Cower not, fierce reader! Today, I am pleased to present to you the books that helped maintain my sanity during the reading for my last book review. There's no Pulp entry in this review set, due mostly to indecision. But, we do have a great collection of stories to behold.
Wraithkin by Jason Cordova- We've got interstellar war, racism, eugenics, the utopia/distopia dichotomy, and enhanced suits to turn the unwanted into terrifying soldiers. There's also love, brotherhood, sacrifice, and political intrigue. Major crime: Fitting all that coherently into a small package. When's book 2 due? 8 of 10 fell deeds.
War to the Knife ; and Forge a New Blade by Peter Grant- The Laredo Trilogy(only tow books so far) takes place in the same time/space(relatively) as The Maxwell Saga. The writing's a little tighter than the early Maxwell books, and the story is vastly different. We've got a small planet resisting conquest, lots of political intrigue on all major locations, and of course, a good amount of war. Good stuff, and one more to go. 8 of 10 fell deeds.
The Old Man and the Wasteland by Nick Cole- Yeah, I haven't gotten through all 3 yet, but let me tell you: the first story is pretty good. In many ways, it's an obvious take on The Old Man and the Sea, and it knows it. There's plenty of apocalyptic goodness here though, that built Mr. Cole's reputation, and his writing has grown since, so there's good stuff both ways. 7 of 10 fell deeds.
Cartwright's Cavaliers by Mark Wandrey- A shared universe mech/armored suit series with a complex set of alien cultures and a solid coming of age story? Yeah, we've got that and more. A great start for a Hero's Journey tale, and I really want more of Cartwright and Co. 9 of 10 fell deeds.
Asbaran Solutions by Chris Kennedy - Yeah, it's the second book in the world. Different author, so different review. This story is radically different. There's a ton of loss of life, and while there's great motivation for the characters, I can't imagine who'd want to join Asbaran given their death toll. Yeah, great revenge story, though. 7 of 10 fell deeds.
When you play Social Justice, the world loses.
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