Reading Archive: 2015
December
3 Stars to Gender Swapped By Aliens! by Eric Filler
Description
The Zargon Empire took over Earth without firing a shot. Thanks to reality warping powers, aliens have conquered the planet without anyone the wiser. Anyone except Dr. William Cauffield. He's taken to an alien lab, where they use their reality warping powers on him, changing him into new forms in an attempt to bring him into line. Yet William refuses to forget those he cares about, no matter what the aliens do to him. But how long can he hold on to who he really is?
Review
Intriguing, but not really my sort of thing. Can't argue that the writing was good nor the idea didn't work, but for all that it's not the sort of thing I'd regularly read.
2 Stars to Encryption by Bill Ward
Description
In a small software engineering company in England, a game changing algorithm for encrypting data has been invented, which will have far reaching consequences for the fight against terrorism. The security services of the uk, usa and china all want to control the new software. The financial director has been murdered and his widow turns to her brother-in-law to help discover the truth. But he soon finds himself framed for his brother’s murder. When the full force of government is brought to bear on one family, they seem to face impossible odds. Is it an abuse of power or does the end justify the means? Only one man can find the answers but he is being hunted by the same people he once called friends and colleagues.
Review
I can't admit to being very impressed by this. The start was interesting enough and certainly opened things up for a fascinating story, but Jenny was so unreal and Peter so overblown as to make them caricatures rather than characters. Having Jones and Baines muddied the waters unnecessarily when they'd have fitted as one character, some of the English was questionable at best and there was never enough of an explanation of the bad guys motives to justify things, never mind the ludicrous implausibility of both the Chinese turning up and the actual ending. Sadly, I think spy fiction is not much better off for this corpus.
2 Stars to Edison's Conquest of Mars by Garrett P. Serviss
Description
In 1897 H.G. Wells created one of the greatest science fiction masterpieces ever written-The War Of The Worlds. The story was serialized in newspapers across America and proved to be so popular that the Hearst newspaper group commissioned a sequel, to be written by their own science editor - Garrett Putnam Serviss. This sequel appeared in February of 1898 and quickly entered into the annals of science fiction history. It is one of the rarest and possibly one of the most important stories ever to appear in the genre. Serviss procured the cooperation of the famous inventor Thomas Edison and wove a totally distinct and astonishing tale of humans invading Mars. Whereas Wells had composed a story of human suffering, Serviss invented the space techno-thriller. This book contains the first space battle to ever appear in print. It is the first alien abduction story. The birthplace of the hand-held phaser-gun. It has asteroid mining and the first truly functional spacesuits. It is a cornucopia of technical ingenuity. The hero of the story is Edison himself. This is the first time this story has appeared, complete and unabridged with the original illustrations since the winter of 1898. First appearance ever outside the USA. The book that inspired Robert Goddard! Comes with a 13-page essay by editor Robert Godwin and original cover art by Tom Miller.
Review
How very... Verne. And old. But not without its charm, in a quaint, Wyndham-like way. Vastly dated now, nonetheless an intriguing look into prevailing attitudes of the day.
3 Stars to Blind Needle by Trevor Hoyle
Description
Calderbook CB453. A chase thriller that evolves into a horrific, erotic, suspense-filled tale with deep psychological undertones. 248 pages.
Review
Dark, gritty, and probably not worth it unless you're a fan. I enjoyed it for the most part, although reading 2 chapters concurrently nearly gave me a headache! Fun, in a macabre sort of a way, but not a book I can enthuse on.
4 Stars to Tunnel in the Sky by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
A classic novel from the mind of the storyteller who captures the imagination of readers from around the world, and across two generations. The final exam for Dr. Matson's Advanced Survival class was meant to be just that: only a test. But something has gone terribly wrong...and now Rod Walker and his fellow students are stranded somewhere unknown in the universe, beyond contact with Earth, at the other end of a tunnel in the sky. Stripped of all comforts, hoping for a passage home that may never appear, the castaways must band together or perish. For Rod and his fellow survivors, this is one test where failure is not an option....
Review
Though none of Heinlein's students quite match the rapport I enjoyed with Mat Dodson, this managed to be a very neatly told story with a lot going for it to capture a young person. Of course you do have to be a very particular type of younger adult to enjoy these. SO if you like the style this is a very worthy addition.
3 Stars to The Rings of Time by Greg Cox
Description
When a mining colony on an endangered moon is threatened, it’s a race against time for the Enterprise crew to find a solution in this original novel set in the universe of Star The Original Series. The U.S.S. Enterprise responds to a distress call from a vital dilithium-mining colony in the Klondike system. The colony is located on Skagway, a moon orbiting Klondike-6, a gas giant not unlike Saturn. For unknown reasons, the planet’s rings are coming apart, threatening the colony and its inhabitants. Kirk and his crew need to find a solution—fast.There are more than 3,000 colonists, including hundreds of families, on Skagway, which is more than even the Enterprise can take on, and there are no other rescue ships or habitable planets anywhere in the vicinity. Meanwhile, an approaching comet that may be the source of the crisis turns out to be a mysterious alien probe. Sensors indicate that the probe is incredibly old and running low on power. Suspecting that the probe may have something to do with the threat to Skagway, Kirk has the probe beamed aboard the Enterprise . Suddenly after a blinding flash, Kirk suddenly finds himself floating in orbit above Saturn in our solar system, drifting in space wearing a twenty-first century NASA spacesuit. What just happened...?
Review
No, no, no. You can't end a novel with a mysterious unveiling and expect your audience to be happy about it. I'm sorry, but between the Preserver's and the Q Continuum we've got far too many omnipotent uberspecies kicking about without adding another to the mix. The writing was pretty good, despite the ending, and the way in which the 2 vessel commanders thoughts are so clearly different was very neat indeed: there was never any doubt as to who we were with, even when physically it was less clear than it might've been! I did wonder if there weren't perhaps a few too many drops into the future (Sulu's command, Kirk's mountaineering), just because a novel is written today it doesn't mean it has to bow down and suck in everything that's happened since. I found the religious tolerance allegory, with Zaldana's veil, utter ridiculousness, and the blase certitudes of precision time travel rubbed me a little, too. Still, for all those irritations (and the ending did verily piss me off) I found myself hooked. So it's not a book I'd read again, but I did rather enjoy the story.
4 Stars to Beast in the Basement by Jason Arnopp
Description
"You can only live in a world of make-believe for so long, before reality comes calling. It always does." In a big house in the English countryside, a reclusive and increasingly unstable author toils over a book which will close the best-selling trilogy of Jade Nexus fantasy novels. Speculation and rumour are rife among hardcore Jade Nexus fans that their heroine will die at the hotly-anticipated novel’s conclusion - a possibility against which they have begun to loudly protest via social media as the release date nears. How do you deal with such intense pressure? How do you cope with distractions to your work such as a violent intruder, panicked messages from your agent and a potential love interest moving into the cottage across the field? And far worse than any of those problems... what do you do about the Beast in your basement? BEAST IN THE BASEMENT is a contemporary horror novella about obsession, revenge, censorship, blame culture and parental responsibility. A dark tale with a real kick. Read it fast before someone spoilers you! Author Jason Arnopp's previous credits include the feature film STORMHOUSE, DOCTOR WHO: THE GEMINI CONTAGION, THE SARAH JANE ADVENTURES: DEADLY DOWNLOAD and the New Line Cinema novel FRIDAY THE 13TH: HATE-KILL-REPEAT. He is also the author of the non-fiction Kindle book HOW TO INTERVIEW DOCTOR WHO, OZZY OSBOURNE AND EVERYONE ELSE. Parental advice: this novella features strong bloody violence, profanity and some sexual scenes. Not recommended for minors.
Review
With a twist I saw coming, this nonetheless managed to keep my interest. The writing is as always fresh and well-paced, and the idea of the work clever. If you like Jason, worth checking out!
2 Stars to Second Chance by David D. Levine
Description
Chaz Eades is on the mission of a lifetime—the first to an alien solar system far beyond our own—and it's a one-way trip. When he learns that contact with Earth has been lost, he wants to help reestablish communication. But the commander insists on science first and contact later, the crew is inexplicably hostile, and Chaz finds himself painfully isolated. Soon he realizes that there's a secret at the heart of the crew's troubles that is much larger than any he could have imagined. All bets are off, and he's not at all prepared for the mission he faces survival.
Review
This had potential, in fact the setup was really good. But it ended far too abruptly without any follow-through to be a complete story in my book.
4 Stars to Time Salvager (Time Salvager, #1) by Wesley Chu
Description
Convicted criminal James Griffin-Mars is no one’s hero. In his time, Earth is a toxic, abandoned world and humans have fled into the outer solar system to survive, eking out a fragile, doomed existence among the other planets and their moons. Those responsible for delaying humanity’s demise believe time travel holds the key, and they have identified James, troubled though he is, as one of a select and expendable few ideally suited for the most dangerous job in history. James is a chronman, undertaking missions into Earth's past to recover resources and treasure without altering the timeline. The laws governing use of time travel are absolute; break any one of them and, one way or another, your life is over. Most chronmen never reach old age; the stress of each jump through time, compounded by the risk to themselves and to the future, means that many chronmen rapidly reach their breaking point, and James Griffin-Mars is nearing his. On a final mission that is to secure his retirement, James meets Elise Kim, an intriguing scientist from a previous century, who is fated to die during the destruction of an oceanic rig. Against his training and his common sense, and in violation of the chronmen’s highest law, James brings Elise back to the future with him, saving her life, but turning them both into fugitives. Remaining free means losing themselves in the wild and poisonous wastes of Earth, somehow finding allies, and perhaps discovering what hope may yet remain for humanity's home world.
Review
An exciting idea here, I must admit I didn't think I'd enjoy this as much as I eventually did. There was something captivating about it, and seeing what happens next is something I'm looking forward to paying for. First of Chu I've read, pretty impressed.
4 Stars to Undermajordomo Minor by Patrick deWitt
Description
Lucy Minor is the resident odd duck in the hamlet of Bury. He is a compulsive liar, a sickly weakling in a town famous for begetting brutish giants. Then Lucy accepts employment assisting the majordomo of the remote, foreboding Castle Von Aux. While tending to his new post as undermajordomo, he soon discovers the place harbours many dark secrets, not least of which is the whereabouts of the castle's master, Baron Von Aux. Thus begins a tale of polite theft, bitter heartbreak, domestic mystery, and cold-blooded murder. Undermajordomo Minor is an ink-black comedy of manners, an adventure, and a mystery, and a searing portrayal of rural Alpine bad behaviour, but above all it is a love story. And Lucy must be careful, for love is a violent thing.
Review
Words can't really express the total weirdness of this story. I found myself almost guiltily hooked and coming back for more not because I was so engaged in the characters, but just for the flow of the words. I can't say it's a book i'd read again, but it certainly had a charm and appeal while I was in there.
4 Stars to One Day by David Nicholls
Description
15th July 1988: Emma and Dexter meet for the first time on the night of their graduation. Tomorrow they must go their separate ways. So where will they be on this one day next year? And the year after that? And every year that follows? --back cover
Review
I found myself utterly absorbed in the lives of these two very different characters. There was a great deal of British culture in there, and it’s interesting to see how things change because I was just being born when the whole thing kicks off, and yet it ends only a few years ago. It’s not the sort of book I think you can describe in a few sentences, without living it, the impact is lessened.
November
3 Stars to The Rolling Stones by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
It doesn’t seem likely for twins to have the same middle name. Even so, it’s clear that Castor and Pollux Stone both have "Trouble" written in that spot on their birth certificates. Of course, anyone who’s met their grandmother Hazel would know that they came by it honestly… Join the Stone twins as they connive, cajole, and bamboozle their way across the Solar System in the company of the most high-spirited and hilarious family in all of science fiction. This light-hearted tale has some of Heinlein’s sassiest dialogue (not to mention the famous Flat Cats incident!). Oddly enough, it’s also a true example of real family values–for when you’re a Stone, your family is your highest priority.
Review
I found myself enjoying this less than a lot of Heinlein, there seemed an overabundance of technical talk, which is I suppose a good thing for a young person with a keen interest in rocketry. To me, for the story, it drifted some. Still, I can’t say it wasn’t worth reading, there’s that inimitable style…
4 Stars to Capital by John Lanchester
Description
Celebrated novelist John Lanchester (author of The Debt to Pleasure) returns with an epic novel that captures the obsessions of our time. It’s 2008 and things are falling apart: Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers are going under, and the residents of Pepys Road, London—a banker and his shopaholic wife, an old woman dying of a brain tumor and her graffiti-artist grandson, Pakistani shop owners and a shadowy refugee who works as the meter maid, the young soccer star from Senegal and his minder—are receiving anonymous postcards reading “We Want What You Have.” Who is behind it? What do they want? Epic in scope yet intimate, capturing the ordinary dramas of very different lives, this is a novel of love and suspicion, of financial collapse and terrorist threat, of property values going up and fortunes going down, and of a city at a moment of extraordinary tension.
Review
This was a very complex novel, not in terms of what I understood but I think more in the ideas it tries to convey. On the surface, it’s just a glimpse into the lives of a few people and is not very remarkable for anything else, but the way in which it captures these people’s feelings, beliefs, goals and dreams is actually very well done. I didn’t get the thrill of a fantastic space battle, nor the unmasking of a spy or adrenaline rush of a thriller. But there’s a lot of subtlety to everyone, isn’t there? People, and by that I mean every person, has their own agenda, and it’s refreshing, even though it took me over 4 hours to read this thing, it’s refreshing to see that depicted in such an approachable, readable, and yes indeed enjoyable way.
2 Stars to War Stories from the Future by August Cole
Description
“The authors in this anthology invite us to shed the shackles that bind us to our current constructs and instead imagine things as they might be, for better or for worse.” - Martin Dempsey, foreword to War Stories from the Future War Stories from the Future is the culmination of the Atlantic Council Art of Future Warfare project’s first year exploring the future of armed and social conflict.
b>CONTENT "From a Remove" by Alec Meden "Article I, Section 8, Clause 11" by Ken Liu "A Stopped Clock" by Madeline Ashby A Visit to Weizenbaum" by Jamie Metzl "ANTFARM" by August Cole "We Can Win the War, You Must Win the Peace" designed by EG Douglas " Delphi" by Linda Nagata "The Exception That Proves the Rule" by Mathew Burrows "Coffee, Wi-Fi and the Moon. The unknown story of the greatest cyber war of them all" by Nikolas Katsimpras "A Need for Heroes" by David Brin "Another Day of Infamy" by Ashley Henley Featuring a foreword by Martin Dempsey, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the collection features new science fiction stories, as well as the project’s contest-winning short-story writers and visual artists. The anthology explores many of the most important looming issues in defense and security, but in a way that no white paper or policy brief can. To do so, the project commissioned established writers such as Ken Liu (privateers in cyber war) and Madeline Ashby (war breaking out in the world’s most connected city in Korea as experienced by its least connected population, street vendors), Jamie Metzl (the operational implications of bio-enhanced targeting and weaponry), Mathew Burrows (effective foresight in intelligence), and project Director August Cole, who edited the collection (swarm warfare and crowd-sourced intelligence). The collection also features two stories from best-selling science-fiction writer David Brin (the nature of heroes and warriors) and Linda Nagata (linked ground combat overseen from afar). Crowd sourcing is a cornerstone of the project’s goal of bringing in new voices. The anthology includes contest-winning stories from Alec Meden (drone operations in space and non-state actors), Nikolas Katsimpras (outbreak of a great power war), and Ashley Henley (the president’s address after a catastrophic cyber attack). Visual artists EG Douglas and Sam Cole (propaganda posters from the next world war) and Alex Brady (future of urban warfare) also feature in the collection. The Atlantic Council’s Art of Future Warfare project is driven by the Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security’s mandate to advance thinking and planning for the future of warfare. The project’s core mission is to cultivate a community of interest in works and ideas arising from the intersection of creativity and expectations about how emerging antagonists, disruptive technologies, and novel warfighting concepts will shape tomorrow’s conflicts.
Review
Some of these were interesting, and one or two might've worked well expanded or in longer series of their own. On the whole though, they were too conceptualised and abrupt to be stories of significance to me; I came away having finished the volume without being able to really say that I'd enjoyed it especially.
3 Stars to Kick (Jenkins Cycle, #1) by John L. Monk
Description
They say suicides are damned for eternity. But if coming back to life in the bodies of violent criminals is Hell, then Dan Jenkins will take it. And he does, every time a portal arrives to whisk him from his ghostly exile in limbo. Dan rides the living like a supernatural jockey, pushing out their consciousness and taking over. They're bad guys, right? Killers and brutes of every sort, which makes it okay. He doesn't know where their minds go while he's in charge, and for the most part doesn't care. For three weeks at a time, it's a chance to relax and watch movies, read fantasy novels, and have random conversations with perfect strangers. Normally, before the villain returns to kick him out, Dan dishes out a final serving of justice and leaves the world a safer place. It's one of the rules if he wants more rides, and he's happy to oblige. For a part-time dead guy, it’s a pretty good gig ... until someone changes the rules. "Kick" is the first book in a series of dark fantasy paranormal thrillers. If you like "Quantum Leap" and "Every Day," you'll love this gritty, hilarious, and original take on the body hijacking hero story. Vividly written, "Kick" is a wild ride with a sharp sarcastic wit and a flawed yet likable main character.
Review
This was a bit different, and no mistake. Recommended by a work colleague I found the idea quite captivating and the execution pretty high-grade. I'm not saying I was hooked, and I must confess to finding the theology a little odd, but the story itself was quite engaging and I'd like to see where it goes.
2 Stars to The Eye of Minds (The Mortality Doctrine, #1) by James Dashner
Description
Michael is a gamer. And like most gamers, he almost spends more time on the VirtNet than in the actual world. The VirtNet offers total mind and body immersion, and it’s addictive. Thanks to technology, anyone with enough money can experience fantasy worlds, risk their life without the chance of death, or just hang around with Virt-friends. And the more hacking skills you have, the more fun. Why bother following the rules when most of them are dumb, anyway? But some rules were made for a reason. Some technology is too dangerous to fool with. And recent reports claim that one gamer is going beyond what any gamer has done before: he’s holding players hostage inside the VirtNet. The effects are horrific—the hostages have all been declared brain-dead. Yet the gamer’s motives are a mystery. The government knows that to catch a hacker, you need a hacker. And they’ve been watching Michael. They want him on their team. But the risk is enormous. If he accepts their challenge, Michael will need to go off the VirtNet grid. There are back alleys and corners in the system human eyes have never seen and predators he can’t even fathom—and there’s the possibility that the line between game and reality will be blurred forever.
Review
People have raved about Dashner. I gave up on Maze Runner but because a respected friend enthused about the whole Mortality Doctrine saga, but I really must say The Eye of Minds didn't do much for me. The writing was almost too high level. There was very little world-building, and it's so hard to empathise with Michael that by the end of the book I really didn't give a hoot about what happened to him. Equally, Bryson and Sarah are taken out of things without any real damage done to them, so their loss is so evidently a way to make Michael go on alone there's no joy in his solo progress. Cutter's introduction and build-up was far too overblown, Ronika's mystique seemed pointless and the ending was so Matrix as to be visible from the dust jacket. I'm not saying I won't give the series as a whole a try, but I came away thoroughly unimpressed with the quality of Dashner's writing, characters or plot.
4 Stars to Nine Tomorrows by Isaac Asimov
Description
Nine stories: Profession; The Feeling of Power; The Dying Night; I'm in Marsport without Hilda; The Gentle Vultures; All the Troubles of the World; Spell my Name with an S; The Last Question (one of Asimov's most often requested stories); and The Ugly Little Boy (Asimov's own personal favorite).
Review
Asimov holds a place in my heart, of course, his robot stories are childhood treasures. I first had this collection read to me by the indefatigable Ian Craig from the UK's RNIB Talking Book Service, and he did a bang-up job. On that reading, I really enjoyed Profession, I'm in Marsport Without Hilda and The ugly Little Boy. These were all as good as I recall, but I also found enjoyment in All the Troubles of the World. The Feeling of Power is a very solid story, and I also enjoyed The Dying Night, because I haven't really read much of Urth before. I have acquired several further collections of Asimov's short fiction and will sprinkle them through my reading over the coming months.
4 Stars to Hitchers by Will McIntosh
Description
Two years ago, on the same day but miles apart, Finn Darby lost two of the most important people in his his wife Lorena, struck by lightning on the banks of the Chattahoochee River, and his abusive, alcoholic grandfather, Tom Darby, creator of the long-running newspaper comic strip Toy Shop . Against his grandfather’s dying wish, Finn has resurrected Toy Shop , adding new characters, and the strip is more popular than ever, bringing in fan letters, merchandising deals, and talk of TV specials. Finn has even started dating again. When a terrorist attack decimates Atlanta, killing half a million souls, Finn begins blurting things in a strange voice beyond his control. The voice says things only his grandfather could know. Countless other residents of Atlanta are suffering a similar bizarre affliction. Is it mass hysteria, or have the dead returned to possess the living? Finn soon realizes he has a hitcher within his skin... his grandfather. And Grandpa isn’t terribly happy about the changes Finn has been making to Toy Shop . Together with a pair of possessed friends, an aging rock star, and a waitress, Finn races against time to find a way to send the dead back to Deadland... or die trying! Skyhorse Publishing, under our Night Shade and Talos imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of titles for readers interested in science fiction (space opera, time travel, hard SF, alien invasion, near-future dystopia), fantasy (grimdark, sword and sorcery, contemporary urban fantasy, steampunk, alternative history), and horror (zombies, vampires, and the occult and supernatural), and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller, a national bestseller, or a Hugo or Nebula award-winner, we are committed to publishing quality books from a diverse group of authors.
Review
Oh, wow. I really enjoyed this, in a gothic, escapist sort of a way. Chapter 13 was creepy in the extreme, it really got me, and apart from an unfortunate reliance on death in water and the repeated use of the word waked, there's very little to complain about. Characterisation was powerful, the plot was clever and although these things do have to end in a set way it was handled cleverly enough that I really felt as if I'd come away from a novel with a lot going for it.
5 Stars to The Short Drop (Gibson Vaughn, #1) by Matthew FitzSimmons
Description
A decade ago, fourteen-year-old Suzanne Lombard, the daughter of Benjamin Lombard—then a senator, now a powerful vice president running for the presidency—disappeared in the most sensational missing-person case in the nation’s history. Still unsolved, the mystery remains a national obsession. For legendary hacker and marine Gibson Vaughn, the case is personal—Suzanne Lombard had been like a sister to him. On the tenth anniversary of her disappearance, the former head of Benjamin Lombard’s security asks for Gibson’s help in a covert investigation of the case, with new evidence in hand. Haunted by tragic memories, he jumps at the chance to uncover what happened all those years ago. Using his military and technical prowess, he soon discovers multiple conspiracies surrounding the Lombard family—and he encounters powerful, ruthless political players who will do anything to silence him and his team. With new information surfacing that could threaten Lombard’s bid for the presidency, Gibson must stay one step ahead as he navigates a dangerous web to get to the truth.
Review
This is a taught, engaging and utterly compelling thriller of the highest quality. It reminded me of a collaboration between Greg Iles and Mark Russinovich and shatters the mold for a debut novel so completely, you'd swear Fitzsimmonz had been churning out professional novels for years. I eagerly await anything else produced by this very talented author.
5 Stars to Resistance is Futile by Jenny T. Colgan
Description
Connie thinks she's never met anyone quite like Luke Beith before. She has no idea how right she is. As a high-ranking mathematician in a male-dominated field - with bright red hair - Connie's used to being considered a little unusual. But she's nowhere near as peculiar as Luke, who is recruited to work alongside her on a top-secret code breaking project. Just what is this bizarre sequence they're studying? It isn't a solution to the global energy crisis. It isn't a new wavelength to sell microwave ovens. The numbers are trying to tell them something . . . and it seems only Luke knows what. The truth is out there. Will Connie dare to find it? In this whirlwind adventure, Sunday Times bestselling author Jenny Colgan boldly goes where no author has gone before . . .
Review
"‘That’s because we’re under house arrest,’ pointed out Arnold. ‘And one of us is dead.’" This was,much to my surprise, fluffy and romantic in an uber clever fashion. I really enjoyed the math speak, the personalities, and of course I'm a sucker for a little romance if it's handled well. I'm not saying I shall rush out and read all the author's full-on romantic fiction, but this was very fine indeed.
2 Stars to Luna by Rick Chesler
Description
On the threshold of opening the moon to tourist excursions, a private space firm owned by a visionary billionaire takes a team of non-astronauts to the lunar surface. To address concerns that the moon’s barren rock may not hold long-term allure for an uber-wealthy clientele, the company’s charismatic owner reveals to the group the ultimate discovery: life on the moon. But what is initially a triumphant and world-changing moment soon gives way to unrelenting terror as the team experiences firsthand that despite their technological prowess, the moon still holds many secrets.
Review
There were a few clangers in what was, honestly, a droll and humdrum story with all the pathos of a low-budget cheesy horror flick without any saving graces to mitigate. The new novel excerpted at the end looks good, though.
4 Stars to Unforgettable by Eric James Stone
Description
Out of sight, out of mind. Due to a fluke of quantum mechanics, no one can remember Nat Morgan for more than a minute after he's gone. It's a useful ability for his career as a CIA agent, even if he has to keep reminding his boss that he exists. But Nat leads a lonely life, unable to connect with anyone for a lasting relationship, until he gets handcuffed to Yelena Semyonova, a thief working for the Russian mob. Nat and Yelena must work together to stop a ruthless billionaire from finishing a quantum supercomputer that will literally control the fate of the world.
Review
What a brilliant idea for a thriller. Of course, there's a lot of disbelief happening, and there were times when I wondered if I were reading a pulp magazine story (not that that's a bad thing). An author to keep an eye on, and a series to follow-up. Solid writing, interesting if stereotyped characters. One to watch.
4 Stars to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Description
Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7,057. He relates well to animals but has no understanding of human emotions. He cannot stand to be touched. And he detests the color yellow. This improbable story of Christopher’s quest to investigate the suspicious death of a neighborhood dog makes for one of the most captivating, unusual, and widely heralded novels in recent years.
Review
Despite a serious amount of visual information which of course I miss, I managed to enjoy this book tremendously. I think the appeal for me is the very logical way in which Christopher approaches the world, it doesn't feel as if you're being told about disability, rather that you are perceiving the world in a way this young man lives it, in a direction so different from that our collective consciousness expects us to face. It's not a long read but it's seriously worth more thought per page than many books I've found.
3 Stars to Vessel by John Bowen
Description
When Holly Reilly finds herself on the run carrying a piece of technology with the potential to change what it even means to be human, she calls the only person she trusts with the skills necessary to keep her alive, her estranged husband, Gabriel. Gabe and Holly soon find themselves caught up in a secret conflict that has raged for centuries, a battle poised to spill into the modern world, threatening chaos and bloodshed.
Review
The idea here is nothing new, of course, and although the writing was to a high standard and without many errors, the pacing of the story, the ungainly number of flashbacks and almost 30 occurrences of "fair haird man" did, on occasion, remind me I was reading a book rather than enjoying a story. Some of the language was really nicely done though (the use of the word cleave from the Old English clifian rather than the more commonplace cleofan derivation is a good example), making this book the sort of thing I'd enjoy as a quick filler between other works.
3 Stars to TFS Ingenuity (The Terran Fleet Command Saga #1) by Tori L. Harris
Description
It’s the year 2277. For fifty years, Earth has received mysterious data transmissions from random locations in deep space. The streams include advanced technology, allowing Humans to achieve faster-than-light travel virtually overnight. As we prepare to take our first, tentative steps into interstellar space, we know almost nothing about our alien benefactors, and their motivations remain unexplained. While completing their shakedown cruise, Captain Tom Prescott and the crew of the first Terran Fleet Command starship, TFS Ingenuity, stumble into a first contact situation. They learn that Earth is not the first civilization granted access to the stars before their time – and how this Faustian gift has inevitably led to centuries of interstellar war. Humanity’s existence hangs in the balance as a powerful alliance assembles a preemptive military strike, believing it to be their only option to protect themselves … from us. Prescott and his small, initially unarmed starship must serve as our only line of defense. Ingenuity is our only hope.
Review
I don’t like the word thrusted. Apart from that, this is fairly typical space opera with the usual captain, commander, lieutenant ensign mix. Nothing leapt off the page as original, but equally nothing made me stop reading in disgust.
4 Stars to Need by Joelle Charbonneau
Description
What do you really need? One by one, the teens in Nottawa, Wisconsin, join the newest, hottest networking site and answer one question: What do you need? A new iPhone? Backstage passes to a concert? In exchange for a seemingly minor task, the NEED site will fulfill your request. Everyone is doing it. So why shouldn’t you? Kaylee Dunham knows what she needs—a kidney for her sick brother. She doesn’t believe a social networking site can help, but it couldn’t hurt to try. Or could it? After making her request, Kaylee starts to realize the price that will have to be paid for her need to be met. The demands the site makes on users in exchange for their desires are escalating, and so is the body count. Will Kaylee be able to unravel the mystery of who created the NEED network before it destroys them all? alternate cover edition for ISBN 0544416694
Review
This was an exciting, fast-paced and very interesting story. I felt a bit let down by the ending but really enjoyed the plot as a whole. I need to read more of Joelle’s work, her leads are always thoughtful, usually flawed people with worlds painted in rich detail.
2 Stars to The Calcutta Chromosome by Amitav Ghosh
Description
From Victorian lndia to near-future New York, The Calcutta Chromosome takes readers on a wondrous journey through time as a computer programmer trapped in a mind-numbing job hits upon a curious item that will forever change his life. When Antar discovers the battered ID card of a long-lost acquaintance, he is suddenly drawn into a spellbinding adventure across centuries and around the globe, into the strange life of L. Murugan, a man obsessed with the medical history of malaria, and into a magnificently complex world where conspiracy hangs in the air like mosquitoes on a summer night.
Review
The writing wasn't bad, but I somehow didn't click with this one and I found the ending dry and not very progressive.
October
3 Stars to Future Wars . . . and Other Punchlines (1) by Hank Davis
Description
Trade paperback humorous military science fiction anthology . Featuring a mix of classic science fiction reprints and original stories by Baen regulars. Includes stories by David Drake , Frederik Pohl, Howard F. Waldrop , Christopher Anvil and more. CATCH-22 IN OUTER SPACE? War, as the general said, is hell, but it also has its humorous moments, though the humor may be grim, and you “had to be there” to get the joke. War is likely to continue into the future, and into space, no matter how many idealistic speeches are made and U.N. sponsored treaties get signed, and so will the wartime jokes, ranging from slapstick to gallows humor. And if “you had to be there” to get the point, some of the best writers in science fiction are on board to put you there . . . David Drake , the Dean of military science fiction, turns to fantasy and shows the result of having a combat balloon manned by halflings of dubious competence. Frederik Pohl tells of the invasion of Earth by aliens with impenetrable force shields, and how a goldbricking soldier with all the ethics of a career politician became an unlikely (and unwilling) hero. Herbert Gold considers the lighter (?) side of the strategy of M.A.D. (Mutual Assured Destruction). Theodore R. Cogswell , in a story which the Science Fiction Writers of America voted into their Science Fiction Hall of Fame, presents an isolated planet’s outpost, left behind after the collapse of galactic civilization, and the psychological subterfuge that kept morale from failing. Steven Utley and Howard F. Waldrop , in a Nebula Award and Locus Award-nominated work of alternate history, report on General George Armstrong Custer’s ill-fated mission when he and his dirigible-borne paratroopers were attacked by Chief Crazy Horse’s biplane squadron. Christopher Anvil shows that when aliens with overwhelming technological superiority invade Earth, their campaign can completely unravel because the local conditions are nothing like those back home. (A tornado is just moving air—how could that be dangerous?) And more! Future war may be future hell—but there’ll also be future hilarity. About Future Wars . . . and Other "A question at science fiction conventions has long been "Can you combine humor and science fiction?" The answer with "Future Wars... And Other Punchlines" is an overwhelming yes". Hank Davis has collected some of the finest short stories that do both , tell good sf while being very funny. Some of the authors he has included are Frederik Pohl, Clifford D. Simak, Gordon Dickson, David Drake and Sarah A. Hoyt. A special mention has to be given to Fredric Brown who was a master of the shorter short story that many times was only one page. He is included here with "Sentry" Like many of his works of sf there is a surprise ending that is memorable. "Future Wars... And Other Punchlines" is great fun for anyone who likes to read short stories." — Midwest Book Review
Review
A nice collection, some new to me but most not, especially those stories published before the turn of the century. I don't think a particular story leapt out at me as overwhelmingly brilliant but, if war is your thing, at least worthy of a look, I'd say.
3 Stars to Blink by Ted Dekker
Description
The future changes in the BLINK of an eye...or does it? Seth Borders isn't your average graduate student. For starters, he has one of the world's highest IQs. Now he's suddenly struck by an incredible power--the ability to see multiple potential futures. Still reeling from this inexplicable gift, Seth stumbles upon a beautiful woman named Miriam. Unknown to Seth, Miriam is a Saudi Arabian princess who has fled her veiled existence to escape a forced marriage of unimaginable consequences. Cultures collide as they're thrown together and forced to run from an unstoppable force determined to kidnap or kill Miriam. Seth's mysterious ability helps them avoid capture once, then twice. But with no sleep, a fugitive princess by his side, hit men a heartbeat away, and a massive manhunt steadily closing in, evasion becomes impossible. An intoxicating tale set amidst the shifting sands of the Middle East and the back roads of America, Blink engages issues as ancient as the earth itself...and as current as today's headlines.
Review
I would've enjoyed this as a thriller but although I can appreciate the benefits of love as a force, swallowing omnipotence isn't on my agenda just yet. So an interesting story, but overall not very satisfying
1 Stars to Time Flying: A Time Traveler's Memoir by Dan Garmen
Description
A brand new love story / thriller from Dan Garmen... Rich Girrard is happily married, a father, relatively well adjusted and owns half of a very successful tech company. Like most people approaching 50 years old, he had a few regrets, things he'd done, things he wished he hadn't. When Rich finds himself again living his life in the 1970s, fully aware that he's doing it for the second time, he discovers the process is far more complicated than he first thought, and struggles to change the things in his past he needs to, while trying to remain the man his family will recognize when he returns to them. Dan Garmen's debut novel Time Flying is a story of time travel, military action and a love story spanning thirty years and two lifetimes.
Review
An unfulfilling poorly-ended novel, far too full of repetition, basketball, digression and attempted profundity. I don't have the energy to invest in a sequel. Sorry, dan.
2 Stars to Coding Isis by David Roys
Description
Technology to die for... The most significant improvement to mankind since the invention of the internet, Chris Sanders knows his research will change the world and make him a very rich man. When Chris's beautiful research assistant is murdered, evidence suggests she and Chris were having an affair and he becomes the prime suspect. Accused of adultery and murder, Chris must turn to his wife for help in proving his innocence, but should she trust him? Will she help? Detective Ben Naylor from Washington DC's Metro PD finds the evidence against Chris is unequivocal. Either Chris Sanders is a calculating, cold-blooded killer, or he is the unluckiest son-of-a-bitch alive. Can Chris win the fight to prove his innocence? Can he win the battle for his life? Coding Isis is a fast-paced techno-thriller that brings a new breed of hero to the genre.
Review
This was an irritating book. The mythological Isis seems hardly applicable and of course the Islamic State has captured the term in modern usage. Horus, another project code name, was a clever connection but no more than that. Some of the writing irritated me as well, the protencious Britishness of the lead, for instance with much being made of his heritage but none of impacting on any of the events. I found the story unimaginative, the technology portrayed underused and underexploited, the ending was obvious and I think Roys needs considerably more polish.
4 Stars to Fool's Quest (The Fitz and The Fool, #2) by Robin Hobb
Description
Acclaimed and bestselling author Robin Hobb continues her Fitz and the Fool trilogy with this second entry, following Fool’s Assassin, ramping up the tension and the intrigue as disaster continues to strike at Fitz’s life and heart. After nearly killing his oldest friend, the Fool, and finding his daughter stolen away by those who were once targeting the Fool, FitzChivarly Farseer is out for blood. And who better to wreak havoc than a highly trained and deadly former royal assassin? Fitz might have let his skills go fallow over his years of peace, but such things, once learned, are not so easily forgotten. And nothing is more dangerous than a man who has nothing left to lose…
Review
I really enjoy seeing Fitz older. It was also very interesting when he was young of course, and even then his writings were profound, of a sort. But with age comes wisdom, and the writing has unrolled to show that in a very compelling way. This book did end rather abruptly, hopefully paving the way for a powerful, engaging concluding instalment.
5 Stars to Fool's Assassin (The Fitz and the Fool, #1) by Robin Hobb
Description
Tom Badgerlock has been living peaceably in the manor house at Withywoods with his beloved wife Molly these many years, the estate a reward to his family for loyal service to the crown. But behind the facade of respectable middle-age lies a turbulent and violent past. For Tom Badgerlock is actually FitzChivalry Farseer, bastard scion of the Farseer line, convicted user of Beast-magic, and assassin. A man who has risked much for his king and lost more… On a shelf in his den sits a triptych carved in memory stone of a man, a wolf and a fool. Once, these three were inseparable friends: Fitz, Nighteyes and the Fool. But one is long dead, and one long-missing. Then one Winterfest night a messenger arrives to seek out Fitz, but mysteriously disappears, leaving nothing but a blood-trail. What was the message? Who was the sender? And what has happened to the messenger? Suddenly Fitz's violent old life erupts into the peace of his new world, and nothing and no one is safe.
Review
I'm far from the place and person I was when I first started reading about these characters, and yet no matter where I am or what I'm doing, I find myself hooked back in with the simple opening of a book. I wondered about this one, partly because there was a regular shifting of viewpoints, and partly because I saw the end coming quite a way off which is unusual. And yet I still delighted in the language, the intrigue, and the actions of a character who still clings to being a hero in my mind, for all his faults and failings. I like him, and reading about him is something that I can never imagine getting old.
3 Stars to The Inverted World by Christopher Priest
Description
The city is winched along tracks through a devastated land full of hostile tribes. Rails must be freshly laid ahead of the city and carefully removed in its wake. Rivers and mountains present nearly insurmountable challenges to the ingenuity of the city's engineers. But if the city does not move, it will fall farther and farther behind the optimum and into the crushing gravitational field that has transformed life on Earth. The only alternative to progress is death. The secret directorate that governs the city makes sure that its inhabitants know nothing of this. Raised in common in creches, nurtured on synthetic food, prevented above all from venturing outside the closed circuit of the city, they're carefully sheltered from the dire necessities that have come to define human existence. Yet the city is in crisis. People are growing restive. The population is dwindling. The rulers know that, for all their efforts, slowly but surely the city is slipping ever farther behind the optimum. Helward Mann is a member of the city's elite. Better than anyone, he knows how tenuous is the city's continued existence. But the world he's about to discover is infinitely stranger than the strange world he believes he knows so well.
Review
I found this hard to put down, but also a little hard to take seriously. It was an idea, but I felt it wasn't really explored in enough depth to make it a truly outstanding book.
4 Stars to The Alloy of Law (Mistborn, #4) by Brandon Sanderson
Description
Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is now on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds. Kelsier, Vin, Elend, Sazed, Spook, and the rest are now part of history—or religion. Yet even as science and technology are reaching new heights, the old magics of Allomancy and Feruchemy continue to play a role in this reborn world. Out in the frontier lands known as the Roughs, they are crucial tools for the brave men and women attempting to establish order and justice. One such is Waxillium Ladrian, a rare Twinborn who can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After twenty years in the Roughs, Wax has been forced by family tragedy to return to the metropolis of Elendel. Now he must reluctantly put away his guns and assume the duties and dignity incumbent upon the head of a noble house. Or so he thinks, until he learns the hard way that the mansions and elegant tree-lined streets of the city can be even more dangerous than the dusty plains of the Roughs.
Review
It's been about one hundred and six books since I read a Sanderson (the last was April), and I haven't spent any time in the Mistborn world in over 5 years. How crazy is that? Yet I found myself utterly compelled, that 19th chapter was brilliant. If you're not anywere familiar with the world it's probably a harder one to get into than the original Mistborn trilogy, but for a first timer it's well worth the effort and for a fan, it's truly delightful.
3 Stars to The Man Who Came Early by Poul Anderson
Description
How rarely science-fiction writers succeed in creating a wholly alien culture may be judged from any adequate study of an earthly culture of a time or place which does not form part of our direct heritage. S.F's aliens may have pseudopods or supersdentific gadgets, but rarely so wholly different a frame of reference as man himself has achieved in other eras. Here F&SFs favorite Scandinavian skald takes us to Iceland near the end of the tenth century and convincingly depicts a truly "alien" way of life and teaches us the tragic truth that the role of a twentieth-century timetraveler to a "primitive" culture need not necessarily be that of Prometheus the Fire-Bringer.
Review
This is a solemn, melancholic story. I haven't read much Anderson but it was very well set in its era and I enjoyed it.
4 Stars to The Door Into Summer by Robert A. Heinlein
Description
Electronics engineer Dan Davis has finally made the invention of a lifetime: a household robot with extraordinary abilities, destined to dramatically change the landscape of everyday routine. Then, Dan was tricked by an unscrupulous greedy business partner and a greedier fiancee into spending thirty years in suspended animation, the long sleep, just when he was on the verge of a success beyond his wildest dreams. They never imagine that the future time in which Dan, a modern-day and future-time, Rip Van Winkle, will awaken has mastered time travel, giving him a way to get back to them, and at them, and get his revenge!.
Review
"suicide is such a final experiment, even if the circumstances are mathematically intriguing" It saddens me that I am now very close to having read everything heinlein ever published. One day there'll be no more. I think I agree with Floyd C. Gale's analysis, "Heinlein paints a detailed picture of both civilizations, so evocative that 1970 emerges clearly in the reader's mind as the old days, and pretty primitive at that". It's a fast, fun, tinkery story, and although the romantic aspect gave me pause for thought, it does seem silly not to acknowledge that custom more than anything else dictates sexual relationships and of course Bob's a man for pushing at any boundary when he gets his eyes on it. If you are a Heinlein fan I don't think you'll be disappointed.
3 Stars to The Universe Wide Web: 1. Getting Started by Simon J. Morley
Description
This is a young adult sci-fi adventure thriller. When Jack Smart stumbled across the intergalactic internet, known as the Universe Wide Web, little did he realise what adventures and dangers lay ahead. The Universe Wide Web differs from World Wide Web; it’s an actual place, somewhere out there in the ether, that you enter for real. And you can use it to click, and travel, instantaneously, to anywhere in the universe. The Universe Wide Web has web-rooms, chat rooms, web-games, trading sites; it’s a huge, labyrinthine place full of alien creatures, and strange technologies and ideas. It has millions of users - creatures from all over the universe; though only one person from earth has ever logged on. Jack discovers that his deceased father, an astro-physicist, was not only the first earth based user of the Universe Wide Web, but also worked on its technology design, and held the security code that is at its core. This code holds the key to controlling the Universe Wide Web. This importance of this security code is such that it brings with it danger from many unscrupulous creatures trying to steal it. Jack is drawn into a series of adventures and encounters as creatures try to discover whether Jack knows what his father knew. His life is in danger. Who will help him? Along the way Jack has to learn to use the mind-browser – the interface to the Universe Wide Web that taps into your conscious. He also learns how to use Universe Wide Web apps, such as the stealth app that lets the user move invisibly, or apps that bring avatars to life. He also plays on-line games – virtual games the players take part in for real. These adventures and encounters - some dangerous, all strange – take Jack onto the Universe Wide Web and to planets in the far corner of the universe. This eventually culminates in a battle to save the Universe Wide Web from pirate take-over - and only Jack has the means to save the Universe Wide Web.
Review
Brilliantly priced and a very enjoyable family-friendly kid saves the world story, and if not the world, he at least saves the uniweb (which is the whole point of the story - a great intergalactic Internet with physical transportation built-in). There were some howling editorial issues: the section of the human torso, from below the chest to above the waist is the "mid-rift", assuming too much makes you "assumptive" (not technically incorrect if read very literally but it's an archaic term outside law and salesmanship), and small flashes of light were "slithers". Apart from a little grammatical cleaning though it was very enjoyable. I think it'll hit a little young of the teen market, unless your teens are seriously closeted (or devout), it does really have a great innocence about it with a brief drug-induced scene to gradually get you into the grit of reality and an initial exploration of death which is handled neatly for the less mature reader. Overall, the sort of story I'd be happy to give my less bloodthirsty kids, when they're approaching secondary school. Very British, too, in the writing - nothing overt, but that's the sense I came away with. Certainly recommended for the right young person.
3 Stars to The Brain by Alexander Blade
Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
Review
An enjoyable era piece, although not as slickly written as some of course. It's always interesting to see these works in a modern light, this one has clearly aged but was still worth enjoying.
3 Stars to Inside the O'Briens by Lisa Genova
Description
Joe O’Brien is a forty-four-year-old police officer from the Irish Catholic neighborhood of Charlestown, Massachusetts. A devoted husband, proud father of four children in their twenties, and respected officer, Joe begins experiencing bouts of disorganized thinking, uncharacteristic temper outbursts, and strange, involuntary movements. He initially attributes these episodes to the stress of his job, but as these symptoms worsen, he agrees to see a neurologist and is handed a diagnosis that will change his and his family’s lives forever: Huntington’s Disease. Huntington’s is a lethal neurodegenerative disease with no treatment and no cure. Each of Joe’s four children has a 50 percent chance of inheriting their father’s disease, and a simple blood test can reveal their genetic fate. While watching her potential future in her father’s escalating symptoms, twenty-one-year-old daughter Katie struggles with the questions this test imposes on her young adult life. Does she want to know? What if she’s gene positive? Can she live with the constant anxiety of not knowing? As Joe’s symptoms worsen and he’s eventually stripped of his badge and more, Joe struggles to maintain hope and a sense of purpose, while Katie and her siblings must find the courage to either live a life “at risk” or learn their fate.
Review
Though lacking the emotional impact for me of some of her other novels, this was still a deeply moving portrayal of what is, without doubt, a horrible disease. I do think part of my distance came from familiarity of the condition in fiction of course (Frameshift is one of my all-time favourite novels). It would make a cracking film, if you could find a lead to do it justice, and any literature that spreads positive disability awareness with such masterful writing is worth celebrating.
3 Stars to Desert Places (Andrew Z. Thomas/Luther Kite, #1) by Blake Crouch
Description
Novelist Andrew Thomas finds his peaceful life transformed into a nightmare by a mysterious killer who has framed him for the murder of a young woman whose body is buried on his property, covered in Andrew's blood, and who threatens to turn Andrew over to the police unless he does what his unknown adversary wants.
Review
This was quite creepy, I must thank Andre for the find! And the worst thing about the entire episode is that you can see what the narrator might just become. It’ll be well worth seeing what happens next, fascinating stuff.
4 Stars to Small Miracles by Edward M. Lerner
Description
Garner Nanotechnology is developing nanotech-enhanced protective suits and autonomous first-aid nanobots. It’s cutting-edge stuff, and when it saves Brent Cleary from a pipeline explosion that killed hundreds, the Army takes notice. Near-death experience changes a person, so no one is entirely surprised when easy-going Brent turns somber and studious, focused and cold. Not at first. But Kim O’Donnell, Brent’s best friend, cannot get past some of the changes. This just isn’t her friend, and she wonders what’s gotten into him. With an Army field trial imminent and the company’s future at stake, possible nanotech side effects aren’t something anyone wants to discuss. The bad news is, Kim’s right. Something has gotten into Brent – and he isn’t the only one changing. If Kim can’t stop them … maybe we’ll all change.
Review
This is a hugely thoughtful take on the nanotech event horizon. Lerner writes with scientific acumen, technical aptitude and personable characters. It's a pretty scary look into a future; and the prologue and epilogue both hooked me and made me want more. If you're a hard sci-fi fan, this is one not to miss.
5 Stars to Disruption: The Cambridge Files: Book 1 by Steven Whibley
Description
At fourteen, Matt Cambridge has executed so many pranks - the latest nearly destroying his school - that his parents are out of discipline options. So his father pulls a few questionable strings to get his son into Camp Friendship: A camp that promises to strengthen the moral compass of today's youth. With a name like Camp Friendship Matt imagines three punishing weeks of daisy chains and Kumbayas. Within minutes of arriving at the camp, however, Matt's nearly killed--twice. It doesn't take long for him to realize there's more to this picture-perfect place than meets the eye. What sort of summer camp has programs in forging passports? Why do they have endless fight training, and weapons drills, and what is with the hidden rooms? Matt wonders if his parents realize they've enrolled him in what seems to be some kind of freakish, elite spy school. What Matt doesn't yet know - and is soon to find out - is that Camp Friendship's ultimate purpose is far more sinister than he could possibly have imagined. With each dot he connects, he begins to understand that in the end he'll be left with two choices: pull the prank of a lifetime to escape this place...or die trying.
Review
This is one of the best younger teen spy stories I have ever read. It crackles along at a great pace. Chapters 10 and 36 were particularly gripping for me, but the whole story was superbly written and flowed amazingly well. Easily on par with the YA work of Chris Ryan, Eoin Colfer or Anthony Horowitz, joining the annals of Mark A Cooper and Thomas E Sniegoski in that niche, Whibley is setting up a most wonderful, thrilling series that any teen worth his age in action points would do well to jump on before it shoots off on to the big screen as an epic action movie.
5 Stars to Split Second (Split Second, #1) by Douglas E. Richards
Description
A stunningly unique time travel thriller. The 27th bestselling Kindle book of 2017--out of almost 6 million titles. What if you found a way to send something back in time? But not weeks, days, or even minutes back. What if you could only send something back a fraction of a second? Would this be of any use? You wouldn't have nearly enough time to right a wrong, change an event, or win a lottery. Nathan Wexler is a brilliant physicist who thinks he's found a way to send matter a split second back into the past. But before he can even confirm his findings, he and his wife-to-be, Jenna Morrison, find themselves in a battle for their very lives. Because while time travel to an instant earlier seems useless, Jenna comes to learn that no capability in history has ever been more profound or far-reaching. Now, as Jenna fights to defeat the powerful forces arrayed against her, nothing less than the fate of humanity hangs in the balance. . . SPLIT SECOND is a roller-coaster ride of a thriller, one that will have readers pondering the nature of time, and of reality, long after they've read the last page. "Richards is a worthy successor to Michael Crichton." (SF Book.com) "Richards is an extraordinary writer," (Dean Koontz) who can "keep you turning the pages all night long." (Douglas Preston) Near Future Science Fiction Thrillers by Douglas E. Richards WIRED (Wired 1) AMPED (Wired 2) MIND'S EYE (Nick Hall 1) BRAINWEB (Nick Hall 2) MIND WAR (Nick Hall 3) -- New in 2016 SPLIT SECOND (Split Second 1) TIME FRAME (Split Second 2) -- New in January, 2018 QUANTUM LENS GAME CHANGER -- New in 2016 INFINITY BORN -- New in 2017 Kids Science Fiction Thrillers (9 and up, enjoyed by kids and adults alike) TRAPPED (Prometheus Project 1) CAPTURED (Prometheus Project 2) STRANDED (Prometheus Project 3) OUT OF THIS WORLD THE DEVIL'S SWORD
Review
I found this novel completely accidentally: I'd aimed to reread a Richards novel, picked up the wrong one, looked online for the name of the one I actually wanted and, boom. A new one of his I hadn't seen appeared. This was brilliantly done, like much of the material this man produces. It was interesting to me that we don't see to what the title refers until quite a way in; this is unusual because in his other novels, the idea behind the story emerges early on. this was compounded by the revelation as to the the big practical use for the scientific discovery, which itself isn't made obvious until even further in. So we're sort of left hanging on, as this story unfolds, having an idea of what's coming because of the book jacket but then being walloped over the head with a new idea on top of that, which was super. Richards took a great deal of care and effort to explain things, about the nature of time especially, the afterword is, as ever, well worth reading. Even with twists familiar for any of his previous readers, this was an exciting, scientifically intriguing thrill.
3 Stars to Time After Time by Karl Alexander
Description
H. G. Wells chases Jack the Ripper through time, via his infamous time machine, to current day San Francisco, Jack just happen to be a sociopath friend of dear H.G.'s. San Fran is a great back drop to the novel, and their battles. H.G. even finds love. This book went on to make a great film by the same title. In fact H. G. and Mary married in real life, McDowell still considers Mary Steenburgen his greatest love, though they divorced and remarried years ago, It is also his favorite film.
Review
This was a bit of rollicking fun, and no mistake. I didn't fully feel as submerged in the landscape as I have with other authors, some of the language wasn't, at times, there. But the story was enjoyable and I found myself enjoying it, that's all I can really say!
5 Stars to Apple and Rain by Sarah Crossan
Description
When Apple's mother returns after eleven years away, Apple feels whole again. But just like the stormy Christmas Eve when she left, her mother's homecoming is bittersweet. It's only when Apple meets someone more lost than she is that she begins to see things as they really are. A story about sad endings. A story about happy beginnings. A story to make you realise who is special.
Review
Wow. I'd never even heard of Sarah Crossan and a student I met for the first time today said how good this book was. Move over, literati - she was spot on. This is quite possibly the most perfect teen novel I have ever read. Of course, it's not my usual fair, but there's so much in here to enjoy (not just the frumious Bandersnatch and the hallowed words of our marvellous, unquantifiably rich heritage) but there's a reservoir of deep-running realism, a glimpse into a family filtered through the achingly realistic thoughts and feelings of a young girl herself painted so beautifully and genuinely it's hard not to melt into the pages and feel as if, for a little while, you're hearing all this poured out at you from Apple herself. It's the sort of novel I could read paragraph by paragraph, deconstruct and analyse six ways to Sunday, and I must confess that I stopped reading and breathed in the poetry (I've always enjoyed reading poetry, and guiltily mouthing it to myself made me feel young again). It is a world away - perhaps a universe away from my usual style of book, I enjoy the thrills and the spaceships, the spies and the geeks. But this seemed to cut through to a part of me that isn't ordinarily brought out into the world very often. Any book that can do that has to be worth £4.00.
4 Stars to A Thousand Faces by Janci Patterson
Description
In her debut YA science fiction novel, Janci Patterson presents a thriller that #1 NYT bestseller James Dashner calls "a fantastic book" and #1 NYT bestseller Brandon Sanderson calls "hands down one of my favorite novels of the year." In the world of high-stakes espionage, it pays to be able to change your face. And that’s just what sixteen-year-old Jory and her family of shape-shifting spies can do—alter their faces and bodies to look like anyone. Jory is in training to be a full member of the family business—when she can convince her parents to let her help with their elaborate cons. But when Jory’s parents go missing on the job, Jory is thrown into a world of secrets, lies, and stolen identities that will put all her training to the test. Jory’s always wanted to be a member of the team— But saving her family wasn't supposed to be part of the job. Other Praise for A THOUSAND "A Thousand Faces is a well-plotted race of a story with fantastic world building. A paranormal Mission Impossible for teens, Jory's world and story are so meticulously parsed together they make you want to look twice at every face you see on the street."-- Aprilynne Pike, #1 NYT bestselling author of the Wings series "A Thousand Faces is one of those rare books that can include heartbreaking and swoon-worthy romance and equally skillful action and suspense. It's a terrific novel."-Robison Wells, author of the Blackout series "A THOUSAND FACES is the YA thriller I've been waiting a fantastic, troubled heroine, struggling with an incredible power she only barely controls, trapped in a web of supernatural espionage where she can't trust anyone. The pace is quick, the intrigue is devious, and the magic is absolutely fascinating. A brilliant combination of romance, science fiction, and the supernatural."-Dan Wells, author of the Partials Series
Review
Another one of Michael's excellent finds, a story that doesn't waste time on explanations but throws you into itself with delightful story from the very beginning. Well worth a look, and I'm anticipating more!
3 Stars to R-Day by P.T. Mayes
Description
"If revenge was legal for twenty-four hours, who would you get even with?" June the 5th is R-Day. Officially the R stands for "readjustment", but everyone calls it what it really is: revenge. For twenty-four hours revenge will be legal within the British Isles. Anthony Lees, returning from a business trip to Japan, finds himself on a desperate mission to save his brother, who he has discovered has had an R-Day licence taken out on his life. He must find him before the man who took out the license does. But first he must locate him, which considering his brother’s dubious history, is easier said than done. An odyssey through England thrusts Anthony into the crazy revenge plots of others, and in doing so is himself endangered, but he is a survivor. Can he save his brother and, more importantly, himself? R-Day is a thriller aimed at adult readers and contains mature themes and language. It is not suitable for children. R-Day is available to download for the Kindle from Amazon. Amazon.com http://amzn.to/RuQcL0 Amazon.co.uk http://amzn.to/RuQmSE
Review
Despite some huge deficiencies in the English language (people don't usually lose conscience when they become incapacitated) the story was pretty nifty. It's becoming a fad to depict Britain in a less than stellar way in the near future (we've had Bombmaker, Age Bomb etc, but R-Day was a new concept. I quite enjoyed it!
4 Stars to Hotel Alpha by Mark Watson
Description
Three decades ago, Howard York founded the most extraordinary hotel in London: the Hotel Alpha. A self-made man, Howard believes that you create your own luck - and when he is in the room, there is a sense that anything is possible. Graham, the concierge, has been behind the Alpha's front desk since the day the hotel opened and knows everything about it. Chas, Howard's blind adopted son, has almost never ventured outside its walls. Both of them believe that the Alpha gives them everything they need - until two mysterious disappearances raise questions that no one seems willing to answer. As the years forge ahead, Graham and Chas must ask themselves whether Howard's vision of the perfect hotel has been built on secrets as well as dreams . . . Captivating, brilliant and full of surprises, Hotel Alpha is an ingenious novel about the incidental and life-changing ways in which we connect with one another. You can discover more about the hotel and its inhabitants in one hundred extra stories that expand the world of the novel and can be found at the Hotel Alpha Stories website.
Review
I really enjoyed Eleven, so when the chance came to get a new Watson I couldn’t say no. This had an elegant piquancy to it, a sort of nostalgic warmth as it moves from an older, perhaps more respectable time into contemporary Britain. I have yet to read the other stories surrounding the work, of course I will do that; so the ending to me left things a little unanswered but certainly not unsatisfying, because you don’t read this sort of book for a climactic ending, you read it for the atmosphere and that was there in spades.
September
4 Stars to Earthman Jack vs. The Secret Army (The Earthman Jack Space Saga, #2) by Matthew Kadish
Description
After his heroic battle against the Deathlords on the Ghost Planet, Jack Finnegan is looking forward to arriving at Omnicron Prime, the capitol planet of the Galactic Regalus Empire -the largest and most advanced civilization in the universe. Things are looking bright for Jack. He has his unconventional group of friends, his mystical spaceship, and the girl of his dreams -Princess Anna. Not to mention a secret mission that could save Earth and everyone he cares about. But things get complicated when he arrives at Omnicron. Not only is Jack uncomfortable being thrust into the spotlight for his courageous actions to save the universe, but he soon finds life in the Empire isn't everything he'd dreamed it would be. His friends abandon him to pursue their own interests. Greedy and cunning politicians conspire to steal his spaceship. Even his relationship with Anna is strained now that she's gone from being "the girl next door" to the most powerful woman in the universe. But beneath all that lies a new and terrifying threat from the Deathlords. A threat that grows in secret, slowly spreading throughout the Regalus Empire like a plague, and it threatens to destroy from within the only thing powerful enough to stop the Deathlords and their malicious rampage throughout the galaxy -the Empire itself. Worst of all -Jack is the only one who knows about this new threat, and no one will believe his warnings. Suddenly, the Empire is no longer safe for Jack and his friends. Even the people they've come to rely on the most can no longer be trusted. As those he's sworn to protect turn against him, how can Jack hope to save the day? Fighting the Deathlords was one thing. Fighting the "good guys" is quite another. Will Jack be able to find the strength to be the hero the universe needs? Or will he finally be defeated by this Secret Army?
Review
Although unavoidably this didn't have the huge impact of the first book, it's still a gripping continuation of Jack's adventures. The politics, especially toward the midpoint of the work reminded me a lot of the Galactic Senate from the Star Wars universe (what little of it I know) and the actual plot was fun to read. There were huge references to all sorts of sci-fi classics (including Dr who, which nobody does) so that was pretty nifty, and I must say I was impressed with Jack as a character because he's just so fun to read about. It's superb that Kadish has got things planned out, and I'm really looking forward to see where things go.
4 Stars to Time and Tyde by Graham Storrs
Description
Time and Tyde is the story of Vincent Demarco, a man whose life becomes increasingly bizarre after he meets Tony Tyde, an eccentric entrepreneur claiming to be a researcher who has come from the future to study him. As a result of Tony's persistent interference in his life, and his own weakness in resisting it, Vince is drawn into Tony's world of money, beautiful women, and events so extraordinary that he begins to doubt his own sanity. Nothing makes sense any more to Vincent. Yet, when he finally begins to assert his independence from Tony, things go from bad to much, much worse. It turns out that being insane and being visited by an amoral jerk from the future are not all that different. Whether he believes his troubles are down to one or the other, for Vince the outcome is just the same – and just as disastrous. There is plenty of comedy in this otherwise very dark drama. If Nick Hornby had written K-PAX, the result might have been something like this.
Review
Another fantastic offering from Mr Storrs, this time very Locally presented with a great flavour of Australia. It's not heavy on the time travel I must admit, and as much as I enjoy the harder science I did find a lot here to appreciate more mentally than in the action feel of some of his other works. In fact I think you can make a compelling case for calling this a psychological, rather than technological story, and very well handled it is too.
3 Stars to Cryonic by Travis Bradberry
Description
"Sometimes you're better off dead. . . ." When Royce Bruyere chose to be cryogenically frozen upon death, he figured coming back to life would be exciting. Neat. Bonus time. The world he awakes to is nothing of the sort. A Chinese invasion has crippled the United States, dividing the country in a decade-long stalemate along the Mississippi. Royce's successful reanimation is unprecedented, making him the Chinese regime's most prized possession--but not for long. Eager to control life and death, the Chinese reanimate other "cryonics," until something goes horribly wrong. Royce travels through a future wrought with violence and despair, only to discover the cure for the disease lies within him. It's a race against time as he flees the Chinese and the bloodthirsty victims of a terrifying epidemic in the hope of saving the country from apocalypse and creating a life worth living.
Review
Despite an overuse of the word macabre and intensely short chapters, this was a fairly well-presented escapist zombie story. If that sort of thing appeals, give it a go - reminded me of a watered-down Demolition Man.
3 Stars to Reality Hack by Niall Teasdale
Description
the state of things as they actually exist.Reality is an illusion, albeit a persistent one. – Albert Einstein.The belief that one’s own view of reality is the only reality is the most dangerous of all delusions. – Paul Watzlawick.Not creating delusions is enlightenment. – Bodhidharma.Which delusion do I pick? – Nisa Harper, aspiring Reality Hacker.If you discovered that magic was real, what would you do with it? Reveal it to the world, or keep it secret? Nisa Harper has just learned to make the impossible happen and is really beginning to wish she had kept it a little more secret than she did. Only a few days after discovering that magic is not only real, but that she can do it she is being pressganged into a secret branch of the police set up to deal with the supernatural. But that’s only the start…If you discovered that the world was not real, that everything you knew, everything you can see when you look out through a window, is little more than an illusion, how would you react? If your reality is not real, then what is reality? If you could see beyond reality to the place outside it, how would you know that was real and not another delusion? Where does the unreality stop?For Nisa Harper, rookie supernatural detective and reality hacker, picking which delusion is the right one has just become a matter of life or death.
Review
This reminded me of Peter Grant for female nymphomaniacs. Not really my thing, I find the cat thing disturbing, never mind anything else. The book's description doesn't mention what I would consider excessive sexual activity, which I have no problem with in fiction if it gets us anywhere, but I think I'd have preferred a work focusing on the hacking reality, more than the rampant sexual gratification of a witch cat.
4 Stars to The Smuggled Atom Bomb by Philip Wylie
Description
Not only one of this contry's great authors, but a leading government consultant on Civil Defense, Philip Wylie spins suspense out of an atomic plot against the United States!
Review
This had a great period feel to it, I couldn't decide if I was reading Heinlein or Eric Frank Russell. For anyone who enjoys works of that time period, this comes highly recommended.
2 Stars to Pinball (The Gatespace Trilogy 1) by Alan Seeger
Description
Steven Denver is a writer struggling to find a plot for his next novel, the success of which -- or lack of -- will mean the continuance or the demise of his career. But when he stumbles upon a strange green whirlpool near his home, he discovers that it is a gateway through space and time. Exploring the Gatespace beyond leads him into worlds unknown and adventures that defy the imagination, perfect fuel for the creativity of an author... But there's just one complication... will he ever make it home to write that book?
Review
This was, unfortunately, a very annoying book. Far too repetitive, even for a time travel story, with a feeling of insipid ennui I couldn't quite shift.
4 Stars to Supersymmetry (Superposition, #2) by David Walton
Description
Ryan Oronzi is a paranoid, neurotic, and brilliant physicist who has developed a quantum military technology that could make soldiers nearly invincible in the field. The technology, however, gives power to the quantum creature known as the varcolac, which slowly begins to manipulate Dr. Oronzi and take over his mind. Oronzi eventually becomes the unwilling pawn of the varcolac in its bid to control the world. The creature immediately starts attacking those responsible for defeating it fifteen years earlier, including Sandra and Alex Kelley—the two versions of Alessandra Kelley who are still living as separate people. The two young women must fight the varcolac, despite the fact that defeating it may mean resolving once again into a single person.
Review
The first chapter hurls us straight into this exciting, non-stop edge-of-your-seat thrill ride. I really enjoyed the whole thing, and although it seemed a shame that Jacob didn't have much of a showing otherwise it was a fantastic story, putting me in mind of a Doug Richards novel quite a lot. Walton's crafted a superb follow-on, and That loaded question in the very final chapter keeps the universe wide open for other stories.
4 Stars to Pandora's Gun by James Van Pelt
Description
What would you do if you controlled powers that were once attributed to gods? What if what you had heard was right: sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic? High school student Peter Van Meer finds an impossible treasure that seems too good to be true. Now, he must work with his two best friends to unlock its secrets before it threatens to spill out its unknown dangers into the world. Chased by the police, the FBI, and men in blue suits, they soon realize that Peter’s discovery is much, much more than they bargained for.
Review
Although the action is perhaps a little muted for my age bracket, the teen psychology, parenting, relationships and calls to chivalry and doing the right thing are strong in this profoundly fun and cleverly-done younger teen story. I quite liked the Lord of the Rings references, and the whole atmosphere of the work seemed to speak to a part of me that even if I've grown away from, I'll never quite be able to shake. The concepts and feelings brought up, such as the uberfriend, are well worth a young person seriously thinking about.
August
5 Stars to Randoms (Randoms, #1) by David Liss
Description
A science fiction superfan finds himself on his very own space adventure when he’s randomly selected to join an alien confederacy in this hilarious middle grade debut novel. Zeke Reynolds comes from a long line of proud science fiction geeks. He knows his games, comics, movies, and TV shows like Captain Kirk knows the starship Enterprise. So it’s a dream come true when he learns the science fiction he loves so much is based on reality—and that he’s been selected to spend a year on a massive space station. To evaluate humanity’s worthiness, the Confederation of United Planets has hand picked three of Earth’s most talented young people—and then there’s Zeke. He’s the random. Unfortunately, Zeke finds life in space more challenging than he’d hoped. When he saves his transport ship from a treacherous enemy attack, he’s labeled a war criminal. Now despised by the Confederation, rejected by his fellow humans, and pursued by a ruthless enemy, Zeke befriends the alien randoms: rejected by their own species, but loyal to each other. But their presence in the Confederation may not be so random after all, and as the danger increases, Zack’s knowledge of science fiction might be the only thing that can save himself, his friends, and Earth itself.
Review
“It was me,” she said. “You’re good for a beginner. If you’d like, you can meet me in the officers’ lounge after 2200 and we’ll play a few rounds.” “I’d love that!” The humans didn’t much like me, but the beaked otter thought I was okay. Oh, my word. If there was one book worth starting in bed and staying up after 02:00 hours on my last night of school holidays, it was this one. Of course I don't have school holidays per se anymore, working at one rather than learning in one, but I almost wished I was young enough to still be at school because although this book totally got me at my age it would have utterly and unashamedly knocked my socks off as a teen. “You’re being daft,” Steve said. “It’s only a plasma wand.” “No it’s not,” I told him, as I whoomed back and forth. “It’s an elegant weapon for a more civilized age. This is a light saber.” Each part builds on the next with inevitable, astoundingly pull-you-in progress. I mean I was hooked at chapter 3, the quality of the writing alone did that, but then to have the character and plot click into place so brilliantly felt like a bonus. And so, by the time we end the first part we're already firmly on the side of our hero and wondering just how on earth he's going to pull off his task. “not only did I not forget regulation 46-A, I’m counting on it. Our lives, at this point, depend on a scheme I’m stealing from Star Trek Two.” At the end of the second part, when we get the - what's the word for the literary punch that snaps things into clarity and lets you see where things are going? - after that, it was a good, old-fashioned roller-coaster of adventure, and when the mission seems to be over and there are wisecracking geeks bouncing off each other I felt as if I could really quite happily just go join in with them. Of course, I won't spoil anything for you, so you're gonna have to read this to find out what happens. But I felt as if I were reading an armada for a slightly younger audience (Yes, it's marketed to kids, but don't let that put you off), because it's seriously the best book I've read this month. I've only given one other 5 stars in August and I think if I had to choose one of them, it'd be this one. It has it all, including a character who reminded me a little of Ron Weasley, and I cannot wait to pick up more of Liss's works. The jacket calls him "a proud science fiction geek". The man deserves recognition for this novel. I can't wait to give it to my kids and have them just "get it". I just need to work on finishing the Trek reruns. And having another kid...
3 Stars to If Only They Could Talk (All Creatures Great and Small, #1) by James Herriot
Description
Librarian Note: An alternative cover for this ISBN can be found here When the newly qualified vet, James Herriot, arrives in the small Yorkshire village of Darrowby, he has no idea of the new friends he will meet or adventures that lie ahead. From the author whose books inspired the BBC series "All Creatures Great and Small", this first volume of unforgettable memoirs chronicles James Herriot's first years as a country vet, with the signature storytelling magic that has made him a favourite the world over. Here is a book for all those who find laughter and joy in animals, and who know and understand the magic of wild places and beautiful countryside.
Review
I found the chap with the cigar and his old dog very sad, and the whole set of circumstances were related in a very readable, open, shining-light-on-the-times sort of a way. I'd look at the rest.
3 Stars to Con Academy by Joe Schreiber
Description
Meet Will Shea, a con artist who has bluffed his way into one of the nation’s most exclusive private schools. But Will isn’t the only scammer at Connaughton Academy—Andrea Dufresne is there too, and the ivy-covered campus isn’t big enough for the both of them. So they make a bet—and the winner gets more than just a high school diploma. In this twisty tale of secrets, lies, and deception—it’s hard to figure out who’s double-crossing who. May the best con win!
Review
I quite got into this story. It was a fairly quick read, but would've probably quite appealed to me when I was a little younger.
3 Stars to Veracity by Laura Bynum
Description
Harper Adams was six years old in 2012 when an act of viral terrorism wiped out one-half of the country's population. Out of the ashes rose a new government, the Confederation of the Willing, dedicated to maintaining order at any cost. The populace is controlled via government-sanctioned sex and drugs, a brutal police force known as the Blue Coats, and a device called the slate, a mandatory implant that monitors every word a person speaks. To utter a Red-Listed, forbidden word is to risk physical punishment or even death. But there are those who resist. Guided by the fabled "Book of Noah," they are determined to shake the people from their apathy and ignorance, and are prepared to start a war in the name of freedom. The newest member of this resistance is Harper—a woman driven by memories of a daughter lost, a daughter whose very name was erased by the Red List. And she possesses a power that could make her the underground warriors' ultimate weapon—or the instrument of their destruction. In the tradition of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Laura Bynum has written an astonishing debut novel about a chilling, all-too-plausible future in which speech is a weapon and security comes at the highest price of all.
Review
This was a compelling, hard-hitting an very readable story. I think it had more to offer than I was prepared to let in, it deserved to be read in a comfy chair in a quiet, contemplative mood and unfortunately my surroundings didn't do it justice.
3 Stars to The Tempest (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, #19) by Susan Wright
Description
When a ferocious plasma storm strikes the entire Bajoran system, Deep Space Nine becomes a port under siege, filled to overflowing with stranded space travelers, unpredictable aliens, and Klingon smugglers. Wof and Odo find themselves tested to the limit as they struggle to control the chaos that has consumed the station. But even greater danger faces Dax and botanist Keiko O' Brian when they must fly a runabout into the very heart of the storm and encounter a stange new form of life!
Review
This had the feel of an early DS9 story for some reason. Also, quite weird that I should find Keiko in a central place in 2 novels picked at random over the last week or so.c
5 Stars to Galatea in 2-D by Aaron Allston
Description
When illustrator Roger Simons realizes that he has the power to pull living beings from his paintings, he must use his newfound abilities to fend off an attack from a powerful--and dangerous--rival.
Review
Wow. Whilst lacking the modernity of Libriomancer this managed to be hugely entertaining. I'm a bit of a sucker for this sort of novel, and this one pleased on all levels. A shame it had to be 22 years old to do that, but forsooth, it was fun.
4 Stars to Irona 700 by Dave Duncan
Description
Fantasy at its most enchanting: An original and absorbing tale from a master storyteller about the profound effects of a single life on the battle against ultimate evil It is Midsummer Day, the beginning of the year 700, in the city of Benign. All the children born in the year 684 celebrate their joint sixteenth birthday by passing in front of the statue of the blind goddess Caprice—but only one will become the Chosen and join the Seventy who govern and guide the city. Much to her surprise, Irona Matrinko, one of the many children of an impoverished fisherman, is chosen. Irona 700 moves into the palace and, with the help of a new mentor, recognizes and cultivates her great talent for guiding wars: strategy and tactics, leadership and inspiration. As Irona gives her life to the city, an ancient enemy, Maleficence, attacks again and again, corrupting Irona’s friends, destroying her lover, and continually defeating her grandest plans for peace and harmony. Along the way, Irona becomes a masterful politician, a shrewd judge of character, and, even at great cost to her personal happiness, a true heroine.
Review
This was quite dark, and a pleasant change of pace to Duncan's Eye of Strife. It's unusual to have a female lead, But Irona is powerful and grows well into the story. I probably will reread it for more enjoyment rather than gulping it down but it kept my interest and there's huge scope for future novels in the setting I think, were Mr Duncan to ever wish to revisit.
3 Stars to The Sinister Mr. Corpse by Jeff Strand
Description
Zombies… Sometimes they rise from the grave, hungering for human flesh… Sometimes they’re created by a mad scientist intent on forming an unstoppable army of the undead… Sometimes the zombie plague is transmitted by a horrific virus… …and sometimes, they’re resurrected in front of millions of viewers as part of a live primetime television special. This is the story of Stanley Dabernath, zombie. A regular guy who dies, is brought back to life as a ghastly walking cadaver, and becomes the international sensation hailed by the press as The Amazing Mr. Corpse. Fame! Wealth! Groupies! Despite his ghoulish appearance, Stanley finds himself living the dream. But in many ways, it’s harder to be a celebrity than a zombie. The suits behind Project Second Chance want to tell him how to behave in public. It’s difficult to enjoy a simple restaurant meal in peace. There’s constant pressure coming at him from all sides–-not to mention that many people consider him a vile blasphemy that should be erased from existence. And does Project Second Chance have Stanley’s best interests in mind, or is the real reason behind his reanimation something much more...sinister? "With loads of relentless action and characters that make reading seem more like eavesdropping, THE SINISTER MR. CORPSE will have even the biggest stiffs among us laughing all the way to the grave." -- Rue Morgue “Those expecting the typical apocalyptic world full of flesh eating corpses will quickly realize they are in for a different treat altogether. For those familiar with Mr. Strand’s popular Andrew Mayhem novels, take the witty banter, sharp one liners and laugh out loud moments, then turn it up a notch or three.” -- Horror World
Review
I think this falls somewhere in the middle of the works I've read of this author. It was enjoyable enough, although Strand clearly backed himself into a corner and had to write a bit of a silly ending for the thing. Worthwhile if you like his style.
4 Stars to The Genesis Machine by James P. Hogan
Description
Drafted to work on defense projects, mathematical physicist Brad Clifford defies his superiors to bring about world unification and teams up with a maverick fellow scientist to build a machine capable of neutralizing all weapons. Reprint.
Review
This started off as a very hard sci-fi story and was pretty heavy, scientifically. I enjoyed it a great deal, even if the ideas were over my head. One of Hogan's better works in my book!
3 Stars to Imbalance (Star Trek: The Next Generation, #22) by V.E. Mitchell
Description
The Jarada are a mysterious race of insectoid beings with an extreme devotion to protocol. When this usually reclusive race offer to open diplomatic relations with the Federation, Captain Picard and the U.S.S. Enterprise are quickly ordered to Jarada to negotiate the exchange of Ambassadors. When the ship arrives, the Jarada seem uncharacteristically friendly. They invite Picard to send down members of his crew and negotiations proceed both quickly and smoothly. Suddenly, however, the Jarada change. They cut off Commander Riker and his away team from the U.S.S. Enterprise and initiate an unprovoked attack on the ship. Now Picard must unravel the aliens' mystery before it's too late for the away team - and the U.S.S. Enterprise.
Review
Despite not being episodic in the least (Crusher's dialogue would never work onscreen) I quite enjoyed this. Even though it didn't really stand out, it was better than the last Trek I read.
2 Stars to Balance of Power (Star Trek: The Next Generation #33) by Dafydd ab Hugh
Description
When a famous Federation scientist dies, his son puts his inventions up for sale to the highest bidder, be they Federation, Klingon, Romulan, or Cardassian. Among the items at auction is a photon pulse canon capable of punching through a starship's shields with a single shot. Meanwhile, Wesley Crusher is kidnapped from the Academy by renegade Ferengi who have set their sights on the photon canon as well, and Captain Picard must outmaneuver enemies on every side to save Wesley and protect the Enterprise from the deadly fire of the new canon.
Review
There were several onscreen episodes where the Ferengi were played for laughs, of course, this novel felt like that all the way through. The ridiculous pirate affectations didn't help, Wesley's inner soulsearching was maunderingly painful, some of the editing was sloppy and the story oozed pointlessness and banality to a bruising level.
4 Stars to The War Against the Assholes by Sam Munson
Description
The novel is set in a Manhattan “shrouded in mystery” and follows a 17-year-old Catholic high school student who begins to acquire supernatural powers after being introduced to a book called The Calendar of Sleights by a strange classmate. The protagonist is then pulled into a long-running war among rival factions of magicians.
Review
I was reminded of Lev Grossman, yet the style wasn't quite the same which made for a refreshing, complex, strange sort of a read. I never quite felt as if I had my finger on the pulse of the thing and sometimes had the feeling that not only was I outside the story but outside the meaning of it also. For all that, I was still engaged and interested to see where things went.
4 Stars to The Returned, Part 1 (Star Trek: New Frontier, #19) by Peter David
Description
The first installment in a brand-new three-part digital-first Star Trek: New Frontier e-novel from New York Times bestselling author Peter David! Captain Mackenzie Calhoun and the crew of the U.S.S. Excalibur are back, picking up three months after the stunning events depicted in New Frontier: Blind Man’s Bluff. Calhoun's search of Xenex has failed to find any survivors, and now he is bound and determined to track down the race that killed them—the D'myurj and their associates, the Brethren—and exact vengeance upon them. His search will take the Excalibur crew into a pocket universe, where he discovers not only the homeworld of the D’myurj, but another race that shares Calhoun's determination to obliterate his opponents. But is this new race truly an ally…or an even greater threat?
Review
This is a series that keeps on going, one of those mainstays of the Star Trek universe which provides a little light relief in comic form. I must admit, at first the whole "part i" thing annoyed me but, on reflection, this is just taking the concept of a series further. I'm sure there's only so much life left in the saga, but it's still fun while it lasts.
4 Stars to The Orion Protocol by Gary Tigerman
Description
1958: The Eisenhower-commissioned Brookings Reportrecommends that any future discovery of extraterrestrialintelligence be kept secret from the public. 1968: Congress grants NASA the power to indefinitely"quarantine" anyone exposed to alien life or artifacts. 1993: Just 48 hours from the Red Planet, NASA's Mars Observer probe inexplicably disappears and is declared "lost." A mysterious whistle-blower inside NASA sends science journalist Angela Browning a classified photo revealing extraterrestrial ruins on Mars. With the help of Jake Deaver, the maverick commander of the last Apollo mission to the moon, Angela's prepared to pursue the truth into the darkest corners of Washington politics. But what's waiting for them in the shadows of a revolutionary space-based missile defense shield program is a conspiracy beyond their imagining -- forcing them both toward the terrifying decision that could end their lives ... and alter our world forever.
Review
Though fairly slow to start, this picked up and I quite enjoyed the story. The collection of evidence and research at the end is also quite shocking!
3 Stars to Crooked by Austin Grossman
Description
Award-winning novelist Austin Grossman reimagines the Cold War as an epic battle against the occult waged by the ultimate American Richard Nixon. Richard Milhous Nixon lived one of the most improbable lives of the twentieth century. Our thirty-seventh president's political career spanned the button-down fifties, the Mad Men sixties, and the turbulent seventies. He faced down the Russians, the Chinese, and ultimately his own government. The man went from political mastermind to a national joke, sobbing in the Oval Office, leaving us with one burning how could he have lost it all? Here for the first time is the tale told in his own the terrifying supernatural secret he stumbled upon as a young man, the truth behind the Cold War, and the truth behind the Watergate cover-up. What if our nation's worst president was actually a pivotal figure caught in a desperate struggle between ordinary life and horrors from another reality? What if the man we call our worst president was, in truth, our greatest? In Crooked , Nixon finally reveals the secret history of modern American politics as only Austin Grossman could reimagine it. Combining Lovecraftian suspense, international intrigue, Russian honey traps, and a presidential marriage whose secrets and battles of attrition were their own heroic saga, Grossman's novel is a masterwork of alternative history, equal parts mesmerizing character study and nail-biting Faustian thriller.
Review
I wanted something to follow on from Milkweed. I struggled through this, it was too trenched in American history and politics to really give me what I wanted. Not a bad story for someone who's more up with the subject matter than I am, though.
4 Stars to Mute (Muted Trilogy #1) by Nikita Spoke
Description
One night, without warning, the world goes mute. Every person in the world is rendered unable to speak. Jemma, a young librarian, thrives a little too well. She's being watched, and she and a new friend are in danger of disappearing completely. Faced with the choice to follow the rules or to survive, Jemma takes a chance, leaving certainty and stability behind.
Review
I found myself really getting into this book, and now I'm itching to see where it goes. It had an interesting relaxed quality to it, even when it picked up I think the lack of speech was interesting, although undermined a little toward the end when communication starts to pick up again. Also it's far too short and I want book 2 rather than having to wait, but that's just my impatience. I will be buying book 2!
3 Stars to Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus by Orson Scott Card
Description
In one of the most powerful and thought-provoking novels of his remarkable career, Orson Scott Card's Pastwatch interweaves a compelling portrait of Christopher Columbus with the story of a future scientist who believes she can alter human history from a tragedy of bloodshed and brutality to a world filled with hope and healing.
Review
It was refreshing to read a "change something in history" take that didn't involve Hitler, actually. Although there was something a little too ephemeral here for me to relax, I found the story interesting and the history quite revealing as well. Not one to cherish, but I did enjoy it.
1 Stars to Message from Tomorrow; a Near Future Time Travel, Science Fiction Novella by H. Bradley Stucki
Description
“Message from Tomorrow” A near-future time travel, science fiction novella. Andre Manus sat in the dark basement of his gothic-style mansion at the metal desk where he’d spent the last 3 years working, sweating, and making history. The only light came from a Tensor lamp shining a pool of illumination onto the hard desk surface. It highlighted four magazines spread out in front of him. Andre’s picture was on the cover of each magazine; a symbol of his recent triumph of cracking the code and bringing on the next new revolution in computer science. The Wired magazine cover read, “A New Einstein for our Age.” Computing magazine heralded, “Different Dimensions to Infinite Speed.” Inc. magazine blazoned, “Computing Fortune Blown Open.” And the one Andre was most proud of, Popular Science, read, “Breakthrough of the Century!” Andre had made an evolutionary leap in computing. He'd found a way to process information instantaneously no matter how large or complex. It entailed sending that information into Space Time; have it processed there then moved back into normal Space Time as output. Since Space Time existed in different dimensions from our regular Space Time, it seemed as if no time had elapsed in the processing of the information. Now huge amounts of data and intricate and complex problems could be solved. The only time it took was in compiling the questions and assembling the relevant data. The computing power and time required would no longer be a barrier. Yes, he’d done that. By all rights Andre should be proud. And he definitely was. The world was his. He owned the key to it all. Offers had poured in and he'd turned them all down, opting instead, with his wife Krissy as his business partner, to start their own company and control the new technology themselves. Virtually overnight they were mega-rich. Yet it all was overshadowed by one stupid mistake. One mistake that had cost him everything! His daughter had been killed in an auto accident. His wife had collapsed with grief and kicked him out of their new home and her life. His board of directors had learned he’d allowed his secret process, the basis of all his work, to be stolen, and they’d kicked him out of his own company and filed charges with the FBI. None of them cared he was just as much a victim as they were. There was only one way to fix his That was to end it -- Using his computer. If it worked, everything would be fine. If not, there was always a gun. "Message from Tomorrow" is a science fiction novella rollicking through 22,000 words. Get set for a thriller of a ride. Don’t believe it? “Look inside.” Get the free sample. See for yourself. If you like mystery and suspense; if you like family drama; if you like science fiction and time travel, you’ll enjoy this novella. This is a new-type thriller with computer science and a touch of Space Time fiction mixed in. The mystery and suspense is fast paced. The family drama is heart wrenching. The time travel is different than you've seen before. Check it out!
Review
This was, not to put too fine a point on it, ridiculous. There were the usual profusion of grammatical errors you see in many self-published works; more than I'd be comfortable with for the number of words, extend it to a novel and they'd be profuse. But, the whole idea of the story is totally ruined. So I'm going to give a few spoilers just to get it off my chest. The basic idea of the story is that a chap develops a wonderful new technology but, after it's stolen by a bit of chicanery, his life spirals out of control and he is considering killing himself. Then he has the bright idea of sending a message back in time (he realises this has already happened to him but we don't find out until we've already read three quarters of the story). He manages to send a message back (although it's only 3 words and the extrapolation of what they "must" mean is absurd, especially because the event they relate to hasn't happened to his former self, but we ignore that). Having received these words he decides to be more careful in future, and executes a plan to enable better decisionmaking. This is pivotal to the story. Make a better decision next time so what happened the first time won't happen again. Logical? yes, yes indeed. So, the decision comes around again. But does he use this wonderful new method of decisionmaking? yes, of course he does. But he also gets ... "feelings" ... The text says, "There was something about this meeting. It was like they'd met before in 'this' meeting . . . But he knew they hadn't met before. Andre's feelings of discord were spiking inside yet he held his face calm. This was a critical junction of some sort. He didn't know how he knew it, but this decision seemed more vital..." So, the moral of the story is shot to bits. The entire point of the story, that you take care when making decisions, is cliched enough. But to execute it in such a way that you only worry about using your decisionmaking system when prompted by ineffable, temporally-confused feelings? Who gets away with selling that sort of idea? And as if that weren't enough, no teenager in the modern age is anything like Allie. Minus a hundred points for a girl who can drive on her own yet can't get through a single piano recital without her daddy there and then only uses the word "stupid" to complain about it. Realism? I think not. NEXT!!!
July
4 Stars to Death By Dangerous by Olly Jarvis
Description
Death by Dangerous is a compelling legal thriller set in Manchester and Bradford. John Anderson is one of the North West’s most dedicated and successful prosecution barristers. His career is going from strength to strength and he is on the verge of becoming Queen’s Counsel. But the life he once knew suddenly comes crashing down following a fatal road traffic accident... “They’re saying it was your fault. Someone died.” Recovering from his injuries, he has no memory of the collision. Was he responsible for the death of a child? Who was his female passenger? Facing charges of causing death by dangerous driving, the professional and personal life he once knew now lies in tatters. Depressed and taking refuge in alcohol, Anderson refuses, in the face of so many unanswered questions, to accept his guilt. He becomes convinced that the gangster he was prosecuting at the time of the crash is in some way involved. The mystery deepens as his search for the truth draws him into Manchester’s sordid criminal underworld. Shunned by his former colleagues, Anderson finds help from an unlikely source, enabling him to confront his prejudices and re-evaluate his past life. He embarks on a journey of self-discovery and, ultimately, the path for his own redemption. Anderson knows that defeat means deliverance to a prison full of violent criminals he has prosecuted over the years. He now has to find the strength to fight the most important trial of his life.
Review
This was as gritty and realistic a portrayal of the scenario as a layman can expect, I think. An excellent introduction to the author and no mistake, enjoyable with an ending worth reading.
5 Stars to Mirage by James Follett
Description
1967-1969. Based on the true story of how Israel's Mossad agents stole three tonnes of Mirage fighter drawings following General de Gaulle's disastrous ban on the supply of these aircraft that were vital to Israel's defence.
Review
Wow, this was good. The sort of book that comes with sound effects and sweeping, orchestral music right in my head (although I can't do an Israeli accent and so my characters ended up sounding very odd). To believe that this is based on true events is difficult, but it adds that much more poignancy to this masterfully-penned, suspenseful, exciting, brilliant thrill. very, very enjoyable.
4 Stars to An Unwelcome Quest (Magic 2.0, #3) by Scott Meyer
Description
Ever since Martin Banks and his fellow computer geeks discovered that reality is just a computer program to be happily hacked, they’ve been jaunting back and forth through time, posing as medieval wizards and having the epic adventures that other nerds can only dream of having. But even in their wildest fantasies, they never expected to end up at the mercy of the former apprentice whom they sent to prison for gross misuse of magic and all-around evil behavior. Who knew that the vengeful Todd would escape, then conjure a computer game packed with wolves, wenches, wastelands, and assorted harrowing hazards—and trap his hapless former friends inside it? Stripped of their magic powers, the would-be wizards must brave terrifying dangers, technical glitches, and one another’s company if they want to see Medieval England—and their favorite sci-fi movies on VHS—ever again. Can our heroes survive this magical mystery torture? Or will it only lead them and their pointy hats into more peril?
Review
Oh this is much better than the last one! A quest, nice touch, and the repartee is all there and as fizzing and engaging as ever. Let's hope the trend continues, I think there's scope yet for more fun in this totally clever world Meyer's built.
2 Stars to Master of Formalities by Scott Meyer
Description
Even when finding oneself engaged in interstellar war, good form must be observed. Our story is set thousands of years after the Terran Exodus, where two powerful, planet-dominating families―the elegant House Jakabitus and the less refined Hahn Empire―have reached a critical point in their generations-long war. Master Hennik, the Hahn ruler’s only son, has been captured, and the disposition of his internment may represent a last and welcome chance for peace. Enter Wollard, the impeccably distinguished and impossibly correct Master of Formalities for House Jakabitus. When he suggests that Master Hennik be taken in as a ward of the House, certain complications arise. Wollard believes utterly and devotedly in adhering to rules and good etiquette. But how does one inform the ruler of a planet that you are claiming his son as your own―and still create enough goodwill to deescalate an intergalactic war?
Review
A staggering disappointment, worthy of Rob Reid . I think [author:Douglas Adams, John Scalzi, Grant Naylor when I look for funny. I look to Rick Cook, to Simon Hawke and yes, to Meyer Off to be the Wizard was ribtickling. Humour is, I guess, a particular thing. This was not, particularly, mine.
5 Stars to The Flicker Men by Ted Kosmatka
Description
A quantum physicist shocks the world with a startling experiment, igniting a struggle between science and theology, free will and fate, and antagonizing forces not known to exist. Eric Argus is a washout. His prodigious early work clouded his reputation and strained his sanity. But an old friend gives him another chance, an opportunity to step back into the light. With three months to produce new research, Eric replicates the paradoxical double-slit experiment to see for himself the mysterious dual nature of light and matter. A simple but unprecedented inference blooms into a staggering discovery about human consciousness and the structure of the universe. His findings are celebrated and condemned in equal measure. But no one can predict where the truth will lead. And as Eric seeks to understand the unfolding revelations, he must evade shadowy pursuers who believe he knows entirely too much already.
Review
This was scientifically spooky, if that works to describe it with any degree of accuracy. I kept catching myself, knowing of course the validity of the double slit experiment. It's a haunting powerhouse of a novel with a great deal of Humanity to absorb, and one I'll be coming back to in the future as I think there's much offered that I am sure I didn't take in first time around.
3 Stars to Innerspace by Nathan Elliott
Description
Novelization based on the screenplay by Jeffrey Boam and Chip Proser.
Review
This was fabulous, fun pulp era fiction. It reminded me quite a bit of some of the Harry Harrison magazine style stuff, and although totally wacky I still enjoyed it. Time to watch the film soon!
5 Stars to The Postman by David Brin
Description
This is the story of a lie that became the most powerful kind of truth. A timeless novel as urgently compelling as Warday or Alas, Babylon, David Brin's The Postman is the dramatically moving saga of a man who rekindled the spirit of America through the power of a dream, from a modern master of science fiction. He was a survivor—a wanderer who traded tales for food and shelter in the dark and savage aftermath of a devastating war. Fate touches him one chill winter's day when he borrows the jacket of a long-dead postal worker to protect himself from the cold. The old, worn uniform still has power as a symbol of hope, and with it he begins to weave his greatest tale, of a nation on the road to recovery.
Review
Post-apocalyptic fiction has always been an intriguing genre, but lately with self-publishing it's boomed, and not always to the good. This is what I consider to be a seminal work of that style, I found myself strongly absorbed by the landscape, the ideals, and the characters. I haven't read much of Brin before, but I'm working on it as so far I have been very impressed.
3 Stars to The Arrival of Richard III by Kari August
Description
What would you ask for if God owed you a favor? King Richard III chooses to travel to the twenty-first century to repair his reputation. After more than five hundred years of Tudor-inspired propaganda, Richard's name is in tatters. Reviled for crimes he never committed, he has his work cut out for him. He needs help and decides his distant cousin Ned York is just the person to assist him. But mild-mannered Ned has problems of his own. Recently fired from his prestigious law firm due to a mistake by his ex-girlfriend, Ned is trying to figure out what to do with his life. The last thing he needs is some cousin he's never met, with a wacky story to tell, arriving at his doorstep in Colorado. Nevertheless, Ned finds he is unable to resist Richard's plea for support and begins an adventure that turns his life even more upside down . . . while discovering Lindsey, the love of his life. If only Lindsey can get around the fact that she thinks Ned is a little kooky. After all, Ned has now become convinced that Richard is actually the real king come back to life. The Arrival of Richard III is a romping tale through the centuries in which medieval and modern man comically clash.
Review
I liked the sound of this, but it held a vapidity I couldn't quite shake off. I did finish it and enjoyed parts, but it was a touch too Americanised and soft chicked for my taste.
4 Stars to My Tomorrow, Your Yesterday (The Time Bubble #9) by Jason Ayres
Description
When 54 year old Thomas Scott wakes up in a hospital bed on New Year’s Day he has no memory of who he is or why he is there. Racked with pain from a terminal illness, death swiftly follows. The next day he awakes to find himself alive again and confused, especially when he discovers that it is now New Year’s Eve. As the days pass he begins to realise that he is living his life backwards one day at a time. So begins the extraordinary tale of a man who goes to sleep on Sunday nights and wakes up on Saturday mornings: A man who cannot form a meaningful relationship with a woman because when he jumps back to the previous day, she has no memory of him. And a man who can win a fortune from gambling any time he likes, but has only one day to spend it. Trying to find some purpose in life he resolves to find out as much about his own personal history as he can. Learning of the death of his wife and an attack on his daughter, he prepares to make changes in the past to secure their future. From middle-aged father all the way back to childhood, the passing years present all manner of different challenges as he grows ever more youthful. Set in and around Oxford between the years of 1970 and 2025, this unique concept for a time travel novel features plenty of humour, nostalgia and “what if?” moments.
Review
Though not a new literary device, this managed to work. I quite enjoyed the changes in technology as Thomas regressed, and his way of life was also quite interesting, in particular his years of retirement and puberty. The obvious question of course is which path his life is set on at the end: have his changes held up and will he now grow up with a family? Or, if he doesn't change his ways in Scrooge-like fashion, is he doomed to die early? An author worth reading more of, for certain.
5 Stars to The Practice Effect by David Brin
Description
From one of the most critically acclaimed and well-loved authors of contemporary science fiction, a highly imaginative and exciting story as only David Brin can write . . . “High spirits and inventiveness . . . Dennis's adventures, which can only be called rollicking, are legion.”— Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine Physicist Dennis Nuel was the first human to probe the strange realms called anomaly worlds—alternate universes where the laws of science were unpredictably changed. But the world Dennis discovered seemed almost like our own—with one perplexing difference. To his astonishment, he was hailed as a wizard and found himself fighting beside a beautiful woman with strange powers against a mysterious warlord as he struggled to solve the riddle of this baffling world. “A delightful, often very witty story, with the underlying thoughtfulness we expect from David Brin.”—Poul Anderson
Review
I totally enjoyed this book. Of course, people popping off into alternate worlds are two a penny on my bookshelf but this had charisma, science and talent going for it. I'll read more of this author and totally recommend this book to any sci-fi reader.
3 Stars to The Magic Fart (Pornucopia, #2) by Piers Anthony
Description
The long awaited sequel to Pornucopia! Picking up where Pornucopia left off, our hero Prior Gross receives word that his ideal woman, which he never knew existed, is in trouble! Off he goes to the Land of Fartingale where farts are magic!
Review
I turn 28 years old this year, yet the words "The Magic Fart" cannot but help cause an inner chuckle. anthony writes, in his author's note: "Close to half my life passed between the novels; could I still write as effectively as a senior citizen?" (Pornacopia was written in 1970). I think the answer is yes, it's got as much going for it as its predecessor. Dave Duncan is also incredibly able to craft sex scenes and he's in his 80's.
3 Stars to Pornucopia (Pornucopia, #1) by Piers Anthony
Description
Pornucopia is a picaresque black comedy that transgresses all bounds of everyday good taste. It begins in a near-future world where sex-vending machines and genital transplants are taken for granted. Prior Gross, the hero and sex object of this wild adventure, thinks his fantasies have all come true when a beautiful young woman seduces him on a public beach. She turns out to be a succubus, beginning his initiation into a realm populated by demons that are not merely horned, but horny. He encounters a perverse cast of characters that includes a satyr, a vampire, and a pair of luscious sisters, one of whom tricks him out of his manhood. So Prior Gross sets out on a perverse odyssey, taking him to a distant planet where he discovers the key to the return of his property and, ultimately, the origin of the universe itself.
Review
I found this as a younger teen and, of course, it totally and utterly intrigued, baffled, titillated and confused me. Fortunately, it didn't hold any sway what soever on my person when it came to either the consideration or practice of any form of sexual activity, which is astonishing, given that I pepper quotes from other novels and indeed entire paragraphs into daily conversation where warranted. Having reread it today? It doesn't really impact much. It's a bit of fun.
3 Stars to ATLAS (Atlas, #1) by Isaac Hooke
Description
Rade Galaal enrolls in the hardest military training known to man to become a member of the MOTHs, the most elite fighting unit in the galaxy. MOTHs are tacticians, corpsmen, snipers, astronauts and commandos rolled into one. They also happen to pilot the atomic-powered ATLAS mechs, specialized military hardware that brings new meaning to the phrase "one-man-army." When Special Warfare Command orders MOTH Team Seven on a covert operation beyond the furthest reaches of explored space, Rade realizes he's signed up for more than he bargained for...
Review
With a strong Starship Troopers, Old Man's War feel to it this had potential, and I must admit to being held, if not overly thrilled. The politics, technology and aliens were all just that bit too vague to make much meat out of. Potential here, but not one that cries out to carry on with.
3 Stars to Alien Velocity by Robert Appleton
Description
EPIC Award Finalist 2011 - Best Science Fiction Charlie Thorpe-Campbell is the greatest RAM-runner the world has ever seen--and he knows it. On the verge of retirement from the sport, he is defending his title as champion of the annual orbital race one final time when he's suddenly hurtling away into deep space. Charlie's unscheduled voyage through a wormhole ends with a crash-landing on a most unusual planet, with scores of spacecraft from all corners of the universe in orbit. Seeking help, he heads toward what appears to be civilization, unaware of the horrors waiting for him there... Once inside the great, orb-covered city, Charlie is thrust into intergalactic competition by a bloodthirsty alien race. When he discovers he can use his unique abilities to save not only himself, but the entire galaxy, will he face up to the challenge--or run from it? Previously published as Charlie Runs Rings Around the Earth, newly revised by the author. 39,000 words
Review
This was ... A bit weird. It reminded me a little of a Peers Anthony, but with a slightly more fowl-mouthed lead. It had that weird, dissociative feel of some of Anthony's works, but it did at least take an old motif and do something unusual with it.
4 Stars to Hostile Takeover (John Lago Thriller, #2) by Shane Kuhn
Description
Professional assassin John Lago faces off against his deadliest adversary yet—his wife—in Hostile Takeover, the exciting sequel to Shane Kuhn’s bestselling debut The Intern’s Handbook, which the New York Post called “a sexy, darkly comic thriller.” At the end of The Intern’s Handbook, John tracks down his nemesis Alice but instead of putting a bullet in her head, he puts a ring on her finger and marries her. Together, they execute a hostile takeover of Human Resources, Inc., the “placement agency” that trains young assassins to infiltrate corporations disguised as interns and knock off high profile targets. As HR’s former top operatives, they are successful until conflicting management styles cause an ugly breakup that locks John out of the bedroom and the boardroom. But when Alice takes on a new HR target, John is forced to return to the office battlefield in a role he swore he would never play again: the intern. What starts out as a deadly showdown turns into the two of them fighting side by side to save HR, Inc.—and their marriage. “Those who like Dexter will love John Lago” (Booklist), and in Shane Kuhn’s sequel to The Intern’s Handbook, readers will be rooting for this smart, witty antihero to come out on top.
Review
This was almost as good as the first one, it certainly carried things on very nicely. Of course, believability if it ever remotely existed is shot out of the stratosphere now, but the tone is authentic, the combat exhilarating and the idea executed with style, machismo and aplomb.
5 Stars to Social Engineer (Brody Taylor Thrillers, #1) by Ian Sutherland
Description
Whose side is he on? The drug company curing dementia or the animal rights activists protesting outside? Brody Taylor loves hacking humans. After all, people are the weakest link in all computer systems. If he's hired to break into your network, he will find and exploit the weak point. You. The problem with always manipulating people is that even those closest to you don't trust you. And Brody's just fallen in love with Melanie, a zany, beautiful French animal rights activist. But she's in love with the character he's trapped himself in, not the real Brody, social engineer and computer hacker. Can Brody social engineer his way to the truth and save his relationship with Melanie? A novella that introduces Brody Taylor in a thrilling standalone adventure. At 60 pages, SOCIAL ENGINEER can be read in under two hours!
Review
This is free, what's not to like? It's also a seriously good story (Jacobson, pwned, loved it) and a clever way of getting into Ian's writing without having to buy something. But if you are getting this for your Kindle, save yourself having to go back to buy the follow-on novel by getting them both at the same time. It's worth it, trust me.
5 Stars to Armada by Ernest Cline
Description
It’s just another day of high school for Zack Lightman. He's daydreaming through another boring math class, with just one more month to go until graduation and freedom—if he can make it that long without getting suspended again. Then he glances out his classroom window and spots the flying saucer. At first, Zack thinks he’s going crazy. A minute later, he’s sure of it. Because the UFO he’s staring at is straight out of the videogame he plays every night, a hugely popular online flight simulator called Armada in which gamers just happen to be protecting the earth from alien invaders. But what Zack’s seeing is all too real. And his skills—as well as those of millions of gamers across the world—are going to be needed to save the earth from what’s about to befall it. Yet even as he and his new comrades scramble to prepare for the alien onslaught, Zack can’t help thinking of all the science-fiction books, TV shows, and movies he grew up reading and watching, and wonder: Doesn’t something about this scenario seem a little too… familiar? Armada is at once a rollicking, surprising thriller, a classic coming of age adventure, and an alien-invasion tale like nothing you’ve ever read before—one whose every page is infused with author Ernest Cline’s trademark pop-culture savvy.
Review
"There were marks where she’d dug her nails into my skin, but I hadn’t even noticed. I’d been too busy having my whole perception of reality shattered into a million pieces." Ready Player One was, without doubt, one of the novels of the year. I think Cline's fast becoming one of the authors of the decade, a full-time geek, as the bio at the book says, is quite, quite accurate. With a Douglas Adams reference in the opening paragraphs and a voice reminiscent of his debut novel, this thing kicked off superbly and didn't let up for a moment. "Besides, now I was thinking there just might be a God after all—that would explain who was currently fucking with my whole notion of reality." The depth of the characters might push some away, but if you accept the escapist nature of the work and the sheer genius of the way Cline is perfectly content to shanghai tropes both historical and modern to fit into his protagonists worldview you can fall, head first, into this pure work of geek without too much trouble. “We’re not going to play for them, Graham, I told you,” he muttered. “Aliens are invading in a few hours, remember?” Some of the extras really stood out; Milo's mom was great, and Lex took the cake in dialogue, a sort of merging of two of his previous characters to form one badass chick. The whole thing was a rollicking, guilty pleasure, and I think as it's less focused on minutia than Clines debut it might attract a wider audience. So, despite a predictable pattern, sometimes too familiar tropes and a story that hasn't really given us much to innovate over (apart, of course, from the central tenet of the film and game industries direction which is uber cool) this nonetheless manages to be intensely pleasurable and a novel I will, I am sure, read time and time again. A feather in the cap to be sure, and something very worthy to follow the gigantic success of Cline's debut work.
3 Stars to The Proteus Cure by F. Paul Wilson
Description
In medical ethics, the line between right and wrong is often blurred. Who is to decide what is for the good of humanity? Changing the world. One person at a time… That is the mission statement of Tethys Hospital, run by Dr. Bill Gilchrist and his deformed sister, Abra. VG723, their revolutionary stem-cell-based therapy, appears to be capable of doing just that for the cancer patients who come to Tethys. VG723 is often their last hope. But if they match the protocol, they're virtually guaranteed a cure. Dr. Sheila Takamura, a young, dedicated oncologist, is proud to be involved in the clinical trials. Once the FDA approves it for widespread use, VG723 will revolutionize cancer therapy. That is why she's alarmed when former patients return with bizarre syndromes. Yes, they're cancer free, but they're experiencing dramatic changes in their hair and skin and general appearance. When she investigates a possible link to the protocol, those patients start dying. As the body count grows, Sheila finds her own life in danger. She comes to suspect there might be a literal meaning behind the Tethys motto – but can she learn the truth in time to save herself and millions of others?
Review
Despite being predictable, I still found this kept my interest. it's probably a little too slushy for me to say I enjoyed it a great deal, but it wasn't a bad book.
4 Stars to Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee
Description
From Harper Lee comes a landmark new novel set two decades after her beloved Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece, To Kill a Mockingbird. Maycomb, Alabama. Twenty-six-year-old Jean Louise Finch—"Scout"—returns home from New York City to visit her aging father, Atticus. Set against the backdrop of the civil rights tensions and political turmoil that were transforming the South, Jean Louise's homecoming turns bittersweet when she learns disturbing truths about her close-knit family, the town and the people dearest to her. Memories from her childhood flood back, and her values and assumptions are thrown into doubt. Featuring many of the iconic characters from To Kill a Mockingbird, Go Set a Watchman perfectly captures a young woman, and a world, in a painful yet necessary transition out of the illusions of the past—a journey that can be guided only by one's conscience. Written in the mid-1950s, Go Set a Watchman imparts a fuller, richer understanding and appreciation of Harper Lee. Here is an unforgettable novel of wisdom, humanity, passion, humor and effortless precision—a profoundly affecting work of art that is both wonderfully evocative of another era and relevant to our own times. It not only confirms the enduring brilliance of To Kill a Mockingbird, but also serves as its essential companion, adding depth, context and new meaning to an American classic.
Review
I, like many thousands of my contemporaries, spent a few months in that tired old town called Maycomb before sitting GCSEs. I think initially we were as much intrigued by the dialect and entertainments of the characters as the plot, but I certainly grew to enjoy the work. I only read it myself once thereafter, on an ice-cold evening between colleges, which must've been a few years out of secondary school. I'd heard about Watchman in the media of course, and it's odd, because I wasn't compelled to pick it up. At least, I didn't think I was. And yet this morning, I was between books. Then, with only four minutes before I signed off work, I decided what the hell? And transferred it with all due haste to my ereader before leaving. I read the first chapter on the way home, completed my evening activities and put my daughter to bed, and finished it in the bath with a drink. I found it a rather poignant experience. My own memories of reading Mockingbird are full of classroom experiences, old friends and teachers, a life I seem to have left behind. I think the fourth section was my favourite, Scout's huge, all-encompassing feelings of injustice and hurt and hate and loss are powerful. But the whole work holds the same message, tone, and compelling voice of Mockingbird; indeed I came away feeling I'd seen another facet to the prism of life. Watchman is another coming of age story, isn't it? I can't say Mockingbird felt in any way childish, but this certainly hit home in a different way to me now. It's perhaps not as immediately endearing, certainly not as easy to get into, but I think anyone who read Mockingbird will want to read this, just to know a little of the lives we've seen before.
3 Stars to Glasshouse by Charles Stross
Description
When Robin wakes up in a clinic with most of his memories missing, it doesn’t take him long to discover that someone is trying to kill him. It’s the twenty-seventh century, when interstellar travel is by teleport gate and conflicts are fought by network worms that censor refugees’ personalities and target historians. The civil war is over and Robin has been demobilized, but someone wants him out of the picture because of something his earlier self knew. On the run from a ruthless pursuer and searching for a place to hide, he volunteers to participate in a unique experimental polity, the Glasshouse, constructed to simulate a pre-accelerated culture. Participants are assigned anonymized identities: It looks like the ideal hiding place for a posthuman on the run. But in this escape-proof environment, Robin will undergo an even more radical change, placing him at the mercy of the experimenters—and at the mercy of his own unbalanced psyche...
Review
Whilst the concept could've worke very well, I found the timbre of the writing just that bit beyond what fits comfortably into my head. Stross has never been a writer where I've guaranteed myself a 100% easy read, and I think this book, though holding a lot worth looking at, slipped through the cracks of enjoyment for me.
3 Stars to A Dream of Wessex by Christopher Priest
Description
A Dream of Wessex is a “story about a group of twentieth-century dreamers who create a consensus virtual-reality future. Once they enter their imaginary world they are unable to remember who they are, or where they are from.”
Review
I wasn't captivated by this. Parts of it did interest me, but there was something about the writing style which I found it a little difficult to connect with. I shall put it on my "to reconsider" pile and read it one day when I am in a different frame of mind.
3 Stars to Journey Into Space - Operation Luna (Journey Into Space, #1) by Charles Chilton
Description
Between 1953 and 1958, millions of people tuned into the radio adventures of Jet Morgan and his crew as they left Earth to investigate the universe. The success of the series reached amazing heights, retaining the record of being the last radio programme to surpass its television rival in the ratings. The series was translated into 17 langauges and broadcast worldwide. Chilton went on to write three bestselling novels based on the groundbreaking radio series. Reprinted for the first time in forty years, Fantom Publishing presents Charles Chilton's tales of space expedition in limited edition hardback.
Review
I am of course far too young to have enjoyed the radio broadcasts of this pillar of British radio in its original form, but I cut my teeth first on the abridged cassettes and then on remastered radio productions as they became available. This novelisation has been around in an audiobook form for a few years I think probably because a lot of blind people enjoyed it in its initial run on the wireless. I can't say there was much new to enjoy in the novel. In spots, I heard the voices of the actors instead of getting the words on the page, which was a nice experience and it was interesting to read a little more of the visualisation that Chilton pictured, which of course you lose on the radio. But it also served to bring home Chilton's tropes: circular ships and a reliance on aircraft, time travel and larger-than-life aliens, Humanities destruction - all these motifs reappear, perhaps to excess, in his latter works. So a mixed bag really, I don't think someone unfamiliar with the work will get much out of it to be honest.
1 Stars to A Loop in Time (Time Loop #1) by Clark Graham
Description
“We’re losing him!” came a frantic voice over the headset. “I’m still here,” the pilot insisted. “We’re losing--” the voice cut out and then there was silence. “Control, do you read me? Control?” the pilot was panicking. There was no answer. Suddenly flames burst out all around him. The last thing he remembered was reaching for the eject switch, before his thoughts devolved into an inky black void. The mysterious pilot was brought into the military hospital unconscious. The base didn’t know who he was. Some thought he was an alien, some thought he was a Russian spy all because of the unknown, yet highly advanced airplane he was flying at the time of his crash. When the pilot awakes, he has amnesia. He gradually gets his memory back only to find that he is not only in the wrong place, he is also in the wrong time.
Review
I didn't find this particularly inspiring. The concept is not new by any stretch and nothing really was added to it. The dialogue was stale and static, the characters flat and difficult to engage with, the profusion of weddings completely inexplicable and there were several internal inconsistencies which, even if one is inclined to put oneself into the world no matter how difficult, ruins the idea.
5 Stars to The Eye of the World (The Wheel of Time, #1) by Robert Jordan
Description
The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth returns again. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow. Moiraine Damodred arrives in Emond’s Field on a quest to find the one prophesized to stand against The Dark One, a malicious entity sowing the seeds of chaos and destruction. When a vicious band of half-men, half beasts invade the village seeking their master’s enemy, Moiraine persuades Rand al’Thor and his friends to leave their home and enter a larger unimaginable world filled with dangers waiting in the shadows and in the light.
Review
I'd heard a lot of good about these books and was finally pushed into starting this almost a week ago. Finally I've finished it, and I must admit to being very, very impressed. Bildungsroman or not, or too early to tell, this is an epic in the true scope (I read that the series runs to 4,000,000 words). I enjoyed the earlier part of the novel more I think, which set the scene beautifully, and I especially enjoyed the royal family and the power evident there. I have absolutely no idea on what areas the other books will focus, but sincerely look forward to working my way through them over the next few months.
5 Stars to The Watcher by Charles Maclean
Description
Charles Maclean's horror classic is finally back in print Friday, rush hour. Martin Gregory just manages to catch the 4:48 train. Tomorrow is his wife's birthday and he plans to devote the weekend to her and their beloved dogs. But when he rises in the morning, Martin does something so horrific, so inexplicable, and so out of character that his only option is to run. A lost horror classic back in print at last, The Watcher chronicles Martin as his quest for understanding plunges him through shifting realities and twisted corridors of time, and into the deepest recesses of the human mind.
Review
This was a deeply satisfying novel for me. I hadn't come across mephitic before, so that's worth hearing; and the latency period dismissed by Freud as nonsexual being in actuality highly significant struck a chord, as well, making me evaluate things I hadn't considered contributory toward my own sexual gestalten. So, 5 stars for personal psychological exposition. Literary merit is harder to define when you're busy untangling your own sexual proclivities.
June
3 Stars to Tomorrow is Too Far by James White
Description
Jim Carson was Security Chief at the Hart-Ewing plant--and he was very good at his job. That is, he accomplished what he had to unobtrusively. The nature of the job made Carson caution and meticulously thorough. What he brought to his profession was a most thoughtful sensitivity, So when Carson became uneasy, he knew something was really wrong. And methodically, as usual, he started going over the multitude of details and impressions he had been picking up day-by-day for weeks. He came up with a most astonishing result!
Review
Though a little dated, this was still an interesting read for someone interested in the genre. White does have a style his own, which is not to everyone's taste, but if he is your sort of thing this is a volume worth at least giving a look toward.
3 Stars to Deathspell (Deathspell, #1) by Connor Peterson
Description
A boy orphaned by violence grows up in the shadow of his father's murder. His older brother offers him a home, but the life of a farmer is a poor fit for Christian Richardson. Set in England in the 1400s, the Wars of the Roses litters the country with plenty of jobs for a young mercenary trained in how to wield a sword. Christian grows out of his youth and becomes a capable fighter, one who inherited his father's blade. As a member of the Brotherhood of the Black Rose, he puts coins in his pockets and food in his stomach, but every day he searches for the sigil of the men who took his father's life. Finally, after years skirting the edges of a group called the Luminaries, he'll make a discovery that will put him in reach of his goal. Vengeance. The sword was not the only possession his father had given to him, though, and unbeknownst to Christian, the Luminaries have been hunting for Richard's son - the boy who escaped from them nearly a decade ago - just as he has been scouring for signs of them. An almost successful attempt on his life reveals hidden gifts, and even more secrets that his father had taken to the grave. As Christian reaches the threshold of claiming revenge, he faces the realization that retribution might come at a high price. Will he listen to the pleas of his loved ones, cautioning him away from danger? Or will his pursuit for justice take him down a path from where he can never return?
Review
deathspell Despite turning into a vampire thing, this started off interesting. I think the concept has been done better Michael G Manning springs to mind but the plot was compelling and the romance didn't interfere, although nor did it really add much to the story. I'd read another set in the world, just to see where things ended up.
4 Stars to Resistance by Owen Sheers
Description
Imbued with immense imaginative breadth and confidence, Owen Sheers's debut novel unfolds with the pace and intensity of a thriller. A hymn to the glorious landscape of the Welsh border territories and a portrait of a community under siege. 1944. After the fall of Russia and the failed D-Day landings, a German counterattack lands on British soil. Within a month, half of Britain is occupied. The seat of British government has fled to Worcester, Churchill to Canada. A network of British resistance cells is all that is left to defy the German army. Against this backdrop, Resistance opens with Sarah Lewis, a twenty-six-year-old farmer's wife, waking to find her husband, Tom, has disappeared. She is not alone, as all the other women in the Welsh border valley of Olchon wake to find their husbands gone. With this sudden and unexplained absence, the women regroup as an isolated, all-female community and wait, hoping for news. Later, a German patrol arrives in the valley, the purpose of their mission a mystery. When a severe winter forces the two groups together, a fragile mutual dependency develops. Sarah begins a faltering acquaintance with the patrol’s commanding officer, Albrecht Wolfram, and it is to her that he reveals the purpose of the patrol. But as the pressure of the war beyond presses in on this isolated community, this fragile state of harmony is increasingly threatened. Imbued with immense imaginative breadth and confidence, Owen Sheers's debut novel unfolds with the pace and intensity of a thriller. A hymn to the glorious landscape of the Welsh border territories and a portrait of a community under siege, Resistance is a first novel of grace and power.
Review
The joy of a well-told Welsh story. Stephen Leonard Venables and, to a leser extent [Author:Stephen Carr ] have been thus far unique in my Goodreads experience, at least off the top of my head. I'm many hundreds of books in, of course. This was poetic, almost beautiful in its way, with a shockingly accurate tinge of the valleys and a potent, grim, yet strangely soft and Human slant on war as well. It doesn't fill an alternate history story as many others do; it's no Charles S Jackson work, for instance, but it has a peculiar, resonant quality to it that I am honestly struggling to pin down.
5 Stars to Play or Die by Jen Cole
Description
Ready to play the game of your life? Could you stay ahead of a sociopathic hunter being sent your co-ordinates every three hours? Jo Warrington is about to live this nightmare. On a Melbourne city street she is plunged into a game devised by people from the future. Her choices - play or die. As Jo flees a remorseless Hunter, her watching audience places bets on how long she will survive and awards points for ingenuity. The points allow her to ask questions, but when the answer to one reveals her father's recent death to have been no accident, she resolves to play the game on her own terms. Desperately searching for clues as the assassin closes in, Jo is tempted when her father’s sexy equipment salesman turns up asking her to trust him, but Richard seems to have his own agenda. Can Jo track down her father’s murderers before she herself is killed? And what of her viewers from the future? Will they be satisfied with anything less than her death? A lot can happen in five days. If you crave the adrenaline hit of an action-packed thriller, then choose a comfy chair to read Play or Die. It’ll be a while before you leave. This is a novel for young adults and old.
Review
With all the open, Australian warmth of Graham Storrs and the hugely enjoyable moral entreaties of E.C. Myers , Brett Battles and Kristen Simmons and their ilk, this was a brilliantly inventive, unaccountably captivating joy from start to finish. Not that the subject matter was particularly pleasant to read about, but what an absolutely riveting cocktail of science fiction and caution. I don't think I've enjoyed a book so clearly sending a message about corporate greed, corruption and murder before. There were parts where the message perhaps overshot the story, but overall I think I found Jo's exploits as engaging as that of her futuristic audience. I'd have no qualms about recommending this to science fiction fans, those who enjoy thrillers, or in fact anyone who wants to read a proper, engaging story with real people you can believe in. It's a great, all-round novel and without doubt one of the best in its category.
1 Stars to The Temporal Knights by Richard D. Parker
Description
The first victims died on the fourteenth of June and before the month was out every human female, young boy and non-virile male was dead. Five billion people in all. In the wake of the tragedy came unbridled grief, disease and chaos…and finally Martial Law. Extinction was staring Mankind in the face. It took over a year to stabilize what was left of society, and then another full year before the first test tube baby girl was born. The entire world rejoiced! The Laws of Nature bent to the brilliance of the human mind. Mankind, that bizarre species of primate, had somehow managed to cheat death and endure…and then the aliens fell upon the planet in force. Countless hordes of enemy soldiers poured down from the heavens. The invaders attacked and killed without hesitation, but they also died by the millions. The remaining human beings fought back desperately, but the enemy came in endless waves, relentlessly killing and destroying everything that was human. For five long years the battle raged on, until once again humanity was threatened with extinction. All appeared to be lost. Less than a thousand human beings lingered on earth, when a strange and bizarre solution presented itself. Discovered deep within the alien technology was the key to life, the key to time and the key to victory. The last of Mankind would move back through the ages to the year 893, to England, during the reign of King Alfred the Great. There, they would drag the dark ages into the light, speed up the process of enlightenment, and prepare Mankind for the coming battle. With luck, they would truly be ready when the alien invaders finally came again. Those still alive would risk everything and cross over; it was that, or oblivion. “We’re like Twain’s Yankee,” Major Thane commented. “Who?” “You know, Twain’s Yankee, ‘The Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court.’ If we succeed in going back, our situation will be very similar.” Thane explained. Colonel Lemay grunted. “Yes, but this time we’ll be bringing along machine guns and hand grenades.” “And don’t forget the flamethrowers,” Moore added with a laugh.
Review
There were a few proofing errors which truly irritated me in this one, things like ad nausea, sweat meats, and use of the word accent instead of ascent. Then there were the picky issues with technology; Their computers are idiotic, or perhaps the men just get a kick out of saying computer as it seems to hear them just fine when they omit the word. The second thing to really get my goat was the dialect of the locals. Forsooth was used quite often (34 times, to be precise). Na, Thee, ye and tis abound, even when the locals are thinking, which is a bonus for authenticity but there's no evidence provided to show that Parker's done any research on the speech of the period the book visits. But, all that aside, I cannot get the sanctimonious, riding in on a white horse attitude of the Americans out of my head. Clearly, Parker implies that any impact from a future US visitor is going to immediately take ninth century England into a "cultured" state of affairs. This is compounded by the absolutely ridiculous ending to the book, which repeats the assumption on a grander scale, and then a stranger appears (literally, a group of characters we've not seen just pop up in the epilogue) and mention the title, word-for-word, of another of Parker's books. I came away laughing at the sheer inanity of the whole thing. Parker did a really good prologue; I'll give him that, but I kept reading for the historical, technological and psychological flimflam.
4 Stars to Marcher by Chris Beckett
Description
Charles is an immigration officer with a difference: the migrants he deals with don’t come from other countries but from other universes. Known as shifters, they materialize from parallel timelines, bringing with them a mysterious drug called slip which breaks down the boundary between what is and what might have been, and offers the desperate and the dispossessed the tantalizing possibility of escape. When a shifter-led gang commits murder in the name of the old Norse pantheon and then uses slip to escape justice, Charles and his girlfriend Jaz decide to cross to another universe themselves in a bid to confront the problem at source and prevent their own society from degenerating into tyranny. But is that Charles' real motive? Or does he have other reasons which even he can't clearly see?
Review
"When people were happy time didn't matter. You could almost define happiness that way. It was when things were hard that people needed the faith that tied one minute to the next, like one of those human chains that rescuers make to get people out of floods or burning buildings. And shifters broke that faith." I really got into this. The atmosphere was greatly British, the concept novel, the whole mirror thing very neat and meaningful and the congruity of disenfranchised youth versus a welfare state corrupted beyond measure was totally gripping. Also, the quote above on faith; I suppose time is the one constant even the most ardent curmudgeonly atheist, or indeed even an equally scientifically-minded apatheist, would not deny. Sadly, the end of the story totally let the work down, I think; unless there are further happenings to read about there wasn't really a satisfactory denouement to get ones teeth into and the ending fell a little flat as a consequence. Still, I totally enjoyed the majority of the book.
3 Stars to The Three (The Three, #1) by Sarah Lotz
Description
Four simultaneous plane crashes. Three child survivors. A religious fanatic who insists the three are harbingers of the apocalypse. What if he's right? The world is stunned when four commuter planes crash within hours of each other on different continents. Facing global panic, officials are under pressure to find the causes. With terrorist attacks and environmental factors ruled out, there doesn't appear to be a correlation between the crashes, except that in three of the four air disasters a child survivor is found in the wreckage. Dubbed 'The Three' by the international press, the children all exhibit disturbing behavioural problems, presumably caused by the horror they lived through and the unrelenting press attention. This attention becomes more than just intrusive when a rapture cult led by a charismatic evangelical minister insists that the survivors are three of the four harbingers of the apocalypse. The Three are forced to go into hiding, but as the children's behaviour becomes increasingly disturbing, even their guardians begin to question their miraculous survival.
Review
Parts of this were just mawkishly bad, the author's tried to go for the whole documentary, it's a real thing, author-on-the edge feel which sort of sickened me and kept me coming back in equal portions. I'm in two minds as to whether or not to go for the next one now; I'll see if it calls to me after digging through the titles that built up whilst I was plodding through this one.
4 Stars to POV by Chris Brosnahan
Description
John Macfarlane is a highly-skilled optometrist. He works with IDRoPs, a solution that allows people to see augmented reality. He lives a quiet life with his wife and daughter, but one day, everything changes. John discovers that someone is brutally murdering his patients, ripping their eyes out, and slipping away. Who is the killer? And can he stop them before they destroy everything he has worked so hard to build?
Review
I found this refreshingly fast-paced, if a little short compared to my usual taste. It had a nice snap to it, and I particularly like the technology in play. An author to watch, for sure.
3 Stars to Duplicity by N.K. Traver
Description
A computer-hacking teen. The girl who wants to save him. And a rogue mirror reflection that might be the death of them both. In private, seventeen-year-old Brandon hacks bank accounts just for the thrill of it. In public, he looks like any other tattooed bad boy with a fast car and devil-may-care attitude. He should know: he’s worked hard to maintain that façade. With inattentive parents who move constantly from city to city, he’s learned not to get tangled up in things like friends and relationships. So he’ll just keep living like a machine, all gears and wires. Then two things shatter his carefully-built image: Emma, the kind, stubborn girl who insists on looking beneath the surface – and the small matter of a mirror reflection that starts moving by itself. Not only does Brandon’s reflection have a mind of its own, but it seems to be grooming him for something—washing the dye from his hair, yanking out his piercings, swapping his black shirts for … pastels. Then it tells him: it thinks it can live his life better, and it’s preparing to trade places. And when it pulls Brandon through the looking-glass, not only will he need all his ill-gotten hacking skills to escape, but he’s going to have to face some hard truths about who he’s become. Otherwise he’ll be stuck in a digital hell until he’s old and gray, and no one will even know he's gone.
Review
though enjoyable and indeed exciting in spots, I found this a little too ephemeral and flighty. Little was given as lead-up to the hacking scene and culture, and even less made of the new technology before it engulfed the lead. I'd read more though, perhaps these things will be built on later.
4 Stars to 14 (Threshold, #1) by Peter Clines
Description
Padlocked doors. Strange light fixtures. Mutant cockroaches. There are some odd things about Nate’s new apartment. Of course, he has other things on his mind. He hates his job. He has no money in the bank. No girlfriend. No plans for the future. So while his new home isn’t perfect, it’s livable. The rent is low, the property managers are friendly, and the odd little mysteries don’t nag at him too much. At least, not until he meets Mandy, his neighbour across the hall, and notices something unusual about her apartment. And Xela’s apartment. And Tim’s. And Veek’s. Because every room in this old Los Angeles brownstone has a mystery or two. Mysteries that stretch back over a hundred years. Some of them are in plain sight. Some are behind locked doors. And all together these mysteries could mean the end of Nate and his friends. Or the end of everything...
Review
This was almost as good as The Fold. The only trouble was that of course I knew what lay in the other world, and so some of the surprise was taken away. But it’s still nicely done, with a style of writing most pleasurable to read. And I thought Tim was pretty cool.
2 Stars to The Embedding by Ian Watson
Description
London experimenters condition a group of completely segregated orphans with an artificially implanted language, an Amazon Indian tribe employs hallucinatory powers against an American-Brazilian dam project, and the extraterrestrial Sp'thra seek to maintain their endangered communications systems
Review
I don’t feel as if I read this carefully enough to properly enjoy it, but the ending was far too up in the air to impress. The tone of the whole thing seems to be a little beyond my grasp.
5 Stars to Terminal Mind by David Walton
Description
The Philip K. Dick award-winning SF dystopian novel. Years in the future, the U.S. is a splintered country. The city-state of Philadelphia is ripe for revolution. Mark McGovern, the son of a rich politician, lives in a world of expensive parties and frivolous biological mods, a sharp contrast to the poor underworld of his best friend, Darin Kinsley. When the two accidentally release a sophisticated virus called a 'slicer' into the net, Mark must try to stem the tide of casualties before the charged political situation explodes. But the slicer is more than a virus. To destroy it, Mark must first sort truth from lies, not only for himself, but for the mind of the child who holds his fate.
Review
This is a hugely exciting novel. It reminded me a little of Ramez Naam, and I found myself keen to read even when it wasn’t quite appropriate. Walton’s no stranger, but I’ve yet to pin him down (each of his other works is so different in tone and style as to seem written by someone totally different). This impressive multi-hatism is marvelous to read and I can guarantee that picking up all of his published novels to date will not bore you.
4 Stars to The Fold (Threshold, #2) by Peter Clines
Description
STEP INTO THE FOLD. IT’S PERFECTLY SAFE. The folks in Mike Erikson's small New England town would say he's just your average, everyday guy. And that's exactly how Mike likes it. Sure, the life he's chosen isn’t much of a challenge to someone with his unique gifts, but he’s content with his quiet and peaceful existence. That is, until an old friend presents him with an irresistible mystery, one that Mike is uniquely qualified to solve: far out in the California desert, a team of DARPA scientists has invented a device they affectionately call the Albuquerque Door. Using a cryptic computer equation and magnetic fields to “fold” dimensions, it shrinks distances so that a traveler can travel hundreds of feet with a single step. The invention promises to make mankind’s dreams of teleportation a reality. And, the scientists insist, traveling through the Door is completely safe. Yet evidence is mounting that this miraculous machine isn’t quite what it seems—and that its creators are harboring a dangerous secret. As his investigations draw him deeper into the puzzle, Mike begins to fear there’s only one answer that makes sense. And if he’s right, it may only be a matter of time before the project destroys…everything. A cunningly inventive mystery featuring a hero worthy of Sherlock Holmes and a terrifying final twist you’ll never see coming, The Fold is that rarest of things: a genuinely page-turning science-fiction thriller. Step inside its pages and learn why author Peter Clines has already won legions of loyal fans.
Review
I found this very enjoyable indeed. There’s something Lovecraftian about it, but the characterisation was very good and the characters all captivating. I need to read more in this world.
May
2 Stars to Head of State by Andrew Marr
Description
The debut novel by Britain’s most celebrated pundit, a gleefully twisted take on 10 Downing Street It’s September 2017, and the United Kingdom is on the verge of a crucial referendum that will determine, once and for all, if the country remains a member of the European Union or goes its own way. But, unsuspected by the electorate, and unknown to all but a handful of members of the Prime Minister’s innermost circle, there is a shocking secret at the very heart of government that could change everything in an instant. A group of ruthlessly determined individuals will stop at nothing—including murder—to prevent that from happening. Andrew Marr’s first novel is a darkly comic tale of deception and skullduggery at Downing Street and Whitehall. Making full use of his unrivalled inside knowledge of the British political scene, Marr has created a sparkling entertainment, a wholly original depiction of Westminster and its denizens, and a fascinating, irreverent glimpse behind the parliamentary curtain.
Review
Though fascinating in political terms, I found this had a lot of what I'd already expected: vastly fowl-mouthed newspaper editors, stereotypical old Etonians, scathing contempt for the blandness of today's politics and of course there's an adopted child who comes back to haunt things at the end. A rather good idea, very heavily steeped in politics and insider knowledge of course, but in all essentials this has been handled more readably, if not quite as Britishly in other works.
1 Stars to Linear Shift by Paul B. Kohler
Description
No one said time travel would be easy. Peter Cooper, a widowed father of two whose life is crumbling around him—until a bizarre encounter with a desperate Army general launches him on a risky mission: to go back to 1942 and change a moment in time. The repercussions will almost certainly alter the conclusion of World War II. But will the ripple effects stop there? And what kind of life will Peter return to? Unknown Consequences: A successful mission may not have the success he had intended.
Review
I had echoes of Michael J. Sullivan's Hollow world with this book, but there were a few issues... First, whether there were 7 or 8 days to go to the event, the author couldn't quite make up his mind. Then there were a handful of cludges, such as: "moonlight cascaded through the partially open drapes, saving Peter from utter obscurity." It's dark, but is it really utter obscurity? "he began to feel remorse for how he had acted. Regurgitating the information from Applegate, he..." Regurgitating? It can mean to repeat, yes, but there are plenty of other words. "He smiled internally." He's alone, he can surely just smile? There's nobody to see! The quotes in chapter 9 mysteriously revert to straights, not smarts, just for a bit. On the second visit underground this guy decides not to use a map. he gets lost, so uses the map after all. The map was available to start with, there's no rationale given for him not using it. "As he and Julie sat privately waltzing with the possibilities" is such an odd, odd phrase. I'm a man for metaphor,but to a point... "It was the quintessential impulse purchase, but with so much going on with the mission, he’d felt he needed to record some of his thoughts." You can't have this both ways: either he bought it on an impulse, or thought about it beforehand. The girl says "maybe." He rejoins, "Only if you promise." How on earth does that work? Manstein's English is very good, until the author gives him a very erratic German accent. Weird. There's a countdown; but it doesn't start at 10, or 5, or whatever. it starts... at 8. A cow "churns" its cud. Every other cow I know chews. "Dr. Epson passed him on the left, a look of passion and fear etched through his eyebrows, on his lips." Just, WTF? And, a US military general uses a tape recorder to liberally edit an interview debriefing. In 2013. Seriously? So if you can set all that aside, what you actually have here is one of those twiddle something in the Second World War and history changes stories. However, everything we are trying to affect corkscrews around a single character and nothing is done to show us any benefits the changes he's going for would have. Nor is any remotely plausible attempt made to tell us how the science works, or indeed why this guy is involved. there's an insanely idiotic subplot about pennies, gratuitous sex, considerable historical license and if the French is as bad as the English in some parts, I wouldn't be surprised.
2 Stars to Warship (Blake's 7) by Peter Anghelides
Description
From the Blakes 7 Universe: An alien fleet stands poised to invade Federation space. The only vessel available to hold it back is the Liberator, commanded by Roj Blake and his crew. As an intergalactic war breaks out, old enemies become allies, and friends will become separated. And Blake will be forced to leave behind all that matters to him... This release consists of two discs: the story on one disc, and a behind the scenes documentary on disc two. It is not part of any Blake's 7 subscription. Written By: Peter Anghelides Directed By: Ken Bentley Cast Gareth Thomas (Roj Blake), Paul Darrow (Kerr Avon), Michael Keating (Vila Restal), Jan Chappell (Cally), Sally Knyvette (Jenna Stannis), Jacqueline Pearce (Servalan), Alistair Lock (Zen/Orac)
Review
I've got a love-hate relationship with Big Finish. I think they made a mess of James Follett's Mindwarp, and find their Blake's 7, both audio and especially electronic, wildly overpriced. The formatting of this ebook got under my skin (look at the unsavory apostrophes on "Liberator's"), and a few of the plot points were contrived (Vila on the hull of the ship, and his struggles to remain anchored whilst fighting wildly springs to mind). Then there's the whole issue of just inserting whole story arcs between canon stories, and the fact that given that the actors are aging they're flogging a dead horse with these stories anyway and, even though I crave more and more stories of this type I also find them paradoxically annoying as well. what a garbled and mismatched set of ramblings! But then, the book sort of has that impact on one, too.
5 Stars to A Darkling Sea by James L. Cambias
Description
On the planet Ilmatar, under a roof of ice a kilometer thick, a team of deep-sea diving scientists investigates the blind alien race that lives below. The Terran explorers have made an uneasy truce with the Sholen, their first extraterrestrial contact: so long as they don’t disturb the Ilmataran habitat, they’re free to conduct their missions in peace. But when Henri Kerlerec, media personality and reckless adventurer, ends up sliced open by curious Ilmatarans, tensions between Terran and Sholen erupt, leading to a diplomatic disaster that threatens to escalate to war. Against the backdrop of deep-sea guerrilla conflict, a new age of human exploration begins as alien cultures collide. Both sides seek the aid of the newly enlightened Ilmatarans. But what this struggle means for the natives—and the future of human exploration—is anything but certain, in A Darkling Sea by James Cambias.
Review
I was handed this book, metaphorically speaking, by David Walton. He enjoyed it, and so I felt as if I should check it out also. Wow, am I glad I did. Aliens showing their alienness with a Jim Hogan Code of the Lifemaker style, a Star Trek reference and an ending that begs you wanting more. If aliens are remotely at all your thing, what's left to want in this brilliant novel?
4 Stars to In a World Just Right by Jen Brooks
Description
Imagination takes on new meaning for a uniquely talented teen in this debut novel that is a breathtaking blend of contemporary, fantasy, and romance. Sometimes Jonathan Aubrey wishes he could just disappear. And as luck—or fate—would have it, he can. Ever since coming out of a coma as a kid, he has been able to create alternate worlds. Worlds where he is a superhero, or a ladies’ man, or simply a better version of himself. That’s the world he’s been escaping to most since sophomore year, a world where he has everything he doesn’t have in real life: friends, a place of honor on the track team, passing grades, and most importantly, Kylie Simms as his girlfriend. But when Jonathan confuses his worlds senior year and tries to kiss the real Kylie Simms, everything unravels. The real Kylie actually notices Jonathan … and begins obsessing over him. The fantasy version of Kylie struggles to love Jonathan as she was created to do, and the consequences are disastrous. As his worlds collide, Jonathan must confront the truth of his power and figure out where he actually belongs—before he loses both Kylies forever.
Review
A solid, teen story, with perhaps a little too much poetry to think about. A clever idea, and a pretty strong analysis of greef and consequences too.
4 Stars to Less Than Hero by S.G. Browne
Description
With the razor-sharp satire that earned him rave reviews for Big Egos and Lucky Bastard, among others, S.G. Browne delivers another irresistible read, about an unlikely band of heroes who use their medical complications to gain fame, confront villains, and bring their own unique brand of justice to New York City. Faster than a spreading rash! More powerful than dry heaves! Able to put villains to sleep with a single yawn! Convulsions. Nausea. Headaches. Sudden weight gain. For the pharmaceutical soldiers on the front lines of medical science—volunteers who test experimental drugs for cash—these common side effects are a small price to pay to defend your right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of antidepressants. Lloyd Prescott, thirty-year-old professional guinea pig and victim of his own inertia, is the first to notice the bizarre, seemingly implausible consequences of years of testing not-quite-legal drugs: his lips go numb, he becomes overwhelmed with exhaustion, and instantly a stranger crumples into a slumbering heap before him. Under cover of night, Lloyd and his guinea pig friends band together to project their debilitating side effects onto petty criminals who prey upon the innocent. When a horrible menace with powers eerily similar to their own threatens the city, only one force can stop this evil: the handful of brave men who routinely undergo clinical trials. “One of America’s best satiric novelists” (Kirkus Reviews), S. G. Browne fills the prescription for a hilarious and biting commentary on our overmedicated society. Citizens, rest assured that tonight, no matter your ailment—anxiety, depression, super villains—there’s a pill to save the day.
Review
I enjoyed this both as a story, a warning on the prevalence of proscription medication and, of course, a discussion on fait and destiny and all that sort of heavy stuff you only worry about when you have to. The best thing about this work for me was the voice; the whole story had this very authentic, drifting through life quality so few, few people will admit to having. I would read more of the author.
4 Stars to Infinity Squad by Shuvom Ghose
Description
Second Lieutenant Jonah Forrest is finding out that having infinite lives doesn't make war any easier. Sure, downloading into a cloned body when you die is better than the alternative, but that doesn't make a Hell-Spider's claws hurt any less. Or his General's orders for suicide missions any more sane. But when his First Lieutenant gets killed in action, really killed, and when a captured Hell-Spider offers a way to get 'kills' without taking on the enemy, Forrest and his Infinity Squad will have to decide how hard they are willing to work to take the easy way out. Especially when the General starts catching on to their schemes. And when their Hell-Spider prisoner starts suggesting more and more dangerous alternative missions. And when they start suspecting that not ALL of their consciousness is transferring into their new cloned bodies. Infinity Squad: Willing to die to free your planet from alien invaders. More than once if necessary. Update from author 3/24/15: This book is now free for download at Amazon.com!
Review
This was actually rather good. I enjoy a military thing of this calibre a great deal and this one delivered in all the right places. Cleverly put together technology, a poor Second Lieutenant everyone can get behind and with senior officers less comprehensible than the aliens sometimes, it’s good, gun-carrying fun for any military sci-fi enthusiast or Rick Shelley fan.
2 Stars to The Wonder (Bison Frontiers of Imagination) by J.D. Beresford
Description
Nothing will ever mystify or challenge the Wonder. He masters entire libraries and languages with little effort. No equation, no problem is too difficult to solve. His casual conversations with ministers and philosophers decimate their vaunted beliefs and crush their cherished intellectual ambitions. The Wonder compels obedience and silence with a glance. His mother idolizes him as a god. Yet no one is more hated or alone than the Wonder. This is the chilling tale of Victor Stott, an English boy born thousands of years ahead of his time. Raised in the village of Hampdenshire, the strangely proportioned young Victor possesses mental abilities vastly superior to those of his fellow villagers. The incomprehensible intellect and powers of the Wonder inspire awe, provoke horror, and eventually threaten to rip apart Hampdenshire. Long recognized as a classic of speculative fiction but never before widely available, The Wonder is one of the first novels about a “superman.” J. D. Beresford’s subtle and intriguing story of a boy with superhuman abilities paved the way for such noted works as Philip Wylie’s Gladiator and A. E. van Vogt’s Slan
Review
I had a rather Midwich Cuckoos vibe from this work. I enjoyed the quality of the writing, but couldn't really warm to the story.
4 Stars to BrainWeb by Douglas E. Richards
Description
When the Academy Awards become the target of a brutal terror attack, only one man can stave off massive bloodshed. MIND'S EYE, the novel that introduced Nick Hall, was a runaway Kindle bestseller. Now Hall returns in a riveting stand-alone thriller, set in an Internet future that is just around the corner. From the New York Times bestselling author of WIRED. Nick Hall, an unwilling recipient of brain implants, can surf the Web with his thoughts and read minds. And while this makes him one of the most formidable men on earth, he is determined to stay off the grid. But when terrorists seize control of the Academy Awards and vow to butcher the world's most beloved stars, one by one, in front of an international television audience, Hall is forced to reveal his astonishing capabilities. Now, power players around the world will stop at nothing to capture him. And as the secretive group working with Hall begins to unravel, he is sure of only two things: he has been betrayed by someone close to him. And the stakes he is playing for could not be any higher . . . Based on actual research on thought-controlled Web surfing, BrainWeb is a smart thriller that raises a number of intriguing possibilities about a future that is rapidly approaching. "Richards is a worthy successor to Michael Crichton." (SF Book.com) "Richards is a tremendous new talent" (Stephen Coonts) "who can keep you turning the pages all night long." (Douglas Preston)
Review
Richards has continued Nick’s story very well in this typically well-paced and action packed thriller. The awards ceremony being taken over, that was pretty cool. New York and the Horses, students being kept offline and blogging, the analysis of war planes, all these served to cement the agendas of his characters and were significantly real exemplars. Despite knowing what’s coming somewhat, you really can’t but help dive into these escapist, enjoyable thrillers and I found this one executed well. It’s great to see an author producing work in line with current events, and extrapolating so nicely on thoughts of the future. A few editing issues (Brianweb, the most obvious), but a neat, enjoyable thrilling escape.
4 Stars to Emissaries (Canta Libre Trilogy, #1) by Graham Storrs
Description
First contact was a surprise when it came. A silly, childish message of peace and friendship from a place so far away only Earth's newest prototype spaceship, the Canta Libre, could reach it - or so people thought. The UN-led team that went out to represent humanity was mostly scientists and soldiers, led by General Ramirez, and carrying Ambassador Hartmann to the most momentous meeting in human history. But they were not alone. Other teams went too; one led by Petrov, a gang boss with dreams of technological riches and power beyond measure, the other crewing an ancient ark ship the rest of the world had long since forgotten, its mission changed by an unscrupulous government, its half-human captain, Ken Lee, bitter and heartbroken. Some, like young Kitty Hamilton and drug designer Mike McBain, were dragged into the race for first contact against their will. Others, like Geoffrey Cejka and physicist Susan Iverson were eager participants. But none of them – not even the military robot – would complete the mission unscathed or unchanged. Some wouldn't complete it at all. Yet, though the struggle to answer the call of the enigmatic aliens would challenge the hapless travellers to the limits of their endurance, and the struggle to be the first to represent humanity would be vicious and deadly, for the survivors, the real struggle was still to come.
Review
Space opera is a different genre for Storrs, and I must admit, for all that the concept appealed, I wasn't sure how it was going to work. Edge-of-your-seat thrillers, bewilderingly-engaging time hopping, all these flow from his fingers with unparalleled ease. But how this? The first thing to impress me was the dedication. I also noted, early on, Storrs penchant for internationalisation (the CAT had a flavor similar to that of the Timesplash universe's policing group). Five Chapters in, and we've already got a large well of characters, of all conceivable orientations (both political and sexual). The story switches neatly between these groups and tells its story with many of the hallmarks of vintage space opera. Whilst it's not a genre I totally embrace, I can see the appeal. Though I firmly feel Storrs is on much more solid ground with his thrillers, I will still be eagerly picking up the next one when it comes out because I know his works are well put-together and there will be a larger story line to enjoy at the end of the trilogy.
5 Stars to Necessary Evil (Milkweed Triptych, #3) by Ian Tregillis
Description
12 May 1940. Westminster, London, the early days of World War II. Again. Raybould Marsh, one of "our" Britain's best spies, has travelled to another Earth in a desperate attempt to save at least one timeline from the Cthulhu-like monsters who have been observing our species from space and have already destroyed Marsh's timeline. In order to accomplish this, he must remove all traces of the supermen that were created by the Nazi war machine and caused the specters from outer space to notice our planet in the first place. His biggest challenge is the mad seer Gretel, one of the most powerful of the Nazi creations, who has sent a version of herself to this timeline to thwart Marsh. Why would she stand in his way? Because she has seen that in all the timelines she dies and she is determined to stop that from happening, even if it means destroying most of humanity in the process. And Marsh is the only man who can stop her. Necessary Evil is the stunning conclusion to Ian Tregillis's Milkweed series.
Review
Alternative ways of ending the Second World War are, of course, a literary staple. But This series has been so expressly brilliant at adding nuanced, layered complexity to the situation that really, it doesn't fall into that mould at all. Marsh's pain fairly powers out of the pages of this book. Hugely, overwhelmingly poignant in the early chapters, it does ebb more toward a lesser, melancholic sort of sufferance toward the middle of the book as the necessary evils take root. Not to say it doesn't come back and slap you in the face thereafter... It's a massively satisfying ending to this intriguing series. One day, I shall read the set through as a single work, to better enjoy the milieu once again. if you've been following the warlocks, you won't want to miss this one. If you haven't, make a start with The Coldest War
3 Stars to Virtual Prophet (The Game is Life, #4) by Terry Schott
Description
Inside the Game, players struggle to survive in a world where technology no longer functions. On Tygon, fans are unable to view what is occurring inside the Game. Trew and Danielle rush to save both realities, but they are unable to know what the other is doing. The fate of reality depends on a Game, and time is about to run out...
Review
A satisfactory, if mildly disappointing ending. I can't say it was a let down really and yet there was something, call it momentum, that didn't quite click at the end. Still, a very clever and interesting concept, and I'm glad I read the series and supported the author.
April
4 Stars to Key to Havoc (ChroMagic, #1) by Piers Anthony
Description
1,000 years ago Earth sent out a ship that colonized the planet Charm. But the population of Charm is now far removed from their ancient ancestors. Technology has been lost over the years but the people have something better—Magic! Charm is a world covered by volcanoes, each erupting a different color of magic. Everything within a particular Chroma becomes that color. Plants, animals, insects, and even humans all become one color and can perform that color of magic. Traveling is dangerous because a person leaving their native Chroma home can no longer perform their color magic. Havoc is a barbarian living in a nonChroma village, where no one has magic. As a boy, he rescued a dragon that rewarded him with special magic; to sense pending danger. His gift becomes more valuable than he can imagine as he is suddenly drafted and forced to become the new king of the planet. He must perform his duties or be executed for treason. To make matters worse, the assassin who killed the former king is now after Havoc! Book 1 of the ChroMagic series
Review
More overtly sexual than some of Anthony's works, although not of course all of them, this was nonetheless enjoyably typical. I can't put my finger on what he does to the dimensionality of his characters but I'm quite a fan, even if it's not to many tastes.
5 Stars to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry (Harold Fry, #1) by Rachel Joyce
Description
Meet Harold Fry, recently retired. He lives in a small English village with his wife, Maureen, who seems irritated by almost everything he does, even down to how he butters his toast. Little differentiates one day from the next. Then one morning the mail arrives, and within the stack of quotidian minutiae is a letter addressed to Harold in a shaky scrawl from a woman he hasn't seen or heard from in twenty years. Queenie Hennessy is in hospice and is writing to say goodbye. Harold pens a quick reply and, leaving Maureen to her chores, heads to the corner mailbox. But then, as happens in the very best works of fiction, Harold has a chance encounter, one that convinces him that he absolutely must deliver his message to Queenie in person. And thus begins the unlikely pilgrimage. Harold Fry is determined to walk six hundred miles from Kingsbridge to the hospice in Berwick-upon-Tweed because, he believes, as long as he walks, Queenie Hennessey will live. Still in his yachting shoes and light coat, Harold embarks on his urgent quest across the countryside. Along the way he meets one character after another, each of whom unlocks his long-dormant spirit and sense of promise. Memories of his first dance with Maureen, his wedding day, his joy in fatherhood, come rushing back to him - allowing him to also reconcile the losses and the regrets. As for Maureen, she finds herself missing Harold for the first time in years. And then there is the unfinished business with Queenie Hennessy.
Review
Many, many of my reads are escapes: into futuristic, science-fiction worlds, others medieval fantasies, or the rest, anything in between. But then there are books that have such a powerful, real, tangible quality of humanness about them that I can't help but love them. Ben Elton's Time and Time Again, Jo Walton's My real Children, Gavin Extence's The Universe Versus Alex Woods, Lisa Genova's Still Alice, Mark Watson's Eleven, all of these hit that unnameable elusive spot which in some cases makes you feel good and warm about the world and in others moves you to tears. This pilgrimage did that to me, with an impact most poignant, characters so genuine and reality so actual that you can feel it because it so really applies to you. I can't put this book out to the lovers of fantasy, of spaceships, of spies or of assassins. But I enjoyed it most profoundly.
3 Stars to The Crown of Thorns (The Crown of Thorns #1-2) by Ian C.P. Irvine
Description
Book One of a Two Part The story is concluded in Book Two.
For fans of Dan Brown, John Grisham, and David Baldacci, Crown of Thorns is a fictional thriller which takes place in the field of genetics and human cloning. Hugely controversial, you will either love this book or hate it. Some will feel challenged and uncomfortable by the topic it deals with, and others will be drawn into it and unable to put it down... the question is, what will you think? A young student at Oxford University has an idea for his doctor’s thesis (Ph.D.), which fulfils not only the criteria for ‘originality’, but goes far beyond it. For if Jason Dyke is right, his idea will soon change the world and shift the delicate balance of power from one nation to another. Jason’s idea is In the genetics laboratory at Oxford University, he will clone Jesus Christ. But when the CIA finds out about his plan, the President of America realises that if the UK succeeds, the balance of power will shift from the USA to Europe. And he realises that that only way to stop this happening is for America to create its very own clone of Jesus Christ. The race is on... Genetics is the future. In the coming years, or maybe even months, the single most important scientific development in the history of mankind will be the development of human cloning. This book is based upon a simple idea, which takes the inevitable science of human cloning, one step further. What makes this book stand out from other novels that deal with a similar concept is the way the author makes the science seem plausible, by explaining simply what genetics is and how cloning works. By leading the reader through the latest advances in cloning techniques until even the impossible seems possible, the reader cannot help but get sucked into the story. Right to the very end the author successfully maintains the thrill of the ride, and manages to keep a surprise up his sleeve… Whoever reads this book will never forget it. And they will ask….one of two 1: Is it really possible? 2: When will it happen? Please Crown of Thorns is also available in an omnibus edition containing Book One and Book Two. (See Author's Page.) Reviews from Amazon UK Omnibus Five By B Baynes "Head Bookworm" (Worcestershire, England) I just happened on this book while browsing through Amazon to find things to download to my Kindle. The premise of the book captured my interest so I duly downloaded it. And, I loved it! The story is utter nonsense, let's be honest - recreating Jesus Christ through cloning?! But, it is written in such an engaging manner that I found myself drawn in unwittingly. Mid-read, I actually broke my ankle and I found myself begging my family to bring my Kindle to the hospital so I could continue reading the book! I would recommend this highly to any one else, with the proviso that they suspend belief and read it for what it is - a truly interesting and captivating piece of fiction! Five By Mr. A. Zabinec (Notts, UK) Browsing the Kindle store for something to 'unwind' me, I chanced upon this excellent gem of a book. To my mind, the Author mirrors perfectly the Biblical events of Jesus' birth 2000 years ago and the subsequent 'Revelations' predicted for our time. The Characters are totally believable, able to deduce and thwart the plans of the Americans and British governments and to hide the true Messiah. A well thought out and researched book by the author, I was totally absorbed in it from start to finish. Believers & non believers alike will enjoy this thumping good read!!! Five Star "Pageturner!" By Ultramum (UK) Great book ... as I said in the title a real page turner ... some of the science lost me slightly but it didn't detract from the reading ... I really got involved with the characters and didn't want to stop reading!
Review
Though I do want to read on, I found this book impacted me the same way as a title by James Galloway or Wayne Edwarde Clarke. Each of these authors have some quality I can't define which screams "unpublishable" yet "compelling" at the same time. They've also all got a lot of sex or sexual exploitation, and each their own bête noire (I believe Galloway had Foxes, Clarke measurements, and Irvine's seems to be implausibly convoluted acronyms). There were a few things that irritated, a King Harry, for instance, and the Belief that the US was better off with Bush Junior than other presidents which seems strange, but then I'm not American. Also a collection of grammatical slipups, sadly par for the course on Kindle, and a few little things that I didn't bother to note. Still, it kept me reading, for although religion isn't my scene and I didn't see any depth to the characters and in fact I regret buying it somewhat, I also wanted to see where it went and, , in spite of myself, want to read more. Weird, much?
3 Stars to The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
Description
Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. “Jess and Jason,” she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy. And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar. Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train... An alternative cover edition for this ISBN can be found here.
Review
This was a grim, interesting story pinned down through alcohol-fogged memories, a morass of lies and splintered memories colluding to make it a challenge to see the ending coming somewhat. I didn't click with the characters as I had hoped, and although it excelled at being a dark, compelling British read, I wasn't as hooked as I could have been.
3 Stars to How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
Description
People are always daring Billy to do zany things. But Billy may have bitten off more than he can chew when he takes his friend Alan's bet that Billy can't eat fifteen worms in fifteen days. If Billy wins, Alan has to fork over fifty dollars. Billy wants the money to buy a used minibike, so he's ready to dig in. He sets up mustard and ketchup, salt and pepper, and sugar and lemon to disguise the disgusting taste. Good news for Billy—once he gets going, he finds himself actually getting hooked on those juicy worms. Bad news for Billy—Alan is busy cooking up schemes to make Billy worm out of the bet. Will Billy keep up his wormy work for fifteen days? No cheating! Keep eating! Worm by worm by worm... --back cover
Review
This is one of those childhood classics, I first heard this on audio tape read by Lionel Wilson and he did a superb job. My remaining audio copy isn't brilliant quality, as the digitising process left a lot to be desired, but his style shines through very well. It's a great story, and there's a lot to talk about with children as it progresses. The scene where Billy's father is being woken up still amuses me, and I really enjoyed rereading it today for the nostalgia value.
3 Stars to Eeny Meeny (Helen Grace, #1) by M.J. Arlidge
Description
Two people are abducted, imprisoned, and left with a gun. As hunger and thirst set in, only one walks away alive. It’s a game more twisted than any Detective Helen Grace has ever seen. If she hadn’t spoken with the shattered survivors herself, she almost wouldn’t believe them. Helen is familiar with the dark sides of human nature, including her own, but this case—with its seemingly random victims—has her baffled. But as more people go missing, nothing will be more terrifying than when it all starts making sense....
Review
A deliciously psychotic murderer haunts the pages of this very fast paced and hallmark British police-procedural production. The narrative is fast and furious, a paper version of any of the detective stories you'd find on midweek television. There was perhaps too neat an ending, and the chapters were very very short (almost too abrupt to be credible) but I really enjoyed the thrill of the work and the writing style. Thanks, Kim!
1 Stars to Mars Station Alpha: A Novel by Stephen Penner
Description
A LOCKED ROOM MYSTERY IN SPACE. The colonists of the first space station on Mars have vanished. Captain John Stanton leads a second team to the Red Planet, unsure what he'll find. Originally assigned merely to relieve the first group, Stanton must now figure out what happened to them, and keep the same fate from befalling his own crew. As he investigates, the mystery deepens and the dangers remorseless sandstorms, virulent bacteria... perhaps even ancient Martian ghosts. Stanton's mission changes from relief, to rescue, to simple escape.
Review
I couldn't take this remotely seriously. If it was intended to be funny, it wasn't. But equally the characters weren't professional, the Captain's inner voice was far too prolific and totally ruined any surprise of the ending and the entire crew is less competent than a batch of raw Starfleet recruits. I will probably pick up the crime novel advertised at the end of this one, the writing there at least seems a little more believable. But sadly, if this calls itself science fiction, I hope Penner's other genres are considerably better represented.
4 Stars to Quintessence Sky (Quintessence, #2) by David Walton
Description
Quintessence Sky continues where the events of Quintessence (Tor Books, 2013) left off. At the edge of the flat Earth, a strange fire in the sky burns, altering the balance of the elements and threatening all life on Horizon Island. Matthew Marcheford experiments to determine the cause, while the growing animosity of the manticores and the arrival of more ships from Europe jeopardize the colony's fragile peace. When Matthew's fiancee, Catherine Parris, is betrayed and abandoned deep underground, the secrets she uncovers there may be Horizon's last hope. King Philip of Spain, determined to control quintessence, hires a Jesuit priest named Ramos de Tavera. Ramos unlocks secrets that would give Philip the power to conquer the world, but he hesitates, knowing the king's ambition and brutality. Instead, he seeks the advice of Princess Elizabeth, imprisoned in the Tower, and his faith in church and country begins to falter. To protect his family from the king's wrath, Ramos must work together with Matthew and Catherine across thousands of miles to rescue Elizabeth and save the Horizon colony from destruction.
Review
An utterly delightful read. walton's put something of a lighter tone into this one; Catherine dies twice over before we start chapter 5. And, although it's seriously written and supposed to be read as such, the awe and brilliance of the Quintessence powers shines through to give the reader a sense that, somehow, things will turn out well. "Princess Elizabeth isn't likely to pay us a visit any time soon" is perhaps my favourite statement of the entire work. And speaking of the princess, she was extremely well done, I think she stands out in this book, although Ramos was also very good. My only gripe: why not tamarins this time? Yes, yes, I know: Manticoras, it's already there, and tamarin was an approximation and they aren't really South American Monkeys. But I did like the word. A novel that extends the story superbly, and leaves itself open to another one which I hear David is working on and am, as you can doubtless imagine, rather looking forward to reading. If you've got book 1, you'll want to buy this alongside because the two fit together very neatly.
3 Stars to Aberystwyth Mon Amour (Aberystwyth Noir, #1) by Malcolm Pryce
Description
Schoolboys are disappearing all over Aberystwyth and nobody knows why. Louie Knight, the town's private investigator, soon realises that it is going to take more than a double ripple from Sospan, the philosopher cum ice-cream seller, to help find out what is happening to these boys and whether or not Lovespoon, the Welsh teacher, Grand Wizard of the Druids and controller of the town, is more than just a sinister bully. And just who was Gwenno Guevara?
Review
There aren’t a great deal of Welsh books that I can claim to have read. Experiment with Destiny had a certain CymraigCymrageness about it, and of course ironbark was very potent. This perhaps engaged me less because it’s not my neck of the valleys. Price is a talented writer though, and that comes through, I found the plot followable and the the Aber history interesting.
5 Stars to Quintessence (Quintessence, #1) by David Walton
Description
Imagine an Age of Exploration full of alchemy, human dissection, sea monsters, betrayal, torture, religious controversy, and magic. In Europe, the magic is thin, but at the edge of the world, where the stars reach down close to the Earth, wonders abound. This drives the bravest explorers to the alluring Western Ocean. Christopher Sinclair is an alchemist who cares only about one thing: quintessence, a substance he believes will grant magical powers and immortality. And he has a ship.
Review
To start with, it bothered me that the voice of this work wasn't what I expected. Walton hadn't captured the tone I relished in Arthur PhillipsAngelica, in Rick Yancey'sThe Monstrumologist , indeed in Alan K. Baker's The Martian Ambassador or the Holmes of Horowitz The House of Silk. And yet... And yet. I keep coming back to Eifelheim, a seminal work which gave me perspective of the unnatural in such breathtakingly appropriate language. And I'm reminded that Walton has captured, brilliantly, a form of Quantum Entanglement here, refracted with unsurpassable aplomb through a Tudor lens. Even if the language wasn't quite to my expectation, the scientific method is layered on a breathtakingly realistic politico-monarchistic background. Religion is the cornerstone surrounding Edward's regency and the subsequent fallout, and the characters were expertly sculpted around it. Sinclair's "look around you" speech; I could practically feel the ship beneath me and hear someone like Benedict Cumberbatch giving it. Parris, such a driven soul, was very easy to see through an feel with: every twist and development held import for him, and it was a pleasure to follow his exploits. Catherine was harder to click with, partly because she's younger, but also because I found myself filtering her shenanigans through more adult, more contemporary eyes. The other remarkable thing about this work was the profusion of scientific discovery, mired in, if that's not too strong a term, the mores of the time. Copernicus, Galen,Hippocrates, Vesalius: Walton's not just written a novel, he's immersed us in the period and the knowledge, beliefs and ideologies thereof. This makes quintessence as a novel and the discovery of quintessence itself both hugely significant, the former is an astonishingly well-put-together tale, the latter a refreshing, exciting addition to the annals of the Tudor period. Recommended, without reservation.
2 Stars to Poirot and Me by David Suchet
Description
In Poirot and Me, David Suchet tells the story of how he secured the part, with the blessing of Agatha Christie's daughter, and set himself the task of presenting the most authentic Poirot that had ever been filmed. David Suchet is uniquely placed to write the ultimate companion to one of the world's longest running television series. Peppered with anecdotes about filming, including many tales of the guest stars who have appeared over the years, the book is essential reading for Poirot fans all over the world.
Review
I have only read one Poirot novel, and I do hope to get through the entire collection – a sort of bucket list option, as it were. Suchet was a part of my television watching for as long as I can remember. It was interesting to read his account of this huge televisual achievement, although Suchet’s dry, repetitious style can be grating, which is superbly ironic given that his speaking voice is mellifluous and calming. There are a few interesting anecdotes and some points I hadn’t known before, but there’s little exciting or revelatory about the work for someone already familiar with the character.
4 Stars to Countdown to Armageddon by Edward M. Lerner
Description
Hezbollah has obtained an atomic bomb and a would-be martyr eager to deliver it -- and that's the good news. The bad news, unknown even to Hezbollah, is that their physicist has also found a way to take his new bomb back to a turning point in European history. Harry Bowen, an American physicist, and Terrence Ambling, a British agent turned historian, are determined to stop Abdul Faisel and prevent the nullification of all Western civilization. Their mission can be accomplished, if at all, only in the darkest of the Dark Ages. And there, too, time is running out....
Review
There’s an element of freneticism to this work; it’s not a relaxing, laid-back sort of a novel. Take your eye off a character for half a sentence and you’re playing catch-up before you know it. I found this better than Learner’s other work I read last week, it in fact had more in common with the michael Crichton novel I read at a similar time. If time travel appeals and you prefer quick, thought-provoking work rather than slower and more dolorous offerings, this is a worthy contender (and it goes back to an era less worked-over by the masses, too).
5 Stars to Bombmaker by Claire McFall
Description
The English government have closed the borders with their Celtic neighbours. Any Celt found in England is branded with a tattoo, found twice they are executed. Scottish Lizzie is the 'property' of psychopathic London gang boss Alexander. Can Lizzie escape Alexander's deadly grip and at what price her betrayal?
Review
"It tasted awful, but it felt good." This is a stunning novel. It has a huge, gritty, post-apocalyptic feel to it, nevermind that the apocalypse was financial and socially dehumanising rather than caused by zombies, aliens or viruses. I was put in mind of Ken Jack’sUnited States of Europe of course, but Mcfall has that young-adult voice of Chris Ryan, Eoin Colfer and Anthony Horowitz nailed to perfection. The subject matter is also very topical: devolution was a serious public thought last year, and the extrapolation here is deft and terrifying. The work is very UK-centric, which is a refreshing change for me at least, and is seriously one of the most gripping, compellingly forceful works to cross my screen in a long time. I found it in a newspaper, if you’ll believe that - The best young adult books of 2014 from the Telegraph; and I couldn’t put it down. If you like your teens building bombs, your countries socially divided and the possibility of the celts being chucked out of England ever occurred to you, this is seriously worth your time.
3 Stars to Remote Control by Cheryl Kaye Tardif
Description
In this dark, suspenseful and somewhat comical look at one man's desires, Remote Control, a novelette by bestselling author Cheryl Kaye Tardif, delivers a strong Be careful what you wish for! Finalist in 2008 Textnovel Writing Contest
Review
A rather dated concept, but still does well at warning you not to spend your life in front of the TV disappointing your other half.
3 Stars to A Sincere Warning About the Entity in Your Home by Jason Arnopp
Description
"Dear friend, This is no chain letter, hoax or prank. It is a sincere warning about your home and the entity which dwells within. Your home has been haunted for quite some time. I am sorry that I could not personally deliver this document. I did not even post it myself. The postmark on the envelope will not help you, should you ever attempt to locate me. When this letter is complete, I shall entrust a friend in another country with repackaging and sending it on my behalf. This letter also may or may not have been translated from its original language. You do not know me. You must never know me. Neither do I know you, beyond your name, address and appearance. I have seen you in person but you have not seen me. Think back to the day that you moved into your home. I contrived to casually pass by as you stood outside. I saw your face, but you did not so much as glance my way. I did not stop walking. I simply committed your face to memory and moved on before you became aware of my presence. Why did I want to see you? I suppose my conscience drove me to it. Just as it compels me to finally write this letter. I wanted to see exactly who I was passing the entity on to." A NEW CONCEPT IN FEAR... Imagine a supernatural horror story in which the paranormal activity happens within YOUR home. A SINCERE WARNING ABOUT THE ENTITY IN YOUR HOME takes the form of an anonymous letter sent to YOUR address. It details the terrifying events which happened in your home and which continue to this day. You have inherited a curse and are being preyed upon by a bone-chilling apparition. This 10,000-word letter from the previous resident advises you how to cope, while detailing the unthinkable ordeal they suffered before you. A SINCERE WARNING ABOUT THE ENTITY IN YOUR HOME is the ultimate way to scare yourself in your own home, because it's the only ghost story which takes place IN your home. Dare you read it?
Review
A clever use of narrative technique to give what could, under the right circumstances, be a rather chilling short. The quality of the writing was very good and I'd gladly pic up something longer.
4 Stars to The Telepath Chronicles by David Gatewood
Description
In THE TELEPATH CHRONICLES, fourteen of today's top sci-fi writers share stories of the uncanny and unexpected. Telepathy. Just a far-fetched bit of science fiction “hocus pocus.” But is it? With today’s giant leaps forward in technology and biotechnology, with people constantly surrounded by sophisticated yet invisible communication networks, and with a rapidly increasing understanding of the brain’s inner workings . . . is it so hard to imagine that we might be able to develop direct mind-to-mind communication? Or might it not be the case that evolution alone, in the right circumstances—if not on this planet, then on others—could give rise to creatures with telepathic abilities? This collection of fourteen stories explores the ramifications of a future where telepathy is real. From that first glorious moment of discovery, to the subsequent jealousies and class divisions, to the dangers of weaponization and the blessings of medical miracles, The Telepath Chronicles promises to take you inside the creative minds of some of today’s top science fiction authors.
Review
I’m really enjoying these collections, edited by Gatewood. In this one, Peter Cawdron’s contribution didn’t impress me as some of his others, but I still picked it up given that he was opening the collection. Pretty much all the stories were gripping here. The Locksmith, The Null, Little Blue, No More Lies and Word-Bound stood out, but every single one was worth reading and, as with the Robot Chronicles, I’ve put authors on my list to go look up their other works.
2 Stars to The Next Thing I Knew by John Corwin
Description
When Lucy Morgan drops dead along with everyone else on Earth she refuses to take death lying down even if, technically, her corpse is. She drags her ghostly social life back from the grave and enlists her friends to figure out the rules of the afterlife. More importantly, they want to discover who or what killed everyone and why the heck anyone would do such a mean thing. But what they discover changes everything. And if they can't figure out how to put their newfound ghostly powers to work, humanity will be extinct for good.
Review
This had potential, but didn't manage to lift itself beyond that possibility. It tried to do too much, and whilst the humour and message of Humanity came through, the disconnectedness of the writing, coupled with the almost too feminine perspective ruined this one for me a little. Even the title held a promise unfulfilled, and the very jarring scene from Nick's point of view actually made me stop reading and turn to the cover, in case I'd managed to fall into a different book without realising it somehow. A work which can throw you out of it so easily is, sadly, not one I can enjoy.
2 Stars to Timelines by Bob Blink
Description
New Cover - Story unchanged.After more than a year of exploring with time travel, Jim Crampton has become accustomed to traveling into earth’s past or future via the time complex he discovered by accident in the mountains outside of Seattle, Washington. Several things bother him however. Despite his technical skills he has made no progress in his attempts to understand how to control his destinations, or in understanding the basic operation of the time complex. Is there something special about the dates and locations pre-programmed into the machine? Is travel to times and places other than he has found even possible? There are clues that the answer to this question is yes, but he has yet to find a way to test what he suspects. He has no more idea now than when he first chanced upon the time complex as to who or what built it, and why. Despite the hundreds of hours spent in the complex itself or traveling to other time periods, he has never encountered another traveler. The odd symbols on the equipment and what appear to be handwritten records lead him to suspect that the time complex was not created by future humans. If this is so, is there a sinister purpose behind the device, and why were the ‘Builders’ completely absent for so long? Perhaps they have finished their investigations, and have left. If so, why leave it powered and operational?He is also concerned how the complex might be used if he reveals its existence to the wrong people, yet he has come to the conclusion that he needs help if he is to make any headway understanding the secrets locked inside the hidden complex. His decision to disclose the secret to two of his closest friends will set in motion a chain of events he could not have anticipated.After a disastrous trip into the past to ‘show off’ his secret, Jim gains the trust of a fellow traveler from his own future. Together they assemble a select team to unravel the mysteries locked inside the complex. Their investigations lead to a race against time to determine the future of mankind.
Review
Unfortunately, this book plods along and meanders around far too much. Blink’s clearly tightened up his writing style a good deal since, and it’s sad to say that as a debut this would probably have put me off. The idea is an interesting one, but far too little is made of things to make it a credible story of the future in my view.
5 Stars to Superposition (Superposition, #1) by David Walton
Description
Jacob Kelley's family is turned upside down when an old friend turns up, waving a gun and babbling about an alien quantum intelligence. The mystery deepens when the friend is found dead in an underground bunker…apparently murdered the night before he appeared at Jacob's house. Jacob is arrested for the murder and put on trial. As the details of the crime slowly come to light, the weave of reality becomes ever more tangled, twisted by a miraculous new technology and a quantum creature unconstrained by the normal limits of space and matter. With the help of his daughter, Alessandra, Jacob must find the true murderer before the creature destroys his family and everything he loves. From the Trade Paperback edition.
Review
The courtroom drama aspect and the sheer quality of the writing made me feel like I was reading a Robert J. Sawyer novel, and by the time I'd finished it I had a nod to Douglas E. Richards. It was a very well-put-together story, and although the chances of me reading two stories about the birth of quantum technology in a week are hard to quantify (see Timeline) what are the further chances that both would have a very likable character called Marek in them? How ironic is that. The science here was interesting, although the intelligences we see are never fully explored and it's therefore as much an adventure/thriller as much as anything else. I really got into it for some reason,Jacob, perhaps because of his flaws, seemed much more Human than he might otherwise have done. If you're into science at all, it's a light but pleasing story with enough futurism to get you going. The smart paper was fascinating, the concept of Viewfeeds and Eyejacking quite brilliant, and the teenage side of it explored with an E.C. Myers or Cory Doctorow-like frankness. At heart, though, I felt this had a lot to say about the power of family, about disability, about the future of technology and today's precepts and concepts thereof. it doesn't push the hard science, which at first thought may be a turn-off to one used to that, but it does have a message to impart, and just because that message is as much about the people than the technology, it's no less valid. I see Walton's got many other books out and I'm looking forward to reading more of this very readable writer's produce.
4 Stars to Corrector (Jake Waters Book 1) by Bob Blink
Description
Multiple victims killed by another angry gunman at the local mall. What if there were someone out there who could prevent the slaughter, even after it happened? Is Jake Waters a hero or a hardened criminal? Unfortunately, those who might consider him the former are usually blissfully unaware he has passed through their lives and has changed their destinies in such a dramatic way. Regrettably, the police and FBI see his actions in a wholly different light, and while they have yet to determine whom the mysterious killer is, they continue their search and are building up both a profile and a backlog of unsolved cases. They are perplexed at his actions and how he has had the advanced knowledge to perform his surgical removals. Jake, ex-military and a survivor of the war in Afghanistan, tries to pursue his own destiny as a freelance programmer who writes computer games and consults with NASA on special projects. He is blessed or cursed with a special skill, depending on your perspective, one which makes him aware of events that no one else is. As a result, he sometimes feels it necessary to take action on his own. Those he removes have been planning numerous horrific deaths, and he does not feel bad by his actions. He also suspects the police will one day stumble upon his identity or catch him in the middle of one of his missions. Then he will have to rely on his ability to elude them. For the most part, Jake is an average guy. Except for his ability to back-track, of course. That makes him different from everyone else and has not only saved his own future, but has often provided him the means to help others. Unfortunately, he's learned that providing that help came at a large personal cost and not a little risk. For the most part, he feels the results are worth it. Jake's own life has become more complex of late. He has become seriously interested in a young woman, Karin Wolter, who he hopes to bring closer to him. For their relationship to progress, Jake feels it will be necessary to reveal what he can do, and what he has done in the past. He is concerned how she might react once he reveals his past to her. She has never understood violence, and has expressed some concerns over what he had been forced to do in the military. After her mother is killed, Jack's close friend Cheryl comes to him for help in ensuring the death doesn't happen. When his attempt to help doesn't go as expected, Jake learns of another event that forces his hand. It becomes necessary to reveal himself to the FBI in the hopes he can gain their trust and help to prevent the impending disaster from taking place. Even if he is able to turn aside the catastrophe, he is uncertain what his own future will become once the FBI has their hands on the man they have been seeking for so long.
Review
I enjoyed this quite a lot. It did have the All-American Dreamboy feel of the Afghanistan vet now doing something heroic, but for all that, it was a clever use of a form of time travel. Very gun-heavy, one gets the impression Blink dislikes hats and adores firearms. I did have one query - there's a part of the work where Jake books a room in a hotel for a whole week, which seems not to impact the room given to his friends, as they have the same room whether he booked his out or not. Causality is never really addressed in the work, and so that did make me pause for thought. I'd love to read more and the ending is open for a sequel; it would also be totally fascinating to see the end of Jake's life if he manages to get old without getting himself killed or kidnapped by the government.
4 Stars to Fools' Experiments by Edward M. Lerner
Description
We are not alone, and it’s our own damn fault ... Something demonic is stalking the brightest men and women in the computer industry. It attacks without warning or mercy, leaving its prey insane, comatose--or dead. Something far nastier than any virus, worm, or Trojan horse program is being evolved in laboratory confinement by well-intentioned but misguided researchers. When their artificial life-form escapes onto the Internet, no conventional defense against malicious software can begin to compete. As disasters multiply, computer scientist Doug Carey knows that unconventional measures may be civilization’s last hope. And that any artificial life-form learns very fast ….
Review
This was alluring, because of the subject matter; it felt like a Jim Hogan work with a healthy dollop of American arrogance added for good measure. If you're a fan of AI stories, it's worth a look.
4 Stars to Timeline by Michael Crichton
Description
In an Arizona desert, a man wanders in a daze, speaking words that make no sense. Within twenty-four hours he is dead, his body swiftly cremated by his only known associates. Halfway around the world, archaeologists make a shocking discovery at a medieval site. Suddenly they are swept off to the headquarters of a secretive multinational corporation that has developed an astounding technology. Now this group is about to get a chance not to study the past but to enter it. And with history opened up to the present, the dead awakened to the living, these men and women will soon find themselves fighting for their very survival -- six hundred years ago.
Review
Rich with period detail, this seemed an almost slightly less cerebral Eifelheim. There was a great deal of "will they, won't they" in the latter sections of the book and the ending didn't come as a shock, but it was tied up nicely and a solid, time travel story to add to the collection.
5 Stars to Synchronic: 13 Tales of Time Travel by David Gatewood
Description
Synchronic: 13 Tales of Time Travel introduces 13 varied and original takes on the pitfalls and paradoxes of time travel-from some of today's most talented voices. From Michael Bunker's story of a father, a son, and the legendary Santa Anna Gold, to Jason Gurley's heart-wrenching tale of an astronaut forever torn from his young wife and daughter, these stories will keep you on the edge of your seat, and often have you guessing right up until the final word. You'll meet a prison therapist who treats his patients by going back and preventing their crimes; a woman who can't stop reliving her life, no matter how much it hurts; a space marine suffering from a time-altering brain injury; a woman who will betray the man she loves to correct a horrible mistake; a vengeful soul from ages past; and a time cop charged with preserving the timelines of multiple universes. You'll experience a world where time travel is so common, reality itself hangs by a thread; a love story that overcomes the unforgiving barriers of time; a thrilling encounter with a pack of T-rex; a historian's efforts to alter Roman history; and the first manned mission to the Red Planet-or is it? So sit back and enjoy. Just be sure you've got plenty of time. Contents; Foreword (Synchronic: 13 Tales of Time Travel) • essay by Nick Cole The Santa Anna Gold / short fiction by Michael Bunker Corrections / short fiction by Susan Kaye Quinn Hereafter / short story by Samuel Peralta Reentry / short fiction by Eric Tozzi The Swimming Pool of the Universe / short fiction by Nick Cole The River / short fiction by Jennifer Ellis A Word in Pompey's Ear / short fiction by Christopher G. Nuttall Rock or Shell / novella by Ann Christy The Mirror / short fiction by Irving Belateche Reset / short fiction by MeiLin Miranda The Laurasians / short fiction by Isaac Hooke The First Cut / short fiction by Edward W. Robinson The Dark Age / (2014) / short story by Jason Gurley Afterword (Synchronic: 13 Tales of Time Travel) • essay by David Gatewood .
Review
Another brilliantly put-together collection. I enjoyed all bar one of these stories and found Corrections, Reentry Window, and The River really stood out. I also found the authors commentary and editors introduction very enjoyable and, I think all things considered, it's one of the most enjoyable short story collectionsI've ever had the pleasure of enjoying.
4 Stars to Perfect State by Brandon Sanderson
Description
From the author of Legion and the #1 New York Times bestselling Stormlight Archive comes an action-filled novella about privilege, culture clash, and expectations. God-Emperor Kairominas is lord of all he surveys. He has defeated all foes, has united the entire world beneath his rule, and has mastered the arcane arts. He spends his time sparring with his nemesis, who keeps trying to invade Kai's world. Except for today. Today, Kai has to go on a date. Forces have conspired to require him to meet with his equal—a woman from another world who has achieved just as much as he has. What happens when the most important man in the world is forced to have dinner with the most important woman in the world?
Review
Perhaps lacking a little of Sanderson's trademark cleverness, this still manages to be an enjoyable, and of course gripping, read. I do prefer his novels, you can get into them much more, but this killed half an hour and ensured Sanderson hadn't drifted too far from my thoughts of future writings.
3 Stars to Translucent (Translucent, #1) by Dan Rix
Description
When a meteorite falls near her campsite in the San Rafael Wilderness, troubled teen Leona Hewitt ventures down into the crater looking for a souvenir. What she discovers changes her life. Contained in the meteorite is a sticky, mucous-like fluid that bends light, cannot itself be seen, and seems to grow in the presence of living tissue. It’s drawn to her. But when a government team arrives in hazmat suits and cordons off the meteorite impact site, Leona questions her decision to take it home with her. For one thing, there are rumors of an extraterrestrial threat. For another, it has been speaking to her. It wants to be worn . . . stretched on like a second skin. It’s seeking out her weaknesses, exploiting her deepest fear—that the only boy she’s ever loved will unearth the vile secret in her past and see her as a monster. Now it promises salvation. It can make her invisible.
Review
Despite a supremely, superbly annoying ending, this had proper thrillingly terrifying scenes for the unwary teen. Recommended, if you've got the next one to hand - it's one of those that needs the follow-on so you can... er... follow on.
4 Stars to The A.I. Chronicles by Ellen Campbell
Description
A.I.: Artificial Intelligence. Even today, machines that mimic human thinking surround us. As the intellectual feats of computing machines grow more and more astounding, will there be a day when their apparent intelligence approaches, or even surpasses, that of human beings? And what if these machines then become conscious, self-aware? In this latest title in the acclaimed Future Chronicles series of speculative fiction anthologies, thirteen authors confront the question of the Singularity: that point of time when A.I. becomes more than simply a human construct. From machine awareness to omniscience, these original short stories explore that territory where human intelligence comes face-to-face with what is either its greatest hope, or its greatest threat. The A.I. Chronicles features stories by bestselling author David Simpson (the Post-Human series), Prix Aurora winner Julie Czerneda (In the Company of Others), plus eleven more of today's top authors in speculative and science fiction.
Review
Most of these works made me want to go investigate the author and read more, which was good. The exception was David Simpson, as I'd already read the work he offered here in a seemingly little-changed form as the start of one of his novels. I picked up the collection because of Peter Cawdron's name in the list of contributors, and his contribution was as enjoyable as I'd hoped. A very well curated collection with, should I re-open it, enough links to authors pages and other works to keep me going for weeks.
1 Stars to System Error: In Your Favour by Iain Clements
Description
The world is in the midst of the worst financial crisis in recorded history. The 24 hour rolling news stations are struggling to keep up with the number of banks collapsing, companies going into administration, and the wider effects these issues are having on the public. Many experts are trying vainly to explain just what is going on, but in London's Canary Wharf district computer specialist Kate Meer understands all too well the cause of these seemingly unconnected problems. A new artificially intelligent computer system called C.A.R.L that she designed is out of her control. As events in the world continue to spin out of control and the global financial markets embark on a roller-coaster ride, Kate has to join forces with James Gold, a notorious hacker, to try and regain control of their renegade system before it’s too late.
Review
I found this irritating. An author who mixes up philosophy and psychology, adds things for the sake of bulk (I'm talking about the ATM), uses command-line computer parlance with, clearly, no understanding thereof and then has the gall to show you an extract of another novel featuring very similar geographical constraints, so you don't even feel as if you've finished the first. Not remotely impressed with this mishmashed mess-up.
March
3 Stars to Darknet by Matthew Mather
Description
A terrifying new breed of predator evolves... A dark secret determined to stay hidden... A prophetic and frighteningly realistic novel set in present-day New York, Darknet is the story of one man's odyssey to overcome a global menace pushing the world toward oblivion, and his incredible gamble to risk everything to save his family. Jake O'Connell left a life of crime and swore he'd never return, but his new life as a stock broker in New York is ripped away when his childhood friend Sean Womack is murdered. Thousands of miles away in Hong Kong, data scientist Jin Huang finds a list of wealthy dead people in a massive banking conspiracy. Problem is, some of the people don't stay dead. As Jin begins her investigation, she's petrified to discover her own name on the growing list of dead-but-alive... On the run, they race across continents to uncover a dark secret spreading like a cancer into the world. Why was Sean killed, and how is the list of wealthy dead connected? Are some of them really coming back to life? But all this becomes irrelevant when Jake's wife and daughter are attacked... MORE ABOUT DARKNET Darknet follows on the heels of Matthew Mather's bestseller CyberStorm, translated into sixteen languages and now in development for film by 20th Century Fox.
Review
Despite being heavy on psychopathy this was pretty interesting. The one thing I did think was that it was a little too spread out, inasmuch as huge numbers of agencies, banks etc were involved, and there was a lot of what seemed pointless death. Mather seems almost too hardened by the realities he tries to portray to make them appear new or exotic.
2 Stars to The Secret Box (The Secret Box, #1) by Whitaker Ringwald
Description
The Amazing Race meets The Mysterious Benedict Society with a twist of magical mythology in this hilarious middle-grade caper about a strange locked box that transforms the lives of three kids. The Secret Box is the first in an irresistible middle-grade trilogy that combines the magic of 11 Birthdays with the adventure of the Genius Files series and humorous quirk worthy of Trenton Lee Stewart. The page-turning mystery, alternating girl and boy narrators, and clever incorporation of mythology are sure to delight-and lingering questions will leave readers eager for more. On her 12th birthday Jax Malone receives a surprise gift from her estranged Great-Aunt Juniper: a mysterious locked box that will only open in one location. If Jax's mom hadn't tried to return it, Jax would have assumed it was just another boring present to add to the most boring, un-magical birthday ever. Instead, Jax decides she must open the box. So she recruits her reluctant cousin Ethan and his obnoxious, computer-genius older brother Tyler to help find the site where the box will open. But what starts as a fun adventure quickly turns crazy, even dangerous, when Jax, Ethan, and Tyler learn that the box was not intended as a gift, but as a call for help from an ancient magical source thought to only exist in myth. "This mystery unfolds before your eyes in a series of cliffhangers that build up to a blow-your-mind ending. Wanting to know the secret kept me turning the pages."-Dan Gutman, New York Times bestselling author of the Genius Files series
Review
I'm sorry to say that this failed at linking magic/myth and technology in any conceivably appealing fashion (a la Colfer) and also held none of the whit of Trenton Lee Stewart, as hinted at on the cover. Disappointing for a teen of mine, I fear.
3 Stars to A Question of Will (The Aliomenti Saga, #1) by Alex Albrinck
Description
They murdered his wife and son. They burned down his house. They beat him within an inch of his life. And then they realized they had the wrong man. They should have killed him when they had the chance. Will Stark is a thirty-five-year-old self-made billionaire. He's happily married and father to a young son he adores. He's well-loved in his community for his philanthropic efforts. He lives in a beautiful home inside a private, secure community designed to provide safety for his family from those who would do them harm. His idyllic world is shattered when, despite his best efforts, men storm his community, murder his family in their home, and burn his house down. In his efforts to rush to the aid of those he loves, Will is seized, beaten, and nearly killed. And as it's happening, the men who've attacked him realize they've mistaken him for someone else. Will's rescue from certain death brings him into the midst of a battle between two factions of a secret society, one in which members learn the secrets of developing superhuman abilities. And it's a battle in which a man named Will Stark has been the focal point. Will seizes the opportunity to learn these secrets, and battle those who destroyed his family. His own rapid development, however, means he may become a target for attack of his own accord. As he builds his new life, however, Will is faced with a critical decision. Will he use his new abilities to seek out vengeance? Or will he risk everything he has to save those he holds most dear?
Review
I felt this was a little to expansive for its own good; it tried to do too much: almost parapsychic powers, time travel, assassins, paradoxes - it contrived a little to many things into a small page count, and almost seemed to be part of a world that could've done with some more definition in other worrks.
4 Stars to Crown Court by James Follett
Description
Based on the Granada TV series, this well-crafted book follows the fortunes of a down and nearly out jurist who can hardly follow the court proceedings through worrying about his girlfriend's difficult pregnancy. But, by the end of the week, he is caught up in momentous events in the courtroom that imperil his life.
Review
It's always a pleasure to find a new Follett. This started off a smidgen contrived and, even though it was predictably quick-paced, I managed to really enjoy it by the time I turned the last page. Not my favourite of his, but certainly a quick and enjoyable one.
4 Stars to The Eye of Strife by Dave Duncan
Description
Sword fights and romance, miracles and mystery, treachery and sly humour.... A god summons a curious assortment of witnesses to his temple to testify on what they know about a jewel that was lost a thousand years ago. At least one of them is guilty. Others are lying…. Dave Duncan at his devious best.
Review
"The imperial bed would sleep a dozen warriors or four horses, but it contained only one man, dying in lonely ordeal, as all mortals must." Duncan's re-visiting old themes with his latter works, it would seem. I mentioned that the Starfolk had similarities to the Seventh Sword series last year. This one holds a similar narrative style to the second of the Omar books, where characters add to a narrative in turn to unfold a story. There are some memorable characters here, particularly those little ones Duncan excels at dropping in (did you notice the old miner?). The gods do seem prolific in their interventions, but then it is a short work in contrast to others of his, where they've had whole series to unravel their games. The language is, as ever, exquisite. Defenestrated ! What a word! And my favourite dialogue throughout any of Duncan's published works in the last 3 years has to be “Why don’t you stop that disgusting concupiscence?” Marvelous, marvelous sentence. Of course, a proofread mightn't go amiss, there were a couple of missing n's - "a open carriage" etc, and a then instead of a than somewhere. Hard to find using automated tools, but they stick out a mile when you read out loud. So, Duncan's best? No. Not by a long shot. But certainly not a poor showing, with enough subtle nuances that I'll reread one day.
3 Stars to John Golden: Freelance Debugger by Django Wexler
Description
FREELANCE DEBUGGER John Golden is a debugger: he goes inside the computer systems of his corporate clients to exterminate the gremlins, sprites, and other fairies that take up residence. But when he gets a frantic call from Serpentine Systems, a top-of-the-line anti-fairy security company, John finds out he's on much more than a simple smurf-punting expedition. With the help of his sarcastic little sister Sarah (currently incarnated in the form of a Dell Inspiron) and a paranoid system administrator, John tackles Serpentine's fairy problem. But the rabbit hole goes deeper than he thinks, and with the security of all of company's clients in danger, there's more at stake this time than John's paycheck!
Review
This was a bit silly really. Lighthearted enough that I enjoyed it some, but nothing to dive into too seriously.
5 Stars to The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers, #1) by Becky Chambers
Description
Follow a motley crew on an exciting journey through space-and one adventurous young explorer who discovers the meaning of family in the far reaches of the universe-in this light-hearted debut space opera from a rising sci-fi star. Rosemary Harper doesn’t expect much when she joins the crew of the aging Wayfarer. While the patched-up ship has seen better days, it offers her a bed, a chance to explore the far-off corners of the galaxy, and most importantly, some distance from her past. An introspective young woman who learned early to keep to herself, she’s never met anyone remotely like the ship’s diverse crew, including Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, chatty engineers Kizzy and Jenks who keep the ship running, and Ashby, their noble captain. Life aboard the Wayfarer is chaotic and crazy—exactly what Rosemary wants. It’s also about to get extremely dangerous when the crew is offered the job of a lifetime. Tunneling wormholes through space to a distant planet is definitely lucrative and will keep them comfortable for years. But risking her life wasn’t part of the plan. In the far reaches of deep space, the tiny Wayfarer crew will confront a host of unexpected mishaps and thrilling adventures that force them to depend on each other. To survive, Rosemary’s got to learn how to rely on this assortment of oddballs—an experience that teaches her about love and trust, and that having a family isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the universe.
Review
This was strangely engaging. Reminded me of a modern James White in the liberalism of form (see Sector General), an idealised, multispecies Roddenberry of alyaunte cohesion. Fascinating that Humans weren't any more centric than anyone else, that really worked well. An author worth keeping an eye on for certain, one of those books where, even though action scenes clearly aren't the idea, the progression of the story comes through loud and clear.
3 Stars to Aftershock (Sedulity Saga #2) by David P. Forsyth
Description
This thrilling sequel to the Bestselling apocalyptic sea adventure, "Sedulity 1: Impact," takes the apocalypse to new levels of annihilation. Join the passengers and crew of the Sedulity as they find their way through the shocking aftermath of an asteroid strike in the Pacific Ocean. Every form of violent natural disaster is unleashed in this chilling tale of destruction and survival. How will these characters deal with the end of the world as they knew it? Hundreds of reviewers have clamored for a continuation of this tale of disaster. Here is your invitation to come aboard for the second leg this epic voyage. NOTE: This is the second book in a series intended to be read in the order written. BONUS READ: This Kindle edition includes "Lukan" (a prequel novelette in the Sovereign Spirit Saga) at the conclusion of this book (sold separately for $0.99).
Review
Lacking much of the impact of the first book (excuse the pun) there's little progression to the story here, and it feels like we're in something of a holding pattern. The internals of the crew were interesting though, and I'm keen to see where the story ends.
3 Stars to The Warlock in Spite of Himself (Warlock, #1) by Christopher Stasheff
Description
Back in the novel that launched the epic Warlock series. In an interstellar romp that proves science and sorcery can mix, only hard-headed realist Rod Gallowglass can save the people of Gramarye from their doom by becoming--The Warlock in Spite of Himself-- if only he believed in magic .
Review
Though I enjoyed this, I struggled to fall into the milieu and the era quite as convincingly as perhaps I needed to. I'll probably at least give another one a try, as we're now established on planet.
4 Stars to Just One Damned Thing After Another (The Chronicles of St Mary's, #1) by Jodi Taylor
Description
A story of history, time travel, love, friendship and tea. Meet the disaster-magnets at the St Mary's Institute of Historical Research as they ricochet around history, observing, documenting, drinking tea and, if possible, not dying. Follow the catastrophe-curve from eleventh-century London to World War I, and from the Cretaceous Period to the destruction of the Great Library at Alexandria. Discover History – The New Sex
Review
"“I would also take this opportunity to remind you that Doctor Foster will be circulating similar medical paperwork for your completion and does not share my enlightened attitude towards employee relations. As I'm sure at least some of you are aware, she enjoys a robust, thorough and above all, penetrative approach to your annual medical examinations." Not my usual fair, but enjoyable all the same (the briefing at the opening of chapter 6 was very good!) I will probably carry on with the series, as I found it unaccountably compelling, even recogniseing the target gender as assuredly not my own.
4 Stars to 2001: A Space Odyssey (Space Odyssey, #1) by Arthur C. Clarke
Description
Le vaisseau Explorateur 1 fait route vers Saturne. À son bord, deux astronautes et le plus puissant ordinateur jamais conçu. Cinq ans plus tôt, un étrange monolithe noir a été découvert sur la Lune. La première preuve d'une existence extraterrestre. Et bien longtemps avant, à l'aube de l'humanité, un objet similaire s'était posé sur Terre et avait parlé aux premiers hommes. On détecte un nouveau signe de cette présence aux abords de Saturne. Que sont ces mystérieuses sentinelles ? Quel message doivent-elles délivrer ? Nous sommes en 2001, l'humanité a rendez-vous avec son destin.
Review
I'd read this before, of course, and watched the film recently. I find it interesting how much of the work is still so very representative of its era (office girls, the annual income of a department head etc), the use of tape and TV etc. Still, a work with tremendous impact.
3 Stars to UnHappenings by Edward Aubry
Description
When Nigel Walden is fourteen, the unhappenings begin. His first girlfriend disappears the day after their first kiss with no indication she ever existed. This retroactive change is the first of many only he seems to notice. Several years later, when Nigel is visited by two people from his future, he hopes they can explain why the past keeps rewriting itself around him. But the enigmatic young guide shares very little, and the haggard, incoherent, elderly version of himself is even less reliable. His search for answers takes him fifty-two years forward in time, where he finds himself stranded and alone. And then he meets Helen. Brilliant, hilarious and beautiful, she captivates him. But Nigel’s relationships always unhappen, and if they get close it could be fatal for her. Worse, according to the young guide, just by entering Helen’s life, Nigel has already set into motion events that will have catastrophic consequences. In his efforts to reverse this, and to find a way to remain with Helen, he discovers the disturbing truth about the unhappenings, and the role he and his future self have played all along.
Review
No content provided.
5 Stars to Foresight (Timesplash, #3) by Graham Storrs
Description
Jay and Sandra are back—fighting to save a world on the edge of destruction. In the middle of a bizarre global catastrophe that looks suspiciously like the mother of all timesplashes, Sandra Malone discovers that the corporation she works for is spying on her. To find out why, she sets off to track down the culprits. What she discovers catapults Sandra, her daughter, and everyone around her into a deadly struggle to prevent a disaster. Now working in European Military Intelligence in Berlin, Jay Kennedy begins to suspect that the shock that hit the world was something more sinister and dangerous than even a timesplash. In the midst of the chaos that has engulfed the world, Jay learns that Sandra is in danger and that their daughter has gone after her. This turn of events threatens to distract him from solving a puzzle on which the fate of the whole world might hang. With time running out, Jay is torn between the possibility of losing Sandra, and the desperate need to stop a new kind of time-travel technology that could destroy the planet.
Review
"The time machine had to be at Clarke Engineering because that’s where Sandra was, and he knew, with a completely irrational conviction, that Sandra had sniffed and stumbled and smashed her way to the very heart of the mystery." Just when you might think that you can see where these stories are going ... you can't. We start splashing the other way. What a brilliant direction in which to take things. “Now look, Jay, I know you’re in intelligence and everything but that’s no reason to be completely paranoid.” The characters have moved on, which is great - so many authors fall into the trap of keeping things stagnant. It's also refreshing that it's not just another displacement rig story, that there's more to it; the little twists are what make things refreshing, aren't they? I loved the Asimov Homage in chapter 15, the uber neat power source in chapter 13 (how does he come up with these things? Seriusly?!) and Cara's grandmother is not the sort of person I want to be meeting in a dark alley with her shotgun! I recently read a fascinating novel about the disappearance of America from the earth as a global power. Storrs comes at that from another way here, and it does feel quite disheartening at times to see the impact that's had. There's always been a gritty side to this world, and it shines through here, if anything gritty can glitter, I'm mixing my metaphors. And yet there's hope, too. it almost felt like coming to revisit a wonderful old friend, reading this novel. If you, like me, are a fan of the series, this one won't disappoint.
February
4 Stars to Migration by James P. Hogan
Description
After Armageddon Came a Renaissance Reaching for the Stars—but was It Only a False Rebirth? Real science fiction by a New York Times best-selling author. The world of the past eventually died in the conflagration toward which it had been doggedly heading. A more fragmented and diversified order has emerged from the ruins and . technology has reappeared to a greater or lesser degree in some places and not at all in others. Unique among them is the nation-state of Sofi, with an exceptional population that has rediscovered advanced science. However, as the old patterns that led to ruin before begin to reassert themselves across the rest of the world, a scientific-political movement within Sofi embarks on a years-long project to build a generation starship that will enable them to create their own world elsewhere. The circumstances and thinking of future generations growing up in the totally unknown situation of a space environment cannot be known. Accordingly, the mission will include different groups of idealists, reformers, misfits, and dissidents who are not satisfied with the world-in-miniature that constitutes the original mother ship, to go out and build whatever they want. Hence, what arrives at the distant star generations hence will be a flotilla of variously run city states, frontier towns, religious monasteries, pleasure resorts, urban crushes, rural spreads, academic retreats, and who-knows what else. The trouble began, of course, when all the old patterns that they thought they were getting away from started reappearing . . .
Review
One of Hogan's better reads in my opinion, this was typical of his style, not too dolorous but equally with enough cleverness to make it worthwhile. I didn't realise he'd published a third volume of shorter fiction as well; I must pick that up sometime if it's been done electronically.
3 Stars to Camouflage by Joe Haldeman
Description
Two aliens have wandered Earth for centuries. The Changeling has survived by adapting the forms of many different organisms. The Chameleon destroys anything or anyone that threatens it. Now, a sunken relic that holds the key to their origins calls to them to take them home—but the Chameleon has decided there's only room for one.
Review
This was fun, did all the right things. Then it ended abruptly, ruining itself.
4 Stars to The Riddles of Epsilon by Christine Morton-Shaw
Description
Something dark has awoken on the remote island of Lume Jess is not pleased when her parents drag her off to live on the weird little island of Lume. But then she encounters an eerie presence in an abandoned cottage, and her anger turns to fear when it begins to lead her through a series of creepy riddles. As she slowly unravels the mysteries of Lume, she finds the writings of Sebastian, a boy who lived one hundred years ago and whose life contains unsettling reflections of her own. To her horror, the dangers he unearthed in 1894 now begin to threaten Jess and her family . . . and if Jess does not unlock the riddles in time, she may lose her mother forever.
Review
I was totally spooked out by this one. I stopped reading late at night and could still hear chanting and spooky music long into my dreams. Not a novel for your easily-scared teen by any stretch, but a bold debut with a great deal to offer the right reader.
4 Stars to The Invisible Library (The Invisible Library, #1) by Genevieve Cogman
Description
Irene must be at the top of her game or she'll be off the case - permanently... Irene is a professional spy for the mysterious Library, which harvests fiction from different realities. And along with her enigmatic assistant Kai, she's posted to an alternative London. Their mission - to retrieve a dangerous book. But when they arrive, it's already been stolen. London's underground factions seem prepared to fight to the very death to find her book. Adding to the jeopardy, this world is chaos-infested - the laws of nature bent to allow supernatural creatures and unpredictable magic. Irene's new assistant is also hiding secrets of his own. Soon, she's up to her eyebrows in a heady mix of danger, clues and secret societies. Yet failure is not an option - the nature of reality itself is at stake.
Review
Alan K. Baker, Adam Christopher, Stephen Hunt. Enjoyable, all, but I've yet to find a great Steampunk story. And yet Cogman (clue's in the name, isn't it?) has managed to put her work up there with Jim C Hines, Max Barry and Daniel Brako, and produce a work which despite having the staumaz stigma kept me reading and interested all the way through. There's clearly a lot to add to this world and I look forward to future stories, especially if we see more magic or different technology.
4 Stars to The Engineer Wizard (The Genie and the Wizard, #1) by Glenn Michaels
Description
Paul Armstead is your average American senior citizen and electrical engineer. He’s 61 years old, unremarkably unattractive, and a self-proclaimed science-fiction nut. He’s lived the American dream in drab, typical fashion without a single noteworthy event in his rather mundane life. So how does he end up fleeing from one end of the world to the other, dodging government dragnets, evil, nightmarish monsters known as the Oni, good wizards, bad wizards, beautiful women, spies, and wizardly spells? Well, it is entirely the genie’s fault....
Review
This was truly fun. I can't help but think some of the quotes should have been left to the reader as an exercise, because I'm that geeky and I enjoy that sort of thing. The ending was a bit of a let down, not because of what happens but because there's no more to read! I would hope that the next one is just as exciting and enjoyable and I'll be buying it on day of release, whenever that may be.
3 Stars to The Kingdom on the Edge of Reality by Gahan Hanmer
Description
Sometimes it's funny how fast things can change, and sometimes it's not... Welcome to Albert Keane's beautifully designed medieval kingdom nestled in a completely isolated river valley in the Canadian wilderness. Peaceful, happy, and prosperous, it takes nothing from the modern world, not so much as a single clock. There is a castle, of course, and a monastery. There is even a pitch dark, rat-infested dungeon - because you simply have to have one if you are trying to rule a feudal kingdom! Farmers work the land, artisans ply their trades, monks keep school and visit the sick, and nobody (well, almost nobody) misses the modern world at all. So why has Jack Darcey - actor, wanderer, ex-competitive fencer - been tricked and seduced into paying a visit? And why hasn't anyone told him that the only way to leave is a perilous trek across hundreds of miles of trackless wilderness without a compass or a map? Because a tide of fear and violence is rising from the twisted ambitions of one of King Albert's nobles, and Albert's fortune teller believes that Jack could turn the tide - if he lives long enough .
Review
This has a lot to offer in so many ways and yet it didn’t quite sweep me away like I wanted it to. Not an author to dismiss, but this effort, though with enough going for it to keep me reading, didn’t hit very well at all.
2 Stars to Secret Cargo by Charles Christian
Description
Secret Cargo Two prickly space travellers, each with their own surprising secret, find they have more in common than they at first thought - and not just their love of early cinema. But the path of true love, and 23rd century technology (much like today’s) does not always run smoothly. Can they trust each other and can they trust their rescuers? The unlikely pair of 20th century film buffs know every movie ending ever made but where will they be when the credits roll?
Review
This didn’t impress. In fact, I came away not only confused but rather unsurprised at the ending. Not a story to impact me much.
4 Stars to Doomware by Nathan Kuzack
Description
It is a future time, when brain-based cybernetic computers are all but universal throughout humanity. A computer virus of unprecedented potency has swept across the globe, laying waste to technology and leaving half the world's population dead. The other half are neither dead nor alive – they are zombies, reanimated not by witchcraft, but by the virus infecting their brainware. David Lawney – an acybernetic, whose body inexplicably rejected brainware as a child – has survived the disaster in a London now teeming with horrors. Haunted by memories of society's mistreatment of his kind, living in constant fear of a gruesome death, somehow David must find the strength and courage needed to protect a fellow survivor, a young boy, whose existence may hold the key to the only remaining record of all human history. [WARNING: Contains adult themes, violence and M/M romance.]
Review
This went from a creepingly haunting post-apocalyptic landscape to an powerful story of love, survival and intrigue in a very short space of time indeed. I want to see what happens next, now, I do hope we get a sequel.
3 Stars to Second Life by S.J. Watson
Description
The sensational new psychological thriller from the bestselling author of Before I Go To Sleep. She loves her husband. She's obsessed by a stranger. She's a devoted mother. She's prepared to lose everything. She knows what she's doing. She's out of control. She's innocent. She's guilty as sin. She's living two lives. She might lose both . . .
Review
4 uses of "severance", 3 of "banal" and to be "falling in a love" are just some of the things I do not expect to find after paying as much for this book as for the last 3 I have read combined. Mr Watson, being published properly, surely deserves better. I have maintained for many months that one of the few distinguishing features of the big publishers is their standards, but sadly the more I read, the less this proves to be the case. Clearly, the big bucks thanks to film adaptations and such are pushing substandard editing. At least people selling works on their own for £0.99 often have only themselves on a production. Someone was actually paid to comb the work for these things before we got to spend a month's broadband access on the thing. As to the story, it was fascinating, as one would expect from Watson. I can't confess that his writing has matured since his debut novel almost 4 years ago - neither his characterizations nor ability to surprise has changed much, which did mean in places I found my expectations met rather than surpassed. Despite this, the plot is easy to follow and Julia's story is engaging - almost the sort of dramatic blogging from an addict you might stumble upon and persist in reading in vicar. There were a few occasions when a conversation at a distance (through texts etc) were immediately 'cut' to discussions on location, in a restaurant or similar - one gets the impression Watson 'saw' the scenes on the silver screen rather in the pages of the book at these times. Nonetheless, for all my critiques (and I feel them important, because I disapprove of hype for hype's sake) I enjoyed the story, whilst comprehending that I was neither the target audience for the work nor as remotely impressed with it as Watson's initial offering.
3 Stars to The Gift by Dave Donovan
Description
When high-level governmental programmer Sam Steele is called into his office on his day off, he quickly finds himself at the center of a battle for humanity itself. An alien entity is heading straight for Earth, and an elite team of specialists has been assembled to attempt to make first contact. But despite Steele’s expertise, Colonel Eric Web, his superior and longtime thorn in his side, makes it clear he doesn’t want him there. The aliens that arrive represent a long-dead race and say they’ve come to help humans defend themselves against an imminent threat, but their help will come with a price. Now the future of humanity hangs in the balance between two Web, the regimented, hubristic military man, and Steele, a brilliant man broken by loss and tragedy. As the team races the clock to try to divine their visitors’ complex instructions, they struggle with infighting and, ultimately, the question of what it means to be human.
Review
Though interesting and worth sticking with, this nonetheless had an adolescent, American dreamboy feel to it. Character depth was a little limited (we had Dans and Sams and Jacks and a raft of monosyllabic characters). There were a few asides where the present tense intruded, and very minimal explanation of things like "the device" and "The Rigby's" both, which just seemed to appear. Cammo might be the way it's pronounced but in written form the milspeak for camouflage has only ever had the one em, and although "wait one" only appears 4 times in the work it still feels very overused. Still, English quibbles and the apparent youth of the Mise en scène aside it's a very readable work, on a par with Richard Phillips Second Ship, I'd say. I'd be interested to read more, although not without expecting to be aware of who will eventually triumph.
4 Stars to Without Warning (The Disappearance, #1) by John Birmingham
Description
In Kuwait, American forces are stacked up, locked and loaded for the invasion of Iraq. In Paris, a covert agent, a woman who inhabits a twilight of lies and death, is close to cracking a terrorist cell. And just north of the equator, a forty-foot wood-hulled sailboat, manned by a drug runner, a pirate, and two gun-slinging beauties, is witness to the unspeakable. In one instant, all around the world, for politicians and peasants, from Gaza to Geneva, things will never be the same. A wave of inexplicable energy has slammed into the continental United States. America, as we know it, is gone. . . . Now U.S. soldiers are fighting a war without command or control. A correspondent records horrors for no one. Washington is gone and the line of succession is in tatters; the functioning remnants of government are in Pearl Harbor, Guantánamo Bay, and one desperate, isolated corner of the Northwest. For the jihadists, it’s Allah’s miracle. For Saddam, it’s a chance to attack. Iran declares war on an America that doesn’t exist–except in the hearts and souls of the men and women who want it to.
Review
I really, really enjoyed this. It reminded me of Ludlum's Paris, and the hopping around the world from France to Cuba, the Pacific ocean to Qatar was great fun. Birmingham's action scenes are excellent and his depiction of a catastrophe was both involved and tantalizingly scary. I do think the profusion of stale farts detracted some: it's that sort of language, used more than once, which takes a good novel from at least holding some pretense of literary merit into the gutter. But even with that, I found myself turning pages and wondering where everything would go. And the ending deserves the second book, no questions asked.
3 Stars to Takedown by John Jackson Miller
Description
An all-new novel of Star Trek: The Next Generation—one of the most popular Star Trek series of all-time, featuring the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise! When renegade Federation starships begin wreaking destruction across the Alpha Quadrant, Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise are shocked to discover that the mastermind behind this sudden threat is none other than Picard’s protégé and friend: Admiral William T. Riker. The newly minted admiral is on board the U.S.S. Aventine as part of a special assignment, even as the mystery deepens behind his involvement in the growing crisis. But the Aventine is helmed by Captain Ezri Dax—someone who is no stranger to breaking Starfleet regulations—and her starship is by far the faster vessel…and Riker cannot yield even to his former mentor. It’s a battle of tactical geniuses and a race against time as Picard struggles to find answers before the quadrant’s great powers violently retaliate against the Federation… ™, ®, & © 2015 CBS Studios, Inc. STAR TREK and related marks and logos are trademarks of CBS Studios, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Review
I struggled to click with the writing style a little. Clicking combadges stuck out (you don’t click them. Really) and it was evident that Miller is new to the genre. Still, for the first time Post nemesis, I felt as if I was reading something I’d like to see onscreen, the sort of story that would’ve fit well into a feature-length episode. I enjoyed it for that, even if the story was already done on television and little new was added. It was a solid, episodic adventure for the continuing voyages.
5 Stars to Fool's Fate (Tawny Man, #3) by Robin Hobb
Description
The triumphant conclusion to the Tawny Man trilogy, from the author of the bestselling Farseer and Liveship Traders trilogies. The moving end to the tale of the Farseers, in which kingdoms must stand or fall on the beat of a dragon's wings, or a Fool's heart. A small and sadly untried coterie - the old assassin Chade, the serving-boy Thick, Prince Dutiful, and his reluctant Skillmaster, Fitz - sail towards the distant island of Aslevjal. There they must fulfil the Narcheska's challenge to her betrothed: to lay the head of the dragon Icefyre, whom legends tell is buried there deep beneath the ice, upon her hearth. Only with the completion of this quest can the marriage proceed, and the resulting alliance signal an end to war between the two kingdoms. It is not a happy ship: tensions between the folk of the Six Duchies and their traditional enemies, the Outislanders, lie just beneath the surface. Thick is constantly ill, and his random but powerful Skilling has taken on a dark and menacing tone, while Chade's fascination with the Skill is growing to the point of obsession. Having ensured that his beloved friend the Fool is safely left behind in Buckkeep, Fitz is guilt-stricken; but he is determined to keep his fate at bay, since prophecy foretells the Fool's death if he ever sets foot on the isle of the black dragon. But as their ship draws in towards Aslevjal a lone figure awaits them...
Review
"the outcome poised and uncertain, possibilities hovering" is a phrase used in the epilogue, and the saga draws to a close at long last yet there's still that thread left dangling, isn't there? Still the idea of perhaps, possibly, more to tell. But, even had I finished this work not knowing there was more I would've found it most excellent. It's a solid, weighty end to a chapter in Fitz's life handled very well.
5 Stars to Golden Fool (Tawny Man, #2) by Robin Hobb
Description
The acclaimed Farseer and Liveship Traders trilogies established Robin Hobb as one of the most splendidly imaginative practitioners of world-class fantasy. Now, in Book 2 of her most stunning trilogy yet, Hobb continues the soul-shattering tale of FitzChivalry Farseer. With rich characters, breathtaking magic, and sweeping action, Golden Fool brings the reluctant adventurer further into the fray in an epic of sacrifice, salvation, and untold treachery. Golden Fool Prince Dutiful has been rescued from his Piebald kidnappers and the court has resumed its normal rhythms. But for FitzChivalry Farseer, a return to isolation is impossible. Though gutted by the loss of his wolf bondmate, Nighteyes, Fitz must take up residence at Buckkeep and resume his tasks as Chade’s apprentice assassin. Posing as Tom Badgerlock, bodyguard to Lord Golden, FitzChivalry becomes the eyes and ears behind the walls. And with his old mentor failing visibly, Fitz is forced to take on more burdens as he attempts to guide a kingdom straying closer to civil strife each day. The problems are legion. Prince Dutiful’s betrothal to the Narcheska Elliania of the Out Islands is fraught with tension, and the Narcheska herself appears to be hiding an array of secrets. Then, amid Piebald threats and the increasing persecution of the Witted, FitzChivalry must ensure that no one betrays the Prince’s secret—a secret that could topple the Farseer throne: that he, like Fitz, possesses the dread “beast magic.” Meanwhile, FitzChivalry must impart to the Prince his limited knowledge of the Skill: the hereditary and addictive magic of the Farseers. In the process, they discover within Buckkeep one who has a wild and powerful talent for it, and whose enmity for Fitz may have disastrous consequences for all. Only Fitz’s enduring friendship with the Fool brings him any solace. But even that is shattered when unexpected visitors from Bingtown reveal devastating secrets from the Fool’s past. Now, bereft of support and adrift in intrigue, Fitz’s biggest challenge may be simply to survive the inescapable and violent path that fate has laid out for him. From the Hardcover edition.
Review
“Oh, good. Perhaps this will be more a task for shovels and ice saws than for a prince and a sword.” a jest, of course, but wrong. So, so wrong, nonetheless. The huge sense of - inevitability? Of the implacable path of parenthood? However you think on it, it's there, and it sweeps one up and makes you feel sorely for Fitz. it's a trial unlike many of his previous, but it still pulls. The masterful way in which Hobb takes us from the little joys of rediscovering court life to the deepest levels of unease and dissatisfaction as the threads of Fitz's life tangle and knot is truly potent stuff. “You would ask a promise of your queen? Do you not think you presume too much?” I set my jaw. “Perhaps. But perhaps for a long time, the Farseers have presumed too much of me.” Duty is becoming ever more a pressing watchword, and of course the conflict of loyalties and allegiance is going to feature heavily in the conclusion to this adventure. There were some parts of it that excelled for me - the whole of the seventeenth chapter seem to exude revelation upon revelation, and the atmospherics of the challenge in the thirteenth stirred me, too. But I think what gripped me most of all about this work was the marvelous sense of power it holds: Chade's aging, Hap's youth and Fitz's experiences here all coalesce to form an almost irresistible read. And what next? Well, as our beleaguered narrator observes - The Prince was right. Buckkeep Castle was stuffed full of secrets, and half of them were not secrets at all. They were only the things we dared not ask one another for fear the answers would be unbearably painful. Will the climax to this trilogy be "unbearably painful"? Only time (and another eight and a half hours of reading, according to my ereader, will tell.
5 Stars to Fool's Errand (Tawny Man, #1) by Robin Hobb
Description
alternate cover for ISBN 9780006486015 Fifteen years have passed since the end of the Red Ship War with the terrifying Outislanders. Since then, Fitz has wandered the world accompanied only by his wolf and Wit-partner, Nighteyes, finally settling in a tiny cottage as remote from Buckkeep and the Farseers as possible. But lately the world has come crashing in again. The Witted are being persecuted because of their magical bonds with animals; and young Prince Dutiful has gone missing just before his crucial diplomatic wedding to an Outislander princess. Fitz’s assignment to fetch Dutiful back in time for the ceremony seems very much like a fool’s errand, but the dangers ahead could signal the end of the Farseer reign. Cover illustration by John Howe
Review
"I looked at him. He was not just one old man come to visit me. He brought all of my past trailing along behind him as an embroidered train follows a woman into a hall. When I let him in my door, I had let in my old world with him." This is hugely satisfying. I left Fitz long ago and have had a daughter, got a job, moved house 3 times, all since I last set down his story. So it helped me, I think, that the book opens slowly, re-sets the scene, acquaints us with the world again, for then we are totally subsumed by the wave of words as our hero once again sets forth. "Little Brother, do not treat me as if I am already dead, or dying. If you see me that way, then I would rather truly be dead. You steal the now of my life away, when you constantly fear that tomorrow will bring my death. Your fears clutch cold at me and snatch all my pleasure in the day's warmth from me." It's a more melancholic work than the opening to the initial trilogy, no denying that, and yet for all that it's as powerful, as gripping and totally captivating as any other. I've missed this world, with all its intrigue and beauty, it's sorrows and joys and pains and problems. I'm very, very glad to be back.
January
5 Stars to Starfire (Supernova Alpha, #2) by Charles Sheffield
Description
Earth has been ravaged by galactic disaster—but the real devastation is yet to come. The end draws nigh.... The year is 2053, and Earth has barely recovered from the Alpha Centauri supernova that destroyed much of the planet's infrastructure. Now the supernova's residual effect—a storm of high-energy particles—is racing toward Earth, and an international effort has been launched out of the Sky City space colony to save the planet. But the controversial plan—to build a giant protective shield for Earth—is falling dangerously behind schedule. A series of unexplained murders has disrupted the Sky City workforce, so much so that a brilliant but monstrous criminal has been enlisted to track down the Sky City killer. Then comes more startling news. Evidence indicates that the original supernova was caused deliberately, and that the lethal particle storm will arrive sooner than anyone expected. But who—or what—tried to destroy the Earth? And will the answer come in time to save it from its final apocalypse?
Review
It's an irony that some trilogies are too long, yet the gap between these two books could have easily held another title. Still, this was a totally rewarding read, and I found it compelling to the end and utterly enjoyable all the way through.
2 Stars to Hollow World by Michael J. Sullivan
Description
The future is coming...for some, sooner than others. Ellis Rogers is an ordinary man who is about to embark on an extraordinary journey. All his life he has played it safe and done the right thing, but when faced with a terminal illness, he’s willing to take an insane gamble. He’s built a time machine in his garage, and if it works, he’ll face a world that challenges his understanding of what it means to be human, what it takes to love, and the cost of paradise. He could find more than a cure for his illness; he might find what everyone has been searching for since time began…but only if he can survive Hollow World. Welcome to the future and a new sci-fantasy thriller from the bestselling author of The Riyria Revelations. BEST OF & MOST ANTICIPATED LISTS • 2014 Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Science Fiction • 2014 The Qwillery's Brannigan Cheney’s Top 3 books • 2014 The Fictional Hangout’s Best Books of the Year • 2014 Ranting Dragon’s Ten Fantasy and Science-Fiction Novels worth reading in April • 2014 Barnes and Noble Top Fantasy and Science Fiction Picks for April • 2014 Ranting Dragon’s 30 Most Anticipated Science Fiction and Fantasy Novels • 2014 The Book Probe’s Most Anticipated Sci-Fi Novels • 2013 The BiblioSanctum’s Top 10 Reads • 2013 Fantasy Review Barn’s Barney Award for Outstanding Reads
Review
An interesting if overdone time travel take with potentially fascinating yet somehow bland characterisation. Unfortunately, it didn't really grip me.
4 Stars to Aftermath (Supernova Alpha, #1) by Charles Sheffield
Description
It's 2026, and catastrophe has struck from an unexpected source. The Alpha Centauri supernova has risen like a second sun, rushing Earth toward its last summer. Floods, fires, starvation, and disease paralyze the planet. In a blue aurora flash of gamma rays, all microchips worldwide are destroyed, leaving an already devastated Earth without communications, transportation, weaponry, or medicine. The disaster sets three groups of survivors on separate quests. A militant cult seizes the opportunity to free their leader, known as the Eye of God, from the long-term coma to which a court sentenced her. Three cancer patients also search for a man in judicial sleep: the brilliant scientist—and monstrous criminal—who alone can continue the experimental treatment that keeps them alive. From a far greater distance come the survivors of the first manned Mars expedition, struggling homeward to a world that has changed far beyond their darkest fears. And standing at the crossroads is one man, U.S. President Saul Steinmetz, who faces a crucial decision that will affect the fate of his own people ... and the world.
Review
I really managed to get into this one. The variety of character was such that I never felt stuck on a single point of view, and the story itself is certainly written well. I’ll be picking up the sequel soon and no mistake.
3 Stars to Ascent by Jed Mercurio
Description
A truly stunning novel — spare, powerful and ultimately awesome — Ascent will propel Jed Mercurio into the first rank of British novelists. Yefgenil Yeremin is a flyer and he is a phantom. In the Korean War he shoots down more American jets than any other pilot in history. He becomes the legendary ace dubbed “Ivan the Terrible.” But the Soviet Union’s involvement in Korea must be kept secret, so his name remains unknown, his victories uncelebrated.
Review
This captured well the perceived coldness of the Russian side of the space race and had some heartfelt moments. It’s a difficult book to quantify, but I found it enjoyable and interesting.
5 Stars to Winds of Change (Empires Lost #2) by Charles S. Jackson
Description
LATEST UPDATE – CONTRARY TO POPULAR BELIEF, I AM STILL ALIVE AND WRITING WHEN I CAN. ALTHOUGH MY FACEBOOK PAGE IS NO MORE, FOR THE TIME BEING I CAN BE FOUND AT UNTIL A MORE PERMANENT WEBSITE CAN BE ESTABLISHED (go to the above page for the latest news)NORTH SEPTEMBER 1942. As the Wehrmacht solidifies its unassailable hold on Western Europe and stands poised on the brink of total victory in North Africa, members of Thorne’s Hindsight team, alone and spread across the globe, work desperately to bring about a generational advance in American and Allied military technology. For two years, Britain has lain crushed beneath the boot heel of Nazi Occupation. The British government-in-exile battles to control the rest of its crumbling empire as unrest builds in Ulster over broken German promises of reunification with the weak but neutral Republic of Ireland. On the run in Northern England, Richard Kransky falls in with an IRA mission to evacuate to Ireland a man believed to be vital to the Allied war effort… a man whose escape the fanatical Sicherheitsdienst will do anything to prevent. Struggling with conscience and the voices in his own head, James Brandis hides behind the guise of a church curate in an Australian country town as he watches over the safety of a half-caste, Indigenous girl. Born out of the tragedy of the Stolen Generation, her survival lies entwined with Brandis’ agenda for the future. Questions arise over his own existence and true identity however as destiny forces his hand when Brandis is forced to protect her against a violent man with murder on his mind. In Egypt, the last ragged remnants of the British 8th Army prepare as best they can for a final Wehrmacht assault intended to drive the Allies from North Africa once and for all. Arriving in Suez amid wholesale evacuation and camps flooded with tens of thousands of refugees, Max Thorne and Eileen Donelson intend to field-test prototypes of a new and powerful main battle tank soon to be manufactured by the thousands in the United States. Reichsmarschall Kurt Reuters, acting on information from spies and fifth-columnists, devises a bold plan to rid himself of Max Thorne and Hindsight once and for all. As the final German assault on Suez begins and the trap is sprung, Thorne and Donelson find themselves forced into a desperate battle for their own survival as they race toward one last, slim chance of escape.
Review
“What do you mean, they will not fly…?” The question was screamed with a volume and intensity that belied the Reichsmarschall’s advanced years and gave a clear indication that the man was a long way from being ready to retire. “We stand here at the cusp of handing the Verdammt English their greatest and most comprehensive defeat since the fall of Britain itself, and you’re telling me that my fucking Luftwaffe will not take off?” There's no denying that this work opens in a bleak, ravished world. Yet hope is alive and everyone has moved on from where we left them, and the great war machine continues to grind out equipment and grind up personnel with astonishing rapidity and devistation. Our heroes, no longer trying to hold fast in Scotland, are spread around the world; and Britain, or chillingly now the Reich-Protektorat Grossbritannien, is shivering beneath the "jackboot of racism and oppression". “Courage enough to threaten a fourteen-year-old boy over a few ill-chosen words, Mister McCaughey,” Levi observed coldly, not backing down for a moment. “What kind of strength d’you think you might find to take the fight to grown men who’ve killed your friends and enslaved your country?” Pluck and courage rule the spirit, though, and just one of the incredible geographical expansions of this work gives us elements of the IRA doing their bit, and smuggling refugees across occupied borders is an exciting part of that for the reader. There's an amazing, spine-tingling naval battle in chapter 6 which I took delight in slowly reading and making explosion noises to myself in the early hours of the morning. When Mr Jackson expands, he doesn't just add an element to things. We've spread our wings truly, the winds of change have blown an exiled British government as far as Australia, and the hight of the action in this novel climaxes in Egypt. Scotland isn't neglected, there's a rather important installation on the island of Soay in the St Kilda archipelago, and Australia and the Americas are represented as well. Italian combatants join the troops, and old faces make sometimes brief, but always exceptional appearances. “I think I nearly made him say ‘fuck’ then,” Thorne remarked drily, as usual attempting to calm himself down through irreverence. “He said ‘bollocks’ while you were gone,” Lloyd observed with a grin. No prizes for guessing who they're talking about, our true Gentleman of the sky (who as I recall saved a lot of bacon last time) is back doing what he does here in that jet of his. There are the chronological developments to take into consideration. Phillip Brandis is perhaps the most shockingly intriguing of these, although poor Max seems on the verge of mental collapse on occasion too. It's not confined to one side either, Reuters has a massive, volcanic shouting session at poor Albert during a major battle, and the mounting mental stress he's under seems at least partially to blame. There's far too much I could mention to be comprehensive. The main body of action which has been building for a little more than the first half of the book goes on for many chapters, and although the last 20% of the work finishes up other details, the engagement still takes up many hundreds of words and had me captivated. The interesting point here is that we're talking about a single day of action which, because of the book's size, took me longer to read than it would have taken to see a Hollywood film, perhaps 2. That's the kind of reading to totally engage a brain, I can assure you! There was a powerful, painful death at the end of chapter 17, even though we see it coming, it still stung. In chapter 22, seeing the perspectives after the camps from Schiller's point of view was almost as gutting as allied casualties,. The praying in the aircraft as it trundles down that runway was a scene so clear to picture, and the blood virus, such an invisible yet deadly detail, gives us us just one more thing to think about when next we step into this world, perfectly captured on the pages of Mr Jackson's pièce de résistance. He mentions in the author's note that this eera is "the most written about subject in the entire genre of Alternate History". I'm not a history connoisseur. I enjoy the story and the characters, and can, I hope, appreciate a little some of the unfathomable level of effort and detail Mr Jackson puts into his writing as a result. Everything from sound and smell, through temperature and texture is set down on the page for a reader to absorb. I've read a few other alternative history works, of course, and the majority due indeed focus on the era, but none approach it with the richness, the clarity, the reality this can muster. I have been privileged to spend another week with characters old and new, in places familiar and far afield, surrounded by language sometimes harsh, but always descriptive and a story with complexity, yes, but also with purpose and secrets yet to be revealed behind it. Charles Jackson has my gratitude and my money both, and these shall follow with, I hope, more installments to come. There's enough material here already to produce many hours of a slow-burning major TV series of the highest calibre. Why have Graphic Audio not come a-knocking at least? TO anyone reading these words, I can guarantee you a copy of this and its predecessor will give you hour upon hour of the most captivating, detailed writing you can find anywhere. A postscript: it's not just me, an Amazon reviewer calls it "perhaps the most absorbing WWII alternate history novel of all time".
4 Stars to Unbound (Magic Ex Libris, #3) by Jim C. Hines
Description
For five hundred years, the Porters have concealed the existence of magic from the world. Now, old enemies have revealed the Porters’ secrets, and an even greater threat lurks in the shadows. The would-be queen Meridiana, banished for a thousand years, has returned in the body of a girl named Jeneta Aboderin. She seeks an artifact created by Pope Sylvester II, a bronze prison that would grant her the power to command an army of the dead. Michigan librarian Isaac Vainio is powerless to stop her, having been stripped of his power and his place among the Porters by Johannes Gutenberg himself. But Isaac is determined to regain his magic and to rescue his former student Jeneta. With no magic of his own, Isaac’s must delve into the darker side of black-market magic, where he will confront beings better left undisturbed, including the sorcerer Juan Ponce de Leon. With his loyal fire-spider Smudge, dryad warrior Lena Greenwood, and psychiatrist Nidhi Shah, Isaac races to unravel a mystery more than a thousand years old as competing magical powers battle to shape the future of the world. He will be hunted by enemies and former allies alike, and it will take all his knowledge and resourcefulness to survive as magical war threatens to spread across the globe. Isaac’s choices will determine the fate of his friends, the Porters, the students of Bi Sheng, and the world. Only one thing is certain: even if he finds a way to restore his magic, he can’t save them all…
Review
I'm pleased to say Hines has lost none of his pace, this story crackles along with all the fun of the rest. It does seem that Isaac lands himself in hotter water at the start of these novels, and as the stories unfold there seem dire consequences for more and more people. But these are very well worth reading and I'm always happy to pick up a new one.
3 Stars to Wild Child, Book 1: A Teenage Sci-Fi Conspiracy Thriller by Mike Wells
Description
Briana Fox is the wildest girl in school. She and Kyle have been close for a long time...almost lovers. But Kyle is afraid that if he pushes her, he'll have his heart broken and lose his best friend. When Briana challenges him to a swim across the lake, she's injured in a horrific accident, but she discovers a mysterious substance in an underwater cave that saves her life. What seems to be a magical yet harmless "power drug" invokes superhuman abilities, and Briana soon becomes dependent on it for her very survival. When two government agents learn of the discovery, they will stop at nothing to find the source and turn Briana into a human experiment. Is Kyle willing to risk everything to protect his love?Readers of all ages will enjoy this gripping, fast-paced story.Book blogger "Worth a serious read...incredibly gripping and heartwarming."- Halinor Everdeen Cipriano, Assortments"A fast, suspenseful thriller with an ending I never saw coming."- Jessica Willis, The Tales Compendium"Very exciting and gripping, leaves you wanting more."- Becky's Barmy Book Blog"If anything, you should read it for the unique ending."- Rachel's Book Reviews"You should give it a try. It's really different and interesting."- Brielle, Awesome Bookworm
Review
Points for writing style but for the love of all things literary can the man not finish a book without making you "need" to give him more money?
5 Stars to Impact (Sedulity Saga #1) by David P. Forsyth
Description
From the author of "Voyage of the Dead" and the "Sovereign Spirit Saga" comes a whole new type of apocalypse. Inspired by "Lucifer's Hammer" and other epic science fiction novels, David Forsyth brings the fear, suspense and thrilling action of "end of the world as we know it" fiction into focus aboard a cruise ship en route to Australia when an asteroid strikes the Central Pacific Ocean. Whatever image that description evokes is nothing compared to the epic forces of nature, human drama, and pain of loss you will encounter in this book. Not for the faint of heart. The author takes no responsibility for decreased bookings on cruise ships. Read at your own risk. The scariest part is that this story is based on true possibilities. Are you game? For fans of Forsyth's other work, sorry, no zombies in this one. But if you like the idea of facing the end of the world on a ship at sea (as in Voyage of the Dead), then you should enjoy this adventure too. Who needs zombies when the world itself turns against you? Sedulity: noun. Constant in purpose and intent. Assiduous, steadfast, tireless, indefatigable. Praise for Forsyth's Voyage of the Dead and Sovereign Spirit Saga: "It's Clive Cussler meets Max Brooks." "I've read over 130 zombie books(retired and a lot of time). This one is by far the best one so far." "I was so caught up in the story I had stayed up all night to finish the book and even then I couldn't wait for the next one!" "After reading the first book,which I could not put down.I couldn't wait for 2&3' now I just rate all other zombie genre books against these...so far,,these are the best." "The writing is so good, the story so captivating and the characters so compelling that I have plowed through all three books in the trilogy in four days." "Read all three back to back, really good storyline and characters.I would recommend this book and all others by David." David P. Forsyth is the founder of ApocaCon, an event and group dedicated to the promotion of apocalyptic fiction. Visit the author at www.davidpforsyth.com or on Facebook at the ApocaCon page and group. Welcome aboard and bon voyage!
Review
End-of-the-world scenarios are two a penny on Kindle at the moment. Like Zombi apocalypses and vampire stories they’ve saturated the market to such a degree that finding a good one is actually a struggle. Enter the the cruise ship Sedulity. I was, I will confess, hooked. We aren’t overwhelmed with characters, there’s the potential with a thousand passengers aboard the cruise liner but Forsyth sticks to a small set for this outing. This is a good thing, you really get a feel for them (I almost cried at the phone call in the life boat). I’m going to start the second one now. Highly recommended, because the run-of-the-mill the world is ending story just got an injection of very, very good writing.
5 Stars to Disavowed (Star Trek: Section 31) by David Mack
Description
Amoral, shrouded in secrecy, and answerable to no one, Section 31 is the mysterious covert operations division of Starfleet, a rogue shadow group committed to safeguarding the Federation at any cost. Doctor Julian Bashir sacrificed his career for a chance to infiltrate Section 31 and destroy it from within. Now it's asking him to help it stop the Breen from stealing a dangerous new technology from the Mirror Universe - one that could give the Breen control over the galaxy. It's a mission Bashir can't refuse - but is it really the shot he's been waiting for? Or is it a trap from which even his genetically enhanced intellect can't escape?
Review
There's a great deal of the Mirror Universe to explore, and i'm well out of the loop. But it was still a great book to read. Even if Picard didn't ring true, the Dominion angle was very nicely managed and it's a most worthy addition to the Section 31 corpus. Loved it.
5 Stars to No True Echo by Gareth P. Jones
Description
Eddie is pretty certain nowhere could be more small-town, more boring, and more inconsequential than his home town of the Wellcome Valley. Unfortunately, he is about to be proved spectacularly wrong. Eddie's problems start when he sees his teacher getting shot (possibly with an elastic band) and then promptly vanish into thin air. Or maybe they start just a little bit before then, with the arrival of Scarlett, a new girl in town who seems rather too confident and mysterious for your average schoolgirl. She attracts trouble (and Eddie) like a magnet, and she's apparently only interested in two very strange things - protecting the local crackpot scientist, Dr Wolf, and telling Eddie absolutely nothing about what on earth is going on. Because things quickly go from weird to worse for Eddie, and he's about to find himself in the middle of a dangerous battle for the fate of not just himself, Scarlett and the town - but Time itself.
Review
“So you're telling me that today is two days ago, tomorrow is yesterday and what was today hasn't happened yet?” This is absolutely and without doubt my best time travel book of the year so far. It crackles along at a breakneck pace and has characters both deep and meaningful “We shouldn't talk,” said Angus. “Why? Are you worried that we might say something that actually makes sense?” The complexities of time travel do strain the reader a little, but the fun factor is always there, and the dialogue in the ETA chapter is absolutely priceless (Cornish's bewilderment is superb). The only slight qualm in an otherwise outstanding novel was the end, which although it succeeds in finishing off the story, somehow seemed to avoid any meaningful resolution in my mind. I can't deny that the story itself was worth a handful of bad endings, and this one wasn't bad, just less fulfilling than I'd hoped. Yet this was a powerful, enjoyable, and very entertaining read.
4 Stars to Apprentice Swordceror (Blademage Saga, #1) by Chris Hollaway
Description
Apprentice Swordceror, Volume I of the Blademage Saga, is a debut novel that tells the story of a young man trapped between the separate and incompatible worlds of Wizards and Warriors. The main character, Kevon, is easily identified with, possessing the raw talent we all wish we had, and the naiveté we hope we lack. His journey through betrayal, love, loss, and personal growth is accentuated by the friends and allies that he comes to surround himself with. The story will appeal to classic fantasy fans, while the different angles on magic and standard fantastical races will satisfy those who need something different than the usual fare. Kevon begins his story as a Wizard's Apprentice in a small town, far from anywhere important. He finds himself thrown out into the world, sorely unprepared. Forced to hide his identity to survive, he journeys across the Realm searching for vengeance and redemption.
Review
A fascinating look into a world where swords and sorcery never mix, until now. Our hero is no Manning's Mordecai and still less a Kvothe and yet compellingly I read this to the end, as it wasn't too long and went in a few interesting directions. A recognisably amateur effort, but with potential indeed.
3 Stars to Reboot (Reboot, #1) by Amy Tintera
Description
Five years ago, Wren Connolly was shot three times in the chest. After 178 minutes she came back as a Reboot: stronger, faster, able to heal, and less emotional. The longer Reboots are dead, the less human they are when they return. Wren 178 is the deadliest Reboot in the Republic of Texas. Now seventeen years old, she serves as a soldier for HARC (Human Advancement and Repopulation Corporation). Wren’s favorite part of the job is training new Reboots, but her latest newbie is the worst she’s ever seen. As a 22, Callum Reyes is practically human. His reflexes are too slow, he’s always asking questions, and his ever-present smile is freaking her out. Yet there’s something about him she can’t ignore. When Callum refuses to follow an order, Wren is given one last chance to get him in line—or she’ll have to eliminate him. Wren has never disobeyed before and knows if she does, she’ll be eliminated, too. But she has also never felt as alive as she does around Callum. The perfect soldier is done taking orders.
Review
A very open-ended work, written well enough and with just enough of a difference to make it worthwhile. Be interesting to see where the series goes. Intrigued, but not quite hooked.
5 Stars to Firefight (The Reckoners, #2) by Brandon Sanderson
Description
Babylon Restored, formerly Manhattan, may give David answers. Ruled by the mysterious High Epic, Regalia, David is sure Babylon Restored will lead him to what he needs to find. And while entering another city oppressed by a High Epic despot is a gamble, David's willing to risk it. Because killing Steelheart left a hole in David's heart. A hole where his thirst for vengeance once lived. Somehow, he filled that hole with another Epic—Firefight. And he's willing to go on a quest darker, and more dangerous even, than the fight against Steelheart to find her, and to get his answers.
Review
I love Sanderson's writing, and he's really got a younger voice distilled to a superb art now. David's tone, language, and puns are right on target, even when they're so totally bonkers. There was a point where I wondered just how credible his sense of weaknesses really was, but that was utterly swept away in the thrill of the plot and the action. I think this is probably Sanderson's best young adult work yet, and that's really saying something because his others have all been wonderful, too. I suppose there's no other word for this book, though. It's ... Epic.
4 Stars to Meta (Meta, #1) by Tom Reynolds
Description
It’s been ten years since Connor Connolly lost his parents in ‘The Battle’; a fight between The Governor and Jones, two of the world’s strongest metas. Before ‘The Battle’ the world had been full of metas, super-powered humans whose amazing abilities came from mysterious wristbands. Since that day one has never been seen again. Now 16 years old, Connor lives in Bay View City with his older brother Derrick, a meta-obsessed blogger, where he’s just trying to keep his head down long enough to survive high school. All of that changes the night he attempts to save a girl's life and wakes up to find the first new pair of metabands anyone has seen wrapped around his wrists. Connor soon finds an unlikely ally in Midnight, a masked vigilante who helps him learn how to harness his new abilities, while also trying to balance his summer job at the lake. As a meta, Connor becomes known as Omni, potentially the most powerful meta the world has ever seen, but it isn’t long before he finds out he's no longer alone...
Review
Lacking the professional polish of a larger publisher, this nonetheless managed to come across as one of the higher-end teen superhero stories. It had echoes of Earthman Jack or perhaps The Second Ship though of course without the aliens and an almost comic book superhero motif in its place. I hope there's more of this.
4 Stars to A Simple Plan by Scott Smith
Description
Two brothers and their friend stumble upon the wreckage of a plane–the pilot is dead and his duffle bag contains four million dollars in cash. In order to hide, keep, and share the fortune, these ordinary men all agree to a simple plan.
Review
A hauntingly reasonable work, this struck a chord somewhere and kept me interested. The writing was well executed and the narrative never strayed, so although I couldn't put myself in his shoes I could see him in them with perfect, painful clarity. One to read if you're at all interested in the Humanities.
5 Stars to City of Halves by Lucy Inglis
Description
London. Girls are disappearing. They've all got one thing in common; they just don't know it yet... Sixteen-year-old Lily was meant to be next, but she's saved by a stranger: a half-human boy with gold-flecked eyes. Regan is from an unseen world hidden within our own, where legendary creatures hide in plain sight. But now both worlds are under threat, and Lily and Regan must race to find the girls, and save their divided city.
Review
Wow. All the hype over books like City of Bones and this comes along and deals the genre a staggering blow. With less technology but as much warmth as The Silence of Six and with a London as different as Ben Aaronovitch, this is a story to get lost in and a sequel to eagerly anticipate.
4 Stars to The Sixth Science Fiction Megapack: 25 Modern Classic and Stories by Arthur C. Clarke
Description
"The Sixth Science Fiction Megapack" presents 25 more mind-bending excursions through time and space, with great stories by such authors as Arthur C. Clarke, Nancy Kress, Lawrence Watt-Evans, George Zebrowski, Philip K. Dick, and many more! Included are:
Review
An enjoyable, eclectic collection to keep my scientific flame aglow. Particular favourites? THE HANGING STRANGER, which I'd read before, EGOCENTRIC ORBIT, MEMBERSHIP DRIVE, THE ASTRONAUT FROM WYOMING (which actually seemed more a novella) and REMEMBRANCE OF THINGS TO COME (the idea of which gripped me).