Heroic: The Golden Age by Evan Currie

 

Heroic: The Golden Age by Evan Currie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Heroic: The Golden Age is in actuality the fourth novel in the Superhuman series which began back in 2018. In this novel five years have passed since the alien probe "infected" humanity and brought about the rise of super powered individuals. Alas the effects are biased towards those with violent and aggressive tendencies meaning the war between "Hero" and "Villians" to put it in comic book terms is woefully one sided. Nevertheless the man who was known as The Marine fought valiantly but has not been seen publicly for five years and things have only gotten worse despite government backed enhanced law enforcement (LEO's) and huge leaps in technology to fight those that use their gifts for criminal and antisocial purposes. The main narrative of this novel is the siege of New York as a mob war between the Mafia and Russian groups explodes as enhanced goons come into play and the victors strengthen their hold on the city thanks to being able to "create" on demand their enhanced "soldiers" some of which have talents well beyond being able to fly or throw a car across the street.
Against this background we focus on two young people, Novah Isabella Islay who is new to the area and very intelligent especially in the sciences and Devin Meeran who has a gift for coding and an obsession with Superhumans and his streaming channel. Not an obvious couple but fate has things in store for them as the war for possession of New York raws around them and super powered fall one by one along with hundreds of police, national guard and civilians.
I was delighted when this fourth novel came out, I'd enjoyed the first three but upon reading I was sceptical if a novel without the main character from the first three would keep my interest. Without any doubt it did, I really did not want this novel to finish as the characters across the spectrum were all well written and interesting to follow with some creative events going on as the world watch New York once again come under the pressure of historic and tragic events.

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A Warship Named Sky: A Hero's Story by Saxon Andrew

 

A Warship Named Sky: A Hero's Story by Saxon Andrew
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thoroughly enjoyed this low key scifi story set well into the future of humanity after two aggressive nations took their wars to the stars and were promptly stomped on by the galactic community. The result an Earth united under a world government with trading ties to other worlds. We meet Angle Barrett soon after he loses the love of his wife (Sunny) and two years later he opens the last gift she bought him, a small model spaceship which was to signify their desire to travel to the stars together. Angle decides to search for a real spaceship matching this model and after jumping through some hoops the "unflyable" ship is sitting in his backyard. He dives into research and believes the ship which is hundreds of years old may have been from the almost mythical race known as the Sorjourn and that is where his adventure really begins.
I found the novel a very easy read, it flows quickly and smoothly and the narrative builds in a very well written manner as Angle is exposed to greater threats and circumstances that would have been the death of him without his interaction with significant others. I was surprised how invested I become in Angle and the other two characters the are part of the "Hero Story" and truth be told the ups and downs hit me dead center, I was wiping my eyes far more times than even with media that sets out to tug out the heart strings. Overall a very comfortable read with an engrossing story and likeable characters and at spine that has an old Trek feel about it in which looking for answers is often more rewarding that using force to remove an obstacle.

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Spock's World by Diane Duane

 

Spock's World by Diane Duane
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Spock's World is easily one of my top five Star Trek novels, I own a rather battered hardback copy of the novel and as an ebook and have read it more times than I probably should but it is really that good. In this novel we get the main storyline which deals with the Vulcan population considering pulling out of the Federation, a global debate is imminent and people from all walks are invited to debate the proposition in front of the Vulcan people. As you would expect all our favourite characters get their time under the spotlight and we get many secondary characters playing major roles as the story unfolds. In addition to this main story we get a number of secondary elements dealing with aspects of Vulcan from the birth of their star system, their evolution into sentience, Surak, Sarek and many other aspects which add so much more to the Vulcan that we knew so little about from the tv series.
Personally I simply love reading about the birth of the first Vulcan language and the experience of wonder as the world is opened to a single vulcan who looks beyond what he can see and is determined to face the unknown. The "Forge" a huge desert where life is forever lived on the edge provides the backdrop to a chilling story of passion and anger and underlines how known Vulcan physical traits played their part in the history of its people. The story of the political/economic and eugenic aspects of the vulcan society seen through the interaction of two of the main "houses" on the verge of a major space exploitation project is beautiful and sorrowful to read but reveals so much of what Vulcan was before Surak. As for Surak his story is wondrous and inspiring and his revelation after seeing an antimatter weapon used on Vulcan's sister planet shows how near the edge these people were before Surak brought sanity to his people. Finally Sarek a master of computer tech posted to the Vulcan embassy on Earth and his rise as an attache finally as ambassador and his meeting to one Amanda Grayson. There is a lot more in the novel, some of which has been expanded upon in other works by Diane but overall the structure of this book is perfection giving you a great core story with to coin a phrase "fascinating" looks into Vulcan society. Spock's World is a must read for any original series Star Trek fan but sits apart as Vulcan and its people have been portrayed significantly different in recent tv and film and for me at least those recent stories and insights failed to love upto what Diane created for her readers.

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First Strike by Christopher G. Nuttall

 

First Strike by Christopher G. Nuttall
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Earth was alone or so they thought until they were visited by a member of the most advanced race in the galaxy and provided with technology and materials along with a warning, their existence would soon become known and to survive humanity would have to unite or suffer the consequences. Years later the Earth once again faces a very real threat, the race known as the Hegemony can expand in only one direction and they have already occupied one human colony world and humanities status as a minor race could see the Hegemony being allowed to simply take Earth and its colonies with the full support of the major races in the galaxy. Faced with ever shrinking options the leaders of Earth opt for a military first strike to retake their lost colony, the goal is to drive the aliens back to gain status and recognition maybe even allies amongst the major races. A daring roll of the dice for if the very small Federation Military fail, Earth will at best become a colony at worst removed from the stars.
First Strike was a very entertaining military scifi novel, I liked the galaxy as painted by Christopher with a very organised number of races under the umbrella of the a race which helped to raise them to their place amongst the stars. We get some political aspects in play both from humanity and the alien races, lots of space pew pew and ground missions with some pirate action thrown in. Overall a very satisfying standalone scifi novel.

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Thrilling Adventure Yarns 2022 - Robert Greenberger

 

Thrilling Adventure Yarns 2022 by Robert Greenberger
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Just finished the latest Thrilling Adventures Yarns (2022 Edition) once again funded through Kickstarter and edited by Robert Greenberger (also contributes a story) and again came away thoroughly entertained. Granted I liked some of the stories more than others but I enjoyed all of them especially that moment before starting each one when you are not sure what you are going to get more so from authors who you are very familiar with. The stories span across a number of well used genres so there is literally something for everyone but again it's difficult not to like the stories on offer from detective dramas within the "real" world or with a supernatural leaning or something out of the myth/legend given a spin you wouldn't see coming, also, some great artwork. As usual you will have one or two that resonate and for me that would be The Ghosts of War by Steven Savile and Riding in Cars with Girls by Geoffrey Thorne. Highly recommended anthology, infact why not pick up all the editions of the series, I won't lead you wrong.



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Limited Edition Kobayashi Maru Medallion

Limited Edition Kobayashi Maru Medallion

I picked up this little beauty from Fanattik the other day, it wasn't overly expensive and while not that big it is heavy and feels like you are getting a lot of value. 

 

From Beyond by Jasper T. Scott & Nathan Hystad

 

From Beyond by Jasper T. Scott & Nathan Hystad
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Are we alone, well the answer could be the non-human craft that is drifting through the solar system on a trajectory towards the sun. Its existence is a very closely kept secret which includes repurposing an upcoming Mars supply mission led by Commander David Bryce. The potential future of the human race is put into his and his crews hands (after signing a very one sided NDA) and along for the ride is a covert assassin known as Dark Three. Meanwhile on Earth a desperate and lethal search for evidence of a some sort of crashed object has a man known as Atlas travelling across Asia chased by killers and maybe some US military associated elements, could the Mars mission and this trail of evidence be linked...
From Beyond is from authors I've read before and while overall the novel (first in a series) entertained it lacked a little something which for me precludes reading book two. The Earth based narrative couldn't hold my interest when compared to the space based one and the second novel "Signal" looks like it will lean towards the former. This is certainly not a poor novel by any means, some good characters and like I said the space based aspect was very good, it still gets a solid mark but this series isn't for me.

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Three Time Travelers Walk Into... by Ian Randal Strock & Michael A. Ventrella

 

Three Time Travelers Walk Into... by Michael A. Ventrella
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Three Time Travelers Walk Into... was a successful Kickstarter funded project created by Ian Randal Strock and edited by Michael A. Ventrella and offers up a multitude of stories which have to simply build upon a seed idea of three well known individuals from different time frames interacting. From that simple premise we get eighteen tales of mystery, humour, adventure and well many other genres and hand on heart I enjoyed them all. As a Trek fan I really liked "The Man Who Broke Time" by David Gerrold but my favourite was probably "The Adventure of the Confounded Writer" by Jonathan Maberry.
I can not recommend this anthology enough, some very clever and imaginative writing and well I want them to sell lots of copies so maybe we can get more.

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Lineage by Joshua James

 

Lineage by Joshua James
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Unexpected alliances have been formed as humanity fights for its very survival as the balance of power tips precariously between those the seeded the universe and those that wish to use the power of the Stellar Key and Sparks to dominate and control life everywhere it is found. The conflict moves on to Titan and an "abandoned" Chinese facility but on Earth there is an almost unreal dash to gain the power the the planets spark and key offer despite the utter foolishness of that desire. Thankfully the bloodlines of the original defenders/protectors of these gifts are still active and there are those prepared to defend life and the Earth regardless of the cost to themselves.
Lineage really ramps up the threat to life across the universe in a macro form centered in the solar system as multiple vested interests fight to obtain, deny or destroy the power the Stellar Keys and Sparks present. We continue to follow the core characters but with get a major influx of Earth based people and their story rivals what we've been presented with so far and expands the narrative by leaps and bounds. Looking forward to the fourth novel in the series "The Creed" which is due out March 2023.


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Cascade by Joshua James

 

Cascade by Joshua James
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The catastrophic events surrounding Saturn and on its moon Enceladus has far reaching consequences, the military conflict between factions of humanity raises tensions on Earth but the arrival of an alien starship and their own goals has really caused a rethinking of mankind's place in the cosmos. Carpenter Lowell and Peter Chang now "captive" onboard the alien ship are privy to many of the secrets humankind have been unaware of and maybe just maybe our place in the universe may finally unify us to make the right decision when dealing with the Stellar Key and the Spark that is at the core of Earth and so many other worlds.
Cascade is the second novel in the series and continues the quite impressive world building (quite literally) that is at the core of Joshua's story. Our two main protagonists continue to be entertaining and handle the dire situations they find themselves in often with a healthy amount of luck. The scope of the narrative is definitely impressive and offers up an intriguing look at alien contact with humanity. Overall a strong second novel with the third already on my kindle.

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Artifact by Joshua James

 

Artifact by Joshua James
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The year is 2219 BCE in the kingdom of Ur-An in Mesopotamia. The King of all things looks to the heavens were ships from the depths of space are attacking and his calls for help from the other visitors who gave him knowledge and gifts go unanswered. Faced with the end of all things (from his point of view) the most precious object on Earth is sent away to be hidden and protected but this is not the end of the story nor the beginning.
I've read some of Joshua's work before so was more than willing to begin a new series (Saturn's Legacy which is currently three books and one due soon). Well the beginning of Artifact was different but we soon learn that humanity has had contact with alien intelligence for generations and the secrets of that contact continue to Mars and beyond. It is infact Mars where we meet the central character of Carpenter Lowell who is a member of the US Space Corp assigned to protect a science project which alas ends poorly and then some time later Lowell is assigned to Enceladus (Moon of Saturn) to babysit another science project but his past catches up to him and he finds himself in the middle of a mystery that has been hidden for thousands but will soon be revealed as various military powers race to uncover the secrets.
This was a strong start to the series of novels, as I said the beginning through me but adds the foundation the series requires to build upon as events take place in the near future. There is plenty of action, lots of well developed characters and the beginning of some solid narrative which will take us forward, highly recommended.

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A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher

 

A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

In the city of Riverbraid both the weak and powerful folk who can harness magics are welcome, the warrior wizards serve the army while hundreds of others whose talents are small and varied live perfectly normal lives under the protection of the Duchess and the Council. However wizards are now being killed and when young Mona (a wizard who has a talent for dough and bread) discovers the body of a young woman in the bakery she is thrust into the mystery that puts her life at risk as well as every soul in the city. Well I wasn't sure what this book was going to be, the blurb sounded fun and while it may be aimed at the younger reader I enjoyed the story and the characters as well as the scope of the story from smalltime street levels events to the larger political and military aspects of the city itself. Highly recommended for someone looking for something a little different or maybe a youngster who expects their stories to have a bit more meat on the bone and have consequences.

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Prodigals by Alan Dean Foster

 

Prodigals by Alan Dean Foster
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First contact is here and arrangements are made for a number for groups of people (with certain skills and capabilities) to meet the "aliens" in specific places across the globe. Devali Mukherjee is chosen to be part of the American group who meet the alien craft near Lake Surprise in Texas. The aliens make demands hand in hand with some threats but during a subsequent meeting the humans are allowed to visit the alien mothership but with no explanation the aliens declare an emergency and their ship leaves orbit and accelerates out of the solar system. Devali and his companions are now faced with understanding multiple aliens species who inhabit the ship as well as trying to understand the situation they are in with little help it seems for returning to Earth their survival may depend upon them being useful to the ship.
Prodigals is not a large and complex novel, the story is pretty compact but the scope is almost limitless. We are introduced to a good group of central characters which sets the narrative on a solid footing and offsets the fantastical nature of first contact and aliens who like humans are not all cut from the same cloth. A solid novel with a few surprising twists and revelations which are most satisfying.


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Omega Force: Unleashed by Joshua Dalzelle

 

Omega Force: Unleashed by Joshua Dalzelle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Omega Force returns to its roots or getting back into Robin Hood mode as the team take on what appears to be a small time low profit job to aid in the exposure, suppression and extreme prejudice of a sentient being trafficking operation. As the existing structure of the this part of the galaxy collapses and law enforcement becomes a thing of the past the dark nature of sentients is emerging and part of this is the kidnapping and selling of being both old and young for simple labour tasks or more darker desires. This 14th novel feels a little "lighter" than those previously as it seems to be setting up a new chapter in the lives of the crew and in many ways this story is very different to the "machine" led narrative we've had for a few novels but when you get down to it we still have Omega Force kicking ass for all the right reasons. Of course not everything fits smoothly back into place, the team are out of practice dealing with threats with little back up and to put it bluntly they are not as young as they used to be. Omega Force Unleashed is a new beginning and there are a lot of situations to flesh out and explore in the next few novels, this should be a lot of fun.

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A Time for Freedom by Daniel Arenson

 

A Time for Freedom by Daniel Arenson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The warships and Marines of an united humanity along with allied sentient races who have felt the wrath of the Rah continue to defend Earth at a terrible cost but there is hope as intelligence is gathered on the Arakavish solar system. The risk of striking at the heart of the empire is high but a defence lead agenda will mean the end of humanity and thus the decision is made, the only way to save humanity and her allies is fly into the spider's web but even then that may not be enough.
The final novel in the Starship Freedom series is tasked with offering a viable narrative to conclude this intergalactic war, it doesn't really succeeded although not for the want of trying. Daniel puts an awful lot of action into this novel and while the combat is as good as always it all seemed just a little too much. Without spoiling anything the story did hit some solid emotional points which is always a good thing when you are supposed to become invested in long running characters but a few things that were happening I couldn't quite accept and a few others I think needed fleshing out a little. All said though the series as a whole was entertaining and fun to read, lots of action and some great characters to follow through out, highly recommended if light military scifi is your thing.

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Stingray

Stingray

I've been looking for a good model of Stingray for a while and the best is well too expensive so I find this little model on ebay and well it does look very nice so job done. 

The Guns of Freedom by Daniel Arenson

 

The Guns of Freedom by Daniel Arenson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A reborn Freedom has portaled back to the Solar System and to the ongoing Rah invasion led by The Atrocity along with thousands of Rah and Arachtaur warships. The combined Alliance, Desert Thorns and Red Dawn fleets along with numerous vessels from other nations are bathed in blood as they attempt to protect Earth but for the first time in its history every soul is reaching for one goal, the survival of humanity. Admiral King soon realises that a defensive stance will never protect Earth, the Rah fleet is simply too large even if spread across this part of the galaxy, it's only a matter of time before another five thousands ships could be sent to destroy Earth. The only long term solution is to hit the Arakavish Empire at its heart, they know where it is, the have stealth recon ability and now the means to portal directly there. Operation Gaia's Flame is given the green light.
The Guns Of Freedom was pretty much none stop action with theatres of war in the solar system and the Achernar system. The description of the alien star system was very well done, it made me think of what we saw in Star Trek with a Borg system but more fluid and dynamic. We are getting some good character set pieces (something Daniel has always done) but they seem more important now as life and death is figuratively at times a flip of a coin. We're nearing the end of this grand adventure, still lots to do but this novel lays down the groundwork.




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In Pursuit of Freedom by Daniel Arenson

 

In Pursuit of Freedom by Daniel Arenson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The dreadnaught Freedom now the last surviving member of the human fleet sent to find allies against the Rah encounters the last of the Aeolian race. What the humans find is not exactly what they expected but first contact is certainly more positive then with the Rah's. This novel is quite easily the best of the series, the introduction of this new element takes over reducing the reliance on oft repeated space battle and ship based narrative allowing the author to stretch himself. The result is a very entertaining look at humanity meeting a new sentient race and having to deal with suspicion and caution from the other side as well as from their own. The Aeolians themselves were an inspired creation by Daniel and I kinda loved one of them embracing nicknames and calling the Admiral "Bully Dog". Overall a good addition to the series which if I am honest needed a little kick in the pants.

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Failure Mode by Craig Alanson

 

Failure Mode by Craig Alanson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Failure Mode is the final novel in the Expeditionary Force series which started so long ago with the awesome Columbus Day which for me begin my enjoyment of Skippy and the Merry Band of Pirates.
Alas we know from all forms of media closing a long running series is always difficult, you have an informed fanbase with so many expectations and opinions and rarely do you satisfy everyone.
For my sins I can not give this novel a respectable rating, it didn't fulfill my expectations but overall the series has been magnificent and this final installment has not significantly affected my willingness to recommend the Expeditionary Force novels to anyone looking for science fiction set in our current timeframe with humour and plenty of the fantastic.
Let's be honest though, if you've invested in Craig's story for so long you are going to read this book and may many indeed come away happy but more than anything I am grateful for a very enjoyable experience over the years and look forward to the spin off which will focus on the Ethics & Compliance Office and specifically Uhtavio Scorandum.


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Jaws Movie Poster 3D

JAWS

One of the my all time favourite movies is "Jaws" the original summer blockbuster that changed the way Hollywood looked at marketing and release schedules not to mention really cementing the reputation of a young Steven Spielberg. I've owned the movie on a number of formats as well as back in my youth having the movie poster on my wall thanks I recall it being part of a movie magazine I read back then. Now movie merchandising needs to grab my attention at this certainly did...

I had a little space on a shelf so what the hell, I've also added a LED backlight, alas no flickering but it kinda looks nice when lit up. I'm sure someone with some skill and technical knowledge could go to town with sound effects, music and various lighting effects.