Pyramid Power by Eric Flint and Dave Freer Book Review

Pyramid Power 

BBy: Dave Freer and Eric Flint






Pyramid Power is the sequel to Pyramid Scheme, and for the most part just as fun and lighthearted as the first book.  This one takes a look at Norse Mythology, and has fun playing with the underdogs there.  It is very entertaining with the sort of humor you would expect if you read the first book.  If you didn't read the first book I suggest you do so before finishing this review since I will probably be giving away some plot points to make my summary here make sense.  If you haven't seen the review I did for that one yet check it out here: Pyramid Scheme.   You have been warned.

Pyramid Scheme by David Freer and Eric Flint

Pyramid Scheme 

By: David Freer and Eric Flint






Pyramid Scheme is a fun and irreverent story that revolves around the myths and legends of both Greece and Ancient Egypt.  I cant really decide if this story is Fantasyish Science Fiction or Science Fictionish fantasy.  It is a little bit of both since the main protaganists end up in "Mythworlds" where there are gods, monsters, and magic but they are sent there by what amounts to an alien probe.  However you classify it though, it is a very entertaining read with clever hero's who team up with the underdogs of both Greek and Egyptian legend.

Live Free or Die by John Ringo Book Review

Live Free or Die 

By: John Ringo






This book is the first book in the Troy Rising series.  I suppose you could say it is an alien invasion story, and you would be right, but you would also miss the point because the best part of this book is the way that humanity springs back and keeps moving.  While the book has some events that are pretty terrible, The book doesn't get very depressing because it moves so fast.  I had trouble putting this one down because I just couldn't wait to see what happened next.

DarkShip Thieves by Sarah A. Hoyt Book Review

DarkShip Thieves 

By:Sarah A. Hoyt






Darkship Thieves is a very good science fiction adventure that manages to pack a coming of age plot, a clash of spacefaring cultures plot, and some romance into one book.  The main character goes from being a spoiled, almost feral, rich girl to someone who values others and wants to earn her place in the world.  The book also explores the consequences, and human reaction to genetic engineering, and the mindset of the enhanced vs the originals.

The only things that threw me in this book are that much of the technology is not adequately explained, and at times the main character is almost too perfect at physical confrontations.  The lack of technical explanation is mitigated by the fact that the world this takes place in has regressed technologically from its peak.  The people in the story often don't know why something works. In addition the main characters prowess in a physical confrontation is balanced by her temper causing her many issues in the book.  Overall this is a very good book and quite fun to read.

Athena Hera Sinestra is a spoiled rich girl, who happens to have enhanced senses and fighting ability.  When she is attacked on her fathers spaceship she manages to fight her way to a lifepod and escape into the powertrees where solar energy is concentrated in powerpods that are used to power civilization.  Shortly she runs into a mysterious ship that can only be one of the DarkShip Thieves.  The DarkShip Thieves are one of her cultures biggest boogeymen, since they are rumored to serve Biolords who escaped from the riots and purges of their great war.  But when the operator of the ship saves her multiple times, and takes her home to Eden, the world the BioLord's former servants have made for themselves, when it becomes clear earth space is not savfe for her she realizes many things she was taught were a lie.  Over time Athena comes to make a life for herself on Eden and falls in love with her rescuer Kit.  When the time comes she marries him and begins to go on Powerpod runs with him.  The problem is things on earth are not as they seem, and her father will stop at nothing to get her back.  They are ambushed, and captured.  Now Athena must rescue her husband and  find out why she is so important.  What she discovers could overturn the very basis of her society, because it turns out that most of the BioLords never left earth.

This book will appeal to any science fiction space adventure fan, and the romance aspect is prominent enough to bring in that audience as well.

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

Kiln People By David Brin Book Review

Kiln People 

By: David Brin






Kiln people is a Science fiction/Mystery novel set in a world where people can cheaply and easily make copies of their bodies and minds for specific purposes.  The main character is a private investigator specializing in the sort of trouble this technology lends itself to.  The author uses this to explore the nooks and cranny's of what this sort of thing would do to a society.  He even gets into some of the effects a users mental health could have with it.  In my opinion this is good because I feel the day is coming that we will be able to copy our minds to computers, and this book seems like a primer for that day.  There is not really anything about this book that I did not like.  It was a very fun read and provides a lot of interesting things to think about.

Endless Blue by Wen Spencer Book Review

Endless Blue 

By: Wen Spencer






Endless Blue is a space adventure/mystery/romance from Wen Spencer. As with all her books the best part of them is the interplay of her characters, and the process of them dealing with their own issues. In many ways this book is defined by the flaws in the characters and the way their flaws mirror the flaws in the society they come from. One thing that I particularly like in this book is that in coming to grips with their own problems the main characters are able to move forward with fixing those parts of their society. As usual Wen Spencer builds a complex world you hope to continue to experience, and there is nothing about this book that I dislike. This is the only book in the series, but I continue to hope that she picks up this world and these characters again.

Hab 12 (Scrapyard Ship Book 2) by Mark Wayne McGinnis Book Review

Hab 12 

By: Mark Wayne McGinnis






This is the second book in the scrapyard ship series, and it picks up where scrapyard ship ends.  This book diverges from the well known plot of the first book, and makes use of some of the discoveries made by the crew in the first adventure as plot devices in this one.

Scrapyard Ship by Mark Wayne McGinnis

Scrapyard ship is a near future novel involving a salvaged starship of unknown origins, and a massive threat to the security of the Earth.  I have read a number of these types, and It is a very good example.  The characters are what differentiates this book from its peers.  The action, and pace are very quick, and I got very caught in finding out what happened next.

The only complaint I have about the book is that I could tell the generally tell the broad plot outline from the type of book it was.  That being said there is nothing wrong with following a trope if you do it well and the author does it very well.

The main Character Jason Reynolds is a navy seal who has found himself in a bit of trouble because his sense of justice and honor sometimes outvotes his common sense.  The story starts with him under house arrest at his old family scrapyard with a shiny new ankle bracelet after an incident with some pirates.  When his daughter comes to visit they both end up finding out that there is an ancient starship hidden on the property the hard way.  It turns out that his father didn't disappear years ago, but has instead been fighting a long war against an alien menace that is now coming for earth.  Very shortly the invasion arrives and Jason must scramble to get those he cares about to safety.  Before he can get to her his ex-wife, who he still has feelings for, is captured and the alien Craing have made a fatal mistake.  Before her capture Jason was not sure he would take up the challenge from the father who abandoned him, but now the aliens have made it personal, and unlike his father he is not afraid to discover everything his new ship can do.

This book will appeal to readers who enjoy military science fiction, and ancient alien benefactors.  There are a lot of boarding actions, space battles, and hand to hand combat scenes for the military science fiction fan and plenty of clever capabilities that the crew unlocks on their salvaged ship along the way for the fan of the ancient alien technology.

The book can be found at www.amazon.com in print or as an e-book.

Alien Taste By Wen Spencer Book Review

Alien Taste starts out as a good murder mystery novel and explodes into a science fiction adventure complete with shape shifting alien invaders.  As with all of Wen Spencers books you will really empathize with and understand the characters.  The world they are in feels very real and you will have a hard time putting the book down because it will keep you engaged to the very end trying to see what happens next.  I know I should write what I didn't like about the book at this point but really the author didn't do anything I didn't like with this story.

Ukiah Oregon, and Max Bennett, are a private detective team who specialize in finding missing people.  In fact when it comes to weird missing persons cases they are the best.  Ukiah has almost magical tracking abilities, and Max handles everything else.  For their latest case they are trying to find a missing co-ed with three hacked apart roommates.  Ukiah knows that something is off about this case almost immediately because he really does have superhuman tracking abilites, and he can tell that the blood from the girl he is trying to find isn't completely human.  When he does find her she is insane, Armed with a sword, and being taken over from the inside out by something that is hauntingly familiar to Ukiah.  The fact that Ukiah doesn't remember his early childhood or how he came to be in a humane wolf trap in Ukiah Oregon(he was named after the town) has never been a problem for him until now.  By taking this case the past he can't remember is about to catch up to him, and he will discover that his tracking abilities and sense for DNA are only the tip of the iceberg.  Ukiah discovers that like the thing that was changing the girl he found he isn't completely human and he is not alone.  His fathers people have been battling for the future of our world for a long time and the fight just came to him.  The question is can he learn enough about himself to be anything but a pawn in the long war between the descendants of his father Prime and the hive mind known as Hex.

This book should appeal to mystery fans, and science fiction fans alike.  I really think that anyone who gives it half a chance will love it.  Wen Spencer has a gift for writing compelling stories that you just can't put down, and when they are over you just want more.

This book can be found at www.amazon.com as an e-book.

Mutineer's Moon By David Weber Book Review

Mutineer's Moon is an older novel, but still very good.  It is the first book in a trilogy that includes Mutineer's Moon, The Armageddon Inheritance, and Heirs of Empire, and all three were later republished as Empire From the Ashes.  It touches any number of interesting science fiction concepts in an interesting way that explores their human impact as well as the technology itself.  This epic story will catch your interest, and keep you engaged with its fast paced action.

The first time I read this book I had a hard time putting it down.  There are not really a lot of good stopping points because you just want to see what happens next.  In fact that is one of the things I both loved and hated about this entire series.  Once you start reading it you don't want to stop even when you run out of books.

The plot of this book is that the moon is really a giant starship, and a mutiny 50,000 years ago stranded it in orbit.  The modern population of earth is made up of the survivors of the loyalists.  You would think that after 50,000 years the mutiny would be resolved, but fast forward to now and the mutiny is still going on between bouts of cold sleep.  The mutineers, who maintained a tech base, act as puppet masters playing the descendants of the fallen loyalists off of each other.   When NASA Astronaut Colin Macintyre is tasked with surveying the moon with an advanced new sensor Dahak's (the starship) AI, who has become self aware after 50,000 years of autonomous operation, is forced to act or be revealed.  He snatches Colin ship and all, and fakes a crash.  After determining that Colin is the descendant of loyalist's Dahak is provided a way to finally deal with the mutiny.  Which is good because the reason that he was built in the first place is on the way, and his empire is terrifyingly silent.  Colin Gets shanghaied into becoming Dahak's Captain, and now all he has to do is put down a mutiny that's been going on for 50,000 years.  That task is easier said than done, but Colin is possibly the only man for the job, and when the mutineer's make things personal for him they don't stand a chance.

This book will appeal to anyone who loves a good action science fiction novel complete with clandestine battles between advanced combatants.  It is a fun read and the start of one of my favorite science fiction series.

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

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.

Arpeggio of Blue Steel Anime series Review

Arpeggio of Blue Steel is a Science Fiction Anime about human AI relations.  The AI's in question started out as aggressors known as the Fog which take the form of navy ships, and have blockaded mankind from the seas.  This series has a twist that I like in that the AI's begin crafting human forms to better understand the people they face.

The thing I don't like about this series is that even though the main character a human named Gunzou manages to connect with and change several AI's from weapons to people the question of what they are, where they come from and what they should be doing that is asked throughout the series remains unanswered.  I  really hope that there is a follow up season which answers some of that.

The story of this anime is that one day the Fleet of Fog showed up and began destroying mankind's oceangoing capabilities.  They took the form of Warships, but were based on a nanotechnology that nobody on earth has.  They have both shields, and ultra advanced weaponry and human weapons cannot really hurt them.  At the beginning of the show the humans have managed to "Capture" one fog vessel but cannot even scratch its hull or access its systems.  This all changes when Gunzou touches the submarine.  Systems suddenly come online, and soon a strange girl appears to him and tells him she is the mental model of his ship, which is the I-401 that he was taken to see recently.  The series then skips ahead to a time where I-401 has been running a lone offensive against the Fog.  Throughout the show various AI's with mental models go up against I-401, and Gunzou, and when they end up losing they determine that they must learn more about humans to be better weapons.  This provides an opportunity for Gunzou to build on this curiosity and make them realize that they are people not just machines and that they have free will.  The series uses a mission to smuggle advanced technology capable of taking down fog ships as a plot device to move these encounters forward.  In the end Gunzou and I-401 are able to deliver the advanced weaponry prototype to the united states where it can be manufactured.  More importantly in the process he has freed several AI's from being bound from the program known as the Admirality code.  Some of them even leave the Fog to join his force the Blue Steel.

The series explores some interesting ideas about what it means to be intelligent, and what it means to be human.  This is interspersed by some visually stunning Naval battles between Gunzou's forces and the Fog, and some land battles with Mental Models.  All In all this series should appeal to both the science fiction action crowd and the people who want a series that makes them think.

This series is available as a stream at www.Crunchyroll.com.

Hard Luck Hank Screw the Galaxy by Steven Campbell Book Review

This book is a lighthearted action adventure novel about mutant mobsters in space.  The main character Hank is not quite the thug that he makes himself out to be, but his sense of right and wrong are a bit skewed to say the least.  Despite this he is a very likable character who will often do the right thing even when he knows its stupid and would advise anyone else to run.  I found myself enjoying the book just to see Hank's take on the crazy situations around him.

This book is not really a "makes you think" kind of story, but more of the "escape my mundane world" sort.  If you are looking for deep philosophical meaning from a story this one may disappoint, but if a story about a nearly indestructible mobster with a heart of gold defeating all foes who threaten his home turf sounds interesting to you this should be a fun read.

Hard Luck Hank Makes his living as a gang negotiator on a space station so far from anywhere else it is the favorite hideout of mobsters on the run. His mutation makes him literally bulletproof, and lets him heal at an advanced rate. His healing is not Wolverine fast but if you cut off his finger it would grow back in about a month without a scar.  Unfortunately this is accomplished in part by making him very dense, and his muscles are completely normal so he is very slow.  He likes to say that hes not the smartest, or wisest negotiator but he is the best because if they shoot him in the face he will just keep talking.  Since his ageing is healed just like any other injury everybody knows Hank because he has been there for 150 years, and everyone trusts him because he has negotiated a deal for them at some point, and they know he plays fair.  This is why when the station comes under threat from outside invaders or non-corrupt government officials Hank is one of the first people to get called.  If anyone can get a station full of gangsters to pull together its Hank, and if he cant? Well he's bulletproof.  One thing I like about this book is that even though he is almost indestructible he can get hurt, and at a couple of points in the book when his negotiations get lively he does end up in the hospital.  After beating the opposition down of course.  So where does the screw the galaxy part come in?  Well lets just say by the end of the book you realize that 150 years of negotiating deals between gangs is good experience when facing down galactic empires.

This book will appeal to anyone who likes science fiction and doesn't mind flawed dark heros.  Hank is not really a good guy but he sure is fun to read about, and he has a way of taking things as they are that is quite refreshing.

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

The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett and Steven Baxter

This book is a frontier style science fiction novel, but with a delightful twist.  The frontier is all different versions of earth.  This book explores the concept of many worlds in a new and unique way.  It follows a protagonist on a journey of exploration, but unlike most many worlds science fiction he is not the person to discover stepping between worlds, and most worlds do not have humans already on them, but are instead unsettled wilderness.

My only complaint about this book is that it takes a while to get interesting and there is a lot of character building before anything particularly interesting happens.  Despite this when the pace does pick up the book is well worth it, and the reason for the character building becomes apparent.  I just wish that the process had been more interesting at the beginning.

The plot of this book is that of an exploratory journey into new frontiers.  The main character, Joshua, is approached by an emancipated AI named Lobsang, who claims freedom based on being a re-incarnated motorcycle repair man,  to accompany him on an expedition as a backup way of getting home.  Joshua is one of the minority of people who have found they don't need a device to step, and he has traveled the worlds more extensively than most.  During the voyage they discover non-human races of steppers who all appear to be fleeing back in the direction of our world, and eventually determine what they are fleeing from.  This book is more about what is learned on the journey, and exploring the possibilities of a limitless frontier than the actual journey itself.  It is a great look at how things could go in a modern frontier when the cost of travel is achievable.

This book will appeal to science fiction fans who enjoy world building, and colonization novels.  I bought it because I enjoy reading both authors work, and I was not disappointed.

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

Elysium Movie Review

Elysium is a truly classic science fiction movie in that it takes the biggest troubles of the time and uses a story about the future to talk about where those issues could lead.  The movie is sad and hits very close to home in our recent economic recovery.  The effects are very good and for the most part the science is even accurate.

The only problem I had with the movie is that I can't see how things would get as dystopian as they are presented in the movie.  First it presumes that somehow the inhabitants of the space station Elysium completely disenfranchise most of the world including the people of the united states, after fleeing it.  This seems a bit far-fetched considering that the major space powers would not allow the kind of technology that would allow that to happen without having similar technology to counter it.  Second the people of Elysium seem too disconnected to be believable.  Their hoarding of miraculous medical technology in particular seems particularly cruel.

The plot of this movie is a mixture of the Savior archetype, and the Prometheus archetype.  Basically the richest people in the world have fled to the luxurious space station named Elysium.  There they have robotic servants, and disease free nearly immortal lives brought about by medical technology that has the capability of completely rebuilding a body from the faintest spark of life.  Cancer, Birth defects, and deadly radiation poisoning are all quickly and easily fixed.  In contrast the people on earth are left with modern medical technology or worse, and must deal with massive overpopulation and a poisoned biosphere.  Meanwhile the people of Elysium rule over and profit from the people of earth as a permanent lower class.  The hero of the film is not a good man, but at the start he has cleaned up his act, gotten a job, and is trying to better himself.  When he is exposed to a lethal dose of radiation on the job he is given pills that will allow him to function for the rest of his now very short life and fired.  This is done despite the fact that the company has the means to cure him.  Due to his criminal past he has contacts that allow him to do something about it instead of waiting to die like a good slave.  A plan is launched to steal an Elysium citizens identity giving the underground access to billions of dollars.  In the end the hack yields more than they ever bargained for, and he is presented with a choice.  Save himself, or save the world by taking control of Elysium.  In the end he decides to save the world by making all earth residents Elysium Citizens.

This film addresses some of the biggest issues facing America today.  The rampant inequality and disparity of access to health care are currently dividing this country at an accelerating rate.  While things have not gotten nearly to the point that the movie portrays, it is frighteningly easy to see parallels to our current problems.

Science fiction lovers and people who see the current inequality building in our society as a bad thing will likely love this film.

This movie can be purchased digitally or on disk from www.amazon.com.

1632 Book Review

This science fiction alternate history story is a fun adventure that makes you appreciate just how far America has come.  By throwing together modern Americans with Germans in 1632 during the 30 years war Eric Flint can compare and contrast the societies in a very interesting way.  The reactions on both sides serve to highlight both the good and the bad that can be find in the modern American system.  It even gets into how you must act to keep and spread the freedom we all take for granted.  I have read this book many times over the years and frankly there is nothing I don't like about it.

The story starts with the West Virginian town of Grantville being mysteriously transported to 1632 Germany in the middle of the 30 years war.  It is the answer to the question "What if you dump a load of American Coal miners who self identify as rednecks into the mess of early Germany?".  What is the answer you ask?  They kick ass, take names, and spread American style freedom backed by modern firearms, vehicles, and political thought that's what.  This does not mean that everything that the uptimers(What people from the modern era are called in the book) do is good because in a whole town there are bound to be some bigot's and intolerant people.  The leaders of Grantville must deal with both internal and external threats, and work to ensure that the American melting pot mentality prevails.  One of the big threats that the main character Mike Stearns sees is the trap of fortress America.  If they are to succeed in making their new home a place they want to live they must resist the urge to hide in a bunker and instead spread their ideals to make the rest of the world more hospitable to their way of thinking.  In this book Eric Flint is truly remaking the world of 1632 and he does a great job of it.

This book will appeal to alternate history fans, science fiction fans, and anyone who likes to see a new fictional world come to life.  While there is quite a bit of violence the overall tone is positive, and while reading it there was never a sense of hopelessness that this sort of story could evoke if done poorly.

This book can be found on www.amazon.com in print or as an e-book.  As of right now this book is free as a kindle e-book.

Pacific Rim Movie Review

This movie is a fun, science fiction, giant robot vs monster movie.  I rented it last night and really enjoyed watching it.  The technology for the the giant robots, called yeagers, is a bit out there but the way the research was portrayed was interesting.  I particularly liked the concept of there needing to be two pilots to share the load of running the yeager.

That being said I had real trouble believing that the yeagers( the giant robots) would be possible in the time frame that the story seems to portray.  There is a reason we use tank treads instead of walkers.  The sheer power and resiliency of the yeagers is more befitting an organic system than a mechanical one.  Despite this the movie manages to be quite entertaining.  The giant robots are cool, and the special effects are really good.

The plot of this movie is that the world is being invaded by giant monsters from another dimension, and the world built giant robots to combat them.  The movie is a little different from other giant monster movies because they are being deliberately sent as an invasion force to destroy our civilization.  The aliens who want colonize send giant monsters through a dimensional rift that they opened at the bottom of the pacific ocean.  The humans responded by building yeagers to stop them.  This works for a while but eventually more capable monsters are sent and yeagers start to fall.  The governments of the world decide to build giant walls to hide behind at this point, and the remaining yeagers end up in Hong Kong fighting the monsters.  The twist is that just as the yeager program is winding down the monsters break through the wall.  It seems that they are preparing to send a wave of monsters against the world and destroy our civilization once and for all.  The only thing standing between the world and its fate is a rag-tag group of the remaining yeagers, and their pilots.

This movie is a classic example of the giant robot/giant monster movie done in modern times.  Most science fiction or action movie fans will like this movie.  It is not however very original in its plot.  basically it is neon-genesis evangelion meets independence day, so if you expect to be surprised by the twists you will probably be disappointed.  If you want a great Friday night popcorn movie though this could be a winner.

This movie is available on disk or as a streaming rental or purchase at www.amazon.com

The Quantum Connection by Travis S. Taylor

This book is the even more action packed sequel to Warp Speed.  While it is a sequel it stands alone quite well.  I actually read it first and was not confused at all.  The book picks different characters to focus on and at the beginning they do not even know about the crew from the first book.  The book is a fun read if you want a classic style science fiction story where the good guy wins, and the bad guys are left in the dust by the hero's mighty intellect and wise tactical or technological decisions.

This book's strength is also its weakness because the bad guys don't really have much of a chance despite having an initial advantage.  This is really a geek, techno-fantasy, superhero style story with some real science at its heart.

The book is the story of how Steven Montana(the hero) saves the world.  At the start of the book Steven is a gamer geek and college student studying computers when the warp war from the first book breaks out.  In the fighting his entire home town with everyone he knows is wiped out and he is told it was because of a meteor.  He slides into a spiral of depression and only begins to come back out of it when a chance encounter gets him a job working on reverse engineering a strange circuit that turns out to be a quantum supercomputer.  When a background check fails due to him having no-one to vouch for him he has a major relapse and heads into the desert after taking all of his "happy pills".  At this point the book takes a bit of a turn because he is abducted by aliens that have been experimenting on him for years and were the ultimate cause of his depression.  Because of the pills he took he is able to wake up from their sedation and take over the ship. The research ship turns out to be run by a quantum supercomputer, the very thing Steven was just studying.  Using the supercomputer and the nanotechnology on board the research vessel he enhances himself and a female fellow captive, and together they take off to save the world.  Soon they meet up with the crew from warp speed, and god help anything that threatens earth from that point on.

This book will appeal to classic science fiction, and comic book fans.  To be honest the writing reminds me of some of Heinlein's stories.  The action in the book never stops, and there is not a lot of time spent on introspection.  This book also has a little bit less explanation of the science behind whats going on than warp speed so it may not appeal to hard science fiction fans as much.

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

The number of the beast by Robert Heinlein book review

This story is a non-stop adventure through space, time, and a whole bunch of parallel realities.  As with any Heinlein book there is quite a bit of philosophy as well, but unlike his earlier books where the characters mostly state their philosophy, his later books (of which this is one) demonstrate it through the actions and reactions of his characters, and in bits and pieces of conversations they have.  If you pay attention you can find it all over.  This particular book explores the concept of parallel realities, and the idea that all possible things will happen in some universe.  The story illustrates this point by linking many of Heinlein's story-lines, and a few other fictional universes together using a device that allows for dimensional hopping.  There is even a trip to Oz thrown in there.

As with most Heinlein books there is not really anything I don't like about this book.  That being said some of the technological concepts that it is based on have long since been surpassed particularly in the field of computers, and the way they operate.  On the other hand the things that he has the outdated hardware doing are still largely out of reach today.  Personally I think that the two things balance out, but it could be jarring for some if this is their first Heinlein book.

This book is a story about a group of people who discover a way to hop between dimensions.  They are not the first to obtain this technology, and their excursions are almost immediately noticed.  The main characters Zeb, Deety, Hilda, and Jacob are thrown into a fight of flight situation in Zeb's modified ( read armed) roadable aircraft.  Jacob rigs the air-car for dimensional travel and they are off keeping one step ahead of the black hats.  Whenever they think that they have lost them they show up again.  As I mentioned earlier they make stops at several fictional universes along the way where they augment their capabilities and move on.  In the end their problems start to get resolved when they meet up with Lazurus Long (from time enough for love), Mike(from the moon is a harsh mistress), and several other Heinlein hero's.  Throughout the story the concept of parallel realities making all things be real things is explored.  This book will really make you think about the reality you see around you, and ponder the 'what if's' of your favorite stories.

This book will appeal to any Heinlein fan, and any science fiction fan.  It will also appeal to people who like action adventure or fan fiction since the book is full of references, and interactions with characters or worlds from other works.

This book is available at www.amazon.com as an audio book or in print.  I could not find it in E-book, so if you see it in that format please let me know where.

Conrads Time Machine Book Review

This book is a retroactive prequel to the adventures of Conrad Stargrad series.  It is basically the story of how the civilization that made the time machine Conrad stumbled into began.  It is a very good story about three nerdy friends who discover and develop time travel together.  Like the Conrad series this book stays mostly upbeat and stays happy while still being interesting, but there are some very unfortunate personal consequences for the main characters from the development of time travel.

This book still has an element of everything going right for the main characters, but not to the extent that the Conrad series had.  In fact there are some very sad parts for one of the main characters.  The part I really didn't like was when in the course of the story advanced inter-dimensional aliens taught them how to do time travel right, so that they didn't pollute the alien's homes.  I think that the story would have been better without it.

This book tells the story of Conrad's Uncle Tom, and two of his friends Ian and Jim, who discover and develop time travel.  Soon after its initial discovery the societies that the three of them will start show up to help, and the time travel paradoxes, antics, and tragedies begin.  This book explores both what happens to a people when they know their future from the day they were born, and the havoc reckless time travelers can cause.  The book also explores a lot of the spin off technologies that warping space and time creates.  This story explains why Tom is so willing to help his relative Conrad in the Conrad Stargrad series.  It is not just because they are related, but because he knows first hand the damage, and the good, a little bit of knowledge from the future can cause.  He wants to make sure he helps the good come about.

This book will appeal to Leo Frankowski fans, and to people who like a good engineers tale.  Large parts of the book are devoted to figuring out technical problems, and this may not be the sort of thing action adventure lovers would like.

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