Conner is having a very bad day. First, a long lost aunt, he didn’t know he had, showed up to his home to kill him. Now he’s in his uncle’s dungeon. Yes, he wants him dead, too. Really, all he wants to do is finish high school. Now he’s in a magic land nobody believes exists, hunted by nearly everyone, because of a prophecy given by a long dead witch. If he can survive, maybe he can get back to the real world and finish high school. It isn’t much, but hey, everyone needs goals. To survive, he’s going to need friends. He’s got some, but will a princess, an imp, and a banshee be enough to save him from homicidal relatives?

John Lenahan tells a unique tale of magic and mystery. He creates a vibrant and fascinating world full of interesting characters. Fantasy readers everywhere will enjoy this enchanting and engaging tale.

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Space is not empty. It is full of dust and trace elements, just very widely spaced. Rick’s job is to find and understand those currents. This isn’t always convenient for the planetary governments. Hence his current situation. Mindless. His memories and purpose forgotten, Rick must find out, what happened to him, who did it, and why. The answer is important, he just doesn’t know why. He’ll need to work fast, because the problem he’s trying to remember, it’s that the world they are on is about to end.

Issac Azimov brings another tale to the Foundation universe. Amnesia and the political intrigue that marks much of his work. A thrilling tale of haves and have nots and the power struggles that are the everything of their world. A wonderful book that I recommend highly.

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The end of the world’s energy problems is at hand. The answer lies not in renewable energy but in a parallel universe. As the physicist to figure it out, Fredrick Hallam gain fame and fortune. This turns out to be a bad thing. Hallam isn’t that smart and has a fragile ego. He abuses his new found power to ruin all scientists that disagree with him.

Fellow scientists Lamont and Denison have felt the full weight of Hallam’s ire. They suspect that something is very wrong with the whole process. Why would the para-men give them the gift of limitless energy? But no one wants to ask the hard questions if it means giving up free limitless energy. It will be up to them to find out the alien’s nefarious plans before all of humanity pays the price. Destruction of the earth itself.

Issac Azimov tells a tale of science and human frailty. His exploration of human the human condition, how we act and react is flawless. Each character has their own agenda and how they choose to reach their goals is the foundation of good fiction. A wonderful story, told artfully. Well worth reading.

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Dirk Pitt is visiting operations in the Black Sea when they receive a mysterious mayday: ‘we’re under attack.’ They arrive to find the crew of the freighter dead and nearly go down with the ship when the smugglers try to cover up the evidence. What does it all mean? Why would anyone gas an entire ship? How was it done? What does it have to do with a missing Russian bomber and a lost shipment of gold? The race to find the answers will take them across the Mediterranean and beyond. Dirk and his team will uncover more shipwrecks than you can shake a dive fin at, and uncover a terrorist attack on American soil. Will they be in time, or will it be the beginning of world war three, with the US and Russia at each other throats.

Clive and Dirk Cussler do what they do best, tell stories of adventure and international intrigue. At the center the dirty and unseemly business of smuggling weapons. Also, the most feared of weapons, a nuclear bomb. Non-stop action from page one until the thrilling final, this story will keep you awake until the wee hours.

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Wade Watts is an egg hunter, or ‘gunter’. Ten years ago the father of virtual reality, James Halliday died. He left his multi-billion dollar fortune to whomever could solve his puzzles, and find his ‘easter eggs’. For Wade, an orphan living in the slums, it is his one chance to escape poverty. Can the puzzle be solved when millions before him have failed? The journey will take him through a plethora of nineteen eighties pop culture. a thorough knowledge of classic video games, movies, and Dungeons and Dragons will be required to win the challenge. But the online game company IOI, also wants Halliday’s virtual reality world, and they’ll do anything to get it. Assassination, dirty tricks, and corporate hackers are all on the table for the highest stakes game in history. Wade in his online personality of Parzival, will need his friends Art3mis and Aech if hopes to have a chance. The problem: they want the prize as bad as he does.

Ernest Cline does a good job of weaving dystopian future technology into a enthralling trip down memory lane. An enjoyable read for scifi fans of all ages, even if you didn’t live through the eighties.

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The Mule is desperate to find the Second Foundation. His Empire stretches far into known space. Peace reins within his borders. None outside his domain dares challenge his strength. Only one things threatens his realm, the Second Foundation. It’s out there somewhere, waiting to reassert control over the galaxy. To that end, he tasks two of his servants to find them. Han Pritcher and Bail Channis. Will they be able to find the Second Foundation, or will they suffer the Mule’s wrath.

Arkady Darell knows that her father is up to something. A plot to discover who has been meddling in the affairs of the new Empire. The Prime suspect? The Second Foundation. Some may think her young and precocious, but she’ll show them. She’ll find the Second Foundation and end the threat to the new Empire. All she has to do now is stow away on a ship. Easy as falling out a window.

The final book in Issac Aszmov’s Foundation trilogy. The search for the Second Foundation continues and everyone has their reasons for wanting them out of the way. Will it survive, or will the Sheldon plan continue unimpeded. Twists and turns abound in the final installment of this classic collection.

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The Empire has fallen. Hari Sheldon’s Foundation has survived. They’ve convinced the local warlords that it is easier to work with them than against them. That may have worked for the near space neighbors, but now the Foundation’s influence has bumped up against the Empire’s remnants. Generals and Admirals control different sections of space and all of them want power. They know that knowledge is power and the Foundation has the knowledge. Are Lathan Devers and Ducem Barr up to the challenge?

But lurking in near space is a being called ‘The Mule.’ He has a strange power to control the people he meets. Did Hari Sheldon’s plan account for mutants? What are his goals? Why has no one seen him? Toran and Bayta Darell seek the answers by travelling to Trantor, the capital of the old Empire. Perhaps they will get the answers they need from the Second Foundation. A collection of social scientists Hari Sheldon created to gently guide the galaxy. If only they can find them. All the while, The Mule follows their every move in his mad quest to control the galaxy.

The sequel to Issac Azimov’s Foundation continues the epic struggles of a galaxy trying to put itself back together. A choice between a thousand years of anarchy or thirty thousand years of death and destruction. A classic scifi series that is a must for readers of space opera.

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The greatest trove of ancient lore, the Ringworld, is gone. The huge fleets of all the major races must struggle to justify their existence and the lives lost. A prize exists, just a bit further in space. The Puppeteer fleet of worlds. Everyone knows the Puppeteers are cowards,  plundering their planets will be easy.

But the fleet of worlds is more than just the Puppeteers and they have a centuries of experience at manipulation. To some in their government, defense of the fleet it is an opportunity to grab power. Larry Niven covers new territory: a scifi political thriller. Terrans, Kzin, Puppeteers, and others will clash in a tale that will keep you guessing until the end. Who will prevail in The Fate of Worlds

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Hari Sheldon has uncovered a dangerous secret. The might Empire that has united the galaxy and brought peace for thousands of years is coming to an end. Obviously, the Empire wants Hari to keep his mouth shut. He will, but for a price, they must give him a planet on the edge of everything. Here he will conduct a social experiment. A Foundation. Nothing can stop the Empire from falling, but maybe, just maybe, they might be able to turn 30,000 years of anarchy into only a thousand.

That plan comes falls apart when the Foundation’s neighbors come calling. The Empire losing its grip on the outlying systems. To those governments, the knowledgeable and undefended Foundation, is too tempting a prize to pass up. After all, what can a bunch of scientists do against a might space navy.

Issac Azimov spins an interesting tale of a future where a false sense of security could lead to destruction. One genius has all the answers, or does he. What can he really know about a future long after he’s dead? An excellent story and a must read for science fiction fans everywhere.

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A Life in Shadows is a collection of short stories set in the Good Intentions universe. As the name suggests, a lot of the stories revolve around our favorite lesbian witches Onyx and Molly. It offers an intriguing look at Molly’s mentor, and what happened when she died. In another story, Molly has an uncle who’s a cop. We met him briefly in Natural Consequences. When he has a really bad day, Molly and Onyx step in to help him out… with disastrous results. One story explores what would happen if a demon’s soul got trapped in a good person. How would it affect them? Would the angels help? The last story brings us back to Alex. Lorelei has uncovered a den of demons. She can’t go to Rachel with the information, so she enlists Alex to investigate further. It’s a simple recon mission. What could go wrong?

Elliott Kay brings us back to his urban fantasy world of angels, demons, and sex. This is a fun set of stories with lots of action. One down side is that we have another situation, where Lorelei unintentionally gets Alex into hot water. This is a reoccurring theme in all of the books in the Good Intention series, and I’d like to see Elliott get away from this. Otherwise, it’s the wonderful characters we know and love, getting into trouble and finding a way out again. Lots of adventure and page turning excitement.

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