Book Review: A Storm of Swords

Book Review: A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin Note:  This review will contain SPOILERS for the first two volumes in the A Song of Ice and Fire series. The Battle of King’s Landing is over, and the forces loyal to King Joffrey are triumphant.  But the War of Five Kings rages on, with no… Continue reading Book Review: A Storm of Swords

Book Review: Ready Player One

Book Review: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline Wade Watts is a gunter.  That’s short for “Easter egg hunter,” which has nothing to do with the holiday.  Born into grinding poverty as the child of refugees in the energy-starved dystopian future, Wade was orphaned at an early age and put into the hands of a neglectful… Continue reading Book Review: Ready Player One

Book Review: The Book of Van Vogt

Book Review: The Book of Van Vogt by A.E. van Vogt In 1972, DAW Books was a brand new publishing company started by noted speculative fiction editor Donald A. Wollheim.  Its mission statement was to publish quality science fiction books that had not previously appeared in paperback.  (As opposed to reprinting old books with a… Continue reading Book Review: The Book of Van Vogt

Book Review: The Great Quake

Book Review: The Great Quake by Henry Fountain Disclaimer:  I received this uncorrected proof through a Goodreads Giveaway to facilitate this review.  No other compensation was offered or requested.  As an uncorrected proof, many changes will be made in the final product, due out August 2017, including an index and bibliography, and possibly more illustrations.… Continue reading Book Review: The Great Quake

Book Review: Jefferson’s America

Book Review: Jefferson’s America by Julie M. Fenster In 1803, many people in the fledgling United States expected a Louisiana War, as the Spanish had forbidden American shipping from passing down the Mississippi and through the port of New Orleans.  That didn’t happen, as the Spanish were induced to yield the Louisiana Territory to their… Continue reading Book Review: Jefferson’s America

Book Review: Merton of the Movies

Book Review: Merton of the Movies by Harry Leon Wilson Simsbury, Illinois might just be a wide spot in the road, but twice a week, the Bijou Palace shows movies made in far-off Hollywood.  Perhaps the most fanatical attendee of these showings is young Merton Gill, assistant shopkeeper at Gashwiler’s Emporium (general store.)  Merton has studied… Continue reading Book Review: Merton of the Movies

Book Review: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

Book Review: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table by Martin J. Dougherty The Arthurian mythos is a familiar one to just about everyone in some form or another.  But unless you’re a scholar of the subject, you might not know where all the pieces came from and how they got put together.… Continue reading Book Review: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

Book Review: Life Is Beautiful

Book Review: Life Is Beautiful by Sarah M. Johnson In 2008, an airplane carrying humanitarian workers to a remote village in Guatemala, where they were to build a school, crashed and burned.  The crew and most of the passengers were killed; one young woman survived relatively unharmed, though she had lost half her family, and… Continue reading Book Review: Life Is Beautiful

Book Review: Three In One

Book Review: Three In One edited by Leo Margulies According to the introduction by the editor, this book came about because there were three long science fiction stories in the to-publish pile, too long for short-story collections but too short to be their own paperback.  The cover by Emsh is a good choice with the… Continue reading Book Review: Three In One

Book Review: The Play of Death

Book Review: The Play of Death by Oliver Pötzsch Disclaimer:  I received a Kindle download of this book through a Goodreads giveaway to facilitate this review.  No other compensation was offered or requested. The year is 1670, and the people of Oberammergau are preparing their every-ten-years Passion Play…though some of them think it might be… Continue reading Book Review: The Play of Death