Saturday, December 6, 2014

Book Review Posts, 2013-2014

December 12 ,2014
Secret Wars And Silos
David Drake, What Distant Deeps
John Ringo/Julie Cochrane, Sister Time
Hugh Howey, Shift (not recommended)
Sam Schall, Vengeance From Ashes

December 5, 2014
Leftovers
Dan Abnett, Horus Rising (not recommended)
David Drake/Eric Flint: Belisarius I: Thunder At Dawn
Virginia Postrel: The Substance Of Style
Peter Grant: War To The Knife
Larry Correia et al.: The Many Deaths Of Joe Buckley

November 21, 2014
Sequels And Weirdness
Larry Correia: Spellbound
James Schmitz: The Witches Of Karres
Eric Flint/Dave Freer/Mercedes Lackey: The Wizard Of Karres
Eric Flint/Dave Freer: The Sorceress Of Karres
Philip K. Dick: Clans Of The Alphane Moon

November 14, 2014
Hard-Boiled And Hard Core
James Hornfischer:  The Last Stand Of The Tin Can Sailors
Larry Correia: Hard Magic, Warbound
Douglas Perry: Eliot Ness: The Rise And Fall Of An American Hero


October 31, 2014
“He Was A Very Nice Boy…He Used To Write Science Fiction”
Neal Stephenson: Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon, The Baroque Cycle, Reamde, The Mongoliad
Rick Atkinson: The Guns At Last Light
Bill James: Popular Crime
Samuel Eliot Morison: The Two-Ocean War
David Drake/S.M. Stirling: Hope Rearmed, The Chosen

October 23, 2014
Brain Candy
Vaughn Heppner: The Lost Starship
Brian McClellan: The Crimson Campaign
Eric Flint/Charles Gannon: 1636: Commander Cantrell In The West Indies

October 9, 2014
Birthday Week And The Admiral Of The Ocean Sea
Samuel Eliot Morison: Admiral Of The Ocean Sea


September 20, 2014
A Princess, A Dragon, And A Qwerkywriter
S.M. Stirling: The Golden Princess , The Given Sacrifice
Rory Modena:Sparrowind: The Dragon Who Lived As A Knight
Jodi Adler: Auntie Jodi's Helpful Hints

August 22, 2014
Shoot It. Shoot It In The Head.
David Drake/S.M. Stirling: Warlord, Conqueror
Sanctum 2
Bioshock
Bioshock 2

August 15, 2014
Off The Shelf
A.E. van Vogt: Transgalactic
Hugh Howey: Wool
Mark Van Name: One Jump Ahead


August 7, 2014
Brain Candy, Coyote, a Dragon and Zombies
Jack Campbell: Beyond The Frontier: Invincible, Beyond The Frontier: Guardian
Allen Steele: Coyote Rising
Frank Herbert: The Dragon In The Sea
John Ringo: Islands Of Rage And Hope

July 25, 2014
Multimedia Hijinkery
Weird Al Yankovic: Mandatory Fun
Jerry Pournelle/S.M. Stirling: The Prince
Sarah Hoyt: The Big Ship And The Wise Old Owl (novella)


July 17, 2014
Books…And A Smittypalooza?
Robert Heinlein/Spider Robinson: Variable Star
Iver Cooper: 1636: Seas Of Fortune
Sarah Hoyt: The Price Of Gold (short story)
Marko Kloos: Measures Of Absolution (short story)


July 2, 2014
If You Want Blood…
Andy Weir: The Martian
Larry Correia: Monster Hunter Nemesis
Tom Kratman: The Rods And The Axe
Christopher Nuttall: The Trafalgar Gambit

June 27, 2014
Edge Of Tomorrow
Gene Wolfe: Shadow And ClawSword And Citadel


June 18, 2014
A Failed Slut, A Successful Farmer, And A Pair of Soldiers
Kathy Shaidle: Confessions Of A Failed Slut
Matthew Harrington: Godspawn
James Jones: From Here To Eternity (restored edition)

June 3, 2014
Jet Lag Blues
Matthew Harrington:  The Original Uncut "Soul Survivor" And Other Stories
David Drake: The Sea Without A Shore
Steven Brust: Brokedown Palace
Robert Conroy: 1920: America's Great War (not recommended)

May 27, 2014
Monsters And A Mystery
Larry Correia: The Monster Hunters, Monster Hunter Vendetta
Larry Niven/Greg Benford: Bowl Of Heaven
Renee Pawlish: This Doesn't Happen In The Movies

May 20, 2014
Not Saying It Was Aliens…
John Barnes: The Last President
Charles Gannon: Fire With Fire
Eric Flint/David Carrico: 1636: The Devil's Opera

May 9, 2014
Things Fall Apart
John Barnes:  Directive 51, Daybreak Zero
John C. Wright: The Judge Of Ages
Vox Day: The Last Witchking
Sarah Hoyt: Where Horse And Hero Fell (short story)

April 21, 2014
Holy Guacamole, A Decent Sequel!
Christopher Nuttall: The Nelson Touch
Dennis Detwiller: Denied To The Enemy, Through A Glass Darkly
Delta Green: Alien Intelligence
Delta Green: Dark Theatres

March 25, 2014
This Is Not A Bolo Combat Unit. This Is Not The Concordiat.
Tom Kratman: Big Boys Don't Cry



March 19, 2014
Picking Up The Signal
Christopher Nuttall: Ark Royal

February 7, 2014
Meanwhile, Elsewhere In The Culture War…
Casey Neumiller: Destiny's Heir
Brian McClellan: Promise Of Blood
Marko Kloos: Lines Of Departure
John Ringo: To Sail A Darkling Sea

December 5, 2013
A Death In Bedford Falls
E.N. McMahon: It's A Wonderful Death
Larry Correia: Monster Hunter Alpha
Herbert Werner: Iron Coffins

November 25, 2013
Blood, Horror, And Other Things I Found At The Library
Mark Wayne McGinnis: Scrapyard Ship (not recommended)
Tom Kratman: Come And Take Them
David Drake: Ranks Of Bronze, Other Times Than Peace, Foreign Legions
Jack Campbell: The Lost Fleet: Fearless
John Ringo: Under A Graveyard Sky

November 12, 2013
Veterans: The Next Generation
Mike Williamson: Freehold, Better To Beg Forgiveness
Tom Kratman: The Watch On The Rhine, Caliphate, A Desert Called Peace, The Amazon Legion


October 28, 2013
Loose Cannons And Enthusiastically Violent AIs
David Drake: Loose Cannon
Iain Banks: Surface Tension

October 12, 2013
Time Enough For…Anything
Keith Laumer: Dinosaur Beach, Imperium
Larry Niven: Flight Of The Horse, Rainbow Mars
Isaac Asimov: Pebble In The Sky
Ward Moore: Bring The Jubilee
Robert Heinlein: The Door Into Summer, Time Enough For Love
Virtual Unrealities: The Short Fiction of Alfred Bester
Poul Anderson: Time Patrol
H. Beam Piper: The Complete Paratime
Harry Harrison: A Rebel In Time
Harry Turtledove: The Guns Of The South
Connie Willis: The Doomsday Book, To Say Nothing Of The Dog
Leo Frankowski: The Cross-Time Engineer
L. Sprague DeCamp: Lest Darkness Fall


September 30, 2013
It’s The End Of The World As We Know It
Walter M. Miller: A Canticle For Leibowitz
David Brin: The Postman
Poul Anderson: Maurai And Kith, Orion Shall Rise
Dean Ing: Systemic Shock
William Forstchen: One Second After
Richard Matheson: I Am Legend
Harry Harrison: Make Room! Make Room!
John Brunner: Stand On Zanzibar, The Sheep Look Up

September 26, 2013
Great SF Authors That Go Well Together
C.M. Kornbluth: His Share Of Glory
C.M. Kornbluth/Frederik Pohl: Gladiator-At-Law, The Space Merchants 
Larry Niven/Jerry Pournelle:  The Mote In God's Eye, Footfall, Lucifer's Hammer, Inferno, Fallen Angels (with Michael Flynn), The Legacy of Heorot (with Steven Barnes) and Beowulf's Children (ditto)
David Drake/S.M. Stirling: Warlord, Conqueror, The Chosen
David Drake/Eric Flint: The Tyrant, The Reformer
David Drake/Tony Daniel: The Heretic

September 19, 2013
The Colossus Of Colorado Springs
Marko Kloos: Terms Of Enlistment
Larry Niven/Matthew Harrington: The Goliath Stone
Robert Heinlein: Double StarThe Door Into Summer, The Puppet Masters, Farnham's Freehold, Assignment In Eternity, The Menace From Earth, Expanded Universe, Take Back Your Government
William Patterson Jr.: Robert A. Heinlein: In Dialogue With His Century

September 12, 2013
Three Authors and Some Extra Stuff
Casey Neumiller: Dead Man's Fugue 
S.M. Stirling: The Given Sacrifice
Ray Bradbury: Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Halloween TreeFahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles
Poul Anderson: Twilight World, Captain Flandry, Sir Dominic Flandry: Last Knight Of Terra
Poul Anderson/Gordon R. Dickson: Earthman's Burden
H. Beam Piper Megapack


September 5, 2013
The Golden Age
Isaac Asimov (editor): The Hugo Winners (Vol. I & II), The Hugo Winners Volume 3, The New Hugo Winners
Robert Silverberg (editor): The Science Fiction Hall Of Fame, Vol. 1; The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume 2A; The Science Fiction Hall Of Fame, Volume 2B
Isaac Asimov: The Foundation TrilogyI Robot, The Caves Of Steel
Robert Heinlein: The Past Through Tomorrow, Orphans Of The Sky, Methuselah's Children
Jack Williamson: With Folded Hands
A.E. van Vogt: Slan, The World Of Null-A, The Weapon Shops Of Isher

August 28, 2013
FAQ You, Seriously
A. Bertram Chandler: To The Galactic Rim

August 23, 2013
Space Opera
E.E. "Doc" Smith: The Skylark Of Space, Triplanetary, Children Of The Lens
John W. Campbell: The Collected Works Of John W. Campbell
Larry Niven: Protector, The Best Of All Possible Wars
C.J.  Cherryh: Downbelow Station
Orson Scott Card: Ender's Game
Larry Niven/Jerry Pournelle: The Mote In God's Eye
Iain Banks: Consider Phlebas
David Brin: Startide Rising
Dan Simmons: Hyperion
David Weber: On Basilisk Station
Jack Campbell: The Lost Fleet: Dauntless
Charles Stross: Singularity Sky
Chris Bunch/Allan Cole: Sten
Michael Flynn: The January Dancer, On The Razor's Edge

August 15, 2013
Groundpounders
Robert Heinlein: Starship Troopers
L. Ron Hubbard: Final Blackout
Gordon R. Dickson: Soldier, Ask Not, Tactics Of Mistake, Dorsai!
Joe Haldeman: The Forever War
Jerry Pournelle: Falkenberg's Legion
Jerry Pournelle/S.M. Stirling: The Prince
H. Beam Piper: Lord Kalvan Of Otherwhen, The Complete Paratime
John F. Carr/Roland Green: Great Kings' War
David Drake: Ranks Of Bronze, Foreign Legions
John Scalzi: Old Man's War, The Ghost Brigades
Keith Laumer: The Compleat Bolo, Honor Of The Regiment


August 9, 2013
21 Books – Conclusion
Donald Westheimer: Von Ryan's Express
Rumiko Takahashi: Ranma 1/2
William Manchester: American Caesar
Bruce Catton: The Coming Fury
Bernard Fall: Hell In A Very Small Place
Alistair Horne: To Lose A Battle
John Del Vecchio: The 13th Valley


August 1, 2013
21 Books, Part II
David Drake: Hammer's Slammers
James Webb: Fields Of Fire 
H.P. Lovecraft: The Shadow Over Innsmouth
S.L.A. Marshall:  The River And The Gauntlet
Keith Laumer: Retief's War
James Jones: From Here To Eternity
Hans Hellmut Kirst: The Revolt Of Gunner Asch


July 26, 2013
21 Books, Part I
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: The GULAG Archipelago
Anton Myrer: Once An Eagle
Robert Heinlein: Rocket Ship Galileo
Bill James: This Time Let's Not Eat The Bones
Bernard Cornwell: Sharpe's Rifles
C.S. Forester: Beat To Quarters
Ronald Glasser: 365 Days


July 11, 2013
IN THE GRIM FUTURE OF HUMANITY, THERE IS ONLY WAR.
Sandy Mitchell: Ciaphas Cain, Hero Of The ImperiumCiaphas Cain, Defender Of The Imperium
John Ringo: A Hymn Before Battle, Gust Front, When The Devil Dances, Hell's Faire, Eye Of The Storm
John Ringo/Tom Kratman: Yellow Eyes, The Tuloriad
John Ringo/Julie Cochran: Cally's War, Sister Time, Honor Of The Clan

July 4, 2013
From West Virginia To Wroclaw
Michael Shaara: The Killer Angels
Newt Gingrich/William Forstchen: Gettysburg, Grant Comes East, Never Call Retreat
Eric Flint: 1632, 1635: The Eastern Front
Eric Flint/Virginia DeMarce: 1634: The Bavarian Crisis

June 26, 2013
Lost In (Divided) America
Robert Ferrigno: Prayers For The AssassinSins Of The Assassin, Heart Of The Assassin


June 20, 2013
It Hasn’t Been As Much Fun Since The Bear Up And Died
General Sir John Hackett: The Third World War: August 1985
Tom Clancy: The Hunt For Red October
Larry Bond: Red Phoenix
Dale Brown: Flight Of The Old Dog
Harold Coyle: Team Yankee
Ralph Peters: Red Army

May 28, 2013
Our Own Corner Of The Library

By Popular Demand

This is going to serve primarily as an index to the book review posts I do over at The Other McCain more or less weekly. Most of what I review is science fiction and military history, with the occasional urban fantasy and even more occasional mainstream fiction novel added because I occasionally feel the need to read some historical fiction. Comments have been disabled since the commenting action should be going on at the book posts, and because I have enough troll patrolling at Stacy's joint to keep me busy.

As time and energy permit, I may expand this blog to include Reviews on Demand, where I can be bribed to look at something you're not quite sure you want to pick up, or conversely to give a good solid trashing to some no-talent Glittery Hoo-Ha who deserves it. We'll see how things work out.