Scan barcode
rossbm's reviews
463 reviews
Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Read as audiobook. Very well acted. Fun read. Got interested in loot and progression. Tries too hard at times, but sometimes lands well.
Breaking Hel by Miles Cameron
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
A fun read. Things kind of progress quickly. Maybe a bit too quickly, given how many characters there are and the different aspects of the world. Felt a bit cluttered but ultimately would recommend.
Same as Ever: A Guide to What Never Changes by Morgan Housel
informative
medium-paced
2.75
Pretty similar to his "Psychology of Money" book. Hard to tell what main message is. Reminds me a bit of Robert Greene's 48 laws of power, except shorter and less historical anecdotes.
Autocracy Inc: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World by Anne Applebaum
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Listened as audiobook. Kind of strident tone. Short. Presses home the point that there are dark forces in the world, network of crony capitalist autocracies (as well as others such a iran) out there that hate us in the West with our democracies and human rights. need to push back against them.
Storming Heaven by Miles Cameron
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
A good followup. Pretty fast paced, at least the stuff Zo is doing is interesting. Era and her party mostly meander, although they do make progress. A lot of mysteries and new players. Similar to Miles Cameron's other books, find that the mythology starting to become a bit over the top/too complex, with too many layers of the onions and interdimensional powerful beings
Against All Gods by Miles Cameron
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
A fun fantasy read. Interesting setting and characters. A bit faster paced and "on the rails" compared to some of Miles Cameron's other books that I have read (no main character, not much sticking around in one place).
Setting is very Bronze aged inspired, with Greek, Mesopotamian and Egyptian influences.
Setting is very Bronze aged inspired, with Greek, Mesopotamian and Egyptian influences.
Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity by Daron Acemoğlu, Simon Johnson
informative
slow-paced
2.75
Read as e-book. Kind of slow. Found it was light on history. Kept on saying that technology could go one way or another in terms of uplifting workers, but didn't really provide concrete examples. So hard to follow and not most convincing/enlightening. Still central premise resonates.
The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
adventurous
dark
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Listened as audiobook. A fun read. Based on title, thought that the vampire slaying would happen earlier and be a bigger focus.
A Brief History of Intelligence: Evolution, AI, and the Five Breakthroughs That Made Our Brains by Max Solomon Bennett
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Good over view of how intelligence developed. 5 key developments were:
1. nervous system for steering
2. Reinforcement Learning through Basal Ganglia and dopamine.
3. Simulation through pre-frontal cortex. Apparently this is unique to mammals? Or Birds developed separately?
4. Theory of mind. Social apes very good at this. helps with learning behaviours from others.
5. Language: developed relatively recently and rapidly?
One of my biggest takeaways is that the brain is a simulation machine. Always predicting the world, even predicting Basal Ganglia and dopamine response for planning purpose. So when predictions correct, don't notice. But once prediction is off, then surprise. But of course, might predict wrong but not see error.
1. nervous system for steering
2. Reinforcement Learning through Basal Ganglia and dopamine.
3. Simulation through pre-frontal cortex. Apparently this is unique to mammals? Or Birds developed separately?
4. Theory of mind. Social apes very good at this. helps with learning behaviours from others.
5. Language: developed relatively recently and rapidly?
One of my biggest takeaways is that the brain is a simulation machine. Always predicting the world, even predicting Basal Ganglia and dopamine response for planning purpose. So when predictions correct, don't notice. But once prediction is off, then surprise. But of course, might predict wrong but not see error.
Paris 1919: Six Months That Changed the World by Margaret MacMillan
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Good account of peace treaties drawn up after WW1. My biggest takeaway was that it wasn't because treaties were too harsh that Nazis came to power, but probably opposite. After all, the reparation that Germany had to pay was less than what they demanded of France after Franco-Prussian war. Would have been fair to demand a lot more, should have payed back with interest at very least, if not double. Look at what happened after WW2: very harsh terms for Germany and no revanchism . Guess Keynes' book really influenced our views of the peace treaty.