The BSFA and Arthur C. Clarke awards shortlists are both now out. As usual there is a large overlap with four novels in common on two lists of six. The four are The Scar by China Miéville, Light by M. John Harrison, The Separation by Christopher Priest, and The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson. I bought the last of these in June and it completely blew me away; and now I am re-reading his Mars trilogy after someone emailed me last week to ask if I would put a review of them on my website. I don’t think I’ve ever read anything by M. John Harrison but this might tempt me to try; I’ve enjoyed both Miéville and Priest before and will add those to my wish list too.

The two which made the Arthur C. Clarke award list but not the BSFA were Kil’n People by David Brin and Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon. Brin is rather hit and miss and I have found his Uplift series decreasingly, er, uplifting. I haven’t read anything by Moon but as with Harrison could now be tempted. The two other BSFA nominees are Effendi by Jon Courtenay Grimwood and Castles Made of Sand by Gwyneth Jones, both sequels to books I have read in the last couple of months. I just bought the Grimwood last week and hope to get to it in the next few days. Not overwhelmed by Jones’ Bold as Love but I might give in to temptation if I see it in a shop.