Robert J. Sawyer

Hugo and Nebula Award-Winning Science Fiction Writer

The case of the missing Amazon reviews

by Rob - June 27th, 2009.
Filed under: Reviews, Wake.


The case of the missing Amazon reviews …

Well, okay, it’s not much of a mystery. :) But if you’ve only seen the (very nice) reviews of my Wake on Amazon.com, you’re missing the ones that have been posted on Amazon.ca (the Canadian counterpart).

Often, Amazon consolidates reviews across its divisions — but in this case the Canadian and American editions have different ISBNs. (And slightly different covers: note the lack of the “WWW:” prefix before the title in the Penguin Canada cover above.)

Over on Amazon.ca, there are now three reviews, from readers in Winnipeg, Toronto, and Calgary, and all of them give the book five stars (and, no, I actually don’t know everyone in Canada — none of these fine folks are friends of mine).

Excerpts:

Winnipeg: ***** “Robert J. Sawyer is always a fantastic read and this book is definitely going to continue the trend.”

Toronto: ***** “I consumed this book. Like with his Neanderthal Parallax novels, I completely empathize with these characters. They lift off the page and pull you along with them, particularly Caitlin. Her ability to see through people and her edgy humour are brilliantly achieved and you can’t help but admire her strength of character and resolve.

“The use of biological terms and technology are meshed throughout the story in a way that it isn’t dumped on you. (It should be noted that I have a biology and information technology background, so I felt like this book was written for me. But with that said, the way he reveals the information would easily engage anyone without this knowledge.)

“Whether you are a science fiction aficionado or not, add this book to your Must Read list. It will not disappoint.”

Calgary: ***** “Like most of Sawyer’s works this book is filled with extra nods to Canadians. And like most of his works contains elements which should never be left out of science fiction: thinly veiled political commentary, using technology that is not completely understood to create a believable and unique scenario, and finally the exploration of some aspect of humanity.

“A must read in my humble opinion.”

Visit The Robert J. Sawyer Web Site
and WakeWatchWonder.com

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