Out of the Dark by David Weber Book Review

Out of the dark is a near future Alien Invasion science fiction book.  Like many books of this type the aliens invading earth wipe the floor with us.  I am talking most of our cities gone, our military forces wiped out,  complete subjugation of the populace kind of wiped the floor.  Then as is common with this type of novel something turns the tide.  Whats different about this story is that its not some fancy new technology the government was hiding, or an ancient alien spaceship hiding out on the moon that turns the tide.  In this case the aliens find out the hard way that there is a reason humans fear things that go bump in the night, and they have just pissed that reason off.

The only thing I didn't like about this book is that the destruction of a good chunk of humanity was too well described.  The first part of the book was good but depressing.  On the other hand it was worth it because the payback in the second part was awesome.

When the Alien Shongairi  invade the earth they pretty much hit the high points of the alien invader handbook and with most of the population wiped out things look pretty grim for humanity.  Part of the book follows a resistance cell in the United States that is doing what it can to fight back and keep the human race alive.  The other part of the book follows Master Sergeant Stephen Buchevsky through the balkans after he and some of his people narrowly escape destruction.  The master Sergeant does what he knows best and begins resisting the invaders and linking up with local forces doing the same.  One of the locals he befriends named Mircea Basarab is a little bit strange, but willing to help.  When most of Stephen's group gets destroyed defending Mircea's homeland, the terrifying truth is revealed.  By the time Mircea gets to Stephen his new friend is nearly dead and he must reveal his true self in order to save him.  It turns out that he once inspired a book by the name of Dracula and he was called a vampire for good reason.  For years he has been holding back the monster inside, and now the Shongairi have woken it up.  You heard me right its aliens vs Dracula.  As crazy as that sounds it is done really well, and I can't think of a better use for the horde of vampires that gets made to combat the aliens than what the author does.

This book will appeal to science fiction fans that can take a little bit of the paranormal thrown in, and any others that give it a chance will probably find it a good read.

This book can be purchased at www.amazon.com in print or E-book form.

Fangs for the Mammaries by Escher Friesner Book Review

Fangs for the Mammaries is the third suburban fantasy anthology by Escher Friesner.  As with the other two anthologies it is a collection of short stories by different authors with a common theme.  For this book the theme is vampires living in suburbia.

Like the other two books the stories in this one explore the trials and tribulations of vampires in our modern world.  Whether its a vampire field trip to the mall with werewolf security guards or the poor confused undead after the twilight movies bring teenage snacks, I mean girls, to their doors, these short stories are a funny, entertaining, and thoughtful look at vampires in the burbs.  In addition much like its predecessors this book contains continuations of the previous books short stories.

This book is good for anyone who loves vampires, and modern fantasy.  It is particularly good if you want a story that you don't have to devote a lot of time to since they all stand alone.

This book can be purchased as an e-book or in print at www.amazon.com.

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs Book Review

This book is a a paranormal urban fantasy novel set in a world a step away from our own.  Not only are there werewolves, vampires, and other paranormal species, but the Fae have gone public with their existence.  The history of this world before that point is largely the same as our own, and so far the Fae are the only group to come out.

We are introduced to this world by Mercedes Thompson who is a VW mechanic trying to get by in the Tri-Cities area of Washington state.   Her former boss is a gremlin that moved to the fae reservation when the the fae came out.  Mercy also has some secrets.  She is a walker who can shift into a coyote, and she was raised by werewolves.  While she puts on a good front she is very well connected to the local supernatural community, and can call in some big guns when she finds herself in a fix.

When a stray (not attached to the local pack) werewolf approaches her shop looking for a job, she knows exactly what he is, and that something is very wrong.  The boy is terrified, and seems to have been abandoned by his makers, something that she knows is not accepted among the werewolves, and would not be tolerated by the local pack ( their alpha is her next door neighbor).  Having a soft spot for strays of any sort Mercy takes him in and gives him a job.  His past catches up to him quickly and Mercy has to call the local pack when he turns up dead. 

From her conversations with him she knows that there is more going on than it appears, and with someone under her care dead Mercy will not give up until she has uncovered all of the secrets.  With an angry coyote on their tail no secret is safe, and when the coyote is friends with werewolves the secret keepers will not be in good shape either.

This book is the first in the Mercedes Thompson Series by Patricia Briggs.  I will warn you that this series is addicting, and you may end up buying all the rest of the current series as well.  It can be found at www.amazon.com in print or e-book format.

StakeLand Movie Review

I suppose this movie can be described as a horror movie, but it seems to be more of a dark coming of age movie to me.  It is true that the movie is basically a post civilization collapse story with "Vampires", but the plot focuses more on a master vampire hunter training an apprentice to live in the collapsed world. 

The vampires in this movie are a lot more like zombies than anything you can find in contemporary fiction for the most part.  They are unthinking, undead creatures constantly seeking blood and fleeing the sun.  they are a bit stronger than normal humans, but not much, and their main advantage seems to be the fact that they are infectious, and there are a lot of them.  From what I can tell in the movie if you are killed by one your rise as one, but all thought ceases in the transition.  The world is definitely in a new dark age in this film, but there are many examples of communities getting by.

The two main characters in this movie are Martin, the apprentice, and Mister, the master.  The story is told from Martin's point of view and narrated by him.  It doesn't really feel like a horror film because the main characters are so numb to the horror around them that the normal tension is just not there.  Instead it is replaced by the coming of age story of Martins training by Mister.  Don't get me wrong all the elements of a horror movie are there, but they didn't hit me the same way.  

The basic plot of the movie is that Mister and Martin are trying to get to New Eden, which is apparently in Canada, where the cold keeps the vampires at bay.  They travel through a transformed United states fighting vampires, and picking up companions, and enemies along the way.

This movie was interesting, but very dark, and I would not recommend it if you are terribly afraid of vampires or zombies.  If you can get past that it is an interesting take on a coming of age tale, and the background for the setting is very well thought out.

I watched this movie on Netflix via my Roku streaming player.

Strike The Blood Anime Review

Strike the blood is a currently running anime that I picked up last night.  It is currently being simulcast from Japan.  There are only 4 episodes out yet but so far it is a very good series.  The male lead character, Akatsuki Kojo, appears to be a normal high school guy (as normal as they get in anime) but he has also become an incredibly powerful vampire.  The female lead, Yukina Himeragi, has been sent to observe him and told to kill him if he becomes dangerous.  This anime is set on an artificial island built by japan to be the home of the various supernatural creatures that are endangered in the world.

The show starts with whispered rumors of the "Fourth Primogenitor" being on the island.  Shortly you find out that this powerful being is just a high school boy, who doesn't even know how to control the power he has.  His observer, Yukina Himeragi, is very good at fighting, but not so good at anything else.  she has been training to fight vampires and monsters her whole life and is a curious mixture of naive and deadly.  In the episodes so far he struggles with just what he should do with his new-found power, and she struggles with her feelings for him, and becoming a more complete person.  So far they seem to be good for each other.  Oh yeah there are some awesome supernatural fight scenes as well.

The overarching plot seems to be the two main characters growing into their power while trying to save their home from supernatural threats.  This is definitely for a more mature audience and does not have kids in mind.  Minor characters die, and the main character is horribly injured at times.  The violence is extreme in some cases.  I would recommend this show for adults and teenagers, but not children.

 This Anime can be found at www.crunchyroll.com.