Can You Survive The Zombie Apocalypse? By Max Brallier

This is a pick your own ending zombie disaster story.

Zombie stories seem to have created their own niche.   The last zombie story review I wrote got some of the more vehement comments when I said I wasn’t fond of zombie stories.   I’m still not fond of zombie stories but I try and keep an open mind.  

This book is billed as a pick your own ending for adults story.   I guess some adults will read it but I suspect it will be more of the teen age guy crowd than your run of the mill adult.  

I admire the ability to set up the convoluted turn to this or that page in these types of stories.   Technically this book is quite sound.   I found the characterization minimal at best.   The characters were like cell phone photos compared to 14mb 1200dpi images, not a lot of depth and washed out features. 

It is an amusing read and one that you can pick up and put down easily.   There is very little captivation.  It reads like a video game and most likely will capture a portion of serious gamers.  Look at the success of Call of Duty’s zombie section.  With that said, again it seems like the book is focused on the young video gaming male and frankly that is a good thing.   If you provide a book that is themed to their taste they will read.   Getting young guys to read can be difficult so if this genre succeeds then kudos to the author.    The zombie theme guarantees it will have a rabid and voracious following so it will no doubt succeed admirably in it’s niche.

I recommend it, particularly for your reading resistant gamer.

Body of work of Max Brallier

Web site: http://www.maxbrallier.com/

Rogue Oracle by Alayna Williams

A story plucked out of today’s disasters and leavened with a touch of mysticism. 

The recent tsunami and resultant nuclear meltdowns were particularly poignant as I read this book.   News commentator’s comparisons to Chernobyl were particularly frightening.   Stories with a grain of truth often ring more clearly to a reader.  

Tara Sheridan’s oracle skills were brand new to me as her use of a Tarot deck.   I haven’t read any of Alayna Williams books before but I intend to remedy that oversight.   The plot was intricate with out unnecessary nuances.  

I think a chapter to fill in the back story would have been helpful to understand who Tara was and what was involved wither relationships with Harry and Carrie.

The two Steves added some humor and lightened up what was otherwise a pretty scary semi-occult book. 

I recommend the book.

Body of work of Alayna Williams

Web site:

The Turing Option by Harry Harrison and Marvin Minsky

The Turing Option (Questar Science Fiction)
True artifical intelligence is within reach when Brian Delaney, prodigy, is left for dead and his life’s work is stolen. The ensuing search for the dastardly villains (truly dastardly) and recreation of his work is the thrust of the book.

Brian Delaney is not very likeable but his life was not started a foundation of love and trust. This may be a prime example of love and nurture’s difficulty in overcoming early abusive situations.

The copyright of 1992 helps to explain some of the dated technology. The irony is that a lot of that technology was pure speculation in 1992 and is now passé.

There is thought provoking speculation in this book along with calculated ruthlessness that sadly seems to characterize some current governments and corporations. Harry Harrison is always thought provoking. I am not familiar with anything else from Marvin Minsky so I can comment on his part of the book.   However after googling him, I see he is a well known  expert on AI so his part may be self explanatory.

The ironic ending between man and machine is superbly done.

The book moves at a realistic pace and is well worth reading.

I recommend the book.

Body of work of Harry Harrison

Body of work of Marvin Minsky

Web site: http://www.iol.ie/~carrollm/hh/
http://web.media.mit.edu/~minsky/