Book Review: Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
Murder your darlings. It’s a phrase in publishing that’s often associated with a similar phrase: Torment your darlings. The first, allegedly, means that you can’t afford to fall too much in love with your own prose. It can be the best thing you’ve ever written, but if it’s not relevant to the scene or doesn’t…Read More
Book Review: Left Behind by Elske Höweler
Coincidences Beyond Infinity. This side of infinity is rife with oddities. Maybe not to you, if you’ve lived here long, but to an infinity immigrant, it’s weird. Beyond weird; infinitely weird. My wonderful wife is an avid reader. Six plus books per month avid. I’ve been reading more on this side of infinity because I’m…Read More
Book Review: The Apollo Murders by Chris Hadfield
It took me longer than it should have to get around to this book. Honestly, I was afraid of being disappointed. Chris is one of the smartest, wittiest people I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting and some of the chatter around this book had me concerned that it wasn’t going to measure up to…Read More
Book Review: New Moon by Liz Bullard
I received an early Christmas present a few weeks ago: an autographed copy of Liz Bullard’s New Moon. I’ve just finished it and I’m very happy. Bullard has been experimenting with the series and kicked everything off by publishing Book 2, Portal, on Kindle Vella. I read it there and was intrigued by the story…Read More
Book Review: The Elvis Cole series by Robert Crais
I’ve got three friends that give me unfailing book recommendations: Scott, Chuck, and Remo. This one came from Scott. Elvis Cole is a private eye in LA who has a partner named Joe Pike. I’ve enjoyed the series so much that I’ve already finished the first three books. The first book in the series, The…Read More
Book Review: The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
I came close to not reading this series. “Murderbot” made me think that it was going to be a horror/sci-fi lash up, heavy on the horror. Movies are often like this. They get billed as sci-fi, but the only sciency aspect is that the creature/bug/mutant/virus originated in a lab or on a space station. From…Read More
Book Review: The Heart Rehab Experiment by Starla DeKruyf
I picture Kate Hudson teaming with Paul Rudd in the movie that they’ll make from DeKruyf’s book. So does she. In fact, Starla DeKruyf (@starlawrites) dedicates The Heart Rehab Experiment to Paul Rudd first and her husband second. That tells you a bit about DeKruyf’s sense of humor. The book (currently free Kindle Unlimited) is…Read More
Book review: Livewired by David Eagleman
Lots of academics attempt to write for the masses. Few succeed. Kahneman and Sapolsky come to mind. David Eagleman might be the best I’ve read. Livewired is subtitled “The Inside Story of the Ever-Changing Brain.” Skip the subtitle, read the book. It’s outstanding. Eagleman masterfully navigates the complex landscape of neuroscience, revealing how our brains…Read More
Book Review: Prophecy Trilogy: Portal by Liz Bullard
I read Bullard’s Prophecy Trilogy: Portal recently and am better off for having done so. It was the first novel I’ve read on Kindle Vella – more about that later. Let’s talk Tabatha. Almost as soon as you read her name, you learn that she’s the Chosen One. Eli was sent to find her and…Read More
Book Review: Pulse by J.Z. York
I love it when authors explain how the worlds they create are different from ours, and why, particularly when the explanation is organic to the story. The reader has an “aha” moment, followed by a “that’s cool” moment. Both are fun and J.Z. York delivers a few of them in Pulse. The basic premise is…Read More