Review: Titanborn

Titanborn by Rhett C. Bruno
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Titanborn has been on my radar for a long time, and now that I've gotten to it, I have no idea why I had waited so long. There isn't much to not like about it or the rest of the series -- it's got a dark and gritty sci-fi-inspired setting, complex and flawed characters, and a plot that will keep you guessing until the very end. That's not just a superfluous description; I literally could not have imagined how this book ended. I'm not going to spoil it, but if you hate reading predictable books where you can see every plot twist coming, you'll enjoy Titanborn. Plus, the audio version is narrated by R.C. Bray, who I'm pretty sure has never had a bad performance.

The book follows the ventures of Malcolm Graves, an elite corporate agent who operates in a future world where megacorporations run the sol system. Malcolm conveys a film noir quality to the novel, as he's an anachronistic anti-hero who is a blend of gumshoe, assassin, and smart-ass alcoholic. He even carries the sci-fi equivalent to a magnum revolver in a holster under a classic duster coat. Overall, I loved the gritty tech-noir setting, Malcolm's endless snark and sarcasm, and the edgy writing. Maybe I was reading a bit too deep, but I also found that Titanborn presents a futuristic take on some modern contemporary social issues, and by doing so, presents some dark questions about the fate of our morality and humanity in a future where we've failed to address those issues. Regardless of whether this was intentional, you have to like a good that makes you think a bit at the end.

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Review: Hammond's Hardcases: The Complete Series

Hammond's Hardcases: The Complete Series by Jack Colrain
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hammond's Hardcases by Jack Colrain is your standard military sci-fi brain candy. I read the complete series omnibus, so this review includes all three books. Overall, the series isn't exceptional, but it'll be solid entertainment if you are into the military/space marine sci-fi genre and like lots of well-written action. It's certainly worth giving the series a try now that it's a 3-for-1 omnibus deal on Audible and Kindle (and free on KU).

Like most omnibus editions, I didn't feel like all three books earned the same rating or could be reviewed together. Thus, there may be some spoilers in the review below as I focus on the highs and lows of each book included in the trilogy omnibus. You've been warned.

The first book (Mozari Arrival) was my favorite of the series. There was a focus on character development, lots of mystery involving the Mozari, and new and exciting technology. I found the plot intriguing, and the book really kept my attention. I'm a fan of the character and relationship development in a series, and it was balanced with action sequences, so I really enjoyed it.

However, I was immediately turned off to the second book (Trojan Colony) when its ridiculous premise became clear. Here's a minor spoiler: The target world for a new earth colony was discovered to be right in the middle of humanity's worst and far superior enemy's territory. And the military, civilian government, and colonists all just say, "Oh well, we are already halfway there. Let's just do this thing anyway." Once you get over the absurd way the plot was set up, the rest of the book was pretty enjoyable. Lots of gold ol' shoot em' up action, cliche military vs. civilian headbutting, and just in the nick of time rescues.

The last book (Gateway War) just felt like a series of explosions, space battles, and ground-pounding space marine engagements. Again, the earth's civilian and military leadership is still packed with morons whose poor decisions set up the action-packed plot. The book's last half degrades into a non-stop action-packed slugfest. It wasn't really my thing, and getting through it was a bit grinding, but I can certainly see the appeal it may have for many readers and fans of action-based sci-fi.

Overall, I found the first book excellent and the following books just okay. Had there been more plausible plot devices and a bit more even pacing in the later books (between plot and character development and action), I would have enjoyed them much more. But I think some of this may just be my tastes in books. All-in-all, it was good enough that I'd give other Jack Colrain books a shot as well, particularly if I was in the mood for something fast-paced and action-oriented.

I also listened to some of this series on the audiobook edition from Audible in addition to the kindle book. Like the Hammond's Hardcases series, Andrew Tell's performance is good, but not without its flaws. The narration kept me interested, the tone projected the proper emotions, and the pacing matched well with the action in most of the series. However, Tell pauses a lot, which makes the cadence of the reading a bit uneven. It annoyed me initially, but I became used to it as the series went on. There are also many secondary characters throughout the series, and I feel like the narrator exhausted his range trying to come up with unique voices for each. Occasionally it was difficult to tell who was talking by their voice alone (particularly with female characters, who sounded very similar).

Special thanks to Jack Colrain, who provided me with these books at my request.

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Review: Still Alive: Series Box Set Books 5 & 6

Still Alive: Series Box Set Books 5 & 6 by Javan Bonds
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The best low-brow humor and zombie-slaying gore!

The Still Alive series continues to be one of my favorite go-to books for gratuitous violence, lowbrow humor, and descriptions of unspeakable things I wish I could unread. I can't be sure, as I'm not certain which scenes of the book my brain has blocked from my memory to protect itself from the mental trauma, but these two books may have been the most violent and gruesome book of the series. In a good way. If you haven't started this series, you should really give it a shot. Once you start, you won't be able to stop. It's kind of like passing a car wreck on the highway- you know you shouldn't slow down and look and you tell yourself you won't, but then you find yourself staring anyway. But, again, it's in a good way.

But seriously, this is a great series. The writing is well done, the plot is exciting and detailed, and most of the characters are deep and developed. Hidden under all the blood and gore, Javan Bonds has some talent as an author. The humor typically balances the darker aspects of the books, providing levity and enjoyment when it's needed. And it's just gotten better with the addition of the box set for the 5th and 6th books in the series (Zombie River Run & Zombie Paradise Lost).

Zombie River Run is the follow-up for the first four books in the Still Alive series by Javan Bonds. It chronicles the continuing struggles and adventures of the crew of Viva Ancora and the survivors of Guntersville. I really can’t say enough good stuff about this entire series, I love its humor, its cast of characters, and the storyline. And as an Alabamian, I find the characters, their interactions, and their culture extremely relatable. I swear that I’ve met and know some of them. However, I think Zombie River Run suffers a bit in the storyline because of where it falls in the series as it's working to resolve a few loose ends from the first books and set things up for the next few. That means after the story arc was wrapped up in the first four books, Zombie River Run transitions us into what is sure to be a great second story arc. It's a bit slower than the previous books and doesn’t end with the same adrenaline rush of climax, but it still has some great scenes, excellent dialog, and fun culture references.

Zombie Paradise Lost is full of all things that make this series great but is also a "split book" that takes place at the same time as Zombie River Run and I'm still internally debating if I liked that. Many of the events from Zombie River Run are repeated in Zombie Paradise Lost, but described from a different perspective. It provides some additional insight into many of the events in the last book but also left me feeling a bit cheated on the plot and advancement of the story arc. And while I was disappointed Mo isn't a major character in Zombie Paradise Lost, I really enjoyed the fully developed story involving the investigation of the missing children -- the whole good versus evil element has been excellent.

S.W. Salzman's performance in this series continues to blow me away. I still can't believe that one narrator can create so many different, distinct voices. It really makes the book come alive and significantly adds to Bonds' already well-developed characters. I’m definitely adding Salzman to my favorite narrator list and will be hunting down other books that he’s recorded.

Special thanks to Javan Bonds who provided me with this book at my request.

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