Occasional Book Recommendations: Linda Nagata, The Red

   I've had a lot of bad luck with science fiction of late. I've largely stopped even trying to read it. A lot of it is so badly-written that I can't get more than a few chapters in. And I don't have terribly high standards for such things. And, of course, there are lots of other ways for a book to fail. Military sci-fi is often particularly bad IMO, though it's a sub-genre that, in theory, at least, I really enjoy. John Birmingham's Weapons of Choice is just a blast, IMO, and the sequels are generally pretty good, too. And of course there's Starship Troopers...
   Anyway, I'm about 3/4 of the way through Linda Nagata's near-future military sci-fi novel The Red right now, and really, really enjoying it. The writing is actually...good. And there are actual characters. And actual ideas. Ideas about cool weapons-tech, and realio-trulio other ideas about...y'know...politics and human life and stuff...  It's actually like a real actual novel...but with badass exoskeleton combat. Weird...  I can't help but think that there must be a catch of some kind...
   Anyway. Linda Nagata. The Red. Philosoraptor say: check it out.