Books Read 2016

McNutt · Post by **McNutt** » Sun Jul 03, 2016 11:15 pm

Interesting. I just bought both books for $2. Thanks for the recommendation.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Mon Jul 04, 2016 12:09 am

Finished the much maligned Aftermath: Star Wars: Journey to the Force Awakens by Chuck Wendig.

I went into this one expecting to be turned off by the writing style since I had read so much negativity around it, but honestly it didn't bother me that much. The present tense approach was a little annoying at first, but I got over it fairly quickly.

No, the real problem with this book is that the Star Wars novel universe has forever been topped by the Heir to the Empire trilogy by Timothy Zahn. I've been reading Star Wars novels for decades now trying to come close to that experience, and haven't found it yet. Given that this is one of the first "official" canon novels of post-RoTJ, I couldn't help but want something akin to Zahn's epic, filled with the characters we loved.

Instead we get yet another play-it-safe, by-the-numbers novel of no-name characters doing things that could essentially be set in any time period in Star Wars history with a few details changes. This could have been an episode of Star Wars Rebels or Clone Wars. By now we've become used to writers' imaginations being fiercely constrained by the limitations of the corporate machine that runs the Star Wars marketing empire.

The other thing I disliked about the novel was a casual tone that ran throughout that to me felt a bit disrespectful towards the source material. Yes, I understand that in "real life" people might call someone the wrong name, but in the book it comes off as a mean-spirited jab towards Star Wars naming conventions. I understand that in "real life" characters would do mundane things - such as Empire officers going drinking after work - but this is Star Wars. I want to hear about the heroics and the adventure, not what Loyalty Officer Bob is doing after work next Wednesday.

Aside from that, the book wasn't "bad" in terms of story - it was just so plain vanilla and watered down that I'm sure I'll have forgotten it a week from now. At least Lost Stars, the YA novel, had an interesting character dynamic at its core that elevated it slightly above the rest just because a love story was something different. Disappointing, but not unexpected.

[Edit] There are actually a handful of known characters in the book, but they aren't central to the main plot. And one had a moment so egregiously head-slapping that I actually had to re-read it a couple of times:

Spoiler:

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Tue Jul 05, 2016 1:59 am

Finished The Girl In The Ice: A Conrad Simonsen Thriller (not to be mistaken with the OTHER "The Girl In the Ice: An Erika Foster Thriller")

On a helo sightseeing trip in Greenland, a body was spotted in the snow in the middle of nowhere. She must have been there for 25 years, and it's clear she's murdered... She was half-naked, with red lipstick, and suffocated with a plastic bag. And if not for the chance flyover and global warming, she'd have NEVER been found. Police Commissioner Conrad "Simon" Simensen soon zeroed in a prime suspect, and started finding more victims, with hints at even more. But soon political pressure was brought to bear, as the investigation started to veer into some sensitive backgrounds that reaches high into the German and Danish governments. Then the granddaughter of the only girl who got away, plus a policewoman (who changed her eye color and hair color to act as bait) both disappeared, along with the suspect...

Nice setup, as we were able to piece together how did the killer came to his insane obsession, and why he rarely if ever strikes which made him that much harder to detect. And the cat and mouse game later was... high tension indeed. But the end feel almost rushed, a bit too *deus ex*. Still, a nice thriller nonetheless.

Hmmm... 6 tentacles out of 8.

Just for grins, I got the OTHER The Girl In the Ice novel as well.

It's only $1.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Tue Jul 05, 2016 1:17 pm

Finished Star Nomad: Fallen Empire Book 1

Alliance has toppled the Empire, and former Alliance space fighter pilot Alysa Marchenko's mind is only getting home to Perun, one of the few planets held by the Empire, and get to her daughter. It was the only thing she wanted after she got the news that her husband had been killed in an Alliance bombing raid. Unfortunately, she only has her skills as a pilot, and Mica, a mechanic who can fix anything... and her knowledge of the planet... a freighter that her mother used to own... a VERY long time ago. After some struggle with local bandits, Alysa reached the ship... only to find an Imperial Cyborg squatting in "her" ship... but after a bit of false start... they agree on a mutually beneficial arrangement... They'll get some passengers, get off the planet, and she'll take him to wherever he needed to go. They picked up two passengers and a "guard", but they all seem to have secrets of their own...

Standard fare action adventure with a misfit crew. Alysa has a quip-y mouth (too much for her own good), the Cyborg "Leonidas" is basically "Spock" (cold straightman, tremendously strong), Mica is Scotty, and there's a Doctor (who knows more than he lets on), a guard (who's into barbeque), and a professor (who's into meditation, and chickens). Not too bad, but probably wouldn't pay full price for it.

Call it... 4.5 out of 8 tentacles.

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Tue Jul 05, 2016 2:21 pm

YellowKing wrote:
Spoiler:
There is a sequence where Admiral Ackbar is wondering if he's heading into another "trap," and the fan service vomited on the page with that passage nearly made my eyes roll out of my head.

This sort of thing annoys me as well. I want my fan service subtle and classy, not screamed into my face "5 dolla sucky sucky!"

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Tue Jul 05, 2016 9:23 pm

Finished Date Night on Union Station by E M. Foner

Interesting premise, fun read.

Kelly Frank is the acting EarthCent Ambassador in Union Station, a giant space station in neutral space operated by the "Stryx" who can inhabit mechanical bodies but also is basically a part of station's infrastructure. Unfortunately, this job has no perks, she's behind on her rent, and she hadn't had a date for... years? So when the office manager got her a subscription service for 5 blind dates matched by the AI that ran the station... she decided to make the most of it... and got into some truly bizarre adventures... from being kidnapped on/for a star cruise to negotiate a contract kill fee for a bunch of students who had ordered an alien disintegrator canon, from chasing down counterfeit Earth goods to negotiating trade deals and discovering what the station AI REALLY have to say about humans... These dates are never quite what they seem to be... but maybe the next person she ran into may even be her true love... Really, it's free, what does she have to lose?

While the premise itself sounds like romantic adventure, it's really just a setup for the hijinx. There are five adventures in this FREE BOOK (yes, the first novel is FREE!) and #2 is just $1.00 There are nine books though.

It's funny when the "date" never turned out to be the way it should be. I think I can give this 6 tentacles out of 8.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Wed Jul 06, 2016 3:48 am

Finished Starship Eternal: Book 1 of War Eternal

Capt Mitchell "Ares" Williams is a space marine/ space fighter pilot and hero of Battle for Liberty, who's being celebrated as a hero after stopping the enemy warship with a perfect shot already coined by the media as "shot heard 'round the universe". Pulled from the war for morale drive, he hates cavorting with politicians, barely tolerates the media spotlight, and yearns to return to the cockpit. After barely surviving an assassination attempt, Williams started to suffer hallucinations that carry a chilling yet familiar warning: "They are coming. Find the Goliath or humankind will be destroyed." The only Goliath that makes sense was the first FTL starship built by humankind after they salvaged the technology from the crashed alien ship known as XENOS-1... and it was lost on its maiden voyage. As he encountered more and more of these hallucinations/messages, suddenly he was embroiled in the biggest scandal and a dragnet is out for his arrest, and except for some unexpected help he would not have survived. He managed to escape to the Rim and ran into the Riggers, a bunch of former military who's considered expendable for black ops... and together, they may be the last best chance for finding the Goliath, the last hope in humankind's survival in the coming war that no one sees coming.

This may involve a bit of spoiler...

Spoiler:

Decent plot twists, though the beginning is a bit lame. The plot twists though gets better and better, and the extra scenes started to make sense. I'm not too sure I want to read all five books though. Call it, 5 tentacles out of 8.

Jolor · Post by **Jolor** » Wed Jul 06, 2016 9:14 am

The Night Circus - Morgenstern
Late to the party with this one and finally powered through after numerous stops/starts over the past 2 (?) years. Not to say that the story wasn't gripping or well-crafted ... I never made it past the first chapter before something "better" came along to read. In all likelihood, it was my preconception that I was about to read a book that really wasn't of high interest, was supposed to be very good, and there it is just sitting there in my daughter's room.

"The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it, no paper notices plastered on lampposts and billboards. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.

Within these nocturnal black-and-white striped tents awaits an utterly unique, a feast for the senses, where one can get lost in a maze of clouds, meander through a lush garden made of ice, stare in wonderment as the tattooed contortionist folds herself into a small glass box, and become deliciously tipsy from the scents of caramel and cinnamon that waft through the air.

Welcome to Le Cirque des Rêves."

6 o' 8 tentacles

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Fri Jul 08, 2016 10:56 am

Out of Tune - edited by Jonathan Maberry.

I love horror short-story anthologies, and like most of them this one ties the shorts together with a theme. In this instance, all the stories are based on famous folk ballads. What's nice is that after each story, there is a short description of the ballad it was based on with the historical context, variations, etc.

There are some top notch Bram Stoker Award-winning writers represented in this collection, and overall I enjoyed it quite a bit. The concept of having them based on different folk ballads means there's a bit more variety than most themed anthologies. As with any collection, some stories are better than others, but there were enough memorable gems to make it a worthwhile read.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Sat Jul 09, 2016 6:29 am

Finished the OTHER "The Girl in the Ice" book. Not bad.

Erika Foster has just returned from a long enforced vacation when a hot case was dropped into her lap... A rich socialite was found in the lake, murdered, her open eyes just under a sheet of ice. Unfortunately, Foster's demons haven't quite left her, as she lost 5 members of her team including her husband on a drug bust few months before, thus the enforced vacation for recuperation. And the more she pokes the less the suspects want to be poked, as the socialite's rich father has a LOT of political connections (having the vice commissioner on speeddial doesn't help). Landing in the middle of office politics didn't help either, as others don't want her in charge. As investigation continued, it becomes clear this wasn't the first girl found strangled in a body of water. When a potential witness turned up dead, murdered the same way, it's clear there's a serial killer stalking London... and Erika Foster herself may be next... For she's learned too much... and gotten too close...

VERY different setup, yet with very similar high concept, this one ends up with a terrific chase and almost TV/movie type plot that it almost can be filmed as a 2-hour special, no deus ex machine ending needed here. And the ending was nicely handled, with clues dropped along the way that only made sense when that final bit of info dropped to close the case.

I can give this 6.5 tentacles out of 8.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Tue Jul 12, 2016 4:46 am

Finished ["Fatal Affair" by Marie Force]) Currently FREE on Amazon for Kindle

Nick Cappuano did not expect to find his boss, US Senator John O'Connor, murdered in bed, in a VERY grisly end. He certainly did not expect to find the lead detective in the investigation to be Sam Holland, whom he had a mad fling with six years ago. Even now he believed she was the one that got away. Sam Holland needed the case to get back into her career after a previous disastrous investigation, and sleeping with a material witness is the last thing she needs, esp. when they seem to have no solid leads, yet every stone they turn over they seem to discover more suspects. Was it the brother, who destroyed his own political ambitions when he can't keep his pants zippered? Was it a childhood sweetheart who got pregnant at 16 but he can't marry? Was it one of his various dalliances in town? Was it a exlover's current husband, jealous of wife's first love? Add a car bomb, a gunman, and political pressure to wrap it up quickly, and it's a real mess. Then body count started to go up...

As a murder mystery, it's a bit on the easy side. I guessed the murderer about 3/4th way in, and I'm usually pretty bad at it. And this is a ROMANTIC thriller, so there's gonna be some sex scenes between the two, albeit rather tastefully done. WHile there are NINE TEN books in the series, I'm not certain I want to read the rest of them.

5 tentacles out of 8.

Carpet_pissr · Post by **Carpet_pissr** » Tue Jul 12, 2016 8:43 am

hitbyambulance wrote:
hitbyambulance wrote:
Carpet_pissr wrote:
Scuzz wrote:I can see how the writing style could turn you off. I think maybe I finally reached a point where I just ignored the technical stuff because I didn't need it, I just assumed it was good science but didn't need to know it.
Exactly what I did. And when I started just skipping past the parts/pages where he was doing mental math, and "showing his work" to the reader, it went much faster for me.

But after digesting it as a whole, I realized that if this was good science, and even Mars-accurate, I would much prefer to just read an actual science journal or article about the challenges on Mars. If it's NOT, then ugh. Just acts as an obstacle to the pretty thin story IMO. The problem (for me), is that I think the pseudo-technical jargon part IS the story...or at least a large part of it. The main character here seems to be "presumed Mars science/physics", which I think was the surprise/disappointment for me.

I picked up my iPhone 6 (Apple, Inc.). I started reading 'The Martian' (Andy Weir). I read 279 electronic pages, which would translate to roughly1456\9=161.777 pages in an actual paper book. Then I stopped and took a break. I put my phone (iPhone 6, remember?!) on the counter, face up, which I had been using to read the book via the Kindle app, owned by Amazon. Then, after eating a small snack consisting of 8 potato chips, and a banana, I resumed my reading of 'The Martian'. I picked up my iPhone 6, slid to unlock the phone, slid 2 pages to find my Kindle app, and opened the app, which was on the 3rd row from the top, 2nd icon over. I then picked up where I left off before my snack. I proceeded to read 18 more pages before I realized that I disliked the book due to the writing style. I stopped reading, and opened the Amazon app. I wanted to read reviews. Reviews of the book. I wanted to read reviews of the book to see what other had said about it. I wanted to read reviews of the book to read what others had said, and why they liked it so much. I read through 18 reviews, sorted by "most helpful", then by DATE, and read the top 7 reviews. They were all good. They really liked the book. Actually, they loved the book. They loved the book so much that it made ME want to love the book too, so I continued reading..."

i'm on page 5 and these exact issues are already making me want to quit.
finished - if this had been instead released as a theoretical 'how to survive on Mars?' reader without the cardboard characters, stilted dialog, easily surmountable situations, lame attempts at humor and general lack of literary merit, i would've been ok with that.

Heh, that book is somewhat of a sacred cow, careful!

It is one of the very few instances where I much preferred the movie over the book.

Scuzz · Post by **Scuzz** » Tue Jul 12, 2016 11:14 am

I finished John Scalzi's Old Man's War last night. It is the second Scalzi book I have read, the first being Redshirts. Redshirts is a comedy, Old Man's War is what I would call an old fashioned space sci-fi adventure book, and I really enjoyed it.

I know this is the firs book in a series but it could be a stand alone. However you do finish the book wanting more of the main character, and I do plan on getting the next book.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Tue Jul 12, 2016 2:40 pm

In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick

I haven't seen the movie that was based on this book, but I'm more inclined to do so now. In 1819 the whaling ship Essex was rammed and sunk by a whale, and what followed is one of the most amazing tales of survival in history. Fascinating account of the life of a whaler, the incident, and the aftermath.

On the downside, I got the audiobook version of this book and just didn't care for the narrator at all. He had a weird cadence to his voice that just grated after awhile. Recommended, but skip the audiobook version.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Tue Jul 12, 2016 2:59 pm

I've spent most of my reading time so far this year reading magazines (mostly the Atlantic), but I'm getting a little bored with that so I'm going to plow back into books. So, time to set up a spot here.

Reading:

When Genius Failed, by Roger Lowenstein.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Wed Jul 13, 2016 2:51 pm

Finished Warrior: Legacy Fleet Book 2 by Nick Webb

I've read book 1 before, so when book 2 was discounted, I picked it up. It's fine bit of "yarn".

The first battle of Earth against the Swarm was won, barely. The Swarm has no inhibitions. The Swarm has no conscience. The Swarm has no Mercy. But Earth has a Hero... Captain Timothy Granger, miraculous survivor of the first battle, piloting the old Constitution to an impossible yet hardwon victory. Now at command of another refitted ship, the Warrior, Granger will lead a fleet to take on the Swarm homeworld... but enemies are plotting. New enemies and new allies emerge. New alliances are made and old ones broken. And there are swarm infiltrators in the Fleet and on Earth... but Granger will fight. And he will win. Because the alternative is unthinkable.

The world painted is nicely detailed, and there are clues left here and there on who are the real traitors, and who are not, so it's NOT a complete surprise at the plot twists... but only if you paid attention. The space combat is a bit on the average side, no clear application of tactics. No forcefields, so the tactics seems to be use rail guns to punch holes in armor then lasers for penetration. Except for the alien "singularity" weapon, and the Terrans have a counter to that, but it's not easy to use... toss an osmium block into it. Except osmium is heavy enough that it made the fighters trying to deliver it sitting ducks for hostile fighters. it's a lot like a torpedo run.

All in all, for the amount of WTF-just-happened plot twists and the amount of backstabbing (who's the real enemy here) it's fine read, if you dig this genre.

6.5 tentacles out of 8.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Wed Jul 13, 2016 4:03 pm

Finished Citadel: First Colony (Book 1 of 3) by Kevin Tumlinson

Humanity has reached the stars, and humanity's second ever colony ship is approaching its destination. Full of misfits, even including an alien, one of humanity's former enemies, the colony has survived several attempts of sabotage, and the legacy of the first colony ship lost in space. However, disaster soon struck. The carrier ship has been sabotaged. The colony module will not disengage from the carrier and the colony captain was forced to take drastic actions: sacrifice himself to shoot off the clamps. The modules finally released only to collide in mid-air and forced into manual control. Upon crash landing, the survivors had to evacuate and extract what they can out of the citadel module and try to locate the cryopods of the other colonists scattered all over after the mid-air collision. They got one shuttle sort of working, and only by retrieving other pods for parts can they hope to effect full repairs. The chain command dictates that the alien captain is in charge, but many humans refuse to submit to the rule. Others are harboring deep dark secrets, yet others have their own deep agendas. And the planet has its own secrets, despite it appears to be uninhabited... Who sabotaged the ship? Why? Can the colony survive, or will man turn on man and doom humans among the stars?

Interesting cast of characters and world building. FTL space is postulated to be anti-electrical unless deeply shielded, so analog and pneumatics and steam and gears (steam punk?) are back, but there's a bit of problem as the pods all contain self-regulating computers with a lot of storage, and how did pod survive the FTL move? The FTL system is described as "light rail", so it seems to require "fixed lines" which doesn't make sense in 3D space... But the problem with the tech side are relatively minor. It's a interesting cast of characters, though a bit long-winded.

5 out of 8 tentacles. Not sure if I want to read the next two books though.

Finished Killer Instinct by Jack Badelaire

William Lynch is a 21-yr Ivy Leaguer on vacation in Paris when he learned that his entire family had been slain and his home burned to the ground, obviously at the hands of the Boston Crime Syndicate, but little actual justice had been done. Lynch hires/begs Richard, an uncle, ex-merc, ex-Vietnam vet, to train him to be a killer... a merc, in order for him to go vigilante... to seek justice on his own terms. This is an origin story, how a soft-spoken college kid turned into a lethal mercenary, and the twists and turns along the way.

As a thriller, it's pretty good. Not quite to the point of Clancy good, but good enough, and there's enough humanity in here to prevent it from falling into "template-dom" (i.e. Mack Bolan #147, et al).

5.5 tentacles out of 8.

Rumpy · Post by **Rumpy** » Mon Jul 18, 2016 3:26 pm

Finished Speak by Lousia Hall. It's really quite good and certainly one of my favourites I've read this year. It's the story of AI, its creation and the people involved. It's sci-fi, but with a more thoughtful and philosophical bent. I almost gave up on it early on, given that each chapter is in a different voice and style, which initially made it hard to get into. But then something magical happened and it gripped me and I found it quite enthralling.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Tue Jul 19, 2016 5:44 am

Finished Space Cruiser Musashi by Deam Chalmers

I bought into the hype (and the $1 special) and the book ended up kinda lame.

RCS Musashi is an old ship with a misfit crew. Kane keeps mentioning the Void (quoting the swordsman Musashi) the XO was disgraced from former position. The helmswoman looks like a sex kitten and is into lesbian S&M... with the XO. Engineer is ubernerd and barely communicates. The doctor hides a deep dark secret. The ship psionicist is antisocial mainly because his brother was a famous traitor, and the marine sergeant is a thinker among grunts. While answering a distress call, they ran into a Valorian ship... Valorians have tremendous psionic powers and actually taught the humans how to form wormholes for interstellar travel, but they are actually human. And they are the head of some conspiracy involving the head of the Terran Interstellar realm... And Musashi ran smack into the middle of it. The ship is outclassed and outmatched, and crashed on a former mining planet... But they were able to defeat the Valorians on the ground, with tremendous sacrifice. But the Musashi will rise again... but will it be enough to defeat the Valorians thi stime? And what about the corrupt officials in the conspiracy? The crew will suffer casualties and fatalities, but justice shall be done...

The sex angle is played up and really makes no f***ing sense. Engineer basically performed one miracle after another. Doctor's secret is bad enough, and is the main thrust of the plot. Psionicist gets some background explained but didn't really mean much. The marine sergeant didn't get to do much either. The conspiracy is believable enough, and the enemy creepy and strong enough without being too weird. But the plot, well, it barely makes sense.

Four and a half tentacles out of eight.

Finished Galaxy of Heroes (Book 1) by Gus Flory (current free on Amazon)

Captain Jace Spade has been in plenty of tough spots, until the Chaldaan, the foremost military power in the galaxy, grabbed him and sent him on a special mission with an offer he literally cannot refuse. But betrayal and doublecross is the rule, not the exception.

Captain Mina Casey was a survivor of the Heliac system, conquered by the Chaldaan a while back, and she drifted until he found a planet to settle down, but trouble is coming, and yes, she knows Spade... and trouble.

Sgt. Joe Grimes was also a Heliac survivor, a former Heliac Ranger, one of the toughest infantry around, but after loss of Helia he's also a drifter, and his only prized possession was Genie, a beautiful and nearly indestructible cyborg.

Genie is a cyborg with perfect proportions, and a lot of extra capabilities, to both love and protect humans... but she knows she's property limited to her programming... and she yearned to be free...

These four unlikely characters are on a collision course, for they will face the Chaldaan armada, an unstoppable force, and determine the fate of a planet. (Maybe)

Sounds intriguing, but I assure you, the summary is better than the book. The four characters to come together, but in a way that really makes no f***ing sense other than prior history revealed bit by bit. Genie used to belong to Spade, who lost her to Grimes at a Poker game. Casey also knew Spade and even did a few deals together, until Spade broke her heart (with Genie), but Spade is more of a grifter than a drifter, except he can also fight on the ground. The book is just full of separate scenes that doesn't really want to link together. Spade gets captured and forced to go on a mission, where he's betrayed, but managed finagle his way out, only to see his crew slaughtered. He took back his ship, escape to this frontier planet, only to ran into Casey and Grimes, where Grimes is basically wasting his money on alcohol while mumbling about escaping to the deep frontier and live on a fresh planet, and then causing enough trouble until Genie bailed him out... physically. Somehow Spade was betrayed again (setup as the fall guy while local leader tried to setup a huge false flag operation against a bogus gang to consolidate power) than the Chaldaans arrived and we ended up with Saving Private Ryan's final battle where they had to hold off enemies including infantry and tanks, but it's no use and they still had to run. Told you it makes no sense.

Three tentacles out of eight.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Tue Jul 19, 2016 10:22 am

Games Without Rules: The Often Interrupted History of Afghanistan by Tamim Ansary

As read by the author. An interesting look into the past two centuries of Afghani political life, dealing with the Brits, the Brits, the Brits, the Soviets, and the Americans, as they are continually hammered by outside empires in an effort to control their rivals.

Throne of Stars by David Weber, John Ringo

Books 3 and 4 of the Empire of Man series. The march across the planet of death resolves, and the heir to the throne realizes that the fight to get off the planet was prologue to a fight for the future of the Empire.

McNutt · Post by **McNutt** » Tue Jul 19, 2016 10:27 am

Kasey, I apologize if I asked you this before, but how are you able to read that many books? It seems like you read one or two books a day. It's incredible.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Tue Jul 19, 2016 11:12 am

McNutt wrote:Kasey, I apologize if I asked you this before, but how are you able to read that many books? It seems like you read one or two books a day. It's incredible.

Kindle has audio narration feature... I turn on TTS and I listen to the book. Most of these cheap novels are only 300 some pages any way, done in a couple hours, esp. if it's set to 2X speed. (Oh, and it had to be a genuine Amazon Fire / Kindle device with TTS, just the Kindle app won't do it)

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Wed Jul 20, 2016 12:09 pm

Finished The Girl From Above Book 1: Betrayal by Pippa DaCosta

Interesting setup, but sub-par delivery scifi.

Caleb Shepperd is a smuggler who barely escaped from a maximum security prison for knowing too much, and some very bad times he'd rather forget. So it's just his luck that a synth, known as #1001, stowed onboard his ship... bringing with her a lot of bad memories for Shepperd, and a huge amount of regret. He's much rather chuck her out the airlock, but she's worth too much.

#1001 is a synth, not human, and while most synths do need to follow the synth laws, she has no such compulsion. She... can kill. And she's been tasked to kill... Shepperd. But why are there memories telling her doing so would be a very bad idea? Who gave her the orders? Why? Does it even matter?

As Shepperd tries to get out from a vast conspiracy to silence him, and wonder what to do w/ 1001, 1001 is debating what to do with Shepperd, and herself. And together, they are about to discover that knowing and thinking too much... has a price, in this galaxy.

To explain the problem, I need to reveal a little spoiler

Spoiler:

It's really sci-fi romantic adventure, not space opera, but the romance is barely there, and clues are dropped along the way that 1001 had some relation with Shepperd, that plot is fine. Unfortunately, the rest of the plot is rather unremarkable, as everybody else has an agenda, even Shepperd's XO, hottest pilot this side of the quadrant... and...

Spoiler:

Average meh. 4 out of 8 tentacles.

Finished The Temporary Agent by Daniel Judson

Five years after his life was saved in Afghanistan by marine Charlie Cahill, ex-seabee Tom Sexton has retired and became a drifter in the US, hoping to leave his violent past behind. He's settled in a small town and met his match in Stella, a woman just as damaged as he is, but just as resourceful and resilient. Then he got a secret signal from his former CO to come back in... due to an emergency. It seems that Charlie Cahill has gone rogue, and some black ops people need Sexton to bring Cahill back in. And suddenly, it seems everybody wanted Sexton and Cahill dead. Where had Cahill gone? Who's behind the large arms caches around the US (and the world)? is the guy who hired him the good guys or the bad guys? Who are the good guys and the bad guys any way? Is he supposed to kill Cahill or save him? Can he even save himself and Stella against an enemy who seems to be everywhere... and nowhere? Who *is* the enemy, and who *is* friendly? Making the wrong decision... may have far more consequences than his life, but lives of thousands.

I may have to re-read this novel, as there's enough deception and intrigue here that I probably missed a couple plot points or foreshadowing. The two groups are out to out-psych and out-fake the other and Sexton is caught in the middle. But this is a good book.

6.5 out of 8 tentacles.

Rumpy · Post by **Rumpy** » Thu Jul 21, 2016 3:19 pm

Now reading Influx by Daniel Suarez, a Crighton-esque sci-fi novel which is quite a bit of fun so far.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Thu Jul 21, 2016 3:24 pm

The War Below: The Story of Three Submarines That Battled Japan

Focusing on the unique stories of three of the war’s top submarines—Silversides, Drum, and Tang—The War Below vividly re-creates the camaraderie, exhilaration, and fear of the brave volunteers who took the fight to the enemy’s coastline in World War II. Award-winning journalist James Scott recounts incredible feats of courage—from an emergency appendectomy performed with kitchen utensils to sailors’ desperate struggle to escape from a flooded submarine—as well as moments of unimaginable tragedy, including an attack on an unmarked enemy freighter carrying 1,800 American prisoners of war.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Fri Jul 22, 2016 12:30 am

I was really into the submarines from playing the first Silent Service sim and owned or read several books on the subject. I read Harry Homewood (Silent Sea, Final Harbor), Charles D. Taylor (mostly modern subs and hypothesized US vs. USSR fleet actions in limited war), Ted Roscoe (The Pig Boats), and a hard bound 5 inch thick book, probably by UNI, that's WW2 US Navy Submarine History. So I am familiar with all the submarine names.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Fri Jul 22, 2016 2:04 am

Finished Excelsior by Jasper T. Scott

The year is 2790... And Earth is about to go to war... with itself. Alliance is on the brink with open warfare with Confederacy... in space... and on the ground. Alliance sends USS Lincoln, commanded by Captain Alexander de Leon out to the edge of the system for a special mission... it is to transit through a newly discovered wormhole and explore a planet on the other side, dubbed Wonderland. Back on earth, Leon's wife "Caty" (Catalina) survived the local war as Leon will be gone for at least two years. Yet she's left in the regular refugee camp and forced to take on menial jobs and take on a husband to survive. Leon's ship survived the trip explored the planet full of dangers, and returned with the info, but all info was lost due to sabotage. There was a spy in the Lincoln's crew... who killed herself when a coded transmission was spotted from the Lincoln to the Confederacy. As Confederacy and Alliance fight to build colony ships to transit the wormhole first, Earth is back again on the brink... but something is not adding up... There's a deeper agenda at play here, but for what purpose?

While the plot twists are fine, the book doesn't quite fit together. The two parallel plot lines (Leon on Wonderland, and Caty on Earth) just don't mesh at all until the end, and the "twist" ending, worthy of M. Night Shyamalan, only sort of makes sense as long as you don't look at the details. Altogether, "meh". Call it 4.5 tentacles out of 8.

Spoiler:

Just went on a buying spree on a lot of sale books, got like 5-10 of them.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Fri Jul 22, 2016 7:10 am

Yes, I do occasionally read romance novels.

Finished Billionaire's Counterfeit Girlfriend by Nadia Lee (free on Amazon)

Hilary Rosenberg is content in her job as executive assistant to one of the most powerful man in LA. She knows she'll never be fashionably thin... She is a redhead with curves, though she hides it under conservative business attire. She had dug herself out of some horrific upbringing and circumstances. Her life is fine with a boyfriend (who doesn't treat her that nice) until one day, when she found out her boyfriend had been cheating on her (a "fiancee" confronted her in the lobby), her crazy "cousin" (who's practically a twin) is back in town, and her boss's friend, billionaire playboy Mark Pryce, asked her for a favor... Go with him on a couple weekend dates, ending with a family picnic, so his mother won't keep trying to set him up with some bimbo heiress. She knew it's just fun. She has no father, and her BF cheated. She can't allow herself to fall in love... esp. w/ a playboy.

Mark Pryce is a billionaire in his own right... started as a bartender, then restaurateur, and became the owners of multiple hot restaurants in town, but has absolutely NO luck in love. His girlfriends only lasts 3 months, so punctual they're known as the "quarterly girls". And there's a LONG list of them, mostly bamboo thin blonde bimbos with boob jobs, NOTHING in common with Hilary Rosenberg. To convince his mother, he'd do a lot to woo Hilary, to make sure she gets the story right, but EVERYBODY knows of his reputation, and his mother has done things behind his back to... ease things along. But Hilary is different. He had been watching her for almost a year, intrigued, wanted to know her better. And he does know how to woo women... Maybe a little too well.

The girl who won't fall for billionaire charm.

The guy who can't run from his playboy reputation.

Add crazy cousin, over-protective mother, and more than a few good friends on either side... can this counterfeit girlfriend turn real? Or was it all a mere mirage?

Nadia Lee is a pen name for a Korean author who got this genre down pretty well. The situation almost reads like some Korean TV romance series with the complicated WTF-ness, but the background is quite nicely written. There's enough "no, don't do that!" moments in the novel with lots of misunderstandings that are the order of the day for melodramas, but then, that's what romance novels are supposed to have, right? Only one sex scene in the whole book. All the characters actually make sense, and they do change a bit by the end of the book, so characterization is above par. Not like a must-read, but above average for sure.

5.5 tentacles out of 8.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Fri Jul 22, 2016 8:12 am

Kasey Chang wrote:I was really into the submarines from playing the first Silent Service sim and owned or read several books on the subject. I read Harry Homewood (Silent Sea, Final Harbor), Charles D. Taylor (mostly modern subs and hypothesized US vs. USSR fleet actions in limited war), Ted Roscoe (The Pig Boats), and a hard bound 5 inch thick book, probably by UNI, that's WW2 US Navy Submarine History. So I am familiar with all the submarine names.

I'm just starting to get back into naval warfare. I have a guy that runs WWI-WWII war gaming.

Back in the 90s, it was all Aces of the Derp. I even wrote a short story in HS for a citywide competitors on American Ingenuity that involved the USS Shark successfully escaping from convoy escorts by making them think she'd been sunk.

Jolor · Post by **Jolor** » Fri Jul 22, 2016 11:35 am

The Brotherhood of the Wheel - Belcher
Author of The Shotgun Arcana and The Six-Gun Tarot, both of which I thoroughly enjoyed.
Mixes urban and ancient mythologies and based on the premise that the Knights Templar still survive, watching over travellers. Amongst them are truckers, taxi drivers, state troopers; those who "live and work on the asphalt arteries".
While keeping travellers safe from evils of all types (thieves, murderers, rapists) they are not unfamiliar with the supernatural dangers of the road. The investigation into a string of missing children (and young adults - hello, market segment) leads to one such encounter. The awakening of this ancient evil threatens to tip the balance of nature and the universe itself.
Masterfully told and a two-day read.
8 o' 8 tentacles

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Fri Jul 22, 2016 11:43 am

Isgrimnur wrote:Aces of the Derp.

Ehrmagerd, serbmerrerns!

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Sun Jul 24, 2016 2:17 am

Finished Sherlock Holmes and the Houdini Birthright by Val Andrews

Val Andrews (RIP) has written over a dozen Sherlock Holmes novellas, most of them set late in Holmes' career, and this one is one of the more interesting ones.

Holmes has retired to Sussex coast raising bees, until suddenly one day he shows up at Watson's door, having received a summons from none other than Harry Houdini, and with help Houdini was able to expose a bogus medium who had fooled the Conan-Doyle's. Houdini later died under odd circumstances as documented in history, a stomach strike by a student, leading to busted appendix and infection eventually to his death. So it is very strange that later, the distraught widow, Bess Houdini, shows up in London, and begs Watson to summon Holmes for another investigation... As there are... suspicions that Houdini may have been murdered. Before the apparently death, Houdini had suffered a series of accidents, including one that broke his ankle WHILE being dunked in the water. As Holmes and Watson chase down leads, it lead them into Canada, and then across the ocean to Hungary. Is Houdini hiding a deep dark secret beyond the grave? Who would want to kill Houdini? As Holmes and Watson close in on the answer, the truth may be even stranger than fiction...

Val Andrews wrote nice stories, and the chronology is nice. Obviously this story had to mess with the real events a bit, but it's a bit of fun read. If you can find this at a discount (like $1) get it.

5.5 or 6 out of 8.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Sun Jul 24, 2016 3:19 am

Finished Splendid Apocalypse, Fall of Old Earth by Timothy J. Gawne, Book 5 of An Old Guy/Cybertank Adventure

Old Guy is a Cybertank in the post-human era. He was there during the fall of Old Earth, how Old Earth almost destroyed itself but the story was never told... until now. The Neo-liberals were in charge and there were no resources left on Earth with 200 billion people. The rich and powerful have left for AlphaCent leaving the junior neo-libs to destroy any competition, and they had made a copy of Old Guy to help them destroy any and all suspected enemies. Elsewhere, the Librarians Temporal are attempting to preserve humanity by creating underground shelters and preserving knowledge in hardcopy, which cannot be censored and/or rewritten at neo-lib's convenience. Is there hope for humanity on Earth? Absolutely, if Old Guy can just do something about these mental controls these darn neo-libs wrote into his system software...

Old Guy series is meant as both sci-fi adventure AND dystopian political satire and this book is the same idea, albeit with even more satire than normal as it's mostly about old Earth rather than sci-fi adventure. The adventure itself is maybe 5.5/8 though you can add a star if you like the political satire.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Mon Jul 25, 2016 2:10 am

Finished Rath's Deception by Piers Platt

Think La Femme Nikita and Jason Bourne, but in a scifi setting, and you got this series.

Rath is an orphan, who got "recruited" into the Janus Group... whose informal name was "The Guild"... of Assassins. The recruits train to be "contractors", assassins for hire. The plan is simple... 50 for 50. Make 50 kills, and you get 50% of whatever the group made off your contracts, which usually comes out to about 100+ million. However, ANY attempt to reveal the group, refuse an assignment, or fail an assignment without making an good faith attempt, and you'll be killed remotely. In return, you get hemobots that will heal you and synthesize drugs and/or counter poison/venom, implants that allow you to change your face, hair, and even a bit of the skin tone, and other enhancements, and a nanobot forge that can build stuff and/or disintegrate stuff, including weapons, grenades, ammo, and so on.

Rath took on various assignments, made his kills, and learned some things he probably shouldn't know, but he also left a bit of a trail behind, enough for one obsessed cop to follow, but the Guild had infiltrated Interstellar police as well. Attempts to investigate the Guild are met with ridicule... and/or outright assassinations. The question becomes... will he survive long enough to collect on his earnings? And what other things he's not supposed to know will he learn?

The plot twists were pretty good, as the author does have pretty good setup, leaving hints ahead of time for the twists so it's not totally a surprise. And it's a good yarn.

Spoiler:

There are four books in the series. I'm not quite sure I want to pay $5 for each, but I'll keep it on my "want to read list". First book's free, so at least read that. It's pretty good. 6 out of 8 tentacles.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Mon Jul 25, 2016 5:11 am

Currently reading Six Gun Snow White by Catheryrine M. Valente

A retelling of the Snow White tale... a VERY unusual setting... the Old West. Yes, you read that right. Our heroine was daughter of a Nevada Silver Baron of low birth and high ambition. He basically forced the Crow to give up one of their most beautiful daughters, Gun that Sings, to him in marriage. And she died at childbirth, never had a chance to name her daughter. The girl grew up with only servants and a governess, and father, and was a total tomboy with guns and animals to keep company (fox, old bear, etc.), except when her father want to present her as a proper lady at certain dinner parties. Only much later did she realize her father lied to everyone... claiming she's his ward, not daughter. Her father later remarried, and it was this (evil) stepmother that dubbed her Snow White, as it's obvious that our heroine, half white half native child, will never be as white as to be accepted...

I'm just getting started, and it's kinda shock to me that this is written in first person. Yes, the narrator was Snow White herself. And it's interesting so far. Very interesting premise, very imaginative. Wonder what other surprises I'll see down the book.

Jolor · Post by **Jolor** » Tue Jul 26, 2016 11:16 pm

The Magicians - Grossman

Another well-known effort on these forums, no doubt. But I'll tell you anyway

Ah, wizardry college, not wizardry school; a college setting with all of the "self-discovery" that college offers. The theme is more mature, correspondingly. Also more risque, sodden, despondent, self-loathing ... Much of the fun of the book comes from some not-so-subtle tweaks at its acknowledgement of influences/predecessors (Potter, Narnia, LotR) but it doesn't do so in a mean manner but rather an appreciative nod. The D&D battle magic spells did, however, have me as soon as the first 'Magic Missile' was cast.
The world-building was a bit slow, in fact ignored as characters were established first, but the payoff was great as the action end-game was very well done.
I bought this book while waiting for Planetfall to come through at the library and blew through in two days; am hoping that the library comes through soon or I'm buying Book 2 very soon.

7 o' 8 tentacles

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Thu Jul 28, 2016 3:35 am

Finished 2 books of the 4 book bundle in The Pike Chronicles 4-book set by G.P. Hudson

Interesting space opera. The first book makes no f***ing sense. Second one is the guy dealing with the consequences, not too bad, but the setup is a bit weak.

Book 1: Sol Shall Rise

Sol System was conquered by Juttari for 500 years until the Diakan, secretly arming the Earthlings, finally got the Earthlings to threw off the overlords. Diakan armed and tech'ed humans, but just enough so they can act as tripwire guards for the Diakan frontier... by defending the jumpgates. Now the Earthlings planned to change the game by creating the first gate-less jump drive, and they want to search for the "Lost Colonies" before the Juttari came and wiped out 2/3rds of Earth population. And the Diakan asked for a captain for this new ship: Captain Jon Pike.

Jon Pike is special. He was in the human resistance before he's 14, and he's VERY good at killing his enemies. When he lost his family in the war, he vowed to make war on the Jutarri, and the Chaanisar, the human proxies, stolen from Earth, brain-chipped to be controlled by the Juttari, to be perfect weapons. And the Diakan has a gift for him... a Diakan symbiont, the first human to receive one, a symbiont that enhanced his physical capabilities. But he's a soldier with no war to fight, as the war has ended. He tried black ops, but it's not enough.

Captain Jon Pike wondered why would Diakan send along a handful of advisors and picked him as commander. And there may be a mole. Pike was attacked before he even got his orders. And an enemy ship was waiting for them, armed with a cloned jump drive, clearly stolen from the humans. Then the ship found some humans in an asteroid field... and a new set of aliens... the Kemmar, who turned out to be... slave traders. And they are... after Pike's ship.

Book 2: Prevail

Pike tried to save the humans he found, gambled everything, and lost. His best friend lost to an alien prison when attempting a rescue mission. His ship lost when kamikaze attacks broke through his defenses when he tried to come to aid of his ground force. His crew lost as they scattered in life boats to avoid capture. The only ones he had left was the Reiver woman and her daughter, who Pike virtually adopted after he rescued them before the rescue attempt on the planet. When an unexpected ally emerged, and it turned out to be their former enemy, the Chaanisars, who apparently overthrew their Juttari masters despite the brainchips.

The Chaanisars need Pike's crew. They need the doctor to remove the brainchips, because somehow, a virus had disabled the local control signal projector thus freeing the Chaanisars, but it's merely temporary. They cannot return to Juttari space lest they be under control again.

Together, they have discovered the lost colonies, only to be betrayed in a power struggle.

Found the 4-book bundle for $1.00 (or was it $2.00?) the other day, must be a pricing mistake or temporary sale, but whatever.

Spoiler:

While the space opera portion of the fight was fine, the characters are mostly WTF? and paperthin. You have the reckless supersoldier/leader, the proverbial best-buddy marine sergeant, the super-badass mom and her cutie-pie kid, the nerdy engineer, the inscrutable alien, and the super-hardworking XO. The motivation for these folks are paper-thin. At least the tech don't look too out of place.

4.5 out of 8 stars so far, doubt it'd improve much. Will report back when I finish the other two books.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Fri Jul 29, 2016 4:40 pm

Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis

I've recently been trying to plow through my Kindle backlog, and this one was next on the list. I'm down to about 15 books left before I can feel guilt-free about buying new ones, so I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

"Moneyball" was a freebie I got some time ago during a promotion, and the only reason I grabbed it was because I had enjoyed the 2011 film based on it. However, I am the farthest thing from a "baseball" guy as you'd ever want to see. I don't watch baseball, I don't care about baseball, I don't have a favorite team. I've seen one professional game in my life, and while it was fun, if I never went to another one I doubt I'd miss it.

However, the statistics and number-crunching behind this book did fascinate me quite a bit, and those are the parts that kept me thoroughly entertained. Unfortunately most of that stuff occurs early on, with the end of the book getting deeper into actual baseball which bored me (I know, sounds a bit backwards). Still, it was a pretty quick read and I don't mind spending a little time in subject areas that I'm not necessarily a huge fan of, because you never know when that information may lead to something new that you do enjoy.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Sun Jul 31, 2016 3:37 am

Finished "Sullivan's War, Sullivan Saga Book 1" by Michael K. Rose.

On Earth, a powerful politician was murdered, and Interstellar Police detective Frank Allen quickly narrowed in on a suspect: Rick Sullivan. But the more Allen investigated, the less he's sure Sullivan need to be stopped. For Sullivan is not merely murdering people, but he's fighting a war... a war of independence for his planet, where an oppressive military is suppressing the population. He was the best operator that military had produced, but an incident involving slaughter of civilians pushed him over the edge. Made him into who he is today. Allen investigated and chased Sullivan across several star systems, but his heart was not in it any more, and soon Allen will have to pay a terrible price... and Sullivan will lead a planet to strike for its freedom... or die trying.

Think Jason Bourne with a dash of La Miserable with a bit of scifi, plus guerilla action against an army and Hitler's final days in a Bunker, and you got Sullivan's War. The book almost switches genres at a whim, going from police procedural to adventure to small squad combat to spy thriller and back and forth. There's a TON of characters, even a bit of romance in the middle. Plus this universe's equivalent of the Prophets in the Celestial Temple (i.e. Wormhole Aliens, DS9). Yes, it's messy.

It's not a bad yarn, but altogether, didn't really make me want to read book 2 and 3. Call it 5 out 8 tentacles.

Kasey Chang · Post by **Kasey Chang** » Sun Jul 31, 2016 3:46 am

Finished Sherlock Holmes and the Sandringham House Mystery a novella by Val Andrews

Another Sherlock Holmes adventure by Val Andrews, this one is just before WW1. When a painting vanished from Sandringham House, one of King Edward's many residences, with the Royal Illusionist Horace Goldin performing in house to His Majesty, and it turned out to be an almost priceless Rembrandt, Holmes and Watson were drawn into this adventure. While Goldin is not being suspected, it's not doing his reputation any good either. Holmes and Watson go undercover as Magician's Assistants and found one surprise after another, not all of it pleasant.

Val Andrews knows his Sherlockian lore and his familiarity with magic (for he's a fan of such) means this book has quite a bit about magic shows and all the Sherlockian stuff sounds quite authentic, and the mystery itself is nicely done. Though the ending felt it was drawn out a bit too far as if it had to be padded to its final length. Still, at least 6 out of 8.