Reading Archive: 2009
December
4 Stars to Memory Prime (Star Trek: The Original Series #42) by Judith Reeves-Stevens
Description
Captain Kirk learns that one of the Federation scientists attending the award ceremony for the Nobel and 2-Magnees prize is marked for assassination
Review
I have these TOS spirts but am determined to hold Lorra's last title until 2010, so picked something different to keep me going. Heavy on warp theory and, joy of joys, more Vulcan T'Pel-esk stuff. Very enjoyable to read, another one gobbled in a single sitting. The whole robot thing was a little contrived, perhaps - but a good yarn nonetheless.
3 Stars to Prostho Plus by Piers Anthony
Description
Dr. Dillingham, terrestrial dentist, is kidnapped by aliens, forced to treat a cavity in a very strange mouth, whisked off to the far reaches of the galaxy, and offered a prestigious position at the Galactic University of Dentistry
Review
I seem to be drawn to Anthony near the end of the year - last year it was Mode, and now this. An amusing little work, this, with much consideration given to the art of dentistry.
5 Stars to The Vulcan Academy Murders (Star Trek: The Original Series, #20) by Jean Lorrah
Description
Kirk and McCoy accompany Spock to the Vulcan Academy Hospital seeking experimental treatment for a badly wounded Enterprise crew member. Spock's mother is also a patient in the hospital, and Kirk soon becomes involved in the complex drama of Spock's family... Suddenly, patients are dying, and Kirk suspects the unthinkable—murder on Vulcan! But can he convince the Vulcans that something as illogical as murder is possible? Until the Killer is caught, everyone is in danger!
Review
Done it again. Historically that's completely inaccurate, of course, because this novel obviously came first. I don't know the TOS characters nearly as well as those of the TNG era, of course, so the completely jelled dialogue and the nuances of some of the character's history is a little over my head. But who can not admire the completely perfect flow of this story? It's a neat murder mystery, with vulcans as most of the prime suspects. while it lacks some in surprise (the culprit stuck out somewhat from the beginning) the overwhelming 'everyone's a suspect' motif certainly kept the tension going. The sheer amount of historical references packed in for every character, the superb emotional contours of Spock and Sarek, the phenomenal familial focus of Amanda and the irreplaceable sojourns into Spock's youth are absolutely priceless. It's Lorra's first trek book, but you wouldn't know it. The depth is staggering, the characters vivid, and the entire work so alive that I almost heard Nimoy's vibrant tones as I ploughed my way through this work in a single sitting. it did seem a little short, but I was reading in the early hours of the morning and not really paying much attention to the pages. The characters at times seemed a little unreal, but I attribute that to my lack of familiarity with the time's universe. The murderer was a rather unspectacular revelation, but given the things we learn about the Vulcans; the glimpses into their culture, history and planet, and the apparent dichotomies that simply turn out to be for the most part nothing at all make this more than just a trek book. There's only one more of Lorra's trek titles to read, another ToS one. Something to enjoy in the new year, I'm sure.
3 Stars to Tong Lashing (Sir Apropos of Nothing, #3) by Peter David
Description
The zany adventures of Sir Apropos of Nothing continue as the nobleman finds himself in a magical ancient land where, confronted by monsters and other fantastical enemies, Apropos starts construction on a gigantic wall that appears to go on forever. Reprint.
Review
No content provided.
4 Stars to Resonance by Chris Dolley
Description
Graham Smith is a 33 year-old office messenger. To the outside world he's an obsessive-compulsive mute - weird but harmless. But to Graham Smith, it's the world that's weird. And far from harmless. He sees things others can't . . . or won't. He knows that roads can change course, people disappear, office blocks migrate across town. All at night when no one's looking. The world's an unstable place, still growing, sloughing off layers of reality like dead skin. One day you drive by, and it's changed. Annalise Mercado hears voices, all from girls calling themselves Annalise. Sometimes she thinks they're spirit guides, sometimes she thinks she's crazy. But then they start telling her about Graham Smith and the men who want to kill him. That's when they meet. So begins the story of two people whose lives are fragmented across alternate realities. And how they hold the key to the future of a billion planets. . . .
Review
"at the last count you had 472 fathers and 4,487 mothers." It's quite evident from the outset of this crackingly enjoyable story that Graham, our strange protagonist, is rather odd. he has strange habits, strange ideas, strange issues. And naturally they worsen a hundredfold throughout. "Why hadn't fate picked someone brighter? Not someone who took five minutes to lock a door and couldn't sleep if he thought a picture was hanging crooked." I've seen some odd literary heroes in my time, but graham is up there with the best of them. His whole world is completely skewed, and only people with connections to other worlds can be of any help to him. "I'm the girl with two hundred voices in her head. I believe everything." of course no romp through multiple worlds is complete without a female sidekick and love interest, and the 200 provided are certainly interesting candidates. I very much enjoyed puzzling out how Graham was going to get everything sorted. Though some of the dimensional theory was a little confusing at times. It's perhaps difficult to reconcile the quiet, placid Graham with the one that involves himself with resonance so forcefully. maybe I should stop underestimating the power of love.
November
4 Stars to Earthsearch (Earthsearch, #1) by James Follett
Description
The crew of the Challenger were in an agonising situation: they had been born on their starship and had never set foot on a planet, and yet the Earth was their spiritual home. For years they had studied holograms and videos of Earth in the Challenger's library and had dreamed of the time when their ship would return so that they could walk under the Earth's blue skies, feel warm summer breezes on their faces and cool green grass beneath their feet. And now the Earth had vanished from the solar system. From clues discovered on the abandoned colonies of the other planets they learned that the people of Earth had taken their planet in search of a new sun—a sun that was not liable to become a nova. The crew decided to go in search of their lost planet. Even though the trail was half-a-million years cold...
Review
"Nothing could be simpler. The lock is ignorance. . . Tomorrow we'll unlock it with knowledge." This was an enjoyable read all around. Tied very closely to the dramas, which seem worth checking out, too. Worth noting is that though many science fiction novels eschew travelling faster than light, this one follows that convention but also makes use of it in several situations to further the plot, time, or both. There are several things that stuck in my craw - scientific observations that seemed nonsensical, a few minor things that seemed out of character and one or two little jarring things that made me pause a little. Nothing overly incongruous, and I was very impressed by the development of Elka and Bran. There were signs, but subtle and easily overlooked, which gave the whole thing a much more sinister feel (which was of course the intention). There's something about the English Sci-fi I've read that can't quite compel me to give it a five-star rating. be it that I'm so hooked on the overseas style or that there's somethingg a little stilted about the British offerings I've yet to determine. nevertheless a solid, worthy duo of novels, neatly bound together with a warm and respectful intro from the author. Top class reading, old chaps.
3 Stars to True Evil by Greg Iles
Description
Dr. Chris Shepard, a busy young doctor in Natchez, Mississippi, has never seen his new patient Alex Morse before. But the attractive young woman with the scarred face has come to Dr. Shepards office on a mission to catch a killer. This New York Times bestseller is available in a tall Premium Edition.
Review
Though not my favourite Iles title by a long shot, the sympathy you feel for Chris and alex is quite intense. Whilst the action is standard, the surrounding miasma of death and disease ratchets up the intensity of our feelings toward the leads. The medical stuff is interestingly scary, too. The FBI and western powers in general do always seem to come out smelling of roses, though - if not with regards to how they handle their own personnel, at least with reference to their intentions and operating procedures. a little more grit wouldn't go amiss, the shades of grey are a little thin on the ground.
3 Stars to Engines of Destiny (Star Trek: The Original Series) by Gene DeWeese
Description
THE MACHINE AGE
Review
"If you were telling someone how to use a sonic shower, would you bother to explain that you can modify its circuits to make it work as a low-power disruptor?" An interesting point there - I wonder if Section 31 have ever used that trick? This started out gripping me but slacked off quite considerably. It's an interesting idea, Scotty and Guinan are two characters I wouldn't have ever thought to be involved in such a complex web. Guinan was even more insufferable here than in the TNG episode Yesterday's Enterprise, and kirk is a shallow shadow of himself inserted only as padding for Scotty's actions.
5 Stars to Black Powder War (Temeraire, #3) by Naomi Novik
Description
Picking up where book two left off (in China, Macau) Captain Will Laurence and his extraordinary dragon, Temeraire, are ordered to retrieve and escort a precious cargo of valuable dragon eggs from Istanbul to England. They take the Old Silk Road from China to Istanbul, crossing deserts and mountains. En route to England, they help the beleaguered Prussians battle Napoleon.
Review
I got so engrossed with this fabulous continuation that I didn't want to stop and note my favourite quotes and comments to pepper in here. Suffice it to say that the pace picks up, the ending is superb and the story continues with more of what I've loved all the way through.
4 Stars to Throne of Jade (Temeraire, #2) by Naomi Novik
Description
When Britain intercepted a French ship and its precious cargo–an unhatched dragon’s egg–Capt. Will Laurence of HMS Reliant unexpectedly became master and commander of the noble dragon he named Temeraire. As new recruits in Britain’s Aerial Corps, man and dragon soon proved their mettle in daring combat against Bonaparte’s invading forces. Now China has discovered that its rare gift, intended for Napoleon, has fallen into British hands–and an angry Chinese delegation vows to reclaim the remarkable beast. But Laurence refuses to cooperate. Facing the gallows for his defiance, Laurence has no choice but to accompany Temeraire back to the Far East–a long voyage fraught with peril, intrigue, and the untold terrors of the deep. Yet once the pair reaches the court of the Chinese emperor, even more shocking discoveries and darker dangers await.
Review
The combat scenes have certainly grabbed my interest more in this excellent sequel - either the author's pulled her finger out or I've acclimatised myself to their nature. The ethos of ethics continues - the Chinese angle is a brilliant one, and the contrasts between the handling of dragons there is an excellent way to plough through pages. it's quite frequently the case that a series declines as it goes - although we're only at the second, I see no sign of that what soever. Couldn't put it down.
4 Stars to His Majesty's Dragon (Temeraire, #1) by Naomi Novik
Description
Aerial combat brings a thrilling new dimension to the Napoleonic Wars as valiant warriors ride mighty fighting dragons, bred for size or speed. When HMS Reliant captures a French frigate and seizes the precious cargo, an unhatched dragon egg, fate sweeps Captain Will Laurence from his seafaring life into an uncertain future – and an unexpected kinship with a most extraordinary creature. Thrust into the rarified world of the Aerial Corps as master of the dragon Temeraire, he will face a crash course in the daring tactics of airborne battle. For as France’s own dragon-borne forces rally to breach British soil in Bonaparte’s boldest gambit, Laurence and Temeraire must soar into their own baptism of fire.
Review
historical fiction has never quite been my bailiwick. Mixed with some Sci-fi, as with the Time wars stuff of Simon Hawke I have enjoyed a little, but it's not a genre I've exhaustively explored. I must therefore say I was pleasantly surprised to find myself enjoying this debut novel from US-resident Novik a great deal. The premise - introducing dragons into the Napoleonic Wars and so providing an Aerial Corps alongside the more traditional Navy - is a stroke of genius. I find it amazing that with a minor additional factor the horizons have expanded to such a degree that a whole series of books can be launched. I've read books with more heart-pounding combat scenes, books with more of an emphasis on tactics and strategy, and books with a more political bent. The area in which this one particularly excelled for me was that of social ambience, though. William Laurence is Captain of the HMS Reliant and through no choice or desire of his own is thrust into the initially unenviable position of "harnessing the beast". We can immediately see that this isn't something to be desired. "The Corps may not be the sort of life that any of us has been raised to," he says to his crew. that's putting something of a happy face on things, it seems. becoming an Aviator would mean "an end to any semblance of ordinary life", and "the prospect of entering their ranks could not be appealing to any gentleman raised up in respectable society." an aviator supposedly lives in "wild outrageous libertinage in small enclaves, generally in the most remote and inhospitable places" and dragons were "finicky" and "could not be managed by force". Much is also made of the sociological impact of such a thing - Lord Allendale, Captain Laurence's father is quite against the whole dragon thing and almost disowns his son as a result. A woman that Laurence had shown interest in is suddenly out-of-bounds and much is made of the almost ostracising effect being a dragon's companion instils in "polite society". I am by no means as eloquent as the author, so it may not seem such a huge deal, coming from me. But the social mores of the time are very much in evidence, and Captain Laurence has many an adjustment to make. there is a fascinating congruence which speaks highly of Laurence when he has been training and living with his dragon for six months, though. He ends up making a delivery to a seagoing vessel, and one of the crewmen happens to bring the matter up. "I suppose he is a valuable animal and we must be glad to have him, but it is appalling you should be chained to such a life, and in such company." For the reader, it seems that this isn't too wide of the mark of Laurence's thoughts at the opening of the novel. But his curt "I wonder that you could imagine such an address acceptable" shows us without doubt that his attitudes have radically shifted. The language is exquisitely crafted - Novik makes room in her acknowledgements for those catching "out-of-period words". The precision, self-control, perhaps even snobbishness of the English upperclass elite is perfectly captured and expertly applied to create a sense of the time so inspiring that I want to turn all the electricity off and read by candle light. As I said, the raw elements of this nonetheless outstanding novel aren't incredibly done in themselves. the aerial combat, seamanship, politics and detail are very good, but have been done better in works focusing more specifically upon them as individual themes. For me, the biggest and best part of this book was the social impact of having a dragon for a companion, alongside the titular characters growth, development and adaptation to the situations in which they found themselves.
2 Stars to And Another Thing... (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #6) by Eoin Colfer
Description
AN ENGLISHMAN'S CONTINUING SEARCH THROUGH SPACE AND TIME FOR A DECENT CUP OF TEA... Arthur Dent's accidental association with that wholly remarkable book The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has not been entirely without incident. Arthur has traveled the length, breadth, and depth of known, and unknown, space. He has stumbled forward and backward through time. He has been blown up, reassembled, cruelly imprisoned, horribly released, and colorfully insulted more than is strictly necessary. And of course Arthur Dent has comprehensively failed to grasp the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. Arthur has finally made it home to Earth, but that does not mean he has escaped his fate. Arthur's chances of getting his hands on a decent cuppa have evaporated rapidly, along with all the world's oceans. For no sooner has he touched down on the planet Earth than he finds out that it is about to be blown up...again. And Another Thing...is the rather unexpected, but very welcome, sixth installment of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series. It features a pantheon of unemployed gods, everyone's favorite renegade Galactic President, a lovestruck green alien, an irritating computer, and at least one very large slab of cheese.
Review
perhaps I am atypical - let's scratch that and start over, shall we? I am atypical when it comes to many things: the Hitchhikers guide to The Galaxy is one of them. Or 6, if we're being both pedantic and relatively modern. This means that unlike practically everyone else that's read them in my circle, I didn't find the books to be howling mad, nonstop laugh out loud factor material. of course they were very good, Douglas Adams was a superb storyteller. Interestingly enough, perhaps my favourite of the series was So Long and thanks for all the Fish - which, by a staggering coincidence, is that least enjoyed by my peers. I did mention my abnormality problem? So when I learned of Colfer's planned sequel to this most talked-about series, I was able to distance myself from the highly-charged emotional impact felt and voiced by many on the matter. and there WERE many, many who couldn't do the same, many who did indeed have something to say on the matter and many more with absolutely no intention of buying a book in Adams' series, written by "an outsider". The preceding 200 words have pretty much boiled down to "I was looking forward to reading this, but as I didn't consider the original series to be the Holy Grail of modern literature, wasn't going to be overly prejudiced". Even so, I think it's a bit of a balls-up, to be quite frank. not insofar as the characters are concerned - Colfer has clearly and deftly managed to win them all over to his style of writing (with the possible exception of Ford who I felt was as out-of-character as a wardrobe in a nudist colony). The problems I have are the complete juxtaposition with the whole milieu of the series - 61 Guide Notes dotted all over the place like barfed-up post-it stickers, for instance. And now we come to what is perhaps my most irritating irritant - the Irishman. "What was an Irishman without tea?" Is one of the lines relating thereto. As if shattering the uniqueness of one of Arthur's remaining comforts isn't enough, the scattering of "Bejaysus!" everywhere and the ridiculous leprechaun-filled Irish affectations truly, I am sad to say, ruin this for me. There are some things indefinably Adams about the series - the BBC, for one. Lord's Cricket Ground, for another. Chesterfield sofas, marvin, Eddie. these were quintessentially Adams. Unintelligible irishmen, made-up religions and the aging of Eccentrica Gallumbits (the triple-breasted whore of Eroticon 6) are most certainly not. I'm a big colfer fan, having enjoyed many of his works. In this instance, though, I feel he's taken the opportunity to become far too indelible to this volume. it's very 'him', and not particularly five-star Frood material. I enjoyed it as a story. As part of the series? Next...
4 Stars to The Artemis Fowl Files by Eoin Colfer
Description
Artemis Fowl’s confidential files have been discovered in his safe at Fowl Manor. Now you too can share the secrets! The Artemis Fowl Files will delight Eoin Colfer’s legions of fans with its behind-the-scenes interviews with the much-loved characters including: Holly Short, Mulch Diggums, and Artemis Fowl. Two brand-new Artemis Fowl short stories including: “LEPrecon,” the story of Fairy Police Captain Holly Short's move from Traffic to Recon following her initiation into the Fairy Police, and “The Seventh Dwarf,” featuring the flatulent dwarf Mulch Diggums, Butler, and Artemis himself. Plus: Special coded messages from the Fairy Book for fans to translate A “Fairy Spotter” Guide detailing the fairy world. Learn all about the physical characteristics and countless personality traits of the various fairy categories including: elves, trolls, sprites, pixies, goblins, and more. Cool descriptions and diagrams of Foaly’s greatest gadgets.
Review
As an avid Artemisian it's hard to believe that I hadn't read this yet. It was quite interesting, too - I think I liked the first story more than the second but the history side of things is often underplayed in the main sequence so worked well here. This sort of tie-in gets lost when you listen to audio books; a real shame as Nathaniel Parker (who narrates the unabridged novels) does so with such aplomb. It would have been nice if LEPrecon had been included as an audio bonus with The Opal Deception and The Seventh Dwarf with The Eternity Code but I suppose that's little more than wishful thinking.
2 Stars to Makers by Cory Doctorow
Description
From the New York Times bestselling author of Little Brother , a major novel of the booms, busts, and further booms in store for America Perry and Lester invent things—seashell robots that make toast, Boogie Woogie Elmo dolls that drive cars. They also invent entirely new economic systems, like the “New Work,” a New Deal for the technological era. Barefoot bankers cross the nation, microinvesting in high-tech communal mini-startups like Perry and Lester’s. Together, they transform the country, and Andrea Fleeks, a journo-turned-blogger, is there to document it. Then it slides into collapse. The New Work bust puts the dot.combomb to shame. Perry and Lester build a network of interactive rides in abandoned Wal-Marts across the land. As their rides, which commemorate the New Work’s glory days, gain in popularity, a rogue Disney executive grows jealous, and convinces the police that Perry and Lester’s 3D printers are being used to run off AK-47s. Hordes of goths descend on the shantytown built by the New Workers, joining the cult. Lawsuits multiply as venture capitalists take on a new investment backing litigation against companies like Disney. Lester and Perry’s friendship falls to pieces when Lester gets the ‘fatkins’ treatment, turning him into a sybaritic gigolo. Then things get really interesting.
Review
I must admit that this one didn't grip me nearly as much as I'd thought, hoped and expected from the surrounding fanfare. Some of the tech stuff was interesting, some of the attitudes in line with my own but mostly I found it a boring look into what the world might have ended up being if a certain geek sector took over.
3 Stars to Captain's Peril (Star Trek: Totality #1) by William Shatner
Description
The Dominion War is over. The Federation is at peace. What better time for two legendary starship captains to set aside the demands of duty and take some well-deserved time off? When Kirk and Picard arrive on Bajor to dive among the ruins of an ancient sunken city, things are far worse than they had planned.
Review
"I think it will work," Sulu said. He smiled at Scott. "The physics of it are sound." "Aye, physics," Scott complained. "We're basically throwing a rock off the back of the ship, so of course the physics will work. The thing will fall! Not much can go wrong with that." So yet again, we have a Kirk-centric experience. this time, there's orbital skydiving. Characterisation isn't too much of a problem because apart from Kirk (naturally) and Picard, there's nobody of familiarity (apart from the obligatory appearance of Kirk's old shipmates to pat him on the back and tell him how brilliant he is after the fact). Still, the story is passible and the look into some of Kirk's history is worth the rest of the claptrap. and poor, poor Captain Picard - can you get any more demeaning? "Fish food. Not quite the shining culmination of my career I'd imagined."
4 Stars to Your Country Needs You! by Mark Veronon Harland
Description
Sleaze, corruption and conceit have been the hallmarks of successive elected Governments and the Queen has had enough! Convinced that ordinary citizens selected at random by a new computer nicknamed RADO - Random Automatic Democratic Order - can run the world's fourth biggest economy just as effectively, she abolishes Parliament as we know it! Can a hundred and two (one per county) men and women 'good and true' possibly do any worse than the overpaid and over-rated career politicians they replace? Thus the story traces the action of a 'national draw' and subsequent life of the new Parliament. Has the Queen made a huge mistake? Could it work in reality and how would you react if your country needed YOU?
Review
that momentous night when the computer picked all your names out from the millions of citizens of this land will for ever be remembered as a defining moment in the history of this nation. A moment when the shackles of sleaze and corruption were shaken off, and at last the future of the country could be decided by ordinary people leading ordinary lives.
3 Stars to Preserver (Star Trek: The Mirror Universe Trilogy, #3) by William Shatner
Description
Captain Kirk is helpless to prevent his evil twin from capturing him, but the reappearance of the long-dormant "Preservers" will threaten the entire galaxy, unless he can prevent them. Reprint.
Review
No content provided.
3 Stars to Dark Victory (Star Trek: The Mirror Universe Trilogy, #2) by William Shatner
Description
James T. Kirk returns to the mirror universe that was first seen in the original televised Star Trek, to engage in a battle with the cleverest and most dangerous foe he has ever encountered, his mirror universe duplicate.
Review
No content provided.
3 Stars to Spectre (Star Trek: The Mirror Universe Trilogy, #1) by William Shatner
Description
Retired and happily married, Kirk believes his adventuring days are over. But as he returns to Earth for the first time since his apparent death upon the Enterprise-B, events elsewhere in the galaxy set in motion a mystery that may provide Kirk with his greatest challenge yet.
Review
the mirror Universe is hardly an overdone trek concept, and I can only admire the level of detail that went into the research for the characterisations. It's quite a thrilling read, although everything is Kirk, Kirk, Kirk.
3 Stars to Avenger (Star Trek: Odyssey, #3) by William Shatner
Description
A lethal virus, inimical to all conventional forms of plant life, threatens the entire Federation with starvation and dissolution. With the Federation already on the brink of overpopulation, Starfleet's resources are stretched to the limit. Whole worlds and even complete star systems are placed under quarantine, causing interstellar food supplies to run dangerously low, and hostile alien empires to eye the weakened Federation with malevolence. But now, in this moment of Starfleet's greatest need, Captain James T. Kirk, long believed dead, embarks on a desperate quest to find the source of the mysterious virus. Elsewhere in the galaxy, Ambassador Spock, his diplomatic efforts stalled by the spread of famine and chaos, returns to his native world of Vulcan to confront a mystery of a deeply personal nature. Did Sarek, his legendary father, really die of natural causes—or was he murdered? Determined to learn the truth, Spock begins a highly logical investigation that soon leads him to a reunion with a long-lost friend he never expected to see again. Kirk and Spock, together again, must join forces to save a new generation from an awesome menace unleashed by ruthless interplanetary conspiracy.
Review
This nicely ended the saga of Kirk's return - although credibility has, once again, been stretched to the max.
October
4 Stars to The Return (Star Trek: Odyssey, #2) by William Shatner
Description
Veridian III: A world has been saved, the U.S.S. Enterprise 1701-D lies in ruins, and one of the galaxy's greatest heroes rests beneath a simple cairn of rocks on a lonely hillside. But as a legendary Vulcan ambassador comes to the last grave of his best and dearest friend, the adventure is only beginning. The Borg and the Romulan Empire have joined forces against the Federation, and their ultimate weapon is none other than James T. Kirk, resurrected by alien science to destroy the Borg's most formidable enemy: Jean-Luc Picard. The astounding return of Kirk - as only William Shatner can tell it!
Review
"Geordi, I have frozen my eyelids together. I am such a failure!" that hasn't happened in the other 11 trek titles I've read in the last few months. this was Data, of course, and I must say the post-Generations setting of this novel explored some of the consequences of the movie fairly well. It is fascinating to note that Shatner's screen time as Captain Kirk was supposedly quite difficult for the other actors, and yet his novel characterises certain characters particularly effectively. Data and Worf are explored well, I feel; riker and some of the others a little less. It's still very much a Kirk novel, although there are indications that the ego has, if not diminished, made room for the new centuries characters. "I'm very familiar with your early exploits and adventures with your Captain, But surely you of all people can understand that the dead cannot return to life?" "There appear to be some of my 'exploits and adventures' with which you are not familiar." Spock and Riker don't hit it off in the slightest, but I suppose some antitheses are to be expected. One area at which this novel excels is the plucking out of historical events and fitting them in - This snatch of dialog clearly refers to Spock's tangle with the Genesis planet, for instance. much of Kirk's history is brought up in one way or another (not extensively or in any sort of overblown way, but in an aid to recall and with deft handling so we never feel weighed down by history). What's impossible to miss is the fact that despite Kirk supposedly died, he's back in action and raring to go. "Mr. Data, put us on a collision course with the Borg ship. I would like you to pull out at two seconds before collision." "Yes, sir. I believe I would like that as well." There's humour aplenty and action enough for anyone, and if we accept the postulate that Kirk 'had' to come back to make this novel (and the subsequent stories) work, this is a brilliant read. For those who feel Kirk's time is up, this may be a little on the sickly side. Kirk is portrayed as an excellent combatant, deceiver, computer-operator and pilot and it is perhaps a stretch, even for the inviolable kirk fans, that he's mastered decades of technological advancement in what is realistically no time at all. Nevertheless, the captain had a reputation to uphold and there's no getting around the fact that this is extremely well-written, easy-to-read and pleasing to boot. The spirit of this book can be summed up quite well, by a passage on page 116 relating to Captain Picard and his forced interaction with the Borg. To conclude this review, it reads: "Above him, a starship was in danger. Around him, Starfleet personnel looked to him for leadership. And on the thousand worlds of the Federation, an interstellar civilization unmatched in history teetered on the brink of extinction, to be saved or destroyed by what a single individual would accomplish in the next few minutes and hours. In the middle of action, there was no room for doubt. He could not afford it or allow it. He was a starship captain. It was time to make a difference."
3 Stars to The Woad to Wuin (Sir Apropos of Nothing, #2) by Peter David
Description
Apropos's peaceful career as a tavern owner is turned upside down by the arrival of the sorceress Sharee, with the forces of the war-mongering Lord Bellicose at her heels, who drags him into the middle of another dangerous adventure, this time under the identity of Wuin, the powerful scourge of the land, in the sequel to Sir Apropos of Nothing. Reprint.
Review
the opening of this book made me think a lot of the whit, humour and snazzy repartee was missing; for that reason I didn't seem to get on with it as well as the first title. Perhaps because of this lack of laughs the puns seemed to worsen and the omnipresent caricatures grated a little. nevertheless it was interesting to read the further adventures of Apropos. I'm slightly saddened that Isteria and its folks didn't make more of an appearance - I thought that King Runcible, Queen Bea and Princess Entipy were characters that could have gone further. of all the characters present in Sir Apropos of Nothing, Sharee and Meander were the ones I liked least, and of course they predominate in this volume. I'm therefore not overly impressed, and am hoping that when I read the third and final volume, that my confidence (or at least the fun factor) is put back into the parlance.
4 Stars to Mercenary (Bio of a Space Tyrant, #2) by Piers Anthony
Description
This is the second in the series BIO OF A SPACE TYRANT, featuring the stages in the life of Hope Hubris, the Tyrant of Jupiter, and his beloved sister Spirit.
Review
As gripping an instalment as the first, although the sex does seem somewhat overbearing. Still, the political climate and the military stuff is pretty good.
September
4 Stars to Treason (Star Trek: New Frontier, #17) by Peter David
Description
It is a time of political upheaval and uncertainty in the New Thallonian Protectorate. Following the brutal assassination of her husband, Si Cwan, former Starfleet officer-turned-newly-appointed-Prime Minister Robin Lefler must now face the growing danger and intrigue surrounding her newborn son and heir to the noble line of Cwan. Following a harrowing assassination attempt, Robin has no choice but to flee New Thallon with her child...seeking refuge with Captain Mackenzie Calhoun and the crew of the U.S.S. Excalibur and creating a major diplomatic crisis in Sector 221-G.
Review
Are vulcan's ever to blame for their own mistakes? It was fairly heartfelt, I suppose, in a cold, emotionally detached Vulcan kind of a way. Eyes open for a starfleet conspiracy though, looking fascinating.
2 Stars to Missing in Action (Star Trek: New Frontier, #16) by Peter David
Description
Peter David's unforgettable novels of Captain Mackenzie Calhoun and the crew of the Starship Excalibur remain one of Star Trek's most popular book series among fans. Now, David continues the thrilling new direction for the New Frontier universe begun in After the Fall with a novel that will shock and delight longtime and brand-new readers of this acclaimed series. Following the dramatic events of After the Fall, Captain Mackenzie Calhoun and the crew of the USS Excalibur find themselves catapulted headlong into another universe, far from the New Thallonian Protectorate and Sector 221-G... a place where an ancient war rages between two powerful alien races. But Calhoun has no intention of staying here for very long and, adopting the time-honored philosophy of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend," takes it upon himself to somehow (and by any means necessary) persuade one side or the other to help him and his crew get back home. Meanwhile, the shadow of war has fallen over the New Thallonian Protectorate, and an embattled Si Cwan faces growing treachery as he attempts to maintain his tenuous hold on power. With Starfleet and the Federation declaring Sector 221-G temporarily off-limits, Admiral Elizabeth Shelby and Captain Kat Mueller decide to take matters into their own hands, ignoring orders by trying to find some way of getting to the Excalibur, presuming there is any Excalibur to get to. But they never count on the most unexpected of allies -- an old friend whose shifting loyalties are about to be put to the ultimate test even as a growing cataclysm looms...
Review
Well, imagine that - 2 races at war with Calhoun in the middle. Sensing somethin' of a theme here. The Romulan stuff was first class, though, and I must say the whole thing with Cwan was fairly gripping. The Q angle got on my nerves, though.
4 Stars to After the Fall (Star Trek: New Frontier, #15) by Peter David
Description
Three years have passed since the events depicted in Stone and Anvil, and for the past and present crew of the USS Excalibur, life has taken many surprising twists and turns. Captain Elizabeth Shelby has been promoted to admiral and is commanding officer of Space Station Bravo – while her former starship, the USS Trident, has a new captain. Soleta has left Starfleet to embrace the perils of exploring her Romulan heritage. The powerful Zak Kebron doubles as Excalibur counselor and security chief. And Mackenzie Calhoun? Well, Mackenzie Calhoun's still who he is. As Si Cwan, prime minister of the New Thallonian Protectorate, prepares to marry off his sister Kallinda in a politically advantageous pairing that will strengthen his newly restored empire, the bride-to-be is abducted in a calamitous event that threatens to destabilize the entire sector – especially since Kallinda's abductor is all too familiar. As the Excalibur-A, the Trident, and the entire Thallonian fleet attempt to bring order to their sector of space, none could ever suspect that a mysterious alien force may also be playing a part in Kallinda's disappearance – and that the the entire galaxy may soon face a long-forgotten enemy.
Review
Soleta was a real surprise. The Spock thing is wearing a little thin, though.
4 Stars to Refugee (Bio of a Space Tyrant, #1) by Piers Anthony
Description
Though he was later accused of every crime and sexual perversion in the galaxy, Hope Hubris began as an Innocent. Because he defended his older sister against the violent lusts of a wealthy scion, Hope and his peasant family were forced to flee Callisto, one of the moons of Jupiter. Pursued by bloodthirsty scions across the ‘airless desert, they barely escaped with their lives. The Illegal space -bubble was overcrowded with refugees, all hoping to reach Jupiter for asylum. But the space travelers had not reckoned on the terrible threat of high space—the pirates, barbaric men who rape, rob, and murder, - with no thought but to satisfy their bestial appetites. it will take all Hope's ingenuity to survive, but the atrocities he witnesses will never die. There Is only one way he can be rid of them... This is the first in the series BIO OF A SPACE TYRANT, featuring the stages in the life of Hope Hubris, the Tyrant of Jupiter, and his beloved sister Spirit.
Review
And so begins the series of Hope Hubris. Judging by the prologue and epilogue there's a lot more to come - as if potential incest, murder, rape, torture and slavery weren't enough. I do enjoy the author, though - so onward and upward, as it were.
2 Stars to Bill, The Galactic Hero (Bill, The Galactic Hero, #1) by Harry Harrison
Description
It was the highest honor to defend the Empire against the dreaded Chingers, an enemy race of seven-foot-tall lizards. But Bill, a Technical Fertilizer Operator from a planet of farmers, wasn't interested in honor-he was only interested in two things: his chosen career, and the shapely curves of Inga-Maria Calyphigia. Then a recruiting robot shanghaied him with knockout drops, and he came to in deep space, aboard the Empire warship Christine Keeler. And from there, things got even worse.
Review
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4 Stars to Space Cadet by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
This is the seminal novel of a young man's education as a member of an elite, paternalistic non-military organization of leaders dedicated to preserving human civilization, the Solar Patrol, a provocative parallel to Heinlein's famous later novel, Starship Troopers. Only the best and brightest--the strongest and the most courageous--ever manage to become Space Cadets, at the Space Academy. They are in training to be come part of the elite guard of the solar system, accepting missions others fear, taking risks no others dare, and upholding the peace of the solar system for the benefit of all. But before Matt Dodson can earn his rightful place in the ranks, his mettle is to be tested in the most severe and extraordinary ways--ways that change him forever, from the midwestern American boy into a man of the Solar Patrol.
Review
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5 Stars to Replay by Ken Grimwood
Description
Jeff Winston was 43 and trapped in a tepid marriage and a dead-end job, waiting for that time when he could be truly happy, when he died. And when he woke and he was 18 again, with all his memories of the next 25 years intact. He could live his life again, avoiding the mistakes, making money from his knowledge of the future, seeking happiness. Until he dies at 43 and wakes up back in college again...
Review
No content provided.
2 Stars to Gladiator by Philip Wylie
Description
First published in 1930, Gladiator is the tale of Hugo Danner, a man endowed from birth with extraodinary strength and speed. But Danner is no altruist. He spends his life trying to cope with his abilities, becoming a sports hero in college, later a sideshow act, a war hero, never truly finding peace with himself. The character of Danner inspired both Superman's creators, and Lester Dent's Doc Savage. But Wylie, an editor with the New Yorker, sought to develop more than a pulp hero. His Gladiator provides surprising insights into the difficulties suffered by the truly gifted when born in our midst.
Review
I don't know what made me pick this one up. nothing to write home about but rather a depressing view of mankind. Watched the movie hancock a few days ago which reminded me of this book.
August
3 Stars to Starworld (To the Stars, #3) by Harry Harrison
Description
THE RETURN OF THE REBEL The stars are afire with rebellion against the tyranny of Earth. Jan Kulozik, rebel in exile, returns home as a prisoner on a ship bearing a cargo of death. But Kulozik escapes his captors and ignites the flames of revolt across half a world. With the aid of Dvora, a lovely but lethal comrade-at-arms, Jan races toward a rendezvous with destiny, and a reckoning with a treacherous double agent who holds the fate of the human race in his hands.
Review
A fairly average novel tying up everything that happened in the first two, I guess. I enjoyed it more than the predecessors because it contained more action, although the first in the series was more gripping, in a secret police state kind of a way. here, the action was enjoyable, the space warfare and technology well-thought-out and applied and the treachery and double-crossings endless. All though a little predictable at times, an interesting series (although I'm sick of females just in for the sex).
3 Stars to Wheelworld (To the Stars, #2) by Harry Harrison
Description
Book 2 of the To the Stars Trilogy
Review
This second installment takes off a few years after the first finishes, and sees our intrepid engineer isolated on a backwater planet with plenty of freedoms except those of speech and departure. he seems to be quite virile, too - the Don Juan of the spaceways, do we think? Sarah's quite easily left behind and although jan foments revolution and stands up for his rights, much of his anger at the authorities is still pent-up and unreleased.
3 Stars to Homeworld (To The Stars, #1) by Harry Harrison
Description
Jan Kulozik was one of Earth's privileged elite. A brilliant young electronics engineer, he enjoyed all the blessings of a 23rd-century civilization that survived the global collapse and conquered the stars, unaware of the millions who slaved or starved to maintain his way of life. Then Jan met Sara, a beautiful agent of the rebel underground dedicated to smashing Earth's rigid caste system. Through her he discovered the truth behind the lies he'd been taught. His every move watched by state surveillance, Jan risked his position and his life to restore humanity's heritage.
Review
Though quite orwellian in plot and detail, this book held little in the way of innovative technology. The future as depicted is a scary, fascinating one and as the protagonist shucks some of his naivety and really starts to bloom, things seem set to take off quite interestingly indeed.
3 Stars to Foundation (Foundation, #1) by Isaac Asimov
Description
The first novel in Isaac Asimov's classic science-fiction masterpiece, the Foundation series For twelve thousand years the Galactic Empire has ruled supreme. Now it is dying. But only Hari Seldon, creator of the revolutionary science of psychohistory, can see into the future--to a dark age of ignorance, barbarism, and warfare that will last thirty thousand years. To preserve knowledge and save humankind, Seldon gathers the best minds in the Empire--both scientists and scholars--and brings them to a bleak planet at the edge of the galaxy to serve as a beacon of hope for future generations. He calls his sanctuary the Foundation.
Review
when I told people I enjoyed reading science fiction, those that didn't turn away in disgust left in horror at the thought that I'd never read Foundation. I liked Asimov's robot stories a great deal in my teen days, but this was something I'd never picked up. So I did. Wasn't bad...
4 Stars to Crossover by Michael Jan Friedman
Description
Continuing the mission he began in "Unification", Starfleet Ambassador Spock endeavors to impart the logic of the Vulcan way to a small band of Romulans eager to unite the Romulan Empire and the planet Vulcan. But unbeknownst to them, a Romulan spy has joined the ranks disguised as a Unification sympathizer. Deceived by this traitor, Spock and his students are taken hostage. Fearful that Spock's knowledge of Federation security will fall into enemy hands, Starfleet dispatches its best ship, the USS Enterprise 1701-D, and most respected captain, Jean-Luc Picard, to secure the hostages' release. Spock's former shipmate from the original Starship Enterprise, Ambassador McCoy – over one hundred forty years old, but still as feisty as ever – is brought in to consult on the negotiations. Their situation is further complicated when Captain Montgomery Scott confiscates an out-of-service starship and effects his own daring rescue of Spock. Picard must now find a way to preserve the Federation's security and prevent a war while treading a minefield of danger and deadly Romulan politics that threaten his ship, his crew, and the Federation he serves.
Review
I really enjoyed this book. The insults put me in mind of a polite peter David, and this novel provides a nice addition to the Relics television episode as well.
July
4 Stars to Better than Life (Red Dwarf #2) by Grant Naylor
Description
When Holly, the computer on the "Red Dwarf," suddenly goes dumb, David Lister, the holographic Arnold Rimmer, Cat, and Kryten, the cleaning robot, become trapped in a game called "Better Than Life," and it is up to a talking Toaster to save them all
Review
"We're talking about the trigonomics of four-dimensional space, you simple-minded gimboid, we're not talking about some seedy game of pool in a back street Scouse drinking-pit." Lister's pool shot has to be one of my favourite scenes in this book, but all of it is top-notch and funny to boot. Arn's mental instability is topped only by the disregard the entire Human race held for the Earth, and the Eurovision and Star Trek references were well appreciated. "You wouldn't catch her peeing in no stand-up you-rinal. Be a cold day in hell before you searched through her handbag and found a pair of testicle handcuffs." Lister's love life predictably yo-yos from "perfect" to "dismal" throughout, and it's interesting to see some of the television episode ideas come to life. They sometimes spin off in a different direction, of course, but the whole book is well packed with amusing moments.
5 Stars to Metamorphosis (Star Trek: The Next Generation Unnumbered) by Jean Lorrah
Description
Unexplained gravitational disturbances summon Captain Picard and the Starship Enterprise to the planet Elysia, and the android Lieutenant Commander Data to a date with destiny. For on this alien world, he is drawn into an impossible quest, leading him to consequences both heartwarming and disastrous, as he finally dares to pursue his fondest desire: to become human.
Review
if i'd realised that jean Lorra had written this novel I would have read it a long, long time ago. survivors, the other work I've read, is without doubt the most emotionally-compelling Star Trek novel I have ever come across. Lorra's done it again, this time, with Data. He played an important part in Survivors, and a lot of that bleeds through. The story of tasha yar was a tragic one - but of course, Data's quest for Humanity, if written well, could be as poignant and as heartfelt as yar's lost love. Could be, I said? Only could be? Why should I be so unstinting with my enjoyment? To answer that, we have to go back a little in time - my time, that is. In actuality we're jumping forward from the viewpoint of the novel, all the way to the tenth star trek movie, nemesis. And forward again, to the end of nemesis... to Data's sacrifice. "Good bye", he said. And then he fired his phaser into the Thalaron matrix of the Scimitar, obliterating the ship, the danger, and himself. The look In picard's eyes when he realises what's going to happen - pivital. Immense. Breathtaking. Or it should have been. having no vision, I am unable to judge. The paragraphs describing it on page 180 of J.M. Dillard's novelisation certainly seem adequate, but no more than that. there's no depth, no emotional punch. I left the cinema having enjoyed the film, wondering absently just how many more times the Enterprise would grace our screens, saddened that Data was gone, but not truly involved in the sacrifice he made for his crew and the people of Earth. The novel? I don't know, I haven't read it. Apart from the few pages I just consumed to get an impression of the thing it has never been opened. so perhaps now you'll understand why, when I sat down to read this author of Authors and realised that the story was going to be Data-centric, I had my doubts. not about the quality of the writing or the impact it would have, but about just how far my own feelings could stretch to a character I'd enjoyed on TV but that I knew was going to be blown to smithereens in an alien starship. I wanted the Data from the future of All Good Things, the professorial, contraction-spouting Data that he'd tried so hard to become, whilst respect for the character and his actor swelled through one-hundred and seventy-five television and four feature-film appearances. This book takes place before all of that, of course, and before anyone starts jumping down my throat, I know that these things aren't canon. I even know that there are some apocrypha, some inconsistencies in both backstory and future development. But how can anyone deny the power of this novel? how can anybody, anyone at all who appreciates the character that was Data not read this book and come away moved? i'll admit that it didn't have the emotional impact of the story of yar - Tasha was different. less defined on screen, more malleable and, I think, better suited to lorra's style of story. But with that in mind,, the impact is still considerable. There are a few minor things to point out. The use of the term "landing party" leads into "away team", and I like that - truly a generation gap. did they use Landing party on enterprise, when matter transport was less employed? I hope so. good continuity. Similarly, the "it was a vision/dream" approach might have been tiresome, if it weren't for the vestigial deja vu-like sequences. personally, I think Thralen should've died the second time around, just to bring home the universal constants of suffering and pain - perhaps I'm being a little morbid but it otherwise seems too perfect, too q-like, to keep terms within trek Vernacular. Darryl Adin has remained a seriously underplayed character - if Peter David's new Frontier lot can take off so well, why not an extraordinarily effective bunch of freedom fighters with a former Starfleet security officer? That's enough, I think. jean Lorra has managed to take two brilliantly portrayed characters right off of our television screens and provide them with deep, rich, and vibrant emotions through two TNG novels all their own. i'm sorry, but Dillard's pros just cannot compare.
3 Stars to The Gilded Chain (The King's Blades, #1) by Dave Duncan
Description
Review
This book has garnered a lot of good will, from some very high-flying people. my views on Duncan are something of a mixed bag - I absolutely loved his Seventh sword series but wasn't too keen on the Alchemists Apprentice. I was nevertheless presently surprised by the Gilded chain. Perhaps, because the first seventh sword book was that little bit shorter, or perhaps just because it was a different story, I enjoyed it (and subsequently the series) that much more. Gilded chain started to chafe a little; given the overarching morality of Durendal and the introduction and prancing displays of the inquisitor's at almost the outset of the book. Still, a very solid, fantasy romp, with good swordsmanship and an interesting take on the allegiance of knights to a monarch. The magic is different to many other titles I've seen - in many cases, magic often saves the day or becomes a far too pivital plot point. here, requiring an octogram and chanting, as well as having The White Sisters who can detect enchantment's residue, magic becomes a much riskier venture. it seems that the ending of this book paves the way for the beginning of the next. I suppose I shall come to it soon - not immediately, but despite its shortcomings, I quite enjoyed it.
4 Stars to Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers (Red Dwarf, #1) by Grant Naylor
Description
8 hours, 15 minutes Nominated for the Audiobook Download of the Year, 2008. When Lister got drunk, he really got drunk! After celebrating his birthday with a Monopoly-board pub crawl around London, he came to in a burger bar on one of Saturn's moons, wearing a lady's pink crimplene hat and a pair of yellow fishing waders, with no money and a passport in the name of "Emily Berkenstein." Joining the Space Corps seemed a good idea. Red Dwarf, a clapped out spaceship, was bound for Earth. It never made it, leaving Lister as the last remaining member of the human race, three million light years from Earth, with only a dead man, a senile computer, and a highly evolved cat for company. They begin their journey home. On the way, they'll break the light barrier. They'll meet Einstein, Archimedes, God, and Norman Wisdom...and discover an alternative plane of reality.
Review
"Emergency. There's an emergency going on. It's still going on, and it's an emergency." Red dwarf is one of those TV shows that works even better as a book. you lose the actors, of course, but the fun behind the whole thing is still there and the pros and dialog simply ooze laughter. "No way are these my boxer shorts. They bend!" A great one-liner from lister, and not even one of the funniest. Was great on the box, and is great in paper.
3 Stars to Orphans of the Sky by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
An umbrella title for the novelette Universe and its sequel novella Common Sense, published originally in 1941 in two different issues of Astounding Science Fiction. First published under this title in 1963. Heinlein gives us one of the earliest uses in science fiction of the "generation ship" idea, a huge spaceship transporting an entire community of humans to a destination so distant that generations will pass during its journey. And as Heinlein demonstrates, the origins of the community can become forgotten, misinterpreted, and otherwise distorted with the long passage.
Review
Interesting characters, and certainly a more action-packed and faster-paced work than something similar (such as Captive Universe which explores similar themes, all-be-it with a different slant.
3 Stars to The Witches by Roald Dahl
Description
Note: This edition shares ISBN 0590032496 with another edition. This is not a fairy-tale. This is about real witches. Real witches don't ride around on broomsticks. They don't even wear black cloaks and hats. They are vile, cunning, detestable creatures who disguise themselves as nice, ordinary ladies. So how can you tell when you're face to face with one? Well, if you don't know yet you'd better find out quickly-because there's nothing a witch loathes quite as much as children and she'll wield all kinds of terrifying powers to get rid of them.
Review
No content provided.
2 Stars to Grounded (Star Trek: The Next Generation #25) by David Bischoff
Description
While answering a distress call from a scientific station in a remote part of the galaxy, the U.S.S. Enterprise becomes infected with a mysterious alien life form which feeds on and transforms inorganic materials. The Starship begins to gradually disintegrate, and Starfleet is forced to order its evacuation and destruction to prevent the dangerous infection from spreading throughout the galaxy. It's the end of an era for Captain Picard and his crew, who are scheduled for transfers that will split them up among different Starfleet vessels. But even as the end draws near for the Starship Enterprise, Captain Picard begins to formulate a desperate plan to save his ship and preserve his crew—a plan that will force him to defy Starfleet orders and lead him to a confrontation with a malevolent alien force which has the power to destroy the entire Federation.
Review
"If we can contain it, we shall contain it. If we can communicate with it, then we shall communicate with it. And if it indeed threatens us further, if the lives of other members of this crew are endangered, then it must be destroyed." So says Picard, noble captain of the enterprise. And I suppose he has a point, given that his ship is being threatened by dirt. or clay, rather. bit of a humdrum storyline, truth be told. Seemingly harmless organic matter rising up and being dangerous? can you say "Home Soil"? A hither too hidden possible romance? Try "The Measure of a man". To soothe the cries of outrage, please be assured that I had to go look up those episode titles - all I could remember were the terms "bags of mostly water" from home soil (episode 1.18 for those who count such things), and I couldn't remember Picard's female foil in The Measure of a man (2.09), but did recall the office "Judge Advocate General". her name was Phillipa Louvois, by the by. Seeing her first lines of dialog written here reminds me of another point I meant to raise - one of grammar. I know that many of us struggle with the terms "to", "too" and "two". English is positively machiavellian in that way sometimes. But when an author, an editor, a publisher, and whoever else vets a work before it goes on mass production allows no less than 2 blatantly incorrect uses of the word "to" to go unchecked, a few eyebrows cannot but help be raised. I'm no demigod of the english language (I daren't count my mistakes) - but then if I were publishing this review and expecting to make money out of it (offers welcome) then I'd be sure to attempt to conform to the linguistic guidelines of my chosen medium. To cap this rant off, louvois' line was "Don't gloat, Picard. It's almost more irritating then when you're being self-righteous". I'd point out precisely where the error sits - but you're not blind. even if you are, you can see it. I'm not going to tell you not to read this book. Deadly danger to the Enterprise, interesting new characters, a little light profanity (not even from Riker) and following the early TV format wherein the last fifth of the thing finishes the threat, with little previously accumulated data to help. I quite liked the proposed theories on autism, though... What else? data was quite central, and that worked well. Worf might as well have been on vacation, for all the useful input he had. Killed a few hours at least - a title i'm going to now forget about.
4 Stars to The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
It is a tale of revolution, of the rebellion of a former penal colony on the Moon against its masters on the Earth. It is a tale of a culture whose family structures are based on the presence of two men for every woman, leading to novel forms of marriage and family. It is the story of the disparate people, a computer technician, a vigorous young female agitator, and an elderly academic who become the movement's leaders, and of Mike, the supercomputer whose sentience is known only to the revolt's inner circle, who for reasons of his own is committed to the revolution's ultimate success.
Review
There haven't been a huge number of novels I've read with a huge world following. This is one of those, and so I shall refrain from drawing too many erroneous and malformed conclusions in favour of pointing out that I just enjoyed it as a story. The grammar and linguistics were interesting, the plot enjoyable, andd the revolution well-executed and utterly enthralling.
4 Stars to The Ambivalent Magician (Reluctant Sorcerer #3) by Simon Hawke
Description
Trapped in a paralled universe, Dr. Marvin Brewster marshals his renegade nation of brigands, dragons, trolls, vampire elves, and the runesword Dwarfkabob to challenge evil wizard Warrick. Aware that he's the dastardly villain of a nonstop rollicking adventure romp, Warrick plays the role of destiny and changes the path of the ambivalent magician--while it's being written.
Review
And so, with as many endings as books in the series (almost), this witty, erudite gem of a saga draws to a close. This isn't the first time I've read them, but I make it a policy here on Goodreads to only mark books i've read when I can give them a thought-out rating, or a little review, or both. This series is so different from anything else of hawke's i've read (Time Wars and a little TNG), but I was hooked from the start and delighted all the way through. the characters? Cliched and stereotyped - but with an edge of unpredictability that made them just a little more than your average fantasy-world denizens. The world? Rich, even the bushes march about. and the dialog, the wordage, the personalities (not to mention the unorthodox narrative impositions) all add up to a series most excellent. if you're looking for a few hours to kill, and you're a fan of lighthearted fantasy or science fiction (or you happen to know someone who's nagging you incessantly), you could certainly pick worse titles with which to while away your woes.
0 Stars to Endgame Enigma by P. James Hogan
Description
Early in the 21st century, Russia has heroically gathered its dwindling resources to build "Valentina Tereshkova", a space station rumored to have actually been built by the last heirs of the Soviet dictators as a weapon. When scientists Paula Bryce and agent Lew McCain travel to the station to investigate, they become prisoners in the station's high-tech prison facilities.
Review
James hogan was a man with far too much time on his hands. The complexities of the plot (not to mention the diagrams) are well thought out and had me wondering, almost, up until the end. I never doubted the aims of the Russians, I suppose it's far too much to expect anything other than what we found, given the western viewpoint with which the novel was penned.
4 Stars to The Inadequate Adept (Reluctant Sorcerer, #2) by Simon Hawke
Description
Trapped in a parallel universe, reluctant sorcerer Marvin Brewster must stop an evil wizard who has captured a time machine.
Review
A great continuation, and no mistake. The fun is all still there, and things are only looking more interesting
5 Stars to The Reluctant Sorcerer (Reluctant Sorcerer, #1) by Simon Hawke
Description
Accidentally transported through time to a parallel universe where magic really works, bumbling genius Dr. Marvin Brewster is mistaken for a sorcerer and must escape through a route controlled by the Grand Director of the sorcerers' guild.
Review
I absolutely love this book. i've yet to see an author with Hawke's style of narrative aside, the intrusions add a great punch to the story. The characters are utterly amusing, the dialog charming and spot-on, and the whole concept so lightly funny that one simply has to read all the way through then dive at the next one just for the sheer hell of it.
3 Stars to Flashback (Star Trek: Voyager) by Diane Carey
Description
A hundred years before the Starship Voyager was transported to the Delta Quadrant, Lieutenant Tuvok served under one of Starfleet's most famous officers: Captain Hikaru Sulu of the Starship Excelsior. Now those days have come back to haunt him. While traveling through an uncharted nebula, Tuvok is besieged by recurring memories of his time with Captain Sulu-- repressed memories that may well kill him unless their source is determined in time. To save her closest friend, Captain Kathryn Janeway follows Tuvok to the century-old bridge of the Excelsior during a desperate battle. There Tuvok, Captain Janeway, Captain Sulu and Commander Janice Rand must face a menace to galactic life unlike anything known before...
Review
I first encountered this story almost 13 years ago during it's 1996 television debut as part of Voyager's third season. Written, as it was, to commemorate Star Trek's thirtieth anniversary, it seems almost inevitable that a novel should have emerged, unsurprisingly swiftly upon the heals of the teleplay. What's more surprising, to me at least, is the fact that I quite enjoyed this novel. a mere 5 of the 39 voyager novels currently listed are based on television episodes. Perhaps I was too young at the time (I was only eight years old when voyager started showing), but even looking back, I can see potential episodes that would've made superb novels. The other four (which I have read and will read again before I put down my conclusions too conclusively) all flagged themselves in my mind as unworthy for one reason or another, and so Flashback is the one, so far, that leads the pack. Again, I can only attribute my sluggishness in remembering where this whole story was going to my youth, but it wasn't until The Doctor said 'Who's is that?' that I was able to comprehend the rationale behind the plot. it was a rather sudden revelation, came upon me with light bulb precision, actually - I didn't even have time to stop reading before it sank in and I was there, fully grasping what had happened (and what was to come). odd, how 13 years of memory can cloud something, until one line of dialog can snap you back to something absorbed long ago and buried... Was that line of dialog in the episode? I do not recall. it's unimportant. I'm not going to go into the plot, only to note the fact that the novel expanded in several large areas on the television episode. it really worked here, giving insight into the Vulcan Mind, Tuvok in particular, and some of the events of the 2290's. Despite several continuity errors from the era, it managed to hold its own well. One thing I did feel a little overdone was the final chapters, where Tuvok talks with Sulu and Spock. While the author certainly knows her business with these characters (having penned some excellent TOS titles), their seemed little use to dragging them into the end of this book - sort of a hactenus ex machina feel to the moment - an impression that what had gone on before (from then, as in the 2290's) and what had gone on after (as in the intervening time) just happened to fit their words and give them a ring of power and wisdom. or perhaps it's just me... I've been unable to shake the feeling, while rereading many of these trek titles, that there's not a great deal of latitude (because the characters all end up a certain way onscreen, post-novel). Some books make me feel this more strongly than others and Flashback wasn't overly powerful in that way, which is good, but it was by no means a perfect read. But then I have odd ideas about what constitutes a great novel. That's why I've never written my own.
3 Stars to Through the Ice by Piers Anthony
Description
Seth is whisked from fighting teenage punks in Michigan to being part of a quest—along with Tirsa the telepath, Rame the faun, and Vidav the giant—when he falls through the ice.
Review
A fairly regular fantasy story, I suppose - interesting to read because of the circumstances of its creation, of course. Enjoyable enough, certainly, although predictable as anything.
4 Stars to The Zenda Vendetta (Time Wars, #4) by Simon Hawke
Description
In he kingdom of Ruritania, Prince Rudolf is about to be crowned king. Instead, due to the machinations of his half-brother, he becomes the "Prisoner of Zenda." That was back in the 19th century. But history is about to repeat itself--with a twist. The TIMEKEEPERS, the terrorist underground from the 27th century, have traveled backward once again to try and sabotage the course of history. However insignificant Ruritania may be, the slightest tampering with the past would have incalculable consequences for the present. The commandos of the Temporal Intelligence Agency, Lucas Priest, Finn Delaney and Andre Cross, have another temporal adjustment on their hands. And all they have for a guide is an obscure 19th century novel!
Review
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3 Stars to The Pimpernel Plot (Time Wars, #3) by Simon Hawke
Description
Time travel wasn't just fun and adventure. Major Lucas Priest, a veteran of the Time Wars, was aware of the danger of operating in Minus Time. One false move, and the course of history is changed with incalculable consequences. Now Lucas is faced with the greatest challenge of his career: to readjust the events of the French Revolution and correct the blunder made by an agent of the Temporal Corps. Alex Corderro, in his first hitch in Minus Time, had caused the death of Sir Percy Blakeney, the English aristocrat who played a key role in saving French royalists from the guillotine. Someone had to impersonate Blakeney and carry out his task. Easier said than done. Especially since the much-feared Mongoose, that great saboteur and double agent from the 27th century, was on the loose again. And Mongoose had other ideas of how history should proceed . . .
Review
No content provided.
3 Stars to The Timekeeper Conspiracy by Simon Hawke
Description
At first the discovery of minus time seemed like a blessing. Countries at war could fight their battles in the past rather than destroy the present. But now the situation was desperate. Humanity faced the danger of a temporal split, with incalculable consequences, as a result of attempts to change the past. So Captain Lucas Priest, a seasoned veteran of the Temporal Corps, was dispatched to seventeeth-century France. In the world of Cardinal Richelieu and the Three Musketeers, he must infiltrate the terrorist underground called the Timekeepers and put an end to their mad schemes forever...whatever forever means!.
Review
No content provided.
3 Stars to Hard Sell by Piers Anthony
Description
Mr. Fisk Centers buys real estate on Mars, where he drives a supersonic car in a suicide race and visits a robot mortician for a sample embalming. Reprint.
Review
oh, it's shallow and pieced together and utterly silly. but I enjoyed it.
3 Stars to The Ivanhoe Gambit (Time Wars, #1) by Simon Hawke
Description
In the 27th Century, international disputes are resolved through time travel, “clocking” soldiers from the future into conflicts of the past. It seemed like an elegant wartime industries drove the economy without actually putting nations through the physical ravages of war. And since the past already happened, history could not be changed. So went the theory. What could possibly go wrong? Lucas Priest found out the hard way. Enlisting in the U.S. Army Temporal Corps seemed like an adventure compared to his boring corporate job, but after marching with the Roman legions against Hannibal, fighting Custer’s 7th Cavalry with Crazy Horse, and raiding with Attila’s savage Huns, he could have used a little boredom. And it was about to get much worse. History, it turned out, could be changed, and a plot to kidnap and impersonate King Richard the Lion-hearted was discovered barely in the nick of time. But could it be stopped before a madman changed the course of history? Two elite commando teams had tried and failed in their attempts. Now Priest was drafted to take part in a third. The team was tasked to infiltrate the past with impersonations of their own to prevent a timestream split. But it would be hard enough passing themselves off as Sir Ivanhoe, Robin Hood, and Little John without having to assassinate a king….
Review
Surprisingly comprehensive views on time travel and an interesting plot as well.
3 Stars to The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
Every evening, Jonathan Hoag finds a mysterious reddish substance under his fingernails, with no memory of how it got there. He hires the husband-and-wife detective team of Ted and Cynthia Randall to follow him and find out. But Ted and Cynthia are mystified when they find that their own memories of what happens during their investigation do not match. There is a thirteenth floor to Jonathan's building that does not exist, there are mysterious and threatening beings living inside mirrors, and all of reality is not what they thought it was. Contents ...And He Built a Crooked House... (1941) They (1941) The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag (1942) Our Fair City (1949) The Man Who Traveled in Elephants (1957) ...All You Zombies... (1959)
Review
This was just weird. heinlein's hard SF stuff is more my cup of tea, I think - I'm just glad I have no site. For to look into a mirror... Scary...
0 Stars to End of an Era by Robert J. Sawyer
Description
Archaeologist Brandon Thackery and his rival Miles 'Klicks' Jordan fulfill a dinosaur lover's dream with history's first time-travel jaunt to the late Mesozoic. Hoping to solve the extinction mystery, they find Earth's gravity is only half its 21st century value and dinosaurs that behave very strangely. Could the slimey blue creatures from Mars have something to do with both?
Review
what an utterly superb little book this turned out to be. Time travel, lots of jargon, and most of all a brilliantly innovative rationale for the extinction of the dinosaurs. The Martians grasp of English provided plenty of amusement, the only thing that was off was the profanity.
June
3 Stars to The Amber Wizard (The Osserian Saga, #1) by David Forbes
Description
For a thousand years, there have been no great wizards in the world -- and even longer since a wizard-king reigned. Now all must welcome and fear the coming of The Amber Wizard As Gerin Atreyano takes his place as the Crown Prince of Khedesh after his father ascends to the throne, a stranger appears and proclaims that Gerin may be the amber wizard foretold long ago. Now young Gerin's training, both as prince and wizard, must begin in earnest. But his enemies place a secret enchantment upon him, pulling him down a path of darkness. As opposing forces mass across the land, arming for bloody war, he inadvertently opens an ancient portal using forbidden magic. And suddenly Gerin Atreyano faces a dual destiny as savior or destroyer of a world in chaos -- as he prepares for the dread reemergence of humanity's most powerful Asankaru, the vengeful and terrible Storm King.
Review
Not a bad little book, but somehow I couldn't quite get into it. had shadowings of Earthsea (with the young guy learns he's a wizard and releases hell) motif. The soldiers were well done, the geography and culture of the people's was interesting. perhaps this book simply had the misfortune of coming after Hobb's Farseer trilogy in my reading list and so paled in comparison.
4 Stars to Assassin's Quest (Farseer Trilogy, #3) by Robin Hobb
Description
King Shrewd is dead at the hands of his son Regal. As is Fitz--or so his enemies and friends believe. But with the help of his allies and his beast magic, he emerges from the grave, deeply scarred in body and soul. The kingdom also teeters toward ruin: Regal has plundered and abandoned the capital, while the rightful heir, Prince Verity, is lost to his mad quest--perhaps to death. Only Verity's return--or the heir his princess carries--can save the Six Duchies. But Fitz will not wait. Driven by loss and bitter memories, he undertakes a quest: to kill Regal. The journey casts him into deep waters, as he discovers wild currents of magic within him--currents that will either drown him or make him something more than he was.
Review
"I take myself with me. That's all I truly need, or own." Very Klingon sentiment, actually - but true, it seems. For this is the impression I was left with upon finishing this most epic of series at 3:15 AM in the morning. This is a cut above 2:00 AM, which you may remember was my previous deadline for actually getting some sleep. "FitzChivalry. Hero. Just words." Another good one. As this final story unfolds, we see just how Fitz, verity and all who are concerned with them end up. It is a sweeping, grand, mildly meloncholic finish which left me feeling empty and drained. "Fate had made me a killer, a liar, and a thief. And the harder I tried to avoid those roles, the more firmly I was pushed into them." The dialog here isn't as snappy as we've seen before, but the commentary, the feelings and the thoughts; all these batter us with their relentlessness. Things set in motion from the previous 2 books are on paths that no-one can stop, and it just remained to see precisely who came out when, where - and in how many bits. 'But for now, let me show you something else. No, step back, please, so you can see it all. Here it comes.' I heard the slam and the latch. 'The outside of my door,' the Fool announced gladly. "I painted it myself. Do you like it?" There are moments of amusement, even unbridled joy. but on the whole, this is a sombre, sad, torn ending to a series whics so enthralled and swept me up from its very opening pages. I've remarked before how lighthearted some stuff has been before it, yet this is unquestionably more real. More serious. more painful... "Sometimes all the choices are poor ones, and still a man must choose." Now that Fitz has recognised this truth, he has to resign himself to the fait in store for him. it is a hard, lonely and sorrowful road he treads, and the sacrifices he makes, the life he seems to end up leading, all of it reflects and rebounds in the mind in such a way that it's hard to decide if it's a mercy or not. Fitz was, is, and has always been a King's man. whether he will continue to be may yet reveal itself in further Hobb titles.
4 Stars to Realtime Interrupt by James P. Hogan
Description
A man revivesafter blacking out in his garden to find himself in the body of a younger man named Joe. Original.
Review
This is truly one of my favourite Hogan novels. partly for the reality of the virtual reality, but partly for the emotional development. Corrigan loses much of his ambition as the novel proceeds, and for anyone so dedicated to their work that they'd backstab even their friends, it's certainly a worthwhile read. the AI stuff is quite good, too...
5 Stars to Royal Assassin (Farseer Trilogy, #2) by Robin Hobb
Description
The legend continues… Regal’s treasonous attempt to usurp the Six Duchies throne from his half-brother Verity has been foiled. Now, as Fitz recovers slowly from the foul poison administered to him, the King’s Fool prophesies: ‘We are here, Fitz, you and I, to change the future and the world...’ Cover illustration by John Howe
Review
without a shadow of a doubt, this is one of the most compelling, exhaustingly detailed and riveting series of books I have ever read. I can only apologise for not peppering my thoughts with quotes from the text as I have done in recent times. if i'm hurrying through a book, I'm lining up another title - or if the one I am reading so grips me that I haven't even the whit to pause and note a place wherein resides an interesting quote, then I can often come out of my reading hays and think 'oh my: is it over?' I'm on the next one already, really - it's the second night I've been awake until gone 2:00 AM reading and these pull at me mercilessly. Other recently-consumed trilogies - Dave duncan's destiny of the Sword, Star trek: millennium and the Black Magician trilogy - all were gripping and enjoyable. but this has a different feel to it - a darker, more mature, more adult feel. A more dangerous feel, too. Someone said that this author isn't afraid to throw hardship at the characters. All I can say to that is... Too true.
4 Stars to Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer Trilogy, #1) by Robin Hobb
Description
alternate cover for ISBN 0006480098/9780006480099 Fitz is a royal bastard, cast out into the world with only his magical link with animals for solace and companionship. But when Fitz is adopted into the royal household, he must give up his old ways and learn a new life: weaponry, scribing, courtly manners; and how to kill a man secretly. Meanwhile, raiders ravage the coasts, leaving the people Forged and soulless. As Fitz grows towards manhood, he will have to face his first terrifying mission, a task that poses as much a risk to himself as it does to his target: Fitz is a threat to the throne… but he may also be the key to the future of the kingdom. Cover illustration by John Howe
Review
"Royalty has no leisure to ignore such opportunities, or to let them be created for others." So says old King Shrewd, and he's right. this superbly spun tale launches us into the life of Fitz Chivalry, who (at page open) is dumped on a doorstep and taken in by the royal family: Fitz, being 6 years old, doesn't understand why. he's given over to the care of a stablemaster. "Bastard you may be, but you're Chivalry's bastard, and I'll make you a man he'll be proud of." Burrich by name and loyal by nature, Fitz is cared for by this once proud man, who has now fallen a few rungs on the political ladder, all because, ironically enough, of fitz's existance. His father (Prince Chivalry) was king in waiting, but abdicated his throne when word of the boy spread. thus the scene is set for Fitz to enter Buckkeep castle. It's not until a few years later that King Shrewd makes his move. "There he stands, young, strong, and resourceful. His lines are every bit as royal as yours, for all that he was born on the wrong side of the sheets. So what will you make of him? A tool? A weapon? A comrade? An enemy? Or will you leave him lying about, for someone else to take up and use against you?" Shrewd (as his name might imply) is aware of the tendency for royal bastards to cause major uprisings when they come of age. perhaps as a method of preventing any such thing, he makes Fitz a Kings Man; with his loyalty sworn at a young age. Fitz grows up happy to do anything for his king and, as is obvious from the book's title, sets out to become an assassin under the tutelage of the king's master assassin chade. "We are better parted, boy. Better for both of us. There can be no misunderstandings if there are no understandings at all." But all is not smooth sailing for Fitz, and some of his skills lose him the support of his staunchest allies. The whole thing is very much solid fantasy, the world original, magic important but underplayed and two more books in this trilogy alone to work through. Heaven!
May
4 Stars to A Stainless Steel Rat Is Born (Stainless Steel Rat, #1) by Harry Harrison
Description
A chronicle of the life and times of the Stainless Steel Rat; traces the rise of "Slippery Jim" diGriz from his humble origins as a shoplifter, through his schooling in arts of crime with the Bishop, to the heights of crime as an intergalactic con-man.
Review
I think this is one of my favourite of the rat series. The first held the opening thrill and some of the ones up until this point have been enjoyable, but nothing's really taken us back and given us some of our heroes history. it is this history that makes the man, of course; and so although it may seem a little cliched and repetitive to hear of the same rationales for crime, there's nevertheless a fresh twist on the whole shebang - truly a breath of fresh air.
4 Stars to Idlewild (Idlewild, #1) by Nick Sagan
Description
It is a not-too-distant future in our all-too-recognizable world. It is the late twenty-first century and a deadly virus has seeped into human kind's genetic make-up. In only a few generations this plague will have wiped us off the face of the planet, but we're not going down without a fight. Teams of scientists, geneticists and programmers race to find a cure, but time is not on our side and our only hope lies in one last, desperate gamble... Eighteen years later and ten individuals are about to come of age. One of them, a young man, is suddenly startled awake. He has no memory. His surroundings mean nothing to him. All he knows for certain is that someone is trying to kill him. Unsure who he can trust, he is reacquainted with his companions, all of whom are being trained at a special establishment run by the elusive Maestro. As he tries to uncover the identity of his would-be killer, it becomes clear that more - so much more - than just his life is at stake... Smart, stylish, terrifying and thrilling in equal measure, Idlewild fuses the fierce imagination of The Matrix with the chilling social vision of Minority Report, and introduces a singular new literary voice.
Review
People are calling Sagan everything from a revolutionary to a thief, this debut novel has folk up in arms with rapture, for the most part. I like Paul Skevington's character summation - he writes: "we are presented with a very realistic and credible depiction of a group of teenagers who are teetering on the edge of a grim precipice that they will be lucky to escape from." I agree with the point, also; rather than just liking the sentiment - the characters are certainly nicely done and their world a terrifyingly real place. what I wondered about was the perceived arrogance of the characters, running mostly throughout the book. because they've spent their lives in virtual reality, been educated to an extremely high standard, and placed in a world where the nature and the nurture are completely aligned, it's obvious that the native intelligence of the characters is higher than that of the average Human. Even working on the law of averages we can assume that despite whatever other weaknesses they may possess (immune system deficiencies, psychological disturbances etc), person for person they are rather clever. It's odd to see the reverse in fiction, the breed of 'superman' always seems to have brought with it a contempt for humankind. While the case is somewhat different here (the characters are teens, they have almost been programmed to save the world) there's still a great deal, an overwhelming number, of flaws in their makeup. Still, that aside, it's an interesting read. Enjoyable, too - kept me on the edge of my seat and up until the wee hours. I've deliberately been vague about the plot because the thing comes together in its own time rather well and reading too much about it would have surely spoiled it for me.
3 Stars to The Stainless Steel Rat for President (Stainless Steel Rat, #8) by Harry Harrison
Description
The Stainless Steel rat is back! Slippery Jim diGriz, the future's most lovable, laughable, larcenous conman tumed counterspy, retums for yet another high-tension mission. This time the Special Corps has given the Rat a daring assignment - liberate a backward tourist planet from the clutches of an aging dictator. With his lovely but lethal wife, Angelina, and his two stalwart sons, James and Bolivar, diGriz pits ballots against bullets in the fight for freedom. He's vowed to restore truth, justice, and democracy to the world of Parisio-Aqui, if he has to lie, cheat, and steal to do it.
Review
An interesting continuation of the saga. Hardly earth-shatteringly brilliant, but it's nice to see how James' kids (now grown up) handle things in the field. james' reading speed may leave the imagination behind a little, but it's an interesting read all the same.
4 Stars to Star Trek (Star Trek: Kelvin Movie Novelization, #1) by Alan Dean Foster
Description
"Are you willing to settle for an ordinary life?or do you think you were meant for something better? something special?" One grew up in the cornfields of Iowa, fighting for his independence,for a way out of a life that promised only indifference, aimlessness,and obscurity. "You will forever be a child of two worlds, capable of choosing your own destiny. the only question you face is, which path will you choose?" The other grew up on the jagged cliffs of the harsh Vulcan desert, fighting for acceptance, for a way to reconcile the logic he was taught with the emotions he felt. In the far reaches of the galaxy, a machine of war bursts into existence in a place and time it was never meant to be. On a mission of retribution for the destruction of his planet, its half-mad captain seeks the death of every intelligent being, and the annihilation of every civilized world. Kirk and Spock, two completely different and unyielding personalities, must find a way to lead the only crew, aboard the only ship, that canstop him. "The wait is over."
Review
I saw the movie before I read the book. I will really have to listen to Quinto's narration sometime, because everyone who's heard it has been swept away by it. But for my first run-through I wanted the story, not the drama, and so resolved to read it myself. As many have indicated, Foster hasn't fleshed much out beyond what the movie provides. This is good in some ways - the novels were never considered canon so the fact that he hasn't deviated from the script any keeps things mostly in-universe. On the other hand, the expansion of characters has traditionally been the driving focus for many novels, which gives this book something of an action movie feel. i'm not complaining too much about this. The whole reinvention of Star Trek has had that; expanding the exploration remit by providing the younger and perhaps more modern-looking audience with action and adventure within the boundaries of today's special effects, rather than those of the 1960's. having seen the film, it's evident that this influence is that of the screenplay, and that's what the writer had to work on, of course. Foster cannot be held accountable for the reboot, and in fact has admirably managed to tie character traits we know and love into a new, fresh take on the Star Trek universe. On to the story itself, then. my biggest major gripe is the way in which Kirk manages to relieve Spock of duty. before he gets marooned, he tries the line "I'm citing you as being emotionally compromised and therefore unfit for continuing in the position of captain of a Federation vessel." All well and good, but Spock denies this, as is typical for the stoic Vulcan. kirk returns and gets the crap beaten out of him, and only then does Spock turn to mccoy with "Doctor. By order of Starfleet Regulation Six-nineteen I hereby relinquish my command on the grounds that I have been - emotionally compromised." I don't have a problem with this scenario per se, but the idea that Kirk tried something, failed, then pretty much used a similar technique (but threw in a few insults and threats) and had it work the second time around rankles. I don't remember his first attempt being in the movie, which makes it all-the-more believable when the second Spock suggests it. if Kirk had tried to outwit Spock the first time around, logically, then came back with the emotional guns a blaze, I'd have been happy. but you cannot have it all. my only other quibble is the ranks. others have noted the alarming way Kirk is propelled from cadet to captain, with official backing at the end. Unless I've failed to understand the military, people generally proceed through the ranks. even the gifted ones. that, and the fact that Kirk has Lieutenant's stripes even without any formal duties makes me wonder just what Starfleet command are thinking. Of course the argument for all this is that with the introduction of the Narada in 2233, a new time line is created. From that moment on, anything that happens is part of the "rebooted" universe, in which this book (and naturally the movie) is set. A neat explanation, except it doesn't really count for anything. new time line or not, the federation had only encountered the Narada twice - first in 2233 (as per the opening scenes of the film and the first few chapters of the book), and then in the year 2258 (25 years on), where the remainder of the book takes place. After the first encounter, the federation is one starship down but James Kirk is only a kid. After the second encounter, Kirk has pretty much single-handedly been the one to face the Narada, all-be-it backed by a very good crew. But herein lies the problem: is one mission enough to skip someone from the lowest rank in Starfleet's arsenal all the way to captain? Even his crew are left in their assumed senior positions. In fact, the whole theory of the entire Federation fleet being occupied whilst some dangerous catastrophe befalls a core Federation world, resulting in a fleet of cadets being sent to deal with the situation, is quite frankly laughable. People said the same thing about Picard and crew being the only ones capable of going back in time to stop the Borg. the difference is that we already had a movie, not to mention seven series of television shows and ample Borg history to back up the choice. If Kirk and company have really been reinvented and the time line really is completely new, separate and distinct, then we have no basis on which to say "oh, yes, he's qualified. he's cheated at his latest test and has no actual field experience, but what the hell, we'll send him anyway. throw in a few of these cadets while we're at it." yet again, I have to reiterate that this isn't Foster's fault. he wrote a novel from a script and had to incorporate everything in that script. in fact, I quite liked the novel. I enjoyed the movie too, of course, but missed out on the visuals that have earned it such praise. For me, a novelisation will always take the top seat, because I can absorb it as well as anybody, blindness or no. the whole Star Trek world has been reset. Rebooted. Started again from scratch (or at least from the 2230's onwards). it's a new playground, with familiar characters but open vistas of possibility. As one of the first written fiction works set herein, I'd say that I am duly impressed.
4 Stars to The Kobayashi Maru (Star Trek: The Original Series, #47) by Julia Ecklar
Description
Trapped aboard a seemingly doomed shuttlecraft, the Enterprise's officers reminisce about their days at the Starfleet Academy, particularly about a no-win exercise, providing the inspiration for them to effect their own rescue
Review
"I am pleased to learn that eighteen hours of unnecessary confinement has not adversely affected your social skills." "Oh, get out of my way!" mccoy and Spock, bickering as always. it seems really odd to see that again, especially as I went to see the 2009 Star Trek film yesterday. That, and the fact that the original series of Star Trek was never something I followed, really, and it's quite odd indeed. But on to this story, then. Our intrepid heroes are stuck in a downed shuttle with nothing to do but talk. there's excitement as they try to attract attention to themselves for a rescue and horror as they are about to be smashed into thousands of little bits, but other than that the focus of the story is how each of the officers Kirk, Chekov, Scotty and Sulu) handled the Kobayashi Maru test whilst at Command School. Kirk's approach to the test is nno surprise, we learn some about that in the Wrath of Khan movie and even if we hadn't it's absolutely in character. The method was modified slightly in the new time line as depicted in Star Trek (2009), although the essence remains the same. Chekov's solution was different, but the focus of his telling is not on the test itself but rather a mission set afterwards. it might have given me more insight into the character but I don't know much about him. Armed with this new information maybe my further reading of TOS material will make more sense. Sulu also talked about the test, but again, the focus was not the test itself, so much as his experience starting command school. There's a lot of great emotion going on with Sulu's dying grandfather and we see the young Sulu making some pretty tough realisations. scotty was perhaps the most impressively technical of the four, which is probably to be expected given his Engineering credentials. Good to know that even unparalleled engineering students cannot hold a constitution-class ship against fifteen klingon warbirds, though, makes my in-universe integrity feel firm once more. A good read for those hungry for character background, I think - although we do have to remember the novels aren't canon. when has that ever stopped anyone? As I've said I'm not too up on my original-series folk, I've read more of them (Spock, Scotty, Kirk in the main) shown in the future, through various contrivances. Still, although there's no major "in the present" action, this volume fills a tidy niche for character history and is well written, paced and thought-provoking throughout.
4 Stars to Mall Purchase Night by Rick Cook
Description
Andy Westin, the new security guard at Black Oak Mall, has no idea that the mall is built on a gateway between Elfland and Earth and that a long-standing conflict may threaten innocent shoppers. Original.
Review
I've wanted to read this book for years, having enjoyed the Wizardry stuff considerably. It was never a local staple, though, so I'm glad to have had the opportunity. "Y'all know them rats folks have been complaining about? Well, it seems like the suckers have learned to skateboard." The story is, from start to finish, quite amusing. Not, perhaps, in a laugh-out-loud kind of a way, but lightly funny, all the way through. It combines this fantasy elf motif with the modern day influences of people and their modern forms of corruption to a truly witty end. "Some red and blue dude is, like, demolishing a Porsche with a crowbar." Slick considered. "Most atypical." The characters are clearly knock-downs and the mode of speech of some is almost pricelessly hippy-retro. yet the lead character has a good heart which makes things fall neatly into place. "Excuse me, officer, did you see a red-headed midget in knee breeches and a vest come this way?" All of the characters are rather odd, yet I'd never have pegged a shopping mall as the nexus for any of this freaky stuff. it's hard to give a coherent picture of such an odd novel, it really is. if you like a bit of light modern-day fantastical fantasy with a sprinkling of stereotypes, in-jokes and humour, go for it.
3 Stars to I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You (Gallagher Girls, #1) by Ally Carter
Description
Cammie Morgan is a student at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women, a fairly typical all-girls school—that is, if every school taught advanced martial arts in PE and the latest in chemical warfare in science, and students received extra credit for breaking CIA codes in computer class. The Gallagher Academy might claim to be a school for geniuses, but it's really a school for spies. Even though Cammie is fluent in fourteen languages and capable of killing a man in seven different ways, she has no idea what to do when she meets an ordinary boy who thinks she's an ordinary girl. Sure, she can tap his phone, hack into his computer, or track him through town with the skill of a real "pavement artist"—but can she maneuver a relationship with someone who can never know the truth about her? Cammie Morgan may be an elite spy-in-training, but in her sophomore year, she's on her most dangerous mission—falling in love.
Review
Quite what possessed me to start reading this I don't know. I suppose I like women and I like spies and I'm glad I'm not a raging teen-age chick. "You okay?" she asked, because that's a best friend's job. "Yes," I lied, because that's what spies do. So it's yet another teen-as-spy story. Chick lit, so naturally the focus is on the relationships rather than the espionage. Still, a spy school is an interesting take on the whole becoming an agent approach. "My mom isn't famous for her pies. No, she's famous for defusing a nuclear device in Brussels with only a pair of cuticle scissors and a ponytail holder. Somehow, at that moment, pies seemed cooler." The language is flowery, the profanity non-existent and the research thorough. Perhaps, were I a femme fatale infatuated with the mysterious i'd have enjoyed it a little more, but for my tastes it's certainly a little too banal.
1 Stars to Echoes (Star Trek Voyager, #15) by Dean Wesley Smith
Description
paperback
Review
is there truly anything worse than a story which seems to end exactly where it started? perhaps I'm being harsh, really. Echoes was published in January 1998. year of hell, a two-part story line which also sees everything reverting to the way it was at the beginning, more or less, first aired in November the year before. deadlock, an episode of the series often mentioned in Echoes aired in march of 1996, so you'd have thought there was plenty of time,as it were, for events to propagate before a television episode muscled in. Still, this sort of story allows for mass destructionn and all sorts of things, because as with "it's all a dream", everyone's fine at the end. not that any of the authors seem to be in for that ssort of thing; to be truthful I expected better of Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch as they are quite prominent. Still, the concept is familiar. As with the TV episodes mentioned above, things can just go full circle and no harm done. Add Voyager's Endgame, TNG's Cause and Effect and yesterday's Enterprise and probably a TOS episode or two (I haven't watched many) and you're probably well on your way to imagining how droll this sort of thing can get.
4 Stars to Hopscotch by Kevin J. Anderson
Description
Suppose you could switch bodies with another person? What exciting new experiences would you choose to explore? What forbidden desires would you indulge? Suppose someone stole your life–how far would you go to get it back? From New York Times bestselling author Kevin J. Anderson comes a pure adrenaline thriller of hijacked identities, elusive motives, and deeply buried secrets–a disturbing, thought-provoking excursion into a sleek, hedonistic society where nothing is your own...not even your soul. Hopscotch For a fee, Eduard Swan will swap bodies with people in distress–those facing surgeries, emotional crises, moments of unpleasantness or discomfort they can’t or would rather not deal with. Eduard will experience the suffering for them. It’s a lucrative business, and in a world in which no one is required to feel any pain, there is no end of clients. But someone doesn’t want to play by the rules. Someone doesn’t want to return his body. And, unfortunately for Eduard, that someone is one of the world’s most powerful men. Now Eduard has no choice but to steal back his life. He has the perfect alibi–or so he thinks. For even in a world where you can hopscotch from body to body, you always leave a trail. And following that trail is a relentless dispenser of “justice” named Daragon, a childhood friend, now a zealous and ambitious agent of state security, who won’t let old friendships stand in the way of doing his duty. When Eduard goes on the run, hounded at every turn by Daragon, his only hope is two other childhood friends: Garth, a tormented artist who gains success beyond his wildest dreams, only to discover the terrible price of fame; and Teresa, a spiritual seeker who risks losing her own body to a fanatical religious cult as she embarks on a harrowing quest to find her true identity. Moving from underground hopscotch pleasure bars to the highest enclaves of power to a seamy underworld of illegal Phantoms, ancient minds who steal younger bodies in a quest for eternal life, Eduard and his friends seek the meaning of identity in a society in which appearances mean everything–and nothing–and where everything is relative...even murder. From the Hardcover edition.
Review
There's little doubt in my mind that this is one of my best reads of the month. Anderson paints a picture of a futuristic society but the whole concept of being able to swap bodies at will is quite inspired. he handles perspective, friendship and duty admirably. Swapportunities and e-nouncements are cool watchwords for the future, and it's a great read, following the main characters, three of which are firm friends and the forth feels for duty, more than friendship. An artist, a lost soul and an eventual murderer all have their shining moments in this compelling story of swapping bodies,all undercut with tension and drama. The intricacies of the swap - the impact of the physical versus the mental - is very well thought-out indeed. Furthermore, the ability to move from physical form to form seems to have engendered a degree of sexual openness and communal working, in some quarters, and that's great to see. As with any society there are bad as well as good people: the modus operandi of the bureaux that seem to run everything is shoot first, ask questions later, and Anderson's favourite mantra - a fake, wooing religion - is also apparent. yet there is hope. For all the violence, the dangers and inherent legal complications that arise from being able to move out of your own body and into someone else's, the public are painted as generally average people, going about their day-to-day business. The Computer Organic Matrix (or COM) is an ever-growing network of computers and minds, and it seems as if any day now it will do something drastic - either to depose the bureaux or else to encourage more of the mere people to join it in some harmonious gestalt. maybe that would have worked for a sequel, who knows? In any case, a shockingly insightful little book, this - fiction at its futuristic best.
5 Stars to Stone and Anvil (Star Trek: New Frontier, #14) by Peter David
Description
Fans of Peter David's best selling New Frontier saga have been eagerly awaiting a new adventure featuring Captain Mackenzie Calhoun, Captain Elizabeth Shelby, and the crews of the Starships Excalibur and Trident. Now at last Calhoun and Shelby return in an exciting page-turner the explores the past of both captains - while simultaneously confronting them with a perilous dilemma in the present. A crewman has been murdered aboard the USS Trident, and all evidence points to Ensign Janos of the Excalibur. Calhoun is reluctant to accept that Janos, a powerful non-humanoid whom the captain has known and trusted for years, could be a killer an immediately launches an investigation into the crime. But this troubling murder mystery soon escalates into a full-fledged diplomatic crisis that threatens to pit Calhoun and Shelby against the entire United Federation of Planets and the starship Enterprise. Meanwhile, the turmoil involving Ensign Janos forces Calhoun to recall his own tempestuous past, his rocky relationship with a young Elizabeth Shelby, and a long-ago exploit that may have everything to do with the deadly emergency that now confronts them all.
Review
"In any case, Dr. Bethom was quite explicit that he had no desire to communicate with you until a particular change in climate at an indeterminate point in the future." "Let me guess: When Hell freezes over." "That was it!" The repartee is brilliant. The narrative, superb. And whilst we can argue that the setting of the story itself is simply a backdrop for a recitation of things gone by, what a recitation it was... "No one's dying, I hope?" "no, but I haven't gotten there yet." We see "one-punch Calhoun" in all his academy glory, and whilst there's certainly more to it than is told, its riveting stuff nonetheless. I loved everything about "then" - it added so much to Calhoun's character and filled in so much of the history that I could have happily consumed another volume on the subject. His unbending positions on almost everything made the whole thing absolutely worth reading, and as for the Kobayashi Maru, I at least had always assumed it was a rescue mission. even knowing that there was no way to win the damned thing I'd assumed that. And then Calhoun takes the test and completely debunks that theory forevermore. "Kebron, for his part, was briefly stuck. He was wearing a mutilated monster on his right arm, and was having trouble shaking it off." The "now" portions of the thing were interesting in their own way and they filled in background on other characters in their own right, but what made this such an excellent read for me was the glimpse into the history of a character that has been built up and done so much throughout this whole series. The unending irony, the ceaseless banter and the whole view of a universe that some authors make so bleak and militaristic gives this book and the series itself a degree of light fun. Certainly one to come back to when you're feeling a bit fed up with the whole high-handedness of the universe, I'd say. Oh, and wasn't that "mind control some of the people some of the time"stuff on page 294 a bit of a Lincoln crib? I thought it sounded vaguely familiar...
3 Stars to Gods Above (Star Trek: New Frontier, #13) by Peter David
Description
Captain Mackenzie Calhoun has often been accused of playing God, but he has never faced off against real gods – until now. As Captain Kirk did before him, Calhoun has encountered beings of unnatural power and abilities verging on godhood, and who claim to be the very individuals who inspired the Greek, Roman, Norse, and, other pantheons from Earth culture. These beings say that all they want is our worship, and in return for it will provide us with a peaceful galaxy-wide paradise of perfect health and endless pleasure. When the Federation, in the person of Captain Calhoun and the crew of the USS Excalibur, refused their offer, the resulting battle left Morgan Primus dead and Lieutenant Mark McHenry, whose own powers over time and space had proved to be substantial, in a limbo beyond death. Now, with a wounded ship and an injured crew, Captain Calhoun, along with Captain Shelby and the crew of the Trident, must face these god-like beings once again, with the fate of galactic civilization at stake.
Review
" 'Impart the godhead.' That would be a euphemism for 'have sex with,' am I correct?" The risque humour, not to mention a rather disconcerting pantheon of gods, continue to sit at the centre of this rather humdrum addition to the new Frontier series. "I've walked some death myself, 'god,' " shot back Calhoun, "and it might be wise for little gods to stay the hell out of my way." Calhoun is his typical brash self, and the rest of the characters fall neatly into their holes with neither fuss nor foible. Morgan's outcome is perhaps one of the most interesting elements here, but even mchenry's eventual state of affairs is only of mild interest after the seemingly endless barrage of Godly abuse. It's worth noting that there seem to be a bunch of asides missing - double helix,xenexian honemoony honeymoon, and of course m'Res and the rest of the gateways incident. I can only attribute these to other New Frontier workks in other series and shall hopefully read them at some point.
3 Stars to Being Human (Star Trek: New Frontier, #12) by Peter David
Description
Throughout the Star Trek: New Frontier saga, Mark McHenry, the navigator on the USS Excalibur, has demonstrated abilities beyond those of the somewhat odd human being he appears to be. When the inhabitants of an innocent solar system are confronted by a menace linked to the source of McHenry's powers, his true heritage is revealed at last. Meanwhile, Zak Kebron is going through a startling change that will leave him both more and less than he was.
Review
"And if we happened to be a literature-appreciation circle, I would be extremely pleased with the direction in which things are going. However, what with this being a starship and all, I'd be far more pleased if we could actually accomplish our mission." So here we see our intrepid heroes thrust up against the almighty. Or as almighty as you get in space, anyway. the mystery of Mchenry is finally explained at least. "Since I do not wish you to do anything about it, the response of 'no' is relatively all-purpose." Selar and Burgoyne's child not to mention the stray calhoun brought aboard the starship pad out the whacky cast of characters quite well. The love lives of everyone seems to be on the agenda once again, though; and there is something of an anticlimactic thread to the whole thing.
April
4 Stars to Restoration (Star Trek: New Frontier, #11) by Peter David
Description
The ever resourceful Captain Mackenzie Calhoun abruptly finds himself at a loss – marooned on the primitive outback world of Yakaba after his ship, Excalibur, is destroyed by deadly sabotage. He is separated from his loyal first officer, Shelby, who has gone on to command the Exeter and is certain that Calhoun has been blasted into oblivion. On Yakaba's dry frontier, Calhoun meets and befriends Rheela, an extraordinary woman beset by enemies trying to control or destroy her and her gift – summoning rain to her parched homeland. Trapped on this hostile world, unable to relay to his people that he survived their ship's cataclysm, Calhoun must stand against countless adversaries who will stop at nothing to gain power or keep it from others. Life and death hang in the balance. Out in the distance, mourning but determined to move on, Shelby must discover what sort of captain she really is.
Review
The conversation between Calhoun and Spangler about aliens is absolutely worth the whole book, just for that few lines of amusement. Excellent form, this one, and yet the ending lines things back up so neatly that you might have chopped out the three books just gone and not missed much. Well. Much being a relative term, what with Kids, strange, time-stretching powers, and marital status.
4 Stars to Renaissance (Star Trek: New Frontier, #10) by Peter David
Description
The ship is only a memory, but the drama unfolds.... The USS Excalibur has been obliterated. Its captain, Mackenzie Calhoun is gone. Now the surviving crew members are dispersed throughout the galaxy, seeking to forge new lives in the wake of the Excalibur's destruction. For Dr. Selar, the ship's former medical officer, that means facing a very personal crisis. Following the birth of her child, the Vulcan doctor returned to her homeworld, determined to raise the child exclusively in the way of logic. But the child's father, the Hermat Lieutenant Commander Burgoyne, has hir own views regarding their offspring's future, and s/he intends to fight for hir paternal rights, even if it means appealing to the highest authorities of two worlds! Elsewhere in the Alpha Quadrant, Lieutenant Robin Lefler and her enigmatic mother travel to the pleasure planet Risa where they encounter a genuine Starfleet legend...
Review
Well now, this is certainly a worthy continuation of the previous title and no mistake. You might call it the second half of something having more than 2 parts, as it were - "to be concluded" may indicate 3. With Requiem focusing on Cwan, McHenry, kebron and Soleta, Renaissance gives us some of the other characters (The Leflers, Selar and family etc). It provides a very necessary link in the chain; with the characters so fragmented, it made sense to put them into more than one book, I'm sure. Interestingly enough, the next one is called "Restoration". So perhaps Shore Leave is over now?
3 Stars to The Stainless Steel Rat Saves the World (Stainless Steel Rat, #6) by Harry Harrison
Description
Someone was tampering with time, altering the past to eliminate the present, fading people out of existence into a timeless limbo. One of the victims was Angelina, the wife of James de Griz, better known as the Stainless Steel Rat. That put Slippery Jim on the trail of the villains, a trail that went back to 1984 and an ancient nation called the United States of America. The Stainless Steel Rat was determined to rescue his wife. And before he was through he'd thrown dozens of centuries through time in both directions. But then he didn't have much choice: to save Angelina he had to save the world. Again.
Review
And so ends yet another adventure for slippery Jim. This time, he goes back to old earth and generally trots around in time, rather than space. all quite paradoxical and ludicrous, but quite unsurprising. We don't know much about Jim's early life yet, so his blase assurances that this is the first time he's felt the true hand of fear and so forth may be a wee bit hollow. Still, with the kids added into the mix the adventures are surely to increase in sarcastic banter, if nothing else.
4 Stars to Requiem (Star Trek: New Frontier, #9) by Peter David
Description
When the U.S.S. Excalibur was suddenly and mercilessly destroyed, Starfleet lost one of its finest starships. But the crew members of the Excalibur lost their captain... and home. Now, in mourning for their ship and Captain Mackenzie Calhoun, First Officer Elizabeth Shelby and the rest of the crew await their new assignments. For Lieutenant Soleta, that means a painful reunion with her Romulan father, while Zak Kebron and Mark McHenry are sent undercover to investigate a series of mysterious alien abductions on a low-tech world. Going their separate ways throughout the Alpha Quadrant, the Excalibur's survivors must face diverse challenges and dangers on their own. The ship is history, but the adventure continues...
Review
So the ship has been destroyed, Shelby is angling for promotion and the rest of our characters are scattered throughout the quadrant, doing their own things. Cwan and his sister investigate the death of an old teacher, Kebron and mcHenry take on a mission for Admiral Nechayev and Soleta tracks down her biological father. In true New Frontier tradition, Soleta's father provides her an emotional roller coaster, Kebron and and McHenry's mission causes us to realise that mark is even weirder than we previously assumed, and Cwan finds himself yet another warpath on which to embark. Of Captain Mackenzie Calhoun, there's no sign. why the starship "blew up", there's no description. precisely what about Mark McHenry is so fascinating to perhaps the most powerful of beings in the universe, we don't know. And as if that weren't enough, Soleta's adoptive father comes out with the line "They were here, on Vulcan. Caused quite a bit of commotion. Some very spirited debate over...", referring to Selar and Burgoyne. But over what, precisely? Is Calhoun really dead and how did he die? What's happening with everyone else we've come to care about? Xyon Senior is still roaming the universe, after all, so things are bound to heat up once more. The destruction of the Excalibre certainly blasted the series to bits - it's gone from following a crew all in one place to a group of people divided. but there's still something between this ragtag displaced group of people. "To maintain the previous crew would be to maintain the ghost of Mackenzie Calhoun at all times," Selar declares. And she's right: so has Mac truly kicked the bucket, heroically holding on to save his crew? Or is he still flying around somewhere, poised to return to the federation and reunite his orphaned shipmates for yet more bitingly amusing adventures? Only time (and the rest of the books in the series) will tell.
2 Stars to The Miserable Mill (A Series of Unfortunate Events, #4) by Lemony Snicket
Description
Dear Reader, I hope, for your sake, that you have not chosen to read this book because you are in the mood for a pleasant experience. If this is the case, I advise you to put this book down instantaneously, because of all the books describing the unhappy lives of the Baudelaire orphans, The Miserable Mill might be the unhappiest yet. Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire are sent to Paltryville to work in a lumber mill, and they find disaster and misfortune lurking behind every log. The pages of this book, I'm sorry to inform you, contain such unpleasantries as a giant pincher machine, a bad casserole, a man with a cloud of smoke where his head should be, a hypnotist, a terrible accident resulting in injury, and coupons. I have promised to write down the entire history of these three poor children, but you haven't, so if you prefer stories that are more heartwarming, please feel free to make another selection. With all due respect, Lemony Snicket
Review
No content provided.
4 Stars to Dark Allies (Star Trek: New Frontier, #8) by Peter David
Description
Many years ago, a bizarre alien lifeform known as the Black Mass consumed and destroyed an entire solar system in what was then the Thallonion Empire. Now the Black Mass has returned and its target is Tulan IV, homeworld of the fearsome Redeemers. Faced with near-certain destruction the Overlord of the Redeemers is forced to turn to an unlikely ally: Captain Calhoun and the Starship Excalibur. Busy coping with the return of his rebellious son, Calhoun is none too eager to come to the aid of his despotic enemy, but when innocent lives are threatened he has no choice but to confront the unstoppable Black Mass. But how can one starship turn back a force capable of consuming entire suns?
Review
"You're not fine. You look like an elephant sat on your face." Things with the redeemers boil to a head in typical style, and nobody can deny that the characters are so alive that it's hard to imagine them sitting quietly in the pages of a book. Cwan's combat is powerful, Calhoun's right-hook is true and we finally get an insight into the Vulcan birthing process.
4 Stars to The Quiet Place (Star Trek: New Frontier, #7) by Peter David
Description
Ever since the fall of the Thallonian Empire, Si Cwan has been searching for his younger sister, the only other survivor of the royal family. His quest has been a hard one, filled with many disappointments, but now it may be nearing its end.... On the planet Montos, a mysterious young woman, whose past is shrouded in secrecy, finds herself pursued by both the fanatical Redeemers and a vicious race of feral predators known only as the Dogs of War. All are in search of information regarding the true nature and location of the Quiet Place, a mystical realm celebrated in myth and legend. Only this same woman, now called Riella, may hold the secret of the Quiet Place, a secret that the Redeemers and others will kill to possess. Is Riella indeed Si Cwan's long-lost sister? Before he can learn the truth, he and his crewmates must brave the unchecked savagery of the Dogs of War -- and enter the terrifying heart of the Quiet Place.
Review
"The Dogs were making so much noise that a blind elephant could have avoided detection simply by listening for where they were and going where they weren't." This instalment introduces us to the dogs of war - a rather dangerous species that now seem to be well on the path of redeemed enlightenment. This probably means they're going to cause all sorts of havoc in the future, so that's interesting. "Krul's grudging admiration for the pink-skinned, humanoid creature upon him rose exponentially. That didn't stop Krul from being utterly determined to haul the humanoid off him and tear him to pieces." The Humanoid in question is Xyon, who appears and immediately escapes execution. Xyon seems deadly, capable and confident - all of which apply to his father, as well, as when we find out who that is we can immediately see. You cannot simply kill him in cold blood." "He is my oldest friend. I have earned the privilege." cwan is on form as ever, and despite very little of the story's action taking place on the Excalibre, this is still a worthy story and one of the more intriguing episodes. Some may dismiss this a little because of the lack of the ship's involvement, but there's enough to ensure a solid entry in the New Frontier saga, there are great battles, banter, brutality and whit all round.
3 Stars to Deathworld 1 (Deathworld, #1) by Harry Harrison
Description
The planet was called Pyrrus...a strange place where all the beasts, plants and natural elements were designed for one specific purpose: to destroy man. The settlers there were supermen...twice as strong as ordinary men and with milli-second reflexes. They had to be. For their business was murder... It was up to Jason dinAlt, interplanetary gambler, to discover why Pyrrus had become so hostile during man's brief habitation...
Review
Quite an enjoyable story, but where it's going is the important thing. I have the second one ready to run and will do so in due course.
3 Stars to Fire on High (Star Trek: New Frontier, #6) by Peter David
Description
On the planet Armista sits a nameless woman. High upon a mountain, she is cradling a weapon unlike anything the Armistans have ever seen. She rocks back and forth on her haunches, singing softly to herself. The weapon is her only companion on the planet, since everyone else is little piles of ash. A weapon that could destroy life on one planet could do so again. Lieutenant Robin Lefler's mother died in a shuttle explosion ten years ago. So is the woman being held prisoner in Thallonian space really her? If it is, what is her connection to the mysterious woman holding a weapon that could doom entire worlds? With the lives of billions at stake, Robin Lefler, Captain Calhoun and the crew of the U.S.S. Excalibur must find the answers before time runs out for them and for the struggling remnants of the once-great Thallonian Empire.
Review
"The creature didn't really have time to have a full sense of its own existence before it didn't have an existence anymore." I think this, taken from the opening chapter, sums up this entire novel, really. "Calhoun, damn him, could afford to be flamboyant, daring, and heroic." It's odd, because Calhoun's not all that heroic at all here. he just sits there, in command, using his mind now and then and not doing much of anything else. as Calhoun was always a very physical player in things, this adds something of a back-seat feel. "if you marry him and he still doesn't know you're alive, then you have bigger problems than I could possibly solve." Most of this book is taken up with relationship advice or discussions thereof. Morgan's entry is interesting but underused, the threat to the ship is something of a holdover from the first four titles and the race of beings that appear simply to put Calhoun in his place are little short of Deus Ex Machina with the deus perhaps converted to a nihil. "Entering a realm that makes no sense? My dear Lieutenant, the technical term for that is 'birth." Still, we've got a few more characters, a heads-up on a new race of beings and a baby (or two) on the way. Things might just liven up yet.
3 Stars to Officer-Cadet (Dirigent Mercenary Corps, #1) by Rick Shelley
Description
Another installment in the explosive new series of future warfare features a young soldier expelled from Earth, who seeks to prove his worthiness in the Dirigent Mercenary Corps, the most demanding and refined of military outfits. Original.
Review
I must confess to never having read about mercenaries in anything other than a holy negative light before now, but this one changes that around entirely. They are, if not the good guys, just doing their jobs, and doing them professionally and fulfilling their contracts. Grist for the mill, maybe - not exactly a five-star sci-fi wonder, but enjoyable enough to at least keep the remaining titles on the shelf for a rainy day.
3 Stars to Martyr (Star Trek: New Frontier, #5) by Peter David
Description
With the fall of the ancient Thallonian Empire, civil war threatens the planet Zondar. The arrival of the USS Excalibur is greeted with relief and celebration by the anxious populace, and Captain Mackenzie Calhoun, fresh from his cataclysmic escape from the Thallonian throneworld, is acclaimed as their prophesied savior. But one believer's messiah is another's blasphemer – and a prime candidate for martyrdom. When Captain Calhoun is captured, Lieutenant Commander Burgoyne must find him before an alien fleet launches a holy war against the Federation!
Review
And the odyssey continues... "McHenry, to his credit, didn't sound nervous. He seemed resigned, even interested in what it would feel like to plunge into a star." This from the most insane of helmsmen, of course. The fun is still rocketing along, although it's clear that Cwan and his people have taken something of a back seat. there are new species on the scene and I suppose this is to be expected if, in television style, David is creating a series all his own. "Why give an opponent an opportunity to stick a sword between your ribs while you're busy rubbing the sleep from your eyes?" Calhoun's relationships (or lack thereof) are of paramount interest, and the day is saved by telepathy and sex. not generally a trek pillar, but Selar doesn't seem to mind. "I would prefer that you do not puncture, wound, or lacerate any other parts of my body unless you have been granted specific permission for that activity." Kinky, you might think - who knows with these two? They'll probably shatter all records - and one dreads to think of the offspring. it seems clear that someone's going to be having a baby in a few months time (or whatever the gestation period for Vulcans is). And once again, we're off on another path of madness; this time to rescue a supposedly dead parent from a race who, because of their sacrosanct beliefs in life, merely keep their prisoners imprisoned until they die, rather than getting rid of them posthaste. Bounding with a dig at the French, wordplay, mindplay, swordplay and sexplay, a solid volume. The 6th isn't quite as long, so we'll see where that goes when we get there.
5 Stars to End Game (Star Trek: New Frontier, #4) by Peter David
Description
Captain Mackenzie Calhoun: Wearing a veneer of civilization as others would a cloak, Calhoun will now find himself facing a scheme for revenge that may unleash the savage warrior he keeps locked within himself. Lieutenant Robin Lefler: An eternal optimist, Lefler occasionally asks the wrong question at the wrong time...and yet this time it may lead the Excalibur crew to unexpectedly shocking answers. Commander Elizabeth Shelby: Walking the fine line between duty and conscience, Shelby may find that she must decide between the life she loves and the man she once loved. As the Thallonian homeworld faces catastrophe, Captain Calhoun must confront his own bloody past in a life-or-death struggle for survival and honor. But when the planet's ultimate secret is revealed, only Captain Calhoun and the USS Excalibur can save the last remnants of the Empire from total destruction!.
Review
"What she really wanted to do was slap him but, aside from slitting the occasional throat or blowing an opponent out of space, Laheera tried to avoid violence whenever possible." And so ends the mystery of Thallon, the hostages, and all the other interesting things. Almost... " 'Gracious in defeat' my ass. I'm going to kick the crap out of them." calhoun is, as ever, singlemindedly brilliant. he deals with the hostage situation in a novel, and very un-by-the-book way, but at least it wins points with the crew. "That's not an embassy! It's a cell!" "We intend to redecorate." Meanwhile, Lord Cwan and Lieutenant Kebron appear to be in even worse trouble than death, until Kebron decides to take matters into his own hands. it would appear that the good Lieutenant shares a sense of humour with his commanding officer after all, and there's something to be said for that. Of course the blatant pumping of the "Great Bird" and references to Thallon having a "pulse" and being like "a giant egg" are hard to miss, and when the end for that noble, hither too prosperous planet comes, it does so in heaving, Volcanic, delectably violent form. And then of course there's the battle of Calhoun's life - as he ages, his skills wain and the fight on the turbulent world is horrifically brutal. But with all the action, adventure and drama aside, David does manage to make a good point: "Isn't that what the Prime Directive is all about? Sitting around, doing nothing, tiptoeing around the galaxy and trying not to leave any footprints behind?" asks Calhoun. And this is, of course, a sentiment shared by others. "Nobody leaves paradise. Everyone should want to be in the Federation," says michael Eddington. Perhaps that's indicative of something to come. there are, of course, a bunch more New Frontier titles which I will have to work my way through to see where things go next. This seems to have concluded this particular arc, though; and concluded it well. Next we just have to find who Dr. Selar pegs as her sex target.
4 Stars to The Two-Front War (Star Trek: New Frontier, #3) by Peter David
Description
Roll Call: The Crew of the USS Excalibur Dr. Selar: The Excalibur's Vulcan doctor is all business. If you want to know what's wrong with you, she's the one to go to, but not if you're expecting someone to hold your hand. As calm and logical as the rest of her people, Dr. Selar has a secret as shocking to her as it will be to the rest of the crew. Si Cwan: A prince exiled from the Thallonian empire, he is beloved by some and targeted for death by others. But Si Cwan has his own agenda: a search for the one woman who means the world to him. Zak Kebron: The bronze-skinned Brikar is the security chief of the Excalibur. When he walks, the decks shake, and if he's coming your way, you'd better pray that you're on his good side. Two mysteries vie for the attention of the crew of the Excalibur: Is the hospitality of the people of Nelkar too good to be true? And does a stranded spaceship truly hold the object of Si Cwan's quest... or is it instead an all-too-deadly trap?
Review
"Who am I to judge you?" asks Mackenzie Calhoun, "I am someone who knows what it's like to deal with someone like me." It's all still there - the laughs, the character development, the inexorable rolling on of the plot. This time, of course, things are heating up. naturally, it's all gone wrong and also naturally, it's all gone wrong at once. Kebron and Si Cwan have lost their ship and were the sole occupiers of a second during its complete obliteration which, if it weren't for the very early placement in the series chronology, might just be fatal. Captin Hufmin and his refugees seem to have landed themselves in extraordinarily hot, piranha-laced water, and Captain Mackenzie calhoun, despite his emphatic "They made their free choice, and they die as free beings", cannot surely just let everyone be slaughtered for petty technological advancement? "Are you saying you think I have a pretty face?" "I am saying that, with sufficient intoxication, anyone may seem attractive." In the less combative (but highly emotional) scenes, we have Selar still refusing Chief Engineer Burgoyne's advances. But with both shipboard Vulcan's having ample spuriously scandalous history, things continue to bubble. So: is it the end for Cwan? Is Calhoun heartlessly going to let everyone die (thus ensuring Commander Shelby has to report him and take over his job)? Is Soleta going to keep her heritage a secret? is Selar actually producing increased hormones, and if so, will she allow her control to slip long enough to actually have sex with someone not of her own species? And if any of this happens, what's Admiral Jellico going to have to say about it all? I suppose some of these questions will be answered in the next title, which I am immediately going to pick up. The plot thickens yet again, and although we can easily see this is yet another link in the complex chain of events, it's a more thought-provoking, cliffhanging link than the last. "may the Great Bird of the galaxy," As Lieutenant Commander Burgoyne so graciously opined, "Roost on your planets."
4 Stars to Into the Void (Star Trek: New Frontier, #2) by Peter David
Description
Roll Call: The Crew of the U.S.S. Excalibur: Captain Mackenzie Calhoun: An unorthodox, decisive young captain who loves his crew and his ship, and loves testing their limits even more. Commander Shelby: A woman of strong opinions and strong values, Shelby never hesitated to tell her captains when she thought they were wrong, and Mackenzie Calhoun won't be any exception. Burgoyne 172: The chief engineer of the Excalibur, with the decisiveness of Calhoun, the strength of Shelby, and the gender of both. Burgoyne is a Hermat, and when s/he sets his/her sights on you, s/he isn't an easy...person...to refuse. As the Thallonian Empire succumbs to violence and insurrection, the U.S.S. Excalibur prepares to launch on her humanitarian mission of mercy. But her departure is destined to be a memorable one, as Calhoun contends with an unexpected stowaway, a stormy relationship with his crew, and -- light-years away -- frightened refugees aboard a dying ship.
Review
"I see you're determined to make this about you." "Frankly, sir, since I'm the only one here aside from you, I think it's a thing for me to do." As humorous in the first instalment in its own right, this title lacked some of the pacing - perhaps because it was simply an extension of the first story and showed our characters setting up. "Feel free to sit," Calhoun invited. "I wish to remain taller than you," replied Si Cwan. The fun is still there and so are some new characters, including Burgoyne 172, Zak Kebron, Mark McHenry, and Robin Lefler (who had some screen time). We also learn about the history of the Thallonian Empire, which seems to firm up the fact that something is brewing on that front. Things seem to be coming to a head, what with the Thallonians arming themselves for battle with Cwan, Calhoun's brother having been ordered to do something about him, and the "Grissom incident" still a taboo part of Calhoun's history. not to mention Burgoyne's flirtation with Selar. All this and more is sure to erupt soon...
5 Stars to House of Cards (Star Trek: New Frontier, #1) by Peter David
Description
Sector 221-G: For the whole of Federation history, this large area of space has been controlled by the Thallonians, a cruel, militaristic race of which little is knownexcept that they rule the other races in their sector with vicious iron hand. Now the Thallonian Empire has collapsed and the systems it once ruled are in chaos. Old hatreds are surfacing. Petty tyrants control deadly weapons. World after world is descending into disorder and self-destruction. The Federation must send a starship to help where it can and report what it finds. That ship is the U.S.S. Excalibur, a newly refit Ambassador-class starship commanded by Captain Mackenzie Calhoun and manned by Starfleet's best and brightest, including some old friends from Star Trek: The Next Generation and some of the most dynamic new characters ever to crew a Federation starship. Join Captain Calhoun and the crew of the U.S.S. Excalibur as they explore strange new worlds, seek out new life and new civilizations, and boldly go where no one has gone before!
Review
The majority of authors I have read who have dealt with a Star Trek novel have treated the characters and universe itself with some semblance of reverence. "What the hell kind of person was capable of sounding erudite while losing blood out of his face by the pint?" Peter David seems intent on breaking this trend, with his combination of amusing asides and in-character sarcasm. "please leave me to my work. This is a scientifically curious situation, and it takes precedence over the famed Thallonian inhospitableness." David seems to be well on the road to starting his own mini trek series, though. He's taken some fringe characters from television (such as Selar and Elizabeth Shelby) and seems to be setting them on a path to innumerable adventures. Having added characters of his own into the mix (Mackenzie Calhoun, Si Cwan, Soleta, etc), and with judicious use of cannon characters (although in unexpected positions sometimes) such as Edward Jellico, Alynna Nechayev and Spock, all seems ready for Calhoun to take the Captain's seat of this vessel with one of the most eclectic crews in starfleet. Not having any eyesight, I've been unable to keep up with comic books over the years. I know, of course, that Peter David wrote comics - his flamboyant style and quick wit makes him quite good at it, I imagine. still, this is a very short novel and I can see why the first four were combined into an omnibus volume. Short doesn't mean less, though - well it does, but there's plenty more in the series. I absolutely enjoyed every minute of it and will pick up the second one forthwith.
3 Stars to The Stainless Steel Rat's Revenge (Stainless Steel Rat, #5) by Harry Harrison
Description
The second adventure of slippery Jim diGriz the Robin Hood of the far future, robbing the rich to give to the even richer...himself.
Review
Clearly the second installment of what turns out to be a rather longwinded series, this lacked some of the captivating pace of the first title. 'Thanks for saving my life.' 'Not at all, sir. I always believe that it is the little extra services that count. Now--may I show you your room?' Despite this, the witty banter of our hero Jim is on par excellence, and we leave the title expecting to see more of the "grey men". 'I don't wish to bother you dearest,' says Jim to his wife busy with their twin sons, 'But the man in the plum jacket coming up behind me is an assassin. Do you think you could do anything about it - and keep him alive if possible?' Dry humour all the way and promise for the future of Jim's larcenous offspring makes Revenge a useful link in the stainless steel saga.
4 Stars to The Stainless Steel Rat (Stainless Steel Rat, #4) by Harry Harrison
Description
In the vastness of space, the crimes just get bigger and Slippery Jim diGriz, the Stainless Steel Rat, is the biggest criminal of them all. He can con humans, aliens and any number of robots time after time. Jim is so slippery that all the inter-galactic cops can do is make him one of their own
Review
"I heard the robot rolling away, untroubled by the fact that his writing, pillow-shedding patient was suddenly dead. This lack of curiosity is what I like about robots." It's implausible on so many levels - the technological, psychological, criminal - even completely unbelievable. yet what a page-turning, utterly enjoyable yarn the author weaves. Slippery Jim becomes a character with such a wide array of talents, opinions and ways to get himself into all sorts of unsavoury situations that the book was a true delight from start to finish. we won't go into the depravity brought upon the banking sector too much - suffice it to say that this is different from the gentle short stories of Fifty In Fifty (and in my view, far more enjoyable).
4 Stars to The Hologram's Handbook (Star Trek Voyager) by Robert Picardo
Description
Perfectly capturing the wry sensibility and sarcastic wit of his popular on-screen character, Robert "The Hologram Doctor" Picardo delivers a tongue-in-cheek guide to life in the digital universe. THE HOLOGRAM'S HANDBOOK is precisely the book for which Voyager fans have been waiting -- whether they realise it or not. Written by Robert Picardo in the unmistakably tart-tongued manner of his popular alter ego, Voyager's Emergency Medical Hologram Doctor, this manual for laypersons of all persuasions opens an unprecedented window on the world of holographic reality. Featuring lively illustrations throughout, THE HOLOGRAM'S HANDBOOK serves as an indispensible manual for holographic beings who are struggling to survive in an unforgiving organic world. The book also offers a collection of comic insights and guidelines for the enlightened organic reader on how to better interact with and understand holographic beings. Robert Picardo brought the EMH to vivid and unforgettable life on screen -- who better to recreate that distinctive style in print? His portrayal became an instant hit with viewers, and those who tuned in every week to enjoy the Doctor's pithy comments will welcome the chance to savour his words of wit on every page.
Review
I've never read Andrew J. Robinson's A Stitch in Time but, like this title, know it was written out of the flow of the television series. Even so, Robinson portrayed his character with aplomb and whilst The Doctor is a very different persona entirely, Robert Picardo attracts a similar level of admiration for his acting ability, whit, and general entertainment value. I listened to an abridged form of this book in audio, read by the author himself. This is something of a Pocket Books tradition (i.e. publishing abridged audio versions), but in this instance there's little to complain about. Because Picardo is both the author and narrator, you really get the impression that he's standing in front of you on some sort of huge, golden stage (naturally constructed so he has more room to pontificate), expostulating to you in his usual, flamboyant (and utterly self-aggrandising) style. my only feeling of sadness was missing out on more of the dry whit, sparkling humour and droll sarcasm that makes this a truly pleasurable read - which means I'll have to go find a printed copy at some point. Picardo is utterly in-character, and the whole presentation is something The Doctor would come up with. I'm slightly surprised there aren't more in-universe references, jokes etc - the use of the name Joe in the chapter "What's in a name?" notwithstanding. there were several other oblique references that only a diehard fan would have spotted, which might explain why I missed 'em. My favourite chapters have to be "Expanding your program" (the bit about the stomach cracked me up) and "dress for success". I also enjoyed "user Friendly" and "Anatomical Correctness", but the whole title was ablaze with that which makes The Doctor, the Doctor. The song at the end was a great listen, it's great to know that Picardo did most of his own vocal work in the TV shows and that comes through clearly here. With perhaps a shade too much emphasis on pretty posteriors, and maybe a little too much lost on the cutting-room floor in abridgements, this was nevertheless an unadulterated Voyager romp, firmly to be entrenched in Voy folklore for years to come and a fitting, worthy addition to the annals of trek literature, that is such a staple of the Star Trek world.
5 Stars to Star Healer (Sector General, #6) by James White
Description
Sector Twelve General Hospital had a staff of thousands divided among sixty or so intelligent species. Every day it treated alien illnesses of baffling complexity... Senior Physician Conway, the human doctor commanding the Ambulance Ship "Rhabwar," takes on a challenging and dangerous new assignment among a strange race of aliens.
Review
"Rarely have I seen such a discouraging clinical picture, and I shall certainly have my hands full, all eight of them, with this one.", So says aCrepellian octopod Diagnostician. To me, the entirety of this book matched the pace, tension and drama of the first chapter of the first title, which is after all what hooked me in the first place. '"And don’t think you can pull your Senior Physician’s rank on me to get up," she said sweetly as Conway opened his mouth to do just that. "In this instance you are the patient and not the doctor, Doctor."' Bristling with humour, concern for the mental stability of our protagonist and the well-being of his patients, this installment sees Conway at his very best, the hospital a well-running machine all around him. Seems to me that this is a perfect end-of-series marker - the characters are all wrapped up and left as neatly as if a season of a television drama was coming to a close. My only slight seed of doubt is that there are more books, and some say the quality declines. This happens with series, of course; but this one at least will certainly stick in my mind for its sheer excellence.
4 Stars to Sector General (Sector General, #5) by James White
Description
Four stories describe the efforts of the doctors in a futuristic hospital to treat strange creatures from outer space
Review
I enjoyed this one a little more than the last few, for two main reasons. First, the danger to Senior Physician Prilicla was a more interesting line of approach for the plot than the others have had recently, having a main character in danger obviously increases the tension levels and makes for an enjoyable read. The solution to the ills has a deus ex machina ring to it - but then what in this series doesn't? I also liked the aside about MacEwan and Grawlya-Ki - more background on the hospital was a change of pace compared to the constant find, diagnose, panic and cure pattern of previous titles. They're addictively fascinating reads. Critics have said they decline in quality after the next one so I shall just have to see for myself.
3 Stars to Ambulance Ship (Sector General, #4) by James White
Description
CALLING DR. CONWAY. . . There was a lot of talk about the vital importance of his new assignment, but it still seemed like a demotion to Senior Physician Conway. After twelve years of outstanding service--and the most incredible experiences imaginable--Conway couldn't quite appreciate the "honor" of becoming an ambulance attendant at this stage of his life. True, the insectile empath, Dr. Prilicla, would be with him--and so would the eminently desirable Nurse Murchison--but it was definately a comedown for a Senior Physican of his status to be conscripted as part of a first-aid team for disabled spacefarers. Then the first call came--and Conway faced the problem of treating a spaceship crew's mysterious ailment. . . without wiping out every patient and doctor in Sector General! A GRIPPING NOVEL OF A FUTURISTIC HOSPITAL'S BATTLE TO CONTAIN A POTENTIALLY DEADLY EPIDEMIC. . .
Review
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3 Stars to Major Operation (Sector General, #3) by James White
Description
SECTOR GENERAL is an enormous hospital based far out on the Galactic Rim. No other hospital on or off the Earth encounters the widely diverse problems created by the hundreds of different alien life forms that turn up at Sector General for treatment. Being a doctor, human or otherwise, in this establishment requires a degree of adaptability Hippocrates never imagined . . .
Review
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3 Stars to Star Surgeon (Sector General, #2) by James White
Description
This is the second installment of the Sector General series, about a huge multi-species hospital on the edges of the galaxy. Sector General is a hospital station -- a place where all kinds of patients and medics from all worlds are welcome. But for the first time, the hospital is threatened by creatures too different its purpose, and so powerful that they can cause utter havoc! The book tells the story of the events that culminated in the Etlan War. Here are all the strange and not so strange creatures who inhabit James White's hospital in space as both doctors and patients: the human doctor Conway, plus two-ton doctors with four-ton patients, creatures which are multi-legged and telepathic, gas breathers, underwater behemoths--a wild and wooly assortment of denizens from all parts of the galaxy. "Sector General" is a mercy station--a place where all kinds from all worlds are welcome. But for the first time, the hospital itself is threatened by creatures too differnet to understand its purpose ans so powerful that they can cause utter havoc!
Review
I zipped through books 2, 3 and 4 of this series without stopping and they've sort of run together in my mind. A shame, because the escapades of Dr Conway and all his colleagues is great fun, even if we get the same old words chapter after chapter. it's very much like watching a TV soap opera but without the interruption of advertisements.
4 Stars to Hospital Station (Sector General, #1) by James White
Description
Hospital Station [mass_market] White, James [Dec 12, 1984]
Review
it seemed clear that this was originally short stories, and that format works really well here. I feel a little odd, reading what's really book form of the hospital dramas that grace our television screens. Really enjoying it, though - the pros is clear, the characters typically singleminded, and if the odd sentence is repeated word-for-word because of the story-to-novel conversion process, then it just serves to push me to the next sentence to see what's coming up.
March
4 Stars to The Veteran: Five Heart-Stopping Stories by Frederick Forsyth
Description
On a grimy sidewalk in a defeated neighborhood, an old man is beaten to death. When a cop investigates, he finds two killers and a startling legacy of honor ... In a prestigious London art gallery an impoverished actor is swindled out of a fortune-until an eccentric appraiser hatches a delicious scheme for revenge... On an airplane high over war-torn Afghanistan, a passenger sends a note to the plane's captain, warning of suspicious behavior. But no one can guess who is really conspiring aboard the 747, or why... From the war-torn Italy to the Little Big Horn, from soldiers of fortune to victims of fate,The Veteran is a riveting experience in crime, heroism, and the kind of mano-a-mano duels-and surprising twists of fate-that are the hallmark of Frederick Forsyth at his very best.
Review
I've never read any frederick forsyth before and didn't really know what to expect. I must say I was hooked, fascinated and surprised. My favourite story out of the five in the collection has to be "the Art of the Matter", describing a disgruntled x-employee's vengeance on a corporate bigwig who lost him his job. I also enjoyed "The Veteran", it was quite police procedural (which works well in a short story ) with an excellent twist at the end. The remaining stories in order of my enjoyment were "Whispering Wind", "The Citizen" and "The Miracle".
4 Stars to Sleeper Agenda (Sleeper Conspiracy, #2) by Tom Sniegoski
Description
Continues the quest of teenager Tom Lovett who vows to take down the evil agency that created him while also fighting the evil within himself--an alter ego that emerges as an assassin. Original.
Review
"I can see it in your eyes," the man said above him, blood dripping from his lips as he attempted to force the glinting blade down into Tom's face. " 'Why won't this guy go down?'" Wells laughed, shaking his head ever so slowly, his face a bloody mess. "I can't feel a thing," he said. "Do you understand, boy? They made it so I don't feel any pain." The blade slowly descended. "It's a battle of the science projects," Wells grunted with exertion. "May the better freak win." I must confess that although I enjoyedSleeper Code, Sniegoski's first book about Tom Lovett, I merely found it "good", rather than something I'd retain as a highly enjoyable read. The premise in outline is that Tom has narcolepsy, but when he's asleep sometimes he's actually host to a second, cultivated personality - a killer. I got the strong urge to pick up This (the second book) straight after the first, largely due to a sense of incompleteness. The story was obviously going further, and I wanted to find out where. So I did... Taking both works as a whole my rating has to increase, because although the kid-as-spy or teenager-as-soldier concept has been done and done to death, this was nevertheless an interesting twist on the concept. Books that inform about any sort of condition (narcolepsy in this case) are always good because that sort of material gave me, at a younger age, insight into a condition I was otherwise clueless about. it's fiction, of course, primarily a good yarn, but with some interesting comment about its subject matter nevertheless. I do find myself wondering if that's the end of it, or if (in Alex Rider fashion) more and more titles will appear. The ending is complete but certainly not closed-off, so who knows. Hopefully, if done properly, it won't be overdone.
3 Stars to Sleeper Code (Sleeper Conspiracy, #1) by Tom Sniegoski
Description
When teenager Tom Lovett learns that his narcoleptic "fits" are really cover for his alter ego, Tyler Garrett, to commit coldblooded murder as a hired assassin, Tom vows to take down the evil agency that created him while also fighting the evil within himself. Original.
Review
I decided to read this because a reviewer compared it to Robert Ludlum's Jason Bourne novels. Whilst the concept is perhaps vaguely similar, the writing is clearly aimed at a much younger audience. The violence lacks aggression but the story isn't short of a few thrills, and the end is certainly left hanging so that I've got to finish up. A very short book, really - I started reading about 11:00 PM and was finished within a few hours.
4 Stars to Across the Nightingale Floor (Tales of the Otori, #1) by Lian Hearn
Description
In his black-walled fortress at Inuyama, the warlord Iida Sadamu surveys his famous nightingale floor. Constructed with exquisite skill, it sings at the tread of each human foot. No assassin can cross it unheard. The youth Takeo has been brought up in a remote mountain village among the Hidden, a reclusive and spiritual people who have taught him only the ways of peace. But unbeknownst to him, his father was a celebrated assassin and a member of the Tribe, an ancient network of families with extraordinary, preternatural skills. When Takeo's village is pillaged, he is rescued and adopted by the mysterious Lord Otori Shigeru. Under the tutelage of Shigeru, he learns that he too possesses the skills of the Tribe. And, with this knowledge, he embarks on a journey that will lead him across the famed nightingale floor—and to his own unimaginable destiny...
Review
A very enjoyable read indeed, the description was enchanting and the coming-of-age story brilliantly handled.
3 Stars to Realty Check by Piers Anthony
Description
For the visit of their granddaughter and grandson, Penn and Chandelle got a house in Philadelphia that is rent-free for a month, and soon discover the house's fantastical properties, but they must now find out what the house wants in return.
Review
The only downside to such a short novel is the lack of depth in-character stuff the author can produce. Still, everyone here is written in such a way that their own unique points come forth. The plot is somewhat fantastical and the suspension of credibility perhaps a trifle overstretched, but for a light read and some interesting comments on the generation gap it's a good choice.
3 Stars to Dark Watcher (The Watchers, #1) by Lilith Saintcrow
Description
The Theodora Morgan knows she's a little strange. Her talent for healing has marked her as different all through a life spent moving from town to town when someone notices her strangeness. Now she has a home, and she doesn't want to leave-but she's been found. The Crusade wants her dead because she's psychic, the Dark wants to feed on her talent, and then there's Dante. Tall and grim and armed with black-bladed knives, guns, and a sword, he says he's here to protect her. But what if he's what Theo needs protection from most? The Dante is a Watcher, sworn by Circle Lightfall to protect the Lightbringers. His next assignment? Watch over Theo. She doesn't know she's a Lightbringer, she doesn't know she's surrounded by enemies, and she doesn't know she's been marked for death by a bunch of fanatics. He can't protect her if she doesn't trust him, but how can she possibly trust a man scarred by murder and warfare-a man who smells like the same Darkness Theo has been running from all her life? Bounced around the world as a military brat, Lilith Saintcrow fell in love with writing in second grade and never looked back. She currently resides in Vancouver, Washington, with two children, a menagerie, and books. Find her on the web at lilithsaintcrow.com.
Review
An interesting title indeed, magic seemingly set in a modern-day world. the "normals" seem pretty much oblivious and they're only there for backdrop, but it's the start of a series and in this instance I think the second one will be well worth a read.
4 Stars to The Turing Option by Harry Harrison
Description
After gunman storm his high-security laboratory and put a bullet in his head, Brian Delaney reconstructs himself with the nerve reprogramming techniques that he invented and sets out to regain the scientific knowledge he has lost. Reprint.
Review
This is quite a brilliant story - of regrowing, relearning, rediscovering. The basic plot is that a brilliant scientist survives an attempted murder, but with portions of his brain severely damaged. He's been working on artificial intelligence, though; so all is not truly lost. The storytelling is gripping and the technology fascinating. the ending is quite different than what I expected - throughout the novel modern technology is portrayed as holy beneficial, and it's not until the end that we see something that might just draw a cloud over the idea of going too far with technology. A superbly spun story, if leaning a trifle toward the unbelievable.
3 Stars to Harry, a History: The True Story of a Boy Wizard, His Fans, and Life Inside the Harry Potter Phenomenon by Melissa Anelli
Description
During the brief span of just one decade, hundreds of millions of perfectly ordinary people made they became the only ones who would remember what it was like when the Harry Potter saga was still unfinished. What it was like to seek out friends, families, online forums, fan fiction, and podcasts to get a fix between novels. When the death of a character was a hotter bet than the World Series. When the unfolding story of a boy wizard changed the way books are read for all time. And as webmistress of the Leaky Cauldron, one of the most popular Harry Potter sites on the Internet, Melissa Anelli had a front row seat to it all. Whether it was helping Scholastic stop leaks and track down counterfeiters, hosting live PotterCasts at bookstores across the country, touring with the wizard rock band Harry and the Potters, or traveling to Edinburgh to interview J. K. Rowling personally, Melissa was at the center of the Harry Potter tornado, and nothing about her life would ever be the same. The Harry Potter books are a triumph of the imagination that did far more than break sales records for all time. They restored the world's sense of wonder and took on a magical life of their own. Now the series has ended, but the story is not over. With remembrances from J. K. Rowling's editors, agents, publicists, fans, and Rowling herself, Melissa Anelli takes us on a personal journey through every aspect of the Harry Potter phenomenon-from his very first spell to his lasting impact on the way we live and dream.
Review
It's impossible to sit down for a few hours and grasp every nuance of a topic so richly diverse as harry Potter. I suppose I therefore read this book trying to understand one person's (the author's) journey through the Potter world. There's no denying that Anelli can write and write well, and despite being utterly real, this heartwarming, modern-day coming of age story is still that. it charts not only Potter's explosive success, but Anelli's growth at the same time. Laced with whit, reflection, and more importantly so much of the Human Spirit missing from some fiction, it was great to see just how much of a difference harry Potter had made to one young woman's life.
2 Stars to Farmer in the Sky by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
Bill knew his destiny lay in the stars, but how was he to get there? George Lerner was shipping out for Ganymede to join the fledgling colony, and Bill wanted to go along. But his father would not hear of it -- far too dangerous a mission! Bill finally talked his way aboard the colony ship Mayflower -- and discovered his father was right!
Review
Despite its target of a juvenile audience,this was an enjoyably shallow read. Virtuous and frontiering, it's not got much in the way of grit and was probably an interesting magazine spread in the fifties.
2 Stars to The Alchemist's Apprentice (The Alchemist, #1) by Dave Duncan
Description
To the legendary clairvoyant Maestro Nostradamus, the future is forever in motion. But for young swordsman Alfeo Zeno, his apprentice and protector, the present is hard enough to contend with. His days are spent poring over astrology charts and making calculations, his nights learning arcane magic or transcribing Nostradamus's nebulous prophecies. Until one night, when the Council of Ten arrives to take the seer into custody. It seems that a high-ranking friend of the prince died under mysterious circumstances after Nostradamus cast his horoscope, warning of danger-and rumors are swirling that the mystic poisoned the victim to enhance his own reputation. Alfeo is stunned when his master refuses to flee. Instead, Nostradamus charges Alfeo with the task of clearing his name. Now, Alfeo must unravel a web of magic and murder if he is to have any future of his own.
Review
The only other material of Duncan's I'd read was the Seventh Sword saga - and I utterly enjoyed them. This lacked something for me - I've never been a huge fan of whodoneits in general, but hoped that the author's style would pull the thing through. whilst an enjoyable enough read, there was nevertheless a feeling of something missing and I'm probably going to put the continuing parts of the series deep in my haystack, which I may or may not get through one day.:
2 Stars to Counter-Clock World by Philip K. Dick
Description
In Counter-Clock World, one of the most theologically probing of all of Dick’s books, the world has entered the Hobart Phase — a vast sidereal process in which time moves in reverse. As a result, libraries are busy eradicating books, copulation signifies the end of pregnancy, people greet with, “Good-bye,” and part with, “Hello,” and underneath the world’s tombstones, the dead are coming back to life. One imminent old-born is Anarch Peak, a vibrant religious leader whose followers continued to flourish long after his death. His return from the dead has such awesome implications that those who apprehend him will very likely be those who control the fate of the world.
Review
Whilst certainly deep theologically, I cannot help but feel Dick's obsession with hallucinatory drugs simply ruins the whole thing. The story was certainly interesting, I'd read fragments in another PKD short story before and I was reminded of what I think is a Heinlein story "what the dead men say". Could have gone further with less theologism and philosophising but for all that the the plot kept me reading.
5 Stars to Survivors (Star Trek: The Next Generation #4) by Jean Lorrah
Description
Treva is an isolated human colony on the fringes of known space on the verge of becoming a true interstellar community, a full fledged member of the Federation. But now the U.S.S. Enterprise has received a distress signal for Treva is in the throes of a violent revolution, a revolution led by a merciless warlord who has committed countless atrocities in the name of freedom. Data and Lt. Tasha Yar are dispatched to investigate. Once they reach Treva, they discover the truth, and any possible solution may be far more complex than a simple rebellion. Treva's president wants more then Starfleet's good words in her fight against the rebels, she wants their weapons technology.
Review
Thrilling, superb, utterly charming. "It is the price we pay for being survivors." Data. yar never really got a great deal of onscreen development, yet despite this fact, Jean Lorra has taken every nugget, every morsel, every nuance and development of those nuances and made Tasha yar into a fully-flushed, Human character. "That is the greatest danger in confronting evil: it is contagious. I have no doubt I did what was necessary. Why I did it I will probably question for the rest of my life." Jean-Luc Picard. But not only did Lorra give Tasha Humanity, depth, thoughts and feelings and cares and everything else that turns someone we read about into someone we feel for - not only this, but the backstory which was so rarely hinted at onscreen has become something so much more... "But the day the rape gang found the girl, just two days after the old woman's death, the knife did her little good." Page 14. Even by the fourteenth page, this girl has our sympathies. By page 248, I wanted to cry as much as anyone else. "'Gone?' Picard asked as if he still could not believe it, forcing Dr. Crusher to explain further, her voice tight with unshed tears." A simple line - even the description of the demise is simple. yet anyone having seen the show will agree with Guinan's assessment, made in the episode Yesterday's enterprise: "It was an empty death. A death without purpose." "To lose his freedom would be far worse than death to such a man." Rikan, about Adin. As empty as the death may have appeared, as sad as the episode where she died still was, watching it didn't really hit me; not terribly. not the way the death of a regular should at least. But absorbing this novel, really seeing who Tasha could have been and how she might have felt and thought and loved and lost then loved again, really makes the loss of such a profoundly emotional character that more painful. "As her fiance fell, Yar felt something inside turn to ice. She rose to her knees, took aim at the one who had shot Dare, and drilled him through the forehead. And she kept shooting until that phaser was discharged, and she was the last of the bridge crew taken, backhanded by the Orion who finally captured her. She struck the wall, and blessed oblivion overcame her." Jean Lorra pulls the heartstrings in every way imaginable - by Giving Tasha a history to make anyone sad, proud, hopeful and disgusted in equal measure. By making her such a real presence, a driving force, yet a vulnerable, caring person. By making her later love life such a tormented affair, and by then handing her the biggest conflict of all - to love, to friendship, to duty, to belief. I haven't even started on Data's development in this book - but I don't need to. i couldn't do it justice, more than the author has done herself. All I can do is to announce my overwhelming feelings, my enjoyment of a fine work of art and my hope that if anyone is in need of a good read and a powerful story they remember this review.
2 Stars to Behold the Eyes of Light by Geoff Geauterre
Description
A feline mutant of a desert race realizes her people have reached a crucial point. Their planet is dying, and the people have come to a dead end in their development. In an unparalleled quest to avoid this end, she uses her one mutant gift to travel outside the realm of physical reality and escapes her dimensional realm. However, once she does this, she is trapped in a place where dimensions cross, and were it not for the curiosity of the mighty Dr'gons, she would have perished. Brought home to their realm, she is introduced to a world beyond imagination, filled with deadly terrors on every hand. Trained and changed under the care of the Great Dr'gons, she becomes more than herself, more than any had ever imagined, … and if the All Mother, the Sorceress of Night is to survive, she must evolve so one day in the future she can return to her people and 'Bring them up from the Hunt!'
Review
This book just confused me from the start. Nothing is quite explained in a satisfactory manor and I have no idea what species the main character is supposed to be, let alone in what world, universe or cosmos the whole thing is set. On the plus side the humour was amusing at times and there's no denying the descriptive language and character traits shines through well. There's a sequel - perhaps it'll clear things up. Perhaps I missed something that came before. in any event despite being utterly lost and confused throughout the plot was interesting.
3 Stars to Freezing Point by Karen Dionne
Description
Salvation and annihilation meet at one degree. One man's dream of providing clean drinking water for millions, tapped from the polar ice, sparks a conflict of humanity, science, big business, and environmental extremism. But no one can foresee the true danger hidden deep within the ice-an enemy more deadly than any could imagine, and an apocalyptic horror mankind may not survive.
Review
An interesting read, sporting relevant ecological issues in an intriguing storyline. The writing is well done but the ending did leave me a little disappointed - in a 'hanging on', 'what's next' kind of a way.
2 Stars to Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
The historians can’t seem to settle whether to call this one "The Third Space War" (or the fourth), or whether "The First Interstellar War" fits it better. We just call it “The Bug War." Everything up to then and still later were "incidents," "patrols," or "police actions." However, you are just as dead if you buy the farm in an "incident" as you are if you buy it in a declared war... In one of Robert A. Heinlein’s most controversial bestsellers, a recruit of the future goes through the toughest boot camp in the Universe—and into battle with the Terran Mobile Infantry against mankind’s most alarming enemy.
Review
Some of Heinlein's more militaristic stuff I quite enjoy - some not so much. this fell into that category; perhaps being biased by the film I didn't enjoy maent I didn't give this book all I could have. I wanted a good story and got a book full of political exposition.
February
3 Stars to Prince Caspian (Chronicles of Narnia, #2) by C.S. Lewis
Description
Illustrations in this ebook appear in vibrant full color on a full color ebook device, and in rich black and white on all other devices. Narnia . . . where animals talk . . . where trees walk . . . where a battle is about to begin. A prince denied his rightful throne gathers an army in a desperate attempt to rid his land of a false king. But in the end, it is a battle of honor between two men alone that will decide the fate of an entire world. Prince Caspian is the fourth book in C.S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia, a series that has become part of the canon of classic literature, drawing readers of all ages into a magical land with unforgettable characters for over fifty years. This is a stand-alone novel, but if you would like to see more of Lucy and Edmund’s adventures, read The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the fifth book in The Chronicles of Narnia.
Review
One of the very best things about these books is the lovely language - my favourite sentence is "Of course, if the children had attempted a journey like this a few days ago in England, they would have been knocked up." The magic and mystery of narnia still holds sway. I saw the movie of Prince Caspian Recently and enjoyed it a great deal, but this and the BBC radio drama (not the newer tosh but the originals) is still the very best.
3 Stars to Rollback by Robert J. Sawyer
Description
Dr. Sarah Halifax decoded the first-ever radio transmission received from aliens. Thirty-eight years later, a second message is received and Sarah, now 87, may hold the key to deciphering this one, too . . . if she lives long enough. A wealthy industrialist offers to pay for Sarah to have a rollback―a hugely expensive experimental rejuvenation procedure. She accepts on condition that Don, her husband of sixty years, gets a rollback, too. The process works for Don, making him physically twenty-five again. But in a tragic twist, the rollback fails for Sarah, leaving her in her eighties. While Don tries to deal with his newfound youth and the suddenly vast age gap between him and his wife, Sarah struggles to do again what she'd done once figure out what a signal from the stars contains.
Review
I'm perhaps being unfair by only rating this one 3 out of 5 - the pros, the plot, the characters are all as vivid as any Sawyer novel I've read to date. the trouble I found with Rollback (apart from the title reminding me of a supermarket commercial) was that I never quite clicked with the main character. yes, I feel for his plight, and I cannot help but swoop through the emotional depths - so it was a good, solid read. But for me at least it lacked the pace of Flashforward and the intrigue of Frameshift. Enjoyable, but nothing to fawn over.
January
3 Stars to 50 in 50: Fifty stories for fifty years! by Harry Harrison
Description
Fifty stories for fifty years! A collection-and celebration-of the work of Harry Harrison From his first sale in 1950 on, Harry Harrison has been one of the science fiction world's creative dynamos, working in every subgenre of the field, always bursting with provocative ideas. Parodic one moment, serious the next, Harrison has been called by Brian Aldiss "one of the few authors capable of carrying the old vigor of earlier days forward into a new epoch." On the occasion of his fiftieth anniversary as a professional writer, Harrison has gathered together fifty of his best stories-one for each year-along with substantial notes and introductory material. 50 in 50 is at once a memoir, a compendium of an engaging body of work, and a look at the history of science fiction in the second half of the 20th century.
Review
A great collection of stories, neatly categorized and labeled up. Some are better than others, but all show great insight into the sf field over the decades. My favourites?The Streets of Ashkelon, At Last, the True Story of Frankenstein, Arm of the law, The Velvet Glove, Captain Bedlam, The Incident at Ind, and An Honest Days Work.
3 Stars to Firefly by Piers Anthony
Description
When a fleshless corpse is found on a Florida estate, a reclusive caretaker, an investigative reporter, a police officer, and a woman discover that a creature whose victims die in a frenzied state of sexual ecstasy is preying on human beings.
Review
By no means my favourite of this author but an interesting read, and no mistake. The main female lead is well-done and interesting and there's certainly a lot of questioning of sexual normality.
2 Stars to The Shapechanger Scenario by Simon Hawke
Description
When humans arrived at Draconis 9, the only life on the planet was docile race of mammals. Humans do what they always do when they arrive on a new planet; they begin to kill things. It turns out the mammals were tasty. Little did the colonists know the animals were actually a race of telepathic shapechangers. Faced with being hunted for food, the shapechangers took the form of humans and began to learn how to face their new predator. The race was docile no longer.
Review
If Hawke wasn't an author I'd already enjoyed, I would have regretted picking this book up - simply because the story is left even more wide open than at the end of the first novel. It also seems that the introduction of a new alien species herein serves a single, filling-wholes-in-the-plot purpose. Still, the characters are well done, the dialogue snappy (if stilted in places and sometimes repetitive from the prior story) and the writing engaging. Despite this, a let-down - I'd call it OK at best.
2 Stars to Who Goes There? and Other Stories by John W. Campbell Jr.
Description
Contents: "Who Goes There?" "Blindness" "Frictional Losses" "Dead Knowledge" "Elimination" "Twilight" "Night" Note: This is the 1948 collection. There is a separate entry if you have just the 1938 novella. Also published as 'The Thing and Other Stories'. 'The Thing from Another World' and 'The Thing from Outer Space'. All contained the seven short stories mentioned above.
Review
The BBC did an absolutely horrifying radio drama of this so I naturally had to read the work. Unfortunately I didn't really enjoy it much - perhaps the scare factor had been taken away by the vivid audio presentation and that just left a slightly expanded storyline - not enough to grip me with any force.
3 Stars to Psychodrome by Simon Hawke
Description
Psychodrome- An intergalactic scavenger hunt that sends its players across the stars in a game player for keeps... a game where the lines between reality and computer-generated fiction blur, and the only sure thing is that there is no sure thing. Now Arkardy O'Toole has entered Psychodrome. A gambler down on his luck, O'Toole hopes to pick up quick cash- and avoid some nasty characters that he's accidentally crossed. But his past has followed him into the game, and he and his teammates soon find out that if Psychodrome doesn't kill them, reality will...
Review
I've only ever read Hawke's humourous fantasy so this was a nice change of pace. Psychodrome is a sort of virtual game; brain implants to broadcast your feelings, with viewers tuning in at home on a 25th century TV set. The future is well fleshed yet not too overpowering, the technology not overused and the plot gripping without being overly obvious. An enjoyable read, with a second to follow. NB: I couldn't find a number of pages - my copy had 220.
3 Stars to Destiny (Rogue Angel, #1) by Alex Archer
Description
An ancient order tied to the Vatican…A blood fortune buried in the caves of France…A conspiracy of power, greed and darkest evil… Archaeologist and explorer Annja Creed’s fascination with the myths and mysteries of the past leads her to a crypt in the caves of France, where the terrifying legend of the Beast of Gevaudin hints at the unimaginable. What she discovers is shattering: an artifact that will seal her destiny; a brotherhood of monks willing to murder to protect their secret; and a powerful black-market occultist desperate to put his own claim to centuries-old blood money. Annja embarks on a high-tension race across Europe and history itself, intent on linking the unholy treachery of the ages with the staggering revelations of the present. But she must survive the shadow figures determined to silence her threat to their existence.
Review
OK, I've got a thing for teen lit. Young adult. Call it what you will, my days of sci-fi short stories in magazines have damaged my literary taste buds (litbuds?) for evermore. So what did I think of this book? it reminded me of television shows Buffy, Angel, neither of which I've ever seen. I cannot help the way I associate. I'm not a great proponent of happy endings, but there are plenty more in this rogue angel series for me to see that the end of book 1 is by no means the end of the series. is the protagonist a Doppler Lara Croft? Perhaps - I wouldn't know. I only ever appreciated her described physical attributes vicariously; none of her story came along for the ride.
4 Stars to The Destiny of the Sword (The Seventh Sword, #3) by Dave Duncan
Description
The Riddle of the Goddess Wallie Smith had been dying on another world when the Goddess transferred his mind to the body of the barbarian swordsman Shonsu. Then She gave him the great, magical Sapphire Sword of Chioxin and sent him on a mission. All he had to do was to lead the arrogant band of swordsmen to destroy the sorcerers and their Fire God. Now Wallie discovered that he'd already tried it -- and been hopelessly defeated. A few complications cropped up. Wallie's reputation was in tatters. His best friend and pupil was apparently planning to betray him. And if he won, he would doom all hope of progress and learning in this World of the Goddess -- doom the Goddess Herself. It made an interesting kind of riddle. All he had to do was find the solution -- and survive, if he could!
Review
what an absolutely perfect end to such an enjoyable series. I will concede that at times the religion was a stretch for me, but the debate of whether or not a miracle could be expected was certainly eagerly anticipated. This really is alternate-universe fantasy of a high order, and although it's a little early in the year for such statements, this series is certainly my high point of 2009. What shall top it? Bring 'em on!
5 Stars to The Coming of Wisdom (The Seventh Sword, #2) by Dave Duncan
Description
The Goddess had rescued Wallie Smith from certain death, endowed him with a magnificent new body, and gifted him with the legendary Sapphire Sword of Chioxin. She asked only one service in return... So Wallie became the Goddess' champion -- and promptly found himself on the losing side in a battle against magics far beyond any the priests of the Goddess could hope to summon, After eons of exile, sorcerers walked the World again, claiming lands and souls for their Fire God. Wallie quickly found that swords were no match for spells -- and how could mere mortals prevail against the powers of magic?
Review
An excellent continuation of the series and no mistake - as commented upon by others, the ending is a revelation. Personally the religious Goddess-as-supreme pathos of the work does sometimes sort of make me stop and think "Hmm", the free will against destiny angle is interesting to contemplate. Here's hoping for a conclusion with as much to offer.
4 Stars to The Reluctant Swordsman (The Seventh Sword, #1) by Dave Duncan
Description
The last thing Wallie Smith remembered was a fog of hospitals, grim-faced doctors, and pain. So when he woke in the body of a barbarian swordsman, attended by a beautiful slave girl and a wizened old priest nattering about the Goddess, he assumed it was a fever-dream. But the World could not be dismissed so lightly. A naked little demigod called Shorty explained that the Goddess needed a swordsman. If Wallie undertook the job and succeeded, all that World had to offer would be his. If he refused, the results would be...unpleasant. Wallie was not convinced, but Shorty was exquisitely persuasive. Soon Wallie found himself bearing a magnificent sword, with no idea how to use it -- and the servants of the Goddess were out to stop him.
Review
As I consumed the opening pages of this fine story, my miserable excuse for a brain could not but help attempt linking this work to The Reluctant Sorcerer by Simon Hawke. Hawke also wrote a trilogy featuring someone from our world forced to adapt in an alternate, medieval one; and its no coincidence that both this trilogy and that have an opening novel with the word reluctant in the title. You must forgive the parallel - I was rather heavily entoxicated at the time. 'tis the little things that amuse. anyway apart from that similarity the books hold little in common - this title, whilst not devoid of some comedic moments, only fleetingly alights upon the path of amusement. it has a story well told, characters that are clearly going places, and despite the concept of the uprooted earthman in unfamiliar surroundings and a demigod doing whatever he sees fit with no challenge to his authority being a little old-hat, its a cracking good read and I'm already on the next one.
4 Stars to DoOon Mode (Mode, #4) by Piers Anthony
Description
Beyond the world we know there is a multiverse of Modes where many strange realities interlock in an infinitely intricate pattern, and a perverse and deranged Emperor plays a deadly multidimensional game with human pawns as his slaves. Now, with DoOon Mode, Piers Anthony at last delivers the breathtaking climax to this awesome saga. Fearing the heroine Coleen's dawning power, the depraved Emperor Ddwng dispatches a terrible Mind Monster to assault her soul and bend her to his will. To protect herself, and those she loves, Coleen must journey back through many worlds to her own home on Earth, face her deepest and darkest fears, and draw the strength for a final confrontation to save the multiverse from tyranny and domination.
Review
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