This book is basically a storyline set in the future, following a spaceship captain called Calvin Cross and his military spaceship crew who get caught up in a conspiracy. The book falls into the ‘space opera’ genre, but its focus is character based, not going overboard on the technology descriptions, which I suspect will help the book not date quickly, as some science fiction books do.

I will admit I found some aspects of the storyline implausible, especially the command structure and Calvin Cross, plus the ships doctors in particular, and they were weak points for me. I didn’t like the fact the main character took drugs, regardless of the reason and the doctors involvement. I hate to be negative, but I’m being honest.

So I’m four paragraphs into my review and what is the story actually about? I don’t wish to give spoilers, but Calvin and his crew are chasing after an admiral who has gone on the run. Naturally that one sentence doesn’t properly describe the story, but you should get the gist.

I will admit without the book being free I might never had read it, as I hadn’t heard of the author. It wasn’t the best science fiction book I read in 2011, but Richard Sanders is a good writer and I’m glad I read this ebook, but I probably won’t read any follow-ups. If you were a fan of the Star Trek Enterprise TV series with Scott Bakula, then this book is probably for you.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: The Honour of the Knights (First Edition) – Stephen J Sweeney As a long-time reader of science fiction, in this case...
2. Book Review: Time Riders – Alex Scarrow Brilliant! This is a well written time travel book and...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

This is a fantastic book choc-a-bloc full of useful advice and insight into how to improve your work life quality and accomplish more in less time. Even if you are happy with your current job, this book should give you much to think about.

This book isn’t all talk either, as Tim gives plenty of insight into his own work life balance and there are great reader contributions to enjoy. I had already begun a transition in my work life when I read the book, and the book helped me evolve some of the changes I had made, plus gave me plenty of advice and new actions to take.

Each day the book gave me something to consider and some of the actions I’ve taken have had immediate benefits, others will not bare fruit for a while, but the wheels have been set in motion. One of the areas that has had the most impact is changing how I communicate. i.e. less, but in a more focused way. There have been other equally important changes, but unfortunately I’m not willing to discuss here, but all positive!

I didn’t read this book in one sitting, but over a month and this is a book I will revisit. It is a book to keep, and is one of the best lifestyle books I’ve read in a long time, as influential on my life as Ricardo Semler’s business books are.

This book has made a difference to my life already.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert This was a book review I had initially decided I...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Without giving too many spoilers away, this book primarily focuses around five starfighter pilot in the military, citizens in a confederation of planets, with next door neighbours comprising of independent worlds and an Empire, with the Empire apparently going through a civil war.

You follow Simon Dodds (starfighter pilot) and his colleagues through a series of adventures, all mixed and supported by other story arcs, equally as interesting. I’m not going to go into too much detail, but if escape pods, space battles and spies are of interest to you, then this book should be on top of your reading pile!

This book is what a book part of any series should be, which is to have good pace, interesting characters and plot, throw up a handful of questions and leave you wanting more. For this book is book one of a series, but fear not you can enjoy this book on its own! However it will leave you wanting to know more and plough into the next in the series, as any good book one should deliver.

Now I read the first edition, which has now been superseded by a rewrite, including new characters, background and more. I’ve not read the second edition, which I might one day, but I must admit the first edition was a great read!

I’m glad I took the time to read this book, which was the ebook edition, which at the time of writing this review is free via Amazon UK. The author Stephen J Sweeney happens to be a British software developer, but I’m glad Stephen also took the time to write this book.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: The Phoenix Conspiracy – Richard Sanders I’ve been reading science fiction books again…gee what a surprise!...
2. Book Review: Time Riders ‘The Doomsday Code’ – Alex Scarrow Book three of the Time Riders series and it did...
3. Book Review: Time Riders ‘The Eternal War’ – Alex Scarrow The Eternal War is part of the ‘Time Riders’ time...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I approached this book from seeing the movie trailer! A lady whose personal life is in turmoil who goes on a personal journey covering Italy, India and elsewhere, which are two countries that fascinate me. The trailer looked interesting, so when this book became available at the library I borrowed it. What a mistake!

Now originally I wasn’t going to write this review, as it is a true story of a period of Elizabeth Gilbert’s life. Writing a negative review regarding a book is one thing, the book being about someone’s life is tough to write if you didn’t like the book. To try and keep this as spoiler free as possible, I won’t go into too much detail.

First of all I need to say I admire Elizabeth for the bold steps she took in her life, plus admire the fact she is a writer. That being said I found it hard to balance these bold steps with her relationships, her views and actions. I found much of what I read on a number of topics extreme.

I enjoyed reading about Elizabeth’s time in Italy, but found myself jumping pages after a while, not due to the locations, but due to Elizabeth’s views and what occurred, especially the relationships and religious aspects. From a book perspective I felt the book was a missed opportunity.

The locations wasn’t enough to keep me going and many pages became tough to read. I persevered with this book for too long, but ultimately I had to give it up. As this is a book of someone’s personal life, I’ve tried to be sensitive in this review for that reason. Such a shame I didn’t like the book and I definitely won’t be watching the movie.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

This time travel series is aimed at the teen market, which I’m not part of, but I do enjoy time travel books, so decided to read the time rider books, which cover three teenagers and their support team, policing history so to speak against those who seek to alter the time line. Okay it isn’t quite as clear cut as that, but you get the picture. I’m not going to go further and try and do a recap of what preceded this book, sorry. I guess this review is for those already on their ‘time rider’ journey.

By this instalment I was disappointed…fed up…. with the character Sal. Well that all turned around in this book! The author threw a curve ball and whilst I don’t wish to give spoilers away, the development and depth of Sal that rolled out as the book went along, was welcomed.

Also what a storyline in this book! In my humble opinion the best yet. It covers an American Civil War that never ended, and a young Abraham Lincoln displaced from his native time period.

Writing about a time travel and the civil war? Naturally I can’t help but mention Harry Turtledove! I’m sure many a Harry Turtledove fan would enjoy this book, but in reality writing about the two topics combined is where the similarity ends, Alex firmly makes his own mark whilst continuing his Time Riders series.

The pace of the book was intense and didn’t slow down, indeed there were quite a few developments that I didn’t expect, especially one in particular close to the end. One of the many carrots dangling that is willing me on to read the next book in the series.

As a side note there were topics and issues that occurred, that people are looking at right now in the real world, such as how we view genetics and artificial intelligence.

If you’ve not read the books that preceded this book, I recommend you do so first, then this book will be more rewarding to read.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: Time Riders ‘The Doomsday Code’ – Alex Scarrow Book three of the Time Riders series and it did...
2. Book Review: Time Riders – Alex Scarrow Brilliant! This is a well written time travel book and...
3. Book Review: The Honour of the Knights (First Edition) – Stephen J Sweeney As a long-time reader of science fiction, in this case...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

There is a certain Dan Brown feel to the stories, issues to overcome, worldwide locations, evil forces at work and the outcome primarily in one man’s hands – though in Sean’s case he does have backup at times.

The story really gets going in Antarctica as a discovery has been made, but quickly it is stolen. Nolan strives to reclaim the goods, but also in the process help a colleague who has been accused of murder.

I really would love to divulge more, but serious plotline spoilers would result, so all I will say what follows is some serious globe-trotting as the story unfolds.

Tom’s skill as a story teller shines through as per usual and this was a good read. So if you’ve Dan Brown, Jack Higgins or Tom Clancy, you hopefully will like this book also. For those who watch the tv series ‘Human Target’, Nolan is easily comparable to the tv show’s lead character.

Tom Grace’s Polar Quest is fast paced action and adventure that within days I had finished. It was a well-balanced story and didn’t hold any punches.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I had heard about this book on the radio, as interest was gathering in the run up to a Hollywood movie adaption.

The book starts out covering Slavomir’s imprisonment in Russia during the late 1930s, which included maltreatment and torture, then his subsequent journey to Siberia via cattle train cart and then on foot to the camp through the harsh conditions.

All through this book you are amazed at Slavomir’s spirit and willpower, especially when faced with often what most would consider insurmountable odds.

The book primarily covers Slavomir with a group of men and a female who are imprisoned in Siberia, a cold and inhospitable region of Russia.  They escape and the plan is to walk to their freedom. The journey this takes them on is nothing short of remarkable.

The settings are epic in scale, the landscape diverse and the people they meet were fascinating. One can’t but wonder if the way of life has changed much for many in those regions they walked. They covered harsh snow covered lands, rivers, lakes, the Gobi desert and mountain ranges whilst crossing borders.

I don’t want to give too much away to spoil the book, but I highly recommend this book. I literally couldn’t put the book down at times and completed the 240 page in a few days.

After some research, it appears that those who have researched the accuracy and also some who have retraced the routes taken, have good grounding to claim the journey as fictional. Though perhaps the beginning imprisonment before the journey to Siberia is true. I do not know and have decided not to ponder the facts versus fiction debate any longer regarding this book, but to just appreciate the story contained within. This book is well written and it is the best book I’ve read so far this year.

The book was ghost written by Ronald Downing whom Slavomir acknowledges at the beginning.  The book was originally published in 1956 and I’ve just read a 1956 version of the book. Turning the old pages I was gripped by what would next occur. This book stirs emotion and gave me much to consider about humanity as well as enjoying the book.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I will admit for me personally there is a Timecop or Quantum Leap feel, but Time Riders is more ambitious in the time periods it has visited and for book three it went medieval. For those who do not know the Time Rider series it is about a young team, possibly part of an agency who are policing the time stream. The three humans were plucked out of time just before their deaths and they have the support of three artificial intelligence personalities, plus the teams founder from time to time. Their HQ is NYC in 2001 and they can open a portal to other times and locations.

I won’t spoil the book for you, but in short Liam, Bob & Becks end up in 1194 England to correct the history. A period of unrest, poverty and the time of the mythical Robin Hood. In book three it was the first time I preferred the Liam O’Conner storyline over the rest of the teams, based back at the HQ in 2001 New York.

Liam and his A.I. companions Bob & Becks were the standout characters for me. Plus the background and writing of the period from Alex (the author), made it a fascinating period to read about, whereas the 2001 era chapters didn’t pull me in.

If I have this correct there are two Bob’s (one in a computer system, another in a body) and a Beck’s. The two A.I. in flesh bodies hugely contribute to the ‘Time Riders’ series. These protectors so to speak could ultimately be the standout characters of the whole series, time will tell.

In this installment both Bob and Becks accompanying Liam ‘grow’ more as individuals. Becks more so than Bob. Their ability to adapt, evolve and yes at times to use their brute strength contribute. Becks personal journey was more interesting this time around and her femininity played an important role, but I won’t give details in the review.

There was a couple of interesting twists regarding their medieval adversaries that left me guessing until the details were revealed. I had a few ideas, but was proved wrong and enjoyed those developments and additional layers to the ‘Time Rider’ universe so to speak.

Though in truth due to Liam O’Connor spending so much more subjective time living, compared to the team at the HQ, who experience days rather than Liam’s months in different eras, I can’t help but feel an imbalance of maturity and decision making capabilities of team members is on the horizon.

I must admit Maddy & Sal did not impress me in this book, Sal more so than Maddy. However this is a series, so who knows where it will lead (well okay Alex does, but you know what I mean) and perhaps their characters will later surprise me.

I do have to pinch myself though and remind myself this is a young adult book, so I shouldn’t be so serious, geeky and just enjoy the next installment. Though a good book can throw up questions and thoughts if the reader is interested and when that book is part of a series, it is a good thing. Yet again I read this book within a few days, which is a sign I’m enjoying a book and the writing from Alex just flowed.

Until next ‘time’.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: Time Riders ‘The Eternal War’ – Alex Scarrow The Eternal War is part of the ‘Time Riders’ time...
2. Book Review: Time Riders – Alex Scarrow Brilliant! This is a well written time travel book and...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

This is the first book of a series and me being me I had started with the second (oops), but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the first in the series when I did read it. It filled in a lot of questions I had and is a fine start to the story of the ‘Time Riders’.

I have quite a decent time travel book collection, so I’m a fairly good judge on this topic and what is a good read. Many authors allow themselves to get bogged down in the ‘mechanics’ of time travel, indeed some try and prove their writing talents by such a strong focus. Alex naturally has to explain the details, but this book is character driven.

The end result being it does not matter where the character is in time, you are focused on the story as a whole as all the characters are well written and the overall story balanced. Which means I was not impatient for a new chapter to arrive or eager to skip to a different era to continue that aspect of the story.

The different time travel aspects of the story nicely complimented each other as did the characters. Please bare in mind when reading this is aimed at the younger reader, so with that in mind and appreciated, you can enjoy this well written story.

The ‘Time Riders’ are essentially three youngsters, an A.I. and they are guided by a mentor. The three youngsters are all from different eras, for instance Liam is a young Irish chap from the early 19th century. All three originally were going to die, until a new opportunity opened up before them. Thrown together they not only do they have to adjust to displacement, but policing time so to speak. The A.I. aspect I will not divulge details, but is a great addition to the team and thus story.

The main story of the first book centres around the Nazi’s and if history had been changed during the second world war. With the past changed, the time stream is altered. Alex naturally could of led the story down multiple paths, but the storyline he created was top notch, fresh and original.

Whenever I enjoy a book I tend to read them quickly and I am always keen to read a page or two in a spare moment. This book I devoured quickly and naturally I am looking forward to book three (I’ve read book two already).

It is only a matter of time before I read another Alex Scarrow book.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: Time Riders ‘The Eternal War’ – Alex Scarrow The Eternal War is part of the ‘Time Riders’ time...
2. Book Review: Time Riders ‘The Doomsday Code’ – Alex Scarrow Book three of the Time Riders series and it did...
3. Book Review: The Phoenix Conspiracy – Richard Sanders I’ve been reading science fiction books again…gee what a surprise!...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

As I’ve mentioned before on this blog I’m generally not a fantasy fan and Sir Terry Pratchett’s books are the only set from the genre that I will read. I am glad I took the time to look at his Discworld work, as it has opened up a new collection of books for me to devour.

Terry’s writing skills are unique and his intelligent use of the English language is a joy to read. The world he has created with his talents enables him to produce fun, intelligent and fast paced witty books.

Men At Arms is no exception to the rule and it was a great read from beginning to end. This book centres around the ‘Night Watch’, whom are part of the police force of Ankh-Morpork, a city on Discworld which spans a river (of sorts). Where Trolls and Dwarfs dislike each other, Gargoyles live upon the roofs and assassins have their own guild. As any Discworld fan would point out, I’m only touching upon a few aspects of this incredibly complex world.

Terry seamlessly pulls an amazing amount of detail in his stories together, whereas other authors would falter. In this case foul play is afoot and there has been a murder. Tensions are running high between the Troll and Dwarf communities and Captain Sam Vimes of the Night Watch is on the case….oh and facing retirement, marriage and the regular prospect of having to avoid flame induced hiccups from young homeless dragons.

This book covers the expansion of the police force to include more individuals from different races. It shows the tension within the squad and how they adjust to working together, keep the peace on the streets and hope your clothes are not stolen if you are a female werewolf. The stand out character of the book is Corporal Carrot and his background, rather than Sam Vimes or other well known Discworld characters. Also reading how some of my favourite Discworld characters joined the ‘Night Watch’ was interesting and fun.

The Discworld books are to be savoured, they enable you to escape into another world, not restricted by our laws of nature, yet though all too familiar at times. The characters are fascinating and the books enjoy a wide readership from young to old.

I read this book in a week, even though I was busy and snowed under with work. I read it at lunchtimes, in the evening and a few spare moments. A great way to relax and recharge. This books was absorbing and even though perhaps not my favourite discworld book, a great read.

Related posts:

1. Book Review: The Four Hour Work Week (4HWW) – Timothy Ferriss In the work world there is too much time wasting:...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.