Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute PowerThe best refutation of the ideal of the omnipotent Emperor that I can think of is the heirarchy above and below the council of Boskone in E E Smith's Lensman universe. We are repeatedly shown that this is vulnerable to the "only good news" phenomenon,
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean
efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/
--
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll
On Wednesday, November 8, 2023 at 3:06:51 PM UTC, James Nicoll wrote:
Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute Power >>The best refutation of the ideal of the omnipotent Emperor that I can
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean
efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/--
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll
think of is the heirarchy above and below the council of Boskone in E E >Smith's Lensman universe. We are repeatedly shown that this is
vulnerable to the "only good news" phenomenon, where overlings do not
hear of the failures of their underlings, because their underlings dare
not tell them >(https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-putin-6ef2407371c67f0736459378833fab7a). On the other hand, the forces of civilisation are full of people
who know the reasons behind their orders and will comply with them >enthusiastically in both the letter and the spirit. The other autocrats
I can think of are more like Shakespearean Kings, always at risk of a >powerful noble challenging them - Ezar and Gregor Vorbarra, the
Padishah Emperor, and Elizabeth III Winton (not really under threat of >insurrection, but only a constitutional monarch, perhaps with as much
power as Queen Victoria) come to mind sufficiently to be found by a web >search. Baen was pushing the "Sun Eater" series by Christopher Ruocchio
- I think in this we see a noble becoming Emperor. I am not sure by
what means, as I wasn't sufficiently impressed by the first book to
read further.
In article <521e9a20-8376-4e8f...@googlegroups.com>,https://www.baen.com/pr-suneaterseries RIVERDALE, NEW YORK, January 16, 2023—Baen Books has signed a contract with author Christopher Ruocchio to publish the final two books in his internationally award-winning Sun Eater series, as well as for a first
Andrew McDowell <mcdow...@sky.com> wrote:
On Wednesday, November 8, 2023 at 3:06:51 PM UTC, James Nicoll wrote:Huh. I had not noticed the Sun Eater books moved from DAW to Baen.
Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute PowerThe best refutation of the ideal of the omnipotent Emperor that I can >think of is the heirarchy above and below the council of Boskone in E E >Smith's Lensman universe. We are repeatedly shown that this is
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean
efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/--
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll
vulnerable to the "only good news" phenomenon, where overlings do not
hear of the failures of their underlings, because their underlings dare >not tell them >(https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-putin-6ef2407371c67f0736459378833fab7a). On the other hand, the forces of civilisation are full of people
who know the reasons behind their orders and will comply with them >enthusiastically in both the letter and the spirit. The other autocrats
I can think of are more like Shakespearean Kings, always at risk of a >powerful noble challenging them - Ezar and Gregor Vorbarra, the
Padishah Emperor, and Elizabeth III Winton (not really under threat of >insurrection, but only a constitutional monarch, perhaps with as much >power as Queen Victoria) come to mind sufficiently to be found by a web >search. Baen was pushing the "Sun Eater" series by Christopher Ruocchio
- I think in this we see a noble becoming Emperor. I am not sure by
what means, as I wasn't sufficiently impressed by the first book to
read further.
--
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll
On Wednesday, November 8, 2023 at 5:20:53 PM UTC, James Nicoll wrote:
Huh. I had not noticed the Sun Eater books moved from DAW to Baen.
https://www.baen.com/pr-suneaterseries RIVERDALE, NEW YORK, January 16, >2023—Baen Books has signed a contract with author Christopher
Ruocchio to publish the final two books in his internationally
award-winning Sun Eater series, as well as for a first look deal for >Ruocchio’s next series. (end quote)
Just to confuse the likes of me, I think Amazon is listing "Empire of >Silence" as published by Gollanz.
In article <9110b8d2-910e-4ef9-88f5-7aadff2eb1b8n@googlegroups.com>,
Andrew McDowell <mcdowell_ag@sky.com> wrote:
On Wednesday, November 8, 2023 at 5:20:53 PM UTC, James Nicoll wrote:
Huh. I had not noticed the Sun Eater books moved from DAW to Baen.
https://www.baen.com/pr-suneaterseries RIVERDALE, NEW YORK, January 16, >>2023—Baen Books has signed a contract with author Christopher
Ruocchio to publish the final two books in his internationally >>award-winning Sun Eater series, as well as for a first look deal for >>Ruocchio’s next series. (end quote)
Just to confuse the likes of me, I think Amazon is listing "Empire of >>Silence" as published by Gollanz.
It's odd for a series to jump from one publisher to another mid-
stream. I wonder what the backstory is.
In article <9110b8d2-910e-4ef9...@googlegroups.com>,
Andrew McDowell <mcdow...@sky.com> wrote:
On Wednesday, November 8, 2023 at 5:20:53 PM UTC, James Nicoll wrote:
Huh. I had not noticed the Sun Eater books moved from DAW to Baen. >https://www.baen.com/pr-suneaterseries RIVERDALE, NEW YORK, January 16, >2023—Baen Books has signed a contract with author ChristopherRuocchio to publish the final two books in his internationally >award-winning Sun Eater series, as well as for a first look deal for >Ruocchio’s next series. (end quote)
Just to confuse the likes of me, I think Amazon is listing "Empire of >Silence" as published by Gollanz.It's odd for a series to jump from one publisher to another mid-
stream. I wonder what the backstory is.
Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute Power
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean
efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/
In article <521e9a20-8376-4e8f-b7f6-c2dccc8a5f47n@googlegroups.com>,
Andrew McDowell <mcdowell_ag@sky.com> wrote:
On Wednesday, November 8, 2023 at 3:06:51 PM UTC, James Nicoll wrote:
Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute Power >>>https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean
efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
--The best refutation of the ideal of the omnipotent Emperor that I can
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll
think of is the heirarchy above and below the council of Boskone in E E
Smith's Lensman universe. We are repeatedly shown that this is
vulnerable to the "only good news" phenomenon, where overlings do not
hear of the failures of their underlings, because their underlings dare
not tell them
(https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-putin-6ef2407371c67f0736459378833fab7a). On the other hand, the forces of civilisation are full of people
who know the reasons behind their orders and will comply with them
enthusiastically in both the letter and the spirit. The other autocrats
I can think of are more like Shakespearean Kings, always at risk of a
powerful noble challenging them - Ezar and Gregor Vorbarra, the
Padishah Emperor, and Elizabeth III Winton (not really under threat of
insurrection, but only a constitutional monarch, perhaps with as much
power as Queen Victoria) come to mind sufficiently to be found by a web
search. Baen was pushing the "Sun Eater" series by Christopher Ruocchio
- I think in this we see a noble becoming Emperor. I am not sure by
what means, as I wasn't sufficiently impressed by the first book to
read further.
Huh. I had not noticed the Sun Eater books moved from DAW to Baen.
On 11/8/2023 9:06 AM, James Nicoll wrote:
Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute Power >>
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean
efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/
One for five, the book I just reviewed, "The Girl Who Owned A City".
Lynn
On Wednesday, November 8, 2023 at 3:06:51 PM UTC, James Nicoll wrote:where overlings do not hear of the failures of their underlings, because their underlings dare not tell them (https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-putin-6ef2407371c67f0736459378833fab7a). On the other hand, the forces of civilisation are full of
Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute Power
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/The best refutation of the ideal of the omnipotent Emperor that I can think of is the heirarchy above and below the council of Boskone in E E Smith's Lensman universe. We are repeatedly shown that this is vulnerable to the "only good news" phenomenon,
--
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My tor pieces at https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll
Lynn wrote:
James wrote:
Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute Power >>>
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean
efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/
One for five, the book I just reviewed, "The Girl Who Owned A City".
I remember Empress Isher's thoughts on absolute power:
The man nodded but said nothing. The empress studied him, biting
her lips. "My friend," she said softly at last, "I have it in my
power to make your punishment anything I desire. Anything. Death,
banishment, commutation-" she hesitated-"reinstatement."
Major Sanders sighed wearily. "I know," he said. That was the picture
I suddenly saw."
"I don't understand." She was puzzled. "If you realize the
potentialities of your act, then you were very foolish."
"The picture," he said in a monotone, as if he had not heard her
interruption, "of a time when someone, not necessarily yourself,
would have that power without qualification, without there being
anywhere to turn, without alleviation, without-hope."
She had her answer. "Well, of all the stupidity!" said Innelda
explosively. She leaned back in her chair, momentarily overcome,
drew a deep breath, then shook her head in irritation. "Major," she
said gently, "I feel sorry for you. Surely your knowledge of the
history of my family must have told you that the danger of misuse
of power does not exist. The world is too big. As an individual I
can interfere in the affairs of such a tiny proportion of the human
race that it is ridiculous. Every decree that I issue vanishes into
a positive blur of conflicting interpretations as it recedes from
me. That decree could be ultimately mild-it would make no difference
in the final administration of it. Anything, when applied to eleven
billion people, takes on a meaningless quality that is impossible
to imagine unless you have studied, as I have, actual results."
This is a re-post because the original is missing from more than one
usenet server.
Ted wrote:
Lynn wrote:
James wrote:
Five SFF Novels About Autocrats and the Problems of Wielding Absolute Power
A state managed by a single deciderer should be a marvel of lean
efficiency .... but not according to these authors.
https://www.tor.com/2023/11/08/five-sff-novels-about-autocrats-and-the-problems-of-wielding-absolute-power/
One for five, the book I just reviewed, "The Girl Who Owned A City".
I remember Empress Isher's thoughts on absolute power:
The man nodded but said nothing. The empress studied him, biting
her lips. "My friend," she said softly at last, "I have it in my
power to make your punishment anything I desire. Anything. Death,
banishment, commutation-" she hesitated-"reinstatement."
Major Sanders sighed wearily. "I know," he said. That was the picture
I suddenly saw."
"I don't understand." She was puzzled. "If you realize the
potentialities of your act, then you were very foolish."
"The picture," he said in a monotone, as if he had not heard her
interruption, "of a time when someone, not necessarily yourself,
would have that power without qualification, without there being
anywhere to turn, without alleviation, without-hope."
She had her answer. "Well, of all the stupidity!" said Innelda
explosively. She leaned back in her chair, momentarily overcome,
drew a deep breath, then shook her head in irritation. "Major," she
said gently, "I feel sorry for you. Surely your knowledge of the
history of my family must have told you that the danger of misuse
of power does not exist. The world is too big. As an individual I
can interfere in the affairs of such a tiny proportion of the human
race that it is ridiculous. Every decree that I issue vanishes into
a positive blur of conflicting interpretations as it recedes from
me. That decree could be ultimately mild-it would make no difference
in the final administration of it. Anything, when applied to eleven
billion people, takes on a meaningless quality that is impossible
to imagine unless you have studied, as I have, actual results."
As you already know, an epub of _The Weapon Shops of Isher_ is found
online [1]. Calibre can convert epubs into audiobooks. [2] .
It's hard for me to find time to read fiction. So audiobooks are
listened to during dog walks instead.
Although it was my original intention to listen to _Weapons Shops_
next, the last novel in the _Hidden Truth_ trilogy talks about Borges
in story. So _The Garden of Forking Paths_ will be my next story.
"The Garden of Forking Paths" is a mystery story, as well as
a spy story, but also a story about the nature of plot itself,
bearing the influence of Chaos theory and quantum mechanics.
In a way that prefigures the modern-day 'narrative' of
computer and video games, where multiple paths through the
game are possible, Ts'ui Pen's novel doesn't so much reject
linearity - such a complete rejection would be possible, when
we are still required to read forwards, turning one page at a
time - as build simultaneity, and multiple possible outcomes,
into its linear structure.
In a way that echoes quantum theory and in particular, the
concept of Schrödinger's cat, characters are simultaneously
dead and alive, having been killed off in one chapter only to
turn up alive and kicking in the next. The idea is to create
an infinite narrative containing every narrative possibility.
<https://interestingliterature.com/2021/07/jorge-luis-borges-the-garden-of-forking-paths-summary-analysis/>
Does "Garden" anticipate the many-worlds interpretation of quantum
mechanics relative to physical reality? Does alternate history rank as
some of the hardest science fiction around given its many-worlds
association?
As an aside, the German studies part of Prospero's Isle [3] only now
caught my eye.
Speaking of German, two of the three Perry Rhodan immortal autocrats:
Perry and Atlan, feel fatigued from fighting off usurpers all the time.
So Atlan abdicates his Arkon throne and Perry decides to downsize his >dominion to a mere Solar Imperium.
Perry's pruning produces unforeseen consequences when the IT
collective takes him to task for failure to federate the Milky Way
in a timely manner in PR1500 "Call of Immortality."
The third autocrat, Lumerian [4] Factor I, finally finds love of
another more compelling than love of power.
Note.
[1] <http://prosperosisle.org/spip.php?article974>
[2] <https://crcomp.net/epubtomp3/index.php>
[3] <http://prosperosisle.org/spip.php?rubrique114>
[4] <http://www.lemuria.net/>
Danke,
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