SciFi Review: Crossline by Russ Colchamiro

Crossline
by Russ Colchamiro

Description:
Perfect for fans of Firefly, Flash Gordon, Stargate, and Escape from New York...

Hotdog pilot Marcus Powell has been selected to test Taurus Enterprises' Crossline prototype craft and its newly developed warp thrusters, which, if successful, will revolutionize space travel as we know it.

But during his jaunt across the stars, Powell is forced into a parallel universe -- including a parallel Earth -- where he finds himself at the center of an epic battle he may have been destined for all along.

Meanwhile, back home, reclusive oil tycoon and Taurus CEO Buddy Rheams Jr. -- who sent Powell on that very mission -- has a mysterious past and a secret agenda, one that could prevent Powell from ever making it back to his wife and little girl.  From author Russ Colchamiro, Crossline is a psychedelic, action-packed romp across time, space, and dimension that asks the question: once you cross the line, can you ever really go back?

Goodreads |   Amazon

My Review:
Crossline attempts to tackle the complexities of time, space, and alternate dimensions. Neither of the two Earths are our own, so the author takes liberties with both, imagining the what-ifs and throwing not one, but two dimension travelers into the mix.

The story starts off strong from a sci-fi perspective by launching us into space along with Powell, but for me, I didn’t really get engaged until we shift to Buddy’s story, and oh, what a story that is! It’s one of those cases where I develop a favorite character early on, and then whenever time is spent on someone else, I’m on edge until the story goes back.

I also very much enjoyed Jesse and Chandra’s story, though Jesse would be my favorite if I had to pick between them. She’s sort of the bridge that holds everything together, and the fact that she’s basically a preschooler makes it all the better. She really shines in the finale.

Oddly enough, what should have been the main draw, what happens to Powell, was where I had issues. I found certain scenes confusing and others lacking the emotion that I think they were meant to convey. Despite some intriguing and exciting parts, too many scenes in Powell’s story hop from one to the other or progress only through deus ex machina (the muffins being one example).

Overall, I really enjoyed this story, particularly the parts featuring Buddy and Powell’s wife and daughter, Chandra and Jesse. The unique blend of mystical, scientific, and hypothetical make it an interesting read.

I’d recommend this to folks who dig sci-fi with a bit of paranormal/tribal fused in. It’s a good length and worth a read!

I received the review copy of this book from the author via Lola’s Blog Tours.

About the Author:
Russ Colchamiro is the author of the rollicking space adventure, Crossline, the zany SF/F backpacking comedy series Finders Keepers: The Definitive Edition, Genius de Milo, and Astropalooza, and is editor of the new SF anthology Love, Murder & Mayhem, all with Crazy 8 Press.

Russ lives in New Jersey with his wife, two ninjas, and crazy dog Simon, who may in fact be an alien himself. Russ has also contributed to several other anthologies, including Tales of the Crimson Keep, Pangaea, Altered States of the Union, Camelot 13, TV Gods 2, They Keep Killing Glenn, Camelot 13, and Brave New Girls.

He is now working on the first novel in a new series featuring his hardboiled private eye Angela Hardwicke, and the first of three collaborative novella projects.

Russ is repped by The Zack Compnay.

For more on and Russ’s books, you can visit www.russcolchamiro.com, follow him on Twitter @AuthorDudeRuss, and ‘like’ his Facebook author page www.facebook.com/RussColchamiroAuthor.

You can find and contact Russ Colchamiro here:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon

Sci-Fi Review: The Host: A Novel by Stephanie Meyer

The Host: A Novel
by Stephanie Meyer 

Description:
Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. The earth has been invaded by a species that take over the minds of human hosts while leaving their bodies intact. Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, didn't expect to find its former tenant refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

As Melanie fills Wanderer's thoughts with visions of Jared, a human who still lives in hiding, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she's never met. Reluctant allies, Wanderer and Melanie set off to search for the man they both love.

My Review:
I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect from The Host, but I didn’t expect to love it so much. It takes the body-snatcher invasion idea to another level. Benevolent, non-violent invaders who, nevertheless, destroy entire civilizations by taking over the bodies and suppressing the minds of their victims.

The two main characters, Wanderer and Melanie, are fantastic together. Wanderer didn’t ask to be given Melanie’s body, but she was. Unfortunately for Wanderer, Melanie’s will to survive is strong and she refuses to fade into nothingness. Wanderer can’t help but feel what Melanie feels, and it leads them both into danger and an unexpected life path.

I pretty much loved everything about this story, but one thing I couldn’t help but realize was that this would likely make a rather boring movie. Most of it would be set in the caverns, and a lot of it would have to focus on the inner dialog between Melanie and Wanderer. Not the stuff of movie magic. Perhaps that’s why I’ve heard the movie was no good. Anyhow, I am glad I picked up the book because it’s perfect. Makes you think, makes you feel, and makes you care.

I recommend this story to folks who love sci-fi with a bit of romance. It would mostly appeal, in my opinion, to those who love YA, but it’s smarter than many YA stories I’ve read and really makes you think.

I borrowed this book from the library.


About the Author (from Stephanie Meyer's Goodreads profile):

I was born in Connecticut in 1973, during a brief blip in my family's otherwise western U.S. existence. We were settled in Phoenix by the time I was four, and I think of myself as a native. The unusual spelling of my name was a gift from my father, Stephen (+ ie = me). Though I have had my name spelled wrong on pretty much everything my entire life long, I must admit that it makes it easier to google myself now.

I filled the "Jan Brady" spot in my family-the second of three girls. Unlike the Brady's, none of my three brothers are steps, and all of them are younger than all the girls. I went to high school in Scottsdale, Arizona, the kind of place where every fall a few girls would come back to school with new noses and there were Porsches in the student lot (for the record, I have my original nose, and never had a car until after I was in my twenties). I was awarded a National Merit Scholarship, and I used it to pay my way to Brigham Young University, in Provo, Utah. I majored in English, but concentrated on literature rather than creative writing, mostly because I didn't consider reading books "work" (as long as I was going to be doing something anyway, I might as well get course credit for it, right?).

I met my husband, Pancho (his real name is Christiaan), when I was four, but we were never anywhere close to being childhood sweethearts. In fact, though we saw each other at least weekly through church activities, I can't recall a single instance when we so much as greeted each other with a friendly wave, let alone exchanged actual words. This may have been for the best, because when we did eventually get around to exchanging words, sixteen years after our first meeting, it only took nine months from the first "hello" to the wedding. Of course, we were able to skip over a lot of the getting to know you parts (many of our conversations would go something like this: "This one time, when I was ten, I broke my hand at a party when-" "Yeah, I know what happened. I was there, remember?")

We've been married for ten and a half years now, and have three beautiful, brilliant, wonderful boys who often remind me chimpanzees on crack. I can't write without music, and my biggest muse is, ironically enough, the band Muse. My other favorite sources of inspiration are Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance, Coldplay, The All American Rejects, Travis, The Strokes, Brand New, U2, Kasabian, Jimmy Eat World, and Weezer, to mention a few.   
                    

Follow the author here:

Amazon
Goodreads
Her Website: http://stepheniemeyer.com/

New Release and Review: Immortal Writers by Jill Bowers

Immortal Writers
by Jill Bowers

Description:
Young up-and-coming author Liz McKinnen has no idea that her life is about to change forever when she comes home from her first book tour.

When she's kidnapped and told by her captors that she has to kill her fantasy book's antagonist, she thinks that she's fallen into the hands of crazy, dangerous fans... until her antagonist sends a real, fire-breathing dragon after her. Liz is quickly initiated into the Immortal Writers, a group of authors from throughout time whose words have given them eternal life, and whose prose is so powerful that it's brought stories over from the Imagination Field into the Reality Field.

As Liz meets authors such as William Shakespeare, JRR Tolkien, Edgar Allan Poe, and Jane Austen, she has to learn how to control magic, fight dragons, and face her own troubled past before her power-hungry villain takes over the world. Will she survive the ultimate battle against the dragon lord whom she created?

My Review:
Immortal Writers takes a rather literal spin to finding immortality through the written word. Imagine learning, as an author, that your plot twists, dashing heroes, and darkest villains have come to life. Not just come to life in the minds of your readers, but in reality. All I can say is Liz has her work cut out for her.

First off, I love how the story brings to life some of the things writers often say about writing. That they’ll live on through their words, that their characters take over the story, that the story itself has to happen the way it does, despite their intentions. I’ve felt this in my own writing, but to imagine that all of this might happen because the story is becoming real is just mind-blowing.
I also love which authors were chosen to be featured in this story and how they’re portrayed. Poe is one of my favorite characters in the story, mostly because of how the other authors react to him. But as a fantasy/sci fi fan, I particularly loved how Anne McCaffrey, J.R.R Tolkien, and even Gene Rodenberry make an appearance. And not just an appearance, some of them get involved in the plot personally. There’s mostly an air of fantasy, but also a few elements of sci fi, based on the writer’s who’ve been immortalized and the aspects of their writing that have leaked into the real world.
Now, all that’s related to the premise, but the story itself, the struggle and the romance and the personal growth of the main character, Liz, are all handled exceptionally well. It’s a satisfying read, and Liz’s story seems complete at the end.

That being said, there were points where the famous authors’ cameos made me roll my eyes. Just a little cheesy at times. And it was funny that Shakespeare seems to be the leader of all the immortal writers.

For folks looking for a book club read, there are some questions at the end specifically for that. In my opinion, this story would make an interesting discussion topic, particularly in book clubs where the members also enjoy writing.

Overall, I loved this book. I think folks who like to write, whether published or not, will be entranced by this story and the way it unfolds. Fantasy and sci fi fans in particular will dig the references to their genre and likely their favorite authors.

I received the review copy of this book from NetGalley.


About the Author:

Jill Bowers is a technical writer by day and a fantasy author by night. She is one of two composers-in-residence for the Westminster Bell Choir and has a great love for all music. She used to be the writer and host for the award-winning radio show Olde Tyme Radio on the Aggie Radio Station at USU and has dabbled in stage play writing as well.

Jill enjoys attending Utah's Comic Con and Fantasy Con and has an unhealthy attachment to Netflix. She lives in Utah and has a lovely dachshund that needs to lose weight because she probably doesn't get enough walks and is too cute to not feed. Jill attended Utah State University for their creative writing program, where she actually specialized in creative nonfiction rather than fiction. However, Jill loves delving into different worlds in fantasy and sci-fi novels and is excited to have people enter the worlds she has created.

Author Links:
w: www.immortalauthor.com/
t: @Jilliard08
f: facebook.com/immortalauthorjill
g: goodreads.com/user/show/2509616-jill-bowers
p: pinterest.com/jilliard08/
i: instagram.com/jilliard08/
y: youtube.com/channel/UC4FH9bS51qVga7rPot7awTw

**Updated 05NOV2017 with Author Info and Links!**

New Release Review: Orphans of Time-Space by Robby Charters

Orphans of Time-Space
by Robby Charters

Release Date: November 1, 2016

Description:
 At nine years old, Drake was sure he had a best friend named Timmy Browning, but it turns out, Timmy never existed.

Later, at age sixteen, he has other weird memories, which remind him of his earlier one of Timmy Browning. While looking further, he realises he also knows things that he shouldn’t, such as the interior of the actual house that Timmy would have lived in, and Timmy’s mum (now the mother of Drake’s girlfriend, Jeanette); and weirder still: the name of a mysterious assassin.

These types of memories are the mark of one who has the “gift” of time perception. Thus, Drake’s adventures begin…

Saving Timmy Browning is the first in a collection of short stories, novelettes and a novella, all set in the same universe, some with the same characters. Saving Timmy Browning is a novelette, with an “uh-oh” ending if you want to take it on its own; or a cliff-hanger if you want to read straight into the sequel…

Saving the Time-line: Timmy Browning and his younger sister, Jessica have been saved from non-existence, but now the world has been plunged into a nightmarish alternative history of international proportions (no, not like Biff Tannen’s Hill Valley)

By now, we’ve already met Johann, a member of “The Order”. They have the task of streamlining history, and helping humanity avoid nasty things like nuclear war and mass genocide. They’ve been working overtime to keep the USSR and Argentina from a devastating war. They’ve run out of options, except for one, that Drake, Timmy, Jeanette and Jessica can help them with.

Episode Three is more like a chapter in the book that ties a few loose ends together.

The Murder Victim Who Was Still Alive is a stand-alone short story, set in the same universe, same premise. Police Inspector Dylan Murphy is working on a weird case: the body of a six-year-old boy was found buried under a pavement that hadn’t been been dug up in fifty years. But the time of death was only two hours ago. What’s even more strange: the boy, Mickey Stewart, is still very much alive.

The Great Time Shift (What would happen if Hannibal didn’t defeat Rome?) – How “The Order” was founded; Thoma tells the story of how it all started in a monastery in Iskandar (Kandahar). It was a time-line in which Rome never rose to be a great empire. First century Judea was under the Parthian Empire, so Christianity spread Eastward instead of Westward. India and China have been Christianised and Yoga is a Christian discipline. Thoma and his fellow monk Yoseph discover time-travel, and how to do it safely, avoiding the dangers of becoming embedded in the earth or dropping from the sky (because of the spin and orbit of the earth).

This novella answers the questions: how did history shift from the Parthian to the Roman time line; and how could the Incarnation and the rise of Christianity have possibly occurred in such a barbaric civilisation as the Roman Empire?

My Review:
The Orphans of Time Space is a rather intriguing collection of stories, all revolving around the possibility that some people may not only be predisposed to perceiving broken timelines, but also to traveling forwards and backwards along them.

The main character in the first one is Drake, and his story is all about discovering his own abilities and then learning to use them to save his abruptly non-existent friend, well, exist again. It gets complicated when he figures out that if he saves Timmy, his girlfriend Jeanette will go poof instead.
My favorite of the stories, however, is the one that stands alone in the middle, The Murder Victim Who Was Still Alive, even though the 6-year-old murder victim was incredibly well-spoken, especially when it cuts to his perspective. Still, I liked it. There was tension, and it really drew me in.
The longest one, I think, was the one about the history of The Order. It gets pretty deep, and Drake and friends reappear, but only as observers or students hearing a story second hand. I enjoyed the interesting take on the first Christmas. Clever.

Obviously, the author did a lot of research on the historical figures and put some real time into working through some plausible alternate realities, paradoxes, and methods to protect his time travelers from the influence of their own actions. I’m not as well versed in my history, but I didn’t any have trouble following along and enjoying the story.

The stories seem to be written in such a way as they could be read as standalone works, but as such, there are some redundancies, particularly in explaining the logistics around time travel.

Overall, I really liked these stories, particularly the mystery, the Saving Timmy Browning one, and the one with the first Christmas in it.  It’s an eclectic collection, all in the same world, but not all directly linked.

I received the review copy of this book from the author.

Book Links:
Goodreads
Amazon.com


About the Author:

I presently live in Belfast with my family. That's where my dad was from, and where I have family connections. Most of my life was spent in Thailand, where I was born, and where my wife is from. I've done a number of things in my life, including charity work, training and mentoring, teaching English, telemarketing (don't hit me), working with homeless children, and, of course, writing. In three of my books you'll find a character named Boz. That's me. Oh, and I also do freelance book design. Just Google "Robby Charters" to find me, or go to my website: www.RobbyCharters.co.uk.

Author Links:
Amazon
Goodreads
http://www.RobbyCharters.co.uk
Twitter @robbycharters


------

On a side note, this isn't the first book I've read by this author. Nope, the first was The Zondon, which I picked up on Amazon back in 2013 because it started with a Z, it wasn't about zombies, and I was trying to complete an A-Z reading challenge.

Here's my review for The Zondon on Goodreads. It's one of those books I still find myself thinking about even a few years later.

New Release Announcement: Episode Five of The Chronicles of the Harekaiian by Shanna Lauffey

Episode Five of The Chronicles of the Harekaiian
by Shanna Lauffey

Release Date: September 7, 2015

Description:
A cosmically displaced teenager with the genetic ability to time travel might be the key to understanding current questions and theories about the universe and what prevents time travelers from rewriting history.

Kallie visits her friend Harlan Edmundson, a practicing Physicist and covert researcher for a revised guide to Time Travel Physics, who has spent his life searching for an elusive explanation for the Time Shifters' abilities. Kallie hopes to try to make sense of an impossible time loop and to learn why travel to the future has always been discouraged among the Harekaiian, even more than potentially paradoxical visits to the past.

For decades, Doctor Edmundson has jotted down equations and kept a notebook filled with spectacular claims and outrageous plans to try to find the answers to many of History's unanswered questions, as well as solutions to unsolved riddles and to investigate his controversial theory of time loops, but now they find an even greater mystery.

Kallie and Marcus' dreams of leading a quiet and peaceful life become shattered when Kallie realizes that only she can close the loop, but the price of what she must do could be higher than she can bear.

-----
I have this on my to be read shelf, thanks to an ARC from the author. Based on the previous books in the series, I'm looking forward to it.  Below are the amazon.com links to The Chronicles of the Harekaiian episodes. Perfect for those who like a mix of realism and time travel. Probably one of the most solid time travel storylines I've read.




By the way, I'm running some promotions for my Shadows of Valor series this week. Today only, Shadows of Valor is free. All week, Forgotten Valor is only 99cents (US and UK). Check them out and tell your friends.

New Release: Plausible Deniability (Episode Four of the Chronicles of the Harekaiian) by Shanna Lauffey

I'm pleased to share Shanna Lauffey's new book, Plausible Deniability, released today on Kindle and soon to be released in paperback. I've read the first few episodes and liked them all. This one looks to be good as well.

Description:
Kallie wants to return to Los Angeles. She and Marcus come out of their quiet and peaceful existence in a small Northern California town nearly a year after the last encounter with their pursuers, but who is the mysterious young person who appears in their remote sanctuary and disrupts the illusion of safety under which they have been living?

An audacious teenager who carries the time-travel gene, hardly more than a child with all the knowledge of a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time, will risk everything to enlist Kallie to be his would-be savior. Kallie still has reason to fear Mason, her pursuer who is obsessed with time travel and has spent his entire adult life obsessively hunting down that secret, even resorting to murder in the past.

An impossible and unbelievable discovery about time loops, which the scientists insist are not viable, destroys the foundation of all that Kallie thinks she knows about time travel and forces her to make an impossible choice that may put events into motion that will have terrible consequences.

Swayed by her best friend's devotion to saving him from being lost forever, Kallie is compelled to compromise everything she holds sacred to save the adolescent from the danger of blinking out of existence. The charming and disquietingly confident teenager responds to the anomaly of his existence with flippant remarks and quoting from a Stephen King novel, while Kallie nurtures a fear that the young man might in fact be the ultimate temporal weapon.
 

The fourth book in the Chronicles of the Harekaiian series will present concepts of time travel and reality that leave readers thinking long after they turn the last page.

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Pick up a copy today!

 

Or, here on Smashwords.

 

 

Want a heads up when her new books come out? Follow Shanna Lauffey's Author Page.

Upcoming Sci-Fi Thriller Release: Only the Cold Remains (The Sity #2) by Curran Geist

Only the Cold Remains by Curran Geist


I liked The Sity, particularly for its unique and well-executed storyline, and look forward to reading this one, which is set to be released this month (June 2014).  It promises to be quite an exciting read, likely edgy and action packed like its predecessor.

Description (from Goodreads.com)

I was made for this... I was made a killer...

Victor's fate hangs in the balance as he awaits the games of the Death Night. The young man will have to face his fears if he is to overcome the trials of the arena and claim his destiny.

Revelations about the past threaten to derail everything Carina has achieved in the colony. Will she hide from the truth or will she protect the ones she most loves?

In this dystopian thriller, humanity’s existence reaches a crossroads. The streets of the metropolis are overrun with alien troops on the hunt for escaped slaves. Deep in the underbelly of the Sity, lurk shadows of a worse horror. With Medtronik’s hold on the city of sin growing tenuous, the only solution to the Kuljik’s “human problem” is extermination. 

The lines between good and evil continue to be blurred in the struggle for survival. For the road home is long and bloody. When the forces of humans and Kuljiks clash, only the cold remains.

This is book two in THE SITY series by Curran Geist.

It is recommended for readers 17 and over due to violence, profanity, and sexual content.

About the Author

My Review of The Sity (The Sity #1)

Promo links:

Amazon Author Page:  http://www.amazon.com/Curran-Geist/e/B009FATDPE
Blog:  http://thesity2012.wordpress.com
Twitter:  @CGeist_thesity
The Sity Series Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/EnterTheSity
Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6466599.Curran_Geist

Forgotten Valor (Shadows of Valor #2) Cover Reveal and Release Date

Woot, woot! 

My third book, Forgotten Valor (Shadows of Valor #2), is set up for pre-order on Smashwords and is scheduled to be released on November 20.  This is something new on Smashwords, which I think is fantastic. 

Forgotten Valor by Patricia Hamill


Check out my sample here at Smashwords and then keep an eye out on Kobo, Apple or B&N if you'd like to pre-order.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/364579

So excited! I'll keep you all posted.
:-D

I will coordinate the print and kindle release on Amazon so they will also go live on November 20, but the book will only be available for preorders at Kobo, Apple and B&N.

Novella Review: Santa Claus vs the Aliens by James Cardona

Today's feature short or shortish book is Santa Claus vs the Aliens.  This one was good timing because the author sent me a review request for two of his books just before I decided on my theme for October.  I picked this one because it looked funny (I like funny) and because it was a novella and fit into my plans.

As a bonus, this story is free today on Amazon (last day), so if you like what you see here, pick up a copy!

santa claus vs the aliens by James Cardona
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Love it. The right mix of humor, danger and whimsy...

Santa Claus vs. the Aliens follows young Edwin Cardona on an unexpected adventure in New York City. Edwin, the son of Puerto Rican emigrants, lives in a children's home where his father left him temporarily while he got on his feet. In a moment of frustration, Edwin throws away his father's most cherished possession, a gaudy ring with a face that looks like Santa. The story begins with Edwin setting out from the children's home on a quest to retrieve the lost ring and ramps up from there into a surprisingly riveting urban adventure featuring aliens, Santa and personal growth.

Set in the Great Depression era, the historical details in this story are both fascinating and accurately portrayed. I didn't get all of the song references, favorites of the time, but the rest is interesting. That young Edwin lives in a children's home and prefers it to his father's family is an interesting setup, made all the more so because Edwin, his father and the family are all real people, relatives of the author. In fact, I've confirmed it with the author; everything besides the obviously fictional parts (aliens, Santa, etc.) actually happened as told in the story.

Progress!

Hi all, I just wanted to post a quick announcement.  I've finally rapped up edits for Forgotten Valor (Shadows of Valor #2).

Keep an eye out for the cover reveal and release date!

If you want to catch up with Shadows of Valor #1 before #2 comes out, you can find it at most ebook stores, including Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and in print at Amazon.

I'm also running a freebee at Smashwords.com if you use the following code at checkout.

Free ebook of Shadows of Valor
Code: GD23W
Expires: 05OCT2013
At: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/291758

About Shadows of Valor:
Four years ago, Edwin's father was slain by Verackan raiders, intent on plundering the Orescan heartland to supplement their own waning resources.

Now seventeen and intent on vengeance, Edwin runs away from home to join the Orescan Army. Soon, he finds himself a Probationary Recruit, not in the Army, but in the Special Air Corps. Through a combination of natural and technologically enhanced gifts, this elite and secretive organization battles the Verackans from the shadows.

As Edwin explores the full potential of his gift, a new objective begins to take hold: ending the Verackan threat for all time.


What others are saying about Shadows of Valor:

M.K. says, "quick-paced, well written sci-fi" (full review here).

Michael Long says, "I found the story to be engrossing and I couldn't put it down" (full review here).

Jaq Hawkins says, "took me back to a time when I left my own home at a young age" (full review here).

Amanda says, "In no way was I expecting the exceptional quality revealed to me" (full review here).

Review: Xenolith by A. Sparrow

 Xenolith by A. Sparrow
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Complex and intriguing...

Xenolith starts with the definition of the stone of the same name: "a stone foreign to the matrix that embeds it." This story has many elements that refer themselves to this definitions.

First, the story is told in a non-linear fashion. Something will happen, sparking a memory, and then we travel back with that person and experience it with them, before coming back to the present, or sometimes almost back to the present. I've read books using this format before, sometimes with confusing results, but in this book, there are enough clues, prompts, and guides built in to keep everything straight. Each change of time and perspective is purposeful and meaningful, and I love the complexity it yields and how it relates to the title of the book.

Review: The River of Blue Fire (Otherland #2) by Tad Williams

River of Blue Fire by Tad Williams

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Enjoyable, but takes its time...

The second installment of the Otherland series by Tad Williams picks up where the last leaves off. The "heroes" gathered by Mr. Sellers at the Golden City narrowly escape into another simulation, one that seems perfectly normal except that they are now 1/100th their real size. Gigantic insects and birds populate the world, going about their natural activities, but those are hazardous when you're the size of the next meal.

Soon, events beyond their control shatter the small company and each remnant must find its own way through the increasingly disturbing simulations. Renie and !Xabbu find themselves in Oz gone wrong where they meet a mysterious man who can overcome the rules of the simulation and a naive young girl named Emily who needs rescuing.

Review: City of Golden Shadow (Otherland #1) by Tad Williams

City of Golden Shadow by Tad Williams

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Surprising, complex, and insane...but I like it.

The City of Golden Shadow has been sitting on my bookshelf for over ten years, unread. In times past, I've picked it up and tried to read it, only to give up after twenty pages or so. That being said, I'm glad that I decided to stick it out this time, because this is an astonishingly complex, intricately woven masterpiece. 

Now, to get it out of the way, let me begin with why I never got far in previous attempts. The book starts off on a battlefield with Paul Jonas, a lone soldier stuck in a ditch listening to a man screaming insanely in the background. The imagery is fantastically realistic and more than a little disturbing. In short, it gives every impression of being a war book, which isn't a genre I particularly enjoy. Alas, until this time, I never made it far enough in to realize that nothing is as it seems at first glance.

Review: Talented by Sophie Davis

Talented by Sophie Davis

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Very cool, I loved it!

Talented takes place in a distant future 100 years after a series of catastrophic natural disasters damages underground nuclear reactors, which in turn contaminates the world's oceans. In the years following The Great Contamination, some children are born with strange genetic defects, some as simple as purple eye color others as complex as superhuman powers of the mind and body. I love the strange and wonderful skills portrayed in the book.

The world is divided between those who would accept (or perhaps just use) the gifted and those who would suppress (or exterminate) them. I found it interesting that the organization that gathers, trains and uses the talented kids is called TOXIC, not a very positive acronym for a group supposedly devoted to training and supporting the population's uniquely qualified outcasts.

Review: Oooeelie by Kenneth Crowe

Oooeelie by Kenneth Crowe

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Intriguing and complex...

Oooeelie, a superior being who crash lands on earth tens of thousands of years ago in mankind's infancy, is stranded. Lonely, he mentally connects with a human girl to form a bridge between himself and her tribe. In the process, she speaks the very first fully formed word, Oooeelie.

Fast forward to modern day New York, the original Oooeelie is long dead. However, he isn't gone. Joanna, a dissatisfied woman is plagued by recurring dreams that feature strange cave paintings, a shaman and her dog, Oooeelie. Through chance, she comes across a picture in an old book that exactly matches her dreams and tracks its origins to an address in the city. What she doesn't know is that the building hosts the offices of the Order of Man, an organization whose members have systematically tracked down and destroyed Oooeelies throughout history.