Finished CAPTAIN'S MEMORIES

 

Perhaps as much as a thousand years after the annihilation of all technology on Earth as well as much of much of the population by the nova of Betelgeuse, the Earth is expanding to terraform Mars, the moon, and also asteroids they have moved into Earth orbit from the asteroid belt.  Captain Susan Pearce has spent most of her life working on this effort and now is teaching new cadets in the use of ships to manipulate those asteroids as the project continues.  Using that format, many of Henry Melton's stories are strung loosely together which show us how this was done and how it is impacting lives.  Fascinating.  The technology explanations are beyond me often, but the substance is highly readable.

I have now started Harvest Season by Melanie Lageschulte.  After being fired from her big city job as a consultant in an advertising firm, Melinda's mom has asked her to come and help run her uncle's store in the small town in Prosper after his heart attack.  She finds a farm she can take care of in the owner's absence for very low rent and has spent the summer in the hamlet of Prosper, Minnesota.  Now autumn is coming on, and her life is still very much up in the air with her uncle and the farm owner slated to return sometime soon.  In the meantime the small town prepares for winter and so does Melinda.

Finished MOON HUNT

 

This is the third of four books in the Cahokia series.  I have now read them all, but accidently read the last two out of order.  As in most series novels, they can all be read alone...each has a separate adventure--only the setting and some of the characters continue.  I have enjoyed all of the books by these authors.  This one was more steeped in superstition (religion to them) than the others, but I love this kind of thing.  I also love the characters and character interaction and in these books, setting is practically another character.

I have now begun a book of short stories by Henry Melton.  Though they are short stories, they are about the same subject--his Project Saga which started with Star Time.  This book is set maybe several hundred years after the apocalypse caused by Betelgeuse going nova.  Since that time, Earth has evolved into several kingdoms which developed a world court.  They are now terraforming several asteroids which they have moved into Earth orbit as habitats for a growing population.  At it's beginning, the world court is meeting at a space station orbiting the Earth.  Two of their children are exploring and are in the observation arm when that arm suddenly breaks off and begins to drift away.

Finished two books and have started a new one.

 

Our internet has been out all week.  I think something froze/ broke with the weather here in Dallas, TX.

So,  I have a couple of books to report on.  This Simon Canderous series is what I called tongue-in-cheek and by that I mean a similar roller coaster ride to the Indiana Jones movies or Star Wars.  Simon is a wise cracker humorist in dark situations, which he has in common with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the new fun series on Sci-Fi--Resident Alien (title character doesn't know he is funny) which gets funnier each week. This is the first time we have encountered vampires in this series, and I do like quirky vampires.  I've been enjoying this series and will buy more.

I have now started You Don't Own Me, Under Suspicion # 6 by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke.  I enjoy this series very much.  This time a young woman is under suspicion of having killed her husband (or having him killed) six years ago, but the police never found enough evidence to arrest her.  Her in-laws are adamant that she is guilty and have come to Laurie Moran at Key News to ask her to prove it on her Under Suspicion tv show.  This requires even more than the usual diplomacy on Laurie's behalf to get all parties to agree to be interviewed on camera

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And now I am reading Moon Hunt, another Novel of North America's Forgotten Past.  The first part of the book is occupied with the politics of Cahokian life, completely saved from boredom by Seven Skull Shield, thief and rogue who works as one of our protagonist's spies.  His antics often make me laugh out loud, and his dog is a great match for him.  I have only gotten to the actual beginning of the plot now, but I have been thoroughly entertained.

Finished UNDER THE DRAGON'S TAIL

 

I first discovered these stories on Ovation Channel under the name The Artful Detective.  Now they are simply Murdoch Mysteries.  These are procedurals set in the late 1800's and early 1900's.  Think about how little detectives had then to help in comparison to what they have now.  In these, we follow Murdoch as he solves crimes using his observations (not as much like Sherlock Holmes, but rather of behavior and reactions.)  I enjoyed this one more than I did the first (this is the second), I think because it dealt sensitively with women's issues.  Of course, woman author.

Now I have started Dead Matter, by Anton Strout, the third of his Simon Canderas books.  Simon works with the Department of Extraordinary Affairs in New York City.  He has a special talent to see a thing's history by touch.  With people, he also can see their thoughts.  He wears gloves all the time....except while working.  The books are tongue-in-cheek humor with lots of action.  So far Simon has encountered a huge daemon in a grocery store and a hoard of murderous ghosts in a graveyard and I am only on page 40.

 

 

 

Finished CRIMSON DEATH

 

Wow this was a long book.  And I was wrong.  In looking at it I assumed it would have a complicated plot/adventure.  But it took more than half the book to even get to the adventure part.  Prior to that, it was about complicated relationships.  Now, I find that interesting...character and relationships, and this author gives me lots of them.  When the adventure did get started, however, it did become exciting in an edge of the seat kind of way.  Of course I knew Anita would survive--there is a next book--but how she was going to do it was a mystery as well as which of her inner circle would survive.

 

I have now started Under the Dragon's Tail, the second of the Detective Murdoch series.  I like the way Maureen Jennings introduces each character before she begins the mystery.  We learn a little about each character, although we will learn more as we go on.  We also learn a little bit more about Detective Murdock in each book.  Right now, a woman is found dead in her house, a victim of an obvious accident.  Of course, we readers of mysteries know it will most likely turn out to be murder....

 

Finished THE LOVING CUP, book 10 of the Poldark series

 

I think each of these books is better than the last.  This had beautiful moments, quiet moments, funny moments, and seriously tense moments.  These books are a joy to read.

I am now about to start another Anita Blake book (#25).  This one appears to be as long as the last book I read, so I may get further behind on my challenge (55 books this year), but I do enjoy these books and I've learned that the longer ones are the best.

Finished HOME

 

Surprisingly long and complete.  During Julie's early years, she was in vaudeville which prepared a huge number of our actors, singers, and especially comedians for a life on Broadway, TV, and movies.  But Julie takes the time to introduce us to all the people she met along the way--famous or not--and describes them all interestingly and lovingly.  Even the people whose tempers were "iffy", she enjoyed what was good about them--she describes them at their worst, but waxes poetic about the things she loves about them.  She comes across the same as she does in most of her movies.

I have now started The Loving Cup, the tenth book in the Poldark series.  It starts with Geoffrey Charles Poldark coming from the war in Europe (fighting Napoleon) with his new wife.  He stops at Falmouth where he visits his Aunt Verity and Uncle Andrew.  His plan is to stop by his step father's home to meet George's new wife and introduce him his.  Then to go home to Trenwith which has fallen into disrepair.  Not an easy few days ahead of him.