It's been a while since I read science-fiction, or teen fiction, and now I think I'm properly hooked. With both of these incredibly fun and thrilling rides, I may have decided to stay on the young adult or teen fiction roller coaster of fun for just a little while longer.

The Diabolic is a brilliantly designed story of a young woman who is genetically engineered to be a protector, to fully embody all areas of defense, strength, intelligence, and cunning, in order to protect the one she's assigned to. But when Nemesis has to take the place of the one she's to protect, quite a different path is created for everyone as Nemesis suddenly begins to conflict with the feelings of her duty to protect Sidonia, and her newfound feelings that were not programmed in her.

I really got caught up in this story and enjoyed every second of it. Each page was a complete ride from start to finish, and I was intrigued by this character, Nemesis, who seemed robotic in fight-protect scenes, but felt an internal battle when her own emotions began to creep up on her. I would have wished for more of that developed, more moments when maybe she could have fallen down that rabbit hole for just a second to be fully encased in feelings that were not full love, or full hatred, or full protection, but were ambivalent, or fully geared towards a friendship more than what was programmed. Regardless, that's just me. I loved the story overall!

The Empress is the sequel to The Diabolic, and I must admit that

while I am a little over trilogies, I sort of felt sad that this one was just over when I turned that last page. I wanted even more of Nemesis' addicting new world and thrilling chapters, her new fight she would have to carry on against the one she once truly loved. I wanted more, and I will without a doubt beg for a third installment so I can get my ample fill of this futuristic science-fiction world so filled with religious hypocrisy and zero religious and scientific balance. This was a very well-thought out and written story and Nemesis truly became an interesting character with each page - her struggle between being a cold and emotionless person to one confused with the occasional feeling and sense of new duty was enticing and interesting. I yearn for one more in the series. Does anyone know if there are more?

FTC Disclosure: I checked both books out from my local library in Jacksonville, Florida.

About the Author 

S. J. Kincaid was born in Alabama, grew up in California, and attended high school in New Hampshire. She interned for a politician in Washington, DC, and received degrees from universities in Illinois and Ohio, but it was while living beside a haunted graveyard in Edinburgh, Scotland, that she realized she wanted to be a writer. Several years, several manuscripts, and several jobs later, Ms. Kincaid now lives in California.

Visit the author:

• On her website
• On Facebook
• On Twitter
• On Instagram
• On Tumblr

If you know me even a little bit, you'll know that I am an X-File fan, and have been since I was in college many moons ago. I can't imagine a year going by without watching at least one episode of partners Mulder and Scully, aided by the ever-dependable yet conflicted and awesome Assistant Director Skinner, take on the dark side of monsters and aliens to uncover the truth. Over the past few months, I took a trip down memory lane with each episode of the nine seasons through Netflix, catching up just in time to hunker down with the cold weather and watch the first new episode in sixteen years to premiere tonight. Has it really been that long?

The magic that was this show just doesn't seem to be captured in any other series that walks the line of the spooky and mythical. Even shows like "Fringe," or "Lost," both of which I completely enjoyed, still can't quite match the exact fervor, intensity and cult-like fandom that The X-Files produced. Having watched many shows of the same genre, and over the past few years especially, and then by binge-watching all nine seasons of The X-Files reminded me of just that. There's just nothing like science-fiction, or fantasy fiction, or paranormal fiction, like The X-Files created.

While I'm a complete Mulder and Scully fan, I'm still sad they couldn't extend the show a few more years with Agents Doggett and Reyes. Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish really did those roles justice, without taking away anything from the original cast. They were honest to their own characters, finding the humility and goodness of their torn pasts to piece it together with each other, in a somewhat similar "maybe they'll get together" kind of hint to the fans.

Tonight will mark the show's return in a "hit-making" way, according to online rumors, but especially as even stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson have admitted needed to be done, because of the way the 2008 film didn't seem to fit with the overall flow and spirit of the show. This is expected to be an incredible two-night premiere (tonight and tomorrow) for the show's return to the small screen. I'm one of the millions of thrilled fans who will be watching and falling in love with the show all over again. I'm hoping that it will spark many returns for as long as it can last.

Are you watching tonight? I'm planning to live tweet, but I don't want to be distracted too much from tweeting to not focus on the show. Throughout the day today, I just couldn't sit still, so I even made (or, tried to make) a cake in honor of tonight's festivities. Don't laugh.

Nothing says "get swept up in a completely awesome and outrageous (and oftentimes hilarious) sci-fi story" like when you start any Peter Clines' novel, and The Fold is no different. I spent every single second I could listening to this book and within a day and a half over one weekend, I was finished.

Mike is just a regular high school teacher. Please keep it that way. Don't get into his life and rummage around in it and then get him wrapped up in some sort of drama he wants no part of. Just don't. He likes things the way they are, and that's just how it is.

When an old buddy of Mike's pulls him into a DARPA secret time travel government project called The Albuquerque Door whose team insists that it's safe to travel through it, Mike's true and intense intelligence finally comes out, whether he wants it to or not. After all, when you're talking about folding time and space so that you can travel hundreds of feet in an instant, how safe can it really be? With unending energy on each page, The Fold has become one of Peter Clines' best efforts of science fiction, time travel, alternate universes and more. This is an absolute ride of fun, and I have yet to be disappointed by any of his work. Peter Clines, one of my favorite authors, no doubt about it.

And oh by the way, Ray Porter was the narrator. We all know he's awesome because he also narrated 14 (also a Peter Clines' novel), and Haruki Murakami's What I Talk About When I Talk About Running. Click here to listen to a sample from The Fold.

FTC Disclosure: I downloaded this book through my Audible.com membership.

About the Author
Peter Clines is the author of numerous short stories, Ex-Heroes, Ex-Patriots, –14–, The Eerie Adventures of the Lycanthrope Robinson Crusoe. For a more perfect bio to read, click here.

Visit the author:

• On his website
• On his blog
• On Facebook
• On Tumblr

About the Narrator

Ray Porter is an actor and casting director, known for Almost Famous (2000), Argo (2012) and The Runaways (2010).

I downloaded this on a complete whim and I'm so glad I did. I've been Netflix-binging all nine seasons of The X-Files in anticipation of their six-episode return to Fox in January, so sci-fi stories featuring aliens is sort of my thing right now.

Fear the Sky was awesome. Just AWESOME.

Earth is a prized commodity to the universe. It is one that in a very short period of time, millions of members of another race, an alien race, will come to take Earth from humans and use it for what they want. Without even wanting to take the opportunity to generate dialogue with humans, the plan is to come, take and destroy.

Before this happens, alien reconnaissance is planned. With agents disguised as human, who supersede all human intelligence and technology, they infiltrate and learn and report back on potential challenges and plan the eventual destruction of all humans.

When one man identifies an anomaly on a visual report of space, the partnership developed within a small but high-level group of people within the United States covering all areas from the military to the government begins, one that must be kept secret even from the President. After all, who would really believe that aliens were going to come to earth, or even that some were already here?

As this small team of devoted and dedicated patriots to the human race begin to investigate, plan, and ultimately defend, Fear the Sky becomes a powerhouse of a sci-fi story that I could not stop listening to. I wanted more - I wanted all of the trilogy released at once.

It is a story a little heavier on the science and technical side than I'm used to, but it was a phenomenal story that I need more of. My only wish was that the word "ignominious" was used less. That's it.

The reader was R.C. Bray, and we all know and love his work anyway. The link to the sample audio is here.

FTC Disclosure: I downloaded this from Audible.com via my monthly membership fee.

About the Author (from Goodreads)

Stephen Moss was born in England, but spent time as a child in wildly diverse places, including several years in Brazil, Belgium, and Malaysia.

He eventually settled in New York, but still travels avidly, something he uses as inspiration and input to his writing. Stephen is a fan of Hard SF by masters such as Iain M. Banks, Peter F. Hamilton and Orson Scott Card and the many fantastic writers creating masterpieces every year. 

His first series, The Fear Saga, combines his passion for Hard Science Fiction with his passion for travel. The three-part series takes place across the globe, from London to Brussels, Africa to Antarctica, the Hindu Kush mountains to the back streets of Tel Aviv. The few places in the books which Stephen hasn't been to in person he researches avidly, wanting to put his characters into the reality of their surroundings, and knowing that the settings for a story are as important as the individuals you then paint into them.

Visit the author:

• On Facebook
• On Goodreads
• On Amazon

About the Narrator

R.C. Bray is awesome and has narrated several books, but my favorite will always be The Martian.

Visit the narrator:

• On his website
• On Facebook
• On Twitter
• On YouTube
• On SoundCloud

UPDATE [01/15/16]: An earlier version of this review incorrectly identified a different narrator for the work. This has been corrected - and my apologies for the error!

Sometimes it's better to not read a single review of a book, or any synopsis of it before you decide to dive in. Sometimes, when you see flurries of excitement of a book on Twitter and Instagram, you should just pick it up immediately. And then when an old college buddy recommends the audio, you just go ahead and stop procrastinating.

Here's one thing that I feel is fairly consistent with every review I've seen since I finished the book: you can't really give anything away. It wouldn't be fair to write about one piece, one thing that makes this story so very, very unique from all the other ones that have come out. You don't want to spoil it one bit. Instead, you have to just say that it's about a little girl named Melanie who is very, very smart and she goes to school every single day and loves to learn about the world and her favorite teacher is Miss Justineau. And then you throw in the part that there is also a man in the military who picks Melanie up from her cell every morning, who very meticulously straps her into a chair, following a process so specific as to keep him far from her, who then takes her to a classroom filled with other children similarly held down in their chairs. You should probably also add that there is a very ambitious doctor, a completely disturbing sociopath who evaluates them, one by one.

And then you just have to write that the story is engaging, absolutely perfect for those who like extremely smart and uniquely driven characters, who enjoy twists that are unexpected and who fancy a tale of a young girl who is smarter than your smartest human out there.

This is an adventure told by an author with an imagination who has taken our current culture of a dystopian society and placed an excellent spin to it, and is voiced through narration in the audiobook by Finty Williams, who is just powerful and PERFECT for every role. From Melanie to Miss Justineau to Gallagher to the Sergeant, this audio is one of my favorites this year, no doubt about it.

Click here to listen to a sample from Audible.com.

FTC Disclosure: I downloaded this book through my membership with Audible.com

About the Author 

M.R. Carey is an author of comics, novels, and films, according to Wikipedia. I couldn't track down a website for him, but it seems he's fairly active on Twitter.

Visit him:

• On Twitter

I was completely surprised by this thoughtful and unique post-apocalyptic tale of young teenagers in the world since a massive explosion happened, an explosion so impacting and devastating that the world and people living in it would forever be changed. The new normal has become one in which bodies fused to metal or wood, or even other people or animals, has now been born.

In the nine years since the Detonations, Pressia and her grandfather struggle to live and make a life. One of Pressia's hands fused with the doll she was holding when the blasts occurred and now the doll's head has become one with her fist. Her grandfather fused with a metal fan which is now in his throat. In this new world they live in, everyone around them has had their bodies blended to something, or has been left with scars incredibly severe. No one is without blemish, unless you live in the Dome.

The Dome is hidden, filled with those who were unscathed and untouched by the blasts, protected on the very day the Detonations happened. They are known almost as a myth of an all-knowing entity, overseeing those who live outside the Dome, and who one day will come back and help those who were hurt. One day this will happen, but it's unknown when. For these nine years, the inhabitants of the Dome, also known as the Pures, have never ventured outside, and those who are fused or scarred beyond recognition, don't know the Dome's location.

Partridge is considered one of the Pures, a body perfectly clean and free of scars and marks, or fusions to objects. He is surrounded by people like him, and he does not know what awaits him outside of the Dome, but he is prepared to search for his mother. His decision to leave the Dome is unheard of and when he escapes and enters into a world where his pure and untouched face and body are so easily noticed, Pressia is the one who helps him. Along with Bradwell (fused to a bird) and El Capitan (fused with his brother), the journey begins. With unsettling and startling characters who at first might be unexpected, their disfigurements became a part of the landscape of this new world, "normalizing" it and making it unique and part of each character's personality. What a beautiful array of characters with so many incredible characteristic advantages and contributions to the adventure, and this story will stay with me for a while. I'm excited that this is a trilogy, so I'll be downloading the second installment soon.

The narrators were phenomenal. I should have realized this was going to be a homerun audiobook when I saw the list: Khristine Hvam, Joshua Swanson, Kevin T. Collins, and Casey Holloway. Khristine Hvam is the narrator for Daughter of Smoke and Bone and Days of Blood and Starlight, and she was awesome, so Pure is in extremely good company with this team. Click here to listen to an audio sample.

FTC Disclosure: I downloaded this book through my Audible.com membership.

About the Author (from her website)

Ah, there's a lot going on with this author! Such cool stuff. For her complete bio, visit her at the following sites:

• On her website
• On Facebook
• On Twitter

A few years ago, I read Wool Omnibus and immediately proclaimed it to be the best book I had read all year. The best. I still stand by that when I look at the list now. And thank you, Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings, for first posting about it!

And now I finally, FINALLY picked up books 2 and 3 and am kicking myself that I didn't read these in quick succession. Allow me to give you a brief review by saying you're missing out on all things incredible if you don't dive into this unique world.

I'm going to cheat a little bit and use a few lines of my review of the first installment to start:

I couldn't believe how sucked in I was. Each character was so thoroughly developed and the action so intense that I happily read the entire book on my iPhone. That means about 1200+ pages (screens?) that I flew through, desperate to know what happened next. It is one of the BEST books I have ever read in my LIFETIME, and is my absolute favorite book of the year. This, when released in print next year by Simon and Schuster, will be picked up on the day of release and will rest nicely on my bookshelf next to Stephen King's The Stand, Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian, Ken Follet's Pillars of the Earth, and other favorites that I always want to have at my fingertips. As many of you know, science fiction is not one I'm that used to, so I can easily assure you that if your reading preferences include political corruption, mystery, thrillers, suspense, love, and more, I highly recommend that you step outside of your boundaries and do a dual risk of reading a self-published tale and one that just happens to be labeled as science fiction. The bottom line? I LOVED THIS BOOK.

Where Wool describes a suspenseful period in the world of silos set underground, Shift goes back to the start and outlines how the silos were first envisioned, drafted, built, and ultimately inhabited. Donald, a young congressman with a friendship with a high-ranking senator results in Donald being called on to use his architectural skills and draft a "what if" scenario - if humans had to live underground, how would they do it? What would they live in? Donald, trusting and sensitive, could never have imagined that his ideas would be built, and once they are, that they would ever be used. The reason why is never fully explained to him. Why should it? This senator, so much like a father-figure, is his guide.

Shift encompasses three "shifts," work conducted by the same group over a period of many years, made possible by a simple pill created to erase the past and make mindless the workers to monitor and manage a world very different than what they ever previously lived in. While Shift was sometimes more tedious than Wool, it was a crucial puzzle piece in the overall series and can't be skipped. I would urge you, however, to not take years in-between books the way I did. It's worth it to go back to back.

And then Dust. Ahh. This beautiful installment captures the magic that was Wool and more so. It returns back to characters from Wool and places them in situations to engage with the characters from Shift, and it is awesome. Dust is what I remember Wool to be, and I keep shaking my head when I remind myself that these are self-published books (although Simon & Schuster did convince the author to release Wool in print, which brought a larger fandom). There is no big-five publisher responsible for editing any of it. This is the author, enveloping himself in such a unique world and delivering a knock-out punch to those who feel a self-published book is just not as good as one you'd pick up at the store. This entire series begs to differ with that argument, and wins. He isn't limited by the publishing world to release his books at a certain pace, and after a series of teams edit away the core of it. He writes how he wants to write and releases it whenever he wants to. He has complete control over it and for fans like me? It works because I can keep diving into these worlds whenever I want.

Hugh Howey's work is incredible. It makes no difference if you're a sci-fi or fantasy fan. His robust repertoire are stories that deal with regular people in unique worlds and situations. It's just right for someone who isn't used to these genres. Take a chance. Get his work. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Publisher of Shift: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

Release Date: 1/28/13

Publisher of Dust: CreateSpace

Release Date: 8/17/13

FTC Disclosure: I purchased and downloaded this story directly to my iPhone.

About the Author

Hugh Howey is the bestselling author of the self-published phenomenon that is the Wool series. He is also the author of the Molly Fyde series and a host of others that can be found by clicking here. He is currently on the trip of his life by sailing the boat of his dreams, which he plans to be on for at least the next decade. And he's writing. Thank goodness.

Hugh Howey is extremely active with his fans and on social media (and with sailing the world, I'd really like it if he got on Periscope, too!), so here are the links where you can visit the author:

• On his website
• On Facebook
• On Twitter
• On Instagram

My  Instagram post about The Martian audiobook is:

If you listened to The Martian by Andy Weir, narrated by R.C. Bray and you didn't like it, WE CAN NO LONGER BE FRIENDS.

 I really should just leave it at that.

Fine, so here's more. Mark Watney is the only member of a crew who survived a devastating dust storm on Mars after being the first man to walk on the red planet. His commander and the rest of the crew "confirmed" he had died and without risking more lives to secure his body and bring him back, they make the heart-wrenching decision to leave him. The only problem is that Watney did survive, and somehow he's got to figure out how to stay alive until rescue comes. And in the meantime, he should probably figure out how to communicate with them also so that they know he actually did make it through the dust storm. When I write "meantime," I should clarify that I'm speaking in days.... as in hundreds of days. Somehow, in those hundreds of days, Mark Watney has to keep his air supply going, feed himself, keep his electronics up to par, maintain his humor, and generally just NOT DIE.

Through intelligence, training, dedication, and absolute extreme humor, Mark Watney is one of the most engaging characters to get to know. With his journal and video logs, combined with life on earth responses and characters who ranged from the tight-assed (but completely understandable) PR specialist and the brilliant but relaxed research scientists, the audiobook version was a winner in every way. While there were more than enough moments that had me cracking up, the successful balance of scenes that made me hold my breath wondering if Watney would make it out of this one continued and I refused every excuse to take a break from listening. I'm sure this has been written already somewhere by someone much smarter than me, but this was Apollo 13 on Mars, and DAMN IT WAS AWESOME.

It's going to be a movie and Matt Damon will play Mark Watney. I think he's a PERFECT choice, along with the rest of the cast. I just hope and pray they stay true to the book's humor and sincerity.

The story is fantastic, R.C. Bray as the audiobook narrator is incredible, and the author rocked it. Matt Damon, there's a lot riding on your shoulders, my man. I'm pulling for you.

As I mentioned earlier, if you read The Martian or listened to the audiobook, and didn't like it, we really, really have to reconsider our friendship. #truthhurts

FTC Disclosure: I downloaded this audiobook via my Audible.com membership.

About the Author (from his website)

ANDY WEIR was first hired as a programmer for a national laboratory at age fifteen and has been working as a software engineer ever since. He is also a lifelong space nerd and a devoted hobbyist of subjects like relativistic physics, orbital mechanics, and the history of manned spaceflight. The Martian is his first novel.

I was a huge fan of Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go, and apparently, this is the sort of premise I like in my freaky, horror dystopian novels. Unwind, by Neal Shusterman is one heck of a story, told from the perspectives of three runaways who are to be "unwound" and will be "donating" their body parts in one fell swoop because their parents or guardians don't want them anymore. It's not just about organs in this future society, though, not heart or kidney transplants from accident victims. Now, no longer do you have to deal with that pesky and boring eye color, you can now purchase a new set of eyes from an "unwind" and have the color you want. It is freaky and it is disturbing, particularly in one scene at Happy Jack, a place where all the "unwinds" go to before they undergo the "chopping block." This story is of Connor, Risa, and Lev, as they come of age and run from the law, fugitives from a world that somehow turned into a society that doesn't considered being "unwound" as dying.

Connor is the troublemaker and his parents are done with him; Risa is an orphan and the orphanage is looking to cut costs, and Lev is the religious offering from his family, who has been preparing for this "special" moment his whole life. When Connor, Risa, and Lev cross paths as they run from their fates, with Lev as their hostage, they know they just have to make it until they reach their eighteenth birthday and then they are free.

This is a wild and unforgettable journey, one I won't soon forget. While at first, I wasn't sure about the narrator's intonation, at some point about an hour in, it seemed to *click" and either I got more into the story, or the narrator really got into the groove of it, relaxing the initial monotone, and really digging deeper into each characters' individual personalities, truly giving this story its deserved frightening tension and action-packed ride. By the end of this audiobook, I couldn't go anywhere without listening to it, and made up excuses to go on errands so I could listen to it in the car. I can't tell you anything about what happens at Happy Jack, an absolutely insane camp where the "unwinds" go before their operation is performed, but there is one scene... one scene that really is sticking with me and still freaks me out. And the fact that in this society, people truly believe that these kids aren't dead, but instead are in a "divided state," is just fantastically horror-filled and completely disturbing. And don't worry, the only political agenda is the extreme of a side, whichever side that may be, and it is always scary.

Don't give up on this audiobook because of the first hour or so; stick with it. The story is SO worth it, and I plan to download the rest of the trilogy. Even if there's that one scene at Happy Jack... I can't get that one out of my head at all.

Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Release Date: 11/1/09

Audio Time: 10 hours, 10 minutes

Narrator: Luke Daniels

Click here for an audio sample of Unwind by Neal Shusterman, narrated by Luke Daniels.

FTC Disclosure: I purchased this book from Audible.com

I read this for Stainless Steel Droppings' RIP IX Challenge.

About the Author

Neal Shusterman is an award-winning author who grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He is an author, director, and screenwriter, for such projects as "Goosebumps," and is in constant demand to speak at schools and conferences. The Unwind is a trilogy and I've heard is going to be made into a movie.

Visit the author:

• On his website
• On Facebook
• On Twitter

About the Narrator (from Goodreads)

Luke Daniels has performed at various repertory theatres around the country, with an emphasis on Shakespeare. His many audiobook credits range from action and suspense to young adult and adult fiction,including works by Philip Roth and John Updike. He currently resides in the Midwest.

Visit the narrator:

• On his website
• On Facebook
• On Twitter
• On Tumblr

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a wholly remarkable book. It has been compiled and recompiled many times over many years and under many different editorships. It contains contributions from countless numbers of travelers and researchers. The introduction begins like this: "Space," it says, "is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly hugely mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist, but that's just peanuts to space. Listen..." and so on. (p.53)

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams was my escape from all of the tragic news and social media debates over the past two weeks. I purchased the complete series in this ultimate guide and settled down on a rainy weekend for pure escapism, jumping into the famous first short novel, and successfully ran away from everything. My first thought, in-between bouts of giggles, was that I couldn't believe it was the very first time I've ever read this book. It's one of those realizations I wish I could go back in time and seriously tell my younger self to stop caring about who said what in school and just sit down and read this. Don't waste time, dive into the story and get ready to laugh away.

When Earth is destroyed to make way for an expressway in space, one earthling named Arthur Dent is saved by alien friend, Ford Prefect. Thrown out of one ship (I guffawed my way through the descriptions of why the poetry by aliens on that ship could result in stomach-turning moments) and then subsequently picked up by another ship, Arthur and Ford come face to... faces with Arthur's long-lost cousin, Zaphod Beeblebrox (er, semi-cousin) who happens to be the President of the Galaxy on his own mission. Riding along with Zaphod is a brilliant human woman named Trillion, a depressed robot named Marvin and a rather cheerful computer. Their eventual antics to uncover life's answers, a long-lost planet, and more, brought me to tears of laughter. As Arthur tries to understand and bumble through moments to understand the new world he's now in, while also mourning the loss of Earth, Douglas Adams takes you through a delightful romp in space with the most hilarious moments and events that could ever possibly occur.

I loved every page of the first installment. I learned about why a towel is the most important item to always carry, why "Don't Panic" is so important, and the answer, at least partially, to life, the universe and everything. I laughed out loud in several scenes and completely understood why this book is loved by many, even those who have reading interests that fall outside of science fiction. When family friends who are fans of contemporary fiction did a virtual foot stamp for me to read this, I needed no further encouragement. Thank you, my friends. This was absolutely hilarious and I cannot wait to read the rest.

What I love about science fiction written thirty or more years ago is reading their versions of what life and technology will be like in the future. I'm sure it's already been covered time and again by other readers and reviewers, so this will be redundant, but I love quotes like the ones below that clearly indicate smartphones, iPads, Nooks, and Kindles. Right?

For years radios had been operated by means of pressing buttons and turning dials; then as the technology became more sophisticated the controls were made touch-sensitive - you merely had to brush the panels with your fingers; now all you had to do was wave your hand in the general direction of the components and hope. (p.67)

Or, what about air bags?

Air cushions ballooned out of the walls in an instant as everyone was thrown against them. For a few seconds the inertial forces held them flattened and squirming for breath, unable to move. (p.86)

But, really, for me it was all about the depressed robot, Marvin.

"You think you've got problems," said Marvin, as if he was addressing a newly occupied coffin, "what are you supposed to do if you are a maniacally depressed robot? No, don't bother to answer that, I'm fifty thousand times more intelligent than you and even I don't know the answer. It gives me a headache just trying to think down to your level." (p.92)

I can't wait to read the next installment.

Publisher: Random House
Release Date: 2002 (first published in 1979)
Pages: 144 pages for the first book in the collection, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

FTC Disclosure: I purchased this book from my local independent bookstore in Norfolk, Virginia called Prince Books.

About the Author

Douglas Adams is the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series which originally started off as a radio series on the BBC in 1978. More than 15 million books in the US, UK, and Australia have been sold. He died much too soon in 2001 at the age of 49. The introduction by Neil Gaiman in this collection is a beautiful tribute.

Visit the author:

• On his website

I am quickly realizing that I need to pay more attention to my fellow bloggers out there. When Carl said this would be his favorite of the year, I screeched to a halt and thought, wha? A self-published tale? Really? Interest piqued and a tad bemused at the idea (please forgive my elitist tone) I downloaded Hugh Howey's Wool Omnibus and on a whim, opened it to read the first few chapters, fully expecting to not really get it. Instead, I was hooked. Instantly.

I haven't been this excited about a book in a long time. I haven't been this eager to read a book every chance I got in a long line at a checkout counter. I actually was excited when I knew I had to wait in the stores fighting holiday crowds. Or waiting in line to get coffee. Sitting at a bookstore and foregoing all the other books I was buying for family and instead whipping out my iPhone to read just a few more pages. When was the last time I did that? Honestly, I really can't remember.

Even though it's broken into five "short stories," I would rather describe it as five parts. Wool feels like one continuous tale about a society in the future forced to live in a silo buried underground because the air is so toxic that any who venture outside are poisoned, ultimately succumbing to their death. Living in a silo with over a hundred levels below ground consisting of all the necessary systems to function a society properly, people exist almost within a caste system with the "up-toppers" as the upper-class with a "view" of the outside and the down deep levels of the working class. Because no one can go outside for fear of death, only those who are found guilty of a crime of some sort are sent to "cleaning," which allows them to go outside with only one requirement: to clean the cameras and sensors which invariably get thick with grime and distort the feed of the images of the outside world back to the silo's residents. It is always a death sentence to be sent outside.

Wool 1 sets the stage of introducing the silo, its residents and overall systems, and Mayor Jahns, Sheriff Holston, Deputy Marnes, and the IT group led by Bernard. It's been three years since the Sheriff's wife was sent outside, and he's never come to terms with it. Because I don't want to give anything away, I'll just vaguely describe that the remaining sections of Wool Omnibus delve into more characters, events, and such breathtaking moments of complete suspense that the idea of leaving the book to do something else seems utterly unimaginable. Everything is so intensely real that quite frankly, it's set the standard on any books I pick up for a long while. I still can't get these characters out of my head and I want more. My understanding is that there are at least three more parts to this tale and I am eagerly awaiting their releases.

I couldn't believe how sucked in I was. Each character was so thoroughly developed and the action so intense that I happily read the entire book on my iPhone. That means about 1200+ pages (screens?) that I flew through, desperate to know what happened next. It is one of the BEST books I have ever read in my LIFETIME, and is my absolute favorite book of the year. This, when released in print next year by Simon and Schuster, will be picked up on the day of release and will rest nicely on my bookshelf next to Stephen King's The Stand, Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian, Ken Follet's Pillars of the Earth, and other favorites that I always want to have at my fingertips. As many of you know, science fiction is not one I'm that used to, so I can easily assure you that if your reading preferences include political corruption, mystery, thrillers, suspense, love, and more, I highly recommend that you step outside of your boundaries and do a dual risk of reading a self-published tale and one that just happens to be labeled as science fiction. The bottom line? I LOVED THIS BOOK.

Upcoming events to put on your calendar

• Simon & Schuster to release a print version in March 2013 in the United States. (Or, just buy it now.)
• Ridley Scott has optioned it for a film.

Others said:
Stainless Steel Droppings

Publisher: Broad Reach Publishing
Release Date: 4/6/12
Pages (screens?) on my iPhone: 1200+

FTC Disclosure: I purchased and downloaded this story directly to my iPhone.

About the Author

Hugh Howey is the bestselling author of the self-published phenomenon that is the Wool series. He is also the author of the Molly Fyde series and a host of others that can be found by clicking here. He currently lives in Jupiter, Florida with his wife, Amber, and his dog, Bella.

Visit the author:

• On his website
• On Facebook
• On Twitter

With my reading preferences continuing to lean towards the epic fantasy and science fiction genres, I'm excited to participate in The 2013 Sci-Fi Experience, brought once again to you by Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings. Over the past year I made a considerable number of changes, including not accepting the majority of review requests, and instead only reviewed the books I picked out for myself. The result was a much happier year in reading, without pressures. I'll definitely continue this ban on review requests simply because the blog has now become my "happy place" and I post only when I've reviewed a book that I've read, and not because I have a deadline to meet. This blog is a place I rest at when the work day is long.

Which means that when Carl has a reading event planned, it's never a challenge, just a chance to continue to do something different. I'm ready for the experience again and while I haven't picked specific books yet, I'm thinking Jules Verne, Edgar Rice Burroughs (I just watched the movie John Carter and had no idea that story came from a book written about a hundred years ago), Douglas Adams, and definitely more of Hugh Howey.  I also have a couple of George R.R. Martin sci-fi books that are signed by the author that I received sometime last year and have been meaning to get to.

Here's to a new year, my friends. Will you be trying something different in your reading preferences this year? Let me know if you plan to go outside of your comfort zone, your go-to selection of books, and try something "out there."

[Edited 8:38 am EST] I also noticed that there is a vintage sci-fi experience as well, so I'm definitely joining the Little Red Reviewer for her month of January with vintage sci-fi tales. And, in this case also, this is not-a-challenge. This is just for fun. I'm looking forward to it. Why not join along and try something new?

I make this commitment today: I will never again listen to a book while I am running if it requires complete and total focus and concentration on each and every single word. If I learn in advance that a book requires this much attention, plus so much, much more, I will consider it another form of exercise and will instead pick up the printed version.

One of two things happened for me with this book. Either I should only have read the printed format, or I am just too feeble-minded to understand the complexities, nuances, and brilliance of this novel.

Broken into six stories from different characters in multiple time periods, David Mitchell tackles the connection one life has to another, ultimately coming full circle to the initial start. Without question, this is an extremely intelligent story, and the attempt to interweave each tale is unique.

The Six Stories

The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing

Starting in the 19th century on a Pacific island, Adam Ewing is waiting for his ship to be repaired. While there, he meets a variety of people including Dr. Henry Goose and a slave from the peaceful Moriori tribe named Autua. Adam continues his personal documentation of his travels and while waiting for his ship, he begins to feel ill and Henry begins to take care of him.

This was a challenging introduction to the story. Written in convoluted nineteenth-century prose, I found it quite distracting with my concentration veering off a bit. It ends abruptly at the partial conclusion of Adam's journal entries, which had it not been for a note on Audible.com's site, I completely would have thought that I had a faulty copy. Apparently, David Mitchell designed it to be jarring, and he was successful with it.

Letters from Zedelghem

The story jumps to the 1930s and Robert Frobisher is in Belgium working with a famous composer. He writes letters to his lover Rufus Sixsmith, while simultaneously having an affair with the composer's wife. He finds the journal of Adam Ewing, but what he finds is incomplete.

I also found this story challenging in both the accent and the method of narration delivery, and considered taking a break from listening. I found the story interesting, but difficult to focus on.

Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery

Jumping to 1975 in California, Luisa Rey is a journalist with a tabloid newspaper, but wants to break out of this type of reporting. She begins an investigation into the local nuclear power plant and meets Rufus Sixsmith, who was the recipient of the letters in the previous story with Robert Frobisher. He reveals to Luisa that the plant is unsafe and she begins to pursue the investigation.

This jumped out as my favorite story thus far. Narrated by favorite Cassandra Campbell, I found this to be the easiest to understand and was the most engaged in the investigation Luisa was working on. I was heartbroken when the story shifted to the next tale as I wanted to hear more about Luisa.

The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish

Ah, Timothy Cavendish. A publisher with considerable financial problems in the present day, Cavendish's brother helps him escape from thuggish collectors to a hotel far from home. It's only until the next day that Cavendish realizes that he is not in a hotel, but rather in a nursing home. Cavendish struggles to explain to the hospital staff, his "captors," that it's a mistake and he must return home.

This was hilarious. While it was a little all over the place, I enjoyed this part and ended up not regretting the shift from Luisa's story to Timothy's. I felt so bad for him, yet found his humor to be delightful.

An Orison of Somni-451

Jumping to the future in a dystopian world set somewhere in Korea, an interview between two people is shared. The interviewer is the archivist documenting the events of Somni-451, a cloned human being, or a fabricant. A fabricant is not truly aware of who they are and is solely created to perform menial tasks that need to be done in this futuristic society, and Somni-451 works in a fast food restaurant. She slowly ends up becoming aware of herself, but this self-awareness and the actions coming from this are not approved of.

While I completely understood this story and that the narrator was supposed to deliver the tale in a way that would convey that the speaker was not fully aware of who they were to a certain extent, it was too robotic, or monotonous, for me to be truly engaged. Granted, I felt the "hollowness" that Somni-451 was experiencing, and I was horrified by certain sections, but I wasn't pulled into this one as much as I know I should have been.

Sloosha' Crossin' an' Ev'rythin' After

Zachry is now an old man and is relaying the adventures of his youth. Living in Hawaii, the world is now in a dystopian state, after a major catastrophic event that caused those who survived to live in an extremely primitive state. Meronym, a woman who is a "Prescient," visits the island to study Zachry and his people. He regrets her visit and observation, considering it an intrusion and an insult, yet is confused with whether he can trust her or not.

While one of the more crucial tales reflecting the connections to others, this was by far my absolute least favorite.  In fact, this was PAINFUL. I so wanted it to end. The dialect and verbiage used was extremely challenging to understand, and unlike the other stories in which just when I was starting to understand what was happening, things switched to a new tale, I never quite completely felt like I "got" Zachry's story. Words were shortened for this made-up dialect, and it was annoying. Usually, when I listen to the audio format, it's much easier to understand dialect, but not in this case. "Spesh" meant special, "un'stan" (or something like that) meant "understand," etc. Given that this was the only tale to be told without interruption, I was floundering through it and praying it would just. end. already.

What's the bottom line?

While I will emphatically state that each story had a certain triggering event that would make my ears perk and I waited for more of that intrigue to continue, invariably, one story would jarringly shift to the next and I was left wistful, wishing a little more was given so that I could sink my teeth into it and really grasp the meaning.

I just couldn't get into the story, though. I found the complicated method of storytelling to be confusing and mostly abstract, and for the most part, I was perplexed by the events. I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm not bright enough for the intricacies of the tale, especially the audiobook while running! (Maybe I just don't have my wits about me? Possible.) I do plan on watching the film; perhaps the greater reveals of the story's brilliance will finally be unfolded for me then.

That all being said, it would be a book that could be read more than once, simply because so much is involved with each character; one reading is really not enough. With an abundance of themes, ranging from corporate corruption, racism, sexism, and more, for the right reader, this will keep you thinking for days. For me, it was all just a blur.

Passages of Note (both from The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish)

Books don't offer real escape but they can stop a mind from scratching itself raw.

Looking back, I see that Ernie tolerated my posturing because he knew Veronica was only humoring me. Ernie had never read a work of fiction in his life. "Always a radio man, me." But watching him coax the Victorian boiler system to life one more time, I always felt shallow. It's true. Reading too many novels makes you go blind.

Audio Notes
Multiple narrators always ease the listener with cues on the shift in perspective, which is helpful. This was the case with Cloud Atlas as well, and I felt most drawn to the narration of Luisa Rey and Timothy Cavendish as they were the most engaging and delivered extremely well. You can listen to a sample from Audible.com by clicking here.

Others said:
Buttery Books
Care's Online Book Club
Leeswammes' Blog
Love, Laughter, and a Touch of Insanity
The New Dork Review of Books

Publisher: Random House Audio
Release Date: 11/23/04
Audio Time: 19 hours, 33 minutes
Narrators: Scott Brick, Cassandra Campbell, Kim Mai Guest, Kirby Heybourne, John Lee, Richard Matthews

FTC Disclosure: I purchased this from Audible.com

About the Author (from his website)

David Mitchell is the acclaimed author of the novels Black Swan Green, which was selected as one of the 10 Best Books of the Year by Time; Cloud Atlas, which was a Man Booker Prize finalist; Number9Dream, which was short-listed for the Man Booker as well as the James Tait Black Memorial Prize; and Ghostwritten, awarded the Mail on Sunday/John Llewellyn Rhys Prize for best book by a writer under thirty-five and short-listed for the Guardian First Book Award. He lives in Ireland.


Visit the author:

• On his website

Well, holy Hannah.

Or, hmm.

Not the King story I was expecting. A little bit of horror, but a whole lot of science fiction. Written in the late 1980s, the fear of nuclear power plants and technology taking over the world was certainly forefront of conspiracy theories at that time. Reading it now does make it a little dated, of course, but I don't know. It wasn't bad. I think it was a little bit good.

There are different degrees of good, such as "stellar-oh-my-gawd-holy-crap-that-was-amazing" (11/22/63 and 'Salem's Lot), to "ho-hum-but-not-bad" (The Colorado Kid). But I have yet to close a Stephen King book and think, "Wow, that was sufficiently horrible." I hope I don't ever experience that since I'm enjoying the journey so far.

The Tommyknockers is listed as #61 out of #62 out of all of Stephen King books. That's right, second to LAST on the rankings listed here (thanks to The New Dork Review of Books for posting it). I can't say if that ranking is nuts or not, but I can say that if this is considered almost *the* worst of Stephen King's books, then I've got nowhere to go but up in the Uncle Stevie world and it's going to be an incredibly fantastic ride since I sort of dug this book.

The 1980s experienced several frightening events, and one of them left a huge impression on history: Chernobyl. Those images from the horrible tragedy in Russia, nuclear radiation destroying lives painfully, will never be forgotten. The debate for nuclear power plants to be built in suburban neighborhoods caused intense arguments and in The Tommyknockers, Gard (James Eric Gardener) actively protests against it all. A struggling poet with an addiction to alcohol, it seems his only outlet and safe place is his best friend Bobbi Anderson. A fellow writer, she lives in the tiny town of Haven, Maine and lives on the land once owned by her uncle who passed away years before. When out walking with her dog one day, she discovers a piece of hard, unvarnished metal jutting out from the earth. While her dog, Peter, barks at her to leave it alone (why don't they ever listen to the dog??), Bobbi has a sudden urge to begin digging to see whatever is buried under the dirt.

As Bobbi begins to dig, the energy from the hidden object becomes stronger. A ship of some sort, a UFO ship of massive proportions is slowly unearthed and the power reverberating from it begins to overwhelm and control the town. True to King fashion, the town becomes its own character, isolated from other cities with just a few small roads through and out of it, with no major highway connecting it to anything else. It's a town somewhere in the middle of nowhere and the residents are slowly losing their minds and their bodies. Literally. They lose their teeth one by one as the power overtakes them, and I began to accept that the wasted bodies became similar to what might happen if nuclear radiation were to spill out into a neighborhood.

Not my favorite King story, but you know what? As ridiculous as some of the sections were, I still enjoyed it. Granted, there was the rise of a suped-up vacuum cleaner and a Coke machine, but I just got it. I totally understood King's disgust with society, technology becoming more advanced before we could keep up with it, and the fear of nuclear power plants right around the corner from schools and neighborhoods. (That is freaky, you know?) Apparently, King also wrote this at the peak of his addiction according to the article linked above, so it makes complete sense why all of his characters have some jacked up habit. The story meanders here and there, doing that awesome thing that King does which is to take a brand new character and tell their back story for a few pages, and it becomes so absorbing, you think that they're suddenly a new character to cheer on in the book. He tells a story and doesn't mince words. And I just love it when he does that.

Others said:
Let me know if you've reviewed this so I can link to your review here.

Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons
Release Date: 1987
Pages: 558

FTC Disclosure: I checked out The Tommyknockers from my local Virginia Beach Public Library.

About the Author

Stephen King is the author of more than fifty novels, including The Stand, The Dark Tower series, It, The Shining, oh...what more can be written that one doesn't already know. So here you go, click here to visit this wicked cool author's official website.

The Stephen King Project. My education (and others') continues! The Tommyknockers is another selection for the challenge Kathleen and I are hosting. The site can be found (with other participants' reviews) here.

I am so conflicted on this one.

I really, really, and I mean really wanted to love this one. There is a Terry Pratchett fandom that is obviously out there for  a reason, and I know others have read or listened to the audio who absolutely loved it and I so wish I fell into that camp. Undeniably, there were so many elements that I enjoyed about it (particularly the surprising humor), but unfortunately, I am left slightly undecided on this one.

Sam Vines is finally going to take a vacation. As the commander of the City Watch for Ankh-Morpork, he religiously shirks vacation time since there's always something he needs to fix in his city, but his own wife, Lady Sibyl convinces him that a trip to the country is important for them.

While on vacation, Sam really can't shy away from the need to solve a crime, even if it's not in his jurisdiction. When a murdered goblin is discovered, it's Sam who not only needs to solve the murder, but he does have to somehow set right the long-standing misconception that goblins were talentless, disgusting, (not to mention smelly) and all-around useless beings in existence. Well, disgusting at times they may be, but they are still members of society, and no amount of disgust should make them not regarded as individuals afforded the same rights as everybody else.

I knew this was part of a very large series, but I heard Snuff was easily read as a stand-alone. After all, this is book THIRTY-THREE in an extremely popular series called Discworld, which I've never heard of before. *ducks* I realize a ton of choked guffaws are now occurring in the science fiction fan world, but please bear with me, I'm relatively new to this genre (or this type of sci-fi fantasy) so don't give me a virtual smackdown. Snuff absolutely was extremely, and surprisingly, funny and not tough to follow as a stand-alone, but I haven't developed the love for these characters and sci-fi as I would hope to have at this point. I mean, I'm almost there, but I'm not all the way there yet. Does that make sense? Don't answer that.

I did enjoy Terry Pratchett's ability to create this very unique and distinct world. It was certainly an escape for me, and I really appreciated how racism, objectification, infidelity, murder, and more social issues were incorporated into this fictional land. Pratchett brings this to the forefront in Snuff and surprisingly, I did find myself giggling away at all of the hidden meanings, especially Sam Vines' perspective on marriages, interactions with fellow pub-drinkers, and more.

Ultimately, I'd have to say that while I'm certainly not going to walk completely away from Terry Pratchett stories, I think the next time I read one of the books from the Discworld series, I'll stick with the printed version first to get comfortable with the rhythm before diving into the audio. That's probably what it is. The audio was just a bit tougher to get into, even though I did enjoy the narrator's voice.

Audio Notes: I enjoyed Stephen Briggs' narration, even though his voice was very tough to get used to right off the bat. I do feel he had just the right British accent that tended to scoff at the ridicule of unbecoming traits in others. Click here for the five-minute Audible.com sample (click the play button beneath the book cover picture).

Others said:

Things Mean a Lot

Publisher: Harper Audio
Release Date: 10/11/2011
Audio Time: 11 hours, 29 minutes
Narrator: Stephen Briggs

About the Author

Sir Terry Pratchett is the celebrated author of the long-running fantasy Discworld series. With over 65 million books sold worldwide in 37 languages, his place in publishing history is undeniable.

Visit the author:

• On his website
• On Facebook

This is another selection for Teresa's 2012 Audio Book Challenge.



FTC Disclosure: I purchased this audiobook on Audible.com