After a long Christmas break, your two bookends decide to mix things up to mark crossing the 1/3 hurdle of The Way The Stars Fall by reading a short Story, infamous in its awfulness – The Eye Of Argon by Jim Theis. A slight shake up also in that, due to both the shortness and the lack of copyright concerns, we decided to read through the story and makes comments as we go. Where, to be honest, for the most part we just read the book while Peter tries to stop himself from fainting from laughter induced giddiness. It galls me to say that the eye of argon is such an entity there isn’t too much your bookends can add that the book doesn’t say for itself. By my god it is funny.

We only read the first two chapters here; I expect it will only take another 2 or three episodes to finish the rest.

This week things are very different in the novel this week. We leave the comfort of
the Tranquility and DSCOS-58 to find Captain Tiberius Hunter and his ex-wife
Amelia on the battle cruiser the Turmoil, themselves natives of the universe
Jack and his crew have found themselves in and on their way to a dinner with
the Imperator of the Evil Illmarian Imperium. It’s far less interesting than it
sounds. This episode we discuss who we think these people are, with their very
odd relationship, discuss the logistical problems of the grand dining hall in
the Imperialis Basilica that the Imperator makes his home and speculate on the
links the galaxy spanning Illmarian Imperium may have with a certain fast food
chain, from way over extrapolating two words in the chapter to start telling a
story we’d rather be reading than this one. 

A long episode this week, as this chapter is almost as long as the last two
combined (still pretty short all told) the Evil!Fargas arc is closed off for good
as the Tranquillity wrecks the fleet chasing them out of the system and decide
that having already made enemies out of the empire, they should try to hit up
the Insurrectionists. The journey is eventful, as Jack and Tona admit their
feelings for each other, they try and work out how they can leave this dimension
and we learn that Hollister is a terrifying force after he has a few Katarina
Ales. Your two bookends are not without comment on these topics, in particular
going on a diatribe over why the Jack and Tona relationship paints Jack as definitely
an awful Captain, and possibly an awful person in general.

This week your bookends Peter and Louis yet again talk about a chapter only a few pages long for 50 minutes, wherein we discus Jack Hunter’s prisoner management skills, Tona Shrike with her sexy sexy head and skewed priorities when it comes to choosing between trousers and being able to fire her gun safely. In particular we realise that we have no idea what kind of a person Tona is supposed to be from her characterisation before being utterly dumfounded both by the laughably poor siege of the tranquillity by Evil!Fargas and the overwhelming OP-ness of the APAGs kinetic barriers.

This episode, the pair of absolute Bookends Peter and Louis read a short chapter they accuse of imbuing an attempted rape with comedy, seemingly unaware of the fact they are in fact themselves are making light of rape for comedy. It is pretty funny though, at least when Lewis is the one at the helm writing the rape scenario. Also, they speculate on just how capable Tona should be after an arn unconscious, a rifle butt to the head and being held aloft by the neck. I don’t think I’d be in a fit state to take on 4 men and win in this state, but I guess Tona is just that good.

This episode our hero Jack spends the chapter inside a prison cell, talking to himself, poking things with a fork, talking to Insurrectionists until getting saved by Hollister, the real hero of the story. As ever, your two bookends Louis and Peter are bemused and spend far too long talking about just how many versions of spelling the Illmarium Republic needs for their combat harnesses.

In this episode the plot actually moves forward and Louis and Peter spend a long time discussing just why Jack thought visiting the station personally was a good idea, just how quickly communications break down and Jack goes from coming in peace to threatening to blow up the space station and spend far too long analysing what it means about Jack that he gets into a slap fight with a 90 year old man with a metal ring hand. Also Chuckle Vision.

In this episode, Louis and Peter spend a long time wondering just what is even happening, in the sense of the science on display, the events, what the author was thinking when he made this plot and what they’re doing with their lives. Not much of importance actually happens in this chapter, but dealing with the fallout of last chapter just raises so many issues, makes Louis so so confused and Peter so so furious.

In the longest episode yet, your two bookends discuss the terrible state the Tranquillity is in, Jack’s bizarre ways of interacting with guests, the inherent problems of having a galaxy spanning empire without warp travel, the utility of portholes on a space ship and much more. Far, far too much more. The length of these are getting ridiculous. We also introduce what we plan to be a new regular segment – Chuckle Vision!

In the second episode, your pair of Bookends tell you about some real world book news regarding the Author, before heading into a chapter discussion that is, if anything, even more rambly and unstructured than the first episode. And somehow even longer, which is almost worrying seeing as we don’t spend half of this episode just talking about the book in general like we did in the first episode.