguardo implacabile  della prodigiosa macchina e a rimediare ai loro errori..

-La macchina del tempo, di G. H. Wells

Link: https://amzn.to/38Z0KA0

Un gentiluomo inglese, scienziato dilettante, annuncia una sera ai suoi  amici di aver costruito una macchina in grado di viaggiare attraverso il  tempo, sia nel passato che nel futuro, e di essere in procinto di  partire per la sua prima esplorazione. Dà  loro appuntamento a casa sua  per la settimana successiva. Al loro arrivo, gli ospiti del Viaggiatore  nel tempo (così è denominato nel romanzo) lo vedono tornare, piuttosto  malconcio, da un viaggio nel lontano futuro. Il Narratore, che era uno  degli ospiti, riporta fra virgolette il resoconto del Viaggiatore. Egli  racconta di essere montato sulla sua macchina per il viaggio di collaudo  e di essersi subito spinto fino all’anno 802701. In una Terra che della  passata civiltà umana conserva solo rare vestigia, ma che per opera  delle precedenti generazioni è stata interamente liberata dalle  malattie, dagli animali nocivi e anche dalle asperità climatiche, il  Viaggiatore è venuto a contatto con due future razze umane: gli Eloi e i  Morlock. I primi vivono in quella sorta di ospitale e confortevole  giardino che è diventata la superficie terrestre, e sono d’aspetto  grazioso, miti e gentili, ma la loro intelligenza è pari a quella dei  bambini. I secondi vivono sotto terra, sono astuti, infidi e d’aspetto  repellente. Il Viaggiatore ritiene che i Morlock siano i discendenti,  totalmente abbrutiti, delle attuali classi lavoratrici; gli Eloi  sarebbero invece i discendenti delle classi dominanti, rammolliti e  istupiditi da secoli di benessere materiale.

- L’ Incognita del tempo, di Stephen Baxter

Link: https://amzn.to/3qCFSEH

Ideale  seguito del libro di Wells, La macchina del tempo. Il Viaggiatore del  Tempo nel grande capolavoro di H.G. Wells “La macchina del tempo” pensa  con rimpianto a “come sia stato breve il sogno dell'intelletto umano”.  Ma Stephen Baxter sa quello che Wells non poteva sapere, cioè  proiettandosi nel tempo il Viaggiatore ha cambiato il futuro e sarà  destinato a cambiarlo ancora. Svegliandosi nella casa di Richmond, al  ritorno dal suo primo viaggio, il Viaggiatore non riesce a soffocare i  rimorsi. Ha abbandonato la bella e indifesa Weena, del mite popolo degli  Eloi, alle brame cannibalesche dei Morlock, la razza umana degenerata  da cui è stato costretto a fuggire. Decide così di ripartire prontamente  per un nuovo viaggio nell'anno 802.701 d.C., ma scopre con sgomento di  essere entrato in un “altro” futuro…

[drachenwiki]

There is an awesome short story about this topic by Kage Baker. The only difference is that here it's a swarm of small dragons that plagues the hotel instead of one big one.

You can read or listen to it here:

https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/baker_03_18_reprint/

The idea of dragons in modern times is so fun because imagine a hot summer day on your vacay and go to use the hotel pool and staff is like "valued guests we regret to inform you that the pool area is out of service at the moment, we apologize for the inconvenience"

And people like "wtf why" looking out their hotel room window and there's this. This dragon just curled up in the pool chilling, literally, cooling itself down

Some of the staff are trying to gently shoo him away and the dragon does a soft little "rrrrrr" like a grumpy cat and a warning puff of smoke and they're like "fuck it i don't get paid nearly enough for this" and no ones using the pool today sorry!

[infinitaregna]

"I kissed him and wriggled upward to the pillow and the safety of English; it was a great language to be evasive in." - Rosa Mendoza

[lizabethstucker]

The Mammoth Book of the End of the World edited by Mike Ashley

3.5 out of 5

A collection of twenty-four short stories and novellas exploring the destruction of civilization and/or the planet. The authors range from Golden Age giants to more modern ones. While the majority of the stories are reprints, there are a few original to this collection.

I've taken my time reading this chunky book which is reflected in the time taken from start to finish. I find collections like this work better for me when I dip in when I want something different from what else that I've been reading. However the stories are different enough to read through with no interruptions.

One of the better collections of this trope that I've read in many years. Only one story came in rated at less than 3 stars, an unusual situations with such a narrow focus and large number of stories. A few of my favorites include "When Sysadmins Ruled the World" by Cory Doctorow; "The Last Sunset" by Geoffrey A. Landis, particularly heart wrenching; and "And the Deep Blue Sea" by Elizabeth Bear.

If you love well written stories, consider picking this up. It is well worth your time.

[fishfingersandscarves]

hello i am once again continuing my tradition of redesigning my favorite book's cover

[s-leary]

All of you reblogging this who haven’t read The Company series by the late Kage Baker… get on that.

The premise is that a 24th-century corporation invents immortality, but to prove that it works so they can sell it, they also have to invent time travel. Naturally. So they send a small number of people back in time—waaaaay back—and those folks collect orphans and turn them into immortal cyborgs with 24th-century educations, still embedded into whatever culture and time period they’re in but speedrunning modern technology in their little immortal enclaves.

There is nothing wrong with this foolproof plan and everything goes super well for both the immortals and their future corporate overlords. 🙃

its terrible for any number of reasons, but i think if we invent immortality there should be an extreme sport called civilizational speedrunning where teams of 20 go into the wilderness somewhere and try and be the fastest build the first internal combustion engine. i bet you could get it down to like 3 years tops

[wanderrealms]

That's how I sing loud

Read this and recognized my singing teacher's teachings.

"“That’s right. But you use the Calling Voice. It’s how you make yourself heard without getting hoarse. You sort of push your voice out of here—” Salpin reached for her waist to show her and, when Eliss drew back involuntarily at his touch, put his hands on his own diaphragm. “And you breathe like this. Watch.”

He took a few deep breaths in a certain way. Eliss watched closely.

“And now I sound like this, but now—” said Salpin in a normal conversational voice, before booming out...'

From The Bird of the River by Kage Baker.

[agardenandlibrary]

My current read is a sci-fi historical novel. It's good so far!

In the future, The Company has figured out a) immortality (by turning people (mostly children) into cyborgs) and b) time travel (but only back in time (for now)(they "save" missing art and extinct animals)).

The book follows one of the new immortals as she's taken from 16th century Spain, turned into a cyborg and taught human history, then returned to the 16th century and told to work for the good of The Company to Save Things From Time.

Her first posting is in England, where they came over with Philip of Spain as he gets ready to marry Mary.

Reminding me of:

The Redemption of Christopher Columbus by OSC (boo hiss etc but nonetheless)

And is it To Say Nothing of the Dog? With the time agents who go back to rescue pieces of art? (Edit: yes, yes it is)

[dean-belongs-with-lisa]

This scene would not leave my head so I had to try and draw it. (The outstretched hand was really hard)

[grison-in-space]

I can't help but be reminded of Kage Baker's Anvil of the World, which involves a hapless caravan master entrusted with a gross of "glass butterflies" that appear very nearly as practical as this:

The man in the mask turned his head, peering through the domed lenses of his fish eyes. The name Smith was an alias, only the latest of many the man had used. He got awkwardly to his feet as he saw his cousin approaching. His cousin’s costume was fine and elaborate, robes of red-gold brocade and a fire efrit mask. No less elaborate was the costume of the lady his cousin had in tow: butterfly wings of green and purple foil and a butterfly mask of the same material. “This, madam, is Smith. My caravan master,” explained his cousin. “A most experienced veteran of transport. A man in whose expert hands you may trust the rarest of commodities.” This was not exactly true. Smith had never led a caravan in his life, but his cousin’s freight and passenger service had lost its former master to a vendetta on the day of Smith’s sudden arrival in Troon, so Smith was learning the business. “How nice to meet you,” said the woman in the mask, and shot out a black and curling tongue. Smith started, but the tongue was merely a feature of the mask, for it was hollow, and she poked it now into a tall glass of punch. “Honor on your house, lady,” Smith murmured. His cousin coughed, and said, “Smith, this is Lady Seven Butterflies of Seven Butterflies Studio. You will be privileged to transport her celebrated creations!” “I’m delighted,” said Smith, bowing. “Rely on me, lady.” But Lady Seven Butterflies had lost interest in him and fluttered off to the punch bowl. His cousin leaned close and grabbed him by the shoulder. They bumped papier-mâché faces as he hissed, “Very important client! Almost ready to sign a contract granting us exclusive transport rights! Used to go with Stone and Son until they broke goods in transit. Vital we catch the ball, cousin!” Smith nodded sagely. “Right. What are we shipping for her?” “One gross of glass butterflies, what else?” said his cousin impatiently, and turned to pursue the lady. Smith sat down again. It was a good thing his new job would require him to be on the open road a lot. He didn’t think people in Troon got enough oxygen.

come to Marshals if u would like to purchase World’s Most Breakable Object

[ladykissingfish]

*Gaara and Naruto, in Naruto's office* Gaara: My thanks again for hosting me this week. Naruto: Ah, it's no problem, Gaara. We're friends, aren't we? And what kind of friend lets another friend come to his village and NOT have him in their own house?! *lightly punches Gaara on the shoulder* Gaara, smiling: Tsk; such informality between Kages. Our respective village elders would disapprove. But speaking of which ... you're positive there's not a problem with me staying with you? Naruto: Why would there be a problem? Gaara: Well ... I get the feeling that Sasuke isn't too happy to have me there ... Naruto: What do you mean? Sasuke knows how important you are to me, both as a friend and an ally to the Leaf. Gaara: I get that, but, I don't know. Sometimes I see him watching me out of the corner of his eye when we're talking and he honestly looks like he wants to kill me or something. Naruto: *bursts out laughing* Sasuke? Kill YOU? Come on, now. He's so sweet and gentle and -- *Gaara pulls a small, plastic-wrapped bag out of his pocket and puts it on the desk* Gaara: So the other day, while you were out, he made me these. Naruto: *looks at the bag* Cookies? See, he DOES like you! Sasuke is a great baker and his cookies are fantastic! You're in for a real treat, dattebayo! He -- Gaara: He filled these with almonds. After asking me to my face if I had any allergies. I told him when I eat any kind of nuts, my face swells up and I can't breathe. I watched him in the kitchen, chopping up almonds and adding them to the cookie batter. And smiling at me while he did it. Naruto: Naruto: M-maybe -- Gaara: Don't worry; I already asked Lee if I could stay with him.