last reads

The Devils Only Friend by Dan Wells Publishing information: Kindle Publisher: Tor; 16 June 15 ISBN: 978-0765380678 ASIN: B00XTW6GPE Series: John Cleaver #4 Copy: Provided by publisher Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis: "John Wayne Cleaver hunts demons: they've killed his neighbors, his family, and the girl he loves, but in the end he's always won. Now he works for a secret government kill team, using his gift to hunt and kill as many monsters as he can . . . . . . but the monsters have noticed, and the quiet game of cat and mouse is about to erupt into a full scale supernatural war. John doesn't want the life he's stuck with. He doesn't want the FBI bossing him around, he doesn't want his only friend imprisoned in a mental ward, and he doesn't want to face the terrifying cannibal who calls himself The Hunter. John doesn't want to kill people. But as the song says, you can't always get what you want. John has learned that the hard way; his clothes ...

Franklin’s Lost Ship: The Historic Discovery of HMS Erebus By John Geiger and Alanna Mitchell 201 p., illustrations, maps, notes, selected bibliography HarperCollins Publishers, Toronto, 2015 Reviewed by David C. Woodman The September 2014 discovery of HMS Erebus, one of two long-lost discovery vessels from the third Arctic voyage of Sir John Franklin, garnered international interest and will undoubtedly count as one of the greatest marine archaeological finds of the century. As the fitting culmination of a six-year effort in difficult conditions by Parks Canada and its partners, this discovery will undoubtedly result in a bookshelf full of new publications concerning its archaeological, historical, and even political implications (full disclosure: I have one in manuscript form). Franklin’s Lost Ship , as the first of these, has the advantage of primacy and immediacy, and serves as a good introduction to the story of the discovery of the wreck and the historical background. Mr. Geiger,...

The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu Publishing information: Hardback; 623pages Publisher: Simon and Schuster; 1 April 15 ISBN: 9781481424271 Series: The Dandelion Dynasty #1 Copy: Out of pocket Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis: "Two men rebel together against tyranny—and then become rivals—in this first sweeping book of an epic fantasy series from Ken Liu, recipient of Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy awards. Wily, charming Kuni Garu, a bandit, and stern, fearless Mata Zyndu, the son of a deposed duke, seem like polar opposites. Yet, in the uprising against the emperor, the two quickly become the best of friends after a series of adventures fighting against vast conscripted armies, silk-draped airships, and shapeshifting gods. Once the emperor has been overthrown, however, they each find themselves the leader of separate factions—two sides with very different ideas about how the world should be run and the meaning of justice. Fans of intrigue, intimate plots, and action will find a new se...

Congratulations to our winner of the Wode series by J Tullos Hennig. Marie A. From Altamonte Springs, FL Your information has been passed on to the proper people and you should be receiving your digital copies of the books soon.

We are pleased to announce that we have 10  (Yes! 10! :) ) eCopies of Jamison Stone 's Rune of the Apprentice up for grabs. About the Book: In a world where magic, technology, and nature have merged, the few who can control Runes hold dominance over all of creation. All naturally believe that Aleksi, a sixteen-year-old orphan, was blessed to be born with a Rune embedded in his palm, but that’s only because they don’t know the truth—Aleksi’s Rune is so powerful, it’s killing him. Asura, a brutal emperor who uses Runes to conquer entire continents, will stop at nothing to kill Aleksi and claim the boy’s power for his own. With his Rune burning its way through his body and assassins trying to cut out his heart, Aleksi is forced to seek out an infamous man wanted for crimes against humanity: Aleksi’s missing mentor, Rudra. With visions of his parents’ murder haunting his days and the prophetic whispers of a young captive priestess illuminating his nights, Aleksi will only be able to u...

If you are a Kindle owner, here is a list of some interesting deals that you can check (they all go for $1.99 ): Constitution  (Book 1 of The Legacy Fleet Trilogy) by Nick Webb The year is 2650 75 years ago, an alien fleet attacked Earth. Without warning. Without mercy. We were not prepared. Hundreds of millions perished. Dozens of cities burned. We nearly lost everything. Then, the aliens abruptly left. We rebuilt. We armed ourselves. We swore: never again. But the aliens never came back. Until now. With overwhelming force the aliens have returned, striking deep into our territory, sending Earth into a panic. Our new technology is useless. Our new ships burn like straw. All our careful preparations are wasted. Now, only one man, one crew, and the oldest starship in the fleet stand between the Earth and certain destruction: ISS CONSTITUTION Killing Pretty  (A Sandman Slim Novel) by Richard Kadrey Sandman Slim investigates Death’s death in this hip, propulsive urban fantasy th...

Ghost Fleet A Novel of the Next World War by P W Singer and August Cole Publishing information: Kindle Publisher: Eamon Dolan/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; 30 Jun 15 ISNB: 978-0544142848 ASIN: B00LZ7GOI4 Standalone Copy: Provided by publisher Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis: "What will the next global conflict look like? Find out in this ripping, near-futuristic thriller. The United States, China, and Russia eye each other across a twenty-first century version of the Cold War, which suddenly heats up at sea, on land, in the air, in outer space, and in cyberspace. The fighting involves everything from stealthy robotic–drone strikes to old warships from the navy’s “ghost fleet.” Fighter pilots unleash a Pearl Harbor–style attack; American veterans become low-tech insurgents; teenage hackers battle in digital playgrounds; Silicon Valley billionaires mobilize for cyber-war; and a serial killer carries out her own vendetta. Ultimately, victory will depend on blending the lessons of the pa...

Dark Orbit by Carolyn Ives Gilman Publishing information: Hardback; 304pgs Publisher: Tor; 14 July 2015 ISBN: 978-0765336293 Stanalone Copy: Provided by publisher Reviewer: Tyson Amazon Synopsis: "From Nebula and Hugo Award-nominated Carolyn Ives Gilman comes Dark Orbit, a compelling novel featuring alien contact, mystery, and murder. Reports of a strange, new habitable planet have reached the Twenty Planets of human civilization. When a team of scientists is assembled to investigate this world, exoethnologist Sara Callicot is recruited to keep an eye on an unstable crewmate. Thora was once a member of the interplanetary elite, but since her prophetic delusions helped mobilize a revolt on Orem, she's been banished to the farthest reaches of space, because of the risk that her very presence could revive unrest. Upon arrival, the team finds an extraordinary crystalline planet, laden with dark matter. Then a crew member is murdered and Thora mysteriously disappears. Thought to be...