Created, The Destroyer by Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir - BookReport #152

04/15/2016

There is a long history of men's adventure books. Paperback originals that were a quick and mindless distraction. The Destroyer series was unique in that it took a humorous spin on the genre never taking itself too seriously but delivering on the action and adventure.

This is the origin story and I was able to download it from the Kindle store for free.  Like a good drug dealer would do, the first couple of tastes are free.

There were nearly 200 stories written staring Remo Williams and Chiun and they do not need to be read in any order.

The dialog is crisp, funny, irreverent and intense.  The plotting is quick and the bad guys practically twist their mustaches.  It was a fun read.

If you like Bond, Spenser or even MacGyver then you will enjoy this.

Warren Murphy - http://warrenmurphy.com/

Richard Sapir -  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Sapir

Green Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson - Book Report #151

03/15/2016

This was another audio book for me in Robinson's Mars trilogy.

Like the last book, I am certain I would have abandoned it if I were reading it.  Robinson has a way of digging into things that, if he were on my couch telling me this story, my eyes would glaze overt.

This time it was even worse.  Although, in the last book, I appreciated all the minute details he went into, this time I found it frustrating.  

I kept thinking "Yes, Mars is wonderful." 

"Yes, the scenery is amazing."

I got all that from the first book. All I wanted from this one was a story.  But every time he moved the plot forward he would spend more time looking under rocks and he would skip over important questions that would come up.

Like, after destroying a large structure in space, I would have been very interested in exploring the reaction from the UNTA, the government in the story.  But he had structured the narrative in such a way that we were limited by seeing events through the eyes of the First 100.

I guess I would have been happier had the book been a bit more aggressively edited.

After finally getting to the end I was left uncertain if I cared enough about this series to complete it.

On the plus side, the book explores just how difficult it would be to create a second planet for human habitation.  The first step is dominated by the engineering; how to get there, land and survive on the surface.  

Once more people start to arrive the problems on Earth are imported to Mars; differing motivations, religious freedoms, political ambitions and corporate influences begin to mix into the realities of life on another planet.

It's all very interesting but gets to be a bit dizzying to encompass it all into a novel, even if it's told over three volumes.  I guess the complaint I have with it is that it is a challenging story.  From the length, the depth of detail and the limited scope of the narration, it is not an easy read.  Or in my case, an easy listen.

Still, I came away from both stories feeling as though I have a much better understanding of the planet and the challenges of the endeavor.  I always come away from the experience feeling that I have spent time with a superior mind.  I guess it should be Robinson complaining about me, instead of the other way around.

Robinson's website -  http://www.kimstanleyrobinson.info/d/

Analog Magazine March 2016

013/150/2016 - The Coward's Option by Adam-Troy Castro - Wow!  I was first hooked when this looked like a SF court room thriller then the story takes a sinister twist right in the middle, just when I was getting to like the main character too!  The story was exciting, terrifying and so, so satisfying.

I was happy to learn there are more stories with Andrea Cort plus two novels.  I've got to dig into these stories for sure.

http://www.adamtroycastro.com/

014/150/2016 - Unlinkage by Eric Del Carlo - Part military SF part underground sports.  I like the way this story played with the tele-operated/augmented soldier trope and how it turned into something completely unexpected.

 http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?14471

015/150/2016 - The Perfect Bracket by Howard Hendrix and Art Holcomb - This was a fun nearly comical story of scamming the NCAA basketball brackets.  Once the nature of the scam showed itself my head began to swim. But it was lighthearted enough to be mearly an interesting twist and I found myself smiling at the end of it.

Howard Hendrix - http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?1691
Art Holcomb - http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?224628

016/150/2016 - Elderjoy by Gregory Benford - A quick and strange read. How do you keep a health care system funded?  By taxing behavior, of course.  Interesting, even though it's a bit creepy.

http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?109

017/150/2016 - Snowbird by Joe M McDermott - I kept feeling like this would be the kind of thing Steven Spielberg would tackle.  The setting is a rural orchard where RVs, driven by AIs, start arriving en mass.  Why?  Why here?

It was very well done.  It provided the sense of there being a much bigger world, just around the other side of the mountain.

http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?201397

018/150/2016 - Drummer by Thomas R Dulski - At first this story of a traveling salesman caught my attention for how unique it was.  I'm always a sucker for a mundane SF tale.  The day-in-the-life kind of thing grabs me.

Here our narrator meets a younger fellow "Drummer", what those in the business are called, in a bar and he engages him in conversation.  After a bit if time he gives the younger man the advice that he might be happier in some other kind of work. 

We then follow our man through the years and to other meetings with with the younger one.  

The story sort if lost cohesion for me as the younger guy kept making more radical moves as our narrator kept progressing in a more natural, tried-and-true career path.  Perhaps that was the point of the story.  Maybe you never know how a conversation, or a chance meeting will pivot a person's life trajectory.

Hmm, just by writing this entry I think I'm coming to understand it more.

http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?Thomas_R._Dulski

Inhuman Garbage by Kristine Kathryn Rush - A Short Story Review.

013/150/2016

Set in the Retrieval Artist universe and available from Asimov's website for free while the readers' choice awards are still in the voting stage.

It is a straight-up murder mystery involving the main characters of her earlier novels plus a crime boss who is the main suspect.

It was well done with a good twist and a surprising conclusion.  It also does the added work of expanding her RA universe.

Not being a reader of the series I can say that it works very well as a stand alone story.

Cold War by Adam Christopher - A Short Story Review.

012/150/2016

I was captivated by this story.  It is set in a larger world that Christopher has written about in a book called The Burning Dark.

A small group of marines are set on a frozen world for a search and rescue mission, only there is a secret secondary objective that puts the group in peril.

Wonderfully done.  I was heart-thumpingly scared for the group when a monstrous threat appears.

I was reminded of the scenes in the movie Aliens when the group is trapped in a room and the radar shows the aliens coming closer and closer and .... wait!

They're in the room!

But we don't see them ....

Yea, like that.

What fun.

Adam Christopher

New Space Frontiers by Piers Bizony - Book Report #150

02/15/2016

Pretty cool, eh?  150 books.  That's something.

I borrowed this book from the Edmonton Public Library but I simply must get a copy of my own.

If you are even a little bit interested in today's space flight this is the book that will explain it all and be the starting point for deeper research.

It may surprise you to learn just how many projects are out there that are just about ready to break out.  If half of the programs that are explored here make it to flight, the next five to ten years will be so much fun to watch.

The book itself is just beautiful with the interior photos and artwork sending my imagination soaring.

The sad reality of the exploration of space is that it has held orders of magnitude more promise than results.  So it is with a cautious optimism that I follow these newcomers to the black.  The chief difference today is that it is private enterprises, who have a profit motive, that are creating the new hardware that will make the next leap possible.

Don't let anybody tell you that spending money in space is a waste.  The money is never spent in space, it's spent here on Earth and launched into it.  The human race must push forward or stagnate in place.

I found this book to be filled with hope for the future.

Piers Bizony

Analog Magazine, January/February 2016 - Part Three

Theories of the Mind by Conor Powers-Smith

006/150/2016 - A common subject in SF is exploring communication.  Its plausible even likely, that first contact will not come with a handshake and a "How do you do?"

In this story the direct method is not the only aspect explored.  There is the question of logic and individuality to be answered too.

I enjoyed this one, it had the feel of a 1950's classic science fiction, especially in the description of the aliens.  That 50's sensibilities won out when it came to good-old human ingenuity to win the day.

http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?133997

Nature's Eldest Law by Alvaro Zinos-Amaro

007/150/2016 - This was another first contact story.  A team of scientists are exploring a planet when they suddenly discover a grove of plant life that wasn't there before.  These plants have an ability to enhance mental acuity.

It was a good story with believable characters and an ominous ending.

http://myaineko.blogspot.ca/p/home-page.html

The Heat of Passion by Grey Rollins

008/150/2016 - One of my favourite genres the SF Mystery.  Murder and cops in the future are a potent mix.  This one also involved the implications of genetic modification which made for a fresh approach to solving a crime.

Well written with excellent dialog. Rollins is an author to watch.

http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?11629

Woundings by George Zebrowski

009/150/2016 - I think it's a post-apocalyptic story but, I really didn't get it.  No.  I couldn't even understand it.  I'm pretty sure it was in English.  I mean all the words were English ...

Wow!

http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?George_Zebrowski

The Shores of Being by Dave Creek

010/150/2016 - Part X-files part first contact, but not really.  There are alien artifacts in the woods, that's the X-files part. 

Two alien races are at war and Earth is caught in the crossfire.

 http://davecreek.net/Explore_Dave_Creeks_fictional_worlds/Home.html

An Industrial Growth by David L Clements

011/150/2016 - Post-apocalyptic with nanotechnology run amok.  A small team must confront a large concentration  nano-machines hidden away in an abandoned industrial plant.

This was a well-realized story that I enjoyed it very much.

https://davecl.wordpress.com/

# # #

As a whole this issue was a solid read and a good start to 2016.

Onward.

Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson - Book Report #149

01/15/2016

I "read" this book as an audio book loaned from my library.

I was stunned by how much research must have gone into it.

The scope of it was breathtaking.  It wasn't just about the getting there and setting up a base.  No, it went on to city building, immigration issues, corporate shenanigans, political power plays, environmental issues and incredible infrastructure construction.

It felt so real. 

Do not let the fact that it was published in 1992 make you think it's out of date.  It is not.  Everything discussed here is still fresh and relevant. 

A must read for sure.

It felt like a privilege to spend so much time with a superior mind.

KSR website -  http://www.kimstanleyrobinson.info/d/

Kim Stanley Robinson

Analog Magazine, January/February 2016 - Part Two

We Will Wake Among the Gods, Among the Stars by Caroline M. Yoachim and Tina Connolly

002/15012016 - Remember how the big reveal of Planet of the Apes was that it was not the distant past but the distant future?  This is that same kind of thing.

Seven ships land in different parts of a habitable planet.  One is never heard from again and becomes a thing of legend, like Atlantis.  We are generations past the initial landings and find the descendants have reverted back to kingdoms and blind religious faith.  In this story we are following an expedition to find the lost Seventh City.

The story was well written and interesting enough but this kind of dystopian future is not my rusty tin cup of muddy tea.  These tales are best set right here on Earth, for the simple truth that we understand implicitly how tings were, we are invested in the past of the story.  For this very reason I found the story fell flat.  It may have worked better had it been a novel, making the end of the story even more powerful.

Caroline M. Yoachim -  http://carolineyoachim.com/

Tina Connolly - http://www.tinaconnolly.com/

Farmer by Joe M. McDermott

003/150/2016 - Another dystopian story, this time set on Earth.  A New York brownstone is converted into an urban farm.  Not because it's trendy but necessary for survival.  Things are not good in this future.  We are never told exactly what happened to cause the infrastructure to collapse as it has, only that this type of urban farming is not unique.  People live in squalor and are ever-fearful of superbugs, drug resistant infections.

It is such an infection of one of the farm's customers that threatens the livelihood of the two men who own and operate it.  The government still functions and now the men are under threat of an inspection to see if they are the cause of the infection.  Were they doing something illegally?

I liked this one.  It was very vivid in my mind's eye.

Joe M. McDermott -  http://jmmcdermott.blogspot.ca/

Rocket Surgery by Effie Seiberg

004/150/2016 - What happens when you give a guided missile artificial intelligence? 

This was a cool story.  I enjoyed how the AI evolves.

 http://www.effieseiberg.com/

Saving the World by James Gunn

005/150/2016 - An exploration about genre fiction.  How does reading Science Fiction affect the brain.  Can reading science fiction save the world?

This is a well argued story.

http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?1162

The Persistence Of Memory by Rachel L. Bowden

006/150/2016 - A quick story about a memory of a time and place that changed the direction of the narrators' life. 

I could picture it as a short film. Well done. 

Analog Magazine, January/February 2016 - Part One

Wyatt Earp 2.0 by Wil McCarthy.

001/150/2016 - In Dawes Crater City, Mars, a facsimile of Wyatt Earp is printed. The head of security needs a bit of help to control the miners and convinces his superiors that a lawman from Earth's history is the correct choice to bring about a bit of order.

Earp wakes up complete with his memories and personality intact. At first we get a fish-out-of-water story but it doesn't take long before he gets his footing and starts asserting himself.  At first he struggles with whether he is a real person since he is a manufactured copy of a man long dead.

There is a fair bit of exploration of the meaning of life when you are the 2.0.  The old saying, The More Things Change The More They Stay The Same came to mind in the final action sequence.  The last scene made me happy for its cleverness and made me wish the story was longer.

An excellent start to the issue.

Wil McCarthy's website is here:  http://www.wilmccarthy.com/

Wil McCarthy

The Art of Space by Ron Miller

This is a coffee table book filled with beautiful art with space and science fiction as its theme.

It explores the history of the art form in five distinct areas:
 
Planets & Moons,
Stars & Galaxies,
Spaceships & Space Stations,
Space Colonies & Cities
and finally Aliens.

It's beautiful, informative and focuses occasionally on specific artists who excelled at their work.

I would recommend this book as a valuable addition to any personal library both for its own right and as a reference to other works.  It makes a good resource to seek out other collections from specific artists. 

Some of my favourite artists are Chesley Bonestell,

Alan Bean,

John Berkey,

Chris Foss,

Don Davis,

Robert McCall

and the ever-creepy H. R. Giger.

There is one other artist, who is not mentioned in this book,  but should be better known, his name is Wayne Haag who did a series of covers for Interzone Magazine.  He has a series of crashed and derilict ships, known as the Ankaris Project.

I have no idea if he had anything to do with the new Star Wars movie but you can get a real appreciation of his art in the opening scenes on the desert planet Jakku.  Below are pictures of his series not of the new movie.

  See?  The book is already working.  It will inspire you to look into this genre of art.

2016 Reading Goals

The theme for this year is

 - SPACE! -

This will apply to fiction and non-fiction.

On the non-fiction front I have dozens of books to satisfy my needs.  I have been a giant NASA geek for my whole life so I will dedicate this upcoming year to reading about the agency.  I also hope to read a bit of speculation on where space exploration, both government and commercial, will go in the near future.

I really loved my 100 short stories in 2015 challenge and I will try to read 150 shorts this year.  I will primarily accomplish this by following a secondary goal; to read each issue of Analog Magazine with a 2016 publication date.

I cannot control what is published in Analog but they tend to stick to Hard Science Fiction which will satisfy a reading focus I'd like to attempt on the fiction side; that is to read fiction without FTL travel.  The massive best seller, The Martian by Andy Weir, has re-awakened a market for "plausible" SF.  Let's face it, without a breakthrough in propulsion, humans will not see another star system in anything resembling the near future.  I want to concentrate on fiction within our own solar system.

Kim Stanley Robinson, Ben Bova, Kristine Kathryn Rusch,  Robert J Sawyer and Michael Flynn are authors that immediately come to mind that have written novels in our home solar system so my focus should not be difficult.

Just to keep things symmetrical I will set a goal of 15 books (fiction or non-fiction) and 150 short stories. 

Fiction River #15 Recycled Pulp

As I write this it is January 1, 2016 but I will post it in 2015.  My challenge to read 100 short stories in 2015 was ignored for much of the year but it was in the last two months that I made an effort to accomplish it.

I've been reading a few collections in those months and have been reviewing the stories individually, in draft form, with the plan to publish them once I completed the collections.  So, in the effort to track my reading in 2015, below is a review of the stories read from the collections I have not completed.  As I finish the collections I will count the remaining storeis towards my 2016 goal.

Cool?

Thanks.

* * *

I've been a long-time fan of Kristine Kathryn Rush's work, while on her website I found that she's been busy starting up her own publishing business.  From that I discovered the anthology magazine Fiction River where each issue focuses on on particular genre.  Being a fan of pulp I thought I'd buy this issue and give it a spin.

From the introduction I learned that this may not be exactly what I thought I was getting into.  There were some very special and interesting rules the editors put on the authors.  This I found intriguing and thought it would be a nice way to get some exposure to genres I would not usually buy.

That's the real reason to read anthologies; to be introduced to the new.

The Revolt of the Philosophers of Fomalhaut - by Phaedra Weldon.

91/100 - Angles are sent to Earth to kill.  Yup to kill.  This rubs our angelic narrator the wrong way and we discover with him what is going on and how to deal with it.

You know what?  This was quite a compelling story.  I enjoyed it and could see it on an episode of the Twilight Zone.  Not the old one but a new 21st century version of the show.  Putting this story to a visual medium would be interesting.

 http://www.phaedraweldon.com/

Marvelous Contrivances of the Heart - by Cat Rambo.

92/100 - Another quiet, elegant story about two people who have their own problems. An obsessive husband and a deeply sad, frustrated wife.

An then something strange happens and the entire story takes on a sinister feeling. 

http://www.kittywumpus.net/blog/

The Flower of the Tabernacle  - by Annie Reed 

93/100 - This collection is turning into something unexpected.  I was sure it would be a collection of genre stories but it's looking like something much more compelling and heavy.

This on js a straight up police detective story.  I was reminded of Lawrence Block in the telling of the discovery of a dead woman in a church.  Murder? Suicide? Something else?  This was a story very well told.

https://anniereed.wordpress.com/

Lost in the Tarnished Cube - by Thomas K. Carpenter

94/100 - A wizard buys a tower.  His mortgage is backed by a magical bank.  It comes due unexpectedly.  He must handle the penalty in his own way.

Sadly, this story did not work for me.

http://thomaskcarpenter.com/

The 2015 Short Story Advent Calendar editied by Michael Hingston

As I write this it is January 1, 2016 but I will post it in 2015.  My challenge to read 100 short stories in 2015 was ignored for much of the year but it was in the last two months that I made an effort to accomplish it.

I've been reading a few collections in those months and have been reviewing the stories individually, in draft form, with the plan to publish them once I completed the collections.  So, in the effort to track my reading in 2015, below is a review of the stories read from the collections I have not completed.  As I finish the collections I will count them towards my 2016 goal.

Cool?

Thanks.

* * *

I read about this project a couple of months ago. I found it appealing because of it's limited print run, only 1,000 made, the project was created locally and it simply looked lovely.

1 Flamingo by Jessica Westhead - 

67/100 - This was a sad, touching, dreary story that left me wondering what I just read. 

Stories where nothing truly happens and characters are no different at the end then how they started make me feel like I've wasted my time. 

2 The Princess Doctrine by Chris Bachelder - 

68/100 - Part Princess Bride and partly a comical look at political decision making. 

In the world of the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale the king and his lords must decide on a plan of action to protect the newly born princess. 

Very entertaining. 

3 Bison Burgers by Lee Henderson - 

69/100 - Two adult siblings are invited to their father's newly purchased bison ranch.  They miss the turn to the ranch house so they park and decide to walk across the pastures in an attempt to find the house.  

It's during that walk where we learn about the brother and sister, father and mother.  Conversation, speculation and realization come together on the brisk Alberta foothills afternoon.

Lovely.

4 Flex by Naomi K. Lewis - 

70/100 - This was a weird little time travel story about an out a college under-achiever working for his girlfriend's brother.

The brother is working a strange angle with flex-time on a contract job.  What I liked about it was how the author managed to tell the second half of the story backwards.

5 Americas by Jason Lee Norman

71/100 - This was a touching collection of "facts" from Central American countries.  I use quotes because I am not sure of any if these fascinating points, some sound like legends, some like hearsay, are true.  I suspect they are, which I would make me happy, because the world is a strange and beautiful place and it is good to hear about it. 

6 No One Else Really Wants to Listen by Heather Birrell

72/100 - I had to force my way through this one.  Firstly, it was written as a series of posts to a chat room, a venue I cannot tolerate. Then the subject did not capture me, simply because I am male.  Yup, it was a chat room full of pregnant women. In my own defense, I am a father of two girls so I have some experience with the subject but it never happened to ME, you know?

7 Laplanders by Zsuzsi Gartner

73/100 - Here is another literary story where nothing really happens, except kind of.  Two young people meet on a trip to China.  They are very different from each other and her personality deeply affects him. They part after the trip but it is the boy who is changed by the encounter and from it others are also affected.

It was a rather dull story and yet somehow interesting.  Makes me think that even brief interactions can alter perceptions and that every person you meet can be important in your life.

8 When Orphans Glowed in the Dark by Heather O'Neil

74/100 - A heart-wrenching story about orphans returning from the war.  It is filled with tales about how these kids coped with their circumstances.

9 Wrestling by Rosemary Nixon

75/100 - Man I did not like this story.  Crazy, religious fanatics occupy the same room as serial killers in fiction for me.  Crazy people are crazy! There is no understanding them, just run away.  Thank goodness it was a short story; if it was a novel I would have thrown it across the room.

10 Two-Part Invention by Doretta Lau

76/100 - This was a cute story about a single woman who decides she would like to only date dead men.  In it she meets Glenn Gould.  Charming.

11 There Is Good in the World

77/100 - Man, there really is terrible stuff published everywhere.  I hated this one; it made no sense and was just stupid.

12 Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus by Eliza Robertson

78/100 Again, another bullshit story where a man has a nothing life and does nothing with a future that looks like he'll continue to do nothing.  What is the point of this thing?

13 Jobbers by Spencer Gordon

79/100 Finally a decent story.  A sad story of two kids coping with a dysfunctional family situation by pretending to be WWF professional wrestlers.  Touching.

14 Valerie's Bush by Nancy Jo Cullen

80/100 - An interesting story about how a "hair cut" can lead to a life change and a letting go of the past.  I liked it.

15 God Loves Hair by Vivek Shraya

81/100 - A touching story of a young Indian boy growing up in the neighbourhood of Millwoods, Edmonton, struggling to fit in and to understand and accept his own sexuality.  Coming of age is confusing and difficult.

16 The Story of Patricia

82/100 - A shepherd boy tells stories to his oxen.  They don't understand what he is saying but they ate very interested.  Seems strange but somehow it works.

17 The Prize Jury by C. P. Boyko

83/100 - What fun.  It really spoke to the world of literary fiction, novelists and literary prizes.  It was, funny, sad, enlightening and infuriating all at once. Very well done.

18 Statistical Abstract for My Hometown, Spokane, Washington/Addendum by Jess Walter

84/100 - A fabulous story. Written in bullet points I could not help but relate to everything the author said.  Spokane is much like Edmonton in so many ways.  The Addendum was the best part of it.

19 Robin by David Whitton

85/100 - A heart-thumping read.  We hear what is going through a young woman's mind as she plunges to her death from a seventh story balcony.

20 A Luckless Santa Claus by F. Scott Fitzgerald

86/100 - First published in 1912 it is still fresh and funny and relevant to today.  It's also the first Christmas story in the collection.

21 Raccoons by Russell Smith

87/100 - Yikes! Men can be so stupid.  Here is a man trying to end an affair while trying to cover it up from his family.  It as very well done. You just know the whole thing will blow up in his face.

22 What Tells by Jacqueline Baker

88/100 -  Yet another navel-gazing, nothing-happens and nothing-changes story about a normal, dysfunctional-feeling family going out for a picnic.   God another waste of my time.

23 The Pigeon Cove Festival of Lights by Kevin Wilson

89/100 - I really liked this one.  It had the feeling of being a fable.  All the families of a cul-de-sac decorate their homes with increasing amounts of lights, turning the little street into a tourist attraction.

24- How I Saved Christmas by Richard Van Camp

90/100 - This one was a bit off kilter until I found the voice of the narrator.  A young high-schooler trying to cope with the realities of living in a small community in NWT.  Here we learn how he himself has learned to cope and how he convinces a local to continue being Santa Clause for the yearly festivities.

This is where I ended in the collection.  Christmas was upon me and I had no time to complete it.  I will soon read and review the last story in the box.

25 Rock Crystal by Adalbert Stifter

Xx/100 -  

Star Wars Journey to the Force Awakens: High Noon on Jakku by Landry Q. Walker - A short story review.

66/100

What fun!

This was an old-fashioned wild-west stage coach bank heist story.

This time it involves a rogue droid named CZ-1G5 as the primary suspect.  There are chases, shoot-outs and even a stand-off between the good guy and the bad guy.

I loved it.

Even though it was set in the Star Wars universe it could have been played out in any genre.

I don't know if it helped me understand the new movie in any way.  The previous short did that very well by using a setting from the movie in it's narrative.  This one was so generic that it did not matter that it was a Star Wars story.

So, if it's purpose was to fill out the movie, it did not accomplish that.  But as pure entertainment it sure was a fun read.

Recommended.

Landry Q. Walker

Star Wars Journey to the Force Awakens: The Crimson Corsair and the Lost Treasure of Count Dooku by Landry Q Waker - A short story review

65/100

Now this is what I'm talking about.

It's a tough, gritty and funny story set in a strange, dangerous world.

As the title suggests it's an adventure tale of hidden treasure. What makes this so much fun is that it expands things from the new Star Wars VII movie; in the trailer we see a crashed star destroyer on a desert planet.  In this quick read we learn which ship it is, why it crashed and what is supposedly on board.

The author found entertaining ways to introduce characters and ending them in quick succession.

It is not written to be taken too seriously, after all Star Wars does have a sense of humour and the author took the opportunity to tell a fun story without venturing into farce.  By the end you've had a small taste of a very large universe and you've been able to fill in a bit of the story.

Now when you see that crashed ship you won't just think that's a cool background but you'll know how it came to be.  That is the ultimate value of reading it.

Well done.

The author's website is here:  http://landrywalker.blogspot.ca/

Landry Q Walker