Worldwired
First, a question about the third book in the Jenny Casey trilogy by Elizabeth Bear (matociquala), who won game 7? I admit I may have skimmed over it but I don't recall seeing that answered.

I had to grin at the following the paragraph

The other three would be showing American sports hype. Some things never changed, and in New York City, acts of war still gave pride of place to Game Four of a 2-1 World Series when the Yankees were one game behind and the Havana Red Sox looked fit to win it all. Which was ironic, because Havana was under water and despite having kept the name, the Red Sox were based out of Argentina these days.

The book dragged in places for me, mostly the alien contact parts. I'm fully willing to take responsibility for that as that really doesn't interest me and the more alien the contact the more I find it tedious. However, the latter part of the book really picked up for me.

The book ended well (though I still think there is a short story or novella between the events at the end of the book and epilogue describing the exploits of Jenny and why she is still in the public eye) and perhaps the only way it could. It wasn't quite a "they all lived happily ever after and rode off into the sunset on their white horses" but it was close enough to leave me feeling happy about reading it. In most instances, I am reading for pleasure and escapism and downer endings just don't do anything for me except make me feel irritated for having wasted that time. I want the storybook ending in my pleasure reading which I admit does contrast with my like for gritty, noir settings and other dystopian and/or dysfunctional universes.

A definite thumbs up for Worldwired and the entire series. Hammered is still my favorite of the three.

(An aside, the LJ spell checker doesn't know noir?)