<![CDATA[Very much enjoying this.]]>Very much enjoying this.

Past the ½-way, the story structure @cstross is referencing — and references to others in the same series — is clear to the reader. This is no knock-off or parody in any manner, however; merely a pondering of “what if you put that guy in *this* situation?” It’s incredibly well-done.

References to other great works — especially a mid-’30s German mesmer — are also intelligently included.

This is a work of great skill.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/topic/1966247f-df29-41f5-b801-98716bc4b391/very-much-enjoying-this.RSS for NodeSat, 06 Jun 2026 05:31:23 GMTSat, 09 May 2026 23:08:38 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Mon, 18 May 2026 07:07:51 GMT]]>@IanAMartin Not-a-spoiler: our protagonists survive to the end of the series, which is still several books ahead of you!

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://wandering.shop/users/cstross/statuses/116594315857523006https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://wandering.shop/users/cstross/statuses/116594315857523006Mon, 18 May 2026 07:07:51 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 17 May 2026 21:47:57 GMT]]>@IanAMartin
Love this one as well. The first novel didn't quite catch me, but with the Jennifer Morgue, I was completely hooked on the laundry files.

@cstross @Menhit

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://fosstodon.org/users/marcusboden/statuses/116592114263575066https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://fosstodon.org/users/marcusboden/statuses/116592114263575066Sun, 17 May 2026 21:47:57 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 17 May 2026 21:35:06 GMT]]>I have now completed @cstross’s “The Jennifer Morgue.” I see now the purpose of the James Bond Trope structure, and it is perfect. Sending it up, certainly, but also pointing out its class- and gender-based weaknesses.

I do worry about the characters, given the end of “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.’

I also wonder about @Menhit’s reaction to the climactic scene.

Very highly recommended.

★★★★★

Link Preview Image
]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116592063705934609https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116592063705934609Sun, 17 May 2026 21:35:06 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Tue, 12 May 2026 16:43:59 GMT]]>@IanAMartin @cstross

There’s a place for ‘Artifacts’ like maybe a manual that is marked up by an owner discovering a portal to another world in their vehicle’s engine compartment or similar.

I really struggled to find a ridiculous genre example as too many I came up with were either “been done” or “ok, I could see that” and prefer not to accidentally step on an upcoming book.

(In the unlikely event a technical manual is somehow inspiring a future novel for anyone, please do so with my blessings and best wishes.)

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.games/users/MacBalance/statuses/116562607442608386https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.games/users/MacBalance/statuses/116562607442608386Tue, 12 May 2026 16:43:59 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Tue, 12 May 2026 16:34:04 GMT]]>@MacBalance I’d be interested in reading @cstross’s homage to a Chilton’s manual on, say, the Datsun 510 four-door sedan (1974 model). What sort of eldrich horrors are located in the auto choke mechanism, for instance?

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116562568466778935https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116562568466778935Tue, 12 May 2026 16:34:04 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Tue, 12 May 2026 16:29:33 GMT]]>@IanAMartin This is on the short list of @cstross works that not only fit into an established genre but have a very explicit reason to do so. (More of a reason than an author saying “I felt like writing an homage to Chilton technical manuals, so I did so” or some similar nonsense.)

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.games/users/MacBalance/statuses/116562550662545847https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.games/users/MacBalance/statuses/116562550662545847Tue, 12 May 2026 16:29:33 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 13:17:10 GMT]]>@flippac @IanAMartin @cstross

Yes Indeed. 3:O)>

(Not going to give _any_ of the plot twists away.)

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://wandering.shop/users/Cadbury_Moose/statuses/116550469606731932https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://wandering.shop/users/Cadbury_Moose/statuses/116550469606731932Sun, 10 May 2026 13:17:10 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 10:37:19 GMT]]>@cstross I like the illustration itself as a painting, not so much the graphic treatment. I looked up the Orbit version and I agree that they made much stronger design decisions.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://pataterie.ca/users/chantaryu2/statuses/116549840999752740https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://pataterie.ca/users/chantaryu2/statuses/116549840999752740Sun, 10 May 2026 10:37:19 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 09:43:47 GMT]]>@chantaryu2 @IanAMartin It is, in any case, a shit cover (in my opinion). Very American, though. If you want decent covers on the Laundry Files, the British editions from Orbit have a uniform design language and look much nicer on a bookshelf—especially as Orbit is the sole UK publisher (in the USA the series went through three imprints, some of whom only did hardcovers and all of whom used different physical sizes for their h/c's).

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://wandering.shop/users/cstross/statuses/116549630545111153https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://wandering.shop/users/cstross/statuses/116549630545111153Sun, 10 May 2026 09:43:47 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 09:28:02 GMT]]>@IanAMartin @cstross I feel like I should know who painted that cover but I can't put my finger on it. I was going to say Dave Palumbo because of the palette, but not enough brush strokes.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://pataterie.ca/users/chantaryu2/statuses/116549568623461819https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://pataterie.ca/users/chantaryu2/statuses/116549568623461819Sun, 10 May 2026 09:28:02 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 08:35:24 GMT]]>@IanAMartin @cstross All I can say is come back when you've finished the book!

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://types.pl/users/flippac/statuses/116549361647518139https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://types.pl/users/flippac/statuses/116549361647518139Sun, 10 May 2026 08:35:24 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 08:32:36 GMT]]>@IanAMartin @cstross he is damn good, you’re in for a good time.

It’s *not* the same world, but if you’re enjoying the Laundry, you’ll love https://www.infinityplus.co.uk/stories/colderwar.htm too.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.me.uk/users/Floppy/statuses/116549350608878055https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.me.uk/users/Floppy/statuses/116549350608878055Sun, 10 May 2026 08:32:36 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 08:19:02 GMT]]>@flippac I never thought @cstross had done anything badly this far! Far from it!

Though it is more ‘Broccoli Bond’ than ‘Book Bond,’ despite the fact “Thunderball” was written after the screenplay.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116549297265530313https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116549297265530313Sun, 10 May 2026 08:19:02 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 08:02:36 GMT]]>@IanAMartin @cstross I promise you, it gets better re playing with Bond story structure by the ending!

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://types.pl/users/flippac/statuses/116549232668260874https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://types.pl/users/flippac/statuses/116549232668260874Sun, 10 May 2026 08:02:36 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 02:23:13 GMT]]>@baltakatei I’m aware that @cstross’s output is considerable. The change around 10 or so (haven’t go anywhere near that, obviously), so if it takes a turn away from my tastes, I was planning on looking elsewhere in his œvre for something. Therefore, thank you for the suggestion of trying the “Saturn's Children” series, as maybe an android-based society exploring economics might be my thing. I mean, honestly, it might!

¯\(°_O)/¯

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116547898151979720https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116547898151979720Sun, 10 May 2026 02:23:13 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 01:35:13 GMT]]>@IanAMartin @cstross I enjoyed the first book but after getting into the sequels, the playful “actually, this historic accomplishment was vampires” started to feel disrespectful to real people whose sacrifices made such feats possible in history. I get that I need to suspend my disbelief to enjoy fantasy, but for me it was too much.

I enjoyed their Freyaverse series more.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://twit.social/users/baltakatei/statuses/116547709397952729https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://twit.social/users/baltakatei/statuses/116547709397952729Sun, 10 May 2026 01:35:13 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Very much enjoying this. on Sun, 10 May 2026 00:13:19 GMT]]>I’ve just realized this is only №2 in the series. The fact that №1 has a short story/novella (depending on your definition) in addition to the novel is likely to be part of my confusion.

Yet, I have already fully dedicated myself to reading all of @cstross’s work in this series. It doesn’t take long for me to become obsessed, it would seem.

But, damn, he’s good!

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116547387363664030https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://thecanadian.social/ap/users/116268351989643599/statuses/116547387363664030Sun, 10 May 2026 00:13:19 GMT