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#BookReview: Storm Fall by Tracy Banghart

Solid Progression. This is NOT a standalone book, it is in fact written in trilogy form. So do NOT read this book without reading REBEL WING first. That said, if you’ve read REBEL WING, this story is a solid progression from that one. By the end of this book, some plot lines from REBEL WING are resolved, others are enhanced, and some new ones are introduced. It seems clear that we should get one hell of a conclusion in the next book, and I for one am looking forward to reading it.

This review of Storm Fall by Tracy Banghart was originally published on May 26, 2018.

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#BookReview: An Astronaut’s Guide To Life On Earth by Chris Hadfield

Space Oddities. This is an intriguing look at the life of the man who became Canada’s first space walker and who went viral a few years ago when he (and his son and several others) put together a music video for David Bowie’s Space Oddities… from the International Space Station. Solid, enjoyable read that is even more fascinating when read close in time to other books from other former ISS Commanders, as the different tones about their jobs and the different expressions of experiences they share roughly in common are even more fascinating than this book by itself – which is still very strong in its own right. Absolutely recommended.

This review of An Astronaut’s Guide To Life On Earth by Chris Hadfield was originally published on May 23, 2018.

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#BookReview: Primordia by Greig Beck

Amazing adventure. Starts slow and then boils to a somewhat standard ending for its type, but done in a way that will have you begging for a sequel. Which fortunately, released just before I read this book. 🙂

All you really need to know though is its basic premise: What if Sir Arthur Conan Doyle were inspired to write The Lost World by an ill-fated yet *real* journey?

This review of Primordia by Greig Beck was originally published on May 18, 2018.

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#BookReview: Hawaiian Punch by Douglas Corleone

Fun Hawaiian PI. Even if PI/ detective books aren’t really your thing, this book is awesome. Fun mystery on Hawaii that keeps you on your toes – I didn’t see the endgame coming until it played out, though I was at least partially correct in my early presumptions. Really hoping to see more of this character in future books.

This review of Hawaiian Punch by Douglas Corleone and Rick Chesler was originally published on May 13, 2018.

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#BookReview: It’s In His Arms by Shelly Alexander

Much At Stake. In this book, we get our first entry in Red River where the female lead already has kids. And she, the male lead, and the entire town have some real stakes at play other than just the romance of the primary story. Alexander executes all of this very well, even though much of it is plainly obvious almost from the first time you encounter the characters in question. Still, a fun, fairly light beach read.

This review of It’s In His Arms by Shelly Alexander was originally published on May 13, 2018.

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#BookReview: Our Enemies In Blue by Kristian Williams

Very Thorough Research. This book both predates and succeeds (and even cites) Radley Balko’s stronger work RISE OF THE WARRIOR COP: THE MILITARIZATION OF AMERICA’S POLICE FORCES. While it cites *volumes* more incidents than Balko’s work, and is thus very illuminating because of it, this book has a fatal flaw that is lacking in Balko’s work – namely, that it constantly comes at the issue of police brutality as a form of racial and/ or class warfare/ oppression. Its discussions of Anarchism and the optimal state of having no police force whatsoever is great (and lacking in Balko’s work), but that strength isn’t enough to overcome the flaw of being so hyper-biased throughout. Still, like Michelle Alexander’s THE NEW JIM CROW (which this book also cites), this book – initially written roughly 8 yrs before Balko’s, and updated 3 yrs after Balko’s – is a GREAT read for any who seek the truth that in America, police truly are the enemy of us all.

This review of Our Enemies In Blue by Kristian Williams was originally published on May 13, 2018.

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#BookReview: Failure Is Not an Option by Gene Kranz

Fascinating. This book is a fascinating tale of Gene Kranz’s early years at NASA, where he rose from being one of the initial Flight Controllers for the first Mercury missions to being the Lead Flight Director for both the first Lunar landing and the Apollo 13 explosion. The story ends after the Apollo program is scrapped, and the book then introduces its singular MASSIVE flaw, that resulted in me docking it a star. In the final chapter, Kranz takes himself from the hero just doing his job of his experience with Apollo to the bitter old man who just retired 20 years later when he is writing this book and making “recommendations” about the state of NASA during the 90s. His critique of the early days of the International Space Station in particular sounds particularly hollow nearly 20 years later, while former ISS Commander Scott Kelly is still being studied after his Year In Space mission (which contrasts nicely against some of Kranz’s early missions of putting Alan Shepherd in space for just 15 minutes). Overall a great book, just ignore the last chapter to have a happier experience.

This review of Failure Is Not an Option by Gene Kranz was originally published on May 13, 2018.