The Fantasies of Robert A. Heinlein

I tracked down this book because I have fond memories of Glory Road which was the only other fantasy, I recalled written by Heinlein.  This was disappointing, not that the stories but the fact that I didn’t really see them as fantasies.   It was more lip service with mention of magic.  I guess they could be considered early urban fantasy but I felt they fit more with his general body of work than in the fantasy genre.  

My impression of Heinlein was that he was a frustrated philosopher.  Much of his work struck me as proposing a different way of seeing and doing things.   These stories had some interesting twists and I did enjoy them. 

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.

Prime Deceptions by Valerie Valdes

This is a follow up to Chilling Effect.  Eve is a trouble prone cargo freighter captain.  This volume involves her continued fight with the Fridge and the discovery of the Forge.  

Both the Fridge and the Forge support their own conspiracy and both are often at odds with Eve and her crew.  A side bar story is Sue, who joined the crew in Chilling Effect, trying to find her cybernetic guru brother.   Between being involved in bot fights and synthetic creature creation, the crew supports each other.

Eve discovers her extra-species boyfriend, Vakar, is a Wraith, a CIA type for his species.   That does nothing to diminish their mutual affection.

Eve’s mother turns out to have more responsibilities with B.O.F.A., the united planets policing agency than Eve or Mari, her sister, ever expected.

This is a good series and I look forward to more books.

 

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.

Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes

Eve is a bit of a wild child.  She has a chip on her shoulder and makes decisions for her starship crew without considering the consequences.   She runs afoul of the Fridge, an extraterrestrial criminal organization.  She also refuses the advances of a well-connected alien who does not take rejection well.  The book details her adventures in trying to take down one and avoid the other. 

The story is good, classic space opera with Spanish overtones.   Eve and her family appear to be Spanish speaking descendants from someone who was originally from earth.   Valdes creates a memorable bad girl with a conscience.  Pink, her bestie has a conscience and is constantly reminding Eve of her lack of one.   Min, is almost a stereotypical geek who focuses on integrating her personality with the ship.   Vakar and Eve have a relationship impacted by olfactory overtones, excreted by Vakar and interpreted by Eve.  Cryogenics are a factor in the title.  

Good characterizations and an entertaining story.

Oh, there are also psychic cats.

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.

Spotlight on Alison Levy's Gatekeeper

Fantasy novel mixes mythology and alternate dimensions for page-turning adventure

GREENSBORO, North Carolina – Author Alison Levy crashes onto the fantasy scene with the first installment of The Daemon Collecting Series, Gatekeeper (Spark Press, October 6, 2020). Using her writing to cope with anxiety, Levy expertly weaves a page turning story full of action, alternate universes, and heroism. Her vivid world building and unique characters show readers what it looks like to fight for survival while standing up for what is right, even if it’s risky.

In Gatekeeper, Rachel Wilde comes from a dimension that exists adjacent to ours. The people there have structured their society around daemon collecting: they locate, catch, and repair malfunctioning daemons (creatures out of phase with our world that tempt people to do good or evil). Now Rachel has been given two unusual assignments: 1) find a person who has been trying to break down dimensional barriers, and 2) track down a missing line of gatekeepers, human placeholders for a daemon that was too badly damaged to repair.

Authorities of Rachel’s world believe the missing gatekeepers are descended from a girl who went missing from West Africa hundreds of years ago, likely sold into slavery. With no leads to go on, Rachel seeks help from Bach, a raving homeless man who happens to be an oracle. Bach does put her in the path of both of her targets—but he also lands her in a life-threatening situation. Rachel must stop the criminal, reunite a gatekeeper with her stolen past, and, above all, survive.

ALISON LEVY lives in Greensboro, North Carolina with her husband, son, and variety of pets. When she’s not writing or doing mom things, she crochets, gardens, walks her collies, and works on home improvement projects.

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.

The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson

This is a novel of treachery.   Falcrest has an empire.  It conquers by attrition, providing income, innovations and troops. Baru, a precocious child, decides to work against the empire when her parents suffer.  This is her story.

Machiavelli has nothing on Dickinson.  The plot was devilishly clever with nuances that had to be noticed as they later came into play.

The wealth of characters sometimes led to minor confusion. 

It was an interesting book and very clever plot.

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.