A Tasty Bite of Sci-Fi
343792
Chilton's sketch of the cyborg concept is intriguing and imaginative.  His character is an enjoyably sardonic character with a wry smile and a deadly set of skills.  The story is short but complete, enough to eat in a bite, lick your lips, and decide to make another meal of the sequel when it comes out.
4707966
Unnerving Magazine Review
The Hematophages by Stephen Kozeniewski is a sci-fi thriller with a fairly weighty horror bent.
This tale works in three distinct parts. Firstly, the reader settles in, getting comfy with all the science fiction lingo and future changes to our species. Then the mystery settles and theres not much new added by way of universal norms to draw away from the mounting tension. The third part is, obviously, the kablooey stage where playtime is over and where, if it were a movie, the hero might say something sarcastic and clever when it finally rounded out.
On a salvage mission in deep space, a crew, this including our hero, finds itself in the midst of something beyond their understanding. There is a living world, a flesh world, and just like our personal, individual flesh worlds, this one has buggers feeding on its leavings. Blood covers this planet and the creepers are swimmers. The scenery described invoked images of Fallout bunkers, mixing current day objects and comparatives with futuristic changes. There are moments where humor shines through the bleak and forceful situations. There are minor mysteries here and there, really stringing the arc along in what feels like a rapid pace from the opening pages.
Theres easy love between characters and most often Id moan a little over that (which maybe I did temporarily), but the payoff is too much fun when it finally hits. And when times get tough in this story, they really get tough, andnasty in all the right ways.
This one is ooey and gooey sometimes. It gets tense. Its fast. Its wildly imaginative. Its a whole lotta fun.
3850440
Jacob Wenzel's Sci Fi adventure takes the reader on a non linear trip to the edge of the Macroverse. Along the way meet Sally the cavegirl, William the mega talented engineer, Bob the computer and Fluffy the feline/tiger. Wenzel displays a flowing style and vibrant wit as he translates quantum physics into delightful chunks of dialogue and description. The book's playful tone extends from the sublime to the ridiculous. Social customs, cultural observations, imaginative inventions and minute differences in alternate realities form the fodder for a fun filled romp through time. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a dollop of humor along with food for thought.
136758
You will not enjoy this novel if you looking for a little light entertainment, an amusing bit of sci-fi fluff to pass the time. As you can guess from the title, CALCULATING GOD is filled with weightier matters. An alien lands on Earth and begins a series of investigations with a paleontologist from the Toronto Museum. Their discussions are satisfyingly deep and far ranging: paleontology, cosmology, biology, genetics, theology, evolution, faith, morality, friendship. The human scientist, Tom, is dying of terminal cancer, which lends extra weight to his introspection, and the alien, Hollus, is thoughtful, sensitive, and a lot more three-dimensional than many characters in fiction (expecially science fiction). A very satisfying read, which will have me pondering some of it imponderables for a long time to come.
4266621
In return for a gracious offer of a free Kindle copy of this book, I am happy to present the following honest review in return ...
If you enjoy good scifi then this book has plenty to offer: Current-cutting-edge science in the fields of bio-chemistry, DNA research, quantum physics, artificial intelligence, astronomy and other important new fields; blended with some controversial concepts such as ancient aliens, time travel, worm holes, cryogenics, evolution and human history. All of these elements and more ... including OOPARTS (anomalic- "out-of-place-artifacs") are wound around a tight suspenseful thriller which keeps your imagination growing even past the books conclusion. My only reason for not rating the book 5-Star is because I felt that this particular novel may have included just a bit too-much speculative science than required to tell the story. Sometimes it becomes a problem for a new author to include "more than is really necessary" rather than not enough. But I don't think that will be a problem for most readers. This novel is entertaining and highly creative.
1764539
The Touchstone series is curiously addictive, I'll just say it. It's a fast fun read for anyone who likes science fiction or fantasy. I didn't expect to be drawn in, but I ended up reading all five books immediately after being sucked in by the free book. I just had to see how it turned out, Gratuitous Epilogue and all. The Touchstone series has a lot of original science fiction ideas, adventure, and romance. There are believable characters, personal growth, sacrifice, and flat out kick-butt action.

I love science fiction and fantasy and that's what pulled me in. The "magic" system is very Marvel Universe in that it's telekinesis and other mental powers for our friendly psychic space ninjas, yet there's the whole Ena aspect making it rather fantastical. And yet, with space ships and nanites, it came across as almost near-science.

I don't normally care for books where romance is mentioned so often, but the romantic longing in this book actually just fit in with the whole story, plus Cass was so analytical about it. She thought about it, tried to modify her behavior and deny it, all in a realistic way that most of us can relate to. If you've ever had an interest or crush, you've had many of the same thoughts. ... although Cass is probably more grown-up about her crush than most of us were at her age.

One touch that I really liked is that Host wrote a dialect for Cass to show her struggles with the new language that wasn't annoying. I am irritated by many southern, hick, or ignorant-type dialects that people create as they try to give their characters an accent. Dialects usually result in my instantly deleting said book. However, Host writes a non-accented dialect - no special characters or tons of apostrophes denoting dropped syllables... Host writes in an ASL/Auslan-type transcription that neatly demonstrates the language barrier while still being very readable and not annoying in any way. In fact, it's so easy to read that I started not noticing it at all. It was VERY well done, which I really appreciate, as annoying accents are obviously a pet peeve of mine. Kudos!

Lots of neat ideas, fast-paced storyline, and a lot of fun. I will definitely read this series again.
1506897
I especially liked the humor.  The action is great.  And there are enough twists and plot shifts to keep any  scif-fi aficionado with a short attention span riveted to the storyline.  Needless to say I liked it and can't wait for a second course.
3056460
Bandits
By L.M. Preston

Published By Phenomenal One Press at Smashwords

eBook ISBN 0-9841989-4-6, $2.94; Paperback ISBN-13 978-0-9841989-3-1, $14.99

Normally I don't enjoy science fiction, I'm much more interested in vampires than aliens. Still, I really liked this novel. The beginning dragged on a bit for me, but once we got through the packing it was continuous action for the rest of the story. The author did a great job at setting a fast pace while still being able to describe the alien planet around them.
The story takes place on a distant planet inhabited by thieves and killers which is where we meet Daniel, a young boy who is forced to run after his father is murdered in their own home. Along with his younger brother, and cousin he must figure out who killed his father and why. His first stop is to a friends house to get help but what he finds is his friends headstrong younger sister, Jade, who quickly joins the group in their quest.
The four of them travel through dangerous waters to reach even more treacherous treasure troves in order to solve the clues laid out before them by Daniel's father. The creatures encountered were described well, as was the terrain making their unknown planet really come to life.
Although I did enjoy a lot of this novel, there were some points that tugged at me while I read.
Daniel takes up the lead role but is just a bully in the beginning. He pouts and fights when he can't get his way and ends up being a hard protagonist to like and cheer for, thankfully he does seem to change throughout the novel and softens to those around him.
Jade gets somewhat annoying, fast. In the first chapter we meet her she has her hands on her hips more times than most people breathe in a minute. This seemed to be the only form of emotion she could show, whether she was trying to be sexy, angry, sad or stubborn her hands always found her hips. This could have been taken care of by a bit of editing though.
The whole book could have benefited from a red pen and a good editor. Lots of words were either missing, added twice, or were used wrong. I found this to be distracting as it always is when I am reading anything, but I also found that for the most part the story was interesting enough for me to continue on.
I'm not sure if this is intended to be a series or not but it definitely showed promise to continue on and the characters did grow throughout the book. I would be interested in reading more about these characters and from this author should they have a better editor next round.
All in all, not a bad read for those who enjoy a fast-paced good sci-fi adventure story.
3349969
I had the pleasure of meeting Derick, a thoroughly delightful and motivated author, for the first time in February. I found myself drawn to his compelling book cover. Now, if you are a fan of deep science fiction who can wrap your reading mind around names like "Sckiik," you may discover that this action-packed story satisfies your craving for adventure. As for me, since I am not a habitual reader of science fiction, I have to admit that I did not understand all of the concepts or follow the story line very well, and some of the names were hard to connect with. One thing I appreciated was the author's willingness to write honestly and with no holding back, offering true-to-character situations and interactions between the players. If you like science fiction, then you could give this story a try.
276201
As a good novel should, this books effectively stirs the reader to think more clearly about ourselves and ponder our values and prejudices.  It is scifi, but shouldn't turn off non-scifi readers.  The alien first contact scenario is highly believable and doesn't rely on leaping assumptions in science or about society and politics.

What I really liked was that it's set in the near future and we easily connect with the emotions, attitudes, fears, and prejudices of the characters and the reality of earth's geo-political situation.  The author confronts the reader with a significant number of issues we face.  Some are obvious many subtle.

It's a quick read and the story moves along to keep you flipping the pages.  It is written as a collection of journals, meeting minutes, and media articles which keeps things crisp and punchy.  The author warns that the journals from the aliens are written in a brutally logical style and may be hard to follow.  The good thing is they are logical so take it as is and remember that "Not False" means "not proven false so may be true".  The alien humor always brought a grin to my face.
2363697
Fun, engrossing read with a great sci-fi world and back-story. After the first few pages, I was hooked and devoured the rest of the book in a few hours. It's a smart story with good pacing and a set of twists that keep the reader on edge the whole time, and by the end, it's just one story in a bigger thread that intrigues with its potential.
3592112
I decided to check this out after the SciFi series got my attention, and I'm glad I did.  It's engaging near future space opera that I couldn't put down.

The book is set in the near future, after the settlement of the asteroid belt, Mars, and some of the moons but before interstellar exploration, and follows two characters: Morgan, a world-weary Belter detective, and Holden, an idealistic ship's officer.  The various characters find themselves in a action-packed thrill ride, where almost every chapter seems to feature a life or death gun-fight, ship to ship battle, or jaw-dropping revelation about the secrets behind the conflict.

Overall, I liked it a lot.  I couldn't wait to see each new chapter, and almost every one had a couple surprises that made me catch my breath.  My only gripe is that some of the characterization seemed plot driven.  Pretty much every character starts the series as one of the dregs of their profession, but turns under pressure out to be one of the best in the system at what they do.  Other than that, I liked it a lot!
3587998
The alien characters come to the fore in this sequel to "Forging Zero." We get deeper into their origins, customs, feuds (fraternal and inter-species) with passion, humor and surprise.

I was not as breathless at the end as I was at the end of the first book, but I definitely want more.  The list of novels and stories at the end of the book promise many, many hours of intense thoughtful writing about a complex future in which Humans are not always the central actors.

By all means acquire and read this book. It is a worthy permanent member to a good science fiction collection.
3823828
The Bobiverse series is why I keep Kindle Unlimited. Taylor's fun, humorous sci-fi writing stands up there with Scalzi and Cline. The books are a fun take on space exploration, with plenty of space battles, first contact, politics, and future tech ideas to stay fresh and fun from start to finish. Book two continues the fun and expands on the story lines that were left hanging after the first. Highyly recommended for fans of pop culture sci-fi that never takes itself too seriously.
2784990
I am not a friend of the author. I am, however, a voracious kindle unlimited reader.

I felt that disclaimer would be helpful before I gush about this work. Is it the best book I've ever read? Clearly not. What it is, however, is a refreshing bit of space opera that is well thought out in its world-building, and strong in its pacing. It clearly distinguishes itself from the bulk of also-ran science fiction that clutters up my kindle recommendations.

Once I was done with this enjoyable romp, I also enjoyed reading the author's appendices where he provides an "inside baseball" overview of the world-building choices he made and how they compare to common tropes in military sci-fi and more typical space opera.

In general, I liked this book so much that I immediately downloading the first book in his other series--Fimbulwinter
1447291
One of the benefits of choosing a book from the back lot of all the science fiction now available on Amazon is that occasionally one will find something that really is different enough to defy easy categorization. Last Communion by David L. Ryan is one of those finds that made my stroll through the seemingly endless virtual bookshelves pleasantly rewarding.

I think the title refers to a book written in 1987, Communion, which is the purportedly true story of a man abducted by aliens. It became a best seller and helped start a flurry of alien abduction reports. The word communion was then used to refer to a personal contact with extraterrestrials.

This kind of abduction is how :"Last Communion" begins but the plot changes quickly and radically. The hero kind of goes berserker and successfully turns the tables on his kidnappers, totally eliminating them but leaving himself in a dire predicament as a result.

From then on it becomes a kind of Clive Cussler meets Orson Scott Card kind of thing. There are close encounters with human mutants, more aliens, both mutated and run-of-the-mill, Iranian militia, and Mexican drug lords. As I got deeper into the book, I became more and more of a fan of its hero, as flawed and politically incorrect as he might seem, and then of the very appealing heroine as well. The action scenes are well choreographed and convincing. It moves quickly, providing more than a few laughs, and at times seems to hint at some tales untold leaving plenty of room for more spinoff adventures as a result. The ending shocked me but left me anticipating the sequel, due out who knows when.

Its not a long read but you will probably enjoy it and be left wanting more.
4026265
Based on the cover, This Alien Shore is marketed to readers who want to read books about young women in an exotic future.  Don't be misled - This Alien Shore is real science fiction, reminiscent of&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Starfish-Rifters-Trilogy/dp/0812575857/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Starfish (Rifters Trilogy)</a>, with a dash of River Tam from&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Firefly-The-Complete-Series/dp/B0000AQS0F/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Firefly - The Complete Series</a>&nbsp;thrown in.

This Alien Shore's apparent story of a young woman in a cyberpunk future, trapped by choices made for her, takes a back seat to a cyberthriller set in that future.  That's not a bad thing.  Friedman lays out a fascinating future where the humans are the aliens.  Earth has cast its spawn far and wide and the journey has changed them.  Earth itself holds ten billion plus more on corporation-owned space stations.  Every human is given brain-integrate software at birth to enable Innernet connection and monitor his or her health.

Faster than light travel and communications are made possible by wormholes that are controlled by the Guild.  The Guild is based on the planet Guera, where the inhabitants are outwardly human, but honor every difference of the human mind.  Gueran society has an elaborate system to accommodate and integrate people we'd call crazy or mentally disabled - not only to tolerate them, but tap into the gifts that accompany their differences.  Friedman gives us tantalizing glimpses of how this works.

All wormhole pilots belong to the Guild, and someone is targeting them with a lethal, and nasty, brainware virus.  It's an exciting rate to the finish to find the rogue programmer and learn his or her agenda before the virus cripples communication to the outer worlds, or broadens its target.  Dig in and enjoy!