When reading is good it bring you into a different world. The people step out of the pages and become close to you. Fuzzy Nation is such a book.

It is a book about a disbarred Lawyer who meets a family of cute little fuzzy aliens and saves them from the clutches of the Big Bad Mining Company ZaraCorp. Jack Holloway is the kind of unwilling hero you love to read about.  At first he blows up half a mountainside prospecting for the Company and hit the big one, gets fired for the destruction and rehired straight afterwards when his favorite enemy prospector liaison learns what he found. Relationships like that is something I like reading about. They drive one another crazy but there is respect between them. In the brief time Jack is unemployed he claims the find and bring in the ZaraCorp as his partner to help extract the find.

When he arrives home at his tree house (Yeah that’s right) he finds a fuzzy little animal inside his cabin. Carl ,his well-trained dog (well he can set of explosives) takes offence at the intruder and chases it up a bookshelf. Jack has never seen anything like the cute little catlike biped before so he put Carl outside and offers fruit to win its trust before it leaves for the jungle. That is basically first contact for you.

What follows is immersive and fun. Jack involves a former girlfriend who happens to be a biologist to look at the creatures. She has moved on to a new fiancé which makes for interesting chemistry, maybe not what you expect though. The Company is very excited about the new find but they are only allowed on the planet because it has no sentient specie. They would do anything to stop the Fuzzies from being declared sentient including exterminating them.

Jack is at first convinced they are just animals and I guess the money he would lose if ZaraCorp weren’t allowed to mine the find of rare jewels he made also helps. But he is also a lawyer and uses that to his advantage. His relationship with the former girlfriend continues to deteriorate as she is convinced they are. She is idealistic and he is self-serving.

There is action but most of the decisions in this novel take place in the court room. It is funny how enjoyable the whole experience is. Never in a thousand years would I have guessed I would enjoy a story about lawyers so much.

Fuzzy Nation is an homage to H. Beam Piper and his Hugo award-winning novel  Little Fuzzy.

Heineken doesn’t do science fiction, but if they did it would be something like Fuzzy Nation to paraphrase their promo. John Scalzi is a brilliant scoundrel and Fuzzy Nation is the most brilliant fan fiction I ever read. I so hope there will be more books in this universe.

Book Information

Fuzzy Nation by John Scalzi – Tor (2011) – Amazon US | UK

Excerpt: Chapter 1-4

Jack Holloway works alone, for reasons he doesn’t care to talk about. Hundreds of miles from ZaraCorp’s headquarters on planet, 178 light-years from the corporation’s headquarters on Earth, Jack is content as an independent contractor, prospecting and surveying at his own pace. As for his past, that’s not up for discussion.

Then, in the wake of an accidental cliff collapse, Jack discovers a seam of unimaginably valuable jewels, to which he manages to lay legal claim just as ZaraCorp is cancelling their contract with him for his part in causing the collapse. Briefly in the catbird seat, legally speaking, Jack pressures ZaraCorp into recognizing his claim, and cuts them in as partners to help extract the wealth.

But there’s another wrinkle to ZaraCorp’s relationship with the planet Zarathustra. Their entire legal right to exploit the verdant Earth-like planet, the basis of the wealth they derive from extracting its resources, is based on being able to certify to the authorities on Earth that Zarathustra is home to no sentient species.

Then a small furry biped—trusting, appealing, and ridiculously cute—shows up at Jack’s outback home. Followed by its family. As it dawns on Jack that despite their stature, these are people, he begins to suspect that ZaraCorp’s claim to a planet’s worth of wealth is very flimsy indeed…and that ZaraCorp may stop at nothing to eliminate the “fuzzys” before their existence becomes more widely known.

This is my semi-regular series on the state of books in the making.

I wonder which book John Scalzi is referring to in todays post? Do you know anything about it? John is one of my favorite authors.

New novel?
Done.
Like, just this second.
When will you get to read it?
Sometime in 2012, I would guess.
So now you have a reason to live. Through 2012, anyway.
What’s it about?
Fate. And destiny. And free will.
And lasers! And explosions! And space ships!
Man, it’s got everything.
Just you wait.

We can also notice that Chris Wooding is still writing on this years Tales of the Ketty Jay novel The Iron Jackal scheduled for August. That will not leave much time for editing and publishing. We have also seen a rough draft of the cover art

But he is not the only one with a short time between finishing the first draft and release. David Weber’s fifth Safehold novel How Firm A Foundation will be released in September and he just turned it in. Tor usually takes a year.

John Scalzi is one of my absolute favorite authors and now he has taken up a new series. It is a safe bet that anything by Scalzi would rank high on my expectations. He is witty and funny and his writing has an edge to it. To quote John: It’s a reboot of the Hugo-nominated 1962 science fiction novel Little Fuzzy, by H. Beam Piper. I took the original plot and characters of Little Fuzzy and wrote an entirely new story from and with them. The novel doesn’t follow on from the events of Little Fuzzy; it’s a new interpretation of that first story and a break from the continuity that H. Beam Piper established in Little Fuzzy and its sequels. Source: Whatever

The release date is May 10th which just happens to be John Scalzi’s birthday. Pretty cool.

I have not read the original but I expect this to be high on my picks for next year.

Title: Fuzzy Nation
Author: John Scalzi
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Tor (May 10 2011)

Order from: Amazon US | UK | B&N

Jack Holloway works alone, for reasons he doesn’t care to talk about. Hundreds of miles from ZaraCorp’s headquarters on planet, 178 light-years from the corporation’s headquarters on Earth, Jack is content as an independent contractor, prospecting and surveying at his own pace. As for his past, that’s not up for discussion.

Then, in the wake of an accidental cliff collapse, Jack discovers a seam of unimaginably valuable jewels, to which he manages to lay legal claim just as ZaraCorp is cancelling their contract with him for his part in causing the collapse. Briefly in the catbird seat, legally speaking, Jack pressures ZaraCorp into recognizing his claim, and cuts them in as partners to help extract the wealth.

But there’s another wrinkle to ZaraCorp’s relationship with the planet Zarathustra. Their entire legal right to exploit the verdant Earth-like planet, the basis of the wealth they derive from extracting its resources, is based on being able to certify to the authorities on Earth that Zarathustra is home to no sentient species.

Then a small furry biped—trusting, appealing, and ridiculously cute—shows up at Jack’s outback home. Followed by its family. As it dawns on Jack that despite their stature, these are people, he begins to suspect that ZaraCorp’s claim to a planet’s worth of wealth is very flimsy indeed…and that ZaraCorp may stop at nothing to eliminate the “fuzzys” before their existence becomes more widely known.

Related posts

Scalzi, John[profile]
- Agent to the Stars Free Online Book
- The Android’s Dream
- Judge Sn Goes Golfing (novella)
- The God Engines (novella)
Old Man’s War Series
1. Old Man’s War
2. The Ghost Brigade

Stargate Universe is one of my favorites and this episode proved me right. It’s setting the scene for the season finale. This episode goes back to the first episode and what happens here explains a lot of what we saw then. It is about treason/mind control and the Lucian Alliance (read about it on stargate.wikia.com). The Incursion Part One starts next week.

Worldbuilding

We learn something about the Lucian Alliance, they knew about Icarus and Destiny beforehand. Now they are trying to take it over again. According to Rush they are a human coalition made up of various Milky Way planets formed in the power vacuum left behind by the Goa’uld. They’re criminals, mostly… Street gangs with spaceships. But it seems that they might be something more, and they might even have some right in their complains that the Terrans take it all for themselves and don’t share, at least that is what Kiva says.

Plot

Dr Rush is disturbed by haunting dreams of handing secrets over to Lucian Alliance spies on Earth then he sees himself reflected in a window, he is Colonel Telford. He tells Young and convinces him to let him take the next stone to Earth to find out the truth. Young doesn’t trust Rush so he goes after and tells General O’Neal who sends Dr Jackson another old SG-1 member to follow him.

Rush sets up a meeting but is exposed almost immediately, captured and taken off Earth on a Lucian cargo ship and tortured by Commander Kira until he reveal his identity. He is then taken to a gate world similar to Icarus where they have setup operations to dial Destiny. Everyone on the Lucian side might not be on the same side, one guy behaves suspiciously. Rush is forced to help them.

While Rush is being tortured Telford goes straight to Camile Wray, Is she a Lucian spy too? That would explain a lot. Eventually Young confronts him, interrogate him and even fight him but he doesn’t get him to tell the truth until he brings General O’Neal aboard.

All this not knowing gets the civilians nervous and without information they seem to assume the worst and rumors fly around. The failed revolution is not forgotten. I wonder if there are more Lucian spies on Destiny? They knew about Icarus on forehand thanks to Colonel Telford, they might have slipped in a group of infiltrators. That would help to explain why they in my opinion overreact and try to take over the ship.

Characterization

TJ’s baby shower unites the crew. It is heart breaking how they craft little gifts for her child.TJ is still worried and Chloe tries to comfort her. Alaina Huffman continues to convince as pregnant medical officer.

Commander Kiva played by Rhona Mitra would be a wonderful addition to Destiny. She is hot and interesting and she believes she is doing the right thing. I am a reasonable person that only tries to do the best for my people she tells Rush while he is being tortured. You make a terrible first impression he replies. I am afraid it is most likely that she will only be on for a few episodes and then as the enemy but a man can always wish ( I know she has a role on The Gates this summer as a vampire housewife so she might not have the time anyway).

Master Sergeant Greer had some anger issues this episode too, when he almost beat Telford to death. That is a man about to explode.

Young continues to fight with his demons. The way he orders the others to stay out of it when he tortures Rush shows leadership. He doesn’t want to do it but he can’t see any other way. It is especially clear when he in the end tries to force the truth out of Telford by opening his cabin to space while he forces himself to watch.

I am starting to like more and more of the crew, Greer, Young and TJ especially. I can’t say I like Rush as a character but he is interesting and more understandable now and well played.

Trivia

They showed one of the best science fiction books ever as a tribute to the author John Scalzi there when Rush asked the escort if he was okay staying in the car and he showed him The Old Man’s War (read my review) . John Scalzi is a Creative consultant for the show. He also has an impressive blog with SGU discussions called whatever.

My View

Good episode with lots of interesting stuff happening that ties back even before the series started and it all starts to come together. We are getting more and more of the big picture. The Lucian Alliance are about to try to take over the Destiny. This can go in many ways, they might succeed (at least for a while) or they might fail or Stargate Command might even be able to use the gate to keep contact with Destiny. I love SGU and it keeps getting better and better.

This is my totally biased list of the top military science fiction series of our time. These are the ones I found entertaining to read and reread. My focus is as always the characters and the wow moments. Thats why there is lots of space opera here. I have followed some of the authors here for decades others for just a few years. They are all good, the focus in there books lies on different things though.

I like binary counting it seems. Counting down from 10001 in seventeen steps.

Edit: I added RCN, which I love but forgot.

10010. RCN is about Captain Daniel Leary and his friend the formidable Adele Mundy and their military adventures aboard the Heavy Cruiser RCS Milton. David Drake rewrite historical battles and wars and make beautiful military science fiction out of it.The next Royal Cinnabar Navy book to come out is What Distant Deeps that will be out in September 2010. I read RCN 7: In the Stormy Red Sky about a year ago before I started doing reviews.

10001. Starfire Series – is built on a board strategy wargame about interstellar conquest. A survey fleet travels trough a previously uncharted wormhole and run into a hive-like speice called the Bugs, all communications attempts fail and the Bugs ambush the fleet and launch an invasion against the Terran federation and nearby powers. In the center of the series is the arms race with the bugs. Later in the series there are other opponents. Solid political and military technology world building if somewhat weaker in character building by David Weber and Steve White. The fifth book Exodus is written by Steve White and Shirley Meier.

10000. Confederation of Valor – is about the futuristic career of a non commissioned officer fighting aliens for the elder races in the alliance. There is a secret behind the scenes that are gradually revealed. The Protagonist Staff Sergeant Torin Kerr keep her space marines and and superiors alive. Tanya Huff writes good characters and the dialog is to die for. My reviews of the first four books, there is a fifth book The Truth of Valor coming out in september 2010.

01111. Jenny Casey - used to be a former retired Canadian special forces living in the hellish streets of Hartford, Connecticut. Earth is in shambles from environmental disasters. Jenny becomes a pawn in game of world dominance between Canada and China over being the first to reach the stars. In Hammered Jenny tries to survive, in Scardown she has to fly and in Worldwired she has to teach the aliens to talk with each other. The world is a bit noir and gritty as Elizabeth Bear likes to write.

01110. Major Ariadne Kedros – is a woman with a dark military past working as a surveyor. Her past catches up with her, both from old enemies and old friends. The world is built on Greek culture with the dominating race being the Minoans called so because they share symbols with the Greek. Temporal buoy’s play a significant part in the story as well as their weaponization. Laura E. Reeve is the creator of this resourceful and guilt ridden heroine. The third book Pathfinder is out this summer.

01101. Aldenata universe – Posleen War | Cally’s War | Hedren War – takes place in a world where an ancient race, the Aldenata uplifted a number of races, screwing them up at the same time. The only race not uplifted is the humans. When the galactic society is attacked by the ferocious Posleen there is a need for someone that can fight so they turn to the humans, who they fear almost as much as the Posleen. The O’Neal clan unite the different series. The redheaded feisty warrior princess Cally stands out together with her war hero father Mike. It’s John Ringo’s universe and he cooperate with Tom Kratman, Mikael Z. Wiliamson and Julie Cochrane there. This is also another example of a series where other races taking advantage of the human race’s ability to fight.

01100. Stellar Marines Universe – Heritage Trilogy | Legacy Trilogy | Inheritage Trilogy – is Ian Douglas Stellar Marines family saga. The Garroways fight in the sands of Mars to the Magellanic Cloud. Humanity is on the brink of extinction time after time as they fight the Xul, a galaxy spanning race of xenophobics. Built on ‘Hard science’. Ian Douglas is really a pseudonym for William H.Keith.

01011. Tour of the Merrimack – is about the  finest battleship in Earth’s fleet and its crew.The series’ arc about how to deal with the ravenous Hive, a race of space traveling insects that devour all life they come across. In The Myriad the Mack was out looking for the Hive’s Home world when they stumbled on the time traveling aliens who eventually caused the universe to throw them into an alternative reality to avoid paradox. In Wolf Star the war between Earth and the New Roman Empire is going at full blast and Merrimack is in a deep strike mission behind enemy lines when they meet the Hive again and the Romans have to bow down and admit they need help. In the Sagittarius Command they go after the cause. I love Rebeca M. Meluch’s characters.

01010. Dahak Series – Earths Moon is in reality a gigantic camouflaged battleship who’s crew become the human race. This is discovered by a lone human astronaut that has to face the ancient ship’s computer Dahak. It’s not enough that he has to deal with mutineers that survived in Antarctica, he also has to do with an onslaught of hordes of genocidal aliens and traitors. David Weber is at his best in this awesome space opera

01001. Empire of Man – Prince Roger is a failure and a brat when his starship is sabotaged and he and his company of marine bodyguards has to land on the other side of an hostile planet and walk all the way to the star port on the other side. Wonderful four armed aliens, an epic journey and a prince that becomes a man and the soldiers that fights with him. Nice technological progression from stone age to space age. Written by John Ringo and David Weber.

01000. Lost Fleet - The Alliance has been fighting the Syndics for a century – and losing badly. Now its fleet is crippled and stranded in enemy territory. Their only hope is a man who’s emerged from a century-long hibernation to find he had been heroically idealized beyond belief . Captain John ‘Black Jack’ Geary’s legendary exploits are known to every schoolchild. Appalled by the hero-worship around him, Geary is nevertheless a man who will do his duty. And he knows that bringing the stolen Syndic hypernet key safely home is the Alliance’s one chance to win the war. But to do that, Geary will have to live up to the impossibly heroic ‘Black Jack’ legend. Victorious the final book in the series is out now in April. Written by Jack Campbell

00111. Seafort Saga - is built on C. S. Forester’s novels about Horatio Hornblower and written by David Feintush. The books are set in a future human society that is largely dominated by unified Christianity. The main protagonist is a naval officer who strives always to do his duty, both to the navy and to his God, at great personal cost. Beside the personal story there is an interesting race of fish like aliens central to the story.

00110. Kris Longknife – is about a formidable woman with a knack for getting in trouble and getting out. She is one of them Longknifes and if life wasn’t enough complicated being an officer in the navy, the society of humanity dissolve and her grandpa is named King making her a reluctant princess. The Peterwald family with their long standing grudge with the Longknife set up their own little pocket empire and starts to make life for Kris and her family difficult. Lots of humor, fantastic characters by Mike Shepherd. The next book Redoubtable will be out in November this year.

00101. The Vorkosigan Saga - is about Miles and his mother Cordelia Naismith. It begins with Cordelia’s military career and the unlikely love story between her and Miles father. Miles is crippled in vitro by an assassination attempt but grows up to a crippled formidable interstellar spy and mercenary admiral. Lois has modeled the series after Hortio Hornblower with a taste of Lord Peter Wimsey. The novels stand alone pretty well but benefit from each other. Another Miles novel, CryoBurn is coming later this year. Written by Lois McMaster Bujold.

00100. Safehold – is the world where humanity hides from extermination from the Gbaba, something went wrong thou, the leaders of the colony reprogrammed the colonists in cold sleep creating a medieval world ruled by the church and themselves as Angles. When a fraction tries to revive advanced technology they are ruthlessly exterminated by orbital strikes. 800 years later their second line of defense wakes up. Nimue Alban is an android with the mind and memories of a long dead starship captain. Her mission is to restore civilization and prepare Man for the inevitable re-encounter with the Gbaba. David Weber’s knowledge in history comes to life in this beautiful military saga. The latest novel A Mighty Fortress is out this April (it arrived April 20 for me).

00011. Family’s Regnant universe – Heris Serrano Trilogy | Esmay Suiza continuation | Suiza and Serrano - is about two formidable females Heris Serrano of an old navy family and Esmay Suiza of an old army family. Characters easy to love and formidable old ladies. Much of the driving force for conflict in this universe comes from longevity treatments. Those who get it and will live long life, those who fear the consequences or those who wont wait their turn. Elizabeth Moon is an amazing crafter of characters and worlds.

00010. Honor Harrington is about a competent man kind of military woman with an empath treecat called Nimitz that becomes the foremost military commander of her time battling expansionist empires and human slavers. She is called the Salamander because she thrives in the heat of battle. There are so far eleven books in the series that starts with On Basilisk Station and the next book Mission of Honor will be out this summer. The series is written by David Weber and the success so far have lead to two sub series Saganami and Wages of Sin. The first written together with Eric Flint.

00001. Old Man’s War start with protagonist John Perry joining the army on his seventy-fifth birthday and goes off to fight in The Colonial Defence Force where he meets the love of his life, fight aliens, become leader of a colony and in general make himself useful. I am afraid to tell you much about this series because I so enjoyed the surprise  I got as piece after piece fell in place. John Scalzi is one of my favorite authors, I love his characters and his humor.

And before you say how could he miss Hammer Slammers, I didn’t. I tried to read them a couple of times but never really fell for it. Bolo is another ‘series’ that I considered but I feel its less a series and more of a loose concept even if i love them. I have probably missed some, because I haven’t read them, so as usual give me a comment, I love to get to know more military science fiction series.

Welcome to my new Friday series on Formidable Female Protagonists in Science Fiction. One thing I enjoy reading about in science fiction is strong female  protagonists and I would like to present some of them so you might get to know them too. I like lists, and I have assembled a long list to pick from so you can expect five new examples of the ‘stronger’ sex every Friday for the next ten weeks.

This week they are:

1. Alicia DeVries – Cadre and Fury (David Weber)
2. Terese Drajeske – Ex Field Commander & Mother (C. L. Andersen)
3. Mackensie Elizabeth Winifred Wright Connor Sol (Julie E. Czerneda)
4. Zoe Boutin Perry – Teenager & Holy Icon (John Scalzi)
5. Parrish Plessis - Postapocalyptic Bodyguard (Marianne de Pierres)

There is also undiscovered Formidable Female Protagonists out there that you can recommend to me in comments to this post, please.

Alicia DeVries – Cadre and Fury

Book: Path of the Fury (1992), In Fury Born (extended version, 2006)
Author: David Weber
Publisher: Baen

Path of the Fury starts when her family is killed while In Fury Born is an extended version that starts with her being recruited as a potential Cadre trainee. Alicia DeVries is a good example of a formidable female protagonist in a Military setting. She is very talented, bound by her honor and quickly rises through the ranks while putting her life on the line for her Empire. I would recommend that you go for the extended version with the background story to why she becomes one of the Furies. The books are really entertaining and funny.

Imperial Intelligence couldn’t find them, the Imperial Fleet couldn’t catch them, and local defenses couldn’t stop them. It seemed the planet-wrecking pirates were invincible. But they made a big mistake when they raided ex-commando leader Alicia DeVries’ quiet home, tortured and murdered her family, and then left her for dead. Alicia decided to turn ‘pirate’ herself, and stole a cutting-edge AI ship from the Empire to start her vendetta. Her fellow veterans think she’s gone crazy, the Imperial Fleet has shoot-on-sight orders. And of course the pirates want her dead, too. But Alicia DeVries has two allies nobody knows about, allies as implacable as she is: a self-aware computer, and a creature from the mists of Old Earth’s most ancient legends. And this trio of furies won’t rest until vengeance is served.

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Terese Drajeske – Ex Field Commander & Mother

Novel: Bitter Angels (2009)
Author: C. L. Anderson (Sarah Zettel)
Publisher: Random House

Terese Drajeske is a different kind of formidable, she is competent, reluctant to enter service again and more than a little bit cynical about it. But she also have a talent for it. Read my review

An Imploding Star System.
A Murdered Galactic Spy.
A Woman Seeking the Truth—and Finding the Unbelievable…

The Erasmus System is a sprawling realm of slavery, smugglers, spies—and constant, creeping decrepitude. Here everyone who is not part of the ruling Four Families is a slave of one kind or another. But the Guardians, a special-forces branch inside the United World Government for Earth, have deemed Erasmus a “hot spot.” Somehow, it is believed, this failing colony intends to launch a war upon the solar system.

Ex-Field Commander Terese Drajeske, now a mother of three, has been called back to active duty and sent to Erasmus, ostensibly to investigate the murder of her colleague—and friend—Bianca Fayette. At first blush, the death defies explanation: Bianca was immortal. But beneath that single murder lies a twisted foundation of deceptions. Suddenly Terese is plunged into a vortex of shattered lives, endemic deceit, and one dreadful secret. In this society without hope, someone has put into motion a plan that will cast humanity into chaos. And Terese, who has given up her family and her sanity to prevent war, may be asked to make the ultimate sacrifice….

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Mackensie Elizabeth Winifred Wright Connor Sol

Books: Survival (2005), Migration (2006), Regeneration (2007)
Series: Species Imperative Trilogy
Author: Julie E. Czerneda
Publisher: DAW

Mack is one of my favorite characters. She is down to earth, a researcher thrown into an alien situation that just handle the situation as any problem she is used to. Humor and suspense also helps. The Species Imperative trilogy forms a circle and the Sinzi (a leading alien race) have a thing for circles. It’s a great story with a successfully told Big Idea, the characters are to love, and the science is beautifully and skillfully presented by Julie E. Czerneda. Read my reviews: Survival, Migration and Regeneration

Survival: When her Field Base is mysteriously attacked, Dr. Mackenzie Connor must flee for her life. Joining forces with an alien archaeologist, she escapes to his planet on a quest to find a defense against the unknown agressor-before they launch a full-scale invasion of Earth.

Migration: Dr. Mackenzie Connor races against time to help the Interspecies Union devise a plan to prevent an interstellar enemy from conquering world after world.

Regeneration: With the alien Dhryn cutting a pathway through the inhabited spaceways-bringing about the annihilation of many of the races who have the misfortune to lie along the star trail they are following-time is running out for all sentient life-forms. Can biologists Mackenzie Connor and Emily Mamami solve the riddle of the Dhryn before their part of the galaxy becomes as dead as the mysterious region known as the Chasm?

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Zoe Boutin Perry – Teenager & Holy Icon

Book: Zoe’s Tale
Series: Old Man’s War Universe
Author: John Scalzi
Publisher: Tor Books

Zoë Boutin Perryis the 17-year old adopted daughter of John Perry and Jane Sagan, two former-soldiers-turned-colonists.  Her biological father, Charles Boutin, created a device capable of giving a race of creatures, called the Obin, consciousness. The Obin worshipped him, but he was killed for being a traitor to mankind and wanting to overthrow the colonial Union, and so his daughter, Zoë, became a demigod to them. A strong YA novel.

How do you tell your part in the biggest tale in history?

I ask because it’s what I have to do. I’m Zoe Boutin Perry: A colonist stranded on a deadly pioneer world. Holy icon to a race of aliens. A player (and a pawn) in an interstellar chess match to save humanity, or to see it fall. Witness to history. Friend. Daughter. Human. Seventeen years old.

Everyone on Earth knows the tale I am part of. But you don’t know my tale: How I did what I did — how I did what I had to do — not just to stay alive but to keep you alive, too. All of you. I’m going to tell it to you now, the only way I know how: not straight but true, the whole thing, to try make you feel what I felt: the joy and terror and uncertainty, panic and wonder, despair and hope. Everything that happened, bringing us to Earth, and Earth out of its captivity. All through my eyes.

It’s a story you know. But you don’t know it all.

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Parrish Plessis - Post Apocalyptic Bodyguard

Every week I intend to introduce a new-to-me heroine, that both you and me might be tempted to try. Parrish Plessis comes highly recommended as a kick-ass cyberpunk heroine. The Parrish Plessis series is a SF action adventure set in future Australia. According to the author it is multi layered text, offering a combination of thrills and spills and social satire.

Marianne de Pierres is also known for her Sentients of Orion series.

Book: Nylon Angel (2005), Code Noir (2006), Crash Deluxe (2007)
Series: Parrish Plessis
Author: Marianne de Pierres, Marianne Pierres
Publisher: Roc books (US) | Orbit books (UK)
Cover art: Larry Rostant

Nylon Angel: Nylon Angel introduces a startling new femme fatale and all-around bad girl.

While trying to send her sadistic boss to death row, she finds herself sheltering a suspect in the murder of newsgirl Razz Retribution. In a world run by the media, the truth isn’t relevant-it’s bad for ratings. Which is why Parrish finds herself tagged for the murder-and up to her tricked-out leather tank top in trouble.

Code Noir: The Tert war is over, and bodyguard Parrish Plessis has gotten a piece of the toxic pie-and the responsibilities that go along with it. To pay off a blood debt to the Cabal Coomera tribe, she must enter the heart of tekno-darkness-the slum town of Dis-to find their missing shamans and to kill her ex-lover Daac. But Parrish still has feelings for Daac-feelings that run as deep as the high-tech parasite he infected her with. Bad blood never boiled like this.

Crash Deluxe: After inheriting a less-than-glorious empire within the Tert, Parrish Plessis-coup leader, bodyguard, and overall dangerous vixen-has her hands full, and her head even fuller. She’s still under a blood debt to the Cabal Coomera. She’s trying to take care of the growing population of stray social castoffs who have come to her for protection. And the nasty high-tech parasite her treacherous ex-lover hit her with is about to turn her into something much less than human…

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Read Part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | index | afterword

Congratulations!

I love that one of my favorite authors sold another book so I can read it. That’s me being selfish.

Love the cover. Read more about it on Whatever.

I made mistake with the feed earlier this month so I have to make 2 similar posts to get it right, sorry ignore the other

The God Engines by John Scalzi

John Scalzi treads new domains with this dark Gothic Opera of star travel, faith, living gods, sex, violence and space battles which channels the spirit of H.P. Lovecraft…

… The God Engines is a chilling horror story set in a world with living manifested gods, so it has to be fantasy? Well, maybe, there is a lot of Space Opera and science fiction in this fantasy story. I think it’s magnificent and I love the inventiveness of the story, using gods as engines! I am just sorry it is so short, the plot could easily have been made into a full length novel. I say convinced that it would be easy for John Scalzi, him being such a fantastic writer (nudge, nudge).

The Course of Empire by Eric Flint & K. D. Wenthworth (Empire Series 1)

The reason I am reviewing The Course of Empire now is that the second part The Cruible of Empire will be out next month (March 16, 2010). This is the first book in a series about an alien invasion of earth by the Jao that changes into something else under the pressure of yet another more menacing alien race, the Ekhat bent on exterminating all non Ekhat life from the universe. It holds interesting alien point-of-views (pov), alternatives to violence and an unusual positive treatment of collaborateurs…

… This is one of the best alien point of view stories I have read in a long time, the world is vivid and the characters are easy to love. I got very emotional here and there in the story, especially at the end. I would recommend The Course of Empire to anyone intrested in a good alien point of view story or if you are just looking for good science fiction.

Semper Human by Ian Douglas (William H. Keith) (Inheritance Trilogy 3)

This is the last book in a Marine Corps Saga spanning thousands of years and three trilogies. The Trilogies are first Heritage, then Legacy and finally The Inheritance Trilogy. It is an epic military saga about the Marine Corps and the Garroway family that serves in it…

… The whole series is a great homage to the Marines, where every man is a rifleman first. It is a strong moral story about standing up for your team and your ideals. It also have great world-building and believable science within the fiction. You should read the other books in the Inheritance Trilogy before Semper Human, there is lots of references. I strongly recommend the whole series to any lover of military science fiction and space opera.

The Shockwave Rider by John Brunner

It’s been said that John Brunner invented the term “worm” for a program that replicates itself on a network in this proto-cyberpunk novel from 1975.

The first half of the novel had me wondering if this was way to intelligent for me, then the fog lifted, the wow feelings started to hit me. This is a great novel! It involves the Brain Race, a development from the previous Arms Race. Every superpower collect their own brain resources and develop them at great cost in institutions like Tarnover to handle the out of control speed of change in society. The novel addresses many of the problems with the ever faster changing world that are still valid today. Especially in the area of mental health…

… The Shockwave Rider impressed me with its content and how the pieces fell into place in the story and it became great. It is a few years old but much of what it tells are still valid. Read it if you can get hold of it.

Coyote Horizon by Allen Steele (Coyote 6)

Humanity meets aliens in Spindrift (4) where the Hjadd saves the day and we learns to know them better in Galaxy Blues (5) when we go and trade with them. Contact with another technologically more advanced civilization always leads to change. This time the contact is with an interstellar multi-specie civilization whose very existence challenge many of our traditional belief systems. The planet Coyote become much more than a safety vault for the overpopulated and ecologically devastated home planet. It becomes a focal point of the whole human civilization when the Hjadd sets up there embassy there and not on Earth.

This book is concurrent in parts with Galaxy Blues (5). It is a two book story the last part Coyote Destiny (7) is published in March 2010…

… I like the characterization in the beginning of the book. The world building is good, it’s one of Allen’s strengths. The storyline was clear and easy to follow. I am not so hot on this many protagonists and switching back and forth between them. It works but I personally would have preferred a more central protagonist, but that’s just me. I liked the book in general and it is a good read you don’t want to put it down…

… The book ends with a cliffhanger but you don’t have to wait long to read the last part of this story. Publication is next month. You can start reading about Coyote with this book but you you misses a lot of the backstory if you haven’t read volume 1-3.

Pleasure Model by Christopher Rowley (Netherworld Trilogy 1)

Rook Venner bring the evidence home, said evidence being Plesur, a pleasure model with long golden hair, deep blue eyes, a pert little nose and large mouth loaded with heavy lips that works like triggers on the heterosexual male mind all packed into a gorgeous young body, to protect her from rape. Only to wake up in the middle of the night by a phone call telling him to get out NOW!

Presenting Heavy Metal Pulp, a new line of novels combining noir fiction with fantastic art featuring the themes, story lines, and graphic styles of Heavy Metal magazine…

… The book doesn’t end with a Cliff hanger but leaves enough unresolved that I long for the next volume. I enjoyed the fast paced illustrated action packed spicy Pleasure Model immensely. It is a good read. It lacks somewhat in depth that can be remedied by checking out Rowley’s homepage. I would recommend it to any adult science fiction fan. I myself can’t wait until I have read the next two Netherworld books. I wonder when they will be out?

Live Free or Die by John Ringo (Troy Rising 1)

This is the first book in a new series called Troy Rising. It is an alien invasion Space Opera with an unlikely hero…

… Live Free or Die is an amusing Space Opera with a bit sketchy characters and world building but quite enjoyable. I would recommend it to readers of military science fiction with a sense of humor. I will definitely buy the rest of the series as soon as it is available.

Mirrored Heavens by David J. Williams (Autumn Rain 1)

This is the action packed first book in a new cyber-thriller series, Autumn Rain.

It starts out as one of those super action packed first scenes in a Hollywood Block Buster but here it feels like it never stops. Put a handful major characters, one mega conspiracy or two and the intrigue and mysteries of a Le Carré cold war spy thriller into the mix and splatter it out on a canvas of world-wide insurrection, high technology and dystopian cityscapes and you have a feeling what this book is…

… Mirrored Heavens is a strong first novel by David J. Williams. He presents a chilly future high-tech world of espionage and double crossing that is more than entertaining, the characters are not very deep and at times the plot might feel a bit over complex at times but so far I like it. I already have volume 2 Burning Skies here waiting. I can recommend it if you like fast paced cyber thrillers.

Starbound by Joe Haldeman

Starbound left me conflicted, I have had to have a few days to think it over before writing a review. After the human race’s near extinction from an exploding martian the earth authorities decide to send an expedition after the mysterious Other’s starship that left the solar system heading for what might be the Others home world…

… not a bad book, nor an excellent, it is somewhere in between for me. It took a little long time before the action started and when it did it was over in no time. I would recommend it if you like mysterious aliens and Defying Gravity-esque personal interaction.

I haven’t read Marsbound, and it it is supposed to be a better read than this one, maybe it suffers from middle-book-itis.

Bitter Angels by C. L. Anderson (Sarah Zettel)

Bitter Angels was written by Sarah Zettel under pseudonym. It’s a military science fiction of sorts with a central murder mystery. And I liked it much more than Kingdom of Cages, which put me off from her, seems I was wrong…

… I liked the mystery part, but it took a bit too long to get to when it started to make sense, around page 300. I wouldn’t mind if the author made faster work of that. It left only 150 pages for the real action and the characters to grow.

Now and then I felt it was too much talks, meetings and dead ends that didn’t bring the story forward, but I might have missed a point or so. It slowed it down from excellent to good in my mind. Bitter Angels is a good mystery-spy science fiction and if you like that it’s a book for you.

I made mistake with the feed earlier this month so I have to make 2 similar posts to get it right, sorry read either one.

The God Engines by John Scalzi

John Scalzi treads new domains with this dark Gothic Opera of star travel, faith, living gods, sex, violence and space battles which channels the spirit of H.P. Lovecraft…

… The God Engines is a chilling horror story set in a world with living manifested gods, so it has to be fantasy? Well, maybe, there is a lot of Space Opera and science fiction in this fantasy story. I think it’s magnificent and I love the inventiveness of the story, using gods as engines! I am just sorry it is so short, the plot could easily have been made into a full length novel. I say convinced that it would be easy for John Scalzi, him being such a fantastic writer (nudge, nudge).

The Course of Empire by Eric Flint & K. D. Wenthworth (Empire Series 1)

The reason I am reviewing The Course of Empire now is that the second part The Cruible of Empire will be out next month (March 16, 2010). This is the first book in a series about an alien invasion of earth by the Jao that changes into something else under the pressure of yet another more menacing alien race, the Ekhat bent on exterminating all non Ekhat life from the universe. It holds interesting alien point-of-views (pov), alternatives to violence and an unusual positive treatment of collaborateurs…

… This is one of the best alien point of view stories I have read in a long time, the world is vivid and the characters are easy to love. I got very emotional here and there in the story, especially at the end. I would recommend The Course of Empire to anyone intrested in a good alien point of view story or if you are just looking for good science fiction.

Semper Human by Douglas, Ian (William H. Keith) (Inheritance Trilogy 3)

This is the last book in a Marine Corps Saga spanning thousands of years and three trilogies. The Trilogies are first Heritage, then Legacy and finally The Inheritance Trilogy. It is an epic military saga about the Marine Corps and the Garroway family that serves in it…

… The whole series is a great homage to the Marines, where every man is a rifleman first. It is a strong moral story about standing up for your team and your ideals. It also have great world-building and believable science within the fiction. You should read the other books in the Inheritance Trilogy before Semper Human, there is lots of references. I strongly recommend the whole series to any lover of military science fiction and space opera.

The Shockwave Rider by Brunner, John

It’s been said that John Brunner invented the term “worm” for a program that replicates itself on a network in this proto-cyberpunk novel from 1975.

The first half of the novel had me wondering if this was way to intelligent for me, then the fog lifted, the wow feelings started to hit me. This is a great novel! It involves the Brain Race, a development from the previous Arms Race. Every superpower collect their own brain resources and develop them at great cost in institutions like Tarnover to handle the out of control speed of change in society. The novel addresses many of the problems with the ever faster changing world that are still valid today. Especially in the area of mental health…

… The Shockwave Rider impressed me with its content and how the pieces fell into place in the story and it became great. It is a few years old but much of what it tells are still valid. Read it if you can get hold of it.

Coyote Horizon by Allen Steele (Coyote 6)

Humanity meets aliens in Spindrift (4) where the Hjadd saves the day and we learns to know them better in Galaxy Blues (5) when we go and trade with them. Contact with another technologically more advanced civilization always leads to change. This time the contact is with an interstellar multi-specie civilization whose very existence challenge many of our traditional belief systems. The planet Coyote become much more than a safety vault for the overpopulated and ecologically devastated home planet. It becomes a focal point of the whole human civilization when the Hjadd sets up there embassy there and not on Earth.

This book is concurrent in parts with Galaxy Blues (5). It is a two book story the last part Coyote Destiny (7) is published in March 2010…

… I like the characterization in the beginning of the book. The world building is good, it’s one of Allen’s strengths. The storyline was clear and easy to follow. I am not so hot on this many protagonists and switching back and forth between them. It works but I personally would have preferred a more central protagonist, but that’s just me. I liked the book in general and it is a good read you don’t want to put it down…

… The book ends with a cliffhanger but you don’t have to wait long to read the last part of this story. Publication is next month. You can start reading about Coyote with this book but you you misses a lot of the backstory if you haven’t read volume 1-3.

Pleasure Model by Christopher Rowley (Netherworld Trilogy 1)

Rook Venner bring the evidence home, said evidence being Plesur, a pleasure model with long golden hair, deep blue eyes, a pert little nose and large mouth loaded with heavy lips that works like triggers on the heterosexual male mind all packed into a gorgeous young body, to protect her from rape. Only to wake up in the middle of the night by a phone call telling him to get out NOW!

Presenting Heavy Metal Pulp, a new line of novels combining noir fiction with fantastic art featuring the themes, story lines, and graphic styles of Heavy Metal magazine…

… The book doesn’t end with a Cliff hanger but leaves enough unresolved that I long for the next volume. I enjoyed the fast paced illustrated action packed spicy Pleasure Model immensely. It is a good read. It lacks somewhat in depth that can be remedied by checking out Rowley’s homepage. I would recommend it to any adult science fiction fan. I myself can’t wait until I have read the next two Netherworld books. I wonder when they will be out?

Live Free or Die by John Ringo (Troy Rising 1)

This is the first book in a new series called Troy Rising. It is an alien invasion Space Opera with an unlikely hero…

… Live Free or Die is an amusing Space Opera with a bit sketchy characters and world building but quite enjoyable. I would recommend it to readers of military science fiction with a sense of humor. I will definitely buy the rest of the series as soon as it is available.

Mirrored Heavens by David J. Williams (Autumn Rain 1)

This is the action packed first book in a new cyber-thriller series, Autumn Rain.

It starts out as one of those super action packed first scenes in a Hollywood Block Buster but here it feels like it never stops. Put a handful major characters, one mega conspiracy or two and the intrigue and mysteries of a Le Carré cold war spy thriller into the mix and splatter it out on a canvas of world-wide insurrection, high technology and dystopian cityscapes and you have a feeling what this book is…

… Mirrored Heavens is a strong first novel by David J. Williams. He presents a chilly future high-tech world of espionage and double crossing that is more than entertaining, the characters are not very deep and at times the plot might feel a bit over complex at times but so far I like it. I already have volume 2 Burning Skies here waiting. I can recommend it if you like fast paced cyber thrillers.

Starbound by Joe Haldeman

Starbound left me conflicted, I have had to have a few days to think it over before writing a review. After the human race’s near extinction from an exploding martian the earth authorities decide to send an expedition after the mysterious Other’s starship that left the solar system heading for what might be the Others home world…

… not a bad book, nor an excellent, it is somewhere in between for me. It took a little long time before the action started and when it did it was over in no time. I would recommend it if you like mysterious aliens and Defying Gravity-esque personal interaction.

I haven’t read Marsbound, and it it is supposed to be a better read than this one, maybe it suffers from middle-book-itis.

Bitter Angels by C. L. Anderson (Sarah Zettel)

Bitter Angels was written by Sarah Zettel under pseudonym. It’s a military science fiction of sorts with a central murder mystery. And I liked it much more than Kingdom of Cages, which put me off from her, seems I was wrong…

… I liked the mystery part, but it took a bit too long to get to when it started to make sense, around page 300. I wouldn’t mind if the author made faster work of that. It left only 150 pages for the real action and the characters to grow.

Now and then I felt it was too much talks, meetings and dead ends that didn’t bring the story forward, but I might have missed a point or so. It slowed it down from excellent to good in my mind. Bitter Angels is a good mystery-spy science fiction and if you like that it’s a book for you.

Captain Ean Tephe is a man of faith, whose allegiance to his lord and to his ship is uncontested. The Bishopry Militant knows this — and so, when it needs a ship and crew to undertake a secret, sacred mission to a hidden land, Tephe is the captain to whom the task is given.

Tephe knows from that the start that his mission will be a test of his skill as a leader of men and as a devout follower of his god. It s what he doesn t know that matters: to what ends his faith and his ship will ultimately be put — and that the tests he will face will come not only from his god and the Bishopry Militant, but from another, more malevolent source entirely…

Author John Scalzi has ascended to the top ranks of modern science fiction with the best-selling, Hugo-nominated novels Old Man’s War and Zoe’s Tale. Now he tries his hand at fantasy, with a dark and different novella that takes your expectations of what fantasy is and does, and sends them tumbling.

Say your prayers…and behold The God Engines.

Info

Format: Hardcover
Length: 136 pages, novella
Illustration and cover: by Vincent Chong, please check out his website, the illustrations are wonderful. 

Plot

You have to have faith to be a starship captain, since your engine is a captured and defiled god. The first line of the book is “It was time to whip the god” – just like that. Captain Ean Tephe has a strong faith and his religious superiors uses it and him when their god come under assault from new and strong gods. They send him on a mission to find converts to strengthen his god with new faith. A mission that will challenge his faith and his grasp of reality in unexpected and sinister ways.

Idea

The main focus of the story is faith. How strong faith might move mountains, but also the difference between reflecting and challenged faith compared to blind faith that doesn’t allow challenges. I am not sure that is what John intended, but I feel it has something to tell us all about the follies of blind faith. I should add that this is not a religious book even if it is about faith, there are no identifiable religions in it.

Characterization

One of John Scalzi’s strength is his vivid characters and his uncanny ability to make you feel what they do. I like Ean, I understand his motivations and I chill to the bone like he does.

World building

There is something gothic over the world John Scalzi conjure. A dystropic interstellar empire run by a militaristic church, serving one God that has conquered and captured other gods to be used to power the starships that keeps it together. It is not a world I would like to live in but it is an interesting world I would like to read more about.

My View

The God Engines is a chilling horror story set in a world with living manifested gods, so it has to be fantasy? Well, maybe, there is a lot of  Space Opera and science fiction in this fantasy story. I think it’s magnificent and I love the inventiveness of the story, using gods as engines! I am just sorry it is so short, the plot could easily have been made into a full length novel. I say convinced that it would be easy for John Scalzi, him being such a fantastic writer (nudge, nudge).

Sara & Harlan

One of my favorite books is Anne McCaffrey’s first published novel Restoree. It is also a lovely love story. You can tell I have read my copy a couple of times by its rugged looks. Sara is a beak-nosed introverted young librarian from New York who slowly comes out of a drug induced confusion in a beautiful new body apparently caring for another male patient. She had been abducted by the Mil, a race of aliens that eat human flesh. She had been skinned alive and left in a catatonic state by the aliens when it was attacked by humans from the planet Lothar. They saved her and and without her skin mistake her for one of her own and restore her skin to a lovely golden color giving her a nose job at the same time. Now she wakes up caring for another drugged patient, Harlan. He is the deposed regent of the planet. She rescues him from the mental hospital and they flee as his enemies hunt for them. Their love grows as she continues to surprise him by supplying the skills and knowledge they need to escape. She teaches him to sail when they need to steal a boat and she eventually restore him to the regency that is his right.

Anne first wrote this book in anger over the way females where portrayed by science fiction at the time. Hiding in corners while the heroes saved them. The novel was first published in 1967.

Miles & Ekaterin

They meet in Komarr and continue in A Civil Campaign with his secret courting and ultimately very public betrothal to Ekaterin after she saves his beacon. Their marriage is background to another love story in Winterfair Gift. And they go on honeymoon in Diplomatic Immunity.

The Vorkosigan Saga is a series of novels and short stories written by Lois McMaster Bujold most of them is about Miles a physically disabled aristocrat from the planet Barrayar, a planet where ‘mutants’ used to be killed at birth. Miles is determined to prove them all wrong. And he does in a couple of wonderful  books as a mercenary, a spy, statesman and diplomat. Eventually he meets the love of his life, Ekaterin but she is at the time married and as revealed later to a traitor. To further complicate things the husband is later killed under circumstances that  implicate Miles. After Her husbands death Ekaterin returns to live with family on Barrayar.

A family that is very disapproving of Miles. He starts a secret campaign to woo Ekaterin. But his heart might be in the right place but his head is not. There is a very funny but disastrous ’butter bug’ dinner there that is a pleasure to read. The notion that Miles had something to do with killing Ekaterin’s late husband surfaces, but Miles can’t tell the truth due to security reasons. Ekaterin confronts miles and he offers  to take the blame to spare Ekaterin and her son.  They reconcile enough to start to solve their problems and defeat their enemies and it is quite beautiful the way it all works out in the end. With Ekaterin’s shouting match with an upstart Council  Member resulting in them defeating their enemies and their very public betrothal in the end.

It is a very beautiful love story covered in a couple of excellent novels worth reading. The banter between the lovers are medium, Miles knows Ekatering is much smarter than he is.

John Perry & Jane Sagan

John meets Jane the first time believing he sees his dead wife as he is about to die himself. And he is almost dead, as much almost as the advanced medical technology of the colonial union can save and regenerate.

This happens in the second half of Old Man’s War one of the best science fiction I have ever read, written by the talented Mr John Scalzi [profile].

He has been saved by a team from the “Ghost Brigade” and the team leader looks exactly as his dead wife Katy. Next time he sees her is in the mess hall waiting on some burgers. He approach her and thanks her for saving his life as she is about to leave he shows her his wedding photo and wake up after being thrown into a wall.

Jane seeks him out in secret the same night wanting to know more about Katy. John learns that Jane is made from the DNA of his dead wife but heavily modified for the special forces. And she is only six years old. Jane manipulate her commanders to promote Perry and assign him as their liaison on the mission to find out why they where defeated on Coral, the planet she rescued John from. They find out that the aliens have a tachyon detector on the planet that can predict where spaceship will enter normal space. One of Jane’s teammates is killed on the mission. John volunteer to take his place as they are sent to capture  the device. John is instrumental in the success of the mission and saves Jane’s life carrying her on his back several hundred meters in the middle of a firefight to put her into a stasis capsule. Then he drags the capsule out of the building it was in seconds before it explodes. Then he loses sight of her as she returns to the insular Ghost Brigades.

The Ghost Brigades continues Jane’s story and in The Last Colony they are reunited when they are offered a position as leaders of the first colony to be established with people from other colonies.

January was a good month for reading, I was on vacation until the 11th so I had lots of time to read. None of the books here was made a bad review, even if I wasn’t as fond of Multireal as I was of Infoquake, sorry David. It was really hard to rank the 7 first books this month, they all blew my mind. Ask me again tomorrow and I might change the order. If I included re reads into the list it would be different.

The picture was taken by me not very far from where I live in Norrbotten, Sweden. January is cold, it is -13C here today and darkness comes early so I prefer to stay at home with a good book.

Novels

1. WE by Dickinson, John
2. Darkship Thieves by Hoyt, Sarah A.  (DarkShip Thieves 1)
3. Infoquake by Edelman, David Louis [profile] (Jump 225 Series 1)
4. Cosmopath by Brown, Eric (Bengali Station Series 3)
5. Multireal by Edelman, David Louis [profile] (Jump 225 Series2)
6. Migration by Czerneda, Julia E (Species Imperative Series 2)
7. Regeneration by Czerneda, Julia E (Species Imperative Series 3)
8. Eye of the Storm by Ringo, John (Hedren War Series 1, Posleen universe)
9. The Tuloriad by Ringo, John & Kratman, Tom (Posleen universe) sequel to Yellow Eyes
10. Fire by Cashore, Kristin (The Seven Kingdoms 2)
11. Valor’s Choice by Huff, Tanya (Confederation of Valor Series 1)
12. Better Part of Valor by Huff, Tanya: (Confederation of Valor Series 2)
13. The Heart of Valor by Huff, Tanya: (Confederation of Valor Series 3)
14. Valor’s Trial by Huff, Tanya (Confederation of Valor Series 4)
15. Starship: Flagship by Resnick, Mike (Starship Series 5)

Re reads

1. Old Man’s War by Scalzi, John [profile] (Old Man’s War Series 1)
2. Peace & War by Haldeman, Joe - omnibus version of Forever War, Forever Free, Forever Peace

Novellas and Short stories

1. High Stakes by Hoyt, Sarah A. (DarkShip thieves universe) a free online short story
2. Judge Sn Goes Golfing by Scalzi, John [profile] (Android’s Dream universe) a novella
3. Neptune’s Orphans by Hoyt, Sarah A. (DarkShip thieves universe) a free online novelette

John Scalzi visits the universe of his bestselling novel The Android’s Dream for this exclusive short story, featuring fan favorite character Judge Nugan Bufan Sn — a brilliant alien jurist whose misanthropy and lack of social graces is matched only by his futile, unrequited for the game of golf. When he hits the links at the absymal Dulles Woods golf course, the unexpected happens: He begins to play well. But there are more hazards on the course for Sn than just sand traps and disaffected caddies

The Android Dream story and the universe it takes place in would be good for a sequel  or two?

The Fantasy books is something I found while idly browsing Amazon. I think my son will love them, he is much more into fantasy than I. I want to read them too of course, that’s a bonus.

1. Judge Sn Goes Golfing by John Scalzi
2. The Innocent Mage by Karen Miller
3. The Awakened Mage by Karen Miller
4. Chasm City by Alastair Reynolds (Revalation Space 2)
5. Absolution Gap by Alastair Reynolds (Revalation Space 4)
6. The Prefect by Alastair Reynolds (Revalation Space 5)
7. WE by John Dickinson
8. Fire by Kristin Cashore

We might not be as far from BrainPals (Brain embedded computers in John Scalzi’s Old Man’s War novels). Boffins have already tested this thought-to-speech machine on humans. We live in interesting times… 

(PhysOrg.com) — The results of our study show that a brain-machine interface (BMI) user can control sound output directly, rather than having to use a (relatively slow) typing process …

By implanting an electrode into the brain of a person with locked-in syndrome, scientists have demonstrated how to wirelessly transmit neural signals to a speech synthesizer. The “thought-to-speech” process takes about 50 milliseconds – the same amount of time for a non-paralyzed, neurologically intact person to speak their thoughts. The study marks the first successful demonstration of a permanently installed, wireless implant for real-time control of an external device.

I am impressed and also a little scared, this might help a lot of people communicate better, but it could also be used for other things. Imagine having Microsoft windows running in your brain, that’s scary. What do you think?

I did two things on my seventy-fifth birthday. I visited my wife’s grave. Then I joined the army.

As first liners go this is one is a good one. Old Man’s War is an absolute brilliant book by my favorite author John Scalzi. John Perry, the protagonist is a cynical but friendly old man. He loves his dead wife Kathy very much and remembers her with warmth and affection, but also at times with resentment for leaving him behind. She suddenly died from a brain aneurysm eight years ago.  They had enrolled in the Colonial Defence Force (CDF) together before she died, planing a life together among stars they knew very little about. John still have no idea of what to expect, except that they have some way to make him young again.

So on his 75 birthday he travels to CDF’s recruitment office. The young recruiter confirms that he signs up for two years with an option for CDF to extend it to ten. John takes a leap of faith and signs, becoming legally dead if he stays on earth. Once you leave earth you can never go back. The official reason is to protect earth against alien diseases.

John Scalzi paints a humorus if somewhat cynical picture of being old.

Perry travels to orbit via the Beanstalk, a feat of colonial engineering no one on earth can duplicate. As Harry, another recruit he meets there theorises, the beanstalk isn’t the most economical or easiest way to get to orbit, it is rather the hardest most expensive way to get there, it is a message to the governments on earth. Unless you can duplicate this, you have nothing to do among the stars.

They are herded trough Colonial Station to their ride the starship CDFS Henry Hudson, where they somewhat surreal are served coffee and donuts. Not the usual military welcome.

During the following two days they go trough tests of various kinds. First they get a physical and their brains are implanted with a sensor array. They test  language, math, make them angry, awnser questions from to a naked sexy woman/man etc. Perry resents being treated as a preschooler. During that time he bonds with a group of other recruits and they name themselves ‘The Old Farts’, they becomes his substitute family.

After two days they skip to the Phoenix system where they will load supplies before going to Beta Pyxis III for basic training. The enormous space station and the hundreds of ships around it makes them realise what a backwater earth have become.

The long awaited ‘concluding physical improvment’ that will enable them to fight in CDF takes place, more later.

The characterisation is exquisite and this is one of John Scalzi’s greatest strengths, you can identify with the characters, what motivates them, in fact at times it felt like my consciousness was transferred into the main character. John also do cynical old man very well, even if he is young man himself. 

The world is also well though out and coherent. Earth is kept a backwater by the Colonial Union to be used for soldiers and colonists. The developed countries supply educated experienced soldier at an age of 75, the under developed countries supply colonists of any age.

It is a beautiful story with a moral. The characters John and his group are easy to love. World building, descriptions etc is inserted in a clever way. No massive infodumps here. There is also a number wow moments in the story.

Our protagonist John Perry get to experience revelation after revelation about the CDF and Earth. If you are a first time reader, you should enjoy it too. If you read on, you will learn too much, and it might spoil part of the enjoyment. You have been warned. Spoiler alert!

The ‘concluding physical improvment’ is made by transfering their conscious to new bodies. John gets a new green-fighting-machine one, of the Defender Series XII ‘Hercules’ model, and a brochure. He has SmartBlood™, CatsEye™, UncommonSense™,  HardArm™,  BrainPal™  all patented technologies that he will benefit from as long as he is in CDF. He name his BrainPal Asshole.

Their Commander holds a short speach and order them to have fun the rest of the trip, and they do. Their new bodies are as likable as possible, meaning they all look very attractive. The following days are spent having sex and enjoying being 25 again.

On arrival to Beta Pyxis III they are given a lecture. They learn humans have colonized a dozen planets, they compete for the same real-estate with hundreds of other colonies by other races. Humanity have few allies. Very few races are allies with anyone, been so since before we left earth. There is a fierce competition, a race where we have to fight to colonize. The Colonial Defence Force objectives are to protect colonies, secure new planets for colonization, prepare planets with native populations for human colonization.After 10 years of service three out of four of them will be dead.

The Old Farts are split into different training platoons. Master Sergeant Antonio Ruiz is Johns drill instructor, he lives up to what you can expect from a master sergeant and more. He hate their guts but he fails to find anything to hate with john so he makes him platoon leader.

They learn the limits of their bodies under cheerful banter. After a week they receive their weapon, the MP-35 infantery rifle.

When the recruits get over confident in their abilities, Ruiz takes them down again. He explain military economics for them. Their fantastic bodies and weapons are the bare minimum that allows them to survive on the modern battlefield. He also drills alien races preconceptions out of them, it doesn’t matter if they look like Bambi they will still eat you! They also do war games and John have a knack for it. John graduates with a good grade from Ruiz.

Perry is assigned to CDFS Modesto, 233rd battalion, D company, 2nd platoon Lt Arthur Keyes commanding. Their first mission is ritual fighting with a more advanced race, the Consu. They have personal shields making them hard to kill, John programs a two shot function for his rifle that works and share it with the rest. It works out well and he get a commendation. The fight was, as a veteran tell Perry, as easy as they get.

But life in CDF is dangerous, other Old Farts die off. After the first fight Perry and his fellow recruits are fully accepted into the platoon. and he reflects on replacing dead friends. Until you fight you just take up space exemplified by a former senator now first timer trying diplomacy in the middle of a raid ending up a needle cushion. Eventually killing gets to Perry but he works through it. 

Then comes the Coral massacre, a Rraey invasion force captured the colony and butchered the colonists. The Colonial Union sends a fleet to take it back, but they are ambushed as they skip out into normalspace, the Rraey have acquired a new technology that allows them to predict where a ship skips back into normal space. The fleet is destroyed. Perry is the only survivor and he is rescued by his dead wife.

After being rescued he is put in stasis until they can get back to Phoenix station. There he is put into a regen tank to heal. Afterwards he finds out he was rescued by CDF special forces, from the ship sparrowhawk. They are called the Ghost Brigade,  rumor says they are dead people.

Then he sees someone in the cafeteria that looks exactly like Kathy, his dead wife. He boldly thanks her for saving his life. Her name is Jane Sagan. Before she leaves he beam her a photo of  his wedding and is thrown into a wall. Later that night Jane sneaks in and visits him. she wants to know more. she is six years old and she doesn’t know any realborns. It amazes her to hear that he was married to Kathy for 42 years.  Their relation develops in secret.

John Perry is promoted to Lieutenant and sent with Sparrowhawk to return to Coral and capture the tachion detector. Thats as much as I am going to tell.

In conclusion, It’s a wonderful book i strongly recommend it to all lovers of science fiction.

Books I have ordered:

• The God Engines by John Scalzi
• Judge Sn goes Golfing by John Scalzi
• Coyote Horizon by Allen Steele

Other books that might be of interest:

• Starbound by Joe Haldeman
• Darkship Thives by Sarah A. Hoyt
  - Big Idea article on John Scalzi’s Whatever Blog
  - Read an excerpt
• The Domino Pattern by Timothy Zahn
• City Without End by Kay Kenyon
• Pookayne of Mars by Robert A Heinlein
• Regenesis by C. J. Cherryh

These are the best books i have read for the very first time in 2009. There was quit a few authors I discovered 2009, and many of them are already favorites. To mention some of them John Scalzi of course he is my favorite of the year, Jaine Fenn is another strong new author, Elisabeth Bear is much better than the covers of her books, Laura E. Reeve with her strong Greek influence and Tony Bellantyne with his robot series is novel to say the least. I don’t doubt for a second I have missed some of this years greatest new authors and books. I would love to read them if you tell me about them.

1. Old Man’s War Series by John Scalzi (Old Man’s War, The Ghost Brigade The Last Colony, Zoe’s Tale)
2. The Graveyard Book by Niel Gaiman
3. Storm from the Shadows by David Weber (Saganami 2)
4. The Anderoid’s Dream by John Scalzi
5. Mote in God’s Eye by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
6. By Heresies Distressed by David Weber (Safehold 3)
7. Torch of Freedom by Eric Flint & David Weber (Wages of Sin 2)
8. Saturn’s Children by Charles Stross 
9. The Dispossessed by Ursula Le Guin(Eukmen 5) 
10. The Magicans’ Guild by Trudi Canavan (The Black Magician 1)
11. The Sidhe Series by Jaine Fenn (Principles of Angels, Consorts of Heaven)
12. Mothership by John Brosnan(Mothership 1)
13. Undaunted by Mike Shepherd (Kris Longknife 7)
14. The Coyote Series by Allen Steel
15. 1632 by Eric Flint (Ring of fire 1)
16. Empire Series by Richard Allen Stotts (Midshipman, Heir to the Throne, Majesty, Acheon, Citizen of the Empire) – All are Free Online Books
17. Relentless by Jack Campell (The Lost Fleet 5)
18. Southern Vampires Series (1-9) by Charlene Harris the inspirationt to True Blood the TV Series 
19. Seeds of Earth by Michael Cobley (Humanity’s Fire 1)
20.  The Jenny Casey Series by Elizabet Bear (Hammered, Scaredown, Worldwired) 

The Best Re-Read Books of 2009

1. Remnant Polulation by Elizabeth Moon - This is the best First Contact book I ever read. It might be the best book.
2. Honor Harrington Series (1-11) by David Weber
3. Kris Longknife Series (1-7) by Mike Shepherd

Interesting and Notable Books not on the list 2009

• The Wess’har Wars Series by Karen Travis
• The Merchant Princes Series by Charles Stross
• Contact With Chaos by Michael Z. Williamsson
• The Lost Xuyan Bride by Aliette de Bodard
• Twisted Metal by Tony Ballantyne
• Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds
• Jennifer Government by Max Barry
• Major Ariane Kedros Series by Laura E Reeve

His Military science fiction reminds me of Heinlein in style if not ideology. John’s characters often observe society and grows in insight and ability as the story gets along. Stylewise he is witty and pointed and have a sneaky kind of humor that hits you from behind at times. Ideawise he is original, surprising and ironic, a great worldbuilder.

I read his blog Whatever, if not daily, at least a couple of times a week. It makes me smile and sometimes roar with laughter. His blog is mainly about writing but he also makes pointed comments about contemporary stuff from gay marriages to healthcare reforms. There is also music, food and pictures of the family and their cats and dog.

He is the creative consultant of  Stargate Universe, one of my favorite TV series.

Series

Old Man’s War

I love this series so much, in fact it was the subject of the first article I ever wrote on this blog. I will soon reread the books and write the articles they deserve.

1. Old Man’s War
2. The Ghost Brigade
3. The Last Colony
4. Zoe’s Tale

Stand Alone Novels

• Agent to the Stars (Free online version)
• The Android’s Dream
• Judge Sn Goes Golfing (novella)
• The God Engines (novella)

Links

• Everything Tagged John Scalzi on this blog
• Whatever John Scalzi’s own blog is one of my favorite blogs.
• John Scalzi at Wikipedia
• John Scalzi’s blog at AMC – he writes there weekly

This is the story about Kenneth Chinran, the man that wrecked Earth. We get to follow Kenneth from enrollment, trough training, undercover on Earth and finally as a father on the run with his daughter after the fact.

The book isn’t as personal as Freehold, I don’t feel fully connected to the character. This might be intentional by Michael as the character seems to have the same problem. It is still a good read but not as good as Freehold.

I must thank John Scalzi’s Whatever for showing me Michael Z Williamson.