This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Technos Series: Dumarest #7 Author: EC Tubb Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 154 Words: 47K
At least this book wasn’t named after a woman. I was getting rather tired of that. Of course, Earl Dumarest sleeps around like a flipping clock. I mean, a space prostitute is so smitten by him that she gives him a freebie, apparently all night long. Sigh.
The story is the same as all the previous ones. Earl is trying to track down more info about Earth, goes to a hellhole of a planet, finds out it was all for naught, gets one teensy tiny clue and then goes off hunting again.While fighting off Cyclan plots.
It’s always the setting and whatever adventure is written that makes these stand out. Here Earl has to hide out on a technological planet and survive a mechanical death maze. It was pretty cool.
Once again the cover is awesome. Earl is wearing his usual 70’s disco-spacesuit with the bubble helmet. It just makes me want to do the whole Dance Fever, John Travolta thing. Oh Beeeeehaaaaave!
★★★✬☆
From the Publisher
Synopsis – click to open
“A dying man’s last words brought Dumarest to Loame, ‘the garden planet’. Its name was a mockery–Loame’s gentle citizens could only watch in horror as their fields were ravaged by a mutated vine that destroyed all it touched. They were sure the acid-dripping vine was the work of their enemy world, Technos.
Technos was not a world open to outsiders–but Dumarest is not a man who takes no for an answer. As a fugitive, as a prisoner of war, as the captive bedmate of a queen, he continues his quest, seeking an answer to the question that his his life’s obsesson: ‘Have you ever heard of a planet called _Earth_?'”
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: KTF Part II Series: Galaxy’s Edge #17 Author: Jason Anspach & Nick Cole Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars Genre: Military SF Pages: 285 Words: 117K
This series is done. I’m glad. It had sunk to disappointing levels. Even here, Anspach and Cole (the authors) do their best to get rid of every “force” user and divorce this series from its space opera roots. Not particularly happy with them as authors right now.
I do have a couple of standalone Tyrus Rex novels still to read by them. I still haven’t decided if I’ll actually read them or not. I don’t have anything else to say that won’t sent me descending into a rant and I just don’t have the energy for that right now.
★★✬☆☆
From the Publisher
IT ALL ENDS HERE.
Every decision, battle, triumph, and heartache has led the galaxy to this moment.
The Republic is spun wildly into sudden war as Gomarii slavers, in overwhelming numbers, strike on behalf of their Savage allies. The battle is fiercest on a newly rediscovered world: Earth.
But galactic war is only the symptom of an older, deeper, and far more dangerous conflict. Now Keel and Ravi must work frantically to assemble the warriors needed to withstand an ancient threat, and Prisma must wrestle to control her own inner darkness. While on the front lines, Death’s grim specter comes for Chhun and Victory Company.
For once again, a Legion stands steadfast before the void.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Boundless Series: Lost Fleet: Outlands #1 Author: Jack Campbell Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: Mil-SF Pages: 317 Words: 124K
After reading the prequel series The Genesis Fleet and not being very impressed, I was wondering how I was going to handle Campbell’s foray into the next Black Jack Geary Adventure. It has been 8 years after all.
Thankfully, Campbell does a great job of recapping things and bringing wayward readers like myself up to speed. Thus I dived back into the Lost Fleet universe and had myself a grand old time.
This was everything that previous Lost Fleet books are. You get Jack Geary being forced to walk that impossible line between doing the right thing while corrupt politicians do everything in their power to destroy him by hook or by crook. He’s given conflicting orders, hampered by stupid citizenry, surrounded by enemies as well as crew who border on hero worship of the worst kind.
There are space battles but thankfully that plays a smaller part than usual. I have had my fill of space battles from reading the Empire Rising series by Holmes. Sadly, with Campbell being a retired Navy officer, there’s not much space marine fighting described. It’s all ship to ship, sigh.
Overall though, I had a better time reading this than the Genesis fleet trilogy and that bodes well for the rest of the trilogy.
★★★✬☆
From the Publisher
click to open
Geary believed in the Alliance. Even when he uncovered overwhelming evidence that the highest echelons of the government and fleet command were involved in secret programs and prison camps, he believed it was worth saving. And that his duty was to see that justice was served even though some factions feared that revealing the truth would cause the Alliance to crumble.
But after narrowly surviving two assassination attempts when he brings evidence of the misdeeds to the capital star system, Geary realizes that some have decided the easiest way to make the Alliance’s problems go away is to get rid of him. He finds himself ordered to undertake a perilous new mission outside of the reaches of human-occupied space while the Senate clashes over the evidence.
Geary’s warships must escort a diplomatic and scientific mission across the dangerous, disintegrating remnants of the Syndicate Worlds empire. But even if he can make it to Midway Star System, the gateway to alien-controlled space, Geary will face former Syndicate officials who have rebelled and regard the Alliance with deep suspicion. And that will be the easy part. . . .
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: The Web of Spider Series: Spider #3 Author: William Gear Rating: 1.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 668 Words: 241K
This was twice as long as the first book and it was NOT twice as good.
This was very much a religious treatise as much as it was a science fiction “story”. There were pages of Gear using his characters to talk about neo-shamanism and how wonderful it is to serve a god who doesn’t know everything and who is both good and evil.
How anyone could find that desirable is well beyond me.
Gear also takes some heavy handed swipes at monotheistic religions, ie Judaism, Islam and Christianity. Unfortunately, Christianity is the one he focuses on and just ignores the other two.
I wanted to quit several times, but I was reading this concurrently with Neuromancer and that was so bad that I couldn’t tell if my desire to quit was because this book was really that unenjoyable or if Neuromancer was just sucking the reading joy from my life. Looking back now, its obvious to me this book WAS that bad and I should have dnf’d right near the start. One more mark against Neuromancer for destroying my senses in regarding other books.
★✬☆☆☆
From the publisher
Click to Open
THE FINAL CONFLICT!
The Sirian rebellion had proved the catalyst for the rise of two powerful new forces in the galaxy. Ngen Van Chow, leader of the failed rebellion, had fled to a distant world, establishing a base from which he would launch an interstellar holy war of destruction, a war fuelled by the discovery of a long-hidden technology which could transform ordinary men and women into fanatical soldiers of Deus.
While on the long-lost colony planet of World, the Romanans, known as the warriors of Spider, and their Patrol allies – formerly part of the military and police force which kept order among the worlds and stations controlled by the computer network of the Directorate – prepared for civilization’s final stand against this seemingly unstoppable conqueror.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Neuromancer Series: The Sprawl #1 Author: William Gibson Rating: 0.5 of 5 Stars Genre: Cyberpunk Pages: 251 Words: 84K
Because this might be seen by more than the usual suspects, I spoil my reviews. So read at your own risk. But if you’re reading Neuromancer, you deserve whatever you get. No sympathy from me. This is a rage fueled hate re-read of this book and I plan on venting my spleen at John Wick levels, and I have pencils. You have been warned.
PART I Chapter 1 – In which Bookstooge meets some Main Characters, and Hates them.
Having read this once before, back in 2011 (2011 Neuromancer Review) I was passably familiar with what I was getting into. My review back then left a lot to be desired, even by me, someone who is usually pithy and pointed and rather economical with my words. However, it bloody well sums up this whole first chapter to a flipping Tee. Maybe my pithy pointedness was more spot on than I realized.
We are introduced to Case, a drug addicted hacker who stole data from the wrong people (those employing him, dumbass!) and they burnt out his nervous system so he could never jack into the system (here called The Matrix. Hmmmmm, sound familiar?) again. Case is 24 and on such a downward trajectory that he’ll commit suicide by risky job within a month.
Everyone who Case knows, or comes into contact with, is as much a junkie and a loser as himself. We are talking scum of the Earth here. Case’s dealer is trying to steal from him, his ex-girlfriend lies to him to steal 3megabytes of RAM (oh, did I laugh out loud at THAT!!!). Case is so strung out that he can’t function without drugs.
Speaking of drugs, Gibson for sure was a damned junkie himself at some point. His use of terminology and slang is way too prolific to have been learned using a dictionary and thesaurus. I HATE drugs. They destroy the very essence of a person and leave them a shambling wreck that only causes pain and ruin to those around them. As far as I’m concerned, drugs are the physical embodiment of spiritual evil. And our main character Case has deliberately placed himself within that web of evil.
Rage fueled hate read? Oh, game on!
Chapter 2 – In Which Bookstooge meets some other characters
At chapter’s beginning we meet Case’s new employer, an Ex-Special Forces military guy and his crazy teched out assassin girl. Who has Wolverine style fingernails. Case gets his matrix jockey ability back, has sex with the tech assassin, watches his ex-girlfriend get whacked by a former employer and is disappointed that his new mods make drugs of no use to him any more.
Wow, what a bunch of scumbags killing each other. I wasn’t sad about that at all. Case proves what a man whore he is and between that and his former drug use, if he dies I’ll be happy. When you hate the main character from the get-go, and that hatred only grows in the second chapter, it just doesn’t bode well for the book as a whole.
Gibson really throws around a lot of tech terms in this chapter. I don’t know enough to tell if he was using some real terminology or if it was just mystical mumbo jumbo garbage. I think it was all complete bullshit, but then I’m not exactly unbiased about Gibson.
PART II
Chapter 3 – In Which Bookstooge reads a metric ton of technobabble and rolls his eyes a lot
I seriously thought of giving up in this chapter. Chase gets his online mojo back, has a lot of sex with Molly the ninja/assassin/thingy and finds out that he is biologically boobytrapped to help him stay loyal to his employer. Then Gibson throws around even MORE technobabble, to the point where it didn’t make any sense to me and my mind just skipped over it. And I didn’t feel like it made one iota of difference to the story.
Chapter 4 – In Which terrorists help our protagonist to steal something from a library
Booo! Stealing from a library, booo!!!!!! I don’t care if it’s some super duper secret locked down online only library, it’s just plain despicable to steal from one. Even if it’s a digital version of Case’s old mentor who taught him every cowboy trick he knew (apparently Gibson didn’t foresee that Brokeback Mountain would be a thing in the future and that we could make endless jokes about cowboys). While the graphic sex scene happened earlier in the book, there’s still pornographic levels of description included. Bad people, worse people, and then people I don’t know how to describe other than plain and simple evil, doing bad things, doing worse thing and doing evil things.
Chapter 5 – In Which Bookstooge learns that AI are really pulling the strings and Case meets the digital version of his old boss
I have such issues with how AI are used in stories and in popular culture. Digital selves as well. It all springs from the idea that our minds are self-existing containers and as long as you scoop all the info-goop, you can dump that goop somewhere else and still have that mind. I call it the harddrive fallacy. We are more than just containers for data. There is a reason every human is unique. Genes, dna, bits of broken biology, etc. It all comes together to make the person. We are our minds, our bodies and our wills/emotions/spirits. Take away one and it changes everything. Plus, the idea that sentience can come out of non-sentience is so bullshit that how any intelligent person can give it credence in real life is ridiculous. Most of the time I don’t mind, because it’s just a plot line like “aliens” or superheroes. We all know the X-Men aren’t real nor can they be. But imagine if people actually thought they could be and started irradiating themselves. And a whole culture lived that way. It would be madness. And our culture is descending into madness and the promise of “AI” is just one step down along that path.
Chapter 6 & 7– In Which Bookstooge just gives up.
I’m reading the rest of the book, but it’s not worth any more commentary than these blasted 1000 words I’ve already given it. Pure trash. Drivel. Garbage. Filth.
There, that’s three pencils in Gibson’s eye! I hope it hurts, a lot.
PART III
Chapter 8 – In which Bookstooge keeps writing
because that’s what I do. I don’t do drugs, or whore around or kill people. I write. So if I have to suffer this wretched book, then I’m going to make sure you suffer as much as I possibly can make you with my words. In fact, you are simply:
USELESS
LOSER
SCUMBAG
UNLOVABLE
WASTE OF SPACE
INSIGNIFICANT
STUPID
GULLIBLE
FAT
UGLY
STINKY
DIRTY
There, did I manage to hurt your feelings at all? I hope so. Now you don’t have to read this book and hurt your brain.
Chapters 9-16 – In Which Bookstooge wishes he was dead
This book is only 250 pages and it feels like I have spent a veritable eternity here. It’s horrible, just horrible I tell you! This is the book that simply will not end. No matter how much time I spend reading this, it just keeps going! It’s like I’m stuck in some sort of horror themed Dr Who episode where terrible things are happening just offscreen but the terror is palpable.
I guess, let me put it this way. Last month I had a needle stuck in each of my eyes. I would rather do that again than continuing this. But I am so tough, so macho, so manly and totally a man’s man that I’m going to cry like a little baby and keep on reading!
~strikes macho pose
Don’t even think about questioning my utter hatred of this absolute piece of moldering, maggot infested tripe. I hate this enough to finish it.
Chapters 17-End – In Which Bookstooge proves that nothing is more implacable than him.
I finished this. I finished this disgusting piece of shit and I feel bad. I feel terrible. I feel terrible that I wasted my time. I feel terrible that a person can exist whose mind is even capable of writing utter drivel and dreck like this. There is NO justification for this novel or it’s influence on Cyberpunk. But it explains why I’ve always hated cyberpunk. I probably blocked out the details of my previous read but my subconscious kept the truth just out of focus, but still there.
This is the exact scenario I imagine when I don’t listen to my gut and a read goes disastrously wrong. I knew I was going to hate this, based on my original read from years ago, but I had no idea it would be this bad. I know I haven’t given you analytical details. But when your eyeballs have been gouged out and your entrails are sliding out of your sliced up stomach, will you really tell someone “Oh boy, this really hurts. Gibson just scooped my eyeballs out, cut my abdomen open and is in the process of ripping my guts out.” No, you’d be screaming and clawing and too busy dying horribly. That is my experience with this book. Melodramatic? Absolutely! Is this is horrible book? Even MORE absolutely.
I have serious regrets about re-reading this book. It sucked all the joy out of reading for me for weeks on end. It has burned out my desire to write reviews and I don’t know when I’ll recover. But as I view the wreckage that is my literary self, I can cross my arms in satisfaction, KNOWING that I was tougher than this book. I beat it. I finished it. AND I BLOODY WELL WROTE ABOUT EVERY EXCRUCIATING EXPERIENCE. I am scalped, I am gutted, I am sliced to pieces but I stand here, screaming out into the internet, I STILL STAND!!!! I am tougher than this book. I am more determined than Gibson ever could be. I am victorious because I beat this book to a bloody pulp and it’s not getting up and walking away from this, while I am.
This was a crucible experience and now I am on the other side. Let the healing begin.
This post was brought to you by SciFiMonth2024 and hosted by various individuals. I’ll hold Bookforager responsible this time though 😉
✬☆☆☆☆
From Wikipedia
Synopsis – click to open
Henry Dorsett Case is a low-level hustler in the dystopian underworld of Chiba City, Japan. Once a talented computer hacker and “console cowboy”, Case was caught stealing from his employer. As punishment, Case’s central nervous system was damaged, leaving him unable to access the virtual reality dataspace called the “matrix”. Case is approached by Molly Millions, an augmented “razorgirl” and mercenary on behalf of a shadowy US ex-military officer named Armitage, who offers to cure Case for his services as a hacker. Case agrees, and his nervous system is repaired, though sacs of poison are placed in his blood vessels. If Case completes the job, Armitage will have the sacs removed; if not, they will burst and cripple him again.
Armitage has Case and Molly steal a ROM module that contains the saved consciousness of one of Case’s mentors, legendary cyber-cowboy McCoy Pauley.
Case and Molly discover Armitage’s former identity as Colonel Willis Corto. Corto was a member of “Operation Screaming Fist,” meant to disrupt Soviet computer systems. As his team attacked a Soviet computer center, EMP weapons shut down their flight systems. He and a few survivors escaped over the Finnish border, but their helicopter was shot down, killing everyone except for Corto. After months in a hospital, Corto was visited by a US government official, who returned him to the United States to receive psychotherapy and reconstructive surgery. After providing what he came to realize was false testimony, misleading the public and protecting corrupt military officers, Corto snapped, killed the official who contacted him, and disappeared into the criminal underworld, becoming Armitage.
In Istanbul, the team recruits Peter Riviera, a sociopathic thief and drug addict. The trail leads Case to Wintermute, an artificial intelligence created by the Tessier-Ashpool family. The Tessier-Ashpools spend their time in cryonic preservation at Freeside, a cylindrical space habitat which functions as a Las Vegas-style space resort for the wealthy.
Wintermute reveals itself to Case and explains that it is one half of a super-AI entity planned by the family. It has been programmed with a need to merge with its other half, Neuromancer, and has recruited Armitage and his team since it cannot achieve this goal by itself. Case is tasked with entering cyberspace to pierce the software barriers with an icebreaker program. Riviera is to obtain the password to the lock from Lady 3Jane Marie-France Tessier-Ashpool, the CEO of the family’s corporation.
Armitage’s personality starts to revert to the Corto personality as he relives Screaming Fist. It is revealed that Wintermute had originally contacted Corto through a computer during his psychotherapy, creating his Armitage persona. As Corto breaks through, he is uncontrollable, and Wintermute ejects him into space.
Riviera meets Lady 3Jane and tries to stop the mission, helping Lady 3Jane and Hideo, her ninja bodyguard, capture Molly. Under orders from Wintermute, Case tracks Molly down. Neuromancer traps Case within a simulated reality after he enters cyberspace. He finds the consciousness of Linda Lee, his girlfriend from Chiba City, who was murdered by one of his underworld contacts. He also meets Neuromancer, who takes the form of a young boy. Neuromancer tries to convince Case to remain in the virtual world with Linda, but Case refuses.
With Wintermute guiding them, Case goes to confront Lady 3Jane, Riviera, and Hideo. Riviera tries to kill Case, but Lady 3Jane is sympathetic towards Case and Molly, and Hideo protects him. Riviera flees, and Molly explains that he is doomed anyway, as she had spiked his drugs with a lethal toxin. The team makes it to the computer terminal. Case enters cyberspace to guide the icebreaker; Lady 3Jane is induced to give up her password, and the lock opens. Wintermute unites with Neuromancer, becoming a superconsciousness. The poison in Case’s bloodstream is washed out and he and Molly are profusely paid, while Pauley’s ROM construct is apparently erased at his own request.
Molly leaves Case, who finds a new girlfriend and resumes his hacking work. Wintermute/Neuromancer contacts him, claiming it has become “the sum total of the works, the whole show” and is looking for others like itself. Scanning recorded transmissions, the super-AI finds a transmission from the Alpha Centauri star system.
While logged into cyberspace, Case glimpses Neuromancer standing in the distance with Linda Lee, and himself. He also hears inhuman laughter, which suggests that Pauley still lives. The sighting implies that Neuromancer created a copy of Case’s consciousness, which now exists in cyberspace with those of Linda and Pauley.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Lallia Series: Dumarest #6 Author: EC Tubb Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 154 Words: 44K
Dumarest meets another chickie-boo, has some adventures in space, finds an ancient artifact that performs miracles of healing and gets a better idea of where Earth is located. Of course, Chickie-boo dies. I suspect every girl Dumarest meets is going to fall in love with him and then die. Talk about a Black Widower
These adventures of Earl’s are like mini-adventures. Just enough to keep life interesting but not long enough to call it an adventure steak. It’s like getting one big steak tip, knowing there’s a whole bowlful of them.
So while I’d like gorge myself, Tubb is forcing self-control on me by doling these out one at a time. It’s good for me, so I can only complain so much about it before being forced to admit the justice of it all.
★★★✬☆
From Wikipedia.org Dumarest is searching for old charts, and takes passage as a cargo handler on a run-down old trading ship. The dynamics of the flawed men forming the crew are well-described. An agent of the Cyclan confronts Dumarest, and indirectly this reveals a secret property of Dumarest’s ring. Dumarest is healed by an alien ship or device, which gives him a vision showing where Earth is located.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Predator: If It Bleeds Series: —– Author: Bryan Schmidt Rating: 3 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 292 Words: 115K
Much, much better than that horrible Eyes of the Demon collection. At the same time, some of these stories just felt like they were missing something. Like the author had heard about the Predator but hadn’t actually seen any of the movies or read any of the comics. Yet some of stories were so spot on that it felt like a good starter script for another “good” Predator movie.
Overall, I was quite satisfied with this collection and I think I’ll let it stay in my personal library for if I ever decide to re-read it.
★★★☆☆
Table of Contents:
Click to Open
INTRODUCTION by Bryan Thomas Schmidt
DEVIL DOGS by Tim Lebbon
STONEWALL’S LAST STAND by Jeremy Robinson
REMATCH by Steve Perry
MAY BLOOD PAVE MY WAY HOME by Weston Ochse
STORM BLOOD by Peter J. Wacks and David Boop
LAST REPORT FROM THE KSS PSYCHOPOMP by Jennifer Brozek
SKELD’S KEEP by S. D. Perry
INDIGENOUS SPECIES by Kevin J. Anderson
BLOOD AND SAND by Mira Grant
TIN WARRIOR by John Shirley
THREE SPARKS by Larry Correia
THE PILOT by Andrew Mayne
BUFFALO JUMP by Wendy N. Wagner
DRUG WAR by Bryan Thomas Schmidt and Holly Roberds
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Last Stand Series: Empire Rising #12 Author: David Holmes Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 364 Words: 143K
Man, I did not see the Kurullians showing up and saving the day, not at all. I was seeing humanity about to be destroyed, again, and I knew it couldn’t happen, because of the snippets from the beginnings of each chapter, which are from 500 years later. So I saw an untenable position for humanity, saw no way out and yet knew the author would pull a rabbit out of his literary hat, somehow.
And yet.
And Yet.
I was as tense as anything waiting for things to work out.
That takes skill on an author’s side to be able to do such things. I realize this is book 12 but Holmes has shown a consistency in his skill level that I appreciate. Doesn’t mean he’s a wordsmith like Rex Stout or a story teller like Charles Dickens (Holmes could use a good editor to cut down on some of the expositional scenes that go on for pages) but he has not let me down yet.
If you like military science fiction, I highly recommend this series. It’s a bit more space ship oriented than I care for, but it is good nonetheless.
★★★✬☆
From the Publisher & Bookstooge.blog
Synopsis – Click to Open
The orbital Battle of New Shanghai has been lost. What is left of the Allied fleet under James Somerville’s command is in full retreat. The Imperial Marines and Colonial Militia on the planet’s surface are left alone and without support. With a Karacknid fleet in orbit and tens of thousands of ground troops being landed, it is General Johnston’s duty to fight Humanity’s enemy to the last man. For he is the only thing delaying the Karacknid fleet from pushing on to Earth and completing their conquest of the Human Empire. Meanwhile James must scrabble together what meagre forces he can and ready the defenses of the homeworld. With his fleet already beaten once, hope has all but been extinguished. Still, he will make his last stand and fight to the death for the sake of his family and his Empire.
When a fleet of Kurullian worldships show up to help defend Earth and the Alliance, James realizes they have a very slim chance to strike at the heart of the Karacknian Empire and challenge the Warlord himself, which is the only chance the Alliance has in the long term.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: KTF Part I Series: Galaxy’s Edge #16 Author: Jason Anspach & Nick Cole Rating: 3 of 5 Stars Genre: Military SF Pages: 267 Words: 87K
KTF stands for Kill Them First, which is one of the mottoes of the Legion.
It turns out that Ravi, the last Ancient in our universe, didn’t die in the previous book. He simply broke a covenant that freed Dark Forces to act as they were going to eventually anyway.
And all during this time, the original Savage has been biding his time, learning, becoming knowledgeable in the power that Goth Sullus called The Crux. The power that Prisma is trying to learn about. She is now with her mother, who is also a savage in thrall to this God of the Savages. He is the one who set the original Savage Wars in motion and now, he not only plans on starting the Second Savage War, but he also has plans to contain the Consumption, the Dark Force that has been trying to gain access to our universe. With that power under his control, he truly IS approaching godhood.
I enjoyed this much more than the previous book but not enough to redeem the path the authors are going overall.
The Consumption is the Dark Force that Tyrus Rechs was trying to warn everyone against. It is the force the Legion was created to eventually fight against and when the Legion went bad before Article 19, the force Dark Ops were created to fight against. And it turns out he was being used by the Savage King even way back then. So everything we thought we knew has been thrown into question.
This was a good, enjoyable military science fiction story and if this wasn’t book 16 in a series, I’d probably give it a much higher rating, maybe even a 4star. But the authors, Anspach and Cole, have spit on me and my Star Wars fandom and I can’t overlook that, nor will I. 3Stars is as high as my reading conscious will let me go.
★★★☆☆
From the Publisher
Synopsis – click to open
The Savage Wars never ended.
As Kill Team Victory and General Chhun take control of the cities on Kima, a war every bit as spiritual as it is physical rages in the deepest parts of galaxy’s edge. The Legion, and the Republic military at large, struggle to deal with a sudden multitude of planetary invasions and uprisings — with rumors of mysterious ships breaking the peace achieved by Article Nineteen. Meanwhile Captain Aeson Keel continues his search for Prisma, aided by friends from both his past and present. But only mankind’s oldest ally can hold back the tide of ultimate destruction. For an unknown darkness is closing in, and the Republic once again stands on the threshold of galactic war.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Mostly Harmless Series: THGttG #5 Author: Douglas Adams Rating: 1 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 148 Words: 64K
In the first book, I stated that the philosophy of Hedonistic Nihilism portrayed by Adams disturbed me. That got some good comments going.
Well, I feel flipping vindicated. The book ends with the Vogons destroying every version of Earth on every possible space/time continuum. And Arthur just sits back and enjoys the thought of the coming total nonexistence coming his way.
I cannot state strongly enough how abhorrent I find that attitude.
★☆☆☆☆
ps,
Two sub-2star books in a row is a REALLY BAD WAY TO START THE MONTH!!! Just saying…
From Wikipedia
Synopsis – click to open
Arthur Dent plans to sightsee across the Galaxy with his girlfriend Fenchurch, but she disappears during a hyperspace jump, a result of being from an unstable sector of the Galaxy. Depressed, Arthur continues to travel the galaxy using samples of his bodily tissues/fluids to fund his travels, assured of his safety until he visits Stavromula Beta, having killed an incarnation of Agrajag at some point in the future at said planet. During one trip, he ends up stranded on the homely planet Lamuella, and decides to stay to become a sandwich maker for the local population.
Meanwhile, Ford Prefect has returned to the offices of the Hitchhiker’s Guide, and is annoyed to find out the original publishing company, Megadodo Publications, has been taken over by InfiniDim Enterprises, which are run by the Vogons. Fearing for his life, he escapes the building, along the way stealing the yet-unpublished, seemingly sentient Hitchhiker’s Guide Mk. II. He goes into hiding after sending the Guide to himself, care of Arthur, for safekeeping.
On Lamuella, Arthur is surprised by the appearance of Trillian with a teenage daughter, Random Dent. Trillian explains that she wanted a child, and used the only human DNA she could find, thus claiming that Arthur is Random’s father. She leaves Random with Arthur to allow her to better pursue her career as an intergalactic reporter. Random is frustrated with Arthur and life on Lamuella; when Ford’s package to Arthur arrives, she takes it and discovers the Guide. The Guide helps her to escape the planet on Ford’s ship after Ford arrives on the planet looking for Arthur. Discovering Random, the Guide, and Ford’s ship missing, the two manage to find a way to leave Lamuella and head for Earth, where they suspect Random is also heading to find Trillian. Ford expresses concern at the Guide’s manipulation of events, noting its “Unfiltered Perception” and fearing its potence and ultimate objective.
Reporter Tricia McMillan is a version of Trillian living on an alternate Earth who never took Zaphod Beeblebrox’s offer to travel in space. She is approached by an extraterrestrial species, the Grebulons, who have created a base of operations on the planet Rupert, a recently discovered tenth planet in the Solar System. However, due to damage to their ship in arriving, they have lost most of their computer core and their memories, with the only salvageable instructions being to observe something interesting with Earth. They ask Tricia’s help to adapt astrology charts for Rupert in exchange for allowing her to interview them. She fulfills their request and conducts the interview, but the resulting footage looks so fake that she fears it will destroy her reputation if broadcast. She is called away from editing the footage to report on a spaceship landing in the middle of London.
As Tricia arrives at the scene, Random steps off the ship and begins to yell at her, mistaking Tricia for her mother. Arthur, Ford, and Trillian arrive and help Tricia to calm Random. They remove her from the chaos surrounding the spacecraft and take her to a bar. Trillian tries to warn the group that the Grebulons, having become bored with their mission, are about to destroy the Earth. Random disrupts the discussion by producing a laser gun she took from her ship. Arthur, still believing he cannot die, tries to calm Random, but a distraction causes her to fire the weapon, sending the bar into a panic. Arthur tends to a man hit by the blast, who drops a matchbook with the name of the bar – “Stavro Mueller – Beta” – and Arthur realizes that this is the scene of Agrajag’s final death. He sees Ford laughing wildly at this turn of events and experiences a “tremendous feeling of peace”.[1]
The Grebulons destroy the Earth, believing that their horoscopes will improve if it is removed from their astrological charts. It is revealed that the Vogons designed the Guide Mk. II to achieve their desired outcome by manipulating temporal events. As a result, every version of the Earth in all realities is obliterated, fulfilling the demolition order that was issued in the first novel. Its mission complete, the Guide collapses into nothingness.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: The Jester at Scar Series: Dumarest #5 Author: EC Tubb Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 176 Words: 54K
This felt extremely short, even though it was longer than the previous book, Kalin. Earl has his little adventure on Scar, the mold harvesting planet (yeah, it’s just disgusting) and then has the chance to go be a rich son of a gun on some no-name world and flips a coin. The coin goes against that choice, and the book ends. BAM. I was totally expecting him to go to the other world and have continuing adventures there in this book.
On the plus side, no naked ladies on the book cover. Or in the book either. The lady portrayed is the wife of the said Jester and she’s a snotty nosed blueblood who begins to learn that taking care of your people is what is important, not just ruling over them. That theme was done a bit heavy handed, but I had a bottle of bbq sauce on hand, so I swallowed the morality lesson without too much problem.
By this point, if I was Earl Dumarest, I’d give up on finding Earth and I’d go to war against the Cyclans. Every book they have either tried to kill him, have him killed or spiked his plans for finding Earth in one way or another. I’d try to find their secret homeworld and nuke their sicko little world of brain boxes into nothing. Given his success rate of staying alive on planets that just want to kill you, I think his chances would be pretty good. John Wick In Space!
Going to end with some more cover love. This series has some great art and I am just loving it. While I know they won’t last for the whole series, I am trying to enjoy each one as it comes along. Live in the moment as it were.
Should be Embiggenable
★★★✬☆
From Wikipedia.org
Synopsis – Click to Open
Dumarest finds himself on a planet with an economy based on transient labor harvesting spores of fungi valuable for different properties, which grow abundantly on a planet with rapid seasons. He must survive the natural hazards of the monsoon season, and prepare for the hazards of the harvest as many of the fungi are dangerous to lethal. Ultimately he is given a task, by the “Jester”, that wins him freedom but costs him the fruits of his labor. He also confronts a Cyclan because they have become nemeses by this point in the saga. Dumarest’s red ring is mentioned repeatedly in this novel.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Counterstrike Series: Empire Rising #11 Author: David Holmes Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 458 Words: 180K
This is where Humanity tries to turn things around and go on the offensive against the Karacknids (giant xenophobic space spiders). So far, Humanity has been playing nothing but defense but here, Emperor Somerville and other top notch Space Commadores take various fast attack groups behind the front lines and attack the support structure enabling the Karacknid War Machine. It works well, very well. The only problem is, unknown to Humanity, the Karacknids are moving in a massive space fleet from another front and they plan to use all 10,000 ships to absolutely crush Humanity and the Alliance.
This was another chunkster of a book. Every time I pick up one of these Empire Rising novels, it always surprises me just how long they are. But then I start reading and I’m never bored, never.
It was quite the interesting dichotomy as a reader, knowing from the get-go that the Karacknids had a massive fleet on the way, while we are reading about the successes of Humanity in the war on their infrastructure. It was hard to be excited for the victories because we knew the giant hammer was looming, just out of sight.
The book ends with humanity once again on the back foot and all is in doubt. Now, we know that isn’t the truth because every chapter starts with a saying from the book Empire Rising, written in the year 3000, which chronicles the history of the rise of the Human Empire. So I know that Humanity is going to win, eventually, against the Karacknids. I think it is a testimony to Holmes’ skill as an author that I can still feel trepidation about the outcome even while knowing the eventual longterm outcome.
I can’t remember if I’ve stated it before or not, but Holmes has passed from the realm of mere writer/scribbler into the realm of Author in my opinion. He writes real, different, compelling characters (everyone is not the same character with just a different name), with exciting scenarios that do not feel repetitive. My only niggles are that he really needs to tighten up his prose (450+ pages is long, period) and he needs to make his characters actually grow. While distinct in voice, they remain the same. James is pretty much the same now as he was in the first book, The Void War. Like I said, minor quibbles.
Otherwise, I remain quite happy to keep reading this series a couple of books at a time. Holmes has been writing this series since 2015 and book 19 just came out this past March. I’m ok with that given the quality shown here.
★★★✬☆
From the Publisher
Synopsis – Click to Open
The Karacknid invasion of Human space has been temporarily thwarted. A window of opportunity has opened up. Through it Emperor Somerville hopes to strike deep into Karacknid territory to buy Earth and the Varanni Alliance the breathing space they need to replace their losses. On the other side of the Karacknid Empire, Rear Admiral Becket and the Conclave species are planning a pre-emptive strike of their own. With relatively undefended borders, Becket has seen an opportunity to hit the Karacknids where they least expect it. Yet the Karacknid’s power is far from diminished. After the series of defeats the Karacknids have suffered, their Imperator has now focused his full attention on destroying Humanity and the Varanni Alliance. Nothing short of the total conquest of Humanity’s colonies has been ordered. The full might of the Karacknid Navy has been tasked to bring it about. For James, Christine, Lightfoot, Becket and all the others, their own lives and the future of the Empire is at stake.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Farsight: Crisis of Faith Series: Warhammer 40K: Tau Author: Phil Kelly Rating: 3 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 281 Words: 93K
Well, this wasn’t QUITE as bewildering as Farsight was. This was almost a direct sequel to that novella, so I was building on that foundation. I say a direct sequel, but some big events and some matter of time has passed since then. At the end of Farsight the main character, Commander Farsight, has figured out how to beat the orks and is on the brink of taking back the planet Arkunasha, when he is commanded by the Celestials, the highest level of Tau politics, to abandon the planet. Then the Empire of Man attacks the Tau home system and Farsight is tasked with defending his race. Another battle of greater import draws off the Empire and for morales’ sake the Celestials claim it as a great Tau Victory. Everyone involved knows the reality however.
So that is the background of this novel, which is woven into the ongoing story, bits of puzzle pieces that we the reader are expected to pick out and figure out on our own. I’m not a fan of that style of writing any more. The Wheel of Time series and the Malazan Book of the Fallen series both cured me of that.
The current story is about the Tau sending a fleet to reclaim the worlds that the Empire of Man recovered in that unwritten battle. Only politics are involved and lots of highly placed Warrior Caste characters are either sidelined or sent into impossible situations to probably fail and cast doubt on them. The Celestials definitely are NOT good guys.
We also have the Tau really facing the Chaos Gods for the first time. One of them is actually possessed by a daemon and works at undermining the entire fleet. Since the Tau have almost zero psychic ability, they are pretty blind to that aspect of the Universe they inhabit, even after having it rubbed into their little xeno faces when the Psykers from the Empire of Man really let loose.
Overall, I understood more of what was going on but I can’t say I actually enjoyed this any more than its predecessor. The Tau politics are just as dirty as anything seen in the Empire of Man and I do not enjoy that in my fiction. Even in a grimdark universe I need some good guys, not some backboneless wimp.
Not for the Uninitiated or those beginning their exploration of the Warhammer 40K universe.
★★★☆☆
From the Publisher
Synopsis – Click to Open
The tau are a mysterious alien race, diametrically opposed to the Imperium of Man in every possible way — in their mastery of technology, methods of warfare and social structure. Yet in galactic terms they are a young race, and naive when it comes to the manipulations of Chaos. When promising young Commander Farsight is promoted to lead a crusade across the Damocles Gulf to reclaim the tau’s lost colonies from mankind, the mood is one of optimism. With their mighty fleet, and superior weapons and machines, how can their endeavour possibly fail? However, despite a parade of early successes, Commander Farsight soon faces enemies he wasn’t anticipating, and finds not only his courage but also his soul tested to the very limit.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Last Contact Series: Galaxy’s Edge #15 Author: Jason Anspach & Nick Cole Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars Genre: Military SF Pages: 339 Words: 117K
Thankfully, we didn’t spend the entire book with the Legion this time around. But that is the only reason I bumped this up half a star from the previous book. Of course, they immediately do the following and lose that half star.
Urmo is killed by Prisma. Ravi destroys the Dark Wanderer to protect Prisma, and thus the “contract” of the higher beings comes into play and Ravi is out of the picture. Rex is dead. Goth Sullus is dead. Everything that made this Star Wars’esque has slowly been removed and this book really finishes that process. Felt very much like a Scorched Earth way to get rid of elements the authors were no longer interested in.
I am a very disappointed camper right now.
★★✬☆☆
From the Publisher
Wraith discovers crucial intel about the threat that past The Gap, beyond Galaxy’s Edge. Meanwhile, Prisma undertakes and arduous journey and the legionnaires of Zombie Squad search for Masters.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: So Long and Thanks for All the Fish Series: THGttG #4 Author: Douglas Adams Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 224 Words: 44K
This was marginally better than the previous book but only because it wasn’t so stupid. It wasn’t funnier, the plot wasn’t more concrete (still alphabet soup mixed up with mashed potatoes) and Arthur Dent plays a much bigger role (given what a disgusting specimen of wimpiness he is, that’s definitely not a good thing).
But it felt like Adams actually tried to tell a story instead of just writing drugged out scenes that belong in a Monty Python’esque kind of tv show. Not high praise, but it was enough of an improvement that I’ll keep on reading the series.
★★✬☆☆
From Wikipedia
Synopsis – click to open
While hitchhiking through the galaxy, Arthur Dent is dropped off on a planet in a rainstorm. He appears to be in England on Earth, even though he had seen the planet destroyed by the Vogons. He has been gone for several years, but only a few months have passed on Earth. He hitches a lift with a man named Russell and his sister Fenchurch (nicknamed “Fenny”). Russell explains that Fenny, who is sitting in a drugged state in the back seat of the car, became delusional after worldwide mass hysteria, in which everyone hallucinated “big yellow spaceships” (the Vogon destructor ships that “demolished” the Earth). Arthur becomes curious about Fenchurch, but he is dropped off before he can ask more questions. Inside his inexplicably undamaged home, Arthur finds a gift-wrapped bowl inscribed with the words “So long and thanks for all the fish”, into which he puts his Babel Fish. Arthur thinks that Fenchurch is somehow connected to him and to the Earth’s destruction. He still has the ability to fly whenever he lets his thoughts wander.
Arthur puts his life in order, and then tries to find out more about Fenchurch. He happens to find her hitchhiking and picks her up. He obtains her phone number, but shortly thereafter loses it. He discovers her home by accident when he searches for the cave in which he had lived on prehistoric Earth; Fenchurch’s flat is built on the same spot. Arthur and Fenchurch find more circumstances connecting them. Fenchurch reveals that, moments before her “hallucinations”, she had an epiphany about how to make everything right, but then blacked out. She has not been able to recall the substance of the epiphany. Eventually discovering that Fenchurch’s feet do not touch the ground, Arthur teaches her how to fly. They have sex in the skies over London.
In her conversation with Arthur, Fenchurch learns about his adventures hitchhiking across the galaxy, and Arthur learns that all the dolphins disappeared shortly after the world hallucinations. Arthur and Fenchurch travel to California to see John Watson, an enigmatic scientist who claims to know why the dolphins disappeared. Watson has abandoned his original name in favour of “Wonko the Sane”, because he believes that the rest of the world’s population has gone mad. Watson shows them another bowl with the words “So long and thanks for all the fish” inscribed on it, and encourages them to listen to it. The bowl explains audibly that the dolphins, aware of the planet’s coming destruction, left Earth for an alternate dimension. Before leaving, they pulled the Earth from a parallel universe into this one and transported everyone and everything onto it from the one about to be destroyed. After the meeting, Fenchurch tells Arthur that, while he lost something and later found it, she found something and later lost it. She desires that they travel to space together, and that they reach the site where God’s Final Message to His Creation is written.
Ford Prefect discovers that the Hitchhiker’s Guide entry for Earth has been updated to include the volumes of text that he originally wrote, instead of the previous truncated entry, “Mostly harmless”. Curious, Ford hitchhikes across the galaxy to reach Earth. Eventually he uses the ship of a giant robot to land in the centre of London, causing a panic. In the chaos, Ford reunites with Arthur and the two of them and Fenchurch commandeer the robot’s ship. Arthur takes Fenchurch to the planet where God’s Final Message to His Creation is written, where they discover Marvin. Due to previous events, Marvin is now approximately 37 times older than the known age of the universe and is barely functional. With Arthur’s and Fenchurch’s help, Marvin reads the Message (“We apologise for the inconvenience”), utters the final words “I think… I feel good about it”, and dies happily.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Much better than the previous two books. Lots less detailed politic’ing and lots more fighting. Don’t read that wrong, there is some politics going on, but it is almost skated over, as if Campbell realized that the readers of his books aren’t necessarily armchair socio-political theoreticians. Give the people what they want Mac, which is ships blowing each other up and space marines fighting tooth and nail to the bitter end.
That is what I want out of a Jack Campbell/Lost Fleet book. Space action, whether ship to ship or groundpounders beating the stuffing out of each other. Give me that and nine times out of ten I’ll be satisfied.
I do feel that the trilogy got off to a shaky start with the first book but it has ended strong here. Not a place I’d recommend for Lost Fleet newbs though. There are too many references to family names that are recognizable to veteran readers of the Lost Fleet that will simply have zero meaning for anyone who hasn’t read the series up to this point.
★★★✬☆
From Jack-Campbell.com & Bookstooge.blog
Synopsis – Click to Open
The recently colonized world of Glenlyon has learned that they’re stronger when they stand with other star systems than they are on their own. But after helping their neighbor Kosatka against an invasion, Glenlyon has become a target. The aggressive star systems plan to neutralize Glenlyon before striking again.
An attack is launched against Glenlyon’s orbital facility with forces too powerful for fleet officer Rob Geary to counter using their sole remaining destroyer, Saber. Mele Darcy’s Marines must repel repeated assaults while their hacker tries to get into the enemy systems to give Saber a fighting chance.
To survive, Glenlyon needs more firepower, and the only source for that is their neighbor Kosatka or other star systems that have so far remained neutral. But Kosatka is still battling the remnants of the invasion forces on its own world, and if it sends its only remaining warship to help will be left undefended against another invasion. While Carmen Ochoa fights for the freedom of Kosatka, Lochan Nakamura must survive assassins as he tries to convince other worlds to join a seemingly hopeless struggle.
As star systems founded by people seeking freedom and autonomy, will Kosatka, Glenlyon and others be able to overcome deep suspicions of surrendering any authority to others? Will the free star systems stand together in a new Alliance, or fall alone?
Of course, they stand together, defeat the bad guys and form the beginning of the entity known as The Alliance.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Kalin Series: Dumarest #4 Author: EC Tubb Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 155 Words: 45K
Earl Dumarest ends up on yet another bad world that seems intent on killing him, runs into another hot and sexy psychic chicky-boo, runs into the Cyclans and loses said chicky-boo.
I have begun wondering, if traveling seems to be pretty much blind (every story involves travelers getting stranded in bad places because they didn’t know it was bad), then how does mankind stay together and not totally fracture? I mean, if everybody learns that World X is a really bad place and you’re going to be enslaved, then who would go there? I suspect both Tubb’s view and my own are formed from our own perspectives on data. Tubb was in the isolation era, where you might be lucky to know something about the State next to yours whereas I live in the Information Age where I can converse with bloggers from Zimbabwe without even thinking about it (Hi Beaton!). I “expect” civilization to be able to share data from one end to the other whereas Tubb didn’t even consider it as a possibility. It just goes to show that your surroundings and settings do affect your thought processes.
Tubb’s writing can be a bit opaque at times. It wasn’t until I saw an alternate cover that was emblazoned with “Dumarest and Dinosaurs!” (or some close approximation) that I realized the creatures Tubb describes Earl as hunting were dinosaurs. It didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the adventure to not realize that, but once I saw those words, my mental image of the various scenes were clarified greatly.
The Cyclans are once again presented as a great menace but we don’t learn anything new about them. I suspect they will be the “standard” background villain in most of these books. The Universal Brotherhood gets some extra facetime but basically we learn that they are a “Feel Good and be an Ascetic” kind of organization. There is nothing spiritual about them whatsoever beyond the mystical new age “we are all gods” kind of mumbo jumbo you’d expect from a “universal” organization.
To end, it would almost be easier if Dumarest wasn’t searching for Earth. Besides the issues I’ve talked about in previous reviews, the whole data thing applies to this as well. It shouldn’t be so hard to track down Earth, but it is because of Tubb’s world view when he wrote this. If he were alive today, he’d have to come up with a different reason for why Earth is so unknown.
I’m also including a large version of the cover again. These things are great!
★★★✬☆
From the Publisher
Click to Open
Many times, Dumarest’s dream of Earth has almost cost him his life. As he journeys from world to world, restlessly moving outwards towards the edge of the galaxy where his goal lies, Dumarest must be alert, watchful. For there are new dangers – forces more powerful than man – which threaten his dream. On a planet where violence and superstition hold sway, Dumarest forges a bond with the prophetess Kalin. And now, more than ever, he needs her. Kalin. The mutant girl whose mysterious talent for seeing into the future has already saved him from Bloodtime on Logis, from space-disaster, from slavery on desolate Chron. Kalin. Who can foretell the terrors yet to come.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Imperial Command Series: Empire Rising #10 Author: David Holmes Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 420 Words: 166K
This was a great return to the Empire Rising series. Taking this little break from it was just what I needed to make me appreciate the space opera that is involved.
A lot of ship to ship fighting. A tiny bit of space marines kicking butt, but (hahahaaha) not nearly enough.
The little bits of “Imperial History” written in 3002 have already referenced a war with another advanced alien race AND a potential pretender to the Throne. So I’m already preparing myself for those events.
At the same time, I’m not allowing that to rob me of any enjoyment of the present conflict with the Karacknicks (giant space spiders who rule a gigantic empire). They make wonderful badguys and it’s quite enjoyable to see them getting smacked around by humanity.
★★★✬☆
From the Publisher
Synopsis – Click to Open
Trapped behind enemy lines, the survivors of the raid on Jaranna have been forced to flee deeper into enemy territory. Behind them Karacknid fleets gather to exact revenge. With danger at every turn, Admiral Lightfoot must find a way to get his ships home or Earth will be left defenseless. On Earth the Empire has been formed and is bringing the outlying colonies into its fold. Yet there are those who see themselves and not the Empire as the rightful rulers of Humanity. At the very moment when they should be preparing their people to face the Karacknids, James and Christine instead find themselves facing the threat of a civil war. If it spreads and Humanity’s strength consumes itself, the Empire will fall. For their part, the Karacknids have not removed their sights from Earth. Even as the war along the Alliance border rages on, ships are on the move. For it is through Earth’s conquest the Karacknids’ believe the end of the war will come. For those who have sworn to serve the Empire, everything hangs in the balance
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Remains Series: Galaxy’s Edge #14 Author: Jason Anspach & Nick Cole Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars Genre: Military SF Pages: 281 Words: 123K
This was exactly the same as the previous book, in that we get one chapter with some of the space opera element and the rest of the book is a Legionnaires military science fiction novel. Not at all what I signed up for. So I’m downgrading my rating because I felt very generous last time. I’m not feeling that way at all any more.
Anspach and Cole made an unspoken compact with the readers in the first series. This was Star War’esque in both it’s tone and story line. That compact has been broken, most thoroughly now, by them in this second series. I wish they had never started this and once I’m done with this series, I’ll be done with them as authors.
Once again, Indie authors disappoint me and let me down. How typical.
★★✬☆☆
From the Publisher
The Legion has landed…
The Republic world of Kima has fallen with shocking speed to the renewed forces of the Mid-Core Rebellion, and General Chhun must lead the rebuilt and enhanced 131st Legion-along with Marines, Dark Ops, Navy, and Kimbrin Resistance-onto the planet to violently check their assault.
But timing is of the essence, and Chhun can’t do it alone. Bear, working undercover, unearths the treachery of a resurgent Nether Ops still working their dark influence from the shadows. Masters has his hands full just staying alive while he evades deadly pursuers. And Keel finds himself swept up in intrigues that may make the planetary takeover of Kima all but insignificant.
The battle is fierce and hard, but VICTORY is always within reach so long as the Legion-remade to its initial purpose-remains to fight.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Life, the Universe and Everything Series: THGttG #3 Author: Douglas Adams Rating: 2 of 5 Stars Genre: SF Pages: 126 Words: 53K
This was stupid. It wasn’t funny, it wasn’t amusing, it didn’t tell a story. It was simply stupid and Adams completely wasted my time with this utter piece of drivel.
Don’t be like the Chartreuse Emperor and read this book, or you’ll go insane. That’s a DoUbLe BoBa FaCt PrOmIsE!
★★☆☆☆
From Wikipedia
Synopsis – Click to Open
After being stranded on pre-historic Earth after the events in The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, Arthur Dent is met by his old friend Ford Prefect, who drags him into a space-time eddy, represented by an anachronistic sofa. The two end up at Lord’s Cricket Ground two days before the Earth’s destruction by the Vogons. Shortly after they arrive, a squad of robots land in a spaceship in the middle of the field and attack the assembled crowd, stealing the Ashes before departing. Another spaceship arrives, the Starship Bistromath, helmed by Slartibartfast, who discovers he is too late to stop the theft and requests Arthur and Ford’s help.
As they travel to their next destination, Slartibartfast explains that he is trying to stop the robots from collecting all the components of the Wikkit Gate. Long ago, the peaceful population of the planet of Krikkit, unaware of the rest of the Universe due to a dust cloud that surrounded its solar system, were surprised to find the wreckage of a spacecraft on their planet. Reverse engineering the vessel, they explored past the dust cloud and saw the rest of the Universe, immediately taking a disliking to it and deciding that it must be destroyed. They built a fleet of ships and robots to attack the rest of the Universe in a brutal onslaught known as the Krikkit Wars, but were eventually defeated. Realizing that the Krikkit population would not be satisfied alongside the existence of the rest of the Universe, it was decided to lock the planet in a Slo-Time envelope, to be opened only after the Universe has ended so that the planet can exist alone. The Wikkit Gate, shaped exactly like a wicket used in the sport of cricket, is needed to unlock the envelope. However, one ship carrying a troop of robots from Krikkit avoided being sealed in, and these robots began to search for the pieces of the Gate after they were dispersed about space and time.
Slartibartfast, Arthur, and Ford transport to an airborne party that has lasted numerous generations where another Gate component, the Silver Bail, is to be found, but Arthur finds himself separated from the others and ends up at a Cathedral of Hate created by a being called Agrajag. Agrajag reveals that he has been reincarnated countless times in a wide variety of forms, only to be killed by Arthur in each life; he now plans to kill Arthur in revenge. However, upon learning that Arthur has yet to cause his death at a place called Stavromula Beta, Agrajag realizes that he has pulled Arthur out of his relative timeline too soon and that killing him now would cause a paradox, but attempts to kill Arthur anyway. In his insanity, Agrajag brings the Cathedral down around them. Arthur manages to escape unharmed, partially due to learning how to fly after falling and missing the ground while catching sight of a bag he had lost at a Greek airport years before. After collecting the bag, Arthur inadvertently comes across the flying party and rejoins his friends. Inside, they find Trillian, but they are too late to stop the robots from stealing the Silver Bail. Arthur, Ford, Trillian, and Slartibartfast return to the Bistromath and try to head off the robots activating the Wikkit Gate.
Meanwhile, the Krikkit robots steal the last two pieces, the Infinite Improbability Drive core from the spaceship Heart of Gold and a peg leg used by Marvin the Paranoid Android. They capture both Marvin and Zaphod Beeblebrox in the process.
The Bistromath arrives too late to stop the robots from opening the Gate, so its occupants transport to the planet to attempt to negotiate with the Krikkit people. To their surprise, they find that the people seem to lack any desire to continue the war, and are directed to the robot and spaceship facilities in orbit about the planet. With help from Zaphod and Marvin, the group is able to infiltrate the facilities. Trillian deduces that the Krikkiters have been manipulated, reasoning that the people of Krikkit could not simultaneously be smart enough to develop their ultimate weapon—a bomb that could destroy every star in the universe—and also stupid enough not to realize that this weapon would also destroy them.
The characters discover that the true force behind the war has been the supercomputer Hactar. Previously built to serve a war-faring species, Hactar was tasked to build a supernova-bomb that would link the cores of every sun in the Universe together at the press of a button and cause the end of the Universe. Hactar purposely created a dud version of the weapon instead, causing his creators to pulverize him into dust, which thus became the dust cloud around Krikkit. However, Hactar was still able to function, though at a much weaker level. Trillian and Arthur speak to Hactar in a virtual space that he creates for them to explain himself. Hactar reveals that he spent eons creating the spaceship that crashed on Krikkit to inspire their xenophobia and incite them to go to war, also influencing their thoughts. However, when the Slo-Time envelope was activated, his control on the population waned. As he struggles to remain functional, Hactar apologizes to Trillian and Arthur for his actions before they leave for their ship.
With the war over, the group collects the core of the Heart of Gold and the Ashes, the only two components of the Wikkit Gate not destroyed by the robots, and returns Zaphod and Marvin to the Heart of Gold. Returning to Lord’s Cricket Ground only moments after the robots’ attack, Arthur attempts to return the Ashes, but is suddenly inspired to bowl one shot at a wicket that is being defended using a cricket ball in his bag. However, during his run-up, Arthur suddenly realizes that the ball was created and placed in his bag by Hactar and is actually the working version of the cosmic-supernova-bomb, and that the defender of the wicket is one of the Krikkit robots, ready to detonate the bomb once thrown. Arthur trips, misses the ground, and flies over the pitch, allowing him to throw the bomb safely aside and behead the robot with its own bat.
Afterward, the group are taking Arthur to a ‘quiet and idyllic planet’ when they come across a half-mad journalist. Some time earlier, he had been reporting on a court case in which a witness named Prak was inadvertently given an overdose of a truth drug. Prak began to tell all truth, horrifying the involved parties so badly that they abandoned the courtroom and sealed it up with him inside. The group find him still there, hoping to learn from him the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe and Everything. They are disappointed to find that Prak has told all the truth in existence, but has forgotten it and kept no record. The only information he can provide is that the Ultimate Question and its answer can never both be known about in the same universe. He then attempts to tell Arthur where God’s last message to His creation is, though he dies seemingly before Arthur is able to memorize the location.
Arthur ultimately settles on Krikkit, where he becomes a more skillful flier and learns bird language. He is briefly interrupted by the arrival of an immortal alien who has made it his goal to insult every living creature in the universe, but the alien realizes that he has already done so with Arthur on prehistoric Earth.
