THE LOST FLEET - FEARLESS

ACE

Written by Jack Campbell

Copyright © 2007 by John G. Hemry
Cover art by Pat Turner
Cover design by Annette Fiore
Interior text design by Kristin del Rosario



In Fearless, the second book of The Lost Fleet series written by Jack Campbell, the Allied Fleet - trying to make their way back home to Alliance Earth space - discover a prison colony which contains Alliance prisoners of war. After freeing the prisoners, a former prisoner and Alliance hero, Captain Falco, believes that he - and not Commander Jack Geary should be in command of the fleet.

With the arrival of Captain Falco, loyalty amongst the fleet has split dramatically - especially between the factions who were not happy with Geary and his outdated methods of honor and strategy in the first place. This is especially dangerous as the enemy Syndics continue to search for them. While very dramatic, I was not comfortable with all the jealousy and in-fighting among the fleet. The consequences of siding with Falco is damning. Meanwhile, reunion and news of prisoners and the relationships they have with the members of the fleet have uncomfortable results.

Pancho
All people smile in the same language.
 

THE FLAXEN FEMME FATALE

DAW

Written by John Zakour

Copyright © 2008 by John Zakour

All Rights Reserved.

Cover Art by Michael Koelsch




In The Flaxen Femme Fatale, written by John Zakour, Private Eye Zachary Nixon Johnson is approached by a flaxen haired femme fatale in his office who warns him not to find her - then disappears in front of his eyes.

Part of the Zachary Nixon Johnson series where Johnson is the last freelance P.I. on Earth, Johnson knows he is in trouble when the military wants him to find this femme fatale - who mysteriously looks like his secretary/niece, who is considered the most powerful PSI in the world.

Johnson needs all the help he can get on this woman hunt, including HARV his annoying holographic computer hardwired directly into Johnson's brain and GUS his powerful cheerful weapon, whether wanted or unwanted in dealing with this flaxen femme fatale - who is very powerful, and deadly. I like the fact that he needed all that help, even from space. Aside from the fact that P.I's tend to be loners, the help - along with his doctor fiance - also tends to keep Johnson's ego in check.

Johnson's adventures makes the series very funny and is a quick read.

Pancho 
All people smile in the same language.
 

COWBOYS & ALIENS

TOR

Novelization by Joan D. Vinge

Based on the Screenplay by Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman & Damon Lindelof and Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby

Screen Story by Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby and Steve Oedekerk

Based on Platinum Studios' Cowboys & Aliens by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg

Copyright © 2011 Universal and Dreamworks II Dist. Cowboys & Aliens TM & © Universal Studios and Dreamworks II Dist. Licensed by Universal Studios Licensing LLC.



In Cowboys & Aliens, novelization by Joan D. Vinge, is a novelization of the movie Cowboys & Aliens. A stranger wakes up alone in the middle of a desert in the Old West with no memory of who he is. This lone cowboy also has an alien device strapped to his wrist.

Based on the graphic novel created by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, the stranger is a cowboy who is a wanted man. After getting involved in the small town of Absolution, New Mexico's politics between the sheriff and the son of the local rich cattle rancher - the town gets invaded by alien ships. After the invasion, the stranger, sheriff, the rancher and a small posse goes after the aliens who kidnapped the townspeople - including the rancher's son.

I liked the fact that all the characters eventually had to work together to battle the aliens in order to bring their people home. The mystery of why the stranger has the alien device is still a little confusing to me, even after reading the book and watching the movie. Although I did like the fact that the stranger wound up with the device, I was hoping it would be for a different reason. This is a wonderful blend of the Old West and aliens from outer space which does not skimp on either genre.

Click here to read the movie review of Cowboys & Aliens.

Pancho
All people smile in the same language.

ANGEL - redemption

POCKET PULSE

Written by Mel Odom

Copyright © 2000 by Twentieth Century Fox Film



In redemption, written by Mel Odom, Angel Investigations gets a walk-in client with actress Whitney Tyler - who plays a vampire on a TV series. Her problem is that some people think she is a real vampire.

While Cordelia is glad to finally have access to a star with money, Angel has a strong feeling that she has seen Whitney before - 200 hundred years ago.

Considering that they are in Los Angeles, I was wondering when they would spend more time in the movie/television industry - especially with Cordelia wanting to be a Hollywood star. With Angel Investigations acting as security as Whitney is being targeted as a vampire seemed quite ironic. The flashbacks to when Angel was the evil Angelus 200 years ago almost makes up the subject of an entire book by itself.

Pancho 
All people smile in the same language. 

MARRIED WITH ZOMBIES

orbit

Written by Jesse Petersen

Copyright © 2010 by Jesse Petersen



In Married With Zombies, written by Jesse Petersen, - the first book in a zombie marriage encounter series, Living With the Dead - dysfunctional couple Sarah and David finds out their marriage counselor has turned into a zombie - and now they are on the run as everyone around them are turning into zombies.

What I liked about the book was that Sarah and David are forced to work out their marriage and become a couple again as they try to survive the sudden zombie outbreak. What happened made it logical at how fast the zombie infection spreads. It never occurred to me how much a car is necessary for a zombie apocalypse. The chapter descriptions are self-help sayings zombie style that are really quite appropriate for the book. I thought this was a fun book and am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

Pancho 
All people smile in the same language.
 

THE REPOSSESSION MAMBO

HARPER

Written by Eric Garcia

Copyright 2009 by Eric Garcia




In The Repossession Mambo - written by Eric Garcia, which is the basis for the movie Repo Men - a bio-repo man, who works for a credit union and repossesses artificial mechanical organ transplants in people when they stop paying for them, is on the run from his own repossession people when his own credit goes bad.

I admit, I got this book because I work for a credit union and the repo man works for a credit union. As I am familiar with our Collections Department, it was interesting for me to see the workings and philosophy of the book's credit union. Having the repo men targeting their members for repossessing of the credit union's property, almost like a hit man, is a little disturbing as it is all legal. Not even celebrities are safe. The idea of marketing artificial transplants for anything in the body taken to the ultimate extreme was an interesting comment on society, as it is all about money and not in preserving the quality of life for people. Everything was geared toward artiforgs and not any type of medicine. The society of the book seemed like what is depicted in the movie Blade Runner. I was surprised at how many ex-wives the protagonist had. I think my favorite scene is when a member did a surrender, and the manager was livid because members do not do that sort of thing.

Pancho
All people smile in the same language.

STAR TREK CORPS OF ENGINEERS - WOUNDS

POCKET BOOKS

Written by Ilsa J. Bick, Keith R.A. DeCandido, John J. Ordover, Terri Osborne, Cory Rushton

Based upon STAR TREK and STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION created by Gene Roddenberry and STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE created by Rick Berman & Michael Piller

Copyright Star Trek S.C.E.: Malefictorum copyright 2005 by CBS Studios, Inc. All rights reserved.
Star Trek S.C.E.: Lost Time copyright 2005 by CBS Studios, Inc. All rights reserved.
Star Trek S.C.E.: Identity Crisis copyright 2005 by CBS Studios, Inc. All rights reserved.
Star Trek S.C.E.: Fables of the Prime Directive copyright 2005 by CBS Studios, Inc. All rights reserved.
Star Trek S.C.E.: Securitycopyright 2005 by CBS Studios, Inc. All rights reserved.
Star Trek S.C.E.: Wounds copyright 2005 by CBS Studios, Inc. All rights reserved.

2008 by CBS Studios. Inc. All Rights Reserved.
STAR TREK and related marks are trademarks of CBS Studios Inc.



In Wounds, an anthology of the Star Trek Corp of Engineers with five stories by Ilsa J. Bick, Keith R.A. DeCandido, John J. Ordover, Terri Osborne, and Cory Rushton,

I like the fact that, while each story in this anthology can be read separately, the stories interconnect and build on each other. The SCE deal with the aftermath of the Dominion War. Starting with the murder of two crewmen, to dealing with a threat from the Mirror Universe, to eventually having Doctor's Lense and Bashir crashing on a war-torn planet.

After being stranded on the war-torn planet, Doctor Lense's life changes forever.

Pancho 
All people smile in the same language.
 

THE AGE OF ODIN

Solaris

Written by James Lovegrove

Copyright James Lovegrove 2010



In The Age of Odin, the third book in the Pantheon series written by James Lovegrove, former British Army soldier Gideon Coxall gets in a car accident in the middle of a severe snowstorm while looking for the Valhalla Project, which is recruiting former military personnel for unspecified combat operations, and winds up recovering at the Project. Gideon soon finds himself fighting along with real Viking gods to prevent Ragnarok - the end of the world.

I liked that several figures from the Viking gods were made into modern day versions. I was able to relate to these gods as they were made into interesting and relatable characters, especially as they fight along the mercenary soldiers, all of whom were special operations, that the gods have recruited for their battles as well as fighting with modern-day weapons. I never realized before how much the Viking gods were all related and that they were such a dysfunctional family. The women from the Viking gods were all very strong women. Fumblewinter was very apparent in this book. I was always aware of the winter's cold while I was reading the book. Oftentimes, the background does not make a significant impression on me while I read a book.

Pancho
All people smile in the same language.

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - RESURRECTION

ibooks, inc.

Written by Richard Hatch and Stan Timmons

Copyright 2001 Universal Studios PublishingRights,
a Division of Universal Studios Licensing, Inc.

Battlestar Galactica
is a trademark and copyright of Universal studios.
All rights reserved.

Edited by Howard Zimmerman
Cover art by Matt Busch
Cover design by j.vita & Joe Bailey



In Resurrection, written by Richard Hatch and Stan Timmons, the Battlestar Galactica and the Colonial Fleet have been depleted of food and fuel after their battles with the Cylons and the alien race Chitain. War veteran Commander Cain challenges Apollo for leadership.

Meanwhile, with their new quantum-shift technology, the fleet gets warped across the galaxy - back home to their starting point, the planet Kobol.

While I can understand a veteran such as Commander Cain questioning Apollo's strategy of following the alleged path of the Thirteenth Tribe and would challenge young Apollo for leadership of the fleet, it was still rather annoying to see instead of Cain challenging Apollo instead of working with Apollo on helping the fleet recover. Having the people losing faith in Apollo was sad. Winding up back at their starting point of the planet Kobol was a little unbelievable, but eventually made sense.

Pancho
All people smile in the same language.