Mixed bag

I should have started with the first book in the Gene Wars series but misread the order. Oh well it gives me another book to add to my list.

Forge of Heaven: C J Cherryh

At the far edge of the galaxy, tiny Concord Station holds a unique place in the universe -- the one place where humans from Earth, the strange Outsider worlds, and the extremely powerful, alien ondat all coexist, bound together to the fate of the fragile world below. Scarred by vicious nanotechnology unleashed by the powerful ondat, this lone desert planet acts as the crucible to determine whether there can be peace between the far-spanning empires of the universe, or unending, unstoppable war to rival even the cataclysmic Gene Wars that once devastated untold galaxies.

Born the son of a desert prince, Marak trin Tain knows all too well the knife edge between diplomacy and disaster. Centuries ago he was caught in the battle between the terrorist First Movement and Earth, and the resulting destruction when the ondat sent planet-crushing missiles to prevent contagion from uncontrolled nanotechnology. Now, immortal but not invulnerable, he shepherds the evolving world and its brave inhabitants toward a new future. But this utopia is hardly idyllic, and a journey of discovery becomes one of desperation when a violent act of nature threatens even Marak’s own survival.

High above on Concord Station, intrigues and alliances from every faction of Earth and the Outsider colonies fight for influence, while the implacable ondat pursue their own unfathomable goals. In the midst of dangerous collusion, all the watcher Procyon wants is to record the miracles of the planet evolving below, sharing in the undreamed-of wonder of watching a new world grow. But the surprise arrival of a ship from Earth upsets the delicate balance of power on the station, and a deadly attack becomes the opportunity for rebellion. Caught up in a web of danger and intrigue, Procyon will step far beyond his comfortable life into a nightmare of dangers, as plot within plot unravels with disastrous consequences.

For the fate of one man could decide the future of human and alien alike ... and the ondat are watching.

With the intro at the start of the book you don't have to read Hammerfall first as it works well enough as a standalone.
It started slowly but built into an interesting story. Seems to be how I've found most of this author's work. You get sucked in.
I've become quite attached to CJ Cherryh and will continue to work my way through her books. I haven't tried any of her fantasy titles so if anyone can make suggestions please do so.


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Dead Right: Peter Robinson


The broken body of Jason Fox has been found in a dirty alleyway. At first, it looks like a typical after-hours pub fight gone wrong. But Inspector Alan Banks soon realizes that the truth is rarely so straightforward...Jason was a member of the Albion League, a white power organization. And there are many people who might have wished him dead: the Pakistani youths he had insulted in the pub that evening; the shady friends of his business partner; or someone within the Albion League itself. And just as Banks begins to get a grip on the case, an unexpected discovery forces him to reconsider everything he believes.


I was expecting a ho hum typical racial story and while it did have those elements the books didn't become a cliche. In this book we also got more of a look at Bank's personal life which keeps the series more than just a set of detective stories.



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Alliance Space: CJ Cherryh - Merchanter's Luck and Forty Thousand In Gehenna.

From the Publisher
This omnibus edition of two novels set in C.J. Cherryh's most renowned universe--the Union-Alliance Universe--marks the first time these books have been available in more than a decade. Merchanter's Luck is an unforgettable story of two spacers who accomplish something amazing together that neither could have achieved alone.

Forty Thousand in Gehenna traces the history of a unique civilization that arises from descendants of human colonists and native alien species. Together these two novels further explore the fascinating universe Cherryh created in her Hugo award-winning novels, Downbelow Station and Cyteen.

I know I'm out of order again as far as some might feel, but getting hold of some of the older books is difficult and I don't feel lost when reading of any of these books that have a back history. There is always enough info to keep a good flow and I am finding all the tales interesting enough to keep turning pages to reach the end. I don't hesitate to put a book down if it doesn't interest me so you can tell I'm enjoying these




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The Last time I Was Me: Cathy Lamb

is about a woman named Jeanne Stewart who has just hit crisis point in her life.
Unfortunately, she has reached that crisis point in front of 834 advertising execs, calling them, "pointless" and "schmucks." She has also assaulted her cheating boyfriend in a creative, and some might say humorous fashion, and is now facing both criminal and civil charges. She is grieving for her mother, still hiding from her past, and wondering if she should driver her new-old Bronco into the Pacific Ocean. When the moon is full and her truck packed with her high heel collection, her grandmother's teacups, a violin that brings her to tears, and her mother's china, she heads for Oregon. In Oregon she enters a court-ordered Anger Management program, runs naked along a river, falls in love, buries a body, learns more than she ever wanted to about germs, re-builds a house, eats piles of pancakes for the first time in years, covers herself in peanut butter, flies like a bird, runs a gubernatorial campaign, reaches out to those in desperate need of help, and endures a court trial.

I laughed so hard I darn near peed my pants at some of the antics in this book. Just plain good female fun without ever falling into that tacky "romance" novel realm.
I am now trying to track down her first book Julia's Chocolate. Maybe I can get the library to buy a copy for me.


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Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action comedy film directed and produced by Ben Stiller and written by Stiller, Justin Theroux, and Etan Cohen. The film stars Stiller, Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr. as a group of prima donna actors making a Vietnam War film when their fed-up writer and director decides to drop them in the middle of the Vietnamese jungle, forcing them to portray their roles without the comforts of a film set. The film was produced by DreamWorks and distributed by Paramount Pictures.

When I saw the ads for this on TV I never expected to see it, I had put it into the "teen boys" category, but it was about the only thing on the movie shelf at the library and it was free. It did have it's funny bits and we did laugh out loud. Tom Cruise is in it doing a fine fun acting job and hardly recognizable.
It was the play on the Vietnam war movies with the helicopters and music that got us.

I've also finished all but the last two episodes of Space: Above and Beyond.