Sherry D. Ramsey

The Heavenfield by I.G. Hulme

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

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The Heavenfield by I.G. Hulme

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I’m afraid things went downhill a bit in this sequel. The characters are not living up to the promise they showed at the outset, and some plot problems have seriously affected the believability of the story. It’s still interesting and I’ll keep going with the series, but I’m getting worried that the author is not going to follow through on the promise of the first installment.



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The Heavenfield by I.G. Hulme

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It almost feels like a cheat to count this as a full book–it seems more like Part One of a multi-part series. At any rate, it was a very enthralling listen–production values are excellent on this audiobook–and I really enjoyed it. There are still a lot of mysteries to be explained, but I feel confident that the author will explain everything in due time. Not recommended if you NEED to understand everything that’s happening from the beginning, but if you’re willing to go along for the ride, it’s an interesting one!



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Sliding Void by Stephen Hunt

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

There were many elements of this book that I enjoyed, the unique cast of characters and the background mystery of the ship, the Gravity Rose, being two of them. They are enough to make it likely that I’ll try the next book at some point. However, I couldn’t give more than three stars to this one because I found the beginning of the book somewhat confusing, the pacing odd throughout, and the ending very abrupt. I liked it enough to give the second one a try, although oddly, I don’t feel compelled to get it right away despite a cliffhanger ending.



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Half Share by Nathan Lowell

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

While the writing continued good for the most part in this second of the Trader Tales series, I think I’ve had as much of this main character as I’m interested in having. In the first book he was a little too perfect, but in this book he surpasses the bounds of believability. He is good at everything, knows how to perfectly deal with everyone, and never makes a misstep. It’s just…too much. Also, although there was a bit of mystery revolving around a secondary character in this book, there was too much concern with sex and too little concern with any kind of a plot. While it started out still being pleasant to listen to, I’m sorry to say that I grew increasingly annoyed as the story progressed, and finally just wanted it to be over. I think this author has a lot of potential, but having a good substantive editor to give plot and character advice would be a good idea. I don’t think I’ll bother with anything more about this character. I would, though, consider reading something else by this author after he’s had the opportunity to hone the storytelling skills a bit.



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The Buntline Special by Mike Resnick

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Sadly, this book was a pretty big disappointment to me. I kept going to the end because it was a quick read, but I really did not care about any of the characters or what happened to them. It just felt like a lot of talking, some brief bouts of gunplay, and some weird stuff thrown in as a twist. Also, there are NO interesting female characters–or at least, they are not interesting in the way they’re portrayed. Surprising from such a talented author, but I guess anyone can have a project that just doesn’t live up to its potential.



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Quarter Share by Nathan Lowell

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I liked this podcast book quite a lot–it would be four stars except for the fact that I found it slowed down a bit too much toward the end. However, I will be listening to the next book in the series. The main character is engaging and the world the author has envisioned is interesting. The story was somewhat lacking in a major conflict, although it is mainly about how the MC adjusts to a huge change in his life and begins to make his way in the world…but for quite a while I was sort of waiting to find out what BIG thing was going to happen, until I realized that there wasn’t going to be one. The book is well-written, though, and the characters engaging enough for me to give the second book a try. The narration is very well done and the narrator’s voice pleasant and perfect for the character.



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Doctor Janeway’s Plague by John Farrell

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I would like to be able to give this more stars–the writing was competent for the most part and there were some great ideas in the book. The reading for the audiobook was good, if a little rushed. However, I spent most of the time listening to it feeling quite confused about what was going on and why characters were doing things, and many of the characters seemed to have little to distinguish them from one another. I’d try another book by this author because I think there’s quite a bit of potential there. This one, though, could have used the attentions of a substantive editor before it made its way to readers and listeners.



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Deadly Games by Lindsay Buroker

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoy the books in this series so much! Every time I finish one, I just want to start the next, which is surely the sign of a successful series. I’m so invested in these characters now, I just want to know how everything works out for them! (And of course, their ongoing adventures are always intriguing.) It’s no wonder Buroker is so successful!



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The Fridgularity by Mark A. Rayner

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you like your fiction well-peppered with cultural and personal chaos, you are going to enjoy this book. If the notion of a web intelligence manifesting itself through a web-enabled fridge (emoting via fonts) while it shuts down the rest of the Internet excites you, you are going to enjoy this book. And if you can imagine and appreciate the idea of a handwritten version of Twitter, then you are definitely going to enjoy this book.

Mark Rayner turns his considerable satirical talents and sharp sense of humour to our dependence on technology, and the serious and silly (and seriously silly) ways we might react to its loss. As always, the writing is both fun and funny, with an underlying vein of truth that makes us cringe a little even as we’re laughing. Definitely recommended for everyone not sure if we’ll be chuckling or crying–or both–when the technological singularity arrives.



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