Book Reviews Archives - Page 5 of 17

Murder by Other Means by John Scalzi

Murder by Other Means by John Scalzi, Book #2 of the Dispatcher series.

Introduction

Murder by Other Means by John Scalzi is about Tony Valdez, who is a legal professional murderer. In the future, people who are murdered come back to life in the place where they find most comforting. People who commit suicide and have natural deaths stay dead. 99.99% of all Murder victims return to life naked but alive. So, murderers can keep people from dying an eternal death. Times are tough for dispatchers because legitimate jobs are scarce. Tony needs money, and he takes a shady deal that goes wrong. They implicate Tony in a robbery scheme and people are dying without being murdered. Will Tony discover the criminal’s plans before they kill him by other means?

Summary

Murder by Other Means by John Scalzi is the second book of the Dispatcher series. In the first book, The Dispatcher, someone has kidnapped one of Tony’s colleagues, another dispatcher. Tony must rescue him, or his colleague may be killed and stay dead. Tony searches for him even though Tony faces his eternal death.

They set this novella in Chicago like the previous novella. Tony lost his role with the Chicago PD and needs money, so he takes a risky job. Mr. Peng is from China and wants a quick way home. Tony can provide that for him. He got the job from Lloyd Barnes, a Chicago lawyer. The translator is Mister Chen. Tony performs the dispatch.

Tony is at the bank and becomes involved in a robbery scheme in which he becomes implicated. People die in unusual ways. Tony has to unravel the mystery or he will be the next person to die and not come back.

Recommendation

Murder by Other Means by John Scalzi was originally only released as an Audible audiobook in 2020. I read the hardback novella published by Subterranean Press in 2021. The book is 191 pages long. This, the second story of the Dispatcher series, explores another ramification of the murder mechanism that rules this world. How would you murder someone without murdering them? The solution made sense. It was an enjoyable thriller.

Links

Murder by Other Means by John Scalzi is Book #2 of the Dispatcher Series

This is the link to The Dispatcher’s Goodreads page.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57590084-murder-by-other-means

John Scalzi read the first chapter in his work in progress, the Dispatcher 2, at the science fiction conference ConFusion in Detroit on January 19, 2019. This is a link to my recap of the conference and John Scalzi’s reading.

Conference Recap ConFusion Detroit 2019

The Dispatcher by John Scalzi is a police procedural set in the future where murder victims return to life. Dispatchers commit legalized murder. Will Dispatcher Tony Valdez look for his kidnapped friend even though Tony may face his eternal death?

The Dispatcher by John Scalzi

Buried Book by DM Pulley

Buried Book by DM Pulley.

Introduction

In Buried Book by DM Pulley, nine-year-old Jasper Leary finds his missing mother’s childhood diary in 1952. He searches for her using the clues in the diary, but faces encounters he never knew existed. His travels take him from his uncle’s farm in Michigan to downtown Detroit and to an Indian Reservation. Will he find her alive or dead?

Summary

The Buried Book by DM Pulley starts with Jasper Leary’s mom taking him to his Uncle’s farm. Jasper is nine-years-old and lives with his mom, Althea, in Detroit, Michigan. Uncle Leo’s farm is in Burtchville, Michigan. It’s 1952. She leaves Jasper at the farm and promises to return after she takes care of some important things. Althea doesn’t trust her husband Wendell to watch after Jasper.

The farmhouse is small. Jasper shares a bed with his twelve-year-old cousin Wayne. Uncle Leo and Aunt Velma have their bedroom. Jasper learns the farm life, does his chores, and goes to school. He has issues with Wayne. As the days go by, he wanders around the farm, looking for answers about his mom’s disappearance. He finds the burned-out family house of Althea and Leo. Inside a drawer, he finds young Althea’s diary.

Jasper uses clues from the diary to search for his mother. He travels to a rough neighborhood in Detroit and an Indian Reservation. What he discovers surprises him.

Recommendation

I liked The Buried Book by DM Pulley. Jasper is an interesting viewpoint character, and I thought the mystery surrounding his mother fits together well. The life on the farm sections was detailed and exciting. I wondered about the age of Jasper. His thoughts read to me like an older child. I don’t see a nine-year-old being as independent and resilient as depicted in the novel. The bus driver’s scene surprised me. It didn’t seem to fit with the story to me. The mob connection to the Indian Reservation seemed to cliché to me. I felt that the strengths of the story overweighed my concerns.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Buried Book by DM Pulley.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29105591-the-buried-book

No Ones Home by DM Pulley

In No One’s Home by DM Pulley, the Spielman family buys a mansion named Rawlingswood in Shaker Heights, Ohio, in this ghost suspense thriller. Will the Spielman’s survive the mansion, unlike the four families that preceded them?

Unclaimed Victim by D.M. Pulley connects the stories of Ethel from March 1938 and Kris from April 1999 through the Torso Killer of Cleveland. They are targets. Can they survive? Link to review.

Unclaimed Victim by D.M. Pulley

This is the link to my review of The Dead Key by D.M. Pulley.

The Dead Key by D M Pulley

Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson

Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson, Book #3.5 of the Stormlight Archive

Introduction

Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson is a long novella set in between Oathbringer (Book 3 of the Stormlight Archive) and Rhythm of War (Book 4 of the Stormlight Archive). The novella follows the mission of shipowner Rysn Ftori and Windrunner Lopen which was not detailed in either novel. Rysn and Lopen must uncover the secrets of the lost island of Akinah or it will doom Roshar.

Summary

Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson has two viewpoint characters, Rysn and Lopen. They are minor characters from the series that get a starring role in this novella. In the prologue of the book, a ghost ship appears off the coast of Aimia. Something odd is going on in those waters.

Rysn is a shipowner. She was paralyzed from the waist down and uses a wheelchair. Her pet is Chiri-Chiri who is a larkin, a type of flying crustacean. Chiri-Chiri is sick and Rysn learns that the larkin must return to its home, Akinah, an island off the coast of Aimia, to be healed. Rysn meets with Queen Navani Kholin to arrange an expedition to the lost city of Akinah. Queen Navani agrees because she thinks there is an unknown oathgate in the lost city that would help them in the war effort against the Voidbringers.

Lopen is part of the group that Kaladin assembles to go on the expedition to Akinah with Rysn. Lopen is an original member of the Bridge Four crew and is Herdazian. He is an optimist, always looking for the positive in life and he uses humor to lighten the mood of any group he is in. He lost his left arm, so he understands the challenges Rysn faces overcoming her disability. Lopen became a Windrunner and regrew his arm using his new powers.

Kaladin also assigns to the expedition: Huio, Lopen’s reserved cousin who Kaladin hopes will balance Lopen’s exuberance; Cord, the Horneater daughter of Rock, and she is also a cook like him; and Rushu, an ardent who is researching using fabrials on a ship.

They sail on the ship Wondersail to discover the secrets of the lost city of Akinah.

Recommendation

Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson has two minor characters from The Stormlight Archive shine with their own story. It was fun to see Rysn and Lopen lead an expedition and solve problems. The action in the story was swift and the plot was complete. I liked the development of the secondary characters’ interrelationships. Huio, Cord, and Rushu have their moments. I wanted more but this story was not novel length and I appreciate the story as written.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54511226-dawnshard

My review of Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson. In book four of the Stormlight Archive, the war between humans and Voidbringers intensifies.

Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson

My review of Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson. In book three of the Stormlight Archive, Dalinar learns the truth of his past through his flashbacks.

Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson

My review of Arcanum Unbounded by Brandon Sanderson, a collection with nine stories that are part of the cosmere universe. An overarching plot, which he calls the cosmere interrelated many of the author’s works. He set the stories of the cosmere on a group of worlds that are connected by magical means. He set six stories on the worlds of his published novels, and three stories are about worlds that have not had a novel-length story treatment. All the stories in this collection are excellent.

Arcanum Unbounded by Brandon Sanderson

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells, Murderbot Diaries Book 6.

Introduction

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells is a novella in the Murderbot Diaries Series. The first four stories are all novellas that complete a self-contained single story. The author set this story is between the novellas and the Murderbot novel, Network Effect. The protagonist of the diaries is a SecUnit (Security Unit), a part organic and part mechanical cyborg, or as it calls itself a Murderbot. In this story, Murderbot is a Security Consultant to Dr. Mensah on Preservation Station. It finds a murdered human and must solve the mystery. Who was the victim, how was he killed, and why was he murdered?

Summary

In Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells, Murderbot examines a dead human. Murderbot reports its impressions to Dr. Mensah and Senior Security Officer Indah of Preservation Station. The human is unidentified. Indah calls it a murder while Mensah wants to call it an accidental death for now. Mensah talks to Murderbot on a private channel because they are worried that the GrayCris corporation (the antagonists for the previous novellas of the series) is involved with the death. Mensah convinces Indah to let Murderbot help her learn about the dead human. Insah wishes Murderbot would call him the deceased or the victim.

Murderbot and Insah investigate the case with help from Tech Tural. Insah confirms Murderbot as a consultant for Station Security. Murderbot must become part of the system to investigate the system to get access to the Preservation Station networks. It’s a hard transition for Murderbot because of her Rogue SecUnit identity. All Murderbot wants is to find out who killed the dead human and then can go back to a normal life watching reruns of the show Sanctuary Moon. Murderbot follows the clues and uncovers an unusual suspect.

Recommendation

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells is a locked room murder mystery set on a space station. As a procedural mystery, the story doesn’t have the fireworks of the previous novellas. This story is a different and interesting experience. I recommend it. Network Effect won the 2021 Locus Award for best novel and I think they should nominate Fugitive Telemetry in the novella category next year. I believe she will write more stories in the Murderbot diaries and I plan to read them when they are published.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page for Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53205854-fugitive-telemetry

Book Review of Network Effect by Martha Wells, Book 5 of The Murderbot Diaries, a novel. The diaries protagonist is a SecUnit (Security Unit), a cyborg, or as it calls itself Murderbot. Murderbot must solve a complex mystery or risk the deaths of its human clients.

Network Effect by Martha Wells

This is a link to my review of All Systems Red by Martha Wells, Book 1 of The Murderbot Diaries.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

Book Review of Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells, a series of four novellas. SecUnit calls herself Murderbot. She has feelings of companionship for her human employers. What lengths will she go to protect them?

Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

Moon Maze Game by Larry Niven

Moon Maze Game by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes, Dream Park Series Book 4.

Introduction

The Moon Maze Game by Larry Niven and Steven Barnes is set in 2085. Bodyguard for hire Scotty Griffin gets an offer of a job for Kikaya II, the dictator of the Republic of Kikaya. Ali Kikaya, the dictator’s son and heir, wants to take part in a LARP (Live Action Roleplaying) game set at Heinlein Station on the Moon. The dictator wants Scotty to take part in the game and be Ali’s bodyguard. Scotty left the Moon and his ex-wife, Kendra, under suspicious circumstances. Scotty takes the job. When terrorists kidnap the gamers, can Scotty face his demons, unravel the terrorists’ s plot, and save them all?

Summary

The first few chapters of The Moon Maze Game by Larry Niven introduce the main characters of the novel. Douglas Frost is a contracted construction worker on Heinlein Station on the Moon. He once lived in a country taken over by a dictator and renamed the Republic of Kikaya. He wants to go home. Scotty Griffin is on assignment in Geneva, Switzerland guarding a celebrity. The assignment is ending, and he wonders what he will do next. He once worked on the Moon but left under suspicious circumstances. He gets an offer he can’t refuse.

Wayne Gibson is working at a third-rate LARP Fantasy Park in Las Vegas. He was once a hotshot on the LARP circuit but lost his nerve and reduced to working behind the scenes. Angelique Chan tracks him down. She knew him when they played LARP and wants him to play the first LARP on the Moon with her.

Ali Kikaya is the heir to the dictatorship. He wants to play in the Moon Maze Game. Kendra (maiden name Tuinukuafe) Griffin is the manager of the Moon Maze Game. Xavier is the best player on the LARP circuit and most likely to win the game.

Recommendation

It was fun going back to the Dream Park series. It is unnecessary to read the other novels of the series first, though it helps with the background material. This novel reads fast, the action does not stop, and the resolution is earned. I don’t think that this novel followed the formula from the others. The first three novels focused on a group of game players. They began their game, and a complication occurs which must be solved by completing the game. In Moon Maze Game, it was difficult for me to figure out who the novel was about. If Scotty is the protagonist, then the novel is a science fiction thriller with a game thrown in. Sometimes it’s good to change a formula, but I wanted a game-focused novel like the previous ones in the series.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Moon Maze Game by Larry Niven.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10439988-the-moon-maze-game

This is a link to my review of Head On by John Scalzi. The book is a science fiction mystery like the Moon Maze Game. In Head On, FBI agent Chris Shane cannot physically examine a murder scene because Chris has Haden’s Syndrome. Chris interacts with the world with an android. Chris must solve a case involving the death of someone with the Syndrome.

Head On by John Scalzi

Write Away by Elizabeth George

Introduction

Write Away by Elizabeth George details the author’s teaching method as a creative writing teacher and her writing methods as a bestselling psychological suspense writer. Her thesis is that writing is an art and a craft. The art lives inside the author, but the craft can be taught. Learning the craft of writing puts the author in the proper frame of mind to explore the inspiration of the art of writing. The first part of the book covers those craft ideas using concrete examples. The second half of the book shows examples from the author’s writing illustrating how she constructs her novels, the writing life.

Summary – Part One

She divided Write Away by Elizabeth George into five parts. I will cover each of the five parts and explain the fact I find most interesting in each part.

Part One summarizes the craft. The story has four components: Character, Setting, Landscape (aka World-building), and Plot. The two key concepts are Character is Story and Dialogue is Character.

Part Two is The Basics. The building blocks of the story are Idea, Viewpoint, Voice, Dialogue, and Scene. After she gets an idea, she turns it into a step outline, then a running plot outline. She gives an example of a step outline from her novel A Place of Hiding. The Goodreads link for the novel is: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31367.A_Place_of_Hiding

She gives an example of a running plot outline from her novel In the Presence of the Enemy.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/77097.In_the_Presence_of_the_Enemy

Summary – Part Two

Part Three is Technique. She says good writing comes from craft and using craft comes from knowing how to use the tools of language. In this part, she examines specific considerations for writing suspense.

Part Four is Process. She reviews how she developed the ideas for her novel, In the Presence of the Enemy.

Part Five is Examples and Guides. The author summarizes examples of other author’s guides to writing. She examines The Seven-Step Storyline, The Hero’s Journey, Gustav Freitag’s Pyramid, and Three- Act Structure.

She replicates her Character Prompt Sheet, which she uses as a prewriting activity. Then she reprints her initial character sketch for Eve Bowen from the novel, In the Presence of the Enemy.

Next is a list of places where people work. Finally, she has a list of actions which she calls THADs. THAD is Talking Head Avoidance Devices. They are things for the character to do to avoid he said/ she said static dialogue.

The last chapter is named The Process in a Nutshell. It is a step-by-step list with references to the applicable chapter in the book.

Recommendation

Write Away by Elizabeth George is a brilliant book on writing. I first learned of this book from reading the recommended list of writing books on K. M. Weiland’s website. I’m glad I picked this book up. Elizabeth George is a plotter. Plotters make detailed plot outlines before they write, while Pantsers write as their fancy takes them and fixes the story in revision. In my opinion, all writers are somewhere on that continuum. I consider myself a Plotter and was interested to follow Elizabeth George’s method. I’m glad I read this book and plan to use some of the advice in my next project.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Write Away by Elizabeth George.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1848441.Write_Away

I read Write Away by Elizabeth George because K. M. Weiland recommended it on her website. https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ K. M. Weiland also wrote a book on writing called Structuring Your Novel. I read that book and wrote a review linked below.

Structuring Your Novel by K. M. Weiland

Another similar book on writing is On Writing Well by William Zinsser. This book the classic guide to writing non-fiction. It is littered with quotable quotes and excellent advice. Any writer would find help with this book.

On Writing Well by William Zinsser

To Dream in the City of Sorrows by Kathryn M. Drennan

To Dream in the City of Sorrows by Kathryn Drennan.

To Dream in the City of Sorrows by Kathryn Drennan, Book #9 of the Babylon 5 Universe.

Introduction

To Dream in the City of Sorrows by Kathryn Drennan is a tie-in novel for the Babylon 5 TV show. The author connects three stories not covered in the show. What happened to Minbari Ambassador Jeffrey Sinclair on Minbar, what happened to Sinclair’s fiancé Catherine Sakai, and how did Marcus Cole become a Ranger. This novel shows what brought Jeffrey Sinclair, Catherine Sakai, and Marcus Cole together to fight the Shadows.

Summary

To Dream in the City of Sorrows by Kathryn M. Drennan tells the stories of Jeffrey Sinclair, Catherine Sakai, and Marcus Cole that were not covered in the Babylon 5 TV show. There were three questions answered in this novel that was not detailed in the show. Why was Jeffrey Sinclair removed from Babylon 5 and assigned as the Ambassador to Minbar? What happened to Sinclair’s fiancé, Catherine Sakai? How did Marcus Cole become a Ranger?

Marcus Cole owns a mining company on the colony world of Arisia III. A deadly encounter with the Shadows changes his life plan.

Catherine Sakai is a planetary surveyor for the Universal Terraform Corporation. She spends weeks and months on missions discovering resource-rich planets on the Rim. An encounter with Shadows leads her to a new mission.

Jeffrey Sinclair is the Ambassador to Minbar assigned by the Earth Alliance. No one on Minbar will tell him his expected role. He can’t contact Babylon 5 or Earth. The key to his position comes from the Minbari’s belief that Sinclair has a Minbari soul. He ends up becoming involved with the order of the Rangers. The Rangers’ mission is to look for the return of the Shadows.

Recommendation

To Dream in the City of Sorrows by Kathryn M. Drennan combines small ideas from the TV show to create a plot. In the show, Marcus mentions that his brother’s death led him to become a Ranger. It bridges the gap between three stories involving Jeffrey Sinclair. First is season 1 episode 22, Chrysalis, when Sinclair left the series at the end of season 1. Second is Season 3 episodes 16 and 17, War Without End Parts 1 and 2, when they reveal Babylon 4’s fate. Last is a three-part comic series named In Valen’s Name, which ties up remaining loose ends. They use Catherine Sakai’s occupation and her potential encounter with the Shadows.

I liked this novel. It explained some unanswered questions left from the series. I would have liked a clearer explanation of Catherine Sakai’s fate. They implied her fate, but not definitively.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of To Dream in the City of Sorrows by Kathryn M. Drennan.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/797210.To_Dream_in_the_City_of_Sorrows

My review of The Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos, Book #7 of the Babylon 5 Universe. Can Anna Sheridan escape Z’Ha’dum and can John Sheridan unravel a plot to destroy Babylon 5?

Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos

Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab

A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab.

A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab, Book #1 of the Shades of Magic Trilogy.

Introduction

A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab is a fantasy novel. Kell is a rare magician that can travel between different cities on different worlds, all named London. Grey London is our London with the least magic, Red London is Kell’s London with more magic power, White London has even more magical power, and Black London had the most magic power but has been isolated for years. Kel smuggles tokens between each London. He gets a powerful token that leads to a mission with a Grey London thief named Delilah Bard (please call her Lila). Will Kell control the powerful token, or will the token lead to the destruction of all the cities named London?

Summary

A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab begins with Kell transitioning from his native Red London to Grey London in the year Eighteen Nineteen. Kell is a special Antari mage who uses a token from the London he is trying to travel to, to pass through a blood portal to that London. He brings messages between Grey, Red, and White London. He is in Grey London to deliver a message to King George III, who is feared is growing mentally unstable. Just delivering messages is not enough danger for Kell, so he also smuggles tokens between the three Londons for favors from collectors. Kell is the adopted son of the rulers of Red London and the childhood friend of Crown Prince Rhy.

Kell gets a token that should not be possible, one from Black London. Lila Bard is a thief from Grey London who dreams of being a pirate. She steals the token from Kell but has no clue what she has stolen. Kell is worried that the token means that someone has opened the passage to Black London. He is forced to gain Lila’s help to return the token to Black London and seal the passage forever, or powerful magic will destroy his beloved Red London. Characters from White London thwart them. The rulers of White London are the twins, Athos Dane and Astrid Dane. Holland advises the White London rulers. Holland is also an Antari mage and can pass through the different Londons.

Recommendation

A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab is a great beginning to the Shades of Magic Trilogy. There are fourteen Chapters in the novel. The Chapters are all named. I like that the names all focus on the most important event in each chapter. Each chapter has between three and six scenes, all divided by using the Roman numeral. Each scene is from the viewpoint of one character. The chapters feature alternating viewpoints. Most of the scenes feature Kell or Lila. There are eleven other viewpoint scenes. I liked the structure of the novel. The novel comes to a satisfying end which leads to the world opening up to Kell and Lila’s next adventure.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of A Darker Shade of Magic by V E Schwab.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23211076-a-darker-shade-of-magic

This is my review of Hope and Red, Book #1 of the Empire of Storms Trilogy by Jon Skovron. It is a fantasy novel that has an interesting magic system and has a similar vibe to A Darker Shade of Magic. They published it the year after A Darker Shade of Magic. Red is a pirate and Hope is a warrior. They plan their revenge on those who wronged them.

Hope and Red by Jon Skovron

Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos

Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos.

Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos, Book #7 of the Babylon 5 Universe.

Introduction

The Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos is a tie-in novel for the Babylon 5 TV show. It tells the background to three stories that were not covered in the show. What happened to Anna Sheridan at Z’Ha’dum, John Sheridan taking command as the captain of the Agamemnon, and the events surrounding the dedication of Babylon 5. The novel brings these three stories together. Can Anna escape Z’Ha’dum, can John defeat a plot to destroy Babylon 5, and will Commander Sinclair keep order on Babylon 5?

Summary

The Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos begins with Anna Sheridan, who is the focus character of the novel. Her story is the one the reader wants to know the most since they did not dramatize it in the TV show. The novel begins in November 2256, just before the dedication ceremony for Babylon 5. The events of the novel include December 2256 and January 2257. The pilot episode of the show begins immediately after the events of the novel, and season one begins in January 2258.

The novel’s plot follows three separate parts. Anna Sheridan’s journey to Z’Ha’dum, John Sheridan’s taking command of the Agamemnon, and the events on Babylon 5 itself.

Anna Sheridan is an exo-anthropologist and a consultant for Interplanetary Expeditions. Interplanetary Expeditions sponsors scientific missions to distant planets. Anna’s mentor is Dr. Chang, who asks her to come on a mission to explore the ancient ruins on the planet Alpha Omega III. They take the spaceship Icarus to Alpha Omega III, but they don’t know that the planet is also known as Z’Ha’dum and is the home planet of the Shadows. They are accompanied by the mysterious Mr. Morden, an archeo-linguist. Mr. Morden is important because of his subsequent role in the TV series. They are not prepared for what they find at Z’Ha’dum.

Summary – Continued

John Sheridan is assigned as the captain of the Earthforce spaceship Agamemnon. The crew of the spaceship suffers from low morale because of the policies of their former captain, Captain Best. John and Anna plan to celebrate their wedding anniversary together, but Earthforce assigns John a vital mission that ruins their plans. John must get through to his new crew and foil a plot to destroy Babylon 5. The first four Babylon stations were destroyed or missing, so protecting Babylon 5 is a vital mission for Earthforce. John wants to complete his mission and go see his wife after she returns from her mission to Alpha Omega III.

In orbit around Alpha Omega III, we meet the Vorlon Ambassador Kosh. On Babylon 5, we meet the Minbari Ambassador Delenn, Commander Jeffrey Sinclair, and Security Chief Michael Garibaldi. Kosh sees the Icarus land at Z’Ha’dum. Sinclair investigates the knowledge the Earth Alliance has of the Icarus’s mission. Delenn tells the Earth Alliance to avoid Z’Ha’dum in the future. Garibaldi investigates potential threats to the upcoming dedication.

Recommendation

Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos tells a great origin story for John and Anna Sheridan. The ending was perfect and sad, but linked up seamlessly with the TV show. The reader knows something that was not known before reading the book, and that was the purpose to add this novel to the lore of the show.

It surprised me when Kosh appears in Chapter 11 and calls Delenn. The first ten chapters were all in either Anna or John’s POV. The author added Sinclair and Garibaldi in Chapter 12. There are only 18 Chapters in the novel, so these characters are late additions to the story. Garibaldi’s part would have hardly been a “C” story in the TV show.

I would have liked to see the Babylon 5 crew through John Sheridan’s eyes. Put him inside Babylon 5, rather than having him watch the dedication. I think that would have been more interesting than seeing Garibaldi put down a lessor plot from inside the station. Keep the novel as a novel of Anna and John before we meet them on the TV show.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of The Shadow Within by Jeanne Cavelos.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1111834.The_Shadow_Within

Old Man’s War by John Scalzi is the first novel in the Old Man’s War series. It is a book in the space opera category and similar to The Shadow Within. This is the link to my review.

Old Man’s War by John Scalzi

Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey, book #1 of The Expanse, is a space opera set in the near future when the solar system is settled. It is a book in the space opera category and similar to The Shadow Within. In Leviathan Wakes, Jim Holden becomes the captain of the Rocinante, and Detective Miller is on a missing person case. Their paths cross and the fate of the solar system lies in their hands. This is a link to my review.

Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey

Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King

Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King.

Introduction

Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King is a traditional fantasy. King Roland of Delain has two sons. Prince Peter is his heir who is the perfect prince and ready to lead. His younger son is Prince Thomas, who is too young and malleable to Flagg, the court advisor, and magician. Flagg secretly assassinates the King and frames, Peter, for the murder. How will Peter clear his name, defeat the ancient Flagg, and claim his rightful throne?

Summary

Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King is his first traditional fantasy novel. King Roland earned his kingdom by slaying a dragon. The dragon’s head is mounted on the wall in the King’s study. Peter was his firstborn son and heir. Queen Sasha died giving birth to Thomas. Flagg is the court advisor. He is a magician and a master of poisons who has been the power behind the throne for generations. Flagg thinks Peter would make too strong of a king, so he plots the fall of King Roland and Prince Peter to elevate the boy Thomas to the throne. He thinks he can control Thomas and lead the kingdom into chaos. Flagg’s plan involves the sinister poison, Dragon Sand.

The king is dead and Peter is imprisoned for the regicide in the Needle’s top, a tower prison. Thomas is King and Flagg controls him. Dennis is Thomas’s butler and his devoted servant. Peter’s best friend is Ben, he thinks Peter is innocent, and Ben finds the exiles north of the kingdom. Naomi of the exiles is a tracker who has a pack of dogs, including the dog Frisky.

Flagg is happy with the state of his plans. He has a two-headed parrot as his familiar. Thomas learns more from Flagg than Flagg ever expects he can. Peter’s escape plan involves his mother’s dollhouse and threads from many cloth napkins. Ben also has a plan to free Peter. Dennis learns some truth and delivers a letter to Ben. Ben, Dennis, Naomi, and Frisky make a plan and head to the castle.

Either Flagg will bring chaos to the Kingdom of Delain, or Peter will escape and claim his rightful kingdom.

Recommendation

Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King is the author’s spin on a classic fairy tale. On the dust jacket, the author says he started writing this story to give a book to his young daughter who didn’t want to read his other stories of “vampires, ghoulies, and slushy crawling things.” The plot follows: the prince is wronged and must redeem himself to win his kingdom. King spins the story in his way. Flagg is a complicated villain, though he makes an unforced mistake at the end of the story. The only thing I wanted was to bring Naomi into the narrative earlier. I think a love triangle between Peter, Naomi, and Ben would have tied the story together. David Palladini enhances the story with excellent interior drawings. I added a picture of the title page below. The novel was light and interesting read.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/655707.The_Eyes_of_the_Dragon

The Gunslinger by Stephen King, book #1 of The Dark Tower series seemed to set up for a climax that never happened. What is there is a trippy and metaphysical non-ending.

The Gunslinger by Stephen King