Mr Monster (John Cleaver #2)

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Title: Mr Monster
Series: John Cleaver
Author: Dan Wells
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Paranormal
Pages: 320
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

John Cleaver can't get over the fact that he killed. He's not horrified, he's fascinated and he wants MORE. He knows this though and is doing everything in his power to stop Mr Monster [his mental disconnect that is his inner psychopath] who wants to bathe in the blood of everyone he knows.
But when another serial killer shows up, following in the footsteps of the demon from the first book, John knows another demon has shown up. So it's ok to unleash Mr Monster. But can John reconcile the fact that other people see him as a hero when he knows he's unleashing Mr Monster?

My Thoughts:

This was just as disturbing as the first book. Wells has done his research and seems to revel in showing the struggle that John is going through in trying to control his killer instincts. I guess what bothers me the most is that John is shown as not having any choice, so far, in the matter. He fights against wanting to kill but it is presented as if it is a futile fight. I'm hoping the next book changes that.

Everyone has Choice. Not necessarily easy choices, or even one time choices, but they have Free Will.

The mind of a psychopath is a sick mind. Those interested in such minds are either trying to help heal those minds, or like this author in writing for profit about it, sick bastards themselves. As you can tell, I'm not a big fan of Dan Wells.

There were just enough touches of humor to keep this from being completely dark and horrible. I've got the 3rd book on my tbr list and I'll read it, but after that, I'll be avoiding anything, no matter the subject, by Wells. I don't want to my mind contaminated by a mind like his.

Nephilim: Genesis of Evil

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Title: Nephilim: Genesis of Evil
Series: -----
Author: Renee Pawlish
Rating: 2 of 5 Stars
Genre: Horror
Pages: 345
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

The Nephilim, the offspring of fallen angels and humans, wiped out in the Biblical Flood thousands of years ago, survive as lost spirits, yearning to return to the spirit world.
Every century they have a chance to perform the Great Release in which they possess humans and ascend to a higher plane of existence.
Now a small town in Colorado is the focus and it is up to a small, disparate group of people to stop the Nephilim from wiping out the town.

My Thoughts:

First, this is Christian Horror. Lots of references to the Bible and off handed, sideways references to Grace and Salvation. Done right, it can be alright, although I haven't read any done right yet. Not even Frank Peretti with The Oath or House really did it for me.

However, this was something that needed to be edited by a professional story editor. Not a grammar editor, mind you. The technical aspects of the writing were just fine. But the actual story telling and the characters were lackluster at best. In Horror, you can't just write that something was "terrifying". You need to show how/why it was. Unfortunately Pawlish just doesn't have the writing skills to pull this off. This amounted to a great first draft but that was it. I can't tell someone how TO write "terrifying" but I sure can tell them how NOT TO write it. Don't tell me.
I was told, a lot.
The characters were also "almost there" but really lacked something. They weren't cardboard, but they weren't real people to me either.

It was obvious that Pawlish put a lot of thought into the plot, into the characters, into this book. But her ideas weren't written out well enough. She doesn't have the talent right now to write this book. Maybe in the future? But I'm not sticking around to find out. I really struggled to finish this, so I won't spend any more of my time on her stuff.

There is a bunch I could write on the theological level, but why bother? It won't make or break this book for anyone, trust me.

The Revenge of the Baby-Sat (Calvin and Hobbes #5)

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Title: The Revenge of the Baby-Sat
Series: Calvin and Hobbes
Author/Artist: Bill Watterson
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Comics
Pages: 128
Format: Digital Scan

My Thoughts:

The 5th collection by Watterson. There aren't even themes tying the comics together, so you can't really "review" these books. Each strip is individual and stands on its own.

The New Watch (Night Watch #5)

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Title: The New Watch
Series: Night Watch
Author: Sergei Lukyanenko
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 420
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

Prophets and Tigers and Daughters, Oh My!
So it seem that the Twilight is an intelligent being and it does what it needs to to protect itself. The Mirrors are one such manifestation.
Tigers, a being that hunts down prophets, is another. At first blush it appears that Tigers want to prevent prophecies from being heard, hence, come into being. Come to find out, they are a goad to the prophets, making sure they DO prophesy and hence bringing about chaos, which the Twilight feeds on.
At the same time, Anton realizes WHY his daughter was brought into being. Anton must make a choice which will affect his daughter and all the Others that are and ever might be.

My Thoughts:

I think this was the best Night Watch book to date. Anton has come full circle, where he is now the mature Other who understands the whys and wherefores. In the first book he was the young new Other who wanted to change the world with magic. He has to deal with a situation where he has to explain the "facts of life" to a young Other who just wants to make everyone "good". Ahhh, the irony. It really allowed Lukyanenko to show off his writing chops.

The manipulation by both Zabulon and Gesar in the creation of Anton's daughter left me breathless. To have foreseen the threat posed by an intelligent Twilight and to have so cold heartedly mucked about with peoples' live and destinies was both awesome and scary.

It is hinted that Gesar will soon be getting bored in Russia and moving on. It would seem that Anton is the logical successor should this happen.

I started this Night Watch series almost a year ago. I have enjoyed each one and while I don't know if there will be any more, I certainly hope so. This is Urban Fantasy that I enjoy and can recommend. The style definitely won't appeal to everyone, but I like the Russian soul, as it is the same whether old or new.

Drysine Legacy (The Spiral Wars #2)

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Title: Drysine Legacy
Series: The Spiral Wars
Author: Joel Shepherd
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 471
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

The Federation starship Phoenix and her crew are on the run. But not on the run from just the Federation it seems. Various alien species are attacking them, for various reasons. Add in the apparent rise of an ancient machine race, and the discovery of their ancient foe on board the Phoenix and it is apparent that Erik Debogande and the rest of the crew are onto something much bigger than they ever thought.

My Thoughts:

I enjoyed this just as much as the previous book. Having to face a choice of resurrecting a monster machine race to fight another monster machine race is just "ugh". Possible subjugation of all biological life or certain subjugation.

The action was awesome. The huge battle at the end between the various Hacksaw forces with the Phoenix kind of dodging between was spectacular. Space Marines [always my favorite] versus horrible alien killing machines that ruled the Universe millennia ago.

I thought that this book wrapped up the series. All major issues were taken care of and while the whole "genocidal machine killers" wasn't, that aspect was big enough to have its own trilogy or even a series. When looking at the authors website though, it appears that this will be a trilogy. Not sure what the 3rd book will be about and still be a wrapping up point. Oh well, something to look forward to once it actually gets written.

I've enjoyed these 2 books enough that I'll be hunting down others by Shepherd and giving them a go.

The Paradise War (Song of Albion #1)

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Title: The Paradise War
Series: Song of Albion
Author/Narrator: Stephen Lawhead, Stuart Langston
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars


Genre: Fantasy
Minutes: 795
Format: Audible audio edition

Synopsis:

Lewis and Simon, 2 graduate students at Oxford, stumble upon a portal to another world. Simon goes through and Lewis stays behind. Upon investigation, Lewis finds out that the veil between the worlds is thinning and that passage between and our presence over there, could irreparably damage both worlds.
So Lewis crosses over to rescue Simon and to save both worlds.
Only to discover that the other world is everything our world is but bigger, brighter, better. Lewis is seduced into staying and becomes a warrior. Upon his finishing Warrior School, bad things begin to happen and it appears that it is up to him to set things right.
But how does one fight against the lord of the underworld, his undead and demonic forces while your allies are filled with jealously, greed and self?
And when betrayal of the ultimate kind happens, Lewis realizes that he and Simon MUST go back to their own world.

My Thoughts:

Read and bought these as they came out in the 90's. Re-read them in 2000 and then they've sat on my shelf, looking awesome. I thought about using these in my Project Re-read, but I have been wanting to explore the "Audio" side of books and figured that this trilogy would be a good experiment for that.

I enjoyed this just as much as I did almost 25 years ago. The story, the action, the magic were all still there. I listened to this on my drive to and from work and there were several times where, once I got home, that I just left my bluetooth connected and kept it playing from my phone until I forced myself to stop. If I had been reading this, I suspect it would have been demolished in a day or 3 at most.  I did notice how whiny Lewis was and that he was pretty much a wish-fulfillment of Lawhead's.

As for Audio. I found that it took very little to distract me while listening and that I would then miss some of the book. I tried to go into a grocery store on my way home once and I ended up just stopping the book because I couldn't pay attention.  It also took me quite a while to get used to the narrator. I didn't really like him but by the end I had gotten to the point where he didn't bother me. I think he does the next 2 books as well, so it is just as well that I'm resigned to him.

Sackett's Land (Sacketts #1)

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Title: Sackett's Land
Series: Sacketts
Author: Louis L'amour
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 208
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

Barnabas Sackett, fen-man of England, crosses some of the wrong people. In the process of sorting it all out, he makes a trip or two to the New World and falls in love with it. He determines that he will return there and raise a family worthy of conquering the land.

My Thoughts:

Instead of a western, which the series title "The Sacketts" would leave you to believe, this is a prequel.  Definitely more in the vein of The Walking Drum than of anything else. Very England centric.

Anyone who reads, or has read, L'amour, knows that stereotypes abound. It is the basis for his writing and the style that he uses. His stories are Big and hence are filled with Big men, villains, adventures, etc. It is not something you want a lot of all at once, which is why his stories are usually under the 200page mark.

I enjoyed this. Haven't read a L'amour since '11 so it was ok. My library has the whole Sackett series, all 17 books and while I'm a bit confused as to the order of a couple of them [several different places list one or two books differently] I don't think it will really make a difference. Adding these to my reading rotation and will read one every month or 2. I'm hoping that will be enough time between them so I don't get sick of them and quit the series.
`

Unholy (The Haunted Lands #3) (Forgotten Realms)

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Title: Unholy
Series: The Haunted Lands
Author: Richard Byers
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 342
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

100 years have passed since the last book. Szass Tam has completed his domination of Thay with the building of multiple fortresses, which turn out to be the keystone for a massive magical spell. A spell that will unmake the Universe and potentially remake it, with Tsazz Tam as the new head honcho god. Theoretically.
So the gryphon rider and undead bard from the previous books set out to stop him, with the help of the former Zulkirs of Thay.
Throw in Tam's insane but powerful top lieutenant who wants only the first part of the spell to succeed and you wind up with a pretty fantastic story.

My Thoughts:

Sometimes Forgotten Realms books really stink. The plot is as pulpy and the characters as wooden as the paper they are printed on. But sometimes you run across some that are really a good story that keep you coming back for more. This book, and trilogy, have been one of the good ones.

The plan behind the plan, that was hinted at in the previous book, comes to full light here. Tam's deal with Bane makes sense. Why worry about your soul in 1000 years if you're going to remake the universe with you at the head? You can just unmake the god that you made the deal with and negate it's consequences.

Just like in the previous 2 books, the "heroes" are the underdogs and Tam is a pretty sympathetic antagonist. The bard and mercenary [and for the life of me, I can't remember WHY the mercenary is so long-lived] and their little ghost friend all finish their fight, but it ends up being against their former ally turned Szass Tam lieutenant instead of Tam himself. All part of making Tam the "not really the bad guy" bad guy.

Because I've enjoyed the majority of Byer's work in the Forgotten Realms universe, I'm thinking I'll go track down the rest of his stuff and put it into my tbr pile instead of just some random FF trilogy/series like I have been doing. We'll see if he can continue to entertain.

The Trials (The Red #2)

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Title: The Trials
Series: The Red
Author: Linda Nagata
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 480
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

Shelley and his crew are on trial for their actions in the previous book. As is Sheridan in a world court.
Once the trial resolves, Shelley becomes involved with his former handler and they are both recruited to a extra-Constitutional private army that is intent on making the United States and the world a better place.
Shelley is kidnapped by a group that is trying to use the Red for their own ends. Shelley is rescued but reveals that a Dragon has a nuke up in space. Now it is up to him and his allies to recover the nuke and bring the Dragon to justice.
The book ends with Shelley being recruited by yet another group, this time one with direct ties to the Red and that is below the radar of everybody.

My Thoughts:

As with the first book, this was just good. I am thoroughly enjoying James Shelley as a main character. The poor guy has to figure out if he's Special, a Tool or a special tool. Either way, it sure messes with his head.

I did find it rather sad that at the end he had to pretend that he'd died. That must have ripped up his girlfriend pretty bad. And for him to do that, knowing what it would do to her [as he watched his previous girlfriend get blown up], seems pretty harsh.  A relationship is the dynamic between 2 people, not the actions of just one of them.

I think my favorite part of the book was when he was kidnapped and being used. It was obvious that the group leader thought she had the Red all figured out and so to see her arrogance turned on its head and her ideas filled with a hail of bullets, was rather satisfying.

I have enjoyed these books enough that I'd consider buying them in hardcover. However, I think a re-read in a couple of years would be a wise decision before that. If I enjoy this as much then as I did now, then yes, it'll definitely go on the buy-list.

The Jupiter Theft

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Title: The Jupiter Theft
Series: -----
Author: Donald Moffitt
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SFF
Pages: 339
Format: Kindle digital edition

Synopsis:

Humanity has expanded to Mars but at the cost of a totalitarian regime back on Earth. A scientist discovers a mass moving towards our solar system and it turns out to be aliens, who are taking mass from Jupiter to power their ships as they hop around the galaxy.
A group of scientists, and some "Security" are tasked with finding out as much as possible about the aliens and so they take some nukes along with them. Stuff happens and a couple of people survive and humanity gets a new planet and some tech.
The End.

My Thoughts:

This was boring. Yes, at the end a lot happens, but it felt like I'd been traveling 100 miles at 25mph and then for the last 100 yards the driver floored it and accelerated to 60mph.  Books like this are why I've become more of a fantasy guy over the years.

If you enjoy having numbers and "science" thrown your way like heavy brick walls, then you might like this book. I didn't hate it, but I did end up creating a "Boring" shelf because that was my main impression by the end of the book.

And the hippy culture that permeates the future? That is what happens when you extrapolate the future from the present and don't even try to think through what changes "might" happen. Come on, Free Love and Joints for everyone? On a spaceship? I think the author was just writing his wish fulfillment of grabbing some tail while high.

Good or bad, this book did not entice me to read any more by Moffitt. Back to the dust heaps of anonymity for him!