Mark Martinez
In a straight up, standalone mystery, SecUnit takes some time away from protecting Dr. Mensah and surreptitiously watching his media, to help station security track down a murderer. SecUnit has to work with humans who think he is the most likely suspect, and he thinks the murderer could be anybody, up to, and including another SecUnit. Who knew that anxiety and paranoia could help solve a murder? This time around a I listened to the very enjoyable audiobook narration by Kevin R. Free. I'll definitely read the next Murderbot tale by Martha Wells, but only if it's really weird.
I was given an advance reading copy of Five Decembers by the publisher.
From the moment I started reading James Kestrel's Five Decembers, I was immersed in a time and place I've never experienced, but found entirely believable. Early 1940's Hawaii, Pacific islands, Hong Kong and Tokyo all come alive, giving this book a lyrical quality missing from many hard-boiled tales. Combine the setting with Hawaii PD Detective Joe McGrady's journey to solve two brutal murders while his life is set on fire by world war, and you have a story that makes for compelling, non-stop reading, all the way to the wintry conclusion. Five Decembers is a terrific addition to the Hard Case Crime library.
In his acknowledgements at the end of the book, Kestrel mentions that he has written seven books, but Five Decembers is apparently the first book with the byline James Kestrel. What is his real name? What are his other books? Asking for a friend who wants to read them!
In which we learn the true story of Rocky, the owl rescued from the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. Ms. Duane wrote this novella shortly after Rocky was rescued and released it as an ebook after the bird's release. The story is written in her Young Wizards universe which I'm not familiar with, but I didn't need to know anything about that series to enjoy her clever and entertaining fantasy tale.
Persephone Station is an entertaining riff on Kurasawa's Seven Samurai, set on a corporate planet that's home to a sentient indigenous species and barely habitable for humans. Hired to protect the natives from corporate mercenaries by Rosie, resident crime boss with a mysterious past, retired Marine Angel de la Reza and the women on her team must do the best thay can with limited resources, while sentient AGIs with an interest in the outcome, pursue their own agendas. If you're a fan of Seven Samurai or The Magnificent Seven, you'll enjoy Stina Leicht's forthcoming space opera.
A surprisingly interesting read. I knew nothing about Ms. Oliver except that she had guest starred on many television shows, including the first Star Trek pilot, “The Menagerie”. Reading this memoir, I felt like I could hear her voice, the voice of a fiercely independent, yet very human, individual. Highly recommended for Trekkies interested in Star Trek actors.
Harry Connolly is in fine form with his latest book, One Man: A City of the Fallen Gods Novel. In a bizarre and fascinating setting, Connolly tells the story of Kyrioc, a broken man in a corrupt world, whose last chance for redemption might be saving a young girl, a pickpocket caught in the middle of a gang war and the machinations of the privileged nobles. From beginning to end, One Man is pulse-pounding thriller that never lets up. The ending suggests that there could be more to come in this world. I hope that's the case. Highly recommended.
How did I not know about this book? Carnivorous flies, created by a scientist at Los Alamos, feasting on Santa Fe Opera fans, the New Mexico Governor's family, lowriders, and cute little kids too. There was a whole lot of probing and throbbing going on, and not just among the flies. A masterpiece of schlock horror with a little sex and sci-fi thrown in for good measure.