I am currently reading the science fiction book , The Human Division by John Scalzi. I have also checked out another sy-fi book The Soldier by Neal Asher. Additionally, I also have books by Greg Bear and Stephen  Baxter on my “to be read” shelf. So I have decided to create a new challenge! My June and July Other Worlds Challenge. The goal is to spend the next two months reading Science Fiction books.

Hmm, as I sit here thinking about this challenge, I wonder if I have created it as a way to get away from this world that I  mcurrently live in. One which in fact seems like an other world horror show?

In addition to the books listed above, I also have several science fiction books on my Kindle that I want to read.

E.K. Takes on the Classic Works of Clifford Simak

Finally, one of my 2018 Reading Challenges is to read  books by classic science fiction writers whose books I haven’t read. One of those writers is Clifford Simak

From Amazon:

During his fifty-five-year career, Clifford D. Simak produced some of the most iconic science fiction stories ever written….

Simak was best known for the book City, a reaction to the horrors of World War II, and for his novel Way Station. In 1953 City was awarded the International Fantasy Award, and in following years, Simak won three Hugo Awards and a Nebula Award. In 1977 he became the third Grand Master of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and before his death in 1988, he was named one of three inaugural winners of the Horror Writers Association’s Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Without Simak, science fiction would have been without its most humane element, its most humane spokesman for the wisdom of the ordinary person and the value of life lived close to the land.” —James Gunn

“To read science-fiction is to read Simak. The reader who does not like Simak stories does not like science-fiction at all.” —Robert A. Heinlein

So today I put in a request to check out Way Station from my library. I also purchased the e-book version of the Nebula Award nominated All Flesh is Grass for a whole $1.99.

As I was finishing this post this thought crossed my mind. What will I do if  an author, whose work I can’t wait to read releases a book in June or July? I read it ,duh! But I just checked and there’s good news. Two of may favorite authors Karin Slaughter and  William Kent Krueger won’t be releasing their new books until August. So it’s off to Other Worlds !!!

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How to Tackle My March-April  “to be read” pile – Part 1

So over the last several weeks new books have become available at my library. As a result I have been swapping out books, returning some books read, others have been returned unread. The unread ones were returned because I know I won’t get to them now. The bottom line is I now have eight books on my “to be read” pile from the library. Here is a rundown of the books starting with the books I’m currently reading.

Currently Reading

I am currently reading two of the books. They are Cutting Edge by Ward Larsen and Dark Sky from Mike Brooks. I have previously read books from both authors.

Cutting Edge

Ward Larsen is the author of the David Slaton series which I discovered last year. I read the first three books in the series last year. Book four is scheduled to be released August 18, 2018. It’s an exciting series.So I’ll be waiting for Assassin’s Run

Cutting Edge is a stand alone thriller featuring Trey DeBolt a Coast Guard rescue swimmer who is thought to have died in a failed rescue attempt in Alaska. He was rescued and taken to a secret facility where he was operated on “to make him better”, and once again thought to be dead. But he was saved and nursed back to health by a nurse who was to take him to the morgue.

Soon though there has been an order to an assault time to take him out! And now DeBolt is on the run and the only thing he has is what they did to make him better. He now can call up any bit of information he wants and sees it in his eye!!

So far so good!

Check Out Cutting Edge at Amazon or Goodreads

Dark Sky

The second book is Dark Sky from Mike Brooks. This is the sequel to Dark Run. Publishers Weekly called Dark Run a “terrific debut”.

The series features Captain Ichabod Drift, his ship the Keiko, and his crew. In this installment Drift and his merry band of smugglers have signed on for a new smuggling job to a mining planet. Of course the seemingly easy job may not be as easy as it appears. Was there really any doubt?

SF Book Reviews writes the following about Dark Sky....

“Brook’s talent lies in his ability to create well-developed and likeable characters…Dark Sky is fantastic. It blends character and humour in an expansive and enjoyable space adventure that leaves you wanting more.”

Check Out Dark Sky at Amazon or  Goodreads

In part two of this post series I will review the other six books on my library “to be read”  pile and the order in which I may attack them!

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Originally posted on January 18, 2017. Updated October 2025 with new links, images, and reflections.

The Background

Reading the Lazarus War :Atefact was a return to the years when I read a lot of Science Fiction. Here’s how I tried to get back……

Back in the 70s and early 80s I read a fair amount of science fiction. I read several books by Robert Heinlein, some Arthur C. Clarke, Frank Herbert, James P Hogan, Orson Scott Card and others.

Since then I’ve read the odd science fiction book here and there.  Among my favorites were the books of John Scalzi,, particularly the Old Man’s War series! In 2015  I added a Science Fiction Challenge to my other Reading Challenges. My goal was to read 12 science fiction books. I made it 3/4 of the way there, reading 9 books. Last year I reduced the number of sci-fi books to 6 i guess I figured I could make that goal easily! Wrong! I only read 1 book!

Anyway, this year I raised the goal back to 12 books. I know I already have several sci-fi books on the Kindle that I want to read! The whole point of the opening is that I have already matched last years total of sci-fi books read! The fourth book read for 2017 is The Lazarus War: Artefact  by Jamie Sawyer. And I know I  will surpass my 2017 sci-fi reads because I can’t wait to read The Lazarus War:Legion book two in the series!!

The Lazarus War: Artefact

The Lazarus War:Artefact  is just what  Jack Campbell, author of the Lost Fleet novels calls it

“a gripping read that moves at warp speed.”  

The lead character in the story is Captain Conrad Harris who leads a four-person team of simulants into battle against The Krell a fearsome and deadly alien race.

After returning from another mission where their simulant bodies die, Harris and his crew are sent on a deadly mission into the maelstrom, home of the Krell. Their mission is to find and rescue a research team that the Alliance has not had contact with for over a year! The research team was sent to the planet Helios to study a strange Artefact. The Artefact is huge monolithic structure on the planet’s surface that seems to have a strange effect on the Krell. It draws them to it like a month to a flame. But yet seems to drive them crazy!

The mission turns deadly when the Krell destroy the ship transporting Harris’ and his crew. Harris and his crew  survive, making it to the planet.Now they face the long odds of saving the research team and getting off of the planet without being killed by the Krell! In addition, the Artefact may provide Harris a key to finding the love of his life, who was lost in the Maelstrom!!

Bottom-Line 

The Lazarus War: Artefact was a five-star book for me!! It has everything I love in a science fiction book. Artefact is fast-paced action-packed story, with deadly aliens and lots of questions to be answered.  What is the purpose of the Artefact?  Why did the research center lose touch with the Alliance? And most importantly how the hell will they get off of Helios alive?

I also enjoyed the simulant technology. Captain Harris and his crew transfer from their real bodies to their enhanced bigger and more powerful simulant bodies to fight the Krell. Their real bodies remain suspended in a liquid on their ship.The squad members feel themselves die when their simulants are killed. But they are then extracted back into their real bodies and live to fight again.Because he has died and been resurrected so many times, Conrad Harris has earned the nickname Lazarus .

In an interview included in the back of the novel Sawyer describes the simulants as an extension of our current drone warfare.  Sawyer is intrigues by the fact that by day pilots located in Colorado are fighting wars in countries that they may have never set foot in. Then they return to their home at night  and lead a normal life.

So summarizing I enjoyed everything about Artefact. The fast paced action packed story, the main characters and the interplay between Harris and his squad. Additionally, the story left you wanting more!

I’ll leave you with the words of Neil Asher another Sci-Fi writer whose work I have enjoyed over the last couple of years….

“Alien biomechs… terrorism, subterfuge and traitors…starshipssporting particle beam weapons,  railguns the size of skyscapers. laser batteries, missles. This dear readers is good stuff!

Update: I confess The Lazarus War Book : Two:Legion has been on my TBR shelves since around the time I wrote this post. Maybe it’s time to read it and other books by Jamie Sawyer Ya’Think!

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Links
Hachette Book Group
Goodreads
Amazon

Fantastic Fiction

About – Jamie Sawyer

Jamie Sawyer was born in 1979 in Newbury, Berkshire. He studied law at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, acquiring a master’s degree in human rights and surveillance law. Jamie is a full-time barrister, practising in criminal law. When he isn’t working in law or writing, Jamie enjoys spending time with his family in Essex. He is an enthusiastic reader of all types of SF, especially classic authors such as Heinlein and Haldeman.More

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Book 10 of 2011 was Patrick Lee’s The Breach.

The Breach is the first book of what’s now a two book series featuring Travis Chase, Paige Campbell and the Breach. The second book, which I read first is Ghost Country. The book is an action adventure book with some sci-fi thrown in.

The Breach itself is an anomaly, like a ripe in space, through which entities are sent to Earth from some other vastly more intelligent world. The entity that is the focus of this book is The Whisper.

The Whisper knows all and it’s mission is to cause trouble and in the book it certainly does! From the opening chapter when a plane carrying the Whisper and the First Lady of the United States goes down and the Whisper is stolen, to the last pages where the home of the Breach Border Town run by a group known as Tangent is attacked the action is fast and furious with lots of twists and turns.

I really liked both of the books and I’m looking forward to more books featuring the likable team of Chase and Campbell!

“It’s all here: brilliantly devious enemies; nifty, innovative gadgets and weaponry; hang-on-to-your-hat action; and razor-sharp plot twists aplenty.”
—Publishers Weekly (read the full review here)

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From the cover:  “In a word: Brilliant…..left me breathless and awed – James Rollins

“Wow! Double wow! Starkly original Ghost Country will make Asimov and Heinlein cheer with the angels. The techno-thriller meets sci-fi and the rsult is mind-blowing” Stephen Coonts

I agree the book was great and the action kept me turning pages quickly! I enjoyed the characters and my only regret is that I now have to go BACK and read The Breech!!!

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