Faith Among Shadows

in
Faith Among ShadowsFaith Among Shadows by Malcolm Leal
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When I heard about this book I figured it would be an inspirational story about this man's journey to the LDS church... well it is, but it focuses on the journey. It reads like a spy novel, giving account after account of missions with flashes back to his grandmother while he was growing up and wisdom she learned from the Bible.

If you are LDS, it might not be for you... he sees some 'crazy brain-washed' Elders through a sniper rifle scope, then you don't hear about the LDS church again until the very end of the book and then it's just a brief mention with a few pages of testimony to end the book.

Great read either way!

View all my reviews

Shocked by the Bible: The Most Astonishing Facts You've Never Been Told

in
Shocked by the Bible: The Most Astonishing Facts You've Never Been ToldShocked by the Bible: The Most Astonishing Facts You've Never Been Told by Joe Kovacs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

While this text is quite informative for those that haven't read the bible cover to cover... it is pretty lacking on anything 'shocking', 'astounding', or 'facts you've never been told'.

Would make a great gift though for young-adults to spark an interest in the bible, or anyone for that matter. Would also be a great gift for people that make a lot of assumptions and assume things in movies and Christmas songs MUST be in the bible... might open their eyes. However, for anyone with at least an elementary understanding of the contents of the books in the Bible, won't bring much new to the table.

Joe Kovacs did a great job writing the text however, and even if you consider yourself an armchair expert (or an actual expert) on the Bible, it will still prove to be an entertaining read.

View all my reviews

Alibi Jones: Vacation (The Adventures of Alibi Jones)

in
Alibi Jones: VacationAlibi Jones: Vacation by Mike Luoma
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I first discovered Mike's writing with the Vatican Assassin books way before Charlie Sheen tried to claim HE was the Vatican Assassin. I immediately fell in love with the books and have been telling everyone I know about them ever since. After that series he continued on with Alibi Jones, another great read (or listen).

After Alibi Jones there was a void, I didn't have anything from Mike to read or hear. Enter this short. A great little spacer short to compliment his full-length spacer novels. I can't say much about this novel without including spoilers so I'll just say if you want a great (and cheap) spacer novel/taste of Mike's work go ahead and give this a read, you'll love it! Once you are satisfied with this purchase, go and check out his other books!

View all my reviews

Vatican Assassin

in
Vatican Assassin (Vatican Assassin Trilogy #1)Vatican Assassin by Mike Luoma
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Alright first let me ask a question. Do you like Heinlein, Asimov, Clarke, Robinson, Niven, Hamilton? If you like any or all of those authors and their works, you'll like this series too. A great spacer trilogy that gives you a little of everything you'd want and at times makes you wonder if you are reading some lost work by Clarke, Asimov, or Heinlein but at the same time having a distinct flair that is Mike Luoma. Check this trilogy out, then read past it in the same world with the Alibi Jones stories.

View all my reviews

Empire of the Gods

in
Empire of the GodsEmpire of the Gods by David Stag
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An absolutely great book. As a previous reviewer said, this book is wonderful for a first time author. One can tell that a great deal of passion went into crafting this story, you truly can tell Stag appreciates good sci-fi and wanted to make his mark on the genre.

Upon first reading about the book I was hoping to be in for something along the lines of Heinlein, Asimov, Clarke, Peter F. Hamilton... something good that I could really get into and find myself falling for the characters. Well, this book did just that... Linus is a character that almost anyone could relate to, he's a scared young man in an overwhelming situation.

I don't particularly want to go into any details as I'm not a fan of spoilers, be they unintentional or not so just take my word for it and read this if you like any of the authors I previously mentioned. I truly hope this author continues to write as I want to see far more from his mind.

View all my reviews

How to Script for Games

in
How to script for gamesHow to script for games by Brent Knowles
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The last games I ever coded for were circle MUDs, heavily modified circle MUDs... in fact I designed a custom language system for one and built 10k+ unique rooms in some custom zones... wow, games today were always boggling to me. Grabbed this title, gave it a read... I'm not as intimidated by modern gaming now and think I might have to give coding a 'modern' game just for fun! Pick this title up!!!

View all my reviews

Bill Smith Goes to College

in
Bill Smith Goes to CollegeBill Smith Goes to College by David Stag
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The book starts with a kid arriving to college for his first classes as a freshman, he quickly gets shock after shock of strange and curious things that are the college life. I'd say the book was outlandish and unbelievable but in fact just about every thing in it is par for the course at a typical public college from the dorm arrangement to the nonsensical bureaucratic machine that is the higher learning institution. Not a long read but left me smirking a time or two.


View all my reviews