my 2015 Hugo nominations - novels
Mar. 8th, 2015 09:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
psocopteraYeah, I've been stalling on this one.
What I'm Nominating:
Lockstep, Karl Schroeder. The best alien-planet travel porn I've read in years, coupled with a genuine Nifty Idea. Made the Locus list under YA, which I'm sure is a sign it won't make it anywhere near the ballot, but it definitely belongs on my standouts-of-the-year list.
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison. I think this might actually have awards traction, which delights me.
Stranger, Rachel Manija Brown and Sherwood Smith. I don't even know, possibly I like this in a YA way more than I like it in an SFF way, but the postapocalyptic worldbuilding is just so *competent*. ::fans self:: Didn't make the Locus list, will not have traction, possibly what I would really want would be for it to win the Norton, but I'm not voting for the Norton.
What I'm *Not* Nominating:
The Martian, Andy Weir. Consensus seems to be that this book isn't eligible due to prior self-publication, which gives me a cop-out on deciding whether I would have nominated it. I probably would have; it wasn't quite the book I wished it was in some ways, but it was hella gripping, it was the kind of thing I wanted to tell people they should read, and after I gave it to him for Christmas it's the most excited my dad has been about a novel in years (which is maybe a weird consideration? but I wouldn't even be playing this game if I hadn't started reading his old Year's Bests as a kid, and, like, a super-heartwarming moment of shared fandom with my dad is totally Hugo-relevant for me).
My Real Children, Jo Walton. Iiiii don't know. My favorite thing she's written (definitely liked it more than Among Others) and I wouldn't think it *didn't* belong on the ballot, I'm just... I don't know. Maybe I still harbor resentment for Among Others beating Embassytown (a catalyzing event for me being an actual Hugo voter and not just a Hugo spectator).
Lock In, John Scalzi. A fine book doing some nifty things, but enh. Also my opinion is irrelevant as I will eat my hat if it doesn't end up on the ballot.
The Magician's Land, Lev Grossman. I am SO TORN. On the one hand, I loved so much about it, he's *so good* and the stuff he's working on is so dear to my heart. On the other hand, his problem with seeing women as the sex class ENRAGES me, and I guess I feel like that's a disqualifying flaw for deserving a major award.
Ancillary Sword, Ann Leckie. Ancillary Justice was a slam-dunk but this book felt very Book Two, like, there's a lot of neat stuff on the board but I just don't feel like I can judge the payoff yet.
Echopraxia, Peter Watts. Finally finished my Blindsight reread but I'm only like ten pages into this; maybe it'll turn out to be brilliant but I have not determined that in time to do anything about it.
Turn Of The Story, Sarah Rees Brennan. I love this so so so much, but it feels like it's part of a different conversation than the Hugo conversation. (Maybe *it* should win the Norton, in my fantasy universe where I'm the boss of the Norton.)
The Problem
I probably like any of the above more than Parasite 2 or GrimNoir 4 or Pluto's Increasingly Tedious Second Sequel or whatever the fuck ye Voters of Disparate Tastes are likely to put on the ballot. So should I use my fourth and fifth slots for something I don't really want to vote for after all?
What I'm Nominating:
Lockstep, Karl Schroeder. The best alien-planet travel porn I've read in years, coupled with a genuine Nifty Idea. Made the Locus list under YA, which I'm sure is a sign it won't make it anywhere near the ballot, but it definitely belongs on my standouts-of-the-year list.
The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison. I think this might actually have awards traction, which delights me.
Stranger, Rachel Manija Brown and Sherwood Smith. I don't even know, possibly I like this in a YA way more than I like it in an SFF way, but the postapocalyptic worldbuilding is just so *competent*. ::fans self:: Didn't make the Locus list, will not have traction, possibly what I would really want would be for it to win the Norton, but I'm not voting for the Norton.
What I'm *Not* Nominating:
The Martian, Andy Weir. Consensus seems to be that this book isn't eligible due to prior self-publication, which gives me a cop-out on deciding whether I would have nominated it. I probably would have; it wasn't quite the book I wished it was in some ways, but it was hella gripping, it was the kind of thing I wanted to tell people they should read, and after I gave it to him for Christmas it's the most excited my dad has been about a novel in years (which is maybe a weird consideration? but I wouldn't even be playing this game if I hadn't started reading his old Year's Bests as a kid, and, like, a super-heartwarming moment of shared fandom with my dad is totally Hugo-relevant for me).
My Real Children, Jo Walton. Iiiii don't know. My favorite thing she's written (definitely liked it more than Among Others) and I wouldn't think it *didn't* belong on the ballot, I'm just... I don't know. Maybe I still harbor resentment for Among Others beating Embassytown (a catalyzing event for me being an actual Hugo voter and not just a Hugo spectator).
Lock In, John Scalzi. A fine book doing some nifty things, but enh. Also my opinion is irrelevant as I will eat my hat if it doesn't end up on the ballot.
The Magician's Land, Lev Grossman. I am SO TORN. On the one hand, I loved so much about it, he's *so good* and the stuff he's working on is so dear to my heart. On the other hand, his problem with seeing women as the sex class ENRAGES me, and I guess I feel like that's a disqualifying flaw for deserving a major award.
Ancillary Sword, Ann Leckie. Ancillary Justice was a slam-dunk but this book felt very Book Two, like, there's a lot of neat stuff on the board but I just don't feel like I can judge the payoff yet.
Echopraxia, Peter Watts. Finally finished my Blindsight reread but I'm only like ten pages into this; maybe it'll turn out to be brilliant but I have not determined that in time to do anything about it.
Turn Of The Story, Sarah Rees Brennan. I love this so so so much, but it feels like it's part of a different conversation than the Hugo conversation. (Maybe *it* should win the Norton, in my fantasy universe where I'm the boss of the Norton.)
The Problem
I probably like any of the above more than Parasite 2 or GrimNoir 4 or Pluto's Increasingly Tedious Second Sequel or whatever the fuck ye Voters of Disparate Tastes are likely to put on the ballot. So should I use my fourth and fifth slots for something I don't really want to vote for after all?
