The BBC's Merlin, a fantasy series that delivers the promised magic - SFFMedia

The BBC's Merlin, a fantasy series that delivers the promised magic - SFFMedia




A very nice review, and one that I find agrees word for word with my sentiments on this excelent series. Read the review and come back to comment.

1048. Impact

Recently, I have had a run of good luck with the books I have been reading, as they have provided ample entertainment, and made for an exciting read. This includes this fantastic little gem of a book that I saw at the bookstore and I had to pick-up. It is called, Impact by Douglas Preston and it is a most unusual thriller.

Before, I get into the meat of this review, I am reminded that I had never read a book by Douglas Preston before this one, but he has been an author that I have kept my eye on in the past few years. For one reason or another, his titles have attracted me, but I had not had occasion to pick one up. I had previously purchased "Blasphemy", but I had not read it. Suffice it to say, I intend to change that oversight.

The other thing that I find interesting is the plot of this book. Without of course, giving away too many details, the book opens as your standard scientific-mystery-whodunit-cum-thriller. Recently (and this encompasses the past couple of years), I have been reading about the death of the Science Fiction Genre as a Literary Genre and how the amount of written material being produced in it, is nowhere near what we used to see during the Golden Age or even the Silver Age (anything after the 1960s into the 1980s) or even beyond.  Plus the written material has no coherence to it, and is all over the map, as in, there is no particular style that dominates science fiction as a Genre. This then, could be the reason why a lot of writers don't want to be categorized as Science Fiction writers anymore, even though they constantly delve into that Genre, and yet, their books are found on the more acceptable, mainstream, fiction sales, aisles. The supposition then is, that Douglas Preston here, has written a masterful Science Fiction novel, but one that will not be categorized as such in any bookstore or library, and similarly will never win any major Literary Science Fiction awards like the Nebula or Hugo. On the other hand, the author is able to sell his very masterful cautionary tale to a much wider audience. Is that an acceptable trade-off?  You be the judge.

The plot of this novel is simple enough: Something has impacted the Earth, hitting off the coast of Maine. In addition, one of the scientists from the Mars Mapping Mission at the California Institute of Technology has been found dead because of what he knows. Meanwhile, another scientist, has picked-up the mantle of the dead scientist and continued his research. Something is going on, on Mars. Is the Earth impact and the events on Mars related? This world spanning adventure, which is very well plotted, and paced, with good characters, will keep your interest through-out, and will leave you breathless in many places. It was hard to put down for very long and it was definitely one of those books that I finished in less than 3 days. If it wasn't for other obligations, I would have read it in one sitting.

Yes, some of the side characters are kind of sketchy, and some of the details are still left hanging out there, but in a book such as this, the main plot, and the people you really care about, who are at the center of things, are well conceived, and isn't that all you can ever expect from a well plotted book?

So, I highly recommend this book, and I give it a well earned 5 stars out of 5. A most enjoyable first read for me from Mr. Douglas Preston.

1043. Plague Zone

On a recent trip I got to finish, "Plague Zone" by Jeff Carlson. It is the third book in his Post-Apocalyptic, Nano-technology, Plague Year Trilogy. (Duh! - Obviously, though, one wonders, if the trilogy might grow to more books...but that's a story for different paragraph). Almost six months after the last book, a little band of survivors, including Cam Najarro and Ruth Goldman, the Nano-technology researcher have holed-up not far from the US Government's seat of power, high-up in the Rocky Mountains. Even though the human race has achieved a level of immunity and can descent below the 10,000 foot level, not too many people stray too far below that barrier still. Yes, the Chinese live in Los Angeles, and the Russians north of them, but most American and Canadian forces are still centered around the Rocky Mountains. Strength comes from numbers, but numbers can be easily attacked when people are located in one particular "zone".

A new "nano" attacks the World, not just the Americans, but everyone. There are few survivors. Among them, Cam and Ruth who try to unlock its secret. The journey in this third book is to figure out where the attack came from, why and who create the new  "nano". I don't know, why the author stopped calling the nano-technology "snowflakes" like he did in the other books... that was a bit jarring. Still, the reveal as to who the "nano's" creator was is quite a bit stunning, and an important part of the plot.  The other part that advances the story spectacularly are the people who survive the attack and respond to it this time. I have always been kind of confused as to Ruth's motivations. I am starting to believe that the reason has more to do with Jeff Carlson's writing and something about the way he writes her character and that I am not picking this up, and nothing more.

For the problems and reviews of the first two books go here:
Plague Year
Plague War

There is a lot more exposition and discussion of the Geopolitical situation as well as the effects of the "nano" on the whole world. It's as if, in the first two books, Jeff Carlson was testing his feet in the water... now he has finally jumped in head first.

I enjoyed the third book in this series, even if the conclusion was a bit uneven, even if I get the feeling that there might be another book. I just wish that Ruth Goldman (and by extension the author) had arrived at some different conclusions and a different course of action. The future of what remains of the human race depends on her, and even after this, I expect greatness, or at least that what Classic Science Fiction of the Golden Age always led me to believe.

All in all, a worthy effort. 4 stars out of 5. The last one for effort.

1038. Dead Until Dark

I had to see what all the fuss was about you know. I had to read for myself, at least the first book in this series about this woman, Sookie Stackhouse who meets this Vampire at her place of work, and falls in love with him. Oh, there are so many books with that theme in the marketplace, and unaccountable number of books on the subject. What makes writers, write this type of book? Is every one of these books a singular creation, or does each of these writers sit down and think, I can do the Vampire Story better than everybody else? So, on a company trip I decided to stop at local Barnes & Noble and pick-up the book (and the first sequel).... oh, it turns out there are lots and lots of these books coming out of the imagination of Charlaine Harris!

Meanwhile, there is TV series that airs on HBO called True Blood that covers the events in the books? I don't know, because a) I haven't read all the books, and b) I haven't watched the TV series since I can't afford HBO. So, back in the real world of an adult male, I decide to read a fantasy book written about a young, good looking waitress from Louisiana who can can read minds, and where Vampires exist (they are an every day accepted phenomenon, accepted, and regulated?) Sookie (our heroine) falls for Bill, a Vampire who lives down the street from her house, and they share something intimate and maybe something more. How far back does their history go back? Is their some relationship in their family's past? But Bill has problems of his own. He has come back into town with reputation problems and maybe people pursuing him? Not that Sookie has the easiest life, having to take care of her grandmother and her brother who seems to get into trouble with every women he beds.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, more as a distraction than anything else. It appears that there are now, 10+ books in the series. I definitely have the second one, and I will read it, but I don't know whether I will read anymore in the series. As for the HBO series, since I know nothing about what is going in the books themselves, even though I have sampled it, I can't say I was impressed by it. It is a pretty graphic series. There is something about the printed word that leaves a lot to the imagination.... I like that!

I suspect this book, appeals to a different demographic, but Charlaine Harris IS a pretty good writer, and her characters are well actualized. For this reason, I will give this book 3 and a half stars.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Here I am, two months late reviewing this movie, without any links or any other fanfare. Why? Well, because I did not want to add to the original debate, and because the I am not really a movie critic. My opinion on this matter is hardly important. Of course, neither am I a book critic, so there we are.

First of, the basics: Did I enjoy the movie? Yes! A lot. And not in a fan-boy sort of way. Did I enjoy it as much as the first movie? No! The movie did not have the freshness of the first Transformers movie or the originality. Yet, it maintained the spirit of the Transformers franchise.

Now, at this point, you'll say, you lost me, "what are you talking about?" Please understand, that I have been watching Transformers since 1984. Yes, I realize that at the time I was in High School, but call me a "Nerd" if you want, it was something to take my mind off things back then, including my mother's cancer (she passed away that year), and the pressures of High School in the big city, having grown-up in a small town. So I adored, the Autobots, as protectors of the weak humans, just as I adored other superheroes whose adventures I read about in Comic Books (Batman, Daredevil, Spiderman, X-men and Superman come to mind). So, Transformers and I go way back.

I got (as in, I understood, "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen"), maybe because I am clued-in into the mythology, or maybe because I like the special effects, or maybe because I want to be taken to a special place once in a while, where only movies can take us.

But, how did the movie fare as a movie, and how does the plot hold-up to examination? Well, it doesn't... At best, the plot was no better than a three part episode of the original series -- seriously! At worse, let's not go there.

The movie does not deserve to be ranked as some kind of monumental movie making achievement. You can't sit and watch it and think, "well it's between this one and 'Citizen Kane' for best of all time." Not even close. It's not that kind of movie.

But boy, did I enjoy this movie. And, as such mindless, pointless, fun movies go, there was another such movie that Michael Bay made called "Armageddon". I hated that movie. I hated it with a passion. I still do. Maybe because a similar movie had opened earlier that summer called "Deep Impact" which was thoughtful and more realistic. At least, "Transformers 2," while NOT realistic in any way, has this 'mythology' to fall back on, this history to fall back on -- and that, I enjoyed.

One last point: Will I be buying the DVD when it comes out? Yes. For me it was save-worthy.

But, if there is a third movie in the franchise, I expect something a lot more thoughtful, a lot better than what we just experienced. We shall see.

1029. Plague War

I don't know why anybody would say: "...part George Romero, " when describing Jeff Carlson's follow-up book to "Plague Year", second book "Plague War". There is nothing in it that reminds me of "Night of the Living Dead."  Then again, when you're living in the future without hope, it might seem that the "Living Dead" are roaming the land. Me? I just don't see the comparisons.  I mean, nanotechnology infected people are not zombies. There is hope for them. Isn't there? This book is the second book in Carlson's Plague Year trilogy.

So, does Jeff Carlson succeed in continuing his Nanotechnology-cum-Post-Apocalyptic tale? This, the second book, is a good yarn, taking place immediately after the events of the first book. Events take place at a break-neck speed, and as such leave little room to think. Can Ruth Goldman unlock the secrets of the "snowflake" as the nanotechnology is called? Can Cam Najarro protect her from countless adversaries? What is in it for himself? And let us not forget that the title of this book is "Plague War" so what is this War about?

Events in this book escalate rather quickly. The people that were on the International Space Station with Ruth in the first book go their own ways in the second book. One of them, Ulinov, the Russian commander is instrumental in the events that lead for domination and ultimate war. But, while I can the see the logic that led this author down the path of this sequence of events, I still don't understand why he does not embrace showing us the road to salvation. There are hints at what the nanotech can accomplish. These are the private thoughts of Cam Najarro whose point of view we are treated to always. But if these things and more are possible, why is the hero at least not willing to discuss them openly with Ruth?

Still, because of the expanded exposition and lots more action - Jeff Carlson truly paints on an international canvas this time  - I enjoyed this book more than the first.

I give it 3 stars out of 5.

1028. Plague Year

Plague Year by Jeff Carlson is the debut novel of a new talent in the Science Fiction genre. In the back cover of the paperback edition, no less a master of the genre than David Brin says: "One of the best debut novels in years." And Kevin J. Anderson, a writer whose Saga of the Seven Suns kept me enthralled for years is quoted as saying "Fascinating."

With this kind introduction, a novel of this type has to be good, right? After all, a number of forum members on BookMooch actually recommended this book to me. The book covers a subject matter that I adore, nanotechnology...How I did not become a biochemist or a biological engineer, I don't know. I would have loved to play with tiny little machines. So, my expectation were pretty high going into this book. Not discounting the fact that it's also a book in the "Post-Apocalyptic" sub-genre of Science Fiction.

To be honest, I did enjoy the book on a certain level. And yes, I completely identified with Cam. I thought he was the most well rounded of the characters in the book. But apart from characterization problems such as Cam Najarro and Ruth Goldman, I had issues with some of the decisions the characters were making. I understand these characters belong to a certain author who has to lead them to a certain action sequence and then to a certain outcome, but there were times when their actions made no sense. So, I had problems with the structure of the book.

I also had problems with the language as used throughout the book. Granted, I might not have been an English major in College, but the way a lot of sentences were written seemed odd to me. They weren't particularly wrong, but they were off-putting. Oh, I followed the action alright, but the language made that journey a jarring ride. And this could be because of subtleties in the language that even I am not aware of.

What was the bulk of the story about? Quoting from the back cover: "The nanotechnology was designed to fight cancer. Instead, it evolved into the machine plague, killing nearly five billion people and changing life in Earth forever. The nanotech has one weakness: It self-destructs at altitudes above ten thousand feet..."

So, there are survivors, and a group of scientists who are sent onto the International Space Station (ISS) to escape the Plague. But eventually they are going to have to come back because they are going to run out of supplies and because there is only so much they can do up there. Meanwhile the survivors out West, pick-up one of the creators of the Plague.

You know what I kept waiting to happen in this book? Yes, you have destroyed humankind successfully with this Machine Plague. And yes, there are immense consequences for the ecosystem and the entire planet. Now, show us the next step, show us the ingenuity of the human mind and the promise of the technology. Show us what a well-meaning scientist with the right tools can do with nano-technology...

I give this book 2 stars out of 5.

1024. Joker One

Joker One was a book I received through the LibraryThing Early Review program. They send me this book in December of 2008 (or maybe January 2009) and I dutifully finished before it's publication date of March 2009. Like everything else, life caught up with me and this review got held-up in the big ether, so, very belatedly, I am getting it out.

Donovan Campbell was a United States Marine platoon commander and is the author of Joker One. The book is a memoir of his time as the leader of this platoon, prior to deployment, and during their time in Iraq, in Ramadi in 2004, during the height of what is now called the insurgency.

Over the years, I have read a few war related books, whether memoirs, historical perspectives or other such, recounting of things past, novel set in war (realistic or not), and simple description of key events that made history. It was always very hard to gleam, from all such recounting, whether the truth one read was an honest appraisal of the war described. In most cases, this was because the war I was reading about was so much older, whether it was Vietnam, Korea or World War II. Certainly, there have been some seminal books in the genre, but it is not my intention to remember them here.

What struck me from the beginning of this book, is the narrator's perspective on events. Like anything, when we read a book, we bring our own prejudices into the reading of the book. I personally try very hard to avoid this pitfall, but at the same time, I would be lying if I said that I was one of the war's biggest supporters. Nor did I go out and vocally oppose it, but that's another story, for another time. In hindsight, I have noticed, that many reviewers have taken the approach of bringing their personal biases in reviewing this book (pro or against the war and its effects). I would argue that this book is so great, that such an approach is completely unwarranted.

Here are the themes that struck me upon reading this book:

1. It is made very clear that the author is a Princeton and Harvard Business School graduate. Yet, it is not that education which plays the biggest role during his deployment.
2. The military are given certain parameters to operate within (one could say, their hands are tied, before the deployment even begins), however, the reality on the ground is different than the orders.
3. The History of the Marines as an institution comes through those pages very strongly. Yet, for all that, Marines are soldiers, and soldiers are human beings, with human feelings, and human concerns and human problems and human failings.

The strongest truth in this book was its honesty. From the very first page it grabbed my attention and never let me go. That is why I mentioned it was important to forget your prejudices. You can not go into reading this story by hating the Marines for what they are doing. Open your eyes and read Donovan's story and hear it with your heart. Then you will understand what it really takes to serve in the modern military. If you might get to a point where you question how the military functions, or how it handles decisions handed down from the political leadership that could be an outcome of your existing preconceived notions, but in the meantime, you would have missed the human part of the equation; you would have missed the drama of men fighting along each other for a cause they were told was just and right.

There is another truth hidden in the exceptional story telling skills of Donovan Campbell. He cares. He cares for his Marines. He cares for his squad leaders, his NCOs, his sergeants, etc. He tries to always do right by them. This does not mean he is a "soft" leader, but every trial faced by one in the platoon, is faced by all. Ramadi in 2004 is not a welcoming place. There are many dangers, and many of the dangers come from within mosques and other off-limits type places. I do not know if the loses that this Platoon suffers can be regarded heavy in comparison to other Platoons, yet, you feel each one of them as if they were someone you knew. That is the greatness of the story that Mr. Campbell is conveying here.

Finally, one more compliment. At the end of the book, you get the feeling that something was accomplished and yet, a lot remained to be accomplished. Regrets were finally expressed, but they were not so overwhelming as to consume the tone of the book. This then is the highest compliment I can pay to this war memoir: if you had not made-up your mind about this war and you read this book, this would not help you decide, BUT it would give you a very clear and distinct perspective on what the American fighting men and women have to endure in persecuting this war. And isn't that what we all need? Better understanding? For others, this will be just a great war yarn.

On my personal scale, I have to give this book, four stars out of five.

1022. Hana-Kimi: For You in Full Blossom # 1

Those who know me -- especially those who know me well -- know that I love almost all things Japanese, particularly Animation (called Anime) and Comic Books (which in Japan are called Manga). So, of course I have boxes and boxes of Comic Books going back a few decades, my prized possessions being some "Daredevil" issues from the "Frank Miller era". Unfortunately, some of those, got lost in a big move some years ago. Although lately, I have only been buying Graphic Novels and not individual Comic Books, I have delved or experimented with Japanese Comic Books.

Mostly, the Japanese Comic Books that I read are titles that I became aware of because of the Anime, meaning, the Japanese Animation came first, or if there was a written form before it was animated, I did not become aware of it, until the animation became widespread. Lately, one of my Bookmooch friends convinced me to take a chance at this title.

Shojo Manga is written to appeal to both a male and a female audience, and of course it has no Science Fiction, or robots, or aliens, or anything else like that. Still, I always like to experience the Japanese view of the world. And thus, I read the first volume in what I believe is a very popular series.

This has an interesting premise: Mizuki, is a female Japanese-American track-and-field star (up-and-coming, as they say) who falls in love with a Japanese boy Izumi Sano. Why did she fall in love with Izumi? Well, Izumi is himself, a track-and-field star, a high jumper actually, who Izumi noticed at an international meet. So, Izumi, wanting to be near him, gets a transfer to his high-school in Japan. From a strange quirk of fate, they end being roommates... the complication of course being that Izumi school in Japan is an all boys academy. So how will Mizuki go to school there? Well, she passes herself off as a boy.

That is the beginning of the plot. There are two main sub-elements that take place. Mizuki has to hide her identity, of course (though the school nurse/doctor who is gay, finds out pretty early that she is a girl). The other sub-plot is that Izumi does not want to compete in the high-jump anymore, but his girl-friend is trying to convince him otherwise. To top it off, Mizuki's fair features have brought her attention with some of the other boys, one of them thinking he might be attracted to him (her -- he doesn't Mizuki is a girl, so he thinks he's gay!)

So, will Mizuki be able to hide her identity from her schoolmates? Will she be able to "fight off" Izumi's girlfriend? Will she be able to turn away her boy suitor in the school?

It's a quick read, and I did enjoy it a bit, but I was not the target audience. Personally, I'd be much happier reading G.T.O. or InitialD. Still, I'll give it 3 stars out of 5 for style and for the themes it tackles. I don't know if what American teenagers read tackle subjects like this.

1016. The Color of Magic

I have wanted to read Terry Prachett's Discworld series for ages now...really... Anyway, with the greatest invention of the Internet age: BookMooch on my side, I was able to collect the first 10 books in the Discworld Series. And on a recent business trip, I was able to read the first book. Ah, the lack of an iPod! What fun!

Don't get me wrong, I am probably one of those few Americans who actually GET British humour. And, not only do I get it, but I enjoy it. In fact, for many years, many of my friends kept recommending this series to me, but not until BookMooch was I able to actually get the books on the cheap. Suffice it to say, I have been missing some prime entertainment.

But first a few words:

1. I won't be reviewing the whole series here. I will try to do due diligence and review each novel as I go along and as time permits.
2. There are some major differences between "American Humour" and "British Humour" which I can't begin to explain here. Some people say those differences are born from the fact that the British are so much more uptight than their cousins across the pond. I tend to not support this hypothesis. I am not sure for the reason for these differences. Since Monty Python, Fawlty Towers, Not the Nine O' Clock News, Red Dwarf and other such British comedy hits, I have enjoyed British comedy immensely. There is a satirical spin to that world view that somehow aligns with mine... I wonder why?
3. Discworld has so many books, don't expect literary reviews from me. All I am going to give you, are a few plot elements, along with what I thought, and a comparative ranking to the other books. There should be no misunderstanding: I plan to own the whole series in Paperback Format.

So, let's begin. Rincewind is a third-rate wizard (maybe even worse). In fact, he never really finished his magical education. Twoflower is a tourist from Counter-weight Continent. He has a piece of luggage, a trunk really, that has legs and walks on its own. Rincewind is a college dropout and as such menial tasks as are appointed to him. When Twoflower arrives at Ankh-Morpork, such a commotion ensues because of the gold that he carries that Rincewind is appointed his guide in the strange new land. In a way then, this begins as both a buddy novel and a clash of cultures book. It soon however, becomes a travelogue, as Rincewind and Twoflower end-up on the run.

Along the way, Rincewind, Twoflower and the luggage encounter many adventures and are finally captured at the edge of the turtle...err, the edge of world -- but I won't explain that, you'll have to read about it.

One of my favorite episodes is their encounter with dragons and their riders. In many ways, the idea of what Twoflower experiences and WHY is the reason why, I love to read fantasy and wish it on all young children! It expands the mind. Without imagination, we're nothing.

A lovely book, and a great start to the series. 3 stars out of five.