Sunny and fresh today, we're having a cold snap... cold for the Island anyway.
I finished two books since my last update. I'll provide my reviews and also the synopses of the next two books I'm reading. I also received a book in the mail yesterday and I've decided to try a book that was left in my Little Free Library outside. I'll provide the synopsis for both of those books. As well, I'll continue with my ongoing look at my favorite authors.
New Books
"By Cecile depicts post-World War II France as it reels from war and recovery. In Paris, an orphan girl, Cecile, finds refuge with an older man. He introduces her to nightclubs, intellectuals, artists (Jean Cocteau, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Eartha Kitt!), and non-monogamy. When she falls for his mistress, she begins to live a life she deems worthy of writing about . . . but only under the pseudonym of her husband."
"In Boston, a young woman finds herself pregnant--even though she is still a virgin.
In Ireland, another young woman discovers she is in the same impossible condition.
And
in cities all around the world, medical authorities are overwhelmed by
epidemics, droughts, famines, floods, and worse. It all feels like a
sign that something awful is coming.
Anne Fitzgerald, a former
nun turned private investigator, is hired by the Archdiocese of Boston
to investigate the immaculate conceptions. Even as she comes to care
about and trust the young women, she realizes that both are in great
danger. Terrifying forces of light and darkness are gathering. Stepping
into uncharted territory where the unknown is just the beginning, Anne
must discover the truth--to save the young women, to save herself, and
to protect the future of all mankind."
Just Finished
"It's been a couple of years since I delved into the mystery world of Lincoln Rhymes. The Broken Window is the 8th book in this excellent series. This book starts when Lincoln finds out that his cousin Arthur has been arrested for under suspicion of raping and murdering a young woman. This is based on convincing forensic evidence of his guilt. Arthur's wife asks Rhyme for assistance. It quickly becomes evident that the forensic clues may have been planted. Thus begins a fascinating, scary story of data manipulation and leads Rhyme and his team to other cases where other people may have been falsely accused and sentenced for other crimes.
The core of their investigation involve a 'data-mining' company in New York, SSD. This company basically gathers data on millions of US citizens (purchases, banking, credit card info, etc.) They investigate one man, Robert Jorgenson, whose life has been turned upside down & destroyed by manipulation of his data; false mortgages, criminal abuse, etc. Jorgenson is basically living off the grid, trying to hide from the 'killer' (the suspect is designated 522). A terrifying story about how data on the internet can be stolen to destroy lives.
The investigation revolves around SSD and the main suspects are the upper echelons who are the only ones who have access to all of the data stored on their computers. It's a fascinating story. This whole concept of how our data can be manipulated negatively is already a scary concept but this villain takes it to such a degree so 'he' can commit horrific crimes and then pass off guilt to someone else made for an even scarier story. There is also a whole sub-story involving hoarding that adds to the richness of the story. It's a long book but it still flows along nicely, with the tension rising; close calls where the suspect is almost captured, more murders. The characters are all well-defined. We learn more about Rhymes' past life, especially that involved with his cousin. The other main characters; Amelia, Lon Selitto, the 'rookie' Pulaski, CSU expert Melvin Cooper all add to the richness of the story. They also bring in computer expert Rodney Szarnek (*sp*) to help in their investigation of SSD, to gather data, test their security, etc. He's a fun, unique character.
All in all, I enjoyed the story so much. There was a point near the end where it veered somewhat to the left (I'll just say DHS) that I thought wasn't really necessary but in the end, even that bit tied in nicely. Of course Deaver also made reference to previous books and possibly future Rhyme mysteries. All in all, a long but so entertaining story. (4.5 stars)"
2. Stardust by Neil Gaiman (1998).
"I enjoy Neil Gaiman's style of fantasy very much. I've previously read Neverwhere and American Gods. I'd seen the movie based on the book Stardust before I read and it's a favorite of mine, much along the flavor of The Princess Bride. In both cases, because the movies were so good, I prefer them to the book. Having said that, the book is still excellent.
Young Tristran Thorn lives in the town of Wall, which borders faerie land. The only gate to faerie land is always guarded by two townsmen to prevent anyone from traversing the gap. The is a story to Tristran's past that we will learn about only at the end of the tale. Tristran has strong feelings for Victoria and one night when they see a star fall to ground in Faerie land, he promises to find the star and bring it to Victoria if she promises to do whatever he wishes. She agrees.
The cause of the star falling has to do with the lords of Stormhold. The old lord is dying and he has 3 remaining sons. The lord throws his emblem into the sky and it knocks the star to earth. The sons must find the emblem to become the next overlord. (Their dead brothers' ghosts watch all of this, of course).
As well the falling star has caught the attention of three old witches. They need the stars heart to regain their youth. The oldest sister goes in search of the star.
These are the basic three stories, but for the most part, it follows Tristran on his journey through Faerie, the interesting people he meets who help him along the way and his journey with the fallen star and their growing feelings.
The book is a much simpler story than the movie, which fleshed out many of the events described in the book. But it doesn't take away from the story in any way. The story is also somewhat grittier at times, but only somewhat. It's an excellent story, wonderful fantasy, interesting adventures and nice romance as well. I'd avoided the book for a long time because of my enjoyment of the movie, but I'm glad I finally read it. (4 stars)"
Currently Reading
"The Beales are an odd, reclusive family living in Ashill House, on the edge of Dartmoor: old Simon has withdrawn from active life; Nicholas and Gertrude confine themselves respectively to war games and the bottle; young Edward takes long painting expeditions on the moor. Only Frank Vicary, Gertrude's husband, is able to run the family business with enough drive to compensate for the failings of the others. When there is a murder in the village, there seems no reason to connect it with the Beales. But once Chief Superintendent Wycliffe is on the case, his investigation uncovers far more than he - or the Beales - anticipated ..."
"For five decades,
Kenneth Gibson lives quietly, now teaching poetry to undergrads. His
life is comfortable and dull, until he meets and marries helpless
Rosemary 32. Cared for, her depression fades, his wan wife gains bouncy
beauty and vigorous health. He falls in love. But does she?
After
a car accident, his pushy practical spinster sister moves in to assist,
and stays, warm California to her liking. Ethel compels both to see how
their winter-summer romance is an impossible dream. Landlord Paul is
younger, handsome and wealthy, a better match for his "mouse".
Gibson
sadly puts tasteless odorless instant poison in an innocuous olive oil
bottle. In his cloudy confusion, he forgets the fatal dose on a bus. Who
will die and when?"
Favorite Authors - Clifford D. Simak
Clifford Donald Simak was an American Science Fiction writer who lived from 1904 (Wisconsin) - 1988 (Minneapolis, Minn). Back in my university days I took a Sci-Fi novel course. I was introduced to Simak with his book City (1952). Since 2000, I reread this book and 4 other books by Simak. I will admit that some were better than others. Over his life he was a prolific writer of Sci-Fi novels, short stories, westerns, etc.
Clifford D. Simak
"City by Clifford D. Simak was a reread for me. It had been 40 years since last I'd read it so I wanted to see if it would have a similar impact as my memories of it. I had recently read The Werewolf Principle by Simak and thoroughly enjoyed it. So with that short preamble, I decided to read a copy of City that I found recently.
Basically, it did not disappoint. The story is more of a series of short stories about the future of mankind on Earth. The stories are told by dogs, who have been surgically given the ability to speak and also have had their eyes altered to provide them with a human view perspective. There is a preamble before each story which outlines the dogs views on whether the stories are true themselves.
The main humans are the Webster family who are involved in all of the changes that are taking place in the future. It is a Webster who makes the changes to the dogs, who impact on a philosophy that might give a hope for the future, etc. The other main character, besides the dogs is Jenkins, the old family butler, who also happens to be a robot. The stories move farther and farther into the future with drastic changes to mankind, the dogs, robots, etc.
The stories tie together nicely and make for a fascinating view of the future. I'm glad I read again; it was worth digging it out again. (4 stars)"
"Cemetery World is the 4th Science Fiction story by Clifford Simak that I've read in the past couple of years. I've enjoyed for the most part, especially enjoyed The Werewolf Principle and City. Cemetery World was an entertaining, enjoyable read.
Fletcher Carson returns to Earth, now a Cemetery World for the descendants of Earthlings. After a world destroying war thousands of years before, the majority of the remaining humans escaped and inhabited planets throughout the Universe. A company, Cemetery, has turned the Earth into the cemetery of choice for its descendants (of course, they make much money off of it). Carson, accompanied by a robot who was originally from Earth, Elmer, and a sentient machine, Bronco, wants to travel around Earth making a 'movie', let's call it. Arriving on Earth, he also meets Cynthia, who arrived before and joins the group, searching for treasure / artifacts, left behind by an alien Anachronian.
That's the basic story. As the group travel they are hounded by agents of Cemetery; grave robbers, war machines from the past, Wolves of Steel and even spirits, Shades. There is even a bit of time travel thrown in. On the whole, you won't learn any astounding theories from the book, but if you want a good, sound, entertaining story with interesting characters and a satisfying conclusion, you'll enjoy this story. (3 stars)"
"I've read a couple of other books by Clifford D. Simak recently; The Werewolf Principle and City, and enjoyed both very much. Unfortunately, Time Is the Simplest Thing wasn't quite as successful. It was a short book so I stuck with it.
Basically, Shep Blaine is a paranormal who is used by an organization called Fishhook to explore the stars. At some point in Earth's history, mankind decided that science and spaceships could not succeed in this exploration. Fishhook continued working with science and discovered that paranormals with the assistance of star machines could explore the universe without leaving Earth; their minds and a recording machine of sorts would do this exploration and bring back anything useful that was discovered. Fishhook is a monopoly and becomes a repository for anything useful discovered that is then sold to mankind to make life easier.
Blaine discovers another being on one visit and their minds become enmeshed. He decides he has to escape Fishhook as he is now alien and a danger to them. Thus begins a mad journey across the US as he tries to discover who he is and how he can fight Fishhook and also help paranormals scattered throughout the US and world. For another twist in the story is that mankind has become very suspicious and superstitious of paranormals, believing them to be akin to witches and werewolves and such.
There are interesting possibilities in this story but overall I just thought it tried to hard and ended up not succeeding like it wanted. I liked lots of pieces; Simak displayed a nice touch with small details and actions. But it just was a bit all over the place and while the ending tried to resolve matters, it wasn't all that satisfying of a story. I still have some of his books to read and will try again but this wasn't one of his successes in my mind. (2.5 stars)"
"Back in my university days, I took a Science Fiction novel course. One of the books we read was City, a story of the future where all that remains on Earth are dogs and robots. A beautiful, engaging, touching story. For some reason, I've never read another Simak book, until this past week. The Werewolf Principle, written in 1968, was a lovely surprise. In the future, mankind sent ships into space to search the universe for habitable planets. Along with the ships were two unique humans (maybe telling you their uniqueness might take some of the joy of discovering it for yourselves, so I won't elaborate). Suffice it to say, that one of them returns to Earth, discovered in hibernation in a capsule. Andrew Blake arrives, suffering from amnesia. Slowly he discovers himself and how he has changed over this 200 year journey. He is now more than Andrew Blake. Discovering how he has changed is part of the joy of this book; such an imaginative concept. I found myself saying 'Wow' many times. The book is thoughtfully crafted, intelligently written and the story and characters are all interesting and engaging. It's so nice exploring Science Fiction again, the imagination and the stories. I do like how Simak views the future, some concepts like the living homes are fascinating, and, yet, people still use coins and public phone boxes. I also liked the Brownies, the beings from another world who have settled on Earth and keep an eye on things. Everything about this story was fascinating. I had originally given it 4-stars, but as I write about it and think about it, it deserves more than that. It intrigued me, brought out emotions, both happy and sad, and just totally grabbed me, from beginning to end. It won't take me 40 years to read another Simak story. (5 stars)"
"I've read a few of Clifford D. Simak science fiction novels. I particularly enjoyed City and The Werewolf Principle. The Goblin Reservation was a fun read even though I'm not quite sure how to take it.
Mr. Maxwell, a professor at Time University, returns from a trip in space where he was searching for dragons, discovers that he has already arrived home only to die. How did he get split in two? Was it another race from another planet (the Crystal World) or maybe was it the Wheelers, a mysterious race, possibly Earth's enemies, from somewhere outside the universe?
What do the beings from Crystal World want from him? They seem to be offering the wisdom of billions of years and what do they want for it? Do the Wheelers want it as well?
Maxwell and his strange coterie of friends; Alley Oop, a primitive caveman brought from the prehistoric past; Ghost, a ghost who doesn't know who he is; Sylvester; a sabre-tooth tiger, part Mech; and Carol, Sylvester's owner, must try to find out what the beings want, how Maxwell was turned into two creatures and maybe save the universe at the same time. Oh, let's not forget the Goblins and Trolls and other mythical creatures who live in the Goblin Reservation land next to the University.
So you've got time travelers, supernatural beings, lots of drinking, carousing and fighting and all in aid of saving a world. At times it seems as though the story was written by someone on drugs. Surprisingly, there are wonderful descriptions of surroundings, the characters are interesting, the story weird but a fun read and the ending satisfying. It's not a perfect story, but a fun read, worth trying. (3 stars)."
I will have to find more of his books. The complete listing of his works can be found at this link. Enjoy the rest of your week.
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